Volume 2, Chapter 30 – Dramatic Change

That night.

Without telling anyone else about Estelle’s sudden loss of consciousness, Fia pretended that nothing had happened and, in secret, put Estelle inside the carriage to rest.

Although Estelle’s words were brief, they provided a considerable amount of clues. The disaster that happened in Oro City must be connected to the conversation Estelle heard in the main hall. The only thing left was for Estelle to wake up and explain whether the problem was with Count Oro or with Noreen.

As for why Estelle had forgotten such an important event along the way, Fia could guess the reason. The thing Estelle had seen in the main hall must have been too painful for her—whether the pain was from fear or from some other emotion, once it exceeded a certain limit, the brain would use forgetting as a way to protect itself.

This was also the reason Estelle fainted when she returned to the main hall. The things she saw and heard in the main hall made her recall the events of that time. However, her brain, trying to desperately cover up the truth, could only feed Estelle a terrifying impression. In this way, before Estelle could even remember what had happened, she lost consciousness.

Thinking this way, it was possible that even after Estelle woke up, she would still not be able to know the truth.

Fia glanced at Estelle, who was lying at her feet like a completely peaceful sleeping beauty. Fia, who was sitting in the carriage, let out a soft sigh of helplessness. At this moment, Anastasia and Liti were in another square of the sanctuary. Liti, who was furious about Fia always ridiculing her strength, had Anastasia help her improve her tier by acting as a sparring partner. The two had just left not long ago and would not be back for a while.

This was a good opportunity to try something she hadn’t finished trying before.

Fia moved Estelle’s body a little and sat down in the direction of the carriage’s driver’s seat, turning her back to Estelle. She took out the [Key of the World Tree] that Calista had given her before she left from her spatial backpack.

A total of eleven yellowish-green short daggers were lined up on the table. Fia thought for a moment, then used a spatial hand to pick up all eleven yellowish-green short daggers, holding them with their tips pointing downwards.

When she had first gotten the [Key of the World Tree], Fia had tested it in front of Calista, but the [Key of the World Tree] had failed to work. Fia’s soul did not separate from her body, which made Fia question her own existence. However, in this period of time, Fia had guessed that the [Key of the World Tree] had not been effective at the time because there was only one [Key of the World Tree] acting on her, and its power was insufficient.

Now, with all eleven [Key of the World Tree] filled with mana and used at the same time, she might be able to confirm its effect—if even this doesn’t work, she should probably stop thinking about this. Maybe she really was the elf princess. It was just that because she had lost her old memories and had a new set of memories in her mind, she felt that “I” was not “me.”

If that were the case, she would have made a very embarrassing joke of herself.

A wry smile appeared on her exquisite, doll-like face. Fia pulled up the sleeve of her dress that was covering her left arm and pointed all eleven [Key of the World Tree] at her left arm.

Without hesitation.

Fia glanced to the side. With a determined look, she controlled the spatial force to descend.

However, before the [Key of the World Tree] could land on Fia, Fia was suddenly pulled by a force from behind. As Fia’s upper body tilted backward, the eleven short daggers that were aimed at her left arm naturally missed. They passed through the hem of Fia’s spread-out dress and, like nails hammered into a wall, made a series of jarring clanging sounds.

Following that was the sound of fabric tearing as her dress was ripped by the short daggers.

“Whoa?”

Subconsciously, Fia let out a cry of surprise. But because she felt that the thing that was pulling her had no malicious intent, she didn’t fight back.

Estelle’s inverted face soon appeared in Fia’s vision. Estelle’s face was no longer pale; it was a look of anger, as if she had recovered.

“What are you doing, Fia? Are you trying to kill yourself?!” ¹ …. -_-

“No…”

She must have seen me trying to stab myself with the [Key of the World Tree], so in a moment of panic, she pulled me away, Fia thought.

Fia felt a little embarrassed. But because Estelle was still holding her shoulders, Fia had no choice but to maintain her upward-gazing posture, her eyes glancing to the side. At this distance, their faces were too close.

“I just wanted to confirm something. It’s not what you’re thinking, Estelle.”

