Chapter 17: Well Done, Newcomer

A shiver ran through Dounia’s entire body.
With a speed she never knew she possessed, she bolted toward the escape route she had already identified—the old wooden window that looked thin and fragile.

“Watch out!”

But the shadow tendrils stretching toward the three of them suddenly elongated, reaching for her body from behind like ropes, far exceeding her own speed.

Adelle clicked her tongue, drew a dagger from her skirt, and lunged forward, slashing at the shadow tendril.

At the other end of the corridor, the sinister face under the hood revealed a sneer of contempt.

A shadow was not something that could be interfered with by a mere dagger.

“You are the sovereign of the night…” Adelle chanted.

Swish—

The extended shadow tendril was sliced in two by Adelle’s blade.
The expression of the person in the witch’s robe finally changed.

The helpless blacksmith was easily tossed aside by a shadow tendril, sent flying toward Dounia, who was already clambering onto the windowsill.

Dounia kicked off with her feet, launching herself through the open window and into the alley outside.

She stumbled several steps forward into the alley, her mind a chaotic buzz.

Her survival instinct had brought her to safety in the first instance and had also kept her from holding Adelle back, but was the situation that followed truly in Adelle’s favor?

Linda’s condition was extremely unstable, and Adelle still had to deal with that witch first…

Swish—

Another flash of a blade lit up the corridor as the dagger’s edge once again severed a shadow tendril that whipped toward her like a long lash.

“You are the guardian of all tranquility…” Adelle drew another dagger, and with a sharp flick of her wrist, threw it straight at the witch.

The shadows abruptly contracted, converging into a liquid-like shield that blocked the incoming dagger while simultaneously sprouting dozens of shadow spikes that shot toward Adelle’s position!

Without hesitation, Adelle leaped onto the adjacent wall, then pushed off with her feet to spring to the opposite wall, causing all the shadow attacks to miss their mark.

Just as she was about to recite the third part of the prayer, a powerful wave of magical energy erupted from behind her.

It was Linda, her eyes now bulging like a cursed toad’s, blood-red and purple.
She had slowly walked out of the room and was staring directly at Adelle’s back, causing her limbs to stiffen.

“How will you handle two enemies at once?” the witch asked, cupping its hands in front of its body.
A dark purple sphere of shadow gradually materialized, leaking an aura of curses.

Unlike the previous attacks, a curse did not need to hit Adelle directly to take effect!

“It seems your companion won’t be coming to save you,” the witch sneered.

“If she doesn’t, she doesn’t. It’s not like she could be of any help here anyway,” Adelle’s expression remained unchanged, as if she had long since prepared herself for a desperate fight.

Thump—

A small hand grabbed onto the empty wooden window frame.

Dounia nimbly vaulted back into the corridor, cursing under her breath, “I must have the worst luck in eight lifetimes!”

Linda slowly turned her head, fixing her gaze on Dounia.

Fear and regret surged through Dounia at once, and her calves began to tremble slightly.

“Mean-faced maid! Throw the glasses over here! Hurry!” Dounia shrieked.

‘My successful escape was all thanks to Adelle’s help, but now that she’s caught between two enemies, she’s probably going to die here.’

‘The Surveillance Officer is like the Executioner’s eyes, and the Executioner is like the Surveillance Officer’s hands.’

‘Without her hands, the scales are destined to tip toward failure!’

Adelle hesitated for a moment, then instantly snatched the glasses off with her right hand and threw them accurately toward Dounia behind her.

The situation was critical; there was no time for her to think.

“Don’t wear them for more than three minutes straight!”

“Before Linda completely turns into a monster, kill her!”

Adelle immediately re-engaged in battle with the witch.

Dounia struggled to bend her arm and catch the glasses, her eyes fixed on the now inhuman-looking Linda who was staring at her.

Through the lenses, Dounia could clearly see the distribution of magical energy on Linda’s body.
The corrupting energy had already spread throughout her entire form, but she could still discern the weak points.

But that wasn’t what she needed!

“Big sister…”

“You’re going to kill me too, right…?” Linda said with a sob, her hostile eyes fixed on Dounia, sending a chill through her entire body.

‘Reflection World!’

Using the “mirror” of these extraordinary glasses, Dounia activated Reflection World.

She couldn’t rashly cancel the Mirror Transfer on Violet unless it was the last resort; that would be equivalent to intentionally detonating the bomb on her.
But observing through the Reflection World was unaffected.

Dounia looked at the little girl in the reflection.
Unlike the outside world, her heart and brain had not yet been completely eroded by the dark red corruption.

This meant she could still be saved, just like when she had extended a hand to the on-the-verge-of-losing-control Violet!

But this time, she no longer had the ‘Mirror Transfer’ ability.

‘What should I do? Rely on my knowledge of psychology and try to persuade her?’

“No, I don’t want to kill you. Look, I don’t even have a weapon,” Dounia said, holding out her hands to show her sincerity.

Linda silently looked at her hands, and the aura emanating from her body seemed to weaken slightly.

“I’m a victim, just like you. I’m not even that much taller than you…” Dounia tried her best to back up her words.

But Linda’s bulging eyes suddenly became bloodshot and red.

