"No...!"
That was the swordsman's last will and testant.
Alia ignored him and stomped on his head, crushing it like a waterlon.
Squish.
It was a bit anticlimactic.
He had struggled so fiercely, only to end up like this.
"Barbarian."
Alia turned her attention to .
"You're badly injured."
What the hell is she talking about?
"You're missing an arm."
"I didn't have ti."
Why is she talking about ti?
Is this even a normal conversation?
As I was wondering...
"I didn't expect you to still have this."
Alia rummaged through the swordsman's body and pulled out a severed arm from his subspace pocket.
What the hell is that doing in there?
I frowned, but Alia calmly placed the arm on the stump.
'Wait, that's not going to...'
"It will take another day for the nerves to fully recover."
'...It's reattaching?'
She just pressed it against the stump for about 10 seconds, and it reattached as if glued. It seed like it was his arm, judging by the perfect fit.
'She said she couldn't use potions.'
I recalled our previous conversation.
[...You didn't use a potion?]
[I can't.]
Our brief exchange in the sewers.
'She must have absorbed that essence.'
[Fountain of Immortality].
It nullified all healing effects, including potions, but it greatly increased natural regeneration. Even severed limbs would reattach over ti, so it was a cost-effective essence—
"Bjorn! Are you okay?! Why are you so injured...?"
Ah, right, now's not the ti for this.
I snapped out of my thoughts and pushed myself off the ground. I was dying to know what had happened to Misha...
But that could wait.
"I'm fine. Just help up."
"Okay, co here!"
I walked towards my companions, supported by Ainar. Everyone was gathered in one place.
"Misha... I'm so glad you're okay. Yandel was really worried..."
"Ah, sorry for being late. Sothing ca up. But who's that lying over there...?"
Misha saw the man lying on the ground and gasped.
"Avman?! Is, is he dead...?"
"..."
Raven didn't answer.
She just stared at the ground with a sad expression.
I let go of Ainar's arm, and Misha rushed over to check Avman's breathing.
"He's... not breathing..."
Misha looked at with wide eyes and then checked his pulse.
And...
"There's no pulse either. Then, he really..."
She couldn't finish her sentence and lowered her head.
Seeing that...
"...Yes."
Raven bit her lip, as if she was about to cry, and confird it.
This was ridiculous.
'Yes? He's clearly alive.'
Ugh, this is going to be the death of .
"Why are you saying he's dead when he's clearly alive?"
I walked towards Avman, my body aching, and showed them his wrist.
No. 7611 'Deceiver of the Necromancer'.
The item that put you in a state of suspended animation and granted temporary damage immunity when you received a fatal blow.
"It seems like it worked."
Only one of the jewels on the bracelet was glowing.
But Raven didn't know about this item?
"What? What do you an...?"
I didn't have the energy to explain, so I just opened a potion and poured it on Avman.
Sizzle.
The dried blood started bubbling.
It ant he was still alive.
A potion wouldn't react to a dead body.
"Ersina, heal him."
"Ah, ah... Yes! I'll do it right away!"
Avman's wounds started to heal quickly after receiving the potion and the priestess' healing.
Phew, he'll be fine now.
I was glad we arrived before the item's effect ended.
And that I was still conscious. If I had passed out, they would have thought he was dead and cried over his body.
"Mister, you should also get treated..."
Erwen approached , but...
"Ah."
Right, I also need healing.
"Huh?"
As I tried to move, the world tilted.
Thud!
That was my last mory.
___________________
When I woke up, it was dark.
Tall trees and dark blue leaves. A small patch of night sky was visible through them.
Crackle, crackle, tick!
The sound of a campfire.
I felt a strange sense of comfort and wanted to stay there a little longer.
But...
'I have to figure out what's going on.'
I pushed myself up and sat up.
My entire body ached, from my shoulders to my waist and calves.
It was a different kind of pain thanks to Pain Resistance.
"Phew."
I let out a deep breath.
Did that wake her up?
A fairy peeked out from the sleeping bag next to , rubbing her eyes.
