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Chapter 56
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“This is the holy will of the gods.
We only serve to uphold it.
Child who reads the language of the gods,
Join us in continuing their will.”
A voice echoed in my head, as if it were a reverberation.
It was a phenomenon that happened multiple times a day.
“Lienna? Are you ready?”
“…Yes.”
“Hmm~? Are you nervous, by any chance?”
“Maybe.”
“Pfft! It’s fine. No matter how much of a Holy Maiden you are, you’re still just a first-year!”
Jane placed her hands on her hips.
“Just trust this senior!”
“Okay, I’ll trust you.”
Lienna smiled faintly.
[And now, for the grand finale of the ‘Festival of Stars’! The Relic Capture begins!]
The announcement echoed loudly.
Simultaneously, the murmurs of the audience grew louder.
“Let’s go.”
Jane opened the door to the waiting room, her sharp eyes lighting up.
“Let’s smash them all!”
***
This was the training arena in Building C.
Usually used for cadet training, this space had been transformed into a massive spectator area for the day.
Bustling!
From cadets not participating in the competition to outsiders enjoying the festival, people from various families, knight orders, and magic towers filled the seats to capacity.
“There’s a spot here!”
“Ugh… Why are there so many people… Scoot over, Galli!”
“This is the best I can shrink!”
Erina squeezed through the crowd and found a seat.
It was a bit far from the centre, but since the competition would be broadcast on a giant screen, it wasn’t a problem.
“By the way, where’s the captain?”
“He said he had someone to meet. He’ll be here in a bit.”
“What?! You left the captain alone in his current state?!”
“…He’s doing better now. Being overly protective isn’t good either….”
Corinne grabbed Erina’s sleeve and shook it in disbelief.
“Ughhhhhh.”
“You know…! The captain right now….”
Corinne trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.
Even without saying it out loud, everyone here knew.
Ornica Feron had been utterly broken since ‘That Day.’
“This is unbelievable! I’ll go bring him back, so you two stay here! I’ll be back before the competition starts!”
“Cor… Corinne! Wait!”
“I’ll go too—ugh, I’m stuck!”
.
.
.
“It’s been a while, senior.”
“…You are.”
Ornica bowed formally.
“Ornica, is it?”
The person receiving her bow, Reina, narrowed her eyes slightly and tilted her head.
“Ornica… Is that really you?”
“It is.”
Ornica affirmed without changing her expression.
She confirmed that she was indeed Ornica Feron, Reina’s junior.
‘What on earth….’
At a glance, she looked exactly like Ornica.
A simple haircut wouldn’t make someone unrecognizable.
But.
“What happened to you?”
Everything except her appearance was completely different from the Ornica Reina once knew.
“…Are you unaware of what happened in my knight order?”
“You know that’s not what I’m asking.”
“……”
Ornica fell silent again.
“Just because the knight order encountered some misfortune doesn’t explain such a drastic change.”
“……”
“Tell me, Ornica. What happened to you?”
The current Ornica reminded Reina of herself in the past.
Holding onto her younger sibling’s lifeless, cold body after losing everything her family stood for.
-‘Hic…! Ahhhhh! Aaaaaaaaahhh!!!’
Her sobs and gasps, full of agony.
‘No, it’s not even that.’
The current Ornica was,
herself if she had never received Karen’s help back then.
Carrying her siblings’ corpses across bloodstained snowy mountains, gritting her teeth against hatred.
A future where no one could be saved.
A bottomless pit of despair and ruin.
“What could have broken you so completely?”
“…That’s what I want to ask you, senior.”
Ornica’s empty eyes reflected Reina.
“Senior, what exactly… happened to you?”
“What…?”
Reina couldn’t comprehend what she was saying.
But Ornica was more serious than anyone.
When she arrived here,
Ornica had intended to finish her mission quickly and leave.
Although there were many familiar faces, she didn’t care about them anymore.
At that moment,
-‘…Lan, this cheeky guy. Sending me a cake as thanks for showing him my swordsmanship.’
Reina’s expression softened as she looked at the cake box in front of her.
‘Why?’
The Reina that Ornica knew was different.
She had always been cold as snow and sharp as ice.
But now, the person in front of her had changed.
‘What’s with that smile?’
She had changed so much.
“What turned you into this, senior?”
“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Please tell me. Please… Please….”
What saved you from despair?
