The Academy’s Crude Pink-Haired Martial Artist

An unknown magic circle flashed, and when I opened my eyes, I found myself alone in a dark underground sewer.

What kind of situation is this?

It didn’t take me long to understand.

Stella, who had studied the Demon Realm, the abilities of demons, and the labyrinth that had claimed the most human lives while wandering Gebihenum, quickly realized what this phenomenon was.

Teleportation magic.

Teleportation labyrinth.

The place where Eliaernes and I had been was the teleportation labyrinth.

So, what should I do from now on?

I didn’t need to think long about that either.

There was no time to panic or freeze.

First, I had to move.

Standing still would just get me killed; it would be better to search for the labyrinth’s center and die there.

And if I’m lucky, I might run into Ellie or find the labyrinth’s center, and we could both survive.

And… Ellie will be fine without me.

With that thought, Stella pushed aside all dark ideas and moved immediately.

And not even ten minutes later, I was ambushed by someone.

When I regained my senses and opened my eyes, a woman who looked just like my mother, who went missing seven years ago, was staring down at me.

I couldn’t understand the situation.

Where was I, and who was this woman in front of me?

Why was Pina suspended in the air like that, and why did this woman resemble my mother?

“…Who are you…?”

“Curious, are we?”

The dreamy voice sounded like my mother whispering to me seven years ago.

But it wasn’t the same. It was different.

It was just a resemblance.

“My name is Samaela. Isn’t it similar to Jeniela? The face is similar too.”

Like twins.

“Then…”

“What should you call me, little one?”

Samaela flashed a captivating smile.

Even that looked like my mother, Jeniela, causing Stella’s lips to tremble- shiver.

“I’m Jeniela’s sister, so should I be called Aunt… perhaps? Hehe…”

Chills ran down Stella’s spine at that laugh.

“Oh my… then I shouldn’t call you little one. I should call you niece, right?”

“Huh… don’t spout nonsense…”

Sucking her lips, Stella tried to steady her trembling body.

I need to gather my emotions. I have to organize my dizzy mind and prepare for battle. I will raise my mana, skip the incantation, calculate the magic formula, and cast magic on that face, that face that talks about being an aunt.

I can’t let it happen.

“…W-What… Why is this happening…”

I couldn’t feel the mana flowing through my body.

No, it certainly existed, but it wouldn’t move.

“I fed you poison just in case. If I’m not careful, this aunt might hurt her niece, you know?”

The meaning of that statement was strange, but Stella had no time to think about it.

“So, isn’t my niece curious about her mother? Don’t you want to see her? I’ve heard the bond between mother and daughter was pretty good, wasn’t it?”

Samaela’s bare foot slid up Stella’s thigh. She kicked aside the cloak Ellie had given her with her toes and poked her exposed belly poke-.

“Do you know… where our… mother is?”

Samaela smiled brightly.

“I do. Very well.”

Stella’s face twisted in despair.

Her mother, Jeniela Behrhaigen, had been wrongfully accused. She underwent an unreasonable investigation by the Eustetia Knight Order and was abandoned by her father, Marquess Galheure Behrhaigen.

Then her execution was decided.

On the day of the execution, she disappeared.

When Stella heard the news of her mother’s disappearance, she secretly left home to avoid her family’s eyes. Then, she got lost in the alleys of the empire.

And there, she found a lady who claimed to have witnessed her mother’s last moments.

She begged the lady to tell her, offering everything she had. The lady took half of what she offered and returned the other half, telling Stella about her mother’s last sighting.

She saw an unidentified stranger taking her away.

And that kidnapper seemed to be a Mage.

If it was a Mage, there was only one place to go.

Gebihenum.

At the time, Stella had only been ten years old.

At that age, with that body, she knew it was impossible to even leave the empire, let alone go to Gebihenum.

So, she returned to her family with the lady’s help.

Though strict, her father was still kind, so she tried to share what she had heard.

But her father wouldn’t see Stella.

Her siblings didn’t believe her words when they saw her empty belongings.

From then on, Marquess Behrhaigen didn’t teach Stella any magic.

Her half-siblings, who once played with her while always smiling brightly, pushed Stella away, claiming to be busy.

Thus, Stella was left alone.

Why?

Was it because she supported her mother’s side?

Was it because they feared that if she became strong, she would take revenge on the family that had abandoned her mother?

Her mother was wrongfully accused; why did no one know that?

Was it because she wasn’t her biological mother?

