The Hunter Appears.

This situation holds significant meaning for me.

First, it meant that a very reliable ally had appeared.

I wasn’t sure how much stronger the Hunter had become, but given the speed of my growth, the current Hunter must be at least on par with White Mask. Depending on the circumstances, they might even be able to fight the Deputy Commander for a few rounds.

The community had explained that the Pure Hunter Route was difficult not because of its high difficulty, but because it had the best performance among all positions.

This meant that we no longer had to be pushed back by the Candles here.

But the problem was this.

The second meaning.

“...”

The Hunter was glaring at me with a fierce expression as I floated in the air.

That look—I had seen it once before in the underground prison.

Whenever he was deep in thought, he usually made that expression.

The second meaning was that the Hunter’s evaluation of me could drastically fall.

Because right now, I had accepted part of the Foreign Entities into my body.

No matter how much I intended to help Londan, from the perspective of the Hunter, who hated Foreign Entities, this must seem like an abominable situation.

I carefully watched the Hunter to see how he would act.

But soon, the Hunter’s eyes returned to their usual state, and without further hesitation, he moved toward the Candles.

...So, I passed for now?

If that’s the case, what was he thinking, leaving me in this state?

Even though he could sense Lia when I was in the holding cell, this must seem like an excessive act.

“Tanten! Assistance!”

At that moment, I heard the Deputy Commander’s strained voice as he barely managed to block six Candle swords with a single greatsword, grimacing.

I quickly flapped my wings and attacked the spot where the Deputy Commander stood, causing him to repel the Candles’ swords with the recoil and retreat far back.

Only the Candles were left in the path of my wind blade.

“Kraaaah!”

The Candles were flung in all directions, with some flying high into the air before crashing back down.

Yeah, focus.

My reputation isn’t important right now.

Although it’s a bit of a problem that the Hunter is the protagonist of this story… I’ll figure it out later.

The Hunter’s participation in the battle significantly improved the situation.

“Hunter.”

“How could such an honorable order of knights struggle against these wretches?”

“...You can say whatever you want about my mistakes. I’m grateful for your assistance.”

“Tch, boring.”

The Deputy Commander, having overcome his trauma, was no longer his old self—rigid and inflexible.

The Hunter clicked his tongue and ignored him as he passed by.

At his core, the Hunter didn’t hate people who were good.

As the Deputy Commander dismantled the Candle unit with his close combat skills, the Hunter took down the encircling enemies with his double-barreled shotgun.

On one side, Muyon was dancing a brutal axe dance, while White Mask sliced through the enemies with sword techniques infused with energy.

And I, wielding the power of the Dragon Slayer, cleared the path for them.

…I had expected victory, but things were going far too smoothly.

Had the threshold of difficulty risen from dealing with Foreign Entities to fighting humans?

Either way, it was clearly an advantage.

So.

I should work even harder.

“You fools! Are you going to lose to a trainee knight who has grafted Foreign Entity powers into his body to protect Londan? We must do something ourselves!”

“Well said, Captain!”

“We are the knights of Londan!”

Perhaps seeing hope in this display, the morale of the regular knights rose, and the number of Candles they were able to fend off also increased dramatically.

White Mask would probably regret this.

At this rate, we wouldn’t have to destroy the train.

“The number of enemies is decreasing! Knights, charge!!”

At the Deputy Commander’s shout, the entire knight order, who had been following their battle plan, roared with renewed fervor, and the invading Candles began to shrink back in fear.

“Hey, hey! What’s going on here? You said Londan would be weak without their knight commander!”

“Who would’ve imagined they’d have someone controlling a humanoid Foreign Entity?”

“Retreat! Retreat!!!”

It wasn’t until three-quarters of their forces had been annihilated that the Candles realized they were overwhelmingly at a disadvantage and began fleeing in panic.

The regular knights, seeing this, grew even more aggressive and started to pursue them, but they stopped after recognizing the Deputy Commander’s signal.

Not a single Candle remained. They all fled.

The ones lying on the ground showed no signs of life.

