Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 372 It’s my turn
"Huh? Are those monsters starting to retreat?"

Around the fortress tower, Charlotte gazed at the receding crimson hues, her initial joy quickly turning to wariness.
"No, we can't fall for it. They're trying to lure us over there!"

What is their purpose in luring us?

Vivian asked, puzzled.

Previously, the crimson humanoids created by Hong Yu to hunt them down were more like an automatic defense mechanism. The main purpose of those crimson humanoids was to capture the tower. Otherwise, even if only one-fifth or one-tenth of the blood-soaked people surging towards the tower from all directions were separated, they would likely be surrounded and unable to escape in a short time.

"Yes, you're right. If they really wanted to catch us, they had many better ways."

Xia Luoluo, easily persuaded, nodded. Beside her, Wei Yin wore a subtle expression.

Although it might not be appropriate to criticize someone you've only recently met.

However, Xia Luoluo's feeling of being neither particularly vigilant nor suffering from severe paranoia is perhaps simply due to a lack of intelligence.

"Now that this place is safe, and the rain has stopped for some reason, let's try to get a little closer. Don't worry, I'll protect you and get you to the tower, just like you helped me before!"

Xia Luoluo spoke in a tone completely at odds with her current furtive posture of peeking out from the small window.

Wayne responded with an "Mmm!" and nodded vigorously.

Although she couldn't recall ever helping Xia Luoluo, she instinctively felt that the older sister in front of her was someone she could trust.

"sky"

Soon after, as the crimson humanoid figure faded, Charlotte and Wayne, who arrived unimpeded at a location very close to the tower, witnessed a scene they would never forget.

A sky that is cracked and broken.

On the other side of the sky, a gigantic face gazes down at the earth through the holes and cracks of the world, filled with sorrow.

"Wanderer".
Although Xia Luoluo had never seen a wanderer in person before, she immediately recognized their identity.

The real mastermind behind this incident was forced to create this fairytale world by Wayne.
So, are they actually going to fight against such an opponent?
Previously, when Ritas described them as being like pages in a book, and the Wanderer as the one turning the pages, Charlotte was thinking, "What nonsense is that Ritas guy spouting now?"

But after seeing it in person, Xia Luoluo realized that Ritas's description was incredibly apt.

At the same time, Xia Luoluo felt a deep-seated fear.

Compared to that inexplicable bathing goddess, the Wanderer seems more like a true god.

The so-called gods are beings that, upon a single glance, evoke no resistance whatsoever.
Charlotte was stunned, while Wayne, upon seeing the Wanderer, was immediately overwhelmed by a flood of terrible memories, and her whole body trembled violently.

The two stood there for an unknown amount of time in the hidden alleyway that led to the tower.

Until the area around the tower became quiet, the voice of the young man cursing the wanderers reached Charlotte's ears on the gentle breeze.

"Before, when you still had some use, I didn't want to have anything to do with a doomed loser like you. Now, though..."

"Then die!"

The sound that made the entire sky tremble brought Xia Luoluo back to her senses as if she had just woken from a dream.

"Tsk, I actually got scared by a guy like that! It's all Ritas's fault! He wasn't afraid at all, doesn't that make me look pathetic? He did it on purpose!"

After muttering some incantations to Ritas, Charlotte's face quickly regained its color.

Indeed, there's nothing to be afraid of!

No matter how powerful the Wanderer may seem, he is ultimately just a false "god".

Looking at her now, screaming and losing her temper, she's nowhere near as good as the goddess I know!
"Wein!"

Charlotte turned her head and saw Wayne, who was in an even worse state than her.

She could sense that Wayne's current state was different from feelings of fear; it was more like something that had triggered psychological trauma.

But in this situation, where can she find out about Wayne's inner pain and offer targeted and appropriate advice or encouragement?
"Sigh, I guess I've caught it too."

Charlotte took a deep breath, then hugged Wayne tightly, physically stopping the other's violent trembling.

"Don't worry! I'm right here. If I'm not enough, your brother, the one who can truly save you, is right in front of us!"

