---

The group of Nun Knights arriving at Agno Castle were greeted by none other than undead monsters and hybrid creatures made of chimeras wandering around the castle.

“This is… quite serious, isn’t it?”

Hildegard let out a sigh. As for the undead, those floating in the sky were Wraiths, Geists with physical power, and Spectres that spread fear. Those crawling on the ground were Draugr guarding graves and Revenants risen for revenge, while swimming in the water were the undead Hrökkáll eels.

And that wasn’t all. Mixed among these undead were hybrid creatures of animals and plants. While Bugbears, Owl Bears, human-faced birds, insects, and jellyfish were one thing, there were also grotesque combinations like undead ancient tree stumps fused with Monster Mushrooms and Carnivorous Plants.

“I thought about sneaking in, but with this, it seems impossible.”

Sophia frowned as she spoke.

“How about disguising ourselves as Draugr or Revenants? We can hide our presence with spells.”

Hildegard suggested, but Sophia flatly refused.

“Spells that mimic the presence of corpses aren’t covered in any reputable spell system. That’s an unreasonable suggestion. If anything, we might as well charge in head-on… After all, if all witnesses are dead, it’s still considered an assassination.”

“That’s not going to work, Master. You initially thought of sneaking in for the sake of Agno’s residents, didn’t you? If we charge in head-on, we can’t predict what will happen to their safety.”

It was a situation where they couldn’t go forward or backward. The Nun Knights put their heads together, constantly brainstorming various plans, but nothing concrete came to mind. Just then…

“Hey, could you take a look at this, Master, and Sir Wolfstein?”

Conra rummaged through his belongings and pulled out a parchment scroll, which he then unfolded and showed to the two.

“What’s this…?”

“How did you…?”

It was a map showing Agno’s secret underground passage.

Sophia asked, “Where did you get this?”

“The administrators handed it to me just before we left.”

In short, Sophia and Hildegard’s earlier meeting had been a waste of time. Seeing Conra’s sheepish expression as he pondered the situation, Sophia felt an urge to flick his forehead.

Soon, Hildegard, catching Sophia’s glance, quietly moved and delivered a swift flick to Conra’s forehead.

+++++

As per the map, the underground passage did exist. Sneaking into the passage while avoiding the undead and chimeras, Sophia and Hildegard glanced back at Conra, who was following them, and quietly broke into a cold sweat.

Conra, walking behind them, held his swollen forehead, pouting like a duck’s beak, and walked in silence, clearly sulking after being flicked by Hildegard and Sophia.

But the two also had their reasons. While they were seriously discussing plans, he was enjoying the show! It wasn’t just any petty mischief. Of course, fists would fly in such a situation. In that sense, while Sophia directly flicked him, Hildegard wondered if she herself was innocent.

Unintentionally voicing such thoughts nearly sparked a small war between Sophia and Hildegard, but that’s beside the point.

While moving through the underground passage, they encountered a waterway with undead Hrökkáll eels, causing them to flinch. Soon, Sophia, realizing these eels had no connection to their mission, burned them all to death.

Leading the way were the spirits Gabrielle and Ariel. Thanks to entering a space beyond the perception of those who had cast foresight-blocking spells, the spirits’ foresight had just been restored.

Following Gabrielle and Ariel’s lead, the group finally emerged from the underground passage and entered the Lord’s Keep.

The underground passage led to the Lord’s Keep’s underground wine cellar. Countless barrels of wine were aging on the shelves.

“Come to think of it, Agno is famous for its wine. I once thought I’d like to try it someday. I didn’t expect to end up here like this.”

Hildegard, who loved wine, said with a bitter smile. Sophia smirked and replied,

“After we deal with the witch, let’s come down and raid the wine cellar together.”

“That sounds like a great motivation!”

“Is that really where you get your motivation!?”

Conra, who had been listening, stopped pouting and instinctively retorted.

“Oh, you’re back!”

“I was wondering how long you’d sulk. We need to get ready to face the enemy now.”

“I know that already! I’ll handle it, okay?”

Despite his rebellious tone, Conra had mostly gotten over his sulking and began to sharpen his combat senses.

The wine cellar’s exit led to the kitchen. The kitchen’s entrance connected to a hidden passage used by the Lord’s Keep’s servants. This passage and the emergency stairs connected to every floor except the rooftop, allowing them to reach the floor just below the top without encountering anyone.

Sophia used her Qi Sense to scan the Lord’s Keep. She soon sensed a human sacrifice taking place in Agno’s square and a sinister presence on the rooftop, absorbing the massive life force and main strength generated from the sacrifice.

“They’ve just started the human sacrifice.”

“What? Human sacrifice? You don’t mean…”

“Yes, it seems they’re using Agno’s residents as sacrifices.”

“Damn it… We need to hurry and stop the sacrifice by killing that witch.”

“Master, can you tell where the target is now?”

“The target is on the top floor of the Lord’s Keep, currently absorbing the life force and main strength from the sacrifice.”

Both Hildegard and Conra’s eyes filled with righteous anger. Sophia also quickened her pace. They needed to assassinate the target before it grew stronger.

Sophia, Hildegard, and Conra each hid themselves and infiltrated the Lord’s Keep’s top floor. Finally, standing before the entrance to the top floor, they observed the situation inside.

Inside, the witch, intoxicated by the overflowing life force and power, let out a drunken moan. The moan, filled with human evil and filth, made the three outside involuntarily grimace. Feeling disgusted, Sophia said,

“We execute now.”

With that, Sophia smashed the door and charged into the top-floor room like a tiger.

Thud!

In an instant, the witch’s head flew into the air. Sophia’s Long Sword had mercilessly severed her neck without a moment’s hesitation. Soon, the life force and main strength gathered around the witch began to run wild. This was a phenomenon caused by the caster’s death.

If left unchecked, the life force and main strength would surely go out of control, destroying the surrounding area. They couldn’t let that happen.

Sophia and Hildegard, who had followed her in, simultaneously deployed a barrier of Light Power to suppress the rampaging energy. Conra, who had entered shortly after, sprinkled some alchemical reagents around and frantically chanted spells while waving his staff.

{Follow the flow of the main strength as I guide it!}

With the assistance of the Spirit Esras-Hermes, Conra heightened the progress of the alchemical formula and Druidic spell.

Soon, a fierce light and wind surged, beginning to condense in the air.

“Come forth and follow me, Will-o’-the-Wisp!”

As Conra concluded the spell, the condensed light and wind began to take on a pale life. Filled with the overflowing life force and main strength, the Will-o’-the-Wisp, a product of alchemy and a Druid’s summon, finally revealed itself.

“Success!”

{Don’t celebrate yet. Something feels off about the current flow!}

The Spirit Esras-Hermes warned.

And indeed, it was right.

The witch’s body and head, which had been lying on the ground, twitched and melted into the shadows, merging back together and resurrecting.

{KyyyyyAaaaaake――!}

With tentacles writhing around her neck like decorations, the witch let out an inarticulate scream.

 

---