episode_0021

“Is it over…?”

Instinctively, I blurted out those words and then realized I had raised a flag. I looked at the corpse split in half, but fortunately, it only twitched slightly, showing no further movement.

“Gah… *Gasp*…”

All she was exhaling were ragged breaths that could only last a few more seconds.

Her trembling fingers and eyes spoke to me.

How dare a mere human push her to the brink of death.

I saw her mouth moving and, with my barely cooperative legs, approached her.

“*Haa… Gasp*… I was clearly… told to handle it… but I wasn’t… informed of something like this…!”

An immense amount of blood gushed from her mouth, as if she were spewing out the resentment of all the people she had used as weapons.

If I were in her situation, I would have quietly ended my life out of consideration for those who died by her hand.

Seeing her struggle even a little, I couldn’t help but laugh.

Blood spread across the floor.

That blood was not of those sacrificed to her, but now Baikal’s blood, sacrificed for my growth.

As the blood stuck to my shoes, the corpse turned to dust and vanished, as if returning to its original place.

Simultaneously, the spear, which had barely maintained its form by eating away at my mental power, vanished from my arm.

It felt as if something massive had filled my body and then disappeared.

That feeling was worse than having something taken away that I originally possessed.

Thus, all my stats returned to normal, and with all the strength drained from my muscles, I lay on the floor for a while.

“*System.*”

A chilling silence.

“*System.*”

This time, a frustrating silence.

“*System…*”

No matter how many times I called, the System didn’t respond.

As if it had used up all its power.

Only that silence continued.

“*Ha… Status Window…*”

Then, only a flickering blue screen appeared before me.

Longinus Rapier Strength: 10 Magic Power: 100 Agility: 10 Mental Power: 500

Only my mental power, nearly cut in half, greeted me.

However,

“*Hmm? Did I see that wrong…?*”

A distinct flicker.

It was different from merely maintaining a blurry shape.

So, I scrolled down to see that flicker.

“*This, of all things… I hoped it would be delayed… Then…*”

Only a sigh about time escaped my lips.

That distinct sparkle continued to shine brightly, as if it knew or didn’t know my feelings.

[Quest] [Main Quest] [The current Main Quest has been forcibly moved to the ‘Progress’ stage.] [The world’s clock moves its rusted body.]

“*I’ll have to face ‘The First’ in less than a year… I need to prepare quickly for this…*”

What thoughts would you have if you had a lot of work to do, but the deadline was tomorrow?

Feeling rushed, your mind cluttered, cold sweat dripping, and so on. Various opinions would emerge.

That was my current mental state.

However, the sound of a being that could somewhat alleviate that mental state came from behind me.

“*Whimper…*”

The sound of a young dog, a desperate cry as if its owner had died.

That sound reached my ears, and I, dragging my weary body, walked towards its source.

And there, a small creature with gray fur, shaped like a wolf but the size of a puppy, stood.

‘A werewolf…? I guess since Baikal is dead, all the power granted to this animal has been withdrawn… This must be the aftereffect… Well, just in case it can still transform, I should just go get my potion…’

Just as I was about to leave to retrieve my share, after seeing the monster, someone grabbed me from behind.

No, to be exact, it was biting my ankle.

The puppy, which had been making desperate whimpering sounds just moments before, now had clear, bright eyes as it bit my ankle with its small teeth.

I lifted and shook my foot to dislodge the puppy, but it held on, refusing to let go.

Its movements seemed to blame me.

Yet, it was also a movement that conveyed it didn’t want to be alone.

[Master, you killed her.]

Surprisingly, it could transmit its thoughts to me with its own magic.

“*Yes, I… No, I don’t need to use honorifics to a dog… Yes, I killed her. So what, are you going to try and kill me?*”

[No, my species only serves the strong. Since you killed my former master, you are now my master.]

“*Says who? You were just trying to kill me a moment ago, weren’t you?*”

Without any change in expression, I simply focused on shaking my ankle to dislodge the furball.

However, while this struggle was happening,

a strategy came to mind.

‘It’s good to have a pet.’

Of course, my former self had no intention of making the furball stuck to my foot into a pet, but my current self wasn’t entirely against the idea.

“*So, what can you do?*”

[I can transform and fight like before!]

‘The red form was Baikal’s power, so it’s the Phase 1 form that I fought… It could be useful…’

I admitted to the animal’s words that the furball would inevitably be helpful to me.

A nod.

As soon as this signal came, the animal suddenly brightened, then quickly scurried past my leg and waist, settling on my shoulder.

‘It’s almost like carrying around a final boss of a dungeon… Well… if it’s a racial instinct, I guess I have to respect it…’

I petted the wolf-like dog purring on my shoulder and finally entered the place I had longed for.

Would an ordinary person feel like this if they saw a gruesome murder scene?

An indescribable revulsion surged up from my gut.

‘Even the protagonist here couldn’t overcome the disgust and vomited…’

Baikal’s collection, it was even more cruel and disgusting than what I had imagined based on the game’s description.

Passing through her private room, which was an artistic display of corpses, and entering the warehouse, my mood improved slightly.

“*This is where that potion is…*”

It was luxurious, a sight so opulent that no other word could describe it. That scene unfolded within Baikal’s warehouse.

[New master, you must never pick up any other item. If you do, you’ll simultaneously lose the right to take any other item outside.]

Of course, I knew that fact, but I had been entranced by the dazzling weapons.

What if the wolf hadn’t been there?

I probably wouldn’t have been able to break through any limits and would have been destined to die at their hands, with my mental power cut in half.

I hated even imagining such a thing, so I shook my head and went to that corner.

In that corner lay a truly unremarkable bottle, simply discarded.

A plainness that didn’t suit the luxurious room at all.

A simple liquid contained within such a simple bottle.

To those who knew nothing about this place, it would appear utterly useless, but in fact, this was the exact potion I desperately needed right now.

The reason I went to such lengths, even expending my mental power, was because I could raise that mental power again.

[Consume Nectar? Yes/No]

Nectar.

A substance called the drink of the gods.

It was an extremely rare item that even they could only drink at festivals.

If they drink this, they can ‘maintain’ an immortal body.

So, what would happen if a human drank this substance?

Most would die, unable to withstand this energy.

However, if one overcomes that pain, they can gain one stat that transcends the limits of a human being.

That power would be competitive enough to rival a mythical creature or even them.

[There may be side effects. Is that acceptable? Yes/No]

I hesitated a little due to the pain, but still pressed the left button.

***

“*Rapier? Rapier!*”

Savior and the Reaper were moving about.

While she was busy searching for him for a while, she discovered something.

A shadow emerging from the debris. The friction sound of a staff hitting the floor.

As soon as she heard the sound of Rapier being alive and moving, Savior began to run towards him.

Moment by moment, the pain in her muscles tried to stop her, but she eventually reached Rapier’s location.

However, when his shadow reached a range visible to her naked eye,

Savior had no choice but to halt her joyful steps.

What she always felt when fighting Rapier was the sensation of his sword passing by.

It wasn’t visible, but she could feel it to some extent.

But now, it was different.

There was no sound, no sensation.

Yet, the oppressive weight intensified, even though nothing was visible.

Rapier, in the center, seemed to be concentrating on something.

The more she gazed at him concentrating, the more her head felt dizzy, as if perceiving a higher being.

“*Th-that… Rapier…?*”

A cautious voice.

Savior couldn’t be certain that the person in front of her was indeed Rapier.

Because he looked like a completely different being than before.