Chapter 100

Natara slowly exhaled a puff of smoke, looking at the guy sitting in front of her.

That was Twelve, and he stared at Natara with a bewildered expression.

“I want to buy your magic.” Natara paused and said, “You charge my energy crystals, and I’ll give you some money. Or some other material reward. Do you need any potions? I’m a wizard, so making some medicine for you to take with you is no problem.”

Twelve's face twitched, and his smile vanished completely.

This guy is so inexplicable. As soon as we met, he grabbed my hand and wouldn't let go no matter what I said, and he kept spouting nonsense.

She stared at the crystal on her chest, saying she had never imagined that such pure magic existed in the world.

It's perfect; it's practically made for witchcraft.

His companions had pushed him here without his consent, claiming that witchcraft medicine was too expensive and rare. They said that selling him was a no-brainer compared to getting the medicine.

She herself was very unhappy, which made Twelve feel uncomfortable all over.

It felt as if I had really been sold.

Fortunately, this guy only craves her magic power; apart from that, she doesn't seem to care about anything else about herself.

Unbelievable, truly unbelievable! You really do see all sorts of people after living a long life.

"Isn't there someone more suitable than me? Look at that girl who's all in black, her magic power..."

“I have never seen such unclean magic before, mixed with so much holy magic.” Natara frowned. “The same goes for the others. To answer your earlier question, you are the most suitable candidate. I cannot think of a better choice than you.”

"Thank you for your kindness." Twelve's expression was conflicted.

But he had no other choice. They were in the palace, and the person who had invited him wasn't there. There were no acquaintances of his here, and judging from his teammates' reactions, they had absolutely no intention of helping him.

So if he wants to get out of here alive, he may have no choice but to give in to the generous conditions she offered.

While he was charging the crystal in his hand, he asked many questions about the city.

The reason his magic is needed is because the city has no priests, and the only way to dispel the corruption is with a potion called Black Flower. One of the ingredients in this potion is pure magic.

The one who originally provided the magic was the one who summoned them; he is the patron of this place and currently the center of power. His words are the law of this city.

And in this city there is a guy who can create metal unconditionally. The practicality of this ability is so high that the church is willing to offer all sorts of friendly conditions for this city.

After talking for a while, he suddenly felt that settling down here wouldn't be bad.

This should be considered the best place for monsters, aside from the safe zones they establish in the chaotic regions. Because the protector is a demon, although the church still monitors this place, they often give monsters a wide berth in private.

The city even has a hidden society, a place specifically for monsters like him to live in. In that place, everyone is a monster, and as long as they don't harm people or break the law, they won't face prejudice in the city.

The fundamental reason is perhaps because the rulers here have always treated them favorably.

Natara was here because she still had business with her protector today. But he was out. When she tried to go back, the giant monster outside went berserk.

You really don't need to concentrate to hear what's happening outside, because the dense barrage of artillery fire is enough to make your ears ring. And those roars are like demons awakening from hell, expressing their imprisoned rage to the people of the real world.

Although I've known for a long, long time that there was something extraordinary there, this is the first time I've been attacked.

Even so, they witnessed the city's backlash. No one offered them help; when kind-hearted people asked, the only response was, "Just staying alive is the greatest help you can give."

Perhaps this is why Chulir isn't here. He is the protector of this place, and it's highly likely that he's currently on the city wall, watching the enormous monster outside and commanding the army in battle.

However, he had mentioned that he was going to deal with that thing, but he didn't expect it to happen so quickly. He had originally thought that such matters would be handled more cautiously, with more thorough preparations made before setting off.

But now it seems like it was just a spur-of-the-moment decision; they said they wanted to fight, and the battle had already begun.

Although the battle situation is unknown, it hasn't affected the city so far. Perhaps things are indeed as optimistic as he promised. After listening to them for a while, the frightening sounds no longer inspire fear, but rather feel a bit noisy and unsettling.

Natara looked at the crystal handed to her and played with it for a while.

Indeed, this is excellent material. But perhaps I can't use this reasoning to completely ignore what's happening outside.

After all, even the sky was dyed red. Although she couldn't see outside from inside the palace, she still felt suffocated by the oppressive atmosphere.

It was really unpleasant, and she somewhat hoped that things could be resolved smoothly.

The premise is that they didn't see the crazy scene outside, where nine heads spewed out magic power and intertwined on the ground. They couldn't even distinguish between themselves and enemies, and the magic power beams seemed to cause them no pain after piercing through their bodies.

The already chaotic outside world became even more unsettling, and even heavily armored warriors felt a chill.

Perhaps only the guy leaping and running on the monster, flashing a somewhat dazzling light in the darkness, was inflicting wounds on the twisted monster.

However, none of these people in the palace can be seen here.

"Why is it so noisy outside?" A voice came from the stairs. The guy on the first floor looked at the person scratching his head as he came down, and his expression was a little subtle.

Especially Twelve, who was still feeling dizzy, suddenly felt completely awake when he saw this guy.

That was Ghost Duke. Somehow, he was dressed in tattered clothes and covered in wounds. Red blood stained the floor behind him as he walked.

"I'm so sorry for causing everyone trouble with the cleaning," he said, scratching his head apologetically.

