Chapter 14
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Episode 4 - Assassin [4]
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One second.
It was just one second. If I had acted late, Yuri would have died, and my plans would have been a failure.
"How stupid."
I should have acted sooner. I knew it the moment I decided to stay and listen to their conversation without doing anything.
Why?
"I don't know."
However, this really angers me.
"It's really annoying."
I didn't even try to hide it.
As blood dripped from my sword, it felt as if my entire body had frozen.
One of the effects of Clarisse's magical sword was paralysis.
It has many more effects, but paralysis was one of the most troublesome if you were her enemy.
"First, heal myself."
I focused my magical power.
Then, the ring on my finger lit up. I felt it absorb a large portion of my power, even though I was at full capacity.
Even so, the cut on my back healed in the blink of an eye.
The paralysis faded shortly after. It only lasted five seconds, but that was more than enough time for Clarisse to kill her opponent in that window.
I got up from the ground and shook out my clothes. My back felt soaked in blood and sweat.
Then I looked at Yuri. She was dazed, her gaze lost.
"The games end here, and I mean for both of them."
There was no response.
So I raised my hand and took off my shirt.
All this time, I had been wearing the same gray shirt and black pants, paired with military boots.
"I need new clothes."
I shook my head in annoyance and extended my hand toward Yuri.
She looked at my hand with hesitation. Then she pressed her lips together, lowered her head, and murmured in a dull voice:
"Why did you do that?"
"…"
I raised an eyebrow, confused.
"So you wouldn't die, isn't that obvious?"
For a second, I thought she was smarter, but now I seriously doubted it.
"Since when do you care about other people's lives?"
A smile spread across my face.
I had answers for every possible question Yuri might want to ask me.
However…
"Why should I answer?"
Is it an obligation?
"You're just the protagonist. That's all."
A simple tool to reach the end of this story.
And to change the original pieces, little by little.
I smiled.
"Then why did you save me? If you don't care about anyone, you could have just let me die."
Isn't that obvious?
To her question, I responded with simple words:
"Because I want you to live and survive until the end."
Because that way, I can use you.
Yuri smiled.
"Ha… Ha, ha, ha…"
She let out a dry laugh and brought her hand to her forehead. Her fingers dug forcefully into her skin, and she gritted her teeth in anger.
She stood up from the ground abruptly and looked me straight in the eyes.
"Fine. I'll survive until the end."
She turned around and walked away without saying anything else.
That easy.
But even so, I shook my head. Although I saved her, it doesn't mean her thoughts about me have improved.
Now they were worse.
"And does that matter to me?"
That was enough.
I turned around and looked at Clarisse. She was frozen, watching me. Suddenly, her hands began to tremble.
"I…"
I raised my hand.
Clarisse flinched and closed her eyes, as if expecting me to hurt her.
"Don't do something like that without my permission."
I stroked her head, gently ruffling her hair. She kept her eyes closed for a few more seconds.
Then she opened them slowly, looking at me with a fragile expression.
"Okay."
A shy smile spread across her face, like that of a child who had just been forgiven. Her personality completely changed with just a few words.
"Seth must be injured. I need to find him."
The fight between Seth and Balmung.
In the original story, Seth kills Balmung but ends up severely injured.
He loses so much blood that he faints. Luckily, Yuri and Clarisse find him just in time.
"I have to move fast."
Yuri wasn't the only character I was going to save.
***
''Clank! Clank!''
Sparks flew through the air.
Seth took a few steps back.
The thrusting force of Balmung's sword was quite strong, even comparable to his own.
"We have similar stats."
Only stats of the same level would respond to the recoil.
Seth looked at Balmung between his sword and opened his mouth.
"As expected, you really are an assassin."
A smile tugged at Balmung's lips.
"Well, that's true. When did you figure it out?"
Seth replied coldly.
"Since you stepped onto the podium, but they were just suspicions, nothing more."
Balmung slightly widened his eyes.
He didn't expect to be found out so quickly and in such an easy way, just by being seen the first time.
But Balmung thought to himself.
"If he knew, then why did he come with me or not say anything to his teammates?"
But, as if recalling the earlier conversation, he smiled.
"He said he only trusts Zeth. If that's the case, Yuri and the other girl aren't trustworthy to him."
Perhaps that's why he didn't say anything to his teammates.
Because they might even act against him.
But Balmung understood that they could also help Seth to kill him instead of helping him.
"Anyway…"
Balmung looked at Seth.
A stance with a sword as if he had trained with it thousands of times.
All the chosen ones are ordinary people who never trained in certain areas like swordsmanship.
However, Balmung, from a young age, trained with the sword.
He came from a fencing clan, practiced, and trained throughout his youth until he got bored and found something more fun than just swinging a sword.
So one day he thought:
"It would be fun to use the sword against people."
Not a simple exchange without allowing injuries.
But a real one, life or death.
"It's fun."
Balmung ran his tongue along the blade of his sword.
Seth frowned, watching Balmung's strange reaction.
But he smiled.
"All assassins are as psychopathic as you."
"Oh, that depends. Some kill for pleasure, others out of obligation."
Seth asked:
"Then you…"
Balmung smiled, lowering his sword to his feet.
"You mean what I find the most fun?"
