I had the feeling that it was just a dream.
When I looked around, I was met with nothing but a desolate land devoid of trees, with only swirling dust. I unconsciously held my breath.
In front of me was a deep, hollow pit.
There lay a skull mask and the staff of the archmage that was rolling around.
“Sharcarl.”
Seeing the last relic announcing his death, I slowly started to recognize reality and regain my senses.
Just a moment ago, I would have died had it not been for the miracle of the goddess. I clenched my fist, feeling a complete sense of defeat that had now vanished like dust, reflecting on the archmage.
‘……’
I had experienced my limits.
This was a clear limit.
In my past life, while simply attempting to conquer the Forest of the Demon Realm, my body had taken quite the beating, making me think it was something I couldn’t surpass.
But now, with a young body unscathed, I had trained hard. I had also tried hard to not lose my sense of battle even in the outside world.
Although the sharp senses specific to the Forest of the Demon Realm I had as a Sherpa had dulled significantly, I believed I could manage thanks to my vastly improved physical abilities.
If I were to fight my past self, I was confident I would win.
‘And yet, I lost.’
Was it because I couldn’t handle mana?
That could be part of it.
Perhaps there was an ability to resist Sharcarl’s twisted mana.
But I felt like the limits of Daniel McLean, the man, were becoming painfully clear.
“Daniel!”
While I was caught up in self-reflection, a girl’s voice and its warm weight came flying from behind.
Hayun, who hugged me tightly, called out my name with a trembling voice.
“Daniel! Daniel!”
“Hayun?”
I wondered why she was acting like this all of a sudden; however, looking at her shaking hand on my clothes and her messy clothes and hair, it seemed something had happened.
“I thought you were dead! The Grand Witch said you would be dead too, and I was so scared!”
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
I honestly apologized to Hayun, as it felt like I was indeed close to death. If it weren’t for the mischievous goddess of time, I might have left Hayun all alone in the Forest of the Demon Realm.
“Wait, where’s Kurika?”
I realized Kurika was the one who got caught up in Sharcarl’s last explosion with me. No matter how much of an emperor he was, he would have been half-dead after that blast.
But no matter how much I looked around, there was no sight of Kurika.
I was confident he wasn’t the kind of man who could easily die without leaving a trace.
“……How much time has passed since the explosion?”
I asked Hayun, slightly panicked.
I needed to confirm how long it had been since the goddess of time stopped it and I regained my senses.
“About… an hour has passed. The Grand Witch seemed to sense something and hurried to the witches’ village. I came here to look for you.”
“An hour?”
That was way too long.
Could Kurika have run away?
‘No, it doesn’t seem like he would just run away. If he had regained consciousness, he would have tried to deal with me first.’
I was the biggest obstacle in his path to kill the Earliest Apocalypse.
Just then, Hayun hesitated before speaking up.
“And Daniel, while you were off fighting, the Priestess of Time came to see us.”
“……!”
I had heard she was traveling with Kurika, but she visited Hayun and the Grand Witch?
“Although he was swept up in the explosion, given that he showed signs of coming back to life, it seems Kurika might still be alive.”
“What on earth……”
I was confused about what was happening, but then, from afar, a loud boom echoed, and smoke began to rise, covering the sky.
In the Forest of the Demon Realm, such disturbances could be common, but this was something else. The power it emitted could only come from a large group casting magic.
Seeing that, I spoke, almost entranced.
“Let’s go to the witches’ village.”
*
“Whoo, whoo.”
With Sharcarl dead, I could freely control mana. Thanks to this, the Grand Witch quickly rode her staff back to the village.
The magical sound echoing from the village moments ago made her heart race. Surrounded by the rising smoke, she prayed for the safety of the village.
However, upon returning to the witches’ village, the Grand Witch could only look on in despair at the two figures at the center of the village.
One was the Priestess of Time.
She was walking through the village as if unaffected by Sharcarl’s self-detonation, smiling as she mercilessly slaughtered the witches.
And the other was the wolf man, Kurika.
He didn’t seem well.
Blood dripped from his whole body, and his usually sleek black fur was torn in places, exposing his skin.
His eyes were open, but it was unclear if he was conscious; a mark denoting the Goddess of Death was inscribed on his forehead, just like the priestess.
