Chapter 92

“So, did you find out anything?”

She asked Eched as they returned to their original spot together.

“There’s a river near the World Tree and trees bearing fruit, that’s all.”

Such useless information.

As expected, raccoons seemed incapable of doing anything other than washing food before eating it.

“Still, it’s not like we’re completely out of options.”

Eched remained as confident as ever, just like last time.

Surely, his so-called method didn’t involve grabbing a raccoon by the nape and forcing it to guide them?

‘With Eched, that’s entirely possible.’

Eched was ruthless, after all.

While she was preemptively feeling pity for the raccoon that would suffer in the future, a sudden question came to mind.

“But even if the World Tree purifies all things corrupt, do you think it could purify dark sorcerers?”

There were records of diseases being cured by the World Tree, but that was the purification of ‘disease,’ not the purification of people themselves.

And dark sorcerers were humans who had become one with dark magic, corrupted beyond redemption.

Her question was answered by Eched with striking clarity.

“Dark sorcerers wouldn’t be purified; they’d be annihilated.”

“Annihilated…”

That made sense. Since dark sorcerers themselves were corrupt, touching the World Tree, which purifies corruption, would simply erase them.

It was then that she understood why Eched was so fixated on the World Tree despite the existence of other holy relics.

With the roots of the World Tree, it would be a perfect one-against-hundred scenario.

Eched’s resolute expression showed he had firmly made up his mind this time.

He was determined to completely eliminate the dark sorcerer.

That meant a battle would be inevitable in the process…

‘Why do I feel uneasy?’

She looked up at Eched’s profile.

Eched had fought and defeated dark sorcerers successfully until now.

So, this worry was entirely unnecessary.

‘But there’s always the possibility of “what if.”’

“Eched. Remember how I promised not to leave you and go off on my own?”

“You did.”

“Then the reverse applies too. Don’t even think about leaving me behind and going off on your own.

She had already envisioned a future with Eched.

So, he better not ruin her perfectly planned future.

Her warning, tinged with a hint of threat, made Eched laugh.

And it wasn’t just any laugh—it was one filled with genuine delight.

“I feel happy when you say things like that.”

“Oh, so you understand what it means to feel happy now?”

When she expressed her surprise, Eched grabbed her hand with his large one.

“Why does it make me happy?”

But it seemed he was still far from understanding the reason.

Eched’s curious eyes begged her to give him the answer.

“…Think about it carefully.”

Feeling too shy to explain it herself, she coyly urged him to figure it out on his own.

“Truly like newlyweds…”

Anella gazed at them with envy-filled eyes.

That was when the sound of clashing metal and hurried footsteps echoed.

Turning her head, she saw a soldier guarding the library entrance rushing toward them in a panic.

“P-Please…! Summon the Saintess…!”

The soldier gasped for breath as he spoke.

“The investigation team just returned… It’s an emergency! Deputy Commander Lutz is waiting outside!”

Without knowing the details, they were hurriedly ushered out of the library by the soldier.

As the soldier said, Lutz was standing in front of the library. Upon seeing them, Lutz urged them to hurry.

“My Lord, what’s going on?”

“Eleven members of the investigation team that headed to Kamil Village just arrived at the imperial palace.”

“Already? That’s earlier than expected.”

“Yes. They’re all injured.”

“What…?”

Their early return wasn’t something to celebrate.

“What about Pell…? Is Pell okay?”

Though Shaterian was curious about why the knights were injured, her first concern was Pell, whose combat ability was practically zero.

“…Sir Pell is safe.”

The slight hesitation before the response made her uneasy.

But she quickly understood the meaning behind that hesitation.

It was Pell himself, sitting in front of the treatment room where Eurell was being treated.

Pell was crouched in the hallway, clutching his head.

Though he was said to be unharmed, he was covered in blood for some reason.

“Pell?”

Shaterian approached Pell and called out to him.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

Pell’s face was streaked with tears. His tear-filled eyes seemed vacant.

“C-Chief… It’s all… all my fault. Because of me, Deputy Commander Eurell ended up like that…”

Pell continued to blame himself.

