“It is good to meet you again, Phoenix.”

A rare and genuine smile appeared on Leiu’s face. In contrast, the Mythical Being, in control of Feylord’s body, bowed respectfully.

I am honoured, Nameless Knight.

“There’s no need to be so polite. Now, tell me what’s happening.”

None of the two wasted more time on pleasantries or unnecessary chitchat.

I… do not know what it is. However, it shares the same properties as The End.

“That much is clear. What else can you tell me?”

There are others like it, only infinitely smaller and less consequential. They started appearing all over Mundus a while ago.

“And how do you know this?”

There have been whispers in the Sea of Souls. Whispers of the End.

The phoenix maintained a brief silence before speaking again, in a tone that subtly demanded an affirmation.

You have sealed away Death, have you not, Nameless Knight?

“I did, and when I regain my powers, I will remove it altogether. I know this has surely caused unrest in the Sea of Souls but I do not care.”

I am not here to judge your actions. As you know, removing Death will disturb the entirety of Mundus. Life cannot exist without Death.

“That’s why I’ve only imprisoned it for now. I’ll get rid of it once I have a replacement, but enough about that. The anomaly… why ask for me specifically?”

To destroy it. Darkness is the power of activity. In its current state, you should be able to destroy it and forestall any catastrophe it might bring.

“Destroy? So you’re like Aerin? If I use it against the Void. I just need to find a way.”

It must be destroyed, Leiu. You of all people should understand what comes from messing with the unknown. The End has befallen Outer Mundus and not even the almighty entities there could stop it.

“So I just get rid of it? That’s it? What makes you think it won’t return? We need to understand what caused it to appear in the first place.”

Hearing no response, Leiu grumbled.

“Astria is connected to the Void, so the anomaly could originate from there. I just have to be careful and keep monitoring. Damnit! Where’s Wolfram?!”

I fear I must go, Nameless Knight. This boy’s body cannot handle it anymore.

“Why did you choose him, Phoenix? What makes him so special?”

Nothing. That is the point. If he shows me he can do it, I will give my all to him.

“...”

Leiu furrowed his brow but didn’t comment.

Late at night, after everyone retired to their rooms, Lucy sat on one of the couches in the Living Room, staring at the Darkness. Leiu and Feylord stayed in the same room and didn’t clash with Aerin again, which was fortunate.

Meanwhile, after failing to make Mort act, Aerin simply went to sleep. The only people that remained active late at night were Julie and her servants, but even they soon succumbed to mental and physical fatigue.

Like everyone else, Lucy, too, was given a room, however, she chose to stay here, still stressed about her next course of action.

After an indeterminate amount of time, the ‘Demon Lady’ made her decision. She snuck out of the manor and, as fast as she could, rushed out of Wilsden.

She wanted to find a more opportune time, but staying in the Baron’s estate made her very restless and threatened.

Considering the lengths the Holy Church had gone to, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to send Paladins into Julie’s doorstep.

Lucy didn’t trust anyone, therefore, she didn’t believe that Julie or anyone would help her at a time of crisis. It would be much safer to hand her over to the Holy Church and avoid any more problems, after all, they already got their hands full with the anomaly.

Wearing nothing but her dirties and old white dress, Lucy dashed from one inconspicuous alley to the other until she was, finally, out of the town.

She didn’t have any specific destination in mind, but that was for the best. She was going to aimlessly roam around, which would make it harder for her pursuers to pinpoint her location. It was a full-proof plan, admittedly, but it was better than staying in one place for a prolonged period of time.

As Lucy stepped into Greenbell forest, she looked down at her two hands; One of them glowed with a light-blue light whereas the other emitted faint golden flames.

The Holy Church wasn’t chasing after her just because she was a Demon, that was for certain. Even if they were notorious for hunting non-humans, specifically Demons, they wouldn’t have gone so far for just an unknown Demon.

Lucy had yet to figure out what the artifacts she had absorbed were, but she suspected they were of great significance to the church.

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“I’ll survive… no matter what.” She softly muttered before clenching her hands and springing into a sprint.

The woods were blanketed by complete Darkness, making visibility difficult, nevertheless, Lucy was, to a certain degree, able to navigate it and distance herself from the main local settlement.

There were the occasional roars and growling of nocturnal beasts, but the Demon paid them no heed. She would circle around any danger and run as fast as she could, however, at some point, Lucy’s feet came to an abrupt halt.

First, she looked in a certain direction and frowned, but once she determined that the bubble of resplendent white light shooting towards her, she turned tail and fled. This time, she made use of her Ice-aspected Magic, which allowed her to freeze the ground under her feet and skate across it too boost her speed.

Albeit unexpected, Lucy knew that this wasn’t the time to figure out why a Holy-Magic user happened to be in the vicinity. The fact that they were chasing after her was all that mattered.

She had not been using any light to illuminate her surroundings, and albeit running, she wasn’t loud or conspicuous enough to be seen in the forest. If this unknown person was chasing after her, it could only mean they knew she was a Demon.

Slowly but surely, the pursuer got closer and closer even after Lucy’s attempts to quicken her movement speed. In the end, she felt a powerful burst of Holy Magic descend upon her from above, thus forcing her to spin around and unleash a wave of golden flames.

