Episode 82.
âWhy? I donât know either. When I was told to kill her, I said, âOkay, I got it.â so I came to kill her. Why do you guys need the reason to do the work?â
The man giggled pleasantly at the situation. He was the only one smiling here, but he continued to speak with a smile on his face.
âAnyway, Iâm explaining it to you as much as I can, so listen, we were heading to the dukedom to eliminate the target. From the northern border.â
âThe border?â
âWe really come from afar, arenât we? Thatâs right, I think so, too. Thatâs how important the target was. So we shouldnât fail.â
ââ¦.â¦.â
âBut while I was moving like that, I arrived at a village on the way. Then I heard some people searching for the princess. I donât know why they have to find you there.â
The man pointed alternately at the members of the Dark Knights who had fallen on the floor with the tip of the dagger.
âWhen I heard it, I thought âOpps, she was our targetâ. Wow, I thought we were screwed. Donât we?â
The man acted as if he wanted a response, but it was quiet around him. He shrugged and continued.
âYou know, I didnât know if they tried to kill you, but they needed to find you and search for you. So I thought, how could I catch someone who suddenly went missing and couldnât even figure out where the target was? Itâs kind of hopeless.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âHow do I do this? Iâm doomed. Then, just in time, I came up with a good idea.â
âThat good idea. Do you mean this situation?â
A member of the Dark Knights who managed to a standstill after getting his side cut sharpened his teeth
The man flicked his finger.
âBingo, you said the name of the guy I stabbed was Jimmy. He looked smart. I could find something good if I stuck around a smart guy. So I took a couple of guys and borrowed some clothes, and I was a member of your team for a while.â
âYouâ¦â¦!â
âI didnât like having to crawl back into the forest Iâd crossed, but, as a result, Iâve found my target.â
The man said so and looked back at me again.
It wasnât something I could do, but I naturally had strength in my body.
âHonestly, I didnât expect to find you. I left half of the hope to heaven. I think itâs right that heaven is on my side.â
âYou bastard! Who the hell is he?â
âHey, donât ask me what I canât answer. You know, whoâs gonna tell anyone about the clientâs information? You should follow the princess.â
The man jagged at me and grinned.
âYou know youâre not going to tell me if you ask, youâre not going to ask me anything, and youâre not going to run because you know itâs no use running away. How wise.â
ââ¦..â
To be honest, Iâd run away if my ankle was fine. I didnât feel pleasant because I thought he was teasing me, but I just stayed still because I didnât think it would be any good to try to catch his attention.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âAs expected, look at her, she even not get angry. I like her so much.â
I would have shouted actually.
âNice to meet you, wise princess, you know we donât have any personal feelings, do you? Iâll kill you as painlessly as I can. I donât really like pretty girls getting pain, either.â
âHow dare you! Donât even think to touch the princessâ hair!â
âWhat, did you try to stop me? Arthur, I wonder what you can do to us who are finely and healthy, while youâre dying? What if I killed you all first? Do you get stronger when you become a corpse? Huh?â
The man was sarcastic. He looked so ridiculous to the extent that I wanted to beat him, but there was nothing wrong with his words. There are only two members of the Dark Knights who are standing still.
Even that has just been reduced to one alone. Because the other one fainted, unable to overcome the bleeding from the wound. And the other one was still technically just âstrugglingâ. He was also bleeding in an irresistible amount of blood somewhere in his body.
âUghâ¦â¦.!â
He seemed to be starting to lose his mind. It was worth it. Actually, I think itâs great that heâs been standing up and not lying down.
I was ready to be left alone soon. I raised my head stiffly and looked at the man. Who could it be?
Frankly speaking, it wasnât that I wasnât curious. No, to be honest, I was curious. Who the hell is trying to kill me? And why?
âBut thereâs no way to know.â
It was true that I didnât ask because he wouldnât let me know as he said before.
âDying in the midst of death with curiosity.â
It was absurd. The wrong circumstances were unfair and outrageous, and a little funny. And on the other hand, the mood was more complicated than that.
As far as I can tell, I was now unable to tell whether this situation was unlucky or lucky. I couldnât cross the border for the purpose anyway and was caught before. If it hadnât come to this, I would have died at the hands of Ash as the original story written.
Then, wouldnât this side be better than that? Itâs better to die without even knowing the reason for someone you donât even know.
âYes, this is better.â
Better. This side, much better.
I looked at the man with a determined look. I didnât want to beg for help, since I knew it wouldnât work.
The man stood out in front of me.
âPrincess, did you just see that? Even the last one to hold out had to fall down. Look.â
ââ¦â¦..â
âThe princess is left alone, with us. And youâre still so calm?â
âSo are you complaining?â
I tried not to answer back, but when I was about to die, I couldnât help but say a word because this jerk kept doing it.
The man burst out laughing.
âNo, no complaints! I like you more and more.â
âI donât like you.â
âI thought so. I understand, but I canât help it.â
The man fixed the dagger.
Oh, heâs going to kill me now.
