(Silly! Now is not the time to be thinking about such things! Stand up and move! Don’t ruin Mommy and Daddy’s kindness!)

Chiara spurred herself to her feet. She wiped her eyes roughly, determined to survive. But—

“Ah… Shit!”

There were footsteps. Someone was approaching from both ends of the alley.

It seems that Qiara was too distracted just now. There is nowhere to escape or hide in this alley.

In a few seconds, people whose minds were possessed by fanaticism would stick their heads into the alley and rush over to attack her.

Thinking of this, Qiara's expression twisted, crying and laughing at the same time. The next moment -

Something jumped lightly from the roof, landed in front of Ziara, and covered her mouth.

"Be quiet, or I'll kill you."

The man said such scary words while pressing Qiara against the wall and leaning his body closer.

This posture looked completely like a crime. But when she saw who it was, Qiara was both shocked and relieved.

Then, the fanatics appeared from the alley's exit, looking into the uncovered alley.

However, he just watched without any reaction.

Then, a few men came from the other end of the alley, but there was no reaction either.

The men on one side walked into the alley, their eyes wide open and bloodshot, looking around as they walked.

Then the men passed by Qiara and the others.

The men joined up with the group at the other end of the alley and ran off.

At this time, the hand covering Qiyala's mouth finally released.

“Puff…w-why are you here…ah! Why are you so injured!?”

"That's enough, stop talking."

The one who saved Qiara at the critical moment was the girl of the same tribe whom she had just recalled - Cui.

After Cui's body slipped away, Qiara realized she was covered in wounds. One of her rabbit ears was missing, and her body was covered in wounds, her blood staining her black combat uniform. She looked exhausted, and it wasn't just her personality that was causing her to lose energy.

"Let's leave now."

Cui had no intention of answering Qiara's question and held her hand.

She was still the same, always being very rude to Qiyala. However, this also made Qiyala particularly puzzled.

"...Why did you come to save me?"

Cui had no need to come here. Why would she, with her inestimable worth, risk her serious injuries to save a mere supporter? From a rational point of view, this shouldn't have happened.

Moreover, Qiara and Cui are not on good terms, and they even quarrel every time they meet.

Cui often said to Qiara in front of her, "I hate cheerful people like you the most."

So why?

Cui still didn't answer Chiara's question. Under the invisibility effect of their inherent magic, the two arrived at the town gate in a flash. Similarly, the gatekeepers ignored them and let them out.

"Go to the forest outside town. Kuo is waiting there. Take it to the Black Gate's range. You should reach the Sea of ​​Trees in about three days."

After the decisive battle, Kuo led the Demon Wolf unit, following the retreat plan, along with the Republic Army. Later, to assist Tsui and the others in their espionage activities, they were assigned as a means of transportation. However, all the Demon Wolf units except Kuo have now been eliminated.

"Why don't we go to a closer base? We need to report the situation to Skynet first..."

"You're still as naive as ever. Do you think this kind of shit only happens in this remote little town?"

"Eh? Could it be that the whole world...?"

"Yes, the whole world. Apostles have spread across the globe, posing as priests from local churches, and using charm magic to brainwash all the inhabitants of each region."

"Brainwashing... then the priests in our town are also..."

"That person must be an apostle in disguise. The trouble is, the effects of brainwashing magic can be transmitted indirectly through people. However, I don't know why, but the Liberator, related personnel, and those who have recently strongly agreed with the Liberator's ideas are generally immune to brainwashing. This may be a global automated brainwashing, automated heresy inquisition. Funny, isn't it?"

Hearing the shocking fact that was not funny at all, Qiara could only be at a loss.

"How could this happen... How should we deal with this situation?"

"Who knows? Your Majesty and the others might have a solution. Otherwise, there's no hope."

“How can you say it so simply…!”

"The truth is that simple. All we need to do now is escape into the forest. Assist as many evacuees as possible, mobilize our forces, strengthen our defenses, and try to survive."

At this point, Cui thought that losing Leke Aileyin was a particularly tragic loss.

That's a flying armed base with teleportation and long-distance communication capabilities. If that submarine were still there, it could have ignored the chaos on the ground and rescued people everywhere.

(…No, that’s probably why the enemy is so obsessed with taking down that ship first.)

Thinking of this, Cui sighed with melancholy. At this time, the two came to the edge of the forest.

There was movement in the forest. It was Kuo. Even though the two of them had concealed their presence and gone invisible, Kuo's excellent sense of smell still detected someone approaching and he came over to investigate.

Kuo cautiously poked his head out from between the bushes. He wore no magical armor. His once-sleek, snow-white fur was now tangled and speckled with clotted blood.

From its current appearance, it is not difficult to imagine how difficult it is to escape from the Kingdom of God.

"Once Your Majesty returns to the Sea of ​​Trees, we can set up the White Mist Barrier. After that, I look forward to seeing Meredith and the others—"

Cui discussed the future plan while walking into the forest. She softly snapped her fingers, calling out to Kuou.

So, Kuo's eyes turned accurately to the place where there seemed to be nothing, which was where Cui and Qiara were.

In an instant, there was a loud thud.

Cui stumbled a step or two, as if someone had given her a gentle push, and then, as if completely exhausted, she fell to her knees.

