episode_0053

The moment it saw the large horn raised by the female warrior, the cursed rabbit did not cover its own ears, but rather rushed at it, probably because it knew that blocking its ears would be of no use.

One of the rabbit’s abilities acquired through a curse, she knows very well how excellent her ability to detect the presence of enemies or prey faster than anyone else and read the next move with her keen senses is.

However, the best judgment did not always lead to the best results.

As a result, she came closer to the source of her binge drinking.

Although she knew it was useless, she tried to cover her long ears with her slender hands, but the sound coming from the horn had already penetrated beyond them without mercy.

The two pairs of ears, which can hear even minute vibrations and muscle tremors, amplified the pain that made the ears explode several times, regardless of the owner’s will, and caused the rabbit to struggle.

Even for those of us who immediately covered our ears after receiving the warning, it was a bit painful. The volume was not something that could be produced by simply blowing a horn.

There must have been some kind of magic attached to the horn itself.

Perhaps as a secret weapon that has been prepared for this moment ever since the female warrior left her own tribe to hunt.

We couldn’t know how much pain the binge drinking that involved such things would cause to a rabbit whose ears were more sensitive than anyone else’s.

I could only vaguely guess by watching her expression and struggle.

For her, who has become extremely difficult to get hurt due to the curse, pain must be a pleasant sensation that confirms that she is alive.

But even for her, this kind of pain seemed to be extremely painful.

For the first time since I saw her, her face contorted in pain, and her red eyes, which had not closed even as blood flowed into them, frowned and closed.

She was in pain, rolling on the ground in the forest while a silent scream, drowned out by the heavy drinking, came out of her mouth.

It was the result of digging into her natural weaknesses, which were hidden from view by her fierceness and unfathomable skills.

The female warrior, who had been approaching carefully without stopping even while blowing the horn with all her might, saw what was happening and slowly lifted the ax she was still holding tightly with one hand.

And with the horn still in his mouth, he held the ax in both hands and struck it straight at the rabbit’s white neck.

She seemed to have already lost half consciousness due to the pain that tore her eardrums, so there seemed to be no way for her to avoid the female warrior’s sharp blow.

And in fact, she couldn’t avoid the ax being struck.

However, the problem was that the place where the blade struck was not the rabbit’s neck.

She thought she didn’t have the strength to move, but at the last moment she moved, causing the ax blade to hit her rabbit ears instead of her neck.

“What?…”

The female warrior, who swung the ax with all her might, looked completely embarrassed by the blood coming out of the blade.

Just like me, who was watching, he probably couldn’t understand the rabbit’s intentions.

Even if she was somewhat incapacitated by the heavy drinking poured out by the horn, the curse binding her body would still be effective, even if it had been weakened.

The female warrior probably did not hit the ax with the expectation that she would be able to behead the cursed rabbit.

I guess he just wanted to deliver a shock that would knock her unconscious and subdue her, who was already unable to control her body properly due to heavy drinking.

However, even though he still had the strength to move, he did not dodge like that and instead gave his ears, which could be considered a weakness…

Rather than avoidance, it was an action closer to self-harm.

So then, what was the reason for deliberately trying to injure yourself even more when you were already at a great disadvantage?

Considering the skills she had shown so far, it could not be considered a simple mistake, so the female warrior immediately took back the ax she had struck and was wary of her opponent.

However, the rabbit was just sitting down, breathing heavily, holding its bleeding ear.

As if that was enough for now.

And finally we found out what she was after.

Suddenly, a blinding red flash erupted, a strong wind blew, and the trees began to shake violently.

It’s as if something big is wrong with this forest itself.

The female warrior who faced the flash of light right in front of me screamed, and while I quickly covered my face and tried not to let go of my weapon, a thought passed through my head.

‘…is this by any chance?’

She, too, was aware that the forest we were in now was part of the curse she had received.

Well, in a way, it may be natural since we are the ones who are cursed.

Just as I was trying to weaken the curse and get out of this forest through the wounds I inflicted on her body.

By deliberately inflicting a large wound on the female warrior’s ax just now, she was aiming to make this space extremely unstable as the curse surrounding her body weakened significantly.

And the moment the forest began to shake as she had intended, she finally began to move her body again.

“Be careful!”

The female warrior, who was still unable to open her eyes to the warning I quickly gave her, barely managed to raise the axe.

Thanks to this, she was able to move quietly and without a sound, and before she knew it, she was able to deflect the rabbit’s sword that was aiming for her neck.

