Cardboard Houses Do Not Tear

38 – Those to be protected and those not to be protected

The not-so-wide mountain road has now completely narrowed.

The mountain road dyed in red showed everything naked.

Betty’s string tightened, and Mark stared at me without saying anything.

I don’t know if it’s because of the geothermal heat or because I’m constantly moving, but the inside of my shoes feels hot, like walking on the asphalt on a summer day.

“Whoa.”

He sighed nervously and brushed his left hand.

Her arrowhead twitched and trembled for a moment, but sadly her arrow didn’t fly.

My plan to get Betty frightened by my gesture and firing her first shot went wrong.

But it was okay because I sent a hand signal to the squad leader behind me.

‘Retreat.’

She very slowly raised her hand and opened her mouth.

“Thank you for waiting until I wash my hands, but how long will you be standing there?”

She took her sword with both hands and pulled it over her right shoulder.

“Or should I go?”

At the same time, I pulled her arm a little more.

From their positions, their mouths were covered by their forearms, to the point where they wouldn’t move.

“Don’t go backwards, move sideways and settle down.”

And whispered very quietly to the back.

Of course, the hand signal earlier was a decoy.

You should have clearly seen the hand signal I sent earlier.

Because the mouth of the archer in the distance was smiling.

So, the instructions sent a little while ago on public hand signals that were deliberately slightly revealing must have been counter-detected.

Because they said they worked with mercenaries too.

If Betty had her head, she would be aiming for the squad leader first, and her arrows would obviously be pointed slightly behind her.

So, making her first step miss is the goal of this little prank.

“I’m going.”

With a small whisper, I ran right away.

Pasarak, the dried leaves crumbled at the tips of my feet.

The quickness of surprise was only effective in the first one. Not twice

―Peeing!

Slightly late, there was a gong sound, but there was no destructive sound.

“Damn it!”

Judging by the nausea, Betty’s first shot missed, and her fake must have been eaten.

At the same time as I charged, Mark also ran from the other side.

Suddenly, a tingling sensation came up in my side.

She was targeting me this time.

So before Betty’s arrow flew, I ran diagonally to the right of Mark.

“Mark! Get out of the way!”

Fortunately, the diagonal lines overlapped. The archer has lost where to shoot.

I couldn’t hear the sound of the crossbow. It seems that the leader of the Priyanian squad has not yet taken his place.

I shouldn’t have given him time to get out of the way if she didn’t want to become an arrow holder before she even dealt with the archer.

Shhh!

As her left foot firmly planted on the ground, Selendian stabbed Mark in the shoulder.

Kaang!

“Big!”

The sword and mace touched each other, and at that moment, I pushed the guy with strength in both legs.

The moment you try to entangle yourself with strength.

A peeing sound came from the side.

―Ting!

“Ugh!”

An arrow that would have increased my helmet size to 60+ if I hadn’t lowered my head quickly grazed my helmet.

It was a ricochet with a miraculous tea time angle, but the impact made my head shake momentarily.

Feeling dizzy, I instinctively took a backward step, and ironically, that saved me.

Hooung!

Mark hit me where I was just a moment ago with his left hand.

The momentum of the fist that shreds the air was unusual, it was clearly an attack loaded with mana.

f*ck you. Could have been ribs/bones, not ribs.

I was afraid to step back and shake my head to straighten up, but this time it dug in.

It was because he didn’t have a shield.

“DIE!!!”

Mark roared and swung his mace at random.

The banging sound was terrifying, but as with all cutting, there were rules.

That’s why I unconsciously combed and avoided it.

I thought I could hear an ensemble full of metal sounds, but I didn’t hear it.

Like when playing a rhythm game, your hand gets twisted the moment you recognize a key you hit without realizing it, and you die the moment you recognize that.

That was certain.

That’s why I didn’t listen.

“Ahhh!!!”

At some point, the performance ended, and a mace was inserted vertically as if a pianist was giving a finishing accent.

The bastard sword had a longer reach than a mace and had to be wielded with both hands.

A certain amount of distance is required to apply power.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not something to kneel down in close combat.

The longsword I carry is double-edged. Took advantage of it

I raised the sword horizontally right above my head and swung it while twisting my body.

Kang!

As I hit the mace hilt with the back blade of the bastard sword, I heard the sound of metal clashing.

The trajectory that had been hit vertically was distorted, and Mark’s front was completely opened.

As it was, he swung it horizontally again and was about to sever his head.

I saw something reddish in the diagonal direction to the right.

Instinctively, the body ducked backwards.

