Chapter 39: Invention

William frowned, his mind still stuck on the question Emma had asked earlier.’Am I nothing to you?’

He didn’t want to dwell on it, yet the thought refused to leave.

*’What was that look...’* He couldn’t tell if she was teasing him or truly hurt—but the expression on her face kept bothering him.

"Ugh... why is she messing with my head?"

He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

Forget it. A few good hunts should be enough to clear his mind.

....

Emma was... honestly, quite sad.

She sat with the others, staring off into the forest, wishing she could be somewhere else—specifically, with William. Out here in the wild, surrounded by trees and wind, it could’ve been the perfect place for a quiet date. But instead, she was stuck with these guys.

Still, she couldn’t blame him. If she had made a move, that black-haired creep would’ve noticed instantly and interrupted them without hesitation.

’But doesn’t that mean... Kevin will keep getting in our way?’ Her eyes narrowed sharply as she glared at the boy laughing and chatting with Joseph.

Until now, Emma had considered Kevin an asset—an irreplaceable one. He was the only person capable of resisting the negative energy radiating from the Great Devil, Iblis—the King of Hell, the supreme ruler of the underworld, the one who wielded the purest form of Nyx.

Only someone blessed by the King of Angels, like Kevin, could stand against him.

Emma had read about it—during the final battle, every one of Kevin’s comrades had fallen the moment the Devil Sovereign appeared. Only Kevin stood tall. Though he didn’t possess the purest form of Aether—a power no mortal could truly hold—he borrowed it from an immortal. In that moment, he transcended mortality and became a demi-god, the savior who halted humanity’s extinction.

That was why Emma had tolerated him so far. His usefulness was undeniable.

But things had changed.

Her priorities were different now.

She wanted time with William. And if anyone dared to come between them—

"...!" Her instincts screamed. Emma’s eyes snapped wide as she leapt to her feet, summoning her staff in a blur. The weapon slammed into the ground with a resonant *thud*, aether roaring around her like a storm. Her lips moved fast, her chant spilling out in fragments as a vast magic circle spun beneath her—alive, expanding, trembling with power.

"Emma?!" Kevin’s voice rang out, alarmed. He drew his sword, his aura flaring bright. The others immediately stood ready—because if Emma was reacting like this, something serious was coming.

Then—

"Not so fast, Valkyrie."

A deep, taunting voice echoed from the woods. A beam of light shot forth, slicing through the air straight toward her.

Her body moved on reflex. The staff came up in time—*CLANG!*—and the beam scattered off harmlessly, leaving only a faint scorch mark on the wood.

It wasn’t meant to kill her. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ ????????????????????•????????????????•????????????

It was meant to stop her spell.

And it worked.

Emma’s jaw tightened. "The Mad Scholar..." she muttered, eyes locking onto the figure stepping from the shadows.

A short, stout man emerged, his sharp black hair jutting up like quills, round dark glasses gleaming on his head.

"You still remember me. I’m honored, Valkyrie," he said with a mock bow.

Kevin growled, sword raised. "That’s not her name."

The man smirked. "I name people based on the impression they leave. For example—" His grin widened. "You. I’ve named you Mutt."

Kevin’s glare sharpened, his grip tightening.

Talobo snapped his fingers and laughed. "See? You’re already proving my point."

Natalie stepped forward, her voice trembling between anger and disbelief. "How are you even alive? I saw your body! You were taken away by the Royal Order!"

Talobo chuckled darkly. "Ah, a fool introducing herself with a grand foolish opening. That’s right. Your name is—"

He stopped mid-sentence and jumped back just as a massive hammer crashed down where he had been standing, splintering the ground.

"Wooohoo~! A mad gorilla joins the fray!" he cackled, flipping backward with inhuman agility.

Kevin lunged forward in a burst of light, his sword blazing as he swung upward. The arc of fire tore through the air like a comet, rushing toward the airborne scholar.

But Talobo only grinned.

He slammed his palms together—

**THWAAAM!**

The sound shattered the air like a thunderclap, the shockwave erasing Kevin’s attack as if it never existed. Talobo landed smoothly, dust swirling at his feet.

"Quite the lively bunch," he said, grinning ear to ear. "Launching attacks before introductions. How rude. At least let me finish talking."

Kevin’s aura flared even brighter, his sword glowing white-hot. "You have no idea what kind of trouble you’ve walked into," he warned coldly. "Not just the school staff—but

Lancelot himself is here. Do you understand what that means?"

Talobo’s grin only grew wider, a spark of mischief dancing behind his round lenses. The forest wind stirred, rustling the leaves as the air grew heavy with tension.

"You think I don’t know about that man? Or what your academy’s capable of?" he said, arms folded with mocking calm.

Emma’s jaw tightened. She knew that tone. Beneath all his playful nonsense, Talobo was a strategist—a dangerous one. He never acted without a plan.

Then, with a sudden flourish, the scholar reached into his pocket. "Now, now," he said lightly, pulling out a small object and holding it high for everyone to see, "before we begin, allow me to show you... the main attraction."

He waved it teasingly between his fingers, as if performing on stage. "Look closely," he whispered, his grin stretching unnaturally wide. "Because this... will be the cause of your deaths."

Without warning, he flicked his wrist and tossed it into the air.

"Barrier!" Natalie shouted, her instincts kicking in. A golden shield erupted before them—but Emma’s magic burst out even faster, her barrier overlapping Natalie’s, forming a shimmering dome that shimmered like liquid glass.

Everyone’s gaze locked on the cube.

It hung there midair, silent and unmoving—then suddenly, the surface began to ripple, as if reality itself were bending around it.

The cube trembled, tiny ripples expanding across its surface, twisting light and shadow in unnatural patterns.

Slowly, painfully, it began to grow—shards cracking outward like bones pushing through flesh. Each snap and creak echoed through the forest as if the very air flinched at the sound.

Dark, sinewy shapes stretched from the core, thick cords weaving together like muscle fibers knitting themselves into being.

The cube expanded, twisting, reshaping, until the contours of something humanoid began to emerge.

The ground shook with a dull, resonant thud—then another, deeper, as if the forest itself were bracing for the presence now solidifying before them.

From the fractured remnants of the cube, a figure rose. Dark, massive, and hulking, it stood taller than any human, shoulders broad, limbs thick with coiling power.

It felt as if the light was bending away from the figure. Eeeiely dark and radiated an energy which screamed in their ears to run away.

"Hahahah! Meet my new invention! Wendigo, form 1!"

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A/N:- Thanks for reading.