Harem-Powered Kingdom Building: Empire of Carnal Sin-Chapter 48: Fateful Reunion

For close to a minute, he silently stood at the back, merely observing how his fellow citizens fought.

And then... he accelerated forward. Darkness spread outward from this man, enveloping the battlefield.

But this wasn't like natural darkness. The horizon faded to black. The sky faded to black. Yet not everything was invisible. The terrain, for instance, was barely visible. And all living beings within the darkness could clearly be seen, as if illuminated by soft moonlight.

Only the worshippers of Selune perceived such an effect. In fact, Targon and the rest even felt themselves being rejuvenated. Their depleted stamina and focus returned. Their STR, AGI, and MAGIC surged as though they had suddenly gained several levels.

The Shuvlok warriors, on the other hand, recoiled after being surrounded by the darkness.

"What the hell is this?!" one of them growled.

"I can't see clearly!" another said.

The man did not stop to console them. His focus was purely on the Hill Giant, which was impaired in the same way the Shuvloks were.

His feet pushed against the ground in a powerful motion, causing him to explode forward. His intricate sword glinted across the darkness like a silver comet.

With powerful strikes, he slashed at the giant's legs. Each of his attacks did as much damage as Targon's full-powered strike with his greatsword, causing the giant to roar out in pain and panic.

In response to the man's assault, the giant frantically stomped both its feet, trying to squash him to death.

The man leapt upward and, with inhuman grace, scaled the giant's body, using his sword to carve his path up its back.

It twisted, trying to shake him off. It reached out with its hands, attempting to grab him. But the man was too agile for the giant.

The man thrust his sword deep into the base of the Hill Giant's skull. Its roar turned into a gurgle as its massive body shuddered violently. A final tremor spread through the settlement as the enormous weight of the Hill Giant collapsed.

The dead Hill Giant's ugly face rested some distance in front of Barbara. The man stood victoriously on its back, just below the giant's neck.

Everybody looked on at this scene with stunned expressions. They couldn't quite believe what they had just witnessed.

The man jumped off the giant's back and landed lightly on his feet, flicking the blood from his blade. He stepped toward Barbara, and his handsome face broke out into a happy, cheerful smile.

He knew that Barbara and a few others were from the Boyang Desert. He knew that they weren't worshippers of Goddess Selune. But in spite of that, there was no prejudice in his eyes.

He held his hand out toward her and said, "Hello, I'm the newest citizen of this barony. It's nice to meet you."

Looking at the man and his outstretched hand, Barbara couldn't help but frown. There was now another man who was around the same age as her—or even younger—and was stronger than her.

She had enough time to recover from the Hill Giant's stomp. She got up on her own and curtly said, "Thanks."

The man tilted his head at her behavior but did not mind it, the smile on his face only widening before he withdrew his hand.

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Among the surprised citizens, there was one person who was far more shocked than the others.

Tara's mouth was slightly open, and her breath caught in her throat as she struggled to confirm whether her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Memories surged through her mind. Memories of someone who had once been her closest friend, of the day he had sacrificed himself to save her, throwing himself into a swarm of monsters so she could escape.

She had believed him dead.

And yet, here he was. Alive.

The man's gaze swept across the rest of the settlers as well, until his eyes found Tara. Funnily enough, he reacted almost the same way she did.

"Tara...?" he asked uncertainly. "Tara, is that you?"

This man was none other than Starius, Tara's savior, whom she had told Hiro about the previous evening.

"Starius? You're... you're alive?" Her voice came out hoarse, as if she barely believed it herself.

As if they were being pushed by an unseen force, the long-lost friends who had been separated for many years walked toward each other. Slowly at first, then briskly, examining each other with their eyes to make sure they truly had found the right person.

Unlike the other refugees, Starius arriving at Hiro's barony was no coincidence. However...

"Never would I have expected to meet you of all people in this place, Tara!"

Complicated emotions raced and ravaged Tara's mind. Although she never talked about it to anyone, Starius' death had made her feel guilt and shame among other emotions. Occasionally, she would just freeze, thinking about that fateful day, wondering why she didn't have the courage to do what he did. Wondering why it was him and not her.

She survived, only to end up with a worthless common class... only to lead a life of mediocrity.

But now, those feelings vanished like smoke. A huge burden was lifted off her mind. Her thoughts flowed with unprecedented clarity, as if the shackles that bound her had just disintegrated into atoms.

Once they were close enough, Starius reached out to pull her into a warm embrace, one fitting for such a significant reunion.

But that's when something triggered inside Tara's head.

How could she hug Starius like that? After all... the one she was ensnared by was none other than Hiro!

The manipulative effect of Ensnaring Touch was subtle and devious. The skill did not make Tara automatically hate every male out there. No, she could still get along with men just fine.

Friendship, camaraderie, and even love were totally in the cards!

But intimate physical contact? No.

With a masterful movement she didn't even know she was capable of, Tara dodged Starius' hug, making him keep moving forward and embrace air.

The tense and dramatic atmosphere was instantly diffused, and more than one person had trouble suppressing a snicker.

Poor Starius gave Tara the 'You traitor!' look while she fumbled for an excuse.

"I... We're not kids anymore, you know..."

"Right... of course," Starius said awkwardly, but his face quickly reverted to a cheerful and happy expression.

Barbara made her way to their side, smirking as she glanced between the two of them. Her eyes danced with mischief, and her brain worked to make far-fetched deductions on its own.

She was already suspecting that Hiro and Tara shared an unusual relationship. And now, there was this new bloke who looked like he could be Tara's childhood sweetheart or something?

She felt like entertainment wouldn't be much of an issue for the foreseeable future.

But merely watching from the side was not that fun. How about she fan the flames a little?

"Well, well. What is this? A reunion of long-lost lovers? This might be the most... 'pink' thing that has happened in the gray Desolate Lands."

She brought out all her hidden poetic talent to formulate that sentence.

Tara whipped around to glare at her in embarrassment. "It's not like that!"

Barbara chuckled, enjoying Tara's distress. "If you say so..."

Starius watched Tara intently. There were many things he wanted to tell her. But before he could even get a single word out of his mouth, Hiro and Hema had finally returned.