The girl tilted her head to look at the dust rising from the distant hillside.
She stretched out her small hand.
“Come with me…”
“Mm!”
The white wolf panted heavily and extended a paw.
Taking her hand, the two quickly crossed the lakeshore and entered the dense forest on the other side.
They vanished.
The galloping group of riders immediately spread out, speeding up as they charged into the forest in a pincer movement to surround them.
Silently, fine ripples disturbed the lake’s surface again, like blades of grass bending to lightly caress the water…
A wild daisy by the lake had been quietly plucked by someone.
The urgent sound of horse hooves reached the lakeshore, then slowed down.
The Priestess led her horse, walking unhurriedly toward the spot where the radiance had appeared.
Feeling the residual energy… a trace of melancholy touched her brow, and a self-deprecating smile played on her lips.
She slowly knelt, clasping her hands and closing her eyes in devout prayer.
‘Holy Light, please guide me…’
When she opened her eyes, her pupils were tinged with a golden glow.
A blurred silhouette appeared before her eyes.
The evening chill brushed past, and the image faded slightly.
It was as if even the wind was resisting.
Following the hazy traces of those joined hands, she stepped into the forest ahead.
That small figure slowly turned around, waving a hand as if she had known all along.
Everything was gone; no trace could be found.
With a bitter smile and a shake of her head, the Priestess turned back to the shore, stopping at the spot where the wild daisy had been picked.
…
She bent down, picked a few wild daisies, held them in her arms, and quietly stared at the moon’s reflection in the lake.
Her thoughts drifted to parts unknown.
Another set of urgent hoofbeats approached from a distance, stopping behind her.
“Priestess… we found no sign of the target in that direction.”
“I understand,” the Priestess said, her voice calm and devoid of emotion.
“Do you have anything else to say?”
“I am just very tired, Priestess.”
The Deacon let out a long sigh and slid off his horse.
“Honesty is important, Deacon. There are no old fogies here.”
The Deacon remained silent, leading his horse to the water.
The horse let out heavy breaths, gulping down the cool water.
“…Tell me,” the Deacon reached out to stroke the horse’s mane.
He paused, then said slowly, “Does the Mark grant the mission, or does the mission grant the Mark? At the very least, the gods have never explicitly stated what our mission truly is.”
“That is a blasphemous statement regarding the oracle, Deacon.”
The Priestess was slightly stunned, looking at him with a faint smile.
A soft Holy Light gathered in the Deacon’s palm as he gently stroked a wound on the horse’s body made by sharp claws.
“Whether it is blasphemy, the Gods will judge. At least there is no hypocrisy in my Holy Light.”
Hearing this, the Priestess let out a soft chuckle.
“Hehehe…”
“What are you laughing at?” the Deacon asked, looking at her.
“Nothing…”
The glow in the Priestess’s eyes gradually faded, but she continued to look in the direction where the river flowed away.
“What is your name?”
The Deacon smiled faintly, rubbing the affectionate face of the horse.
“Just one of millions of devout believers, Priestess.”
The Priestess’s smile deepened.
She brushed her hair behind her ear and lowered her head to look at her mount.
“Then, my fellow devout believer, how about we continue our search for the hidden [Candidate Saint]? Those rats are still watching, you know.”
But her horse was busy burying its head in the grass, munching on the tender tips beneath the wild daisies.
The Deacon stared at her blankly.
“You are truly beautiful right now, Priestess. I rarely see you smile so happily.”
He offered his praise honestly and bluntly.
“Thank you for the compliment, Deacon.”
She raised her head, her gaze drifting far away.
“I was just thinking… where should I spend the rest of my life after leaving the Church?”
The Deacon was first stunned.
‘This matter doesn’t seem to have anything to do with you.’
He was then filled with confusion.
The Priestess withdrew her gaze and led her horse away.
“Perhaps…”
She slowly walked into the distance, clutching the wild daisies.
The messenger Deacon hesitated to speak but eventually shook his head, shouting toward her back, “I wish you all the best, Aleia!”
He climbed onto his horse and plunged into the dense forest, continuing the mission to find the [Candidate Saint].
—
A pitch-black underground river.
Inside a [Mana Barrier], under the glow of an illumination spell.
Ino, in her Moon Wolf form, sat obediently, staring wide-eyed at Lukoko, who was right in front of her.
‘Such a cool doggy — it’s a wolf! I want to pet her!’
