“You’ve been following me since I left the cottage. After that, you stay silent while keeping your distance, so I don’t notice your presence. Aren’t you tired of continuing to hide like that?” Ziel said calmly and looked at one of the large trees behind him. But after waiting for a while, no reply was heard from the direction Ziel was looking at.

“Do you want to come out on your own obediently? Or will I drag you out of there?” Ziel said coldly, and he looked serious with his threat.

“Okay. I give up! Could you be more gentle with a woman?” A voice rang out, and a black-robed person came out from behind a large tree while raising both hands.

“So, what are you doing in this place? I want to hear an explanation from you, Helena.” Ziel said indifferently and returned his focus to the village.

The black-robed person was Queen Helena. Ziel had known that the woman had been watching him since he returned to the cottage. But he did not expect Queen Helena to follow him to that place.

Since her mana disorder was healed, Queen Helena’s power also returned. She was at the Magic King level and could be said to be one of the genius mages of her time. Unlike her daughter, Queen Helena can use much unique magic, one of which is teleportation. After seeing Ziel leave, she secretly locked her coordinates and caught up with him. But Queen Helena kept her distance because she didn’t want Ziel to notice her presence and asked her to return to the academy.

“You recognize me? I thought that wearing this isolation cloak would completely conceal my presence. I didn’t think you could still find me after everything I did. Do I have a special impression in your heart that can make you recognize me right away?” Queen Helena removed her hood and revealed her beautiful golden hair under the moonlight. The robe was an outfit similar to the one Princess Aishia had worn in the Elven Kingdom when she followed Princess Freya.

Then Queen Helena strolled towards Ziel while smiling playfully. Her expression was like that of a girl walking in a flower garden.

“You have not answered my question. What are you doing in this place? Didn’t I say I wanted to go to this village alone?” Ziel looked at Queen Helena and asked.

“That is… I feel bored if I have to stay at the academy. It was no different from when I was in the castle of the Aurelia Kingdom. Therefore, I want to find fresh air and a new atmosphere by following you.” Queen Helena said honestly. In the current situation, she knew lying would only make Ziel angry and didn’t want that to happen.

“Only that?” Ziel narrowed his eyes at Queen Helena.

“I want to spend time with you outside. I’ve heard Freya and the girls talk about their date with you, which makes me jealous. I also want to do it with you. Is it not allowed? But if I’m not allowed, then how do I get back to the academy? I ran out of mana when teleporting here. This place is very far from the academy. Ah, don’t ask me to drink potions because I don’t like consuming that kind of stuff.” Queen Helena looked at Ziel and said with a sad face.

The first sentence was honesty, but the last one Queen Helena said was a lie. She wanted to rule out all the possibilities Ziel could use to get her back to the academy.

Ziel was silent and did not immediately answer her words. He seemed to focus on a village in front of his eyes. But it made Queen Helena nervous, and her heart was beating very fast. Queen Helena was worried that Ziel would ask her to return to the academy without listening to her reasons.

“Alright. You can stay here. But don’t ask too many questions and follow my orders. Otherwise, I will immediately send you back to the academy.” Ziel sighed and gave up. He allowed Queen Helena to accompany him so he could keep an eye on her. If that woman acted unsupervised, she might bring him unnecessary trouble.

Ziel didn’t want those gray-haired people to notice Queen Helena’s presence and become alert. This would make it difficult for him to find information in the village.

“Thank you!” Queen Helena smiled sweetly and walked with light steps towards Ziel. After that, she unhesitatingly sat right next to him.

“You have to remember. Do not be noisy. I don’t want the people in the village to know of our presence.” Ziel warns Queen Helena again.

“I understand!” Queen Helena nodded, and her eyes kept staring at Ziel’s face without losing focus. Her actions reminded Ziel of Kalya.

Although their gazes are similar, they are also slightly different. Kalya’s eyes are full of care and affection, while Queen Helena is full of love and lust.

“Have you found anything from that village?” Queen Helena whispered. She felt unable to remain silent and decided to speak.

“Haven’t you been following me since I arrived in this village? Then you should have known about it without me having to answer.” Ziel was too lazy to respond to Queen Helena. He should be angry that she didn’t follow his word. But for some reason seeing her face made him a little uneasy. Either because she was Princess Freya’s mother or something else.

“I did follow you, but I don’t know what you get from watching and walking around the village. My focus then was only on your face and the expression you showed.” Queen Helena lowered her head and said while blushing. Ziel raised an eyebrow at those words. It is again similar to what Kalya did.

“I haven’t gotten anything so far. If until dawn I still don’t get any clues, then we will return to the academy. For now, please don’t ask anything else. I want to focus on observing the village.” Ziel sighed and replied calmly. Queen Helena’s behavior, similar to Kalya’s, makes Ziel more lenient in dealing with her.

“I understand!” Queen Helena smiled and nodded like an obedient wife.

After midnight, the atmosphere in the village became quiet, with only the sound of crickets shouting at each other. If it wasn’t for that, Ziel might be able to hear Queen Helena’s breathing because she was clinging to him right now. When he was about to remind Queen Helena about it, Ziel suddenly frowned. The reason was not that woman but the scene in front of him.

