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The law of the jungle, survival of the fittest.
This is a law of survival applicable to the natural world, and it is also a true depiction of the Diamond Kingdom's experimental cultivation of Mages. In each experiment, only one child ultimately survives the mutual slaughter.
"I know where Fana is... She's not dead..."
A light whisper echoing in his ears plunged Mars, who had fainted from his injuries, into a cycle of memories, with the most vivid scene repeating constantly.
The twilight under the setting sun was exceptionally beautiful. Sunlight streamed into the secret room through the only window on the stone wall, a golden glow pushing back a small portion of the shadows, yet this very glow was filled with the scent of blood.
"Ah ah ah ah—why? Why did you do this?" The boy roared, questioning the red-haired girl who had collapsed before him, utterly devoid of strength. His eyes were bloodshot and ferocious, his face filled with regret.
"I clearly could have..."
The red-haired girl did not answer the boy's question. Instead, she used her last bit of strength to get up and reach out to touch the boy's cheek. Flames, along with her last magical power, surged out. The girl's eyes, looking at her childhood friend, were so gentle, completely devoid of the previous cold killing intent.
This was her truest emotion... The boy, scorched by the flames, was not injured. Instead, he felt a warm sensation throughout his body, and the pain was constantly subsiding. The injuries he sustained in battle were healing.
"I'm sorry..."
The red blood stained the corners of the red-haired girl's mouth, but her face was wreathed in a smile, more beautiful than the setting sun outside the window: "If I didn't do that... Mars, you wouldn't have killed me... The strongest Mars is the most likely to survive..."
"You must see the outside world well, for both of us... Mars!"
With that, the girl gradually closed her eyes, and the hand touching the boy's cheek slipped away powerlessly.
"No, no!" The boy shook the girl in his arms, but no matter how he shouted or shook her, the girl did not respond again. Her breath... "Fana... don't be like this!"
"Fana!"
"..."
Amidst a ferocious shout, Mars suddenly opened his eyes, muttering the girl's name. He sat up with effort. The surrounding environment had completely changed: a clear sky, white clouds, and in the distance, a vast, dense forest and towering mountain ranges.
A few black sparrows flew past him.
"This is?"
"Oh, you're awake, little Mars?" Lotus turned to look at Mars, who was sitting up from the smoke-formed lazy cart, a smile on his face: "Oh my ~ I thought you'd wake up later after such serious injuries, but I didn't expect it to be so fast."
"You really worked hard this time! Thanks to you for holding them off, we got so many treasures ~"
"...Lotus?" Mars looked at the familiar figure, his confused thoughts and memories slowly clearing. He murmured, "I remember everything..."
"Thank you... Lotus, for saving me."
"Huh?" Lotus looked at him with a hint of disbelief. He had always been cold and arrogant, but after a while, he recovered and said, "What do you mean... you can actually say thank you properly ~"
He didn't press Mars about what the Mage from the Clover Kingdom had told him. He was only fighting for survival and his three daughters, so there was no need to stir up two big troubles because of it.
'Uncle, I don't know anything.'
The lazy cart, formed by smoke, flew quickly through the sky. They had already left the collapsed Magic Palace ruins and were heading towards the Diamond Kingdom's territory.
The wind gently ruffled Mars's hair. The flames of Flame Magic burned on him, consistent with the warm feeling in his memory. The wounds caused by the slashes were recovering.
Only the knife mark near his shoulder was recovering slowly.
He remembered what the guy who left the knife mark had whispered in his ear: "How about we make a deal?"
"If the deal goes smoothly... I can tell you where Fana is. Oh, consider it an advance payment, your childhood friend Fana is still alive."
Looking at the unique grimoire floating in the air, Mars murmured, "Fana... is she still alive?"
"How did that guy know? He's clearly a Mage from the Clover Kingdom... Is he lying to me? But if he's lying, then how did he know about me and Fana? Is there a traitor in the Diamond Kingdom's experimental base?"
He couldn't help but clench his fists. "Even so, I have to try my best. What if it's true? As long as there's a glimmer of hope, I have to look..."
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Bai En and his group, after leaving the Magic Palace, parted ways in the forest. After discussion, the treasures obtained from the Magic Palace would be tallied and handed over by Klaus of the Golden Dawn, and the credit would naturally be equally divided among the three Magic Knights... although Klaus felt that the Golden Dawn should take the lion's share... It's worth mentioning that when returning to their respective bases, since the Black Bulls came via Finral's spatial magic and had no flying brooms, and Yuno's group was carrying a large amount of treasure... Bai En and his group also took Asta and them to the Black Bulls' base.
On the way, Asta, holding the second sword of Anti-Magic, the demon-dweller sword, showed off in front of Bai En: "Hey, hey ~ Bai En, look at my new sword, how is it, cool, right?"
"But it doesn't look as imposing as the demon-slayer sword; the blade is much narrower. Oh, is this one of those you mentioned last time? Wow ~ I'm so lucky."
Unlike the chattering Asta, Bai En was terribly silent. Asta even thought his gains had made Bai En jealous and kept trying to comfort him along the way. In reality... Bai En was completely immersed in his own world.
'How lucky! I thought this trip to the Magic Palace was just to tag along, and the biggest gain would only be Mars, this Mage from the Diamond Kingdom... I didn't expect to complete the tempering of the third kitchen utensil ahead of schedule ~'
'Haha ~ Happy.'
'But what nonsense is Asta babbling about?'
"Don't worry, once I master this sword, my strength will definitely increase a lot. When I surpass you and Yuno to become Wizard King, I will definitely appoint you as the Wizard King's Imperial Knight and head chef..." Asta kept patting Bai En's shoulder, his face beaming with longing for the future.
"What nonsense are you talking about, Asta? Are you really starting to daydream now? Don't worry, if you don't become Wizard King, I'll definitely adopt you as my chopping assistant."
"Ha, no way? Just watch, I will definitely become Wizard King."
This time, Bai En did not respond, only controlling the flying broom to fly in an S-shaped rotation in the air, a silver long line forming a perfect pattern.
"Hey, hey, hey... No, I'm going to be sick!!!"
"Help!!"
Listening to Asta, who was clinging to him and wailing behind him, Bai En couldn't help but purse his lips. 'Wizard King? It's still too early, Asta... You can't even do the most basic devil assimilation yet ~'
'After getting the demon-dweller sword, the speed at which Anti-Magic infiltrates the body should accelerate significantly. Keep up the good work, I don't want to be the most tired one in the final battle.'
...