The moment the dazzling lightning struck, Katy, who had fallen to the ground, subconsciously closed her eyes and tightly covered her ears with both hands.
The scream of the blood bag was drowned out by the crackling of the current, followed immediately by the soft click of a sword being sheathed.
The girl cautiously opened her eyes.
Those vertical pupils, which had been glowing faintly in the darkness, had already shifted back to the rounded, azure blue of a human.
Standing at the cave entrance was Gray, who had just descended from the sky with a fierce, angry expression.
‘…Tsk, even though he just kicked a trash-tier blood bag that was barely stronger than a Goblin, how come this guy looks a little handsome?’
Although Katy felt a bit annoyed, she naturally put on an expression as if she had just seen her savior, her eyes sparkling.
“Mr. Gray!”
“Katy!?”
Gray waved his hand to disperse the scorched smell in the air, looking at the blonde girl a few meters away in shock.
The girl looked quite disheveled.
Her originally neat trench coat was covered in dust, and a few drops of crimson blood were splashed across her fair cheeks, adding a heart-pounding touch of eerie charm to her otherwise holy and flawless face.
“Why are you here?”
Gray’s voice trembled with a hint of hindsight.
He couldn’t imagine what would have happened if he had arrived one step later.
“I… when I went out for a walk tonight, I saw a child from the orphanage being snatched away by a bird-headed magic monster with wings…”
Katy gestured with her hands to describe the Harpy’s massive wings and sharp beak, her tone laced with just the right amount of fear.
“I used Light Magic to leave a Tracking Mark on that monster, and then I followed it all the way here.”
“I finally managed to deal with that monster, and then I discovered these unfort—ordinary people who had been cursed by the Demon Race.”
She patted her chest, putting on the appearance of someone still shaken by the experience.
“I didn’t expect there to be another magic monster hiding in the shadows. If it hadn’t been for Mr. Gray arriving in time, I’m afraid I…”
“A curse?”
Gray caught the keyword. In his understanding, curses were a rather troublesome matter.
At the very least, a C-rank Priest would be required to handle it.
Katy, being E-level, would certainly be helpless against a curse.
He scanned the unconscious crowd on the ground, his gaze lingering on Emma for a moment.
With a rosy complexion and steady breathing… she didn’t look like she was under the influence of a curse.
Gray scratched his head.
Never mind—since Lady Katy said so, she must have her reasons.
“Alright, thank you for your hard work, Lady Katy. I’ll take them to the nearest Cathedral to break the curse right now.”
Gray turned to pick up Emma from the ground, but Katy grabbed the corner of his clothes from behind.
Her strength was so great that she nearly pulled him off balance.
“Please, please wait a moment, Mr. Gray.”
The girl lowered her head, bashfully twisting her fingers together with a troubled look.
“Actually… actually, the curse on them… has already been resolved by me.”
After careful consideration, Katy had decided to take the initiative.
Although she could briefly hide her own Mana signature in this cave using the lingering aura of those two Harpies and the blood bag, it was by no means a long-term solution.
Since she was bound to be discovered by Gray sooner or later, it was better to “expose” herself.
That way, her excuse would have a bit more credibility when the time came.
“…Huh?”
The A-rank Hero, Gray, turned around and looked at the awkward-looking blonde girl with a mix of belief and doubt.
Resolved?
Wasn’t she just a novice E-level Priest?
How could she possibly possess the ability to deal with curses?
After deep thought for 0.5 seconds, he reached a conclusion:
The kind and simple little Katy probably didn’t actually know what a curse was, thinking it could be removed just by applying Healing Magic like a normal wound.
Just as Gray was considering how to explain the dangers of curses as concisely as possible to this innocent and naive little Priest, a crimson magic orb, carrying enough power to shatter a boulder, came shooting from the cave entrance.
The young man’s iron-gray eyes narrowed.
He turned to draw his sword while shielding Katy behind him.
The blade, wreathed in lightning, collided with the magic orb.
The resulting shockwave caused the temporary hideout, which had been dug out by the Demon Race with their bare hands, to shake violently, sending dust falling from the ceiling.
“Have you gone mad, Lobelia? There are still hostages here!”
Unlike Gray, who was glaring at her, Lobelia wore a playful smile on her face.
The pink-haired girl stood before the cave entrance, blocking most of the moonlight alongside the Rose Vessel behind her.
Her gaze swept over the unconscious people in the cave before landing on the Warrior and Priest standing in the center.
“Oh?”
Lobelia brushed her hair aside, her voice carrying undisguised killing intent.
“What I see isn’t a hero saving people, but a Hero trying to protect the Demon Race, Gray.”
‘Crap, how did this woman find out!?’
Unlike Katy, whose mind was a whirlwind of panic, Gray actually looked back with a completely blank expression after a brief moment of daze.
“Demon Race? Where? Are they using invisibility magic?”
Lobelia’s lips twitched.
The sarcasm she had prepared for Gray’s argument got stuck in her throat.
She took a deep breath, pointed at Katy in Gray’s arms, and asked through gritted teeth, “Seriously? Aren’t you even curious why there are such obvious Mana fluctuations inside your Lady Katy?”
Gray lowered his head, his gaze scrutinizing the girl in his arms from top to bottom.
…It was true.
As long as he calmed his mind, he could also clearly feel a cold and violent dark aura constantly radiating from the girl’s slender body.
