The brilliance erupted in Noctar.
The light was so intense that it was as if the dawn had arrived, visible even beyond the fortress walls.
Reinard winced his eyes shut against the flooding light. The dark cloud spirits screamed “Kieeek!” in anguish.
The light bomb spreading in all directions enveloped and consumed the black mist surrounding Reinard. As the mist dissipated, Reinard’s body, previously concealed, was fully revealed.
“What…?”
Reinard’s bewilderment was evident. Seizing the moment when the pressure on him lessened, Arfia swung her bow. She severed Reinard’s arm.
Reinard lost his balance and staggered. Just as he was about to fall off the roof, he leapt across to land on the opposite roof. Checking the state of the spirits, he noted their power had weakened.
It was because of Arfia’s light.
‘This light…’
It was no ordinary light. The clear afterglow was unmistakably the essence of spirits. There was no room for doubt.
Didn’t she struggle to wield spirits?
Though they had been nearly indistinguishable before, Reinard couldn’t understand why these unruly spirits were suddenly cooperating with Arfia.
Arfia slowly rose to her feet. Patterns of light emanated from her back, patterns no clothing could conceal.
A brand and a blessing.
A mark of the vow to uphold faith.
Arfia indulged in the power contained within the light.
‘So this is what spirits feel like.’
Even though it was a phenomenon she was experiencing for the first time, it felt strangely familiar. Naturally so, as she had been born with these spirits. Moving her arms and legs felt no different.
Because of this, she instinctively knew exactly how to handle them.
Arfia, holding her short bow, drew the bowstring with her right hand.
“Ki-eeek.”
As the bowstring stretched, an arrow appeared where there was none, an arrow crafted from radiant light.
A sneer formed at the corner of Arfia’s mouth.
“It’s my turn now. Ready for this arrow, compatriot?”
“Kk!”
Letting out a single cry, Reinard swiftly moved. That light, he sensed, was dangerous. The dark cloud spirits in his mind frantically warned him.
He disappeared into the thick haze of fog that spread everywhere. The fog drifted away into the sky.
Arfia’s eyes followed Reinard’s movements. Without any attempt to predict his path, she shot the arrow into the fog.
It exploded.
“Chhak!”
The sound of the arrow splitting the fog came before the piercing air split. The arrow’s light, tracing a straight line, was faster than sound.
The arrow struck the cloud directly, causing the fog to disappear with a “Poof!” Revealed, Reinard plummeted through the air.
Reinard hit the ground, rolling to cushion his fall. Red blood flowed from various cuts on his dark skin. All this damage from just a single arrow.
“Could this… truly be a spirit?”
He could have barely begun handling spirits, yet the power didn’t make sense. Even the high elves from his homeland didn’t control their spirits with such might.
Reinard had been right: Arfia’s spirits were different from the natural ones. They had been cohabitating and battling within her for hundreds of years.
Children grow through strife, and so did the spirits. Unintentionally, they had grown to a level unparalleled by others.
The deity who created the world designated this light a name:
“Light Servant”
The higher rank of a Light Spirit.
Once again, the brilliant light descended upon the fallen Reinard. Arfia aimed her light arrow.
“This is the price for drawing your blade against him. I’ll make sure you don’t repeat such a deed.”
Reinard looked up at Arfia with trembling eyes, then lowered his head.
He tightly closed his eyes, awaiting his fate.
But nothing changed as he waited. The light had not disappeared either. Cautiously raising his head,
“…What is this? Are you savoring a base pleasure by watching me die?”
“Far from it. I have no taste for harming my own kin.”
Given the circumstances, Arfia considered him kin and extended mercy.
But this mercy was only for Reinard the elf. Arfia looked toward the direction of the caravan.
She raised her bow, as if protesting against the world that had brought her suffering. She drew the bowstring and lightly released it. The arrow ascended like a retrograde meteor, sending fragments of light scattering around.
The arrow paused only when it pierced the clouds, then its tip tilted sideways.
And it fell.
‘While I thank you for bringing me to meet him…’
For abducting her, confining her, and treating her as merely a commodity—these things she couldn’t forgive. Here and now, they would pay for their sins.
The meteor fell.
It disappeared between the buildings.
“Kuung…”
A pillar of white light shot up. The ground trembled as if an earthquake had hit.
The light pillar gradually thinned and faded.
The void created by the arrow swallowed the night.
“Paasss…”
The bow, unable to withstand the force, fractured into countless pieces.
A breeze blew, carrying the fragments away.
Among this, Arfia’s braided golden hair fluttered in the wind.
The night breeze was refreshing against her sober mind. Arfia felt an unparalleled sense of liberation.
She turned her head to see the one who had gifted her with this freedom. To proudly boast of having repaid his trust.
Carami stood with a goblet in hand, her mouth agape and eyes wide as never before.
“Very impressive?”
“Didn’t I just absolutely ace it?”
Arfia grinned as she flashed a ‘V.’
Elsewhere…
“Damn it, not my precious goods!”
Carami let out a scream.
Arfia returned to the villa with Reinard in tow.
