…
Her presence was both comforting and weirdly also familiar to the two of them.
…
Ran's eyes fluttered open, her blurred vision barely making out the silhouette of their savior. Gill, meanwhile, stared in shock, his mind racing to comprehend what had just happened.
And more importantly, he knew who was saving them now.
It was Madam Celine.
Gill and Ran were aware that she possessed magical abilities and the skill to brew potions, which significantly strengthened their whole base's power. Even now, Sir Giles controlled half of the underground forces in Mirthwater City, all thanks to her. Due to the vital role her potions played in alleviating the impact of the poisoned water at the underside, she successfully garnered a significant number of loyal followers to their side.
But the thing she did earlier when she flashed onto their side. It was incomprehensible to him. As if she was suddenly teleported right at their side.
Meanwhile, Madam Celine herself was a woman in her thirties, yet her youthful appearance belied her actual age. No one could deny that she was among the most beautiful women in the underside of Mirthwater City. She often wore a black dress and sported a single eyeglass perched on one side of her face, with its chain reminiscent of a butler's accessory. Whispers circulated that she had once served as a maid in a noble family from the Central Region.
And as to how her constant presence was always at the side of Sir Giles, it remained a mystery to all.
Looking down at the two of them, she smiled.
"Don't worry, your aunt here. You are all safe now," she said gently.
At the base, all individuals under twenty and above twelve were required to call her "Aunt," a title she insisted upon, or face the punishment of having their ear pinched by her.
At first, many of the younger ones secretly longed for her to pinch their ears, whether out of a kink or simply the joy of being near her. However, they quickly regretted their wishes soon after it happened. It was said that she wielded a kind of magic that turned her seemingly gentle pinches into excruciating pain, making them feel as if their souls were teetering on the brink of the afterlife. Conversely, somehow – one way or another, all of those below twelve agreed to call her mother, which often brought her to tears for unknown reasons.
"Aunt Celine…" Ran muttered weakly.
"Sleep Ran. Everything will be fine. I promise," Aunt Celine patted her head.
"Okay. Thank you, Aunt," Ran said, closing her eyes as she drifted away from reality and into the realm of dreams.
As she shifted her gaze from Gill and Ran to what lay ahead, Aunt Celine's smile quickly transformed into a solemnity.
…
On the other side, right behind her, Sill's grin instantly faltered when the wind washed over all of them. His expression twisted into one of confusion and unease. The cold breeze grew stronger by the second, carrying with it an unnatural – alarming stillness.
In this light barrier in front of him, he sensed the presence of someone less threatening than Sir Giles, nevertheless, it was still enough to make him want to escape immediately.
Yet, the real danger in this whole situation it came to be, was from something else entirely – something far more urgent to flee from. It was a threat that made him, a being not even human, tremble in fear. Yes, he was shivering from the very fright he used to enjoy from his victim.
"How? How is that possible? I'm only supposed to fear my mother. Why???" Sill stepped back, his corrupted heart racing in uneasiness.
Step by step, he stepped back slowly to retreat – his eyes nervously turning left and right – desperately seeking an opportunity to run. He could feel the gaze of that unknown entity somehow fixed solely on him.
Meanwhile, Aunt Celine remained oblivious to Sill's distress. She did not even glance at the creature that puzzled her as to what he was truly were. It was not that she was arrogant; rather, he was not enough to capture her full attention.
What lay before her was something she could feel even on her skin – a dreadful presence.
It was something deadly. And one wrong move could practically kill them all instantly.
…
As the cold wind howled through the air, it created a swirling storm of snow that reduced visibility to almost nothing. Aunt Celine herself had to squint, her eyes straining to make sense of the vague, indistinct silhouette standing motionless in the distance. Whatever it was, it didn't move an inch.
Suddenly, Sill turned on his heel and bolted without a word. He leaped into the air, bounding from one building to the next with inhuman agility. The wind howled louder, growing fiercer with every passing second that was close to the source of this phenomenon. Snow engulfed the narrow alleyway, blanketing everything in its path.
And then, out of nowhere, a delicate snow crystal prism – thin, hexagonal, and glimmering faintly – appeared right in front of Sill's face.
And then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, it vanished. In its place stood a figure cloaked in frost, with its presence chilling and foreboding.
Before Sill could even react, the figure struck. A single, devastating punch landed squarely on Sill's face, sending him hurtling backward. He crashed into the wall of the building he had just leaped from, with the impact echoing through the frozen alleyway.
*Boom*
The figure hovered in midair, standing impossibly on a platform of snow that materialized beneath its feet. Sill groaned, dazed and disoriented, but he had no time to recover. In an instant, the frost-covered figure was already upon him again.
Blow after blow subsequently rained down on Sill, each punch faster and more brutal than the last. The relentless assault left him no chance to defend himself. The strikes grew so powerful that, with a sickening finality, his head was obliterated – crushed into a grotesque mess of blood, bone, and brain matter. The gory remains splattered outward, but none of it could even come close to touching the figure. Every drop of blood, every shard of bone, every fragment of flesh froze midair, crystallizing into ice before falling harmlessly to the ground.
The figure stood there with a hunched back – its breath visible in the frigid air. It kept muttering something under its breath, repeating the words over and over, again and again. But they were too faint for the already crushed Sill to hear.
"… must… protect… … … eliminate… the… threat… … kill… them… all…" (1)
…
*Author Note:
(1) No, our MC wasn't that overpowered. He was mid at best, even with this special power. He needs time to discover himself.
Is this his cheat? Yes, it is indeed his cheat.