"...Mister! You're awake!"
It was Erwen.
"Are you okay?"
"...For now."
I answered and looked around.
There were several sleeping bags, and everyone seed to be asleep.
'We must be camping.'
I looked around and saw monsters blocked by a translucent barrier.
The effect of [Declaration of Evil's End].
Ah, of course, there was soone keeping watch.
"You're finally awake."
Alia Rainwales.
I still didn't know if she was an enemy or an ally, but we had t several tis by chance.
"...What happened?"
"You passed out, and it's been about a day. That's all."
Hmm, I don't think I asked how much ti had passed.
"I ant, tell everything I need to know. Why were you with Misha, why did your companion betray you, and anything else."
"I see."
Alia nodded and answered after I explained my question in simpler terms.
"Ask your companion."
Damn, she's being prickly.
"Erwen, tell ."
I turned to Erwen and listened to her story.
"I don't even know where to start... I guess I'll start from when you collapsed."
After I passed out, things were chaotic.
They couldn't heal or Avman.
Avman was afflicted with the drake's skill, so he couldn't be healed, and I was poisoned by the swordsman's blade.
[He'll die if we don't do sothing.]
[What? Use magic!]
[Antitoxin magic is versatile, but it's not specialized. It won't work.]
[Then what about divine power?]
[It's a powerful poison. I don't have enough divine power to dispel it.]
[Bjorn won't die here! Heal him!]
Antitoxin magic was useless.
And the priestess was out of divine power.
That's when Alia stepped in.
[Use this. It should be an antidote.]
Alia found an antidote in the swordsman's bag and gave it to us. And that neutralized the poison.
"Fortunately, the antidote worked, and after that, the potion started to heal him."
So my health issue was resolved.
But things weren't easy after that. Monsters were still swarming, and everyone was exhausted.
And they had to take care of and Avman, who were unconscious.
"But thanks to her... we were able to hold out until the priestess could cast [Declaration of Evil's End] again."
"And that's now."
"No, this is our third break."
Erwen said that the atmosphere was tense when they first cast the barrier.
Because of Partslan and Alia.
[We had to join forces, but she's a looter from Noark. We can't trust her. She's the one who attacked us in the first place.]
[W, what?! She's from Noark...?!!]
[You didn't know? You're lucky.]
Partslan didn't hide his hostility towards Alia, and she felt the sa way.
She didn't initiate the conflict, but...
[You talk too much. Try if you want.]
She didn't back down, fueling the tension.
And as killing intent filled the barrier...
[Stop it! Even if we didn't know she was from Noark... she's not a bad person!]
Misha defended Alia.
[What are you going to do if she's gone? Partslan, think rationally. She was betrayed by her companions too, right? She won't attack us with only two people left. If she wanted to, she would have done it already.]
Raven tried to diate, appealing to logic.
But the two of them didn't listen.
[You're saying we should forget about our grudge because the situation has changed? She not only injured Drowus, but she also sent assassins after us. We would have died if we hadn't been careful.]
[It's a sha you didn't. I wouldn't have to listen to your whining.]
[What did you say, you bitch...!]
Partslan drew his backup sword, and Alia also drew her dagger.
But...
[Yes. You made the right choice, Partslan.]
Partslan didn't attack.
He wasn't that close to the archer, but he wasn't stupid.
[I'll be watching you. Don't try anything funny.]
After that, we had an uncomfortable break.
We fought monsters when the barrier was deactivated, and rested when [Declaration of Evil's End] was on cooldown.
Avman woke up during our second break.
[Haha... Let's keep this a secret from my wife. She'll make quit being an explorer.]
As soon as he woke up, he was worried about his wife, but he quickly recovered and rejoined the fight.
And...
"The monsters changed after that."
The third wave had started while I was unconscious.
The mid-boss was a 4th-grade monster.
There were a few close calls, like when the priestess was knocked unconscious by the boss, but Alia carried the team with her DPS.
"What about the essence?"
"It didn't drop."
Damn it.
So now only the last boss is left?
I hope he drops an essence.
