It was a night when even the sound of chirping birds could not be heard.
The breaths of the group that approached the cabin through the dusk quieted. Upon close inspection, there were several suspicious points.
First, there were disturbingly few signs of life near the cabin.
It wasn’t that the presence of living humans had blurred. Literally, the merchants that had been so plentiful around the cabin had vanished.
Only a handful of mercenaries standing guard were yawning.
It was hard to believe that the dozens of personnel had left this area. If they had, they would have caught our eyes long ago.
The only possibility was that little ‘cabin.’
That small cabin had swallowed all the merchants whole. Only such a hypothesis existed in isolation.
Naturally, it was absurd.
I quietly held my breath and pressed my ear to the ground. Closing my eyes and focusing my hearing, I soon began to hear the faint sound of the wind.
The attention of the group naturally converged on me. I deliberately communicated with them through my lip movements.
‘There’s a basement.’
No further conversation was needed.
After reaching an unspoken agreement, our heads nodded. Each one pointed out a mercenary to deal with with a gesture, and then, with a leap, four silhouettes shot off.
Ugh, ack, ugh!
And then a crisp sound as someone was electrocuted.
The mercenary struck by the pommel of a sword didn’t even manage to scream properly. He simply rolled his eyes back and collapsed.
The mercenaries struck by Yulen and Celin fared no better.
At least one mercenary hit directly by Senior Elsi’s shock was about to scream, but the electric current that penetrated even his tongue completely blocked his airways.
What was unexpected was that Celin’s skill was beyond imagination.
She had originally relied on strength over speed. Naturally, I had considered the possibility that she might not subdue her opponent immediately, but Celin completed her role without even pulling out an axe.
The moment her elbow struck the mercenary’s solar plexus, he made a face as if he might vomit blood.
Her improvement had been remarkably swift. If things went well, she might aim for a higher level.
It depended entirely on Celin’s efforts.
Only after we had dealt with the mercenaries around the cabin did we dust off our hands and reclaim our voices.
“That was surprisingly simple!”
“Be careful, Senior Elsi.”
This was just the beginning.
It was a fact everyone knew without needing to add any further comments, so I walked over to stand before the cabin door.
At that point, Yulen and Celin naturally stood to my sides while Senior Elsi held the rear.
I chuckled lightly.
It was clearly a formation prepared for battle. Deep down, everyone understood.
The moment we opened this cabin, there would be no turning back.
I took a deep breath.
Several scenes began to float in my mind.
The first ambush by faceless assailants came to mind. It was somewhat sudden.
Why had the monsters been so ferocious that day?
And why did the faceless assailants aim for Liya instead of someone from the Holy Kingdom?
At that time, Liya had been crying and clinging to me. She had every reason to.
Bang! My kick smashed the cabin door cleanly.
With the splintering of wood, dust erupted. The scenery that unfolded before my eyes showed the merchants resting while eating and drinking tea.
Their attention turned to me.
It was no wonder I entered the cabin with a clap.
I forced a harmless smile.
“Is there anyone among you who has no connection to the Dark Cult?”
Blink, blink.
The merchants, staring blankly at me, repeatedly blinked their eyes. Some exchanged glances with one another, wearing expressions of bewilderment.
That was why I dared to provoke them again.
“… Delphrium bastard, speak up.”
After that came the stillness.
The merchants who had been frozen in shock all tilted their heads in unison. The sight of dozens of eyes moving simultaneously sent shivers down my spine.
After a brief silence among the merchants, one of them suddenly screamed.
“Gaaah!”
And their eyes turned red.
Every single merchant, who had leaped to their feet, was now ready for confrontation. There was no longer any reason to hold back.
Whack! The rays of light shot through the air.
It was a hand axe.
The straight trajectory slammed into the forehead of the leading merchant. Blood sprayed through the air like a herald of war.
Of course, this was just the beginning.
The silver axe blade danced in the air, reflecting the light. Following that, two swordsmen’s shadows rushed forward.
Thwack, thwack, thwack!
Every time the hand axe twisted in the air, blood splattered, and I rushed through. Countless silver lines were etched onto the body of a merchant who had tried to block my path.
It was truly a fleeting moment.
With a single burst, Yulen’s sword emitted light, and the merchant’s body was sliced apart. Celin’s full swing with her axe severed the upper bodies of two merchants.
It was a strike that didn’t even feel like it met with resistance.
Thud!
