Chapter 76
Cilia was a child born on the streets.
Her mother, whose face Cilia never knew, abandoned her immediately after giving birth, and Cilia, a newborn , simply cried instinctively, over and over.
The ones who rescued her were the boys living on the streets.
Though they themselves were children who constantly begged for scraps of food, they never gave up on Cilia.
They took meticulous care of her, prioritizing Cilia whenever they found food, and if they earned any money, they would buy Cilia a gift first.
—With our situation, we can’t even dream of getting married.
—Anyway, aren’t you guys my family?
—That’s right. Cilia is a daughter, a daughter. We’re all her dads.
Cilia was absolutely determined to repay them.
She wanted to graduate at the top of the academy, enter the Guardian Corps, and earn a huge amount of money to let her uncles live in luxury.
That’s why Cilia focused intensely on gathering information even before entering the academy.
She asked her uncles to dig into the backgrounds of the aristocratic children and look into commoner kids who seemed promising.
Among them, the one classified as the highest danger was “Daphne Aktion.”
That motherf***er, Daphne Akion.
If you list just a few of this child’s past records, most people would unanimously curse her.
Daphne’s wicked acts were so renowned that rumors were widespread, asking if she wasn’t the very incarnation of a demon.
So much so that the brief, fiery hype about “Daphne the Heros” had vanished as if it had never existed.
And yet,
She was, and yet…?
“She’s different from the Daphne Akion I know… They clearly said Daphne was a crazy delinquent, an absolute psycho, and someone beyond redemption even in death.”
“You are insulting me right in front of my face.”
“Ah, right? If you were really Daphne, shouldn’t you have hit ten people by now? And then gotten kicked out? Leaving me to reap the benefits?”
“You are a child with great ambition-”
Daphne, who had been nodding and responding to Cilia’s words with her arms crossed, suddenly leaned her upper body forward. She brought her eyes close to Cilia’s.
“I am Daphne Akion right now-.”
Right now? Cilia was puzzled, but she couldn’t ask because Daphne immediately continued.
“But I am not the delinquent Daphne you know. I am just the very kind, decent, sincere, and formidable Daphne.”
“…Seriously, why are you so confident?”
Cilia was so dumbfounded she felt hollow, and she let out a faint, hollow laugh.
Daphne smirked widely.
“If you do not believe me, you may continue to observe me. You will find it new and enjoyable to see me every day-.”
“…”
Seeing her speak so confidently, Cilia decided that she couldn’t judge “the current” Daphne based on her past self.
Although she had hit someone today… but that was justified , so that could be set aside.
Anyway, Daphne did pretty well today, didn’t she?
‘Should I observe her more?’
Cilia narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing Daphne’s face.
“You know you’re really weird, right?”
“I do not know-.”
“Whatever. …Just go take a shower. You smell.”
With that, Cilia abruptly threw the towel hanging around her neck at Daphne.
Daphne, who received the towel in a daze, tilted her head.
“Why are you giving me a towel?”
“I can lend it to you, as long as you wash it and bring it back.”
Daphne kneaded the soft-textured towel.
She recalled the expression Cilia had shown when Daphne asked to borrow it earlier.
It was the face of someone fiercely protecting something precious.
To so easily hand over a precious item like this.
Daphne tightly gripped the towel, her eyes sparkling.
“Good. I have decided-.”
“Decided what?”
“You are my Subordinate No. 4.”
“…Says who?”
Daphne grinned and raised her thumb.
“I will introduce you to No. 3 tomorrow! Look forward to it! Now, I go to wash-!”
“No, I mean, by whose authority!”
The Northern Continent is a cold region where it snows year-round.
The snowy mountains, where fierce blizzards rage, are filled with darkness and stillness.
The snowflakes fluttering down under the faint moonlight are utterly pitiable.
High on a sheer ice cliff, where even beasts dare not approach, stands a building in the style of an ancient, now-vanished temple.
This was the headquarters of the organization of Black Mages—The Vengeful Spirits.
The leader of the Vengeful Spirits, Yan, sat staring into the blazing fireplace, his elbows resting on his thighs, his hands clasped, and the tips of his middle fingers pressed against his lips.
His body, wrapped in pitch-black bandages, was almost indistinguishable from the darkness itself.
The only clearly visible features were the vivid, golden eyes peering from between the bandages.
Yan was thinking.
—The Anas Team was defeated.
—Their last message was only the word, ‘Hero.’