âWho would say that she likes the guy whoâs trying to kill her? Iâm afraidâ¦..you have to endure it. Oh, but donât blame me too much. Itâs true that I would make it as painless as I can. Iâm an expert. Iâll finish it quickly.â
Yes, thank you very much.
âGood-bye, Princess.â
My heart thumped.
Iâm dying.
This is how it ends.
My hands were full of sweat. My chest tightened and my back was stiff. I clenched my teeth because my legs were about to shake. Itâs an unexpected last, but not the worst. Yeah, at least itâs better than the worst Iâve ever imagined.
I closed my eyes first before the man could lift the dagger, thinking so.
Ah.
âI miss him.â
I missed Ash. Just before I died, I wanted to see his face, thinking it was a relief that I didnât die at his hands.
I was overcome with laughter by the unknowing greed.
âNow you close your eyes calmly ahead of your death? Well, the more I look at you, the more I feel like youâre worth being killed.â
âCaptain.â
âDonât talk to me. I canât be distracted by the shaking of my heart. I have to finish it at once so I wonât hurt her.â
âCaptain.â
âTell me after you kill her.â
âCaptain!â
âOh, you bastard! I canât believe you! I told you to tell me afterâ¦â¦â
The voice of the man who was angry with his subordinates died down.
ââ¦â¦what is that?â
I opened my eyes. Itâs because Iâm suddenly curious about the manâs voice, but at the same time, I heard something ringing in my ears.
Thump, thump~
â¦â¦ha.
âThatâs whatâ¦â¦.â
ââ¦â¦Monster?â
Thump, thump, thump~
The echo grew louder and louder. And along with that, the visible scene became clear.
Monster.
In this world, the so-called creatures were gathering, filling the sights with blackness.
âWh, what? What happened! What the hell are those?â
âIs this a forest with creatures like those?â
âBut when we come across this forest beforeâ¦â¦â
While the conversation was chaotic between the man and his men, the monster gradually got closer.
The monsters have filled all side to the extent I could not count how much those were.
After a while, I and the men were completely surrounded by monsters.
âThi, this is crazyâ¦â¦.â
âThatâs ridiculous. Iâve never heard of thisâ¦â¦â¦.â
The voice of the man and his subordinate was trembling like an aspen leaf.
The pressure from the monsters surrounding us was enormous. I couldnât overcome the pressure and stepped back, but I fell down when I accidentally sprained my injured ankle.
âThis is the monster?â
It was my first time seeing a monster in person. Let alone this much number of monsters.
Suddenly, it occurred to me that Ashâs reason for going south was due to a monster raid.
âIs this the one he needs to catch?â
â¦â¦ is it even possible?
The monsterâs appearance was more threatening than imagined.
Almost three meters tall, rough and tough-looking skin like a beastâs skin, with fangs as big as an adultâs head.
I had no idea how they were hunting that.
âHiiikkkâ¦â
The moment I thought so, one of the manâs men suddenly jumped at the monster.
âThat stupid!â
The man seemed to be a flagship, but he was late.
The manâs load jumped off the ground and drew his sword to the monsterâs arm, but was subsequently cut to the head by another monster right next to him.
The skeleton of the corpse was terrible. I turned my head away without looking there.
âDa, damn it. What the hell is this?â
After the loss of one life, the man and his men became cautious. Of course, that didnât mean anything can actually be done.
The sound of breathing and dryness.
A strange stillness filled the place.
And I realized after a while in that condition.
ââ¦.. those monstersâ¦. they donât attack usâ
Thatâs what monsters do. They were more fierce than an animal and more ferocious than a beast, and when they met a man they did not let go. In other words, if you encounter a monster, you will die. At least thatâs what I heard.
âBut why are they so calm?â
Now, these monsters just swarmed in and havenât been doing anything since.
The manâs colleague died because he attacked first. No one else has been hurt yet. I soon found something else. Monsters were circling exactly around something, not just me and the men.
Luggage?
Whatâs in the luggage?
âThe enchanted cloth?â
No way. But now there was no assumption other than that to explain the situation.
I read the situation so I could take a chance then flung myself through the luggage. My ankle screamed, but I could hug my luggage instead.
A man who seemed to have noticed something belatedly came up to me and tried to take my luggage away. But the monster moved and blocked it.
ââ¦â¦..!â
I was right!
There really was something in this bag. It would be necessary to confirm whether it is definitely the enchanted cloth.
âWhat have you done? Whatâs in your luggage?â
Well, Iâll answer the question if I know the answer. By the way, I donât know what else to do anymore. I kept my luggage, but that was all.
I was still full of monsters everywhere, and I couldnât move right away because I overworked my sore ankle.
It was then.
âWooâ¦.â
âWoo-wooâ¦â
Monsters looked at one place in unison with a grotesque cry.
Low crying, atrophied posture.
They looked as if they were scared.
âThe monsterâs scared?â
I turned away and stared in the same direction as the monster.
Soon a few monsters, who were filling the place tightly, fell down one after another, and one person was seen standing between them.
I stopped breathing.
Ash.
It was Ash.