Seth nodded.
"…"
Suddenly, a completely dark veil enveloped Balmung's entire body.
Balmung's sword was covered by a layer of red and black magical power.
Seth's body shuddered.
It was a truly intense murderous intent.
Then Balmung's answer came quickly.
"It's simple…"
He began to walk.
「Skill: Elemental Sword has been activated」
Similar to Balmung, Seth's sword was covered with a veil of multiple colors.
"Lust is something beautiful; I can't stand seeing a world without colors."
The red color gave vibrancy to a world without colors.
Balmung saw the world around him devoid of any color, which is why red gave him lust and brought out that colorless world.
"How ridiculous."
Seth responded.
He looked with disdain at Balmung's words.
However, Balmung gritted his teeth.
"You say it's ridiculous… You'd understand if you had the same vision as me."
''Boom!''
Under Balmung's feet, the ground sank; he swung his sword, and a curtain of red and black magical power turned into a thin, sharp blade.
Seth swung his sword; his feet sank slightly into the ground as he gritted his teeth.
A multicolored glow appeared on his face; the multicolored veil of his sword's blade shot toward Balmung.
Both blades collided.
''Clank! Clank!''
The clash of metal resounded so loudly.
A magnitude 9 vibration shook everything around them, destroying much of the enormous hall and the rest of the place.
Then, a flash shot out from both swords, causing an explosion of magical power.
Gusts of slashes that cut everything in their path spread in all directions.
Balmung and Seth exchanged blows.
"An assassin is truly scum."
The multicolored glow shone on Seth'ssword.
The red and black veil of Balmung's sword intensified.
"Ha, ha, ha, it's fun. Someone like you will never understand what we feel, those of us who see everything without any color."
Balmung's eyes gleamed black.
The muscles of his body swelled as he slashed directly at Seth.
Seth, however, gritted his teeth; the force exerted with his sword increased.
「Skill: Sword Strength has been activated」
「When using a sword, strength continuously increases in prolonged combat. The initial strength is +10%」
A terrifying force surged from Seth.
'Boom!'
When both swords clashed, everything beneath their feet trembled violently, cracking the ground.
Balmung's sword recoiled a few centimeters backward.
'He's pushing me'
Balmung gritted his teeth.
Then he moved his sword to one side, swung his leg, and struck Seth's side.
He then drew two daggers from his waist and threw them at Seth, cutting his arms, while Balmung tensed the muscles in his legs and leaped toward him.
Feeling his arms being cut, Seth widened his eyes and thrust his sword at Balmung as he saw him close.
Seth's sword sliced through the shoulder, and a thin red line also appeared on Balmung's neck.
Balmung extended his fist toward Seth's face.
Likewise, Seth extended his fist toward Balmung's stomach.
'Thud! Thud!'
Both felt a terrible pain at the same time.
Blood splattered everywhere as they immediately moved their swords and slashed each other's bodies entirely.
"H-haah... Zeth is truly the strongest"
With one arm dangling, Balmung asked.
And Seth, similarly, with one of his arms dangling while blood poured from his mouth, said:
"I don't know, but I feel he's strong"
He wasn't sure if Zeth was stronger than him.
But he was certain of one thing.
'He will be even stronger than me'
Of course, it was just an idea, a thought that suddenly came to his mind, but it might not be wrong.
Anyway...
"Ugh!"
Balmung and Seth spat out a large mouthful of blood, both wounded all over their bodies.
At that moment, Seth looked at his hand while gripping his sword.
'I'm trembling'
Seth gritted his teeth.
「Skill: Sword Tomb has been activated」
「Creates a battlefield filled with swords surrounded by various tombs. Stats temporarily increase by 80%」
Suddenly, a field filled with countless swords appeared around them.
Balmung looked up and stared in shock at what he saw.
"What is this?"
Seth, who stood straight looking at the ceiling, said:
"A skill"
"A skill? That's impossible, I've never seen a skill do something like this"
Seth laughed.
"A murderous bastard like you doesn't have flashy skills like this"
Balmung gritted his teeth.
A black veil surged from his body.
「Skill: Call of Wails has been activated」
「An aura of wails covers your entire body. Strength and speed increase by 50%」
Both skills were at level 1, but they exerted incredible power.
Seeing this, Seth gripped his sword tightly.
Balmung stood up as the black veil covered his entire body.
Suddenly, something resembling black armor formed, and the thickness of his sword increased, making it wider and longer.
The shape of his sword slightly changed, and a black veil appeared over his entire body, leaving his face clear.
"Is that armor?"
"No"
Balmung charged at Seth.
Seth also charged at Balmung.
Both raised their swords and, with all their strength, clashed their blades.
A terrible sound of metal being cut echoed so loudly that anyone would be deaf for the rest of their life.
'Drip! Drip!'
Blood splattered everywhere.
A head flew off and fell to the ground with a splashing sound due to the large amount of blood.
At that moment, Seth appeared two meters away, behind the headless body of Balmung, while his posture remained upright.
But...
"Hukhe...!"
He fell to his knees; a river of blood poured from his body, a red line was on his chest, firmly cut in a straight line, and that's where the blood gushed out sharply.
"This is enough"
Because now he should rest.
'Just for a while'