He pondered the meaning contained in the word “Hero,” left behind by the Black Mages who had now been dragged away to the wicked Imperial Palace and vanished.
“…Daphne Akion.”
Yan ground his teeth.
The Black Mage who had been tasked with killing that damnable girl and recovering the power had disappeared.
At first, he thought it was a simple accident, but the message “Hero” left by the elite three-person Anas Team suggested that it was by no means an accident.
Because the Anas Team was captured, the Vengeful Spirits had to abandon their raid on the mine and return.
Now, while they had not yet fully recovered their former strength, it was obvious that things would become quite troublesome if the momentum of the Subjugation Squad grew too strong.
“I do not know what method she used, but it means that girl is standing in our way.”
He surmised it might be the backlash from the curse. But surely such a lowly child couldn’t dare wield the power of their great former leader.
…Could it be?
Was it because she was descended from ‘that’ Akion family?
“Damn the bloodline of the Hero.”
Yan chewed on his bandages, muttering.
“She must be killed… She must be killed. I must kill her to avoid disappointing Him.”
It was then.
“I’m already disappointed, you know.”
“…!”
The voice was sudden. But it was an all-too-familiar and piercing sound, so Yan shot up as if he’d been thrown, hurriedly bowing from the waist.
“Sir L-Lani-.”
The Green Dragon, Lani.
The one who resurrected the Vengeful Spirits and gave them power.
To the current Yan, this was the being he had to be most cautious of and most revered.
“Hmm? I said I’m already disappointed?”
“I apologize…”
“What will you offer me as compensation for my disappointment?”
Lani twisted his long, dark-green hair around his finger, approaching Yan.
He stared intently into the exceptionally bright golden eyes within the black-bandaged body.
“Will you pluck out your own eyes for me?”
Yan forced down the words that had surged up to the tip of his tongue, swallowing them, and bowed his head again.
“…I am sorry.”
“If one word of apology was enough for forgiveness, then it wouldn’t have been such an important matter.”
Lani lightly waved a hand.
Immediately, a plush sofa formed behind him. Lani lay back on the sofa and crossed his legs.
“No, no. This failure isn’t entirely your fault. Who would have ever imagined that little girl was hiding her strength?”
“…”
“Still, you should have imagined it. Right?”
“I apologize…”
“Hey. It’s a joke. Relax your expression. I’m smiling, aren’t I?”
Yan tightly clenched his hands behind his back and forced a sound of laughter out of his mouth.
“…Hahaha!”
“That’s better.”
Lani snickered and reached out his hand again. A halved pomegranate appeared on his palm.
Lani ate the scarlet, juicy seeds, turning his body sideways.
“You failed to secure the Mana Stone Mine, and you failed to find the Calamity’s sealing location. Didn’t you?”
“…Yes.”
“The former aside, why did you fail at the latter? Huh?”
Yan took a deep breath, then answered calmly.
“The trace of the Calamity has been completely cut off. We used every method Sir Lani taught us, but all failed. No matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t track it. I apologize.”
Lani’s expression hardened for the first time. The Gold Dragon briefly flashed through his mind.
“…Surely, that damn old dragon didn’t intervene.”
Lani muttered to himself, but then he shook his head, recalling that the Gold Dragon had vanished from the continent hundreds of years ago. He focused on Yan again.
“Finding the Calamity isn’t for my benefit, is it? It’s all for yours, so how can you be so lazy in your work?”
“I will redouble my efforts.”
“Hardly.”
Lani’s lips twisted.
“I brought a few more Chimeras, so use them well at an appropriate time. You’ll be able to find more traces of the Calamity.”
“…Thank you.”
“But don’t just use them carelessly, okay? Hmm? Use your head. Understand?”
Yan nodded silently. In order to find the Calamity, Lani’s power was absolutely essential. He accepted this reality.
“Instead, find out where that girl I mentioned is first. And find out what kind of power she possesses, too.”
This referred to Daphne Akion.
It must mean he intends to deal with her himself. Since this was what Yan wanted as well, he readily answered.
“I will contact you as soon as possible.”
“Good. And… ah!”
Lani jumped to his feet.
“I just thought of something, and I’m a little conflicted. Can you choose for me?”
Yan looked at Lani, who wore an excited expression. It was at that moment that the corners of Lani’s lips stretched up to his earlobes.
“Which would be more fun, killing the daughter in front of the Hero, or killing the Hero in front of the daughter?”
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