I Thought I Didn’t Have Long To Live!

Lariette was immersed in a subtle sense of responsibility, which was understandable. Other skilled mercenaries had fought for a long time to kill the Wyvern with just two spells. She took a deep breath at Garren's words that the biggest one was coming. And she stared with a determined look in the direction she felt, whether it was big or small. If it attacks or catches like before, it will be fine.

Lariette kept mana at the tip of her fingers, thinking about that. And finally, a huge monster appeared in sight, much larger than the previous one. It was the mother of the baby Wyvern.

"That is..." Garren instinctively groaned.

A mercenary with strong bones realized how dangerous the opponent he was facing now was. The fully developed Wyvern's skin was as hard as steel, its wings were incredibly large, and its claws were surprisingly long and sharp enough to be dangerous to touch.

Wyvern was a class B monster, which meant that all Wyverns had a class B strength. It only meant the average value, in other words, the rankings varied depending on the individual. And the Wyvern that appeared now had an A or higher ranking. Soon the eyes of the expedition members were focused on one point, on Lariette. It was only natural that they would rely on her at that moment. Recognizing that gaze, Lariette swallowed and tried to use magic, but the close voice of Doha dissuaded her.

"No, there's no way to do it with that magic," he said in a cold tone.

The way he looked at her was also clear. As a result, Lariette became anxious and hesitated to use magic. Doha was her mentor and knew more about magic, so she asked him quietly for guidance.

"Well, what should I do...?"

"Well, how about we flee?" Doha responded with a sly smile.

He didn't care if someone died. On the contrary, it was better if those who knew Lariette's abilities died, as it reduced the chances of the information being leaked to Candel. It seemed to him that there was no possibility of dealing with the Wyvern with that group.

The same applied to Lariette's inclusion. Her magic was quite good, but she still lacked experience, precision, and speed. A class A flying monster was very difficult to handle perfectly, so she wouldn't be able to attack properly. So the best option for Lariette was to flee with Doha in order to survive. He didn't have such a reasonable decision, but he didn't back down.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Lariette responded with a furrowed brow. That option didn't fit.

"How can I let others die?"

She didn't know if she had any power to help, but Lariette's was one of the best. Power was limited by responsibility, so she would do everything possible to protect the innocent.

"Well, I will follow your will, miss," Doha smiled and murmured.

His still idealistic will was absurd and charming, and that was what he fell in love with. It would be very amusing to see the woman he fell in love with struggling with what she couldn't do. There was no twisted idea, but originally Doha was that kind of person. Although he had the power to protect, he didn't reveal anything, and if there was nothing to help, he was a human opposite to Lariette.

"Everyone, gather around!"

Upon hearing Bluff's voice, everyone gathered within a small shield, even the fighters had to hide because they couldn't avoid the Wyvern's attack. Lariette deployed her magic and recreated the same scene with the tree trunk, it was a double preparation for the Wyvern's attack.

Kang, kang~

Shortly after, a powerful impact struck the shield, the sturdy trunk broke like a thread, and soon Bluff's protective shield shattered like glass.

"Damn it!"

"Ahhh! What should I do?! Mom!"

"Calm down, calm down!"

Garren tried to calm the people with a loud voice, but he couldn't calm himself with the broken shield. Fortunately, they survived one attack, but the Wyvern had already flown to the other side for the next assault.

Bluff, who suffered internal injuries, couldn't create another shield because the mana-maintained shield was broken, which meant the battle was nearing its end. It would be the same if Lariette used healing magic to restore his mana, in the end, the same thing would happen again and again.

Leaning on Doha due to the impact of his shattered shield, he bit his lips forcefully. There was no breakthrough as Doha had hoped, there was only one way, a very dangerous and risky one. Lariette looked around with a calm gaze. There were faces of desperate people at a moment when death was just around the corner, and not long ago, their faces portrayed an image of herself.

"Leave, go away!"

"I want to live...!"

It was the appearance of the moment when she shed tears and longed for life. Lariette knew how terrifying the impending death was, and she also knew how moving the phrase 'life is precious' that she thought appeared in a book was. Life was so precious that it had taken a loved one away, so she couldn't ignore it. Simultaneously with her determination, Lariette rushed out of the broken shield and ran in another direction.

"Miss!" Doha shouted in astonishment, following her unexpected behavior.

Lariette ignored Doha's cries and kept running.

"What?! Is that bitch trying to escape?" Augustine, who was trembling, succumbed to a momentary rage and pointed at her. "Are you going to live alone?" he added angrily.

Hanabi: And here I thought nobody could be worse than Shelia.

"No, I'm not going to escape."

Garren lifted his body and continued.

"Let's flee."

As soon as he finished his words, a strong wind magic was cast from Lariette's hand. The Wyvern, which was flying to attack the group, turned its wings in a sudden gust of wind.

