Ch.3535. Preparation

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Nightmares are worst because you can’t escape them even by closing your eyes.

The dream that Yuria Greyhaunter had every night was just like that.

[Miss, why… why?]

The voices of the departed she couldn’t let go became lodged inside her eardrums, the smell of blood wouldn’t leave her hands, and she couldn’t tell whose flesh was stuck to her feet.

Corpses formed a mountain.

All of them, piled up by her.

The gardener who always tended to small bonsai plants with her, the kitchen maid who made her favorite carrot cake for dessert with a warm smile, the maids who constantly nagged but worried about her day and night.

Everyone.

She had cut them all down.

Simply because they were within ‘three steps’ of her.

“…”

She screamed at the top of her lungs.

I didn’t mean to do it. I didn’t want to do it.

Never, ever.

She pleaded while shedding tears of blood, while vomiting bile.

But not a single word reached them.

Her mouth wouldn’t open.

Everyone looked at her with resentful eyes, spewing curses, turning into cold corpses.

Then, through the mountain of corpses, she saw a man walking toward her.

Golden ceremonial robes. A snow-white wand. A swaying rosary.

A man boasting perfect beauty as if crafted by God himself.

Yuria knew who he was.

The Pope. The pinnacle of all religious figures in this era.

[Are you still hoping that someone will save you?]

A voice like jade beads rolling on a tray flowed out.

[Are you still hoping that someone will come close to you?]

But.

To her, it was the voice of a ‘predator’ that made her whole body tremble just from hearing it.

[You are a cursed scapegoat.]

The dream.

Always.

[You must remain alone until you die.]

Ended with the Pope whispering those words.

●

“…!”

She pushed her eyes open with a shallow scream.

Her entire body was drenched in cold sweat.

“…”

Yuria Greyhaunter brushed her face and looked out the window.

Fortunately, it seemed she hadn’t overslept.

Her day always started regularly at the same time.

Living self-sufficiently far away from people, even someone as delicately raised as her had become accustomed to the wild lifestyle.

Through the window, she caught a glimpse of the Academy buildings.

A bustling, vibrant society of civilized people.

“…”

Yuria turned her gaze away from there with a dry look.

She had no time to worry about such places. There was too much to do.

She needed to reinforce the tent where she slept, check the traps and snares she had set to catch prey, and wash the clothes she had been wearing for a week.

That was her life. A savage within society, living completely disconnected from everyone in a place where she wouldn’t encounter a single person.

Just a half-day’s walk away was a glittering, brilliant civilization, but she was not someone who could ever approach it.

The curse of isolation. The shackle of having to live alone in seclusion for her entire life.

Today too, she would just have to live the role given to such a person.

Yes. That would have been the case normally.

“Are you awake?”

“…”

That would have been the case if not for this strange man who suddenly appeared.

A mask that hid his face, a modulated voice.

‘…Huh?’

She knew this person. More precisely, the familiar mask made him immediately recognizable.

He was the person who had visited once before and tossed her delicious snacks.

And also someone who had hinted that he knew something about her and her “sister.”

While recalling all this information, Yuria instinctively calculated the current distance between herself and this man, even with sleepy eyes.

Three steps, and.

Just a little bit closer than that.

“…!”

Once again, regardless of her will, her sword was violently drawn.

Yuria’s face turned pale as the blade shot forward at lightning speed.

Once again, another situation where she might kill someone against her will.

“That’s right.”

But the man drew his prepared sword as if he had been waiting for this.

Then he immediately parried her strike.

Following that, he continued to receive her flurry of attacks while standing in place.

As if he had come specifically for this purpose.

After exchanging attacks and defenses for a while, just when it seemed he was about to be pushed back, he smoothly stepped outside the three-step boundary.

“…This should be enough. I can handle it, and getting closer…”

And he was muttering something as if satisfied.

As if her attacks were manageable.

“…”

Yuria stared blankly at her sword and then at her opponent.

It wasn’t the first time she had seen someone “deflect” her attacks. Especially at the edge of the three-step boundary.

Her characteristic of combat power increasing exponentially the closer someone got meant, conversely, that it wasn’t that powerful at the very edge.

The problem was.

‘This is the second time, isn’t it?’

This man had experienced being attacked once when he narrowed the distance between them when they first met.

So she had understood when he didn’t show up afterward.

“…”

-You must remain alone until you die.

The sentence she always heard in her dreams replayed in her mind.

Yes. She knew well that was her fate.

