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“I never had that kind of father. He’s not even my real father.”
May has expressed her reluctance to the magic tower’s former owner.
It was understandable. Because it was him who branded May as a traitor.
The magic tower’s owner, who had no child, adopted two children in his forties.
The two carefully selected children were geniuses. However, May, who has free-spirited behavior, failed to follow his will, causing friction with her father in everything.
Then one day, the top-class potion that the magic tower’s owner had made for a long time was smashed.
He was angry and predicted that it was also caused by May again, feeling unfair, May shouted back.
The magic tower’s owner, who would normally scold her moderately, was angry and said harsh things to May that time, so May fought back and didn’t want to lose.
The big fight that scratched each other soon destroyed the surrounding.
Would you believe that the fight between those two blew half of the magic tower?
When the magic tower, which boasted a long history, collapsed, the magic tower’s owner was angry and expelled May from the tower.
Feeling relieved, May left the tower immediately.
And I picked her who was in the middle of wandering.
Others whispered that it was caused by May who failed to become the next owner of the magic tower, but in my eyes it was just a fight between a novice father with a daughter in the middle of puberty.
‘The problem is that the scale is too big.’
Their relationship will recover if one of them relents, but both of them were really stubborn.
“If you don’t like it, I won’t force you anymore. But May, it’s a chance to clear up the misunderstanding and get rid of your traitor brand. You can restore your reputation.”
“I don’t care. Who cares if I’m branded as a traitor? No one can touch me anyway.”
She clasped my hand, while saying it was nothing for her.
“And I’m just not interested in such honor. I only need you. You’re more precious.”
“May….”
May’s sincerity touch my heart. I didn’t expect her to think about me this much.
My nose itches.
“So we, in a quiet place-”
In that moment, May’s eyes shone sharply.
She put strength on her hand that was wrapped around mine.
“It’s really gross. How can you follow us all the way here?”
Fuuh, blowing her bangs roughly with her breath, she rolled up her sleeves.
“Ria, just wait here. I’ll be back after kicking them out.”
“I’ll join-”
“No, I can’t show you such a dirty scene.”
May laughed wickedly.
How hard are you going to torture them?
I begged her with anxiety.
“Don’t kill them.”
“I’ll be back after killing half of them then.”
She was full of will to beat them.
I don’t know for anyone else, but I’m sure Ludo is gonna get ripped off.
When I was sending my heartfelt condolences to the hot-blooded boy.
“Huh?”
I rolled my eyes.
“May?”
There is no answer.
“Miss Kanae?”
There is still no answer. I didn’t feel good.
I felt a chill on my back as if someone was watching after me.
‘Is it just my illusion?’
I checked that there was no one, but….
Feeling anxious, I slowly got up. And moved pretended nothing had happened.
Even though I was getting away from that place, the gaze after my back did not disappear.
‘Why is it after May said that….’
I increased my steps to find May.
“May, where did you go!”
As soon as I turned to the corner of the alley while calling for her anxiously, my body suddenly hit someone.
“Ugh.”
When I stumbled after being bounced off by a large, solid body, the person hugged my waist at an agile pace.
I swallowed my breath in the red eyes that glistened in front of me.
A beautiful face like a work of art carved by God was looking at me in front of my nose.
Thump. The sound of my heart was ringing in my ears.
“Miss Ria, where are you going in such a hurry….”
I stared blankly at Dillian’s face.
Only then did I feel a familiar scent, a familiar voice, and a familiar warm body.
At that moment, my tense body relaxed.
“Sir Dillian.”
Clinging to him as if I had found a resting place, I looked around and looked behind him.
“Somewhat, keep following me.”
Then Dillian’s red eyes, which were stained with surprise, shone eerily.
“What kind of guy is he?”
“I don’t know. It’s a very unpleasant gaze.”
When my shoulder trembled, Dillian held me in his arms, protecting me.
Normally, I would have gotten away from him, but this time I clung to him first.
‘You all die. Don’t you dare come.’
Laughing inside as I was relieved believing in Dillian, a long shadow fell over my head.
“Huh…?”
That, the shadow that I made eye contact with in the inn.
The purple eyes I met grinned, and at the same time,
Splash-!
Black lumps rose from under the wall.
One, two, three….
As the number increased in an instant, I stopped breathing.
That wasn’t a shadow figure I knew.
It was not a flat figure attached to the floor or wall, but a figure standing up on the ground like a person.
But the figure wasn’t human.
The black, sticky lump wobbled and twisted.
“Di, sir Dillian, behind you…!”
Then, the monster opened its eyes which closed, reacted sensibly to my voice.
At first, the purple eyes, which couldn’t find anything and stuttered in the air, soon looked exactly at me.
At that moment, I noticed its existence.
‘The thing that May warned me…!’
Clatter.
I lost what to say when I saw the head fall on the floor, not in the place it was supposed to be.
“….”
“Surely, it’s really unpleasant.”
