Surely, I must have been wrong.
From the very beginning, in the way I chose to exist—I was wrong.
As a demon… and as a member of that human family of two.
I was surely wrong.
I was never once fulfilled.
Not in the actions I chose, not in the decisions I made, not in the hell I walked of my own accord—never once did I feel fulfilled.
I simply acted, driven by vague impulses, and thus the being known as "the Executor"—myself—was formed.
Surely, that too was a mistake.
And yet… now, I think I am fulfilled.
…But the more fulfilled I feel, the more glaringly my mistakes are thrust before me.
If it would feel like this, I almost wish I had never realized it.
To believe oneself righteous and march forward without doubt—how easy that is, how sweet an escape.
That day, when I asked Anju about the meaning of the Bible—that was the beginning of the decisive collapse.
The bitter taste that lingered in my mouth.
I once read the term "phantom limb pain" in some medical text written by humans.
It refers to a phenomenon in which a person who has lost a body part—whether to injury, illness, or a curse—continues to feel pain in that missing limb, even though the nerves that once sensed the pain are gone, and the limb itself no longer exists.
The pain of a lost body part. Phantom pain.
Those two—their flesh must already have been digested and dissolved within my stomach.
There should be no taste remaining in my mouth, the organ meant to sense flavor.
And yet… I can still taste the flesh I have already eaten.
Like phantom pain that refuses to separate me from my nature as a demon, it lingers.
At that point, I should have understood.
But I did not want to admit it.
So I ran.
My first escape was a brilliant success.
That battle in which I established the first stage of my style as an Executor.
The sensation of piercing and killing the demon who burned that village—with the original form of the sacred sword that is now my favored weapon.
That was when I acquired a taste for it.
A beast that has tasted the sweetness of escape seeks the next hunt—another escape.
Then I sought efficiency.
And in exchange for efficiency, I began to feel something within me wearing away.
I began pretending to be powerless, feigning support from the rear while aiming to reap the spoils. Under the pretext of "cleanup," I laid hands upon humans—people just like them.
And even from that sensation, I fled.
Escape upon escape, until the Executor that is me was complete.
When the human elites—especially the nobles of the Empire—began willingly offering sacrifices, did I not even feel a certain relief?
"This isn't my fault.
They are the ones offering themselves as prey…
So I am not to blame."
…
…It makes me sick.
The part of me that is a demon loathes the me who has failed as a demon.
The part of me that has drawn close to humanity despises and looks down upon the me who is ugly as both demon and human.
Why did I have to become aware?
Even if I had continued forever with that smoldering, nameless frustration, it would have been far better not to realize.
…Hey, Anju.
I am truly glad I met you.
But… if I had never met you—never met any of you—I would not have had to feel this way.
Why did I stop my sword that day and speak to you?
A demon's words are meant to deceive humans.
So why did I speak without any intent to deceive?
…The truth is, I have long understood the reason.
But escape is no longer permitted.
Now, I am being forced to choose.
I, who have always chosen wrongly, am once again pressed to choose.
The more I think, the more I am confronted with the reality that it is dangerous for me to remain with Anju and the others.
So I must decide.
Even if it means letting go of this happiness, I must part from them.
A thought crosses my mind—that even this choice may simply be another escape from awareness.
But the danger is real. So there is no other option but to leave.
Solitaire knows my face.
The Empire I used—and which used me—and the northern nations besides.
Shadow warriors who tried to bury me among the sacrifices and were instead killed. Court magicians. Special magical task forces.
There are mountains of people who wish to conceal me as the dark underbelly of their nations.
And the former Demon King's army—deceived and betrayed again and again by a fellow demon, by me—even more so.
I, who have piled up escapes and continued making mistakes, am no longer someone who should remain beside anyone.
So this time, I must not be wrong.
…
"…An… ju?"
—See? I've made another mistake.
"Every… one…?"
—You remain mistaken to the very end, demon Riene.
So some resigned part of myself sneered.
◇
Several days later, at the monastery where the children now slept in silence.
Moonlight illuminated two figures standing before the entrance.
One was a young priestess in a habit, her pale golden hair catching the light. Her gentle eyes—so full of compassion—now looked as though they might overflow with tears.
The other wore something like a gothic-style maid outfit, a red scarf wrapped around her neck. At first glance she looked like a human girl—but two horns grew from her head, marking her clearly as not human. Yet her glossy twin-tailed pink hair and doll-like, delicate features softened that impression.
Still, the demon girl's expression was as empty as a doll's.
