Chapter 14 : The Tyrant’s Tranquilizer
Wusssh, the branch shook. The forest was screaming.
The black smoke surrounding the disaster beca sli and fell to the ground. Dripping, black masses crawled on the ground as if they were alive.
Tears welled up in Alie’s eyes. She’s got goosebumps all over her body.
“Huh, uh…”
It’s dangerous. Her animal instincts warned her.
‘If you touch it, you’ll die. My whole body will rot alive, I’ll struggle in pain, and disappear without leaving a bone behind!’
“Argh—”
Alie stepped back.
Tok.
The tree hit her back. Her retreat was blocked. In the anti, the figure gradually shook off the black smoke and showed itself. Black hair was seen, fierce eyes, and a manly face was revealed. It was Serwin’s face.
‘It’s not the Emperor—’
Serwin has cold golden eyes. But the man in front of her had emotionless black eyes. There was no tension or sadness at all.
It wasn’t Serwin, it was the killer she saw in her dreams.
“…..”
Alie didn’t say anything. Her mouth was tied up in fear and couldn’t open.
[Witch, you’re full of fear.]
The ‘disaster’ looked disappointed. The exaggerated expression was combined with the grandiose tone, making it even more creepy.
Screams echoed throughout the forest with the sll of rotting bodies. There was ‘disaster’ at the center of the gradually decaying forest. Everything alive is dying, but it’s speaking and looking so indifferent.
Alie couldn’t laugh. Black mucus was spreading widely. Wherever it touched the leaves burned black. Like it was an epidemic.
[You don’t have to be afraid.]
The disaster spoke kindly.
[Your blood and flesh will soon be mine.]
“What are you talking about—?”
It ca slowly. At the sa ti, black smoke gathered as if to stifle Alie’s breathing. It got darker and darker in front of her and she couldn’t breathe.
‘I need to wake him up.’
Alie closed her eyes and opened them.
‘I have magic.’
It was only simple wind magic, but for so reason it worked to get rid of black smoke.
‘Like in Serwin’s room. That’s all I have to do. It’s just a simple gust of wind.’
Alie comforted herself and raised the wind into a gale with her trembling hands. It was a strong gust of wind that made it hard to even keep her eyes open. Black smoke was quickly caught up in the wind and disappeared. The black mucus also dispersed. But the disaster stood indifferently, still in the body of the Emperor.
[Oh, you know how to use your brain]
Does it think she wanted a complint right now?
Black smoke leaked from Serwin’s body and wrapped around it. Then, a creepy laugh rang out again. Alie shuddered.
It was simply a living disaster itself. She didn’t know it could speak and think like a human being.
Alie raised a weak wind and wrapped it around her body. It was to protect herself. The black smoke approaching Alie hit the wind shroud and disappeared.
‘Magic doesn’t work! What should I do? What do we do now?’
Being wary of the disaster, she agonized over how to stop it.
‘—It’s not enough to blow away the smoke. It’s coming out again. The priority is to return the weakened seal to its original state, but I don’t know how! How did the seal beco so weak?’
At that ti, she heard sounds coming from behind her. They were the knights of the Emperor. They quickly ford an offensive formation. Alie was startled. To soone who didn’t know the situation it looked like Alie was being hurt by Serwin.
“Take your ti and co to us. It’s dangerous if you get close.”
Ethan said.
“Be as far away from His Majesty as possible. We’ll attack and make a gap.”
What the knights were after was Serwin, not Alie.
Alie recalled that the knights reacted very seriously to the news that Serwin had disappeared.
‘Did you know that Serwin was taken over by the disaster?’
She carefully looked at its face. Serwin’s face was hidden by black smoke. Still, she could feel it was smiling.
‘They found out the disaster is the Emperor. Does this happen often? They seem to be familiar and know how to respond.’
Alie first decided to follow Ethan’s words. Looking at their familiar attitudes, there seed to be a solution.
‘Renee?’
Renee was seen among the knights. Renee, who t the knights under the auspices of the house, had been forced to lead the way. She found Alie in danger and wanted to run to her sister right away, but she was watching the situation and biting her lips hard because if she moved wrong she could make it more dangerous.
The disaster followed Alie’s gaze to the knights and raised its arms to point at Renee.
[Look carefully]
Then, black smoke billowed toward them.
“Renee, get away!”
Alie shouted, but the knights only turned to the air. Perhaps there was no black smoke in their eyes.
‘It’s too late to avoid it!’
