novelraw Chapter 128 : Chapter 128
Chapter 128 : Chapter 128
Chapter 128 : My Blood…?
- Kaboom.
“Bleeegh!”
As the shield that had completely blocked the plaza entrance shook continuously, Muno felt his insides twist from the excruciating pain wracking his entire body, and he vomited a large amount of blood.
“Sir Muno!”
“Damn it…!”
The expressions of the relatively unscathed Anthony and Victon grew urgent, but Muno, with a pale face, waved his hand.
- Rumble
“It’s, it’s over.”
Thud.
The moment Muno slumped down, leaning against the massive shield he had created.
The party finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Amazing, you are. We’re alive thanks to you.”
“What kind of trick is this? It looks like Spirit Arts?”
Despite their praise, Muno couldn't smile.
He only looked relatively fine in comparison; Anthony’s face, who had delivered the final blow to the monster, had turned as white as a corpse.
Even without many visible wounds, it was clear at a glance that he had severe internal injuries.
But someone’s condition was even more serious, completely unconscious.
“Rauel, is she unconscious? She was fine just a moment ago….”
“Ah. This young lady seems to have inhaled the poison it spewed. We need to get out of here quickly and find a temple. More importantly, are you two alright? You were hit with that poison at close range.”
Only after hearing Anthony's words did Muno finally check his own condition.
Other than the feeling of his muscles and organs being twisted(?), he seemed to be fine.
“…I think I’m okay, but was that really a potent poison?”
At that bewildered reaction, Anthony looked dumbfounded.
“This young lady lost consciousness just from inhaling a little. On top of that, her condition is gradually worsening….”
Soon, that incredulous gaze turned to Victon as well.
“As you can see, I can separate foreign substances, be it poison or anything else.”
Seeing Victon, who had turned his hand into smoke, give an awkward smile, Anthony couldn't help but be even more perplexed.
“You two are really…. Hah. Well, let’s get moving. We have to save this young lady first. Ugh.”
The moment Anthony forced himself to stand up with a pale face.
Victon, whose complexion also looked quite bad, said something unexpected.
“If it’s simply due to poisoning. How about we try feeding her some of Sir Muno’s blood?”
“Blood?”
What kind of bullshit is that.
At the party's gazes, which carried that meaning, Victon shrugged his shoulders.
“It seems Sir Muno here has a constitution that’s strong against poison….”
As if you’re one to talk.
Even while receiving Muno’s disbelieving stare.
“……If it’s a creature that’s completely unaffected by such a potent poison, its blood itself could be an antidote.”
Creature?
Muno’s brows furrowed at Victon’s oddly shining eyes as he looked at him and his slightly peculiar choice of words.
Even Anthony agreed with that nonsense.
“……Ah, that might be a good method.”
I thought the folk remedies of this fantasy world were fantastically insane, but.
Their words unnecessarily reminded me of past events.
‘My blood….’
The Demon Cult bastards had mentioned it often, and Miya’s mother, the dragon, had also mentioned my bloodline.
I was curious about it myself, but.
‘If drinking blood can be an antidote, is that even a person?’
I didn’t want to go along with such a ridiculous notion.
But.
“Didn’t you just bleed a lot anyway? Why not give it a try? There’s no harm in it.”
Anthony, who blindly trusted fantasy folk remedies, was strictly my superior, so it seemed better to at least pretend to do it.
And if, by some one-in-a-million chance, Rauel recovered immediately, that would be a good thing too.
“Ugh.”
Thump. Thump.
Muno forced his body up and staggered over to Rauel, quietly looking down at her face.
And.
Woong.
He lightly cloaked his right gauntlet with a mana blade.
“Oh?!”
“Hmm…?”
I had planned to briefly remove the glove on my left hand and cut it to draw blood.
But the mana blade manifested so naturally according to my will that I was surprised myself.
However.
“Ugh!”
Manifesting a mana blade was a great burden on his already seriously injured body.
“Bleeegh!”
Damn it.
Startled by the copious amount of blood pouring from my mouth.
Sgak.
“Ugh!?”
I had unknowingly cut my forearm too deeply.
Blood trickled down.
“Oh dear, that seems a bit excessive.”
“Ugh. Don’t tease me.”
