When the world ended, when it restarted...
I…What was I doing?
***
The door creaked when it opened.
And soon, we managed to get in.
Light streamed through the broken windows, and soon we noticed the body of a demon on the floor. In the middle of the room.
"I doubt we'll find bandages here..." Frederick murmured, as he looked around.
And suddenly, the ground shook.
"Don't tell me…" I muttered, then quickly left the house with Frederick.
Anser followed us, and soon a long, giant worm came out of the house, destroying everything in its path.
Anser drew his sword, astral glowing and suddenly trembling.
"Wait, Anser!" I touched his hand, to stop him, then I looked at him. "Astral detects magic similar to yours, wait a second."
Frederick snorted as he watched the worm emerge from the ground, seemingly endless. "That thing with constellation magic? It's like I have the soul of a sweet girl…"
Frederick was right, even so, if Astral shines, it means that there really was similar magic nearby.
And soon, that thing was heading towards us, at full speed.
"Star Magic: Star Body."
A woman's voice caught our attention, and suddenly, the worm's entire body exploded.
Pieces of flesh and blood flew everywhere.
But that didn't matter.
Astral escaped from Anser's grasp and flew in front of us, behind the ruins. The sword blade remained still, floating, and pointing at a woman's face.
Her body reminded me of the same girl from Constellation Magic, but, in addition to that, she had a long scar on both eyes, so of course, she had no eyes.
"She definitely has constellation magic." Frederick said, then gave a snort that sounded somewhat relieved.
At least our trip was over.
The woman grabbed Astral, and then brandished her in the air.
"She has Astral," Anser said, taking two guns out of his coat and throwing one to Frederick. "If she attacks us with it, we're dead."
Frederick and I understood the message: we have to at least get some of her blood to use to us, so...killing her isn't such a bad idea.
Frederick pointed the gun at the woman and began firing, every bullet hitting the woman's head, but she simply walked towards us.
"Who are you?" She raised her hand, trying to grab something. "To whom does this sword belong?"
Anser frowned, then fired; but the woman caught the bullet with one hand, and soon after caught the bullets that were coming towards her.
Frederick clicked his tongue. "That old woman is clever despite not having eyes..."
Soon, I passed Frederick to Anser.
"I'll take care of her, I'll take Astral away from her."
I felt Anser frown as he grabbed Frederick. "No, don't do it."
But, at this moment...
We didn't have many options.
I cannot use magic, only the regeneration of the Sect to which Elmetron belongs. But, with the strength of a demon, I think I can face her.
"Where are they?" The woman fired the bullets, and before she could draw her sword, I went for her arm.
I managed to snatch Astral from him, and then I threw it at Anser.
Anser stretched out his hand, reaching towards Astral, but…
"Come back."
The woman's simple command made the sword return to her, taking it in her hand again, and then she turned to look at me.
Gulp.
Her skin returned to a human, albino tone, similar to Anser's, except that her entire body was scarred and had pieces of flesh missing.
"Constellation Magic? Nebula Magic? Moon Magic? Orbit Magic? Gravity Magic?" And then he pointed his sword at Anser. "Which one are you? And how did they manage to get here without dying in the attempt?"
Frederick looked from side to side; he knew what he felt.
Fear.
"Answer me, and tell me that I am not alone."
And yet, none of us could speak; her presence was too sinister, making us feel as if we were speaking, she would cut our throats.
"…" And perhaps that made her angry. "Star Magic: Anser."
We all opened our eyes.
Perhaps Frederick and Anser were surprised to find their name in a spell. But in my case...
Perhaps this woman could be from the Vulpecula sect.
"My name is Anser Ciro," The woman stopped mid-spell, dispelling the sudden wind that had appeared. "I am from Clan Vulpecula, and I use Moon Magic."
Slowly, the woman lowered her hand, and then threw the sword back to Anser, who managed to catch it and sheath it again.
"Vulpecula..." Then she smiled. "I was a member of Clan Vulpecula until I was expelled."
Anser opened his eyes, surprised, and then approached the woman.
"Why were you expelled?"
The woman thought for a moment, then sighed.
"For betraying the clan."
Frederick looked at me, and then at Anser repeatedly.