Ping!

Something tinged with light swayed past my eyes, and Betty, who fired a shortbow at me from a distance, shouted.

“Mark, be careful- kyaaak!”

From where she was, a pop was heard.

I don’t know if Betty was hit, but the prianian squad leader succeeded in repositioning.

“Damn it, Betty! Guard your body first!!”

Mark quickly pulled himself away and shouted something, but it sounded different to me.

‘A while ago, the squad leader said he had five rounds left.’

And I just fired one shot.

So I don’t have to worry about enemy archers while she fires four rounds in front of her.

I only remembered that fact.

“You f*cking bastards! Where are you guys messing around and f*cking?!”

Then he charged again while provoking.

“I’ll cover you with dirt, so let’s lie on the ground together!!”

“You bastard!”

The trajectory of the mace he wielded was slightly distorted, as if he had been angry with him for saying that earlier.

It was rather good.

Kang!

Once again sword and mace met crosswise, and her arms tingled slightly.

This time it seemed to be mixed with mana.

“Great!!”

Then the guy who was shorter than me started pushing me backwards with brute force.

The moment I fell after being pushed like this, it was obvious that my bone pain would break.

―Kagagagak!

I grabbed the middle of the sword blade with my left hand that had been holding the pommel, and pressed it down with my weight.

“Big!!”

“See!”

The mana he possessed allowed him to transcend his original strength, but he could not overcome his physical limitations.

So, even when he was almost pulled back, he was just a little bit ahead of me.

If he and I had opposite physical conditions, it would be me who would be weighed down.

His hands interlocked, and Mark’s raised sleeves rolled back, revealing a corroded left gauntlet.

I can assure you, if I could say one word right now, I would like to say this.

Look, you are the culprit.

But, right now, I can only say one word.

“That’s cool!!”

Suddenly, it started to get out of hand.

Kagak!

That’s why I pushed it hard once and quickly backed away.

I also thought that he could rest a bit by hesitating and taking backward steps.

“Whoa, hook. Kellogg!”

As I breathed in, I was filled with an acrid smell. I had to deal with it quickly and get out.

Oxygen mixed with carbon dioxide was supplied to the whole body, and I began to feel a tickle in my arms.

I think I will suffer from muscle pain this morning. If I’m alive until dawn.

I desperately wanted to feel that tingling pain in my head, and I let it out.

“f*ck. I somehow feel it.”

Listening to my self-talk, Mark stopped breathing and asked.

“I don’t know what crazy things you are talking about.”

It was a tacit agreement to take a breather.

“Looks more like a complete madman than a real crazy bastard.”

Mark looked bewildered and asked, pointing at the burning tree next to him.

As I watched the fallen tree with a lot of sparks floating in its place, he continued to speak.

“Are you crazy enough to set fire to the forest to stop monsters?”

“At least I am not a stalker who has been chasing pretty girls for months.”

Then Mark’s face contorted for a moment, and I could see his sleeves quivering.

But the tiredness suppressed the resounding emotions, so he didn’t rush.

It’s unfortunate.

I had to somehow get him to use up all his mana.

That’s why I kept making fun of myself.

“Why, even thinking about it makes you feel embarrassed? I just want to go back now, don’t you want to know why I did that?”

“Shut up!”

I decided to ignore Betty’s words and just do my own thing.

“Did you turn your eyes to a crossbow bolt stuck in the middle of your less than an inch forehead, play with your three inch tongue, put everyone in danger, and make the girl who loves you look around in the eye? Great.”

Judging by the tightness of my face, if there was a mirror in front of me right now, it would be dead.

But he forced a smile. The blessing that comes when you smile, because I was desperate right now.

“It really is an adult-like attitude. Mark.”

Then,

The plan to make the creature’s breathing as uneven as possible succeeded.

“Then what is adult-like? If you bury it in your heart and let it rot, is that an adult?”

“No.”

Overcoming or what?

I couldn’t even say that kind of floating cloud with empty words.

Did you say criticism without an alternative is criticism?

That’s why I criticized.

“At least you should have stopped Betty from getting in your way.”

In this situation, in this case, it was only a bad person to give twitching advice.

“What?”

The bastard’s face twisted.

“At least if you wanted clean revenge, you should have stopped Betty somehow, even in the carriage.”

“I’m not going to die just because of that.”

“At least, the other things were kept.”

Again, I heard the sound of a crossbow from somewhere behind, followed by a scream.

“Betty!!”

“……”

I shut my mouth.

I couldn’t keep it again.

