A flash of surprise crossed Lilisah’s eyes, but in the end, she lowered her head and replied, “Yes, Master. I will do everything I can to hold them off!”
“Wait, Froyah—Lilisah’s all alone! She can’t possibly—”
Irene quickly interjected. According to Lilisah herself, her combat ability wasn’t particularly strong. Asking her to face off against so many magical creatures alone was no different from sending her to her death.
This order was essentially a death sentence!
“I know!” Froyah cut her off, her blood-red eyes gleaming with a soul-piercing light.
“But do you have a better plan? We can’t stop moving forward. We can’t afford to waste our strength fighting the monsters at the edge. As long as Lilisah can hold them off for even a little while, we’ll be able to get out of their line of sight!”
“But if we do that, then Lilisah will—”
She’ll definitely die, won’t she?
Froyah smiled as she looked at Lilisah.
“It’s fine. She’s just a combat doll. Even if she breaks, we can just take her somewhere to get repaired. But if one of us dies… there’s no coming back from that.”
“And besides—being able to serve a crucial purpose… isn’t that the greatest value a defective product can have?”
With that, Froyah turned and walked off, continuing deeper into the city.
Irene still wanted to argue, but Froyah grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward into a run. Though both of them had equally useless innate gifts, Froyah’s strength was unbelievable—Irene couldn’t even resist!
“We still need you to lead the way. I really don’t get why you care so much about that defective thing!”
“Lilisah is not a defective product!” Irene snapped back.
“Hmph. She belongs to me. If I say she’s defective, then she is,” Froyah said bluntly. “Though you seem to like her a lot. If you want, I’ll give you her remains afterward.”
“…You—!”
Irene was furious. Over the past few days, she’d seen it clearly—Lilisah’s admiration and affection for her so-called master, Froyah.
But this woman only saw her as a disposable tool!
Strictly speaking, a doll wasn’t a real person. But after spending time with her, Irene felt that Lilisah was no different from a human—maybe even more delicate and sensitive in her emotions.
Irene bit her lip, looking back at the girl who had stayed behind. Her expression was filled with silent grief.
“Miss Irene, don’t worry about me.” Lilisah’s voice drifted over on the wind. Irene saw her turn her back and raise a reassuring hand gesture.
“Once I’ve defeated these creatures, I’ll catch up to you.”
She’s lying! That’s impossible!
Irene could see it—the wave of shadowy magical beasts surging from the end of the street like despair itself taking form.
Even if everyone here fought together, they still might not win!
Brown hair billowed behind her. The silhouette of the girl in Irene’s eyes was steeped in solitude and sorrow—
Like the only shining star in the dark of night.
Lilisah cast one last glance toward the departing Furoya. Her gaze lingered a bit longer on Irene before the corners of her lips curved into a faint smile.
Miss Irene, though our time together was short, it was truly enjoyable.
Casting aside her emotions for now, battle intent flared within Lilisah’s mismatched eyes. She had to buy them enough time. Only by doing so could the others escape the sight of these magical beasts.
With a low shout, she gathered all her magic into her right hand and slammed it into the ground.
A thunderous crash split the air. The ground cracked open beneath her, and the shockwave temporarily halted the advance of the beasts.
Lilisah didn’t need a weapon—her fists were the most destructive tools she had. But right now, she was only at B-rank strength. How long she could hold out was anyone’s guess.
“Sorry, everyone. The road ahead’s closed.”
She crooked her finger at the magical beasts, and though she lacked a ‘Taunt’ skill, her cocky attitude immediately drew their aggro.
Several of the beasts even spoke, spitting venomous words:
“You, a fellow creation of magic, wagging your tail at humans? How shameful!”
“And yet, laughably, those humans threw you away without a second thought. You really think you alone can deal with all of us?”
“Pitiful child, still counting coins for those despicable humans even after being betrayed!”
Just then, two three-eyed monsters tried to rush past Lilisah—but in the blink of an eye, she struck them down. Foul, greenish-black blood splattered across the street.
Her eyes, gleaming with battle spirit, were filled with killing intent. “Didn’t I already say it? If you want to pass, you’ll have to get through me first!”
Before the words had even faded, countless pairs of crimson eyes lit up.
“If you insist on dying, then we’ll grant your wish!”
“We’ll tear you apart and then hunt down the ones you tried to protect!”
A skeletal beast, shaped like a giant lizard, charged ahead. The poisoned green flames on its tail swept toward her in a deadly arc.
Lilisah rolled to the side to dodge, but as she landed, three ghost wolves cut off her retreat.
Claws tore through her shoulder armor. Blood flew, but she didn’t even flinch. She caught one of the wolves by the paw and swung it like a club, smashing it into the skull of the skeletal beast.
Crack!
Bone shattered. But more monsters lunged.
A flame slime spat molten fireballs—her right arm blistered and blackened from the burns.
A gargoyle’s steel beak darted for her neck. She barely dodged, only to have another claw rake across her side.
Blood soaked her robes. Her movements slowed. Her breaths came ragged, like a worn-out bellows.
“Why struggle?”
A spider with a human face sneered hoarsely, its eight legs stabbing at Lilisah’s limbs like spears. “You can’t even feel pain, can you? How pathetic…”
Lilisah staggered back as one of the legs pierced her left thigh, pinning her to the ground.
Gritting her teeth, she snapped the leg off with her bare hands, then stumbled forward to crush the human-faced spider’s skull with a punch—only to be instantly overwhelmed by the swarm of monsters surging in.
Fangs pierced her arm. Venom seared her skin. Her vision filled with blood and darkness.
Is this the end?
In her ears, the magical beasts cackled with scorn, mocking her futile struggle.
Of course Lilisah knew she couldn’t defeat so many monsters—but she should have bought enough time.
There’s still one last resort—
She reached for her core. Magic was pooling there—enough for a final self-detonation. At the very least, she could take another wave of monsters down with her.
But—
As her consciousness began to fade, a face flashed in her mind—Irene, the silver-haired girl who always babbled while cupping Lilisah’s cheeks, who would sneak her tasty treats with a mischievous grin, and who had once firmly retorted, “Lilisah isn’t scrap.”
So this… this is what ‘regret’ feels like…
Master, and Miss Irene… Lilisah can only accompany you up to here—
As the light of her core began to pulse toward detonation, silver strands of hair fluttered into view.
Stunned, Lilisah saw the magical beasts around her scream in agony, clutching their heads and collapsing. A figure leapt down from the rooftop—Irene—who grabbed Lilisah’s hand and took off running.
“This is a cursed magic scroll. Good thing you’re a doll—the curse doesn’t affect you!”
Curses only worked on the living. So why was it affecting magical beasts? These creatures weren’t even bound by lifespans—magical beasts weren’t the same as demonic beasts!
A strange thought flickered through Lilisah’s mind, but the urgency of the situation left no time to dwell on it.
The warmth of Irene’s hand, wrapped around hers, pulsed vividly with life—making her heart beat faster for reasons she couldn’t explain.
“Miss Irene… why did you come back?”