Looking across the entire magic world.
It is all too common for the weak to lose their lands to invasions by foreign races, and the residents of the Capital are long used to seeing humble-born Subhumans, sold into slavery, wander the streets.
Schemes, division, and oppression occur frequently.
The iron law that the weak will be bullied makes many ordinary folk set their life’s goal from birth: to pursue magic power and reach its pinnacle.
Yet in the Shiguang Sea, there exists the rare exception of Shilang Bay—a place that never contends or competes, so obscure that even the records contain only a few scattered mentions.
This region, concealed within the Magic Whale’s mist, vast but not wealthy, has never suffered large-scale invasion.
Even the youngest merfolk children here know they live under the protection of their Princess of Shilang Bay and the Paper Angel, and are guarded by the mighty white whale—called ‘the Ancestor that Devours Mist’ by outsiders, but affectionately known as Grandmother Whale by them.
No matter how the outside world’s wars shift, none of it has ever disturbed the peace and tranquility here.
At the end of a long line, not knowing where she’ll be migrating, even a little girl who’s become separated from her mother by the hurried, pressing crowd does not feel afraid.
Though she’s still at an age when even bedwetting would earn her praise, she already understands deeply that this peace here—
If she just calls out to the Paper Angel—masked, with fluttering paper pieces flying in the sky—the angel will guide her.
And if not the magic-potion-loving Yosena, even crying twice would bring the help of other merfolk and fishermen here.
Once, time seemed to slow with the gentle waves in Shilang Bay…
Until—
“Clang! Clang!”
A fireball launched from a catapult exploded, shattering the conch shells on the shore that stored the merfolk’s songs of the night, the waves smashing into the wooden houses and haystacks by the coast.
In just a few days, half of the island before her eyes fell into a scene like hell, shattering in an instant the peaceful memories that belonged to this place.
Crying and wailing mingled into one.
Yosena grabbed the weeping, lost little girl.
She shouted toward the fleeing crowd: “Run!”
***
Outside Shilang Bay.
On the vast sea, countless banners bearing the “Blood Skull” insignia whipped in the wind, like the roar of a beast.
A dense fleet of warships plowed through the mist, monsters on deck prepared for battle, their eyes shining with a cruel scarlet light.
Opposite them, point for point, stretched the Migludia Family’s fleet, equally vast.
Even facing two hundred thousand monsters and Cultists, not a trace of fear appeared.
The Treading Wave Sea Guard Knights did not retreat an inch, as if to prove both sides were evenly matched.
Only XÄ« knew that if the moment battle broke out, it would be a slaughter with no escape.
Those Sea Guard Knights who looked unyielding before the enemy hordes— it was because she’d devised a plan to “deceive the enemy,” having the people of Shilang Bay prepare scarecrows dressed in the knights’ uniforms.
With the mist around Shilang Bay, these scarecrows, fixed onto ships, appeared almost indistinguishable from real knights, creating the illusion of overwhelming numbers to mislead Blaineau.
Standing at the stern of the foremost patrol ship, XÄ«’s hand clenched tightly beside her sky-blue skirt armor.
She had to be here, to ensure this “fraud” seemed convincing enough to buy time.
At the same time, she hoped the five Paper Angels she’d made of special materials—still able to fly—plus Yosena and the other merfolk, could evacuate the residents as quickly as possible onto the departing ships.
She’d thought with Blaineau amassing two hundred thousand monsters, wielding the Ankalamuheng artifact, and attacking tiny Shilang Bay so cautiously, these scarecrows could at least buy them until dawn before being exposed.
But the fireball catapulted out, carving a cruel arc through the mist, shattered the tactic she’d pondered so hard over.
“Boom boom—!!”
Blaineau gave the order to attack.
He saw through it at a glance!
The Migludia Family’s warships crumbled.
The merfolk’s fishing net traps ensnared Cultist ships, but other Cultists tore through them like wolves.
