But Victor’s words did not register in Shannon’s ears. She had been so happy ever since she left the dungeon, and it had all amounted to nothing! She felt unsteady, almost at the end of her rope. But things could still change.
“U-Um, Mr. Victor,” she began.
“What?”
“You wouldn’t know how to kill an immortal being, would you?”
His reply was immediate. “No. What would I be doing here if there were a way to do that? It is precisely because there is no way to kill an immortal being that they have eternal life. Are you an imbecile? Has your brain rotted with age? That is a risk I must consider further...”
Shannon was at a loss for words. She had completely missed her mark. Victor was not Orlando’s current host. Her head drooped in shock.
“Regardless,” Victor said, “you are proof positive that immortality is possible. We shall test you now, in case Sarah was feeding me drivel about your abilities.”
At his signal, his soldiers snatched Shannon, laid her on a cot, and fastened her in place. Her drive to keep moving had hit rock bottom. For her part, Sarah could offer up no resistance; she just watched. There was no reason for her to remain there any longer, but the matter with her mother still stood, so she decided to stay for the time being.
“You,” Victor said to one of the guards. “Let’s see how she does when you stab her side.”
The soldier nodded, unspeaking, and drew the sword at his hip. Without hesitation, he thrust it into Shannon’s side.
“Shannon!” Sarah screamed.
Shannon grunted. The sword stopped halfway through her body, and blood gushed from the wound. When she spoke, though, it was as if she had only been pricked with a needle. “Man, that hurts, but I’m used to it. The pain will stop eventually.”
Victor hummed. “Interesting. Now take it out.”
“Yes, sir.” The guard yanked his sword out of Shannon’s side. Fresh blood spouted from the wound.
“Shannon!” Sarah yelled again. Her voice shook with fear, but a moment later, she realized her fear was unfounded. Before her eyes, the hole left by the sword closed up, and the skin knit itself back together.
Victor quivered with joy. He stood from his chair, eyes wide with excitement. “You... You are the genuine article! An immortal! You truly exist! Incredible. Simply incredible! In truth, I had thought immortality unachievable even after all the materials I’d bought, the mages I’d hired, and the evil I’d done. But now it’s right in front of my eyes! I can use you to forward my research. I can cut you, burn you, crush you, even melt you! I will research every inch of your body, every cell! You’re the perfect research subject—no matter what I do to you, you won’t die!” His laugh reverberated throughout the room, reminiscent of a villain in a play. “Wonderful work, Sarah! Thanks to your efforts, I shall achieve immortality!”
“Th-Thank you, sir! Then that means...” Sarah stared up at Victor, her eyes glittering with a mix of guilt for all that she’d done and happiness for her mother’s safety. “You can heal my mother...?”
“That’s right, we did agree on that.” Victor grinned broadly.
“W-We did! Oh, thank you so—”
But Victor put his hand on his chin and hummed. “There is no cure for such a rare disease.”
“B-But...Lord Victor, you said you could do something about it.”
“It can’t be cured.”
“Wh—” Sarah’s face turned pale. “B-But you said... You said you could do it. That’s why I...”
“I was lying, Sarah. Honestly, you can perform magic but you can’t tell when someone is lying? This is what happens when you can’t think for yourself.”
“But what about my mother?! What about medicine?!”
“There is no medicine,” Victor said without ceremony, as if he had no more interest in the conversation. “She should just hurry up and die.”
Sarah gasped. Shell-shocked, she shrunk in on herself, tears spilling down her cheeks from her wide eyes. Just like that, all her strength left her, and she sank to the floor. “Then... Then why did I do those things?! I even sacrificed my friend... Why?!”
She tore at her hair, anguished. All of the guilt she had been keeping at bay crashed down on her, all at once. Her mental state had crumbled in on itself.
“Sarah,” Shannon murmured.
“Your efforts to serve me were laudable. You did many things for me on the basis of a single lie,” Victor told her, clapping. “But... Oh, how do I put it? You have served your purpose.”
“Huh?” Sarah muttered weakly.
“You and I were involved in a fair number of crimes together. To let a witness live would be to risk putting all of my work to waste. You never know where a leak might spring from. Therefore, I must have you killed.”
“B-But...” With her hopes crushed, Sarah no longer had the will to resist.
But Shannon did.
“I won’t let you do that,” Shannon spat from where she lay strapped to the cot.
“Hmm? Oh, the experiment speaks. We should have shut your mouth up as well. You,” Victor said to one of the guards, “gag her with something.”
Shannon wasn’t finished. “I won’t forgive anyone who makes my friends cry!”
“Shannon...” Sarah said in a weak voice.
“You’re just a cheap imitation of my master—you can’t even achieve immortality! You’re like a kid playing pretend!”
Victor’s eyebrow twitched. “What did you say, witch? Shut your mouth, unless you’d like to receive ceaseless, undying agony.”
“That’s just what I want, actually, but I’ll have to take a rain check. I’ve made a change of plans.”
“What?”
“You know, I was kind of looking forward to those experiments you talked about, but I think I’ll pass.” With no effort at all, Shannon removed the bindings keeping her tied to the cot.
“What?! You two were supposed to tie her down so she didn’t escape!”
“W-We did!”
Shannon removed the ties around her wrists and dropped them to the floor. She was free, and she headed to where Sarah sat on the floor and extended her hand. “Let’s blow this joint.”
“Shannon...” Sarah hesitated. “But I—”
“C’mon.”
Sarah didn’t say another word. She slowly took Shannon’s hand and let Shannon pull her up, then wiped away her tears, exhausted.
“I won’t let you leave, immortal witch,” Victor declared. “I must offer you to the gods so that I might evolve and become eternal myself!”
“Immortality isn’t ‘evolution,’” Shannon said.
“Enough of your trivial jibes! What more could I want than everlasting life and an invincible body? If we don’t call that evolution, then what is it?!”
“Well, I guess everyone’s got their own priorities. But Orlando didn’t choose you. You’re just an ordinary scoundrel.”
“Nonsense! I care nothing about this Orlando of whom you speak. I don’t even know him! I am everything; I am what matters! Soldiers, arrest them! They’re nothing without their wands!”
“Yes, sir!” The guards drew their swords and advanced on the girls.
“You think mages can’t perform magic without their wands?” Shannon asked. “Since when?”
“You’re bluffing! You must realize I have no qualms about killing Sarah!” Victor cried. Shannon reached for her chest and pulled a wand from her cleavage. “Huh?!”
Shannon grinned, sticking out her tongue. “Say hello to my wand, the Almighty.”
“What?! Didn’t anyone check— Sarah! You little brat!” Victor seethed.
Shannon ignored him and turned to her friend. “Sarah, you’re tired of this mansion, right?”
Sarah glanced at Victor, then clenched her fists, shaking. She screamed, “Y-Yeah! Destroy it! Destroy the whole thing!”
“What drivel is this?!” Victor roared. “Soldiers, kill her at once, or our world will suffer! I must become the immortal ruler who guides this world into the future!”
“I don’t care what you say! I’m leveling this whole place!” Shannon pointed her wand to the sky. Light gathered around its tip like a whirlpool, expanding steadily until it formed a two-meter sphere.
“Wh-What... What is this energy?!” Victor cried.
Sarah looked at the light and whispered, “Condensing and releasing light... It’s a Sanctuary spell! I didn’t know there were any mages who could really cast it!”
The dazzling light shone so brightly that the shadows it created looked as if they were seared into their surroundings. The air in the room should have been still, but a tempest swept over them, and everyone’s clothes flapped in the wind. The light had come alive, and it would not be stopped.
“This is the end for you,” Shannon said.