Chapter 8
Claude’s eyes blazed with hatred as he glared straight at me and shouted.
I tried to calm my ragged breathing, forcing myself not to panic.
“…You’re right. Maybe Anne and you ended up like this because of me. But then why drag Olivia into it? If you want revenge, hurt me—not an innocent child!”
Claude let out a cold laugh.
“Do you really think I went through all this trouble just for some petty revenge like that?”
“What… do you mean?”
I tried to keep my voice steady.
Claude’s twisted face broke into a cruel grin.
“The inquisitor who did this to me said something interesting. He told me that if I wanted my position restored, I should offer the two witches who ruined me as sacrifices to God.”
“……!”
“He said if I swore to destroy those witches myself, he’d happily forgive me and grant me redemption.”
Claude laughed chillingly, then turned to Sophie, who was standing beside him.
“Start.”
“Yes, Father.”
“S-Sophie? Wait—don’t come closer! P-please, help! Auntie, save me!”
Sophie slowly walked toward Olivia, who was tied to a pillar.
Olivia’s eyes filled with tears as she struggled in fear.
I shouted, glaring at Sophie as she approached.
“Stop it right now! If you hurt Olivia, I’ll never forgive you!”
I twisted and fought against my bindings, but they didn’t budge.
Meanwhile, Sophie grabbed Olivia by the neck and forced her mouth open. Then she poured a strange green liquid into the child’s mouth.
“……!”
At that moment, Olivia’s green eyes turned red in terror.
A strange green magic circle appeared beneath her feet, glowing brighter and brighter.
Then purple thorny vines burst out of the circle, wrapping tightly around her small body.
Tears welled in my eyes as I shouted at Sophie and Claude in fury and despair.
“What are you doing to her?! Stop it right now!”
Claude laughed darkly.
“Hah! You shouldn’t be worrying about that brat right now.”
“What… what do you mean?”
Claude smirked at me.
“The drug Sophie just fed that little witch—it’s the potion I told you about that drives magical power into a frenzy.”
“……What?”
“In fifteen minutes at most, that brat will be consumed by despair and hatred. Then she’ll turn into a monster. And when she does, she’ll rip apart everything she sees. Now tell me, who do you think she’ll kill first?”
“……”
“When that creature kills you, I’ll slay it too and bring both corpses back to the cathedral. Then God Himself will bless me with restoration!”
Claude burst into hysterical laughter, as if the very thought thrilled him.
I glared at him, my voice trembling with rage.
“…You’re insane. Do you really think things will go your way?”
“Oh, they will. Because I’ll make sure of it.”
Claude smirked down at me coldly.
Then Sophie stepped closer and said,
“Time’s almost up. Let’s go, Father Claude.”
“Yes, let’s.”
Claude nodded.
As they walked toward the door, I screamed after them, my voice breaking.
“Are you not afraid of God?! How can people who claim to believe in Him commit such evil?!”
But they ignored me and left. The door slammed shut, locking me in again.
Desperate, I struggled against my bonds. I had to escape. I had to save Olivia.
“Help! Is anyone there? Someone’s trapped in here! Please!”
But no one answered.
After shouting until my throat went dry, I collapsed helplessly to the ground.
The door was right there. Olivia was right there.
But I couldn’t do anything.
“Please… someone… help us…”
Tears streamed down my face as I whispered hoarsely.
Then suddenly—
[Don’t give up yet.]
“…!”
[You can find a way. You always do.]
“What… what is this voice…”
I looked around in confusion, but there was no one—just me and Olivia.
The mysterious voice scared me at first, but strangely, it calmed me down. My breathing slowed, and my thoughts grew clear.
I bit my lip and thought,
‘Right. It’s not over yet. There must be a way out of this.’
At this point, I had nothing to lose. If I was going to die anyway, I’d rather die trying to fight back.
I desperately searched my memory for a way to stop this.
‘In the original story… Olivia wasn’t the only one who went berserk from mana overload. The heroine stopped it somehow… how did she do it again?’
Then it hit me.
“That’s right! She stopped it with holy power!”
A smile spread across my face. That was it. If I could get Olivia to a priest in time, she could be saved.
‘But first, I have to get out of these ropes.’
I sat up as best as I could and looked around for something sharp.
That’s when I saw it—the lamp Claude and Sophie had left behind.
‘That’ll work!’
I crawled toward it, removed the glass cover, and brought the flame close to the fabric around my wrists.
The ropes began to burn, the heat biting into my skin. The smell of scorched fabric and flesh filled the air, but I clenched my teeth and endured it.
Finally, the knot gave way.
I ripped the ropes off my wrists and untied my ankles too. Then I ran straight to Olivia.
“Olivia!”
She was still wrapped in the purple vines, staring blankly into the air.
I lightly tapped her cheeks, calling her name, but she didn’t respond.
I had no choice but to carry her out.
I grabbed the purple vines and tried to tear them away.
“Ah—!”
The sharp thorns dug into my hands, drawing blood.
Then something strange happened.
“Huh…?”
The thorns that touched my blood twitched and pulled back. The green magic circle beneath Olivia faded.
Encouraged, I ripped through the vines with my bloodied hands. I didn’t have time to wonder why my blood was working—I just needed to save her.
Soon the circle vanished completely, and the vines fell limp to the ground. I pulled Olivia into my arms.
‘Now I just have to escape!’
I ran to the door and pressed my ear against it.
“How much time has passed?”
“About five minutes, Father.”
“Tch. We’ll wait a bit longer.”
Just as I feared—Claude and Sophie were still right outside. And from the sound of it, there were more people with them.
I bit my lip hard.
‘There’s no way I can get past them all… unless…’
I glanced around the room. It was made entirely of wood. Then my eyes landed on the oil lamp again.
An idea sparked in my mind.
‘Yes… that might work.’
I poured a little lamp oil onto the ropes that had bound my wrists, then laid them flat against the wooden wall.
Then I threw the lamp at them.
Crash!
The glass shattered, and flames burst to life, spreading quickly across the oil-soaked fabric and licking up the wooden wall.
I covered my mouth with my sleeve and listened closely.
“What’s that sound?”
“Did the witch brat already transform?”
“F-Father! The storage room’s on fire!”
“What?! Damn it! Open the door! We have to save the girl’s body, at least!”
Just as I hoped—they panicked.
The moment the door opened, I kicked at the burning wall with all my strength.
Crack!
The weakened wood broke apart, and a hole opened wide.
I tightened my hold on Olivia and bolted through the flames—running as fast as I could.
