Claire Marsha (1)

When Amy's cry erupted, Tess's rapier pierced Falkoa's heart. Shortly after, Rian's eyes widened, and blood gushed from his mouth.

There were no mistakes in Tess's sword handling. Her rapier had accurately penetrated Falkoa's heart, and soon his functions would cease.

Falkoa sensed his imminent death. He wasn't very afraid. Perhaps, he thought, death was the closest drug to pleasure in this world.

"Marsha."

Surprisingly, Falkoa's last words before dying were his leader's name. It was as if he were experiencing his life passing before his eyes as the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Take me to the battlefield."

As Tess withdrew the rapier, Falkoa's body fell backward. It fell with a dull thud, and then Rian dropped to his knees, unable to bear any more physical pain.

"Rian! Are you okay?"

Amy ran in a panic. Rian looked at her with a forced smile.

"Hey, Amy. Did you take care of everything?"

"Tell me. Where and how are you injured? Tess! How could you stab him too?"

Amy yelled at Tess as if she were disappointed. But Tess was just cleaning the blood off the rapier. Then, suddenly, she smiled and squinted her eyes.

"Huhu, what are you talking about? Why are you blaming me? Even after all this, I trust I can control my attacks. The only place I stabbed was Falkoa's torso. Rian is safe."

Amy looked at Tess with a stunned expression.

"But… there's blood coming from Rian's chest?"

"What!"

Tess widened her eyes and looked at Rian. Just as Amy said, thin streams of blood were escaping.

"Rian! Rian! Are you okay? Get out of there!"

While Tess, her face paling, screamed by his side, Rian, having briefly lost consciousness, regained his senses and waved her off as he stood up.

"Don't make a fuss. It's just a small stab."

"I'm sorry, Rian. For my lack of skill…"

"Don't say that. If it had been shallower, Falkoa wouldn't have fallen. Then both of us would have been in danger. Your judgment was correct."

"Hng, but…"

Rian truly believed that. As much as one worried about a friend's safety, a deeper wound was preferable to an insufficient one. That's why Tess could achieve maximum focus.

"Let's go! A wound like this is nothing. Let's hurry. I'm worried about Shirone."

Even while the fight was in full swing, strange sounds and explosions could be heard inside the building. It was clear that she was fighting the leader. It must have been at least as dangerous as Falkoa's fight, if not more.

At that moment, the wall of the building suddenly burst open, and Shirone emerged.

"Shirone!"

Just before touching the ground, Shirone teleported backward by 10 meters. As the photonization state dissipated, Shirone, who had adopted a landing position, was pushed and slid across the ground.

"Shirone, are you okay?"

"Don't come!"

Shirone urgently shouted. The fact that Shirone, who was always composed, was unusually excited, froze his friends in place.

"It's not over yet. It's Sound Magic, so it's dangerous to approach."

Marsha's Sound Magic could freely manipulate targeted and area attacks. It was evident that the three, who were clearly exhausted from battle, would get caught up in the powerful Sound Magic that came and went.

"Not bad. To last this long against me."

Marsha bent at the waist and smiled as she emerged from the building and approached. However, her smile faded in front of Falkoa's corpse.

Falkoa was dead.

Although a bit crazy, he had genuinely enjoyed his time wandering with others at the bottom of life. The fame of the 'Parrot,' known throughout the continent, held 30% of its bloodline.

'You won't regret it, Falkoa.'

Marsha realized without looking. She was sure he would have preferred to die by the sword rather than die of a heart attack due to drug addiction.

But that was the end of sentimentality.

The fact that only a student had taken him down was unexpected, but considering Falkoa's physical condition, who had been addicted to drugs for five years, it wasn't an unusual situation.

Marsha refocused on confronting Shirone once again. She had guessed it when she passed through the first checkpoint, but confronting him directly confirmed that the combination of magics was quite balanced.

His teleportation was top-notch, and she was impressed by the power of the main offensive weapon, Photon Cannon.

The lasers were perfect as siege weapons, and although the defensive magic 'Photon Explosion' required synchronization, it had the advantage of being convertible into offensive magic as needed.

The balance established by a magician after long deliberation and evolution.

What she liked most about this was that it was a unique magic that only Shirone could learn and couldn't be learned from any other magician.

'Unlocker Magic, huh? Sounds fun. I want it.'

As Marsha thought this, Shirone also analyzed the situation variables that had arisen in the open field.

There were no particular disadvantages as he had faced numerous sanctions inside the building. Above all, there was no risk of the hostage being injured, so he could increase his power to the maximum.

"From now on, it'll be different. I'll never forgive you."

"Huhu, Shirone, you'll come to forgive me."

"On what basis? What you did was beyond the bounds of humanity."

"That's the thing, actually…"

Marsha shouted with her tongue out like a mischievous girl.

"It was all a lie!"

Shirone and his companions couldn't understand her words and were left with blank expressions. Then Marsha shouted toward the building.

"Yuna! You can come out now!"

As the sound amplified, her voice resonated toward the sea.

Shortly after, the door of the building opened, and out came a beautiful young woman.

"Could it be that girl is Yuna?"

"Yes, that's Yuna. As you can see, she's been here comfortably and without any problems. How do you feel, Shirone? Aren't you angry anymore?"

Shirone couldn't answer. Even with his exceptional insight, he couldn't even guess what Marsha was thinking.

Oh, don't you understand yet? Is it worth getting so angry over a little prank that this older sister played on her younger brother? Everything I said was a lie. So please forgive me, okay?"

Yuna tilted her head towards Shirone and his companions as she spoke.

"Noona didn't do anything wrong. In fact, it was Marsha Noona who saved me."

Rian opened his mouth in frustration.

"What the hell happened? Could someone smarter please answer this question for me?"

