“Krrungg…!”
Thump!
The beast slammed its front paws down on the floor and a stack of wooden boxes tumbled towards Asta with a thunderous crash.
“Ouch!”
Asta changed direction and ran to the other side in panic. There was a door on that side.
But Asta soon found herself in despair, “W-Why won’t it open!”
No matter how hard she pushed, the door refused to open. Asta turned around in frustration when she heard something crack and shatter.
“!”
The beast was tearing apart the unconscious priests. The sight was so horrifying that Brantley and I froze in terror.
“Krrung…”
The beast, or rather, the monster, looked at Asta lazily with a bloodied face. Then, it approached Asta gradually.
Slow and deliberate. Its tail wagged menacingly. Like a predator playing with its hunt.
“N-No! Open! Please let it open!” Asta tugged frantically at the door knob.
With a clang, something rolled towards her. Asta looked at the source of the sound and opened her mouth in disbelief.
‘It was the goblet she had stolen from the temple!’
The goblet rolled across the floor, then suddenly stood upright. It moved erratically as if someone had set it up on purpose.
But even more shocking was the fact that the blue light emanating from the goblet was the same blue color as the monster’s.
“You- You can’t be…!”
The monster opened its mouth wide and leaned back, almost mocking her.
“Did Prache send it?” Asta was thinking the same thing as me.
“Prache! Listen up! Are you going to abandon me? You can’t do this to me!” Asta shouted in frustration.
Just then-
“I can’t die of injustice… kyaa!”
The monster lunged and swiftly sank its teeth into Asta’s neck. It happened in an instant. Brantley and I held onto each other tightly. But Asta’s screams continued to pierce our ears.
Asta howled in agony, “P-please spare me! Aaah! It hurts, it hurts too much… I’m sorry, forgive me… Aaargh!”
Thud!
The monster slammed Asta with its hind legs.
“Ugh!”
But Asta was already beyond my reach. Still, her blood ran down to where I was.
“I- I don’t want to die… I’m scared…,” Asta groaned in anticipation of her death.
There was no beloved saint, no cruel villain, just emptiness.
“If I had known… I wouldn’t have lived like that… I should have forgotten everything, just like that child… ahh.”
Asta was only left with regret.
But that was all to it. With her eyes wide open, Asta breathed her last in agonizing pain.
I couldn’t help but shiver, ‘Asta… she’s dead. The creature from the goblet killed her.’
‘Why did such a creature leap out of the goblet? Did Prache send it? If so, why resort to such measures?’
I tugged at the chains around my neck.
‘If only I could use my divinity or magic.’
There was no surefire method to prevent the monster from attacking us. Brantley wouldn’t be able to handle it alone.
Then my eyes caught sight of a lid lying near the goblet.
‘It was the one Asta used to cover the goblet from receiving oracles!’
I cautiously reached for the lid. At the same time, the monster turned to me.
“Krng…!”
Thud, thud, thud!
The creature wasted no time in rushing towards us.
I gritted my teeth, jumped out, and grabbed the cover.
I grabbed the lid tightly and lunged forward. Brantley had no chance to intervene.
I slammed the lid shut before the creature’s sharp claws could reach me and the creature disappeared in a puff of smoke.
I finally let out a sigh I had been holding in.
“Hanelope!”
Brantley ran to me and pulled me into a hug.
“That was dangerous! Why did you do that?”
“I couldn’t stay still. After Asta, it would have been us.”
“I would have protected you! So don’t do anything dangerous.”
“I wanted to save you, Brantley. Next time, you save me.”
Brantley looked moved, then said sternly, “Thank you, Hanelope. Still, don’t do anything dangerous again. I’d rather die than not be able to see you.”
It was a frightening thing for a boy of his age to say. But Brantley looked so determined that I could only nod.
“Now let’s get out of here. They must be waiting for us outside,” Brantley said.
We crossed the bloody, swaying cabins to escape this horrible ship. I tried not to look at the bodies of Asta and the priests.
But the exit we finally reached was tightly sealed. A barrier was made of the same pale flames. Shouldn’t it have disappeared with the monster?
‘What if there wasn’t just one monster sent by Prache?’
I had an uneasy premonition. Fear also appeared on Brantley’s face.
“Brantley, let’s look for another way out.”
“But the cabin is too small, even for a window…”
“There’s a door.”
“You mean the door Asta couldn’t open?”
“Yes. Let us try again.”
I squeezed Brantley’s hand, trying to reassure him. But the truth was, I was scared too.
“What if… Asta couldn’t open it because there’s some high-level magic on it?”
