Advent of the Three Calamities - Chapter 824: Evelyn’s Plight [3]

Chapter 824: Evelyn’s Plight [3]

“No, no…”

Evelyn was the first to shake her head.

With both hands on the old man, she persisted.

Sweat continued to drip down from the side of her face, her face growing paler. But it was useless. The frost continued to grow.

“No, no, no…”

Evelyn’s expression grew darker by the second, her teeth clenched tight as a storm of emotions rippled through her. I tried my best to steady her, to calm the chaos inside her, but in the end, a blue orb of light engulfed her body.

“It’s… okay.”

The old man’s voice whispered again, the frost taking over his chest.

“I-It’s not.”

Until the end, Evelyn didn’t stop.

But everyone in the room could see that it was of no use.

“I can… see t-that you’re trying, but you shouldn’t.. waste all of your energy on an old man like me.”

As he spoke, he closed his eyes and sealed his mana.

The meaning behind his actions was obvious.

He had given up.

The children’s sobs grew louder, and Chloe lowered her head. Velar kept his eyes on the old man, though he remained silent.

A tense and gloomy mood took over the room.

Everyone seemed to have given up.

Everyone but one person.

“Stop speaking.”

Evelyn’s voice steadied, and I noticed a shift in her demeanor. The blue orb surrounding her body began to shrink, and her mood seemed to ease along with it.

I grew alarmed.

’What’s going on?’

“Stop speaking like you’re about to die. Sit straight and accept my help.”

Her cold voice echoed in the air, her purple eyes flickering with a certain light.

But despite her words, the old man just smiled.

“I-I’m… sorry.”

“What are you sorry for? Do you think that you’re actually consuming my mana? I can always get that back. Shut up and accept my help.”

“…..”

“You may not think of yourself as someone important, but the children need you. Everyone in the room needs you. If you die, who will take care of the children? Do you think they’re capable of handling them like you?”

“…..”

“Accept my help.”

“…..”

“Answer me!!”

Evelyn’s shout startled everyone in the room, her eyes turning gloomy as her hair started to flutter as though a wind had suddenly appeared within the room.

Seeing the state she was in, I grew alarmed.

That was also the moment that I opened my system screen and looked at a certain quest.

[◆ Main Quest Activated: Prevent the Calamities from awakening or dying.]

Aoife K. Megrail: Awakening

: Progress – 80%

Kiera Mylne: Awakening

: Progress – 75%

Evelyn J. Verlice: Awakening

: Progress – 69% –> 72%

The number was growing at an alarming rate.

[+1]

[+1]

[+1]

Evelyn’s mood turned gloomier and gloomier, and I knew that I had to act quickly before things turned for the worse.

“Hey, calm down.”

My voice layered as I spoke, but it didn’t seem to have an effect on her.

[+1]

[+1]

The meter continued to climb up, and her expression twisted more and more.

’Shit.’

Looking around, I could see that the children had started to move away, their faces filled with fear as they looked at Evelyn. Chloe took several steps back, staring at Evelyn with a look of apprehension, while a frown appeared on Velar’s face.

Seeing how the situation was turning out, I decided not to hold back any longer.

I pressed my hand onto her shoulder.

’Joy. Joy. Joy.’

I injected everything that I had.

Immediately, a green orb appeared within her body. For just a moment, the glow appeared to have an effect as Evelyn’s actions came to a stop. But it was only for a brief moment as her eyes frosted over and a dark hue began to appear around her body.

’Shit…!’

[+1]

[+1]

[+1]

[+1]

The moment I saw the string of numbers, I knew that the situation was turning for the worse. I tried even harder, but it appeared to have an effect on her, and just as I started contemplating whether to fight her directly or not, the old man’s lips parted.

“S-summer.”

He was the only one who appeared oblivious to Evelyn’s changes.

Staring toward the light above, he turned his head in Evelyn’s direction.

“H-have… y-you… ever seen… summer?”

“…..”

Evelyn didn’t answer.

Lifting her head to look at him, she coldly replied, “Stop changing the topic. Allow for my mana to enter your body again.”

But it was as if he couldn’t hear her.

He just hazily looked at her.

“…T-to be honest with you, I thought that I was satisfied with my life. I’ve… l-ived for long enough. I’ve experienced… a lot of things. Even when I heard about s-summer, I didn’t think I would be interested. Nor did… I think I’d be scared of death. T-this old man is happy with the life he’s lived.”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“B-but, that’s a lie.”

The old man looked away from her, turning his attention back toward the light above.

His face trembled.

“I… I am not s-satisfied.”

His eyes shook.

“T-this isn’t how I wanted to die. I-want to see summer, and… and…”

Tears streaked down the side of his face.

“I… am terribly scared of dying.”

