The girl’s bright smile immediately disappeared, as if extinguished by the sharp coldness of the Republic.

Suddenly, the hero who had vowed to start anew by forgetting her own past was back at this very place.

Srrung.

As she lifted the greatsword from the ground and slung it over her shoulder, Aria's eyes held a calmness that were uncharacteristic of the girl who had been irritably complaining just moments before.

The greatsword hanging from her shoulder tore apart and a large mouth appeared, emitting a strange and vicious scream.

Oskov furrowed his eyebrows at the Black Magic emanating from within.

"The Sword of Predation, Duathane?"

It was an object that could be called a living weapon. Especially since the sword's nature and characteristics changed depending on what it cut through, it held limitless potential.

The greatsword was something even the Clark Republic, which was conducting various studies on weapons, was interested in. However, they were unable to retrieve it since it was hidden in the Griffin Kingdom.

"Did you feed Dark Mages to it?"

Oskov showed disbelief. Unlike the Griffin Kingdom, the Clark Republic actively accommodated Dark Mages, so he had some knowledge of Black Magic.

If such energy made from Black Magic emanated through Duathane, it wouldn't have been an ordinary Dark Mage it ate.

And Oskov's guess was correct.

Back when Aria was still a hero and obsessed with Deus Verdi, she had fed two of Dante's Dark Mages to Duathane and even presented the sword to Deus. However, he refused her gift.

Since then, she held onto it due to the difficulty of disposing of the weapon; she never expected to use it here like this.

Kkkkkkiiiieeeeekkk!

Along with Duathane's scream, Aria swung the greatsword. Despite the considerable distance between them, the force that pushed space itself was tremendous.

Only Oskov, the Superhuman, remained standing firmly on both legs.

His sawtooth greatsword began to roar roughly, emitting noise just like Duathane.

"Those kingdom folks are truly unbelievable."

Thud, thud, thud.

Oskov approached Aria with heavy footsteps.

"Even after living such mediocre lives, they think they are extraordinary."

Thud.

Standing right in front of Aria, he looked down at her. It was challenging for Aria to look up at Oskov, who reached a height of 3 meters with the help of his Protection.

In fact, the height difference between them was more than double.

In a situation where he already had the upper hand with just his physique, Oskov raised his sawtooth greatsword high.

"Being elegant and dignified is proof that you are not fierce."

BAAAAM!

The sawtooth greatsword rotated as it struck down on the ground without hesitation. Initially, there should have been a scene where Aria's whole body was mangled by it with blood splattering everywhere.

However, the sawtooth greatsword just gnawed at the empty ground, sending sparks flying in all directions.

In an instant, Aria leaped and spun her whole body like a top while holding Duahtane with both hands.

BAAAM!

The impact was so powerful that it didn’t seem like it came from the hands of such a petite girl.

Oskov, who had been struck on the head, exhaled a tense breath for a moment. He feared he would have almost been knocked out had things gone slightly wrong.

Yet, Aria and Duathane didn’t stop there.

The Black Magic emanating from Duathane took the form of a hand, seizing Oskoph's shoulders.

As the hand continued to pull Aria towards Oskoph, she continued her assault without even touching the ground.

Under the barrage of attacks, Oskov ultimately had no choice but to raise his greatsword in order to defend himself.

Aria moved around as if unaffected by gravity, continuing the battle in all directions.

Even while wielding a long and heavy weapon known as a greatsword, she engaged in close-quarters combat against an opponent more than twice her size without retreating an inch.

Despite appearing fragile on the outside, her combat style was remarkably the opposite.

"Hoo."

It was a deep, steady breath.

Just that sound alone could send shivers down one’s spine; Oskov hastily raised his sword and tried to create distance.

Thud!

When Aria's feet touched the ground, an explosive burst of mana appeared.

The black mana contained within Duathane spread like paint, covering the surroundings.

The landscape turned pitch-black as if obscured by a giant storm cloud—Oskov almost felt like he was floating in the night sky.

"Half Moon."

And then, as the girl drew her greatsword, a single slash resembling the moon in the night sky flowed out smoothly.

The once impenetrable Protection began to crack under the assault.

Crack!

Once Protection shattered, Oskov, who was inside it, finally stepped onto the ground with his own legs for the first time in a while.