The sky shattered one after another, and the wanderer, who had also reached into the "chessboard" to cause chaos, gathered all the power he could in the fairy tale world and launched a final attack on Ritas.

At this point, it has nothing to do with the so-called organization's "ideology" or the "tasks" given by the partners. The wanderers' behavior is full of personal grudges.

Admittedly, Ritas's words infuriated the wanderer. But what truly angered and resented the wanderer was that Ritas, the "protagonist," had been causing trouble from the very first second he stepped into the fairy tale world.

All I had to do was follow the script; I was just like a chess piece, only stepping into the squares I was allowed to move into.
Where did this weirdo come from that they wouldn't even follow the slightest rule?
Even after she intervened and suppressed them, the other party was still able to split their body and soul in two, allowing them to continue their antics from opposite directions.
Admittedly, she made many foolish and unwise decisions afterward.

But the root cause of all the "accidents," including the two uncontrollable monsters, was the remedial measures taken by Ritas for "disobeying"!

so.
At this moment, the Wanderer truly erupted.

She felt that nothing else mattered anymore. Since there was no "protagonist," this world was destined for failure and destruction. Only Ritas, the very source of all the problems, she was determined to eradicate from the fairytale world with her own hands.

Large amounts of blood-like liquid formed a small lake beside the tower.

It was this pool of blood that stopped Charlotte and Wayne.

"Look at me!"

With increasing proficiency in using the enhanced ice elemental magic, Charlotte waved her hand, and a path of ice leading directly to the tower condensed on the surface of the pool of blood.

But before she could even begin to feel smug, the icy road suddenly shattered. And from the pool of blood, several long, tentacle-like things shot out and lashed at her.

Using magic to freeze people in mid-air, then using magic to create a protective barrier, and adding some tumbling and crawling as seasoning.

Charlotte bravely protected Wayne, putting distance between herself and the pool of blood.

"That was close."

Xia Luoluo looked at the pool of blood with lingering fear. There was a mass of long, blood-red hair that seemed magnified many times over and possessed its own consciousness.

Although the blood no longer transformed into a blood-red human shape, it did not mean that the power within it had dissipated.

While Ritas was able to withstand those forces, Charlotte clearly lacked the ability to directly confront the power of the Wanderers.

"Are you alright, Wayne? Tsk, what are we going to do? It was right in front of us."

After checking on Wayne's condition and receiving confirmation that she was alright from the somewhat recovered Wayne, Charlotte frowned.

Due to the tower's height and angle, she couldn't see Ritas directly. However, she knew for certain that he was right there, so close. Ritas, who had inexplicably become a "chess player" after entering the fairytale world, had never been this close to her before!

Just as Xia Luoluo tried several more times, only to be easily repelled by the tentacles emerging from the pool of blood, and reluctantly started biting her fingers at the edge, a new change occurred.

The wanderer, whose voice had been largely filtered out by Xia Luoluo, made a solemn declaration and then sent down ten blood-red threads connecting his fingers from the sky.

The silk threads churned in the pool of blood, eventually forming a blood cocoon.

The blood cocoon burst open, and out emerged the "Black Widow," who was once quite well-known in the Westerlands.

Price Bathorysia, a notorious criminal who calls herself "Bartolysia IX".

"Mischi, my dear Mischi."

In the fairytale world that holds the "memory of the world," the true shadow originating from the depths of Ritas's heart reappears from the blood cocoon.

Ritas on the tower seemed to be resisting as Price opened her arms to him.

However, the translucent soul was constantly shrinking in age, and the light in its eyes was gradually dimming.

Ritas traces back from his youth to his childhood.

The thin boy eventually gave up resisting. He floated in the air, slowly drawn towards where Price was.

"Ritas!"

Seeing this scene, Xia Luoluo, though unaware of what was happening, knew clearly that letting it continue would be disastrous, roared.

Although she finally met Ritas, she didn't want to see him under these circumstances!
"Hey—! Wake up!"

Xia Luoluo was extremely anxious, her voice hoarse from shouting.

"That's not something he can just wake up whenever he wants!"

Viyn was standing next to Charlotte, speaking at an unusually high volume.

