There was a throbbing pulse in the hand holding the sword. Veins stood out, and the pale color shone on the tender wrist.

Crack!

The sword was smoothly drawn.

The black feathers turned into ashes, and sat quietly on the cheek.

The sword cut through the air, and, avoiding the demon about to explode its body as a sacrifice for dark magic, it stepped on the spell.

Moonlight shimmered at the tip of the sword. The demon, buried in darkness, only flashed its eyes red.

“They only aim for that child!”

“They said to tear my child apart while she was giving birth.”

Sharlof felt a strong sense of disgust seeping in.

“It seems like the child found out about my father’s intention to kill.”

“What?”

“The child who couldn’t freely utter a breath seemed to have read those around me. Even though I wanted to ignore it, it was difficult not to know.”

The black ashes were carried away by the wind.

“Ah.”

In the place where the demon subjugation ended.

Only piles of ashes remained from the lesser demons that died.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

“The subjugation operation is almost over.”

All crow demons have been subjugated.

“Then let’s finish the subjugation operation and strengthen the nearby patrol.”

The armored guard took a defensive posture. Even though they were lesser demons, the target was clear.

‘That child will not forget today.’

The child fainted and was held in her mother’s arms. The body hung limply, like a soaked cotton ball.

“It’s not your fault.”
Sharlof gently pushed the forehead of the sleeping child.

“There’s nothing to be distressed about.”

Other than these words, there were no other stories to tell. It was a story Sharlof Tutu, herself, wanted to hear when she was young.

Even though they resembled each other, the resemblance happened to manifest in this way.

‘Stuffing myself into the wardrobe, running away, blocking my ears, closing my eyes.’

It was a form of psychological avoidance. In doing so, she felt as if she would disappear from this world.

“Are you alright?”

Sharlof lowered her eyes. The child’s birth mother, Cloe, shook her delicate shoulders.

As her breath became blocked due to hyperventilation, Cloe forcefully suppressed her breath, gritting her lips.

With sharp nails, she tore at the curly hair, and her reddened eyes were filled with injustice and sorrow.

“Sob, h-hueuk!”

“Regulate your breathing. If you breathe in too quickly, your throat will get blocked in reverse.”

Cloe shook her shoulders.

“Huk, heok. Hup!”

“Invoke the Royal Spirit secretly.”

Cloe absentmindedly opened and closed her lips.

“Ridiculous. I thought I could have everything, but it wasn’t true, was it? If I clear the tombstone and erase only the traces of the dead, it will be over. My child’s father is just a little hurt… I was foolish.”

“Regret?”

“I would rather it wasn’t you. If you weren’t here, it would have been better.”

Everything was ruined.

“It was a mess from the beginning. I shouldn’t have set foot here.”

Sharlof closed her eyes silently.

“What should I, what can I do? I did everything for the child… for my child, wasn’t it?”

“At least, it wasn’t for the child. Don’t attach insignificant reasons to your greed.”

Cloe’s eyes, which had lost focus, cleared up. She wasn’t aware of what she was saying.

In that appearance, all the injustice, hatred, and malice became meaningless.

“…”

Sharlof turned her body stiffly. Soon, a desperate cry burst from her back.

“Hu, hueup! Why, why, please, my child, the child, is it true that… Aah, no, it’s not true.”

“Why demand answers from me?”

Sharlof whispered quietly.

“Poorly evil, yet also poorly lingering. Thanks to your foolishness, your pathetic life became even more foolish. Such foolishness has ruined you. It’s better to become poisonous. If you’re clumsy, you’ll only be swept away by the storm.”

The end became vague, and the ancient malice was forgotten.

When she took steps, was this reduced malice?

“Don’t cry.”

“…”

“Endure it for the sake of the child. If you endure as much as you can, the end will come.”

This, too, shall pass.

“When everything is over, then leave.”

“Hueuk, hup!”

“I will secretly invoke the Royal Spirit, so show the child.”

This fateful encounter ended like that.

Sharlof left the mansion’s path.

The guards came to her side and protected her.

“You become particularly weak near that child.”

“She resembles you.”

“…”

“Even though she resembles, it’s that part that resembles you that’s striking.”

Sharlof shook her arms. The muscles on her lifeless arms tightened.

Each step was sluggish.

With each step, Sharlof looked down at her feet.
Everything is an illusion.

As if blood was pooling at their feet, the field of view was dyed red.

The world, which was pitch black, was stained with crimson blood, and the veins in the wrists tightened.

‘Is it because of the torch?’

The path was red. It felt peculiarly strange.

Soon, a guard approached and opened the way.

Her fingertips trembled. Holding hands with her, she squeezed the joints, and they quivered weakly.

“I never said you could step behind me.”

A sound came from behind.

“Your Majesty, please excuse us for a moment.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sharlof closed her eyes silently.

“Sigh. Sigh… Hu, hueuk. Please kill me. It’s painful.”

The guard whispered, “A victim enchanted by dark magic methods.”

“One of the missing persons from before.”

Her skin was blackened, and her plea for death was desperate.

The breath that reached death gradually became shallow.

Unable to breathe, the woman scratched her own throat with her nails.

“Young lady, you shouldn’t get too close, Your Majesty.”

The guard surrounded the area with a barricade to prevent approach. The woman facing imminent death begged for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“…”

“I’m sorry. I must tell you before I die. Ah, ah, ah.”

Sharlof stood before the dying woman.

“Be careful.”

The guard restrained Sharlof’s steps.

“She has been influenced by dark magic methods.”

“At least, I shouldn’t step back here. If I turn away after committing such a crime and shared the blood of the sinner, it is only right to bear the responsibility.”

“I have been pardoned and have been out of the registry for a long time. Why…”

“I considered it right for me to bear the responsibility.”

Sharlof took a step.

The woman reached out and scratched the ground.

“I confess my past sins. Please, forgive me, to the deceased mistress, I beg for forgiveness. Please forgive me.”

The woman gasped for breath, and her throat convulsed.

“A body tainted by dark magic cannot be saved. Will I die like this?”

Sharlof reached out her hand.

“You have been forgiven.”

“…”

“If forgiven, you will be saved. And, since the temple declared the sanctuary, there are many priests who honor the spirits of the deceased.”

“Ah…!”

“You can close your eyes.”

Behind the Hwanggoong residence, a white cloth was laid out, and the body was coldly covered.