Chapter 78: Pink Light

"Shasha!"

Footsteps fell like rain; dense branches and leaves slapped against his body as he moved at high speed, a faint sting spreading across his skin.

Xia Nan strode swiftly through the underbrush, the Halfling trailing half a step behind, tagging along at his back.

Up ahead, Tim—already fully turned undead—moved with stiff, jerky motions, like a marionette, nowhere near as fluid as a living Human.

He propelled his body by raw physical strength alone, each step sinking a deep footprint into the soft ground.

On top of that, the blazing bright sun overhead made his legs feel as though they were wading through water compared to that night, slowing his overall pace by more than half a beat.

In Xia Nan's line of sight, the gap between them was closing at a speed almost visible to the naked eye.

Out of the corner of his eye, a flash of silver-white light suddenly streaked past.

"That robin again?"

The thought flickered through his mind.

"How many times is this now?"

Since he had come to Kalanfur, this robin with its strange silver feathers had caught his attention no fewer than three times.

It was as though something about him he didn't know about was invisibly drawing this oddly behaving little bird.

Snap—

The sound of wings beating suddenly rang out in the air.

The robin flapped its wings to brake, its two tiny claws landing on a nearby treetop.

At the same moment, not far ahead, Tim—whom Xia Nan and the others were about to catch up to—also came to a halt.

He instantly gathered his focus.

Slowing his pace, he kept a certain distance from the enemy.

Xia Nan gripped the scorching-hot sword hilt, his gaze fixed tightly on the other.

Suddenly, as if seeing something, his pupils contracted slightly.

The environment the few of them were in right now was a quiet stretch of woods on the outskirts of Kalanfur.

Though it wasn't as thick and tangled as Mist Forest, making it hard to tell direction, it was still choked with shrubs and undergrowth.

This meant that anyone walking through the trees had to get very close before they could barely make out what lay hidden behind the vegetation ahead.

And as Tim stopped and turned around, the pale white bones on the ground before him were laid bare before the two of them.

Left arm, right leg, right hand, left foot.

It looked like some kind of vicious, cruel Ritual.

Bones from different bodies, of varying thickness, were neatly arranged on the ground in the standard layout of a human body.

All that was missing from a complete human shape were the most crucial pieces—the skull and the spine.

Xia Nan stared at the muddy ground beneath the bones, where obscure patterns were faintly etched.

The encounters of the past few days rose unbidden to his mind:

The disappearance of the victims' limb bones, the dead pickpocket, Jeff's severed left leg, the short verse in the leather-bound book…

Every detail and clue linked up in that instant.

Steam rose from the surface of the Wooden Sword; water droplets condensed from the temperature difference made the surrounding air faintly blur and warp.

He snapped his head up, eyes locked on the undead ahead.

Battle intent surged.

He was fully prepared to fight.

However,

One second, two seconds…

Tim in his line of sight, ever since he had stopped just now—

Had remained standing in place, utterly motionless.

The tip of his rusted blade pointed at the ground, his head hung low.

Those eyes that had still held a faint spark of life were now completely overtaken by a pale, dead grey.

"What's going on?"

Xia Nan was puzzled, but he didn't dare rush forward rashly, afraid of some kind of ambush.

For a moment, the scene fell into a kind of silent stalemate.

Only the robin perched on the treetop beside them was leisurely preening its feathers.

"Crack."

The light snap of a breaking branch, along with footsteps that made no attempt to hide themselves, came from the underbrush.

Smooth, golden, half-long hair scattered dazzling glints under the sunlight; branches in the trees rustled "shasha" against the surface of metal plate armor.

Something vaguely held in his hand, Ingram's tall, burly figure gradually emerged among the dappled shade.

"Careful!"

From behind, the Halfling clutched the Lute tightly in both hands, his palms whitening from the force of his grip.

His light brown eyes were full of wariness as he lowered his voice to warn.

Actually, he didn't need to say anything.

The moment Xia Nan had spotted the Sheriff, he had already quietly prepared himself.

After all, the time and place of the other's appearance were far too convenient.

Setting aside the fact that the guards they had brought along had all been killed by Tim, so no one could have reported to him the direction of their chase—

Even if Ingram had gotten lucky, found the right path, and come straight over, he absolutely could not have moved this fast.

Unless…

"Tick."

A thick, metallic stench of blood abruptly flooded into his nostrils with each breath.

Xia Nan's brow furrowed tightly.

Within his line of sight, as Ingram slowly walked out of the woods, the bloodstains on his Sheriff uniform — not yet dry — were revealed before the two of them.

Withered white hair tangled around his fingertips; scarlet blood swayed and splashed onto the ground.

Upon that aged, gaunt face, fear and panic still lingered.

His eyes were vacant.

The Shou Mu Ren's head was held in Ingram's hand, lifted by the hair.

At this moment, the Sheriff's face had long since lost its former friendliness and warmth.

But neither was it sickly or frenzied.

He merely looked at the two of them in silence.

Utterly placid.

He did not take the initiative to explain his purpose, nor did he indulge in venting his emotions simply because his plan was about to succeed.

Not a single word was spoken.

His azure eyes swept once over the people present.

Under the gaze of Xia Nan and Alton, he raised his hand — as if straightening his attire as usual — and reached toward his sleeve.

His fingertip pressed against the golden sun emblem on the inner side of the cuff.

A gentle pinch.

Hum—

The bloodstained sleeve tore apart, dissolving into scattered shreds of cloth that fluttered away.

A one-time spell, stored within — using the divine Holy Light of the Sun God "Amanata" as its vessel — burst forth along with it.

Free-floating Magic Particles, under the influence of invisible Gravity in the air, arranged and combined themselves in a specific, orderly pattern, gathering in an instant like fireflies.

A pale-pink magical radiance flickered on and off, as if possessing a certain sentience, following the user's will to lock onto its target.

Then, trailing slender tails of flame, it transformed into two miniature meteor-like orbs of light, swaying and drifting.

Descending amid the shrill whine of magic.

There was simply no time to react!

Even though he had been on guard from the very first moment he spotted Ingram's figure.

Tensed muscles and an ambiguous stance allowed Xia Nan — whether advancing to attack or turning to retreat — to instantly respond to any shift in the situation.

But the very instant that flickering, uncertain thing of pink light reflected within his pupils—

There was already no chance of escape.

"Wom-dong!"

The orb of light, constructed from Magic Particles, sliced through the air and lightly sank into Xia Nan's body.

As if sinking into a mire, the pink radiance spread swiftly, wrapping and covering him.

His heart still beat; his breathing remained steady.

Yet his body, as if time had frozen, was held in place.

Bohuan,

Enchantment,

—【Human Hold】

(End of chapter)