Thirteen villagers. Four elders, five parents, four kids, one of them in the middle of getting his flesh melted in the essence forge for remolding. It's a miserable sight.

The adults display signs of early body modification one after another. Flesh or bone magic isn't quite a chimera creation, but the boundaries begin to blur instantly fast once parts from multiple sources are merged.

A wolf's claw doesn't change a seamstress into a killing machine, and attaching a human head to a wolf… I don't really know. Thankfully, because even being well-versed in stuff like that would draw severe repercussions.

The point is, all the moms, pops, and grannies are very determined and very fierce with their extra fangs and claws and fur and whatnot. If I didn't know any better, and the bastard Alvaro weren't by my side, I'd be slightly worried.

But I'm not.

"Stand down now, and we'll try to spare whoever we can." Alvaro made an empty promise. Anyone modified or colluding in this scheme would be rounded up once the inquisitors arrive and disappear. "We don't want to hurt children…"

I'd be quite fine with that as well. It's my age group, which means it's fair game. Sadly, I'm not buying the talk, and neither are the villagers snarling like beasts and likely at the edge of their sanity.

"If you leave, we can give them back." One of the younger mothers offered. "You came for the students, right? The ones with fair skin and clean mana through the bodies… If you agree, no harm comes to them."

Nice move, lady, really, because the only reason this standoff persists is our fear of collateral damage. Maybe that's why I was told to stand back… Anyway, once the scheme was uncovered, the lives of those brats became secondary.

"I'm sorry, we cannot simply look away." The head of the Turan force says through her teeth. It was a difficult situation. "I apologise for what you had to endure, for our country and for the people, but please-"

"We are the people! My husband, my daughter!" One of the elderly women wails in anguish and releases the chains.

Now, these about two dozen beasts are not domesticated puppies. They have been mangled and starved for days on end, perhaps. So the first bear-wolf thing bit the granny's arm off at the shoulder the moment it broke loose. How ironic…

Next on the menu are those chained up and currently in the middle of getting their blood drained. Predators recognize an easy meal, and the chaos comes in handy for a surprise attack on as, that surprises no one.

Dad releases a pair of arrows, which take down the bear for now, while the guardsmen swing into motion to secure the hostages. Our knightly lady swings into motion and executes two people right away, while Mom stays back to keep us safe.

And Alvaro does nothing. More precisely, he watches and listens as if expecting something. A something that ties all of this together.

Because let's be real, these people could've never achieved those spectacular heists. The patience and skills required to pull something like that off aren't currently among us. I remember the scroll in my sidebag, reach into it, while carnage in front of me unfolds, and allow some mana to enter the scroll.

No reaction, meaning the other part has either been destroyed or is already far away, and the mana requirements are rising. Either way, this isn't ideal. But at least we likely don't need to worry about a third party joining the fray.

"It's good, they're already gone!" I yell, based on my observations alone.

It's not a certainty, but definitely what anyone smart would do. Ditch the dead weight, create a distraction, and flee to restart somewhere else.

Alvaro swings into motion. Why he trusts my words is beyond me. Perhaps a habit, perhaps something I've done, it doesn't matter… His sword flashes twice, and all modified, beastly limbs are severed without fail.

"That's enough!" He pointed he blade at a woman, hissing in pain. They never stood a chance from the start. "If you surrender now, at least your children will be spared!"

That was already a tall promise. I still remember back when I wasn't much older, but the inquisitors still came for me without a hint of mercy, based on suspicion alone. The 'no loose ends' policy they pursue is a cruelly effective one. And one the Fist also encourages to a degree…

"Spared? For how long?" The very woman staring down Malor asked with hollow eyes. "Once we're gone… They'll either starve or end up on the Line all the same." She pushed herself up with blood pouring from her wound.

Alvaro followed her every move as she moved to the essence forge and extracted the still struggling child from its arcane grip. The boy seemed exhausted, and the botched, incomplete process left only a stump where he once had an arm.

