NOVEL SIMPLE
Chapter 126: That’s Enough (1)
【Our apologies. Because of our shortcomings…】
After getting an appropriate amount of sleep, he woke up at around noon.
The Archmage checked on those who’d lingered outside while they’d rested, unable to enter.
Had it not been for the barriers he’d meticulously set up before going to sleep, at least one of them would have surely tried to sneak in.
One could tell just by looking at their faces and their constant subtle glances over his shoulder into the room.
Their expressions showed far too little concern for the Demon Knight to chalk it up to them being worried about him. Clearly, they were much more concerned about the child.
Well, given the circumstances, this wasn't particularly strange. After all, because of their lack of supervision, a child of someone who’d committed treason managed to attack one of their guests.
However, there was more to this. The child had definitely received help escaping her cell, and that person was definitely targeting the Demon Knight. Moreover, this happened the same night the Demon Knight clashed with this tribe’s chief.
While it seemed too poorly thought out to be called a proper plan, it was too suspicious to be a mere coincidence. The Archmage had no intention of overlooking this.
Even if this wasn't the chief's plan, he should have ensured the child's safety so something like this wouldn't have happened.
Since the Demon Knight had given the child a second chance, he had even more reason now to uphold his decision.
【It's alright.】
【Th-The child…】
【We'll take care of her ourselves.】
【Huh?】
It might seem a tad ridiculous for the victim to not only forgive but also protect the perpetrator, but what could he do? The words had already left his mouth.
He let out a dry laugh, declined the offered meal, and shut the door again.
Knowing that the Vigabol chief had deceived them and was now suspected of instigating a child to murder, he decided not to accept any more favors from them.
【Urgh…】
At that moment, the child slowly awoke. As the light shone on her yellow eyes, they seemed vividly golden, like glowing liquid honey.
【Ah!】
The child looked around where she had been lying and noticed the blanket covering her. She soon started fidgeting with it. Seeing her cheeks flush like that made her endearingly look her age.
【Would you like something to eat?】
Although he’d declined that meal earlier, he still had some snacks prepared.
【…Erm, is it… alright not to wake him?】
【It's fine.】
While eating was important, there was no need to wake someone sleeping so deeply just for that.
Besides, he needed rest.
Though he had been sleeping more recently, likely due to the poison, it was still far below average.
“No… the one who sleeps the least is actually Berserk. Warriors, indeed.”
【Hmm?】
【Nothing. Eat up.】
The Archmage had decided the Demon Knight could use some more sleep and didn't wake him.
However, when he still hadn’t woken up the following morning when the sun was already high in the sky, he began to worry that something might be wrong.
* * *
‘Get angry. Get angry at all the unfair suffering you must go through.’
‘Isn't it about time you stop pretending everything's fine? Now is the time for you to get mad, don't you think?’
‘Aren't you tired of being fooled by blatant lies?’
‘Don't you hold any hatred for those who made you stain your hands with blood?’
‘The child who stabbed you in the heart is right in front of you. She tried to kill you. How can you forgive her so easily?’
‘Escaping reality any longer is just…’ freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
「 ▲ Sleep for 1 hour 00 minutes ▼ 」
「 ▲ Sleep for 1 hour 00 minutes ▼ 」
「 ▲ Sleep for 1 hour 00 minutes ▼ 」
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.
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“…ight.”
The dreamless sleep sure left me feeling unexpectedly comfortable.
“…Knight!”
This system, which let me fall asleep instantly without needing to toss and turn even when I wasn't tired, sure was useful. No, it was actually the best.
“…mon Knight!”
Honestly, I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep properly in this place due to stress, but with this, I could at least rest comfortably.
“Demon Knight!”
However, any sleep must eventually come to an end. It was now time to wake up.
“…What is it?”
I slowly opened my eyes and assessed the situation.
Having repeated this long cycle of sleeping, waking up, and falling back asleep, I had no idea how long I'd slept. Judging by the hoarseness of my voice, it seemed I had slept for over half a day.
“…Are you alright?”
“I asked you, what is it?”
How long did I sleep? Wondering if something urgent had happened that made him want to wake me up, I looked around. There was nothing unusual.
“…Erm, No, well, it’s nothing really. But, aren’t you hungry?”
Judging by the sunlight streaming into the room, it appeared to be daytime. If I had fallen asleep around dawn, it would make sense for it to be midday now, but…
If that were the case, the Archmage wouldn't be wearing such a worried expression. Also, my satiety had dropped significantly.
Did I sleep for over a day?
“I woke you because it’s time that you ate something.”
In that case… I’d slept a lot longer than I thought. Whenever I woke up, my mind was half-asleep and my thoughts would wander in weird directions, so I repeatedly tried using the sleep system each time, which must have led to this mistake.
My mistake.
“I won’t force you… but I would like you to listen to my thoughts.”
However, what was done was done. Judging by how my fatigue level was now zero, one couldn’t call this an entirely bad thing, either.
I agreed and sat at the table, accepting the situation for what it was. I had some fleeting worries about this potentially being seen as me breaking character, but I quickly dismissed such thoughts.