Upon hearing the reminder, Xia Luoluo recalled that she was controlled as a "carrier pigeon" not because she wanted to be that way.

Therefore, instead of pointlessly yelling, it would be better to rush over and take Ritas away from this space that was extremely unfavorable to him.

just
Xia Luoluo looked down at the ground.

Although the blood pool shrank considerably after the blood cocoon formed, Price at the center of the pool and Ritas flying towards Price remained far beyond reach.

"That's it! Fly! Just fly there!"

Suddenly, Xia Luoluo had a flash of inspiration.

The blood tentacles stopped chasing halfway through. What does this mean?
They represent a finite length!
So, just fly over them from a height they can't reach!
In that emergency, Xia Luoluo didn't care whether her thoughts were sound or not. She didn't consider what to do if the blood tentacles weren't unable to extend, but rather didn't want to. She didn't even think about what to do once they were actually in the center of the bloodbath.

Or perhaps, she probably wouldn't have thought of it if it weren't for an emergency.

With a wave of her hand, she swiftly created a towering diving platform using ice elemental magic.

"Oooo!"

Clutching Vivian under her arm, Charlotte ran with all her might up the slippery slope, climbed to the top, and leaped into the air!
In Xia Luoluo's imagination, after she jumped, she should have drawn a beautiful arc in the sky and "flew" directly to the center of the pool of blood.

But anyone who has actually jumped off a cliff knows that this kind of leap never creates a graceful arc; it only manages to make a "hook" in the sky before crashing down.

"Wow ah ah!"

Charlotte screamed as she realized she couldn't jump to Price and Ritas and was only falling into a pool of blood.

Just then, Xia Luoluo suddenly felt an upward force so strong it felt like it would break her.

"Well!"

Xia Luoluo turned her head with a look of surprise.
"Wei...Wei Yin, what's wrong?"

Instead of being "carried" by Xia Luoluo, Wei Yin, her face flushed, grabbed Xia Luoluo's body with her arms and struggled to float in the air.

On Wayne's back, a single wing appeared.

"Mmm—Ooh—!"

In her exhausted state, Wayne, who seemed unable to even make a normal sound, swayed and staggered in the sky with Charlotte.

With only one wing, its flight capability is obviously very limited.

To make matters worse, numerous crimson tentacles emerged from the pool of blood below, attempting to strike down the attackers that were encroaching on their skies.

In the fairy tale world, Xia Luoluo had accumulated some practical experience, which came in handy at this moment.

Before she could even think, she moved, unleashing waves of ice elemental magic to resist and block the crimson tentacles that were attacking them.

The recoil from Charlotte's magic actually helped Wayne regain her balance in mid-air.

In an instant, Wayne, having adjusted her flight direction, swooped down with Charlotte towards the direction where Price was.

At the same moment that Ritas made contact with Price, the two girls also pounced on him.

In an instant, the pool of blood began to churn again, with giant waves crashing towards the center from all sides.

Moments later, the liquid in the pool of blood almost completely evaporated, leaving only a giant blood sphere centered on Presley Bartolicia, enveloping Ritas, Charlotte, and Wayne within it.

When Xia Luoluo opened her eyes again, she saw a dim scene.

In the gray world, Xia Luoluo turned her head and saw Wayne tightly hugging her arm, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Although I don't know what's going on, at least I have a companion by my side.
Although she boasted before setting off that she would protect Wayne, in the end she was the one being protected and Wayne became her source of strength. But don't worry about the details, a companion is a companion!
She let out a soft sigh, glanced around briefly, then raised an eyebrow, her expression turning strange.

In this world where fragments of memories are scattered everywhere, seemingly existing solely to pry into the innermost secrets of others, by a twist of fate, only Xia Luoluo contributed her own embarrassing past, never once intruding on anyone else's.

And now, is it her turn to come and see?

While Charlotte was lost in thought, she decided to say something to comfort Wayne, who was probably feeling quite uneasy beside her.

The scene before the two changed.

Just as Charlotte guessed, it was clearly a scene from the past, filled with an old-fashioned filter.

A young Ritas appears.

(End of this chapter)