“If only you hadn’t been there.” If only she hadn’t been there, Rebecca wouldn’t have lost everything. “But it’s too late to turn back now.” Rebecca’s eyes gleamed with a sinister light. At first, there had been some regrets, when she witnessed the Demon Lord summoning the monsters to this land. For a moment, she was bewildered by the sight of the world seemingly coming to an end. She even questioned her decision. Was it really necessary to go this far? But soon, Rebecca dispelled those doubts. She had made the right choice. She was not wrong. Once the Duke and Duchess were dead, Rebecca would swear allegiance to the Demon Lord. If she became one of the Demon Lord’s right-hand, ruling both the human and demon realms, her life might even improve compared to before. Revenge. A life was more prosperous than ever before. Could there be a more perfect outcome than this?
“Are you sure?” the man asked again. “Yes, I’m sure,” Rebecca answered with enthusiasm. She had been eager to see it. To witness that woman’s cold, gruesome death. To see blood splattering before her eyes. “Is there a possibility that it might be someone who resembles her or is disguised as her?”
“No, there is no mistake. It’s undoubtedly her! I’m absolutely sure. So…”
‘———please kill her!’ But Rebecca couldn’t voice the rest of her thoughts. Before she could, the man’s claw pierced through her chest.
“What…?”
*THUMP*
A glob of blood came pouring out through the hole in her throat as she fell heavily to the floor. Staring at the bloodstain in a daze, Rebecca managed to wipe her lips stained with blood.
“Why?”
“Why, you ask? What an interesting question,” Trezef said, pulling his claw out of Rebecca’s body. “I thought you humans don’t spare even a dog after the hunt is over?” Rebecca’s body collapsed weakly, unable to maintain its strength. She was lying there, lifeless, unable to even open her eyes, and there was no answer from her. Trezef paid little attention to Rebecca’s body. He focused his gaze on Yelena as he moved forward.
“So, you are the descendant of the saint,” he said, his voice mixed with a strange combination of satisfaction and other emotions. “I wonder if the saint from a thousand years ago looked like you.”
“Step back, sir!” Yelena warned.
“Well, it doesn’t matter, but…” Trezef narrowed his eyes, and each time he opened his mouth, sharp beast-like fangs were revealed. “I must kill you for the great cause.”
“Sir!”
Trezef lunged forward, but three knights stood in his way.
“Kurgh!”
“Max!”
With a single clash of claws and swords, Max’s body flew and slammed into a wall far away. Then, Trezef’s descending claws were blocked simultaneously by Thomas and Colin’s swords.
“You, little——”
“You guys are resilient,” Trezef remarked, but the confrontation didn’t last long.
“Just a little bit,” Trezef’s claws suddenly emitted a red aura, and they effortlessly sliced through Thomas and Colin’s swords as if they were nothing. The sharp tips of his claws cut through both of them.
*SNAP*
Both of them fell to their knees. At the same time, a massive fireball descended upon Trezef. It was summoned by Aendydn, the spirit of fire. However, in that brief moment, Trezef spread his wings and shielded himself, emerging unscathed from the flames.
“Quite a trick you’ve got there,” he remarked.
“Kraah!”
In an instant, Trezef closed the distance between him and Aendydn and struck him with the broad side of his claws. Aendydn was pushed back, blood spurting out. Yelena stared blankly at the scene before her. All of a sudden, everything that had unfolded felt unreal, like a dream.
“I’m sorry for making you wait. Now it’s your turn,” Trezef approached Yelena with ease. Yelena, who had been stepping back, grabbed a relic in her hand and aimed it atTrezef.
“Don’t come any closer!” The crossbow’s tip was precisely aimed at Trezef’s forehead. He stopped walking. “Step back,” she warned.
“You said you’re a descendant of the saint, right? This is a powerful weapon that only those with sacred powers can use,” Trezef observed Elena closely. Her pale face, the white hand holding the crossbow – Trezef examined her with interest. His lips curled slightly as he said, “It’s not that you don’t want to use it. You can’t use it anymore.”
“Ack!” Trezef rushed forward and gestured lightly, causing Elena’s body to be flung far away. “Anyway, the descendants of the saint are remarkably stubborn, regardless of the era,” he commented.
“Ahh…!” Yelena fell and twisted her ankle in a strange direction, groaning in terrible pain. “As a reward for provoking me, I’ll make sure you die very slowly,” Trezef slowly approached Yelena. Helplessness filled Yelena’s eyes as she watched her approaching enemy. Despair weighed heavily on her entire being. Is it going to end like this? Like this? Without seeing the person she wanted to see?
“Kaywhin,” Elena recalled the face she longed for one last time. At that moment——
*THUMP*
Something big and black fell from the sky, blocking the space between Elena and Trezef. It was a new form of a monster. No. Not a monster. The person who descended from above was… “Yelena.” Hearing her husband’s voice, all the suppressed emotions burst forth, and Yelena’s cheeks were streaked with tears.
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