Episode 288: Understandable (4)
Snap.
There was a clear crack in the green gem inside the glass tube. The person who noticed this quietly approached the table.
fluttering.
However, each time, the roughly draped robe swayed gently. The area around the neck and shoulder blades, which were not covered by the robe flowing down, is covered with fluffy feathers.
“What is this?…”
He took his hand out of his pocket and brushed his faded hair. If you look closely, the wrinkled hands are full of tiny scales.
The nails, curved into hooks, shed a faint sheen.
Crack, crack.
While he was careful not to scratch his scalp, another scratch appeared on the jewel. The cleavage was not yet severe, but it was clear that if this continued, the gem would shatter into pieces.
“I thought I would never use it again.”
However, despite knowing the fact, the owner did not take any special measures.
On the contrary, he seemed to be excited about the jewelry that was becoming increasingly damaged.
The reflected light of the jewel touched the ruby-red eyes, turning them brown. It was as rustling as tree bark and as wet as wet dirt.
“What does someone who looks at the sky think?”
He picked up the glass tube containing the jewel and raised it to eye level.
“huh? Number 73.”
I briefly remembered the moment I made this jewelry in the past. 『This is a failure.』 That was when Venus from another land illuminated this tower.
* * *
“dare.”
The goal was to amputate the arm, and the final outcome was to dig about 3cm into the shoulder. Unlike the magic spear that strikes with a point, it is a slash that cuts the body with a line, and it was not shown until now, but this time it was used as a surprise attack, and most of it was blocked in response.
If I had known it would be like this, I would have just written it from the beginning. I clicked my tongue and waved my free hand at the result that was less than I expected. The magic power that protruded from the fingernails clawed at the air before being erased by the whip.
The crushed magical power melted into the wind.
“Something like humans.”
However, despite that perfect – in my opinion – defense, the other person expressed displeasure. No, it was anger.
There were holes all over my shirt and blood was leaking out, but he was angry because he got a small cut on his shoulder.
Just like an emerald that can break if handled slightly incorrectly, the mysteriously shining turquoise eyes caused a cleavage. Light is bent and reflected on the cross section, which is cracked like a spider web, giving off a sharp, cold brilliance like a shard of glass.
“I will tear your soul and hang it on that star.”
“…oh.”
I just expressed it nicely, but in summary, I blinked at the words, which could be interpreted as ‘I’ll kill you.’ Whether you’re human or not, when you’re angry, everyone’s speech becomes simpler. It was a useless realization.
“Try it.”
Separately, if you are swept away by anger and your actions become simple, it is a relief, but if you only say the same thing and your actions are marinated in rationality, it is a bit difficult.
This is already a one-sided situation, but if the other side comes out with sincerity and the level of difficulty rises, it becomes really embarrassing.
With an awkward smile, I brought up my precious magic power. So, in addition to magic spears, slashers also started firing wildly.
For your information, there is no reason to hold back on this skill until now and use it now. It’s just that even if you don’t want to slash, it has the form of an area-effect attack, and if you’re going to use an area-effect attack, I just thought it would be more efficient to use it when there are a lot of mobs around.
Suddenly!
If I deal with that knight and reduce the number of mobs at the same time, wouldn’t the burden on the castle wall be relieved that much?
So, it may have been a wise decision to take the time in the beginning. I didn’t know that my body would become this tattered, but still.
“It’s not the same…!”
Quang boom!
I floated away to avoid the cyan trail. It was a large move that should not be used carelessly in a fight between knights.
Kyaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
However, it is not a proper 1v1 battle right now. I somersaulted, avoiding her sword and the demons at my feet.
The opponent who should have been targeting me originally is also busy keeping in check the evil pouring in from his son-in-law. The moment I stepped on the devil’s head, I swung my sword down.
As I slashed at the demon with a graceful curve, the opponent holding his sword upward deflected my sword to the side. The protruding sword cut off the opponent’s collar and sliced off the back of it.
