"Yes." Facing Maria's gaze, Castorice merely nodded slightly, her voice remaining calm and rippleless as she admitted candidly, "It was me. They came because of me, so I ought to return them to the silence where they belong."
Her words were concise, but they carried a hint of indifference.
"As I thought..."
Elder Maria was not surprised by this answer.
She knew the strength of Nimue and Shalin all too well; there was absolutely no possibility that they could have caused such an eerie and overwhelming scene.
Her gaze once again lingered on the purplish-white flowers blooming silently upon a skeleton. Those flowers appeared exceptionally bewitching under the moonlight. Even with the experience accumulated over her hundreds of years of life, she had rarely witnessed such a bizarre scene where ultimate death and abrupt life were combined so strikingly.
"Elder Maria!" At this moment, seeing that the Elder seemed to harbor no hostility toward Castorice, Nimue hurriedly stepped forward and added urgently, "Her strength... is very, very terrifying! Just now..."
At this point, she took a deep breath, trying hard to calm her emotions, and then began to rapidly narrate the scene that had left a deep impression on her.
From the vine barrier being instantly severed by a Formless power, to Castorice's eruption of aura "freezing" the wolf pack, to that single swing of the scythe that seemed to cleave through space, the ghostly purple butterfly phantoms, the shattered bones and extinguished souls, the flowers growing from remains... she described every detail with absolute clarity, her words still carrying a strong sense of shock and lingering fear.
Castorice, meanwhile, simply stood in place like a quiet bystander, listening to Nimue's recount with a placid expression.
The scene fell into an eerie balance. Maria listened to Nimue's narration while Shalin shrunk behind Nimue, not daring to make a sound.
The two elven swordswomen quietly guarded Maria's side, their gazes vigilantly watching Castorice, though neither dared to approach or take action without authorization.
Although Castorice had clearly helped Nimue and Shalin, to them, she was a powerful stranger whose source of power was the antithesis of their own. Therefore, no matter what, they had to remain on guard against her movements.
In reality, Castorice was currently evaluating the combat power of these individuals in her mind.
'Nimue and Shalin... preliminary judgment is that they should have strength around A rank in the world of Superpowers...'
'Such strength can only manage to fight a fourth rank monster of this world...'
'It seems the combat power of this world is significantly higher than that world of Superpowers.'
"May I ask, what is your identity, and what is your purpose for coming here?"
Just as Castorice was comparing the combat power of the two worlds, a steady girl-like voice spoke, interrupting her thoughts.
Castorice looked toward the direction of the voice and found that the one questioning her was indeed the one called Elder Maria.
"My identity..."
Hearing Maria's question, Castorice fell into thought.
After a short while, she spoke slowly, "I was once known as the 'Servant of Death.' For now, I hope that explanation will suffice as I am unable to state it directly. Please excuse me."
"Regarding for my purpose for coming here..."
At this point, she shook her head.
"I have no purpose."
"No purpose?"
Upon hearing this, Maria's brows furrowed slightly.
"If that is the case, then why did you come here?"
Castorice shook her head again.
"Your order is incorrect. It is precisely because I arrived here that I have no purpose."
Saying this, she turned her head to look at Nimue and Shalin.
"I mentioned before, I do not know how I arrived here. When I woke up, the only ones in my sight were Nimue and Shalin."
"...I understand." Maria was silent for a moment, seemingly digesting this bizarre explanation. Then she readjusted her expression, adopting the formality and solemnity befitting an Elder. "I am Maria Moon-whisper, one of the Elders of the Moon-marked Clan."
She turned slightly, gesturing toward Nimue and Shalin. "You saved a young bloodline of our clan. As an Elder, I represent the Moon-marked Clan in expressing our sincere gratitude to you."
After speaking, Maria solemnly performed a slight bow to Castorice.
Castorice, however, immediately stepped aside to avoid the bow.
Before Maria could show a confused expression, Castorice explained gently, "Those Undead creatures came because of me. Nimue and Shalin were only embroiled in this danger due to my presence, so I ought to take responsibility."
Hearing Castorice distance herself so bluntly, Maria did not continue to dwell on the matter of gratitude.
She straightened her posture naturally, her gaze falling on Castorice again as she invited warmly, "Since you say you have no goal in coming here, would you be willing to return with us to the Moon-marked Clan for a temporary rest?"
As she spoke, her gaze drifted subtly toward the pair of pointed ears and long purple hair on either side of Castorice's face, adding, "Moreover, your appearance... shares a great deal of origin with the elves of our Moon-marked Clan. Perhaps being in our tribal lands and contacting a familiar environment might help you recall some clues about how you reached this place."
"Elder Maria... this is perhaps somewhat inappropriate?"
At this time, a guard standing on Maria's left couldn't help but take a half-step forward, lowering her voice with a tone full of worry and hesitation.
"Inappropriate?" Maria turned her head slightly, her gaze calmly meeting her guard's. "What is inappropriate? She saved our junior and has shown no malice toward us from beginning to end. Furthermore, her appearance fits our clan characteristics so well. Therefore, in both emotion and logic, all she has done makes her worthy of our invitation to settle in our tribal lands for a while."
"But Elder, the power within her..." The guard hesitated, her gaze warily glancing at the skeletons covered in flowers beside Castorice. "That aura... it keeps company with the dead. It is diametrically opposed to the power we use, even..."
"There are no 'buts'."
Before the guard could finish, Maria interrupted her.
Her voice was soft, yet it carried an unquestionable decisiveness.
"Then I ask you, if she truly harbored ill intentions and desired to infiltrate our clan's lands, would she be unable to find them if I did not lead the way?"
At this point, her gaze swept over the guard.
"With the strength she has displayed, whether it be tracking us in secret or... using force to interrogate and extract the location of our settlement, wouldn't it be an easy task? Her goodwill or malice will not change because of our refusal or acceptance now. Rather than adding needless suspicion, it is better to treat her with candor."
Hearing Maria's words, the guard finally lowered her head under her gaze and fell silent, her fingers gripping the sword hilt relaxing slightly.
Seeing this, Maria said no more. She turned back to Castorice, her face returning to its previous warmth.
"Apologies, my guard was merely fulfilling her duty; she was bound to be overly cautious. So, Your Excellency Castorice, what is your intention?"
Castorice, who had taken in this entire conversation, finally lifted her eyelids upon hearing Maria's words.
Her face still bore that calm, rippleless expression, as if the argument regarding her power, purpose, and departure had nothing to do with her.
"Very well," she uttered two concise words, then added one more as she looked calmly at Maria. "Lead the way."
Upon receiving this answer, Maria nodded slightly and gestured toward a direction.
Immediately, the two elven swordswomen changed positions in tacit cooperation, guarding the core of the group from front and back.
Seeing that matters seemed concluded, Nimue gently tugged Shalin.
Only then did the latter dare to peek out completely from behind her, though she still stayed closely pressed to Nimue.
Castorice, meanwhile, followed quietly at a position slightly behind Maria's side, keeping pace with them.