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“What? Why is there a barrier all of a sudden…”
Roana got up with a serious expression on her face. Yulif’s barrier, which surrounded the ducal castle in several layers, was lifted in an instant. Roana turned towards Canaren lying on the bed. Canaren, who had been asleep as if dead by the magic of Yulif, twitched.
“Huh…”
The magic that Yulif had put on was dissolving one by one. Roana felt it. Something happened to Yulif. There was no way the barrier would break on its own, and Canaren couldn’t have lifted the magic.
Meanwhile, Canaren opened her eyes completely and got her body up.
“…Where is Yulif?”
“The lord is not in the castle. You have been out for a while because of an urgent matter.”
“Be honest with me. What is Yulif hiding?”
Roana bit her lips. She wanted to tell Canaren everything right now. ‘Our lord is dying. It was because of that that he was so cold to you. To prevent you from attaching affection to a human who is about to die.’ However, because of the restrictions placed by Yulif, she could not speak a word about his impending. Roana, frustrated, beat her chest with her fist.
“That… the lord…”
“Arrgggg!”
A shriek shook the silent ducal castle. Roana handed Canaren the pocket watch, which she had placed on the dressing table.
“Hide behind the bed. Don’t move.”
Grabbing the watch, Canaren went and hid her body behind her bed. The sound of Roana’s deadly footsteps mixed with her own harsh breathing. Bang! And the sound of the door opening came crashing down like thunder. Canaren’s body froze in surprise.
“Where is my bird?”
The emperor…! Canaren covered her mouth with her hand. Why is the emperor who should be in the Imperial Palace here? Her fingertips froze at the sound of his voice reminding her of her horrific past.
“Canaren! Answer me! I have finally killed Yulif and is here to pick you up. Yulif is dead. My sword pierced the neck of the one you love!”
“Don’t be shy and get out. You can’t run from this room as long as I have this Roana Orcard!”
The sound of something popping, breaking, and metal clashing together intertwined randomly. In the meantime, Roana’s groans and Deltinus’ madness began to add up. Canaren looked down at the pocket watch in her hand.
Yulif is dead? He can’t be. No way…
“Canaren! I will block the emperor. Get out! The lord’s barrier has disappeared. Go!”
The barrier is gone?
The window shattered before Roana’s screams disappeared. Canaren jumped up. In her eyes, she could see Deltinus wielding a sword with his disfigured arms, and Roana struggling to stop him.
“Roana!”
“Go!”
Canaren realized she would only be a hindrance if she was here. All Deltinus wanted was her, so he might give up on Roana and follow her. Canaren clenched her teeth, pulled out her wings, and spread them out. As she was about to soar out of the window, an eerie energy flew behind her back. And…
“No!”
“….Yulif, no!?”
Yulif, who had blocked the sword that had flown towards her with his own body, was smiling at her.
It was a very surreal moment.
The sword that pierced Yulif’s shoulder. The black puddle formed on the floor from the pouring blood. The bizarre arm of Deltinus that was approaching quickly.
Among them, the most fantastic was Yulif’s smile. Yulif was very beautifully, kindly, and affectionately smiling at Canaren. It was a much brighter and sweeter smile than the one he gave her in the village, which had led her to her painful and radiant love. His smile, which couldn’t even appear in her dreams, made her feel like she was about to cry.
The wind blew. It was a wind with a strong smell of blood. It was only then that Canaren came to her senses. She smiled as if time had stopped and she stretched out her hand to Yulif. The black sword of Deltinus’ that pierced his shoulder was aimed at her.
“Your shoulder, your shoulder, the blood…”
“It’s okay.”
Yulif lightly gripped the blade of the sword with his bare hands. Just as swords quickly turned to ashes and scattered, his smile quietly faded without leaving a trace. The sword vanished into thin air, but a deep and large wound remained on Yulif’s shoulder.
When the sword that had been blocking his wound was removed, his blood gushed like a waterfall. Yulif gently pressed his wound with his opposite hand, engulfing his magical powers. It was a temporary measure to stop the bleeding, not to heal the wound.
“Yulif… It’s you again! How long are you going to disturb me? Why are you disturbing me in every way?”
