Chapter 189: Light and Darkness Interlude
As the final breath of the monstrous creature left its body, Susan’s eyes widened, her entire being gripped by the awe and disbelief of what she had just witnessed.
The creature—once a terror that had ravaged the carriage she had been riding in, devouring every soul aboard—now lay lifeless on the ground.
A massive sword made of pure light was lodged deep into its skull, the source of its demise.
This was the same monster that had effortlessly torn through the hired guards meant to protect her family, a beast of unspeakable strength that not even the most experienced among their protectors could fend off.
It had slaughtered everyone—her family, the passengers, even the horses—and it had done so with a savage, unrelenting hunger.
Susan had watched, helpless, as the monster consumed her loved ones in front of her eyes, their screams echoing in her mind.
And yet, now that terror lay motionless, its once glowing eyes now dull and lifeless, much like the skies that were slowly darkening with the setting sun.
Before her stood the one who had slain the beast—a young girl, not much older than Susan herself, perhaps even the same age.
Her appearance, however, was anything but ordinary. Golden blonde hair fluttered lightly in the wind, catching the fading rays of the sun.
Her eyes, soft yet unreadable, met Susan’s, and for a moment, they simply stared at one another.
The girl’s face was serene, as if what she had just done was nothing out of the ordinary.
But to Susan, it was something beyond comprehension—an act of raw power and control, far beyond anything she had ever known or could even dream of.
“Who… who are you?” Susan’s voice came out in a whisper, her body still trembling from the shock of the events that had just unfolded. She could barely bring herself to speak, let alone understand what had just happened.
The girl tilted her head slightly, a small, gentle smile tugging at the corners of her lips. “Me? I’m just a random passerby~” she said, her tone light and carefree, as though she hadn’t just saved Susan’s life and avenged her family in a single, devastating strike.
That was the first time Susan had met Dorothy.
And in that moment, as Dorothy’s gaze lingered on her, Susan felt something inexplicable—an odd sense of connection, a bond that went beyond mere coincidence.
It was as if their lives had somehow been intertwined, linked by something deeper, something unseen.
Even in her childlike innocence, Susan had sensed that they were similar in nature, both bearing wounds that couldn’t be seen but were deeply felt.
“You know, Susan, don’t you think the world is a bit unfair~?” Dorothy’s voice had a whimsical lilt, almost as if she was teasing the very idea of fairness.
Susan, ever the pragmatist, didn’t need to think long before responding. “Well, it certainly isn’t just.” She said it plainly, her tone carrying the weight of all the injustices they both had experienced and witnessed.
Dorothy’s laughter came soft and light. “Hehe~ But it’s fun living in it, right?”
Susan couldn’t help but glance at Dorothy, her eyes lingering on her friend’s face.
There was something about Dorothy that always felt… different, like she didn’t quite fit into the world around her.
No matter where she stood, Dorothy seemed out of place. Susan often felt as though Dorothy was too special, too unique, for the mundane roles she was forced to play.
She was meant for greatness, and yet, instead of being allowed to shine, she was forever cast into the shadows—her brilliance meant only to highlight the lives of others who didn’t deserve it.
It was maddening.
“Don’t you think it’s unfair… she might be the legitimate daughter, but that doesn—”
“It’s fine~” Dorothy cut her off before she could finish. “The life I have now is more than enough.”
Her words were calm, almost too calm, as if she had rehearsed them many times before.
But her smile—gentle and unwavering—hid the deep scars Susan knew she carried.
Even when faced with extreme discrimination, being born as a bastard child in a world that valued legitimacy above all else, Dorothy had always been the one to remain humble.
She never sought the attention she deserved. Instead, she willingly let the world’s spotlight be cast on her non-existent siblings—phantoms of a perfect family that had never been hers.
Her life was a stage, and Dorothy was forced to play the part of the forgotten one, the shadow who lived only to highlight the brilliance of others.
It was this aspect of Dorothy that Susan both hated and loved.
She hated it because it hurt to see someone so powerful and worthy of recognition continually bow her head and retreat into the background.
But she loved it because, despite it all, Dorothy never lost her grace, never succumbed to bitterness or jealousy.
She bore her burdens with a quiet strength, a strength that only someone like Susan, who had grown close to her, could truly understand.
For a long time, Dorothy had remained a mystery to everyone around her. But not to Susan. At least, not entirely.
Susan had spent years getting to know Dorothy—her quirks, her habits, the subtle shifts in her mood.
She knew Dorothy better than anyone else, or so she thought. And yet, even after all this time, Susan couldn’t shake the feeling that something was always missing when it came to her.
Dorothy was like a book with pages torn out, leaving gaps in the story that Susan could never quite fill.
There were moments, rare and fleeting, where Susan would catch a glimpse of something deeper in Dorothy’s eyes—an unspoken sorrow, a buried anger, or perhaps something far more dangerous.
But whenever she tried to reach for it, Dorothy would smile and deflect, always the master of masking her true feelings.
“Why do you do it?” Susan had asked her once, frustration slipping into her voice. “Why do you let them treat you like that? Why don’t you fight back?”
Dorothy had merely smiled, her eyes filled with that familiar mix of mischief and melancholy.
“Because, someone has to be the shadow. And shadows… shadows make the light shine even brighter.”
Susan hadn’t known what to say then, and she still didn’t.