Yes, Frederick, I know, I wouldn't be able to say exactly who this woman is. I never wrote about a member who lived in the demon world who was also part of the Vulpecula Clan.
"You're hurt, what happened to you?" The woman pointed to Frederick. "I can cure you."
Frederick looked at Anser, then replied: "Am I willing to risk you cursing me?"
The woman smiled, then shook her head. "I won't do it, as long as Anser stays with me. Two days. That's all I ask."
Anser looked at me, almost hopeful that he could find out something about his Clan.
"Why are you looking at me like that? If you want us to stay for two days, fine, Frederick needs to rest after all."
Anser nodded, then cleared his throat, suddenly nervous: "Okay...I'll stay with you for two days."
Frederick snorted, and then the woman's hand rested on Frederick's head. "Star Magic: Star Shower."
And suddenly, all the scratches and dried blood that Frederick had vanished. Anser let go of him, and Frederick managed to stand up on his own.
He was impressed, but of course he didn't want to show it.
"…Thank you."
He said, looking away.
At least we won't have to worry about Frederick anymore, or the cure for Layla...
"Now all we need to do is find a way out, right?" I said, turning around to get a better look at the place: It looked like a forest, but it was certainly hidden underground.
Slash…
Blood came out of my mouth, and I slowly turned around.
The woman's hand had pierced my stomach. A relief on one hand, because if it had been in my heart, I would have removed the seal I had on Raum. And on the other hand...
"W-What?" I murmured, as my stomach slowly tried to regenerate.
Anser watched, confused, as did Frederick.
But as expected of the intelligent Frederick, he was the first to notice what happened, and why this woman, a former member of the Vulpecula Clan, suddenly attacked me.
"Raum. She senses the cursed energy; she must believe you're being controlled by Raum…" Frederick murmured, walking towards the woman, but before he could, Anser stopped him. Frederick turned to look at him, confused. For the first time, Anser wasn't running to save me, and that confused me for a moment too, but this time...
Perhaps Anser knew that he couldn't save me, neither he nor Frederick.
Ah. I'm completely…over.
"Star Magic: Starway."
From her hand came thousands of shiny stones, which soon stuck to my skin, beginning to shine even more.
I felt those hot things so I determined that they were about to explode.
And inevitably, my body exploded.
"…" Anser looked at the woman, and slowly, drew his sword again. "He is not a demon, he is still human."
However, the woman did not hear him. Before Anser could move his sword, the woman ran forward, where, to my surprise, I was still alive.
My body regenerated the destroyed limbs immediately, my heart being protected by the mana regulator itself, preventing the worst...for now.
I managed to dodge the woman when she tried to punch me, her fist hitting the ground and cracking it.
"A human ceases to be human when a demon takes possession of their body…" She muttered, then nimbly moved towards me, trying to land another punch. Before it connected with my jaw, I ducked, but I couldn't avoid the kick she gave me as I ducked. I went flying, hitting my back on a tree trunk. "If you think that just because he can control it now means he's not bad...you are the most naive ones here."
Frederick looked at Anser, who had a conflicted expression.
I could hear the woman's voice, her words, and certainly...I think she's right.
All the members of the five major sects, with the exception of Anser and Randy, still distrust me; they still believe I am incapable of keeping Raum. And really, I was only able to hold onto it for less than a week. After Frederick sealed Raum in my heart, I stopped worrying, but I knew that the others were still worried about it.
At least, that's what I've observed.
They are the wisest, after all.
And yet, I still don't understand why Randy trusts me so much.
Besides, of course, he knows that I am the author of this story.
Before I could think any further, the woman kicked me in the head, shattering it. I immediately regenerated, and started running from her.
Perhaps it was the only smart thing he could do.
She's stronger than she looked!
***
The sun came out again.
Liam and Gene stayed up all night again.
"…"
Layla's condition worsened with each passing hour.
The veins all over her body were turning black, her breathing was getting weaker and weaker, and she couldn't even eat the porridge Liam made for her anymore.
"Gene..." Liam grabbed Gene's hand, noticing how weak she was after using too much mana. "Rest, I'll take care of her."
Gene sighed, unwell, but she knew that if she continued to overexert herself, she would end up dying from mana overload.
"Okay, if the curse gets worse, wake me up immediately."
