Guardian: Derek Walker 29
Luna's voice was inherently flat and emotionless. Devoid of any feeling, it rang out with an air of absolute impartiality—yet at the same time, it sent chills down the spine.
Humans were creatures inevitably ruled by their emotions, after all. Her icy tone felt like it could suppress them all.
Holding her wine glass, Luna tilted her hand, spilling the deep red liquid sloshing inside onto the floor. In that small gesture, Hargin sensed an overwhelming pressure that bound his entire body.
This beauty quietly expressing her rage before his eyes was on a level he couldn't even compare to. To put it bluntly, she was in a completely different league.
He had realized it back when she wielded her elegantly curved dual scimitars to slaughter hundreds of orcs single-handedly. But now, in this moment, he confirmed it once more.
The villagers, including Hargin, instinctively backed away under the intangible aura emanating from Luna.
That's not an opponent you can beat in a fight. Even if the entire village charged at her, they wouldn't so much as touch the hem of her clothes. It was an undeniable fact.
"Drobin. What did these people do?"
Luna's gaze shifted to Drobin. He had burst into the village hall, gasping for breath as if he were a messenger sprinting a thousand li to deliver news of victory. When she pointed him out, he spilled everything he'd witnessed without holding back.
With every truth that poured from his lips, the villagers' faces drained of color in unison. By the time Drobin finished his account, their expressions were as pale as a snow-covered field scorched by the sun.
Luna now grasped the full situation.
These ungrateful wretches, blind to the grace they'd received, had tried to sell Rita off as a plaything for the white orc chieftain. And Luna suspected that wasn't the end of it. She approached Kelly, snatching the glass from her hand, then strode toward Hargin.
As Luna clicked her heels toward him, Hargin felt an overwhelming urge to flee. But even that was denied to him.
His legs went weak; he could barely stand, let alone run. Her piercing gaze sealed his movements like a dense net.
"Drink."
Luna held out the glass to Hargin. As if entranced, he reached for it. He knew it wasn't poison, but the moment he drank, their vile scheme would be laid bare for all to see. Squeezing his eyes shut, Hargin hurled the glass to the floor.
Crash!
The wine glass shattered against the ground, staining the village hall floor. The splattered wine looked just like blood spraying everywhere.
Luna regarded Hargin with her unchanging, expressionless stare. This action was irrefutable proof of his guilt.
"Helping you was my worst mistake."
"Tch! Damn it! Fine, it's do or die!"
Hargin shoved aside the crushing fear gripping him and lunged forward. He was less than a step from Luna. Yanking the dagger from his belt, he thrust it straight at her.
Of course, from Luna's perspective, Hargin's ambush was laughably simple—something she could dodge even while looking away, despite the lack of warning.
Having anticipated it from his building momentum, Luna sidestepped effortlessly, evading the dagger-wielding Hargin. Her foot hooked his.
"Gah!"
Hargin toppled clumsily to the floor. All that bluster, and such a pathetic outcome.
"Pathetic."
"Damn you, bitch!"
Humiliated, Hargin scrambled up, his face twisted in fury. He thrust his dagger hand forward, aiming at Luna. Her expression, fixed on the blade tip, remained utterly serene.
"Hargin! Stop it!"
Rita cried out. But it was Luna who responded.
"Too late."
In the next instant, Luna's body shot toward Hargin like teleportation. No one in the hall could track her movement. She was truly otherworldly.
Thud!
Luna's fist slammed into Hargin's gut. He flew back several meters, vomiting blood midair. His chest caved in from the blow.
He lost consciousness from that single strike. Surviving was a miracle.
"My God... Hargin in one hit..."
The villagers, already aware of Luna's prowess, felt the gulf between them anew. No matter how they thought about it, they had no confidence against such a monster. They never should have made an enemy of her to begin with.
Thud!
"Gah! Is the woman ready!?"
A tactless voice boomed as the village hall door flew open. The intruder was, predictably, Phallaks.
Luna turned her head. Seeing Luna wide awake when she should have been out cold, Phallaks instantly realized something was wrong.
"What? You didn't subdue her?"
It was obvious without asking. At that moment, a blue glow began seeping from Hargin's inner pocket.
Luna furrowed her brow. A chilling, pale energy stirred the madness buried deep in her soul—familiar, yet ominous. The blood in her veins boiled in response. This had to be what Walker mentioned.
Moon Shadow
The elite of the Moon Clan that once dominated the previous generation.
The power radiating from Hargin was unmistakably the same kind as her own.
"So he had it."