"…You're really going, aren't you?"
At the strained words of the priestess—Anju—the demon girl, Riene, gave a small nod.
"Will you not say anything to the children? To leave like this, secretly, after everyone has fallen asleep…"
"When times like this come, I don't know what words I'm supposed to say."
Riene narrowed her eyes and lowered her gaze slightly as she spoke. Anju did not seem convinced.
"It's inconvenient, being a demon. Words meant to lie come easily, but when it's your true feelings, nothing comes out."
"…Humans are the same."
At Riene's sudden self-mocking remark, Anju gave a troubled smile.
"What will you do now?"
She asked again the question that had once been answered with "I don't know."
Even sensing the path Riene intended to take, even believing it would take her more time to fully come to terms with her awareness, Anju still wanted to know—had Riene decided what she would do?
"I'm heading north."
"…Does that mean you're returning to being an Executor?"
Anju pressed a hand to her chest, leaning forward slightly in fear.
Riene shook her head.
"I won't. I still don't know what I truly want. So…"
She lowered her eyes, took a breath, and continued.
"I think I'll return to that village."
Anju's eyes widened.
"There may be nothing left. …But I'm sure there's meaning in going back."
It was a statement utterly unlike a demon.
"If I return, I feel like I'll understand what I truly want."
It was neither rational nor logical—an almost hopeful prediction, uncharacteristic of a demon.
And yet, there was something like conviction in Riene's eyes.
"…I see," Anju replied with a faint, lonely smile.
"A lot has happened, hasn't it?"
"…Yeah."
The time was short—too short—and yet unbearably happy.
They let their thoughts drift over those days.
Once that began, neither could speak.
In truth, since the children had fallen asleep, they had already talked at length.
Both understood this was a parting.
Because they had steeled themselves for it, they had spoken of many happy things.
But now even those topics were running dry.
There were no words left.
And yet, when it came to parting like this—
It was hard to begin.
The final words.
They would never cross paths again.
They must not.
Riene had repeatedly warned Anju of the danger of staying together, and Anju had agreed.
So all that remained was to say "goodbye."
"Anju."
"Y-yes…"
It was Riene who spoke first.
Anju flinched and looked up. She barely maintained a smile, but her lips trembled with fear.
She sensed that the words Riene would speak next would be the true end.
Though her mouth tightened with the fear of separation, she refused to let tears fall, waiting for Riene's words.
"Thank you."
"…What?"
At the unexpected words, Anju's expression crumpled in stunned disbelief.
"When I first met you, I stopped the sword I had aimed at you."
"…"
Riene closed her eyes and began to speak softly. Anju listened in silence.
"You may have thought it was just a whim. But it wasn't."
When Riene opened her eyes, her expression was gentle—like the one she had only recently begun showing the children.
"…I think I was happy."
The apples had tasted terrible, and Riene had harshly criticized them.
Even so, she did not kill Anju and the others. Instead, she taught them how to cultivate the orchard, how to defend against monsters, how to drive them away, even how to train.
Now the apples were well regarded. Exchanges with nearby villages and towns had increased.
Their food supply had stabilized. The children smiled more.
Even Riene understood that calling all of that a mere whim was a stretch.
She had only said so because she did not understand the reason.
But now—
Now, she could say it.
"The orchard. The positioning of the buildings, the shape of the fence, the number of trees… everything was exactly the same. Now that I think about it, Anju had only heard about it, and yet she recreated it that faithfully…"
"Th-that's…"
Anju faltered.
She had always loved the story of the "demon of the orchard." And so she had indeed done her best to recreate the orchard exactly as she had been told.
Without telling the children, she had quietly instructed that it be done that way.
"There was someone who remembered that orchard. If I were to return to that village now, there would probably be no trace of it left… So… I think that's why I was happy."
Now, she could understand the words of that elf as well.
To leave nothing behind… to be forgotten by everyone… that must be something unbearably lonely and sad.
What was that monk-like elf doing now?
Their first meeting had been far too violent—but if they were ever to meet again, she found herself wanting to talk properly this time.
—Ah… to think I would feel that way about the enemy I once least wanted to see…
She keenly felt that she was truly breaking as a demon.
…Though, at this point, that was nothing new.
"So… thank you, Anju."
—Huh? That's strange…
Anju thought that instinctively when she heard those words.
"Even someone like me… I learned that there was salvation, properly, for me too… I understand that now."
—Why is my vision… blurring…?
