Senior Elsi’s breathing was heavy, having barely escaped from battle.
Her focus, held in her eyes, was growing blurry. Not even able to catch her breath, she had to face another attack from the monster—it would have been stranger if it hadn’t overwhelmed her.
Still, her life had been preserved, thanks to countless experiences in actual combat.
It was pitiful how the trail of blood dribbling from the corner of her mouth mixed with her irregular breathing, evidence that Senior Elsi’s injuries hadn’t healed.
Fortunately, it was Senior Elsi who had managed to free herself first.
Yulen and Celin still seemed to have some room to maneuver. Of course, as time passed they would become less effective, but the fact that they could endure at all was important.
The pair was coordinating their efforts to fight against the monster, and together, they were pulling off impressive moves. Yulen’s performance had been expected, but Celin’s was surprising.
She’s really improved a lot.
While I was letting out a sigh at this thought, a look of anger flickered in Senior Elsi’s blue eyes.
She seemed unable to suppress her boiling frustration.
Her small frame shakily but firmly stood on trembling legs, electricity crackling from her hands.
“The audacity to toy with someone like me, Elsi Rainelle…!”
The spear of lightning was growing larger. Its power might be unknown, but it was clear that this was a spell worth investing effort into.
She must be wanting to give the enemy a good blow.
However, Senior Elsi’s wish went unanswered.
“No!”
The urgent shout stopped Senior Elsi in her tracks.
I, along with her, turned our attention toward the source of the voice. There stood Yulen, flashing like lightning, blocking off the shadow-covered limbs of the faceless monster with his blade.
“The contract must be fulfilled! Don’t interfere, you don’t want to know what could happen!”
A smug curve appeared from the darkness.
In the bloody light, a maiden stood with her arms spread wide, waiting for me. The shimmering in her golden eyes created an ominous atmosphere.
For a moment, Senior Elsi and I locked eyes.
I shook my head slightly. In response, she clicked her tongue and fumbled through her belongings.
She was looking for a healing potion.
The girl’s leisurely proposal then continued.
“Come on, let’s fulfill the contract already? I need to be hugged sincerely for more than a minute.”
A groan escaped my lips.
An annoying clause was added. “Sincerely,” a condition that couldn’t be revoked since I had suggested it in the first place.
In the end, I had no choice but to trudge over to the girl.
Clang, clang, clang!
The sound of colliding weapons echoed incessantly from the side. Yulen and Celin were fending off the monster’s attacks.
By the time I found myself standing in front of the girl, she still smiled.
“Will one be enough?”
My body hesitated.
I looked at the girl with a complex expression. She was a sinner who had committed horrible acts, yet on the other hand, she was my lost younger sister.
The family member abandoned by us.
The woman had been captured by the Dark Cult. Surely, she was subjected to all sorts of atrocious experiments. There was no other way she could handle such power.
Her eyes, filled with conflicted emotions, seemed to take pleasure from the situation. Again, she asked with blazing irises,
“Would it be okay not to save those two? We could amend the contract’s terms…”
“Don’t listen to her, I-an!”
Again, Yulen’s scream cut through the air.
Though struggling to catch his breath, he was concentrating on our conversation with the girl incessantly.
“That woman is a merchant! She’d never make a deal without benefit for herself…”
Of course, the moment she clicked her fingers, Yulen’s words were halted.
Threads of blood began dancing around Yulen. As more threads attached to the limbs of the faceless monster, its punches and kicks grew incomparably faster.
And surely, their power would be the same.
I could only feel torn once more.
It was clear that with just Senior Elsi, it wouldn’t be enough. And alone, I had almost zero chance to reverse the situation.
Should I attach additional conditions?
At that moment, a loud explosion resounded somewhere.
In surprise, my gaze turned to a specific spot. There, a trembling and faceless monster stood with its arms crossed, its body dwarfed by the oppressive size of an axe.
A battle axe.
With bloodshot eyes, Celin swung the axe repeatedly, giving everything she had.
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!
GRUNT, GRUNT, GAAARR!
Initially, the monster seemed to be holding up, but as its body began sinking into the ground after several more axe blows, it had become half-buried like a stake in the soil.
The monster thrashed its arms, trying to escape.
However, Celin wasn’t about to let that slide, and a clean stroke followed, like swatting away a ball flying towards her.
SWIPE!
A silver streak cleanly severed its neck, sending its head and blood spraying high into the sky.
In the shower of falling blood, Celin shouted.
