Chapter 193: Night of Redemption I

In the far distance away from the West Gate, almost an hour earlier...

A figure was sitting on the ground, unmoving.

His eyes were just like those of a demonic worshipper, with black sclera and red irises.

However, unlike inferior demonic worshippers who had their minds corroded by the properties of demonic power, the figure’s expression was calm.

He was clad in heavy black iron armor, with a black cape that seemed to meld into the darkness behind him.

Although wearing armor, black tattoos could be seen in the parts where his skin was showing.

His black hair was neatly slicked back, he also had neatly trimmed stubble covering the lower part of his face.

"Hmm... if I find that cult leader lying, I’ll behead him myself."

Muttering under his breath, the figure grabbed a blade of grass and put it in his mouth.

"Well, it’s not like I can disobey his excellency..."

He was Marzak, a general of the Demon Lord of Greed’s Army.

Due to an agreement between the demon lord and the leader of the Children of the Last Silence, he was ordered to do a solo mission.

"Still, there are three other generals. Why me?"

"Hmm, this might be my chance to get ahead of them, though..."

As Marzak was speaking to himself, he suddenly felt a gaze.

His crimson eyes glimmered under the moonlight, "Impossible, did someone notice my presence?"

Normally, he would have instantly killed the other party.

"It’s a shame that his excellency didn’t want me to move unless the presence of the cursed child was proven."

Marzak’s hand, which was reaching towards his sword, immediately stopped.

He then lay on the ground, putting both his hands behind his head.

"Well, I can just kill that person later. I’ll be generous enough to let him live for a while longer."

Almost an hour had passed since then.

Marzak had been lying on the ground with his eyes closed.

He had vaguely sensed the battles happening on both the East and North Gates, but made no move.

However, it was at this moment that a golden brilliance seemed to fill the entire Bakurad Fortress.

The light was so intense to the point that it seemed as if morning had arrived for a moment.

"The cursed child really is there..."

Marzak muttered as he slowly sat up straight.

"It’s time for me to redeem what originally belonged to his excellency."

He then stood up, grabbing his sword by the side in the process.

"Ptui—"

Marzak spat the blade of grass and stretched his body.

The moment it touched the ground, he vanished—as if he had never existed at all.

***

Meanwhile, outside the North Gate...

As soon as the group of the fortress forces noticed the figure, Pandora and Killian ran ahead of everyone.

"Hey—" Eldrin wanted to call them back, only to be stopped by Larkson.

Confused, the old mage spoke, "Why did you just let them go to that person? What if he means harm?"

"It’s fine."

"How can you be so sure?"

"That person... is who I told you about earlier."

Making sense of the commander’s words, Eldrin began to piece things together.

"What..."

As an experienced mage, it was easy for him to sense the traces of mana in the surroundings.

This enabled him to have a gist of the magic spells used within a certain timeframe.

And at this moment, he could not believe his senses.

The sheer impossibility of the magical traces around him was enough to make him doubt the senses he had honed all his life.

Eldrin had disbelief etched all over his face, "Y-You’re telling me that he’s Pandora’s brother...?"

He looked around, as if frantic, trying to make sense of the lingering fluctuations of mana in the atmosphere.

"The magic spells used were only of the basic and low rank..."

"...there are even residuals of array magic being used..."

"... unbelievable... this is unbelievable..."

"...I can’t be mistaken... these mana fluctuations..."

Eldrin could help but stare at the figure shrouded in blood mist after looking around with a crazed expression.

"...these mana fluctuations can only come from a master magician like me..."

"...truly unbelievable."

At this moment, Pandora and Killian had already arrived before the figure.

"Brother..."

"Boss..."

The two of them glanced at each other, not knowing what to do.

They could see that Regis was sleeping, seemingly exhausted from the battle he had fought alone.

Thus, neither of them knew if they should wake him up or not.

"Let’s allow him to rest for now."

"Alright, he seemed to be exhausted..."

After a while, Pandora and Killian reached a decision.

The former used a cloth from her storage pouch to wipe the blood and sweat off Regis’s face.

