The grim atmosphere was wasted on her. Lost in her thoughts, she hummed as she walked through the darkness beside Marco, or it would have been more accurate to say that they both walked through a well-lit cave tunnel.
Hoshino a Light mage, after all.
By all means, Marco should have been grateful to be paired with her, but he had been forced to listen to her nonsensical blabber ever since they’d entered.
He sighed.
“AAAH!!”
Marco whipped his head to Hoshino, his heart skipping a beat. There she was, brought to her knees and clutching her right hand.
Startled, Marco ran to her. “W-what’s wrong?!”
Hoshino’s breath caught in her throat and she spoke with a clear strain in her voice. “I-it’s–”
He had to act fast. “O-Okay! I’ll bring out a health potion, just hold on a moment!” Marco said as he hastily opened his inventory. He did not know what was wrong with her, nor if that would help, but it was the best solution he could think of.
However, he could not even reach into it before Hoshino let out another scream and brought her hand to the air. “It’s the power contained within my right hand! My limitless potential has come at a great cost!! I must harness it and truly bloom into the genius that I am!”
A theatrical indignation filled her face.
Marco froze. He couldn’t believe his eyes. “...Are you serious?” He stood up, and began walking away.
Marco was never one to be unable to take a joke, but enough was enough. There was a difference between being somewhat quirky and outright crazy.
He thought as his heavy steps echoed.
Hoshino scrambled to her feet. “W-wait, Knight of Iron! The darkness within me threatens to consume my very soul! We must defeat it together!!”
Marco sighed and rolled his eyes. “Sure. Let’s just reach the end of this tunnel and head back. Then we’ll find someone to fix that head of yours.”
“W-what!? There’s nothing wrong with my head!!” She exclaimed.
“So you speak normally.”
Hoshino’s cheeks reddened. “The great Star of Justice is nothing if not righteous of heart and mind!”
“Huh Huh.”
“W-Why are you walking so fast, Knight!? I said wait!!”
She struggled to match his pace, and while Marco's gaze was fixed forward, her usual grin faltered for a moment, thinking of what had just happened. She’d fooled him, but the gravity of her situation weighed on her mind.
She thought.
—
The fire served as the only source of light for Verity. It flickered, and danced around them, making it less than ideal, but it had to do.
Midnight was like a furious whirlwind of attacks engulfing him. Her sheer physical prowess, coupled with how she blended into the darkness itself made her into a fearsome opponent. She was undeniably at a much higher level than Verity, and even her equipment was better.
There was the potent poison of her daggers, but also her boots, which seemed to gather the very air below her feet, and her leather vest that possessed a strange safeguarding enchantment.
In contrast, Verity was a bastion of resilience. His opponent was too swift to follow, and too agile counter-attack, but if there was one thing he was good at it, it was defending, surviving. Midnight aimed for the gaps in Verity’s armor, but so far, the edge of her dagger had met nothing but cold steel.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Verity used Limbo to its maximum output, standing amidst the fire as an impenetrable wall.
Midnight clicked her tongue as she circled around him, her hands recoiling from a flawless parry.
The poison.
His wounds.
The fire.
Any of these three factors could have spelled his end, but that was inconsequential. Verity was simply gauging Midnight’s strength.
He scoffed.
Yet, Verity was convinced he could win.
Midnight’s dagger technique was good, excellent even, but it could not compare to the Nine Hells Spearman ship.
The Thief class excelled in infiltration and assassination, but it fell short when it came to direct combat.
And most importantly, Verity could feel it, the edge of her blade was…Not in sharpness, but in intent.
Midnight’s feet hissed against the floor, and she propelled herself toward Verity at a staggering speed.
Verity saw her coming, but he did not move.
Time slowed, and Midnight frowned as Verity seemingly did nothing to stop her.
She wondered.
That's what she wanted to believe, but her instincts told her that there was no trick. As she looked into his eyes, it was clear, he truly had no intention to stop her.
Her dagger was flying toward Verity’s neck, and even when it was but an inch from his throat, Verity stood still.
Midnight’s eyes widened.
[The skill is being activated.]
Verity faded, his body intangible, and Midnight’s strike slipped right through, as if she’d missed.
She struggled to stop, her momentum carrying her forward. As she turned around, Verity’s spear reflected against her pupils.
His spear shot for Midnight’s hand at lightning speed and one dagger went flying, never to be seen again.
Midnight growled, unimpressed. ‘She thought as her weapon flew away.
She had daggers, and she was just as adept with wielding one as she was wielding both. In this split second, she questioned why Verity hadn’t just ended her then and there. This was his chance, and Midnight thought he had let it slip away.
However, Verity had not planned to stop there. He exhaled sharply and Midnight felt a chill run down her spine.
Her survival instincts reacted before she could. She shifted her grip on her remaining dagger and drove it into Verity’s side.
He winced, she’d gotten to something important.
But he also grinned. The moment her dagger moved, he’d dropped his spear, the steel echoing against the stone. When it plunged into him, he held her wrist in place with his right hand, and with his left, he held her other hand.
Midnight furiously tried to break free, but she could not. She was trapped.
She was at least twice Verity’s level, but at this moment, her strength was lower than his. In the first place, it was an undesirable stat for a Thief, and with the boost from Beyond Reason, Verity’s physical strength barely surpassed Midnight’s.
She screamed. “LET ME GO!!”
Verity did not care. He sneered, cocked his head back, and headbutted her with all his might.
CRACK
Midnight staggered back, her eyes wide in shock. As low as her strength was, so was her physical resilience, as would have it the law of action and reaction.
Her skull barely held together under the impact, but her brain shook violently inside of it. She clutched her head.
Suddenly, without her understanding why or how, her world spun, and she found herself laying against the cold stone.
Above her stood Verity, pointing a spear at her throat. “I win,” He said flatly.
—
Jerin brought a hand to his temple, groaning. Something was speaking to him, but every time he tried to listen to it, the meaning slipped through his fingers, ever elusive.
Perhaps he’d need to go on vacation after this mission. Fatigue was getting to him, or so it seemed.
“Are you alright Mister Knight?” Felicia asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
Jerin grunted. “It’s Sir, or just Knight, not ,” He told her, annoyed.
Felicia chuckled and glanced around, following behind Knight Jerin.
Erilsa nodded beside her, hovering in spectral form.
Felicia frowned. If even Erilsa was wary, then perhaps this was something even she couldn’t handle. She tapped Jerin’s shoulder. “I’m not one to shy away from a good challenge, but I have a bad feeling about all this Mister Sir. We should turn back.”
Jerin swatted her hand away, his temple throbbing.
He staggered slightly. blinking as his vision wavered. “Mister Sir is even…worse.” He had difficulty speaking. “And…we’re almost there…”
Felicia narrowed her eyes. “...Almost where, if I may ask?”
Before he could answer, They saw it.
Ahead, something glowed softly, a soft light breathing rhythmically. Their feet moved on their own.
A flower in the darkness, nearly ready to bloom. Its stem was of a breathtaking lilac while its petals were of a crimson red...or perhaps that was due to what was contained within, the source of that glow. Its beauty was such that it was almost painful to look at.
It called to them, whispered in their ears, and they both could not help but to look back at it. “Beautiful…” Felicia muttered.
Erilsa's cry pierced the fog clouding Felicia’s mind, and she shook her head as clarity returned. “What the hell was that…?” She mumbled, rubbing her temples.
Erilsa’s voice was low. Cold. Dreadful. ‘It’s a demonic seed. We need to leave. Now.’
But beside them, Jerin stepped forward and his hand slowly reached for the seed, as if pulled toward it.
I've come..."