Master and Disciple

Although she had achieved final victory, Ivette's experience had been far from pleasant.

From the moment she first encountered the Six-armed Demon, she had been thinking about how to kill this Third-Rank Aberration, which moved so fast that it was nearly impossible to catch. In the end, she had devised a plan: use herself as bait to restrain it, then blast it at point-blank range.

But everyone knew that theory was one thing and practice another. Any plan completed entirely through imagination was bound to encounter unexpected complications when put into action.

For example, in her desperation to guarantee a killing blow, she had poured all her mana into the attack, leaving herself almost no room for error. And the power of that elemental fusion explosion had been simply too great. It had made no distinction between friend and foe, and even her magical defenses had been shattered.

Thus, when the explosion ended, the Six-armed Demon had been reduced to ashes, leaving only a tiny Mana Core that flew far into the distance. Ivette, meanwhile, had slammed into the ground like a basketball on a dunk, crashing into the earth with a smack and leaving a crater between the flesh carpet and the soil.

When the dust settled, Ivette lay in the center of the crater. Her clothes were torn and stained crimson, her face was covered in dirt, and only the emotions in her dark red eyes remained calm, like a machine without feelings.

Then she struggled to her feet and staggered toward the Jellyfish Mist Beast's corpse at the edge. She had no idea where the Six-armed Demon's Mana Core had flown, and now she had to dig out the Jellyfish Mist Beast's core. Otherwise, the "Regeneration Pump" would no longer be able to contain the spread of the Mutation Factor.

The plan never survives contact with reality. Armchair calculations are never enough, and the execution was poor too. I need to leave myself more safety margin in the future... As she reflected, she felt as though every bone in her body had been broken. The pain was excruciating, and she couldn't help gritting her teeth softly as she walked.

But just then, a series of heavy footsteps alerted her.

She turned her head and saw the Tide Worm Queen, which had somehow gotten back to its feet. As she watched the killing intent radiating from its six scarlet eyes, her heart sank.

During the earlier battle, the Six-armed Demon's appearance had prevented her from finishing off the Tide Worm Queen. Then, amid the intensity and tension of the fight, it had seized all her attention, causing both her and the Six-armed Demon to temporarily forget that the seemingly motionless Tide Worm Queen lying in the distance was still alive.

Of course, the Tide Worm Queen was in poor condition too. It had originally been recovering from its injuries, its body covered in cracks—perhaps the work of the Six-armed Demon. Before it had finished recuperating, Ivette had bombarded it with spells, leaving its enormous lower insect body charred and shattered. Thick pus continued to ooze from it as it walked.

But that clearly did not stop it from becoming the one to profit at the end.

What terrible luck... Ivette's heart gradually sank. Along the way, she had encountered the "Mechanical Tyrant," "Night Walker Demon," "Jellyfish Mist Beast," "Tide Worm Queen," and the "Six-armed Demon," which could be called the strongest Third-Rank Aberration on the island. Yet she had only obtained the Night Walker Demon's Mana Core, recovering a pitiful twenty-some points of mana. She had either failed to obtain the other cores or had not had time to collect them, leaving her completely drained. She was actually helpless even against a half-dead Tide Worm Queen. Her luck truly could not have been worse.

She stopped and looked at the approaching Tide Worm Queen, standing perfectly still as though waiting for death. Just as a vicious expression appeared on the Tide Worm Queen's vaguely humanoid face and it raised its sickle high, a dim blue-white Rune Ring was thrust into its mouth by Ivette.

In an instant, the Tide Worm Queen's smile froze. The next moment, dazzling lightning coursed through its entire body, and it slowly collapsed.

At the same time, Ivette's body lost the last of its strength and crumpled to the ground.

This was the last trace of mana she had cast, at the cost of abandoning the Regeneration Pump's maintenance.

Now, dark and violent Mutation Factors surged, churned, invaded, and assimilated through every blood vessel in her body.

It was a sign that she had reached the end of her life.

The sky had grown dark. Heavy black clouds pressed down on the horizon, while violent winds howled through the mountains, whipping up a sky full of dead leaves and dust. A torrential storm was on its way.

In the withered forest, Rosaline panted as she killed several Mutants approaching with her Alloy Combat Blade. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and, despite the fatigue between her brows, her eyes remained bright and full of life.

After killing the Shepherd Sheep, she had unexpectedly remained in excellent condition. Although her mana bar was empty, she had picked up the Mana Core dropped by the Shepherd Sheep, almost restoring her combat power to its peak in one stroke.

If Teacher knew about such an outstanding performance, she would definitely be happy, right? She would definitely praise me, right?

Ah!

To receive the triple approval of her teacher, guardian, and idol—there was no greater happiness in the world!

Speaking of which, she had no idea how things were going on Teacher's end. But the fog had suddenly dispersed, so things should have gone smoothly...

Then she checked her condition.

Her reserves had recovered, but she had encountered several Second-Stage and First-Stage Mutants. She still had forty or fifty points of mana left. However, the Alloy Combat Blade had run out of energy, which was a serious problem. Her combat power had been cut in half, leaving her with perhaps less than a third of her peak condition.

The Magic Skateboard had been destroyed during the battle, so she would have to cover the rest of the distance on foot.