All she knew was that Dorothy had chosen this life—chosen to sacrifice her own light for the sake of others.
And no matter how much Susan wanted to shake her, to tell her it wasn’t fair, that she deserved so much more—Dorothy would never change.
Dorothy was someone Susan felt deeply indebted to—someone she hadn’t realized she needed until the moment everything in her life had shattered.
When Susan lost everything, it was Dorothy who became her everything.
She had been the one to save Susan on that fateful day, pulling her from the depths of despair and giving her a reason to keep going.
In the wake of her family’s death, Susan had found solace and strength in Dorothy’s presence, almost as if Dorothy had filled the gaping void left by her loss.
It wasn’t just Susan who felt this way.
Theo, too, shared that same sense of gratitude, that same unspoken bond with Dorothy.
He owed his life to her in more ways than one.
Even the lost twins, though they were no longer here, had felt the same connection.
For all of them, Dorothy wasn’t just a friend or a savior—she was the reason they continued to live, the anchor that kept them tethered to a world that had otherwise abandoned them.
Dorothy had become the reason for their lost lives, the person they all silently revolved around.
“We’re getting close,” Theo said as they sprinted through the eerily quiet streets, the sound of their footsteps echoing in the stillness.
They had noticed something strange earlier—the creatures of darkness, which had been relentlessly attacking everything and everyone, were avoiding them.
It was as if Theo and Susan didn’t even exist in the monsters’ eyes, or perhaps they simply weren’t considered a threat.
The creatures barreled past them, rushing toward something far more important, seemingly drawn to the same destination.
The further they ran, the more oppressive the air became.
The pressure of the dense mana hanging in the atmosphere grew with every step they took, thickening like a heavy fog that pressed down on their lungs and made it harder to breathe.
It wasn’t just any ordinary mana—it was dark, twisted, and chaotic, swirling violently as if it were trying to tear the very fabric of the world apart.
Both of them felt it—the urgency, the dread. They had to reach Dorothy before it was too late.
“We need to hurry,”
Susan muttered, her voice barely audible over the rushing sound of blood pounding in her ears.
“You know, Susan… if there ever comes a time when I have to make a decision I’ll surely regret… Can you… never mind, forget it~”
“Huh…?”
Susan had been caught off guard by Dorothy’s words, barely paying them any mind at the time.
She had always believed she understood Dorothy, assuming she had seen through her true personality.
Dorothy was the one who spoke so often about living in satisfaction, about igniting the light around her, about embracing their roles in life, even if they were in the shadows of others.
It was all talk Susan had admired, but now—now it all felt like lies.
Empty promises hiding something much darker.
All those conversations about finding contentment, all those hopeful musings about a future filled with plans and possibilities—what was the point of any of it if Dorothy was gone?
What was the point of being her shadow if she would just disappear?
What was the point of saving her, of taking care of her, if she would abandon them all?
And what was the meaning behind this so-called freedom Dorothy had granted them?
A freedom that now felt hollow and useless, a life without purpose if she wasn’t in it.
With every ounce of strength, Susan and Theo pressed on, pushing their bodies beyond their limits, their legs burning as they raced toward their destination.
But the moment they arrived, their feet came to an abrupt halt, their eyes widening in horror as they took in the scene before them.
“B-Boss…” Susan’s voice trembled, barely a whisper as her breath hitched in disbelief.
Theo’s entire frame shook, his fists clenching tightly at his sides as he struggled to process what he was seeing.
His eyes quivered, unable to tear away from the sight of Dorothy.
There she was—their beloved Dorothy, slumped against the wreckage, bloodied and broken. Her once-vibrant face was pale, her body beaten beyond recognition, her clothes torn and stained with crimson.
Yet, even in her weakened state, Dorothy’s gaze remained gentle as she looked at them.
That familiar smile was still on her lips, though it was now tinged with exhaustion and pain.
“You two… you really are as stubborn as ever,” Dorothy muttered, her voice soft but laced with affection. “Why did the two of you, have to show up now…?”
Before either of them could respond, a brilliant flash of light filled the air.
“W-Wait!”
Rose’s wand blazed with a radiant glow, and in an instant, a massive explosion of magical energy erupted from her, engulfing the area in a blinding white flash.
The world around them was swallowed by the intense light, momentarily leaving Susan and Theo in stunned darkness as their vision was overwhelmed by the sudden brilliance.
As the source of the darkness waned, the oppressive veil that had blanketed the entire battlefield began to lift, revealing the shattered remnants of the world beneath.
Shimmering fragments of darkness dissolved into the air like fading embers, the once impenetrable gloom now giving way to a soft, glowing light.
The warmth of the sun, distant and subdued, pierced through the cracks in the dark sky, casting faint rays upon the ruined streets.
Susan and Theo stood frozen, their hearts pounding as the light gradually returned, filling the space around them.
They had braved the storm, the monsters, and the chaos, but what now lay before them was something they were wholly unprepared to face.
Their breaths hitched in unison, their eyes wide in sheer disbelief.
Dorothy, the woman who had been their guiding light, their savior, their reason for moving forward—was gone.
The last traces of her presence seemed to evaporate with the fading darkness.
Her form, once tangible and vibrant, had vanished as though the very essence of her being had been swept away with the retreating veil of shadow.
The space where she had stood mere moments ago was now empty, nothing left but the faint glimmer of mana that still hung in the air.