Bathed in the full moon's light, Riene's smile was more beautiful than ever before.
A pale golden glow faintly illuminated her porcelain-white skin, her lovely pink hair, her deep violet eyes.
Anju had reached her limit.
"…Why—"
She could no longer hold back her tears.
Pressing both hands desperately over her mouth to stifle her sobs, Anju lowered her head and turned her gaze away from Riene's face.
"Anju?"
"Why—why are you like this?!"
She had lived carrying a small, earnest wish: to make this girl smile.
Even her parents had failed to accomplish that.
She had imagined how proud she would feel if she could succeed where they had not.
But…
"That's not—That's not the smile I wanted to see from you!!"
The dam broke.
Anju kicked off the ground and threw herself into Riene's arms.
"Don't look so satisfied over something so small!!"
That expression was one she should wear after living a long life, at the very end, fulfilled.
A carefree smile born of ordinary happiness—that was the smile she should have.
Anju had wanted to see that smile for a long time.
And yet, the last expression she would see from her—
Of all things, it was that smile.
Most unbearable of all to Anju was—
"You've only just learned how to smile—so why… why won't you stay with us?! Why won't you ask me to come with you?!"
"Anju… that's… no. You understand, don't you?"
Gently stroking Anju's back, Riene spoke softly into her ear.
It almost looked as though their roles had reversed. Anju, who had sometimes poured motherly affection upon Riene, was now being gently admonished like a selfish child.
"You have those children, Anju. And those children need you."
"…The same is true of you, isn't it, Lady Riene?"
"…I'm fine. I've already received more than enough from you."
"That's not true!!"
Anju shouted, cutting off her words.
Ah—she really understands nothing.
Why won't she see that she is needed?
"Lady Riene… you're needed too. By me… and by those children…"
Children do not need only a mother. They need a father too.
If Anju was their mother, then Riene was, unmistakably, their father.
Strict at times, distant at others, yet always teaching them how to live and how to fight—protecting both mother and children like a true father.
"And yet… and yet, why…"
She could only repeat the question.
No more words came to stop her.
She understood. Riene had not decided lightly to leave them.
She understood the reasons, at least logically.
Anju knew the fearfulness of demons. She knew the ugliness of humans.
She understood well enough that being with Riene—who would be targeted by both—was dangerous.
"I wanted… to become your family."
"…You already have. More than enough."
"The children feel the same."
"…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry… Anju."
For a while, they simply held each other.
This warmth too—it would be the last.
As if to engrave it into their bodies, so neither would ever forget.
"…Goodbye, Anju."
"…Yes."
They pulled apart, still holding each other's hands, gazing at one another.
At least at the end, Anju resolved to send her off with a smile, desperately arranging a gentle expression on her tear-streaked face.
Riene softly released Anju's hand and turned away.
With the moonlight at her back, she walked farther and farther away.
Anju watched her retreating figure until it vanished from sight.
And when it finally disappeared—
Anju lowered her head, her mouth twisting as tears spilled down.
"Goodbye… Lady Riene."
—I will always love you.
Until now, and from here on.
Even if their paths would never cross again, she carved that feeling into her heart for life.
"Fufufu… this won't do."
From the distant shadows of the trees, a former "nameless" demon watched and laughed.
"So weakened… with 'my' magic at this level, even your magic detection… won't notice me… how ironic. A blessing in disguise, they say. Thanks to it, I can safely inform your friends… who bear a grudge against you…"
Her breath came in broken fragments.
There was no malice in her smile.
No vengeance toward the one who had reduced her to this state.
Her smile was innocent, hollow—brimming with curiosity.
"Even if you gathered the 'current' me… and the friends I've brought… bundled together, we probably still wouldn't be a match for you… even weakened as you are."
She had learned that thoroughly from the devastation inflicted upon her body.
"Fufufu… I've had quite the ordeal too, you know? I was captured by humans… while unable to move… tortured… I even begged for my life… many times… And yet I survived this long… solely because of my curiosity about you… I don't understand it… and perhaps it's something different… but is this… what they call 'love'?"
Of course, her pasted-on smile as she begged for her life must have appeared deeply unsettling to her human torturers—but she had no way of knowing that.
"I've been waiting… for this moment… Now then… having drawn close to humanity and lost it once more… what will become of you? Please… let big sister see."
Her curiosity was no longer directed solely at "humans," but even at her own race—the "demons."
Demons cannot draw close to humans. Through convergent evolution, their forms and structures may have come to resemble them, but fundamentally they are different beings.
