My Substitute CEO Bride (Nash Calicraft) novel Chapter 2463

"Master, you're..." Maxim started to say as Malior walked away.

"I'm going to drive out the invaders!" Malior said firmly, disappearing into the distance.

Maxim, still just a teenager at the time, used his true energy to form a protective barrier around the group. "This world is so chaotic... Hey, is Lady Harkin really that strong?" he asked the children.

The boy at the front nodded. "She got into a duel with some expert before and could no longer use her full strength anymore after that. Otherwise, my mom and dad wouldn't have..." His voice trailed off, filled with sadness.

"I see..." Maxim responded, his expression blank. In his eyes, there was nothing particularly pitiable about these children. He thought they were in the same boat as he was, living in turbulent times, with the Nihons invading. It was best to look out for oneself when living in a time like this.

This was what Maxim believed at the time. His master's eagerness to help others seemed absurd to him. "You can't even ensure your survival, so why bother helping others?" he muttered to himself.

"But... do you really need a reason to help others?" the little girl suddenly asked, her innocent voice cutting through his thoughts.

Maxim looked at her in confusion. "You... can't be serious, right?"

"Of course, I am! In times like this, we have to help each other and stand united. Only then can we drive the invaders out!" she declared.

"What's your name?" Maxim asked.

"I... I am..." the girl began to blush and stutter.

"What?" Maxim looked at the increasingly shy girl, deep in thought.

"What's wrong? You don't have a name?" he asked.

"Her name is Thresmund!" the boy at the front said.

The girl's head sunk even lower.

"Thresmund... That name..." Maxim understood why the girl was reluctant to say her name. It was a difficult name for her to utter.

At that moment, Malior returned and Maxim rushed to his master. "Master, how did it go?"

“Good. Then, I can die without regrets.” Harkin slowly closed her eyes.

Malior then extracted Harkin’s soul.

“Exorcist, what are you doing?” Harkin asked, puzzled.

“Lady Harkin, since I’m addressing you as such, I have a request as well. Would you consider becoming my family's spirit?”

Harkin sneered, “Kid, I know what you're up to, but I can’t. My powers have been sealed by a damned swordsman. I would've saved everyone in this village otherwise. My soul was sealed along with my power, so... it’s useless.”

“Is that so? Well then, what a coincidence, I actually have a way to break the seal!” Malior said as he took out a shard of the anti-magic stone. He then inserted the shard into Harkin’s body.

The seal within Harkin instantly broke, the shard shattering into pieces.

“Perfect,” Malior said before collecting Harkin’s soul into his hand. From then on, Harkin became the Young family's guardian spirit.