It seemed the priestess had taken the injured Kurika, who was caught up in Sharcarl’s explosion, as her subordinate. However, even in unconsciousness, Kurika was still trying to shake off the restraints.
The priestess, seeing the Grand Witch approach with a defeated expression, introduced Kurika.
“Isn’t it amazing? The Emperor of the Forest, Kurika, is now in my hands. Of course, once his injuries heal, he’ll easily escape from such restraints.”
Thud.
The priestess stabbed her bone sword into Kurika’s chest. The sheer lack of hesitation in her action revealed the chilling madness lurking within her.
“If I keep injuring him like this, won’t I be able to control him forever?”
“You’re insane.”
The Grand Witch bit her lip.
The woman, alive by the mark of the Goddess of Death, was completely crazy.
That was the only conclusion I could reach, and her madness spread fear, yet the Grand Witch couldn’t back down here.
All the witches were dead.
Just like when she first encountered the Priestess of Time, all the witches lay collapsed, soaked in pools of blood.
“Why? Why did you attack our village?”
As she observed the expression of the Grand Witch, the priestess slowly clasped her hands together as if in prayer.
“They were villains. Looking underground, it seemed you committed quite filthy deeds, starting with breeding men and using people as magical ingredients.”
“……”
“How could you give birth to them and then use them as magical materials just because they’re men? That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?”
“So you judged us on behalf of the gods?”
“Hehe, well, if that’s how you want to interpret it.”
The Grand Witch couldn’t deny that their village was covered in dirty blood, unable to point fingers at the priestess.
She too, when distinguishing good from evil, was far closer to evil. But that was the way the witches had survived.
Due to having the power of prophecy, they had been reviled by the gods and chased into such a perilous forest.
Since only women could gain the power of prophecy, the men naturally abandoned them and left the village.
They’d realize eventually that raising a boy who had no ability was pointless.
Some were bound by the gods’ gaze and lived in such a village shackled, while others simply left without a second thought.
Jealousy and madness were the roots of the witches of the Black Forest’s long-standing tradition.
“Now, what will you do? If you kneel and beg here, I might spare you.”
“……What can an old woman do after having lost everything?”
She had no strength left to rebuild the village. The witches of the Black Forest believed they had lost their last bloodline and reached their end.
“Ugh, uugh.”
From a distance, a faint groan was heard.
Adriana, lying in the hospital room, was trying desperately to escape from the ruins of the collapsed building, blood trickling down her forehead.
Was there a survivor?
The Grand Witch wondered if the priestess had missed someone. However, upon seeing the expression of the priestess, she understood.
“Oh my, one person is still alive.”
She had been kept alive on purpose.
The priestess had purposely allowed that small girl to survive until the Grand Witch arrived.
Why?
Why was that?
As such questions naturally arose in her mind, the priestess quickly provided the answers to her inquiries.
“How about this? If I spare that girl’s life, will you grant me one favor? It’s quite simple, really?”
“You… this was your plan all along.”
“Oh my, what a harsh thing to say.”
The priestess laughed, covering her mouth.
While it was true that the witches’ village had committed indescribable misdeeds, it seemed those were not significantly important to the priestess.
She merely added it as an excuse to herself.
“It’s really no big deal. In fact, it should be a welcome suggestion on your part, right?”
“……”
“You have to accept, don’t you? That’s the only way you can save that girl, right? Clearly, among the witches, she seems to be the most talented.”
Had she even assessed that in such a short time?
Reason and emotion battled fiercely within the Grand Witch, heating her mind to the point of boiling.
However, to the Grand Witch, emotions were not that significant. Even if it meant begging for her life, saving Adriana was the priority.
With the title of Grand Witch weighing on her, she didn’t want her clan to perish under her watch.
“What’s your wish?”
In reality, though humiliating, she had no choice but to seek mercy from the priestess, who had killed most of her clan.
However, she had to save even that small child.
“It’s simple. Just warp once for me. It doesn’t seem possible to run with Kurika in this condition.”
Even now, Kurika was shaking his head desperately, trying to escape the mark placed on him. He appeared to have very little time left.
“Honestly, you would already be dead if it weren’t for me. You should be grateful for your life being saved like this.”
Once again, the priestess stabbed her bone sword into Kurika, exhaling softly as she spoke to the Grand Witch.
“I’m thinking of going to a very small village, so prepare yourself.”
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