“I… I was exiled by them…”
She chose not to lie, at least not about this. This was an undeniable fact, and the deep, horrific wound on her neck was the most direct proof of it.
She lowered her gaze, not looking at the expression on the bartender’s face. Instead, she used her peripheral vision to lock onto his reaction, her body remaining tensed and ready to either strike or dodge at any moment.
The bartender was silent for a few seconds.
“Wait here,” he suddenly spoke, interrupting her thoughts.
“Don’t make a sound, don’t move around, and don’t even think about running out the door.”
After saying this, he didn’t even look at Aurelia again, nor did he ask a single follow-up question about the boy’s condition. He simply turned around and left the Warehouse.
[What? He… just left like that? To find medicine? Or to… snitch?]
Aurelia froze in place, feeling momentarily lost.
The man’s reaction was completely beyond her expectations. No interrogation, no accusations, no immediate attempt to draw a line between them. He just… told her to wait?
『Your brain really does have some problems.』 The cold and malicious whisper of the Disaster Source rang out from deep within her mind at the perfect time, carrying unabashed mockery.
『That ant is certainly going to report you. Can you not even figure out such a simple matter? Rather than waiting here like a foolish piece of prey, why not take this crippled ant’s last bit of life force right now? Perhaps you could still slaughter your way out.』
『Shut up! I don’t want to hear you talk!』 Aurelia fired back fiercely in her mind, forcibly suppressing the violent impulse that began to stir alongside the whisper.
She turned her head and looked at the boy who had already fainted, hesitating for a moment.
[…Should I take him with me? I can barely protect myself in this state. If I take this little brother along… I’m afraid I won’t get very far.]
Aurelia’s fingers dug into the rough ground, soil embedding itself under her fingernails.
She looked at the boy’s lifeless face, and images involuntarily flashed through her mind.
Back when she first joined the Sword of Saint Radiance, when she was shunned by other Companions for being clumsy and dragging them down, Laurence… perhaps he had hesitated over similar questions. Though thinking about it now was incredibly ironic…
This boy, even in his coma, had his brow furrowed tightly in pain. It felt delicately similar to her own situation.
She wasn’t a saint; she had no ability or obligation to save everyone.
But… was she really going to leave a child who had just luckily snatched his life back from the gates of death—whose injuries had worsened because she stripped his power—in this abandoned Warehouse to die?
[Then again… this little brother doesn’t look that old, but he managed to provoke something carrying the Power of Calamity and was being chased by unknown forces. He’s probably not just some simple street urchin, right? Maybe he knows more about the dark side of this city than I do?]
[I’m all alone right now, a stranger in a strange land, and I’m being hunted by that dead Red-Haired guy. It’s almost impossible to move around. If I can save him… well, at the very least, he’d owe me his life, right?]
[Even if that gratitude is a bit diluted… it shouldn’t be too much to ask him to be my guide, run some errands, or dig up some information, right?]
This thought wasn’t exactly noble—it was even a bit opportunistic and utilitarian—but it gave her a reason that felt like it could justify taking him along.
This reason overrode the moral burden of pure altruism and partially neutralized the warnings about him being a burden that were sounding in her rational mind.
[Oh, whatever! If I leave him, I definitely won’t be able to sleep tonight!] Aurelia gritted her teeth and made up her mind.
Although she wasn’t some Savior, she didn’t want to be a coward who stood by and watched someone die while comforting herself. Since she had decided, she would bear the consequences!
Enduring the pain, she walked to the boy’s side and bent down. Carefully avoiding the wound on his shoulder, she tried to drape one of his arms over her neck while wrapping her other hand around his waist, attempting to prop him up.
However, it seemed she had underestimated her own lack of strength and the severity of her injuries.
Her legs buckled, and she nearly kissed the earth along with him.
[Holy crap! You brat, why are you so heavy?! Compared to that dead Red-Haired guy… the two of you… are actually about the same!?]
After trying several times, she was panting heavily. Once she finally found a suitable point of leverage, she looked at the closed side door of the Warehouse and then at the boy’s pale face.
[That bartender left through the side door, so… I’ll just go through the front.]
“Hang in there… little brother…” She gritted her teeth, squeezing the words out from between them. It was unclear if she was speaking to the boy on her back or to herself.
“I’m not saving you… for free… in the future… you’ll have to work like a dog and a horse to pay me back… do you hear me…?”
***
At the same time, not far from the Warehouse, Vera was leading two Church Saints through the woods, following the uneven trail of blood on the ground.