I pushed the door, but the door didn’t budge.
“It isn’t enchanted either. So what was the problem?” Brantley muttered.
I frowned at the sudden thought.
I cautiously pulled the door and it opened without a hitch.
Both Brantley and I were rendered speechless.
“You were supposed to pull it….”
“Not push…”
I can’t believe the door opened just like that. But it was a relief for us. The door leading to the room had a window.
‘Now all we have to do is escape.’
But that was easier said than done unless we could avoid the thing letting out growls.
“Grrr…”
“!”
We stiffened as we saw the ferocious monster.
“How can it be here? I surely covered the goblet with the lid.”
This wasn’t the monster from earlier. There wasn’t a single drop of blood on it.
“Then this is another monster.”
My uneasy feeling became a reality. The beast seemed to read my mind as it lifted the corners of its mouth.
It opened its huge mouth and tried to attack me. That’s when Brantley shoved me into the room, “Hide!”
He slammed the door shut.
“Brantley!”
I tried to open the door again, but it wouldn’t open because Brantley was blocking it.
All I could hear was the beast’s roar and the sound of something breaking.
“No! Brantley can’t defeat it alone. It’s a monster from the Goblet of Oracles, strong enough to defeat Asta!”
It was evident Prache was the one who sent it.
‘I’m the one he’s after.’
But if I go out now, I won’t be good even as bait. Unable to use magic, I was a burden to Brantley.
‘Unless I could break the chain around my neck.’
I focused all my strength on the chain.
A little bit of mana responded, then shattered again.
“It seems impossible… Even if I try my hardest…”
Bang!
Just as I was about to give up, I heard a loud thud outside.
A groan followed.
“Ugh…”
It was Brantley’s voice.
I lost my senses, “Brantley, no!”
Please don’t get hurt!
Amid my irrationality, I gathered a power that surpassed limits. Suddenly, the seal exploded, and the chains were broken.
I ran and the first thing I saw was an unconscious Brantley.
Fortunately, there was no blood.
‘I think he was knocked down by the force.’
“Kruungg….”
The creature that had been circling Brantley shifted his gaze at me.
My fingers stiffened and I gritted my teeth and glared at the creature, “Come over here. I’ll play with you.”
The monster sneered and walked over, leaving Brantley alone.
‘So I was the target after all.’
I tried to muster the power that was flowing through me. But it wasn’t easy. I couldn’t tell if it was demonic or divine, with all the trapped power pouring out at once. It was more than I could handle.
The monster chewed the words sinisterly, “A little rat from the Koch clan. Still alive, I see.”
The voice was oddly familiar. It was the same voice that ordered me to kill me at the temple.
I was so startled that my whole body felt weak. The strength I had barely gathered spilled over like a collapsed dam.
The monster crinkled its face, sensing the power inside me.
“You touched the sealing stone, attempting to break the seal with the tricks of the Koch clan. To dare to interfere in my wishes!”
Did she misunderstand something?
‘Seals? Does he mean Uncle Rabbit and Miss Butterfly?’
I would love to break their seals, but I didn’t steal anything.
But I couldn’t clear up the misunderstanding, for the monster shouted, “As if that weren’t enough, you’ve dabbled in the power of the gods! In this world, only I am deserving to wield such power!”
“Power?”
A chilling realization flashed through my mind.
This monster was no mere minion of the gods.
– The voice that whispered to eliminate me from the underground of the temple.
– The one who ordered Asta to kill me.
– The being that didn’t hesitate to attack others to monopolize power.
“Prache?”
I called his name without realizing it.
Instead of an answer, an overwhelming power of enmity emanated from him.
The nearby walls and pillars turned to dust in an instant.
I hastily gathered my mana. I was thrown off, but it was enough to keep me alive.
The problem was Brantley. His unconscious body was defenseless against the destructive force.
The stack of crates in front of him crumbled to dust without a sound. Next would be Brantley.
‘I must protect Brantley!’
But I couldn’t defend both of us with my powers.
“One person has to be sacrificed.”
There was no need to hesitate.
I tightly closed my eyes.
Then, I secretly channeled the power that was defending me into Brantley.
“Ugh!”
Immediately, I felt a crushing pain through my body.
“Foolish thing. Trying to sacrifice yourself. Useless!”
Prache’s sneer washed over my collapsing body.
In my fading vision, I saw Brantley.
He was sleeping like a baby within the shield I sent him.
Prache was so focused on my dying body that he paid no attention to Brantley behind his back.
‘Now is the time..’
I stealthily removed a portion of the power protecting Brantley and attacked Prache from behind.
