Chapter 61 : Blackout

I ran.

That was the only thought in my mind.

In the distance, I could see Reina’s terrified face.

And before her, the serpent’s jaws gaped wide as if ready to devour her.

I needed to reach her and kill that serpent as quickly as possible.

But the distance was too great.

“[Accelerate]!”

I shouted the incantation with all my might, praying desperately that this would increase my speed even slightly.

Yet, no matter how loudly I screamed, the distance between us remained vast.

‘At this rate, it’ll all be over before I get there.’

If I continued running, it was clear I wouldn’t make it in time.

So, I asked myself: What should I do?

As it turned out, my body already seemed to know the answer. Before I could respond to my own question, it was moving.

I sheathed the sword in my right hand.

Then, I extended my right arm and shouted.

“[Lightning]!”

In an instant, a surge of electricity began crackling at my fingertips. The raw energy writhed uncontrollably, scattering in all directions.

In that state, I shouted again.

“[Form Shift]!”

Closing my eyes, I imagined.

I pictured a large, sharp spear in my hand—one capable of piercing through anything.

When I opened my eyes, I saw the wild electricity begin to coalesce into a single point.

It was the most potent surge of lightning energy imaginable.

I clenched my fist.

The longer I held it, the louder the electricity roared, and the more strain it put on my arm.

I gritted my teeth.

Containing the lightning, which seemed ready to explode at any moment, required immense concentration.

As I endured with all my focus,

a long spear of lightning finally formed in my hand.

I pulled my arm back, drawing it taut like a bowstring. I planted my legs firmly on the ground and stabilized my body.

Then, with all my might, I swung my arm forward.

I hurled the spear.

Boom!

The thunderous spear shot through the air, piercing the serpent’s head.

Where the lightning spear had passed, nothing remained.

I quickly ran forward and embraced the trembling Reina.

“Ruina… sob… Ruinaaa…”

“It’s okay. I’m here now. Everything’s fine.”

Reina clung to me, sobbing uncontrollably, and I gently patted her back, trying to calm her.

She was trembling in my arms. Whether it was from the recent ordeal or something else, she was terrified and crying.

It made me furious. Feeling her trembling body against mine ignited a fiery anger within me.

I unknowingly tightened my hold on her, but I quickly loosened my grip, afraid I might hurt her.

“Ha, what a touching scene.”

A mocking voice came from behind.

“You bastard!”

I turned to look at Kairen, my face contorted with rage.

“Wow, that’s quite the murderous expression. If looks could kill, huh?”

“At least you know your place,” I retorted coldly.

I gently released Reina, who had calmed down a bit, and stood up. 

My voice carried an icy edge as I spoke.

“Come here. I’ll kill you right now.”

“Who said I’d let you kill me so easily?”

“Who said I’d let you die easily? No, I’ll make sure you suffer every humiliation, pain, and disgrace before I kill you most miserably.”

“And if I resist?”

“Try it. You know better than anyone what will happen.”

I gripped my sword firmly once more.

This time, I wouldn’t make the same mistake. I would strike decisively, severing her neck in one blow to prevent her from pulling any tricks.

Lilia’s intentions? They didn’t matter. Reina’s safety came first.

“Ha… hahaha!”

“What’s so funny?” I asked, irritation lacing my voice.

Kairen’s laughter grated on me. Her smug expression, as if she were enjoying a private joke, infuriated me.

I wanted to silence her permanently.

Kairen replied, still smiling brightly, and began shouting in an annoyingly lively voice.

“You’re right, Hella. I’ll admit it! You’re strong—much stronger than me!

So, yes, your words will come true. I’ll end up helplessly defeated by you.

But you know what? That’s only true when we’re fighting with our natural abilities!”

Her expression twisted into one of pure rage as she shouted.

“Hella, I hate you. I hate your wretched personality. I hate that you hog all of Lady Lilia’s love and attention. I hate that you’re stronger than me.

I probably hate you more than anyone else in this world.

I want to kill you. I want to make you suffer. I want you to feel even a fraction of the misery I feel right now!”

Her voice cracked with anger, but then her expression shifted to one of sorrow. Her tone turned regretful, almost pitying.

