"How unlucky of you."
Lina unsheathed her sword.
As Albert realized that he was unable to get through the barrier or whatever it was, he stood up. His expression shifted from nervousness at talking to her into the face of a human who had experienced horrible things.
"I don't know what to call myself, am I lucky or unlucky? Doesn't matter, really. I am just a human who got myself into a worse fate."
He thought, as his mind began to feel at peace.
He then extended his right arm forward and closed his eyes.
While Lina looked at him, waiting to see what he was going to do, she felt a strange reluctance to kill him.
"Why? Why do I feel like he's going to enter?"
She thought, confused.
Instead of ending Albert's life the moment he failed to enter, she simply stood there, observing him.
"What is he going to do now?
Huh? Why am I concerned about this murderer?"
She asked herself, as Albert remained standing with his eyes closed.
The cold snow under her feet made them feel numb, but for Albert it was as if he was floating in warm air.
And in his mind, he was looking at something fascinating.
[Soul Collection> (Positive: 34) (Negative: 229) ]
[Spell List]
[
[
[
[
Albert chuckled. As he saw the souls he had collected, he realized he hadn't been dreaming during the time he attacked Abaddon's army.
He felt even happier when he saw the two other spells that had kept him alive through his many deaths.
And so, Albert began to create another spell.
A few minutes later.
Even after almost an hour had passed, Lina didn't dare attack him. Instead, she waited patiently.
She rested her tired legs by placing her cloak on the ground and sitting on it while she watched Albert.
And then finally, Albert opened his eyes, smirking.
He suddenly shouted, startling Lina. She jumped to her feet, pointing her sword at him.
"Spell Zero!!!"
Right after, the invisible barrier became visible a transparent, green, glass-like giant wall that reached the sky.
Within seconds, it began cracking and falling apart, shattering loudly into bits.
Albert simply walked through it freely, leaving Lina shocked and unable to react as he passed by her side.
"W-Whaaaat!?"
She gasped, stunned.
Albert pulled up his hood, then waited for her to continue walking so he could follow.
His hands were in his pockets, as if he had rid himself of guilt and trauma. He now had the strength to face her, even though he remembered Lessa's face. He had made a firm conviction and gained confidence that he could avenge the deaths of those he deemed important.
"And now, Miss Lina, shall we continue our walk?"
He asked in a confident voice, almost relaxed and unfazed by the cold air.
She walked directly in front of him, fast, without saying a word, leaving her cloak on the ground. Albert followed with silent steps.
"My personality... yes, I was a coward and a scaredy-cat when I first saw her. But I have discovered something else...
I've faced death many times, but I always ended up crying when I remembered how I killed Lessa with my own hands. Of course, that was an accident, not really my fault.
But as I think about things, those were just meaningless actions. The real thing that made me survive was Power...
The ability to turn fate into your favor.
That's why right now, I will change and forget what I used to be. By doing so, I can hold this power properly.
As that book I read once, said, if you want to master a tool, you must know what the tool is for. Spears and swords are for soldiers.
And this power... is for a person willing to grip life and forge it into a tool."
This was everything in his mind that made him change his attitude.
Then he suggested something to her, since he noticed they had been walking for an hour already, which wasn't efficient, and she was starting to shiver in the cold with only iron armor and no cloth to keep her warm.
"Hey, how about we stop walking and ride something?"
She turned back.
"Murderer... are you listening to yourself right now? Are you even thinking before asking that?"
She answered, her face angry.
But Albert smiled gently, ignoring her words.
"No, you are the one who isn't thinking.
We must find a more convenient method than relying on our bare feet, freezing over time.
I have this... Rider Spell!"
He said, extending his right hand sideways.
Suddenly, a big red cart appeared out of nowhere at Albert's right side, pulled by a crimson horse with long dark hair.
Its rider was a knight in purple armor, with a giant sword strapped to its back.
Both the horse's and knight's eyes radiated black energy.
Albert opened the cart door while Lina stood speechless, unable to believe her own eyes.
Albert had created another spell purely for convenience.
"How convenient, hehe. Thanks to that crazy book I read about the Death Knight, the one said to lead dead people into the dark realm.
Not only is it very convenient for me to have a cart, but it's also strong enough to withstand even the end of the world."
He thought, rubbing his hands to fend off the cold, fascinated by his own idea of making a spell like this.
He looked at Lina, smiling, and opened the cart door.
"Ohh, what are you waiting for?"
He said.
"What is happening? I can't process these things. I can't just accept that he's turning from murderer into..."
She clenched her hands, hesitating to follow him.
"D-Do you even know where we are going?"
She asked, her voice faltering.
Albert smiled again with his eyes.
"Yes! Of course!"
Then he entered the cart and sat on its smooth couch. Inside was bright, even though there was no lamp or any kind of object to conjure light.
Lina braced herself, nervous and confused at how things had changed so suddenly.
She was used to seeing unbelievable things beyond human comprehension, but what Albert was showing was even more shocking.
She walked into the cart and sat down in front of Albert, facing him, her hand gripping the hilt of her sword still in its sheath.
The Death Soldier snapped a chain whip at the horse, controlling its direction with iron reins.
The cart headed toward the Kingdom of Wenthoriz.
Inside, Albert and Lina conversed.
By nightfall, their cart finally arrived at the kingdom's entrance.
At first, the guards blocked the way when they saw the cart from afar. But when one of them spotted Lina through the window, they hurried to open the gates.
She then led Albert into the King's hall. Her face, once full of hatred and hostility toward Albert, had transformed into a calm, almost relaxed expression, as if she wasn't walking with a criminal.
When she entered the hall of the King, Lina knelt. Albert waited behind the giant door, with two guards at his sides.
"Our King, I have found the only person who will likely erase Abaddon."