It wasn’t exactly in line with my character, but considering I had gotten stabbed close to that heart, I figured I could just chalk this up as an aftereffect.
Honestly, at this point, it would be even weirder if they complained about my sleeping or believed it wasn’t in character or something.
“I thought it would be unwise to continue accepting the chief’s hospitality, so I just took out what I had with me. It’s just a simple meal, but… is that fine with you?”
The Archmage offered me a slight apology as he sat at the table. I had wondered why the meal looked so different from our last, and it turned out this was the reason.
Well, I wouldn’t want to accept any favors from an abusive lunatic who threatened children’s lives.
Better to eat plain rice with soy sauce than accept anything more from that piece of trash. Yeah, yeah.
With that in mind, I had no complaints about this simple meal. After all, someone prepared this meal especially for me, so how could I be dissatisfied?
I had some dietary preferences… but there was nothing on this table I wouldn’t eat.
I ate the grain porridge without a word. The child, who seemed to have understood what I’d poorly tried expressing before falling asleep, also remained at the table.
The Archmage and the child seemed to have grown quite close while I was asleep.
“So, I’m thinking we should leave soon… but would you like to rest some more before we go?”
It was good that they got along.
With my mind in somewhat of a daze, I put the porridge into my mouth with a spoon. The Archmage’s words that had reached my ears were slowly getting processed in my brain. It took me a couple of moments for me to get the meaning.
Were we finally going to meet the Mountain Lord? Or had he decided to scrap the whole thing after discovering that the Chief was utter garbage?
I would personally prefer the latter, but since this was the Magic Tower’s request, it was probably the former, right?
“No need.”
I answered casually, already convinced it was like that. If he was showing me this much concern because he thought I’d slept so long due to my injuries, it wasn’t necessary.
My condition wasn’t bad enough to delay our departure.
“Really…? Hmm. Alright, then. Just don’t push yourself too hard. There’s no harm in resting a bit longer if you need it.”
True, but my character setting didn’t allow for that.
I mechanically finished the porridge. The hot food seemed to warm me from the inside, but the subtle chill I was feeling didn’t fully disappear.
【Erm… What are you talking about…】
【Ah, it’s nothing. Just what I told you yesterday, Akata.】
【Ah…】
No matter how warm my surroundings were, no matter how hot the food I ate, there remained a chill brought on by a sadness that would never truly disappear.
“Then let’s head out. Make sure you have everything…”
…But I needed to pull myself together. I wiped away the thoughts trying to drag me into a downward spiral and fixed my expression.
My character would never show any fatigue or weariness. That’s what one called Coolness… or was it Koolness? I was suddenly confused about that word’s English spelling.
* * *
* * *
Bang!!!
Would they not even allow me to focus on something like this?
I frowned, thinking they were being too much despite knowing it was just the flow of the quest.
Sure, minor issues could escalate into major events, but for this to happen continuously is a bit much.
This was the third explosion I’d heard since entering the Great Forest! If they kept repeating this same pattern, players were certain to get bored and drop this game like a hot potato!
“…Really, there’s never a dull moment here.”
See? Even the Archmage looked fed up with this bullshit.
I grumbled internally about the scenario writers being goddamn salary parasites.
Not that I really believed that. From what I’d heard, scenario writers had to do a whole lot of work.
【What was that sound…?】
【Akata, stay here for a moment.】
While the Archmage soothed the child, I opened the door and stepped outside. My eyes narrowed as I scanned the surroundings to figure out what was happening.
Clang, clang, clang!!
【We’re under attack!】
【The Jatav are here!】
I’d had a gut feeling when I heard that explosion, but this definitely looked like an attack, right?
“The Jatav must have an endless supply of troops or something…”
With a weary (internal) sigh, I watched people run toward the village entrance.
Adding in the Archmage’s words, it was clear that not only was this an attack, but the attackers were indeed the Jatav.
Yeah. The same guys who’d caused a ruckus back when we were staying with the Serhan tribe.
They certainly were an aggressive tribe. Katana or Katina or whatever, they seemed to be attacking everyone everywhere during the period when they chose the next warchief. Was keeping one’s political enemies in check like this really allowed?
“We have no more reason to be involved in this fight. It’d better if we just…”
At that moment, the Archmage, clutching his forehead, seemed lost in thought.
“They deceived us first, so there’s no more need for politeness. Let’s just use this opportunity to leave quietly.”
His words were so out of nowhere and without context that I found them quite puzzling.
Hey, you couldn’t just say things like that without explaining anything. I didn’t get what he meant. What deception? Was that kid really an assassin sent by Atarte??
“What are you talking about?”
I asked, a bit irritated. Although my character usually cared little for what went on around him, I had to ask this time.
He mentioned someone ‘deceiving’ us, and my character absolutely couldn’t stand getting deceived.
“Ah… I forgot you don’t know yet.”
The Archmage apologized, blaming his forgetfulness on his old age—though, in my opinion, my memory was even worse than his—and briefly explained what he had learned yesterday.
After he was done, I concluded that Atarte was indeed a total bastard.
I’d had a bad feeling about him when discovering he was a domestic abuser, but learning he’d also tricked us into coming here with conditions he couldn’t fulfill? Yeah, that guy was rotten from the start.
