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Wrapped in old cloaks, they all had nothing below their ankles. Yoon Tae-ha immediately turned and began to flee from the soldiers. A small, sparrow-like crow flew from somewhere and landed on her shoulder.
“You must not go beyond master’s space! That would be disastrous! An invisible magic circle is drawn on the floor here! Only run around within it!”
The crow chattered in a petulant, childlike voice. There was a talking bird, why didn’t you send it sooner? Yoon Tae-ha was dumbfounded, but it wasn’t the right moment to protest to Nox. Magic spells were furiously flying over her head.
“What does he trust in that girl to entrust her with such a valuable thing? She might just run away. She’s grown quite timid from living among humans for so long!”
She heard Raphael shouting from behind. Yoon Tae-ha glanced back. The moment she turned around, red and blue lights violently collided, creating a thunderous roar. Flashes of light burst like fireworks against the black background.
However, without time to observe further, the crow gave a command, tearing her gaze away from the battle.
“Go straight, then turn right!”
As the noise of the Strangers’ battle grew louder, the speed of the ankle-less soldiers also increased.
There were six soldiers, and all of them were skilled at wielding swords. Unlike their ghostly appearance, their swords had sufficient physical destructive power. When they swung their swords, the floor was gouged, and the walls were scratched. Her flesh, too, could undoubtedly end up like that.
“They are ghost soldiers! Espers cannot handle them! Running as hard as you can is the best option!”
Yoon Tae-ha, running through the long, tunnel-like corridor, relying on the light emanating from the orb, argued, “Wouldn’t it be better if you just moved this orb and I supported Nox? You can put the orb in a bag and tie it to your foot. It’s not that heavy...”
“You are not a mage! Therefore, you are a hindrance! You cannot help master! Be content with the role of a transporter! Even that is more than you deserve!”
She muttered lightly, “You’re saying that to hurt my feelings.”
“Master is trying to save you! Master is the one who even takes care of lesser life forms!”
The aggressive yet somehow pure way of speaking wasn’t unfamiliar. It felt as if the voice of the artificial intelligence that had handed over her information to the enemy was whispering in her ear.
Just in case, Yoon Tae-ha sent an illusion towards the soldiers. But the blue blade merely passed through them emptily, inflicting no damage.
“Listen to me carefully!”
The bird shrieked.
“How can I trust you and not even try?”
She boldly parried a sword that flew towards her side and retorted. Using psychokinesis on the ghost soldiers only resulted in the feeling of swinging at thin air.
Ultimately, running like mad was the only answer. For her, who had hated such endurance training even as a child, it was hell. Yoon Tae-ha ran and ran through the dark waterway as the bird directed her. Occasionally, the sound of battle echoed through the black walls. Along with an eerie vibration.
What would happen if this space collapsed? If Nox’s hiding place was beneath Lake Lethe.
Ominous imaginations burrowed into her mind. How long had she run, trying to shake them off? Finally, the crow delivered good news.
“Master is winning! Go back!”
The crow hopped happily on her shoulder. Yoon Tae-ha lightly dodged swords swung simultaneously by two ghost soldiers, then turned left at the approaching corner.
As she returned to the space where the Strangers had been battling, the ghost soldiers one by one turned into smoke and disappeared. It seemed to be proof that Raphael’s authority was waning.
Finally, when she arrived at the starting point, not a single terrifying ghost soldier remained behind her. Exhausted from running, she clutched her knees and bent over. Nox had tied his brother to a chair and was waiting for Yoon Tae-ha.
“Tae-ha! You finally returned after running so hard!”
Raphael’s side hair was red with blood, a testament to how fierce the battle had been, as he excitedly shouted Yoon Tae-ha’s name. His forehead seemed to be torn.
Nox, on the other hand, who had bound his brother with magic ropes, was not seriously injured. Though his earlobe was slightly torn, he seemed to think little of it. Yoon Tae-ha, having assessed the brothers’ conditions, posed a question to Raphael.
“Raphael. How did you find this place?”
“Heh... Kuakua is very good at scenting. If you feed the object that the target of pursuit was carrying with a specific herb, it remembers the scent.”
Raphael looked at Nox and laughed sinisterly.
“Tae-ha. Every time you showed interest in that cute little rat, I got nervous. I won’t lie about that.”
Raphael, tightly bound to the chair legs, suddenly tried to squirm. But the chair was almost one with the floor, so he couldn’t move. Raphael expended some energy for a moment, then gave up and panted. His goal was once again to persuade Yoon Tae-ha.
“Let’s make a new deal now. Hand that over to me. It doesn’t matter what this guy said. I even admit that it’s true! I am the first prince. This guy and I are bound by ill fate... But Tae-ha, I have dedicated myself to Ark for a long time. The ring you’re wearing is proof of that!”
