Sensing the commotion behind her, Flare instinctively turned around—only to be met with the sight of Renard's terrified, despair-ridden face.
The gruesome sight made her heart skip a beat.
Although she wasn't as frightened as the royal guards, who were stumbling backward in horror, Flare still couldn't suppress the unease surging through her.
A deep, primal fear welled up inside her. This was the first time since becoming the Magic Hero that she had ever felt such dread.
To so effortlessly reduce Renard to such a state while keeping his head alive—this was clearly beyond the abilities of an ordinary person. Even a Hero like herself wouldn't be capable of such a feat.
However, Flare forcibly calmed herself down.
Whether or not she could match Eriri in battle was irrelevant—Renard alone was not worth making an enemy of someone who was at least beyond the level of a Hero.
On the contrary, if she could win Eriri over to her side, it would only bring her benefits.
Though Kureha's attitude earlier had been concerning, Flare had no time to dwell on that now.
Suppressing her fear, she forced a smile onto her face and addressed Eriri with an apologetic tone.
"My subordinate acted out of line. I sincerely apologize for his behavior."
Flare spoke with utmost sincerity, completely masking any frustration or resentment she might have felt. She even dismissed the fact that Eriri had casually called her "pink-haired girl" as if it were insignificant.
To further demonstrate her goodwill, Flare dismounted from her unicorn and approached the front of the sports car.
"I am Flare Arlgrande Jioral, First Princess of Jioral Kingdom. If I may, could I ask for your name?" she inquired politely.
However, Eriri didn't respond.
Instead, she lazily glanced at Flare. And in that instant, Flare found herself completely immobilized.
An overwhelming panic gripped her as she realized she could no longer move a single muscle.
She wanted to speak, to demand an explanation, but no words would come. Her terrified gaze remained locked onto Eriri and Kureha, helplessly awaiting their next actions.
Though she couldn't move, her senses remained painfully sharp. Standing within a meter of the sports car, she heard every single word Eriri and Kureha exchanged.
And when she heard Eriri's first sentence, the fear within her multiplied tenfold.
...
"Kureha, I've immobilized this pink-haired girl. How do you want to deal with her? Don't worry—even if she disappears in front of everyone right now, it won't affect your plans in the slightest," Eriri remarked casually.
With just a single word from Kureha, Flare's fate could be decided.
Kureha hesitated momentarily. The only reason she hadn't acted against Flare before was because she feared prematurely exposing her plans.
If Eriri could erase that risk, then there was no reason to delay dealing with Flare any longer.
"If possible, I'd like to reset her memories completely—just like in the original timeline—and rebuild her personality from scratch. But how can we ensure the royal family doesn't notice?"
"That's easy. We simply make everyone in this world—except for you—forget that Flare ever existed. When she reappears, she'll be nothing more than a stranger to them."
"In that case, I'll leave it to you, Eriri-sama."
After listening to Eriri and Kureha's conversation in its entirety, Flare sank into utter despair.
Having savored the satisfaction that power brought, her greatest fear was losing everything she had gained.
And now, according to Eriri and Kureha's plan, she wasn't just going to lose her status as a princess—she was going to lose her very identity.
To her, this was no different from dying.
With a mere wave of Eriri's hand, Flare's memories were completely wiped clean. At the same time, every single person who had ever interacted with Flare—except for Kureha—lost all recollection of her existence.
As a result, Norn Clatalissa Jioral, the second princess of Jioral Kingdom, naturally took Flare's place as the first princess and heir to the throne.
Furthermore, everything related to Flare within the royal palace vanished without a trace—her residence, her clothes, and all evidence of her existence.
Her presence was erased so thoroughly that no one would ever find any discrepancies, nor would they even feel that anything was amiss.
As for the guards who had recoiled in terror after witnessing Renard's fate, Eriri simply reduced them to ashes, wiping them from existence. Along with them, the pile of bloodied remains and Renard's lifeless head also disappeared.
Retracting her hand, Eriri smiled playfully at Kureha. "Alright, it's done. Flare Arlgrande Jioral no longer exists in this world. You can give her a new name."
An amused expression flickered across Eriri's face—she was curious to see how Kureha would handle Flare's new identity.
"There's no need to change her name. She'll still be Flare. After all, no one remembers it anymore," Kureha replied. "As for her surname, she'll take mine. From this moment on, she is my sister—Flare Clyret."
"Sure, whatever makes you happy," Eriri said with a casual nod, showing no objections.
With that, she lifted the unconscious Flare from her memory wipe and restored her ability to move.
The newly reborn Flare opened her eyes, the first thing she saw being Eriri and Kureha. Instinctively, she regarded them as the closest people to her.
Though her memories were erased, her fundamental knowledge and cognitive abilities remained intact.
Thus, while she had no recollection of her past, she functioned like any other normal girl.
"Who are you two? And… who am I? I don't seem to remember anything…" Flare blinked her large, innocent eyes, gazing at them with pure curiosity.
This time, her innocence wasn't an act—it was the most genuine version of herself.
At that moment, Kureha stepped out of the sports car and approached Flare.