Meanwhile, the latter cleaned the area around him.

Before long, Larkson, Eldrin, and the others arrived near them.

"Wait, does this mean that that kid did all of this?"

"No way, he looked like he was my son’s age!"

"Right, kids his age should be playing instead of this..."

"Still, if he really fought these monsters and beasts alone..."

...

The soldiers of the fortress murmured amongst themselves.

Larkson raised his hand, and they all stopped, falling quiet.

They stayed foot while Larkson and Eldrin went forward.

In their eyes, all they could see was the innocent boy sleeping soundly while leaning on the towering corpse of a skeletal wyvern.

"I still think this is ridiculous..."

Eldrin muttered, wanting to believe that someone else fought the monsters and beasts.

Alas, the pieces of evidence were undeniable.

He could clearly feel that the mana residues in the atmosphere matched the sleeping boy’s.

Larkson, while staring at the sleeping youth, asked, "Is he fine?"

"Yes. He’s only sleeping." Pandora answered, her eyes not leaving Regis for even a second.

The commander held his forehead, "I can’t believe this..."

At this moment, they felt a surge of energy from the direction of the fortress.

Eldrin and Larkson’s heads instantly snapped in that direction, followed by Pandora, Killian, and finally, the other soldiers.

They all saw the fortress being bathed in golden brilliance.

It was so bright, making it seem like morning arrived for an instant.

The beauty of the view mesmerized the soldiers.

However, the same could not be said of Larkson, Pandora, and Killian as their faces became grave.

Knowing what this indicated, the fortress commander shouted,

"What happe—"

But before he could finish, a voice interrupted him.

"Did you remember what I said earlier? That there are enemies approaching all three gates of the fortress."

The voice sounded young, yet full of dignity, prompting others to look towards the one speaking.

Before Larkson could reply, the voice continued, "Just now, the enemy in the west started moving."

At this moment, everyone in the area was feeling pressure inside their hearts as they looked at the small stature of the speaker.

His snow white hair that fell a little past his shoulder seemed to glow under the moonlight.

Vigilance could be seen in his pair of blood-red eyes as he glared in the direction of the fortress.

The one speaking was none other than Regis, who had appeared beside Larkson without the slightest warning.

Under everyone’s gaze, he glanced at Larkson, Eldrin, and his party members.

"Someone dangerous is going towards Aurelia as we speak. Do your best to return as soon as possible."

After a short pause, he continued, "I think I can’t defeat him alone..."

’...without relying on demonize.’ he added in his mind.

"What do you mea—" Just as Larkson was about to ask, Regis interrupted him once again.

"We don’t have enough time. I’ll do my best to hold them off, make sure you get there as quickly as possible."

Before anyone could ask any further, Regis’s figure suddenly disappeared.

Only a strange chant lingered in the air.

[Lux Aeterna]

Following this, Pandora and Killian instantly dashed towards the fortress.

The two of them had absolute trust in Regis, so they did not hesitate to follow his command.

Meanwhile, Larkson relayed his orders before running at full speed.

’Is that Teleport? No, there were no fluctuations of mana. Could it be an aura art?’

Eldrin thought to himself as a magic circle manifested over his head and beneath his feet.

[Teleport]

***

At the same time, inside Bakurad Fortress...

"Ha... Ha... Ha..." Aurelia panted as she held her right wrist with her left hand.

Looking at the statue of what seemed to be an elven man before her, she smiled weakly.

"I... did... it..."

She said while looking around, noticing that the surroundings were still like before.

’I was able to control it!’

Aurelia felt a sense of accomplishment.

In the past, the pain of being turned to gold as she used her gift overwhelmed her senses.

This hindered her from reaching the state of mind required to control it.

Normally, her gift would have instantly sucked all of her mana and drain her life force the instant it was activated.

Now, Aurelia only felt exhausted without feeling any pain or pressure.

Tap... Tap... Tap...

Just then, the sound of footsteps caught her attention, and she turned toward it.

"Who’s ther— Hmfff!!!’

Before she could finish her question, a hand clamped over her mouth and lifted her off the ground.