The battle axe lodged into the wall created a strong shockwave. Dust rained down from the vibrating cabin ceiling.
“Gaaah!”
Screams erupted like fireworks from all corners. Bright blue lightning weaved between the merchants, filling the air with the acrid smell of smoke. I occasionally simply pierced the remaining enemies’ hearts.
Kicking, cutting.
With every step I took, blood and lightning spilled. A merchant pierced through the chest by Yulen’s sword choked and spit blood, or another merchant who was cleaved in half from crown to base by Celin’s battle axe.
In the midst of the festival of blood and flesh, I grasped my memories.
It was the day I fought the Archmage.
On that day, I witnessed a surreal landscape. A path I needed to move towards someday, a boundary I wanted to push open.
Then I caught a whiff as well.
The rancid smell of blood, the unique stench of the Dark Cult.
Time was gradually reducing its flow.
Before long, my sword cut through the time itself, slaughtering flesh. The blade pierced the merchant’s solar plexus silently, his eyes wide with resentment and horror.
Then another merchant approached.
Suddenly, as one merchant fell, the arm of another pierced through the chest of the lifeless merchant. At that moment, my empty hand snatched the flying hand axe from the air.
That was the last moment.
Scarlet brain matter was scattered alongside fragments of bones.
My body, having evaded the forearm, finally pressed down on the corpse without hesitation. Drenched in the gushing blood, I hastily pushed two bodies aside.
Bang!
The fallen corpse startled the three merchants charging at me, causing them to leap back in surprise. The shadow of a beast swiftly pounced on one of them.
It was Yulen.
The merchant could not withstand the massive momentum and was pushed back and fell. Without hesitation, Yulen reversed his grip on the sword and pierced the vulnerable merchant’s throat.
Simultaneously, the hand axe was thrown, tracing the path of light.
The body of one merchant was cleaved in half, and the remaining one was no longer something I needed to handle.
Bang! Suddenly, a girl fell from somewhere and crushed the remaining merchant’s body.
Covered in blood, Celin beamed brightly.
“Ha, it’s over!”
With that signal, the hand axe returned to my grip. The devastation created by the three swordsmen was nothing short of horrifying.
Body parts lay strewn across the bloody stream. It was rare to encounter a corpse that had avoided instant death.
A whistle of amazement escaped from Senior Elsi’s lips.
“I don’t think I need to step in!”
“It’s too early to relax. We still have the basement to check out.”
In response to my banter, Yulen scratched his head, wearing an irritated expression. He was making it clear that he genuinely didn’t want to go down into the basement.
“Ian, wouldn’t you rather be satisfied and head back? After all, we have no idea what kind of monster might be lurking down there.”
Of course, it was a futile suggestion.
I made sure to find the secret passage hidden behind the bookshelf. A long staircase awaited us in the darkness.
The torch-lit vision guided me.
As I stepped down each stair, memories scratched at my mind.
My younger sister, Liya.
She had been timid since childhood. When she first met me, she couldn’t easily open her heart and would watch me with cautious eyes every day.
Due to her timid nature, she would tremble for days after being startled.
Several scenes sequentially flashed across my retina.
Liya, laughing brightly while talking about money and kissing my cheek.
Liya, trembling as she sat before a masked man.
And Liya, laughing joyfully as she conversed with merchants in the town.
“… Ian?”
That low call brought me back to reality.
Yulen was looking at me with a worried expression. So were Senior Elsi and Celin, of course.
“Are you okay?”
Of course, I wanted to answer immediately, “Absolutely.”
But in that moment, I found myself at a loss for words. Yet the hesitation didn’t last long.
Soon, a wry smile appeared on my lips.
“… Of course, idiot.”
Yulen pulled back his hand without a word. There were already very few stairs left to the basement.
Just as a heavy silence was about to settle between us.
“Gyaaaaah!”
A scream erupted from somewhere. It was clearly the sound of something coming from the place we were heading.
Yulen and I exchanged glances. After nodding, we hurriedly descended the remaining stairs. The deep basement revealed an unexpectedly vast space.
A blood-red sphere resembling the sun loomed from the ceiling.
Among children with unknown names, a pale girl lay sprawled on the ground. She was the child scheduled to be adopted through the Shylock Guild’s mediation.
And there was one girl trembling as she knelt.
Fear was evident in her golden eyes. Following her gaze, I noticed a man standing with his back to us.
Perry Kuars.
The man we had been chasing.