Liam nodded, then watched Gene sit down in a chair and fall asleep. Just like that, and so quick. Liam went to get a blanket and covered Gene with it, then continued making potions, both for Gene and for Layla.
She knew that the curse was not of this world of the novel.
She doubted Layla would survive, but still, she needed to hold onto hope a little longer.
And once again, that question arose within her.
What was she doing before she reincarnated?
No matter how hard she tried to remember...she could never do it.
Renato's singing brought her out of her thoughts.
"Renato, what's up? Do you want to stretch your wings a bit?" She said, going towards Renato's cage, and opening it. Quickly, Renato left his cage, flying all over the ceiling in circles, until he crashed into a wooden door: It was the closet where they kept Layla's clothes. "Renato! Are you okay? You didn't hurt yourself, did you?"
Liam picked up Renato, and then, curiosity overwhelmed her.
"With your permission, Miss Layla..."
And soon, she opened both closet doors.
Clothes.
"Huh."
Honestly, she expected more.
"Huh?"
She noticed a crack in the back of the closet. It appeared to be covered with paint, to hide the crack.
Slowly, she removed all of her clothes, placing them on a chair, and then inserted the fingers of both hands into the crack, and pulled on the wood.
The wood separated, breaking apart.
As they did so, a foul odor emanated from there.
Renato flew towards his cage, and Liam stood there, completely frozen. And as expected, there was a foul odor; there was a dead body.
Liam slowly walked backwards, and then...
"G-GENE! GENE!" Startled, she ran towards her. Immediately, Gene woke up, getting up from the chair and throwing the sheet aside to go towards Liam.
Gene rubbed her eyes, and noticing the foul smell, her eyes widened in horror and surprise. "Isn't that..." she swallowed hard, while hugging Liam.
"IT'S MANDELEINE!"
Liam's scream echoed throughout the silent room.
Mandeleine's body was crucified on the wall, ripped open from chest to stomach, his heart missing, and blood now trickling from the closet.
Perhaps that explained his absence, but...how long had he been hiding there? And even worse...
Should Layla have known?
With trembling hands, Gene pulled out her Identifier.
"We've found a body...hidden..." she swallowed again. "Don't delay...please."
And with that, Gene put it away, and walked over to Layla's side, with Liam in her arms.
How could that happen? Mandeleine could reincarnate, couldn't he?
He couldn't die, he couldn't...
"Randy…"
That's the first thing Gene thought of.
But at the same time...
…What if Randy already knew?
She turned to look at Layla.
He's still with Layla.
Randy's words from their last meeting echoed in her head.
No, Randy couldn't be a suspect...right? He's his exorcist! His best employee! Why would he kill him?
She didn't understand, and yet...she feared that they would be next.
_
"Star Magic: Anser!"
The woman's hand shone, and then a light was directed towards me. No matter how much I dodged, it kept chasing me.
"Damn..." I've run so much in the last few hours that even Frederick took a seat, seeing all the destruction around him and Anser. "None of you are planning to help me, are you?! Huh?!"
Anser remained silent; she knew he was thinking about how, but, with Frederick...
"I'll start to distrust you; I can't help you."
"THAT'S A PATHETIC EXCUSE!"
However, even if they both tried, they would be at a complete disadvantage.
What can I do to get rid of this?
Suddenly, my foot twisted, perhaps at the worst possible moment, causing me to fall face-first to the ground.
The woman took advantage of the situation and quickly tried to thrust her hand into my chest from behind, but just as she was about to...
The woman flew away, and my chest began to light up.
Frederick and Anser looked surprised, then Anser came towards me.
"Jeon."
But as soon as I looked at him, my heart stopped.
And soon, everything became clouded.
And I fell face down on the ground.
I could hear the screams, but they sounded so, so far away.
…
In the end, the woman stopped chasing Ji Noo.
"What's this about Jeon, huh?" Frederick asked, sitting on one of the rubble, while looking at Anser, sitting next to the unconscious Ji Noo.
Anser turned to look at him, and then sighed.
"That's Ji Noo's real name. Jeon Kwonoo."
Frederick sighed.
"He must have gotten stuck with that doddering old man who guards Anarxie's door when he checked in, right?"
Anser nodded. "I guess…"
"I also suffered with that old man when I registered, but for him to make a mistake like with Ji Noo...pfft…"
Anser glared at him, then covered Ji Noo with his coat.
Soon, the woman approached them.
"What is the demon child's name?"
Frederick turned to look at her, "Jeon Kwonoo, apparently."
The woman nodded, then sat down next to Frederick.
"I forgot to ask why you came. Are you trying to get me to exorcise your friend?" She asked, with a smile.
Then Anser replied: "No, we're looking for someone who has magic similar to constellation magic."
"We already have an exorcist, Mandeleine." Frederick added.
The woman's smile faded.
"Mandeleine?" Then, she smiled. "I haven't heard his name in 67 years."
They both seemed curious.
"How did you get here, after all?" Frederick asked. "Unless your Clan decided to send you here when they expelled you."
The woman shook her head.
"I ended up here while chasing some enemies," she said, raising her head. "When I was expelled, I was blamed for being pregnant by a man, not by the moon."
"Couldn't a man get you pregnant?" Anser asked, so indifferent to his Clan, so his curiosity was obvious.
She denied it, and began to explain. "Only the moon can," She smiled. "A man is impure, the moon assures us of a healthy and pure child..."
After a few seconds of silence, her smile faded.
"However, I had never heard of the birth of a son before," she pointed to Anser. "You are the first male of Clan Vulpecula."
She assured.
Anser and Frederick looked at each other. They thought that perhaps she didn't know that her clan had been wiped out.
"Did you know my mother?"
She thought for a moment, then asked: "How old are you?"
"Twenty-eight years old."
"Were you that old?" Frederick murmured.
Ignoring the comment, the woman thought for a moment, then said; "Do you know your mother's name? Since you are a boy, perhaps your mother's pregnancy was longer, or shorter."
Anser thought for a moment.
He never knew his mother's name, much less his two parents; Randy, nor Sherly. They only said that Anser was in his mother's womb for...
"Nine years."
Frederick almost choked when he heard it.
"Longer than a woman's..." He murmured, then shook his head. "I'm sorry, it's possible I did know her, but perhaps your mother was around ten years old. And I knew many girls that age. I'm sorry."
Anser sighed, frustrated...
He still had faith that his mother was still alive...his mother...
"Thanks anyway..."
The woman couldn't help but feel guilty.
So, she decided to say something more.
"The women who would become warriors like me, were those who could not have children…" She began to explain. "Of those girls, only two were fertile; a quiet and shy girl named Yan, and another more cheerful and lively one...Ellie."
"Perhaps your mother was that girl named Yan." Frederick said, confidently. "You know, a mother's personality is inherited, right?"
Anser sighs.
"Maybe..."
The woman smiled, then...
"Enough with the past, you wanted someone with magic similar to constellation magic, right?"
Anser nodded, then continued explaining. "Yes, you could give us some of your blood or..."
Soon, the woman threw him a small bottle, which contained a red liquid, blood.
"Huh?"
Both men looked at the woman, and she just smiled.
"I made a mistake going after your friend Jeon. Consider it payment. Anyway, I use that blood every time I hunt demons."
They both sighed in relief.
"Don't worry, we'll stay here while Jeon wakes up...for now..." He said, turning to look at Ji Noo, worried. "We still don't know what happened to him. So he should get some rest…"
Frederick sighed, then raised his hand. Immediately, Anser threw the bottle of blood at him, and Frederick caught it.
"What's your name? We can't keep calling you woman...can we?" Frederick said, as he put the bottle in his pants pocket.
The woman smiled, then sighed...
"I can no longer remember my name; I stopped using it years ago..."
Anser looked at her, feeling a little sorry for her...
If his Clan were still alive, he would be angry with them; this warrior, accused of something so unjust and—
"Wait, you said that infertile women became warriors...so...doesn't that mean you were unfairly accused?" Anser said, frowning.
The woman nodded, "Yes, but...if Leader Vulpecula said she would expel me, I couldn't refuse; what she said was what the Moon wanted."
Again, Frederick looked at Anser.
Something was wrong.
"Lady," Frederick began to say, they had to tell him the truth. "Your clan was wiped out more than thirty years ago."
"…"
"…"
The woman's smile faded.
She wasn't worried, she was terrified.
"…What?"
The Vulpecula Clan was one of the most powerful, unless someone killed them all from within...no, that would be impossible.