“If possible, I would’ve liked to do it with my own power. But I can’t. My strength alone isn’t enough to make you suffer.

So…

I’ll borrow another power to make you suffer.”

From her bosom, Kairen pulled out an object.

It was a black crystal. At first glance, it resembled the mana stones used as catalysts by mages, but unlike the usual blue glow, this one radiated an ominous black light.

For some reason, the sight of that light planted a deep, inexplicable unease in my heart.

I couldn’t move.

“So now, you’ll experience it too,” she said, clutching the crystal tightly and spreading her arms wide.

Then she began her chant.

“Our mother, the beautiful night, I beseech you. Grant us peace and respite, and deliver us from danger!”

The moment she began, an immense surge of dark energy centered on her.

Crash!

The windows shattered as the wave of energy swept through like a storm.

‘What overwhelming pressure,’ I thought, shielding Reina with my magic.

There was nothing I could do. I couldn’t leave Reina alone in such an unpredictable situation.

So all I could do was watch.

Meanwhile, her incantation continued.

“Shroud our enemies in darkness so they cannot find us. Invite them into our realm, and grant them—”

I kept my guard up, focusing on her actions.

‘The source of power must be that crystal,’ I deduced.

The black crystal, unlike ordinary mana stones, seemed to be an incredible source of energy.

If I could take it from her, I could stop whatever she was doing.

Yet I couldn’t move.

‘What is she trying to do?’

I had no idea.

Neither her magic nor the crystal was anything I recognized.

Moving recklessly in this situation could result in disastrous consequences.

‘Maybe a light test won’t hurt.’

I extended my hand and uttered an incantation.

“[Lightning.]”

Electricity surged from my fingertips, forming a spear.

I hurled it toward her.

The lightning spear surged forward with a menacing sound, promising destruction to anything it touched.

But.

‘I guess it doesn’t work.’

I clicked my tongue as the spell dissipated into nothingness.

Well, it was expected. There’s no way she wouldn’t have prepared defenses while using magic so openly.

If that’s the case, there’s nothing I can do but wait. Judging by the situation, it seems unlikely that I’ll be able to stop the spell from activating. Instead, I’ll observe the effects once it’s activated and then decide how to counter it.

Not knowing what kind of magic it is bothers me, but I should be fine. After all, I can block most spells.

Even Lilia’s magic has failed against me before. There’s no way her subordinate, Kairen, whose abilities are clearly inferior, can succeed where she failed.

Frankly, is there even a spell in Kairen’s repertoire that could work on me? If her master couldn’t do it, how could she? It’s absurd.

I withdrew the magic I was preparing against Kairen and began to monitor my surroundings.

My priority now was to keep an eye on her and ensure Reina’s safety. That was the best course of action I could take in this situation.

However,

it seemed this wasn’t the best solution after all.

As I scanned my surroundings for any changes, my gaze fell on a shattered window. And what I saw made me doubt my eyes.

“Sometimes, a dream so blissful you never wish to wake!”

The sky was turning black.

It was an unbelievable sight. The once bright blue sky was gradually darkening, as if being swallowed by black ink.

“Sometimes, a dream so painful you desperately wish to escape!”

The blackness spread rapidly, like water soaking through fabric, claiming more and more of the sky.

And then,

the blackness consumed the sun.

“Oh, beautiful night, we implore you! Grant your blessing to these ignorant fools who know not your power!”

Darkness descended. The light vanished, leaving everything swallowed by shadow.

The pitch-black darkness before me made it seem as though all light had disappeared from the world.

But only for a moment.

A faint, dim light began to glow, gently pushing back the darkness. It was weaker than before, but its mysterious, dreamlike quality was mesmerizing.

I turned toward the light to find its source,

and what I saw left me utterly speechless.

I was certain I was wearing a dumbfounded expression.

The scene unfolding before me was just that extraordinary.

“This… can’t be…”

Where the sun had been swallowed and the light extinguished,

a moon was rising.

I couldn’t close my gaping mouth.

I couldn’t take my eyes off the moon that now illuminated the sky.

‘How is this possible?’

It was inconceivable. Turning day into night defied every bit of logic and understanding I had.

