Chapter 59

[Translator: Dawn ]

[Proofreader: Alissa ]

Chapter 59: [STAGE 3] The Choice (2)

‘It’s okay, Evangeline. Everything will be okay.’ 

It was a memory from childhood. 

Monsters came to attack once again during the night. 

The city was in a state of mayhem, and Earl Cross stormed out of the mansion and hurriedly left to the front. 

As per usual, Evangeline’s mother came to her room and hugged her. 

‘There is nothing to be afraid of. When the sun rises, all the monsters will disappear.’ 

But Evangeline already knew. 

That the person who was most scared was her mother. 

Every time the Earl went out to the battlefield, her mother trembled, fearing that her husband might get injured or killed. 

But instead of expressing it, she would come to her daughter and give her a hug. 

‘……’ 

Evangeline turned her head. She could see the flames rising from the frontline through her window. 

Even though there was quite a distance between the fort wall and the mansion, she could hear the sound of metal. The smell of burning ashes harassed the tip of her nose. 

The shouts and screams of people, the cries of monsters. And, the fishy smell of blood. 

‘Mommy.’ 

Asked Evangeline. 

‘When do I have to start going out there?’ 

‘What?’ 

Evangeline’s mother looked at her young daughter with a surprised expression. Evangeline had a decorous face, unlike a child. 

‘I heard from dad. The heir to the Cross family must go out and fight on the battlefield.’ 

Her mother’s expression was as if her entire world had just collapsed. Evangeline tilted her head in question. 

‘Mommy, do you not want me to fight?’ 

‘It’s not a matter of if I’d like it or not. Because that is the fate of the Cross family.’ 

Evangeline’s mother hugged her once more. 

‘But it’s just that, I’m sad.’ 

‘Why are you sad?’ 

‘Because mommy’s a coward. Just as I’m afraid to see daddy get hurt, I’m sad and afraid… that you may have to go through some hard times.’ 

Evangeline hesitated for a moment before asking what she had always been curious about. 

‘Mommy, you didn’t know things would be like this, right?’ 

‘Hm?’ 

‘You never knew that you’d have to worry about daddy every night when he goes out to fight, right? And you didn’t know that I have to fight out there when I grow up too?’ 

She feared for her husband’s life, and she grieved about her daughter’s future. 

Every night the monsters invaded, her mother trembled in fear. 

‘If you knew that things would be like this… you wouldn’t have married daddy.’ 

She looked at her daughter silently for a moment. 

‘No. I knew it from the beginning.’ 

She slowly put a kind smile on her face. 

‘I knew that if I were to marry daddy, I’d have to stay up all night in tears every time monsters invaded.’ 

Her mother’s rough, warm hand stroked Evangeline’s hair. 

‘And I knew that if I gave birth to you, you would have to go out on the battlefield one day. And I knew I would grieve over such fate. I knew it all.’ 

‘Then why? Why did you marry daddy?’ 

As she couldn’t understand clearly, she asked once more. 

‘Why… did you give birth to me?’ 

If she already knew that it’d be sad, then why did she choose this path? 

Even though she knew that what was waiting ahead was pain. Why? 

‘I wonder too. Why did I…?’ 

After blurring her words, she put a faint smile on her face. 

‘It’s because of… what continues.’ 

‘What continues…? What’s that?’ 

Evangeline’s mother hugged her as Evangeline was blinking her eyes. 

‘You’ll understand when you grow up, Evangeline.’ 

‘When I grow up?’ 

‘Of course. I’m sure you’ll figure it out.’ 

Her mother’s large, warm hand gently brushed Evangeline’s back. 

‘You will figure out… why mommy decided that.’ 

Why she proceeded into the future where her fears and sorrows were destined. 

It had been 3 years since her mother passed away, but Evangeline still couldn’t figure it out. 

And she will probably… never figure it out, that was at least what she thought. 

“Urgh?!” 

Catching her breath, Evangeline opened her eyes. 

“Cough, cough, cough!” 

She coughed up blood. A dull pain crept up in her back. 

As Evangeline wiped her mouth roughly, she tried to grasp the current situation. 

It seemed that she was hit by the golem’s fist, flew straight to the wall of the villa, and was slammed into it. 

‘How long have I been knocked out for?’ 

It didn’t appear to be a very long time. Because the golem that struck her earlier was rushing right in front of her again. 

Guooo-! 

Why are there golems here? 

