“What the hell? There is another one here?”
A bone-chilling murderous intent spread throughout the trap, surprising both the Abundance general and the blue shadow.
Serpent Bearer— No! It wasn’t the Serpent Bearer.
From the pitch darkness, the shadow of a young woman appeared. The Abundance general was taken aback when he saw this woman’s face.
[I never expected you to show up here.]
This woman was none other than Carly.
The general smirked when she saw the light emanating from her. It had come here trying to track down Carly, who had stolen the Libra’s Royal Constructs, and she had just made its job easier!
[I never expected the thieving bitch to come here herself. Are you here to beg for forgiveness?]
Carly laughed in derision. “Stop talking nonsense.”
She immediately brought up her sword. Her sword emitted green magical energy, which spread throughout the dark trap.
The general furrowed its brows when it saw this. It used its ability.
[Prosperity in Abundance]
Was it because this monster was one of the thirteen Knights, who had been given a vital position by a monarch?
Despite being in the middle of the Serpent Bearer’s holy ground and trap, the general was able to generate a massive amount of power.
Kwah-jeek!
As to prove this point, an oppressive magical energy whipped around, and the sword in Carly’s hands started to corrode.
[The Golden Rule]
Carly’s eyes flashed as a yellow magic circle appeared on the ground. The magic circle instantly widened as it reached the general.
[Good deserves good!]
[Malice deserves malice!]
The black magical energy that had been flying toward Carly surged up from beneath the general’s feet.
Moreover, it was the same power that the general had used in its attack. It held the same amount of malice, power, and technique as it tried to swallow the general.
This was Carly’s innate ability, the Golden Rule. In simple terms, this ability sent the opponent’s attacks and effects back to them.
The Abundance general flinched.
‘This is the Libra’s…’
It immediately tried to use its abilities, but the blue shadow figure next to it stepped forward first. The blue shadow knew responding with a direct attack against this technique was meaningless.
Pahng!
The blue shadow figure flicked its finger, and something surprising happened.
[Time Passage]
Flash!
A dark blue ring of light appeared and surrounded all of them. Then, it rewound time.
‘…!’
Time was rewound to a point before the magical energy could threaten the general, before Carly had sent back the attack. It was as if the attack never existed in the first place. This was the power of Time Regression! There was more.
“Koohk!”
Carly flinched.
[Warning! Your body’s time is being rewound.]
[It is being rewound to the time before you were born.]
As the blue ring fell over her head, Carly felt fear. It was fear of another form of death. Under the effect of the power of time, Carly’s body was about to perish!
[Crimson Light]
It sounded as if the sky was being ripped apart, as if a crimson light had created a scar in the air.
The force beam of light hit the blue shadow figure.
Tuhng!!
When the crimson light pierced through the shadow, the blue ring surrounding Carly started to falter. The power of Time was being halted.
After returning to her original form, Carly quickly created distance between her and the monsters. Then, she looked back as if she had found something unexpected. “How come you are saving me?”
Yes, standing behind Carly was Chun Yooha.
After using her skill, Chun Yooha dusted off her hands as if it were nothing. “If a disciple of the Serpent Bearer dies, Uncle’s power will become weaker.”
Of course, Carly had yet to be baptized, so she was an unofficial disciple. So it wouldn’t affect Lee Gun much, but Yooha couldn’t let even 1% of harm come to her uncle.
At that moment…
[What the hell? Why is that noona in here?]
A shining serpent appeared within the dark space. It was Chun Sungjae in his demigod state.
[This place can be entered only with the approval of Uncle or me.]
Chun Sungjae had the qualification to oversee the entire defense within the Serpent Bearer’s holy ground. This was why his voice had rung out when the trap was activated. He could also easily bypass the designed traps.
However, Carly was different.
[The trap’s barrier wouldn’t let anyone in without my permission. How did that noona get in here?]
Chun Yooha spoke as if she found him lacking. “That’s pretty much to be expected since you’re the one in charge of it.”
Chun Sungjae felt aggrieved.
[No! Do you think I would cut corners when it comes to Uncle’s business? If it isn’t someone with Uncle’s genes, it shouldn’t be…!]
Carly flinched hard at those words.
However, Chun Yooha just scoffed. “You’re talking nonsense. If Uncle had a child, Dad would have known about it.”
[Maybe. He might not know either? The Aquarius tried and failed to make Uncle’s children. Dad didn’t know about it for twenty years.]
“What? Aquarius? Are you sure about this?”
[Ah! It’s fine now. They tried to make Uncle’s son using his biometric data. Anyway, Uncle told me to report to him if I find anything related to it. He said he’ll burn them all.]
“All? Does he mean his born child too?”
[Uh… Maybe?]
Carly, who had her sword raised, turned oddly pale. Unlike her normal self, she looked frightened.
Oblivious to this, Yooha her tongue. “Let’s stop talking about that. Since Carly got in here, you made a mistake in managing this place. I’m going to tell Uncle about this.”