And yet, after witnessing the demon Macht who sought coexistence, the Demon King, and especially Riene—the demon who had truly drawn close to humanity—her values were beginning to shift.
Even if, in the end, the conclusion that "humans and demons cannot coexist" remained unchanged…
She had developed a new curiosity: just how close can demons become to humans?
And that question was inseparable from her research on humans, which she had made her central theme. Now that she had recognized it, it was a problem she could no longer avoid.
In a sense, she was about to step into a taboo even greater than her research on humans.
From now on, the "conversation partners" she sought would no longer be limited to humans.
Even her own kind would become subjects of her "dialogue."
In some ways, she was entering dangerous territory—one that could earn her resentment from both sides. It was not so different from the Executor who had made enemies of both.
Even having lost the advantage of being "nameless," she could not seem to stop herself.
She was a coward, and she understood the danger perfectly.
…And yet, the demon called Solitaire possessed a boundless curiosity that surpassed even her cowardice.
She too was on the verge of becoming a heretic among demons—though in a different way from Executor Riene.
◇
Her steps were heavy, unsteady.
Was "parting" always this painful?
Perhaps, in the end, she had never truly been prepared.
Still, she had managed to pretend she was.
If she had shown even a moment of hesitation, Anju would never have let her go.
And she herself would not have been able to leave.
There was guilt as well—guilt for leaving the children to Anju.
Unless it was mere arrogance, the children would likely have accepted it less easily than Anju had. And the fact that she found that thought pleasing made her laugh faintly.
In the end, she had never been able to teach them any true magic—only fragments of techniques she had copied herself.
Not even a sliver of the vast circuitry she had accumulated.
If she were honest, she had wanted to teach them more.
She had wanted to see how far those brats could go.
"…How pathetic."
Riene frowned as if she might vomit, sinking into self-loathing.
So she hadn't been prepared to part at all.
"…But it was fun."
She had enjoyed it.
Teaching them how to grow apples. Teaching them how to fight.
She had enjoyed it.
Those were things that did not exist in that hell.
Everything that filled her—had been there.
And yet, she had just bid that place farewell.
She should not have stayed with them.
And she needed to find her answer as soon as possible.
North.
That was where she must head.
"…Back again, huh."
Though she still had not stabilized her mana control, nor could she deploy her inherent domain, she would go north.
She had hidden in the south to address those very issues, so this was completely contrary to her original purpose.
But it could not be helped.
Before she could overcome anything, she did not even know what she ought to do.
She fully understood now that she had continued making mistakes.
But how was she to correct them?
Was it even possible to change her path at this point?
"…Maybe I should just…"
She muttered, conjuring a short dagger with copied magic and examining it.
The blade reflected the moonlight. In it, her own eyes were narrowed in bitter self-mockery.
—Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to end myself there.
She was not seeking a place to die.
But if she were to draw a line under her life…
There was nowhere else she could imagine but that village.
Though she had not decided that yet.
In any case, if she returned there, she would at least reach some conclusion.
With that thought, Riene lifted her face and began to walk again.
That was when—
"Haa—haa—haa!"
A familiar voice.
Broken. Ragged.
Unsteady footsteps running toward her from behind.
"…?"
Not an enemy.
No killing intent.
The presence was weak.
And that voice—
—No… it can't be.
A terrible premonition struck her as she turned.
"Haa… Riene… big… sis…"
A girl with the same hairstyle as her own came stumbling toward her, blood pouring from her body, barely breathing.
"…Elze!?"
Riene called her name in disbelief and rushed forward, alarmed by her condition.
"What happened? Weren't you all asleep?"
"Haa… haa… Riene… big sis…"
Just as Riene caught her collapsing body and Elze tried to speak—
A flash of magical attack light shot toward them.
Reacting instantly, Riene leapt out of the blast radius with Elze in her arms.
Her mana detection picked up three signatures.
She looked up.
"So you're the 'Executor' Solitaire spoke of."
"A demon this young? The Executor? Hard to believe."
"But I sense a 'fluctuation' in her mana… you coward. So that's how you ambushed us."
They glared down at her, voices filled with anger, suspicion, and contempt.
At the word "Solitaire," Riene's eyes widened.
That suspicious, insect-like smile of the nameless great demon came to mind.
"…Hmph. No matter. Whether Solitaire spoke truth or not, we cannot allow a mage—let alone a fellow demon—who falsifies her mana to live. You will die here—"
They drew their staves.
But before they could finish—
"You talk too much."
