Chapter 122

“…?”

The girl opened her eyes.

…But what does it mean to open one’s eyes?

She did not know the meaning of the action, nor what she had just done.

Still, the girl rose to her feet.

Swoosh—

At that moment, a thick black mist spread out from the girl’s body.

It was the aura of corruption, a breath of death that was nothing less than a lethal poison to any living creature.

Even the flower field beneath the girl’s feet could not escape the mist.

In an instant, the flowers lost their vitality and withered away.

As the girl glanced around, her eyes caught sight of a bent flower.

“…”

She didn’t like it.

Instinctively feeling this, the girl swung her arm.

Whoosh.

Her arm sliced through the mist.

The mist split along the path of her swing, momentarily dispersing before creeping back together again.

The girl managed to scatter the mist briefly, but she couldn’t drive it away completely.

It was only natural.

It wasn’t real mist to begin with, and since it emanated from the girl’s own body, such a simple gesture could not solve the problem.

However, the mist also couldn’t harm its master.

The mist that drained the vitality from every living thing—flowers, grass, trees, and even tiny insects—could not bare its fangs against its master. The girl’s arm remained unaffected, just as it had been before it touched the mist. Ɽ

Flailing.

Annoyed by the lack of control, the girl flailed her arms.

The sight was as innocent as a child playing in the sand, yet the consequences of her actions were far from light.

The more the girl moved, the more her arms stirred the mist, causing it to spread further and engulf the flower field.

Eventually, the girl sensed something was wrong and stopped trying to scatter the mist.

Puff—

With her cheeks puffed up, she glared at the mist.

Thud.

“!”

The girl took a step without thinking and saw the mist move along with her, causing her pink eyes to widen.

Tap-tap-tap-!

The girl quickly moved her short legs, hurrying out of the flower field.

The mist that had hovered over the flower field rushed after her, trailing behind into the open space.

In the process of leaving the field, more damage was caused, but fortunately, there were still more healthy flowers than those that had withered.

As she surveyed the flower field with satisfaction, the girl’s gaze suddenly stopped, as if caught by something.

Beyond the field, near a sheer cliff, stood a long object embedded in the ground.

Despite the considerable distance, the girl’s eyes were fixed on the vivid red, unable to look away.

“…”

The girl felt stifled.

Even as she clutched at her chest, as if to tear it apart, the suffocating feeling did not go away.

She wanted to go there.

She shouldn’t go there.

Two conflicting instincts fiercely clashed within her.

In the end, the instinct that prevailed was the one telling her, “You must not go.”

Stumble.

The girl, unable to hide her lingering disappointment, still faithfully followed her instincts.

She passed by the empty space marred with dark marks, and even the small cabin, as she started to move further away from the flower field.

Thud!

“…?!”

The girl, driven by the single instinct to get as far away from the flower field as possible, bumped into something invisible.

She stopped, rubbing her slightly reddened forehead after the light impact.

A pure question arose in the girl’s mind.

What had stopped her?

Tilting her head in confusion, the girl finally noticed the transparent wall blocking her path.

“…”

She didn’t like it.

It wasn’t just because it was blocking her way.

Like when she left the flower field, her instincts whispered to her.

But this time, there was a clear difference.

While her instincts had whispered not to damage it before, now they were telling her to destroy it immediately.

I don’t like this.

The girl moved according to her instincts once more.

Woong—

The girl’s hand grasped the empty air.

Though nothing existed there, a sword had appeared in her grip before she realized it.

It was a pitch-black sword, shrouded in a sinister black mist that allowed no trace of light.

Even if the sword the girl held was a peerless blade, and even if it was the sort of sword that a swordsman who cherished fine weapons could not resist, no ordinary person would be able to wield it easily.

The ominous aura emanating from the pitch-black sword was enough to unsettle not only the mind but also to provoke an instinctual fear.

And even if one managed to overcome their instincts and successfully grasp the sword, they wouldn’t come out unscathed.

The pitch-black sword the girl held was a manifestation of the black mist surrounding her. Most people would have their life force drained as soon as they touched the mist.

It was a fearsome object, but the girl wielding it remained unaffected.

She took up a stance with the pitch-black sword.

A diagonal slash from the lower left to the upper right.

A black serpent bared its fangs as it lunged towards the wall that blocked the girl.

Crash!

The gleaming fangs sank deep into the wall.

The black serpent, not satisfied, twisted its body, intent on ripping the wall apart.

But that only lasted for a moment.

Despite pouring all its strength into the attack, the black serpent failed to tear through the wall, eventually losing its form and scattering.

All that remained was a massive scar on the wall, difficult to believe was left by a single sword.

“…”



The girl’s eyes filled with discontent.

There was no one to stop her, but even if there had been, they wouldn’t have had the chance as the girl charged forward.

The tip of the sword, which had been aiming straight ahead, struck the barrier.

Flash!

The barrier flickered intensely.