“We’re okay!”
Immediately after, with a fierce kick to the earth, Celin lunged towards Yulen.
Watching this from afar, the girl’s eyes slightly twitched in displeasure.
“Ah, that was one of my favorite toys…”
“There’s no need for a new deal.”
Thanks to Celin opening up the way,
I couldn’t let it go to waste. Thus, with firm resolve, I proclaimed again,
“Let’s finalize the contract as is.”
She clicked her tongue faintly. Still, with a slightly flushed face, brimming with expectancy, she stretched out her arms again.
“Then hurry up and hug me.”
I sighed deeply.
After so long, I was reuniting with my younger sister. I never imagined we’d share such a heart-wrenching reunion.
Do I even deserve it?
For a moment, I hesitated, but asking such questions now was meaningless.
Quietly, but with earnest, I embraced the girl.
I could hear her heart pounding. With the condition of “sincerely,” I decided to regard her as my sister, just for now.
She must have gone through so much pain and hardship.
That’s why she clings so desperately to her family. Full of hatred and resentment, but still yearning for my love, it broke my heart.
I understood why she accepted my trade proposal.
Perhaps the word “sincerely” had a decisive influence on her choice.
She was a child who’d never received love from her family.
Love and affection were things that could always be fabricated.
Therefore, the condition “sincerely” had to be attached.
Because contracts were far more trustworthy than people.
The fragile body of the girl filled up my arms in silence.
“Haa, haa…”
The girl’s breathing deepened. Her dazed eyes and disoriented expression suggested she herself didn’t fully understand these emotions.
That’s how a minute passed.
Whether it felt long or short, I separated from her gradually, unable to properly gauge the passage of time.
The girl had been entranced.
Her flushed cheeks, unfocused gaze, and heavy breathing betrayed her condition.
At least, she didn’t seem displeased.
Before the afterglow of the hug had fully faded, the girl absent-mindedly murmured.
“…This won’t work.”
Before I could return the question,
The girl took a step forward. With her hands behind her back, she looked up at my face with her intense golden eyes, the color of an overwhelming desire.
Or perhaps sheer madness would be a more fitting description.
Every time I tried to take a step back, the girl advanced, maintaining the distance between us. From that point, her incessant muttering began.
“I can’t help it… I have to have you… I can’t live without you. I want you, I want you, I want you… I’ll do anything… yes!”
With a clap of her hands, a lively expression returned to her face.
It was as if she’d just realized the perfect plan. Though truly, her pupils were still clouded with fierce desire, showing no signs of clarity.
“Let’s make a ‘contract’!”
Her cheerful proposal made my eyebrows furrow.
Utter nonsense. Especially coming from her, this wasn’t even worth discussing.
I shook my head without a second thought.
“No matter what you say, I won’t make a contract…”
“I’ll save you!”
As though dispensing some sort of mercy, the girl smiled brightly, placing her hand on her own chest.
“All of you! In exchange, you’ll become mine.”
As if our fates had already been decided.
The deal was, if not accepted, death would be the only other outcome.
That’s what the girl was claiming.
*
“I-an, thank you. Your sacrifice won’t be forgotten.”
“Shut up.”
Given that it was a decision I couldn’t make alone, I secured a brief reprieve by insisting on it.
When I returned to the group, Yulen put his hand on my shoulder, pretending to wipe away tears. The tone suggested that my sacrifice was already set in stone.
Of course, I disregarded it as nothing more than a silly joke.
In truth, I briefly considered getting angry, but Yulen’s body was covered in blood and dust. He, too, had been buying us time on the front line.
There’s no one who would want to yell at a comrade they trust their back with.
On the contrary, Celin and Senior Elsi were the ones to erupt in anger.
“You’re crazy, Senior! There’s a time and place for jokes!”
“Our Master? Absolutely not! Can’t you see that look in her eyes?”
At Senior Elsi’s words, the group’s gaze shifted slightly.
The girl was gazing at me with a dreamy expression.
Ever since she was held in my arms,
She hadn’t stopped.
Senior Elsi shivered, as though just imagining it was enough to send chills down her spine.
“Our Master is going to get eaten! It’s dangerous…”
Amid their protests, Yulen only groaned.
In a somewhat tired voice, he spoke:
“Then what do you suggest? Objectively, our strength doesn’t compare to hers. She is one of the Seven Deadly Sins.”
“The Seven Deadly Sins?”
It was a term that sounded familiar from somewhere.