In that instant as they shifted into combat stance—
Even believing her to be a coward who falsified her mana, they still intended to crush her by force.
That arrogance. That careless pride.
Executor Riene did not miss that fleeting opening.
"Zoltraak—the arrow that kills humans."
In her hand appeared a white bow reminiscent of demon horns.
She drew its steel-strong violet string and released arrows wrapped in the mana of the killing spell Zoltraak.
She had not merely lived peacefully under Anju.
After learning Zoltraak's formula, Riene had crafted arrows imbued with it—arrows she could replicate herself.
To overcome Zoltraak's weakness—defensive magic against Zoltraak—she added physical force to the spell itself.
And she granted the arrows tracking ability beyond ordinary projectiles.
Compensating for both weaknesses, combining both strengths.
Three arrows, glowing with Zoltraak's light, shot forth simultaneously.
As the demons focused on those—
The true killing intent—
Ordinary arrows, merciless and precise, pierced their hearts.
The only change was that she had given them Zoltraak's properties.
Their physical lethality remained unchanged.
"Gah—"
"Wha—!?"
"Y-you—!"
Before they could properly wield their staves, they dissolved into particles of mana.
"Ehehe… as expected… big sis… you're amazing…"
"Don't talk, Elze. I'll treat your wounds—"
Elze smiled weakly.
Riene moved to examine her injuries—
But Elze slapped her hand away.
"…Elze?"
"…Please… big sis…"
Because Elze had used the hand that had been pressing her wound to push Riene away—
Riene saw it.
The deep, fatal wound in Elze's chest.
"El… ze… no… that's…"
Riene froze.
Unheeding, Elze spoke.
"Save… everyone… Anju… big sis…"
The hand she had stretched toward Riene fell limply.
Blood flowed thick and heavy.
Her body grew cold.
Riene knew this sensation.
She knew the feeling of life slipping away.
"…Elze?"
Still unable to accept it, she called her name again.
"Elze… Elze… Elze…"
No matter how many times Riene shouted her name, Elze did not move an inch.
At the same time, Riene, supporting Elze's now motionless body, could not move either.
For a moment, Riene remained frozen, unable to accept what had happened—until the words she had heard just before Elze's final breath stirred her back to reality.
"…Save… everyone… Anju… big sis…"
"—!"
The words flashed through her mind. Returning to her senses, Riene looked down at Elze's face once more.
"…."
With a slight frown, she placed her hands gently over Elze's eyelids and closed them.
After laying Elze's body on the ground, Riene turned and ran back along the path she had come, without looking back.
────Huff… huff… huff… huff.
She ran.
She ran with all her strength.
Even gravely wounded, Elze had chased after her, desperately seeking help.
How could Riene not run in response?
With each labored breath, her anxiety and the sense of foreboding intensified, gnawing at her steps.
Her racing heart threatened to slow her, yet she pressed on relentlessly.
Suddenly, another vision appeared before her eyes.
Buildings engulfed in flames, collapsing in ruin.
The screams of people burned, stabbed, devoured.
—Help me.
—Save me.
—Heeelp…
—Run, Riene…!
The voices pleading for help threatened to halt her progress.
Riene was still in the forest, not in the village.
"—!!"
Determined that these were illusions born of her own fear, she ignored the cries, just as she had before, and pressed on toward the orchard.
Along the way, she thought she caught sight of someone standing still, cloaked in red.
Against the flames, it could have been a trick of the light, so she shook her head and tried to pass.
"—Oi."
This time, the voice made her freeze, if only for a moment.
"Beyond this point… is hell."
"…No."
The pause was brief, and Riene ran again.
She would not be deterred by hell.
There was no way she would allow that nightmare to happen again.
Shaking off the vision of the burning village, Riene saw the shadow of the monastery in the distance.
Seeing smoke rising from it, her face visibly tensed.
Still, she did not stop.
She would not believe it until she approached and confirmed it herself.
Pouring all her mana into her legs, she raced forward.
Finally, she arrived at the source of the fire.
"…Ah…"
It was burning.
Red.
Crimson flames consumed the scorched apples, dropping them onto the fiery ground.
It was burning.
The proof of life she had shared with Anju.
The orchard she had built together with Anju and the children.
It was burning.
The salvation that Anju had taught her.
Riene froze.
Faced with this re-enacted hell, her mind went blank.
"Found you!"
"You're the 'Executor' Solitaire mentioned!?"
"Finally, traitor, I've found you!!"