Not knowing the full story, she felt flustered.

She glanced at the treatment room.

Seeing Eurell drenched in blood, she immediately sensed the aura.

‘Dark magic…?’

Eurell writhed in agony as he received treatment from the holy power healer.

The wounds were deep, and since they were inflicted by dark magic, the healing process was clearly challenging.

Purifying dark magic required a battle of holy power and time.

“The Saintess is needed.”

“Yes.”

Without hesitation, Anella entered the treatment room and began treating Eurell.

Unlike the struggling healer, Anella unleashed her holy power without restraint.

“Pell. Now that Anella is inside, Eurell will be fine.”

She reassured Pell, patting his shoulder to calm him down.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

She asked again, inspecting Pell. Though he was covered in blood, it didn’t seem to be his own, which was a relief.

Then she noticed a scratch on Pell’s arm and grabbed it.

It was a wound she could heal herself.

Focusing her energy, she gathered holy power into her palm.

Soon, the scratch on Pell’s arm vanished without a trace.

That was when Eched, who had been silently watching, interjected.

“We need to hear what happened.”

Currently, all the knights except Pell were lying in hospital beds.

So, Pell was the only one who could recount what happened in Kamil Village.

“But I…”

Pell glanced nervously at the treatment room.

She comforted him.

“You can’t do anything here anyway.”

All they could do was hope Anella successfully treated Eurell.

They moved to a different spot.

Once seated, Pell let out a deep sigh.

“Now, tell us what happened.”

“Well… I stabbed Deputy Commander Eurell… It’s all my fault.”

What?

Pell’s sudden confession left her visibly shocked.

But she quickly regained her composure, becoming unusually calm.

“Pell. Do you honestly think that makes sense? Someone like you, who’s never even held a sword properly, stabbed Eurell, the empire’s strongest knight?”

“But Deputy Commander Eurell was really stabbed by the sword I was holding.”

“….”

It seemed Pell wasn’t lying about stabbing Eurell.

But it was hard to believe Pell had done it intentionally…

“What happened in that village? Explain in more detail.”

“I don’t know much myself. It happened so suddenly that I couldn’t think straight…”

“Just tell us what you do know.”

“Well… It was when the investigation in Kamil Village was nearing completion. Deputy Commander Eurell discovered a ritual circle related to dark magic in the village.”

“What did it look like?”

“Well…”

Pell rummaged through his belongings, pulling out a piece of paper and a pen he always carried.

He began sketching what he had seen, relying on his memory.

A circle with triangles and squares inside, surrounded by five smaller circles containing multi-headed animals.

“This part is a bit unclear, but it was roughly like this.”

Looking at the completed drawing, her expression hardened.

And for good reason—it was the same ritual circle Gusto had used to summon an ancient demon, intending to sacrifice her.

“This was in the village?”

“Yes. Deputy Commander Eurell said it was a ritual circle that could summon corrupt entities using human sacrifices.”

What a coincidence.

Of all places, the village they were investigating for heretical cults had ties to dark magic.

“And the village had many sand mounds… Deputy Commander Eurell said those mounds were probably the villagers themselves.”

That meant the villagers had been used as sacrifices.

“If they turned to sand, it means the ritual failed.”

If it had succeeded, the summoned entity would have taken over their bodies.

Eurell added that the villagers had been sacrificed, leaving her torn between mourning their loss and feeling relieved the demon wasn’t summoned.

“Anyway, as we were leaving after investigating that, we suddenly encountered a stranger.”

“A stranger?”

“They wore a black robe, so we couldn’t see their face… But just one person did this to all the knights.”

Pell’s sigh grew heavier.

“One person did all this?”

She was stunned.

Someone single-handedly overpowering the Imperial Knights, the empire’s elite force?

“I don’t remember much, but when we encountered the stranger, sparks flew in front of my eyes. I couldn’t control my body and collapsed… When I came to, I was holding a sword, and Deputy Commander Eurell had been stabbed.”

“You don’t remember anything else?”

“No…”

“You were controlled.”

The moment sparks flew before his eyes.