But only for a moment. As the black aura that flowed from where the sword was embedded began to slowly consume the barrier, the intense flickering quickly faded.

When the barrier had finally lost all its light, what stood before her was not the translucent wall that had blocked her, but a massive, blackened wall.

The girl looked up at it expressionlessly, though there was a hint of satisfaction in her gaze, and she took another step forward.

Judging by its appearance, the black wall seemed like it would be even stronger in blocking her path.

But just before the girl’s foot touched the wall, it quietly opened.

As the girl walked through the gap, wide enough for two or three people to pass, the lush greenery outside welcomed her.

Even the trees, brimming with life and stretching their branches as if to cover the sky, bowed as the black mist touched them.

But that was outside the girl’s concern.

The girl, whose mere presence wilted everything around her, continued walking.

Without knowing where she wanted to go, or where she should be, she moved as if she had to, down the mountain.

Far to the east.

Unaware that the original owner of the barrier had just realized the anomaly and was pulling their hair out.

***

“…She disappeared right after the Ascension Ritual ended?”

“Yes, indeed. You have asked the same thing three times already. Can you stop now?”

“It’s just too hard to believe.”

Da-eun sighed.

Justina, who had overseen the Ascension Ritual, had witnessed everything clearly.

Not only the Magi gathered here but all the Magi in Laxia had been absorbed into Kana.

Of course, this wasn’t a situation that Justina had anticipated, and she felt something was off, but the situation had already slipped out of her control.

All Justina could do was prevent the Magi from scattering elsewhere.

After minutes that felt like a thousand years and dozens of minutes that felt like eons, the flow of Magi surrounding Kana visibly weakened.

Justina could not hide her shock as she watched Kana absorb the remaining Magi entirely.

No matter how high one’s standing, how could a mere girl who wasn’t even of the Demonic Race handle such a vast amount of Magi?

No. Even if she were of the Demonic Race, attempting to contain such a massive amount of Magi would have caused her body to burst long ago.

Even Justina, who had achieved a significant leap in her own growth, could not have absorbed even a fraction of the Magi that Kana had taken in.

It was an event that defied description, beyond what could be called a feat.

Justina, suppressing her astonishment with the chains of duty, approached the collapsed Kana.

That was when a light suddenly enveloped Kana’s body, shining intensely.

Justina reflexively closed her eyes against the blinding light, and when she opened them again, Kana was nowhere to be seen.

“Now that I think about it, it seemed like magic.”

“Magic…”

But who, where, and why?

The fact that Kana was alive was fortunate, but new worries surfaced.

“What if someone who held a grudge against Kana abducted her…?”

Or if it were the act of a pervert intending to do something terrible to Kana….

Da-eun unconsciously bit her lips repeatedly.

Given how much blood Kana lost, her condition couldn’t be good.

“It might cause further misunderstandings, so I’ll say this upfront. We are not the ones who kidnapped her.”

“I didn’t really suspect you.”

To be precise, she didn’t have the mental space to entertain such suspicions.

Da-eun’s mind was so filled with worry and concern that there was no room for other thoughts.

“I’m not particularly well-versed in magic, but—”

A gentle voice snapped Da-eun out of her thoughts.

“The culprit is likely a very skilled mage.”

“Huh? Why do you say that?”

“Spatial manipulation magic is not something that can be easily cast. Furthermore, specifically targeting someone like Kana out of all these people is even more challenging.”

“Ah…”

Now that she heard it, it was such an obvious point that she felt embarrassed for not realizing it sooner.

“A skilled mage…”

“It’s probably one of the most renowned mages on the Ardina Continent. That’s what I think.”

“Why would such a person kidnap Kana?”

The timing is suspicious too.

It was as if they had executed their plan with perfect timing, just waiting for this moment.

Questions piled up one after another, and Da-eun let out a sigh.

“I just hope nothing bad happens…”

Now that it was almost certain that Kana had been kidnapped by someone, Da-eun’s hope was a slim one, but she couldn’t help clinging to it.

“I, too, will dispatch people to find the child.”

“You’re going to help us?”

“…Do you think I am some ungrateful wretch?”

“Ah… that’s not what I meant. …Thank you for your help.”

“I am not helping. I am doing what must be done.”

Justina let out a huff and gestured with her hand.

Following her gesture, members of the Demonic Race swiftly scattered in all directions.

Watching them, Justina turned her head and asked Da-eun and Celine.

“What will you do?”

Their answer was already decided.

“We’ll join the search.”

“Yes. We can’t leave without finding Lady Kana.”

“In that case, I will assign people to accompany you. While the Magi has dissipated, the monsters likely remain.”

Justina nodded, as if she had already expected their response.

With that, dozens of search parties were formed, scouring Laxia as if turning it inside out, and Da-eun believed it was only a matter of time before they found Kana’s whereabouts.

But— Searᴄh the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“…What?”



Contrary to Da-eun’s expectations.

The news of Kana, whom she had been desperately searching for, came from an entirely unexpected place.

—

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