Her body reacted before the question popped into her mind. 

Clunk! 

Evangeline swiftly pulled up the straps of her waistband, equipped her shield on her left arm, and blocked the golem’s fist. 

Crush-! 

Her shield glowed dazzlingly, and her guard succeeded. 

But before she could even get in stance for the next move, the second attack swung in. 

Bam! Boom! 

The golem’s gigantic legs crushed Evangeline’s entire tiny body. 

She couldn’t figure out how such mobility could come from such a large body. 

Evangeline broke the wall of her villa with her body along with her shield and rolled into the villa. 

“Ugh!” 

Evangeline groaned as she lifted herself from the wreckage of the smashed wall. 

“Oh, for crying out loud…!” 

Rumble!Widening the hole in the wall, the golem entered the villa. 

Every time it moved, the ceiling shattered and the walls collapsed. 

“You are demolishing someone else’s house without permission, you jerk…” 

Grinding her teeth and straightening her posture, Evangeline placed her cavalry spear in her right hand. 

Clunk! 

The moment she grabbed the spear, the incandescent light from her shield moved to the spear. 

Her attack skill, [Damage Payback] was now prepared. 

Next time that monster charges in, she should be able to finish it off with a counter. 

‘Hurry up and come at me, you damned bull…!’ 

Evangeline’s eyes shined like a hunter’s as she waited for the monster to come charge at her. 

The golem didn’t waste any time and charged right at her. Evangeline counted numbers in her head for the right timing. Three, two, one— 

[Translator: Dawn]

[Proofreader: Alissa]

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It was at that moment. 

Bang! Crush! 

After destroying the walls on the left and right of Evangeline, two new steam golems appeared. 

“What the—!” 

She was flustered by the unexpected situation, but her reaction speed was quick. 

Thud! Boom-! 

She pierced the chest of the golem coming from the right with the tip of her spear, and she parried the attack from the left with her shield. 

The golem on the right fell as soon as its mana core was pierced and died, while the attack on the left was completely nullified. 

However, the golem charging at her from the front, 

“Ugh…?!” 

She had no way to deal with it. 

Crash-! 

A fist the size of Evangeline’s upper body once again struck her. 

Thud! Crash!Evangeline broke through the wall and fell, stopping only after hitting her closet and display case. 

Dishes and bottles placed in closets and shelves were spilled and broken. 

“Damn… it…!” 

Evangeline was hit by shards of glass that rained down on her, as she wiped her nosebleeds. 

In front of Evangeline, two steam golems roared and charged. 

Evangeline yelled, with her pointed eyes raised. 

“You crossed the line, you damned monsters-!” 

Kicking off the ground in a crouched stance, Evangeline shot herself from the ground. 

She took the fist of the golem that came in first with her shield, then pierced the golem’s chest with the spear in her other hand. 

A second golem followed suit. 

Evangeline spun the first golem around with her spear, blocking the attack from the second golem. 

Thud! 

The moment the second golem got entangled with the first golem, it stopped moving for a second. 

Evangeline vigorously pushed her spear to the front. The tip of her spear, which had pierced the first golem, touched the breastplate of the second golem. 

Kwaa-! 

At that moment, the tip of her spear started to glow. 

All the attacks that had been stored with her first skill [Damage Store] were returned right back at them with her second skill, [Damage Payback]! 

Boom! 

Intangible energy burst from the tip of the spear. 

The energy pierced and exploded the upper body of not only the first golem stuck in the spear, but also the second golem whose chest armor had been touched by the spear tip. 

Thud!  

“Huff, huff, huff!” 

Fragments of the shattered golem bounced in all directions. Raising her spear, Evangeline cleared her breathing. 

“…Ugh!” 

When the battle was over, a sharp pain came from the injured area. 

Her lacerated skin burned, and her ankle tingled as she had sprained it in the sudden attack. 

But Evangeline didn’t even think of applying first aid and hurriedly moved outside her villa. 

‘The golem corps decided to launch a sudden attack. One day earlier than they had been expecting in Crossroad.’ 

At this rate, Crossroad will also be in danger. 

‘I have to return and alert them about the enemy attack…!’ 

Evangeline limped out of the villa. 

But right at that moment. 

Boom! 

The whole area shook. 

It was such a big vibration that Evangeline’s small body floated in the air for an instant. 

“Huh?” 

Evangeline let out a bewildered voice and turned her eyes toward the source of the vibrations. 

