Volume 2, Chapter 73 – Being Hunted Down

Why?

Why… why were the people from the Divine Punishment Holy Church here?!

The black-robed men of the Divine Punishment Holy Church quickly charged into the scattering crowd.

Xingya watched as the soldiers who stood to fight fell one by one under the butcher’s blades of the Church! She watched as familiar noblewomen were pierced through their hearts! She watched as her former playmates fell into the hands of those cruel, black-robed men one after another…

Xingya’s heart was gradually consumed by fear, which felt like a ghostly claw reaching out from the abyss to grip her firmly, dragging her step by step into the endless mire of despair.

Although she usually acted somewhat arrogant, Xingya was ultimately only a twelve-year-old child. Having been protected within the Count’s manor every day and being ignorant of the world’s affairs, how could she possibly withstand the terrifying pressure brought by the Divine Punishment Holy Church? One could even say it was her first time seeing blood, let alone seeing living beings being cruelly stripped of their lives right before her eyes.

As she watched the cruel scenes play out and heard the wails of the servants and her former companions, Xingya’s tears fell uncontrollably like pearls from a broken string.

“Waaaaah!! Mommy, where are you?!”

With her heart nearly collapsing from the thick murderous intent surrounding her, Xingya could not help but wail in grief, constantly calling for her mother, Diana, the Countess.

However, when the people of the Divine Punishment Holy Church launched their charge, Diana had already become separated from them in the chaos! Xingya, who had always relied on her mother, could not find her anywhere at the moment she needed her most.

Fear, despair, and worry instantly spread through her heart!

Seeing that she still could not find her mother, Xingya could only turn her pleading gaze toward the knight who was carrying her as they fled and the other guards from the Earl’s house. “Where… where did my mommy go?! Take me to find her! Take me there right now!!”

“M-Miss?”

Hearing Xingya’s impulsive words, the knights of the Earl’s household showed conflicted expressions. After all, in this situation, it was still unknown whether they could even escape the clutches of the Divine Punishment Holy Church, let alone go back to find someone.

“Miss, please calm down. We must leave first…”

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“I don’t care, I don’t care!!! I want to find my mother!!”

“Miss!”

“I don’t care!!” Xingya shouted at the top of her lungs!

“M-Miss, you…”

Facing the child’s cries, the guards’ expressions became increasingly pained.

However, in that instant, the expressions of the guards and the member of the Blizzard Knight Order suddenly shifted drastically as they looked behind them with trepidation! One of the servants even ran over and covered Xingya’s mouth with his hand!

“Miss, be quiet!”

Xingya: ?

The guard’s stern gaze terrified Xingya into silence. She could only nod in terror while crying.

Upon seeing this, the guard and the knight exchanged looks and nodded before gently setting Xingya and Yumo down by a nearby bush. The knight from the Blizzard Knight Order crouched solemnly in front of the two children and spoke in an incredibly serious tone. “Miss Xia’er, Miss Xingya! Please leave through this path immediately!!”

“Are… are you not going to protect us anymore?! Wh-Why?”

Hearing this, the unease in Xingya’s heart intensified further. However, facing the little girl’s pitiful expression, the knight could only shake his head helplessly, casting a solemn sideways glance behind him. “There’s no time to explain! You must leave here immediately!”

“B-But…”

“No buts! Go now!”

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In the emergency, the knight could not bother with noble etiquette and shouted ruthlessly at Xingya. Being shouted at like that, Xingya had no choice but to swallow her doubts. Then, together with the pink-haired girl, she moved through the bushes while crying…

On the other side, after seeing the two young misses depart, the knight and the other guards from the Earl’s house revealed looks of grim determination. They drew their swords or other weapons and charged resolutely toward the black-robed men chasing them!

…

“Ah… AHH!!”

However, facing the powerful sixth tier executors of the Divine Punishment Holy Church, a fifth tier knight and a few fourth tier guards had absolutely no chance of victory. The moment they clashed with the Church members, miserable screams echoed through the small woods!