“…..”

Evelyn turned silent, before her expression shifted.

[+1]

[+1]

[+1]

“Are you making fun of me?”

Her fists clenched tightly. So tightly that blood started to seep down from her clenched hands as her eyes turned dark.

“…You did all of that bullshit in order to stop me from helping you, and yet, now that you’re about to turn into a statue, you cry about how you’re so scared of death and how you have regrets?”

Evelyn pulled her hands away from his back.

“Fine, have it your way.”

She stood up, her eyes flickering once more.

“You can rot for all I care.”

Evelyn walked out of the room a moment later. Nobody followed her. Neither Velar, Chloe, nor I.

I wanted to go to her, but I knew that in her current state, she’d only turn faster. I planned on following her after a few more seconds.

Instead, I just focused on the statue in the middle of the room.

My heart grew heavy.

Ol’Sal turned into ice.

The number of people within the room grew smaller.

To make matters worse…

This was just the start.

***

Swooosh—!

The cold bit fiercely from every direction.

A figure stood amidst the cold, staring at the numerous statues before her.

Her gaze was particularly focused on the five that stood before her.

Swooosh, swooosh—!

The wind grew even fiercer, and the fog grew denser.

Despite this, the world was silent.

Evelyn basked in the silence as her gaze remained fixed on the five statues.

The darkness in her eyes deepened, and her hair whipped wildly around her, caught in the raging storm that took hold of the surroundings.

But eventually, something changed.

Cra Crack!

A cracking sound echoed.

Even through the howl of the wind, Evelyn heard it clearly. Moments later, cracks began to spider across the countless ice statues surrounding her, their heads slowly creaking as they turned to face her.

It was a sight that could make anyone’s skin crawl, yet Evelyn looked utterly unfazed. Her gaze stayed locked on the five statues before her.

Unlike the others, they remained fixed in place.

As if they understood their place.

Cra Crack! Cra Crack!

More and more statues began to move. Slowly, they started to surround Evelyn.

She didn’t say anything and let the statue surround her.

With each passing moment, they drew nearer and nearer. Yet Evelyn didn’t move. She stood motionless, her eyes closing after a moment, as if she had already accepted her fate.

A statue appeared next to her, its hand raising in an attempt to attack her.

But just as its attack could land…

Ka Cha!

A bolt of lightning burst down from above, striking the statue clean.

It struck the statue clean, leaving nothing behind.

But that wasn’t all.

Ka Cha! Ka Cha!

Bolts of lightning crashed down in every direction, obliterating the nearby statues. The fog lit up with a purplish glow as arcs of lightning rained from above, tearing apart any statue that dared to approach her.

The sounds spread in every direction, and as this went on, the frost around Evelyn’s hand grew more and more, reaching all the way to the top of her shoulder.

Her face grew paler by the second, and the mana inside of her body started to drain.

In spite of this, she continued.

She continued until there was nothing left around her.

Only the five statues.

“…..”

A calm settled across her surroundings a moment later.

This calm persisted for several seconds until a certain voice whispered in the air.

’How do you feel? Do you feel better now that you’ve released all your pent-up resentment?’

The voice was a familiar one.

One that Evelyn was all too used to.

’…It feels good, no? Letting wild on certain occasions. You should do it more. After all, someone as useless as you needs to have an outlet like this. At the rate that you’re going, you’ll fail more and more. What can someone like you even hope to achieve? You’re just a failure.’

The voice whispered deep into Evelyn’s mind, causing her cold face to show cracks, finally.

’You’ve always been useless. The one time you try to do something, you still fail. Control? You have no talent. The old man and the young man’s deaths are on you…’ The voice paused, drawing closer to Evelyn, ’You caused their death. If you hadn’t been so useless, they’d still be here!’

Evelyn’s body shook, her eyes starting to turn red.

She wanted to shake her head. To deny what was being said.

But she couldn’t.

She couldn’t… deny any of the things that were being said.

It was true.

All of it.

If she had trained harder, she was sure she could’ve eased their symptoms even more. She could have slept less, eaten less, sacrificed the little rest she allowed herself. But she hadn’t. That small bit of time could’ve made a difference, could’ve pushed her further.

Evelyn bit her lips, her eyes growing dimmer.

’That’s right. This is all on you. You’re useless. That’s how it’s always been, and how it will always be. That’s why it’s okay to go crazy once in a while. There’s nothing wrong with letting out your emotions.’

“…..”

’Say it with me. I’m useless.’

“…..”

’Say it.’

“…..”

’Say it!!”

“I am—”

“About to go back.”

A voice suddenly pierced the air, making Evelyn freeze. She turned her head to see Julien standing a short distance away, his expression as stoic as ever while he brushed his hair back.

“You’re about to go back.”