“Blessing,” Abiyang thought, already having received a “blessing.” At this rate, it was only a matter of time before he was found out.
Nevertheless, Leorick seemed to be in high spirits, even humming a tune.
There was no hint of suspicion directed at Abiyang.
He merely asked with a worried look, “Are you alright, brother? You appear rather pale.”
“Of course! I apologize for causing concern. It’s just so cold outside…”
“Ha ha, that’s a strange thing to say. Brother Wolf must be overheating in preparation for the ‘blessing.’ Or are there issues with the surgery preparations?”
Abiyang felt his muscles stiffening even more.
It seemed he had misspoken due to the tension. Leorick passed over it as if it were nothing, but even I was sweating nervously.
I hadn’t acted this way with the guards.
Abiyang must have considered Leorick to be the most formidable opponent. That was why his tension level had changed.
In this space, only Leorick was relaxed.
It was a privilege of the strong.
“Even if there are delays with the surgery preparations, it doesn’t matter. Today, a sister has willingly come to help… Now, please lie down on the bed.”
As Leorick turned his back, his broad back was revealed once more.
Without hesitation, his hand struck a box. Shortly thereafter, a thick rope was lifted into his grip.
No, it was a two-headed dog.
Despite being caught by Leorick, the two-headed dog could not move.
Instead, he was forcing the dog’s mouth open to extract its venom.
“The two-headed dog was once misunderstood as a minion of the evil god. An animal with two heads repeating eternal conflict… it symbolizes unresolved strife and war. In my youth, I questioned this. Why does the Lord leave such a malicious creature be?”
Abiyang couldn’t even muster a reply to Leorick’s lengthy speech.
He merely looked around in confusion, consumed by conflict. He had to prevent the surgery to receive the “blessing” at all costs.
Otherwise, Abiyang’s transformation magic would be undone.
“But while being with the elf brothers, I realized the truth of this two-headed dog! The never-ending struggle… it’s unavoidable. There’s only one way to end it.”
While Leorick continued to extract the venom, a chilling noise rang out.
The two-headed dog’s head was crushed, and blood poured out. Leorick meticulously adjusted the position of the cup to avoid missing even a single drop.
“…Eradication.”
It was then that Abiyang’s eyes hardened after a long hesitation.
There were still many questions to ask.
What kind of conspiracy was he planning with the elves, who was the betrayer from the human side involved in this incident.
How did they contact the Dark Cult, and what was their objective?
He also needed to ask about the “vampires.”
However, the situation was not good at all. It wouldn’t be a bad choice to take a step back and regroup.
Abiyang was likely aware of this as well.
“Uh, Leorick?”
“Ah! Don’t worry too much. The surgery isn’t painful at all. Mixing the two-headed dog’s venom and blood and injecting it into the elf will cause a unique chemical reaction. A powerful pain-relief component… it feels like floating in the clouds, perhaps? However, the hallucinations become too strong if injected directly, so it needs to be injected into someone else first for purification.”
Leorick’s endless rambling continued without pause.
Leorick’s calm gaze was changing. His breath grew heavier, and veins appeared in his eyes.
He was clearly getting excited.
“How beautiful is this transformation! The Lord’s design operates even in this insignificant creature… Ah, Emmanuel! And I deeply thank the sister who volunteered to purify this drug!”
If I hesitated any longer, I would be forced into surgery.
Abiyang, increasingly desperate, shouted, “Leorick! I… I don’t feel well… Can we postpone the surgery…?”
“Oh, just in time! The sister has arrived. Come here.”
However, Abiyang’s pleas were ruthlessly dismissed.
A strange presence hesitantly walked in.
Abiyang now had a decisive look in his eyes.
Would he attempt to escape while Leorick was distracted, or was there another way out?
I wanted to tell him to run right away.
Of course, nothing like that happened.
Abiyang and I were too far apart, and the Abiyang who was checking behind him froze in place.
Silence descended upon the dungeon.
A maiden stepped lightly.
She appeared to be just over ten years old, looking even younger than Abiyang. What should have been a doll-like beautiful face looked rather gaunt.
With dark circles under her eyes and bandages covering half her face.
The various band-aids on her bony limbs testified to her condition. There was no way to view her as normal.
Upon seeing her, Abiyang’s eyes locked in place.
Only his wide-open eyes revealed his astonishment.
Momentarily puzzled, I quickly came to realize why Abiyang had frozen.
The girl’s hair was gray. And her eyes were blue.
Similar in hue to Abiyang’s.
“…Betty.”
That faint murmur confirmed my guess as a reality.