Lukoko’s eyes shone.
She had absolutely no resistance to handsome wolf-dogs.
‘So… soft… but I can’t eat her.’
Ino’s eyes didn’t blink as she stared at the chubby girl.
She felt like she was about to drool.
She hadn’t eaten for days.
Now that they were out of danger, hunger began to hammer at her brain.
“Hold on a bit longer. We’re about to leave the [Teleportation Jamming Barrier].”
Lukoko couldn’t help but reach out and pat the wolf’s head.
‘Ohhh~ it feels so good!’
“Mm~”
Ino couldn’t help herself either.
Her tongue lolled out, and saliva dripped…
A flash of desire appeared in her azure pupils.
‘That was close! I almost took a bite.’
The brief interaction ended, and the two continued to stare at each other while the current pushed the [Mana Barrier] forward.
…
[System Notification: You have left the range of the [Teleportation Jamming Barrier]. The skill [Blink] has been unlocked.]
Lukoko’s expression brightened.
She grabbed the wolf’s paw with her small hand and couldn’t help but squeeze the paw pad.
“Get ready… let’s go! Ino.”
“Okay…”
Ino’s other wolf paw instinctively touched the small, fleshy hand.
‘So hungry… smells so good.’
A dazzling Holy Light lit up, and the fluctuations of teleportation grew stronger.
“Are you very hungry?”
Lukoko’s questioning voice drifted into her ears, sounding a bit muffled.
“Hungry…”
Just as Ino spoke, she suddenly realized she was biting something.
She was shocked to find that, at some point, she had taken Lukoko’s small head into her mouth and was licking away.
She hurriedly let go.
“I’m sorry! I’m really sorry! I didn’t mean to~”
She bowed repeatedly to apologize, her voice bordering on tears.
“It’s fine, it’s fine…”
Lukoko’s lips couldn’t help but twitch.
She inexplicably remembered a story about a girl in a red hood and her grandmother.
‘What was it called? Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf? That didn’t seem right…’
*Whoosh!*
The two figures disappeared.
—
Inside a guest room, the second one from the left on the third floor of the [Crossroads Market] tavern.
*Hum!*
Ripples of teleportation billowed out.
*Thud! Thud!*
Two figures fell.
‘Hiss~ Why is it a free fall again!’
Lukoko rubbed her soft little bottom.
“Where is this…”
Ino looked around and asked curiously.
Lukoko let out a mischievous cackle.
“A tavern… two streets away from… your house.”
“You!”
Ino immediately became alert, baring her teeth.
“You are… mmm!!”
Before she could finish, a large steak was suddenly stuffed into her mouth, blocking her next words.
Lukoko placed the wooden plate that had held the steak back on the table.
“Quiet… down. Don’t let… the people outside… hear you. I’m not… on the same side… as those… Church fanatics.”
There was a note on the table that read: “Koko, you and Ino stay obediently in the room. Mama has set up a defensive barrier; it’s very safe. Ino must be very hungry; there are steaks prepared for her on the table.”
At the end of the note, an unidentified wild daisy was drawn.
“Really? Mmm…”
Ino shrank into the corner, tearing at the large steak and speaking indistinctly.
She was truly starving.
Even if she had to fight for her life, she had to fill her stomach first.
Only after she was full would she have a chance.
Seeing the ‘big dog’ huddled in the corner, Lukoko scratched her head awkwardly and handed the note to her.
“Here~ this was… left by… Mama. She is… your mother’s… good friend.”
While chewing vigorously, Ino scanned the words on the note.
When she saw the wild daisy at the end, she immediately chose to believe it.
“Sorry… thank you.”
*Boom!!!*
A loud explosion suddenly erupted outside the window, and the light of fire instantly splashed into the room.
“Ugh!”
Ino was startled, and a piece of meat she hadn’t chewed properly slid down her throat.
“Gack! Mmm!”
Her eyes started to roll back from choking.
“Here~”
Lukoko didn’t care about the noise outside.
Seeing her ‘big dog’ choking, she hurriedly handed over the water from the table.
“…Gulp, gulp… cough, cough… thank you.”
Ino finally caught her breath, her wolf eyes filled with gratitude as she looked at Lukoko.
Lukoko waved her hand, moved a stool, stood on it, and leaned over the windowsill to look out.
