Author's note: POV changed to Vyaghra!!

After ordering Raj to infiltrate the enemy camp four days ago, Her Majesty finally opened up to me and Jambavan for the first time since we left the forest.

"Vyaghra, Jambavan, our era already ended with that battle one millennia ago," Her Majesty stated as the three of us stared into the camp from where Raj was attacking the array.

"I don't know why the me of the past sealed our memories or why we remained as cursed beings in the forest. We were already growing weaker with each passing year and would have died by now if he hadn't cured us back then."

"Your words are wise, Your Majesty," I replied, my head slightly bowed before her. "It can't be a coincidence that Raj arrived only when we were at the end of our lifespan. There must be a task that Your Majesty of the past wanted us to complete in this era."

Her Majesty let out a brief sigh and said, "It may sound a bit immature, but I have this feeling that we will surely find the reason for our return if we follow him."

"Ya aren't the only one who thinks that way, Yer Majesty," Jambavan said, joining in. "Ay believe this young man's gonna shake the entire Vyoman in a few years, and we're here only to assist him."

"Since all three of us share the same hunch, we should carry out our duty properly," Her Majesty ordered. "His realm increases the more intense the battles he fights, so this war will be beneficial for him."

"Is this the reason Your Majesty hinted for me to lie to him about our winning chances?" I gasped. "You want him to fight all of them alone?"

"So it was Yer Majesty's idea?" Jambavan laughed. "And here Ay wondered why Vyaghra said we had less than a 1% chance of winning when he and Ay can wipe them all out easily."

Her Majesty sighed again, a hint of sadness on her face as she explained, "I don't want to lie to him, but it's for his own good if he depends on his own strength. However, my heart won't allow him to fight a dangerous war like this alone. So..."

Her Majesty's gaze sharpened as she stared into the forest where that woman Nyx and her mortal companions were hiding.

"Vyaghra, Jambavan, take care of all the Awakened Sages and the hidden army—except that black-robed man and that wench."

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Jambavan and I replied together, bowing our heads.

"Yer Majesty, can Ay ask a personal question from you?" Jambavan asked, his voice carrying a humorous tone.

The bastard was surely about to ask an improper question to Her Majesty.

"Of course you may, Jambavan," Her Majesty replied with a smile brighter than the sun. "You two and Ruru are family to me, so please treat me as such."

"Thanks for yer permission, Yer Majesty," Jambavan replied, his smile gleaming as he asked, "Ay have noticed that ya never call Raj by his name in his absence. May ya tell me the reason?"

Jambavan's question sent a sudden rush of redness across Her Majesty's face.

"How dare you ask such a disrespectful question to Her Majesty?" I growled, giving him death stares.

"Who are ya to speak on her behalf when she herself permitted me to ask the question?" he snarled back.

"But you still should—"

"It's fine, Vyaghra," Her Majesty said. "I didn't know that you would actually notice that."

She covered her face with her hands as she continued, "When I was young, my mother told me that a wife shouldn't say her husband's name in his absence. It's considered insolent."

"Oh, is that so..." Jambavan laughed, giving teasing side-eyes to Her Majesty, making her even more flustered.

.

.

.

The moment Her Majesty gave her order, this snake-faced mortal—although gross—had already become my prey.

To avoid disturbing Raj in his realm-ascension battle, I forcefully teleported the snake-faced mortal into the forest.

"Khe-khe-khe, that teleportation technique of yours is very interesting," the mortal barked. "If you teach me that, I will let you live."

"Shut your mouth, mortal," I replied, giving him a repulsive glare. "You have neither the skills nor the status to speak to me. I'm already annoyed to dirty my dagger by clashing with that revolting knife."

"Khe! How arrogant!" he snarled, bolting toward me.

His movements rolled like a wave between the trees, a style he likely assumed would make him unpredictable in my eyes.

When he came within striking range, his knife-hand swept upward and then slashed down toward my head.

I tilted my head back, narrowly dodging the strike, but in the next instant his body folded into a full circle, his foot whipping toward me from behind.

"Khe-khe-khe, I've killed hundreds of arrogant, overconfident brats like you," he cackled as a hidden blade shot out from the sole of his shoe, grazing the back of my skull.

Surprisingly for him, the knife passed directly through my head and struck the tree, slightly slicing his own cheek.

The figure he assumed to be me was nothing but an afterimage I had left as I erased my presence from the surroundings.

"Khe? Where did he go?" he stammered, confused as he landed on the ground.

I was still standing exactly where I had been—right in front of him—the only difference being that my body was now covered in the darkness attribute of my Soulforce.

"Tsk, it's too embarrassing to use such a divine skill when fighting a mere ant," I sighed, removing the Soulforce from my body.

"Khe-khe-khe, so you can't stay hidden for long?" the foolish mortal laughed and lunged toward a nearby tree.

He slid a small blade between his lips, the tip flickering out like a serpent's tongue. With two daggers clenched in his hands, he erupted into a rapid, circular motion, flitting from tree to tree, tightening the ring around me.

As he moved, blades flew from every angle; however, despite the relentless onslaught, I tracked his movement with dispassionate calm, letting the storm of blades pass me with no more than a shrug of my shoulders or a turn of my head.

"Khe-khe-khe, all of these weapons are laced with poison that could kill even a Greater Spirit Beast if it enters their blood," he laughed. "For a Lesser Spirit Beast like you, if even one of them touches your skin, you're as good as dead."

"Tch, wasn't it already humiliating enough to fight a mortal?" I sighed, aiming my dagger at him. "Why does he have to be bone-headed as well?"

"Khe-khe-khe! I was chased out of the mainland because I assassinated an heir of a major clan," he boasted, intensifying his attack. "If I wanted, I would have already assassinated Nyx—"

"Shadow Needle."

His lifeless body fell with a thud as the energy needle shot from the tip of my dagger pierced the center of his forehead, leaving a finger-sized hole.

"Pathetic insect."

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