Seeing the scattered corpses of his comrades around the villa, Reinard was left speechless. His eyes met those of the old man responsible for this massacre, and he flinched.
“Victor of Shadow…?”
“Didn’t expect there’d be another who knows this old man.”
“There’s no assassin who doesn’t know of you. I thought you perished alongside the guild on that day. Didn’t know you hid here?”
“I no longer wish to take lives for money. But regardless of that…”
Reinard noticed a sudden shift in the atmosphere around Victor, filled with nostalgia and regret. The piercing gaze directed towards him was difficult to meet head-on.
Instinctively, Reinard took a stance with his dagger, though his trembling hand betrayed his readiness for combat.
“Respect for elders.”
Respect for elders?! What does that mean?
It means you must respect your elders!
Come on, attack me if you want. Even if I die, I will uphold the pride of the elves.
“Slap!”
“Ah!”
Victor’s hand left a trail before striking the crown of Reinard’s head like lightning. Covering his head, Reinard collapsed.
“You would dare draw your blade against an elder? Elves these days know nothing of respect for elders.”
While still stunned, Reinard managed to retort.
“Hah, but I’m older than you… Hik.”
Victor’s fist came up again, thoroughly wiping out any thought of resistance from Reinard.
Indeed, physical education is unsurpassed in teaching manners. With one punch, Reinard had clearly learned his lesson, rubbing the large bump emerging on his forehead.
While these two sorted out their hierarchy, the other pair shared an amicable atmosphere. Arfia enthusiastically recounted her experience wielding spirits to Carami.
“So, when I shouted at them, they just froze on the spot, right? Then I demanded power, and whoosh—they surged into me, and I just brightened up!”
“Is that so?”
Although she didn’t quite get it but didn’t want to dampen the mood, Carami smiled kindly and listened as if entertaining a daughter’s story about a field trip.
Showing such a smile was quite a miracle, given that her inner self had vanished along with the trading caravan.
“In short, those who make elves suffer are nothing special. From now on, I’ll use them to make up for the inconvenience.”
Arfia, oblivious to their concerns, continued her enthusiastic monologue.
Spirits shouted “Hyaak!” out of discomfort but were ignored.
“That’s quite disruptive.”
Carami looked around and assessed the situation. With the earthquake echoing through the night and the light pillar falling, it was strange for anyone to sleep through this.
“It’s probably best to leave now.”
“You’re thinking of departing?”
“Entire trading caravans don’t just vanish without consequences. They’ll likely come questioning us, as we’re somewhat associated with them. And there’s also the risk of false accusations.”
“Does that matter? We’re far from clean ourselves, and our presence prevents reckless deeds anyway.”
Carami tilted her head in puzzlement.
“I’m clean though?”
“What?”
“I only do good deeds. Where will you find a slave merchant more virtuous than me?”
“And…”
“Placing myself and Master on the same level is frankly… quite something, isn’t it? Ha ha.”
Carami sharply drew a line. Victor prepared to counter with “You forcibly enslaved Arfia when she was down!” but Arfia’s gaze toward Carami made him reconsider.
Honey dripped from the eyes of the fairy.
It seemed the involved party, Arfia, would handle it herself. Victor sighed in resignation. There’s no one in this world to trust. I must properly train Emili then.
Victor borrowed a horse from a local innkeeper he was familiar with. Carami and Arfia easily mounted.
Arfia hesitated for a moment before wrapping her arms around Carami’s waist. Carami tried her best to ignore the warmth she felt on her back.
“Go carefully. You can return anytime. You might want to work on that personality of yours. If you meet an odd fellow, you might perish without even getting the chance to scream.”
“Haha, that’s the basic discipline of a slave trader. I’ll visit again soon. Oh, and Master.”
“Hmm?”
“Check the guild’s basement. It’s for the drinks and the children’s education.”
Guild.
Basement.
Combining the two words, it wasn’t difficult to understand her intention. Victor nodded in agreement.
“Master, see you soon! You must stay alive until we come back?”
Arfia waved. Just as the horse began to move forward, Carami flicked a finger.
[Liri’s Liberation Completed]
50 points have been rewarded to you.
[Lara’s Liberation Completed]
70 points have been rewarded to you.
As Carami and Arfia moved further away, Reinard also began to rise cautiously.
“I’ll be going then…?”
“What nonsense? You must stay.”
“Huh? Why must I?”
“What?”
“…”
“…Why must I?”
Victor swiped his finger through the blood-stained surroundings.
“We need to clean up.”
The horse galloped across the night plains.
Arfia, citing the risk of falling off, tightly embraced Carami.
“So, where are we going now?”
Arfia asked about their destination.
Actually, it didn’t matter where they went.
When she first emerged from the forest, even breathing was a struggle, but not anymore. It felt like she could endure even a desert without a single tree as long as her master was with her.
But Carami had an entirely different thought.
“We’re heading to the Great Forest.”
Everything until now has been a significant step forward. And this is the final leap.
*
Far into the night, the horse continued its gallop across the plains.