Who would want to be involved with a person who tries to kill anyone who comes even slightly close?

“Right. Seeing you swing that sword, you seem healthy. Have you been well?”

Except for this strange man in front of her.

While Yuria was looking at him with a bizarre expression, the man sat down with a thud and caught his breath.

The fierce exchange they just had must have been quite tiring.

[…What are you, exactly?]

Letters formed from holy power floated hazily before her eyes.

It was her unavoidable method of communication since she couldn’t use her vocal cords due to the curse of isolation.

It was a question filled with complex doubts.

What is your intention with this behavior? Who exactly are you?

Last time he had disappeared after giving off strange vibes, not visiting for a while, and now he suddenly appears with a sword to spar with her.

And he was dangerously crossing her “danger zone” boundary.

As if he knew about her curse.

‘…Really, what is this?’

It was truly incomprehensible.

“I told you before, didn’t I? I come to feed you occasionally.”

But the other person casually threw out such words.

Indeed, along with those words, a lunchbox slid over to her.

“Eat it. I’m leaving. There’s someone who gets angry if I stay too long.”

“…”

Yuria’s expression went blank as she watched the man immediately leave.

What kind of person was he really?

The day passed like that.

She spent the rest of her day processing her remaining tasks while ruminating on thoughts about that man.

‘What is it? Who is he?’

She was already accustomed to living alone. There was plenty of time for daydreaming.

‘It was probably just a whim.’

Around evening, just before falling asleep, she succeeded in reaching that conclusion and smiled with satisfaction. It must be correct after thinking about that person for 9 whole hours.

Yes. He was someone who had visited once before and then didn’t show his face for a long time.

This time would probably flow similarly.

[…You came again?]

But the next morning, this man visited again in exactly the same way.

At the same time she woke up, with a sword in hand. At the same distance.

He just slightly inserted his body, continued the exchange of attacks, and then retreated.

And again, he just tossed her a meal and disappeared.

“…”

Yuria munched on the lunchbox the man had left and fell into thought again.

Yesterday it was 9 hours, but today it was 12 hours.

Her brain, which hadn’t had much opportunity to be used after living like a wild animal for so long, was being overworked to its limit.

‘Perhaps he has some special business with me?’

That would be the rational conclusion.

When they met recently, he said he had been “asked” to look after her. Maybe there had been some change related to that.

‘…But then why the swordplay?’

She couldn’t reach a conclusion about that part until just before falling asleep.

“Are you up?”

The next day too, that man visited.

Following the same routine, he tossed her a lunchbox and.

“Hey, you know what?”

But this time, instead of leaving right away, he chatted with her about various things.

It was trivial conversation.

What was happening inside the Academy, what the weather was like these days, what interesting things he had seen recently.

Really, worthless, insignificant talk.

She didn’t give any response. She had nothing to say in return since she knew nothing. He just rambled on as he pleased.

“…”

But for Yuria, who had no opportunity to interact with people for a long time.

It truly felt like having a “human” conversation after so long.

“Hey you!”

However, that day, perhaps because he stayed longer than usual, someone came to fetch him.

It was someone Yuria knew as well. Principal Atalante.

The kind person who had arranged a place for her to hide here.

“I warned you not to stay too long! I told you so many times that if someone like you got hurt, it would be a disaster…!”

“It seems too harsh to just cross swords every day and leave. If I keep my distance, there’s no danger in having a conversation. Don’t crush my efforts to become friends like that.”

“Student, you always say things that cause misunderstandings! I’m telling you not to stay long because I’m worried you might cause an accident with unnecessary talk!”

“…I can’t argue with that.”

While that man was being dragged away by Atalante, such conversation could be heard from afar.

They probably thought she couldn’t hear them, but it was useless since Yuria had her ears perked up.

‘So he’s a student.’

She gained a few pieces of fragmentary information.

It seems clear that he knows about her curse.

He’s a student at the Academy. And important enough for Atalante to personally worry about him.

And yet.

He wants to be friends with someone like her.

“…”

-You must remain alone until you die.

That sentence came to mind again. She gave a bitter smile.

I know. I know too.

She had no intention of harboring any futile hope that it could really happen.

She was just a little curious.

What he was thinking.

That day, she spent almost the entire day thinking about that person.

Continuously, continuously.

About that unidentified student wearing a mask.

‘…Yet I know nothing about him.’

Similar days repeated after that, but the same situation kept repeating.

They crossed swords, he gave her a lunchbox, chatted a bit, and then promptly disappeared.

