Chapter 12

The air froze at Luan’s words. Something was attached to Linda’s back…?

“W-what? What are you talking about?” Linda instinctively tried to feel behind her, shrinking back. “W-what’s attached? Is it a ghost or something?”

“Luan, tell us exactly what you see,” I asked him seriously.

Luan, clutching a spirit tightly, bit his lip and spoke in a trembling voice. “I don’t know how to describe it. But… there’s some kind of black shadow hanging behind Linda noona. It’s like… it’s sucking something out of her.”

“Sucking something out…?” Claire narrowed her eyes, staring at Linda.

Linda turned pale and grabbed Zion’s arm tightly. “Wait, hold on… Am I okay? Is there something weird attached to me…?”

“Linda, stay still,” Zion said, calming her down. “We’ll check it out.”

I gathered Holy Power at my fingertips and activated a Sacred Technique. “Lumino Vision.”

My vision brightened as I scanned Linda’s surroundings. And… I definitely saw something. A faint, wriggling black shadow perched on Linda’s back, clinging to her body like a living creature.

“Darn it… It’s a Mana Parasite,” I muttered through gritted teeth.

“Mana… Parasite?” Linda asked with a terrified face. “Huh? Is that something horrible attached to me? Eek… Get it off, please…”

Linda’s scared face and dialect felt oddly cute, but the situation was far from cute. I looked at Zion and said, “Hold Linda still. I need to remove this.”

“Got it,” Zion firmly held Linda. Even then, Linda kept fussing.

“Wait! Will it hurt? Can you do it without it hurting?”

“It won’t hurt, so stay still,” I reassured her, raising my hand. “Alright, here we go. Don’t move.”

I focused Holy Power at my fingertips and aimed at the parasite on Linda’s back. “Holy Flame.”

A sacred flame shot from my fingertips toward the shadow clinging to Linda’s back. The moment it touched the parasite, it let out a bizarre scream. But it wasn’t over yet. The parasite tried to burrow deeper, as if making a last-ditch effort.

“Go away!” I poured more Holy Power into it. “Lumino Purge!”

Linda flinched and yelled, “Ouch! It’s a bit hot! What’s this? You said it wouldn’t burn!”

“It won’t burn, so stay still!” I shouted at her, pouring more Holy Power.

Finally, the parasite let out a scream and detached from her body. It vanished into thin air in an instant. I took a deep breath and checked on Linda.

“It’s over. You’re safe now,” I sighed in relief.

Linda slumped to the ground, wiping her chest. “Ha… ha… That was really scary… I hate Demon Beasts for this reason… Why does this always happen to me…?”

As Linda gradually calmed down, we prepared to move again. But Luan still had an uneasy expression.

“Luan, what’s wrong?” I asked quietly.

Luan turned to look at me and said, “That shadow earlier… It’s not over yet.”

My heart sank at his words. “What?”

“That shadow… It didn’t disappear. It went somewhere else,” Luan’s voice trembled.

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We fell silent at Luan’s words. If the shadow didn’t disappear but went somewhere else… It meant the situation wasn’t over.

“First, let’s reassure the merchant group,” I said as calmly as possible. “We don’t need to give them any more anxiety.”

Zion and Claire nodded in agreement. We returned to the merchant group and briefly explained the situation, trying to give the impression that everything was safe.

“All issues have been resolved,” I said calmly. “You don’t need to worry anymore.”

The merchant group’s representative relaxed his tense expression and said, “That’s a relief. But since we’re still in the forest, we won’t let our guard down.”

He pondered for a moment before adding, “It would be good to regroup once we reach the next village. We can also gather necessary supplies there.”

“The next village?” Claire asked.

“Yes, it’s called Rivertern,” the representative answered. “A quiet village at the edge of the forest. But recently, there have been strange rumors. They say the villagers are avoiding outsiders.”

“Avoiding outsiders?” I repeated.

The representative nodded. “Yes. I don’t know exactly why, but some merchants who visited said they felt a chilling atmosphere.”

I nodded at his words. “Understood. We’ll keep an eye on the situation as we move.”

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When we arrived at Rivertern village, it was immediately clear that the representative’s words weren’t exaggerated. The village seemed peaceful and quiet on the surface, but the villagers glanced at us and quickly averted their eyes or went inside and locked their doors.

“What’s with this cold reception?” Claire muttered in a low voice.

“Right,” Zion agreed, looking around. “It’s weird for them to avoid outsiders this much.”

