Sister, I Hit You Because There Was a Ghost Behind You - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 12. Tonight, We’ll Just Hold Hands
‘…The sheer size of it is no joke.’
The massive centipede that had clung to the Emperor’s neck seemed like a cute little pet in comparison.
Was that truly The Master—the real power behind the Cult that the Archbishop had trembled and worshipped so desperately?
“We depart tomorrow at once.”
I set down my fork as I spoke.
“If we delay any longer, the creatures pouring from that chasm will consume the entire Empire.”
“Absolutely not.”
Kairik von Herzen cut me off with finality.
“You’re not going. That place is a land of death. Even my knights cannot endure a week there before returning mad.”
“We won’t go mad. Not with me there. What’s there to worry about?”
I dabbed my lips with a napkin and laughed with utter confidence.
“And Your Majesty, there’s something you’re misunderstanding.”
I lifted the silver sledgehammer—my “Elegant Conversation No. 2″—from behind my chair and brought it down onto the dining table with a resounding thud. The plates clattered.
“We didn’t come because we were asked for help. We came to clean house. And trash gets disposed of whether the homeowner permits it or not.”
Kairik von Herzen’s eyes widened. He alternated his gaze between the colossal hammer resting on the table and me, standing in my dress with the hammer in hand.
And then, a moment later.
“Puhahahaha!”
He erupted into uproarious laughter, clutching his belly.
It was a wild, untamed sound—like a beast’s roar of delight.
“This is magnificent. Truly magnificent.”
He ceased his laughter and leaned forward. His crimson eyes gleamed like a predator spotting prey.
“Very well. I grant you permission. But I have a condition.”
“A condition?”
“Take me with you.”
“Your Majesty should be resting and recovering….”
Demian tried to dissuade him, but Kairik von Herzen dismissed it without hesitation.
“It’s my domain. My hunting ground. I cannot merely spectate. Besides….”
He rose from his seat and strode toward me with long, deliberate steps. Demian shot to his feet, but Kairik von Herzen stopped behind my chair.
He leaned down and whispered low against my ear.
“You said you’d protect me, didn’t you? You even loosened my leash.”
His warm breath tickled the nape of my neck.
“You have to take responsibility, Violetta.”
Ah, this beast-man concept. It’s more potent than I anticipated.
As I stood frozen in bewilderment, I noticed Demian’s hand gripping his sword hilt so tightly it seemed ready to splinter.
‘Well, this works out. Having one more person is better. And besides, he’s right—I did make that promise.’
With my thoughts settled, I smirked and flicked Kairik von Herzen’s cheek with my finger.
“Fine. You’re coming with us.”
I looked between the two men and declared firmly.
“But if either of you—wolf or holy knight—steps out of line, I’ll beat you both senseless with this cudgel. Understood?”
And so my Northern Expedition was formed.
An uncontrollable beast of a man, a holy knight blinded by jealousy, and a mad saint wielding a cudgel.
…Wait, is the Quest difficulty rising because of the party members, not the monsters?
* * *
That night, I lay on the bed of my assigned guest room, staring at the ceiling. My belly was full and my back was warm, yet sleep eluded me—all because of the unsettling whispers mingling with the wind sounds drifting through the window.
[Don’t come… Come and you’ll die….]
[Give me my eyes….]
I heard the screams of vengeful spirits seeping from the cracks of the Northern Region. These were curses far heavier and stickier than the ghost sounds I’d heard in Seoul—laden with malevolence.
“Ugh, so noisy. Let me sleep.”
I pulled the blanket over my head.
Demian was in the adjacent room, but his purification range apparently didn’t extend through the wall.
Should I go ask him to sleep together?
No, that wouldn’t work.
After all the commotion I’d caused during the day, showing up at his door at night might lead to a real misunderstanding.
That was when it happened.
Knock, knock.
A hesitant knock sounded at the door.
“Who is it?”
“…It’s me.”
It was Demian’s voice.
I bolted upright and opened the door.
Standing before the door was Demian, pillow in hand. He wasn’t in sleepwear but rather fully armed as if ready for combat at any moment. Of course, the pillow he held in one hand looked decidedly out of place.
“Your Grace? Why aren’t you sleeping?”
“…I cannot sleep.”
He avoided my gaze and spoke hesitantly.
“The magical energy in this place is too strong… I came because I was worried about you. I feared you might have nightmares.”
What is this man doing? His excuses have gotten much better.
I suppressed my laughter and opened the door wide.
“Welcome. I was actually thinking about having a pillow fight to chase away the fear.”
“A pillow fight….”
Demian let out a hollow laugh and stepped into the room. The moment he entered, the eerie chill that had been lingering in the air vanished completely, replaced by a warm and clear atmosphere.
