episode_0127

Chapter 127 – Couple Breaker

A brief silence fell.

Sara, who had been stiff as a doll, soon turned to me, radiating intense killing intent.

“You… are you threatening me right now? Is that insignificant thing so important? Is it that important to satisfy your meager desires?!”

“It’s not like that. Do you think I want to do this? My semen is the cure!”

I had no choice but to reveal the truth.

If I didn’t, Sara might really break the potion.

If that happened, it would be over.

Abel would die, and Sara’s sacrifice and my efforts would be for naught.

At my words, Sara laughed awkwardly.

“Semen… is the cure? Don’t lie. There’s no way.”

“It’s true. Otherwise, there’d be no reason to do something like this. Do you understand now? Then give me the potion. We need to treat him immediately.”

I shook off the hand gripping my collar, snatched the potion, and walked past Sara towards Abel.

A dazed Sara quickly followed after me.

“It’s a lie, isn’t it? It’s a lie! Tell me it’s a lie!”

Sara, who had been desperately asking over and over, grabbed my arm and forcefully turned me around when I ignored her.

Her hand, gripping me, trembled slightly.

“Tell me it’s not. Please… tell me it’s a lie.”

“…”

I couldn’t say anything.

Even if I said it was a lie now, she wouldn’t believe me, and more than anything, I didn’t want to in this moment.

Sara, realizing the meaning of my silence, clung to me as if she would collapse at any moment.

“Then what you did back then was deliberate too? Why? Why did you intentionally try to be hated? You’re not trying to atone with something like that, are you? Huh? Answer me. Why did you do it?!”

With just the simple fact that semen was the cure, she understood the entire situation.

That’s why she was in such agony.

This foolishly kind woman thought more about the pain she had caused others than the pain she had received herself.

She regretted all the abusive language and hateful actions she had inflicted under the guise of rape, and she couldn’t bear how pitiful I must have been, having to endure all of it.

I had kept it a secret precisely because I anticipated this, but it had all been in vain.

My teeth ground together, uncontrollably.

‘It’s still okay.’

It wasn’t too late. I could still go back to how things were before. I self-brainwashed myself.

I let out a scoff.

“Hahahaha! You’re not seriously thinking I did that out of remorse, are you? Why did I do it? Because it was fun.”

“…What?”

“What’s fun about normal sex? I can do that any time. If I’m going to have sex with a woman who already has a lover, I need to make sure to savor that flavor. Even if they scream ‘no, no’ with their mouths, they go crazy for it as soon as I thrust. Do you know how funny that is? Professor Sara, even you said my dick was terrible, but you gasped every time I penetrated you, it was truly—”

It was almost enough to make me die laughing, you know?

Before those words could fully leave my mouth, Sara’s palm struck my cheek.

Slap!

A stinging pain spread across it.

I rubbed my cheek, then straightened my head to face Sara.

She spoke, tears streaming down her face.

“I was stupid. To have such a delusion. I’m a fool for pitying a bastard like you even for a moment. I’ll never believe your words again.”

Sara, declaring this as if making a vow, wiped away her tears, turned her back, and walked away.

I watched her retreating figure and smiled.

‘This is enough.’

My heart ached as if someone was forcibly tearing it out, but thanks to this, I had prevented Sara from breaking down, so I was satisfied.

I hoped she would now live happily with Verdan, without feeling any guilt.

…A corner of my heart felt a little cold.

Suffering from an inexplicable emptiness for a moment, I quickly gathered myself and hastened my steps.

Not long after, I arrived where the group was and immediately used the potion on Abel.

I unbuttoned his shirt and evenly sprayed the potion over his abdomen. Thankfully, it was absorbed directly through his skin, purifying the penetrating demonic energy.

If spraying hadn’t been enough, I would have had to make him drink it.

The thought of the first person to consume my semen being a man made me want to vomit just imagining it.

At least if it were a woman, I could feel some sense of depravity.

‘I’m not even gay.’

Feeling uneasy, I finished spraying the potion and stepped back, whereupon Uni immediately clung to Abel.

“Abel. Abel, are you conscious? Abel!”

“Mmm…”

Her desperate calls seemed to have an effect, as Abel groaned and slowly opened his eyes.

The girl’s face was reflected in his dark pupils.

“Uni…?”

“Yes. It’s me! Thank goodness! Really, thank goodness!”

Uni let out joyful cheers upon seeing Abel, who had narrowly escaped death, but she couldn’t easily approach him.

This was due to her fear that his injuries might worsen.

Seeing this, Abel smiled faintly, then his expression hardened as if he’d made a decision, and he pushed himself up to embrace Uni.

“Ah, Abel?”

“It’s good that you’re safe too, Uni.”

“…Yeah.”

A flustered Uni buried her face deeply into Abel’s shoulder, seemingly embarrassed by his whisper, and nodded slightly.

Only Verdan was smiling at that fresh sight.

Both I and Sara, who knew the truth, couldn’t easily feel happy.

Soon, Abel, having finished his display of affection, shifted his gaze to me.

