EVHE 68

Chapter 68

The long battle seemed to have finally come to an end. Just in case the magic circle reactivated, I scuffed the drawing on the ground with my foot to erase it.

Calix, who had locked eyes with me, strode straight toward me.

“Turn your head.”

Instead, I shut my eyes. Immediately, there was a heavy noise, followed by a short, pained groan from the man who had been collapsed in front of me—then silence.

The next moment, Calix pulled me into a sudden embrace. My eyes flew open in surprise, black hair swaying right in front of me.

“I told you to stay still.”

“How could I possibly just stay still there?!”

At his scolding tone the moment he arrived, I couldn’t help but snap back, equally indignant.

“They were aiming for you, and yet you came here anyway?”

“T-that’s…”

It was a complete lie, but I had nothing else to say, so I shut my mouth tightly. I could feel his breath brushing against the side of my neck.

“You never listen to me, not once.”

“If you understood how I feel, you’d try listening for once yourself.”

I pouted at Calix’s hypocrisy, unable to hold back.

“Anyway…”

I let out a long sigh.

“I’m just glad you’re safe.”

I didn’t know if it was really over, but it was such a relief that he was still alive and unharmed.

Calix looked at me as if he couldn’t understand a thing. That irritated me so much I pinched his cheek, making him grimace in annoyance.

“Anyway…”

I didn’t get the chance to finish telling him we should head back to the safe zone.

A sharp, prickling sensation spread through me as if I’d been shocked. My whole body trembled. My hair stood on end, and it felt like static was crawling across my skin.

“Did you feel that just now?”

Gripped by the ominous aura, I clutched tightly at Calix’s sleeve.

He grabbed hold of me, then suddenly twisted his body. I was dragged along, clinging to him as we spun—at least half a turn.

Crack—!

The chilling sound of something solid splitting filled the air. The comforting sense of safety from before felt like a lie in the face of that horrifying noise.

I searched the space with my eyes. The protective barriers we had layered around us had shattered pitifully.

“…What?”

Panicking, I checked over myself. But I wasn’t hurt at all.

That’s when Calix, who had been holding me up, suddenly slumped toward me. I caught him quickly, wrapping my arms around him to keep him from falling.

“C-Calix?”

His body felt as heavy as waterlogged cotton. I could hear faint groans of pain close to my ear.

My eyes slid instinctively to his side. Something that hadn’t been there before—a shard of purple crystal, blood-soaked, was embedded in his flank.

I gasped.

“Kh…”

Calix forced himself to pull away, his face contorting in agony.

“Kassius…?”

He muttered the word, his face drained of color. Even speaking seemed too much for him; blood seeped from where his teeth dug into his lips.

Kassius. The moment I heard the name, I remembered. A forbidden spell, barely mentioned in the original story—so fleeting I hadn’t even retained it.

Which meant… we had fallen into that spell’s grasp.

I had thought the problem was only the suppressive magic circle, but that clearly hadn’t been the end of it.

“D-don’t talk.”

I pulled Calix back into my arms. He let his head fall against my shoulder, weak.

Even pulling a single amulet from my pocket made my hands tremble uncontrollably with fear.

I activated a healing spell right away. But the wound showed no signs of closing.

Didn’t you say it heals any kind of injury?!

Luke from Rose Tower had sworn by it with such confidence. Yet all my mana poured out uselessly, with no effect at all.

The magic circle I had erased reappeared, spewing purple smoke as it reformed. The runes inscribed around it quickly turned black.

The air grew suddenly, unbearably heavy again. Darkness seemed to sink down over just this place, swallowing the light.

My pupils shook violently. My mind went blank white. I had no idea what to do next.

I couldn’t withstand the renewed pressure and the weight of Calix in my arms. I fell hard onto my backside.

And to make matters worse—the enemies Calix had slain earlier, cut down by his sword, began to rise again.

The corpses were moving. Their grotesque motions were no longer of this world.

“Do you… still have the brooch?”

I heard his faltering voice.

I nodded frantically in reply. Calix closed both his hands tightly around mine.

“The method I taught you… do you remember?”

He was asking about how to use the brooch.

If I used its power, I could safely teleport a few meters away. But the brooch was inscribed only for me.

