After their mother, cursed by the Sea Dragon, died giving birth to their youngest sister Medusa,
Stheno and Euryale decided to raise their sister, but it was an endless struggle.
Both Stheno and Euryale were still just young girls. Not only raising a child, but even making a living was a challenge.
- Wah...! Wah...!
Each time the young Medusa, her eyes covered, cried, her two sisters by the cradle didn't know what to do.
Still, the girls desperately raised their younger sister.
Feeding her, burping her, holding her, putting her to sleep, singing lullabies...
And when Medusa fell asleep, the two girls would take the boat and fishing gear left by their parents and head out to sea.
Raising a child and earning a living, both were incredibly harsh. But Stheno and Euryale never gave up.
...Time passed.
As Stheno and Euryale grew into adults while raising their sister, the young Medusa also grew rapidly.
Her eyes were covered to prevent using her Petrifying Gaze, and she was always wrapped up even in the hot southern region to hide her grotesque body.
The two sisters cared for their youngest with all their heart, and the three sisters lived happily for each other.
On a starry night, away from people... the two sisters would take their young sibling to the seashore.
They would then unveil Medusa's eyes and show her the outside world.
- Look, Medusa.
Gazing together at the Milky Way filling the sky, the two sisters tightly held Medusa's metal hand.
- The world is so beautiful.
Medusa swallowed her breath.
The sky she looked up to was dazzling.
The sea's surface, reflecting that sky, was also breathtakingly brilliant.
And on that surface, the faces of the two sisters were reflected.
Though they couldn't directly look into each other's eyes, Medusa and her sisters looked at each other through their reflections in the water.
As much as the sky, as much as the sea, her two sisters were lovely. Her kin, sacrificing everything to raise their sister...
But Medusa herself, the face reflected in the water was grotesque.
A serpent's head. Torn mouth. Long tongue. Metal limbs and a body covered in scales...
A monster, so different from her beautiful sisters.
Because she was born a monster, her beautiful and kind sisters had to live a troubled life.
This fact pained the young Medusa's heart.
- Don't be sad, our dear.
The tears that fell from Medusa's eyes immediately turned into sand and dropped.
Embracing Medusa from both sides, Stheno and Euryale whispered.
- We are happy being with you.
- So, we hope you are happy too.
The three girls cried and laughed together.
...Such a night existed.
Now it was a distant memory, almost forgotten by the three monsters.
***
Thump...! Thump...! Thump...!
The heavy movement of the beast echoed through the corridors.
As if searching for something, the beast wandered inside the temple.
"..."
Lilly, covering her mouth with one hand and tightly embracing the sleeping child with the other, was crouching under the desk in the priest's office.
The voice of Torkel, who had been fighting the beast and cursing it until just moments ago, was no longer heard. Perhaps he had been killed by the beast.
Lilly wanted to flee outside the temple while Torkel was buying time, but she couldn't use her legs.
Even if she tried to push her wheelchair, she couldn't go far.
So, she hastily hid here, but whether it was the right decision, she didn't know.
'If my legs were fine...'
Could she have run far away, carrying the child?
With trembling hands covering her mouth, Lilly continued her thoughts.
If her legs had been fine, if she had been a field worker rather than an office worker, more skilled in using attack magic, or if not that, if Godhand... if Kalail was still alive.
Lilly gritted her teeth. What use were these pointless hypotheses?
"..."
Lilly quietly looked down at the sleeping child - Cid's face.
The boy resembled his mother with red hair, and his currently closed eyes were light green like his father's.
He had been a child she had somewhat resented for the pain of his birth.
But once this tiny life was in her arms, all she thought about was protecting him by any means.
Thump... Thump... Thump...
The monster's footsteps faded away. It seemed to have left to search another section of the temple. If lucky, it might just leave the temple altogether.
Lilly inwardly sighed in relief, but then Cid in her arms twisted his body.
"Ah... Ah..."
Lilly tensed up, fearing Cid might cry. But fortunately, after tossing and turning a few times, Cid fell back asleep with babbling sounds.
‘Phew...’
While gently stroking the back of the sleeping child, feeling relieved,
Crack-!
The sound of the priest's office door being torn off resounded.
The color drained from Lilly's face.
Thump...! Thump...! Thump...!
The monster that had entered the priest's office approached steadily.
Lilly slowly bent her trembling body and embraced the child, burying him in her arms.
‘Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry...’
The words were for the child, but also for herself.
She felt like bursting into tears. It was sorrowful, painful, and torturous. But Lilly bit her lip hard and held back her tears.
Compared to the hardships she had faced so far, this was nothing.
And compared to the hardships she would face while raising this child, this too would be nothing.
So don't cry. Don't cry...
Repeating this to herself, Lilly tightly closed her eyes.
Thump...!
The monster, Stheno, stopped in the middle of the priest's office.
"...Grrr."
Stheno stood still and slowly looked around.
The actual time Stheno was in the priest's office was only a few seconds. But to Lilly, it felt almost like hours.
Thump... Thump... Thump...
The sound of Stheno walking away echoed. Lilly slowly exhaled the breath she had been holding in, making as little noise as possible.
It's passed, it's passed, we'll be safe now...
"...Uh."
That's when it happened.
"Wah...! Wahah...!"
Cid burst into tears.
It seemed he couldn't breathe properly while buried in her embrace. Startled, Lilly tried to stop Cid's crying, but
Swish-!
Crash Bang Bang!
It was too late.
