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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Trees and bushes blurred past Tia as she ran.
She had to find someone, anyone, to help.
That was the only thought that kept her going.
Ethan was strong.
He had always exceeded her expectations.
But could he defeat that knight?
Tia wasn’t sure.
Her gut told her it would be difficult.
It wasn’t that Ethan was weak. It was that the opponent was incredibly strong.
The opponent was Lien.
Even now, Lien was revered as one of the greatest knights of the empire. Many aspiring heroes still looked up to him.
And he had been resurrected as a death knight.
Death knights were often stronger than they were in life.
Tia had read that in a book.
Of course, a death knight’s strength depended on the necromancer who resurrected them.
She had sensed an overwhelming aura of demonic energy when she first saw the knight.
Red demonic energy.
It was something she had only read about in stories and myths.
The demonic energy was thick and suffocating, polluting the air around them.
Tia had been terrified.
‘I… I ran away.’
She had been scared.
So, she had agreed to Ethan’s request.
‘Ethan… please be safe… Goddess, please protect him.’
That was all she could do.
She had never been a religious person.
The goddess had never answered her prayers.
But she would have knelt and begged if she thought it would help.
Lost in her thoughts,
Tia tripped over a tree root and fell.
Her palms and knees scraped against the rough ground, her clothes stained with blood.
The impact was hard, and she had several deep cuts.
But she quickly got back on her feet and continued running.
‘I’m an idiot… a complete idiot…’
She should have given Ethan an intermediate-level spirit.
He had risked his life for her.
‘But me? What did I do?’
She ran away.
A selfish part of her was relieved that she had survived.
‘I’m selfish… a terrible person…’
If she could, she would have gone back to Ethan.
Tia suddenly stopped.
A powerful shockwave rippled through the forest.
Her red hair fluttered in the wind.
Her senses were heightened.
The earth trembled.
“Ethan…”
Tia froze, paralyzed by fear.
But her mind was racing, calmly calculating the magnitude of the shockwave.
‘With that much force… even you…’
It was too late.
Even if she went back, there was nothing she could do.
Ethan would be dead.
He might be strong, but he was still a first-year student.
He couldn’t possibly withstand such a powerful attack.
She spotted a large fortress in the distance.
Smoke billowed from the castle.
‘People… There are people there.’
Tia forced herself to move.
She would avenge Ethan.
She would spend every last coin she had.
She would gather an army of mercenaries, warriors, hunters, and mages.
The Erze family always repaid their debts.
And Ethan had saved her life.
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The forest was a scene of devastation, trees and bushes uprooted and shattered.
The sheer scale of the destruction hinted at the intensity of the battle.
And the victor was long gone.
“…Disgraceful.”
A figure in a gray robe muttered.
He looked down at the black armor.
The fallen knight looked peaceful.
“Your death has been postponed.”
He pulled a red gem from his sleeve.
His arm throbbed with pain.
It was the pain he had received when he targeted the black-haired boy and the red-haired girl.
“The mission is not yet complete.”
He would have his revenge.
He would make that black-haired boy suffer.
He would make him beg for mercy, his screams echoing through the night.
He would cut off his fingers and limbs.
And turn him into an immortal slave.
He would force him to kill his friends, reveling in his despair.
But he needed the death knight.
A cruel smile twisted the gray-robed figure’s lips.
The red gem glowed.
It was an artifact from Gamigin.
His consciousness sank into a dark void.
A realm of pure darkness.
There, he faced the soul of the black knight.
The knight who was once called Lien.
“What do you want, demon? Why can’t you leave the dead in peace?”
The knight’s back was turned, his gaze fixed on the darkness.
“Rise again.”
“…You would mock the dead?”
The knight slowly turned around.
“You’re nothing but a puppet, a tool for Gamigin to use.”
“You would have me relive my failures… lose my memories again?!”
The black knight swung his halberd.
But this was a realm of pure consciousness.
Physical attacks were meaningless here.
The halberd passed harmlessly through the gray-robed figure.
“I, Murmur, the 54th ranked demon general, command you. Rise and fight with me. There is someone we must destroy.”
The red gem glowed brighter.
A red light filled the darkness within the knight’s helmet.
“Fight again, slave of Gamigin.”
The gray-robed figure left the dark realm.
The black knight’s eyes snapped open.
His severed lower body flew towards him, drawn like a magnet.
A sinister red aura enveloped him. It was stronger than before.
The broken halberd reformed.
The black knight stood up, his body completely healed.
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The aroma of roasted meat filled the air around Arvis Castle.
Smoke billowed from a makeshift campfire.
The tea and cookies had been a nice snack, but they weren’t enough.
Arthur and Anya had returned from their hunting trip, a roasted boar slung over Anya’s shoulder.
“How about it? Looks delicious, right? I’m already drooling.”
Anya hummed as she prepared the boar, which was impaled on her hammer.
The boar’s head had been crushed.
A natural consequence of being struck by Anya’s massive hammer.
Kargon-style boar roast.
They had never eaten boar before.
“Are you sure… this is edible…?”
Sepia asked, her eyebrows furrowed.
“Yeah, it’s super delicious. You’ll love it.”
