Chapter 62
The chirper—this country’s one and only divine beast—was wandering the forest for the sake of its ill-mannered disciple.
[She just won’t listen. She won’t.]
Somewhere, someone had been leaking demonic energy, and the vile miasma was spreading deeper and deeper into the woods.
It wasn’t critical yet, but if more time passed, ordinary humans wouldn’t last long.
With Selena and Ailee’s fragile bodies, enduring demonic energy would not be easy.
Of course, both sisters possessed holy power, so they would last longer than normal people.
Selena, who possessed a vessel of holy power so great even he was surprised, and Ailee, who still had little but clearly innate divine ability—yet to the divine beast, they were still mere fledglings.
In a crisis like this, wasn’t it natural to take care of yourself first?
[Why is she worrying about that brat Layton!]
And yet she’d dashed into the forest to search for Ailee, and that worried him terribly.
No matter how many times she trained, training was nothing compared to real combat.
And judging from the increasingly foul demonic energy, this wasn’t a monster that could be handled with some commonplace holy power.
Feeling more anxious for no good reason, the chirper flew a little higher.
From above, the forest was too dense to scout easily.
He really didn’t want to feel that disgusting miasma again, but…
The chirper clicked his tongue and dove into the forest anyway.
The deeper he went, the more signs he saw of monsters tearing the place apart.
Perched on a flexible branch near a blood-soaked tree, the chirper let out a long sigh.
The stench of blood filling the air made him want to return to Selena right away.
[Where could he be?]
The divine beast’s eyes, glowing with an odd light, blinked slowly.
A bluish aura rippled around his blue feathers.
Sensing Layton’s presence wasn’t easy.
Layton Zynes, despite being human, was so skilled at concealing his presence that he could fool even a divine beast.
He had physical abilities far beyond a human’s and wielded a sword infused with demonic energy.
He was the kind who could cut down a monster in an instant—and yet here he was, coming all this way to rescue him.
The chirper briefly admired his own mercy and then sensed the various energies nearby.
The energy of someone screaming in fear; the energy of someone fleeing in cowardice, abandoning another;
even the pitiful, tragic aura of someone who had already fallen victim to a monster.
Amid all those chaotic sensations pounding like a headache, the chirper finally found a familiar—and still unpleasant—presence.
[There you are.]
Detecting Layton’s location, the chirper took off again.
Layton wasn’t far.
Even in the dark woods, his soft brown hair and overwhelming presence made him stand out.
The chirper approached, hiding behind a tree near Layton.
Layton was standing still, holding his horse’s reins.
[I’m dying of urgency here—what’s he doing just standing around?]
Judging Layton’s behavior meaningless, the chirper grumbled.
He had to signal Layton to get out of here without being detected.
But how?
He couldn’t speak to him, and he couldn’t write a message.
Annoyed by Selena’s unreasonable request, the divine beast let out a sharp chirp then resorted to his last idea.
Flapping his wings, he picked up a small stone from the ground with his beak.
Thunk!
And hurled it with all his might at Layton’s head.
The stone struck the back of Layton’s head perfectly, and he let out a brief “Ah.”
But that was it. Not reacting further, he simply stared into the empty air again.
Contrary to the chirper’s expectation that one throw would get his attention, Layton remained unfazed. So the chirper picked up another stone and threw it.
Thunk!
“……”
Thunk thunk!
“……”
Thunk thunk thunk!
“……Hah.”
Only after the third throw did Layton sigh and look around.
The chirper hid behind thick leaves, waiting for Layton to notice his signal.
Layton slowly turned his head left and right, then spoke.
“…Divine beast. Is that you?”
The tone was so calm that the chirper nearly answered, Oh, you found me?
Startled, he let out a squeak and covered his beak with his wings.
Too late—he realized that the branch he sat on was being directly scrutinized by Layton.
“I know. That you’ve been staying near Lady Selena.”