Though my mind screamed that this was impossible, I couldn’t deny the reality of what was unfolding before my eyes.

I forced my frozen thoughts to move.

‘Is this magic? It feels like something on the scale of a grand spell.’

I began piecing together possibilities.

Grand magic could, perhaps, achieve such phenomena. Unlike ordinary spells, grand magic required resources many times greater, manifesting effects that were incomparably powerful.

Still, it didn’t fully explain this situation.

Could any magic truly alter day and night? Such a spell was beyond anything I had ever heard of.

Even if Kairen had used grand magic, there was still a problem.

Grand magic cannot be performed alone.

The formula for such spells is so complex and resource-intensive that it requires dozens of mages working together to activate it.

There is another way, of course.

If a magic circle has already been drawn, a grand spell could be activated with sufficient mana, bypassing the need for multiple mages.

If Kairen had drawn such a circle here in Bilne, that might explain how she managed to use grand magic by herself.

However, there were still issues with this theory.

Grand magic circles are massive, and if she had drawn one in Bilne, I should have noticed it long ago. 

During my time here, I never saw any such magic circle.

‘Wait!’

A memory flashed in my mind.

The festival tradition where lines were drawn on the ground.

What if the lines drawn by the villagers weren’t random decorations but a part of the magic circle?

I felt like I was on the verge of uncovering how Kairen had done this.

But I couldn’t think any further.

My legs gave out, and I collapsed.

I couldn’t move. My body felt heavy, drained of strength.

A strange lethargy overcame me. My thoughts felt sluggish, as if coated in molasses. My arms and legs hung limp.

Sleepiness crept over me, more intense than I’d ever felt. My head drooped. My eyelids grew heavy, and I wanted nothing more than to collapse and close my eyes.

‘A sleep spell…’

I clung to my fading consciousness and thought.

This drowsiness, this lethargy—I’d felt it before. Not long ago, in fact.

I knew what to do.

Back then, I had failed because my power had been sealed.

But this time, it would be different.

I struggled to mutter the incantation.

“[Purify].”

But no matter how many times I repeated it, the sleepiness didn’t fade.

Instead, it grew stronger with each use of magic.

“What…?”

I muttered in disbelief.

I could feel the mana draining from me, which meant the spell had activated properly. So why wasn’t this drowsiness going away?

“Purify…!”

I tried again, only to collapse to the ground. I didn’t even have the strength to lift my head anymore.

That’s when Kairen approached me, limping slightly. She didn’t seem to be in perfect condition herself.

I managed to look up at her.

“Why…?”

“Ha! Look at that face. You’re completely bewildered.”

She laughed as she looked down at me.

“Surprised? That your precious magic doesn’t work?”

“What… have you done?”

“I get it. I was just as shocked the first time. I wasn’t sure if it would work on you, but it did! Oh, this is perfect!”

She clapped her hands in glee. All I could do was fight to keep my eyes open.

She laughed for a while before stepping past me.

Then she picked up Reina, who was lying behind me.

“Well then, I’ll be taking her now.”

“Let her go!”

I mustered all my strength to shout, stretching my arm toward her.

“You’re so desperate. Is this girl really that important to you? She’s the Demon Lord’s daughter, right?”

“Shut up!”

“Wow, how unexpected. To think the oh-so-noble Hella would be hiding the princess of the demons that all the dukes are searching for.”

Kairen smirked as she leaned closer.

“If you want her back, come to the plaza when you wake up. I’ll give you one day.

Though I doubt you’ll wake up from this dream.”

She locked eyes with me and grinned widely.

“Hella, the dream you’re about to have will make you relive the most painful moments of your life.

Normally, I’d trap someone in a happy dream so they’d never want to wake up. But for you, I made it special—a nightmare of pure torment. How did I do?”

“Shut… up…”

“If you can overcome the dream, you’ll wake up. But if you fail, you’ll sleep forever, and this girl will go to Lady Lilia.

So good luck! You’ll need it.”

Kairen mockingly cheered for me before turning and walking away, carrying Reina.

“Reina… no…”

I reached out for her with all my remaining strength, trying to drag myself forward.

But the more I struggled, the heavier my body became.

“My Reina…”

And then, my vision went dark.