She didn’t understand why he kept wearing the mask, or who exactly had asked him to bring her meals every day.

Nor did she understand why he kept entering within the range of her curse despite knowing how vicious it was.

And how he could say he “wanted to be friends” with almost shameless persistence while engaging in swordplay every day.

There was nothing she could figure out.

Even after thinking for 22 hours, cutting into her sleeping time, her brain only cramped with no particular results.

‘I wonder if he’ll come tomorrow too.’

So that night, before sleeping, she just thought about that.

As if, just a little bit.

She was looking forward to him visiting again.

●

“…This is pretty good.”

I mutter while taking off my mask.

As I’ve mentioned before, if you want to increase the proficiency of a characteristic, facing a strong opponent in actual combat is the fastest way to see results.

In that sense, Yuria is proudly ranked among what players call “optimal NPCs for grinding proficiency.”

She’s a strong opponent who’s always ready for battle, yet you can end the fight anytime by just controlling the distance.

By engaging in actual combat whenever you want, you can rapidly boost your characteristic level.

Moreover, since her combat power increases the closer you get, once you’ve built up enough proficiency to handle it, you can gradually get closer to accelerate the growth rate of your characteristic even more.

That’s exactly what I’ve been doing.

‘And on top of that…’

Although it’s a bit dangerous since she immediately tries to kill you without any hesitation, from my perspective where my stats get boosted the more dangerous it gets, it’s not really a problem.

Even if you have sword skills, you can’t use them properly if your stats are lacking. For my specs, where I’d stagger just holding an iron sword let alone swinging it, this is actually welcome.

‘…And well, there’s a safety measure too.’

I think as I look at the Mask of Illusion in my hand.

It’s the mask I wore when I first met her.

The essential item for what’s known as the “Yuria proficiency grind.”

It’s a tip that only veteran players know: the automatic attacks caused by the Curse of Isolation are slightly weakened if the opponent covers their face.

‘There was definitely some reason for that.’

It was a feature that could help with the final strategy of Chapter 2 if used well, but somehow I can’t remember clearly.

It was something seemingly trivial yet important…

‘…Well, I’ll remember it later.’

Considering my personality, if it’s something I can use when the time comes, it will definitely come to mind.

More importantly, right now:

[ You have successfully performed a sword technique! ]

[ The proficiency of Characteristic: Tristan-style Swordsmanship increases. ]

[ Your proficiency has improved by leaps and bounds! ]

[ The characteristic grade has been promoted from ‘Basic’ to ‘General’! ]

< Mastery Info >

[ Characteristic: Tristan-style Swordsmanship ] [ Grade: General ]

[ Current Proficiency: 0% ]

[ This is the sword technique of the prestigious Tristan Dukedom. ]

[ ■ You can exert a consistent level of power regardless of weapon type. ]

[ ■ When wielding a longsword, you can use ‘Deflection’. ]

[ ■ When equipped with a longsword, you can ignore part of the opponent’s defense when striking. ]

“…”

The speed is abnormally fast.

Even though I already had some proficiency built up, raising it from Basic to General in just 7 days is an insanely impressive achievement.

This normally takes at least a month, you know?

‘The listed effects too…’

Deflection is parrying, commonly seen in games. If you defend at the right timing against an opponent’s attack, you take 0 damage and get a turn to attack them.

As for ignoring defense and dealing damage, well.

It’s exactly as written. Simple yet powerful.

‘…So, well.’

These two are enough. I’ve made all the preparations.

< Gift-Related Person Alert >

♥ Elnore Erinarise la Tristan

[ Affection Level 1 ]

[ Exclusive quest ‘Inheritance of the Curse’ has been generated! ]

[ D-1 until quest-related event occurs ]

▼ Gideon Gaelstard la Tristan

[ Curiosity Level 1 ]

[ Exclusive quest ‘Inheritance of the Curse’ has been generated! ]

[ D-1 until quest-related event occurs ]

At least enough to get the results I want from here.

Tomorrow’s “observation class” event.

“…I should go to bed early today.”

The accumulated fatigue from crossing swords with Yuria every day is no joke.

I actually collapsed as soon as I got back to my dormitory.

So.

<System Message>

[ Skill: Fatal Charm activates! ]

[ The villain’s affection increases dramatically! ]

[ Target ‘Yuria’s’ affection level rises to Interest Level 1! ]

[ Reward has been added to the Gift tab! ]

I only saw that message appear the next morning.

“…”

What is this now.

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