“This is something I retrieved from a dungeon.”
“But I’m the one who modified it to be useful on this land!”
Yoon Tae-ha walked towards the Stranger brothers. Raphael looked longingly at the ring on her right hand. As if he wanted her to recognize his contributions and change her mind.
“I was quite a helpful friend, wasn’t I? It wouldn’t be a bad thing for you to let a friend return home.”
“That is a lie. This one said that after opening the rift, he would lead his loyal knights to trample this planet. He told me to become his right-hand man, saying he could establish an empire. Of course, there are no such knights left in the kingdom, so you can rest assured.”
“That’s all slander!”
Nox coldly mocked Raphael. Then he reached into his cloak and pulled out a familiar object. It was a voice recorder. When he pressed a button, Raphael’s furious voice echoed through the vast space.
—It’s quite a coveted land... The only ones who can oppose us here are the Espers. But they each have weaknesses. You must have realized it too. They are inferior to us. If only we can open the great gate again, we can make those idiots riding around in scrap metal kneel beneath our feet... There’s no need to quarrel over wearing a crown in a small land!
The rest was unintelligible. The noise of the battle had drowned out Raphael’s voice.
The gray-haired man tossed the voice recorder to Yoon Tae-ha. She was secretly surprised by the mage’s proactive use of modern technology but didn’t show it.
“One more thing. This one put a curse on your black ring.”
What? Yoon Tae-ha’s eyes widened as she looked at Nox. Raphael’s face contorted violently, as if he hadn’t expected him to reveal that much. She quickly retorted, “A curse?”
“I can see that it’s designed to excessively consume vitality when handling illusions. It’s so intricate that if you weren’t from the same place as us, you wouldn’t even be able to read the design.”
Yoon Tae-ha glared at Raphael. “You defrauded me?”
“What are you talking about! No!”
Nox firmly cut in. “It’s a fraud risking the life of the weapon’s wielder. I became certain of it while fighting you. My elder brother must have planned to use you to further his ambition even before arriving here.”
Recalling the time she battled the Crow Prince, Yoon Tae-ha had no choice but to admit that his words were convincing. She had experienced her entire body losing strength after excessively using the ring, and had even fainted.
“It doesn’t seem like slander. Raphael. I have quite a few beloved Stranger friends, but my capacity for embracing you is not that great.”
“You can only think such petty thoughts. As expected, you were not destined to be a great person!”
Raphael fumed, glaring at her. On his distorted face, hatred for the two people who wouldn’t move as he wished gleamed.
“If you let me live, the day will surely come when I return this humiliation to you.”
Nox let his curse go in one ear and flicked his finger. Then the orb from Yoon Tae-ha’s belt pouch smoothly flew through the air and fell into his hand. Raphael couldn’t hide his greed, licking his lips and looking at the orb with longing.
“How dare you insult a prince of a nation, and make a brother kneel! Go ahead and drag me away as you please. I will never tell you the information you want—”
Just then, Yoon Tae-ha felt something eerie beyond the hole in the ceiling that Raphael had created. The fear instilled by past experiences suddenly rose up and screamed wildly. Goosebumps appeared on her spine. At that very moment, a surge of killing intent shot out from the darkness, targeting them.
“Get back!”
She acted instinctively. Pushing Nox back with all her might using psychokinesis, she also retreated to the wall.
The intruder who came through the hole had long, flowing red hair. Yoon Tae-ha’s heart sank at the breathtaking sight of her back.
The woman placed one foot on Raphael’s thigh and looked around, belatedly noticing the man who was almost on the verge of unconsciousness due to his collision with her. But the woman didn’t care and turned her body. Then, the woman’s face fully came into Yoon Tae-ha’s view.
Kali. It was the hateful Red Snake.
“This is an obstacle.”
Kali’s lips curved into a cruel arc. And before Yoon Tae-ha could even react, her weapon appeared out of thin air.
Immediately after, Kali swung her spear like lightning. Nox shot a spell, having read her intentions beforehand, but she merely deflected his spell by extending her left hand. The spear, as its owner intended, pierced the bound man’s heart.
“Cough...”
Raphael’s sky-blue eyes widened in shock. Kali smiled, looking at his eyes from which life was rapidly draining.
“It was nice meeting you.”
Then, the hand gripping the spear tightened, and all strength soon drained from Raphael’s body, which had been convulsing in his legs.
Kali pulled out the spear. A thick, red pool of blood formed beneath where Raphael had been sitting.
Kali stood barefoot in the pool of the man’s blood she had killed. It was a sight that sent chills down one’s spine just by looking at it. But the woman didn’t care.
She calmly turned her body and met the eyes of the frozen Yoon Tae-ha.
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