While this could be seen as liberation from the seemingly unbreakable Protection, Oskov felt no joy about it.

"No, this can't be..."

"Huff!"

Regardless of Oskov's reaction, Aria exhaled and hoisted her greatsword on her shoulder.

After displaying such a phenomenal series of attacks, why didn’t she claim his life immediately?

"Are you... showing mercy?"

Oskov cried out in humiliation, but Aria responded to him indifferently.

"Professor asked me not to take lives for his sake."

When she heard his request in Norseweden, she initially refused. However, things were now different.

After all, female students were not supposed to make light of other people’s lives.

"More importantly, that thing’s unbelievably sturdy. It took me Half Moon to finally break it."

As Aria nudged Oskov’s broken Protection with her foot, she furrowed her brow and mumbled in disbelief.

"What the hell is this thing?"

Although Aria had witnessed countless tragedies and disasters before her regression, this was her first time seeing something like this.

Unlike what its sturdy exterior showed, the Protection's interior writhed like hundreds of parasitic bugs seeking its next owner.

It was a grotesque sight that could momentarily induce nausea. Did Oskoph, who was wearing such a thing, know about this detail?

Despite her suspicion, Aria kept her distance from it.

She turned her head to check on Findenai, who was leaning against the Kids Zone gate and breathing heavily.

The extermination units seemed to have lost their determination to continue after witnessing Oskov's defeat.

EEeeeeeeeng!

A buzzing sound echoed, which everyone had heard at least once during midsummer.

"A mosquito?"

As Aria frowned and looked around, she found that the area was suddenly swarming with flying insects.

Looking at the gathering insects, Aria instinctively understood.

The owner of these insects must be the creator of the abomination known as Protection, which should not exist in this world.

The insects crawling on the ground and flying in the sky soon coalesced into a human form.

Then, as the insects dispersed, a hunched figure appeared in their place.

If Oskov was twice Aria's size, this man was the opposite.

Despite appearing much shorter than Aria due to his hunched posture, he would likely stand at least 180cm tall if he straightened himself.

While holding a staff, the old man greeted Aria with an air of interest.

"What is your name, Maiden?"

"Do not sexually harass me."

"Hehe, that wasn't my intention, but if you take it that way, it's fine."

The old man seemed pleased by Aria's response. He chuckled as he introduced himself while placing his hand over his chest.

"I am Fhilai, the father of that girl, Findenai, who is behind you."

"...What?"

Aria momentarily looked surprised and glanced behind her. Having heard the conversation, Findenai mustered all her strength to raise a middle finger.

"Stop talking bullshit, you moron."

Upon hearing her firm tone, the old man, who introduced himself as Fhilai, let out a laugh.

"Still got you fooled, huh? Wasn't that entertaining? It was amusing for a moment, right? Haha! That's what we call a sense of humor!"

"You crazy bastard."

As Findenai, who became the target of the joke, gritted her teeth and retorted with disgust. The old man wiped away his tears of joy and responded.

"Hehehehe, I’m Barctos Nikolay, the executive director of Clark Republic's Weapon Development Department. I’m also affiliated with Dante, the same organization as the Dark Mages your greatsword devoured."

"...You’re a Dark Mage affiliated with Dante?"

"Right. Right. As a side job, of course."

Even though he nodded, Barctos approached the Protection that broke into half and looked at it.

"Hmm, so you're able to break Oskov's Special Protection. You’re quite impressive. Thanks to you, I’ve obtained valuable research material."

"What should we do?"

Aria gripped her greatsword once again and adjusted her stance.

"It seems there won't be time for you to make use of that valuable research material, you'll be the third Dante Dark Mage devoured by this greatsword."

"Haha! Is Duathane a gift for me, too? It seems like I’m getting a bundle of presents today!"

The feeling of discomfort was immeasurable even though it didn’t feel like that when they had this conversation.

The old man known as Barctos was unpleasant and repulsive to others, and yet he possessed enough strength to live that way.

He's no ordinary man.

Even Aria, who had hunted two of Dante's Dark Mages at the same time, couldn't help but acknowledge Barctos' strength.

"Ah, it's time."

Barctos raised his head as if he had been waiting for something.

