episode_0082

“… … Ugh.”

Immediately after unfolding the sword that cut Hamel in two, I stumbled, unable to control myself.

I soon regained my balance, but honestly, my condition wasn’t that good.

‘… ‘There is no sound.’

I feel like there is no need to look into it carefully.

The fact is that my whole body is in such a mess.

It’s not a life-threatening wound like it was right after fighting the swordsman, but it’s a state that can’t be said to be normal at all.

No, to be honest, it’s close to the limit.

I probably won’t be able to fight properly anymore than this.

The good news is that the fight is over.

I forced myself to hold on to my body, which was expressing the opinion that I wanted to lie down right away, and looked up.

Then, a seal scattered on the floor caught my eye.

“This is… how… ?”

While being torn in two diagonally, Hamel let out a voice full of questions.

Even though it was a situation where a normal person would have died instantly, he was alive and speaking, just not being able to move properly.

No, beyond that, the section is already procrastinating and trying to heal the wound.

Because the wound is so large, it doesn’t seem to be able to recover immediately, but that alone is already a frightening healing power.

This is a level that cannot be called human. Well, it’s a fact I’ve known for a long time.

“That’s… What on earth is that… … .”

With unfocused eyes, Hamel looked at me intently and asked.

That’s what you say when you’re cut in two and you don’t know when you’re going to die.

Looking at it this way, I thought this guy might be a helpless warrior.

That’s how he rose to the position of Ten Swords in the first place.

Even if you are born with talent that will reach the sky, the state that can be reached only after going through countless training and hardships is the state of intention.

Although it may look like it on the outside, it is definitely not a position for someone who has no interest in nothingness.

If you think about that, there’s no way Hamel doesn’t have a warrior’s heart in his heart.

… Although I don’t really want to admit it.

“Alternative… What do you mean… !!”

Hamel shouted, now in a desperate tone.

I thought as I listened to that voice.

If you ask me what I saw a moment ago… Actually, I don’t know either.

It’s not my perfect technique, it’s just a technique I used haphazardly.

If we really want to analyze it… … .

Before Hamel changed like that.

When Hamel first fell.

I think it should be said that it is a step forward from the technology seen at the time.

What I used at that time was, so to speak, a simple cut using intention.

The same one used against tentacle wolves in the lake near Lakenwood.

And the technology we used a little while ago can be said to be a technology that goes one step further.

As I said earlier that I used it without thinking, it is not a technique that I was able to use from the beginning.

No, even if I were asked to use it again now, I honestly don’t think I would be able to.

Because it’s almost like I accidentally realized what I was vaguely seeing.

It started to appear some time ago.

Probably since the fight with the swordsman.

To be more precise, was it during the fight?

After giving my all in the fight against the swordsman and catching a glimpse of the warrior who had reached the distant state of being a swordsman, I began to see something vague.

When I woke up at Belle’s house, I tried to catch a glimpse of that blurry thing while I couldn’t move my body.

I replayed the fight with the swordsman countless times in my head.

The process wasn’t easy.

It took quite a while to make it as clear as dust.

But is it thanks to consistent effort over a long period of time?

At some point, I was able to see the outline to some extent.

And then I realized.

That it is ‘the road’.

The last technique I showed was a technique that incorporated the enlightenment I gained along the ‘path’.

I didn’t use it intentionally, I just used it accidentally.

I wasn’t sure at all.

I just vaguely felt like it was possible.

And it actually happened.

Well, that doesn’t mean I’m completely on that ‘path’.

I guess I should say that it just became a little clearer.

Anyway, I don’t know the answer to Hamel’s question.

If I were to express myself, I could come up with various answers, but… I had no intention of teaching that to Hamel.

“Do you think I will teach you?”

“You guy… … !”

“But.”

Hamel’s voice, which was about to scream again, was cut off.

“If you answer a few questions, just in case.”

“… … .”

Hamel became quiet.

He quietly looked at my complexion, then opened his mouth.

“… What is it?”

The voice has definitely calmed down compared to before.

I felt like this would lead to some level of conversation, so I asked the question that was on my mind.

“What happened to that body? Could it be something like a different race?”

My goal right now is to avoid the eyes of the Empire, but in the long term, my goal is to thwart the ‘Organization’s’ plans.

However, the ‘organization’ is shrouded in mystery from start to finish.

In order to deal with an ‘organization’, you first need to find out that information.

Originally, there was no way to get that information, but that corner suddenly appeared before my eyes.

It’s Hamel.

The energy that Hamel still exudes is very similar to that that Hayden had.

Since there is no other way for such an energy to exist, it would not be an unreasonable guess to think that Hamel and the ‘organization’ have something to do with it.

So, I must take advantage of this opportunity to dig up information about the organization.

However, going in like that from the beginning is not a very wise choice.

Even if it looks like Hamel doesn’t have the luxury of doing that on the outside, there is a possibility that he is judging me harshly on the inside.

In that case, it would be better to hide as much as possible how much this side knows.

So, I start asking questions under the guise of simple curiosity.

“I don’t know what nonsense you’re talking about. I told you so. I am human. I have been human ever since I was born.”

“Are you saying you were born that way?”

“… That’s not it.”

“Then how did you get a body like that?”

