Chapter 36: Giant Death Worm (3)

Five minutes passed after that.

Sion had taken down four Death Worms all by herself, making sure each piece was thoroughly shattered to prevent them from merging back together.

The others, meanwhile, had focused entirely on dodging, with Beryl nearly dying once and Lancia barely managing to destroy a single sensory organ of one Death Worm as per Sion’s instructions, just to save face.

“That’s the last of them.”

Sion sighed, stomping on the final twitching chunk of the giant Death Worm.

The fight had been exhausting—more so because of the unnecessary effort she’d had to put in.

It was the kind of crude and inefficient battle that didn’t suit her at all.

The blame lay squarely on the three freeloaders who were off in the distance, casually sharing potions among themselves.

“Beryl, are you alright? You didn’t get bitten when you went inside, did you?”

Isabella asked, offering a handful of healing potions.

“I’m fine, just a scratch or two. But thanks for worrying…”

Beryl waved off Isabella’s concern while Lancia lay sprawled out beside them, completely spent.

Unlike their cheerful camaraderie, Sion’s gaze toward them was narrow and sharp.

Slowly, she approached Isabella.

“Princess.”

“Oh, Sion!” Isabella greeted her with a bright smile.

But Sion’s response to that smile was:

-Crunch. 

“GYAAAHHH!!!” 

She answered with a cheerful iron claw, lifting Isabella by her head into the air.

Isabella’s pink twin tails flailed wildly as she kicked and struggled in pain.

“Wait!! Why?! We won, didn’t we?!”

“We won, so why~?”

Sion’s voice was cold and eerie, her eyes shaded darkly despite the smile on her face.

A faint vein was visible on her forehead.

“I told you it was dangerous and to teleport away immediately, didn’t I? So why didn’t you listen? Are my words a joke to you, Princess?” 

“Ack!! It’s not that! I couldn’t leave because you couldn’t come with me! Aahhh!!!”

“I clearly told you, ‘Don’t worry, I won’t die from this much,’ didn’t I? So why don’t you trust my words? Do I seem that untrustworthy to you?” 

“AAAHHH!!!”

Sion tightened her grip, and Isabella’s screams grew more desperate, sounding like a livestock being dragged to slaughter.

Unable to watch any longer, Lancia intervened from nearby.

“U-um, Master… The Princess was just worried about you, so could you please not be too harsh on her…?”

“Oh? Judging by your words, you think you’re safe, Lady Lancia?”

“?!”

Oh no. Now the ire was directed at her.

Come to think of it, she had also refused to retreat when ordered.

As the reaper let go of the princess and approached her, Lancia broke into a cold sweat.

“So, anything you’d like to say?”

“I-I was just worried about you, Master…!”

“Is that all?”

“No, but if you were left alone, it’d be dangerous, so—”

“Is that all?”

“…..”

At that moment, Lancia realized she was doomed.

She accepted her fate and slowly closed her eyes, embracing her inevitable punishment.

Moments later.

-“Wasn’t that a bit much?”

Exia whispered softly, glancing at the two sprawled-out bodies of Isabella and Lancia, their spirits crushed.

But Sion just scoffed.

-“Too much? This is what those fools get for ignoring orders from their superior.

They should be glad it was just physical pain this time. If they’d messed up any worse, they could’ve died. A little punishment like this is a small price to pay.”

-“Hmm…”

Exia glanced back at the two.

It wasn’t as if they’d acted out of malice, they were genuinely worried about Sion, and anyone could see that she had been putting herself in danger to protect the group before the Death Worms appeared.

Maybe Sion could cut them a little slack?

But Sion shook her head resolutely.

-“Even if that’s the case, it doesn’t change anything. Do you think they staying here would be of any help? They’d just end up being deadweight, dragging everyone down until we all got wiped out. What’s the point of that?”

-“Still, if we work together, we might be able to overcome the crisis without any sacrifices.”

-“That’s called wishful thinking, or to put it more simply, overconfidence. If they had some kind of plan or strategy, I might have given them some credit.

But they stayed behind with no such thing, just recklessly hoping for the best.”

Sion crossed her arms.

-“The thing I despise most in this world is blind optimism without any planning.

Simply not wanting something is not enough. Every reckless decision must have a minimum of reason, necessity, and a chance of success.

If you don’t have a solution, you have to come up with one.That’s the lesson they need to learn from this incident.

Got it?”

-“…….”

At those words, Exia recalled the clashes she and Lier had with Sien during their travels 500 years ago.

Sien had often criticized them as embodiments of “reckless sentimentality,” while he himself always pursued cold and realistic choices.

It had led to constant conflicts between them across countless situations.

Even after 500 years, it seemed that people’s core nature didn’t change.

This realization made Exia sigh, though it also brought a strange sense of relief.

Still, there was one thing she couldn’t resist saying.

“Well, I don’t think you’re one to talk, considering you once faked your death to deceive your comrades into making a ‘rational choice’ back then.”

Sion was instantly rendered speechless by that single remark.

After all, she had indeed manipulated situations under the guise of rational decisions to gain the upper hand.

She could only accept this criticism as her just deserts.

Thankfully, Sion’s silence didn’t last long.

The remaining person soon approached her.

“Umm… Hero.”

“?”