?!!

Hearing the screams, the fleeing Xingya couldn’t help but tremble all over. She looked back fearfully only to see that the knights and guards who had just been protecting them had already lost their combat strength and fallen into pools of blood under the siege of the Church members, their fates unknown.

‘H-How could this happen?!’

At this moment, the fear in Xingya’s heart amplified even further. Looking at the black-robed men who were exuding a murderous aura, only one thought remained in Xingya’s mind: ‘Escape!’

She had to run while they hadn’t noticed her yet!

Thinking of this, Xingya quickly turned her head. At the same time, noticing the indifferent expression of the pink-haired girl beside her, Xingya could not help but whisper urgently while crying, “What are you doing! Run, quickly!!”

Although her noble upbringing had given her a strong resistance toward Yumo because she was a ‘slave’, and she had even said some nasty things because of incidents in their childhood, she was a kind child at heart. She naturally did not want to see another child fall into the hands of those perverts!

Thus, Xingya directly grabbed the pink-haired girl’s small hand, pulling the seemingly stunned girl along as she ran deeper into the woods! Looking at Xingya, who was pulling her hand and leading the escape, the pink-haired girl slightly raised an eyebrow.

Of course, Xingya did not notice any of this. Her orange-red eyes kept darting back to confirm if anyone was chasing them…

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‘Faster, I must be faster!’

There was a secret base deeper in the woods! If they hid inside, they would be safe! Xingya could not help but think so!

However, how could two ‘ordinary’ little girls escape the pursuit of the Divine Punishment Holy Church? One had to know that among the people Romney had sent to hunt them down and cut off all loose ends, there were several sixth tier executors!

What did it matter if they had trees and bushes for cover? Within the perception field of a strong expert, they still had nowhere to hide!

Just as Xingya looked back and saw her secret base right in front of her, a black-clothed man suddenly descended from the sky and blocked her path! Xingya’s breathing stopped instantly and her pupils shrank!

?!!

H-How could this be?!

“No!! Mom-”

In a flash, an unparalleled sense of despair exploded in the little girl’s heart! Her instinct was to call for her mother.

However, the black-robed man suddenly struck at Xingya, who was running in front, covering her mouth and pinning her firmly to the ground! At the same time, the other black-robed men arrived and surrounded the other pink-haired girl!

At this point, Xingya’s plan to hide in the secret base was a total failure…

Looking at the black-robed man with a hideous expression pinning her down and recalling the cruel sights she had seen earlier, tears poured uncontrollably from Xingya’s eyes.

‘No, no! Don’t kill me!!’

Xingya wanted to beg for mercy. However, with her mouth covered, she could not even speak. She could only cry desperately and look at the black-robed man with pleading eyes! Unfortunately, this man did not seem to have a shred of tenderness in him. Facing a beautiful little girl like Xingya, there was nothing but killing intent in his slightly reddened eyes.

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After checking Xingya with a strange gemstone, a look of disdain appeared on the man’s face. “Heh, her talent isn’t high either. There’s no need to keep her as a sacrifice. Goodbye, brat.”

?!!

‘Kill? He’s going to kill me?!’

‘No, no, please no!’

‘I’m still young, I haven’t even been in love yet! There are still so many things I want to do!’

‘I… I don’t want to die!’

Hearing those words filled with killing intent, Xingya was completely submerged in a mire of despair! She could only struggle and beg for mercy in her mind, using all her strength to try and break free from the man’s restraint! But how could Xingya, who was only at the second tier, possibly manage that?

The only thing she could do was watch as the black-robed man drew the blade from his waist…

Watching the blood-stained edge gradually enlarge in her vision, Xingya thought, ‘Waaaaah, Mommy, save me, save me…’

However, just as Xingya was about to lose consciousness from extreme fear and suffocation, a familiar, crisp, and cute female voice suddenly rang in her ear.

“Hey, I say, isn’t it a bit much to not even spare a child?”

?!!

‘This voice is… Xia’er?!’