But neither Amy nor Tess said a word.

It was a clear mockery. That was certain. The question was the motive. What exactly was Marsha's intention in devising such a plan?

Shirone was contemplating that same aspect.

It wasn't a matter that could be dismissed as a simple joke. The Parrot Mercenary Band was destroyed. Falkoa is dead. The idea that all this was a lie was inconceivable.

"If that is really the case… then send Yuna here."

Firstly, the priority was to rescue Jiss's younger sister. But Marsha shook her head with a mischievous smile.

"Yuna, go back inside. I'll send you to your brother later."

Yuna nodded and returned to the building.

Shirone was boiling with anger. What did Marsha really want to achieve with this situation?

He couldn't feel any purpose or meaning. It seemed like nothing more than a child's behavior causing a commotion.

"What is all this about? What is it that you really want?"

"Huhu, why? Yuna is safe, isn't that enough? Ah, did you want to take her yourself as a hero of justice?"

"That's not all but…"

"Now you understand, don't you? This noona hasn't done anything wrong. You're the bad one, Shirone. You made me sick. That's why I'll never hand Yuna over to you."

Shirone activated his Spirit Zone. Before he knew it, Marsha's zone, sharp as a sword, was already aimed at his forehead.

"Hmph! I'm not going to fall into the trap now."

Shirone shouted confidently, but his mind was a whirlwind of confusion. Marsha had taken away his motivation to fight. However, she was still spreading aggressive murderous intent.

'Let's stay calm. She's showing hostility towards me. That's reason enough to fight.'

If it was a tactic to deceive the opponent, he couldn't just be on the receiving end. Moreover, since the hostage was safe, once the battle started, he wouldn't be pushed back as he was inside the building.

However, contrary to Shirone's expectations, Marsha released her Spirit Zone. Then, as if disarming herself, she opened her arms and said to Shirone.

"You can kill me if you want."

Shirone's heart sank. Because he knew the meaning of the words she had just spoken.

It was a magical incantation that she recited every time she was beaten by her adoptive father.

And then, Marsha was sincere. She was truly asking to be killed.

'What the hell is this, Marsha? Who exactly are you?'

***

Magic Association Research Room.

Sakiri, a fifth-grade certified magician and researcher, wiped the sweat off his forehead. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and more than half the buttons on his shirt were unfastened.

Clearly, he appeared exhausted. However, his forearms, clutching a mallet, still seemed brimming with strength.

"Huu, now that I've rested, shall we start again?"

"Keueu…"

Lucas, sprawled on the floor, groaned in pain.

The vice leader of the Parrot Thieves' Band who followed Arcane in the assault on the Magic Academy. However, at that time, both his legs were amputated due to Sienna's Ice Magic, Absolute Zero.

It was unknown how many hours he had been battered.

If he hadn't protected his body with Schema, he would have been in such a state that he would have died long ago.

"Here we go. Grit your teeth."

Sakiri swung the mallet again. Lucas, bombarded by the merciless beating, crawled along the floor with his arms until he finally rolled over, exhausted.

"Arrgh! Please stop! At least ask me something before hitting me! I said I would tell you everything!"

"Wait. We need to reach a thousand hits, right?"

"You crazy bastard!"

Sakiri counted to himself inwardly. Five hits left. Now four. Three.

Finally, after delivering the final blow to his side, he threw the mallet as if relieved.

The mallet rolled on the floor with a loud noise.

"Wow, that's refreshing. That's my workout for the day."

"Why, why are you doing this…?"

Lucas clutched his aching stomach and shed tears.

He was someone who had been recruited by the parrot mercenaries when they turned into a band of thieves but quickly rose to the position of vice leader due to his exceptional skills. He was a notorious villain who never lost his nerves, even in front of Arcane.

However, in front of Sakiri, he was like gum stuck to the ground.

Sakiri grabbed Lucas by the hair and threw him towards a chair.

While Lucas, who had been violently thrown to the ground, clung to the chair, Sakiri sat on the opposite side of the desk and said:

"Sit down. Quickly. Before I cut off your remaining arm, too."

Lucas managed to get up with his arms and barely sat on the chair. Then, Sakiri silently went over the documents compiled by the researchers for quite some time.

"Senior investigator, please send me back to prison. I'll tell you where Marsha is."

"Not necessary. What kind of woman do you think she is? Do you still think she'll be there?"

"Damn it! Then why did you beat me?"

Sakiri, flipping through the last page of the dossier, slammed the desk in irritation.

"Do you know what kind of criminal I hate the most? A murderer? A home wrecker? No, it's fugitives. Do you think the kingdom is that easy? Is there a limit to how shameless you can be, and you, a Class B criminal, escape? Your life is over. You won't see the sun for the rest of your life."

Lucas swallowed hard. Sakiri's words were not a threat; they were a fact.

You could tell just by observing the investigator's trend to carry out the thousand blows he promised.

"Anyway, let's get started. It'd be good if you listened carefully. My daughter is now four years old. She's at the age where she acts cute in front of her father. But I haven't been able to go home for several days now! Let's get on with it, shall we?"

"What do you want to hear?"

"Everything else is fine, just this woman called Marsha. Tell me everything you know about her."

The information Sakiri wanted was precisely that.

Claire Marsha. As a political criminal and a Class A felon, she hadn't caused much uproar, but that made her even harder to catch.

The biggest problem was that information about her was scattered all over the place. Sometimes it was said she was a fire mage, at other times it was said she used Ice Magic.

From that perspective, she seemed very cunning and meticulous. Although he searched with as many investigators as possible, he couldn't clearly identify her travel routes.

That's why Sakiri had called Lucas. He had thought from the start that the strategy had gone awry.

What they really needed to know wasn't where Marsha was but Marsha herself.