"Because of you, we—!!"
Ironically, it was the demons who had set fire to the orchard and ambushed her that pulled Riene back into reality.
"—!"
Snapping back, Riene dodged the flurry of magical attacks and sprinted straight for the monastery entrance.
There was no time to waste on them.
Fortunately, though the orchard and monastery shared the same grounds, the distance between them prevented the fire from spreading.
Her plan was simple: rescue Anju and the others, escape through the back, and kick open the front doors.
With a thud, the doors swung open, echoing through the monastery.
The familiar chapel, doubling as the lobby, lay silent.
Before taking in the scene, Riene noticed something on the floor and picked it up.
"—"
Her eyes widened.
It was the cross necklace that Anju always wore.
The one she clutched while praying to the goddess statue.
Now it was soaked in blood.
…and that blood… was still warm.
Trembling, Riene looked up.
In a corner of the chapel, she saw a pool of blood.
"…An…ju?"
There, collapsed, was the girl in the familiar blonde hair and habitual nun's habit.
"Ev…ery…one…?"
And lying protectively near her were Karl and Abel.
…and behind them, partially visible from the shadows, were what appeared to be the limbs of the children.
"…Ah… e…why…?"
Riene froze.
Outside, countless enemies waited, yet she forgot them all, unable to move.
She could not accept this re-enacted hell.
"—So… you are the 'Executor'."
A voice spoke.
Riene turned her face toward the sound, still frozen in place.
Expressionless, demonic, moving stiffly like a tin doll.
"As Solitaire said… I never thought you'd actually come back."
A massive demon clad in full armor.
Heavy gear reminiscent of the Demon King's army, with a massive sword strapped to his back.
His magical aura marked him as unquestionably a general-class demon.
"Pathetic. You've clevered your way through and slain demons before, but now it's your turn to be caught in the net."
────You?
────Was it you who did this to Anju and the others?
"Mimic Trace: Heavy Armor Fractal."
As he spoke the spell, a cursed sword appeared in Riene's hands alongside jagged lightning.
A replica of the legendary sword said to have once shattered mountains in the age of myth.
"Could it be…!?"
The general barely had time to react, and Riene had already closed the distance.
Before attacking with a bow, as he expected, Riene bypassed the anticipation and pressed into his range recklessly.
"Don't underestimate me!!"
The general drew his massive sword to counter.
Yet for Riene—who had survived countless battlefields and memorized countless combat patterns—he seemed frozen.
From the flow of his mana, she could predict his next move perfectly.
Dodging his downward swing and the rushing gale without hesitation, she pierced the sword through his armor and into his abdomen.
"Ghh!?"
This strike would not kill him.
To kill, she would have to pierce his heart.
Still, the strike of this sword—once said to shatter mountains—dealt the general tremendous damage, though death was far away.
But that was enough for Riene.
"I am the bone of my sword."
Still pressing the sword into his abdomen, she spoke the chant.
A minimal release of the artifact's power.
Instantly, the general's body began to distort.
"…W-what… my stabbed stomach… it's so heavy…!!"
His body shrank, crushed toward the sword.
"Ahhh… my body… being sucked… no, crushed… help…"
The ability of the 'Pseudo Divine Era Crushing Sword, Schwear Volk II.'
A blade capable of generating gravity itself.
Even at minimal output, when embedded in a body, the weight alone could distort it.
"Ahhh… my body… being crushed… help…"
The general, now little more than a shapeless mass, still tried to call for help.
Riene, unmoved, replicated the sword with magic and sliced the mass in half effortlessly.
Like swatting an insect.
The general's remains dissolved into magical dust, his screams ceasing only when completely gone.
Riene turned back toward the blood pool.
Her expression remained unmoving.
Like a doll.
Her lips trembled slightly as she tried to speak.
At that moment, the demons surrounding the monastery disappeared, detected by Riene's mana sense.
A chill ran through her body as air swept in through the open door.
And immediately—
"Zoltraak—the magic that kills humans."
Without hesitation, without pause, the blast shot through the doorway.
Riene cut it down instinctively.
Turning toward the door, she saw a white-robed mage standing there.
"Why do you hold that sword?"
Cold, merciless, emotionless.
A voice that was mature yet somehow youthful, eerily similar to Riene's own.
"That sword… was taken back by Himmel."
Standing there was the great elf mage who had once joined the hero Himmel to defeat the Demon King.
Known as "Requiem," with a staff set with a red gem, staring at Riene with ice-cold eyes.