“Ruan. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Same here. Why do you always seem to be involved whenever something like this happens?”

“Ahaha… Right. It is strange.”

Abel, scratching the back of his head awkwardly, then greeted Verdan and Sara as well.

After hearing what had happened after he lost consciousness, he continuously expressed his gratitude to Sara and me.

“Professor Sara. Thank you very much! And thank you, Ruan. I’ll repay this debt someday.”

“Of course you will. Be prepared. You never know what I might ask for.”

“Of course! I’ll prepare diligently!”

Abel just laughed, content.

In contrast, Sara shot glances of distrust and suspicion, wondering if I might make some outrageous demand.

How long had I endured that gaze? Then, from one side, Holy Knights appeared with a rustle.

The Holy Knight who had been leading the charge saw the dead trolls and ogres, and then the group, and seemed to grasp the situation, offering a bow.

“We rushed here after receiving an urgent call, but it seems the situation is already resolved. We pay our respects to all of you.”

Then he exchanged awkward glances with Abel.

‘Had they already arranged everything?’

I thought it was strange how Abel rushed at the monsters without any hesitation; it seems he had something to rely on.

The problem was why the Holy Knights only arrived long after everything was over.

As if thinking the same thing as me, Verdan asked a question in my stead.

“I didn’t expect the Holy Knight Order to arrive. Were you stationed here?”

“Yes, that’s right. We would have arrived sooner if we hadn’t been caught in a barrier on the way. We apologize for our delayed arrival.”

“A barrier, you say?”

“Yes. It seemed to be a type of spatial magic. We ended up getting lost because of it. The same path kept appearing, and it took a long time to break through. We truly apologize.”

As expected, there was a reason for their late arrival.

I had expected it, but Ethan Gloucester had acted in advance.

‘I was lucky.’

I don’t know when the barrier was set up, but I almost didn’t arrive on time because I was blocked by it.

I’ll definitely have to prepare thoroughly so that this doesn’t happen again. First, I’ll need to neutralize surveillance magic.

‘Is there anything suitable…?’

Completely blocking it would conversely raise suspicion, so I should aim for a method of deception.

If all else fails, I’ll have to ask Deborah.

As the Gray Tower Master, she should be able to create a magic tool capable of deceiving Ethan Gloucester’s surveillance magic.

If not now, when would I use my connections?

While I was formulating a plan inwardly, the Holy Knights handled the situation.

“We’ll take care of things here, so you may all leave now.”

“Haha! Then we’ll leave it to you. Please excuse us. Kids, let’s go.”

And so, under Verdan’s lead, we descended Mount Berdia.

What a truly shitty day.

*

Sara and Verdan were walking side by side down an alley in a residential area.

“I really didn’t expect things to turn out this way. I was quite surprised.”

“…Indeed. I never imagined it.”

Just as she was trying to compose herself and make a fresh start, she had sex with Ruan again—could this be considered a trick of fate?

Thanks to this, she now had no idea how to face Verdan.

The memory from earlier came back.

His refusal to elaborate when he mentioned having a secret, and her eventually suppressing her curiosity and letting it go.

Even though she clearly sensed something strange through his flimsy excuses, she had let him go, trusting only in him.

And she had betrayed that trust.

Of course, in exchange, she learned that the pleasure she felt during sex with Ruan was due to the aphrodisiac, but she wasn’t happy about it.

Because of this incident, she also realized that she would make the same choice if a similar situation occurred again.

If she were ever in a similar situation someday and Verdan found out, she wouldn’t be able to bear it.

Accepting his feelings for the sake of atonement could be an even greater betrayal.

It would truly be better for him if she had never started anything at all.

Just as Sara was lost in her own thoughts, Verdan’s steps halted.

She looked up and saw a house.

This house, with its striking red roof, was where Sara lived.

“We’ve arrived already. I wish we could have stayed together a little longer.”

“…Thank you for walking me home.”

“You’re welcome. Well, go on in. See you tomorrow.”

Verdan waved his hand.

Sara, waving back at his kind smile, turned her back and stood before the door.

Just as she was about to unlock it.

“Sara-ssi. Can you tell me what the secret is?”

Verdan’s low voice made Sara’s body freeze.

She slowly turned to face Verdan.

“…”

“I know it’s supposed to be a secret. But I’m just so curious. Hahaha… Can’t you tell me?”

Anxiety hidden behind a playful smile.

Verdan instinctively felt that the current relationship between Sara and Ruan might be the worst he could imagine.

Sara wanted to alleviate his anxiety, but in the end, she avoided it.

“I’m sorry. I promised to keep it a secret.”

“Is that so? Haha! I apologize for asking something awkward. I’ll get going now. It’s getting late.”

At her firm refusal, Verdan was flustered but pretended to check his watch and quickly left.

Sara, who had been staring at his retreating figure, collapsed the moment Verdan completely vanished from sight.

Hngh… Hngh!

Her vision blurred.

Tears streamed down her cheeks, gathered at her chin, then fell to the floor and shattered.

She wept endlessly right there.

“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry…”

As she ceaselessly repeated her apologies to Verdan.