Chapter 8

R̀ｅaｄ on K̃&a;tŔｅa​&d;i&n;ǵCaſе

After completely incinerating Baldric’s body, Lucy dismissed Amon and Death Mount and returned to the village.

The villagers had gathered at the entrance of the inn.

“Who could’ve done such a horrific thing…”

“All their heads are gone… This couldn’t have been done by a human….”

The villagers whispered among themselves as they peered inside the inn.

“Ugh!”

Some villagers couldn’t hold back and vomited.

The inside of the inn was that gruesome.

The walls and floor were stained with blood, and the soldiers’ bodies were scattered everywhere, all missing their heads.

Overturned tables, pieces of flesh scattered about—it was a horrifying scene, as if a demon had swept through.

“…Hailey, wake up.”

A woman lay unconscious at the entrance of the inn.

It was Hailey, the innkeeper’s daughter.

Hailey, who had been preparing to serve Baldric and the soldiers that night, had finished bathing and returned to the inn, only to be the first to witness the horrific scene.

She screamed and fainted, and her scream brought the villagers rushing to the inn.

“…What on earth happened here?”

By the time the villagers arrived, the inn was already in this state.

All the soldiers had been brutally killed.

Knight Baldric’s body was nowhere to be seen. Only his sword lay abandoned on the floor.

“Could it have been a monster attack?”

“If it wasn’t a monster, there’s no way to explain this.”

“But where is the monster now…?”

The villagers looked terrified.

If the monster that had done this was still in the village, it would be a disaster.

There was no way the villagers could handle a monster that had done this to twenty soldiers.

“First, we need to search the village… Ah, Lucy!”

Someone noticed Lucy.

Lucy was standing among the adults, silently staring into the inn.

“Lucy, you shouldn’t be here!”

Only adults were gathered at the inn right now.

The children had been told to stay home because it was dangerous.

But Lucy had slipped in among the adults without anyone noticing.

“…Don’t look, Lucy.”

Jaden, Sam’s father and the village blacksmith, picked Lucy up in his arms.

He carried her away from the inn and set her down, saying,

“Lucy, you know where the village chief’s house is, right? Your grandfather is there. Go stay by his side.”

Lucy nodded.

She had already planned to do that.

She had only looked inside the inn because the villagers were there, but she wasn’t particularly interested. The situation was already over, after all.

“Good girl.”

Jaden patted Lucy’s head and headed back to the inn.

Lucy also turned to go to the village chief’s house.

Just then, someone grabbed her shoulder.

“…Lucy.”

Lucy turned her head. Mitchell was looking at her with a serious expression.

“Can you explain this to me…?”

◈

The villagers searched every corner of the village, but there was no sign of the monster.

Fortunately, it seemed to have left.

Finally feeling a bit relieved, the villagers decided to clean up the inn.

They began moving the soldiers’ bodies to an open area outside the village.

Leaving the bodies in the village risked the children seeing them, and the decaying corpses could spread disease.

As they moved the bodies, one villager asked the village chief,

“Should we inform the lord about this?”

“…We should. The soldiers who came under the lord’s orders to subjugate the bandits have been killed.”

“What happened to the knight? His body wasn’t found.”

“Maybe the monster took him. There’s no way the knight would’ve run away, leaving his sword behind.”

“Either way, it’s a relief for us. The bandits and the monster are scary, but the knight and his soldiers were no better.”

“True. Thanks to the monster, Haileyis safe.”

“Honestly, we should be grateful to the monster. Right, Mitchell?”

A villager asked Mitchell.

Mitchell, who had been silently moving the bodies, nodded.

“…Yeah. I’m really glad Hailey is safe.”

As he said this, Mitchell thought to himself.

‘The one we should really be grateful to isn’t the monster, but Lucy…’

Earlier, Mitchell had gotten an explanation from Lucy.

Lucy had readily admitted that she was the one who killed the knight and the soldiers.

She said she had killed one herself and summoned a demon to kill the rest.

Her calm expression made it clear she had no intention of hiding it.

Still, Mitchell decided to keep the fact that Lucy had killed the knight and soldiers a secret.

Even if he told the truth, they might not believe him, and if it became known that she had summoned a demon, Lucy could be in danger.

Summoning a demon meant that Lucy was a witch.

‘Lucy is a witch…’

When Mitchell had been bound by Lucy earlier, he had heard the soldiers’ screams from inside the inn.

Terrified, agonized screams.

