IDMWE 11🔥

Chapter 11

“You, ch… do you even know what that word means?”

Leona asked, flustered by the not-so-cute word that came out of the cute child’s mouth.

“I don’t know! Grandma just told me to tell you that.”

Leona was startled.

After all, there were already those strange constellations and the angel who were causing a ruckus trying to connect her with Rigan!

This wasn’t something she could easily brush off.

“Um, by any chance, where is your grandmother now?”

“Grandma? I don’t know either. She travels around and stops by sometimes.”

Leona was deeply disappointed by that answer, but there was nothing she could do.

Instead, she eyed the remaining charms.

“Then, can I buy all the charms you have here?”

It might be superstition, but who knows?

Maybe it could actually protect her chastity from those strange constellations.

“You can’t. Grandma said I could only give one to you.”

At the girl’s firm words, Leona said urgently.

“Then, there’s one more friend—no, not a friend, but an acquaintance in a similar situation! Can’t you sell one to him?”

In her haste, Leona didn’t even wait for an answer before leaving.

“I’ll bring him right away, so you absolutely have to stay here!”

With those words, Leona ran toward the pier.

If this good luck charm really had the effect she thought it did, it would be good for Rigan to have one too.

Then at least she could block the constellations’ mischievous tricks twice!

“Rigan Clanford!”

Leona shouted Rigan’s name, running across the village.

“Rigan! Hey! Where are you!”

She ran around shouting at the top of her lungs for about ten minutes.

Finally, Leona found Rigan at an outdoor café near the pier.

He was leisurely drinking tea in a sunny spot, reading a newspaper, with a crowd of people gathered around him.

“Look at that guy! He’s really handsome. Is he an actor from a troupe?”

“He’s wearing a uniform, so I don’t think so?”

“He looks familiar… Wait, that watch on his wrist, isn’t that the Lumix series that was sold as a limited edition at the ‘Jewel of Time’ shop?”

“No way! The one where a single watch is worth three mansions?”

Even though people of all ages and genders were whispering and staring at him, Rigan remained focused on his newspaper as if this were a daily occurrence.

‘So he’s used to this, huh? What a lucky bastard.’

Come to think of it, ever since their academy days, crowds always gathered wherever Rigan appeared.

She hated to admit it, but objectively, he was incredibly good-looking.

‘Even if his personality is trash.’

Leona nodded to herself and called out to Rigan.

“Hey, Rigan!”

“What is it?”

As Leona spoke to him, everyone’s attention shifted to her.

But that wasn’t what mattered right now.

Leona decided to explain what had just happened to Rigan, who was looking at her with a rather displeased expression.

Of course, before that, she asked him to cast a soundproofing spell first. They had previously agreed to keep the topics of angels, the Demon Lord, and constellations a secret between the two of them.

“Unless it’s something really important, just die.”

Rigan scowled and channeled his Aether.

She could feel the surrounding people admiring the spell that was cast without an incantation.

‘What’s so impressive about that.’

Compared to that, her own red Aether rippling across her blade was a hundred times cooler!

“So, did you find out something?”

At Rigan’s question, Leona quickly snapped out of it and explained why she had come all this way to find him.

The mysterious girl, the good luck charm containing flower petals, the clairvoyant grandmother…

“So hurry up and get up! You need to go buy one too!”

However, despite Leona’s shout, Rigan didn’t get up. Instead, he looked at her with pitying eyes.

“What are you doing? I said get up!”

“…I didn’t know you could be this stupid.”

“What?”

“It’s because you believe in superstitions like that that the Knight Division kids are always called ‘sword-wielding orangutans’.”

Tsk, what a waste of time, Rigan clicked his tongue and lowered his head back to his newspaper.

“Excuse me?”

Of course, it was true that Knight Division students were obsessed with absurd superstitions.

But this was completely different from superstitions like wearing unwashed underwear for five days or putting a white mouse’s claw in your mouth to win a match.

“This one is real, I tell you!”

“Get lost before your stupidity rubs off on me.”

Rigan waved his hand as if he really didn’t want to deal with her.

His annoying attitude deflated Leona completely.

“Hmph. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!”

“Honestly, every word you say makes me feel like my intelligence is dropping.”

“I’m telling you, even if your chastity is in danger later, I will never help you!”

With that shout, Leona trudged back to where the child had been.

“Huh?”

And surprisingly, there was no one there.

“What, where did she go?”

Not only the child, but the stall the child had set up had also disappeared.

Leona frantically grabbed nearby shopkeepers.

“Excuse me, the shop in that alley over there. Did you see where the child who had a stall out front went?”

“Child? What are you talking about? There was no one there all day today.”

“The owner grandmother passed away, so it’s an empty shop.”

Leona felt as if she had been bewitched.

*Screech, screech*—.

The wind thick with the smell of the sea brushed against their faces, and seagulls squawked noisily.

Leona and Rigan were on the boat heading from Mivatosh to Garal Island.

Even Leona, who had been confused by the vanished child and charm, forgot all her thoughts at the sight of the sea unfolding before her eyes.

