CHAPTER 832: 832: DIVINE GAME – CARD SWAP 81

"At first, no. She said she didn’t regret it, that it was her choice. She even comforted me, told me she’d never hate me, told me to believe her—that even losing part of her strength, she could still become GodDraw77.

"She could have. She really could have...

"Even after losing so much, even with the team match being the final event, she still helped Cinders—helped herself—win the championship. She could have done it.

"But when she lost her final chance... when GodDraw77 slipped past her forever...

"I asked again, and all she said was that she didn’t regret it."

The words tumbled out disjointed, giving the answer but refusing to admit aloud that Lightchaser had hated her.

Wail suddenly laughed, trying to disguise the catch in her throat. "Ah, when you get old, you get sentimental. You’ll be like this someday too."

The long story had given Rita enough time to wipe out every last Chernor Worm. It was grueling, but she’d done it. She staggered over and sat cross-legged beside the dwarf.

She wasn’t in any position to comfort anyone, but an old person’s tears were the most dangerous weapon in the world.

In the end, she clumsily blurted, "Lightchaser’s still really strong, you know. Last time in the principal’s office, she and GodDraw77 fought over a pot of flower tea, and GodDraw77 didn’t stand a chance. And in private, GodDraw77 told me herself—if Lightchaser actually gets serious now, there aren’t many beings in Kasilanar who can beat her."

"That’s because she hates me..." The old woman finally stopped resisting and admitted the truth. "The Chernor Queen’s curse stayed with us, in another form.

"When she realized she’d missed GodDraw77 forever, I lost the apprentice I loved most. She could never again look at her teacher without a shadow between us.

"And it all came from her own willing choice. She destroyed the bond we both treasured most—our closeness as family, as teacher and student. That moment fulfilled her Annihilation.

"But the cruel part? It didn’t fulfill it completely. Because it didn’t all vanish.

"Life’s regrets are that sharp. And yet, Lightchaser never let that erase everything I’d done for her. Her respect, her admiration, her gratitude—they couldn’t be completely destroyed.

"At the same time, that sharp edge was poisoned. The wound it left never healed. Every time her resentment and regret boil up, and every time I think about how she hates me and I feel the pain and remorse—it’s a double, incomplete Annihilation. And it makes her stronger every single time.

"She’s never said aloud that she hates me or resents me... but skills don’t lie."

Seeing the old woman’s face lined with guilt and sorrow, Rita couldn’t help but blurt, "Then why do you keep taking her money? She works really hard for it."

The sorrow snapped away instantly. Wail’s expression turned grave. "What do you mean ’take’? It’s called finance. You wouldn’t understand. That’s a completely different matter—don’t mix them up."

"...Right," Rita muttered. She thought about saying more, but held her tongue.

Had the younger Lightchaser been like her—throwing down bold challenges to every rival in the spotlight, only to have those words thrown back at her after a loss? Rita didn’t want to imagine it.

In the long years since, the glory of the Lightchaser Moment had been forgotten by the world. The regret and pain of missing GodDraw77 could never be undone. Lightchaser had fallen hard from the heights.

Rita didn’t think it was wrong for Lightchaser to resent Wail—just like Wail didn’t think she’d been wrong not to stop Lightchaser from using the skill. And she was sure Wail believed that too.

But more than anyone, Rita was certain—the one Lightchaser hated most was herself.

If Wail was right and Lightchaser had never truly regretted her choice, then Rita would respect it. Lightchaser wasn’t the type to force herself if she didn’t want to give something, and maybe that was just the way they were with each other.

She brought the topic back around. "So you want me to reopen the Lightchaser Moment and win GodDraw77—to make up for her regret another way?"

"Do you know that after opening GodDraw77, you get a hidden reward?"

"What is it?"

"You can make one suggestion to improve the Divine Game. Of course, they don’t have to accept it. When Cinders won, her suggestion was to raise the age limit by a year—it got rejected."

"You want me to suggest giving the Lightchaser Moment a place in the game announcements? Like GodDraw77, with its own unique reward? So every year when the Divine Game starts, all of Kasilanar hears the Lightchaser Moment?"

Wail burst into laughter. "Yes! Exactly! I knew I was right about you—this is it! This is what I want!"

"This is what we want," Rita corrected.

...

Just as Rita had only wanted to ask Wail this question, Wail only wanted to tell this thirty-year-old story to Rita.

Maybe it was because they now shared a goal. Maybe it was because Rita knew the past. Either way, they were closer now, and Wail was far less sharp-edged than before.

She taught her a new skill—Bloodfang Wail.

"This was Lightchaser’s favorite skill before she developed her own series. I learned it from the Chernor Worms—every attack has a chance to drain the target’s blood to heal you.

"And when you land a critical hit on a vital spot, the enemy’s blood and my essence will briefly enchant your weapon. When you master it, that enchantment will last longer and stack higher."

It was the first time Rita had learned a combat skill directly from Wail—and the first time she’d seen Wail fight.

If Lightchaser’s style was violent beauty, then Wail’s was elegant slaughter.

She disliked wasteful movement, hated messy wounds, and avoided the noisy crash of heavy strikes.

Her kills were as soft as a caress, each step graceful and light, silver hair catching the light.

Her strikes were silent from start to finish—but every one brought pain and blood. She could stay in an opponent’s blind spot until they dropped dead, if she wished.

Against Wail, the Chernor Worms practically offered up their weak points, begging for a swift end.

But for Rita’s sake, Wail slowed her kills so the girl could watch the movements clearly, follow the flow of magic she made visible on her arm.

Rita even suspected Wail had a personal grudge against the species.

Her learning speed wasn’t bad—by the end of half a day, she had it down. Only A-rank for now, but with practice it would grow, just a notch below Lightchaser’s level.

Bloodfang Wail massively boosted her combat sustain.

The only catch was that it required the enemy to feel fear—no matter the source.

Right now, she was only doing so well because Wail was looming nearby. The worms’ racial nemesis was enough to terrify them.

When Rita could kill a Chernor Worm in ten seconds, Wail led her to the far side of the icefield and dug out a crimson Chernor Worm.

"You really have it out for this species, don’t you?"

"Is that unreasonable?" Wail shot back.

"Not at all." Rita pledged to defend Wail’s little hobby with her life. "So what’s the assignment?"

"This one’s a blind Chernor Worm—no sight, only hearing and sensing. You have to kill it without making a sound. When you’re ready, I’ll wake it."

"I can start anytime."

One minute later, after the blind worm’s first strike tore away seventy-nine percent of her health, Rita screamed, "Wait! Grandma! Please, I need more prep time!"