Taming the Evil Saintess

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The combatants in the banquet hall were either incapacitated or had retreated toward the Summer Palace or Temple where the battle had erupted. The only ones left were two mages.

Mages are weak in close quarters.

This was an immutable truth.

Thus, the attackers gathered in the banquet hall believed that this would be an extremely easy hunt.

Boom!

The ground trembled.

A spire of stone erupted from the floor, piercing the attacker between his legs. He could no longer scream and perished.

“….”

A startled breath was felt through the mask.

Why couldn’t a dozen assassins, seasoned killers, eliminate just one mage within twenty paces?

The reason was simple. The two mages in the banquet hall were extraordinary beings that directly defied the truth.

There was a tremendous difference in skill between these two mages and the attackers. The current Archmage and the next Archmage. A master who had reached the pinnacle of magic in human form, and a disciple with the potential to surpass even that master, breaking the boundaries of humanity and opening up new horizons. The combined magic of the two tore through the air, violating senses and sweeping through the banquet hall like an unyielding sword.

The attackers sensed that something was amiss and exchanged glances, retreating slightly.

And that was a bad move. The magical bullet fired by Emily grazed the attacker’s face. A red line marked his forehead as the mask was stripped away, revealing the attacker’s bare face.

“Heh, not a pretty sight at all.”

Emily Barried clicked her tongue while confirming that more than twenty enemies remained.

If it weren’t for her cooperation with her master, Eldarian, it wouldn’t have been strange for her to be dead by now.

How much longer could she hold on?

Winning was a long shot. Those attackers were seasoned assassins who had trained for quite a long time. They were the worst match-up against mages. All she could do was endure and await reinforcements.

“…Hmm.”

It was at that moment.

Emily sensed that the man she had just stripped of his mask seemed to be the chief of the attackers. Rather than hiding his face again, he chose to throw off the black cloth covering his shoulders.

At the same time, the Hero’s Divine Mark on his shoulder glimmered brightly.

“…Huh?”

Emily became momentarily flustered. The Hero’s Divine Mark was supposed to be on Elliot’s hand; why was it now stamped on this assassin’s shoulder?

In that fleeting moment of distraction, the man seized the opportunity. He spread the mark and swiftly closed the distance.

“Emily, it’s dangerous!”

Eldarian swung his staff to erect an intangible barrier, but the assassin, executing inhuman movements, nimbly vaulted over the translucent barrier.

Only after Eldarian’s roar did Emily snap back to her senses. The assassin had already closed in. In a hurry, Emily unfolded Maleficarum and cast her spell. Although she had been hesitant to use it due to its mediocre mana efficiency, she had no choice now.

As she released her mana, a massive magical wave surged outwards like a pulse. Thanks to that, the assassin’s dagger brushed precariously over the crown of Emily’s head. Perhaps realizing further attacks would be difficult, the assassin retreated significantly.

Afterwards, the tension eased again, but Emily struggled to maintain her composure.

“Master, what’s happening… That’s the Mark! The Hero’s Divine Mark is there!”

“…Emily, that’s not something to discuss right now…”

“Oh ho, Archmage.”

The man who had charged in earlier cut Eldarian off. He wore a broad smile.

It seemed he was well aware of the situation. Emily naturally listened intently to the man’s next words.

“It’s not good to lie to a masterpiece you’ve created.”

“…Masterpiece?”

“Yes. Emily Barried, you are a work of art. A truly magnificent one.”

Emily frowned.

What did he mean by “work of art”? He was definitely referring to her. Just as she was trying to comprehend those words—

“Shut up!”

Eldarian’s furious voice swept through the room. A massive fireball exploded. The walls of the banquet hall turned as black as coal. Yet the man continued unfazed.

“Archmage. Do you want to play daddy with your experiment? That’s laughably absurd. Even the cold-hearted Archmage is dulling with age.”

“….”

“Hey, Emily Barried, let me tell you something you might not know. We’re in the same situation.”

“…Same, situation?”

Emily frowned. The man tapped on his own mark and pointed to the mark engraved on Emily’s forearm.

“Yes. A situation where the mark was transplanted.”

“…What?”

“In some sense, I’m your senior. Thanks to your case, the research progressed and I was able to receive a mark as well. There are many others who have received marks. All thanks to you.”

The man chuckled.

Eldarian shouted something, but it didn’t reach Emily’s ears.

“….”

A mark transplanted? That couldn’t possibly be true.

Emily shook her head. It was nonsense. She had a multitude of doubts. However, the man claimed he had received a mark, and the movements he had just shown were undeniable evidence of a real mark’s effect.