Alie used her wind shroud to create a huge barrier in front of them. The black smoke was blocked by the barrier and made a roar. Only then did Renee notice that there was sothing invisible. But she didn’t have ti to think about it. It was because Serwin was seen approaching Alie. She scread.
From the beginning, the disaster was aiming for Alie and pretended to attack Renee. To get rid of the bad wind.
The operation was successful, and the disaster kicked Alie over, her legs collapsing and her head on the ground.
“Ugh!”
She was dragged away by the disaster. It hurt as if her blood was going to explode from her. However, the black mucus dripping from the head was more horrifying than the pain. The mucus crawled over Alie’s skin and fell onto her body on her neck. The mucus wrapped Alie’s arms and legs.
“Ugh—”
[Try it again. It’s fun]
The disaster shook Alie’s body as if it was mocking her.
Alie glared at the disaster. With her arms and legs tied up, her eyes were the only things she could move freely.
‘Knowing that I can’t do it…!’
Alie was still a novice in the ways of magic. It is hard to use more than one magical effect at a ti. If she tried to attack the disaster the wind shroud protecting Renee and the knights was likely to disappear. The disaster was still cleverly sending black smoke towards Renee. The mont the wind shroud disappears, he will attack them.
‘The knights may not know what’s happening, but I must protect Renee.’
Renee was part of her precious family that she only recently got. She couldn’t give up easily.
“Alie! Get this wind out of here! I’ll save you now!”
“Don’t co!”
The knights caught Renee who was attempting to run to Alie. Renee resisted with tears in her eyes, but the emperor’s knights were far stronger than her.
‘Alie, please—!’
Renee felt a keen sense of helplessness.
The disaster stroked Alie’s face while holding her hair with one hand. It’s rough touch ssed up her hair.
[The Emperor has been waiting for you for a long ti. desperately]
“S-so?”
[When the Emperor realizes that he has killed you with his own hands, how will he look?]
It gave an odd smile.
[I want to taste that despair.]
Alie got goosebumps.
It was genuinely pleased with Serwin’s despair.
‘We need to get out of here. We’ll all die at this rate.’
The intense instinct for survival awakened her desperation.
‘I can’t beat you with my strength. I need magic.’
However using magic to attack would an the magic used to protect Renee and the knights was likely to disappear. While agonizing, Alie made eye contact with Ethan. He pointed at the black smoke and shook his sword. The black smoke was gray and blurry like an afterimage.
‘Can we stop the smoke with the sword? Then magic—’
“Tk!”
At that mont, the disaster grabbed her by the neck. Compared to its hands, Alie’s neck looked thin and fragile. Its hands began to tighten around Alie’s neck viciously.
“Tk!”
“Ugh—”
Alie grabbed it by the wrist and struggled.
‘M-magic—!’
Alie didn’t give up. She raised a gale of wind with all her might. A long wind blew. The black mucus ca off her body. However, the disaster did not budge. Only the strength of its hands had weakened for a while.
He started strangling again. Alie struggled in pain. She pushed its body and grabbed at its hand, but its strength was too strong that it remained unfazed. She was being strangled.
She can’t breath. And her throat ached.
‘Is this how I’m going to die—?’
She closed her eyes reflexively and tears ran through her cheeks. But then, a shift took place.
The black wrist that she was holding began to disappear little by little. Like smoke scattered in the wind, the black mucus surrounding Serwin’s body began to gradually disappear.
[Ugh, what is this—!]
The disaster threw Alie down.
‘I don’t know what’s going on!’
Alie shrieked inwardly and held Serwin’s arm. She judged that if she called out to Serwin he would help her. And Alie’s judgnt was correct.
[Arrgggggh]
The disaster howled.
‘No way!’
Alie took courage and reached out her hand. Her hand damaged the black mucus where she touched and reached the Emperor’s head. She stroked him on the head carefully.
Her touch revealed his dark hair and eyes. Black eyes stared at her as if trying to stab her to death.
[Argh, you—!]
“Ugh!”
Alie held onto Serwin’s shoulder and grabbed him by the head and pet him. Then all the black things surrounding Serwin’s body disappeared. As she caressed his head again, Serwin’s eyes began to change.
It was a mysterious sight to behold. In Serwin’s eyes, the black thing disappeared like smoke, and a brilliant golden color began to return.
The golden eyes stared at Alie. Alie saw his eyes and realized. Serwin had returned and the crisis was over.
“Ha…”
Alie sighed and sat on the floor. She felt as if her legs had lost strength. As soon as Serwin ca to his senses, he collapsed helplessly toward her. She hugged him in surprise. When she patted him on the back, he slowly relaxed. It was already late into the night.
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