“Miss Vera.” A young Saint dressed in a pure white robe with a refined face stopped and pointed to a small patch of trampled grass ahead.
“The blood… becomes very faint here, almost invisible. But the vegetation around here shows signs of being hurriedly pushed aside.”
Vera nodded, looking at the residual blood and the blood-stained cloth strips discarded on the ground, her brow furrowed tight.
With so much blood lost, how much longer could that child hold on? Where could a frail girl like her run? Even if she was Dragonkin… Liya was still Liya, the same girl who had always treated everyone with gentleness.
Just as she was staring blankly at the blood on the ground, a figure carrying a cloth bag hurried past on the path. It was the bartender who had just met Aurelia.
He saw Vera and the two Saints behind her, who possessed clearly different temperaments. His footsteps paused, and doubt and confusion flashed through his cloudy eyes before he quickened his pace.
“Wait.” Vera stepped forward, blocking his way, her tone slightly anxious.
“Sorry, have you seen a girl with black hair and red eyes, about 1.6 meters tall, with a near-fatal wound on her neck? She’s very beautiful.”
“You… you’re from the Sword of Saint Radiance, aren’t you?”
He didn’t answer directly but asked Vera a question instead. His tone didn’t give away much emotion, but his fingers tightened slightly on the cloth bag.
“Yes, I am Vice-Captain Vera of the Sword of Saint Radiance. Do you know where that girl is?”
“…Over there.” The bartender pointed toward the blurry silhouette of the Warehouse in the distance. He then glanced at Vera and the Saints beside her before hurrying toward the direction of Shadowlight City, mentioning nothing of the “exile” Aurelia had spoken of.
Vera hurriedly stood up, thanked the bartender, and led the two Saints at a faster pace toward the Warehouse.
However, just as they were dozens of paces away, about to rush into the relatively open area in front of the Warehouse, Vera’s footsteps suddenly halted. Her gaze instantly locked onto the Warehouse’s main entrance.
The sight before her caused Vera’s breathing to stop abruptly, and her heart skipped a beat.
At this moment, the blood on Aurelia’s neck was still flowing, but the cuts on her body from glass shards and wood splinters had already disappeared.
Furthermore, she was now attempting to escape with another boy who was also heavily injured and dying. How did she do it? Where did she get the strength? The wound on her neck had been bleeding for so long, and yet it hadn’t run dry? Was everything the Captain said… actually true? It was too inconceivable…
“Liya!” Vera cried out, her feet accelerating as she rushed toward the swaying figure.
Hearing Vera’s voice, Aurelia’s body jerked and froze. The moment her eyes met Vera’s, she also screamed: “Don’t come over here!”
Vera slammed on the brakes, stopping a few paces away from Aurelia. She spread her hands in a non-threatening gesture.
Her beautiful eyes locked onto the girl in front of her, her voice trembling slightly with urgency.
“Liya! It’s me, Vera! Just me and two Saints. We aren’t here to hurt you! You’re injured, you’ve lost so much blood! That boy also needs immediate treatment! I swear, I will never hurt you!”
Seeing this, the Saint behind her took a step forward. The bronze scepter in his hand, topped with a small cross, began to glow with a faint light.
“Help… me?” Aurelia’s crimson eyes darted back and forth between Vera and the two Saints.
Vera’s expression was so sincere; the worry in her eyes didn’t seem faked. The light from the Saints made the power lurking within her due to pain and fear feel uncomfortable, yet it brought a warmth that made her want to draw closer.
『Wake up, Soul Container!』 The voice of the Disaster Source rang out again. Unlike its previous temptations and guidance, it now sounded like it was giving well-meaning advice, even losing its flowery tone.
『Take a good look. Besides worry, what else is in that purple-haired woman’s eyes? Look closely at the shock and suspicion flashing in the depths of her pupils. She sees the abnormal healing on your body. She’s doubting. She’s wondering if what that Brave said is true.』
Aurelia’s body shuddered again. There was indeed a moment of… something different in Vera’s eyes.
『As for those two low-grade charlatans,』 the Disaster Source continued to whisper, its voice soft yet bone-chillingly cold, 『is their light warm? Indeed, it is very warm to mortals. But what about for me—and for you, who are now completely linked to my power?』
『Shut up! The only thing it’s rejecting is you! Not me!』
『Don’t make me laugh. They claim they want to help you, to save you.』 The Disaster Source’s voice took on a hint of eerie pity.