Ghost Duke looked apologetic, scratching his head and sticking out his tongue.

He definitely should have made an apologetic face, because the ground was covered in red blood.

It's also a bit dark.

The guy who made this thing followed behind, looking utterly terrified.

The girl who called herself a rat looked at the guy's wounds and hesitated whether she should try to sew them up.

This guy has said too many things he wanted to hide, and the idea of ​​silencing him will soon be put into practice.

But she couldn't do it; this guy was incapable of causing any harm, either physically or otherwise. Even if he were burned, he seemed perfectly fine. Finally, he thoughtfully mentioned that it would be embarrassing for her if others saw him injured, and even found some clothes to cover his wounds.

The reason was that he didn't want a lovely girl to be called a monster that hurts others.

After she calmed down, she could only admit that she really couldn't think of a good way to deal with this guy.

Just as she was about to bribe him to shut up, he started to walk away on his own.

It seems that she said her blood was flowing non-stop, so she wanted to find a way to stop the bleeding.

At the very least, we should try to put the body parts that have leaked out back in.

She could only pray that this guy wouldn't say anything inappropriate.

For anyone else, this would be a completely unquestionable conclusion. It was a fatal wound; bones and internal organs were exposed. Anyone else would have been dead long ago. But this guy, though in great pain, was still alive. Tragic, yet still alive and well.

She initially thought this guy didn't feel much pain, unless he clearly stated that he was in a lot of pain, almost unbearable pain. She might have even thought he couldn't feel pain at all.

But when I learned that this guy could still feel pain, I felt something deep inside me stir. Perhaps I shouldn't pity him. I've been stuck in that small space for so long without getting out, why should I pity a lucky person who is free?

But there's still a difference, she thought. The only difference is that she's doing everything she can to survive, while that guy seems to deserve to die. God always seems to be a little presumptuous at times like these, bestowing unsuitable things upon others.

"What happened to you?" Twelve asked hesitantly. Although she knew this guy wouldn't die, she still felt a little heartbroken to see someone who had helped her become like this.

After all, although this guy is a bit talkative, he is genuinely a good person. Good people shouldn't be treated like this.

"This? Don't worry about it. I just went a little overboard when testing the sharpness of the new weapon," Ghost Duke replied earnestly, as if it were the truth. But when he realized that it was Twelve speaking to him, his eyes suddenly brightened.

"As expected, you're still safe and sound." He looked at Twelve with excitement and a smile: "As expected, you're the protagonist, you won't die easily."

"As expected, this is still some nonsensical talk," Twelve thought to herself. "This guy probably reads too many chivalric stories and thinks he lives in a novel. To say he's the protagonist is just ridiculous."

"I think your head's been damaged too," he said, a little annoyed. This guy always started his conversation with that, which was really irritating.

"Maybe so, I do have a gash on my head. Um, you beautiful lady sitting over there? I wanted to ask if you have anything that could help secure it properly. My head hurts so much, and it's so noisy outside. I need something to make me feel better." Ghost Duke scratched his head, hesitated for a moment, and said, "I can pay."

Then he walked up on his own, while the girl behind him looked away as she glanced at the people in the hall.

What Ghost Duke just said was indeed unrelated to her, but she was still uneasy.

Perhaps that's why she felt uneasy, after all, she had done something wrong.

Once they got up there, they realized that although it was quiet, it looked quite lively. There were strange creatures everywhere.

After all, they were all monsters: a red demon, a humanoid creature entirely black, and a strange bandaged monster.

It was originally even more eerie, but the dolls have disappeared somewhere, leaving only these strange creatures here.

The guys who were supposed to be here, like Chullier and Aparie, are gone. And so are some other people.

This resulted in only these guests being present. A group of outsiders visiting someone else's home would likely feel a bit awkward unless they were very oblivious. This made the current situation quite embarrassing.

And because of that damned thing outside, I still can't leave this palace.

So no matter how much these guys dislike each other, they're all under the same roof now, seeking shelter from the rain. They're both down on their luck, so mutual help isn't really an option, but at a time like this, they're not in the mood for kicking someone when they're down.

The awkward silence continued, even Ghost Duke remained quiet. He was in unbearable pain, and he tried desperately to liven things up by making silly jokes and reminiscing. But it was no use; the people couldn't keep up a conversation, and few seemed interested in talking.

He was now taking his potion in a corner, watching Natara stare at him with astonishment.

She was asking if he would be interested in being a test subject for her medicine, but Ghost Duke decisively refused. His exact words were: "Although refusing a cute girl's request is very immoral, I'm sorry, I still prefer the slender type like the girl sitting over there."

Such blatant flirting made the little mouse blush slightly. She had initially worried that this guy would reveal her actions, but now she was just trying to shut him up. She didn't know what to do with him talking nonsense here.

The rescuer arrived at that moment; it was Chullier, who returned with Dedeline and Denos, both reeking of foul odors.

The little spider is nowhere to be found in the whole city; I don't know where that little thing has gone. And those two cats too.

Whether it was checking the sewers, the original location, or asking others, no information could be obtained.

At that moment, the monsters outside took the initiative to act.

The situation was so dire, and on top of that, they were covered in the stench of the sewers. These guys felt like they'd fallen into a sewer and been pulled out.