Conflict

As dusk approached, Li Yue, covered in the dust of the day after finishing her exams, slowly walked home from the academy. She wove through various streets and alleys, carefully avoiding the Holy Knight patrol routes she had already studied. She had a rough idea of why the Church was pursuing her; she felt a mix of weariness and irritation, but in the end, she chose to avoid them.

The item she had scavenged from that corpse was a crest engraved with a skeletal claw. It seemed to be some kind of token, certainly not the sort of thing a legitimate organization would issue. According to the official announcement, the attack had been carried out by a student obsessed with destruction magic who sought revenge after being discovered and suspended.

But that guy was clearly coming for me. Besides, the academy's attitude toward taboo magic is actually quite lenient. As long as no major catastrophe is caused, the only real consequences are restrictions on movement and the requirement to report one's destination whenever leaving. That's about it.

Someone wants to kill me, or rather, they want to force me to use my magic? If that's the reason, the mastermind behind this is a bit too obvious...

Li Yue frowned. For the moment, she didn't know where to start. This crest seemed to be a symbol of identity. She wondered if it belonged to an organization like her own—a group of like-minded individuals gathered for a specific purpose or bound by certain ties.

She gazed at the drifting clouds in the distance, her mind wandering. For a moment, she felt a sense of daze, unsure of her next move. If only she were like the protagonists she had seen on television in the past; whenever they lacked clues, they could just walk around the streets twice and encounter all sorts of eccentric people, eventually pinning down the culprit through some stroke of luck.

The clanking of iron armor echoed from a distance, drawing closer. It seemed a squad of Iron Guards was heading straight toward Li Yue’s position. She furrowed her brow; this path was supposed to be outside their usual patrol route.

“Never-ending... If you want to find trouble with me, do you really value your lives that little?” Li Yue sighed softly. She stopped looking for side paths and simply walked straight toward the knights.

A squad of knights wearing silver-white armor with gold stripes appeared in her vision. They marched with disciplined strides, their swords at their sides as they moved through the nearly deserted alley.

Li Yue’s pace slowed further as she prepared herself for combat. Her hand already rested on the gun holster at her side. In a mere heartbeat, she could draw her weapons.

The lead knight noticed her. After a brief moment of eye contact, Li Yue sensed a flicker of excitement and tension in his gaze. He, in turn, caught the flash of hostility in hers.

“Good day, miss. We are investigating yesterday's arson case in this area. Please cooperate with an inspection.” The lead knight offered a polite salute, attempting to make his abrupt action seem more civil.

An inspection... That strange crest was still in her pocket. If she tried to move it into her ring now, she would have to reach into her pocket first. Doing so would leave her completely exposed. If she didn't get the chance to draw her guns, the risk would be immense.

She watched as the knights gradually surrounded her, the sensation of danger and hostility closing in from all sides.

I could just kill them all... No one would notice. Or rather, I could just deal with any witnesses as well, and there wouldn't be any problems... But if I do that, what happens to my future? Then again, if I'm caught, isn't the result the same?

“I’m sorry, but you have no right to do this,” Li Yue protested. As she looked at the men surrounding her, fragments of memory suddenly flashed through her mind. Those blood-soaked memories resurfaced at her most critical moment, adding insult to injury. “This is my student ID. I was one of the victims that day. I have nothing to do with that incident.”

“Miss, please cooperate. We won't do anything excessive...” The captain of the knight squad looked into her blood-red eyes and felt an inexplicable chill. A dull ache throbbed in his abdomen—the spot where he had once been wounded by a blood demon. The sharp blood claws had pierced straight through him. Back then, he could only stare helplessly into the blood demon's gore-stained, monstrous eyes, utterly powerless.

Now, the intense hostility in this girl's gaze made him relive that moment. That feeling of death creeping over him, that soul-shuddering aura, that bone-chilling presence... it was exactly the same as back then.

He couldn't help himself; he drew his silver sword an inch from its scabbard, struggling to suppress his survival instincts.

“Please raise your hands and do not resist.” A glowing chain slowly approached Li Yue. The silver-white chain, infused with holy light, seemed to possess a will of its own, radiating hostility toward her. Even from a distance, she could feel its scorching heat.

I really... hate this feeling...

“Get lost!” Li Yue growled. In that instant, the silver-white chain lashed out. With a bang, Li Yue fired a shot, knocking the silver chain aside. The surrounding knights, sensing the atmosphere reach a breaking point, all drew their silver swords.

Li Yue let out a cold sneer. Once upon a time, she had held a silver sword herself to face those abominations. And now, she was being lumped in with them. It was truly... laughable.

“You came here specifically for me, didn't you? Just because I carry the aura of what you call an evil god, right?” Li Yue sneered, holding her twin guns and pointing them to her left and right.

“That... please understand. If the fault lies with us, I am sure the benevolent Pope will apologize in person.” The knight gripped his sword hilt. “If we have offended you, please grant us your forgiveness. For the Divine Lord.”

Good... I don't have to hold back anymore. Just like this... I'll kill to my heart's content.

“Stop!” A powerful surge of gravity descended. It felt as if decades of weight had suddenly been dropped onto the knights, slamming their bodies violently into the ground. Their armor crumpled under the pressure, cracking the stone pavement and leaving shallow craters where they fell.

“You dare act like this without an arrest warrant signed by the academy? Does that Pope think he can back you up in everything?” Ripples distorted the air as a pale blue figure appeared before Li Yue. A gentle power enveloped her, helping her suppress the intense urge to kill rising in her heart.

Ha... ha... I didn't expect... you'd come to save their lives...