Hearing a faint voice calling her, Sion turned around.

It was Beryl, looking strangely shy.

She clasped her hands together, bowing her head demurely.

“Thank you for saving me earlier.”

“If you hadn’t acted quickly, I would have been monster food.”

“Hehe, don’t mention it.”

“It’s just what a companion should do.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Sion replied, swiftly donning the mask of a ‘hero.’

In appearance and tone, she seemed every bit the saint of this era.

Seeing her noble demeanor, Beryl’s face reddened slightly as she bowed even lower, looking bashful.

“H-Hero…”

“Yes?”

“Actually, I have something to confess.”

“?

Confess?”

“What could this be about?”

Sion gave her a puzzled look, and Beryl hesitated, struggling to get her words out.

“I… I was afraid that you might harm me, Hero.

I don’t know why, but I had this strange gut feeling, an unfounded paranoia that something might happen.

Now that I think about it, it was foolish of me.”

Actually, it wasn’t paranoia at all.

Given that Sion had indeed been plotting against her, her suspicions were spot-on.

But whether she knew this or not, Beryl placed a hand on her chest and continued.

“However, seeing you risk yourself to save me melted away my baseless doubts.

You truly are the Hero. Strong and kind, you would never harm me.

I’m sorry for harboring such useless thoughts. From now on, I’ll trust, rely on, and follow you completely.”

Beryl smiled sincerely and purely as she spoke.

Exia, quietly observing the scene, whispered to Sion.

-“Trying to destroy the mind of such a sweet girl and erase her memories… some people are real trash, huh?”

-“S-Shut up.”

Sion stammered slightly as she responded.

Despite everything, Sion wasn’t entirely devoid of a conscience.

Though tiny, she did have a moral compass of sorts, and right now, it was spinning at 7,000 RPM.

There’s an old saying that you can’t spit on a smiling face, and it couldn’t be truer.

Even Sion, a scoundrel to her core, felt uneasy about harming someone who trusted and depended on her like Beryl did.

-“Why not just tell her the truth and ask for forgiveness, like I suggested?”

-“Mmm…”

Maybe that would be for the best.

If Sion could bring herself to trust Beryl, it would be the least risky course of action.

Even if Beryl’s memories were destroyed, there was a slim chance they could resurface, and dealing with that would be an even bigger headache.

In that case, it might be better to restore her memories and come to an understanding.

If Beryl cooperated, they could easily fabricate a plausible backstory together.

The only problem was the uncertainty of whether Beryl, as the victim whose memories had been tampered with, would accept the truth.

‘She’s a much kinder person than I thought. Apologizing and seeking forgiveness for her suspicions without anyone prompting her.’

‘With such a level of understanding, maybe she wouldn’t be angry if she learned the truth and might even cooperate…’

In Sion’s mind, two choices weighed on a scale.

One was to proceed with the original plan and erase Beryl’s memories when the opportunity arose.

The other was to confess the truth and seek her forgiveness.

Each had its pros and cons.

Erasing her memories would be the least risky if successful, but it required a series of complex steps to execute properly.

On the other hand, confessing would be quick, easy, and straightforward, but it left everything dependent on Beryl’s reaction.

If she couldn’t accept the truth, it would spell the end of everything.

Each choice had its strengths and weaknesses.

Ultimately, he had to make a clear decision.

-“Fufu…

I knew it. Deep down, you’re hesitant to do something bad, aren’t you? Doesn’t it feel wrong to carry on with this plan?

Why don’t you just listen to your conscience and confess honestly?”

-“…!”

The holy sword, in a sticky sweet voice, was coaxing the demon king into a reverse corruption of sorts.

Her words were kind, but her tone felt strangely underhanded.

-“Hehehe… I knew it. The title of demon king isn’t that important to you, is it?

I always knew there was still a seed of kindness left in your heart, Sion.

Come on, don’t torture yourself. Accept your destiny as a hero carrying the hope of all humanity…!”

This girl was really getting carried away.

Maybe she was more suited to being a demon sword than a holy one.

Exia’s ridiculous persuasion brought Sion back to her senses.

Ignoring her, Sion began to carefully reconsider the situation from the beginning.

Despite having erased her memories, the irregular situation of reuniting with her just a week later.

The unexpected power displayed by Isabella and Lancia.

And even Beryl’s character, far more noble and pure than she had ever imagined.

Taking all these factors into consideration, the most rational choice would be—

‘Alright.’

Sion finally made up her mind, closing and opening her eyes as if in final resolve.

“Hey, Beryl.”

“Hm?”

Beryl turned to Sion, her expression innocent and unaware.

Looking at her, Sion slowly began to speak.

“Thank you for saying that. It gives me a bit of courage too. Actually, there’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you as well.”

“Something you want to tell me?”

“Yes.”

Sion nodded.

She glanced at the others, making sure they weren’t paying attention, then lowered her voice, preparing to reveal the deepest secret in her heart.

“The truth is, I—”

But Sion’s words never got to finish.

-Shooo!

In the middle of the deserted forest, a faint, slicing sound of metal cutting through the wind filled the air.

The sound grew closer and closer, closing in on the two of them until—

-Thud.

In the next moment, an arrow, shot from behind, pierced right through Beryl’s chest, emerging on the other side.

“Oh.”