Chapter 538 – Change

Audreylinda’s brief contemplation lasted over a full minute. During this time, the little bunny girl held in the Female Knight’s arms had fallen into a deep slumber due to minor side effects of the Restoration Potion. Feeling the soft brush of the girl’s furry long ears against her neck, the Female Knight sighed inwardly before making a decision that aligned with her justice.

“Claire!”

The Female Knight spoke firmly to her apprentice:

“The pursuit mission against the evil-doers… shall be canceled for now. We must save this innocent little girl. Leaving her here is not an option. We need to bring her to a town in the Bokkat Kingdom. I believe the Church of Tyr God of Justice will provide her with a safe haven.”

Audreylinda’s words were clear and resolute as she upheld her principle of “saving the innocent above all else.” Though deeply frustrated about having to abandon the pursuit of evil, she ultimately decided to return to the Bokkat Kingdom and arrange the best possible settlement for this poor bunny girl according to her judgment.

Hearing his mentor’s determined words, Claire instinctively wanted to protest. The “bush opening” discussed by those bunny hunters likely contained traces of their enemies. Moreover, he understood perfectly well what giving up the chase at this point would mean.

Audreylinda was already one step behind their enemies, making the hope of catching up extremely slim. If they returned to the Bokkat Kingdom now to settle the bunny girl before resuming the pursuit… it would practically mean abandoning this righteous vengeance.

Gazing at his mentor’s beautiful, resolute face, Claire recalled the scene of Lina being blown into crimson flesh and blood before his eyes…

He truly wanted to say something, yearning to continue this path of revenge.

But in the end, the dejected young man said nothing more. He merely cast a complicated glance at the adorable little girl sleeping on Audreylinda’s shoulder, then let out a deep, helpless sigh.

“I’m sorry, Claire.”

Noticing her apprentice’s conflicted expression from the corner of her eye, Audreylinda spoke with genuine remorse:

“There are far too many innocent and pitiful souls in this world. Perhaps we cannot save everyone, but we must strive to change the tragedies that occur before our very eyes. Therefore…”

Observing how the bunny girl instinctively curled up to protect her head even in sleep, Audreylinda slowly continued:

“Setting aside hatred temporarily for the sake of salvation… this too is a form of justice.”

Claire didn’t argue with his mentor. On one hand, he somewhat agreed with her concept of “justice.” On the other hand, he understood perfectly well how stubborn Audreylinda could be when she became serious. Once her “justice” was determined, it would not be altered. No matter how unwilling he felt, Claire could only follow his mentor’s decision.Thus, under Audreylinda’s decision to save the innocent, the pursuit ended in an anticlimactic manner. The Female Knight would now embark on her return journey, planning to head directly to the nearest small town where the Church of the God of Justice took in orphans. Audreylinda believed the poor Rabbitfolk girl could receive kind care there.

However… before the Female Knight unabashedly intended to carry the girl away, a minor incident seemed to require resolution—such as… a group of indignant Rabbitfolk who acted as if millions of Gold Coins had been stolen from them!

To the Rabbitfolk, the ancestral ritual was sacred and inviolable; otherwise, the entire tribe would face the ancestors’ wrath. Thus, the ritual offering must not have the slightest mishap. Moreover, this time, the “Living Dead Offering”—the Evil Girl—was a widely watched and hated “enemy.” If she were to escape temporarily, not only would the ordinary Rabbitfolk’s rage have no outlet, but even the ruling council of elders would lose face.

Precisely for this reason, the Rabbitfolk Tribe’s elders had dispatched two strong Rabbitfolk guards to watch over a defenseless Little Girl, fearing this crucial offering might flee.

But now, just as the highly anticipated “Living Dead Ritual” was about to begin, with numerous papyrus notices already posted, two inexplicable humans suddenly barged into the Evil Girl’s small wooden hut…

At least, upon hearing this news, the Rabbitfolk Tribe’s Great Elder was furious.

“What? Humans? Since when do outsiders interfere in our beastkin affairs? I’ll teach those two humans with mere brute force (as the face-saving Rabbitfolk guards described them) a lesson, so they know who rules this swamp (how brazen)!”

Thus, this Rabbitfolk elder, whose strength roughly reached the eighth Apprentice-Level, led dozens of Rabbitfolk guards in a huff toward the small hill. Although, as a professional, the Rabbitfolk elder knew his power was insignificant, in his view, at least Apprentice-Level strength was enough to dominate this remote Corner. Now that someone was challenging him, how could this “local Emperor” resist?

In terms of running speed, ordinary Rabbitfolk far surpassed ordinary humans. Coupled with the Rabbitfolk Tribe’s relatively small territory, it took only a few minutes for a group of Rabbitfolk guards clad in wooden armor to escort their “Great Elder” to the foot of the small hill.

At that moment, Audreylinda, who had just consoled the despondent Claire and planned to leave the village and return, happened to descend the hill.

Thus, the motley crew of Rabbitfolk in mismatched armor coincidentally collided with the heroic Female Knight.

“Great Elder, look! It’s those two humans! They’re the ones trying to rescue the Evil Girl!”

“That’s right, it’s those two humans! They’re in cahoots with the Evil Girl!”

The two Rabbitfolk guards leading the way were the very ones whose spears Claire had shattered. Now that they thought they had found their backing, they shouted as loudly as possible.

However… unfortunately, they soon fell completely silent because… the highly anticipated Great Elder showed no intention of standing up for his subordinates.The Rabbitfolk Grand Elder, who had been so aggressive moments before, now had a face ashen with fear. Beads of sweat the size of peas dripped from his aged face onto the ground. If not for the crowd of rabbitfolk blocking the path behind him, the Grand Elder would have surely turned and fled.

“M-M-M-Master-Level powerhouse!”

At this moment, Audreylinda no longer concealed her aura. The pressure emanating from a Master-Level powerhouse made it difficult for the rabbitfolk to breathe, and the Grand Elder at the forefront… hardly dared to draw breath at all.

“I’m taking this child with me. I can offer Gold Coins as compensation.”

True to her reputation as a righteous champion, Audreylinda had only revealed her Master-Level aura to avoid unnecessary trouble. In fact, she had genuinely prepared a bag of Gold Coins as compensation.

However, the rabbitfolk elder was nearly scared out of his wits. What he faced was no “ordinary human with some brute strength” but a Master-Level powerhouse capable of destroying a nation single-handedly. The elder now felt like strangling the two guards who had misjudged her, let alone daring to greedily demand Gold Coins.

Trembling, the rabbitfolk elder practically scrambled out of the way and forced a smile as he addressed the Female Knight:

“Honored one, for this child to catch your eye is a blessing for the entire Short-Tail Tribe! Your presence illuminates this entire Swamp, and your beauty rivals the brilliant moon in the sky…”

A stream of meaningless flattery poured from the Grand Elder’s mouth, but… the Female Knight paid no attention to his fawning.

Placing the bag of Gold Coins beside a mound, Audreylinda swept her gaze over the rabbitfolk holding their breath. Shaking her head slightly, she wordlessly carried Little Keisha toward the tribe’s gate.

Thus, the rescue of an innocent girl was complete. By all accounts, this should have been a happy ending for everyone, but…

Holding Little Keisha, Audreylinda faintly furrowed her brow:

“Why… does this sense of danger feel increasingly stronger?”

[Bonus 500-word super chapter! Sincerely requesting votes!]

(End of Chapter)