The rabbit, frustrated that the surprise attack had failed, rolled over and dodged the ax that the female warrior swung in a counterattack.

The rabbit stepped back for a moment and looked at the female warrior and me alternately, then immediately turned around and started running.

“Where are you running away?!”

Shouting with anger behind her, the female warrior threw the ax she was holding with all her might, and the ax blade containing her monstrous power rotated fiercely and aimed at the target.

I also raise my spear again and prepare to throw my spear on top of the ax the moment it gets stuck in the rabbit’s back.

The moment when the ax was about to sink into the prey’s back with such terrifying force that it seemed as if it could grind anything to pieces.

The female warrior’s ax cut through the air in vain, splitting only the bare tree beyond.

Because the rabbit suddenly disappeared without a trace.

We were finally able to escape from the forest that had been imprisoning us for so long, preventing us from escaping.

Of course, the timing of the escape was truly frustrating.

“…Damn it!”

The female warrior stared blankly at the missed ax for a moment, then fell down in her place, pounded the ground with her fists, and let out her anger harshly.

Although he clearly had the upper hand in the fight through the horn he had prepared, he seemed unable to hold back his anger at not being able to catch his prey in the end.

“…Don’t blame yourself too much. Who would have known that a rabbit could use such moves?”

I quietly approached her and offered comfort.

Even though I thought about weakening the curse and escaping the forest that was part of the curse, I never imagined that the person who was cursed would use it to escape a crisis in that way.

I knew right away that the rabbit was not just a madman or a monster who had gone crazy due to a curse, but whether it was the instinct of the body that had the curse engraved on it or the wisdom gained from spending many years together, he used the curse in an unexpected way.

Nevertheless, the female warrior’s expression did not ease easily.

“…It won’t be easy to get an opportunity like this again. Imperial people.”

There was certainly nothing wrong with what she said.

The already very picky prey had revealed yet another new ability.

Moreover, the rabbit had figured out what we had planned to do to catch her.

Of course, it wasn’t a weakness that could be easily avoided even if you knew about it, but it still wouldn’t be as easy as this time when you didn’t know anything.

“Then you should try harder to seize the opportunity. If you are really that upset about missing that rabbit, I think you should hurry.”

“…That’s right.”

However, the fact that we would eventually have to move again did not change unless we gave up hunting here.

While the female warrior, who remembered that there was no time to be frustrated, got up, I pulled her ax out of the tree and handed it to her.

After receiving the axe, she was silent for a moment, then looked around and asked.

“…I think I succeeded in getting out of the forest.”

“Okay. Now that I think about it, it’s late to say thank you. I received help at a very close time.”

“Thank the woman behind you, not me, Imperial.

If she hadn’t moved quickly when she suddenly smelled blood, we wouldn’t have found the forest.”

I turned around after hearing those words and before I knew it, I was face to face with Luvia who came up behind me and hugged me.

“…Rubia.”

“…The promise you made on the ship… You must keep it. Master.”

The ferocious spirit she used when dealing with an enemy and her usual smirk had disappeared. She just whispered in a very low voice, seeking my confirmation.

As if he was afraid that if I raised my voice any further, I might suddenly collapse.

I clearly remembered Luvia’s fear that she might one day become a monster in her immortal life like that rabbit, and the promise that I would be with her so that she would never become a monster.

“…Yes, of course. I’m sorry for making you worry.”

So we remained silent for a moment, just continuing to feel each other’s presence.

Until the female warrior cleared her throat and got our attention.

“… Well… I really don’t want to disturb you… but you, the Empire, said earlier that you need to hurry. ”

Understanding that what she said was right, I responded to her words by slightly pushing the regretful Rubia away.

“No. That’s right. We need to regroup and catch up quickly.

The problem is that Emma hurt her leg and how to chase after the rabbit that disappeared…

Uh… Luvia, I’m sorry, but for now…”

I was lost in my thoughts when Luvia motioned to me again, and I thought she was sorry that the hug ended sooner than expected, so I tried to comfort her, but it seems that wasn’t what she meant.

“Ema is being treated by the young druid from earlier. Master.”

When I remembered that she had healed my eye from poison splattering during the battle, I felt at least a little relieved.

“And that rabbit… I can chase it.”

She gently swiped a drop of blood from her face with her finger and glared at it with equally red eyes.

As if he wanted to explode it and its owner right away.

“The smell of blood is disgusting, but I remember it clearly now…”