Chapter 91: The Mermaid

Peretti hadn’t expected the Church’s indoctrination to have reached such an extent.

“You say death is the end of responsibility—then you should know this: is there a single noble in this city who is truly innocent? How many people have they killed? How many wars have been started because of their selfish desires—and how many died because of that?”

“In the end, those high above reap the benefits, while ordinary people can only cling to portraits of their loved ones and weep—yet they’re still slandered by nobles as parasites on society.”

Perhaps because of Aerbana, Peretti still held a faint expectation toward the nobles within the Regulation Squad.

An expectation… that they might still be clear-headed.

“Don’t twist the argument! These are completely different issues!”

“They are different,” Peretti sneered.

“The Church tells you witches are unforgivable, that they’ve killed countless humans—but aren’t there just as many who died at the hands of their own kind?”

Disappointment flickered in her eyes.

She had hoped reality would awaken them.

Instead—this was the answer she received.

She stopped holding back.

Raising her hand, a terrifying mass of energy began to gather.

“Danger! Get out of the way!” Nar shouted, hastily casting a dispersal technique to block the attack.

“Heh.”

A beam of light shot out from Peretti’s hand—but its target was not the squad.

It struck an empty patch of ground.

Before anyone could understand, the beam hit an invisible wall—

And then—

It refracted violently.

Without warning, it pierced straight through a squad member’s body.

Seeing this, Xiaolu immediately took to the air.

Only then did she understand the purpose of the light walls.

Not defense—

But reflection.

A system that allowed the beam to bounce endlessly, creating an almost unavoidable killing field.

The beams crisscrossed through the battlefield.

In a single instant—

Everyone present, except Peretti and Xiaolu, was struck down, collapsing into pools of blood.

“…It’s over. Let’s go.”

Peretti lowered her hand, her expression completely blank.

“I thought you’d spare them.”

“I already gave them a chance.”

She glanced at Irene, lying in the blood, a trace of regret in her eyes—before turning away.

“So where to next?” Xiaolu asked, retracting most of her spears back into her body, leaving only one floating outside. The sight made Peretti pause.

A fully malleable alchemical body…

So that was Xiaolu’s ability.

“To the Gluttony Church. I need to find Feiye.”

She picked up the barely conscious Vinika, giving her a slight shake before holding her in her arms.

Vinika had never actually lost consciousness—her body had simply been too weak to move. With Peretti’s healing, she was slowly recovering.

“…Why didn’t you kill me?”

Peretti sighed. “You don’t look like a child, so can you stop saying things like that? ‘Kill me, kill me’—do you want to die?”

Vinika shook her head weakly.

“Exactly.”

Peretti carried her, with Xiaolu following behind like a small shadow.

“Hey… that’s enough.”

“Hm? What do you mean?” Peretti feigned ignorance.

Xiaolu’s brows knitted tightly. “Do you think I’m an idiot?!”

“The beam you just used had more mana than those spheres. You just finished your Feast—your mana isn’t stable. And yet you’re still casting recklessly… If I’m right, your body is already at its limit. One push and you’d collapse, wouldn’t you?”

“No way—”

Before she could finish, Xiaolu stirred up a gust of wind—and Peretti nearly lost her balance.

“Still denying it?! Are you stupid? That was way too reckless!”

Xiaolu raised her hand as if to hit her—but stopped when she saw the exhausted, helpless smile on Peretti’s face.

“…Tch. Next time, no matter what, don’t push yourself like this. Got it?”

“Alright, alright, I know.”

“Don’t brush it off! This is important!”

“…You really are amazing,” Vinika murmured weakly.

“Why do you say that? I’m just an ordinary person.”

“Ordinary? …Haha…” Vinika laughed out of habit, then coughed heavily. “I envy you… You have the power to change what you want to change…”

“I’m not that amazing. I just… feel guilty.”

Xiaolu’s expression darkened.

She had seen many people like Peretti—people she had met while following Caroline.

Capable. Responsible.

Too responsible.

They always believed they could fix everything. Even when covered in wounds, they forced themselves to keep smiling, to keep moving forward.

They cared about everyone—

Except themselves.

And in the end…

They turned to dust.

Caroline hated seeing that.

And so did she.

Protecting Peretti—was her top priority.

“Hey. Stop walking.”

“What is it?” Peretti turned back.

In that instant—

Xiaolu flicked her hand.

A green liquid shot straight into Peretti’s mouth.

Before she could react, her throat moved instinctively—by the time she realized what had happened, it was too late.

Her body grew heavy.

Her consciousness began to fade.

Through the haze, she heard Xiaolu’s voice:

“Sorry. I can’t let you take that risk. You’ll have to sleep for a while.”

Her eyes refused to open.

Overwhelming drowsiness consumed her as she collapsed, still holding Vinika, against Xiaolu.

Xiaolu’s expression turned serious as she poured more alchemical potions into Peretti’s mouth like they were free.

After confirming everything was in order, she dragged her to the nearby Doso River—

Splash!

Peretti’s body sank beneath the water.

“You just threw her in like that? Not afraid she’ll die?” Vinika lay nearby, watching with amusement.

“The potions I gave her include waterproofing and protective effects. I’ve scouted this river—downstream there’s a beaver dam. Strong enough to hold even a bear. She’ll get stuck there. She won’t die.”

With that, Xiaolu hoisted Vinika onto her back.

“Let’s go. Time to find your dear cult leader.”

—

Downstream, deep within the forest—

A graceful young woman sat by the riverbank, one hand propping up her head, the other holding a fishing rod.

Beside her lay a small white-haired girl. Not far away stood another girl, respectfully waiting.

It was Lirna.

From within the distant city walls came cries and screams—

But she acted as if she couldn’t hear a thing, focusing solely on fishing.

“Oh my, this one’s HP bar is thick. Haven’t even seen the person yet and it’s already in my face… probably the tankiest one I’ve ever encountered. Ever.”

She muttered to herself as the rod suddenly jerked violently.

“A bite?”

With a sharp pull, she reeled in her catch.

The “fish” was dragged onto the shore.

She leaned closer, examining it carefully.

“…This is a fish? Looks this pretty—must be a mermaid.”

She stood up, flicking her long black hair back.

“What a haul. Never thought I’d escape my ‘zero-catch’ curse. Time to head back and cook a feast.”

“Yes, Cult Leader,” Lirna replied with a respectful bow.