"Grrr!"
Hargin's body jerked upright—not by his will. It moved like a marionette on strings, unnaturally.
The majestic aura bursting from the blue glow at his chest enveloped the entire village hall.
"W-what is this!? What the hell is going on!?"
Phallaks shouted in confusion. This was nowhere in his plans. Hell, Luna being awake already derailed everything. From his recent experiences, when things went south, it was best to bolt.
"I'm outta he—"
Rumble!
Blue tendrils shot from Hargin's body like tentacles, piercing Phallaks. The light spearing through him began draining his mana.
Luna's expression shifted—a rare occurrence. Frowning, she scanned the room and shouted.
"Rita, Bianca, Drobin—run! This is dangerous."
"Y-yes!"
The blue-glowing tendrils impaled not just Phallaks but the other villagers too. Only Kelly, Rita, Bianca, and Drobin were spared.
"Lady Luna, are you okay?"
"Yes. Don't worry about me. Lady Kelly, can you assist? This is on another level from orcs."
Luna turned to Kelly. She was more than capable of fighting at Luna's side.
Kelly, contracted with the Earth Spirit King, compensated for her unawakened potential with Crit's overwhelming power. To a spirit summoner, a contract spirit's strength was their own—so in that sense, Kelly was strong in her own right.
"Of course!"
Kelly thumped her chest confidently.
"Ahh. Less power than expected. A remote village like this has its limits, after all. And so many with pure souls—it's unpleasant."
A voice riddled with eerie static echoed. It came from Hargin's mouth, but it wasn't his.
Luna gripped her dual scimitars tighter. Her sharp eyes focused not on the puppet Hargin, but the source controlling him.
"This power... Could it be the Moon Clan?"
Crit, hopping off Kelly's shoulder, muttered. Luna nodded.
"Seems like a clansman. Though I don't remember any such relative."
"Ehh!? L-Lady Luna is from the Moon Clan!?"
Kelly jumped at the sudden revelation.
"Kuhahaha! You have no idea how long it's been since I last saw the world. Such a filthy long seal! This body's nothing special, but the human I just absorbed isn't bad."
"Talkative."
Luna murmured, aiming her dual scimitars.
"Spend a couple hundred years sealed, and you'll get chatty too. Gotta talk to yourself just to stay sane."
"Congratulations on breaking free. But I'll erase you right now."
"To think you'd threaten to erase Surf, Shadow of Greed! You've got guts, I'll give you that!"
"Erasing a worthless evil spirit sealed for centuries? Simple enough."
"Grr! Can't argue with that. Then prove it with those hands!"
Vmmm!
Blue spots bloomed across Hargin's flesh. His body swelled massively. Skin split, claws lengthened, hair grew wild. Like an alchemist botched with a potion, mutating grotesquely.
"No time to wait."
Luna shot forward like lightning. Her dual scimitars slashed an X across the grotesquely transforming Hargin. But an invisible barrier appeared before him, repelling her blades.
"Knew it—this scent means clansman! Hey! Even if I love a fight, I don't wanna scrap with family."
"Family? Hilarious. Hairst."
With her self-buff, Luna's movements turned weasel-like, even more agile. She spun mid-acceleration without losing balance, channeling mana into her scimitars.
Powerful mana surged from her heart, frosting the mythic-grade weapons and manifesting dense mana blades.
"Blade Dance!"
Luna's sword dance unfolded in a dizzying flurry—beautiful, yet lethally deadly. Her mana-infused strikes rained like meteors, pressuring Hargin.
But the blades couldn't pierce his ballooned skin. Surf had fortified the body.
"Kuhaha! Nice! My turn to attack!"
The blue spots on Hargin glowed. His body moved with Haste-like speed—not matching Luna, but threatening enough. He targeted Kelly.
"Not happening."
Crit slammed his paw on the floor. The spot shattered, earth rising to shield Kelly. A massive quake followed.
Thud!
Hargin's fist smashed the uplifted earth. The impact boomed impossibly loud for a punch, shockwaves sweeping the hall. Hargin recoiled; Kelly tumbled back from the blast. No serious injuries, though.
Hargin's assault didn't end. His failed strike on Kelly aside, he rose again, blue spots still gleaming.
"Kuhaha! Fun! A bloodbath right after waking!"
Whoosh!
Luna's blade aimed for his side. This time, Hargin dodged, aware of her.
He's faster now. Not just buffs—the body's adapting to Moon Shadow power. If it fully assimilates, it'll be trouble. End this quick.
Luna's eyes hardened coldly.