Not even a second’s delay!
Monsters swarmed up the ropes and boarding ladders like beasts, smashing everything in sight…
Without magic, a mage loses their greatest advantage.
No matter how clever the tactics, against overwhelming strength, they’re no match.
XÄ« saw the monster-filled ship speeding toward the bow of her patrol ship.
“Swish swish—”
She didn’t dodge; she couldn’t.
Maybe, when she’d spent the whole night tracing his face on photopaper until dawn…
She’d already made up her mind.
Maybe, at the moment she closed her eyes now, she’d already helplessly accepted—she could not stay by his side forever…
This despair made every breath feel stretched and endless.
Until the sound of waves came from afar.
“Crash—”
“Splash!!”
This time, the roar of the waves didn’t mingle with the howls from the Cultist ships, but completely drowned them out.
Then, XÄ« vaguely sensed something approaching.
It was the sixth Paper Angel she had given to her young master!
Her blurred vision cleared at once.
XÄ« whirled around, sensing something, and looked to the side.
Amid the crisis, a gigantic wave, dozens of meters high, surged toward them, the monsters roaring in terror.
Riding the crest of that wave was a patrol ship!
The speed of that wave far exceeded anything natural.
Anyone could tell: someone brilliant had ordered the guards to use Tide Magic and Storm Spell to empower the surge before entering the anti-magic domain.
Even when forced out of the magic’s effect, the wave’s momentum was undiminished.
If she guessed right, this was the plan her young master would have come up with.
“Roar––!”
The Cultists, eyes bloodshot with fury, faded from her vision.
All she saw was the Gilded, hurtling atop the waves at wind-breaking speed, filling her bright eyes.
The wave, conjured with Water Magic and the power of the tides, crashed around her patrol ship, scattering the monsters and Cultists besieging her.
Close behind came the Gilded with a thunderous crash.
XÄ« saw the oncoming enemy warship cleaved in two by the Gilded!
Wood chips flew, brushing past XÄ«’s shoulder armor but there was no joy of surviving disaster on her face.
She only looked around, dazed and puzzled, searching for something.
Until, as if sensing it, she looked down—and on a plank among the ruins, she saw the golden-haired man crouched safely, reflected in her bright eyes.
His voice carried over, chastising her: “+, why didn’t you dodge?!”
‘I raced here with all my might to save you, and you just stood there waiting to get yourself killed? Do you think that’s fair to me?’
Lin Nuo let out a long breath, mouthing words to her—
“I almost didn’t make it in time!”
“……”
It was always like this—whenever and wherever, being by his side made her feel solid and warm.
Even in such peril, XÄ« could clearly feel her heart pounding like a drum.
Though young master scolded her but to XÄ«, that voice was the only soothing melody in five days of torment since his return, bringing her comfort and… the sense of security she loved.
At that moment, a voice, identical to Lin Nuo’s, sounded lazily from a Cultist-crowded warship.
“I waited so long for him, and he never showed up.”
“And now look?”
Blaineau’s scornful voice echoed over the sea: “Princess, I knew after fighting him with you in the illusion, you’d use hypnosis to lure him here. After all, to you, he’s just your beloved puppet. You’re always so selfish.”
Prepared for another of Blaineau’s assaults, Lin Nuo flicked out the wrist blade on his gauntlet.
But Blaineau continued: “I wonder what it’s like to be used from deep in one’s subconscious. I can’t wait to watch his despair when he sees the truth.”
Then, the monsters, eyes glowing scarlet, followed the signal horns, withdrawing into the mist.
As the enemy’s retreat drums sounded, Lin Nuo—having spent nearly all his strength rushing here—finally let his muscles relax, half-kneeling on a floating plank.
Was it the end of a wave of attacks?
Anyway… it seemed, for now, they had pulled back.
***
Around Shilang Bay.
The stone steles carved with sea-siren poetry were now broken ruins beneath the waves, all order gone.