“Unfortunately…!”
However, the enemy’s sword itself easily withstood my sword strike. I’ve heard that rapiers generally have poor durability, but I’m not sure if that sword over there is good or if my common sense is wrong, but it’s pretty damn good.
No, it seems like my sword is actually cracked. I looked at the long sword with a slightly chipped edge and kept my mouth shut as I was about to express my disappointment.
This is because once the longsword is broken, there is no way to fight against the bastard.
Of course, the Two-Hender is still in the inventory, so there is no need to worry about its durability…
What I learned in Manhafeld was how to fight with a long sword, not how to fight with a true Two-Hender. And even with the longsword I’ve learned, I’m in such a hurry. If I rub it with a two-hender, which is more crudely used here, my head may be blown off.
I injected magical energy into the sword that was stuck on the ground. The magic injected into the earth through the sword began to sharpen like thorns.
Quaaaang!
The magic power that exploded with the sword as an axis spread forward. wickedness. Once again, the veil created along the sword did not work as it cut away all of my energy.
“You can’t beat me.”
But that’s just a trick. Even after seeing the swordsmanship she has steadily built up, I am not confident that I can imitate it, but since I was able to figure out how to do it just by looking at it, she is definitely a talented person.
“I saw you suddenly open your mouth—”
So I raised my lips as gently as I could. Buzzing. Flying flies and cockroaches burrowed into my clothes and dug into my wounds, but I just ignored them.
“Are you feeling a bit scared?”
My sword randomly drew dozens of trajectories and fired sword energy wildly. As if the world would be split into hundreds of cubes.
* * *
『I think the order was followed perfectly. A clone that even the priest considers perfectly human, yet obeys the original. Are you saying that since it is an unavoidable part, let us ignore it and that there are other flaws?』
『It’s amazing. I can’t believe such a question comes from the mouth of someone who purports to pursue wisdom. Are you asking because you truly don’t know, or are you pretending not to know?』
『…Haha.』
『O one who thirsts for knowledge, if I had wanted to save my obedient humans, I would not have come before you. wealth, fame and knowledge. There are many people who will bow down to me the moment I promise them a fair reward.』
『Then?』
『It is meaningless to be treated as a human being by a human being. To have value, you have to be seen as a human to humans and a devil to devils.』
『That is impossible.』
『Yes. Yes, it looks like it. So this transaction is over. If it turns out to be impossible, there is no reason to stay any longer.』
* * *
“It’s amazing.”
Quang. The moment the opponent’s foot touched the hill, the ground sank in circular steps. As a result, the mud rose up and the demons also bounced into the air.
The sword that clawed at the ground was unable to cut through the sunken ground and only cut into the air above it.
“It would be difficult to speak so carelessly.”
However, all of that is just a secondary aftermath of what she wanted to do.
The air that had been flowing slowly for a moment suddenly speeded up and her body came right in front of me.
An attack from someone who knows swords several times better than I do.
I observed it with wide eyes. The surrounding environment did not support me to evade, so counterattacking was my only option.
Chaechaeang!
Her sword and mine were instantly intertwined. The intertwined swords, which start at the top, rotate and collide at a speed that makes it difficult for the average person to see the movement, making a metallic sound.
Just by rotating your wrist, you can gently bounce and change the angle to cut your hand. If you manage to block it and try to cut your thigh, it gently takes a half step back to avoid the attack and aims for the head again.
block it attack Block attacks. It’s blocked. Its repetition.
There was no time to use a slash. The opponent must have known that the moment I swung the sword wide, sword energy would be released along the path of the sword, so he blocked all opportunities for me to swing the sword at him.
Pow!
However, even at that moment, what both I and my opponent had to worry about wasn’t just each other’s attacks. Grumble. The bugs that appeared along with the demons and stuck to our bodies and the intestinal worms that looked for opportunities under the ground were also our enemies.
