The world grew still as the sky in an earthquake as the vastly overpowering presence—two of them, actually—traveled through the air in intense, mana-infused waves. Even now, the two can barely hold their breaths. The density of mana throughout the air was so much that even breathing had become conscious and on-command. If they hadn't adapted, the air in their lungs would have surely been sucked out by now.
Harita was sweating bullets, even for him, this was simply too arduous of a task to handle. Lieren, on the other hand, remained relatively passive, his expression neutral except for the furrow of his brow. He seemed to be deep in thought, or keeping his focus and sanity.
There was something in his eyes that told it was one of the latter, Harita immediately noticed upon closer inspection. Even now, he couldn't help but be afraid of the kid's potential.
It is a popular belief that the Great Arcana responds to desire, and grants those that desire its protection whatever they want, in response to their will and valor. It must have been this aspect of mana, Harita figured, that enabled him to make such a powerful spell in practically the blink of an eye.
'Even the most noble of blood take at the very least four to five months of constant meditation and creation to construct a simple spell. The spell that he copied, Fallen Valor, was as complicated as they come. Even fourth level mages can't pull off what he did, let alone an newly-initiated Adorned. Seriously, I worry for the kid. At this rate, who knows what kind of trouble he'll get up to in the future. Talent like that only spells trouble.'
Despite this, though, Harita would never let anything happen to him. He had promised, after all, that he would.
Out of everything, Harita despised breaking promises the most.
…There it was again, that mysterious cackle of malignant amusement. It sent cold shivers down their spines. Even with Lieren's ability diluting the magical bewitchment of the malevolent voice, the pure terror and dread that ran across their bodies was simply too much to handle.
Harita held his breath, clutching Night Eater's grip even tighter, so much so that his veins became more pronounced. His eyes were bloodshot from pushing his spells to its absolute limits, including his Reinforcement.
"Harita…?," his companion said.
Lieren looked to be uncertain, despite his earlier resolution. The boy seemed to be thinking twice over this whole idea ever since that dark wave crashed in, choking the life out of them.
Harita shook his head, steeling himself.
'That's enough daydreaming. I need to face reality now. If not, then the entire country might eat itself up trying to contain this horrendous disaster.'
He smiled at the thin boy, faking reassurance. At the very least, he had to keep him safe, even if only psychologically. He had no way to turn back now, even if he gave up all and did his everything to escape from here, excluding abandoning his master.
"It's fine. We're almost there: just a little longer."
Lieren was in disbelief. Even he could tell, with his limited wisdom and non-extensive knowledge, that his Aegis was lying. He also noticed that it was for him, and not for himself, which further complicated his opinion on the matter.
'So it's that bad, huh…'
He faked his reassurance as well. With the overbearing stress of their current predicament, it was very hard to keep any complicated thoughts without meeting some kind of divine intervention invading their mind and attempting to destroy it from the inside.
"Oh… I see. That's good, I guess."
He wasn't very good at it.
Time seemed to crawl as they put one foot over the other, eyeing the dark shadows strewn about everywhere with wary suspicion.
Two figures began to come into view, their presence seemingly extricated from the dark abyss that permeated the enchanted forest like black ink on a white page.
One figure in particular stood out in Harita's eyes.
It was the alluring woman with flowing white hair that elevated its beauty to even greater heights, in contrast to the surrounding darkness. Her silver eyes seemed to pierce the world much more clearly than his ever could.
Lieren, on the other hand, was more captured by the other figure.
"Red!"
He ran with as much speed as his tiny body could muster, his eyes on the verge of tears.
The figure he ran to, the little girl with blood red eyes, had a look of utter shock and terror in her eyes.
"L-Lieren…?"
She shook her head, then opened her eyes wide as plates.
"No, NO! Leave, please. You shouldn't stay here: it's dangerous. You could die. Please, I'm begging you. You don't need to be here, you can live, have a life. So please…"
Her scarlet eyes moved to pierce Lieren's soul with nothing but a glance.
"Just let me be."
"..."
Lieren stayed silent, unable to say anything. Even with all the books that he read practically etched engraved onto his mind, none could prepare him for this. He felt betrayed by this, but still focused his eyes on Red, examining her.
"You've gotten taller," he said, a serene smile on his face.
It was not the same calm and benevolence that alluring woman held, not by a long shot. It was beautiful, calming, and extremely comforting, the kind you'll see on the face of a young child with her mother. Somehow, he looked to be having fun; so much fun, in fact, that he couldn't even notice the dark presence behind him.
And that only irked her even more. She shouted, her brows furrowed and her initial surprise entirely gone:
"Why are you smiling?! Do you think this is funny? Do you think it's amusing? My suffering?"
The boy only watched, his smile not once faltering. There was something… different about him, as if he's found ssomethin important. Red just couldn't quite put a finger on it. A vein budged in her forehead visibly.
"Oh, is that it? Giving me the silent treatment, are we? Have it your way. I'm not talking to you anymore!"
She scoffed at the young boy and his refreshing smile, as if to mock it. Though she did not mean. If anything, she was proud to see him improve so much that her heart felt like it was going to beat out her chest.
With a low growl, she stood up, standing taller than anybody present.
"…!"
Only then did she notice her hulking form. In the midst of her anger, she had failed to keep her form intact, unintentionally transforming midway into her bestial form.
"N-no… don't look at me—?!"
She tried to run, to escape from it all, but found herself—more like caught, in the weak embrace of a small human child.
Though the force behind it was less than considerable, it was enough to keep her intact, put together, and unable to escape. The embers in her heart refused to give up o matter how much she wished that it would.
The boy whispered into nothing, his voice hoarse and weak, his presence barely there.
"It's fine, you're fine. I promise: I won't go. I'm seek of seeing people leave, so it would be really nice if you stayed too… if you don't mind."
Red looked at him from high above, ruminating. He patted his black hair with her burly paw.
If she wanted to, she could crush this pathetic human with her bare hands; it wouldn't even take a second. Killing him would be easier than killing a cockroach: all she needed to do was a bit courage.
And yet, she found herself comforted by the boy's innocent words. Everything was just so complicated, messy, and demanding right now. She needed an escape: an outlet to vent all her anxieties, but lacked so desperately. If she could only take control of something, hold it in her hand, then it would be so much better. Not easier, but better: that much she was certain.
The shadow of happy smile rose form her lips.
"Sure, I promise. I won't leave. No matter what."