The two types of magic clashed before both dispersing.

At last, Lucy saw the face of the assailant, which only made her expression become uglier. Her hand shook ever-so-slightly as she readied herself.

“You!”

Wearing an improved version of his old armor, Rein Goldstar glared at the silver-haired Demon. The last time they were, and fought, he had almost been killed if not for the help of the villagers. His first mission as a Holy Knight had been to find and eliminate the runaway Demon, but he had failed and was forced to return North.

Holy Knights had keen magical senses and were able to detect Demons, even at a distance, but Rein was able to notice Lucy thanks to a device handed by his superior. This device was not unlike the one used by the Paladins that almost caught Lucy.

With his glowing sword in hand, the golden-haired youth kicked the ground and charged at her, but before she could retaliate, a thick wave of green mist crashed down from above.

Rein found himself unable to breathe, his body trembling and then falling on the ground.

“We meet again.”

Lucy, who was startled by this, didn’t panic as she recognized this dreadful mist.

At first, she thought her link with Arthur had been activated, but when she examined her body, she found out that she was still in control, which meant the parasite was actually here.

“Hngh! AAh!”

Rein roared, surprisingly breaking free from the effect of [Air Breath] and unleashing a wave of Holy Light that extinguished the mist.

He was about to attack but once he laid eyes on the somewhat familiar red-haired man, he stopped.

“Mister… Sanguis?”

He and Arthur had met once in the past, and since Julie had spoken so fondly of him, Rein naturally remembered.

“Oh… Rein, yes?”

“She’s a Demon!” Shouted Rein as he pointed at Lucy, but in response, Arthur shrugged.

“And?”

“...”

Confused and dumbfounded by the man’s indifference, Rein stared back at the parasite in silence.

“You’re with her? You’re also a Dem-.... no…” The Holy Knight looked down at the device hanging from his neck. It was only responding to Lucy.

“Still being chased, huh?”

Arthur glanced at the quiet and expressionless Lucy before he shrugged.

With lightning-fast speed, his body shot toward the unprepared Rein and delivered a swift and monstrously strong hit.

The Holy Knight, albeit protected by his armor and Holy Magic, was still blown backwards. The thick armor shattered and Rein lost hold of his blade as his body laid on the ground, unable to move due to the pain and shock from that one hit.

Compared to the Hashashin or the foes Arthur had faced before, Rein Goldstar was relatively weak. He could use Holy Magic and was a decent swordsmen, but that was about it.

Arthur stood to the fallen Holy Knight, thoughtfully staring down at him.

“Kill him.” Said Lucy as ice and fire started form around her hands.

“...”

Although he didn’t say anything, Arthur was about to comply. He had clashed with the Holy Church before, and even if he had not, it wouldn’t be good for him to leave Rein alive after he had attacked him.

Due to his inexplicable link with Lucy, he was more inclined to send with her than against her.

“Stop.”

Before he could finish Rein, Arthur held a cold voice from a couple of feet away. Surprised, he quickly turned around only to see a short dark-haired youth approach him.

Out of instinct, Arthur used [Mist of Decay] and conjured a barrier before hastily distancing himself from the unknown arrival.

Silent, Leiu looked at Arthur and Lucy then at Rein, who was regaining his bearing and struggling to stand up. After some difficulty, he succeeded, though he was breathing heavily and unable to move properly.

This situation was beyond strange for the Holy Knight, however, he was smart enough to know when to retreat. He gave one last look to Lucy before turning tail and running away.

The Nameless Knight purposely stood in the way of Arthur. Although he didn’t attack or do anything, the parasite couldn’t help but feel fear when looking at him. It was as if there was something off about the youth, something sinister and all-consuming.

It was slightly similar to the Gargoyle, but significantly more intense.

“To think I’d meet you again… and with her at your side.” A seemingly mocking laugh escaped Leiu’s lips as he calmly raised his hand.

“I’m not your enemy, Arthur. Come with me to Wilsden, everyone is waiting.”

Then, with a snap of his fingers, a formless Darkness swirled around before revealing a sickly and unconscious Evelyn.

Upon seeing this, Arthur shot forward while casting multiple offensive spells at once, however, they were all cancelled by the Darkness, which cascaded forth and bound him in place.

“Calm yourself. I thought it faster to bring her here than leave her alone in the woods, as you did. Wouldn’t want that Holy Knight to run into her, do we?”

“Who are you?”

“Leiu.”

Arthur, unsettled by the spinning Darkness, which seemed to consume around it, was given back control of his body. He didn’t attack a second time, mostly due to the overwhelming sense of desperation and powerlessness he felt when facing the Nameless Knight.

“Julie and your friends are in the manor. Come.” Leiu was about to turn around only to stop and focus on Lucy.

“You come too.”

Unlike Arthur, Lucy didn’t stand still or obey: A massive golden fireball erupted from her hand, whooshing toward the youth. Simultaneously, she froze the ground and fled.

Unfortunately, all of that was futile as the fireball disappeared and the ground returned to normal.

Instead of warning Lucy, Leiu snapped his fingers, causing the Darkness to appear around Lucy and contract.

Before she could do anything, she was teleported away. When she regained her bearings, she found herself back at the manor, precisely at Feylord’s room.