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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Fwoosh!
A blinding pillar of light shot up into the sky. Hayun and I, having just arrived at the village, rushed in, but it was too late.
The Grand Witch collapsed, gasping for breath, her mana completely depleted. Adriana cradled her in her arms, tears streaming down her face.
Blood and corpses littered the ground.
The witches’ village, their sanctuary, was now nothing more than a graveyard.
“This can’t be…”
Hayun covered her mouth in shock, the sight of so many familiar faces, lifeless, overwhelming her. I rushed to Adriana’s side.
“Where are the Priestess and Kurika?”
That light had been warp magic.
The Priestess had used the witches as hostages to force the Grand Witch to warp them away.
Adriana, fighting back tears, explained,
“They went to a village in the countryside. I’m not sure what’s there, but… it’s near the Palem Plains.”
“Palem…?”
It was a remote area, even by kingdom standards. There weren’t any dangerous monsters nearby, but wild animals were common, attracting hunters from outside the region.
Hunters had settled there, establishing a small village that had gradually grown over time.
Palem Village.
“That’s my hometown.”
Adriana and Hayun turned to me, their eyes wide with surprise. I clenched my fists, taking a deep breath to steady myself.
“And it’s also Rin and Ares’s hometown.”
Knowing I was in the Demon Realm Forest, the Priestess had used that opportunity to threaten the witches and escape to Palem.
She had correctly guessed that Rin would be back in her hometown for the holidays.
‘And with my memories, she could easily pinpoint the village’s location.’
I had been completely outmaneuvered.
A lump formed in my throat.
Even if we left for Palem right now, it would take at least ten days to reach it. The Grand Witch was in no condition to use warp magic.
Was there nothing I could do but wait and pray for Rin’s safety? But then, Adriana slowly got to her feet and picked up the Grand Witch’s staff.
“I’ll send you there.”
“You can use warp magic?”
I looked at her with a mix of hope and disbelief, but she shook her head.
“No, it’s my first time. But I’ll try.”
“It’s too dangerous!”
Hayun shouted, stepping forward. Warp magic was notoriously difficult and dangerous.
Not only was it challenging to learn, but it required extensive testing before it could be used safely on humans.
They started with objects, then moved on to animals, gradually increasing the distance.
And even then, there were cases where things went wrong, with objects being shattered or transported to unknown locations.
Attempting warp magic so suddenly was incredibly risky, but…
“It’s okay.”
I looked at the Grand Witch, lying unconscious on the ground. She was barely clinging to life, yet she had used her last bit of mana to heal Adriana.
Adriana’s forehead was still bruised, but otherwise, she seemed fine.
This was the girl the Grand Witch, a woman who had lived for centuries, had chosen as her successor.
“I trust you. Please.”
I extended my hand towards Adriana, and she smiled, her eyes filled with gratitude.
“I’ll do it. Don’t worry.”
“Haa… Really!”
Hayun ran her fingers through her hair, her expression a mix of frustration and grudging respect. She couldn’t stand the bond that had formed between us.
“I’m going too.”
“Haa… This break has been way too hectic.”
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The night was dark.
Ares Helias, having walked for hours after his horse collapsed from exhaustion, wiped the sweat from his brow.
He had been able to travel comfortably thanks to the blessing of Helios, which illuminated the darkness. Otherwise, he would have been forced to camp out.
Camping in the cold, at this time of night, was a recipe for frostbite.
And the Palem Plains were teeming with dangerous wild animals. It wasn’t safe to sleep out in the open.
“See? I told you Ares would come.”
“Ugh, the slacker shows up instead of my brother. What a disappointment.”
“Too bad.”
Three girls were waiting for him at the entrance of the village. Rin, Diana McLean, and Sen.
They had seen the light from Ares’s blessing and come to greet him.
“I wasn’t expecting a grand welcome, but you could at least pretend to be happy to see me.”
Ares grumbled, but the girls ignored him, continuing their conversation.
“When is Daniel coming? Does he want me to die of worry?”
“Just trust him and wait. You know how strong he is.”
“That’s what’s so strange. He wasn’t that strong when I last saw him. Where did he learn all this?”
“I don’t know. He’s changed so much since he decided to stop being timid, it’s almost unbelievable.”
“Maybe he was always strong?”
“No, he wasn’t!”
“……”
Was this really the time to have this conversation, right in front of him?
Ares suddenly missed his girlfriend, Arnie.
He had visited her family and met her parents. Although he was a commoner, his excellent grades at the academy, his noble appearance, and the title of Honorary Paladin he had earned in Batian thanks to his mark of Helios had made a good first impression.
The Duratan family seemed pleased that he had helped their rough, sword-obsessed daughter become more ladylike.
He missed that last night, the night they had spent together under the starless sky, their passion unrestrained.
He had only come here because Daniel had ordered him to stay with Rin, but…
‘I can’t wait for school to start again.’
He wanted to go back to the academy.
“Sigh, I wanted to see him at least once before I go to Dragon’s Boundary.”
“He’ll be back before then.”
Rin comforted Diana, then turned and walked towards their home, Sen and Diana trailing behind her. Ares, feeling a strange sense of emptiness, followed them.
Boom!
The ground shook.
A blue light, descending from the sky without warning, shattered the peaceful atmosphere of the village.
Dogs barked, trees swayed, and people who had already gone to bed peered out their windows, wondering what was happening.
“This is…”
Ares, followed by Rin and Diana, turned to face the source of the commotion.
The very air grew heavy with the arrival of powerful beings.
A woman in a black priest’s robe, her missing right arm a stark reminder of her past battles, glared at them with terrifying intensity.
And beside her, a werewolf, his body covered in wounds, radiated a pressure that dwarfed the Priestess’s presence.
His eyes were clouded, his breathing ragged, his body weak. He was clearly injured, a shadow of his former self.
But even injured, Kurika was a force to be reckoned with.
“Tell everyone to evacuate.”
Rin’s body pulsed with a dark, violet energy.
The Priestess of Time smiled, her lips stretching wide, as she witnessed the power surging through Rin.
“Found you.”
Her smile sent shivers down Diana’s spine. Her dragon senses, heightened by her transformation, told her…
These two were true monsters.
Ares, Diana, and Sen were ready to fight.
They wouldn’t abandon Rin to face those monsters alone.
But before they could speak, the shadows on the ground began to writhe.
It wasn’t the ordinary darkness of night, but something deeper, thicker, and endless. A darkness that seemed to breathe and move with a will of its own.
Rin looked at Sen, her expression filled with sadness.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to hurt you a little.”
“What?”
She hadn’t wanted to reveal this power in front of Sen, but…
The darkness rose.
The army that had been slumbering within Rin, the little girl, awakened.
Zavalanco, the pirate officer who had been executed for distributing drugs in Elgrid, and his crew.
The Tudogs from Bethel and their subordinates.
The Chokugen Faction members killed by Daniel in Batian.
Jesant and his crew from the competition.
They all rose from the dead, their heads bowed, their loyalty to Rin absolute.
And finally…
The Chokugen Faction’s second-in-command, the Madame, appeared, flanking Rin like a loyal bodyguard.
The long, long night had begun.
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