She couldn’t know.

So, Stella gathered money, accumulated knowledge, and left home.

Four years had passed since she started searching for her mother.

“…No way.”

I met a woman professing to be my mother’s sister, knowing about my mother.

Not just knowing, but she looked like my mother too.

A woman claiming to be my aunt.

She was a dark mage.

Creating a labyrinth underground in the empire, kidnapping Pina, and stacking the corpses of the Royal Knight Order like a mountain.

A terrifying dark mage.

Thus, Stella couldn’t easily believe her words. How could such a dark mage be her mother’s sister?

And… she claimed to know where her mother was.

Wasn’t it just that her mother had collaborated with the demons?

Her mother was wrongfully accused.

That day, that hour, that moment. She had been with Stella.

Her mother never killed anyone, peeled their skin off, or performed strange rituals.

So perhaps…

Was the woman in front of me the truth behind that incident?

Did she frame my mother?

“No, that’s not true.”

It was a question Stella had only thought in her heart.

Samaela shook her head, as if she could see right through her.

“I’m a sister who cares for and loves my sister very much. I wouldn’t have any reason to make her suffer.”

“How… how can I believe that?”

“You can’t easily believe it. In my niece’s eyes, I’m just a dark mage who kills people easily. So, why not listen to the story first?”

Stella didn’t reply.

She felt like… she shouldn’t listen.

But it was a proposal she couldn’t reject either.

She was curious. She wanted to know.

What could Samaela possibly know?

Where was her mother?

Was she healthy? Did she think of her?

If she was alive, why didn’t she come to find me?

“Come closer if you want to hear. No need to sit on the floor when there’s a perfectly good chair over there.”

Samaela held a sweet-looking fruit with a kind smile.

*

Crunch—

Creak—

Boom—

Crack—

I kept smashing the monsters that kept rushing in without taking a break, and my steps didn’t falter.

This path is accurate. Looking at how the monsters are flooding in like they’re insane, it’s certain.

But…

It’s taking longer than I thought.

How far have I come? Halfway? Maybe not even halfway?

“Damn these things. There’s no end in sight.”

Monsters swarm in to the point where I can’t even grasp the situation.

They’re not strong.

Strangely enough, there isn’t a single strong one; they’re all just weak trash.

One kick or punch, and they’re headless corpses.

But there are so many. Unbelievably many.

Those bastards are crawling so thick that I can’t tell if they are monsters or if I’m the real monster.

If I keep this up, I’ll take too long…

I don’t know how to open the door, what Pina is doing, what Stella’s condition is, but taking too long is a given.

That’s why I can’t deal with all the monsters here. I have to break through even if I have to push a little.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue and kicked the ground. Boom— the force that came from my tiny foot shook the very ground. It flipped the earth, increasing the distance between me and the monsters.

Past the overturned ground, I still see writhing monsters.

Taking a moment to catch my breath, I focused mana into my eyes.

The distance to Stella… if I sprint with everything I’ve got, it’s about a two-minute distance.

Then, if I wanted to dash through the monsters as fast as I could, maybe five minutes?

Could they open the door in that time?

It’s impossible, which is why they are holding me back.

“Ugh…”

I sighed in annoyance and calmed my breathing.

If I break through here, how many more will I have to face?

At least two are certain.

The owner of this labyrinth, the snake, and Paid Haberon.

It’s impossible for Paid to be the owner of the labyrinth.

Looking at his face, I mean, I’m not even sure if it’s really his face, but anyway, he’s just a snake’s underling.

So it’s a given I’ll have to face at least two of them.

If I’m unlucky, I might have to face both at the same time.

Then I’d inevitably have to use ‘that.’

If I meet Arisa or Luna, and Paulo in that state, it’ll be chaos.

But what can I do?

It’s better than dying here like an idiot.

Still, I hope one of the snakes or Paid comes looking for me voluntarily.

It’s easier to deal with one at a time than two at once.

Anyway, if I exert myself like this, I could take out all the monsters lying around here in one fell swoop.

While thinking that and loosening up my body…

“Pina wouldn’t wander around alone, but it appears she really did.”

Familiar voice floated from the gaps between the monsters.

“Or maybe you simply came in search of treasure?”

It was the voice of Paid Haberon.

The moment I laid eyes on him…

“I came to kill you, you bastard!”

I kicked off the ground and dashed.

I’m not stupid enough to miss this golden opportunity.

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