Chapter 68: Speak of Cao Cao and he will appear

“What do you need me to do?”

With Prim’s permission, Rustia hurried to Ina’s side, eager to hear her plan.
“The royal city’s gate is made of special materials that can withstand explosions and impacts. My ice magic likely won’t do much.”

As if anticipating Rustia’s concern, Ina shook her head without hesitation, her eyes burning with determination as she shared her plan.
“We don’t need to blast the gate open. We just need a hole big enough for someone to pass through.”

“What do you mean…?”

Rustia’s expression was slightly puzzled, but Ina clenched her fists.
Her staff… well, it was probably left on the carriage, forgotten.
But her magic power had recovered enough to cast dark magic without issue.

“You use your ice magic to make the gate brittle…”

A ball of black mist formed in Ina’s hand.
She pointed to a corner of the gate and explained to Rustia.
“Dark elements have a corrosive effect. Once it’s brittle enough, I can quickly erode a gap for us to pass through.”

“Huh?! You’re a dark magic user?!”

“Let’s not worry about that now. We need to hurry.”

As a saint, Ina knew dark magic carried a negative stigma, but at this point, why care?

“That’s… true!”

Fortunately, Rustia wasn’t one to overreact.
Despite learning Ina wielded dark magic, she didn’t dwell on it.
She quickly followed Ina’s instructions, channeling ice magic to brittle the gate.

While waiting, Ina noticed the light around them dimming.
A red mist began creeping into her vision.
‘This is…?!’

Ina snapped her head up, looking behind her in shock.
Not just her—even Prim, standing nearby, wore a look of disbelief.

“The sky… turned red?”

Prim stared upward, muttering to herself.
“What in the world… is this…?”

The once-clear sky was now shrouded in thick red fog, everything bathed in a blood-red hue.

“Oh no!”

A sharp pain suddenly surged through Ina’s body, right where the red mist touched her.
Prim and Rustia felt it too, wincing in agony at the same moment.

“Ugh… cough, cough… what’s happening…?”

No wounds marred their bodies, yet the intense pain gnawed at them, threatening to knock them out.
Ina and Rustia struggled to conjure magical shields to block the red mist, but their efforts were futile.

“Well…”

Even Ina felt helpless.
The pain was maddening, and there was no way to ease it.
‘This is really going to kill me!!!’

Ina collapsed, her strength gone.
Prim and Rustia weren’t faring much better.

In this dire moment, Ina gazed at the blood-red sky, pressing the throbbing veins on her forehead with all her might, muttering softly.
“Cynthia-chan… what’s happening in that palace…?”

But Cynthia couldn’t answer her now.

Just as Ina closed her eyes, ready to give up, a gentle force surged through her body.
The pain receded like a tide, as if she’d taken a fast-acting painkiller for a splitting headache.
She felt an overwhelming sense of relief.

“What’s going on… Am I already dead?”

Ina basked in the soothing power and slowly opened her eyes.
The scene around her hadn’t changed—still drenched in blood-red.
But Prim and Rustia seemed to have recovered too, looking around in confusion.

As Ina struggled to stand and survey her surroundings, a cold voice sounded from behind.
“Don’t move, Miss Ina.”
“I can only protect this small area.”
“If you leave my vicinity, the Blood Crown’s magic will consume you again.”

“Who?!”

Ina whipped her head around at the voice.

A gray-haired woman in a maid outfit stood there, unnoticed until now.
Her pointed ears, like Cynthia’s, suggested she wasn’t human.
She clasped her hands in front of her, gray eyes fixed on Ina.

“You… who are you? How do you know my name?”

Ina was certain she’d never met this maid, but her appearance hinted at a connection to Cynthia.

“I’ve been keeping an eye on you, Miss Ina.”

The gray-haired maid didn’t answer directly.
Instead, she pointed at the gate behind them.
“But for now, let’s go inside and prepare for the reception.”

“Go in…? How—?”

Before Ina could finish, several red lights, distinct from the surrounding mist, flashed in the maid’s hands.
With a swift motion, she carved a hole in the sturdy gate, just wide enough for passage.

“Allow me to introduce myself, Miss Ina. You may call me Lilith.”

Lilith glanced at Ina, then at Prim and Rustia nearby.
“And… Her Royal Highness the Princess and her court magician.”
“Please move quickly, or the red mist will consume you again.”

“Tch… are we still too late…?”

Guided by the Blood Demon, Cynthia burst into the palace hall.
The red mist had already enveloped the entire palace and was spreading outward.

“With me here, this mist won’t affect you for now… but you must find the source quickly, or the humans outside will be in danger.”

Honestly, Cynthia didn’t care much about other humans.
It wasn’t her concern.
But Ina was out there.
Even if only for her little witch, she couldn’t stop now.

[‘Looks like the Blood Crown’s already activated, right?’]

[Hmm… We need to find the current holder and take it back. They’re likely nearby.]

As Cynthia prepared to follow the Blood Demon’s guidance and search, a low growl reached her ears, putting her on alert.
“Blood… blood… clan… die… for… God…”

As the voice emerged, the red mist around her thickened.
Something seemed to flash within it, but even with her sharp eyesight, Cynthia couldn’t make it out clearly.

The Blood Demon, however, was thrilled, its voice ringing in her mind.
[Oh? They delivered themselves to us?]
[Go, Cynthia! Show this ignorant fool what you’re capable of!]