Sorcerer’s Handbook

There was no way out, and the Black Knight was closing in step by step.

Lise was completely out of options. She hurriedly took out the small mirror from her pocket, disregarding the risk of being discovered by the Black Knight, and initiated a high-speed mental exchange with her sisters. “I’m sorry, I messed up.”

“It’s okay,” the White Queen reassured her. “The enemy has already assumed you are Lise Deya. Confirming your identity is just a matter of time. You’ve done well, Lise.”

Lise asked, “But what do we do now? I’m about to be captured.”

There was a moment of silence in the mirror before the White Queen suddenly asked, “Lise, do you resent us for keeping secrets?”

Lise was puzzled. “What do you mean?”

Deya clarified, “Do you resent us for hiding the fact that you are a spirit?”

Lise tilted her head. “A little bit, but no matter what I am, I’m still your favorite little sister, right?”

The White Queen responded, “Of course, without a doubt-as long as you don’t make me angry.”

Scarlet Dead Apostles added, “And as long as we are here, Lise, you don’t need to know you are a spirit.”

Lise was a perceptive child.

“Scarlet, what do you mean by that? Are you saying you might not be here someday?”

Scarlet Dead Apostles didn’t answer Lise’s question. “Lise, listen to the White Queen more in the future. Black Butler, don’t keep things to yourself. White Queen, don’t try to handle everything alone. Trust others more. Deya, you must stay true to yourself.”

Lise was anxious. “Scarlet, what are you talking about?!”

The usually silent Black Butler suddenly spoke, “Let me handle it. Scarlet Dead Apostles, you are more useful than I am.”

Scarlet Dead Apostles replied, “No, Black Butler, you are more useful. I can’t help in the Virtual Realm anymore. I was born to fight. Now that Deya can fight on her own and has trustworthy allies, my continued existence would only be a burden to her.”

Deya protested, “That’s impossible! Scarlet, you are my sister, not some combat substitute, and you would never be a burden to me!”

Lise was on the verge of crushing the mirror. “What are you all talking about?! I don’t understand any of this!”

“The Trial of the Bronze Dragon erased our past in reality and sealed our spellforce,” the White Queen said in a low voice. “That’s why Annan never suspected us. But without spellforce, we can’t activate our spirit forms, so we have no power to resist in reality and must rely on others for protection.”

“But there is always an exception—if a spirit activates voluntarily, it doesn’t require spellforce.”

Lise had a vague understanding but still hoped for the best. “So Scarlet is going to beat up this bad guy and come back?”

Scarlet Dead Apostles replied, “I won’t be coming back.”

“Why not!?”

“Lise, do you know what kind of spirits we are?”

“Sister spirit, little sister spirit, cute spirit?”

“No, we are all derivative spirits of the Mask spirit,” Scarlet Dead Apostles explained. “I am the Scarlet Dead Apostles Mask, she is the White Queen Mask, and you are the Little Witch Mask.”

“When used on ourselves, we can switch freely and use them permanently. But if we use them on someone else, it means I have to enter the other person’s soul to put the Scarlet Dead Apostles Mask on them.”

Lise asked, “So… Scarlet, are you going to take over this bad guy’s body!?”

“I can’t,” Scarlet Dead Apostles shook her head. “A mask is still just a mask.”

“Then what are you going to do?”

“It’s simple. When it takes off the mask, it will also take off its face. I will actively merge into and disrupt its soul, confuse its memory, and shatter its worldview. By the time it completely removes me, it might not even remember who it is.”

A chill ran through Lise’s heart. “And what about you, Scarlet?”

“The only way to forcibly remove a mask is to destroy the spirit,” Scarlet Dead Apostles said.

“No!” Lise immediately objected. “I don’t want you to die, Scarlet. We… we have Dad, Annan, Aunt Bukin, Uncle Harvey, and Sister Qenna. They will save us. You don’t need to die!”

“The white mist has dispersed for so long, and we have been running for so long,” Black Butler suddenly said. “Who has come to save us?”

The image in the mirror froze.

“They might save Annan, Banjeet, Ashe, Igor, and even Harvey, but no one will save us. Annan and Banjeet are master and servant, Ashe and the others are companions, but we are outsiders that no one cares about.”

“In ordinary times, it might not matter, but in moments of danger, the weight of life becomes clear,” Black Butler said. “Moreover, they can’t save us. The Black Knight just said it—it is a secret guard. Deya, do you remember that name?”

