As the suffocating silence continued for a while, the step-mother suddenly began to scribble something in the empty notebook.

-Is she okay alone?

At the step-mother’s question, the Faceless Lady, Deus, sighed within the mask.

The masked woman sitting across from Deus was not Ibi, but the maid from the arena whom Ibi had saved.

Driven away from the arena due to Lord Bric’s caprice, the saint candidate modestly revised her plans.

In order to successfully execute her plan, she decided to stay alone in that arena.

Before coming to the ruined arena, Ibi had three tasks.
“One is capturing the snake, another is safeguarding the daily life of the Viscount, and the last one is exploiting Cassel Montra’s weakness.”

Ibi placed Deus and Ubia in front of her and spoke with a clear voice.

“To be able to resolve these three things in one place, we are truly fortunate.”

“You call it luck after getting involved yourself; you should be aware of the dangerous situation….”

“Hehehe…”

The confident Ibi only chuckled sardonically at Deus’s remark, and Deus, seeing the young lady who wouldn’t be swayed by advice, could only sigh.

Whether it was Ibi’s scheming or her audacity to handle this significant matter all at once, Deus had to bow her head.

“Is there any way out of this? Time is running out. Everything must be concluded within this week.”

However, Ibi explained her plan without yielding.

“I mentioned that the curse in the southeast of Bys has intensified because of the Night Tribe trapped in the arena. Originally, the curse should have gathered there, but due to the Purification Salt, we can’t approach. Therefore, it spread nearby. If we pull the curse into the ruins, we should be able to solve it.”

“Seeing that you pay a large sum of compensation to Lord Bric every month in that arena, Lord Bric is probably not the owner of the arena but rather someone who manages it as a representative of the lord. So, if the situation arises where his stepson can’t pay the compensation, he will probably try to resolve it even at the cost of his life.”

“We still don’t know how the snake is hiding in that arena. So, to identify the snake, Ubia must go, but if Ubia is already there, it’s risky. Since the snake and other Night Tribe members will sense Ubia just as Ubia senses the snake. So, Ubia should come with the Viscount at the time when the secret arena opens.”

Ibi first assessed the situation in the arena and determined their tasks.

“If Ubia finds the snake, Deus will find the way, and I will put the disruptors to sleep while catching the snake.”

“After that, if Ubia goes out to the ruins and throws the salt, this week’s curse will focus on Ubia. If the curse takes shape, the Viscount can handle it.”

“The most important thing is the last part. After pulling the curse into the ruins, we need to lure it into the arena. So, when people evacuate, we lock the gate. Then, we endure until the Bayen army arrives and hand over the salt and the Night Tribe. That’s the end.”

Confident Ibi Ariatene was determined to truly handle her three tasks all at once.

However, this ambitious plan took a sudden turn due to an unexpected expulsion order.
However, Ibi was a determined one who didn’t know how to give up, and eventually, she decided to exchange clothes with the maidservant and stay alone in the arena. She planned to wait inside until Deus, with Ubia, crossed the castle wall.

Deus, of course, opposed it. He couldn’t leave Ibi alone in this dangerous place.

However, Ibi didn’t listen to Deus’s words this time either.

―I can protect my body.

―If there’s a better way than this, I’ll follow it.

Recalling Ibi’s resolute voice, Deus could only sigh deeply.

Whether she heard the sigh or not, the maidservant wearing a mask and a wig wrote again in the notebook.

―She seems really courageous. Admirable.

Deus fully agreed with those words. Indeed, Ibi was a brave one worthy of admiration.

He remembered. The time when he was trapped in the underground of the tower, Ibi, crouching on the bed, secretly sobbing. The child who roamed the world fearlessly during the day would silently cry like that when night fell. And when the day dawned again, she regained her courage.

Ibi had always been such a brave coward, struggling with all her might.

Representing Deus’s feelings of leaving Ibi alone, the sky, which had been quite overcast, began to shed tears.

As if representing the feelings of Deus, who left Ibi alone, the sky, which had been quite overcast, began to shed tears.

The sound of raindrops hitting the carriage roof echoed gently, and the maidservant spoke again with the notebook.

―I’m glad I can be of help to that person.

Just as Deus was about to nod his head, a thudding sound struck the side of the carriage, not the roof.

Mistaking it for the sound of raindrops for a moment, Deus opened his eyes wide at the subsequent strong smell of blood.

“It’s an ambush!”

After the stench of blood vibrated, the guards shouted. The carriage stopped, and the guards busily surrounded the area.

However, their efforts were in vain, as it was a one-sided massacre.

“Aaah!”

The guards’ screams echoed.

Almost simultaneously, Deus reached out to the maid sitting across from him.

The moment Deus reached out, like a heavenly punishment, the carriage he was riding on was torn apart.

Kwaang! With a thunderous noise, the debris of the carriage splashed over the slowly soaking ruins.

Thrown out of the ruins, Deus rolled and stood up. Along with the dizzying shock, a tragedy unfolded.

Around the carriage, which had been in perfect condition just a moment ago, was now full of corpses. People and horses were torn apart miserably.

Without a chance to properly assess the situation, Deus rolled his body again. At the same time, the ground where he stood was attacked by an unseen assault. With the sound of rocks and a whizzing noise, stones bounced.

Dodging the attack once again, Deus felt the throbbing pain and touched his waist. Blood was spreading from the wound that the attack had barely missed.

Enduring the pain, Deus glanced at the broken carriage. Then, a calm male voice rang in Deus’s ear.

“You have a good sense.”

Although it was a voice Deus heard for the first time, he instinctively knew.