Antagonist Protection Service-Chapter 169 - White Witch Queen

169: White Witch Queen

169: White Witch Queen

In an instant, my vision flashed and blurred.

Before I knew it, my body was hit with a tremendous impact, unlike anything I’d ever felt in my entire life, and when I came to, heavy like lead and seemingly immobilised, aching all over like never before.

All I could hear was persistent ringing in my ears, and as for taste, just the metallic tang of blood.

Slowly, albeit still a bit dizzy, I managed to recover enough to recall and recognise what was going on.

Starting by forcing my eyes to flicker open, feeling around me in an attempt to push myself up from the ground, my limbs trembling from weakness.

An impenetrable cloud of dust and smoke so thick I couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of me filled the corridor, and as I gradually raised to my feet, covering my mouth with the back of my arm and roughly breathing, I quickly pulled up the in-built mask of the Draconic Shadow, which fortunately didn’t seem as damaged as I’d thought.

The thought of using a health potion occurred to me, but I decided against it.

I only had one Standard-quality potion, and if I wasted it now while I was in a state where I could still move and act well enough, even if it was incredibly painful, I should save it.

As for a Lesser Health Potion, which I had two of in stock, I thought it wouldn’t have been enough to do anything, and since the Draconic Shadow boosted my natural regeneration rate, that much was enough for now.

When I stood up fully, feeling my body all over to make sure there really were no grievous wounds, I belatedly realised something.

‘Hm?

Wasn’t there something…’

On my back, didn’t it feel heavier before…?

Then, it occurred to me.

‘Shit, the Protagonist…!’

Turning around, I summoned the Holy Sword and Villainous Blade in each hand, waving them around to try and dissipate the smoke and debris, to no avail.

Clicking my tongue, I started walking forward, pushing through the lingering chaos on full alert.

Eventually, I reached far enough down the corridor that I penetrated the final main wall of smoke, now able to see more than my arm’s length in front of me, but…

‘Where?

Where are they?

Where did they go?

Quickly, I need to find them…!’

My eyes searched frantically, but in the back of my mind, I already knew the answer.

Instinctively, it was obvious.

“…”

The Protagonist was gone.

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I continued down the corridor for any sign of the Protagonist or the witches who were the ones to take her away, and by the time my body had regenerated to the point that I could run without risking injuring myself further, I knew it was already too late.

Once again, I was stuck inside this infinite stretch of corridor, and no matter how far I ran, no matter how much I pushed myself, it wouldn’t amount to anything.

I didn’t understand why I was back to being stuck here, to the extent that I couldn’t even search the rest of the White Witch’s Tower, but all I could do was wait.

Eventually, I realised help had finally arrived when I noticed the illuminating wisps suddenly begin to emerge from thin air once more.

Shortly after, she appeared from the shadows.

“―Incredulity doth not exist in Salem.”

Hearing her voice before I was even able to turn around and see her, she strode right past me, stopping just before the large window on one side of the corridor.

“It doth not, and yet, the gall.”

Her tone, her demeanour, everything was cold, but I could clearly understand why.

Approaching to stand just to the side and a little behind her, I wondered what she saw behind that blindfold of hers.

Like the Librarian and Leinth, I was certain that her being blind was not simply all there was to it.

After all, in both cases, they were expert magicians, absolute top of the game in their respective worlds, at least that’s how it seemed to me.

Rather than seeing nothing, I thought they must be able to see more than I could imagine.

Slowly, she raised one arm up, and, pointing towards somewhere in the city below us, my gaze naturally followed that direction.

In the distance, a certain building stood with a rounded, dome-like roof.

It only appeared average, not even spectacular enough to reflect the pale moonlight above, and not daring to stand out among the rest of the dark city, shrouded in a dense, permanent mist.

For a second, I was confused why she pointed at such a random place.

Oblivious or not to my curiosity, her low, chilling voice continued.

“To think I wouldst remain idle, the foolishness…”

And then, all of a sudden.

“…Perish.”

――The building, in the blink of an eye, erupted into the illusion of a colossal, luminous flower that spread throughout the endless night sky, peerlessly beautiful yet screaming an unimaginable, primal danger to my instincts.

Without a moment’s hesitation, the White Witch Queen moved her finger to another building, this time one with a triangular roof.

“Moulder.”

Immediately following, that building too erupted, but she didn’t stop there.

This time, the target was a larger establishment consisting of multiple, smaller buildings that were conjoined together.

“Fall, and expire.”

It promptly met the same fate, bringing the total count of blooming flowers to three.

“Salem belongeth to none other than mine own self.

All that doth exist within is mine to forge or to raze, and every life is mine to spare or to quench.”

Her pointing finger shifted, and she opened her hand towards the city.

“Thy curiosity hath burned too bright like the sun, and thus, it shall be extinguished in like manner.”

Observing passively, my eyes widened as she continued.

“At long last, the hour hath come for the Black Rose to wither.”

Like a conductor, she swiped her hand.

And with a single, echoing order.

“Begone from before mine dead eyes, wretched scum.”

The entire city bloomed, a fantastical flower garden of ashes, smoke and mist emerging, extending endlessly towards the blackened sky, reaching up for that looming full moon.