Slowly, she got up.
"Who did it?"
They looked at each other.
They couldn't answer something they didn't know.
Just as she was about to open her mouth, the woman turned around, catching a diamond arrow in her hand.
Frederick stood up quickly, took out the pistol Anser had given him, and pointed it at the man in front of them.
"Hyung…" Anser grunted.
The man walked slowly towards them, "Wow, you do remember my name, Sh'ual…"
Anser frowned, confused, but the woman broke the arrow in her hand and slowly walked toward the man.
Once again, the tense atmosphere is returning.
"Who told you that name?" She said.
Hyung chuckled, then stopped and put his hands in his pants pockets. "Wow, so there's a living descendant of Vulpecula besides Sh'ual..." Then he turned around. "Why don't you tell her yourself...boss?"
His shadow distorted, then tentacles emerged, and within them appeared the figure of a man.
Frederick trembled, and soon, he covered his nose.
"That guy with the tentacles...he smells way too strongly of alcohol."
Anser took that into account; after all, Frederick, the man who always put up with Sherly's drunkenness, saying that...means that not even he could get close to them.
There was silence; the woman was standing in front of Hyung and Yumi Enver.
"Who are you?" The woman said angrily. "Answer, now."
"I never saw you when I wiped out Clan Vulpecula... I suppose you're the sinner of that clan, hmm..." Enver said, in an incredibly gentle voice, despite the weight of his words.
Anser took a step forward, standing next to the woman.
"Who are you?!" Anser said, drawing his sword.
"…"
The man looked at Anser for a few seconds.
And then, he smiled.
"You must be the man who condemned all the members of Clan Vulpecula...Sh'ual," Slowly, he approached him. "You look just like your mother, only more...depressing to look at."
Anser gritted his teeth as he gripped his sword.
"You killed my mother...my family...my father..."
Enver snorted, and then smoke began to come out of his tentacles; poison. "Don't portray me as the villain when you don't know what really happened, Sh'ual…" Then, he became covered in tentacles. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth…"
Before he could disappear, Hyung and Enver exploded.
"Star Magic: Star Way!" The woman, without giving them a chance to flee, ran towards the cloud of poison, and with a long, graceful leap, cast another spell… "Star Magic: Star Body!"
And with that, she sank into the poison.
Enver was soon shot out from the poison, covered among its tentacles.
Quickly, when Enver removed the tentacles, Anser ran towards him, filled with hatred and rage…
Upon learning who the true murderer of his clan was... he couldn't forgive him, he couldn't, he simply couldn't...
"Vulpecula: Lunar Cut!" He moved Astral, which glowed, and the attack went in the direction of Enver.
Enver immediately covered the cut with his tentacles.
It was profound, but not profound enough.
"Vulpecula's magic was always incredibly powerful..." Enver's tentacles were beginning to heal, rapidly. "…But the only drawback is that it only works at night, unless you're well trained, like that woman is."
He pointed to the woman, who was fighting against Hyung. For the first time, that woman was able to make Hyung exert himself to try to match her monstrous strength.
"You should run away and take the cure to Layla."
Enver's suggestion went unnoticed. No, that didn't matter to Anser right now.
"None of you can stop me, me...the mighty Yumi Enver!"
BANG!
A bullet pierced Enver's head.
BANG
One more.
And another, and another...
It was Frederick, who was also carrying the unconscious Ji Noo.
"If you're not going to get stronger...step aside and stop getting in the way!" He said, lowering Ji Noo with his arm, and then throwing him aside. "This guy needs you more than that squid."
Anser looked at him, then looked at Ji Noo.
"Damn it…" He said, through gritted teeth, then ran towards Ji Noo, pulled out his gun, and shot Enver as he walked backwards.
Slowly, Enver removed the bullets from his body, moving his tentacles, stretching them out...and then, from them, a black liquid oozed out, similar to ink, but this was poison.
"Energy Usage: 12%..." He murmured, and threw a tentacle at Frederick, who managed to dodge it, and continued shooting at Enver's face, with the aim of blind him.
"Damn Jeon! Wake up already!" Frederick shouted, as he dodged the black liquid.
Meanwhile, Anser shook Ji Noo, trying to wake him up.
"Wake up, damn it...Jeon...please..."