Sword of Salvation-Chapter 59: - Flower of Levia (3)

In an instant, Mariel stood in front of the small island located at the center of the lake.

The island was covered with dense trees, resembling a forest in the middle of the lake. Mariel stepped onto the island and entered the small forest without hesitation. The vegetation was wild, and Mariel noticed strange plants that were likely medicinal herbs the village chief had mentioned.

What caught his attention the most were the dark blue flowers scattered everywhere.

The deeper Mariel went into the forest, the more flowers she saw. They grew not only on the ground but also on rocks and trees. When Mariel reached the center of the island, he found himself in a breathtaking flower field illuminated perfectly by the moonlight.

However, Mariel didn’t take in the scenery. There was no need. His crimson eyes were fully fixed on the center of the flower field.

There stood a large, leafless tree, with dark blue flowers growing all over its trunk. In front of the tree was a slightly long bench. Seated on the bench was a woman with long, dark blue hair, appearing to be in her thirties. She had pale white skin and a stunning face, with curves that easily rivaled Medea’s.

Despite her pitch-black nails and blue eyes with vertical pupils, the woman’s beauty and elegance remained untouched. In fact, they made her even more alluring. Mariel didn’t know if something was wrong with her, but the woman before her looked absolutely perfect—a solid ten out of ten.

"You said you wanted to sleep on my lap while I feed you grape," the woman’s soft, soothing voice said. "Unfortunately, I didn’t bring any grape, but you can sleep here."

The woman, who was undoubtedly the Primordial Demon Levia, patted her lap gently. Her lips curved into a mesmerizing smile, and her eyes were calm and inviting. She beckoned Mariel to rest on her lap like a mother calling her child.

Mariel was deeply tempted to approach Levia and do as she instructed. He wanted to lie down there and gaze at that beautiful face up close. He wanted to bask in the coolness emanating from Levia’s body. However, Mariel couldn’t do that with the dangerous flowers flourishing around her.

"Primordial Demon Levia...."

What Mariel feared had come true; the woman had deliberately waited for him because of the careless words he had blurted out that night.

"Didn’t you want to meet me to fulfill your fantasy? Why are you so cautious now?"

Mariel frowned deeply. The woman’s gaze was serene, and her expression was gentle. Mariel couldn’t understand how a demon like her could have such an expression. Not to mention her calming and soothing aura. If it was all an act, it was a flawless one.

"Why is a demon of your caliber here?" Mariel asked.

"You wanted to meet me, didn’t you?" Levia didn’t wait for an answer. "Don’t worry. I won’t attack you."

Levia’s lips remained smiling. However, in stark contrast to her expression and words, all the flowers in the clearing suddenly flew into the air. The petals shot upward like a flock of migrating birds. Watching them was beautiful, but at the same time, it was terrifying.

"That’s hard to—"

Mariel didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence. The flowers shot toward him like needles falling from the sky. But those flowers moved far faster than any needle. Mariel, who had initially tried to evade by stepping back, stopped abruptly and used a spatial barrier to shield himself.

The flowers bombarded Mariel relentlessly. All he could see was dark blue. Each flower hit him with tremendous force, as if they were made of hard metal.

Not wanting to be pushed back, Mariel transformed his spatial barrier into armor. Then he released a powerful gust of wind, blasting away all the attacking flowers. Without pausing, Mariel dashed straight toward Levia, twin wind swords forming in his hands.

"You are stronger than the three previous wielders of ’Sword of Salvation’."

That one sentence stopped Mariel in his tracks, even though his wind swords were only a few centimeters away from slashing the demon. Levia said it calmly, with no worry on her face. The two wind swords ready to strike her didn’t seem to concern her at all.

"Ah, you might even be stronger than all your predecessors."

Mariel never expected to hear a statement like that. However, when he thought about it, it wasn’t too surprising. Lukhiel carried "Sword of Salvation" with him. It wasn’t impossible for someone to know about it. And when that person heard news of the demon being saved from death, it wasn’t hard to guess that the rescuer held the sword.

