The Protagonists Of The Novel Escaped – Chapter 66

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: TushChen
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Despite her entire body being torn apart by the merciless bombardment, the vampire was miraculously clinging to life.

She narrowly avoided death.

It was thanks to activating Mist Form just before her heart was pierced.

If vampires don’t receive a fatal wound that pierces their heart, they can resurrect using superhuman regeneration.

Ariel, who had barely saved her life through a split-second reaction, raised her head while spewing out the pain of her crushed bones.

‘Where on earth is this…! Could it be that he intentionally spared my life?’

The ceiling covering above.

The barriers blocking all sides.

Ariel instinctively realized she had been imprisoned.

That wasn’t all.

Dozens of guns were deployed and suspended in the air.

They must have been set to pull the trigger in response to the target’s movements.

The moment she rashly acted, she would immediately be turned into a beehive.

Confirming that the danger of death still loomed, Ariel swallowed her saliva while staring at the guns.

“Eek! The vampire is already up!”

“I heard that if an evil vampire sucks your blood… you’ll turn into a dried anchovy!”

The young girls began screaming.

Looking in the direction of the commotion, she could see the girls beyond the iron bars.

What on earth are those?

Judging by their pointed ears, they look like fairies, but… I’ve never seen such a race before.

Just as Ariel feared the Luinongs, she tilted her head while looking at them.

“Heh-heh!”

“If the pretty princess catches us, we’ll be in trouble!”

The Luinongs, who had secretly snuck in to see the vampire, suddenly screamed and ran away.

Ariel, who had shown a dumbfounded expression at this, turned her head and noticed something scattered on the floor.

Colorful candies.

It seemed the fairies she had just seen threw them and fled.

Chuckling, Ariel picked up the candy while being wary of the guns surrounding her.

‘The Disaster God of War…! To think I faced the Disaster God of War! Then could the prophecy related to the Endless Calamities be true?!’

She trembled while recalling the fear and terror that had vastly covered the air.

And she remembered the moment when countless bullets poured down.

War.

She had witnessed the Disaster God of War.

In the vampire’s jet-black eyes, intense fear and feverish emotions rose.

The Endless Calamities, treated as distant myths, truly existed.

Having witnessed mythology before her eyes, Ariel finally realized that the prophecy the apostles of the Disaster Gods had always been babbling about was true.

“Someday, the Endless Calamities will descend, pull the Earth Mother from her throne as the one true god, and bring ruin to the greedy humans.”

Ariel recited the prophecy in a small voice.

The Ascension of Evil.

The prophecy related to the Endless Calamities was very similar to the Ascension of Evil, the ultimate goal of the cult forces.

Of course.

The Ascension of Evil was a plan made to imitate the prophecy.

Ariel scolded her own foolishness for daring to show hostility to the Apostle of War by banging her head on the floor.

If only she could turn back time, she would do anything.

“But why did the pioneer…”

Recalling the image of Edanant desperately blocking her to protect the Valtarian Empire, Ariel let out her perplexity.

If I had pushed through, I would have torn the emperor to shreds…

So why did the pioneer block me?

At some point, Ariel had started calling Edanant a ‘pioneer.’

The vampire, who had been lost in thought while sucking on candy, got up.

It seemed she liked the chewy candy the Luinongs had scattered on the floor, as she was shown picking them up carefully.

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I prided myself on thoroughly concealing my identity.

But,

Just how…

How did the saintess know the identity of the Warmonger?

-I’ve known for a long time…! I’ve known for a long time!

Recalling Zebeline’s agitated appearance as she confronted Ludmilla, he contemplated with perplexity.

It’s difficult to understand.

She said she had known my identity for a ‘long time.’

I wanted the saintess who had chilled my nerves with her bombshell declaration to honestly reveal it.

So I kept accompanying the saintess and blatantly gave her looks whenever we were alone.

“Phew, it’s really busy today too, just like yesterday.”

“Indeed.”

Still, Zebeline turned her head away, feigning ignorance.

What a truly formidable opponent.

She was as stubborn as Ludmilla, befitting her reputation.

Even though I’m stuck to her back, giving her looks, she brazenly ignores me.

I clicked my tongue while staring at Zebeline’s back as she sat in a rocking chair, drinking sweet sherbet.

“I’ll ask you to escort the weak and elegant saintess tomorrow as well. You’ll definitely agree, right, Edan?”

“……”

Goodness.

The saintess in pure white vestments said with a mischievous smile.

Is she going to blackmail me using the Warmonger’s identity as leverage?

The urge to grab the head of the tomboy with fluttering silver hair arose.

Even Ludmilla, who is constantly teased by Zebeline as an old maid, must have felt this way.

“Ahaha, ahahaha…! I’m sorry, it’s just too funny seeing Edan’s reaction, flinching every time I tease him.”

“……”

Am I that fun to tease?

I think another saintess said something similar.

“But I won’t tell you. It’s Edan’s fault for not recognizing me.”

“Huh? What on earth does that…”

Zebeline, who had finished resting, stepped forward and approached.

Then she leaned forward and spoke in a low voice.

It’s the same this time too.

Whenever I looked at Zebeline, someone came to mind.

As if overlaying their image onto her.

It became clearer as time passed.

‘Another headache. Just like last time…’

At the same time, a headache rushed in.

It wasn’t painful enough to split my head.