Since I had already done it, I let a little of the blood drip near Rauel’s mouth, then covered the wound again by putting the glove back on my left hand.
I’ll do it because you told me to, but what’s the point of feeding her blood?
While grumbling inwardly about the unnecessary pain of the wound.
“That’s a very convenient armor. Its performance seems incredible, too.”
“Of course. It’s incredibly comfortable….”
I answered Victon’s admiration with a shrug, then paused for a moment when I saw my reflection in his red eyes.
Because of the shape of the helmet, which seemed to be modeled after an eagle’s head and wings.
‘Was I subconsciously going through a chuunibyou phase? Why even a helmet….’
Well, it does look pretty cool.
Ahem. Ahem.
“Anyway, I hope it worked. For now, let’s get this young lady to the temple….”
Before Anthony could even move again.
“Umm….”
A moan suddenly escaped Rauel’s lips.
“……Huh!?”
“Ack!?”
“As I thought!”
Victon, whose eyes were shining as if he had expected it, looked back and forth between Rauel’s and Muno’s faces.
Rauel’s face, which had been deathly pale and clearly abnormal, was rapidly returning to its original color.
And.
“……Sir Muno?”
At the voice that came out immediately, Muno could only stare at her with a dumbfounded expression.
“Where am I……. Ah! That monster…!”
“It’s been dealt with. Rest for a bit.”
I immediately calmed Rauel, who was trying to sit up abruptly.
It was just all the more baffling because her deathly pale complexion had clearly returned to normal.
“Ye-yes. Then….”
As the staggering Rauel leaned against my arm, almost embracing it with both of hers, the sensation on my arm felt strangely distracting.
At that moment.
“Why did that actually work…?”
Victon’s low mumble from the side drew even more attention.
“What did you just…?”
After telling me to do it yourself?
“Ah. Well, I only said that because I heard that the blood of a certain divine beast had such an effect….”
Victon’s gaze as he scanned me up and down was strangely unpleasant.
It felt like he was asking if I was even human.
Just as I was about to get angry, Anthony interjected.
“The blood of a Corporeal Arts user who has evolved in a special direction can sometimes be no less than that of a divine beast. It seems both of you young friends still lack some worldly knowledge.”
“Ah….”
Victon nodded at Anthony’s words.
Muno just smiled awkwardly.
‘Is this really because of the Demon Devourer, or is there really something in my bloodline….’
Because even I felt strongly that it was the latter.
As I was lost in thought.
“On top of that, if one has just evolved through combat, that special spirituality might still be dissolved in the blood. Perhaps, white-haired friend, the same might be true for you right now.”
“Yes?”
“You’ve evolved too, haven’t you? It doesn’t seem to show much because you’re exhausted. Am I wrong?”
I saw Victon flinch at Anthony’s words.
Oh?
Only then did I move my heightened senses to scan Victon’s entire body, and I could feel a distinctly increased mass through his faint presence.
“Hul….”
For me, it’s a matter of eating magicians to grow, but how on earth could Victon, who looks to be of a similar age, have already reached his fifth evolution….
“Crazy….”
A curse mixed with admiration escaped my lips without me realizing it, but the person in question, Victon, was looking at me with an even more dumbfounded expression.
“Are you admiring me right now? A 4-Star knight who just evolved during combat and achieved such a feat against that monster?”
…I guess he could think of it that way.
The moment I realized that, Victon’s gaze as he scanned me again bothered me.
He was undoubtedly a helpful comrade for now, but if he was really an Imperial, it seemed necessary to obscure some information.
“That’s because I have a good artifact.”
Tap. Tap.
I tapped my chest, appealing to the existence of the artifact(?).
Fortunately, Anthony backed me up.
“That’s true. The Black Knight’s Magician Slayer is famous even in our kingdom.”
Huh?
“Magician Slayer?”
Even Rauel, who had been leaning against me, was staring at me with her gray eyes, making me let out a hollow laugh.
“It got a name like that?”
“Of course. Though I didn’t know that artifact was a growth type.”
As Anthony pointed to the helmet and laughed, the flustered Muno could only scratch his head, no, his helmet.
“Hmm? A growth type? I’ve never heard of an artifact that evolves according to the user’s level. On top of that, it seemed to absorb magic….”
Yeah, of course you haven’t.