[Damn it! I didn’t make a mistake! Excuse me! Do you have Uncle’s DNA?]
“No! Absolutely not!” the deathly pale Carly answered with a straight face.
This made Chun Sungjae glare at her.
[What the hell? Why is that noona acting so weird? Does she have Uncle’s….]
He was about to ask if she had secretly taken Uncle’s item, but Carly turned pale from fright as she shouted. “N-No way! It…It isn’t like that!”
Carly had just heard the father that she liked wanted to kill her. She looked like she was about to cry.
Chun Yooha had never seen such an expression from Carly, so she looked at her as if she were being strange.
[Yes. I wondered what happened. It seems you’re on the Serpent Bearer’s side now.]
“!”
They had assumed the trap activated by Chun Sungjae had taken the Time general away, but the blue shadow laughed.
[My monarch was monitoring your presence with quite the interest.]
The general seemed to have some idea of Carly’s existence.
[I heard a monarch sent to the Zodiacs’ side created something curious a long time ago.]
The general was talking about Giselle, who had been sent to the Zodiacs’ side a couple hundred years ago. The aim was to find a way to break the Zodiacs’ troublesome barriers.
Giselle had eaten the Libra, then her Zodiac Saint to hide her identity as a monster. She had carried out her function as a spy, but at some point, she had suddenly cut off her ties to the monarchs. Then, she started attacking them. It was a baffling situation.
‘Well, she was the lowest-ranked amongst the monarchs. That’s why she probably changed sides.’
[It was quite curious. She was a loser who ate a Zodiac to become a Zodiac. How could she make an absolute masterpiece like you?]
It was unknown as to whose gene was used to make her, but Carly’s abilities had leapfrogged the abilities of the general-ranks. She was a brat that shocked them, too.
[You’re with the snake bastard?]
The Time monarch already had a great interest in Lee Gun.
Twenty-four years ago, the Time general had led its underlings to Seoul. The Time monarch had been interested ever since that day, the day Lee Gun had awakened.
The Time Monarch had spoken these words about Lee Gun at the time. “He should be dead, so how is he alive?”
On that day, the incident had taken place at a department store. There was nothing the government could do as all the people in the Jongno district were supposed to die.
However, everyone there had come back alive, and the thirteenth awakened being’s existence had been revealed to the world.
The Abundance general smirked as if it didn’t find such information important.
[At the end of the day, there are three Saint-ranks here.]
An enormous energy wave surged forth. It was an energy that looked powerful enough to destroy the trap itself.
The Abundance general looked at Carly.
[You should ask for forgiveness now. The snake bastard’s Zodiac Saints can’t be spared, but we are willing to spare you and your mother’s lives.]
The Abundance monarch seemed to need the Libra’s power.
Although Giselle had run away to the side of the Zodiacs, at the end of the day, a monarch was a monarch. The monarchs did look like monsters, but they were devils that possessed beauty that would make humans senseless with just a look at them.
Moreover, the weakest amongst the thirteen Monarchs were gone, leaving only ten Monarchs. And no one dared covet their places.
However, Giselle would be useful in crushing the humans.
“Didn’t you hear me last time? She isn’t my mother. I don’t share any blood with that monster.”
[Don’t say such— Kuh-huhk!]
The Abundance general couldn’t continue its words. The Chun siblings had started their assault.
“Stop flapping your dirty mouth on Uncle’s land! Your spit is going to get on it!”
[Wait— Kuh-huhk!]
As if its words weren’t worth hearing, Chun Yooha sent forth her crimson lighting at the monster. The general ground its teeth when it went rigid because of the lightning.
Chun Yooha extended her hand to extract the soul of the general.
Flash!
Suddenly, her brother appeared behind her and touched her back. She was sent away with Teleport.
[!]
Chun Sungjae clung to the large general, who was taller than him by several dozen centimeters. A light appeared in the young man’s eyes.
[Demigod state]
Kwahng!!
[Contribution is being amassed for the Serpent Bearer’s temple.]
[Contribution is being amassed for the Serpent Bearer’s temple.]
[You have gained EXP.]
As it was getting squashed by the shining serpent, the Abundance general glared at the Time general.
[What are you doing? You said you are here to rescue me— Kuhk?!]
To his dismay, the Time general had already been captured by someone.
The Abundance general became surprised when it saw who that person was. It was to be expected. That person was Hailey.
The Time general looked shocked.
[As expected, you…!]
She possessed a beautiful appearance, like the monarchs. It was unmistakable. This woman was Hailey.
The Abundance general also recognized her. It forced a laugh as if it were baffled. This woman and the daughter made by the Aquarius were all the same.
[Even if you like your father, how could you abandon the mother that raised you? You stuck close to your father. What a difficult girl!]
The eyes of Hailey and the Chun siblings turned round when they heard those words. What?
Who is whose father?
Carly’s face was already deathly pale. And as everyone’s eyes had turned round…
“What? What did you just say?”
The person directly involved in the situation arrived.