And there, she found them. 

Thud…! Thud…! Thud…! 

A group of over 50 gigantic golems advancing straight toward her. 

Every time they took a step in unison, the whole area trembled. 

The walls of the villa, which had already collapsed, splattered brick fragments and flowed down as if an earthquake had struck. 

“What is that now…?” 

That was when Evangeline realized, 

That the three steam golems that she just fought were nothing more than just the scouts. These monsters were the main unit. 

‘I have to run.’ 

There was nothing to measure here. Evangeline felt it instinctively. 

If she were to face that, she would die. 

‘Where’s the horse?’ 

Evangeline looked around to find the horse she rode here, but it had already run away. 

‘Then I have to run all the way to Crossroad?’ 

Evangeline looked at her limping legs. Run all the way with these injured legs? 

Would that be possible? 

‘It’s not a matter of whether it’s possible or not!’ 

She still had some distance from the monsters. It was now or never! 

She gritted her teeth and tried to sprint toward the Crossroad. But it was at that moment. 

Vwoom- 

The two golems at the end of the golem corps rose into the air. 

They were a new type of golem that she had never seen before. While the other golems were rough and rugged, these two were elegant and sleek in design. 

Sensing that something was wrong, Evangeline hastily raised her shield. 

And that act saved her life. 

Bzzz-!Dozens of beams of bright red light were fired from the fingertips of the two golems floating in the air. 

It was the beam magic that the boss monster used during the free exploration. 

But there were far more beams of light, and there were two of the source. 

Boom! Kaboom! Boom!Dozens of red rays devastated the area where Evangeline was. 

Explosions and flames occurred each time the beams scratched the ground like a whip. 

Evangeline raised her shield and parried the magic attack. Her crouched body was pushed back helplessly. 

“Ugh…!”She could feel the durability of her shield decreasing in an instant. 

She struggled a bit, but the attack itself was endurable. The real problem was, 

Guooo-!That all the remaining golems were charging straight at Evangeline who had to stop moving in order to defend against the magic attack. 

‘I can’t waste any more time on this! I’ll have to continue moving as I block the attacks…!’ 

Evangeline started to retreat as she had the shield raised. 

But at that moment, her injured ankle gave up and she lost her balance. 

‘Ah.’ 

She made an unfortunate mistake. 

There was a gap in Evangeline’s defense as her stance collapsed. The golems did not miss that chance and the red rays of light dug into that gap. 

Boom! Kaboom! 

“Aargh!” 

The rays of light were hot and sharp. The attacks only brushed past her, but both a cut and a burn were engraved at the same time. 

Drops of blood spurted all over Evangeline’s little body. 

A beam of light that passed through Evangeline scorched the ground under her, causing an ensuing explosion. 

Kaboom-! 

“Ugh, urgh…!” 

Clawed by the rays and engulfed by the explosions, Evangeline rolled on the ground. 

She raised her upper body as she coughed, then saw the group of giant golems approaching her. 

‘Ah.’ 

Evangeline slowly lowered her head. As brilliant as she was, she was quick to judge her situation. 

‘It’s over.’ 

Such a fruitless death. 

Death has come to find her without any sign and so suddenly. 

“There are so many things that I haven’t done yet…” 

She had never been in a relationship, never drank alcohol, and never smoked. 

She hadn’t even become an adult yet. 

Nor had she contemplated what she really wanted to do. 

“This is how it ends.” 

Evangeline calmly closed her two eyes. 

There was no anger. There was no grief. 

It was just a pity. 

That was the emotion that the girl felt at the final moment of her life. Evangeline let out a small sigh. 

“What a pity…” 

It was at that moment. 

“Then just do them.” 

“…?” 

“Things you haven’t done. Try all of them one by one.” 

Suddenly, in front of her, a voice was heard. 

Evangeline slowly opened her eyes and looked in front of her, wondering if it was just her imagination. 

“Life is short. So you have to try your absolute hardest to waste it without regret.” 

A man stood strong in front of Evangeline, showing his back. 

His shirt was soaked with sweat from how hastily he ran, and his shoulders shook as he couldn’t control his rough breathing. 

Evangeline opened her mouth in disbelief. 

“…Sunbae?” 

The man glanced back. 

The 3rd prince of the Everblack Empire—Ash ‘Von Heiter’ Everblack—grinned with his teeth showing. 

“I’m here to save you, my cute little Hubae.” 

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