After leaving her home, Scarlett and Irish walked toward a quiet, lonely graveyard. The cold air carried a faint scent of wet soil and dried flowers.
Scarlett's footsteps slowed as they reached two simple graves. Her parents' names were carved into the stone, though time had worn away the edges.
She knelt down and placed a fresh flower on their graves. The silence stretched between her and the two souls buried beneath the earth.
For a moment, she just stood there, staring at the gravestones, lost in her thoughts.
"Even if I became a man again… I can't deny it anymore. I'm no longer Asta."
A deep sigh left her lips as she closed her eyes even though she was wearing a blindfold.
It was time to let go.
She clenched her fists, then slowly loosened.
"I should leave here my past behind and fully become Scarlett Nova and live by my own will."
With that decision, she turned around, her heart feeling just a little lighter.
By the time they left the graveyard, the sun had begun to set. The golden glow bathed the streets in soft light, and the cool evening air brushed against her skin.
A warm smile formed on Scarlett's lips as the sadness that had been weighing her down slowly faded.
Irish, who had been quietly watching, smiled as well. Seeing Scarlett happy made her feel happy, too.
"Being all energetic and dominant like a tomboy is really exhausting…" Irish sighed in her mind.
She was naturally an introvert, someone who used to struggle with even talking to others. But after a whole year of training herself, she had finally managed to act confidently in front of Scarlett.
But it was still tiring.
Deep down, she was just a hopeless simp for Scarlett. Every time she looked at her, she had to fight back the urge to blush.
-------------
As they made their way back home, Scarlett and Irish chose to walk instead of using a vehicle or moving at their usual superhuman speed.
Irish had insisted.
She wanted to explore more.
Everything on Earth was new to her, and she couldn't help but feel curious about every little thing.
As they passed through the bustling city, tall buildings towered above them, their lights flickering on one by one as night approached. The streets were filled with people wearing all kinds of outfits—armor, hunter gear, and even extravagant robes.
Before, it might look like a giant cosplay event. But now? it was completely normal.
Scarlett could feel the countless stares directed at her. Some people whispered, some simply admired her from a distance.
But as always, she ignored them.
"Some people whine about not being attractive enough, and here I am… suffering from success".
Scarlett sighed to herself, shaking her head.
But before she could finish her thoughts—
A sharp scream echoed through the streets.
"A gate breakout! Run! Monsters are coming!" a man shouted as he sprinted past in panic.
Chaos erupted instantly. People ran in every direction, fear spreading like wildfire.
Up ahead, a bright blue sphere of light started forming in the air.
The nearby adventurers, who had been minding their own business, tensed at the sight. Even though most of them were low-ranked and heading home for the night, they immediately got ready to defend the citizens.
A moment later, the gate burst open.
A massive figure emerged, more than nine feet tall, with a muscular build and a giant axe in his hand.
His skin was a mix of blue and gray, looking as tough as stone. His face, however, was eerily similar to a horse's.
He lifted his axe and pointed it at the gathered hunters.
"Humans, today I shall—"
BANG!
Before he could finish his sentence, a dark sphere of energy shot through the air at lightning speed. It struck him right in the chest, obliterating his entire upper body in an instant.
THUD!
His lifeless body crashed to the ground, leaving behind a stunned silence.
"W-What? What just happened?!" a female hunter gasped, eyes wide.
"I didn't even see it! It was too fast!" someone else stammered.
"We need to contact the guild right away!" another adventurer suggested, already pulling out a communication device.
Meanwhile, Scarlett turned toward Irish with an impressed look.
"To think you're killing monsters now just by throwing rocks," she said with a smirk.
Irish scratched the back of her head, grinning. "Hehehe... my dark magic is getting stronger and stronger. Besides, the monsters here are weaker than the ones in our world."
"Well, that's true—" Scarlett started to reply, but she suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
Her sharp senses picked up something. She immediately turned her head toward a narrow alley.
Irish followed her gaze.
Without hesitation, Scarlett strode into the alley and grabbed a man hiding in the shadows. She lifted him off the ground with one hand.
"Could you stop stalking us? It's annoying," she said coldly.
She didn't make a scene or attack him further—because she already knew who he was.
The camera in his hands, the ID card clipped to his suit, the professional outfit...
There was no doubt about it.
He was a reporter.
The man let out a bitter chuckle. "Damn... I was wearing such a high-level stealth artifact, and you still found me!"
Scarlett's grip tightened. "That wasn't an answer."