“It’s good that it’s not what I’m thinking,” Estelle let out a sigh of relief and sat back down on her knees. A look of reproach was added to her expression. “Waking up and seeing Fia stabbing herself with a bunch of daggers… anyone would think that person had gone crazy.”

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“Ahaha… this is actually a magical item called the [Key of the World Tree].”

Fia smiled wryly in a perfunctory manner. To make Estelle understand, she had to explain the function of the [Key of the World Tree].

After listening, Estelle gave her a look as if she were looking at an idiot.

“…Not only did you lose your memory, but your mind has also gone bad? To actually doubt whether you are yourself… The elf Mana Surge should be enough to prove it. Well, if you want to try, I won’t stop you. Just remember to use a bottle to collect the blood next time. I want the things you don’t want.”

Estelle placed one hand on her chest, her expression looking very playful.

“Collect it in a bottle? Blood will clot very quickly, you know?”

“It’s fine. We vampires have ways to prevent blood from clotting.”

As she spoke, Estelle opened her mouth and pointed at her pink tongue.

She probably wants to say that a vampire’s saliva can prevent blood from clotting. But her action and the way her tongue was moving were a bit sensual.

Fia politely averted her gaze and sat up straight, pulling out the [Key of the World Tree] that had ripped her dress one by one.

“Estelle, have you remembered anything? What did Count Oro and Noreen say in the main hall?”

Fia asked in a casual tone.

“Ugh.” Estelle’s expression froze, and her brows furrowed. “I… I don’t know. The memory in my mind feels as if it has been dug out. Whenever I try to remember, my head and chest ache. Damn it. I know it’s important, but I just can’t remember.”

By the end of her sentence, Estelle punched the side of the carriage, making a dull thud sound.

Just as I expected.

Fia was not disappointed. If it were that easy to bypass the brain’s protective mechanism, Estelle wouldn’t have fainted in the main hall. As time went on, Estelle would one day remember. It could be a sudden memory or a repeated recollection in her dreams. That was her own business. All she had to do now was to cleanse the chaos and find the mastermind.

Beep—!

A sudden, sharp whistle entered the two’s ears. Although the sound came from a far distance, and the whistle was almost inaudible, the two, being an elf and a vampire, accurately caught the jarring shriek.

Immediately after, an explosion that made the air tremble rang out.

Fia and Estelle exchanged a glance.

“It’s Anastasia.”

“Hurry!”

Without hesitation, Fia ripped open the carriage curtain and ran straight towards the western side of the sanctuary where the sound had come from.

The whistle and the thunder-like explosion were signals Fia had agreed upon with the soldiers in the sanctuary. If they were attacked, no matter what it was, they had to immediately blow the wooden whistle. And if an explosion followed, it meant that the signal was from Anastasia, indicating that the person who was most likely the assassin had appeared.

Although it was nighttime, Fia’s speed did not decrease. With the assistance of [Flight] magic, Fia, who was flying almost close to the ground, passed through the complex streets in just a few breaths and neared the place where the whistle had come from.

The whistle was getting closer.

Turning the corner of a small alley, Fia’s vision became clear.

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Under the starry sky, a stretch of ruins piled with broken stones and rubble appeared before Fia.

Anastasia and five or six soldiers with torches were standing on the ruins. Behind them were Liti, who was holding a staff, and Norton, who was lying on the ground. Liti was unharmed, but Norton was in an extremely sorry state. Both of his legs had been severed at the root, and his right hand, which was holding a finely made longsword, had also been cut off and was lying to the side like a piece of garbage.

Liti was sweating profusely, casting the First-Tier spell [Blessing of Serenity] to eliminate Norton’s pain. But compared to the pain of losing four limbs, the First-Tier [Blessing of Serenity] was clearly not enough. Norton could only grit his teeth, with veins bulging on his forehead, enduring the pain and trying not to roll on the ground.

The culprit was standing opposite Anastasia, confronting the group.