How did you escape from that place?
“…Ah.”
Ornica’s vision darkened.
It was starting again.
It had begun.
-Ornica-nim.
In this illusion, the same boy always appeared.
With slightly long ash-gray hair and a tender, innocent face.
– I made stew for today!
– Haha! You’ve got some on your mouth. Here, use this towel.
– Please teach me swordsmanship again today!
Moments that melted her brain, brief but sweet.
But once that time passed…
– Huh… Huh…? Who are you?
The dreadful moments of pain began.
Two robed strangers slowly approached him.
– D-don’t come near me! I said, don’t come closer!
She saw him swinging a sword with his slender arms, resisting.
His small, adorable face was filled with pure terror.
Crash!
The assailant’s blade stabbed into his shoulder.
– Aaaahhhhh!
A scream pierced the air, threatening to tear her eardrums apart.
His pale skin split in two, and crimson blood poured out uncontrollably.
– S-stop… Please don’t….
Stab!
– Ghhk! Nnnnnn…!
He was slashed.
He was stabbed.
He was cut into pieces.
– Save me….
Soon, drenched in blood, he crawled toward her.
The direction he looked toward was—
– Ornica-nim… It hurts so much….
Ornica.
The current self, forcibly watching this illusion.
– Why aren’t you moving…? Have you started to hate me?
No, that’s not it.
Even now, she wanted to kill those damn things and hold him tightly.
But her body wouldn’t move.
– I’ve lost so much blood… I don’t think I can make food for you anymore….
His voice grew fainter.
Cold sweat dripped from Ornica’s hands, and her head spun.
If only her mouth would move, she could say something, anything.
Her entire body was paralyzed, like a stone statue.
– Hic… Sob… I don’t… want to die….
Stab!
Before he could even finish his last words,
The assailant’s blade pierced through his neck.
Blood gushed from his throat and soaked Ornica’s feet.
– …
Only after his corpse was dragged into the forest did her paralysis fade.
“Ah… Ah… Ah….”
Her tongue felt severed, incapable of forming words.
“Aaaaahhhh! Nnnnggggghhh!!!”
Tears of blood streamed down her face.
Once again, she couldn’t save him.
In this illusion that repeated countless times, she watched him die, over and over again.
Alben.
She had failed to protect him again.
“That damned—!”
Shing!
As Ornica drew her sword and prepared to unleash her Qi—
“Calm down!”
“Captain, no!”
Her senses returned to reality.
“Haa… Huu….”
Ornica quickly assessed the situation.
Her entire body was drenched in sweat, and Corinne and Erina were gripping her arms.
Her hand was already halfway through drawing her sword, ready to swing.
“What is….”
Reina’s eyes twitched in shock.
She knew Ornica wasn’t in a good state.
But she never imagined she’d lose her senses and lash out like this.
“S-sorry! The captain has caused trouble…!”
“No, it’s fine. Step aside.”
“Pardon?”
“I know her well. It’s fine to let go.”
Reina approached Ornica.
“Ornica.”
“…….”
“It seems we have… a lot to talk about.”
***
“I feel nervous.”
“Do you?”
“It’s normal, isn’t it?”
“Fascinating. I didn’t think someone like Lan would ever feel nervous.”
Elma teased playfully.
“So, you even joke now. You’ve grown as a senior.”
I stretched lightly.
“Shh~!”
Black Lotus slithered up my arm to my shoulder.
“You ready too?”
“Shh-shh!”
“Feeling confident, huh?”
Its black tail swayed rhythmically.
If Black Lotus were a rattlesnake, the beat would have been quite lively.
‘…Enough with pointless thoughts.’
I sharpened my senses and surveyed the dense forest.
This was the second floor of the Ten-Thousand Demon War.
It was located below where the entrance exam took place, chosen as the venue for this competition.
“Just one floor apart, yet the top is a massive cave, and below is this forest.”
Its strangeness defied description.
Even the blue sky and the blazing sunlight were merely magical phenomena of the dungeon.
‘If someone gets lost here, there’s no saving them.’
Just as I grumbled internally—
[The Relic Capture event will begin soon!]
[Participants, please finalize your preparations!]
The announcement for the event echoed loudly.
“Lan.”
“Yes, let’s go.”
I loosened my fingers one last time and grinned.
“To win it all.”
The high-stakes competition began.
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