And our Londan knights… had not lost a single person.

There was only one thing this could mean.

“Knights!”

The Deputy Commander raised his sword high into the sky as he shouted.

Although it looked like a piece of plastic to me, to the knights, it must have appeared as a glorious greatsword, more radiant than anything else.

The Deputy Commander turned and faced the knights.

“We have achieved an honorable victory! We protected Londan with our own hands!”

At the moment the Deputy Commander declared victory, not a single knight remained silent. They all roared in triumph.

All the knights left the Candle corpses on the ground for the time being and began returning to Londan for some well-deserved rest.

Now that the battle was over, I intended to return the Dragon Slayer’s power.

“Are you already sending me away?”

Well, it’s over now. You should rest too.

“I would prefer to stay with my husband longer...”

Haha.

Please, don’t make things difficult by throwing tantrums like this.

So, how do I get rid of these wings?

“They are now yours forever. You may fold them up whenever you wish, and summon them at will.”

Boing.

When I tried to fold my wings as the Dragon Slayer had said, I could feel the massive wings retract into my shoulder blades.

Worried that my back might swell up, I reached to check, but the wings had vanished without a trace.

Huh.

Doesn’t this mean I can fight without relying on the Foreign Entities now?

“That is not the case. Since your body is still human, the power will remain unstable. I will have to replenish it regularly.”

Wait, does that mean...?

“I look forward to our next encounter… heh heh.”

Leaving me with an ominous statement, the Dragon Slayer disappeared.

…Why has she suddenly become so… twisted?

Could this be my fault?

I have no idea anymore.

At that moment, someone approached me.

It was the Hunter.

“...”

“Uh...”

The Hunter didn’t say anything as he came closer.

But I couldn’t read his expression, so I nervously swallowed.

The tension was palpable.

I didn’t know what the Hunter was going to say, so I prepared answers to every possible question.

“...Was this the reason?”

“...?”

“Was this why you were toying with the Foreign Entities, saving it all up for this moment?”

The Hunter’s words left me in shock.

What the hell?

Did he see me when I was captured by the Foreign Entities while reading the Record Keeper’s inscription?

And he didn’t say anything until now?

I looked at the Hunter.

Although his face was still expressionless, I could sense that his trust in me hadn’t completely vanished.

So that’s it.

The Hunter must still value the time we spent together in Agartha and the underground prison.

It seems he’s deliberately choosing to interpret the situation in a positive light.

“Hunter.”

“What are you standing there for? Let’s go back.”

The Hunter said this and lightly jabbed me in the stomach before turning away.

“Oof.”

Hey, if you’re going to joke around, at least know your limits!

For a second, I thought I was going to die from the shock.

Fortunately, everything had come to an end.

Now, I needed to retrieve my sword from Simtol and prepare to train under White Mask to grow even stronger.

But.

The joy of everything being over didn’t last long.

“Kuhahahaha! The Inquisitor has finally descended upon this land!”

A man shouted from a building equipped with a loudspeaker, his voice booming as a red mist poured out, filling the air with a sense of dread.

Inquisitor?

What the hell does that mean?

Weren’t the cultists all wiped out last time?

“Bow before the one who will overthrow the foolish humans and truly save this world! Revere him!”

With each word the man spoke, the red aura inside the building grew stronger.

“What is this...?”

“The Inquisitor.”

At that moment, I heard someone speak from behind me.

I turned and saw a saint entering Londan with about five regular knights.

“No way. Has he really grown strong enough to descend upon this land...?”

Even the saint, who had been fascinated by the Record Keeper, now wore a look of shock.

Before I knew it, the red mist had spread to cover all of Londan’s sky.

“Bear witness! The one who will...”

Just as the man, filled with madness, raised his arms toward the sky.

“…!”

“Hik...!”

Suddenly, the man collapsed to the ground, his neck having been slit without a sound.

“What…? His neck was cut… without anything touching it?”

The Deputy Commander’s voice, filled with disbelief, helped me make sense of what had happened.

Gritting my teeth, I realized we were facing a new nightmare.