Chapter 27
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Life and Death (5)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“What are you talking about...”
I'd unconsciously backed all the way to the edge of the bed, desperately avoiding his gaze.
No way.There's no way he knows about me.
“Li-Liberic Eldrian. As you already know.”
“That's just your name. I'm asking about your identity. Though I do have one hypothesis...”
Claus tilted his staff slightly, and chains of mana erupted from its tip, instantly coiling around my arm.
“Ugh!”
“It'll be over quick. Just bear with it.”
I was yanked right up to Claus in one swift pull.
Claus seized my arm, flipped my palm upward, and pressed it against his own right palm.
No way.
A chill premonition hit me just as a sharp sting of pain flared.
“Ha. So my hypothesis was right.”
Blood droplets pooling on my palm had formed the intricate crest of the Rendike family.
A bird with outstretched wings... and a star...
I clenched my fist tight, erasing the crest. Never thought I'd lay eyes on it again.
But regardless of what I'd done, the exact same pattern materialized on Claus's palm.
“How do you know about this?”
That was the first question that came to mind.
I'd only ever shown this family crest to Liscia Erban—because she wanted to remember it.
So why did Claus know?
“That's all you're wondering about? Fine, I'll tell you.”
Claus let out a hollow laugh and sank back into his chair.
I plopped down on the bed, still clutching my palm closed.
It felt absurd... shocking, even... that he'd uncovered my secret so anticlimactically.
“Liscia Erban left records about Luther Rendike and passed this crest on to me. She said if he ever reincarnated, it would let us recognize him.
And if we found him, she asked me to pass along her thanks.”
“...I see.”
The time I'd spent with Liscia Erban wasn't long, but it had left an indelible mark.
She'd believed in me... helped me see my task through to the end.
I should have been the one thanking her.
“Right... so you're Luther Rendike.”
Even after confirming it with his own eyes, Claus looked utterly bewildered.
“Well, that explains a lot. Your bizarre constitution... that absurd mana of yours... even what the demons want with you.”
“I never imagined something like this could happen...”
I squeezed my eyes shut and gripped my forehead. A throbbing headache surged in.
“This isn't your fault. Those bastards have pulled every trick in the book to break the Demon Emperor's seal.”
“Reincarnating was a mistake, though. If I hadn't come back... none of this would have... There's only one way to fix it...”
“Don't talk nonsense.”
Claus snatched my arm.
He forced me to meet his gaze. His face was twisted in fury—aimed straight at me.
“Dying solves nothing. Damn it, I still can hardly believe you're that cursed mage Luther Rendike... but fine, let's say it's true.
Reborn as a helpless little Luar like this? If you die here, you could just end up in some other body. What happens if a newborn baby falls into the demons' hands?”
“Ah...”
My eyes flew wide.
“You're only alive right now because your father's a Prius knight—we could get help. Dying accomplishes jack. Unless you plan to stay dead.”
Die here... and reincarnate again?
I blinked up at Claus's enraged face.
In a way, it was the most obvious conclusion.
Just like I'd been reborn as Liberic... if Liberic died, I might awaken in yet another life. Memories intact.
And like he said, that child might get no help at all during a demon raid...
“So survive, somehow. It's the only shot at doing something about that seal array.”
The moment Claus finished speaking, a shrill alarm pierced the air from outside.
The exact same blare I'd heard atop Prion's white walls that day.
It felt like all the blood drained from my body.
“What the—?”
Claus's expression shifted. He bolted to his feet, peeked out of the tent, then whipped back around, face grim.
“Stay put and hide. Survive, no matter what.”
He vanished out the flap.
The instant he did, the barrier he'd cast over the tent dissolved. Horrific noises came flooding in.
“It's an attack! Seal off the south pass!”
“Loose arrows! Don't let them breach the perimeter!”
Knights' bellows and war cries rang out nonstop.
As the alarm faded slightly, the demons' ghastly shrieks mingled in.
I huddled under the blanket, arms wrapped tight around my shoulders. My insides felt ice-cold.
“Uwaaaagh!”
“Hold the line! Don't turn your backs!”
Demons' laughter... knights' screams... the camp crumbling...
The cacophony poured in from every direction. Even squeezing my eyes shut couldn't block out the vivid scenes playing in my mind.
They really came for me.
I desperately wanted to flee... but my body was locked rigid.
Is Teacher Luwen okay? The Black Guards and Claus? Ash... is he safe?
Liberic.