“Krrungg…!”
Thump!
The beast slammed its front paws down on the floor and a stack of wooden boxes tumbled towards Asta with a thunderous crash.
“Ouch!”
Asta changed direction and ran to the other side in panic. There was a door on that side.
But Asta soon found herself in despair, “W-Why won’t it open!”
No matter how hard she pushed, the door refused to open. Asta turned around in frustration when she heard something crack and shatter.
“!”
The beast was tearing apart the unconscious priests. The sight was so horrifying that Brantley and I froze in terror.
“Krrung…”
The beast, or rather, the monster, looked at Asta lazily with a bloodied face. Then, it approached Asta gradually.
Slow and deliberate. Its tail wagged menacingly. Like a predator playing with its hunt.
“N-No! Open! Please let it open!” Asta tugged frantically at the door knob.
With a clang, something rolled towards her. Asta looked at the source of the sound and opened her mouth in disbelief.
‘It was the goblet she had stolen from the temple!’
The goblet rolled across the floor, then suddenly stood upright. It moved erratically as if someone had set it up on purpose.
But even more shocking was the fact that the blue light emanating from the goblet was the same blue color as the monster’s.
“You- You can’t be…!”
The monster opened its mouth wide and leaned back, almost mocking her.
“Did Prache send it?” Asta was thinking the same thing as me.
“Prache! Listen up! Are you going to abandon me? You can’t do this to me!” Asta shouted in frustration.
Just then-
“I can’t die of injustice… kyaa!”
The monster lunged and swiftly sank its teeth into Asta’s neck. It happened in an instant. Brantley and I held onto each other tightly. But Asta’s screams continued to pierce our ears.
Asta howled in agony, “P-please spare me! Aaah! It hurts, it hurts too much… I’m sorry, forgive me… Aaargh!”
Thud!
The monster slammed Asta with its hind legs.
“Ugh!”
But Asta was already beyond my reach. Still, her blood ran down to where I was.
“I- I don’t want to die… I’m scared…,” Asta groaned in anticipation of her death.
There was no beloved saint, no cruel villain, just emptiness.
“If I had known… I wouldn’t have lived like that… I should have forgotten everything, just like that child… ahh.”
Asta was only left with regret.
But that was all to it. With her eyes wide open, Asta breathed her last in agonizing pain.
I couldn’t help but shiver, ‘Asta… she’s dead. The creature from the goblet killed her.’
‘Why did such a creature leap out of the goblet? Did Prache send it? If so, why resort to such measures?’
I tugged at the chains around my neck.
‘If only I could use my divinity or magic.’
There was no surefire method to prevent the monster from attacking us. Brantley wouldn’t be able to handle it alone.
Then my eyes caught sight of a lid lying near the goblet.
‘It was the one Asta used to cover the goblet from receiving oracles!’
I cautiously reached for the lid. At the same time, the monster turned to me.
“Krng…!”
Thud, thud, thud!
The creature wasted no time in rushing towards us.
I gritted my teeth, jumped out, and grabbed the cover.
I grabbed the lid tightly and lunged forward. Brantley had no chance to intervene.
I slammed the lid shut before the creature’s sharp claws could reach me and the creature disappeared in a puff of smoke.
I finally let out a sigh I had been holding in.
“Hanelope!”
Brantley ran to me and pulled me into a hug.
“That was dangerous! Why did you do that?”
“I couldn’t stay still. After Asta, it would have been us.”
“I would have protected you! So don’t do anything dangerous.”
“I wanted to save you, Brantley. Next time, you save me.”
Brantley looked moved, then said sternly, “Thank you, Hanelope. Still, don’t do anything dangerous again. I’d rather die than not be able to see you.”
It was a frightening thing for a boy of his age to say. But Brantley looked so determined that I could only nod.
“Now let’s get out of here. They must be waiting for us outside,” Brantley said.
We crossed the bloody, swaying cabins to escape this horrible ship. I tried not to look at the bodies of Asta and the priests.
But the exit we finally reached was tightly sealed. A barrier was made of the same pale flames. Shouldn’t it have disappeared with the monster?
‘What if there wasn’t just one monster sent by Prache?’
I had an uneasy premonition. Fear also appeared on Brantley’s face.
“Brantley, let’s look for another way out.”
“But the cabin is too small, even for a window…”
“There’s a door.”
“You mean the door Asta couldn’t open?”
“Yes. Let us try again.”
I squeezed Brantley’s hand, trying to reassure him. But the truth was, I was scared too.
“What if… Asta couldn’t open it because there’s some high-level magic on it?”
