Turning
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chapter-413
Even after being released, Emun gathered those who could not move properly and, cloaked in darkness, moved toward the security management team building. Meanwhile, Cavalry members were incessantly pouring down various elemental attacks from the top of the building.
Amidst the chaos of crumbling walls, overturned carts, and twisted roads, Yuder advanced forward, avoiding obstacles with the minimum movement necessary. Through the thick dust, he spotted the fallen Baron Willhem and Ershi, who was attacking him.
Neither Nahan nor any other comrades were visible beside her. Near the Baron, a servant who had followed him lay flailing, already transformed into a corpse. It was the same method as what happened to his brother and sister-in-law, who had been murdered in the basement of his mansion.
The Baron, forgetting even his dignity, frantically dodged attacks on the ground. His clothes and body were filled with wounds, making him look no different from a hunted beast.
"Wh-where is everyone? The assassin wants to kill me, ah!""Die!"
"Aaaaagh!"
Baron Willhem screamed, covering his face with his hands. But the death he expected did not come.
Yuder locked eyes with Ershi, holding a sword that had blocked her attacking hand. The strong shock traveled up his palm, tingling so intensely that it was unbelievable that it came from a clash between a bare hand and a sword.
"Ca, val, ry."
She seemed not to recognize that the hooded man was someone that she knew, though, given her crazed appearance, it was doubtful she would recognize him even if he revealed his face.
'She's completely lost her mind.'"If you stop me, you, too, will die...!"
She raised her other hand and struck down, as if enraged. Yuder narrowly dodged her charging body and fended off the attack aimed at him and Baron Willhem.
Only then did the Baron open his eyes, realizing that he had not died, and grasp the situation. Whether the one who was defending him was Cavalry or not was no longer important. What mattered was surviving.
"Sa-save me! I'm a noble. She's trying to assassinate a noble!"
Naturally, his cry did not help Yuder at all. It only made the angry Ershi stronger. Yuder frowned as he noticed her attacks getting stronger with every deflection.
'It looks like she might go berserk.'
A powerful Awakener individual, caught up in intense emotions, would often become much stronger in specific situations than usual. Although the attacks might become simpler as excitement grew, it was still not difficult to defend against them.
However, the problem was that the amount of power one could draw was not infinite.
In his previous life, Yuder had seen countless times when Awakeners, drawing power rapidly in the face of death, went berserk and died. If lucky, they survived, and their abilities skyrocketed, but that was truly a matter of luck.
And Ershi seemed to be entering that stage right now.
Facing a berserk Awakener was as difficult as stopping a storm with one's bare body. As he pondered whether to abandon his plan of restraining her with minimal force, reinforcements suddenly appeared from behind.
"You’re here!"
From the dust, Ever appeared, followed by Emun and Kanna. Seeing the enemy numbers increase, Ershi seemed to decide that continuing a one-on-one fight was disadvantageous and retreated, but her growl of hatred did not cease. Yuder approached his comrades and whispered softly,
"Her power is extraordinary. She might go berserk, so be careful."
“Runaway magic?”
“When power is exerted excessively, in some cases, it leads to progress, but in others, it does the opposite. ...I have seen it before.”
“Even before joining the cavalry, you met another Awakener; you really seem to know everything.”
In the midst of Emun's astonishment, Baron Willhem, who had crawled to their side, screamed angrily.
“What are you doing without saving me? Do you know who I am?”
“Who are you?”
As Kanna retorted, Baron Willhem was momentarily lost for words.
“I, I am...”
“Hand him over to me!”
Ershi spoke, her breath rasping.
“All I want is his life. If you hand him over, I promise I will do no more. Isn’t it better than fighting among fellow Awakener brothers and sisters?”
Kanna, who had been eyeing Ershi carefully, shook her head.
“I can tell without using my abilities. You’re lying.”
“...Yes. That person is already consumed by hatred and doesn’t care about anything else.”
Ever also looked at Ershi with the same expression.
Ershi had horrifically killed numerous people, displaying her hatred. The damage inflicted on the Cavalry or other unrelated people didn't matter to her.
Her anger had already surpassed a limit that could be quenched by others' deaths. Even if she killed Baron Willhem, the true culprit, here, her revenge would not end, and she could never escape the hatred that had engulfed her.
Looking at her, seemingly unaffected by the fact that her body and abilities were succumbing to her emotions, Ever suddenly exhaled and spoke.
“Before coming here, I checked, and all the other southern merchants who fought you, except that person, have already left this place. Most of the others have been mostly subdued, but... they managed to escape our attacks.”
It was clear where they had gone: their final destination, the auction house, brazenly located near the Security Management Team.
“Probably, she won't leave here before killing the Baron. Whether it's a rampage or whatever, you don’t have time to stick around here. Go ahead with Kanna; I'll handle her.”
“Sister.”
Kanna turned her head in surprise, but Ever calmly adjusted her gloves.
“She seems to have abilities similar to mine, so it won't be difficult to face her, and soon, the remaining colleagues inside the security management team will come out. Emun can hide the Baron, so there's no problem.”
“...”
Many of the members on standby in the Security Management Team would have already moved toward the auction house when Yuder's signal dropped. They needed to go to them as soon as possible.
But could Ever, who had no experience facing a rampaging Awakener, handle it alone?
Although Yuder didn't think that Ever would be pushed by Ershi, variables could emerge from anywhere.
Ever, seeming to recognize the meaning in Yuder's silence, chuckled and patted Yuder's shoulder.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Have you forgotten our dawn training together? You praised me for controlling my power well; was that all a lie?”
“No.”
“I'll follow wherever you put me, so don’t worry too much. As the Shin Division Deputy Commander, I have no intention of losing to someone like her.”
Yuder remained silent for a moment and then nodded.
“Understood. Come as soon as you're done.”
"It's been a while since I've used my strength properly."
"Ever, hadn't you used your real strength against the people we've just beaten?"
Emun's trembling voice asked the question, but Ever didn't respond. Instead, she just pointed towards Baron Willhem. The Baron's eyes met Ever's, and he retreated with a terrified expression.
"What, what are you going to do? You scoundrels. Don't you dare lay a hand on me!"
"What are you planning to do with that man!"
As Ershi yelled and rushed in, Ever's fists clenched together and her foot struck the ground like an explosion. The moment the two hands collided, a massive pressure erupted with a sound like steel clashing against steel.
Yuder seized the opportunity and quickly signaled to Kanna.
"Let's go."
Kanna also firmly closed her lips and nodded.
"Get on my back quickly. We have to move fast."
"What? Uh, wow!"
Kanna let out a small scream as Yuder jumped, carrying her on his back.
"Ah. It's too high!"
"I'm sorry."
Yuder was accustomed to the sensation of falling and jumping again at this height, but Kanna was not. After he apologized, she made a few sounds of annoyance before tightly gripping Yuder's shoulder and clinging to him.
"It's, it's fine. It's urgent now, so you can go faster! Let's go!"
"..."
"Oh right. But where's the auction house? All around here looks like mysterious mansions."
"According to the information from those who attended the auction last year, one of those mansions has been remodeled into an auction house... So we just need to go a little further."
Yuder answered while leaping from the roof of a building onto the roof of another.
"Ah, is it over there? I hear some noise..."
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