Oh, right. She still had several elemental bombs in her waist pouch. Their power was roughly equivalent to ordinary spells, but their greatest use was throwing them into the sky and using their red, yellow, blue, and green colors to send the four signals: "request assistance," "warning," "retreat," and "victory."

But she hadn't seen any signal flares exploding in the sky for so long. Did that mean Teacher had also become embroiled in a drawn-out battle?

Could an "Overlord" have successfully been born—the reason Teacher had yet to resolve things after all this time?

Carrying her conjectures about the tense situation and her concern for Teacher, she began running. She passed through the forest, which had completely turned purplish-red, and reached an open area covered by a carpet of flesh.

Then she saw the Tide Worm Queen's enormous limp corpse, as well as the battered, slender silver-haired figure beside it, so delicate that it seemed a strong wind could snap her in two.

"Teacher!!!" Her pupils contracted, and she instinctively sprinted over, pulling Teacher into her arms.

Perhaps her frantic calls had worked. After a moment, she saw Teacher's eyelids open slightly, revealing dull, lifeless red eyes.

"Teacher, how are you? Are you all right?" Although she had only a little mana left, Rosaline still took Teacher's hand without hesitation, pressing palm to palm and trying to transfer her mana. The Regeneration Pump was a continuous-casting self-rescue skill and could not temporarily be applied to others.

Unexpectedly, however, Teacher did not receive it.

"The Mutation Factors inside me have exceeded the Regeneration Pump's limit. They've already spread." Teacher spoke softly, but her words struck Rosaline like a thunderbolt.

She knew what that meant. Even someone as powerful as Teacher could not resist the erosion of that bizarre substance.

Her eyes reddened at once, and it felt as though a mountain had been placed on her chest. Then she heard Teacher continue in a calm tone, as if utterly indifferent to her own life: "I will try to suppress the mutation, but you must leave immediately."

Before she could finish speaking, a horrifying rustling surged in from every direction. Although the Tide Worm Queen was dead, the Mother Nest was still alive. Even without the Nest Lord, the Mother Nest could still issue commands to its surroundings and summon an army of Low-Tier Mutants.

Clearly, if they did not leave now, the two of them would die beneath the tide formed by the vast swarm, devoured until not even their bones remained.

"I'll take you back." Rosaline spoke in a tone of promise.

"Think carefully." Teacher looked at her. "You still have a family. You still have a chance to go home."

At the words "go home," Rosaline's heart wavered.

But only for a second. That stray thought vanished. She fell silent, hoisted Teacher's frighteningly light body onto her back, steadied her with one hand, and gripped the cold hilt of her blade with the other as she charged along the predetermined retreat route.

It was a route planned before the operation, one suitable for retreat and leading to an abandoned town where a Magitech Motorcycle had been prepared in advance.

Since the swarm was coming from behind, there were not many Mutants along the escape route. The occasional one or two that attacked from the shadows were easily knocked aside.

Even so, in her current condition, it was somewhat beyond her capabilities. Carrying Teacher made movement difficult, while enemies could come from every direction. Besides the swarm behind her, Flying Mutants also appeared overhead, spraying scalding acid at the ground. Apart from doing her best to dodge, she was completely helpless against them.

Gradually, the clouds overhead grew thicker, congealing into blocks of ink that could not be dispersed. The torrential rain that had been brewing finally poured down.

The icy rain soaked through their clothes and made the rugged, muddy road as slippery as fish scales.

As she rounded a valley entrance, a downward slope appeared ahead. Rosaline's foot slipped, and she fell straight down, rolling several times before her forehead struck a jagged stone. She couldn't help letting out a muffled groan of pain.

But she had no time to care about herself. Forcing down the pain, she struggled to her feet and ran to check on Teacher. She found the silver-haired girl with her eyes tightly shut, her chest completely still, like a broken doll abandoned by the world. Apart from the gray-black discoloration spreading rapidly beneath her skin, there was no sign of life.

"Teacher...?"

There was no response.

In an instant, time seemed to stop. Rosaline felt her heart tremble violently, while rainwater flowed into her eyes and blurred her vision.

Even now, she could not believe that Teacher might have already left her, just like a little girl who had lost both parents in an accident yet still expected them to wake her the next morning.

The six years she had spent with Teacher amounted to more than a third of her life. In her heart, Teacher had never been merely a teacher. She had also been an idol, benefactor, and family member. Rosaline was completely unprepared—and had no idea how to face—a world without Teacher, a desolate and silent world where she was the only one left.

A hoarse cry unlike any she had ever made escaped her throat. Her bony fingers tightened around the Alloy Combat Blade's hilt, sending a flash of light slicing through the cold rain and mournful wind.

After repelling wave after wave of attacks from the Mutated Creatures, she knelt exhausted beside Teacher and reached out to wipe the mud from her face.

As her consciousness grew increasingly hazy, a relieved, almost liberated smile suddenly appeared on her beautiful face.

If the Death God is destined to take Teacher today, then it should take me too. Teacher is always so lazy and carefree. She can't even cook and needs someone to wake her up. If she moved into the underworld alone, she would never get used to it. Someone has to wait on her.

So—

She would remain here. She would remain here until her blood soaked through this rotten earth, until even the marrow had run dry, until her soul-fire was extinguished completely in the cold wind. Together with Teacher, they would become two forgotten skeletons leaning against each other.

The wind would carry the story of her and Teacher away, telling it to the next traveler from another world.