Deltinus swung his arms, which had turned into a monster’s because he digested the blood of a monster. Covered in a hard shell, the spiky arms with saw blades were themselves a weapon. However, even after borrowing the blood of a monster and exceeding the human limit, Deltinus’ attack did not work on Yulif. This was because Yulif used magic through the large amount of blood shed from his shoulder to deflect and block the attack.
“You are mad. It’s sad and embarrassing! I have been trapped in your shadow all his life. Even if I was just breathing, I was compared to you. It was the same after becoming emperor. Everyone, Yulif, Yulif, Yulif! They only looked foryou. Those who rule the empire are the almighty. No one, no one believed me!”
While Yulif was dealing with Deltinus, Roana, who had been freed, came to Canaren’s side. Canaren scanned Roana quickly. Her clothes were tattered and there were small and large scratches here and there, but she did not appear to be fatally injured. Roana took Canaren as far away as possible from Yulif and Deltinus. After seeing Roana unfolding a shield in a corner, Yulif finally opened his mouth.
“Is there any reason to be sad? Even if you become a monster, even if I can’t use one arm, you can’t defeat me.”
“You, you.”
“You should rather thank me. Didn’t I raise you, who was lacking, to the position of emperor?”
“Die. die! I want you to die. Die, die, die!”
Deltinus lost reason at Yulif’s provocation. Unsatisfied with the advantage of his long arms, he rushed to Yulif without a weapon. Yulif squeezed his remaining magical power to the limit and mixed it with his own blood pooled on the floor.
“I will kill you! I will brutally kill your bird, whom you cherish so much. How dare you despise me, the sun of the empire? I am the emperor. I am the master of the empire! Let me make a toast with your blood!”
Deltinus, who raised his arm while screaming in the face of evil, stopped in that position. Something like black vines sprouting from below quietly grabbed his legs. The vine climbed up Deltinus’ body at high speed. It crossed his waist, covered his stomach, wrapped around his neck and began to tighten and twist. Krrrrr. Deltinus screamed in pain as his bones shattered and twisted.
“Aaaaah!”
Roana covered Canaren’s eyes with her hand and covered her ears with magic. Canaren trembled as she grabbed Roana’s arm.
With dry eyes, Yulif observed the arms of Deltinus, who had lost their human form. He drank the blood of a monster that had not been purified properly, so it was already too late to restore him to his original state. Of course, even if there was a way, he had no intention of returning it. His own brother had long since given up on human victory. At last, he had become a figure worthy of that ugly spirit.
Yulif made it impossible for Deltinus to use his arms again. Unable to overcome his pain, Deltinus passed out with tears in his eyes. A cough erupted from Yulif’s mouth as he looked coldly at the man sprawled on the floor, still covered in black vines. A lump of dark red blood gushed out of Yulif’s mouth.
“Yulif!”
Canaren and Roana ran to him. The two supported Yulif, who they wouldn’t be surprised if he collapsed immediately, and sat him on the bed. Canaren wiped Yulif’s lips with her sleeve. Her hands were trembling.
Did he vomit blood because of his hurt shoulder, or where is the pain? Why did he stop it? What foolish things did he do to get his body like this? Countless questions became just one wish. Canaren didn’t wonder about anything. If only Yulif was fine. If only he hadn’t been hurt a lot. As long as he doesn’t die like this, she can do anything.
“Yulif, please… Open your eyes. look at me…”
Yulif’s face was not white, it was blue. It felt like blood had drained out of his body. Really, he looked like he was going to die soon. Even with such a face, Yulif slowly opened his eyes. As if responding to Canaren’s voice.
The purple eyes were out of focus. It broke her heart to see him squinting as if trying to focus properly. Her heart was torn to shreds. The hot lump inside was not a cry, but a torn heart piece.
“…Canaren.”
Yulif’s hazy, cracked voice called out to her. His face slowly tilted towards her. Instead of answering, Canaren hugged his face as he fell. A thick bloody smell emanated from his dark hair, which had always had a refreshing and refreshing scent. It was the smell of death. Canaren was afraid of the smell. she was so afraid that Yulif would be eaten by the smell like this.