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As Erin continued on in her relentless advance, she came across unabating waves of foes in the forms of Demoids and also people. She didn’t feel terrible about cutting down the Demoids but the people she slew were beginning to take a toll on her. Some of them were plain terrible people in essence but most of them were just victims of the circumstances, driven mad by the unbridled chaos. She was forced to take their lives to save the lives of others.

When respite eventually came as she stumbled upon a seemingly quiet part of a borough, Erin understood she had killed more than she ever had in her life before the emergence of this mayhem. She comforted herself with the fact that in doing so, she also saved more lives than ever before. A person killed was a life or two saved. On the dimmer bright side, she had obtained quite an amount of experience from her crusade, though not as much as she wished as her victims were low levels.

[Level: 53]

[Skill Points: 12]

[Ability Points: 12]

[Level Progression: 20%]

At least there was much to gain from her killings, Erin told herself. And the killings weren’t senseless. They were committed as a final means. She had always tried to be civil with her victims before she felled them but they were all either too far gone or their discrimination against other races got the best of them. In the end, Erin was forced to swing her blade at these people.

Sensing no threat in the vicinity, Erin plopped herself right down on a large piece of rubble that was just at the right height. She dispelled her sword and allowed herself a few breathers. As she had accumulated a great deal of points, she decided to use them now since she had the inkling her path would only get more strenuous.

After making sure there was indeed no other presence in the vicinity, she devoted her focus to her information stats. With the number of points she had, she already knew which Arcane Art she would invest in. It was none other than the versatile and nigh unparallel Magic Art, Spatial Magic.

Erin’s Spatial Magic was currently level four. Unlike the other Arcane Arts, Spatial Magic took a total of four points just to raise a single level and after it passed the level five mark, the required points became doubled. As Erin had a total of twelve points in the skill aspect, it was just enough to raise her Spatial Magic by two levels. A surge of knowledge instantly flooded her mind. She could feel the efficiency of her Spatial Magic rising.

[Spatial Magic: Level 4 increased to Level 6]

Erin stared at the roof of a building that took up a vast space just across from her. It was also one of the few remaining buildings that were largely whole and unharmed by the bedlam. As she stared intently at the roof, her vision began to warp and when everything snapped back into place, she was now on the roof and she was assailed with a mild headache.

This time, she stared at something much further in the distance. As fate would have it, she saw a man being surrounded on all sides by Demoids on the corner of a street. Her vision once again began to warp as if pulling her sight close to his face. When her vision straightened, she was now standing in between the man and the Demoids. She endured the throbbing headache and brandished her spell sword.

The Demoids lunged at her, not caring about her identity or the threatening aura she emitted. Erin stunned the Demoids with an overloaded Light Drop and while the Demoids were dazed by the blinding radiance, she decapitated and dismembered the Demoids before burning them with Essence Flare. Under just half a minute, Erin had successfully slain the Demoids without incurring any wounds or injuries.

[Experience gained +20% - Level Progression: 40%]

Erin turned around to face the man but just as she was about to ask about the man’s state, the scent of women and girls drifted into her nose. She could also smell the distress and despair laced on the scent. Most curious of all, the same scent was wafting off from the man in front of her. Erin narrowed her gaze.

“Do you have a family?” she asked.

The man seemed stunned by Erin’s question but his stupefaction lasted only briefly. He shook his head. “I don’t.”

“A female companion or a lover?”

“I-I don’t…, m’lady.”

Erin sighed and suddenly drove her foot into the man’s belly, sending him slamming against the wall behind him. The man retched and dropped to his knees, gasping for the air that was knocked out of him.

“Stay here. Don’t go anywhere if you wish to live. If I discover I’m wrong, then I apologise and heal your injuries, but if I’m not wrong…” Erin didn’t finish her sentence and turned around to leave.

The man didn’t give a response, not that Erin stuck around and waited for one. She followed the scent to a nearby back alley. She had used Life Sense in the middle of her haste and she muttered a curse when she found out she could only sense a single life instead of two. The scene she arrived upon was of a dead woman’s corpse being feasted on by a beastly-looking Demoid while a little girl hid behind a large crate just beside the Demoid, cupping her mouth shut to avoid any voice leaking out of her.

When the little girl saw Erin’s appearance at the corner she appeared from, the little girl inadvertently let out a small shriek of hope that ironically in turn rose a heavy tinge of despair. The Demoid stopped its feast and looked around after catching the faint noise. Its gaze immediately fell on Erin, but its interest in the Fox-kin didn’t last for long. It then turned its head and found the little girl hiding behind the crate.

The Demoid flung the crate away and lunged for the little girl. Erin thrust her hand out and cast the most recent spell she obtained from levelling up Spatial Magic, Aport. She felt a huge chunk of her Mana being drained with that single use of the spell but the result turned out well. The little girl was suddenly and instantly in front of her and she scooped the little girl into her arms.