When the sword was pulled out, Dillian clicked his tongue in the thick liquid.
“How dare you look at miss Ria with your dirty eyes, you really want to die.”
I turned my eyes away from the monster’s body that collapsed in vain.
… Is it the Darkness?
***
I quickly withdrew my thought, wondering if it was too weak for the rumored thing.
Angry at its friend’s death, the monsters opened its mouth bizarrely.
A black and muddy liquid like tar fell to the floor from its mouth.
Unlike the blackened floor, my head turned white.
The feeling was different from the monster Teevee I met on the mountain.
That monster had a curse-like appearance.
Its behavior is bad and has unpleasant energy.
“Sir Dillian, I think they are angry.”
As if the answer was correct, the monsters rushed toward us.
At that moment, my body leaped up. Dillian held me and widened the distance from the monsters.
“Sir Dillian, what are you going to do?”
“I have to kill them all.”
“Well then, drop me so you can relax…”
“That would be nice, but I can’t because I think they will catch miss Ria as soon as I put you down.”
As Dillian said, the remaining three monsters were aiming at me.
In addition, the monster, which was thought to have died, was absorbed by another monster and grew in size.
The more Dillian slash it, the bigger its body was.
It was a situation where even its nucleus was invisible.
I had to find a way out of this situation quickly.
‘If it’s a form similar to a curse, wouldn’t my divine power work?’
It’s okay even if it’s not work. I whispered, hugging Dillian’s neck.
“I will use my divine power. You have to protect me until then. Okay?”
“That’s my speciality.”
I closed my eyes tightly and gathered life force around me.
Then I felt a familiar sound and warm energy.
Whiii-
When I opened my eyes, a swarm of butterflies circled around and protected us.
The scene was so beautiful that I was amazed, but it must not have been for the monsters.
Unlike before, the monster’s faltered and backed out.
And without a miss, I quickly shot the divine power to the monsters.
Spark-!
A blinding white light engulfed the area.
The monsters eroded by the light collapsed to the floor.
It melted to the ground and mushed like ice cream melted in the sun.
The dripping body soon seeped into the crack of the ground and disappeared.
***
I, who went back to the inn, found Harris straight away. I can’t even think about waiting for Mei and the knights.
I ran to Harris and asked him out of the blue.
“Is it the ‘Darkness’ that I met?”
Harris nodded at my brief explanation.
“To be exact, it’s the Darkness’s alter ego. And we are calling it the ‘Shadow’.
“The Shadow…. Then what I encountered is not the real one.”
“Yes, the Darkness has never revealed itself yet.”
At Harris’s affirmation, my face became gloomy.
Meeting the Darkness? I’ve conceded a hundred times, so it’s possible. Because strangely I’ve been unlucky lately.
However, I didn’t expect to be targeted so quickly.
“Did it come here knowing I was here?”
“Yes, it’s highly likely that it saw miss Ria’s light. The Darkness is after someone that has divine power.”
The Darkness that devours someone with divine power. And I have divine power more than others.
‘I’m such a good prey then.’
“Fortunately, miss Ria’s power is overwhelming, so the Shadow seems to have disappeared with just a single attack.”
… Right, I’m sure it is.
I felt a deep obsession in the eyes I met, as if it had pointed me as its prey.
“You should get out of here as soon as possible. And, if you ask the great temple for protection-”
“She will go to the Duchy.”
Dillian’s low voice interrupted Harris.
“How can I trust you to send miss Ria to the temple?”
“Dillian.”
I guess though Dillian is his cousin, Harris still couldn’t stand him swearing at the temple.
When Harris’s chin was full of strength, Nathan opened its mouth.
“Dillian is right. I don’t approve of the temple. Harris, even if you said you’d help, I still can’t believe it.”
When Nathan refused the temple, Harris shook his head incomprehensibly.
“Harris. Do you know why Ria ran away from the temple? It’s because the priests there exploited Ria.”
That’s what Nathan said. They pull out my divine power endlessly.
Only two hours a day. It was the rest time that was given to me.
My face sank heavily when the thought of a life like a machine that was repeated every day came.
“… I need to rest.”
“Ria, do you want me to put you to sleep? If you’re tired, I’ll cast a spell….”
“It’s all right.”
I refused May’s helping hand and covered myself in a blanket.
***
Should I have taken May’s help?
I tossed and turned for a long time, unable to sleep even though it was late at night.
I couldn’t sleep because of what happened during the day.
I carefully raised myself up worried if May, who was fast asleep next to me, would wake up.
Opening the door of the terrace attached to the bedroom and leaning on the railing, I looked around in case the Darkness appeared again.
The strange shadow I saw at home wasn’t an illusion.
It was clear that it’s the Darkness that found me after seeing the light that burst from the forest.
‘I just wanted to live quietly, but why did this happen?’
Unrefined sighs burst forth.
“Miss Ria.”
Deep in thought, I raised my head to the familiar voice.