After a moment of thought, I noticed an elderly man sitting near the village entrance. His clothes were shabby, but he had an observant gleam in his eyes.

“Let’s ask that old man,” I gestured.

We slowly approached him and greeted him. “Hello, sir. Could we ask you a few things about this village?”

The old man looked us up and down for a moment, then slowly nodded. “You must be part of the escort merchant group.”

“That’s right. But the villagers seem to be avoiding us. Is there a reason for that?”

“Is there something here?” I cautiously asked.

The old man sighed and looked around. Then, in a low voice, he said, “Don’t stay here too long. This village doesn’t welcome outsiders.”

“Why not?” Claire tilted her head and asked.

The old man hesitated for a moment before speaking. “There’s a rumor that a strange ritual took place on the outskirts of the village not long ago. Some outsiders were seen doing something suspicious near the village.”

“A ritual?” Zion frowned and asked again.

“Exactly. Some say they saw strange lights and bizarre magic circles.”

I felt puzzled and asked, “But sir, how do you know it was a strange magic circle?”

The old man hesitated, then nodded and replied, “When I was young, I studied magic. Though I never became a proper mage, I can recognize basic magic circles or structures.”

We glanced at each other. Claire raised her eyebrows and asked, “Then, do you remember what kind of magic circle it was?”

The old man let out a deep sigh and said, “It’s too old a memory to recall exactly… but it seemed like ‘forbidden magic.’ Such magic is often related to life or soul, and it’s usually a banned technique.”

“Forbidden magic…” My heart sank at his words. “Then, did you see who performed the ritual?”

The old man shook his head. “I didn’t see it myself. But if what the villagers saw is true, they were likely outsiders. That’s all.”

I nodded and replied, “Thank you, sir. That’s important information.”

The old man slowly stood up and said, “But be careful. If you hear any strange rumors while you’re here, it’s best to leave as soon as possible.”

With that, the old man slowly walked toward the center of the village. We watched his retreating figure and fell into silence.

—

Just then, Linda, who had been quiet until now, climbed down from the top of the carriage and stretched loudly. She walked over to us with a half-asleep face and said, “Ugh… I don’t even know how long I slept~. So, what’s everyone talking about?”

Claire burst out laughing. “You were sleeping like a log? We’ve been talking for a while, and you didn’t say a word. I was wondering.”

Linda rubbed her eyes and said, “Well, I was just sleepy, so I took a nap~. You guys are so impatient. Did something happen?”

“Ugh…” Zion crossed his arms and said, “By the way, Linda, have you ever heard of forbidden magic?”

“Forbidden magic?” Linda tilted her head. “I’ve heard of it. But isn’t that like the ultimate taboo among mages? Where did that come up?”

After Claire briefly explained the situation, Linda’s eyes widened. “Huh… that happened near the village? Then maybe it’s still there?”

“That’s why we need to investigate,” I said, looking at Linda. “As a mage, can you detect traces of something like that?”

Linda rested her chin on her hand and thought for a moment. “Well… I can try. But if it’s too old, it might be hard to find.”

“That’s enough,” I nodded. “Then let’s head to the outskirts of the village first.”

—

As we headed toward the outskirts, we sorted out the situation. According to the old man, the ritual definitely took place near the village, and there was a possibility of traces related to forbidden magic. Linda, still half-asleep, followed while grumbling.

“Ugh… I really wanted to sleep more. I’m so tired~.”

“You were wide awake when we were being chased by that Demon Beast earlier,” Claire teased.

“That’s because my life was on the line! It’s safe now, isn’t it?” Linda retorted sharply.

“Linda, focus,” Zion said to her. “We can’t afford to miss anything.”

“Okay, okay~,” Linda shrugged and replied.

—

When we arrived at the outskirts, we began our investigation. Linda focused her magic to search for traces, while Claire and Zion kept watch. Luan quietly followed me, holding a spirit, and observed our surroundings.

“Hmm…” Linda said, emitting a faint light from her fingertips. “There’s something here… but it seems like an old trace.”

“Does that mean it’s still there?” I asked, and Linda nodded.

“Right. It’s not going to disappear anytime soon. The ritual must’ve been quite powerful.”

“Then… if we follow this, we might find some clues,” Zion said, gripping his sword.

We followed the traces Linda detected and moved deeper into the forest. As the aura grew stronger, a sinister energy began to envelop us.

And then…

Suddenly, a bizarre sound came from the forest.

“Whaaa… help me!!!!” Linda screamed.