“… … .”

Hamel seemed to hesitate in response to my question.

How long had it been since then that Hamel’s mouth, which had been closed heavily, opened again?

“… It was more than 10 years ago. At that time, I was a warrior who was making a name for myself.”

And then it became Hamel’s old story.

About 10 years ago now.

Hamel was a military man who made a name for himself in his own way.

No, it would have been difficult to simply express it that way.

Regardless of his personality and strange body, his talent was real.

Moreover, considering his level now, even if it were 10 years ago, he would not have been at the level of making a name for himself.

“At that time, I was a mercenary, handling requests at random. Because I’m blinded by money and fame.”

From then on, he became a philistine person and became a mercenary to gain money and fame.

If he had jumped to the front lines, he would have gained enough fame, but he decided that dealing with monsters was not worth the money.

Hamel, who became a mercenary, was so talented that he quickly became famous without much difficulty and was able to accumulate wealth of his own.

Then one day it happened.

“A man came to see me.”

It was the first man I saw.

The man suddenly came to Hamel and made a ridiculous proposal.

“He said he would give me eternal life.”

It was a very suspicious suggestion.

“Of course, I refused at first. but… … .”

The man personally showed Hamel a sample of eternal life.

The sight of someone coming back to life even though their throat was cut and their heart was burst.

“In the end, I accepted the offer.”

Even though I saw such a scene myself, the suspiciousness did not change.

However, what they offered was too sweet to refuse simply because it was suspicious.

In the end, Hamel accepted the man’s offer and received the treatment for eternal life.

“A lot has changed since then.”

After receiving the procedure, Hamel immediately noticed a difference in her body.

Magical power could be accumulated and used more efficiently than before, and muscular strength was noticeably strengthened.

And my flexibility has improved to an unbelievable level.

Hamel was very satisfied.

however.

The law of the world is that if something comes, something must go as well.

“In return for giving me eternal life, the man asked me a favor. It was a request to kill a man.”

“… Is that Miguel?”

“Okay.”

“… … .”

Hamel calmly agreed and continued.

“They said it doesn’t matter if I refuse. But after listening to the story, it wasn’t a bad story for me either. It was an opportunity to take over the largest underworld in the large city of Aguillem, possibly the largest on the continent. In the end, I accepted the request, attacked Miguel, and killed him. And then he came to Aguillem and took over the underworld.”

“… Did your relationship with that man end there?”

“No.”

Hamel shook his head.

“After I took over the underworld, that man contacted me again. This time, he said he would help me get Aguilem.”

Hamel immediately accepted the offer.

“Even if he became the head of the underworld, he judged that it would be difficult to surpass Aguilem. Although I still thought he was a suspicious guy… Well, I thought there was no point in doubting at that time.”

Hamel, with the man’s help, finally took Aguilem into his hands.

And when he became the de facto king of Aguilem, the man appeared before Hamel’s eyes again.

“Then he asked if I wanted to join the plan.”

“What is that plan?”

I asked, swallowing dry saliva.

It was an important part.

From the context, it is clear that the man belongs to an ‘organization’.

Maybe we can find out the true purpose and plans of the ‘organization’ now.

With that in mind, I waited for Hamel to continue speaking.

Eventually, Hamel opened his mouth again.

“He said he was thinking of creating a new world.”

“New… The world?”

“Yes. He told me that he would completely destroy the current structure and rebuild the world from scratch.”

“… What are the specific details?”

“The specifics… … .”

I held my breath as I waited for Hamel to continue speaking, but no matter how long I waited, I could not hear Hamel’s voice.

Feeling puzzled by that, I looked at Hamel’s face again.

“… … !”

Hamel also looked embarrassed.

Hamel just gaped, as if he had no voice.

That was definitely a strange phenomenon.

A person who was speaking normally until now suddenly loses his or her voice.

That strange state continued for some time longer.

“This is… … !”

When Hamel’s mouth finally opened, his face showed obvious confusion and anger.

I noticed it.

What caused that phenomenon?

“… Forbidden zero.”

I also noticed.

The reason why Hamel could not continue speaking.

There is a ban on Hamel.

And it is not difficult to guess the person who imposed the ban.

Probably ‘the man’ that Hamel met.

“How dare you, how dare you… … !”

As if he had just realized that he was under a ban, Hamel became very angry and went on a rampage.

Since my neck was the only thing left, I couldn’t create much meaning.

I started walking slowly towards Hamel, who was running wild all the way.

“You… ! No, stop! Yeah, yeah! Save me! It looks like you’re looking into them, but as long as you let me live, I’ll help you! Let’s work together to defeat them… … !”

Hamel seemed to have realized my intention and began to shout urgently.

However, my steps did not stop.

“Stop! stop… ! Put aside old grudges and look ahead! Keeping me alive will definitely be of great help… … !”

Hamel shouted so loudly that the surrounding area rang, but my movements did not stop.

Pick up Hamel’s ink spear lying on the ground.

And, he aimed the tip of the spear at Hamel.

“Nenoooom… … !!”

Hamel, who realized that my will was strong, distorted his expression and became angry.

Fuuk─

The tip of the spear pierced Hamel’s head indifferently.

And, his voice was no longer heard.