Even Aria momentarily had forgotten about its intense presence.

As the marker she placed began to radiate gold light in all directions, it soon transformed into human forms.

They wore thick golden robes, which indicated that they were part of the kingdom's elite forces.

The Mage Tribunal Judges.

And standing before them was the Presiding Mage Tribunal Judge, Tyren Ol Velocus.

Barctos laughed again as he looked up at Tyren, who was calmly glaring at his surroundings while emanating a fierce fighting spirit.

"Hehehe! It turns out it’s a visit from the big shots! Is the kingdom eager to start a war?!"

Despite his amusement, Barctos tapped the ground with his staff. However, Tyren slowly turned and opened a path for someone.

“You have committed an act without the slightest respect for the kingdom, and yet you dare to speak of war?”

Then, a blonde girl who wore a dress that didn’t suit the detention center, donned with a sword strapped to her waist that also didn’t suit the dress she was wearing, appeared.

"Hey, Hunchback, you’re so disgusting, so don't open your mouth. I’m afraid I’ll accidentally unleash Norseweden's wrath upon you."

Upon the arrival of Eleanor Luden Griffin, the Princess of the Griffin Kingdom, even Barctos widened his eyes, smiling without letting out a sound of laughter.

"Oh, oh, I can’t believe this, a Princess has come to such a dangerous place."

"..."

"Here is a place where no one would find strange if someone were to die due to an accident."

Eeeeeng.

An insect attempted to naturally land on Princess Eleanor's fair skin. However…

"Hup!"

It burned out, blocked by Tyren's mana barrier, who was standing beside her.

The golden robes of the Mage Tribunal Judges fluttered in the air.

It was a weapon that could be called the counter to all magic, and because of its defensive power, even Deus found it troublesome to face Tyren.

"Hooh."

When Barctos showed deep interest in the Mage Tribunal Judge's robes, it signified a moment of carelessness.

"Tyren."

At Eleanor's cold remark, Tyren, a Presiding Mage Tribunal Judge, channeled power throughout his body, grasping his staff like a spear as he advanced.

Before Barctos knew it, Tyren had rushed to his side. Looking up at him, the old man burst into laughter.

Tyren's staff stuck precisely at Barctos' hunched back.

Craaaaaaaccckk!

Barctos' hunched back straightened and he collapsed onto the ground like a worm, Tyren's mana created intense pressure, completely crushing him.

"D-Director!"

Even though he wanted to react, Oskov couldn't respond because he had already lost his Protection.

The other members of the extermination unit were no different.

They couldn't even move properly in front of Tyren's overwhelming magic.

Barctos ended up like a crushed centipede that was trampled on hollowed ground.

"Haha! Are you really going to wage war?"

Before anyone realized it, Barctos was suddenly laughing right next to Oskoph. Tyren, startled, checked the corpse he had killed, but it quickly disintegrated into hundreds of insects and vanished.

"Princess! Do you know the situation you're in right now? You've walked right into enemy territory. Do you realize how valuable your body is?"

Barctos chortled as he licked his lips, reaching his nose with his tongue.

Eleanor responded with a sneer.

"How foolish."

"Huh?"

“I only pretended not to see it until now, but it seems like you think I truly didn't realize anything.”

"..."

The warp marker set by Aria trembled.

A golden beam once again descended from the sky to the ground.

This time, there wasn’t a large-scale mana that led a huge army.

Only one figure was contained within the golden light.

"Are you aware of the weight of the blood you’ve shed?"

"....Ha."

Barctos, upon recognizing the incoming figure for the first time, tightened his grip on his staff with a tense expression.

Gulp.

As Barctos’ saliva dropped on the ground, insects began to slowly gather.

"You’ll soon find out. How heavy the weight of death really is."

Watching that figure, Eleanor’s lips formed a big grin.

"In the end, can you all stop him from moving forward?"

Just like that, as the pillar of light finished its role and disappeared, in its place stood an expressionless man known as the Soul Whisperer of the kingdom.

A silent stillness enveloped the surroundings as if to welcome him. His eyes were filled with various thoughts as he surveyed the Republic.

"How can..."

A sigh was directed towards the sky and the ground.

He continued with genuine regret.

"...it be this chaotic?"

As if he saw something.