It was none other than the name Abiyang had uttered.
The name of his younger sister, which I had heard once before.
However, Betty did not even notice the Abiyang resembling Wolf.
She simply clutched Leorick’s sleeve with trembling hands.
The girl pleaded with tear-filled eyes.
“Le, Leorick… please… inject… please…”
Her speech slurred, possibly due to weakened muscles. I covered my face with both hands.
This was serious.
Abiyang could not possibly maintain his sanity.
Leorick, as if feeling pity, gently stroked Betty’s gray hair.
“Oh, sister Betty… do not worry. While I may not have the power to heal your illness, I can alleviate your pain.”
“Hurry! Hurry!”
Betty’s demeanor was as if her intelligence had regressed.
Abiyang bit his lip, turning pale as if blood were rushing from it to endure.
It was a futile struggle.
As Leorick took the syringe and filled it with the drug, Betty thrust her behind out and began to drool like a dog.
Her eyes sparkled with elation and anticipation, a stark contrast to her dry, emaciated body, exuding vitality.
It was a horrific sight, almost too much to bear.
If I felt that way, how could Abiyang hold himself together?
“Damn it…”
As the pent-up anger escaped through clenched teeth, I immediately leaped to my feet. There was only one means left to save Abiyang.
Just before the connection was severed, Abiyang’s screams pierced my mind.
“You bastards!”
I crossed myself multiple times in silence.
May Abiyang be safe.
It was only a few minutes later when I attacked the guards at the “headquarters.”
Gasping, Ishya opened her eyes.
The time taken to be subdued by the sudden intruder had been alarmingly short. Even after regaining consciousness, she struggled to recover her memories.
All she could recall was the golden trajectory drawn and the lightning that had struck.
Then Ishya fainted.
It was an overwhelmingly strong opponent.
Ishya had never encountered a stronger enemy aside from Ian. Though her body trembled involuntarily, her strong pride made her manage to calm herself.
What was their purpose?
In Ian’s absence, there was no way to fend off this kind of intruder. Ishya immediately cried out in a quivering voice.
Fortunately, there was a woman nearby.
It seemed they intended to interrogate her, and Ishya swore she would uphold her loyalty even if it cost her life.
“Who are you! Do you truly expect to touch the elves and escape alive?!”
“Surprisingly, we have no interest in the lives of your elves.”
At least, not so far.
The woman with golden hair and blood-red eyes spoke. Ishya almost shut her eyes in horror at the eerie tone.
She felt it instinctively.
The women surrounding Ishya were all completely deranged. Starting with the blonde woman, there was also a small girl in a hooded hat and a woman with reddish-brown hair.
Their atmosphere was exceptionally terrifying.
It wouldn’t be strange if they swiftly cut off Ishya’s head.
“We’re only curious about one piece of information… What happened to Ian?”
“…Who?”
It sounded vaguely familiar.
When Ishya tilted her head in confusion, it was the girl in the hooded hat who became agitated.
She had a visibly anxious expression. At Ishya’s bewildered reply, the girl enlivened her voice at once.
“Ian Fercurus! Our master! You said he lost his memory! What happened to him?!”
Ah, Ishya belatedly sighed in realization.
She finally understood what they wanted to ask. Now that she mentioned it, the name “Ian Fercurus” came to mind.
Reflecting back, she had heard that he held a high status among humans.
From the respectful attitude of the soldiers, including Alex, to the women now threatening Ishya, it was evident. They had even called him “master.”
What’s more, they believed Ian had lost his memory.
Then an idea struck Ishya.
Perhaps she could rattle these arrogant women?
If she claimed to be an important person to Ian, they might regret treating her this way. And she might escape safely this way.
With a cunning smile, Ishya said, “Ah, I know! I’m his girlfriend…”
Just as the words were spoken, Ishya felt a chilling shiver down her spine.
The mood among the women became frigid.
Even Ishya, who had adapted to the long northern cold, felt a chill. Three women glared at Ishya in silence.
That was even more frightening.
No emotions were revealed on their faces.
Only their eyes expressed a cold animosity.
Despite that, Ishya attempted to bluff again.
“I-I’m his girlfriend…”
A faint spark crackled in the air.
She couldn’t tell what it signified. But Ishya’s instincts were sounding alarm bells frantically.
She was going to die.
In the end, Ishya squeezed her eyes tightly shut.
“I-I’m actually a very close friend of my boyfriend! Haha… What a coincidence, right? So we’re friends, too?”
As she finally sensed the atmosphere around her growing calmer, Ishya let a tear slip.
Humans are terrifying…