'Wait, should I even be worried about that? Can we even defeat him?'
I suddenly felt anxious, but I finished listening to Erwen's story.
It wasn't that interesting.
They fought, rested, and Partslan and Alia had a staring contest.
"So that's what happened."
"Did I answer all your questions?"
Mostly.
"Thank you. Get so rest, you must be tired."
"...No, I'll stay here."
Hmm, she doesn't have to...
But it would be weird for to tell her to leave.
"But mister, should we wake her up?"
"Misha? No, she's fine. Why would we wake her up when she's sleeping peacefully? Let her sleep."
No one had woken up while we were talking.
They must be exhausted from the battles.
We can talk later.
"By the way, Alia."
I got out of my sleeping bag and sat down by the campfire.
And I thanked her.
"Thank you for helping yesterday."
"You're being unusually polite. Just ask your question."
Hey, even barbarians can be polite sotis.
Anyway, I got straight to the point.
"What happened between you and Misha?"
"Didn't you hear from the fairy?"
"I want to hear it from you."
"...Tsk."
Alia clicked her tongue, but she told what happened.
How she was betrayed by Carmilla and Belverson.
How she t Misha and received her help.
I was surprised by one part.
"What? She had a [Declaration of Evil's End] scroll? That's a rare item."
Divine scrolls haven't been made for a long ti since the crafting thod was lost.
They were valuable treasures.
Where did she get it...
'Oh, she must have looted it.'
"Ahem, sorry for interrupting. Continue."
"You look annoyed."
"It's your imagination."
Anyway, thanks to the [Declaration of Evil's End] scroll, Alia and Misha were able to survive the monster wave.
And after that, Alia recovered enough to move.
"But I still don't understand. How did you two get here through all those monsters?"
"...There's an essence. It prevents monsters from attacking first."
Ah, she absorbed that essence.
But why?
She could have just brought a priestess...
'Oh, there are no priests in Noark.'
And she was a looter.
That essence would have been very useful for solo exploration.
"So that's all you're curious about?"
"No, there's more."
"Go ahead."
"Do you know why this island is like this?"
Who triggered the event on this island?
I asked indirectly, and Alia gave the answer.
"Carmilla and Belverson. They touched Gavrilius' Arrangent. They thought they had to trap here and kill after I escaped."
Hmm, so that's what happened.
Maybe one of those two was a player.
Gavrilius' Arrangent refers to a hidden piece.
But the hidden piece on this island was sothing very few players knew about.
"Did you hear that from the summoner?"
"Yes."
"What happened to her?"
"I don't forgive traitors."
She killed her.
'Ugh, why did she kill her?'
That summoner could control a rare flying summon.
We could have used her to escape the island.
'Well, it's no use crying over spilled milk.'
I didn't want to ruin our relationship by criticizing her.
"Anyway, so you found the item?"
"..."
Alia didn't answer.
She seed to be debating whether to tell or not.
I spoke softly.
"Co on, there's nothing to hide between us."
"Between us...?"
"I'm practically your lifesaver, aren't I?"
"What do you an...?"
"Do you think Misha would have saved you if she didn't know ?"
"..."
Alia didn't object.
She seed to agree.
She just clicked her tongue and answered my question.
"I recovered it. They said it was hidden, but it was in their subspace pocket."
"I knew it. Those bastards wouldn't leave a treasure lying around."
"So that's all you're curious about?"
No, of course not.
"One more thing."
I asked my last question.
"What is that item? I heard it's powerful enough to change history—"
"Stop."
Alia cut off.
Damn, was that a sensitive topic?
"Don't ask. I was just curious!"
I hurriedly explained that I didn't an anything by it, seeing her frown.
But maybe I had misunderstood?
"Monster."
Alia muttered sothing strange, staring into space.
...Monster?
Swaaaaaaaaaa!
A strong wind suddenly swept through the forest, shaking the trees.
Then I understood what she ant.
Damn it, I wanted to rest a little longer.
"There's a powerful monster nearby. Wake up your companions."
The last wave had begun.
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