READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 123
Libya’s eyes blinked with surprise.
The mask of her smile faded away, replaced by a wave of confusion.
Her crimson eyes delved deep into thought.
They say coincidences can pile up to become fate.
A man with black hair? Possible. But the fact that he had amber eyes too was just weird, not surprising.
But if this guy was an awakener, could we still chalk it up to coincidence?
‘…No way.’
Her red eyes blinked repeatedly, comparing memories from her childhood with the reality before her. Images of her first love began to overlap with the man before her.
But she still wasn’t sure.
‘No, not yet.’
This situation was too absurd to comprehend. The boy she knew had been taken by the Knights at the age of ten, for execution.
Even if he somehow escaped… it was too optimistic to think he’d managed to survive this long.
He must have been a marked target already—how on earth could a ten-year-old have survived until now?
And why was he hanging around with the Knights, of all people? It was beyond her understanding.
Besides, she had been pretty clueless about the happenings outside.
Living in her hideout meant she rarely caught wind of news from the outside world.
And since she wasn’t close with Sephir, she had barely heard any news about Yor.
It was no wonder she felt so utterly confused right now.
Determined to gather more clues to solidify her suspicions, she recalled one thing: even though she couldn’t remember the child’s face, she could clearly remember where the marking was located. That day had left a vivid shock in her mind.
‘…I just need to check the collarbone.’
She decided to be bold.
After all, it would be too weird to suddenly ask a guy to show her his collarbone in the middle of a fight.
Tap-tap!
She conjured a fire spark in her palm again. A skill she had honed since joining Lemegaton in her childhood.
Her specialty was burning and melting, but she could use it in different ways too.
If she drastically lowered her power and spread the fire as wide as possible, she could very well burn just the clothes.
And so she did.
“Sorry… it might sting a bit.”
Whoosh!
Like scattering sand, thousands of fiery sparks rained down on him. In an instant, a massive wall of sparks appeared before the man.
She heard a distant shout from a woman who seemed to be part of his group.
“Yor!”
Yor; that must be this man’s name.
Libya quietly tucked the name away in her memory.
In a heartbeat, sparks unleashed their fury upon him. While Yor tried to dodge and deflect the flames, there was no escaping the flames raining down.
The glowing embers, floating like ash, landed on him and created holes in his clothes.
Fizzle!
Revealed through the fabric were glimpses of his toned body.
And there it was—one dark red marking near his collarbone.
“Huh…?”
Libya tilted her head in surprise.
The glimmer of hope in her eyes transformed into certainty.
‘Could it really be him?’
Her hands started trembling slightly.
+
[Wowza!]
[Oh wow!]
[Hey Chaerin, you should show this stuff instead of hunting; this is the good stuff!]
[I was wondering what to watch today, and here we go, a surprise! Haha]
[This is hilariously just burning his clothes! LOL!]
[Burn more, please!]
Meanwhile, on the Knights’ side, Chaerin, who had captured this moment unintentionally, was receiving fiery responses from her viewers.
After a long time, her stream had finally caught a moment to rile up the viewers.
Clearly, this was a group obsessed with ‘men.’ Even such a trivial exposure had stirred a significant reaction.
Although, Chaerin wasn’t that keen on the reaction.
In the past, she might have enjoyed it, but after having been through ‘that,’ she found it uncomfortable for anyone to see her body.
“Ugh, why does it keep burning only the clothes! I need to buy sturdier stuff! Let me just hide the broadcast screen for a while!”
Thus, Chaerin quickly redirected her broadcast to something else.
Instead of the duel between the leader and Yor, the intense battles of the Knights took center stage.
Truly skilled knights, their combat scenes were spectacular and vivid.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about. You all love intense battles, right?”
[Zzz…Zzz…Zzz…]
[LOL, who cares about this boring stuff, just show us Yor, for crying out loud!]