"Eh? Cui, what are you doing..."

"Cough!" Cui exhaled and spat out a large amount of blood.

In the blink of an eye, the area around her heart was drenched in blood, and the corners of her clothes kept dripping blood. The blood dripped onto the ground, and a feather fluttered to the ground, emitting a silver glow.

It turns out that Cui was shot by a sniper. Where did the sniper come from? How did he know her location? Had she been targeted long ago?

Cui saw Qiara approaching to hug her with a look of grief on her face, and Kuo also ran towards her with a growl. However, the doubts in her heart and the scene before her quickly became blurred.

Because Cui was fatally wounded and killed in one blow, just like a hunter shooting a rabbit.

But Cui is no weak little creature.

“Don’t, underestimate me, ahhhhhh!!”

Cui roared like a wild beast, took out a small bottle, bit it into pieces and drank the contents before losing consciousness.

It is a specially made powerful medicine, a highly toxic one that will kill anyone who takes it.

However, it allows her to exert power beyond her limits in a very short time before death. Since she is going to die, why not fight to the end?

"Koo! Take this guy away!"

Cui, who was kneeling on the ground, turned over and jumped up, kicking Qiara away at the same time.

Using the recoil from the kick, Cui jumped to the side, and instantly, the silver cannonball struck the spot where Cui and Chiara had been moments before, creating a large hole in the ground.

The enemy first subdued the prey with a surprise attack, then killed it with a bombardment. He wanted to kill it with two attacks, and his killing intent was extremely strong.

"Aren't you ashamed of taking two weak little rabbits so seriously?"

Cui squeezed out all her strength to sarcastically say. At the same time, she used all her strength to shoot the flying knife at the old woman priestess who was flying at high speed.

It was a magic sword capable of severing both magic and space, so even the apostles couldn't ignore it and moved to ward it off. However, this move completely played into Cui's hands, and the mechanism hidden in the hilt ruptured due to the impact, spewing out a powder that had the effect of blocking magic.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”

Cui fought back without stopping. As long as she could hold on for a few tens of seconds, it would be enough.

Poison, dissolving liquid, magic absorption, lightning, heat, ice, petrification...

She used the functions and abilities of all the weapons on her body, throwing them with all her might, not even taking the time to breathe.

"Tsui! No! Let's go! Kuou, let me go!"

Qiara's voice had faded away.

It seems that Kuo made a quick decision and immediately decided to abandon Cui and take Qiara away without any hesitation.

What a smart wolf—Cui thought so and smiled.

Because there is absolutely no chance of winning if we stay here.

Cui was truly grateful that Kuou had survived until now. He was Bandu's highest-ranking servant, and despite being a monster, he possessed the "Black Gate Mirror," which allowed him to open the gate.

If it were Kuo, he would definitely make Chiara, that cheerful compatriot she disliked, escape to the forest.

"what……"

There is no pain as imagined.

The magnificent sword pierced through the center of Cui's chest, pinning her to the ground.

The apostle disguised as an old woman priestess brushed away the dust that blocked the magic power and descended from the sky.

Even though Cui attacked fiercely at the risk of her life, she was unable to cause any harm to the apostle.

"I never thought you could escape the Divine Capital. Such fragile and timid bunnymen shouldn't be capable of such a feat."

Cui's consciousness gradually became blurred, and she could only hear this frighteningly clear and beautiful voice in her ears.

"If you hadn't come to rescue that useless compatriot, you could have escaped."

The greatsword on the chest was drawn.

"Don't worry. While I have no reason not to kill her, I also have no reason to go out of my way to hunt her down."

The apostle shook off the blood on the greatsword, disintegrated it, and turned to leave. For her, this place no longer had her business.

"But no matter what, the people you want to protect will eventually be hunted down and die."

The apostle's attitude was relaxed, as if she had just finished mowing the lawn. In reality, to her, Cui was just an eyesore that she ignored. It wouldn't be difficult to deal with, so she just dealt with it for now.

Even so, this was undoubtedly an act of exclusion from the game of God. Therefore, Cui laughed. It was a mockery.

"One day—"

"?"

"One day, a true hero will be born. A hero far greater than myself."

The apostle did not turn around, but just looked back, then his body retreated slightly.

"Remember this. The future of the Bunnymen will surely shatter your future!"

Because, when Cui raised her head slightly, a smile that could only be described as "magnificent" appeared on her face.

Even when on the verge of death, his eyes were still fierce and sharp, and his aura was powerful.

That wasn't just a quick quip. Her tone spoke of conviction.

"……joke."

On the contrary, the apostle's response sounded much more guilty. He didn't intend to continue wasting time with her and quickly left the scene.

Cui felt so weak in her whole body that she felt the breeze blowing on her cheeks was particularly comfortable.

(Okay, I tried my best...)

After praising myself, I faced death calmly—before that...

"emerald!"

She heard crying. Through her blurry vision, she saw Chiara's figure. Raindrops fell on her cheeks, strangely warm.

"Why...are you running back...idiot?"

“I’m sorry…I’m sorry…”

Why apologize? Was it for not being able to save him? Or was it for the fact that he was protected?

Cuimian looked at the girl of the same tribe in front of her, and she squatted down and held her hand.

My mouth moved involuntarily.

"The rabbit people are... very strong."

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