He didn’t know what was happening, but it was clearly something unimaginably horrific.

Hearing the soldiers’ screams, Mitchell had trembled.

Then, the back door of the inn burst open, and someone came running out in a panic.

It was Knight Baldric.

Baldric, his face filled with terror, began running toward the outskirts of the village.

Seeing that scene shocked Mitchell even more.

What kind of existence was a knight?

They were symbols of bravery and honor, heroes of the battlefield who feared no death.

What could’ve driven such a knight to terror?

The answer came quickly.

A horse burst out of the inn’s back door and began chasing Baldric.

It wasn’t an ordinary horse.

It was a massive horse made entirely of bones, with glowing blue eyes.

On its back was Lucy.

Lucy on the horse disappeared in the direction Baldric had fled, and a while later, she returned to the village on foot.

Her face was calm, as if nothing had happened.

‘…We have to keep this a secret.’

Mitchell resolved.

He could never reveal that Lucy was a witch.

If it became known that Lucy was a witch, she would become a target for extermination.

Just as it had happened in the distant past.

Mitchell didn’t want Lucy to be in danger.

Thanks to Lucy, Hailey was safe, and even if she was a witch, to Mitchell, Lucy was still one of the village’s adorable children.

So he had to hide it.

He would bury this secret deep in his heart and treat Lucy as he always had.

That way, Lucy would be safe, and she could continue living peacefully in the village.

◈

Her grandfather’s condition was worse than expected.

He had been severely beaten by the soldiers and was barely conscious.

Lucy nursed her grandfather at the village chief’s house.

She wiped away the blood from his wounds, changed his bandages, and monitored his condition.

Lucy wasn’t the only one taking care of her grandfather. Hailey and Mitchell also helped nurse him.

“…I’m sorry, Lucy.”

Hailey apologized to Lucy.

“It’s because of me… Your grandfather got hurt trying to save me. It’s my fault…”

Lucy slowly shook her head.

This wasn’t Hailey’s fault.

If anyone was at fault, it was the soldier who had tried to assault Hailey and then beat her grandfather.

Hailey and her grandfather were just caught up in it.

Mitchell, standing nearby, spoke quietly.

“…That soldier ended up dying horribly at the hands of the monster, so he definitely got what he deserved.”

As he said this, he glanced at Lucy.

He was curious how Lucy would react to the mention of the monster.

Lucy simply stared quietly at her grandfather. Her expression gave no hint of what she was thinking.

Though Mitchell couldn’t tell, Lucy was feeling regretful.

Necromancers didn’t have healing skills.

If she had healing skills, she could’ve healed his wounds…

◈

Her grandfather regained consciousness after dawn.

When her grandfather opened his eyes, Lucy was curled up beside him, fast asleep.

“…Lucy.”

At her grandfather’s voice, Lucy opened her eyes.

“You stayed up all night taking care of me…”

Her grandfather smiled warmly and stroked Lucy’s cheek.

Lucy felt awkward again, but she didn’t pull away from his touch.

“…Let’s go home. Staying here might just be a bother…”

Her grandfather sat up.

His wounds hadn’t fully healed, but he seemed well enough to return home.

When they returned home, her grandfather tried to cook the mushroom dish he hadn’t been able to make the day before.

But his condition still didn’t look good. He was sweating profusely and struggling to keep his balance.

Still, he was determined to cook for Lucy.

“I’ll do it.”

Lucy approached her grandfather and said.

“You should rest, Grandfather.”

“…Lucy, you’re going to cook?”

Her grandfather looked at her with a doubtful expression.

Of course, it was natural to think that a ten-year-old couldn’t possibly cook.

But Lucy ignored his skepticism and headed to the kitchen.

She checked the mushrooms and prepared the seasonings.

In the kitchen, there were not only salt and pepper but also some unusual seasonings she had never seen before.

She could make something work with these. After all, cooking was all about effort.

“Hehe… Lucy, you’re cooking? You’ve grown up so fast.”

Her grandfather watched Lucy cook with a proud expression.

“…It’s done.”

After a while, Lucy finished cooking.

The dish looked decent.

The mushrooms were slightly burnt, and the seasoning was a bit heavy, but it was a dish Lucy had put her heart into.

“Try it.”

“Alright, let’s see….”

Her grandfather carefully picked up a piece of mushroom and put it in his mouth.

Lucy watched him nervously.

“Hmm….”

Her grandfather’s expression didn’t look too good.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
She did say he is a good man…