“Wow, it’s really beautiful.”

The surface of the water sparkling as if sunlight had melted into it, and the distant view of Garal Island, were as beautiful as a painting.

Even Rigan, for this moment, took his eyes off the newspaper and gazed at the rippling emerald sea.

“It’s hard to believe that strange incidents have happened here, looking at such a peaceful scene.”

“Didn’t you read the documents? The place we’re focusing our search on isn’t the sea, it’s the mine on the island.”

“I know that too. You’re just looking for faults in something I said casually.”

Leona grumbled and tried to get as far away from the annoying Rigan as possible.

But the boat was too small, so it was only a few steps at best.

“But if there’s a mine, can a boat this small handle the transport?”

“Ha, during Academy Geography class…”

“Oh, I slept through it. I slept really well, so just shut up and give me the info.”

Leona was starting to read Rigan’s repertoire.

Rigan looked at Leona, who had cut him off, with irritation, then opened his mouth.

“Garal Island has a population of less than fifty. All the islanders work in the mining industry.”

“Can mining be done with so few people?”

“These days, it’s all done with magical tools. And what’s mined from the Garal Island mine is a special mineral. Even with low annual production, it’s enough for the entire island to make a living.”

Rigan, as a mage, was well-versed in such trivial matters.

Leona nodded after listening to the explanation, then suddenly had a question and spoke.

“Why on earth would the Demon Lord send magical beasts to such a tiny, insignificant mine?”

“It’s not even certain yet that it’s the Demon Lord’s doing. Don’t jump to conclusions. Everything should be judged after investigation.”

“Yessir.”

Even as they said they couldn’t judge prematurely, neither Rigan nor Leona thought this incident was unrelated to the Demon Lord.

This was due to the additional information secretly delivered from the temple just before they left for Garal Island.

—

「A report has been received that the statue of Sirpion on Garal Island has turned black.」

—

Slightly tense at the thought of possibly encountering a magical beast soon, the two silently felt the sea breeze.

“We’ll be arriving soon!”

A shout came from the helm.

As he said, the boat soon reached the Garal Island pier.

It was a pier built as a stilt house with a roof, where people could rest while waiting for the boat.

“Welcome, agents. I am the village chief of Garal Island.”

“Hello.”

As they got off the boat, someone was there to greet them. He was an elderly man with a kind face and a long beard.

Guided by the village chief, the two entered the island.

The chief briefly explained the situation as they walked.

“The workers who went into the mine didn’t come out, so some of the resting shift went to look for them. But they didn’t come out either.”

Worried, the chief went to the shrine to pray and found the statue of Sirpion half-turned black.

Just as the two were about to wonder why the Special Forces had been mobilized simply for a statue turning black, the chief continued with a concerned expression.

“That statue was personally consecrated by His Holiness the Pope.”

“The Pope?”

If the Pope himself consecrated it, it was no ordinary item. It was strange for such a thing to be on such a small island.

“Ah, didn’t you know? The rare mineral from our mine is used as feed for divine beasts. So the Vatican always keeps an eye on us.”

The chief said that upon seeing the blackened statue, he contacted the religious order separately from reporting it to the district office.

“I thought it wasn’t a normal incident if something happened to a statue consecrated by His Holiness.”

The mine entrance wasn’t far from the pier.

As the chief said, there was a small shrine, and on it stood a statue of Sirpion.

Its appearance seemed crafted from sacred wings and nobility itself. A solemn yet benevolent smile lingered on its lips.

‘It’s truly the complete opposite of the angel—that avatar.’

Leona looked at the blackened statue.

It was said to be half-blackened yesterday, but now it was almost entirely black except for the neck area.

“Are you going in right away?”

“Yes, that’s the plan. That’s fine, right?”

At Leona’s words, Rigan, who had been observing the statue, nodded.

Before entering, the two took out a small item from their bag.

It had been delivered from the Vatican along with the additional information this morning.

“I really don’t want to wear it, but I have no choice.”

What Nathaniel had given them, saying it would be helpful, was a pair of bracelets.

Made of consecrated silver, these bracelets themselves held powerful strength against evil, but they had one major drawback.

Namely, they had a function to track each other’s location.

“The thought of you knowing my location in real-time is horrifying.”

“I don’t want to know yours either.”

In the end, the two agreed to only wear them during missions.

“It might be dangerous, so please stay inside your house, Chief. And please look after the remaining residents as well.”

With those words, Leona entered the mine with Rigan.

There were lights emitting light here and there, so visibility wasn’t difficult.

The width was wider than expected, but the height was low, so Rigan had to walk in a slightly hunched posture.

‘He’s taller than I thought.’

Leona thought that if they needed to retreat, she would have to tuck Rigan under her arm and run.

She chuckled quietly, imagining Rigan being dragged along by her.

Rigan, looking at her strangely, said one thing.

“Stop spacing out and focus. I sense an ominous presence.”

And the answer to Rigan’s words came not from Leona, but from behind them.

“Se-surely, you weren’t talking to me…?”

At the sudden voice from behind, Rigan and Leona’s bodies broke out in goosebumps.