“You’re lying! Miss Adelle said she wanted you to kill me!”

A surging storm of blood-red magical energy slashed a cut across Dounia’s arm, the pain making her suck in a sharp breath of cold air.

‘Adelle, even though you were telling the truth, I still have to say, you really screwed me over!’

Dounia cursed inwardly, then silently focused on her reward—the prize she had earned for offending the maid.

A Moment of Inspiration!

A barely perceptible pinkish hue suddenly appeared in her eyes, and her whole body felt light and airy, as if she were walking on clouds.

As if by telepathy, her intuition told her to walk forward.

“You… don’t come any closer!” Linda warned shrilly. “I know I’m the monster you people talk about! Don’t you just want to kill me!?”

Ignoring the approaching storm of energy, Dounia slowly took off the black-framed glasses.

“You are not a monster. You are human.”

“You’re lying!” Linda glared at Dounia.

Humans are always instinctively suspicious of others, yet they believe wholeheartedly in their own conclusions, even if those conclusions are wrong.

“Your grandfather firmly believes this,” Dounia said in a calm tone. “Even if you don’t believe me, you should believe his words.”

Linda hesitated.

She looked at the blacksmith, who had been thrown against the wall by the shadow tendrils and now lay unconscious, carefully studying his white stubble.

Whenever she used to act spoiled with her grandfather, his stubble would always tickle her until she giggled uncontrollably.

“Look at these glasses. The reflection inside is the real you,” Dounia offered the glasses at the right moment.

Linda took the glasses with a trembling hand, but she did not see a reflection of herself with eyes bulging like a cursed toad.

Yes, her body was tinged with a dark red.

“But your heart has not yet been corrupted.”

‘Am I still human?’

“If I’m still human… can I still see my mom and dad, and my grandpa?” Linda asked.

Dounia lowered her head slightly.

Both her heart and her experience were telling her not to lie.

“The chances are slim,” she said in a heavy voice. “But I promise you, I will do everything in my power to fight for an opportunity for you.”

“An opportunity to be like me, an Executioner, escorted on outings by a Surveillance Officer.”

“You still have a chance to see your family. Don’t give up hope.” Dounia’s sincerity required no acting, because what she was showing was her true heart.

Linda stared at her blankly.
The aura and corruption on her body were rapidly dissipating.
She grasped the black-framed glasses and returned them to Dounia’s hand.

“Thank you, big sister.”

A tear slid from the corner of her eye.
As sorrow welled up in her heart, she ran to the corner of the room and tried to help up the still-unconscious blacksmith.

Streaks of red and purple curse marks gradually appeared on Adelle’s fair skin.
Pain and despair rose up together from within her heart.

But she had faced moments even more desperate than this.

Whoosh—

An inconspicuous shard of glass struck the witch’s body, causing its magical energy to stagnate for a split second.

The witch shifted its gaze toward Dounia in the distance.

‘It’s the effect of that sealed eyeglass item!’

The witch saw through the trick at a glance, but Adelle seized the opportunity, immediately pulling back to create distance.

“…You are the root of darkness, and also the end of the long night.”

“Mother of Darkness who grants peace…”

A darkness as thick as ink flowed out from around Adelle like a liquid, instantly forming a small lake.

Her unique grayish-blue hair stirred without a wind, floating gently like a deep ocean or a mysterious night sky, exuding a captivating charm.

“I, Clementine Adelle, in the name of your devout servant, beseech you!”

The young woman closed her eyes tightly and slowly raised her hands.

A mysterious power filled the air, as if countless invisible threads were weaving between her fingers, devouring any light they touched.

With one hand above the other, she grasped at the empty air, as if pulling something out of the void.

“Damnation!” the witch cursed, turning on its heel to flee.

A long, thin black shadow manifested between Adelle’s hands.

It was a tachi, woven entirely from darkness, its eerie glow seeming to devour all light.

Adelle slowly opened her eyes.

Her firm, resolute, and icy gaze was like a blade that could cleave all things.
Adelle gripped the coalesced dark tachi with both hands and slowly raised it level with her chest.

The power of darkness surged and echoed within her body, yet it made no sound.
The “sheath” felt like a thousand-pound boulder, and was arduously drawn back by an inch.

Unwilling to give up, two shadows split off from beneath the witch’s robe, scurrying away in two different directions, north and south.

An extremely fine black line flashed before Dounia’s eyes.

It was ordinary, monotonous, and simple.

But the world itself seemed to be divided by this line, and all colors faded into insignificance.
Even the shadows were no exception.

The entire blacksmith shop rumbled as it slowly slid forward and apart.
The witch, meanwhile, touched its waist in astonishment, only to find that its own body was also slowly sliding apart, gushing blood.

And the two fleeing shadows, like an unraveled sweater, were swiftly pulled apart by that black line, their threads annihilating into thin air.

“Hah…”

Adelle took a deep breath.
The dark tachi in her hands had already vanished, as if it had never been there at all.

Her grayish-blue high ponytail swayed as Adelle turned to look at Dounia, who was hiding behind her with a look of awe.
She gave a rare nod.

“Well done, newcomer.”