It was indeed the pure aura of the Demon Race.
Silence.
A deathly silence.
“…Mr. Gray, listen to me—”
Just as Katy couldn’t stand the dead silence and was about to start her excuse, Gray suddenly interrupted her.
“Were you hurt by Noctiluca? Dammit, I should have gotten here faster! Lobelia, you be careful too. Noctiluca is quite insidious and can hide within a strange space. Watch out for a sneak attack!”
As Gray kept a lookout for Noctiluca, who he believed could pop out at any moment, he regretfully held the girl’s shoulders and checked her all over.
Meanwhile, both Lobelia at the cave entrance and Katy sighed in their hearts at the same time.
The former was currently wondering if her former teammate was some kind of closeted romantic fool, while the latter was reminded of how she used to laugh maniacally while beating the crap out of this guy with her Spatial Authority.
‘I’m sorry, Gray. I really didn’t mean to laugh that loud back then; I’m truly sorry for leaving you with such a deep trauma.’
But given that Noctiluca’s demon armor was a combination of a stat-monster and a mechanics-monster, anyone who could play it without laughing would have to be a god.
“Actually, Mr. Gray, Lady Lobelia is right.”
Under the surprised gazes of the two A-ranks, Katy timidly raised her hand while still in Gray’s arms.
“There is… indeed Mana inside me.”
The girl seemed to have made some sort of decision.
She bravely raised her head, meeting Lobelia’s mocking ‘let’s see how you lie’ gaze and Gray’s incredulous look.
“Because I wanted to help them break the curse, but my Light Magic wasn’t strong enough to purify it directly. In the end, I could only… guide all the Mana inside their bodies into my own.”
Katy bit her lip, her voice growing smaller and smaller.
Silence.
An even more awkward silence spread through the cave.
Gray and Lobelia exchanged a glance, and then both looked at Katy, who was fidgeting with her fingers.
The girl swallowed hard and looked left and right.
‘Wh-what is it? This reason is perfect, isn’t it? It explains the source of the demonic energy and reinforces the angelic persona of self-sacrifice. It’s a logical loop!’
However, what the former Calamity Pillar, who had been in the Human Realm for less than ten days, didn’t know was that in the 300 years of recorded human history in the Kala World, let alone “guiding” Mana, even people who could achieve Resonance with Mana were few and far between.
Otherwise, many mages wouldn’t have bothered to go the long way around and develop a system of magic based on elements.
Lobelia sneered.
She didn’t even need to argue with Gray anymore; this little demon had already confessed.
“You heard what she said, Gray. Even if a member of the Demon Race learned how to play dumb at some point, you can’t be that stupid, can you?”
She held out her hand to Gray, signaling him to hand Katy over.
Gray lowered his head.
The girl in his arms seemed to realize she had said something wrong.
Her head was hanging low, her golden bangs obscuring her eyes.
Her whole body was trembling; she looked absolutely pitiful.
“Lady Katy…”
Gray’s voice was a bit hoarse as he waited for the girl in his arms to explain.
He also knew how absurd this claim was.
Forget about an E-level Priest; even the most talented magus he knew wouldn’t dare to directly absorb Mana into their body.
However, while logic told him Lobelia was likely right, his emotions were screaming in rejection.
The Katy who had shared an umbrella with him in the rain, the girl who had gently distributed fruit to the children at the orphanage, the angel who had descended from the sky to pull him out of the quagmire of despair… how could she be a member of the Demon Race?
“I… I’m not a member of the Demon Race. I really just absorbed that Mana…”
Katy looked up, her eyes rimmed with red as if she were about to cry.
Gray’s furrowed brow was reflected in her azure eyes.
She also clearly saw her own pitiful reflection in Gray’s eyes.
“I really just didn’t want to see them die. I don’t know why I could absorb it, but I’m really not a bad person…”
“Lady Katy.”
Gray looked into her eyes and asked seriously, “Do you swear that everything you said is true?”
“Yes!”
The girl nodded vigorously, then held up four fingers.
“I swear in the name of the Goddess, Mr. Gray, I absolutely did not lie to you!”
‘Gray, oh Gray, of course I’m lying to you.’
The evil Calamity Pillar lied without a hint of guilt, leading the poor Hero around by the nose.
“Gray, don’t be fooled by her! Harboring a member of the Demon Race is a capital offense that could send you to the burning stake. Get out of the way!”
Seeing that the young man made no move, Lobelia’s voice rose a few decibels.
Crimson magic began to surge around her.
“—I believe her.”
Gray was silent for a moment, then took a deep breath and stepped forward, blocking the path between Lobelia and Katy.
“What? Are you crazy?!”
“I said, I believe Lady Katy is not a member of the Demon Race.”
“This isn’t something you can just gloss over with a ‘belief,’ Gray.”
Countless rose petals turned into sharp blades, swirling around Lobelia.
She was already prepared to take Katy by force from Gray’s arms.
“Since you’re so persistent, don’t blame me for disregarding our old friendship.”
“Save it. You’re no match for me in a close-quarters fight inside this cave. As for Lady Katy, I will take her to see the Black-robed Bishop.”
“If she really is a member of the Demon Race—”
Gray looked back at the still-trembling girl, then looked Lobelia directly in the eye.
“I will personally take responsibility for her execution.”