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    The lightweight frame of my small body, the momentum from being flung into the air, and the sheer force of an attack capable of destroying buildings combined into an unstoppable trajectory.

    Even though I had cushioned the impact with telekinesis, there was no avoiding the inevitable. My body was hurled through the air like a ball.

    Crash!

    The impact left me breathless, and for a moment, my consciousness wavered.

    When I came to, I found myself sprawled helplessly on a cold floor.

    ‘Ugh... I feel like I’m going to die....’

    Even though I was lying flat on solid ground, the world spun around me.

    I couldn’t tell which way was up or down.

    I tried to push myself upright, but the searing pain coursing through my body made it impossible to muster any strength.

    I must’ve slammed into something hard during my flight.

    It seemed I’d have to wait for the pain to subside before I could even think about moving.

    Gasping for air, my battered body barely holding together, I forced my eyelids open to keep from passing out.

    From somewhere close by, Drakel’s voice echoed.

    “Hah... Hahaha! That was quite the surprise! I didn’t expect you to come at me directly like that. You completely caught me off guard. Well played.”

    The sound of footsteps reverberated through the quiet building.

    I struggled to turn my head toward the noise.

    Drakel stood there, looking entirely unscathed compared to me, his face alight with amusement as he took in my pitiful state.

    “Were you aiming for my heart? Hah, too bad! Whatever you were trying to do, it seems it didn’t go as planned!”

    He strode closer and kicked me with his boot.

    Even though I used the last vestiges of my telekinesis to soften the blow, I still tumbled backward, rolling across the floor.

    ‘Ow! Can’t you go a bit easier on me?!’

    I glared at him from where I lay, but as he approached, he suddenly froze, his gaze shifting to my face with a look of surprise.

    “Oh? This is unexpected... To think the Ghost had such a beautiful face. I almost regret not tearing you apart with magic earlier.”

    “...!”

    ‘What?!’

    Panicking, I quickly brought my hands to my face, only to feel soft, bare skin.

    The mask I had been wearing was gone.

    ‘Did it fall off while I was rolling earlier?’

    Mortified, I hurriedly adjusted the cloak around me to cover my face.

    Drakel’s greedy, lustful gaze was far worse than that of the blonde pervert I’d dealt with before.

    “Hahaha! I’ve changed my mind, Ghost! Consider it an honor—I’ll share my noble blood with you and make you one of us. You’ll serve me eternally, by my side!”

    ‘Nope, definitely a pervert!’

    I glared at Drakel with a look of pure disgust.

    If I could speak, I would’ve screamed, “Go to hell, you creep!”

    For the first time, I deeply resented my muteness.

    Unbothered by my withering gaze, Drakel seemed convinced that the fight was over.

    He extended his clawed hand toward me, leisurely closing the distance.

    He probably intended to inject his blood into me and turn me into a vampire—a fate that would bind me to him as a slave, consumed by an unending thirst for blood.

    Absolutely not.

    ‘Well... the fight is technically over.’

    I let the tension drain from my shoulders.

    Drakel’s fascination with my face had bought me precious time—a fortunate turn of events for someone desperately in need of it.

    Suddenly, Drakel halted mid-step, his expression contorting as he clutched his chest.

    “Kuh...! Guhah! Cough, cough...!”

    He began hacking violently, his entire body convulsing as if he were trying to expel something from deep inside.

    Then, he bent over and vomited blackened blood onto the ground.

    “Wha... What is this?!”

    Drakel’s appearance changed before my eyes.

    The youthful features he had flaunted earlier grew wrinkled, his crimson hair drained of color until it turned stark white.

    Alice quickly scanned her surroundings with sharp, darting eyes.

    In no time, she seemed to grasp the situation. Her face broke into a radiant smile, as warm and bright as the sun.

    Without hesitation, she dashed toward Drakel like a flash of lightning, shouting loudly.

    “Ghost! There’s something I really want to talk to you about, so don’t even think about running away!”

    ‘W-what?’

    I didn’t have anything in particular to discuss, though....

    But before I could shake my head in silent refusal, Alice’s attention had already locked onto Drakel, who was bleeding profusely.

    “Grr...! Stay out of this, woman! You worthless... wench of a harlot!”

    “W-what?! Who are you calling a harlot?! I’m still young and...!”

    Click!

    Alice inserted a high-density fuel cartridge into the handle of her katana with a sharp clack.

    In an instant, a brilliant blue plasma glow surged along the blade, its temperature soaring to thousands of degrees.

    “A maiden!”

    “W-what?!”

    Slash!

    With a clean, resounding strike, Alice’s blade severed Drakel’s limbs in a flash.

    The blood magic he’d been relying on to protect himself failed to hold against the overwhelming cut, leaving Drakel stunned with shock.

    Had he still possessed the Tesseract Necklace, he might have been able to fend off her attack. But with less than half of his former strength, he stood no chance.

    ‘Wow, she’s amazing. Makes me feel foolish for struggling so much.’

    I chuckled weakly at the sense of futility washing over me. Perhaps I should have handed things over to her from the start.

    But as I mulled it over, I realized there had been no avoiding it.

    From Drakel’s words, it was clear his target had always been me.

    If I hadn’t revealed myself, he likely wouldn’t have acted. Fighting him had been inevitable.

    “Khaaa! Curse you! Curse youuu!”

    “From now on, you have... uh, what was it? The right to remain silent? Or something like that... Anyway, the police are on their way, so stay put!”

    Alice stomped on Drakel’s mangled body to immobilize him, confidently declaring her victory.

    This deviated from the original story.

    In the original, Raven and Alice had defeated Drakel together, simultaneously cutting his heart and neck to ensure his demise.

    But here, Alice had subdued him completely without killing him.

    Her decision to hand him over to the authorities instead of ending his life was characteristic of her compassionate nature.

    ‘Well, my work here is done. If I stay, it’ll only cause more trouble.’

    The crisis was over.

    The endlessly replicating fake zombies had all disappeared. At worst, there might be a few stray ghouls or vampires left, but they were insignificant.

    With Drakel—by far the most dangerous player—rendered utterly powerless, the Blood Night Incident had effectively been defused.

    I had achieved my goal of punishing the mastermind. Staying any longer and risking further involvement with Alice would only be a hassle. It was better to disappear quietly.

    “W-wait! Ghost! Just stay a bit longer, at least until I hand this guy over!”

    “....”

    Noticing my intent to leave, Alice urgently called out to me.

    Having searched for me for so long, she clearly didn’t want to let this encounter slip away.

    Yet, with Drakel subdued but not entirely secured, she couldn’t leave him unattended.

    The best she could do was plead for me to stay.

    ‘But... why should I?’

    “No, don’t go! Ghost! Please!”

    “....”

    “You can’t leaveeee!”

    I raised my hand from beneath the cloak and gave her a small wave goodbye.

    Then, without a moment’s hesitation, I turned and dove out the window.

    The Ghost leaves now. Be happy, Alice!

    It was a farewell without the slightest regret.

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