I swung my sword and swatted away the moth that was blocking my vision. The palm-sized moth weighed a lot, so it felt a bit heavy when I struck it out.
Cough! The rapier that pierced the tiny fly made contact with my sword.
Sigh!
At the same time, intestinal worms erupted from the floor. Her gaze and mine intertwined for a moment, and as promised, the two swords fell. Suddenly! The enemy’s sword struck an entrail worm on the right side and decapitated the food demon on the left side. visor! The sword crossed again and then fell.
This is because they backed away from each other to avoid the slime sticking out in the middle. It is now. I realized that this distance was the timing of my attack.
“It’s an obvious ploy.”
Liquid!
But before I could even swing the sword, the whip rushed at me like a snake.
phut! With a single crack of the whip, the air was torn apart loudly. I could see several entangled insects crumbling to pieces. Aside from feeling sorry for him, I never wanted to be hit again.
Kyar—Kya!
I plunged my knife into the stomach of the approaching ghoul, then grabbed its shoulder and jumped over it. Sigh! The whips that flew one after another exploded the ghoul’s flesh. It was very good as a shield.
Squeak!
Hiding behind the ghoul, my sword traced the horizon. With a strange noise, the crescent moon crawled across the ground and then disappeared. Sigh! Half a beat later, the demons’ bodies were sliced horizontally, causing a shower of blood. Among them, there was only one person who was not cut in half.
The rapier, which blocked its owner like a shield, rose to the side like the rings of Saturn. Behind her, there are a few demons who barely managed to survive by fanning out.
Even if I were to cut the radius, it would be less than 20m in diameter, so if you go beyond that, there will be more.
“after.”
But what’s important is that she didn’t suffer any damage.
Sigh. The opponent trampled the corpse’s wriggling hand with the heel of his white boot. The splashed mud and the blood that had flowed on the mud splattered on her shoes.
It looked truly foreign and uncomfortable, as if no matter how noble a being was, it would inevitably become dirty in the mire.
“So, why did you stick with the devil despite being treated so poorly?”
Also, because of this, it is impossible to figure out why the other person acts like that. It felt even more confusing because they were being attacked like me to be on the devil’s side, and too much damage had been done to the city to be not on the devil’s side.
“It’s a reason.”
The knight in stained white raised his head, destroying a swarm of flying insects with a single whip.
* * *
『According to the agreement, I will take this away.』
『…What are you going to do about it now?』
『It may be a failure, but it is not useless. This will be used in an appropriate place.』
『If possible, please write it where I can see, right? Let me at least observe.』
『You are making an interesting request.』
『Is it not possible as expected?』
『I will leave behind the green gemstone you made in secret. Be satisfied with that, you who thirst for knowledge.』
『…Did you know?』
『Have you even forgotten where your research started?』
『….』
『When it is stabilized, I will come to get it. That will be our last meeting.』
* * *
“Humans always give meaning to such occasions. “Even though most things in the world occur due to unexplainable flows.”
I thought I was going to go all out this time because I hurt my shoulder earlier. The other person sounded calmer than expected.
Kwasik! As if she still had the ability to look around without turning her eyes, the rapier was stuck in the throat of the food demon that was about to bite her.
“Hana yes.”
The rapier pierced the food ear like a skewer one after another and slammed it into the floor. In the process, the head that cannot withstand the force ends up being torn and separated, and only the top of the head ends up falling to the floor.
“Fool, if you ask me the reason, I will answer you mercifully.”
Clap. A detached head was left on the mud with its eyes closed. The blood-soaked mud and pieces of flesh rolling over it resembled a piece of hell being dragged along.
“All my actions are aimed at bringing down those who have mocked me and are treason against those who made it impossible for me to even stand at the starting point.”
And from the top of the hell island, Teal declared.
“The first one will be you.”
Behind the quietly muttered voice, there seemed to be an inferiority complex boiling like lava.