I Have the Sacred Sword?

Eleonora remained silent, observing the surroundings as she sensed the approaching presences.

It was clear that Alexia's group was following her, though her summon had detected them long ago. Despite this, the summon did nothing, following Eleonora's prior instructions to take no action without her permission.

Meanwhile, Aiden's group, along with Camila and Thorne, still recovering from the recent fight with the wolves, noticed Alexia and her companions' arrival.

Although the relief of seeing reinforcements was momentary, unease grew as they noticed the large pack of wolves trailing the newcomers.

However, the wolves, who had shown relentless ferocity before, now kept their distance, almost as if they feared approaching due to the presence of the two girls, Eleonora and her summon.

Seeing the tension in the air, Aiden decided to take the initiative and moved forward to greet Alexia.

"Well, it looks like you've had your own troubles too," Aiden said with a somewhat forced smile, glancing at the pack of wolves that kept their distance.

Alexia greeted him kindly, but her face showed signs of exhaustion.

"Yes… Well, it seems like we’ll have to go back the way we came," she replied with a faint smile. "Ahead lies a much more dangerous creature, and we don’t want to face it... It would be suicide," she added seriously.

The mention of a dangerous creature immediately caught Aiden's attention, and he frowned.

"A more dangerous creature?" he asked, worried.

"That's right. It’s better not to take any risks. These wolves were just the beginning," Alexia assured, lying to avoid further conflicts. She knew that telling the truth would complicate things.

Aiden nodded, grateful for the warning.

"Thanks for the information. Actually, we’ve had some problems ourselves..." he began, pointing to Camila, who was near Marta, still being tended to by Selena.

"Camila fell along with Marta while trying to escape, and amidst all the chaos, that girl appeared..." Aiden paused for a moment, gesturing toward Eleonora and her summon.

When Alexia and Aiden turned their heads towards the two girls, they were now staring intently at Isuke.

The tension increased further when Eleonora called out to Isuke as he passed by her.

Isuke, hearing the call, raised a hand in greeting, keeping his expression calm.

"Eleonora... I didn’t expect to see you here," Isuke said with some surprise and calmness in his tone. "We were… looking for you," he added, his eyes locking onto Eleonora's.

"I didn’t think you could move," he added, showing no signs of aggression.

Eleonora, seeing Isuke's calm demeanor, took a moment to analyze the situation.

Behind him, she could perceive a young man whose eyes reflected something she knew all too well.

Greed.

"I appreciate you coming..." Eleonora began, her voice soft but firm. "But I’ve already made a pact," she concluded, observing the group closely.

Aiden, who had been listening to the conversation, blinked in confusion.

"A pact?" he asked, clearly surprised.

He didn’t expect someone in Alexia’s group to know this mysterious girl.

Alexia, who had been trying to keep the situation under control, spoke up.

"It’s... complicated, Aiden. This girl asked for our help before, but you don’t need to worry. If she wanted to kill us, she would have done it already," Alexia said with a forced smile.

The silence that followed was uncomfortable, and Alexia coughed slightly, nervous about the lack of reaction.

"In any case, it’s best if we go back. Now that we have Eleonora, returning won’t be so difficult," Alexia suggested, trying to steer the conversation away.

But Darius, who had been watching everything warily, didn’t let the conversation slip away so easily.

"Wait," he said, interrupting Alexia. "What other secret are you keeping?" he asked, his gaze sharp.

Alexia, surprised by the confrontation, shook her head.

"None," Alexia replied, trying to sound convincing, though her tone betrayed a slight nervousness.

The fatigue, combined with the exhaustion from this exploration… made it impossible for her to maintain a flawless façade, adding to all the mistakes she had made and that her mind constantly reminded her of.

"I'm starting to figure you out, Alexia. You never give out all the information at once," Darius reproached, keeping up the pressure.

Thorne, who had remained silent until now, decided to join the conversation.

"Did you know about this forest before we got here?" he asked, incredulous.

Alexia tried to defend herself.

"No, I didn’t know anything about this. I really had no idea..." she began to say, but at that moment, Eleonora, with an unreadable expression, leaned towards Isuke.

“If you want to make a pact with me now, you’ll have to convince my candidate... or kill him,” Eleonora whispered.

Leo, who was close enough to hear, widened his eyes in surprise at the declaration.

Selena, equally nearby, let out a shocked gasp, her hands trembling slightly as she continued tending to Marta.

Isuke, keeping his composure, looked Eleonora directly in the eyes.

"Don’t worry," he replied with a tone full of a certain confidence. "Our only goal was to rescue you," he added with a slight smile. "Although..." he continued, glancing at Leo, "I would have preferred if you made a pact with my friend," he admitted with some resentment.

Eleonora raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his words.

"Why do you say that?" Eleonora asked, clearly curious.

"I’m a mage. It doesn’t make much sense for me to make a pact with an ego-sword," Isuke explained sincerely.

This statement left Aiden’s group stunned.

The discussion they were having with Alexia came to an abrupt halt, everyone turning to look at Eleonora in shock.

Thorne was the first to break the silence.

"She’s an ego-sword?" he asked, clearly impressed, before turning to Alexia. "And you didn’t tell us?!" he accused.

Alexia put a hand to her forehead, clearly frustrated by how things were unfolding.

"It’s better if we head back to the camp. We can continue this conversation at the academy," she said, trying to regain control of the situation. "She’s already made a pact; there’s no point in arguing here," she added firmly.

But Darius wasn’t willing to let it go so easily.

"And what if I defeat Camila?" he asked, looking directly at Eleonora. "Would you make a pact with me?"

Eleonora smiled, a cold and dangerous smile that made the atmosphere even more tense.

"Yes," she simply replied.

The atmosphere grew even heavier after her statement.

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