『But in reality? They are using another method to confirm your abnormality. Once they’ve confirmed it, what awaits you? Imprisonment? An endless purification ritual? Do you know what the term Dragonkin represents in this world?』
Its voice grew deeper and deeper until, at the very end, it turned back into words of cold-blooded mockery.
『What more evidence do humans need for the existence of a possible Disaster container? Suspicion itself… is enough for them to feel fear and killing intent toward you!』
Vera saw Aurelia’s gaze wavering, sometimes in pain and sometimes in struggle. Thinking she was still hesitating, Vera continued to persuade her, her voice becoming even gentler.
“Liya, believe me. Look, there’s only the three of us. I didn’t notify the Captain, and I didn’t bring anyone else. Let me help you, okay?”
As she spoke, she carefully moved a few steps forward. She then reached out her hand, trying to pull the girl into her embrace, just as she always had.
This familiar movement, this embrace that had once given her countless feelings of security, caused Aurelia’s heart to soften and her nose to sting.
Her eyes grew hot, and tears began to fall uncontrollably, sliding down her blood-stained and dust-covered cheeks.
She even leaned her body forward slightly, wanting to get closer to that familiar and warm embrace.
“Liya, I’m sorry… I…”
『What’s the use of an apology? She is merely trying to win back your trust.』
“I shouldn’t have stayed silent… I shouldn’t have let the Captain act so arbitrarily…”
『If they knew then what they know now, why do it in the first place? They aren’t afraid of losing you; they’re afraid of you becoming the first Dragonkin to be tainted by the Power of Calamity!』
“Liya… please…” Vera’s voice pulled her drifting thoughts back.
『Stop listening to her excuses! Accept my power, then join me in corroding your Dragon Clan bloodline to become a true God that no one in this world can match!』
“Let me see your injury… at least let me help you treat the wound on your neck… it’s still bleeding…”
Aurelia’s gaze refocused on Vera’s tear-stained face. The voice of the Disaster Source kept ringing. The voices of the person and the curse sounded one after another, making Aurelia’s Sun Acupoint throb.
She wanted to believe that Vera was still the same Vera, to believe that this apology was real and not the beginning of another trap. But the words of the Disaster Source… didn’t seem to be without reason. They even gave her a momentary sense of agreement.
“Liya, let’s treat the wound first. We can talk about everything else later, okay?” Seeing that her gaze seemed to be loosening, Vera spoke softly and signaled the young Saint beside her with her eyes.
However, just as the light was about to heal her wound, it was interrupted by her flinching away.
“No… it’s fine, thank you…”
But in Vera’s eyes, this action meant that she had already developed an extremely strong resistance toward the entire Sword of Saint Radiance and even the Church. Added to what Laurence had said earlier about her possibly being infected by the Power of Calamity…
“Liya!” Vera’s voice was filled with uncontrollable heartache and anxiety. She took a step forward, but fearing she would provoke her again, she backed away.
“Why? You’ve lost so much blood! At least let me look at the wound and wrap it with some ordinary ointment! I won’t let the Saint near you, look—I brought ordinary hemostatic medicine and a Bandage!”
She urgently took the items out from her waist bag to show them, trying to find a trace of her former trust or dependence in those eyes that were usually clear and soft but were now filled with distance and exhaustion.
Aurelia slowly shook her head, enduring the intense pain as she pointed toward the boy. “Please heal his injuries. At least he is innocent…”
The two Saints finally reacted, hurriedly beginning to heal the dying boy. After a moment of eye contact between Vera and Aurelia, in the end… Vera only received a tragic and resolute bitter smile from Aurelia.
“Vice-Captain Vera… thank you for healing him. This is perhaps… the last time I will accept your help… thank you…” Vera could hear a stifled sob in those last two words.
As she watched Aurelia hoist up the boy, whose breathing had completely stabilized, and walk laboriously toward the gate, Vera didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t stop her, but she couldn’t not stop her…
[The opening scene of the ‘Leaving the Party’ trope ends here! Next comes me establishing my own faction and preparing to crush that dead Red-Haired guy in the future!]
[One day, I will make him… regret what he’s done! When that time comes, it won’t matter if he’s crying and begging me to come back! I mean it!]
Immediately after, she turned her head and spoke to Vera, who was standing frozen in place, using the softest, weakest tone to say the harshest words.
“If I ever meet Laurence again in the future, I will definitely cross blades with him. When that time comes… the harm he caused me… I will surely… return it twofold!”