One surprise after another. He thought he’d hidden himself perfectly.
The chirper hesitated about speaking but then revealed himself.
Layton glanced at the divine beast emerging from between the trees and asked:
“There’s a monster. Are Lady Selena and Lady Ailee safe?”
[Hey, since when did you know I was around?]
Layton looked down coldly at the divine beast who responded with something completely unrelated to his question.
Ill-mannered mentor, ill-mannered disciple—how could they be so alike?
Most people, upon seeing a divine beast, would feel awe or reverence first.
Layton was acting as if he’d met an acquaintance he’d seen for years.
Not that the divine beast had expected anything else.
Clicking his tongue at Layton’s annoyed expression, the chirper spoke again.
[Hard to believe Selena and Ailee fell for someone as prickly and arrogant as you.]
“I didn’t deceive them.”
[So you did before?]
At the sharp question, Layton chose not to answer.
That wasn’t important now.
They could clear everything up later if needed—but he had no intention of growing close enough to share his inner thoughts with a divine beast.
Suppressing his anxiety, Layton questioned him.
Since the little divine beast had come looking for him, it must’ve been at Selena’s request.
‘Are Selena and Ailee safe?’
He’d realized a monster appeared right before the divine beast arrived.
The short screams—repeated in succession—had abruptly stopped.
Then a strange energy began to envelope the forest.
Layton recognized it instantly.
Filthy, vile energy gathering—he knew that flow of air all too well.
As soon as he concluded the source was a monster leaking demonic energy, two people came to mind.
Selena and Ailee.
He needed to confirm their safety.
By now the imperial palace would’ve realized a monster had appeared.
With many high-ranking nobles attending the festival, they would respond quickly.
He hoped Selena and Ailee had escaped safely during that process.
Layton wanted nothing more than to rush over and check on them.
He could simply summon Gaia to handle things here.
He had just been about to summon Gaia when the stone hit the back of his head.
Recognizing immediately that the signal came from the divine beast, he pressed him again:
“Are Lady Selena and Lady Ailee safe?”
The divine beast, clearly annoyed with Layton, realized this was no time to bicker and answered quickly.
[Don’t know. We need to hurry. Ailee disappeared, and Selena went into the forest to look for her. It seems the monster is still around.]
“What are you talking about…?”
[Selena asked me to help get you out safely.]
She’d said that—even while panicking, while rushing to find Ailee?
Layton was so dumbfounded he couldn’t even laugh.
Who was worrying about who?
Why didn’t Selena Bennet value her own life?
[You know very well Selena can’t handle a monster like this.]
“Do you know the monster’s location?”
[I can feel it. East of here. Ten minutes away.]
Before he even finished, Layton mounted his horse and charged east.
And for the first time in his life, he prayed—to a god he didn’t believe in.
A prayer for Selena Bennet and Ailee Bennet’s safety.
But the moment he arrived near the location the divine beast mentioned, that prayer became meaningless.
What Layton witnessed was devastating.
Unlike the revitalized trees and greenery, Selena lay on the ground, her entire body drenched in crimson blood.
[…Selena.]
The divine beast trailing behind murmured her name quietly.
Layton felt his breath catch in his throat.
His heart plummeted from the highest place and crashed endlessly to the ground.
In front of Selena lay a monster, charred black as if burned to ashes.
“Lady Selena.”
In stark contrast to the forest brimming with new life, Selena’s fading form looked unnatural.
He carefully lifted her into his arms.
Blood continued to stream from her shoulder without stopping.
He’d thought he would never know how horrifying it was to lose something precious.
“Lady Selena. Please… please wake up.”
He called to her desperately, but the gentle voice that always answered him did not return.
If he had holy power, could he heal her?
Could he ease her pain the way she had once healed him?
‘Damn this demonic strength.’
A power he once considered useful—now utterly worthless.
As if mocking his arrogant past, Layton collapsed to his knees.