Sepia stared suspiciously at the large piece of meat in her hand.
She had grown up in the affluent Logness territory, accustomed to fine dining.
She was a picky eater, and she wasn’t thrilled about having to eat with her hands.
“Come on, try it!”
Anya’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Sepia took a bite.
Perhaps it was because she was hungry,
‘Delicious…!’
It was incredibly delicious.
The fragrant herbs tantalized her taste buds.
‘This is… unlike anything I’ve ever tasted in the Logness territory.’
Everyone was impressed.
Even Princess Tesha, who was used to fine dining, had never tasted anything like it.
“Wow, Anya! This is amazing!”
“Anya, this is delicious.”
Anya smiled, like a proud mother feeding her children.
“Sepia, what do you think? Do you like it?”
“It’s… edible.”
“Right? It’s edible, right? I knew you’d like it.”
It was a secret recipe passed down through generations in Anya’s tribe.
“We always eat this during festivals.”
“Really?”
“Yeah! We got lucky. I didn’t expect to find a boar.”
It was all thanks to Arthur’s high luck stat.
“Anya, how do you make this?”
Sepia asked, a nervous flutter in her stomach.
She wanted Ethan to try it.
If she learned the recipe, she could imagine them sitting together, enjoying the meal and laughing.
‘I wonder if Vivian knows this recipe?’
Vivian seemed to know everything about cooking.
‘It would be nice to eat this together… But why am I thinking about Ethan?’
Sepia pondered as she ate.
“It’s difficult to explain.”
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yeah! If you want to eat it again, just let me know. All we need is a boar.”
They continued their meal, laughing and talking.
Suddenly, they heard footsteps.
They looked towards the entrance of the clearing.
A woman covered in dirt and grime stood there.
Her right knee was bleeding, and her eyes were red and swollen.
It was Tia Erze.
“Tia…?”
Arthur rushed over to her.
Tia looked like she was in bad shape.
Her eyes were hollow and unfocused.
“Tia, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“It’s… it’s a long story. Ethan…”
Her voice was slurred.
“Ethan…”
“Ethan? What about Ethan?”
Sepia and Tesha also rushed over to Tia.
They looked at her anxiously.
Wasn’t Tia partnered with Ethan?
“Ethan…! I think… Ethan is dead.”
“What?! What are you talking about, Tia?! Ethan’s dead?!”
Sepia exclaimed.
Tia lowered her head and mumbled,
“It’s my fault… It’s all my fault…”
Sepia grabbed Tia’s shoulders and shook her.
“Explain yourself! What happened to Ethan?!”
“He… he sacrificed himself… to save me…”
“Sacrificed himself…?”
Sepia’s grip tightened.
“Wait a minute, Sepia! Calm down and let Tia explain.”
“Calm down?! How can I be calm when I’m being told Ethan’s dead?!”
Arthur tried to mediate, and Anya pulled Sepia away from Tia.
Tia still looked dazed.
“Tia, what happened? Tell us everything.”
Tia recounted the events that had transpired.
Everyone was silent.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”
“Pull yourself together, Tia Erze!”
“I’m sorry, Sepia… I’m a terrible person. I’m a selfish coward who survived at his expense.”
Slap!
Tia’s head snapped to the side.
Her cheek stung.
She was stunned.
So were the others.
“Sepia! What was that for?!”
Tesha stared at them, her eyes wide with shock.
“Pull yourself together, Tia Erze.”
“…That hurt, Sepia.”
“Of course it hurt. I slapped you. Did you see Ethan die? No, you didn’t. You’re not usually this weak and emotional. Think rationally.”
But how could Ethan survive that explosion?
It was logically impossible.
She had calculated the force of the explosion several times.
He was emitting red demonic energy.
What were the chances of a first-year Hero Candidate surviving an attack like that?
It would be more likely for a rabbit to defeat a tiger.
“Answer me! You didn’t see him die, did you?”
“Sepia…”
“…Please… answer me.”
Sepia pleaded, her voice trembling.
She was the one who should be grieving the most.
She had known Ethan longer than anyone else present.
“Yes… I’m sorry. I lost my composure.”
Tia forced a smile, trying to calm herself and the others.
‘But… there has been no sign of him… since that explosion…’
She couldn’t bring herself to say those words.
That was why she hadn’t gone back.
Even if she did, she doubted she could defeat the death knight.
He was a death knight.
He had single-handedly held off hundreds of undead.
Even with an army, she wasn’t sure they could defeat him.
‘I need a team of A and B rank adventurers…’
At least 10 of them.
That was Tia’s assessment.
She was barely a B-rank adventurer herself.
Arthur, Anya, Sepia, and Tesha were probably around the same level.
Except for Tesha, their grades were even lower than hers.
That was why she hadn’t mentioned Ethan’s request for backup.
“What are we waiting for? We have to go find Ethan!”
Sepia said.
“Wait, Sepia.”
“What is it, Tia?”
‘If we go now, we’ll all be killed.’
She had to stop them.
But she knew Sepia wouldn’t listen.
‘I’ll take all the blame… even if they hate me… I can’t let them go.’
Tia’s decision was cold and calculated, as always.
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cannot do the one thing he asked her for, damn i am starting to hate her