Lord: I have built a witch's sanctuary.

Chapter 20 Lyra's Little Secret

The second unpredictable moment in the snowy season.

The gale-force winds, carrying snowflakes, pounded against the newly built greyish-white city walls, producing a teeth-grinding scraping sound.

Leila huddled in a sheltered corner, clutching a piece of dry, hard white bread tightly in her hand—leftovers from dinner that she couldn't bear to finish.

Her gaze pierced through the embers of the campfire and landed on the mound of earth not far away—where only Miss Olivia's head was visible.

The esteemed alchemist closed his eyes and breathed steadily, seemingly truly believing himself to be a plant enduring winter.

“That’s great…”

Leila murmured to herself, a hint of undisguised envy flashing in her eyes.

It's not that I envy being buried in the ground, but rather that I envy the feeling of being needed and valued.

In this camp, everyone has their own place.

Knight Victor is a sharp sword, Miss Anna is a burning fire, Miss Olivia is the granary of the future, and even the two carpenters can help make barricades.

She alone was like a superfluous ghost.

Leila looked down at her palms, her fingertips covered in rough calluses, the lines on her palms as messy as a ball of yarn scratched by a cat.

When she was little, the village fortune teller grabbed her hand, glanced at her, and was so frightened that she smashed her crystal ball to pieces, pointing at her nose and screaming, "You're a jinx! You're a jinx that will bring destruction!"

She didn't believe it at the time.

Until the first family that took her in burned down to the ground because of a mysteriously out-of-control fire in their stove.

Until the caravan where she worked encountered a once-in-a-century mudslide on the flat road.

Until the kind wandering knight who gave her a piece of candy died in the mouth of a monster the next day.

Once is a coincidence, twice is an accident, three times, four times...

She finally realized that she was a walking natural disaster, and bad luck would follow her wherever she went.

I shouldn't have stayed here.

Leila stuffed the last bite of white bread into her mouth and chewed it hard, as if trying to chew away the bitterness in her heart.

She had saved money.

In those dark and slums, she rummaged through garbage heaps for valuable scraps like a rat, and even when chased and bitten by stray dogs and extorted by thugs, she held onto those few coins tightly.

She wanted to save money to take the witch test.

She had heard that if it were a witch, this misfortune might be an uncontrollable talent that could be guided.

As long as she can control it, she will no longer be a jinx.

It took her three whole years to save up enough money for even the most basic test.

That day, she placed her hand on the cheap crystal ball with great hope.

There was no light.

There is no elemental fluctuation.

"Click."

The crystal ball cracked.

It wasn't due to magical resonance, but rather the most bizarre kind of physical shattering, as if struck by an invisible hammer.

The gaunt alchemy apprentice angrily kicked her out, calling her a "bad luck that even magic wouldn't deign to favor," and made her pay back all her savings.

From then on, Leila resigned herself to her fate.

She stopped fantasizing about becoming a witch.

Leila lowered her head and tightened the bundle beside her.

Inside, there was only a tattered linen robe, a chipped dagger, and the alchemical crossbow that Lord Lorraine had given her.

She has to leave.

Before the camp is completely destroyed by her bad luck.

Lord Lorraine is a good man.

Although this young lord always had a stern face, spoke coldly, and would bury his companions in the ground with a wicked sense of humor, he fed her, clothed her, and even casually tossed her a box of ointment because she had frostbite on her hands.

"Stop standing there, go and apply this. If you ruin your hands, who's going to wash the dishes for me?"

Lord Lorraine's tone was very impatient at the time, but Lyra clearly saw that the ointment had a faint magical glow, a high-end product that only noble gentlemen could afford.

Compared to those camps that chased her away with brooms and stones the moment they sensed something was wrong, this place was like paradise.

Precisely because it is paradise, it must not be defiled by such filth.

Leila sniffed, her eyes stinging.

She remembered the focused look in Victor's eyes as he wiped his longsword, Miss Anna's warm smile despite her exhaustion, and Miss Olivia's dedication in burying herself in the ground to grow wheat.

"With Lord Lorraine's wisdom, he must have noticed that something was wrong with me long ago."

Leila chuckled self-deprecatingly.

That person is someone who can tell the strengths and weaknesses of everyone who enters the camp just by looking at them.

How could anyone not see the bad luck emanating from her?

But he didn't send her away.

They even ignored her misfortune, gave her weapons, and taught her how to kill monsters.

Compared to those lords who kept her around out of ignorance, she was someone who, knowing she would bring calamity, still resolutely insisted on keeping her.

This makes the debt of gratitude all the more profound.

"I can never repay this debt of gratitude."

Lyra's fingers gently stroked the cold crossbow, her eyes gradually hardening.

Leaving is absolutely necessary.

She can't let everyone get hurt.

but not now.

Tonight is the second night of the "Moment of Change," and a terrifying demonic tide could descend at any moment.

If she leaves now, she'll be a deserter, a coward.

"Even if we have to leave, we'll kill a few monsters first."

Leila made a silent vow in her heart.

If only she could die at the hands of a monster.

Perhaps the blood spilled here can atone for the bad luck she brought.

The dead do not bring disaster.

Correct……

Right?

"Ugh—!!!"

The piercing alarm shattered the night sky without warning.

Leila shuddered and sprang up from the corner.

coming!

She grabbed the crossbow and stumbled toward her designated defensive position.

Lord Lorraine was already standing on the city wall.

The cold wind made his black robe flutter, but he remained as still as a cast-iron statue.

Beside him stood the sixth Witch's Tower, which had just been expanded during the day. Its lava core at the top was spinning wildly, and the crimson light reflected off the surrounding snowfield, turning it a blood red.

"All personnel on high alert!"

Knight Victor's roar echoed in the wind, "Send those damned insects back to hell!"

Leila pressed her body against the cold wall, shivering, and peered out.

Upon seeing this, her heart nearly stopped beating.

snow.

Red snow.

No, that's not snow.

There were countless tiny, crimson beetles, each the size of a fingernail, flapping their transparent wings. They covered the sky and the earth in a dense mass, like a blood-red blizzard surging upstream towards the camp.

Then, they all crashed into the city wall and exploded!

This is not a normal monster siege at all.

This is a natural disaster.

It is a terrifying calamity that even a large city like Frostwolf City would find difficult to withstand.

"See? It really was me who brought it..."

Laila closed her eyes in despair, her fingers gripping the crossbow turning white from excessive force.

"But this time, I will not run away!"

She suddenly opened her eyes, a resolute flame burning within them.

For this hearty meal.

For that box of ointment.

In order not to let down the person who truly stayed with me.

This life is yours!