“Come… let’s… watch the show~”
A hundred meters away, a building had been smashed to pieces by an [Explosion] spell, and a raging fire was burning.
In the firelight, many silhouettes could be seen moving through the building.
Curses, angry shouts, and the sound of clashing weapons appeared intermittently, and the glow of magic flashed constantly.
Someone else’s attic had a hole smashed into it.
People screamed as they jumped from the windows, not knowing if they had broken their legs.
Looking elsewhere, there were collapsed buildings and charred ruins everywhere.
There were also passersby either hiding in corners or fleeing toward the church in panic.
A huge gap had been smashed into the distant city wall.
Following the gap, on the riverbank further outside the city, a dark, massive rear end was stuck upside down!
An icicle that had not yet melted was accurately pierced into the backside, and two large, round magic orbs swayed in the wind.
It was unknown who had committed such a cruel deed.
Lukoko narrowed her eyes and looked closely, confirming it was a Horned Demon.
It probably wasn’t dead yet.
Looking at the scene, the battle seemed to be nearing its end.
It was a bit of a pity she hadn’t seen the whole battle; it must have been quite exciting.
Ino tossed the last bite of meat into her mouth.
“Mmm~ gulp, gulp.”
She drank all the water in the cup.
“Haa~~”
She let out a long breath and finally asked the question she wanted to ask: “Why do you… talk with a stutter?”
“I’m not even… one year old… yet!”
Lukoko glanced at her.
“But you clearly look four or five years old?”
Ino also leaned on the windowsill, looking out.
But before she could see the situation outside clearly, “Here~” several tentacles poked out, wiggling in front of her face.
“Eek!!”
Ino’s scalp tightened.
Her wolf head snapped back into the room, and she fell onto her butt.
“Haven’t you… seen me before?”
Lukoko asked curiously.
“I wasn’t in my right mind then…”
Ino scratched her head, her wolf face full of embarrassment.
“I can’t remember… hehe.”
*Hum! Swish, swish, swish!*
*Rumble!*
Several more loud noises came, and the entire tavern shook…
“Who is fighting?”
Ino scrambled up and peered out curiously.
“That big commotion should be made by that old white-robed geezer and the leader of the assassins.”
Lukoko pointed to the deep pit that had just been blown open, where a charred figure lay.
On the other side, the Bishop of the Awakening Mission floated in the air.
His magnificent robes fluttered, and he was covered in Holy Light.
Within his calm eyes, a storm of judgment seemed to be brewing.
The Holy Light on his scepter grew more dazzling.
The incantation was about to be completed, ready to give the heretic in the pit the final blow.
Suddenly, a slender figure leaped out from the darkness, holding a shiny metal rod, and struck the back of the Bishop’s head.
“Who — “
*Thud! Crack!*
“Aaaah!!”
*Bang!*
From the moment the shadowy figure appeared to the Bishop’s alarm, to the [Mana Barrier] being shattered by the sneak attack, and finally, the Bishop being slapped down and crashing through someone’s roof — it all happened in an instant.
The Bishop’s reaction was fast enough to at least avoid being hit directly on the back of the skull, but he certainly couldn’t escape a few broken ribs.
Having succeeded in one strike, the shadowy figure grabbed the person in the pit and fled.
*Crash!*
Wood chips flew as the Bishop surged back into the sky.
His hair was disheveled, his crown was nowhere to be found, and his magnificent priestly robes were torn to shreds by the impact.
His breathing was like a bellows, and he was hunched over with bloodshot eyes.
He looked as miserable as could be.
He glared at the battlefield under the firelight but could no longer find any trace of the enemy.
“Serves you right!”
Seeing the old man who used to be high and mighty, looking down his nose at others, in such a miserable state, Ino spat fiercely.
She then shrank back into the room, perhaps afraid the old man would see her and notice something.
Finally, she could relax.
She was so tired…
“Don’t be afraid~ he can’t see… us.”
Lukoko watched the miserable Bishop with a faint smile and waved her hand at the cautious Ino.
[Perception Masking] was active.
If her [Levitation] was skilled enough, Lukoko might have flown over right then.
A sneak attack!
She would use her size 23 boots to kick that low-health old fogey’s butt!
*Whew… whew…*
Steady snoring sounds came.
Ino had fallen asleep right there on the floor…
*Heave-ho~*
Lukoko jumped off the stool, pulled the blanket from the bed, and gently covered her.
‘Sleep well, poor kid.’