Because it’s not one.
The moment he gave an awkward laugh at another misunderstanding brought on by Anthony’s words.
“You young ones really lack worldly knowledge. Such things certainly exist among myth-grade artifacts. His Excellency Kyle Dragon’s Dragon Sword is a perfect example.”
“……Yes?”
The party couldn’t help but focus on Anthony’s words, their eyes shining simultaneously.
“Never mind the others, but why are you surprised, Muno? Didn’t Viscount Trauni tell you that the red jewel on your chest is part of a mythical treasure? And that it was a part of your armor……. Even I, who was right next to you, remember?”
Ah.
That’s because my armor isn’t an artifact.
The moment I realized where Anthony’s misunderstanding had started, I couldn’t help but let out another hollow laugh.
However, apart from that, Victon just stared at Muno with surprised eyes, as if he had learned it for the first time.
“Indeed, the world is wide. A growing artifact… A myth-grade one, no less. Amazing.”
“Well. I think the young ones who grow during combat are more amazing. Like you and Sir Muno.”
Praise from the world-renowned Blood Knight.
Despite that, Victon’s gaze did not leave Muno’s armor.
At that, Anthony smiled and added.
“Don’t be envious. It would be just as picky about its master. Well, your talent is no less than Sir Muno’s. You might find a connection someday.”
“I wonder. I’m not really one to have much luck with artifacts.”
There seemed to be a different meaning hidden in Victon’s bitter smile.
But Anthony seemed to have interpreted his meaning a little differently.
“No, that’s not right. If I report today’s achievements, His Majesty might bestow a reward right away. What do you say? How about joining the Royal Knightly Order?”
We hadn’t been traveling together for long, but it seemed like the first time I had seen Anthony talk so much.
He was probably taken with Victon’s talent.
“Sir Anthony, Victon is probably….”
“Thank you for your words, but I am an Imperial. I have no intention of abandoning my country, Sir Blood Knight Anthony.”
Before Muno could say anything, Victon revealed his own nationality.
Anthony’s expression hardened in that instant.
He was an injured and exhausted Blood Knight, but at that reaction, the surrounding air instantly became heavy.
Accordingly, Victon also took a step back with a stiff face.
Anthony, who had been staring at Victon for a while, finally let out a small laugh.
“……So you were a rising star of the Empire. It seems I’ve just revealed information about our own prodigy for no reason.”
“……You don’t blame me?”
“You helped me, so why would I blame you? I’m not such an unreasonable man. Unless we meet again as enemies in the future.”
Anthony’s words eased the tension that had been rising in that moment.
“Just tell me one thing. Why is a knight of the Empire here?”
“That’s….”
Victon once again recounted the story he had told Muno.
The disappearance case that continued even at the Empire’s border. He had come here on a request, following the clues.
Anthony’s eyebrows twitched at the words ‘request’ and ‘free knight’, but fortunately, he didn’t press further.
“Alright. It’s a relief for now that a friend like you is an ally. We’ve dealt with the monster, but there are still many questions.”
As if in response to Anthony’s words, Victon also nodded his head.
“A multi-headed monster that regenerates even when its neck is cut off, I’ve heard of it. Though I never heard that it had a human face….”
“Hydra.”
“The Monster Lord, Hydra.”
Anthony and Victon said the same name at the same time.
“Yes. That’s right.”
“That monster that caused immense damage to both Iron and Deus in the past.”
The moment Anthony and Victon’s expressions grew heavy.
‘I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere before?’
Ah, in games or manga from my past life…….
‘No, that’s not it. I definitely heard it recently, didn’t I? Hmmm, no. Now’s not the time to worry about that.’
Muno tilted his head but had no choice but to change their topic of conversation.
Because there was something that was bothering him.
“I don’t think now is the time to be talking about old monsters.”
“Hm?”
The important thing now wasn't some ancient monster.
The identity of the unease he had felt around the time the battle began had now clearly come to mind.
“What do you mean, Sir Muno?”
“According to the lizardman we dealt with outside the castle, the one leading the work here was definitely an elder. With the name Sieran, or something like that.”
“And?”
“He definitely said that the elder was a 6-Circle magician. But there were no 6-Circle magicians among those who became the monster’s heads.”
Muno’s words brought a heavy silence.