Deya replied, “I heard it once in a bedtime story. The secret guards are the royal blades, representing the Yisuo Royal Family. They can freely use the royal family’s Gospel points and have the authority to invoke Forbid… secret guards can even be considered legendary sorcerers.”

Black Butler continued, “If I’m not mistaken, the white mist in Vamora was dispersed by it using points. It wasn’t even serious just now, merely playing a game of chase with Lise. Even if someone came to rescue us, who could stand against a legendary sorcerer? Who would dare offend a secret guard of the Yisuo Royal Family?”

Lise exclaimed, “So we just let Scarlet go to her death? I don’t want that!”

“So… we should go back.”

Black Butler spoke softly, “If we surrender, Scarlet won’t have to sacrifice herself. If we go back, we won’t have to keep running. White Queen, Scarlet, Lise, Deya…” By the end, there was a note of pleading in her voice.

Deya didn’t respond.

“We absolutely can’t go back.”

Scarlet Dead Apostles firmly rejected Black Butler’s suggestion.

“The witch needs Lise Deya, not Scarlet Dead Apostles, not Black Butler, not White Queen, not Secret Princess, and certainly not Little Witch. Even if we obediently return to the tower, the witch will still cleanse us all. She won’t allow us to continue existing and obstruct the ‘true Lise Deya’ from achieving Armored Sanctification. Everyone will die, no exceptions.”

“One death versus five deaths—it’s simple math even I can do, Black Butler.”

“But what if it’s not just one death!” Black Butler roared. “This time we encounter a secret guard and Scarlet has to sacrifice herself. What about the second time we encounter a secret guard? Will it be me? Then the third time? The fourth time? Will it only end when Deya is the only one left?”

White Queen interjected, “Black…”

“Three months remain until the Weaving Festival ends. If we behave well, the witch might let us live for those three months,” Black Butler pleaded. “Deya, do you really want to watch everyone die one by one? Can’t you let us live peacefully for these three months? Do you know what Scarlet likes to eat? Do you know where Scarlet wants to go? Do you know that Scarlet actually loves listening to music?”

Deya didn’t respond.

“Don’t embarrass yourself, Black Butler,” Scarlet Dead Apostles said. “Don’t make it sound like I’m afraid of death. I am Scarlet Dead Apostles—that’s the name I chose for myself.”

“Lise, without other spirits to assist, I can only activate through contact. Just touch the secret guard with your hand.”

Lise almost wanted to hide her hands. “No!”

“Don’t be so stubborn. You’re an adult now.”

“I’m not an adult! I’m Little Witch! And how is this different from killing Scarlet with my own hands? Absolutely not!”

“Deya!” Black Butler’s scream nearly shattered the mirror, but then it turned into a tearful plea. “I’m begging you…”

White Queen said, “Black Butler, don’t do this. The person suffering the most here isn’t you, it’s Deya.”

Deya still didn’t respond.

Even the swiftest mental exchange takes time, and the Black Knight had already reached the end. The Substitute spread its arms to shield Lise, as if trying to repay her for saving its life moments ago.

“No…”

Pop.

With a light wave of the Black Knight’s hand, the bubble burst. Lise looked up, forced to face this cruel nightmare up close.

“Lise, look at me.”

Lise instinctively glanced at the mirror, and then her Mask was removed.

Black Butler roared, “Deya!”

White Queen cried, “Deya…”

Little Witch screamed, “Deya!”

Their shouts came to an abrupt halt.

Drip, drip.

Her tear ducts worked harder than ever to cleanse her eyes, her teeth bit deep into her lips, drawing blood. Large teardrops mixed with thick blood droplets fell onto the mirror, forming a new layer that obscured the faces of her sisters, reflecting only a girl sobbing uncontrollably.

“Deya, you are the strongest among us. From now on, you’ll have to bear the burden.”

Deya hastily wiped away her tears and looked up to see the Black Knight’s outstretched hand. Fighting the nausea rising in her stomach, she raised her hand to reach out—

Buzz!—

Suddenly, a sharp screech came from the ceiling, jolting Deya’s mind into a daze. The unprepared Black Knight also paused for a moment.

At that instant, an inverted sword body barrier emerged from the ceiling above the Black Knight, and the section of the ceiling was cut out and began to plummet downward!

Crash!

Deya stared in shock as the Black Knight was directly hit by the falling ceiling piece, complete with the sword body barrier. In the midst of the swirling dust and debris, along with the ceiling, descended a figure in a dark red trench coat—a person with the presence of a high-quality father figure.

“Hmm?”

Ashe saw Deya’s small hand reaching out towards him and instinctively reached out to grasp it.

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