"Is that the name of the sword Lukhiel always carried?" Mariel asked as he slashed at two flower spears coming his way.

Levia didn’t have any proof that the sword was with him, so he could pretend here. Mariel’s sudden halt may have weakened the act, but he could claim he was interested in the information coming from the demon. Levia likely wouldn’t believe it, but it was better than openly nodding.

"Oh, you haven’t tried using it yet? That’s not surprising. So, how is Lukhiel? Is he still alive?"

Levia spoke casually with a gentle expression and calm eyes. However, she didn’t stop attacking Mariel with her dark blue flower spears. Mariel continued parrying the relentless strikes without moving from his spot.

"That’s a funny question. Aren’t the demons hunting Lukhiel just like humans are?"

"That doesn’t change the fact that I’m curious to know the answer. So, is he alive? Dead? Ah, never mind. It’s not that important."

"You still haven’t answered my question," Mariel said. "What is a demon of your caliber doing here? I don’t believe you come just because of the words I said. Honestly, I’m tempted to accept your offer, but I’m worried you’ll kill me out of the blue."

"Lukhiel trained you well."

Levia didn’t answer Mariel’s question. The demon stood up from the bench she had been sitting on. The bench instantly turned into flower petals. The same happened to the flower tree.

"I am only here to greet you," Levia said as she turned around. "You’re not strong enough to be tested yet, so I’ll postpone our battle. But Mariel Allvar, I’ll keep watching your progress. So, do your best not to disappoint me."

Mariel said nothing. He didn’t even bother to ask how Levia knew his name. His eyes were fixed on Levia, who began to walk away.

The demon... she had been stalking Mariel for a long time—and she would continue doing so. That was what Mariel gathered from the demon’s words—and he was certain he was right.

"Oh," Levia stopped in her tracks, glancing slightly over her shoulder. "That flower’s name is Levia. It only comes from the underworld. I can grow it anywhere. I can shape it into anything, make it harder than anything. It can also be a medicine or a poison. More interestingly, it can become a curse. You’ll have to destroy all of them if you don’t want them cursing every creature around this lake."

Levia didn’t wait for Mariel’s response. Her body turned into thousands of butterfly-shaped petals. The swarm of butterflies flew high into the air in groups, heading straight southeast.

Mariel didn’t know where she was going, but two things were now clear: he had a professional stalker after him, and that stalker was using those unique flowers to watch him.

"I don’t know whether to be happy or annoyed, but one thing’s certain—Levia is really strong."

Mariel took a deep breath and released a wave of wind in all directions, deflecting the flower spears that charged at him.

As if they had minds of their own, the flower petals merged together to form a colossal mythological creature. Mariel had no time to deal with something so useless. So, before the massive creature could attack him, he nullified all their existence with his spirit ability.

"Levia did call them flowers, but they are still made of prana. Anything made of prana is powerless against my spirit nullification ability."

Mariel looked around in all directions, searching for any trace of Sterminatore members. However, after a few minutes without any results, he decided to return. Continuing the search would only waste time.

"...What happened?" Celinee asked as soon as Mariel stepped onto the boat.

The ninja’s face showed a bit of confusion; she truly wanted to know what had happened. Mariel couldn’t blame her.

"Nothing special. She did attack me, but it was just a game. Levia came to confirm whether Lukhiel was still alive or already dead. She left immediately after I gave her the answer."

"Seriously?" Celinee asked, a bit incredulous.

"As much as I’d like to say no, that’s the truth. Oh, she also told me about the flower. Its name is Levia, and it only grows naturally in the underworld."

"Really? No wonder I’ve never seen such a flower. So, what about the bodies of Sterminatore members?"

"There are no traces of them. Whether Levia sank them into the lake or buried them underground, I don’t know. Searching further would just be a waste of time."

Celinee agreed with Mariel. Continuing the search would only waste their time. Both of them decided to return to the village and rest. They, especially Mariel, needed to ensure their bodies stayed in prime condition.

The boat reached the lake shore in just a few minutes.