A welcome voice echoed in my head. I jerked my head up.
Peeking out from the blanket, I saw a massive wolf slipping into the tent.
“Ash!”
Bandages swathed his legs, but he moved without trouble. Seeing him unscathed filled me with relief.
“What's going on out there? Is everyone...”
Better if you stay put. They're looking for you.
As expected.
I bit my lip. Couldn't shake the guilt—this was all because of me.
The shouts and screams outside were swelling louder by the second.
Stay here. I'll scout the situation...
Rumble...
Then the tent's ceiling sagged... and came crashing down on me in a blink.
The support pole splintered with a grotesque crack, debris raining straight at me.
“Ah...!”
Liberic!
I stumbled dodging it and tumbled off the bed.
A deafening roar shook my ears as pale dust billowed up. I curled into a ball, eyes clamped shut.
When the pounding vibrations finally ebbed, I cracked my eyes open. Pitch darkness—buried under collapsed wreckage.
And right there, Ash braced the fallen pillar over my head with his own body.
“A-Ash...”
I reached out to the still wolf's scruff. No response—he'd passed out.
No...
I stretched to pull him close... but a cold hand clamped my throat first, yanking me out into the open.
“Found you, runt.”
“Hk...”
Air cut off, my vision reeled wildly.
Sudden sunlight poured down, black horns glinting overhead.
Long, icy hands and arms—it was a demon.
Towering height... a body like white, hardened armor... four jet-black horns sprouting from its head.
I knew that form all too well. One of Kylek, Demon Emperor Berkis's elite guards.
“Hide-and-seek's over.”
Grivis flashed a grin, red eyes gleaming.
With my throat crushed, I couldn't even scream.
I thrashed to break free, but it was futile against his strength.
Breath grew ragged... vision dimming...
“Lib!”
A cherished voice rang out from somewhere.
Teacher Luwen? No, this is...
Sching.
A frigid clash of metal—and Grivis's arm went flying.
Black blood gushed overhead as my father's face came into view, sword in hand.
“Lib!”
Someone caught me as I plummeted to the ground. I gulped down ragged breaths in their arms.
“Lib, it's okay. You're safe now.”
Shuren hugged me fiercely, whispering right in my ear.
That voice... tears spilled out before I knew it.
He wore a knight's uniform, gripping a sword scarred from heavy battle.
“Damn knight scum...!”
Grivis bellowed murderously and swung his remaining arm.
Clang!
Father's blade intercepted the metallic limb—sparks erupted on impact.
Father bore down relentlessly, aiming to cleave off the other arm too. Rage twisted his features.
“Instructor, I'll back you up!”
Erner Belliuud joined in, face set. He dropped low, darted inside Grivis's guard, and slashed deep across the gut.
Grivis twisted in agony, staggering back.
I could scarcely believe it—Father, Erner, and Shuren, all here.
Trembling, I clutched Shuren tight.
“Wipe 'em out! Show these bastards who crawled in here what happens!”
A woman's fierce shout rang out, followed by thunderous cheers. Just to my left.
Red Guard Knight Merian Cortis swept her blazing sword through the fray, commanding the field.
Dozens of knights in red cloaks surged toward the demons at her orders.
The demons battling the camp knights faltered under that scorching momentum.
The Red Guard's onslaught was merciless.
Her flame-wreathed blade ignited on contact, erupting violently and reducing those foul bodies to ash in seconds.
“Wait—this wasn't the plan...!”
“Fall back! Fall back!”
Outmatched, the demons began fleeing one by one.
Grivis was no exception.
One-armed, he glared at me through the inferno.
“We'll meet again, Liberic.”
Even amid the chaos of screams and shouts, his eerie voice stabbed clear into my mind.
“Haat!”
Erner slashed at Grivis, who parried with his arm and leaped far back.
Then he plunged into the horde of retreating demons and vanished.
The second Grivis fled, Father sheathed his sword and rushed straight to me.
“Lib.”
Father crushed me in a fierce embrace.
“F-Father...”
In that searing warmth, I couldn't stem the flood of tears.
All the terror, fear, and despair I'd endured poured out in sobs.
“Lib... I'm sorry. So sorry...”
Father's voice was hoarse, ragged. His once-pristine uniform was filthy... his neat face and hair a total mess.
Just looking at him, I could picture how desperately he'd searched.
“I should've protected you. Should've stopped this from ever happening.”
No... it's not your fault.
I clung to Father's profound regret, weeping endlessly like a child in his arms.