Indeed, a highly effective human talisman.
“The bed is narrow, so I’ll sleep on the sofa.”
He moved toward the sofa.
“What are you saying? You need to maintain your condition for tomorrow’s battle. Come here.”
I patted the space beside me on the bed.
“Let’s sleep together.”
“What?! B-but…!”
“We’ll just hold hands while we sleep. Really. I can swear to it.”
I looked at him with earnest eyes. It was the truth. To survive in this brutal Northern Region and to enter the ‘Cracks’ tomorrow, I needed to be at full capacity.
Demian’s face flushed crimson as he hesitated for a long moment before finally removing his armor and carefully perching on the edge of the bed.
“…I’m truly only holding your hand.”
“I know, I know. Who’s going to eat you?”
We lay side by side, though a pillow remained between us. Beneath the blanket, I searched for his hand as he awkwardly tried to evade me, and grasped it.
It was rough and ungainly, yet wonderfully warm.
The moment his warmth touched me, the phantom screams that had been echoing through my mind vanished like a lie.
“…It’s so peaceful.”
I murmured softly.
“…So is it for me.”
Demian answered quietly, his grip tightening on my hand as he spoke.
“Miss Violetta. What Kairik von Herzen said…please don’t let it trouble you.”
“A priest? Ah, it doesn’t bother me. Just nonsense.”
“…I’m relieved to hear that.”
He exhaled a sigh of relief. But I knew the truth. The look in Kairik von Herzen’s eyes when he gazed at me in the dining hall earlier.
It wasn’t merely the affection one shows a benefactor. It was something far more primal and dangerous—the gaze of a predator eyeing its prey.
‘Tomorrow worries me.’
I squeezed Demian’s hand tighter and closed my eyes.
Thus the night before the storm deepened around us.
* * *
The next morning, we stood before the gates of the Grand Duke’s Castle in full battle regalia—myself, Demian, and Kairik von Herzen. A small party, yet the mightiest in all the Empire.
“Ready?”
Kairik von Herzen asked as he slung an enormous greatsword across his back. Beside him stood a black horse, its eyes now clear and alert, unlike the day before.
“Of course.”
I wore leather combat attire beneath my mink coat and slung my hammer across my shoulder. Demian remained pressed close to my side, vigilantly surveying our surroundings.
“Let’s depart. To hell itself.”
Kairik von Herzen spurred his horse forward. We charged northward through the blizzard, racing toward the Canyon of Screams where black auroras rippled across the sky.
After riding for perhaps an hour, grotesquely shaped rocky mountains emerged through the snowstorm. And between them, a colossal fissure yawned open like the very end of the world, pitch-black and gaping.
A suffocating, horrifying miasma pressed down from all sides, piercing my skin like countless needles.
It felt as though every nerve in my body was screaming in warning. An overwhelming terror seized me—that vast, malevolent presence was staring directly down at me with crushing intensity.
Alarms shrieked frantically in my mind. Hundreds, no—thousands of demonic beasts swarmed around the fissure like an ant colony.
“Wow… this quantity is no joke.”
I laughed dryly. My arm muscles might actually tear if I had to smash all of these.
“Are you afraid?”
Kairik von Herzen asked with a bitter smile.
“Not at all.”
I adjusted my grip on the hammer and rose from the saddle.
“I’m thrilled. Because I see all of that as money.”
“Money?”
Where the monsters scattered and turned to ash, small luminous stones rolled across the ground, gleaming brilliantly.
Those were mana stones—crystallized pure magical essence condensed within the bodies of demonic beasts and malevolent spirits. They were the vital power source that drove every magical engineering device in the Empire, from communication systems to advanced heating apparatus.
Demand was explosive, yet supplying it required risking one’s life hunting monsters—making these magical stones the ultimate luxury commodity, priced at whatever the market would bear.
I gleamed with excitement as I carefully gathered the magical stones scattered across the ground, my voice trembling with fervor.
“These are magical stones. Each one of them is worth its weight in gold.”
I licked my lips. The memory of poverty from my past life ignited a burning competitive fire within me.
“Demian! Kairik! You know the plan?”
“A frontal assault through the center?”
Demian drew his sword as he asked.
“No.”
I pointed my hammer’s head toward the deepest part of the chasm, at the core that resembled a dark pupil.
“We go straight in and take out the leader’s head first. That’s my style.”
“…You’re insane.”
Kairik shook his head, though his eyes gleamed with delight.
“Let’s go! Partners!”
I spurred my horse forward and leaped down the cliff first.
Behind me came the roars of Demian and Kairik.
Thus began our legendary conquest of the Northern Region—crude, magnificent, and utterly unforgettable.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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