Chapter 324 - Role (4)

I was running through the sewers.

SPLASH, SPLASH.

Filthy water reached my shins, spraying everywhere as I kept my gaze fixed ahead.

There were two people—a man and a woman. The man had shoved the woman against the wall and held a sword to her throat.

'Come on. If you were going to leave me behind, you could at least have stayed out of trouble.'

Tightening my grip on my hammer, I shouted at the top of my lungs, making the entire passage echo.

"VEHELLLAAAAAA!"

I had to draw his attention somehow and get that sword away from Amelia.

But...

SPURT!

As he withdrew his sword, blood erupted from Amelia's throat.

Ha. I'd thought he was only holding it against her skin. He'd already stabbed her.

And it looked as though he'd thrust it deeper once before pulling it out...

"... A barbarian?"

He turned his upper body toward me and muttered. I was wearing my iron helmet as usual, but he must have deduced my race from my battle cry and enormous build.

I used my ability to track moving objects to take a quick look at Amelia.

"Kh, khh... ugh...!"

With a hole in her throat, she pressed one hand over the bleeding wound and propped herself against the wall with her shoulder. Even at a glance, she was in bad shape.

But...

'As long as she's alive.'

Worrying alone wouldn't save anyone. What mattered most was sound judgment and the ability to act on it.

With that in mind, I kicked off again and dashed forward.

SPLASH!

The distance closed rapidly. Once we were within reach of each other's weapons, he unleashed a blazing Aura and swung at me.

BOOM!

I caught his Aura with my hammer.

A questioning look entered his eyes. He must have assumed that using Aura would let him slice straight through my weapon and me...

"A Numbered item."

Like a veteran who had seen it all, he found the answer in an instant.

'Quick on the uptake, aren't you?'

Still, I decided to focus on the positive. His little remark had given me a brief opening, hadn't it?

I swiftly reached out with one hand and pulled Amelia toward me while our weapons remained locked in a contest of strength. She didn't even seem to have the energy to stand, and her limp body slipped straight into my arms.

That was everything I needed to pick up, then?

"... So you're her companion."

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Then... you are my enemy as well."

Talk about stating the obvi—

"...!"

Our brief contest of strength ended that instant. Luhenpraha pressed harder with his sword and pushed me back instead. It felt incredibly unfamiliar, since no one had overpowered me recently, but there was no need to lose heart.

'His Strength is slightly higher than mine.'

I let the force carry me backward into a backstep. Naturally, he dashed after me. He was much faster than I was.

'His Agility is way higher than mine.'

So I was outclassed in the two key stats for close combat. On top of that, the Passive and Active Skills I'd painstakingly combined for their synergy were sealed, while he was freely pouring out Aura—my worst possible matchup.

'Seriously, does this bastard have no shame?'

Complaints aside, I quickly finished my assessment.

The gap in our capabilities was overwhelming. Under normal circumstances, even running away would be difficult.

But...

'I don't need to use that just yet.'

It wasn't a major problem. After all, put another way...

KABOOOM!

Didn't that just mean I had to create abnormal circumstances?

For example...

ROOOOOSH!

An underwater fight.

* * *

In the dark sewer, torches flickered. Fifteen or so men and women stood divided into two groups, glaring at each other like sworn enemies.

"What's that supposed to mean? Say it again, Dumbo."

"It's Derbon, not Dumbo."

"Same difference. You were always grinning like an idiot around that barbarian. I thought you liked it."

"What...? You little shit...!"

Their words were laced with unmistakable hostility.

Caught between them, Laura Reinweils clasped her trembling sister's hand tightly and thought that she would never have followed them if she'd known this would happen.

'Why are these people doing this even now...?'

She simply couldn't understand.

At first, it had only been a minor argument. The explorer who had once worked for the Melta Trading Company and knew the secret route through the sewers had trouble finding the way. Someone had mocked him for it.

That had sown the seeds of discord.

["You sure bitch a lot for someone tagging along for free without lifting a finger."]

Derbon, who had tacitly taken on the role of leader, defended their navigator. No, he went beyond defending him and made a threat.

["Come to think of it, this isn't fair, is it? If you're going to talk like that, you should at least pay us. Oh, and if you don't have money, equipment will do."]

["What?"]

["Don't like it? Then go back."]

Those few exchanges had split the group in two in an instant, leading to the current situation.

"Last offer. Hand over your equipment and follow us, or go back."

"Ha. You thought we'd just roll over if you said that?"

"Throwing your weight around just because you're friends with the navigator? He's the only one we need to find our way out to the city anyway, isn't he?"

"... So you're determined to spill blood."

"Um... please, everyone, calm down..."

Laura spoke up, thinking she had to stop them somehow, but Derbon interrupted her.

"Stay out of this, Laura. This is actually for the best."

"What? F-for the best...?"

"We'll have plenty of expenses ahead, won't we? If we're going to get established on the surface again."

The man opposing Derbon nodded, as though he agreed on that point at least.

"Right. If just half of us die here, the rest can live a little more like human beings."

His words made Laura realize there had never been any seeds of discord to sow. Unlike the surface she had only heard about, this way of thinking came naturally to the people of Noark.

Picking a fight over their inability to find the way had merely been a pretext. No, perhaps he had said it deliberately, hoping for this outcome.

'This is why I wanted to get her out of here, whatever it took... 'ّ

Noark, a city inhabited by beasts.

Laura trembled, overcome by renewed disgust for the city.

Then she reached for her sword belt.

If the battle was unavoidable, Derbon's side—the side she belonged to—had to win. Only then could they escape and live like human beings.

Whatever happened to her, her sister, at least, deserved that chance.

"Amelia, get ready."

"Okay, Laura."

At Laura's whisper, her sister reached for her weapon as well.

One way or another, the two sisters were also beasts who had successfully survived in this world where the strong devoured the weak.

"Well, let's get start—"

The moment a man on the opposing side gripped his weapon and stepped forward, someone in Derbon's group loosed an arrow, starting the battle.

How much time passed after that?

ROOOOOSH!

A fierce torrent burst out of the dark passage beyond and engulfed them.

* * *

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

While fleeing Luhenpraha's onslaught and his menacing Aura, I struck exactly four times at regular intervals.

CRACK, CRACKLE, CRACK... CRASH!

Cracks spread across the ceiling like a spiderweb or a shattered mirror, and it collapsed.

Then...

ROOOOOSH!

Water began pouring down in a torrent, as though a dam had burst.

'There really was water flowing overhead.'

Honestly, I hadn't been certain before swinging my hammer. I'd merely judged it likely based on the "observed future" seen through young Amelia's eyes.

["Then the group split up and a fight broke out, and water suddenly came pouring down the passage. My sister and I were swept away and lost consciousness. When I woke up—"]

Clearing my mind of distractions, I held Amelia tighter.

The current would have swept an ordinary person away by now. Neither he nor I was anywhere close to ordinary.

BOOM!

I instinctively shielded myself with my hammer, and a tremendous impact traveled down its shaft. The water had already risen over our heads, yet he was still swinging his sword at me.

'Persistent bastard.'

Struggling to keep my footing in the current, I was driven back five or six steps and closed my eyes.

Sight was useless now. Light source or not, I couldn't see an inch ahead in this muddy water.

'Oh, does that make this a real dirty fight?'

The stray thought surfaced, but I quickly let it pass. I had something else to focus on right now.

'One, two, three, four, five, six... '̣

Keeping the elbow of my hammer arm against the wall, I quickly retraced my steps. That left my back exposed, but I wasn't too worried. His last swing had most likely been aimed by feel at the spot where I'd last stood—

SLASH!

A sharp sting ran through my thigh.

Apparently, he was following me while blindly swinging his sword...

'God, that crazy fuck.'

Still, I was fine now. I'd reached my destination.

'Fifty-one, fifty-two... Whew. Found it.'

Walking with my eyes closed and one elbow against the wall, I reached the branching passage I'd noticed on the way here, immediately ducked inside, and hid.

It was a trick I'd learned from Rotmiller. Drawing maps had taught me to measure my stride precisely, and I'd gotten much better at remembering routes I'd taken before.

There was no way that bastard had the same skills.

'Okay, looks like he went past without even noticing the turn.'

Still, I didn't grow complacent. I kept moving down the passage.

'Gigantification.'

Only when the distance between us increased and I confirmed that my skill worked normally again could I finally relax.

'She has a pulse.'

Amelia was still alive. And her Passive Skill, [Source of Agelessness], which gave her cockroach-like survivability, should be working again now.

I wouldn't have to worry about her throat wound. It had pierced a vital spot, but in terms of the actual extent of the damage, it wasn't that severe. A minute should be enough to regenerate that much tissue.

'The problem is oxygen... '̣

Thanks to the Lung Capacity increase from Stormgush's Essence, holding my breath wasn't much of a problem for me. Amelia was a different story, though. Her throat injury had already been preventing her from getting enough oxygen. I didn't know how long she could last.