"I'm sorry, my dear. Live on, grow strong, and I'll be praying for your happiness." The woman whispered. Then she ushered all the children our way, trying to soothe their frightened faces.

With each beast already slain or dying, and the hostages no longer in mortal danger, the operation could be considered a success. We welcome the innocent – not me specifically, because I hate snotty brats – since avoiding collateral damage is the least we can do.

"They will be in our care." Our lady knight gives her word and honor. Although opponents, they're still all human and have a shred of decency, I guess. Well, I'm not exactly human, but even I'm not a monster.

But the tattered, wounded woman only shakes her head. "Liars… I will not let you have them."

With those words, she throws herself into the ghostly flames of savage mana. What flash and matter remain swirling in the abhorrent goop, swallow her. Unlike the kid, whose resistance to magic is almost nonexistent, as an adult, her body doesn't succumb to the essence forge that easily.

It still does, just with a hell of a lot more pain.

Once her entire being is torn to its fundamental pieces, the matter lashes out and flames of mana flare, now feasting on the individual's own magic. Anything in the rampaging force's path is doomed. Stone, lifeless bodies, chains, or even the living.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

One of the guards manages to shield his face in time, but the mana bites through his armor and eats into his forearm. Anything and everything touched by the mana amalgamation is swept away and merged into the horrific mixture.

"Out! Now, now!" I yell in complete panic.

There's no need to stare into the realm of mana or feel it on my own skin. Simply being in the presence of this affront to magic is making my stomach churn. And worse yet, I have no clue how to stop it.

With the newfound source of matter and mana, the furnace pulses again, and the swelling catastrophe continues to consume. And the villagers readily relinquish their lives to it.

Despite my quite clear warning, the personnel of Turan aren't in a hurry to leave. The hostages are still chained and in mortal peril. Not all of them brawe the cursed magic to fulfill their duties, but those who do, pay a hefty price.

Young students and even impoverished citizens are freed and escorted out, nevertheless, parts of them don't make it out. A leg, or maybe both, and an ear in fortunate cases, a lung or kidney when Pessus flips the coin and it spells doom…

There's nothing I or anyone else can do.

Alvaro does attempt to use one of his Skills – likely nurtured over a century in one of his monstrous Classes of his – and with a slash, sends a trail of soundless gale towards the furnace. It's the catalyst that started this all, and it gets bisected by air too sharp to describe helplessly.

The trouble doesn't dissolve, though. There are souls and bodies with live mana vessels merged into the thing by now, which means an internal mana supply has been secured. Secured and maybe even merged into one…

Without an answer, we flee like rats from a housefire. Behind us, the blob grows to a size where it begins to consume the cavern itself, pulling the entire mine down onto our heads.

In a desperate attempt to save my skin along with those sluggish enough to be sprinting along my side, I try to hold the ceiling. It's obviously not gonna happen. Like, maybe if we tripled my attributes, maybe, but it's simply too much mass across too massive a stretch.

All I manage to achieve is slow the cracks from spreading overhead and prevent the largest boulders from crushing us, even if only by a second. Dad catches on to his sweety struggling to concentrate and run, so he scoops me up in his arms.

It's been a while since he held me in a princess carry, but sadly, I can't fully enjoy it at the moment. Those who lost their legs or vital chunks of flesh get buried first. Next come the injured beasts and Kayla's friends – such as a bear and crows – who aren't fit to navigate the chaos.

By the time it's our turn to find an early grave, the light of day finally reclaims us. Stone comes down rumbling, and the cave entrance bids farewell with a puff of dust and pebbles.

But we made it out, and our palms demanding fair pay will know no mercy.

Alvaro marches over and grabs me by the shoulder. "Elyssia, how do we shut that thing down?" He thinks I'm some sort of magic lexicon, which I do happen to be. "How do we make the magic stop?"

There's so much urgency in his voice that it catches me stupefied for a second. Then the hillside begins to groan and rumble once more, and I finally recognize the severity of the issue at hand.

The essence furnace wasn't buried… It only got fed.

