episode_0067

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The peaceful garden was stained with blood.

The guests who had disappeared into the darkness somehow found the exit and escaped the palace basement.

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The terrified guests hurried out of the palace, escorted by knights of the order.

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The knights who were not assigned to escort gathered in the palace gardens to face the masked horde and the imperial followers.

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The scene of struggle between the religious order and the imperial soldiers was filled with blood and noise. There was no compromise. The two forces were each other’s targets of elimination.

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Only murder.

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It was a scene filled with murderous intent.

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“Get out of the way.”

“That can’t be.”

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Count Dahlia… no, the Imperial Guardian Knight Quadras growled softly.

The master of the holy sword had entered the barrier. Although he had not disobeyed the order since the princess had told him to bring him, Quadras could not hide his uneasy feeling.

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“You insignificant fanatic, don’t you value your life?”

“Fanaticism? That’s not something a henchman of the royal family should say.”

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Nathan, who was blocking Quadras’s path, turned his back on the barrier and spoke.

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“You serve the light, so you doubt nothing and judge nothing.”

“On the subject of a power whose very existence is made up of control.”

“…Don’t slander our will.”

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Instead of answering, Nathan swung his sword.

No further conversation could be established between the two.

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‘He’s strong. As expected from the youngest captain!’

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Nathan was considered the last bastion of the Holy Knights and was considered to be the strongest commander in history.

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But Quadras had no time to indulge in sentimentality.

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The anxiety of sending the Holy Sword to the princess without disabling its owner and the relentless onslaught of Nathan’s attacks prevented the Guardian Knight from being distracted.

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electrical energy.

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It was the first time in a long time that a strong person had been seen since the rebellion.

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Quadras was drawing out powers he had long hidden.

The true power that could not be unleashed until the princess awakened and the royal family returned.

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Instead of blue mana, his sword is filled with pitch-black darkness.

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It was the power that the royal family bestowed upon their subjects.

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“!”

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Nathan noticed the change in his opponent.

By using darkness instead of mana, the pressure and speed transmitted through the tip of the sword also became much stronger.

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Nathan, who received that power, was surprised, but he did not panic and responded calmly. He took advantage of the gap with defensive movements rather than hasty attacks.

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It was an exploratory battle.

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I recalled the stories I had heard about the Guardian Knights from my seniors in the Order before Nathan came into action. Stories about their fearsome swords.

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Recall your memories and understand the person in front of you.

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Opportunity… Look for the opportunity.

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Kang-!

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The sound of swords clashing echoes.

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As Nathan turned his back to the barrier and blocked the Guardian Knights, the Knights of the Order attempted to enter the barrier. They were rushing to kill the royal family members inside the barrier.

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“Where dare you-!!”

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Quadras shouted.

Sword energy poured out from the tip of his sword.

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It wasn’t the color of black magic that we know of by common sense.

It was a black sword, completely black, like his sword.

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Swoosh-

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A terrible darkness fell upon the knights.

The knights each screamed and disappeared into the darkness.

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Not even a drop of blood was spilled.

He died in the darkness, as if evaporating.

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visor-

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A surprised Nathan belatedly blocked the next attack.

However, I couldn’t push them forward. There were people who were distracting me from my vision and preventing me from focusing on the opponent in front of me.

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Tadak Tadak – Taking advantage of the confusion, the royal followers tried to enter the barrier.

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This time, the situation unfolded in the opposite direction from before.

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The imperial reinforcements were trying to threaten the descendants of the hero and the owner of the holy sword within the barrier. Nathan could not send them away. He clicked his tongue and released the power of the sword.

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Holy relic.

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Nathan’s sword, which he had lent to Carl Maynor and returned, flashed. Seeing this, Quadras tensed and prepared to counter the next attack. But-

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“Eww!”

“Kkaaaah!”

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A scream was heard from afar. Here and there, the royal followers fell, bleeding. Quadras hurriedly turned his eyes to see Nathan moving a long distance, flashing.

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“Everyone, don’t move hastily-!!”

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Quadras shouted at his followers, but they were already a rabble. They were helpless against Nathan’s lightning-quick movements, and were either killed or fatally wounded.

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“Fuck.”

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Before the situation could be resolved, Quadras approached Nathan, cutting down the knights of the surrounding sect.

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In this chaos, only two people were free.

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They were slaughtering each other’s opposing factions, mercilessly blocking those who tried to enter the barrier.

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Thanks to this, a precarious balance was created.