I pushed the door, but the door didn’t budge.
“It isn’t enchanted either. So what was the problem?” Brantley muttered.
I frowned at the sudden thought.
I cautiously pulled the door and it opened without a hitch.
Both Brantley and I were rendered speechless.
“You were supposed to pull it….”
“Not push…”
I can’t believe the door opened just like that. But it was a relief for us. The door leading to the room had a window.
‘Now all we have to do is escape.’
But that was easier said than done unless we could avoid the thing letting out growls.
“Grrr…”
“!”
We stiffened as we saw the ferocious monster.
“How can it be here? I surely covered the goblet with the lid.”
This wasn’t the monster from earlier. There wasn’t a single drop of blood on it.
“Then this is another monster.”
My uneasy feeling became a reality. The beast seemed to read my mind as it lifted the corners of its mouth.
It opened its huge mouth and tried to attack me. That’s when Brantley shoved me into the room, “Hide!”
He slammed the door shut.
“Brantley!”
I tried to open the door again, but it wouldn’t open because Brantley was blocking it.
All I could hear was the beast’s roar and the sound of something breaking.
“No! Brantley can’t defeat it alone. It’s a monster from the Goblet of Oracles, strong enough to defeat Asta!”
It was evident Prache was the one who sent it.
‘I’m the one he’s after.’
But if I go out now, I won’t be good even as bait. Unable to use magic, I was a burden to Brantley.
‘Unless I could break the chain around my neck.’
I focused all my strength on the chain.
A little bit of mana responded, then shattered again.
“It seems impossible… Even if I try my hardest…”
Bang!
Just as I was about to give up, I heard a loud thud outside.
A groan followed.
“Ugh…”
It was Brantley’s voice.
I lost my senses, “Brantley, no!”
Please don’t get hurt!
Amid my irrationality, I gathered a power that surpassed limits. Suddenly, the seal exploded, and the chains were broken.
I ran and the first thing I saw was an unconscious Brantley.
Fortunately, there was no blood.
‘I think he was knocked down by the force.’
“Kruungg….”
The creature that had been circling Brantley shifted his gaze at me.
My fingers stiffened and I gritted my teeth and glared at the creature, “Come over here. I’ll play with you.”
The monster sneered and walked over, leaving Brantley alone.
‘So I was the target after all.’
I tried to muster the power that was flowing through me. But it wasn’t easy. I couldn’t tell if it was demonic or divine, with all the trapped power pouring out at once. It was more than I could handle.
The monster chewed the words sinisterly, “A little rat from the Koch clan. Still alive, I see.”
The voice was oddly familiar. It was the same voice that ordered me to kill me at the temple.
I was so startled that my whole body felt weak. The strength I had barely gathered spilled over like a collapsed dam.
The monster crinkled its face, sensing the power inside me.
“You touched the sealing stone, attempting to break the seal with the tricks of the Koch clan. To dare to interfere in my wishes!”
Did she misunderstand something?
‘Seals? Does he mean Uncle Rabbit and Miss Butterfly?’
I would love to break their seals, but I didn’t steal anything.
But I couldn’t clear up the misunderstanding, for the monster shouted, “As if that weren’t enough, you’ve dabbled in the power of the gods! In this world, only I am deserving to wield such power!”
“Power?”
A chilling realization flashed through my mind.
This monster was no mere minion of the gods.
– The voice that whispered to eliminate me from the underground of the temple.
– The one who ordered Asta to kill me.
– The being that didn’t hesitate to attack others to monopolize power.
“Prache?”
I called his name without realizing it.
Instead of an answer, an overwhelming power of enmity emanated from him.
The nearby walls and pillars turned to dust in an instant.
I hastily gathered my mana. I was thrown off, but it was enough to keep me alive.
The problem was Brantley. His unconscious body was defenseless against the destructive force.
The stack of crates in front of him crumbled to dust without a sound. Next would be Brantley.
‘I must protect Brantley!’
But I couldn’t defend both of us with my powers.
“One person has to be sacrificed.”
There was no need to hesitate.
I tightly closed my eyes.
Then, I secretly channeled the power that was defending me into Brantley.
“Ugh!”
Immediately, I felt a crushing pain through my body.
“Foolish thing. Trying to sacrifice yourself. Useless!”
Prache’s sneer washed over my collapsing body.
In my fading vision, I saw Brantley.
He was sleeping like a baby within the shield I sent him.
Prache was so focused on my dying body that he paid no attention to Brantley behind his back.
‘Now is the time..’
I stealthily removed a portion of the power protecting Brantley and attacked Prache from behind.
