CH 109

I ran through the woods with Monet on my back.

Behind us, we could hear explosions in the distance.

Probably the fight between Chris-sensei and that guy started.

But I’m sure Chris-sensei will be fine.

The name “three-star wizard” is not just for show.

I didn’t look back, I only looked forward.

When I went here, I was guided by the crow.

So I don’t know where I am now.

It’s okay though.

I have gravity magic for situations like this.

“—gravitational-release.”

Floating in the sky, I could see the forest stretching into the distance.

I looked around and found, …the royal capital!

Then we move through the air towards the Royal Capital.

Because I was carrying Monet on my back, my movement is not that fast.

I’m in the middle of moving when I thought I heard a sound from the forest with a buzzing, and something black grew out of it.

It’s a tentacle-like shadow.

“No way…”

It’s a familiar magic.

That magic is … the Yin magic we saw in the battle yesterday.

When I saw it, I thought of one person.

“Julian…?”

Are you saying that Julian is on the side of the kidnappers?

No, it’s not good to assume.

But the shadow is clearly coming towards me.

It looks like I don’t have time to think about it slowly.

“Let’s just get out of here!”

While I was distracted by my thoughts, the shadow was closing in on me.

Then it tried to cling to Monet’s body.

“Don’t…!”

I moved three dimensions through the air to avoid the shadows.

However, with Monet on my back, my movements are restricted.

The speed at which the shadow moved was faster than my flying speed.

In addition, the number of shadows increased, and gradually being driven into a corner—finally, it grabbed one foot.

“Fireball!”

I need to burn the shadows as fast as I can. 

To escape from the shadows, …so!

Let’s get some altitude!

The higher I go, the more magic I consume and the harder it is to control.

In other words, if we distance ourselves from Julian, we should be able to slow down the shadows.

As I had predicted, the shadows slowed as they gained altitude.

I continued to maintain our current altitude.

In this way, we managed to escape the shadows far from the royal capital.

For now, let’s just land on the ground.

“Fu…”

We landed in a place in the forest.

Dense trees blocked the sunlight.

“Seems like it would be hard to escape into the sky with Monet on my back…”

Why has Julian used Yin magic?

I don’t know what he’s thinking, but I don’t think Julian is the enemy.

But if you weren’t my enemy, why were you chasing me?

Are you really an enemy?

Hmmm, hmmm, hmm.

It’s better to just head back to the Royal Capital!

I know the approximate direction.

I’ve always had a good sense of direction.

Even in a strange place, I often thought, “If I go this way, I’ll get there,” and I would arrive there.

Well, I often arrived in completely different places…

Do you think that’s having no sense of direction?

All I need is a 50 percent win rate!

I tried to run with my strengthened body.

Then Monet’s right arm, which was crossed in front of my chest, suddenly moved.

Did the impact of the landing wake you up?

That’s what I thought, and I tried to talk to Monet—.

“You… why…”

A …knife stabbed me in the side.

The pain spread quickly.

What’s … huh…?

Why is there a knife …stabbed in me?

What…happened?

Because the only thing on my back should be Monet, who is unconscious.

There …should be no such… thing as a stabbing.

And why is …Monet holding that knife…?

I don’t know what that means.

I don’t know anything.

My mind goes blank.

I can’t sort out the situation.

Monet took a knife and …stabbed me with it?

Haha …such a stupid thing…

“…….”

But the pain in my side tells me that what’s happening is real, even if I think it’s not.

I staggered and Monet left my back at the same time.

“Mo…ne…?”

I staggered forward a few steps, and with a flop, the tree caught me.

Then I saw Monet.

“‘Aww, shame, I thought I could hide it a bit better.”

Monet smiled as she looked down at me.

She’s laughing, but it’s a… chilling laugh that sends a chill down your back.

“What… why…?”

I can’t get my head around it.

Because… I’m here to save Monet from being kidnapped.

This makes it sound like…

“Goodbye, Owen, goodbye.”

Monet laughed as she spun the little knife around.