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No one, no one could enter the barrier.

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The royal followers were blocked by the cult’s leader, Nathan, and the cult’s knights could not penetrate the royal guardian, Quadras.

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The two of them, like gatekeepers, showed their determination not to let anyone into the barrier with their actions. Their determination included each other.

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I tried to enter the barrier before my opponent, but I didn’t have the luxury of showing him an opening.

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Because the exploration wasn’t over yet.

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The palace garden was thus dyed in blood.

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*

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“Ugh.”

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The sword groaned.

I struggled to get back up, dusting off my clothes. I couldn’t even count how many times I had fallen and rolled.

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“I haven’t even started. Don’t joke around.”

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The unknown was approaching the sword that was struggling.

The heavy armor clanked with each step.

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Is it impossible without the Holy Sword?

Carl thought to himself. Somehow, the Holy Sword-!

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… .

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The sword soon shook its head.

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You can’t rely on the Holy Sword forever. You can’t be called a true master of the Holy Sword without the skills to handle it. It’s only now. Your opponent isn’t perfect either.

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‘That guy isn’t as strong as the original.’

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As he thought, the power of the unknown was not as omnipotent as it was in the original. So, if not now, there was no chance. Before the unknown became stronger, before it became the horrific villain of the original… he wanted to gain as much experience as possible.

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It was an irrational thought.

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Rather, since the opponent was weak, it would have been more reasonable to use the power of the Holy Sword to destroy him… but I didn’t want to do that.

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He’s clearly the enemy, the worst villain, and the enemy who even stole the heroine… I had a strange feeling that I didn’t want to end it in vain.

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Too early an appearance, a development that is different from the original, a strange sense of foreboding, Unknown’s behavior of not killing Carl in the magic potion lecture hall, etc…

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The instinct of the sword, an unknown sense, was whispering.

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He advises us to confront the unknown, but not to do anything we will regret, because there are still many things we do not know, and not to make hasty decisions.

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‘There may be a mastermind who is not unknown.’

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Isn’t this a common cliché in ice water?

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If the original villain appears earlier than planned, it is worth being suspicious. A new story unfolds due to possession, and a new dark side appears that is not a known enemy.

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So, not now.

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You can’t get rid of the unknown yet. You have to become stronger through the unknown. The best way is to grow stronger by fighting against it.

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To prepare for any new threats that may arise.

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“!”

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As I was absorbed in the sentiment, I felt a strong heat.

A huge fireball appeared above the head of the unknown who was walking slowly.

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Carl soon considered withdrawing his decision. He quickly turned his eyes to where the Holy Sword had flown.

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I felt a tremendous power.

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Black, that kind of power without magic. Even with just pure mana, Unknown was already a powerful magician. It was a great spell that you would only see at a magic demonstration by elite magicians of the Magic Tower.

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“Without the Holy Sword, is this all you can do?”

“……”

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It was not easy to respond to Unknown’s provocation.

The mouth of the relentless sword fell silent.

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…because it’s true.

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The sword could not be denied, but it did not flinch.

Somehow… I was struggling to find a breakthrough.

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“You rushed in so recklessly? You wanted to save that woman that much!?”

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What was felt beyond the unknown’s distorted voice was anger.

It wasn’t anger filled with contempt and hatred. It felt like something complex and subtle.

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“Is that woman so precious that you would risk your life for her-!!?”

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Whoosh-!

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Before I could finish speaking, Unknown gestured.

With a gesture, a huge fireball poured down towards the sword.

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“Stop!”

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An urgent voice was heard.

It was a pretty voice. Chloe’s voice shouting.

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But before the voice could reach him, the unknown’s magic attempted to cover the sword.

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bang-!!

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There was an explosion.

Unknown did not turn his eyes away from the scene of the explosion. As if it was not over yet… .

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For a moment, a tingling sensation came over me.

The fluff stood out inside the armor.

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“Ha!”

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A sword emerged from the thick smoke.

He was now holding two swords in his hands. They were the swords that Chloe had dropped… no, that she had let go of.

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I was amazed at how he managed to find Chloe’s sword and how it looked when he picked it up.

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And… seeing Chloe holding her sword instead of someone else’s made Unknown feel even more uncomfortable.

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There was no time to think about it being uncomfortable. The attacks from the twin swords were sharp. It was on a completely different level from when you were fighting a single sword.

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Skill level.

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There are different levels of skill in handling weapons.

