Isis and Rosalyn.
One was a renowned Hero, known to every soul across the continent.
The other was the lord of the remote territory of Enid, a Countess about to be formally invested.
If not for Ron, there would never have been any intersection or contact between the two.
But now, they both observed each other in silence.
“Hello.”
“I am Rosalyn Enid, the lord of this city.”
Even though Miss Rosalyn inwardly despised Isis for her rudeness and neglect, she maintained a friendly and enthusiastic demeanor on the surface, greeting her and reaching out for a handshake.
Underneath her hood, the experienced Isis saw through the elegant young lady’s difficult nature at a glance.
She tilted her head toward President Falga, gave a slight nod, and followed her perception of the Child of Destiny straight into the Earl’s Mansion.
“This — “
“My apologies, Miss Enid.”
President Falga, who hadn’t understood the situation a moment ago, realized what happened immediately. A look of shame quickly appeared on his face, framed by his white hair and beard.
“This is a high-ranking Adventurer I invited from elsewhere. As you know, most of them don’t particularly like being restrained.”
Falga knew that Isis had zero interest in meaningless etiquette or social interaction, nor did she want to expose her identity through excessive contact with outsiders.
But while the Hero could ignore the feelings of a small-town Countess like Rosalyn, he had to continue living in Enid. Thus, he felt the need to explain further.
“I hope you can — “
“It does not matter.”
Rosalyn cut him off directly. Her pink eyes glanced toward the door where Isis had entered, and a servant immediately followed after the guest.
“After all, as the lord of Enid, I am the biggest beneficiary of someone being able to resolve the riot in the magic beast forest.”
She displayed an extraordinary level of humility and simplicity, engaging in pleasantries with the old man.
“To be called a high-ranking Adventurer by you…”
“Could she be above Mithril grade… perhaps Gold grade?”
Concerned about Ron’s competition, the attentive Rosalyn probed Falga as if they were merely chatting.
Like a shrewd old fox, Falga only smiled without a word. His narrowed eyes were full of memories of the shock he felt when he first learned Isis’s identity a few days ago.
‘Gold grade?’
‘Little girl, you have no idea. A living legend just walked right past you,’ Falga thought.
“Oh, President Falga, you really are something.”
“Always keeping me in suspense. You don’t even know how to satisfy Rosalyn’s curiosity.”
Rosalyn acted like a girl asking an elder for a toy.
“I apologize. I actually don’t know much about her situation either. She was introduced by the president of another branch.”
“Is that so? Then please, come inside.”
Falga and Rosalyn.
The two people walking side by side through the gate were arguably the two highest-ranking individuals in the small city of Enid.
But clearly, in the Earl’s Mansion today, they were not the protagonists.
‘Nearby… they’re nearby.’
‘The scent of Destiny… they are nearby.’
Isis’s steady steps became hurried as she entered the building. After easily shaking off the trailing servant, she followed her sense of the Child of Destiny into a corridor that branched out in many directions.
“Cough! Cough!”
Suddenly, her footsteps came to a jarring halt.
Isis first clutched her chest through the rough fabric of her cloak, then slowly crouched down after a violent fit of coughing.
In truth, this movement was useless for alleviating her current pain. The erosion from the demon race’s power and the Demon King’s remnant soul originated from the depths of her soul.
‘This girl, I want her… Did you not hear me? I don’t care if she’s the daughter of a sinner!’
‘Isis, I will be your master for a lifetime, so stop thinking about suicide or hurting yourself.’
She could never forget being in that dark, sunless slave market, inside a cage where she could only curl up in a crouch.
One person had reached out to her in her despair, helping her escape the desperate plight of original sin and darkness.
Now, she held the same posture as she did back then, but the master who could pull her up and save her from her predicament was long gone.
‘Master… Isis will come to accompany you soon…’
Even so, the bit of solace the memory brought to her heart helped her suppress the demon in her mind.
‘I just need to find Destiny.’
Isis staggered to her feet, looked around, and spoke silently in her heart.
According to the prophecy, she was supposed to find the Child of Destiny in Gaderade. That person would bring release to her — a foolish Hero who had craved power and absorbed the Demon King’s remnant soul.
Like a traveler walking alone through a vast desert, it was only because of this clear goal that Isis had endured until now.
But she had spent two whole weeks using every means and resource available without any results, as if the prophecy about Gaderade was nothing more than a mirage.
‘Master, are you protecting Isis?’
The dual agony of body and soul had greatly weakened her strength. The despair and fear that attacked her from time to time nearly caused her to fall into complete corruption several times.
But it seemed that there was always a way out. Isis had come to Enid for the origin crystal to temporarily suppress the demon remnant, and here, she felt the aura of the Child of Destiny once more.
‘Yes, right here…’
“Master, Master!”
“Lifa really did it!”
Isis snapped her head around. At the end of one of the paths the corridor led to, she saw Lifa walking toward her, holding Ron’s arm.
The Child of Destiny.
“It wasn’t a difficult sword technique to begin with.”
“Lifa, you need to have confidence in yourself. With more practice, you’ll be able to master it even better.”
Ron and Lifa were returning from the training ground. Both had pleasant, relaxed smiles on their faces.
Lifa was happy because her inner worries had been set aside, and she had mastered several sword techniques she hadn’t been able to grasp for the past few days.
Ron was simply happy because his guidance had been successful, and Lifa had returned to her usual self while making progress.
However, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a figure standing at the other end of the corridor.
“Eh?”
Lifa was confused by Ron’s sudden stop, but she quickly noticed the strangely dressed Isis as well.
Isis walked forward in silence.
The Prophet who revealed the prophecy had once made her drink a special potion. If she was near the Child of Destiny, she would perceive it — what she called the ‘scent of Destiny.’
“Hey, who are you?”
Seeing Isis approach without a word, Lifa became highly suspicious of her strange attire and instinctively shielded Ron behind her.
“Who are you?”
Ron mimicked Lifa’s tone, but he was far more composed than he appeared.
He actually knew exactly who this hooded person was.
‘Isis… when did she get here?’
Ron swallowed hard, his mind racing, but he couldn’t figure out why she would suddenly appear before him.
Even more suddenly, during the last few steps before reaching Lifa, Isis’s body pitched forward. If Lifa hadn’t stepped up to catch her, she would have collapsed onto the ground.
“Hey! What’s wrong with you!”
Lifa looked at the beautiful face revealed as the hood fell back, realizing that Isis’s skin was as pale as her white hair.
Ron listened closely to Isis’s whisper. His pupils suddenly contracted at the final words she uttered before losing consciousness.
“Please… kill me.”