"Here you go!" Lariette raised her voice and shouted at the monster.

Along with it, she deployed earth magic and tightly wrapped the Wyvern's legs with the trunk of a tree, of course, it was just a tree trunk, so it tore with a single step. She didn't intend to trap it in the first place, so it was fine. Her purpose was to focus the monster's gaze on her, and her two magics were enough to achieve that purpose.

"Kaeaeum!"

The Wyvern flew like an arrow towards Lariette with a deafening cry. Lariette realized that she had become an offensive target and started running again. Thanks to the use of wind magic, her movement speed was quite fast. The expedition members ran to the other side of the gap and hid among the rocks, there was no point in fleeing far away. It was because if they were caught, the Wyvern would soon catch up to them as well.

"Huh, huh!" Lariette breathed heavily as she continued moving her legs.

The place where she had been until now was destroyed by the Wyvern's claws. She shuddered at the thought that her body would have been torn apart if she had been a little later. Her stamina was gradually running out, and her speed was decreasing. The intense wind revealed that the Wyvern was closing in.

"No, I can't die here."

She couldn't die there. She promised to return to Asrahan and sincerely apologize, but she couldn't die without even being able to regret. However, there was no way. If only she could survive by her own will, she wouldn't have to worry for three months. She regretted how she had lived her life and the choices she should have avoided, but she would probably make the same choice if she went back. When she turned her head back, she saw a giant Wyvern right in front of her.

"Asrahan."

Lariette closed her eyes, remembering her precious memories with his sweet face. One of her hands tightly held her necklace. It was a jewel-encrusted pendant that resembled Asrahan's eyes.

Kwaaang~

There was a strong impact, but she didn't feel any pain.

"Asrahan protected me?"

Lariette foolishly thought and slowly opened her eyelids. Before her eyes was a ray of bright light, and a familiar voice tickled her ear.

"Truly..."

A huge golden curtain spread around Lariette, incomparable in size to the shield created by Bluff. The veil was pristine without any flaws, even though it was struck by the Wyvern's claws.

"Miss, you have the gift of driving people crazy." The silver hair fluttered in the wind, and the beast's golden eyes shone as if it had given up hiding its identity any longer.

At that moment, what Augustine had said earlier came to her mind.

"—Sounds like a protective barrier! Do you think anyone can use the divine barrier? Only a high priest or something!"

Undoubtedly, suspicions sprouted in her mind. And to confirm it, a bright light emanated from Doha's hands, the dazzling light soon transformed into a large spear. The spear decorated with gold on a white background was as sacred as that of a god.

"Will you tell me I'm amazing?" Doha pursed his lips, recalling how Lariette praised Bluff.

And he quickly pierced the Wyvern's body with the spear.

The Wyvern, which had everyone fighting, died in the blink of an eye, and soon silence fell. People were so surprised that they looked at Doha with pale faces. Lariette also stared at him, mouth agape, without saying a word.

It was Augustine's trembling voice that broke the silence.

"A humble believer of God, meet High Priest Mikhail, who will be the moon of the empire."

The moon of the empire, destined to become the Pope.

Garren, who even obtained the hair of the future Pope and ordered him to stay awake, leaving him sleepless, dropped to the ground with his mouth wide open. Others quickly knelt and bowed their heads. And Doha didn't care at all about their reaction. His eyes were fixed on Lariette, a tremulous look soon appeared in the atmosphere.

-----------------

A few hours after Asrahan left the capital, he received information about Lariette. It wasn't exactly about Lariette, but about Mikhail Dohabelion. That was exactly what Asrahan had ordered his subordinates to do.

"You better escape well," Asrahan whispered with a terribly low voice, as if he were standing right in front of him. "I don't know what I'll do once I catch you."

The tender and soft blue eyes were no longer lifeless; only gloomy eyes remained burning with passivity and madness.

Asrahan continued to pursue Lariette. After obtaining information about the group and the color of her hair, the speed of the chase accelerated. He didn't stay a single day in Fusian. He instinctively felt that she wasn't there, and soon his men returned with the information that she had already passed the checkpoint to the west. There weren't many villages there, so Asrahan cast away sleep and hastened the pursuit. Then he arrived at the sacred city of Deauville.

"Sir, please rest. First, I will go around the checkpoint and find out if there is any record of the Lady's departure."

Asrahan's men urged him to rest out of concern for his health. He hadn't rested even for a few hours during all those days. He must have looked worse than during the war. But Asrahan's reaction was resolute.

"No."

"You need to rest a little so that the Lady..."

"No, that's not what I meant."

"Huh? What...?" The subordinate opened his eyes and asked again. Asrahan responded with a cold smile.

"She's here." He looked into the distance and muttered quietly. "So, are you ready to be caught?"

And a few hours later, he finally found the person he had been looking for.