Chapter 74

Chapter 74

74: Blood Born The sun was setting. Standing on the roof of the building across the street, I looked down at the bustling people below. “….Hmm.” Roughly twenty-five to thirty people, maybe? It was hard to get an exact count since they weren’t staying in one place. Some were soldiers in armor, others were burly, unarmed men. The former were probably guards or members of the defense force, and the latter were likely members of the underworld organizations. Their armaments weren’t a concern. The guards were wearing standard swords and shields, and the thugs would have at most daggers or short swords. But the problem was their numbers. Even though I’ve mastered martial arts, I’m not an inexhaustible superhuman. If I drew upon my inner energy and unleashed the Yin Demon Art, I could handle thirty or so, but there were more than thirty. If the defense force got involved, I’d be in real trouble, so I wanted to play it safe. If I really went wild, I could probably take down about a hundred, but I wasn’t confident beyond that. I didn’t want to indiscriminately slaughter people and become the kingdom’s worst criminal. And if dragon knights or griffin riders showed up, it would be a real headache. I could probably fight them if I had to, but I didn’t want to take that kind of risk. Plus, my condition still wasn’t great. My state wasn’t good because of Quaidon’s poison. I seemed a little better than before, but I was still weakened. Shouldn’t I be getting used to it by now? This is lasting a surprisingly long time, which is a little annoying. In every respect, it wasn’t a good situation. That made timing my entry all the more important. Unlike Earth in my past life, there were very few ways to contact each other personally in this world. In the end, the timing of my entry would be a game of reading the room, but that was easier said than done.

-Tap, tap.

…Or so I thought, but maybe it’ll be easier than I thought. Seeing a group of people approaching in the distance, I hid myself between the ridges of the roof. It wasn’t a tall building, so I’d be in trouble if I was spotted. But I didn’t stop peeking out to observe them. At the head of the group was a knight with short-cropped hair and a sturdy build. He wore steel breastplate armor, carried a shield on his back, and had a sword at his waist. The reason I identified him as a knight was simple. The other guards were following him.

-Thud, thud.

And next to him, a man in black clothes walked alongside him. He was quite handsome, but his attire suggested he wasn’t a soldier. Was he a member of the underworld organization? But seeing other members following him, he seemed to be at least a high-ranking officer. “….” They stopped in front of a building and began to talk. As soon as I saw that, I gathered my inner energy and used Earth Listening Technique. I didn’t want to waste too much energy, so I used it weakly. “….We’ve apprehended her.” “Are you sure?” “Yes, my men and the soldiers have confirmed it, so there’s no mistake.” “I see. But if you’re wrong….” “With all due respect, this is Mesatria. We are only cooperating with you, not acting as your hands and feet. Please keep that in mind.” “Insolent. If you want to live long, I suggest you shut your mouth.” “….I understand.” From their conversation, it seemed El had already been captured. There couldn’t possibly be someone else in a similar situation at this timing. I was curious how they had managed to capture her, who had mastered the Blood Shadow Demon Art, but there were many ways, if I thought about it. Even if we’ve mastered martial arts in this world, we’re not invincible. Still, it left a slightly bitter taste in my mouth. It was fortunate that I came looking for her like this, but what would she have done otherwise? Anyway, that officer is quite resolute. There’s a difference between the East and West, so he’s not wrong, but it’s quite difficult to say that in front of a knight. Unless he’s the boss of a large and useful organization. There was a higher chance that the knight wouldn’t be punished for killing a criminal from the slums.

-Tap.

Watching them enter the building, I lightly stretched my body. I had obtained information and roughly grasped the situation. Now, all I had to do was time my entry. …First, let’s count to 100 in my head. //

-Thud, thud.

Hearing the sound from beyond the door, Erzebet slowly gathered her inner energy. She had already planned everything in her head. She had unlocked the handcuffs on her wrists and finished her mental simulations. Even if her opponent was a knight with a demon sword, she had a chance if she attacked by surprise. A single strike. If she could land just one strike, it would be enough. But there were a few difficulties with that plan. First, she couldn’t kill the knight, even for Lutian’s sake. ‘….Ugh.’ Second, her physical condition wasn’t perfect. That was unexpected. The strike from Layla’s Internal Force of Gravity, though not powerful, contained Quaidon’s poison and the magic power of a monster. Both acted as deadly poisons to humans, causing even greater damage with just a strand of inner energy. If this were the world in her knowledge, filled with pure energy and where she could heal internal injuries with meditative breathing at any time, such an attack could be dismissed as nothing. She could wash away the foreign energy with breathing exercises and treat the wounds. But that wasn’t possible in this world, where meditative breathing was meaningless. Fortunately, the inner energy that had entered her body was weak, and her internal injuries had recovered due to the nature of the Blood Shadow Demon Art. ‘…I have no choice.’ She didn’t blame Layla now. The fault for that situation lay with her. So, she had no choice but to do her best now.

-Creak.