Moreover, he said he received the mark because of her.

That couldn’t be. That mustn’t happen.

Emily was innocent. She had met Eldarian in the Shadowhold slums when she was a child. She was taken in and—

“…Ah.”

A small gasp escaped Emily’s lips.

She was five years old when she was taken in by Eldarian, and that was when the mark manifested.

The processes were different. It was merely a coincidence. The probability of a magical mark emerging just after picking up an orphan from the Shadowhold was astronomically low.

Being of remarkable intellect, Emily quickly realized what the man was trying to say.

“…You mean, I’m a body that had the mark transplanted?”

The question of who it was directed toward didn’t need to be asked again.

Emily turned sharply. Eldarian was gazing at her with vacant eyes. He parted his lips.

“…Emily, I can explain it all. But now is not the time. Let’s…”

“Am I… was I just an experiment?”

“Emily! Focus!”

Eldarian shouted, but Emily shook her head and stepped back.

Eldarian’s face twisted at her response.

“Was I… nothing more than a prop for your daddy play?”

Daddy play.

The man’s words echoed in her mind.

She knew it was not the time. Even now, the assassins were drawing nearer. Yet, Emily could no longer channel her mana to Eldarian like before.

Collaboration between mages relies even more on trust than that of knights. Maintaining a spell consumes more mental energy than holding a sword’s energy. Emily was confused, her mind tangled like a spider’s web, preventing her from maintaining the mana net around her.

Boom.

Before long, the magic that assassins feared temporarily lost its light.

Highly trained assassins couldn’t miss such an opening.

“…Ah!”

Emily yelped and turned around. But the assassins had already closed in to within five paces.

“Well, well, Archmage, you really dug your own grave this time. Why didn’t you untie that knot earlier?”

The man grinned, charging forth. However, he was targeting Emily, not Eldarian. Unlike Eldarian, who was ready to intercept with his staff, Emily was yet to fully unfold Maleficarum.

The silver glint of a dagger drew close. The daggers thrown from afar aimed directly at Emily’s eyes. Drawing mana and releasing it in a wave was a one-time deal. There were no other options.

Feeling death closing in, Emily shut her eyes.

Thwack!

The blade pierced through a heart.

However, Emily’s heart was not pierced.

She opened her eyes, which had been tightly shut. The scene revealed before her was Eldarian’s chest being impaled by the blade.

“…Ah.”

In a fleeting moment, she quickly understood the magic Eldarian had unfolded.

Teleportation, the most complex type of space magic.

His recent research had simplified its complicated structure to adapt to battle conditions. Emily had an understanding because she had been involved in it.

Teleportation through a medium with mana. In other words, position shifting.

Emily was once again at Eldarian’s place, while he was where she had been. The dagger that had risen and pierced from behind was now soaked in blood. The daggers thrown by the assassins were embedded throughout his body. The gruesome sight could only be described as a hedgehog.

Emily was horrified.

“…M-Master! Why!”

“I know, cough.”

Eldarian looked at Emily, spewing blood in torrents.

“…I know, but I couldn’t stop myself.”

“….”

“I did something terrible. I’m sorry.”

What he meant was unclear.

Was he referring to the sacrifice he made to save Emily or repenting for the past when he had transplanted a mark onto his own body as a child? Or perhaps both.

She couldn’t tell, but it no longer mattered.

“…Ah, aah.”

In any case, Eldarian had thrown himself to save Emily, proving his sincerity towards her.

And that in a moment of losing her composure, she had pushed her master into peril.

That would suffice.

“Ha ha ha. Truly a tear-jerking scene.”

The man gabbled on, but Emily didn’t hear. In truth, even if she had, it would not have changed what she would do next.

“….”

Emily looked at the staff of the Archmage standing in Eldarian’s place. It was a streamlined staff, topped with the ancient gemstone passed down since time immemorial.

She had never imagined she would inherit this treasure now. That was because Eldarian was strong, and he would remain so for decades to come.

The situation had changed. There was no longer room for childlike antics.

“…You.”

She glared at the man who had plunged the blade.

Crack! A spark of mana flickered near her cheek.

Emily seized the Archmage’s staff.

Underneath all this, a dreadful plan had been unfolding, but Emily had been utterly oblivious. Acting like a child, she had caused her master to stay in the banquet hall and protect her. And thus, she had fallen for the man’s trick and lost her master.

“Just wait. I will kill you.”

That day, a new Archmage was born.

A sorcerer more cruel and cold than her predecessor.

Emily Barried finally became an adult.