But Lin Nuo could still easily see, amid the broken buildings, the tranquility XÄ« had once described.
Cultist corpses soaked in seawater were pierced and entangled with harpoons and fishing nets—the tools of ordinary fishers.
The local folk looked simple and honest; even after repeated Cultist attacks, compared to the Migludia Family’s knights, their eyes showed more exhaustion than despair.
Few were wounded; even the Sea Guard Knights from the Migludia Family had not suffered much loss.
XÄ«’s strategic planning had been perfect.
Lin Nuo gave silent praise to his own nun’s wisdom.
“Tweet tweet!”
A small merchild, crying with a few scrapes, suddenly had something fly into her arms, and wiped her eyes, distracted by the plump Fatty Bird, stopping her tears.
Lin Nuo touched his own face—it looked like he had scared her…
Because Blaineau, made with his own face, had brought a shadow over these people, making them wary—Lin Nuo couldn’t help that.
He didn’t bother explaining, and began tending to the wounded.
Though his Healing Spell no longer worked, Lin Nuo had at least read a few books on basic healing arts since gaining the ability.
The way he bandaged these merchildren was much more skillful and gentle than the knights under Dax Migludia.
At that moment, the merchild’s parents saw the princess staring, unmoving, at the golden-haired man helping with the bandages.
Their gaze held… a kind of gentleness they had never seen before.
Realizing this man was not the Cultist leader, and was far gentler than that villain, their wariness faded quickly.
“Child, go tell big brother where your arm hurts.”
“Tweet tweet!”
With her parents’ encouragement and Fatty Bird flapping its wings to point at Lin Nuo, the little merchild, much less afraid now, swam over.
She finally stopped sobbing, tugging on her adorable little voice: “Big brother, where does your arm hurt~?”
“…..”
Her parents, a bit embarrassed, corrected her—it’s not supposed to be said like that.
The knights present, including Kaier following behind Lin Nuo, all smiled.
The bleakness of war was, for a moment, lightened by this innocent optimism…
Only Lin Nuo was left speechless!
How could he have scared such a cute little girl!
If he ever caught that dog using his face and voice again, he’d make sure he never tasted any good juice!
The burnt smell in the air hung over Shilang Bay’s outer shores, lingering even after a long walk inland.
Lin Nuo tried to climb higher, to better understand the terrain and maybe find an advantage.
But if there were a way, XÄ« would have already spotted it…
Thinking thus, he climbed a huge rock, and—without looking—reached a hand back.
Quickly, the girl who had followed him closely all the way placed her soft, cool hand into his.
Helping her up, Lin Nuo turned to tidy her translucent, sea-blue soft armor.
From the shoulder guards carved with fish scales and water patterns, to the shining skirt armor, to the indigo-tinged leg armor gleaming in the dawn…
He was as careful as she had always been with him.
XÄ«, for once unable to hold back, the one who’d always been strong for others and never showed her vulnerability—
Her voice was so gentle it could drown a person in the sea breeze.
“Didn’t I tell you to go protect the ones you care about?”
Lin Nuo stood up and wiped her face and replied, “I’m here to protect you, aren’t I.”
…Mm.
So that’s it…
She was the one he cared about.
For some reason, at this moment, the warmth of having him by her side felt more precious than ever.
Besides her racing heartbeat, there was also a touch of emotion that stung her eyes with tears.
“Ahem!”
A rough cough drew Lin Nuo’s eyes in that direction—someone sat on a cane in the ruins, downcast.
Lin Nuo didn’t pay attention.
Dax coughed a few more times.
Finally, unable to stand these two idiots playing lovey-dovey at such a dangerous time, Dax angrily hit his knee—unexpectedly triggering a reflex that made his leg kick out cutely…
“……”
“All right, I get it.” Lin Nuo said to Dax: “Since time is short and I’ve made it here, let’s hear what you have to say.”
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