Taking her hand gently, she spoke in a soft, reassuring tone. "Your name is Flare Clyret. And my name is Kureha Clyret."
"Flare… So that's my name?" Flare repeated it a few times under her breath before breaking into a bright smile.
Then, tilting her head, she looked at Kureha with curiosity. "Since we share the same surname, does that mean we're related?"
"That's right. You are my sister!" Kureha declared firmly.
Hearing Kureha's words, Flare beamed with joy.
Perhaps because of her instinctive trust, she never once doubted Kureha's claim. In her heart, she had already accepted Kureha as her beloved sister.
As Eriri stepped out of the sports car, she realized that with Flare joining them, a two-seater vehicle was no longer practical.
Thus, after exiting the car, she stored it away into her inventory and replaced it with a four-seater blue automobile.
Since Eriri had ensured that no one was paying attention to them, aside from Kureha and Flare, no one witnessed the strange scene of one car vanishing and another appearing in its place.
Upon seeing Eriri, Flare immediately became excited and asked, "Hello! Are you also my family?"
"Hmm… if you want to put it that way, I guess so. Oh, and my name is Eriri Spencer Sawamura. Make sure to remember that, okay?"
Previously, when Flare had asked for her name, Eriri had ignored her, primarily because she disliked Flare's original personality.
But now that she had been reborn as an innocent and pure girl, Eriri had no qualms about introducing herself.
Besides, given that she would be living as Kureha's sister from now on, it was only a matter of time before she learned Eriri's name anyway.
Similarly, Eriri considered all the chat group members as family, including Kureha.
Now that Flare had become Kureha's sister, it wasn't wrong to say she had some connection to Eriri as well.
"Mhm! I'll remember it!" Flare nodded earnestly.
There was no denying it—this version of Flare was far more pleasant than before.
Although she still had the same face, the pure and innocent charm she now radiated was leagues beyond what she had displayed previously.
...
The trio didn't linger on the street for long.
Soon, they rode in the new four-seater car, took a tour around the royal capital, and eventually arrived at a grand castle located in the bustling heart of the city.
This castle was the estate of the Clyret family.
The Clyret family was known as the most powerful clan of swordsmen, revered as the "Sword of Jioral Kingdom." Their noble lineage commanded immense respect.
Their purpose was singular—to forge the greatest swordsmen in history. To achieve this, they even went as far as modifying their own bloodline.
After centuries of such obsessive refinement, the Clyret family finally produced a unique occupation known as the "Sword Saint."
Unlike other bestowed titles, "Sword Saint" was not a mere honorific—it was a divine vocation, akin to the "Hero" class.
However, whereas there were ten chosen Heroes across the land, only the Clyret family had ever produced a Sword Saint.
This meant that Kureha, as the current Sword Saint, was utterly unique in this world.
Moreover, Kureha was the most gifted prodigy the Clyret family had ever birthed.
Because of this, her status within the clan was incredibly high.
Of course, this prestige was entirely conditional upon her retaining her strength as the Sword Saint—should she ever lose her power, her standing would plummet instantly.
Just like in the original timeline, where she lost her right arm to a high-ranking demon, had the Healing Hero not restored it, she would have been reduced to nothing more than a breeding tool to propagate the "Sword Saint" bloodline.
To the Clyret family, the title of "Sword Saint" was paramount; familial bonds were merely secondary, insignificant attachments.
This was one of the reasons why Kureha chose to make Flare her sister.
Having never truly experienced familial love, she now wanted to taste the warmth of kinship for the first time.
For her clan members, Kureha did not have much affection. However, no matter what, they were still family. Even though she had gained top-tier strength on the continent, she never considered rebelling against her family.
But after joining the chat group, she learned much more and broadened her horizons, which greatly changed her view of her clan.
If, when she made a move against the royal family, the Clyret family—who were loyal to the Jioral Kingdom—tried to stop her, she might truly take action against her own kin.
After returning to the Clyret family estate, Eriri drove the vehicle without stopping, directly taking Kureha and Flare to her personal palace under Kureha's direction.
Kureha did this mainly to avoid her clan members seeing Eriri.
She knew her family's habits well. Although they pursued the strongest swords, they also valued appearance highly.
Otherwise, Kureha wouldn't have such remarkable beauty—this was the result of generations of bloodline refinement.
Eriri's beauty was undeniably at the pinnacle, and she was unique.
If the other members of the Clyret family saw Eriri, there was a high chance they would try to force her to leave behind her bloodline.
Of course, if someone truly tried to force Eriri, then the next second, the Clyret family might be wiped out by her.
Fortunately, the Clyret family's population wasn't large. Coupled with the speed of the car, they didn't encounter anyone else on the way to Kureha's palace.
As for the warhorses left behind by the royal guards, they simply abandoned them. Not only that, but they also left Flare's unicorn on the street.
While a unicorn was a highly valuable mount for commoners, to the three of them, it was nothing special.
After stepping out of the car, Eriri did not store it back into her inventory.
Because this car was the one she had promised to give Kureha as a gift.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:
Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven