NOVEL NEXT Chapter 48
Chapter: 48
‘What should I do?’
Honestly, everything the guy said was spot on. Without that demonic sword, I was just a complete amateur.
‘But pulling out the demonic sword now feels a bit… off…’
Gargandoa was optimized for killing and absorbing blood, and he didn’t really get the whole idea of sparing a life. Because of that, I hesitated to bring it out.
‘What if I accidentally kill them?’
They weren’t your ordinary swordsmen; they were gladiator slaves. That meant they had owners. If I killed them carelessly, I might end up having to pay for them.
‘Maybe I should just pretend to fight and go down?’
It would feel a bit bad, but no better ideas floated to the surface. With that thought, I picked up the sword.
“Are you challenging me to a duel?”
“Who are you talking back to?”
“You started it, so I thought I could too.”
Why does he want me to be formal when he’s being so casual? It wasn’t like he brought a top-tier gift like Bianca did anyway—his rudeness was just plain annoying.
‘Maybe I should just whip out the demonic sword… No wait, let’s keep that for when I’m really fuming.’
As I was thinking about it…
“Die!”
“…!”
The guy charged at me without even getting into a ready stance. It was a sneak attack—totally cowardly for a so-called “duel.”
Thwack!
His sword stabbed right at my gut.
“As expected, a total idiot.”
He chuckled as he swung his sword to the side. I felt the sickening crunch of a rib breaking and piercing through.
“Cough, cough!”
Blood exploded from my lungs. Though honestly, it was a bit too much.
Swoosh, splat!
“What the hell?!”
The slave stepped back, shocked as blood sprayed out like a fountain at full blast, losing all his bravado.
“Bleh!”
I gagged out the blood filling my mouth, wiping my lips with the back of my hand.
“Ugh, got blood all over my outfit.”
“What?! How are you still standing?!”
His eyes were darting between my upper body and face. Not just him; the other slaves watching from a distance were freaking out and backing away.
“…? I’m standing because I can.”
*
“What the… Are you undead or something?!”
The guy was sweating bullets. Undead—those immortal beasts that might lose control and attack at any moment? Yeah, no one wants to get killed by one of those.
“Yikes!”
In a panic, he lifted his sword high, aiming to slash my shoulder this time. It sliced through my shoulder and into my left chest.
“Hah, haah… This time for sure—”
Grasp.
“…?!?!”
“Could you pull the sword out now, or should we keep fighting like this?”
I casually grabbed the part of the blade stuck in my body and lifted it in the air. The guy looked completely bewildered.
“Ugh—”
As I yanked the sword free from my shoulder, his face went ghostly pale. Suddenly, one of the slaves from a distance charged in.
“Take this!”
Flash!
He held out a palm-sized brooch. A bright white light burst forth towards me.
“This brooch has divine power!”
“Wow, a rare item…”
“Nothing’s too valuable for a friend!”
While those two were busy bonding, an unwitting voice of an undead rang out.
“Wow, my wounds are healed. Thanks!”
“…?!”
“…?!?!”
Clang!
The slave holding the sword dropped it and started retreating.
“G-Get away!”
“Eek!”
Humans freak out in the presence of the incomprehensible. For them, I was the poster child of that fear—a creature who wouldn’t die even when stabbed, standing around like it’s no big deal, casually pulling out swords lodged in its body. Plus, divine power had zero effect on me!
I looked absolutely terrifying—blood-soaked with a weird grin.
Unable to handle their visual and mental horror, the slaves flopped down to the ground and scrambled to escape.
“Please, spare us!”
“Monster… Monster!”
In a flash, the training ground was empty. All alone, I scratched my chin and looked down at my condition.
“Geez… And I don’t have many clothes to begin with.”
There was no way I could return to Iris like this. I had no choice but to chase after the slaves who had run away to nab some clothes. I had won the duel, so it felt only fair to grab something in return.
But I totally forgot one thing—how I might look to others. I was only worried about how Iris would see me and completely ignored how I appeared to the other slaves.
So there I was, walking through the hallways, dripping blood and holding a sword.
“Gasp…”
“Ugh…”
The people on this floor had seen countless bodies and monster carcasses. Yet, they shrank back and recoiled because I looked exactly like a serial killer on a rampage.
The ones cowering the most were the ones who had just seen my recent match. Having witnessed the horrifying scene of slaughter, they were already petrified without me needing to do anything.
‘Don’t make eye contact.’
‘What did he kill to leave that much blood?!’
‘He came out of that match without a single drop of blood on him, right?’
‘Oh man, seeing him hold a regular sword? So it wasn’t just an item that made him strong.’
As this unintended misunderstanding deepened, I finally found the room of the slaves that had fled. I asked another slave, and it was easy to find.
Knock, knock.
I knocked on the door where I thought a slave would be. No response.
“…? Is there no one inside?”
This is going to be awkward. What now?
Thinking hard, I knocked on the door again. The moment I did, the handle turned smoothly. Looks like they hadn’t locked it after all.
‘They must be inside since they said they would be. I’ll just go inside and ask; maybe they didn’t hear the knock.’
Since they had already been rude first, I opened the door without hesitation.
‘Wow, you can fit this much furniture in here?’
As I scanned the room, I noticed it had a lot more furniture than the one I shared with Iris. Of the two rooms, one was closed, and one was open. I peeked inside the open one, but it was empty. Only one room left.
‘They must be in there.’
I marched purposefully towards the closed door.
Knock, knock.
I knocked once out of courtesy, still ready to enter even if there was no answer.
Bang, thud! Crash!
Just as I was about to twist the handle, a loud ruckus sounded from inside. I immediately turned the knob and stepped in.
“Hiiek, hiiieek!”
A silhouette covered in blankets was screaming and bolting to the corner of the bed. It must’ve bumped into a shelf while panicking, as several items tumbled to the ground.
“Please, save me!”
“…?”
Covered in blood from head to toe with a sharp sword in my hand, I must have looked like a murderer barging into the room after slaughtering someone.
“Weren’t you the one in the training ground earlier?”
“No, no! That’s not me!”
The slave shook his head frantically.
‘Could it be I’m wrong…?’
When I tilted my head in confusion, the man slammed his head down on the bed, crying out.
“Yes, yes! That’s me! It is… it is!”
“Oh, in that case, I have a favor to ask.”
For a moment, his mind probably flashed to me shouting, “I’ll take your life soon enough!”
“I just need to use your bathroom—”
“Please, just spare my life!”
The two of us tangled up in our words in the air, followed by a brief silence.
“I don’t need your life; I just want to use the bathroom.”
“Oh, feel free! Use it as much as you want!”
I took full advantage of the guy’s bathroom and even snagged some clothes.
*
‘Oh no, I’m late. Really late.’
Ever since I returned from Bianca’s, Iris hated it when I left even for a moment. Of course, if it was unavoidable and I asked her to wait, she would quietly comply, though her cheeks puffed up in the meantime.
‘Still, it’s nice to see she’s showing more reactions and has wants now.’
Grinning, I arrived at the front of our place.
“Iris, I’m back!”
Normally, she’d zoom over and hug me, but today she was just sitting on the sofa, not budging an inch. As I got closer, she finally turned to look at me.
“Did something happen, Iris?”
“…”
Iris silently gazed at my face and then timidly reached out to hold the hem of my shirt.
“Different clothes…”
“Oh, I borrowed these from someone I know.”
“…”
For some reason, Iris looked downcast. Was it because I was late?
“Sorry, Iris. I’ll try to come back quicker next time. Were you lonely all by yourself?”
“…”
Without a word, Iris clutched my clothes tighter. She looked like she wanted to say something, lips moving as if about to form words, but then she shut up tight.
‘No way…’
I observed Iris’s troubled expression, pondering deeply.
‘Is she worried about going to the top floor following Bianca?’
I couldn’t think of any other reason for her to sport such a strange face. I remembered Bianca’s invitation.
‘Hmm… there’s a shadow that bites people randomly, so sending her off seems a bit risky.’
How should I explain that so Iris won’t leave?
*
As I grappling with my thoughts, Iris recalled what had happened just a moment ago.
Lian didn’t return even after the match ended, so she had ignored his advice to wait in her room and slipped out. For Iris, that took quite a bit of courage.
As she wandered around, a strong smell of blood suddenly invaded her senses. Drawn as if enchanted, she headed towards the source of that scent.