Chapter 69

69

Hastily grabbing the rumpled blanket and dangling from the bed, I climbed down.

'Why is the bed so high?'

Carefully descending and stepping onto the marble floor, a chill seeped through me even more.

I quietly approached Vera.

Placing my palm under her nose, I felt a faint breath.

'Thank goodness.'

She doesn’t seem to be dead.

'But why did she suddenly collapse?'

Why is the window open? And... why do I feel such a cold presence from behind?

Slowly turning my body towards the corner,

The moment I turned, a black figure that had been holding its breath appeared. It was wearing a pitch-black robe, and its eyes glowed a sickly yellow like a beast’s...

'Just a kid...?'

Though taller than me, he wasn’t an adult.

Judging by his development, he was probably around ten? That’s being generous.

Taking a step back, he took a step forward.

"Cherina?"

His voice was dark and lifeless.

It was so dry and parched that it didn’t seem like a child’s voice at all.

And it sent shivers down my spine.

I’ve seen all sorts of things in my life, but this was the first... no, the second time I felt such a dark presence...

'The one who came to the orphanage was like that too.'

He was even drier than this kid.

It was hard to believe that he even had emotions. He seemed to accept pain without any reaction.

"Are you Cherina?"

His voice was devoid of emotion, and his tone was stiff.

It wasn’t a question. It seemed like he was just confirming something.

I took a step back.

He took a step towards me.

A magic circle appeared on his palm.

'Wordless incantation?'

How can he cast a spell so quickly without an incantation? I quickly read the magic circle before it activated.

'Binding?'

I don’t know exactly what kind of spell it is, but I can tell it’s a binding spell.

As his magic circle started to glow, I cast a spell as well.

I could use simple gravity magic without an incantation.

Lifting objects with magic is a basic skill. If I couldn’t do this, I’d be dead.

I floated in the air and charged towards the door. Grabbing the doorknob and pulling it down, the door opened.

I quickly went outside. The chains from the magic circle scattered before they could fully form.

'Wow, what is this kid?'

What did I do to deserve this? He couldn’t possibly know I’m Hella.

I didn’t tell anyone, so if he knows I’m Hella, that’s really impressive.

To be honest, I don’t think anyone noticed.

I only have a tiny bit of mana, and the only spells I can use now are through a mana stone.

Even if I could generate mana with this body, no one would notice.

Mana resides in a person’s body. Since my body has changed, my mana wouldn’t be the same.

"Don’t run."

The sound of the robe’s hem brushing against the floor came from behind.

If I didn’t run, would I be human, or a baby? I took out the mana stone and held it, but I had no immediate offensive spells.

'If it’s a simple one, maybe...'

But even that required an incantation now.

The situation is different from when I was Hella. I had to recite the ancient language in my head or out loud.

'How is he casting spells without an incantation?'

Even without the incantation, the speed at which the magic circle appears is too fast.

If I had known this, I would have practiced offensive spells more.

At least enough to make a loud noise so that Sharent Clown or Deshar Clown would notice...

'I’ve been chased too much since I came here, haven’t I?'

I’ve only been good and quiet here!

"Sharent!"

Where is Sharent Clown’s room?

It’s not on the second floor. I quickly headed towards the stairs.

As I kept supplying mana to stay afloat, my condition worsened.

By the time I reached the bottom of the stairs, my body couldn’t hold up.

Repeating the process of drawing mana from the mana stone and using it with my small body, my frail body started to creak.

I stopped using mana and started running with all my might.

My breath was heavy, and the sound of panting echoed in my head.

"Sharent!!"

My voice wasn’t very loud, but I tried to put some force into it.

I felt something approaching from behind. Turning my body, I saw the boy already close to me, reaching out his hand.

〈Shepets Saur!〉

I hurriedly recited the wind blade spell in ancient language, even with my poor pronunciation.

The gentle breeze instantly turned into sharp blades.

The power was reduced by at least half compared to what I usually cast, but it was enough to make the boy hesitate.

Another magic circle appeared on his left palm.

'Why can he cast spells without an incantation?'

I turned and ran as fast as I could.

It was ironic to think I could escape from him, given the difference in leg length.

Sure enough, he hesitated for a moment but immediately cast a spell.

Didn’t the noble family have a no-magic rule or something? Of course, I cast a spell because there was no such rule!

"Sharent!"

You said you’d help if needed, bastard!

"All the people in the mansion have been put to sleep."

The kidnapper added kindly.

Hmph, our Sharent Clown has a cockroach-like personality and won’t die easily! He wouldn’t fall for just a spell.

'Seems like he doesn’t intend to kill me.'

If he wanted to kill me, he would have done it already. He was skilled enough, and I wouldn’t have been able to avoid it if he attacked seriously.

However, he didn’t intend to kill me. So, it’s more likely that they want me alive.

Sure enough, it was another binding spell this time.

The only difference was that instead of chains, plant roots were extending towards me.

"Huff, huff."

I can’t run anymore.

My legs gave out. As I collapsed, the boy stopped walking towards me.

He snapped his fingers, and the plant roots around me rushed over.

"Sharent!!!"

I held my breath and shouted one last time.

My voice was hoarse.

If this doesn’t work, I’ll be at the mercy of that creepy guy.

As I screamed, the plant roots accelerated. One wrapped around my wrist and lifted me up...

Crack, crack.

Boom!

A small spark was heard, followed by lightning striking the dry ceiling... no, the dry ceiling.

It struck the boy in front of me.

The black-robed boy was thrown to the ground several times.

The plant roots he summoned instantly burned and turned to ash.

'What... no, if they disappear...!'

What happens to my body floating in the air!

As I struggled to inject more power into the mana stone, someone firmly caught my falling body.

The feeling of being held in someone’s chest made me relax involuntarily.

"Feeling better..."

"But I’m your uncle."

"I’m late!"

I thought I was going to die!

Of course, I won’t die, but I thought I was going to be kidnapped.

Sigh, am I too cute? There are too many people after me...

"Sigh."

I don’t even have the energy to joke.

What the hell is he?

He slowly got up after being struck by lightning. Looking closely, I could see a broken protective barrier around him.

He had silently cast a defensive spell.

'Really, what is he?'

Even if he’s fast, can he cast spells faster than lightning? Is he a high-level mage?

As I watched, he stood straight despite his wobbling body.

"Such scum is now crossing the boundaries of the noble family."

Sharent Clown’s voice was filled with disgust.

His expression was colder and more chilling than usual, like a volcano about to erupt.

"Whose orders?"

"..."

"Why did you target a child with no special qualities?"

Yeah, I don’t have any special qualities...

No, I’m kind of a genius and the owner of an artifact.

Of course, it’s an artifact that no one knows about and that I don’t even expect to come to me.

I glanced at him, but he wasn’t looking at me.

"We need a child with mana."

"So you dared to target a noble family’s child."

"An illegitimate child would only tarnish the family’s name. We’ll take him quietly and dispose of him."

My position in the world is truly sad. I have no complaints and no energy to scream. I’m just tired.

I glanced at Sharent Clown and sighed deeply, making him frown.

'But he’s so confident.'

How can he say that in front of Sharent Clown?

"What scum..."

Oh, Sharent Clown is really angry.

His tone became sharper, and the composure he usually maintained was gone. The veins in his hand, which was holding a sword, were bulging.

A crack appeared on the marble floor where he stood.

His legs, tensed with power, finally pushed off the ground. Sharent Clown’s body shot forward.