Time Healer Ceres

He also recently began to harbor considerable doubts about Cheion’s behavior. After all, there was only one topic coming out of his mouth these days.

“Ceres treated me like a beggar at first. Even now, well... it doesn’t seem like she really sees me as the Tower Master.”

“Is that something you should be saying with a smile? You were treated like a beggar.”

Or—

“Luca! Ceres gave me extra meat today!”

“You rarely eat meat in the first place.”

And there were times when he would start with—

“Ceres said today...”

In any case, Cheion had been stopping by the stew shop every single day without fail lately. Yet whenever Luca offered to accompany him, Cheion would immediately grow wary and refuse.

I thought it was because of the mana stone.

The owner of that shop was said to possess the very mana stone Cheion so desperately searching for. At first, Luca assumed he was acting that way as part of his plan to obtain it.

But that wasn’t the case.

It seemed Cheion’s interest in the mana stone had already faded. Which meant there was something else in that shop that had captured his attention more.

“Could it be that woman?”

Cheion had always been the type to become easily fascinated by something and just as easily lose interest. Luca believed this time would be no different.

He didn’t know exactly what it was, but he was certain that Cheion would soon grow bored and turn his attention elsewhere.

But this time, something feels different.

After watching Cheion disappear in uncharacteristic haste using magic, Luca sensed that things were starting to unfold in an unusual way.

“What is it?”

Little by little, Luca himself became curious about what was in that shop and what kind of person its owner might be.

***

[Skreeeech!]

Thud!

[Squeak!]

“If you’re a rat, then act like one and stay in the gutter. Why are you gnawing on a building like that?”

The giant rat that had been chewing through the wall had its head burst apart before collapsing to the ground.

“It’s been a while, you filthy Bakura.”

Bakura.

They looked like rats, except for the fact that they were larger than an average adult man. They devoured humans and tore through buildings without restraint.

Wherever they appeared, nothing was left intact. The saliva dripping from their mouths carried a deadly poison strong enough to melt iron.

“I suppose it’s almost nice to see you again.”

Clicking her tongue, Ceres ran toward another Bakura that was gnawing away at a nearby building.

[Skreeeech!]

The moment it noticed her, the Bakura swung its sharp claws and spat out its toxic saliva.

Crack!

[Kreeeagh!]

“Disgusting. How old are you to be drooling like that?”

But Ceres was faster. The stick she swung struck its head before it could react.

“Have you all really not changed at all?”

Ceres shook her head as she watched the other Bakura, still absorbed in gnawing on buildings, not caring whether their own kind lived or died.

Back when she lived as Grace, she had entered the Black Forest more times than she could count. Even before she became a healer, as the head of House Ellesia and the Sword of the Empire, it was something she could never ignore.

“You should know your place before acting recklessly. Do you have any idea how many of you I’ve sent to the afterlife? No one has stepped into the Black Forest as often as I have.”

Ah, there was one exception.

Kai.

There was no place where the Black Forest appeared as frequently as the Persia Duchy. Because of that, Kainel had no choice but to face it so often that he had grown so sick of it.

“If I try to kill all of you, it’ll never end.”

It’d be easier if they rushed her all at once like other monsters, but these creatures must be hunted down one by one.

There were two ways to escape the Black Forest. One was to kill every monster inside it. The other was—

“...Where’s the boss?”

Defeat the one ruling this space.

If that was done, there would be no need to hunt down all the rats. The Black Forest itself would disappear.

“Somewhere around there.”

As Ceres scanned her surroundings, her gaze stopped at a single point. Far in the distance, she could sense a strong presence.

Gripping a wooden stick untouched by monster blood, Ceres vanished from where she stood.

***

“Bakura?”

“Damn it...”

“Ha, this is insane.”

“Why did it have to be those things?”

When the mercenaries realized the identity of the monsters rampaging through the darkness, tearing apart buildings and attacking people, curses spilled out one after another.

“How are we supposed to deal with all of them?”

Individually, Bakura weren’t especially difficult to handle. They were large, and the saliva they spewed was highly toxic, but they weren’t impossible to deal with.

The real problem was their numbers. To escape the Black Forest, every single one of them had to be dealt with.

“Then what, we go after the boss?”

“Who’s going to do that? How?”

“Are you insane? That’s the same as asking us all to die!”

The Bakura’s boss was so powerful that ordinary mercenaries wouldn’t even dare approach it. The poison seeping from its body and its overwhelming size alone were enough to make one’s skin crawl. Facing it with the forces gathered here now would be suicide.

“At the very least, the Guild Master needs to be here.”

Someone like Skal, the leader of the Black Guild, might stand a chance. Even if dozens of mercenaries like them rushed in together, they wouldn’t be able to land a single blow.

“For now, let’s deal with these things until reinforcements arrive.”

“Yeah.”

[Skreeeech!]

As if sensing the shift in the air, dozens of the Bakura that had been devouring its surroundings turned to look at the mercenaries one by one.

Faced with that sight, the mercenaries swallowed dryly.

Wuuung—

“—?!”

It happened in a second.

The mercenaries, who had just drawn their swords, froze in confusion when the Bakura that were ready to pounce suddenly rose into the air.

[Screeech?]

Fwoosh!

[Screeeech!!]

A large burst of flames slammed into their bodies. With horrifying screams, the Bakura burned fiercely midair before turning to ash.

“W-what is that...?”

The creatures vanished without a trace. The mercenaries could only stare in a daze, stunned by how easily the Bakura was wiped out.

“Excuse me.”

“—!”

A bright voice cut through the silence. When they turned, they saw a young man casually walking toward them.

Isn’t that him? The guy who’s been hanging around the stew shop lately.

Yeah, I think so... he keeps making dumb jokes while trying to sneak ahead in line.

That’s definitely him.

At the familiar face, the mercenaries began murmuring among themselves. They vaguely recalled hearing that he was a mage, but... could it be that the magic just now was his doing?

“By any chance, have you seen the owner of the stew shop?”

Still confused, the mercenaries shook their heads. Cheion sighed.

“Where did she wander off to now?”

Just moments earlier, Cheion had stopped by the shop, only to find her younger sister and the workers gathered together.

After hearing that Ceres had gone out saying she had something to take care of, he hurried after her. But no matter how much he searched the area, he couldn’t find her.

“What in the world is she?”

Cheion’s gaze dropped to his hand. A small black stone rested in his palm.

“What’s that?”

“Lady Ceres gave it to me. She said it’s a protection stone.”

“.....”

When Cheion saw the defensive magic imbued in the black stone Colin was holding, he fell silent, barely holding himself back from rushing straight to his lab to analyze it.

How can a formula like this exist...

No matter how many times he looked at it, it was astonishing.

After briefly examining the magical formula contained within the small stone, Cheion felt like he had been struck hard in the head.

This level of mana...

It would only last for about three hours, but even so, the defensive power it contained was enough to block something like a dragon’s breath.

Using something like this just to deal with those creatures is a complete waste!

After persistently pressing for it, Cheion obtained the stone in exchange for setting up multiple layers of protective barriers around the shop, then immediately set out to find Ceres.

How does she have something like this?

From the mana stone to this protection stone with an unfamiliar formula, nothing that came from Ceres was ordinary.

Just who exactly is that woman?

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