"Does anyone happen to use void magic by chance?" I ask casually because my hopes are low. No hands in the air – although perhaps because pain and fear generally deny me the spotlight. "Then we're not swimming in options…"

Naturally, I do try to keep a cool head. We're largely uninjured and not in immediate danger. Worst case, we ditch on the job and leave… honestly, this is a complete magical disaster at this point – so we just leave it for others to deal with.

"So there are options?" Alvaro catches on pretty quickly.

"There might be one." I don't deny it. "But I'm not doing it. It's stupid and suicidal."

Stupid and suicidal even beyond my threshold. Sure, the mana amalgamation is all about decomposing and feeding, so I just need to feed it a command to stop. Simple enough, in theory, until I basically need to walk up to it and untangle that crap.

No way I'm doing that.

Aether wouldn't even reach the part where the entire magic formation went wrong. It's a waste of mana, and I prefer keeping my secret over solving this headache.

"Can we just leave?" Victor asks, helping over a limping Kayal. She's whole and breathing, just a little hurt, it seems. "We're here to learn, remember, no solve crises."

Fair point. These past contracts already felt like we're pushing our luck and constantly biting more than we can chew. I'm in a hurry to max out my Skills, because this might be the last Class up I can do this, as later the levels become too much, but it's not worth dying over.

"What if I ask you to do it?" Our senior leader asks a rather stupid question.

Even if my parents and Valka all begged, I would still be reluctant. But this man isn't stupid.

"So, is it worth it?"

Despite what I assume it is brewing under the small mountain of stone, his grin stretches wide. Greed is good, confidence is good, and going in with a mindset of getting what we want… That's the Krieg style of life.

"It's better than money." He says, and that's all I need to know. Because what the Fist has taught me is that money is the best.

However, as I am not quite an adult yet, this is not my decision alone.

"Elyssia, no!" Dad talks to me like a dog, and I can't fault him really. "You have already fought a hill and gone investigating alone, over and over. No more recklessness!"

I look at Mom for help, and so does Dad for support.

"You know, when I was her age…" She starts and doesn't even need to finish.

"Not a good example!" The eldest of our household interjects.

"But it's gonna be what I'll do for a living anyway." I point out, meanwhile, our time is ticking.

"And I still don't like it!"

Yeah, I could live as a princess as well, but life is a bitch. And with a little resourcefulness, perhaps we can get this done easily. I just need to lie, and maybe pray for some luck. And definitely conserve some mana for an escape. Just in case.

While the stone begins to visibly swell, with tendons and flesh stretching between boulders, and magic so thick swirling around the epicenter, one can see it with the naked eye. It's disgusting to look at and be around.

I don't know, like, tasting something bitter and foul through my skin…

"Kayla, get me your fastest bird, many of them!" I omit the part where the thing is almost guaranteed to die. "And Victor, find me a corpse if you can!"

He gets to move, then freezes in motion. "A what now?" He looked at me, confused, then sighed. "Is any type of corpse good?"

"Yeah!"

Good, he knows when not to question stupid requests. Also, what I'm about to do might be best kept a secret once the inquisitors come around with their questions. But I still prefer this over going close to… that thing.

The thing in question has finally emerged from the rubble. An amalgamation of dirt, devoured flora, and chunks of flesh now stench and strike, almost like a golem. With a pinch of mana, I reach out to manipulate the edge of the arcane chaos. But the mana refuses to yield.

"There's still a soul in there." I share my findings, just as I've feared. "Or multiple… Anyway, I'll need you to blast that thing apart as best as you can."

Since the adults are helpless, it falls on me to cook something up. Perhaps if I had anyone at least modestly mana literate around, I could consult them and make a more educated guess, but oh well.

"What is your plan?" Mom twirls her spear and creates javelins of ice. Ice that's gonna get sucked in and absorbed, but whatever…

Once I notice Victor hastily dragging back a half-crushed corpse, I plop down and say. "A corpse magic bomb. Or something along those lines."

If not for the ungodly rumble of rampant mana, the silence upon my answer would be deafening.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.