She probably only needed to hold on for another five minutes or so. She'd said the water had begun receding about that long after the flood, presumably because the source had run dry.

'... Ah, screw it.'

After that brief deliberation, I lifted Amelia. Fumbling along her body, I finally found her nose, pinched it shut with one hand, and pressed my mouth to hers.

Underwater mouth-to-mouth, just like in the movies.

I didn't know whether it would actually work, but I figured it was better than doing nothing. It wasn't as though there was anything to lose.

"...!"

Had she been conscious all this time?

The moment our mouths touched, her limp body twitched. She tensed as though trying to push me away.

So I tightened my arm around her waist and pulled her closer, trying to tell her to stay still. Her resistance weakened.

Was that permission?

I wasn't sure, but I adjusted my lips from merely touching hers to forming as tight a seal as possible, keeping the water out.

Then...

HOOO!

I blew with all my strength, pushing air into her lungs.

* * *

After about five minutes of repeated underwater mouth-to-mouth, the water level began dropping rapidly. The water pouring from above had run out, and what remained was spreading evenly throughout the extensive sewers.

Amazingly, Amelia was still conscious.

"L-let go..."

Come on, it was first aid. No need to be so horrified.

I released her waist, and she splashed beneath the surface.

Oh, right. She was short. The water still reached my shoulders, so her feet wouldn't touch the floor.

"Pwah...!"

Just as I reached out to grab her waist again, her head surfaced on its own.

Huh. So she could swim.

"J-just... so you know... that was unnecessary."

"Huh?"

"I've... been good at... holding my breath... since I was little..."

"What are you saying?"

She was gasping and speaking so quietly that I couldn't make out a word.

Maybe she didn't want to explain again. Or perhaps she had something more important to discuss. Whatever the reason, she changed the subject.

"Never mind... More importantly, why are you here?"

Her breathing seemed steadier, and her tone returned to normal. Well, if she was this recovered, I probably didn't have to worry about her condition.

"Why am I here? What do you mean?"

When I asked as though I didn't understand, Amelia frowned.

"I told you to go back. Didn't you see the note?"

"Oh, that. Yes, I saw it."

"Then... why didn't you go back...?"

Sheesh, she was really giving me a hard time. After looking into everything, I'd found that I couldn't use it just because I wanted to go back.

Remembering all the trouble her impulsive actions had put me through, I answered more curtly than I intended.

"Because I still have something to do."

"Something... to do?"

"I can't go back until it's done."

"What? Why would you go that far...?"

What was she talking about? It wasn't about going that far. Doing it was the only way I could go back.

I was about to say so when—

"Ha. That bastard."

[Gigantification] suddenly deactivated. Simply put, he had entered the thirty-meter radius.

He must have charged straight ahead, realized he'd lost me somewhere, and retraced his steps. Apparently, he wasn't going to let us go easily.

So I made my decision.

"Hey, you go on ahead."

"... What?"

"Go save your sister. I'll handle him somehow."

Send Amelia to the sisters while I held him off. Amelia frowned at that simple plan.

"That's suicide. He's not someone you can—"

"Then what are you going to do? What about your sister? Giving up on her?"

"... If nothing we do changes anything anyway, I'd rather—"

"Enough."

I cut her off. I didn't know how her resolve had grown so weak, but...

"Trust me, Amelia. I've given that problem some thought. For now, go save your sister and your younger self. Understand?"

"But—"

"Ah-ah."

No buts.

Seeing her react in a way I never had before, I couldn't help chuckling. Having someone worry about me didn't feel all that bad, but...

"Why do you assume I'm going to lose in the first place?"

[Silent Decree], the fifth-floor lord's Essence.

It certainly was a good Essence. And its rarity was absurd. Fewer than ten people in all of Raphdonia's history had acquired it, and as far as anyone knew, he was the only person in the present day who possessed it, apparently.

It was only natural that people feared that power. With no information, it must have looked like a ridiculously broken skill that handed him easy wins.

To me, that was pretty strange.

'It's not even particularly hard to kill.'

I'd devoted every spare moment of my twenties to [Dungeon and Stone]. Naturally, I'd hunted the Lord of Silence too.

How many times had it been...?

"Three hundred times."

Yeah, probably about that many.

But perhaps she didn't understand what I meant.

"Three hundred times...?"

Amelia asked as if wondering what that meant, and I answered.

"I've absorbed that Essence more than three hundred times."

There was no such thing as a skill without a weakness.