The forest clearing filled with holy light.
Thirty witch hunters stood in perfect formation, their weapons glowing with sacred runes designed to kill demons and bind witches.
At their center stood the silver-haired commander.
Her ice-blue eyes never left Liora.
"Liora Valen," she repeated calmly. "By order of the Holy Church, you are under arrest."
Liora swallowed.
"…This feels a little dramatic."
Beside her, Cairis rolled his shoulders lazily.
"You should be flattered."
She glanced at him.
"Why?"
He gestured toward the hunters.
"Most people don't get thirty elite assassins sent after them."
"That's not comforting."
The commander raised her sword slightly.
"Separate them."
The hunters moved instantly.
Half the squad shifted toward Cairis.
The other half circled Liora.
Perfect discipline.
Perfect coordination.
Cairis noticed.
"…Interesting."
His crimson eyes gleamed faintly.
"These aren't ordinary hunters."
The commander answered calmly.
"Of course not."
Her sword lifted higher.
"You're facing the Church's Crimson Inquisition Unit."
The hunters' weapons ignited with brighter holy energy.
The forest temperature seemed to drop instantly.
Liora's stomach twisted.
"…That sounds important."
Cairis chuckled softly.
"It is."
He glanced toward the hunters surrounding him.
"And annoying."
One of the hunters lunged.
His blade slashed toward Cairis's throat.
Fast.
Precise.
Deadly.
Cairis caught the sword with two fingers.
The glowing blade stopped instantly.
The hunter's eyes widened.
"…Impossible—"
Cairis flicked his wrist.
The man flew backward like he'd been hit by a battering ram.
He crashed into a tree twenty feet away.
The other hunters didn't hesitate.
Three more attacked at once.
Blades glowing.
Holy spells activating.
Cairis smiled.
"Oh good."
Dark shadows exploded outward.
"Now we're having fun."
Meanwhile—
Three hunters rushed Liora.
Their weapons weren't aimed to kill.
Only capture.
Chains of holy magic shot from their gauntlets.
Liora panicked.
"Oh no—"
The chains hit the glowing circle around her.
And shattered instantly.
The backlash knocked the hunters backward.
They crashed into the ground with shocked expressions.
Liora blinked.
"…That keeps happening."
The commander watched everything carefully.
Her gaze sharpened.
"…She hasn't even cast a spell."
A hunter beside her whispered nervously.
"Commander… her magic is reacting automatically."
The commander's grip tightened on her sword.
"…So the rumors were true."
Behind them—
Cairis was already dismantling the other hunters.
One slammed into the ground.
Another crashed through a tree.
Shadows moved like living beasts around him.
But the hunters kept coming.
Relentless.
Fearless.
One managed to stab him.
The glowing blade pierced his side.
Liora gasped.
"Cairis!"
Cairis looked down at the sword in mild annoyance.
"…Rude."
Then the wound closed instantly.
The hunter stared in horror.
"…Demon regeneration."
Cairis grabbed him by the collar.
"Yes."
Then threw him fifty feet across the clearing.
The commander stepped forward.
"…Enough."
Every hunter instantly retreated behind her.
Perfect obedience.
Perfect control.
She raised her sword.
The runes along the blade began blazing with intense holy light.
The entire clearing trembled.
Cairis tilted his head.
"…Now this looks interesting."
The commander pointed the sword directly at him.
Her voice echoed through the clearing.
"Divine Execution: First Seal."
The air exploded with holy magic.
A massive glowing sigil appeared above the battlefield.
Liora's eyes widened.
"…That can't be good."
Cairis's smile slowly faded.
"…No."
His voice dropped slightly.
"It's not."
The sigil above them expanded.
Golden chains of divine energy began descending from the sky.
Hundreds of them.
Enough to bind an entire army.
The commander's eyes were cold.
"This spell was designed specifically for demons of royal blood."
Her gaze flicked briefly toward Liora.
"And witches."
The chains crashed down.
Cairis moved instantly.
Dark wings of shadow burst from his back.
He grabbed Liora's arm.
"Run."
They barely moved three steps before the chains slammed into the ground around them.
The forest exploded with blinding light.
Several chains wrapped around Cairis's arms.
Others wrapped around his legs.
Holy energy burned against his skin.
The smell of scorched magic filled the air.
Liora's eyes widened in panic.
"Cairis!"
He struggled against the chains.
His shadows lashed violently.
But the holy magic held.
The commander stepped closer.
"…Impressive."
Her eyes glowed faintly with divine power.
"You resisted longer than expected."
Liora's chest tightened.
The chains were spreading.
More and more of them.
They were about to bind him completely.
And because of the bond—
She could feel his pain.
Something inside her snapped.
The ground trembled.
Silver light exploded outward from Liora.
Every hunter froze.
Cairis's eyes widened slightly.
"…Liora?"
Her magic surged violently.
Brighter.
Stronger.
Wild.
The divine chains binding Cairis began cracking.
The commander's expression changed instantly.
"…Impossible."
Liora didn't hear her.
Didn't see anything.
All she could feel was the bond.
Cairis's pain.
The holy magic burning him.
And her magic answered.
The forest erupted with ancient runes.
Symbols older than the Church itself burned across the ground.
Across the trees.
Across the sky.
The commander whispered under her breath.
"…No."
Her voice trembled for the first time.
"That's not witch magic."
Cairis realized it at the same moment.
His crimson eyes widened.
"…Liora."
The divine chains shattered.
All of them.
A shockwave of silver magic blasted across the clearing.
Every hunter was thrown backward.
Trees snapped in half.
The commander was forced to shield herself with holy energy.
Silence fell.
Dust filled the air.
In the center of the clearing—
Liora stood surrounded by glowing ancient runes.
Her eyes burned with silver light.
Power pulsed through the forest like a heartbeat.
Cairis stared at her.
Not with amusement.
Not with curiosity.
But with something much darker.
Something almost reverent.
"…So that's it."
The commander slowly lowered her shield.
Her face had gone pale.
"…The prophecy."
Liora's glowing eyes flickered toward her.
"…What prophecy?"
The commander whispered the words like a prayer.
Or a warning.
"The witch who will either save the world…"
Her gaze shifted toward Cairis.
Then back to Liora.
"…or destroy it."