Watching the door of the dark room slowly open, Erzebet took another breath. As the door opened, a familiar face appeared from within. “Long time no see.” It was a face she hadn’t seen in a long time. How could she forget that face? The face of Lanshir Etercharf, the Gardisha knight who had been chasing her for five months. “….You finally found me.” Erzebet wore a sad smile and looked behind Lanshir. Behind him was Lutian, his eyes wide with shock. Seeing his distorted face, Erzebet chuckled inwardly. Did he hope she wouldn’t be here? ‘I told you not to trust anyone.’ Lies with lies. Favors with favors. If she received goodwill covered in deception, it was her way of life to return it in kind. If Lanshir missed her in front of him, the burden on Lutian would be reduced. And since Layla had eliminated the group trying to betray him, Lutian might be able to continue to reign in this underworld if he could overcome this crisis. That was the last gift she could give him. For a brief moment, their eyes met in the air. But whether their hearts were connected was unknown. “Now this tiresome farce is over.”

-Thud, thud.

Lanshir sighed softly and drew the sword from his waist. Knowing that it was a demon sword, Erzebet gathered even more inner energy and quietly waited for her chance.

-Thud.

Two steps forward. To distract him even a little, Erzebet asked Lanshir. “….What will happen to me?” “I have no obligation to tell you. Go and feel it with your body.” What came back was a cold, emotionless answer. But since she hadn’t expected an answer, Erzebet asked again. “You’re not going to kill me here, are you?” “Maybe not. People can live even with their arms and legs cut off. But you’ll be a little lighter.”

-Swish.

Lanshir’s sword pointed towards the ceiling. Erzebet silently stared at the blade with its blue tinge. The angle of the blade was aimed at her left arm.

-Whoosh!

The sword fell like a flash of light under the light,

-Clang!

A harsh metallic sound echoed in the room. What collided with Lanshir’s sword was Erzebet’s hand. Even though it was just a hand made of flesh, it didn’t even get a scratch when it collided with the blade. Seeing that sight, Lanshir bit his lip. “Damn it…!” Erzebet’s handcuffs had already been unlocked with the key Lutian had given her. She had only pretended to be restrained for the sake of a perfect surprise attack.

-Clang!

Even if it was a demon sword, its sharpness was no different from other swords. Erzebet grabbed the blade of the demon sword with her bare hand and reached out towards Lanshir’s chest.

-Crunch.

“Ugh!?” It was a surprise attack that even used inner energy, but it wasn’t perfect. Lanshir quickly defended against Erzebet’s attack with his other arm. The arm guard, which had leather and iron plates, crumpled, and Lanshir staggered. ‘Damn it, it was weak.’ Was it bad luck, or was her physical condition not normal? There was no time to figure out the reason. Erzebet lightly clicked her tongue and threw herself towards the entrance of the dark room. Now that the surprise attack had failed, a head-on confrontation was impossible. She had to keep moving to escape. “What…?” She saw Lutian’s face, shocked and surprised, in her vision,

-Thwack!

“Cough!” Erzebet kicked Lutian in the abdomen with such force that it was almost refreshing. Seeing his seemingly agile body helplessly rolling across the floor, Erzebet smiled bitterly to herself. ‘Goodbye.’ She probably wouldn’t see him again. She thought it was quite an unsightly farewell, but it couldn’t be helped. That was also a form of farewell. And there was no time to be sentimental.

-Swoosh!

The moment she heard the eerie sound in her ear, Erzebet immediately ducked and rolled on the floor.

-Clang!

A sound that was hard to believe came from the collision of fabric and arrowheads echoed, and two quarrels bounced off into the air. It was possible because her hand had the strength comparable to steel due to the Blood Hand Demon Art. “‘Ugh…” Even so, she couldn’t ignore the tingling shock. At the end of the hallway, two men holding crossbows came into her view. Their faces were filled with shock.

-Tap.

Erzebet kicked off the ground and rushed towards the men. Crossbows took a long time to reload. There was no need to worry about the next shot. “Damn it!” The two soldiers each drew their swords, but Erzebet didn’t slow down. To her, who had gathered her inner energy and unleashed the Blood Shadow Demon Art, two guards were nothing more than warm-up opponents. But the soldiers’ shouts were faster than her subduing them. “Intruuuder!!!” “Shut up.”

-Thwack!

Although they didn’t die, the two soldiers could no longer speak. As a clean chop struck each of their necks, the soldiers’ bodies collapsed. Erzebet lightly subdued the two soldiers and continued to run down the hallway.

-Thud, thud, thud.

The situation wasn’t good. Countless footsteps were heard from the other side of the hallway, and “You son of a bitch!!!” A familiar shout echoed from behind. In this situation, which was no different from being surrounded on all sides, Erzebet sighed inwardly. ‘Ah, damn it. I should have just asked for help.’ It wasn’t too late to despair, but it was hard to have hope. But she couldn’t give up here. ‘Break through as quickly as possible.’ She planned to break through the encirclement and pass through the East Gate. Once she got outside Mesatria, there were plenty of ways. But.

-Swish!

Feeling an eerie premonition from behind, Erzebet immediately bent over and rolled on the floor.

-Swish!

Sharp cuts were etched into the walls around her, and a handful of black hair, unable to escape the attack, was severed and scattered. Erszebet arched her back like a cat, assumed a stance, and muttered under her breath. “…Damn it.” Lanschier, who had activated both the Enhancement Crest, practically a symbol of knights, and the magic sword that exerted power akin to cheating, was slowly walking towards her from the entrance of the dark room.