‘Shouldn’t he be just killed?’
Seriously, shouldn’t he be killed?
When that thought came to mind, I clenched my fist tightly for a moment before relaxing it again.
No matter how much of a worthless, irredeemable scumbag he was, killing him would violate human rights—mainly my own.
Regardless, dirtying my hands with the blood of trash like that would be an insult to my hands.
Resolving everything through violence was wrong to begin with.
However, that didn’t change the fact that he was a criminal who should be isolated from society.
I clenched my lips, trembling with anger, looking at the victims who had no choice but to endure because I couldn’t intervene.
If I wanted to keep following my character setting, I should be thinking about how to act in this situation, but my personal feelings kept pushing me toward wanting to punish him. I couldn’t live like this.
“You, perhaps…”
My expression was probably pretty bad. The Archmage, sweating profusely—well, he wasn’t actually sweating, but he seemed to be—looked like he wanted to say something to me.
【Damn it, magic!!】
However, he missed his timing. Another loud explosion erupted. Unlike before, when we were inside the building, we could now clearly see what was happening.
“They’re breaking through.”
That was an accurate assessment. All the priests here had sided with the rebels, leaving no one to counter the enemy’s spells.
Except for the Archmage, who was here as a guest and essentially hired as a mercenary.
【Guests!!】
Look at them. They were running straight toward us.
The Archmage and I frowned as we saw people approach. It wasn’t like we had stood here long or appeared overly relaxed. Despite that brief explanation, we hadn’t spent even a minute outside.
But so what, I guess. It’s not like finding and calling out to someone was only possible if they were nearby. That was all.
【The traitors brought in the Jatav. Please, help u—】
【I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible.】
The Archmage cut them off coldly, even though they hadn’t fully explained the situation yet. He seemed to be hurrying his decision, possibly to prevent me from going after Atarte… Well, only he would know.
【We have received a message from the Magic Tower. Our situation has also become quite urgent.】
【If things continue like this, we’ll be defeated!】
【I’m truly sorry, but we really can’t help.】
His tone was as cold as the Siberian tundra.
【Why…!】
【My apologies. As I mentioned yesterday, we’ll take care of this child.】
Meanwhile, I was still contemplating whether I should deal with Atarte myself, but I figured the Vigabol tribe would fall regardless.
Interfering had simply too many consequences, even if Atarte was a bastard. Damn it all.
【…The chief left us a message in case you guests refused.】
Goddamnit.
“If you do not act, we will lose everything anyway. I will kill all the village children. 【That’s what it says.】”
A true bastard never committed just one evil act.
* * *
“Damn, we finally got here, but why is this place so chaotic already…”
“Fight! Battle! Berserk wants to join in!”
“Wait a sec, Miss Fighter. Why would you want to join a fight that’ll only bring losses??”
Until recently, the most uncooperative and difficult person to deal with in Deathbringer’s life was the Demon Knight. However, ever since Berserk joined their party, that ranking might be changing.
She was usually fine, but when it came to fighting, she would completely lose her mind.
Meanwhile, the Demon Knight was always fairly uncommunicative, especially when it had anything to do with Demons, so he still held the top spot. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
“I definitely joined you guys to find more people to fight. But every time, you tell me not to fight… You liar…”
“I never promised you anything like that.”
The only thing he’d thought when she joined them was, “Ooh, so she’s joining us.” He’d never tried persuading her to join.
Deathbringer, rejecting any involvement in that matter altogether, brought up to his eyes an item that White Wind had given him.
It was supposed to help one detect the aura of living beings, allowing one to see through walls. It was helpful in planning out infiltration routes but rather inconvenient for finding people.
Every person just looked like their silhouettes, colored in various hues—
“Ah!”
White Wind had said Arcane Power users would be easy to spot, and now he understood why.
If ordinary people’s colors were faint and blended into the background, Arcane Power users’ colors were very vibrant and distinct.
As for the Demon Knight and the Archmage…
“There’s no mistaking them.”
Their auras were so immense that they didn’t even resemble a person's outline anymore. The Archmages’ was a bit fuzzy but still person-like, while the Demon Knight’s was just… just…
It was like a circle had been cut out of space, as if even observing him wasn’t permitted.
“But why are they coming this way…?”
Were they planning to join the fight? Well, considering they’d been promised a meeting with the Mountain Lord, it wasn’t strange that they would cooperate, but hadn’t they decided not to get involved in politics?
“…Young hunter.”
But why—
“Get down.”
In an instant, Deathbringer swallowed hard before feeling a weight press down on him. The unexpected heaviness of the muscles pressing down on him was overwhelming.
However, that was nothing compared to what happened next.
───!
A wave that barely even made a sound shook the heavens and earth, throwing back his hood and making his hair flutter wildly. Had Berserk not pinned him down, the wind pressure would have made his body suffer quite some injuries.
“What the…”
Then he saw it. Above him, the dense trees that once stretched endlessly skyward were gone without a single trace.
Just like what had happened to the castle on Montata Island, where it had all been reduced to dust, leaving only a small part of the lower section behind.