“What’s that?” Queen Helena muttered. The question represented what Ziel was thinking at the moment. From the sky above the village, particles of gray light fell like rain. Ziel saw that it only appeared in the surrounding area and did not extend to other places. He quickly carried Queen Helena in a princess hug and moved away from there.

“Kyaaa!” Queen Helena shouted cutely, but Ziel didn’t have time to think about that.

After Ziel sensed he was out of reach of the particle rain, he released Queen Helena. But the woman seemed reluctant to part from his embrace.

“What exactly are those particles?” Queen Helena asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ll try to check it out.” Zel shook his head. Then he gently patted Queen Helena’s shoulder, and a thin layer of gray light enveloped her.

“Eh? What is this, Ziel?” Queen Helena asked in confusion.

“This is just a precautionary measure. I’m worried that the particles have worse side effects than any mana disorder you’ve ever had.” Ziel replied.

“Does that mean you care about me?” Queen Helena felt warm in her heart because Ziel was concerned for her.

“Do you have to ask something you already know the answer to? I want you to wait here because I have to check the particle rain.” Ziel didn’t want to waste time with Queen Helena because the particle rain could end at any moment. But before he could take a step, Queen Helena suddenly tugged at his sleeve. Ziel wanted to question her meaning, but that woman said it first.

“Please be careful and don’t be rash. I’ll be waiting for you here.” Queen Helena said anxiously. Ziel nodded and then left her.

After Ziel parted ways with Queen Helena, he returned to the village. Particle rain is still occurring, but the intensity has considerably reduced.

Ziel saw that the situation in the village had not changed and showed that the people there knew nothing about the phenomenon. Ziel tried to touch those gray light particles. But no matter how long he waited, nothing changed for him.

“Does this particle not have any effect? Or does this not work for me because I am from the same people?” Ziel took a closer look at the light particles.

When the particle fell directly on top of an ant, that insect’s size suddenly became more extensive. Ziel frowned upon seeing that and quickly stomped it to death.

“What’s that? Did light particles evolve the ant? If that’s true, it’s likely not only ants that will evolve when exposed to the light particles directly but all living things other than humans.” Ziel thought while looking at the light particles and the giant ants that died on the ground.

“Does this phenomenon appear every day? Or does it only happen occasionally and coincidentally when I’m here?” Ziel walked towards the village and tried to feel the light particles deeper, but he still couldn’t find any clues. It was like the particle entered his body and disappeared.

“Those particles don’t have any effect on the gray-haired people. Then does this have anything to do with mana disorder in outsiders who come to this place? Can it still affect the people around it after the particle falls to the ground? In that case, many insects and animals may have evolved. Wait. Helena is in danger.” Ziel stopped his footsteps and flew high speed in Queen Helena’s direction.

Ziel didn’t use teleportation because he felt the light particles would interfere with his coordinates and take him to another faraway place. If that happened, he wouldn’t be able to help Queen Helena, and something terrible might happen to her.

***

After Ziel left, Queen Helena sat quietly, waiting for him to return. She looks like a wife waiting for her husband’s return. Even though Ziel had been away for quite a while, she obeyed his words and didn’t move an inch from her current place.

Queen Helena looked around and made sure nothing suspicious was approaching her. She was currently in a weak state from running out of mana and needed some time to recharge it fully. Therefore Queen Helena must be wary of enemy attacks from within the darkness of the forest. If she drank the potion from Ziel, her mana would return to complete, but she didn’t want to do that.

“Why hasn’t Ziel come back yet? Did something happen to him?” Queen Helena muttered, and her face turned gloomy at the thought. When she stood up and intended to catch up with Ziel, she saw the man she was thinking of flying at high speed towards her.

“Ziel… eh?” Queen Helena called out to Ziel, but the other party suddenly pointed at her, and mana was compressed at his fingertips.

(He wants to kill me? But what did I do wrong? Have I made him angry? But if he wants this life of mine, then I will gladly give it to him. Dying at the hands of the man you love, I think it’s quite romantic)

Queen Helena closed her eyes and smiled as she waited for death to come.

[Thunder Beam]

A red laser beam with lightning sparks shot towards Queen Helena and passed right next to her cheek.

Kiiiiiiik!

Queen Helena opened her eyes after hearing a terrifying scream from behind. Looking back, she saw a giant dead bat with a hollow body.

“We will leave this place now.” Ziel came next to Queen Helena and hugged her. He could easily kill those monsters, but he didn’t know how many animals had evolved at this point. But the repercussions of his battle might make the village’s people wary, making it difficult for him to find information in the future.

“Ah, yes!” Queen Helena smiled broadly. She hugged Ziel tightly and buried her face in his chest. But before they could teleport, hundreds of monsters suddenly appeared and surrounded them.

“Looks like I have no other choice.” Ziel sighed, and a red ball of light appeared in his palm. Then he lifted the ball of light and squeezed it.

[Thunder Fireworks]

The ball of light he squeezed exploded and shot lightning in all directions. The hundreds of monsters surrounding Ziel were wiped out in seconds due to the attack. They were just monsters of newly evolved beasts. Therefore, they have no intelligence and act solely on their instincts.

After the monsters were wiped out, Ziel and Queen Helena disappeared from that place. But then, a space rift formed above the village’s sky, and a giant eye peeked out from the gap. It didn’t last long, and the sky returned to normal.