He freely wielded the swords in both hands and unleashed unpredictable attacks with the trajectories of the swords being completely unpredictable.

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Each trajectory was improvised, but it was a series of fatal swings that could not be taken lightly.

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Dismissal-

Phagejik-

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In response to his attacks, he deploys only the optimal shield that destroys the mana surrounding the sword.

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The sound of the shield and sword colliding was heard repeatedly.

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‘…This will definitely make close combat unfavorable.’

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Unknown… Beatrice figured out the situation in an instant.

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Kang-

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I had to get out of the street, out of the area.

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A small shockwave was prepared behind the shield.

First, he blocked the sword’s attack once, then sent out the shock wave he had prepared. The sword swayed slightly at the sudden counterattack.

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Beatrice didn’t miss that moment and used her body, which was covered in all kinds of strengthening magic, to create distance.

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For a brief moment, the sword crossed and the sword energy was sent flying towards the enemy who had moved away.

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‘I knew it.’

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The habit still remained.

Beatrice felt that the swordsmanship of the sword had greatly improved, but the big patterns… the habits had not changed.

That is, unconsciously firing a sword energy towards an opponent from a distance.

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Beatrice concentrated her mind. A black aura rose around her.

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Magi.

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The power of the royal family gathers.

Now that the Holy Sword, which is its weakness, is gone, it appears as the embodiment of absolute irrationality.

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Goooowoong-

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The sword’s aura just disappeared into thin air.

He stood still, bewildered.

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I thought he had no intention of harming me since he only used pure magic to deal with me. I thought he was intentionally not using magic to draw me to his side.

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Carl didn’t want to miss that advantage. For some reason, Unknown seemed more interested in talking to Carl than fighting him… .

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It was a mistake.

A lively magic was spreading around Unknown. The atmosphere changed in an instant. The blue-green light shining inside the helmet became even more intense.

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“…Isn’t that foul play?”

“When did I ever say I would only deal with magic?”

“No… Damn it.”

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Carl gave a hollow smile.

Frankly, it was hopeless. With his current level of skill, he didn’t have the confidence to face the terrible power of the royal family without the holy sword.

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“One eye.”

“What?”

“No. I’ll just take one arm.”

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Unknown said the eerie words without any hesitation.

Unlike the original, I overlooked the unknown I encountered after being possessed because it felt somehow familiar.

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“I’m going to tear off one arm. I’m okay with that.”

“……”

“If you become a one-armed knight, it won’t be so threatening. And-”

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‘Won’t the other years fall apart too?’ was the thought Beatrice kept to herself. It was Beatrice’s true feelings hidden inside her helmet.

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Carl just stared blankly at the unknown floating in the air.

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I can feel the overwhelming difference in power.

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I now realize how reckless it is to confront the royal family without the Holy Sword.

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Although he didn’t show it, he was already very tired from fighting the Guardians outside. But when it got to this point, he lost all his strength. He was in a state of despair.

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Kwak-

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But I can’t give up.

Because that’s the main character’s life. Because he decided to live a different life after being possessed.

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I will never, ever live a life of giving up again.

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I vowed never to show my pathetic appearance, as if I was still weak before the magic potion lecture. I would rather die than do that… I came here with that thought.

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Carl re-read his sword and took up a fighting stance again.

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Beatrice’s face showed a mixture of bewilderment, shock, and anger as she saw the sight. However, it was only hidden by the helmet…

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Instead, a look of resentment poured into Carl’s face.

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“Why, why are you so reckless… You know you can’t win, right?”

“Well, I guess I’ll have to try it though.”

“……”

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I hate you.

Beatrice muttered quietly.

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I really hated it.

The more she was hated, the sharper the magical spear she created became.

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This time, a truly dangerous amount of magic had gathered. She didn’t seem to have any intention of showing mercy.

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Gulp-

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Carl swallowed dry saliva.

He was trembling but didn’t show it and prepared to face the dark window.

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“Stop-”

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Then again a beautiful voice was heard.

But it wasn’t as loud as before.

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Flash-

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It was a split second.

There was a flash of light and Chloe appeared between Beatrice and Karl.

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“!?”

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The bright energy blooming from Chloe’s body enveloped the black spear made by Beatrice. It was just like the light of the holy sword. The energy and color were all different, but like the light of the holy sword, it purified the magic.

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“Both of you, stop. Stop fighting… .”

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Whisper in a quiet voice.

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“Please.”

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A heroine who shines like a star.

The descendants of the warriors who received the protection of the stars have appeared.

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