The Demoid snarled at Erin for taking its prey but it did not choose to fight Erin. Instead, it immediately ran away after expressing its displeasure. Erin did not give chase as she feared for the little girl’s safety in her absence and there was no one else who could look after her. Erin used Mana Harvest to recover however much Mana she could and promptly walked back to where she left the man with the little girl in her arms.

The little girl did not say a single word during the entirety of the short walk. She didn’t even look at Erin but just simply stared absentmindedly at whatever was in front of her. Erin understood the girl was in shock and all the more reason she couldn’t just leave her where she found her.

When Erin made it back to where she left the man be, she was mildly surprised to find the man staying put as he was told. She was sure he would have run away. The man was innocent, such a thought crossed Erin’s mind but then again, she did fracture his ribs and what transpired next dispelled her hopes. The moment the little girl laid eyes on the man, she began to shudder and squirm around in Erin’s arms.

“No no no! Get away from me!” the girl screamed, trying to crawl as far away from the man as possible.

The man had the same reaction when he saw the girl but instead of screaming or flailing his limbs, his face paled. His whole body shook. Erin heard him clicking his tongue under his breath, perhaps to not let his disappointment be too obvious but it was futile to hide his true feelings from Erin.

“Another one…” Erin sighed, shaking her head in dismay. She was hoping she would be wrong as she slew too many for a lifetime’s worth but if she didn’t, they would only continue to cause more misery and anguish to others. She had stopped judging a person’s character with the help of Spirits as the Demonic miasma was skewing the results. Therefore, she had to judge a person with her own unaided abilities.

Sometimes, it was easy but other times, it was difficult. This situation was the former. The man turned and ran, wasting not another second longer. However, his fractured ribs didn’t allow him to run far. In fact, he barely took a few steps before tripping on some small piece of debris and falling. He hastily climbed to his feet but something bristly soft yet hard slammed into his face. He hit the wall beside him, bouncing right off, and tumbled to the ground.

When the man tried to get back up to his feet despite being in a daze, a tag fell out of his collar, dangling by his neck with an iron chain. Erin saw the tag and instantly recognised the man as an adventurer. Her face contorted with disgust and she brandished her sword. But before she could raise it, she spun around and found a man in a hood and leather armour pointing a crossbow at her. The arbalist wasn’t alone. Another hooded and robed figure stood behind the arbalist along with two lightly armoured sworders.

“Adventurers,” Erin muttered as she peered at the four individuals warily.

“B-brother… save me…” the man with the fractured ribs pleaded with blood spurting out of his mouth.

“Brother? Which one?” Erin questioned.

“Me,” answered the arbalist. “Lady Fae, that man you’re pummelling is my brother.”

“This man is responsible for the death of the girl’s mother and other anguish that I dare not know in detail.”

“And do you have any proof for that?” asked the arbalist.

Erin chuckled in derision and then sneered at the group. “Really? Proof? Look around you. Where do you think I can find proof in these kinds of circumstances?”

“Then how do you know he’s guilty?”

“It’s a long story but I can’t prove it to you.”

“So I just have to take your word for it?”

“Yes,” said Erin.

The arbalist tightened his grip on the crossbow. “I think not, Lady Fae. Let my brother go.”

“No!” the little girl suddenly shouted, shocking everyone. “You can’t let her go, Miss Fox!”

Erin raised an eyebrow at the title she was arbitrarily given.

“That bad man attacked me and my mom. He kicked me aside while he pulled down his pants and attacked my mother with his ugly! Miss Fox, you can’t let him go! You can’t! You absolutely can’t! He attacked my mother! When the monsters attacked, he threw my mother to the monster and he ran away! He… he… he….” the little girl eventually ran out of breath and she began panting, trying to gather her breath.

Erin stared at the group. “There you have it,” she said.

“That doesn’t prove anything!” the man spat. “Children are inherently good liars. Don’t listen to her. She’s probably an evil spawn like every other back alley dweller. Brother, don’t listen to the girl. She’s just a filthy lying bi—”

Erin did not let the man finish his insults and slander. She brandished her sword through the man’s head, instantly killing him. She made sure to cover the girl’s eyes before doing so but she doubted it would help much since the sound was just as gruesome and children tend to have vivid imaginations.

[Experience gained +5% - Level Progression: 45%]

The arbalist stared wide-eyed at Erin’s brazen action and he could do nothing to stop it. “Y-you…”

Erin taunted the arbalist with a silent scoff.

“You damn bitch!” the arbalist cried and pulled on the trigger.

With an effortless swing of her sword, Erin deflected the bolt.

Before the arbalist could reload his crossbow, Erin appeared in front of him and pressed the edge of her sword against the arbalist’s neck. His companions tried to intervene but Erin advised them to stop with her gaze and they complied.

Just then, someone shouted, “Wait! Stop!”

Erin raised her gaze and found a familiar face running over to them after turning a corner.

“Caelan?” Erin muttered after recalling the boy’s name. He was the first person she encountered upon entering the Grove which housed the Neverland, Aedan’s manor and estate.