The Survival of an Inferior

I visit Kasfo's workshop when I notice the lights are on. 

*Knock* *Knock*

"Come in."

Kasfo is wearing his goggles and stares into a vial of blueish-white liquid. The liquid has traces of glitter derived from the petals of Blue Beauty.

He shakes the vial a little and gives it one final stir. 

"Phew..." Kasfo takes the goggles off, wiping the sweat off his forehead. 

"Are you not joining the feast?" Lena asks. 

Kasfo glance at Lena. "I figured Young Master need the potion for the battle tomorrow. It's finally complete."

"Yes, thank you. Here's the remaining payment." I take out another bag of gold, Kasfo takes it and places it aside.

"What are you using it for?" says Kasfo.

"I'm not using it, someone else is," I say and place the vial inside a box. 

"...I will be evacuating at midnight. I wish you the best of luck. Stay alive, my loaded customer, I still need to make money."

"Haha...I will," I reply.

I wave farewell before heading for the mansion. In the courtyard, battle cries can be heard.

"HAH!" 

"Someone is practising at this hour?" Lena mumbles.

"There is only one person so diligent," I ironically say, only to realise that I was the same for the past few days seconds later.

In the bask of the moonlight, a woman swings her sword while working on her footwork. Her stunning dark hair flows in the breeze and the light of the moon flashes as if to flaunt her "protagonist beauty". 

Even though her hair created a shadow over her face, I can see a rigid azure glow in her eyes. 

She stops and turns to us. 

"What?"

I leave a box on the bench beside us. "You will need this," I simply say and left.

"What? You brought me here just to see her?" Lena whispers and pouts. 

"I didn't ask you to follow me."

"Hmph..."

...

Rena stares at the box. 

She walks to it with high caution and even sent a wave of mana to detect whatever was inside.

!!!

Her jaws dropped when she feels a soothing and appealing anomaly.

With no hesitation, she opens the box. The contents are what she expected as she has been looking for them since three years ago.

"T-This...How did that bastard..."

----------------------

Rena had a slight change of heart. 

Her favourability of the player increases from -101 to -80 

----------------------

Although it is a pity to sacrifice Blue Beauty, it is a good long-term investment. With that potion, I increase Rena's favorability and unlock her bloodline. Her strength helps my survival.

...

"Lena, I need your help," I say.

She tilts her head. 

I am bothered by my "gut feeling". Everything has been proceeding smoothly. 

That's right...a bit too smooth.

I look at the forest near Chael.

?

"Cast a soundproof barrier surrounding the two of us," I say.

Lena waves her hands and a small magic circle appears mid-air, the magic circle then dissipates and a ripple of air envelopes us.

"Chantless casting?!"

Lena looks away in guilt."Your life force enhanced my energy core to unprecedented levels. I think it evolved or something..."

...What?

That has never happened before when I was playing as Rena...? 

...

It's not very important.

"Anyways, have you heard of demon cultists?"

Lena jolts at that sudden question. Her skin starts to erect goosebumps.

"I..."

"So you do know of them," I reply.

Truth be told, I know the dark truth about her family, the Grande family. On the surface, it seems like a family that cultivates generations of powerful mages but...within their mansion basement holds many documents of cultists and demons. 

Even after countless playthroughs, I am still unable to figure out the relationship between the Grande family and the demons. They just disappeared one night all of a sudden. 

When I dedicated playthroughs solely to investigating the Grande family, all I faced are quick deaths and different butterfly effects. The closest clue I could find is that something "black" attacked their mansion. 

Was Lena also...

I've never seen "Lena Grande" personally as Rena before...

"Y-Yes?!" Lena exclaims when she had eye contact. 

"Nothing. Let's go."

We sneak into the forest and look around.

I put up my hand and Lena stops behind me. 

Bingo.

I point at two suspicious men burying something into the ground. 

I focus on the mana in my surrounding and manages to detect demonic mana within their body. My prediction was right. 

"Those are..." Lena's eyes widen as she shivers. 

"You can recognise cultists?" I ask but she doesn't listen.

I wait until the two men get up and leave.

I can finally see their face, they are the subordinates of Radz.

!

"Ha..." I chuckle. 

Let's test out the ring's power. 

I force my mind to think about "tree branches and roots" that shoot up.

*Crack* 

"Hm? Did you hear that?" one of the subordinates mumbles.

"Yeah...below us?" 

*BOOM!* 

*PST!* 

"ARCKS!?"

A sudden tree's root appears from the dirt and pierces the two unsuspecting men's hearts.

"No...what...is..." are their last words before dying.

---------------------- 

+50,000 exp

---------------------- 

"Are you okay?" I ask Lena. She is holding my arms tightly and cowering.

"Y-Yes...I'm sorry."

Hmm...

Even though her talent is great, her mind is too weak. I'm afraid she won't be able to do much in the upcoming battle. 

I ask her to cast a "Light Foot" spell on me to mask my footsteps and "Clean" to remove the blood on the ground.

I then pull the bodies into a bush.

"Young-"

"Sh."

Another man goes to the area where the two subordinates were at and digs up whatever is buried. 

The mysterious man has demonic mana within his meridians as well. 

I take out a dagger from my pocket.

*WHOOOSH* 

!

A sudden gust of wind burst as I leap at an incredible speed to the back of the man and place my dagger at his neck. 

"Tell me, who sent you?" I ask.

"S-Sorry? I am an innocent man! I-I just had an acquaintance bury something here that I need." my prey says.

"Really? Why then are you gathering the demonic mana in your body to your right hand?" I ask with a smile.

"You-"

I slit his throat and blood splatters. 

He drops to his knees, grasping his bloody wound. In his final moments, he turns around and sees my face. The reaction was exhilarating. 

His eyes redden and brows raised. "I-Impossible..."

*Thud* 

...

This guy recognised me. If he was innocent, his reaction would be confusion yet he was surprised. 

His final moment affirmed my judgement.