[What I wanted to burn was Yor’s clothes, not your broadcast. Guess you want the screen to go up in flames, huh? Haha]
[Me]
[Rock]
[Me]
[Rock]
Of course, the audience’s response wasn’t too favorable, but Chaerin soldiered on, capturing the knights in action.
After all, viewers are adaptable creatures; if she kept showing it, they’d soon settle down.
Yet, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she should keep an eye on Yor.
She thought it would turn into a fierce battle, but something about the atmosphere felt off.
Especially the leader, introduced as Libya.
The smile she had been wearing faded, replaced by a wistful expression. Libya whispered.
“Yor… so that was your name. Yeah, I think it fits.”
“Why are you suddenly calling out someone else’s name? That’s creepy.”
“Yor. It’s me, Libya! Don’t you remember? Or do you not?”
Libya called out cheerfully, like meeting an old friend.
But all Yor could do was tilt his head in confusion.
He had never had a friend with behavior as quirky as hers.
No, considering he had only lived in the forest until now, he hardly had any friends at all.
Fortunately, Libya quickly clarified.
“The orphanage! We grew up together in the same orphanage! I was always right by your side back then!”
“Oh.”
Finally, a memory flickered in his mind—one of a child who tagged along with him at the now-distant orphanage.
Thinking back, that girl had white hair too, he remembered.
He recalled her with an adorably beaming face.
“Wait a second…”
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Yor’s expression shifted to one of shock.
“That kid… was you?”
Libya nodded enthusiastically, her face lighting up with joy, nostalgia, and happiness all at once.
With a bright and bubbly face, she said, “I thought you were dead! I missed you a lot!”
Libya said innocently.
“Come with me. I can protect you now, unlike before! I’ll get you settled in a nice place. Let’s joke around and have fun together like we used to, okay?”
From a distance, it sounded like a sweet conversation typically overheard between affectionate lovers. Their expressions were no different.
But for Yor, that was burdensome.
“…Uh, well.”
This might sound harsh, but honestly, he couldn’t recall much.
His childhood memories were overshadowed by the Demon’s Blood.
After all, he had survived all sorts of horrors by the age of ten, barely escaping execution, hunted by knights. How could such memories linger?
He could only reminisce lightly, like recalling, ‘Yeah, there were times like that…’
But being sentimental? Nah, that wasn’t happening.
“That sounds kind of tough.”
In short, her proposal was rather uncomfortable.
The Lemegaton group was one thing, but the woman before him felt daunting too.
He had never imagined that the girl from the orphanage would grow up to be the leader of such a powerful faction.
Now that he looked again, her personality seemed a bit off. What on earth had they been doing with the orphans?
“I think I prefer it here at Lemegaton.”
As soon as Yor said that, Libya’s expression soured instantly.
“Why?”
Her smile disappeared in an instant, replaced by a glare that seemed to penetrate right through him.
Even the Lemegaton members, who usually held their composure, showed surprise at her sudden shift.
Yet, to Yor, it strangely suited her.
Libya continued,
“Speaking of which, why are you with the Knights? They were supposed to capture you and execute you. So why are you here?”
“Well, thinking about it, it is kind of awkward… but I’m doing fine now. And if I had to detail it, I’d say I’m an adventurer.”
Unusual as it felt to discuss such topics in the middle of a battle, he didn’t mind it. After all, he was curious about how she ended up with Lemegaton.
However, it seemed like something he had said struck a nerve with her.
“…Adventurer?”
That one word made Libya’s brows furrow. A wave of disgust flashed in her eyes.
Zap! Crackle!
Flames erupted around her. A dazzling display of fireworks sparked from her hands.
“No… I can overlook a lot, but not that. Absolutely not.”
Instantaneously, her magic enveloped the area. As if to say he couldn’t escape anywhere.
Yor winced as the radiant flames surrounded him.
“Ugh…!”
Watching him, Libya declared,
“I have to take you with me, even if I have to drag you kicking and screaming. You’ll realize that being here is much better than being an adventurer.”
With that, she charged right at Yor.