“What the hell are you saying?!”

Wasn’t he telling me to abandon him and flee alone? There was no way I could do that.

“Don’t be stubborn. I’ll hold them off meanwhile.”

Calix summoned his remaining strength, taking deep, ragged breaths. His dark red eyes, losing their clarity, fixed intently on me.

He picked up his sword from the ground, sending one last fierce strike of sword energy at the enemies behind us—then let it drop.

He had clearly reached his limit. The more he moved, the more sticky wetness seeped into my clothes where our bodies touched.

What do I do?

Olivia still hadn’t arrived.

If anyone could heal Calix, now would have been the perfect time. But in this vast space, it was only the two of us.

I couldn’t fight them off alone. Even if I could, I couldn’t heal him.

His eyes, once so sharp, fluttered closed. His life force was fading with every passing second.

Is this really the end?

The thought I had always shoved away struck me in full, crushing reality.

“No, no! Stay with me!”

I held him upright in my arms, but he had already lost consciousness.

The amulet still glowed faintly, but that was all. My shield, honed for so long, had cracked apart and was useless now.

There’s nothing I can do.

The realization made tears threaten to spill.

Strength, wit, cleverness—I had none of them.

I thought I had overcome so much until now.

I had always believed I would find a way forward. That there would always be a solution.

…But.

Looking back, everything I had overcome had been thanks to luck.

There had always been someone helping me, or the situation itself had shifted in my favor.

It had never been my own strength.

That was why I hadn’t changed the original flow of the story until now. Why I couldn’t prevent this disaster either.

Maybe it was inevitable. After all, I wasn’t the heroine of this novel.

So this time too…

Hopelessness dug deep into my heart.

The crushing emptiness was unbearable.

“….”

I pulled out the brooch from my pocket. Its jewel shimmered red, ready to cast magic at any moment.

I could flee alone whenever I wanted.

I clenched it tightly in my palm. The metal rim dug painfully into my skin.

…But I can’t run away.

That day at the riding ground with Calix, I had vowed never to give up.

I had resolved to keep moving forward.

And when I thought about it… the only reason I’d been able to keep going was because Calix had always held onto me.

So this time, I have to save him.

I carefully laid him down on the ground. Tears blurred my vision, dripping down without stopping.

I wiped them roughly with my sleeve, then fastened the brooch to my collar.

Gripping Calix’s fallen sword with both hands, I lifted it.

The real blade was far heavier than I had imagined. My arms trembled from the tension of facing enemies up close.

I pointed the blade toward the twisted corpses. They didn’t hesitate, no longer bound by life.

“Phew…”

I inhaled deeply, then exhaled. A short chant, and the brooch released a burst of light.

The brooch held four uses of explosive magic. There were far more enemies than that. I would have to take several out at once.

It was an overwhelmingly unfavorable fight. We might both be swallowed by them.

It’s true—I am weak.

I lacked the knowledge of this world, the experience, the achievements.

And yet… perhaps I had still managed to change many things.

I was no longer the villainess of the Empire. I had become someone who could enjoy a simple, peaceful life.

The mansion no longer felt suffocating. I had friends to laugh with.

Nox, though dangerous, wasn’t nearly as terrifying as in the novel. And Olivia—though her intentions were unclear, I wasn’t convinced she meant me harm.

Even Calix, whom I thought I’d be enemies with forever, had become close to me. I had received so much from him.

If I had been willing to give up, I never would have tried to escape the dead-end ending in the first place.

Even if it seemed I hadn’t achieved much, I couldn’t just stop moving forward.

I can do this.

The hopelessness vanished, replaced with a newfound determination.

My mind finally cleared.

Then—plop. Something wet landed on my head. The ground dampened as droplets fell.

Startled, I looked up. Above were still the same dark, heavy clouds.

But what was falling from that sky…

In the original story, when Olivia’s Estella appeared, it had been pure white snow.

Snow unmatched in purity, said to be God’s blessing that healed all.

When Olivia saved Calix in the novel, the Alois Forest had been described as blanketed in white snow.

But now, things were different.

What fell upon the forest wasn’t snow, but raindrops.

And those endless droplets… were the same blood-red hue as the mana engraved within me.