There was no mockery nor pride in those words, simply the cold hard truth. Verity had won. Though… if someone compared their injuries, they might not come to the same conclusion.
Blood was seeping through Verity’s clothes, dyeing it deep red, and the skin surrounding his wounds had started to undergo necrosis, turning dark and withering away.
His breath was uneven, his hands trembling as he held the spear to Midnight’s throat. He sensed that [Beyond Reason] was deactivating, and he was unsure how long he’d be able to endure without it.
Her vision blurry, Midnight spoke in slurred, broken words. “Kill… me…”
Verity said nothing. He simply raised his spear, and inhaled. His obsidian figure standing above her, surrounded by walls of flames nearly resembled a painting.
Midnight closed her eyes. She had no last words, nor anything she needed to do in this life. ‘Ah… so this is how it ends, huh…’
CRASH
She flinched, the spear’s blade landing an inch from her head. Verity collapsed to the ground, barely holding onto his consciousness. “What an idiot…” He said raggedly.
Midnight turned her head to him. “What…?”
“I… said.. That you’re an idiot.” Verity leaned against his spear, forcing his torso upright. “That story of yours makes no sense, but you insist on clinging to it… for what?”
Midnight bit her lip. She knew… she knew yet refused to admit it. A stubborn woman. “In the end… you won’t admit your wrongdoings…,” She spat with venom.
Verity scoffed, amusement in his voice. “Stupid enough to lie to yourself, and weak enough to believe it.” He leaned back, his hands pressed against the floor. His vision was slowly turning blurry, and dizziness was settling in.
He chuckled. “Not like I’m one to talk. I ran from the truth for years…I know what it's like to tell yourself all sorts of comforting lies...”
Midnight held her silence, but Verity continued, unbothered. “I get it. It’s easier to blame me than see your situation for what it is. The truth is obvious, but by lying to yourself, you can preser–”
“Shut up!” Midnight snapped. “What do you know!?”
Verity slowly turned to her. “I know that you’re a coward.”
“I said shut up!!”
She wanted to stand, grab his collar, swear at him a few times even, but she still couldn't move.
Verity pressed on, his calm amber eyes on Midnight. “You know I’m right.”
Midnight shrank under his gaze, and turned away. “Dammit…” She muttered.
She draped an arm over her eyes, covering them. “Dammit dammit dammit…”
She knew that Verity was right. There were too many holes in her story, too many inconsistencies.
Ash resisting the poison but not her was suspicious in the first place, but how had Eleanor resisted it?
Why had Ash insisted on staying inside the forest that night?
How could he have fought off Bagua, Verity and the entire bandit group by himself? He was strong, but not that strong.
And besides, when Midnight had returned to the battlefield afterward, the lingering traces did not resemble that of a large-scale battle. Something was amiss, and she had felt it all the way back then.
But as Verity had said, it was much easier to push those doubts aside and concentrate all of her anger on a single person.
As her previous conviction fell apart, piece by piece, Verity hammered the last nail in. He did not care for her inner turmoil. “Ash planned to sell you to those nobles. I stopped him. That’s the truth.”
He wasn’t sure how she would react to that information, but against all his expectations, she laughed. Her laugh echoed throughout the cave. It was a loud, hearty laugh.
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Her body, her heart, and her soul all agreed. That was indeed the truth.
“Let me guess,” She said. “Did he say something about wanting my blood?”
“...Yeah.”
Her fist sunk into the ground, her rage spilling out. “...I should have known.” A single tear rolled down her cheek. “I thought he was different… I thought I had finally met someone who saw me for who I was…”
This time, it was Verity who stayed silent. He allowed her to vent.
“We've been traveling together for over a year at that point… We had eaten together, laughed together, fought together…and so much more. He made me feel like I wasn't just a convenient tool, like I was a person too…”
The single tear grew into a silent trickle. “...And you’re telling me that was…all an act? Of course I don’t want to believe that…”
“...Yeah.”
She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand but the tears still wouldn't stop. “Beastfolk aren’t well received in this kingdom…or anywhere, really… I’d never let anyone get that close before...”
She stared at the cave ceiling as the flames dimmed, not that it would change whether she could see or not. “I knew, and yet I didn’t want to believe it because… If I didn’t at least have him then… then… I’ve never had anyone.”
If this was an anime, or one of the stories Verity enjoyed so much, perhaps he’d have knelt down beside her, and said something along the lines of ‘You have me now’.
But it wasn’t.
Verity barely knew her, and it wouldn’t have been sincere.
He simply clicked his tongue. “So what?”
Tears streaming, Midnight turned to him, disbelief etched across her face. “Seriously?”
Verity shrugged. “Yeah, so what? He was toying with you. Big deal! Where did that leave him?”
He was losing the light from the corner of his vision. He was dangerously close to death. “You’re here now, and he’s not. So what if he’s the only one you trusted? Do you know how many people there are on this continent? You’re young, intelligent, strong as hell, and incredibly pretty. You’ll be fine.”
Midnight’s eyes widened.
The best Verity could do for her was tell her how he honestly felt. It might have come off as insensitive, or even misplaced, but that’s what he could offer. “Who cares about an evil dead guy? Just forget about him and move on!”
His voice echoed, the last words repeated twice before fading into nothingness.
‘Just forget about him and move on!’
Midnight stared, her eyes even wider, and a dry chuckle escaped her lips. “...Wow, that really sucked,” she finally said, the corner of her mouth curling upward.
Verity’s head fell down. “Yeah… well… it’s the best you’ll get, so deal with it.” He clutched the wound on his stomach. “Anyways…you wouldn’t happen to have an antidote or something…by any chance?”
Midnight rose, her words caught in her throat, and Verity collapsed to the ground.
“Hey!!”
He woke up a few minutes later, his head resting on Midnight’s thighs. The first thing he saw were her pink hair and cat ears looming over him, both illuminated by a Light spell.
‘A dream come true…’ Verity thought.
He could check ‘resting on a pretty cat girl’s lap’ off his list of things to do if he ever was Isekai’d.
The list was quite long.
Midnight’s grin turned into a grimace. “Ew, wipe that smile off your face.”
She pushed his head off her thighs.
‘A short lived dream…’
He looked down and noticed that he was shirtless. Glancing around, he saw his armor and under coat nearly placed by the cave wall. “Did you undress me?” He asked.
Midnight raised an eyebrow. “How else was I meant to treat you?”
Indeed, he was somewhat sore, but his wounds had closed, and he could no longer feel the effects of the poison. Midnight had treated him. “So I guess you did have an antidote.”
“Of course, and I used expensive health potions on you.” She turned away, slightly embarrassed. “Well… not that I’d ask you to pay me back, since I’m the one who caused the wounds and whatnot…”
Suddenly, Verity heard the system speaking into his ear.
[The sub-skill -Minor Poison Resistance- Has evolved to -Intermediate Poison Resistance-]
[The skill -Never Again- has reached Lv.5. Your proficiency has increased.]
‘Huh, not bad. That’ll come in handy’
He walked to his clothes, and put them back on. He then swung his spear a few times, and nodded. “Shall we go?”
“Go where?” Midnight asked, raising an eyebrow.
Verity tilted his head. “Explore? Isn’t that what we were sent here for?”
“Ah! Right! That’s what this was, wasn’t it?” She replied, gasping.
Verity shook his head. “Ah yes, you must have been a little, preoccupied, with other things.”
Midnight’s cheeks reddened. “Could we maybe put this behind us? It’s all solved, after all, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know, I’m still somewhat sore,” He replied as he began marching ahead.
She followed after him. “Oh come on! You’re fine! I made sure of it! Do you even know how many coins I dumped on you!?” She looked around. “And how do you even know this is the right way!?”
He didn't, he had just guessed. “I have my secrets,” he kept marching forward. “In any case, what do we tell the others when we come out? Can you put that mask back on?”
Midnight put her hands behind her head, her tail swaying behind her. “Nah, I’ll have to get it readjusted by the craftsman who made it. I’m sure they won’t even notice the difference.”
They walked side by side, heading deeper into the cave. “Right…By the way, don’t you think ‘Dawn’, was somewhat of a lazy choice?”
“W-What!? What’s wrong with it??”
“Well [...]”
Twenty minutes had passed before they reached a glowing lilac flower with red petals, this one in full bloom.
Cold sweat ran down Midnight's temple and her eyes winded like they never had before. She grabbed Verity’s wrist and dragged him away, sprinting. “This is bad! And I mean, really bad! Don’t listen to anything you think you’re hearing, got it!!?”
She looked forward, not even daring to look back. “That thing is a demonic seed, and it has already bloomed. We need to get out of here! Now!!”
Verity struggled to match her pace, she had him beat by a mile when it came to speed. “A-Are demons really that strong?” He asked.
“I’d need a full party of platinum-ranked adventures to confidently take down the weakest of them!!”
‘W-what!? That strong?’
They reached the initial chamber in less than a minute, where they arrived at the same time as the two other groups. Felicia ran out, carrying Knight Jerin over her shoulder, and Marco did the same, Hoshino riding the wind at his side.
It seemed the three groups had encountered the same thing. Their faces spoke volumes.
“You guys too?” Felicia finally said.
Hoshino was the first to answer. “That flower, I’m not sure what it is, but… I have a bad feeling…!”
Midnight spoke over her. “Just answer this one question… The flower you all saw… had it bloomed, or had it not?”
“Yes…” Marco and Hoshino said.
“No... but it looked like it was about to.” Felicia replied.
Midnight clicked her tongue. That meant at least two demons, and potentially a third one on the way. How had they reached all the way over here? The demon’s territory hadn’t extended that far yet.
“Sh*t…!!”
It had gone from bad to worse. Without wasting another second, they had to flee because whatever had bloomed inside that cave… was already coming.