With my last conscience, I couldn’t say that.

As I said before, there are always things you shouldn’t do before there are things you should do.

I have to be a person.

Anyway, the small conversation was over.

The revenge-blind man ran again, shouting.

An eyeless arrow shot by a man blinded by love flew.

And I started to feel my heart beating very slowly.

The flames shimmered very slowly, and the tip of the arrow began to be clearly visible.

The time for selection and concentration has returned.

And the result was simple.

K. Gagang.

Swinging with her diagonal line, Selendian split the last arrow she fired.

Through the two arrows, the eyes of someone who had witnessed a skill that would never happen again were stained with astonishment.

But the face was blurry, so I didn’t remember.

But Betty’s last shot was enough to get Mark to come to me.

“You bastard!”

Along with curses that slowly penetrated her ears, the mace was being stabbed straight down.

It was too late to retrieve the sword.

I needed something to cover his eyes, and it was enough for me.

The grains of oats I always carried around filled the air.

“What crazy!”

Patter!

His eyes were blocked as he used his left hand to fend off the grains flying in front of him.

Chack!

“Aagh!!”

The roasted oats that I always hung around my waist met the necessary and sufficient conditions for the aforementioned request.

To-do-duk.

The burnt grain was sown on the burnt ground.

Tuduk.

A drop of blood that wasn’t mine soaked it.

“Keuuugh…”

Mark wrapped around his stomach didn’t fall down.

-You should always aim for injury to the upper body. There are not one or two bastards who thought that if you scratched the skin of the stomach and scratched it, they would go after it, and then flew away after making some sheaths.

Far’an’s advice was helpful.

So, I decided to follow his advice.

-First! If you’re going to sword wrestling, stay a little lower and use your opponent’s weight balance!

Kagak made a sound and entwined the mace, then pushed through.

I was at the same eye level as Mark, and even if he loaded mana, he started to be pushed backwards.

This time it was time to practice Hwar’an’s second teaching.

-Second! If you only engage in a confrontation with swords entangled, you will be hit by an enemy’s sword flying from behind! Squeeze in and grab it quickly, or aim for the next opportunity!

“Room, defense-”

The embarrassed guy’s mouth started to open. The pattern on the robe began to glow.

Women’s robes were not simply items that symbolized memories with their daughters. Maybe it was the insurance Mark might have had.

But the opponent was bad.

Support!

After pulling the angle of the bastard sword a little further forward, I sliced off his right shoulder joint.

“Turn it off!”

– Last third! Aim for the easiest part to subdue, the joints. Asshole! Did you even threaten that the guards will catch you if you aim for the joint?

The pain stopped everything.

The light of the robe disappeared, and the spell was blocked.

At the same time.

A thud was heard as the mace fell to the ground.

But the sword did not stop.

The bastard sword continued to sever the fool’s limbs.

Mark, who had lost his freedom due to the tendons of his limbs being cut, collapsed on the ground.

***

The forest after all the battles was burning quietly.

It was difficult to breathe now. If you don’t move quickly, the monster will suffocate instead.

“Ser, Serpin.”

Mark, whose face had turned pale from blood loss, muttered as he looked up at the reddish sky.

I didn’t remember his face.

That’s why I only asked one thing.

“Is Serpin her daughter’s name?”

He nodded.

And he asked me.

“Betty, save Betty.”

I shook my head.

“Sorry, but he’s already dead.”

In exchange for buying Mark some time earlier, she was shot in the head by the Priyanian Squad Leader and died.

His face turned pale.

“Betty…”

As usual, I didn’t say anything.

Jerobeok, jeobeok.

She slowly walked towards her mark.

Then she pointed the crossbow and said.

“I’m sorry.”

Before the Priyanian squad leader could shoot her crossbow, I held her back.

Now it was the turn of the third party.

“I will do it. Go to the carriage first and wait.”

After the prianian squad leader went to the wagon, he grabbed a large stone that had fallen nearby.

Because Mark and Betty, who will be on the carriage together, should have been killed by the monsters, not by me.

It was absolutely necessary for a safe separation between us and them.

Before hitting the stone, I whispered a single word in his ear.

“May Serpin rest in peace.”

I don’t know why he said this all of a sudden.

But somehow I wanted to. Maybe it’s because I’ve taken on too much acting.

But at least I have no regrets about saying this.

Mark, who was surprised for a moment, slowly closed his eyes and said.

“I couldn’t protect anything.”

That was the end.

I forgot the thirty-eighth face.

And he protected what he had to protect.