Stheno, who had turned back 180 degrees as if flying, picked up the priest's office desk with one hand and flung it aside.
Lilly crouched on the floor with Cid in her arms, now completely exposed.
"..."
With no more cover and the monster right behind her, Lilly thought.
How long could she last if she activated her flame skin?
If she waited until the monster got closer and then hit it with flame magic?
Could she do it? Could she win? Could she protect this child?
‘...It's not about whether it's possible or not.’
Flames started to whirl around Lilly's worn-out body from the recent difficult childbirth, following her magical pathways.
‘I'll do it.’
She decided to take the challenge.
To confront her life.
So... she couldn't give up.
Whether it's the monster behind her, or even the entire world,
"I have... decided to live with this child...!"
At the same moment the monster reached out its hand, and Lilly was about to draw up her magic.
Clang-!
This time, it was the window of the priest's office, where Lilly was facing. It shattered as someone burst in like a cannonball.
"Hey, monster!"
With the scattering glass shards, it was Zenis who burst in. Extending his legs as he flew in, Zenis shouted.
"God does not wish it (Deus Non Vult)!"
A dazzling divine power gathered at the tip of Zenis's foot, transforming into a metal boot and-
Crack-!
He struck Stheno's jaw with it.
Stheno, who had been completely focused on Lilly and Cid, was caught off guard and fell backwards.
"After all the trouble of saving both mother and child, now this monster is causing trouble..."
Zenis, standing between Stheno and Lilly, grumbled and took a combat stance.
"What a messed-up place, Crossroad!"
"...Priest?"
Lilly muttered in shock, to which Zenis gestured.
"Sorry I'm late, Lilly. I came running as soon as I heard the child cry."
"No, but... can you fight the monster?"
"I used to be quite famous as an inquisitor of the order in my younger days. Haven't used my body much since then..."
Zenis's priest robe, torn apart by the collapsed stone wall, revealed a stigmata on his back, emitting a white light.
"What can I do. In this situation, even the reserves have to jump in."
As he said this, Stheno twisted her body grotesquely and leaped up from her spot.
"...Ah."
Stheno opened her mouth and fumbled.
"Ah, ga."
Whoosh!
Stheno, still unaware of Zenis, lunged towards Lilly and Cid. But Zenis was no easy opponent.
"Hey! I came to deliver the gospel! Just listen once!"
Zenis dove into Stheno's embrace, brought his hands together as if holding a spear, and then thrust towards Stheno's abdomen.
"God wishes it (Deus Lo Vult)-!"
This time, the stigmata on Zenis's chest emitted light, and in his hands was a long spear of divine power.
Thud!
The spear of divine power pierced Stheno's abdomen.
Stheno stumbled greatly, roaring fiercely and swinging his arm at Zenis. Zenis hastily deployed another layer of divine armor, but
"Cough!"
Bang! Crash-!
He couldn't prevent being struck and thrown by Stheno's attack.
"Grrr...!"
Having dealt with the interferer, Stheno glanced forward.
But Lilly and Cid were no longer there.
"Wowaaaah!"
Lilly and Cid were suddenly grabbed by a black magic power and whisked out through the broken window.
"Right! Right! Got you-!"
Outside the window, in the temple courtyard, stood a Black Magician.
The sorcerer's gestures controlled the black magic power that snatched Lilly out.
"Go!"
The sorcerer immediately placed Lilly on the hand of a nearby golem. On the other hand of the golem sat a golemancer.
The sorcerer yelled.
"Run, you! As far as possible!"
"I was planning to do just that?!"
The golemancer retorted and awkwardly smiled at Lilly.
"I've carried many on a golem, but this is the first time with a newborn and its mother... Hold tight! It won't be as comfortable as a cradle!"
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The golem started to flee hastily.
Crack-!
"Kyaaaah!"
Stheno burst through the wall, roaring in the direction they went, and then gathered strength to give chase.
That's when it happened.
Flash-!
A piercing flash struck down.
The blind swordsman, who had been hiding on the second floor of the temple, struck with a smooth slash from his unsheathed longsword, precisely tearing through Stheno's eyes.
"Kyaaah, Aaaaah?!"
Stheno, in agony, covered her gushing, bloodied eyes with her hands.
"Oh dear, this is unfortunate. I aimed for the neck but ended up slicing the eyes."
The blind swordsman, having leapt down and delivered the slash, fell awkwardly to the floor and chuckled with a sneer.
"Well, it's better than missing entirely."
Just then, Torkel burst out from the corridor.
"Huff...! Huff, is everyone alright?! My apologies, I passed out for a moment..."
Though his helmet was badly dented around the chin, Torkel's eyes still burned with intensity.
And then, soon after.
Swoosh...!
Lucas, running like the wind, joined them, unsheathing his sword as he entered through the temple's entrance.
Observing the people standing before the monster, Lucas bowed his head.
"I am deeply ashamed. This monster is my responsibility. Because of my mistake, the temple has..."
"Acting Commander! I thought you were dead! Glad to see you alive!"
Zenis cheerfully waved his hand as he emerged from the priest's office through a completely shattered wall.
"This crazy monster has been after Lady Lilly and her newborn child. We must do everything we can to stop it."
"That we will."
Five figures stood in a row before the monster.
Lucas. Torkel. Zenis. A Black Magician, and the blind swordsman.
Although their affiliations and composition were a complete mess, they were, in any case, a party of five.
Lucas looked around and gave a faint smile.
"It’s a good number for hunting a monster."
--TL Notes--
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