With flame-like red hair and an ink-black long skirt, the girl was almost as tall as Anastasia. With just a single glance, one could feel her mature and noble aura. However, such a girl was wearing a veil that covered her entire face, not even revealing her eyes. If not for the soldiers holding torches, the girl would have almost blended into the night.

A name appeared in Fia’s mind.

Noreen Oro, the eldest daughter of the House of Oro.

How is she still alive?

Not caring about anything else, Fia went straight to Anastasia’s side. A person who could survive a Seventh-Tier magic had to be taken seriously.

“Be careful, Your Highness!”

As soon as Anastasia spoke, black chaos suddenly rose from the empty ground. Noreen, who had been standing opposite Anastasia, moved like a ghost, arriving at Fia’s side with just a single flicker.

The figure, which was as fast as if it had teleported, flashed by. The sound of wind whistling rang out above Fia’s head.

[Strength Boost I]

Fia, who was in flight, forcefully stopped herself. Golden light enveloped her right hand. She clenched her fist and smashed it straight into the thing that was swinging at her.

Her fist felt like it had hit something, but it wasn’t the feeling of hitting something hard. It was like her fist had sunk into water. The wet and sticky sensation made her feel a little nauseous.

By the time Fia’s excellent dynamic vision caught Noreen, Noreen’s body had already turned into a liquid-like substance and plummeted.

Is she a liquid lifeform? Chaos?

No matter what, I’ll burn it with fire.

A giant’s arm, formed by spatial force, was inserted into the ruins and then violently lifted. The shattered stones and rubble instantly became a wave, roaring in the opposite direction of Anastasia. After that, fire rain, which had dyed half the night red, mercilessly shot out.

The rumbling of the earth and the smell of scorched air filled the ruins.

Fia took the opportunity to get to Anastasia’s side and glanced at Norton, who was lying on the ground and groaning in pain.

“Was Norton ambushed?”

“Yes. Her Highness Liti and I were practicing magic not far from here. We heard the whistle and rushed over, but it was already too late.”

“It’s not too late as long as he’s not dead. Vampires have the ability to resurrect. Did you fight that person, Anastasia?”

“Yes,” Anastasia nodded forcefully, and a serious look appeared in her lively blue eyes as she looked at the sea of fire. “But that person just now… if I’m not mistaken, her physical features are identical to Lady Noreen Oro. However, her strength is only slightly lower than mine, and she also has the magic to merge with chaos. This is not Noreen’s ability.”

“Maybe she has been hiding her strength all this time. This is not the place to talk. First, let’s move Norton to a safe place—tch!”

“I’ll do it!”

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Before Fia could turn around, Anastasia crossed paths with Fia. She swung her longsword diagonally, cutting the red-haired attacker in two.

FWLOPSH!!

The sound of a water balloon bursting.

Just as it had been when Fia had punched Noreen, Noreen, who was cut by Anastasia’s sword, turned into a puddle of black mucus and fell. Although Fia had flipped over half the ruins, the ruins where Anastasia’s group was standing were not affected, and this was where the chaos had come from.

“Quickly, get Norton out of here!”

“Yes!”

Realizing this, Anastasia shouted for the soldiers to leave with Norton. But chaos had already wrapped around them like ghosts. The soldiers had not even taken a few steps when new chaos appeared. Just like how they had attacked the convoy, countless chaos rose up from under the ruins, trapping the soldiers who were carrying Norton. The soldiers immediately cried out in fear.

“You lowly ants! Your Highness, take Her Highness Liti and leave! Leave this place to me!”

“Okay. Liti.”

Fia picked up Liti and left the ruins with flight magic. Anastasia, on the other hand, began an impassioned incantation that turned her longsword a golden-red color. Like a divine child who had been blessed by a god, a sacred aura enveloped Anastasia’s entire body. With a swing of her sword, a golden-red storm instantly unfolded in front of Anastasia.

The spreading storm not only dissipated the chaos that had trapped the soldiers but also engulfed the ruins farther away that Fia had not yet bombarded. Any chaos that came into contact with the golden-red storm was instantly disintegrated.

However, there was more chaos than she had expected.