"Okay, okay! Let me down, and I'll talk!" he quickly surrendered.
Scarlett let go, dropping him to the ground.
The man dusted off his suit and adjusted his tie before clearing his throat.
"Actually, I'm the head reporter of my hunter news channel. I just wanted to gather some information about you, so I had no choice but to follow you," he explained with an awkward smile.
Scarlett frowned. "A head reporter himself doing something this low-level?"
"Haha... what can I say? We can't just let any random employee use such expensive artifacts, right? So I had no choice but to do it myself!" he chuckled, scratching the back of his head.
"Hmm... what do you want to know?" Irish suddenly asked, tilting her head. "Is it that we're lovers?"
The reporter froze.
"Umm… no… wait, what?!" His hands moved instantly, pulling out a notepad and pen.
"Breaking news! I got today's best scoop—the summoned heroes are yuri!" he mumbled excitedly as he scribbled down notes.
Scarlett slapped her forehead. "Irish… sigh…"
After finishing his note, the reporter took a deep breath and looked up.
"Actually, I wanted to know where you two live. Since Ms. Irish already shared something interesting, why not share that too? We can even make a deal!" he suggested.
"Huh? That's easy! We live—"
SLAM!
Scarlett lightly smacked Irish's face.
"You can't just answer things carelessly!"
"Ouch!" Irish pouted, rubbing the spot where she got hit.
"Come on, it's just an address. What's there to be so—"
Before the reporter could finish his sentence, Scarlett raised a finger.
"Teleport."
A bright green magic circle glowed beneath his feet. In an instant, his surroundings blurred into a flash of white light. His stomach lurched as if he were falling through space, and the next thing he knew—
Rustling leaves, warm sunlight, and the distant chirping of birds filled his ears.
He blinked rapidly as his vision cleared. The sight before him left him speechless.
A grand, ivory-white mansion stood tall in front of him, its symmetrical design perfectly balanced. The gleaming marble facade shone under the sun, intricate carvings adorning its walls. A grand central dome was surrounded by four smaller domes, each reflecting the light like a pearl. The mansion was nestled within a vast, well-kept garden, filled with colorful flowers and trimmed hedges.
The reporter's breath hitched. He knew this place all too well.
"The Taj Mahal?!" he gasped, eyes wide. "She teleported me to India?!"
---
Meanwhile, Scarlett and Irish continued walking back home, the atmosphere was tense as Scarlett scolded Irish.
"But why?" Irish grumbled. "In our world, everyone knows where royals and nobles live. Isn't it normal for common people to know?"
Scarlett sighed, rubbing her temple. "Of course not. This isn't our world. There's no royalty here. If people knew where we lived, reporters would show up every single day, knocking on our door for interviews. Other companies would try to bribe us, beg us for deals, and—ugh!—we'd have to deal with them 24/7! It'd be a total pain in the ass!"
Irish's shoulders slumped. "Oh... Sorry."
Seeing her dejected expression, Scarlett softened.
"Okay, okay, don't look so down—"
Just as she was about to cheer her up—
"Gotcha!"
A sharp voice rang out.
Irish's head snapped up just in time to see a man in assassin robes charging toward them. His face was covered, and a deadly gleam flashed off the katana he held.
In a split second, he swung his blade, aiming straight for Scarlett's neck.
But—
"Too slow."
Scarlett didn't even look at him. She simply raised her hand and caught the edge of his katana between her fingers.
Clank!
With a slight twist, she snapped the blade in two like it was a brittle twig.
The assassin's eyes went wide in horror.
"You dare attack my honey?!"
Irish's expression darkened, her pupils shrinking as black energy crackled around her. The air turned heavy as a suffocating aura of death radiated from her body. She clenched her fists, and with a terrifying roar, she swung at him.
"Shit—!"
The assassin barely managed to dodge at the last moment, rolling to the side with difficulty. Even so, the sheer force of Irish's attack cracked the ground where he had just stood.
"He actually dodged?" Irish muttered in surprise.
"We'll meet again," the assassin said, his voice calm.
In the next second, light engulfed his body, and he vanished.
"Hmm... teleportation magic," Irish noted, crossing her arms. "Looks like he was prepared to escape if things went wrong."
Scarlett, however, remained still. Her expression didn't change in the slightest.
"And this," she said, "is exactly why we can't let people know where we live."
Scarlett turned, stepping over the broken katana without sparing it another glance.
"If our home was exposed, Assassins like him would show up every day."