It was just enough pain to make me frown briefly.

But for some reason, whenever the headache came, the memory that had been gradually becoming clearer faded like fog.

As if not allowing me to sift through all the memories at once.

“It’s okay, even if you can’t remember everything. I’ll always be waiting by Edan’s side. How long have I been searching for Edan…”

“……”

I know.

Zebeline knew something I didn’t.

The Warmonger’s identity,

The reason I couldn’t remember my past,

The result of getting a headache whenever I tried to forcibly dig up memories.

Even though she knew all the inside stories, Zebeline didn’t clearly reveal them.

I thought Zebeline was very cowardly, but at the same time, I felt sorry for her.

Because sometimes, whenever she looked at me, she smiled sadly.

“Sigh… Anyway, I understand. I’ll gradually remember someday.”

“But don’t make me wait too long.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Good.”

Zebeline reached out her hand.

It was a blatant gesture to hold it gently like lovers.

It was a habit Zebeline developed after being caught dancing the waltz with Ludmilla.

It was like seeing a pet dog showing sharp jealousy to its owner while craving its touch.

“It feels a bit stuffy… but on the other hand, I’m happy. To think Edan will always be by my side.”

“I’m honored to hear you say that.”

I grasped her snow-white hand.

Then Zebeline gently burst into laughter.

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The Pug Kingdom was barely able to survive the all-out attack of the dark magicians thanks to Ludmilla’s efforts.

But the result was devastating.

Most of the farmland had been devastated by the demons that had poured in from all directions.

As the kingdom’s sole source of income, agriculture, collapsed, its very existence was put in jeopardy.

The royal family and nobles declared a tax increase in an attempt to somehow recover the damage.

It was a brazen intention to extract the losses caused by a natural disaster from the citizens.

“There can be no tax increase!”

“You cowards who abandoned the castle and citizens and fled to the fortress!”

The unilateral declaration by the royal family soon triggered a large-scale revolt.

Thousands of citizens threatened the ruling class by burning down the nobles’ mansions and farmland.

In response, the Pug royal family mobilized the troops stationed at the fortress.

It’s just a momentary disturbance.

As the regular army was deployed, the fiercely burning flames of rebellion were stamped out in an instant.

The citizens have always been a group with rampant discontent.

That’s why when ignorant fools raise a rebellion, you just need to mobilize the army and crush them.

Harsh whips are always necessary for governance.

“The enemy has raided the royal castle!”

“Don’t back down! The enemy is just one person!”

When the king and nobles were holding a celebratory feast to commemorate the successful suppression,

An enemy appeared.

Surprisingly, the enemy was just one person.

The assailant wearing a black hood slaughtered the guards while displaying swordsmanship bordering on the divine.

Startled by the unbelievable sight, the guards retreated step by step, making way for the assailant.

“It’s an assassin from the cult!”

“To raid the kingdom of the Sword Saint…! I won’t forgive you!!”

Knights armed in full plate armor drew their swords and charged forward.

They can win with a single blow.

The knights of the kingdom displayed strong confidence.

Although the assailant who had attacked the royal castle boasted extraordinary swordsmanship, he didn’t deploy a mana blade.

Clearly, he can’t use mana blades.

He’s probably just a swordsman overconfident in his individual strength.

We’ll bisect him from head to toe in an instant.

The knights of the kingdom swung their blades down at the assailant while drawing out their mana blades to the maximum.

“……”

The assailant tightly gripped the hilt of his sword.

And he targeted not only the charging knights but the entire ‘royal castle.’

────────!!!

It was an ordinary slash without deploying a mana blade.

However,

That ordinary slash was enough to bisect the royal castle of the Pug Kingdom.

With a resounding boom, the pillars supporting the massive weight of the royal castle cracked.

And numerous nobles who had been hiding in the banquet hall, waiting for the outcome, were sliced apart by the slash.

They didn’t even have time to scream.

The nobles, whose upper and lower bodies were bisected and collapsed to the floor, instantly died while spewing blood.

“Y-You, who are you! Are you a ghost! If not a ghost…”

The king of the Pug Kingdom, who witnessed the mass slaughter unfold in an instant from the throne, asked in utter shock.

He seemed like he might faint at any moment, unable to believe what had just occurred before his eyes.

The assailant approached.

His appearance, trailing a sharp blade tip, was truly eerie.

Then the king let out a scream and made a final struggle.

“The Pug Kingdom is the nation that produced the Sword Saint! If you kill me… the Sword Saint will surely find you and take revenge! I’m no different from the father who trained the Sword Saint!”

Perhaps it was because death was right before him.

The king made threats that were difficult to verify.

The reputation left by the Sword Saint is absolute.

That’s why he tried to preserve his life by invoking Sword Saint Regnas.

No matter how much of a one-man army the assailant is, he won’t reach the reputation of the Sword Saint.

“You dare say such things. After exploiting me and my mother like slaves for over 10 years!”

The assailant lowered his hood.

At the same time, the king’s face contorted in horror.

“Re-Regnas…!”

Reddish-brown hair like autumn leaves.

Sharp eyes reminiscent of a beast and a distinct scar across the face.

The king knew the assailant’s identity.

Of course he would know…

Regnas Pavan Pug.

The Sword Saint produced by the Pug Kingdom was standing before him, drenched in blood.

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