[Wind of Exploration] showed that there was chaos with a mana concentration of almost the Second Tier hidden under the ruins. This was not because the chaos’s level was higher than before, but because their numbers were terrifyingly large.

Did she gather half a city’s worth of chaos here?!

Normally, Fia could solve this by continuously using the maximum-range firestorm. But with Noreen’s elusive ability, Fia was not confident that Liti would not be harmed while she was alone.

Noreen’s figure reappeared in Fia’s vision. This time, Noreen did not choose to attack the soldiers. Instead, she quietly snuck up behind Anastasia. What was worse, although Anastasia felt that Noreen was behind her and made a clear movement to turn around, she unnaturally froze for a moment.

Mental magic.

But her opponent was not just Anastasia.

It was not a fireball, but [Telekinesis]. Fia made a spatial hand appear right next to Noreen and then squeezed hard.

Black mucus scattered everywhere.

Although she had an ability that was close to infinite resurrection, Noreen’s body was much more fragile than Fia had expected.

“Lady Noreen, what are you doing!”

“Aren’t you our comrade!”

Although they had burns from the chaos, the soldiers did not give up on reasoning with Noreen. After putting Norton down on the ground, they shouted at the ruins with a mix of fear and anger.

Seemingly moved by the soldiers’ words, Noreen’s attack temporarily ceased. Amidst the writhing of black mucus, she once again transformed into a red-haired, black-skirted figure, standing quietly about ten meters away from the group.

Her facial features were still covered by a veil, making it impossible to see her face.

“It really is the Lady…”

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“You… what are you doing—”

“Danger!”

Before the soldier could finish his sentence, Noreen’s body flickered. If Fia had not arrived in time and used [Bee Shield] to block the attack, the soldier would have been decapitated.

This is endless.

Clicking her tongue silently, Fia manipulated a spatial hand to swing at Noreen. But Noreen, as if she could see the spatial hand, nimbly jumped, used the spatial hand as leverage, and dove from the air towards Fia.

In that case.

With golden light bursting from her right hand, Fia channeled her strength into her right arm. She swung her fist at Noreen, who was flying diagonally towards her. But in the next moment, Estelle’s voice suddenly echoed through the square.

“Fia, stop!”

The thought of killing Noreen instantly came to a halt. Fia changed her fist into a grab. Before Noreen’s longsword could pierce her, she moved to the side, and in the nick of time, grabbed Noreen’s arm and slammed her onto the ground.

“Sister!”

With hurried footsteps, Estelle ran towards Noreen. However, after hearing Estelle’s voice, Noreen just slightly tilted her head. Taking advantage of Estelle’s lack of vigilance, she quietly made a throwing motion with her right hand towards Estelle—before she could, Fia lightly kicked Noreen’s right hand, making the trajectory of the flying knife deviate slightly. The flying knife only grazed Estelle’s shoulder, failing to inflict a fatal injury.

Although Fia could have just stopped the flying knife, she did not do so.

“Gah.”

Estelle made a sound of pain, but she still chose to run to Noreen’s side and, with a thud, knelt down, frantically reaching out to touch Noreen.

“Sister!”

Unfortunately, Noreen showed no reaction to Estelle’s cries. She just slowly reached her hand out to Estelle’s neck, trying to choke her.

Not wanting to see a scene of sisters fighting, Fia frowned.

“She has no self-awareness anymore.”

Fia then crouched down, grabbed Noreen by the back of her neck, and, before Noreen’s hand could touch Estelle, used force in her hand.

Just like when she was attacked before, Noreen turned into a puddle of black mucus and shattered. Fia lit a flame in her hand, turning the chaos that was trying to sink into the ground into ashes.

“Ah…”

Witnessing Noreen’s disappearance with her own eyes, the vivid red in Estelle’s eyes gradually faded. Her eyes slowly widened, and her long eyelashes trembled slightly.

The explanation can come later. Time does not permit me to linger. Fia turned to face the chaos, where at least half of the city’s worth of chaos was gathered and waiting for an opportunity to strike—

No.

The display on [Wind of Exploration] made Fia’s eyebrows twitch.

The chaos had disappeared.