“I thought he was a genius.”
The young master, known for never having held a sword before, was trying to catch up to him, so Berod wondered if he might be a genius comparable to Crown Prince Kaitel.
He thought that someday he might surpass him, but that was a far-off future.
“…I guess I misjudged.”
As he brushed off the debris from the spire raining down on him, Berod mumbled while watching the single deadly strike that cut down the Minotaurus.
It wasn’t catching up; it was merely a process of reclaiming a state he had already attained.
It shouldn’t be possible, but it indeed looked that way.
A natural ascent to such a realm without any process of enlightenment couldn’t simply be described with the term ‘genius.’
He momentarily missed the Minotaurus’s movement. However, Berod captured the moment their sword met the monster.
When he saw that the enormous beast’s explosive speed hadn’t brushed against Robert at all, but that a clean arm had been severed away instead.
He couldn’t possibly explain how it had been cut.
It was that level of skill. No one had reached it; therefore, no one could explain it.
Only Robert, who wielded the sword, clearly understood what he had done as he wiped away the Minotaurus’s blood without any wounds on himself.
Perhaps it was a state that Berod could never touch even if he swung his sword for a lifetime.
“Sword Star.”
Perhaps it was a name that wouldn’t be strange to find in this era, Berod no longer worried about defeat.
Wasn’t it rather strange that he would be the one to lose?
What he needed to think about now was what would happen after the Minotaurus was dead.
It seemed that soon the outcome would be decided.
#
“…Huh.”
He never even considered that his arm would be severed.
The body of the Minotaurus was sturdier than anything else.
Unless one was a god, he had never easily inflicted wounds before, yet here he was, losing an arm despite whatever weakness had overcome it.
If he regained his strength, his arm would grow back. However, the Minotaurus had no power left to regenerate that arm.
The previous attack was one where he could safely pour everything he had.
There was none who could block that attack, nor anyone who survived it.
Even if he had obtained divine power, to be hurt like this by merely a human wielding a sword was absurd.
Berod smiled a little, finding joy in thinking it over repeatedly, as the monster looked at Robert.
“I hope no other human is like you. If others come back, before they even do anything, they’ll lose their heads.”
Could he pull off such an attack once more?
He was half in doubt about that, but it seemed likely that he wouldn’t be able to.
The reason he could sever an arm in that last attack was because it was imbued with divine power.
He had released a sudden burst of strength, delivering a strike at an invisible speed.
Because it was an unreactable speed, he lost his arm, but for a human body to withstand that speed was no doubt a tall order.
I offered my arm to Doigi, but it must be tough to handle that speed with a human body.
The monster lost interest upon hearing my gasping breath.
If I continued to attack like that a few more times, I would surely die, but otherwise, I’d just accumulate wounds.
Demons don’t die easily, so it’s no wonder they chose to seal even a god.
“Are you not going to charge at me anymore?”
“You were the one who started it. You came looking for me while I was just sitting here quietly. Of course, if you hadn’t come, we would have run into each other sooner or later.”
I was getting quite tired of recovering my strength by eating humans.
I thought I would eventually get out one day, but having met this human…
I didn’t think I could stay here for long. I didn’t want to fight anymore.
I could keep fighting if I wanted, but that wasn’t the kind of battle I desired.
Both parties putting their lives on the line, clashing with all their might until one of us died.
This was the first time I felt a human get so close to that sense of life-threatening danger, so I didn’t want to end this fight easily.
I liked this. Perhaps even more than the dead dragon I once followed.
“There was no reason for you to fight me, yet you didn’t run away. Was there a reason for that?”
“…If I don’t fight, I’ll eventually come out somehow.”
“So there’s something out there, huh.”
With those words, the monster quietly laughed upon seeing my cold eyes.
When humans make that kind of expression, there’s usually a similar reason behind it.
It could be that they have something to protect. Or they possess an uncomprehending blind loyalty.
If the man guarding someone is closer to the latter, then this guy is probably the former.
A human with those eyes is dangerous. As I caressed the scar etched on my forehead, I slowly drew up my magic power.
Bit by bit, my shrinking body transformed into a human shape.
Even after becoming human, the severed arm was still there, so as I glanced at my empty arm, I couldn’t help but smile.
It was quite an amusing sight.
To think I, with my arm gone, looked this ugly. Other guys would be quite surprised if they saw me like this.
Only one human can see this form.
Robert, who was silently watching the monster taming its red hair, realized it wasn’t its original form but a polymorph.
“Why didn’t you change until now? If you had reduced your size earlier, you wouldn’t have lost your arm.”
“That would be lacking in romance. When I fight, I put my heart into it. The reason I stopped? Well, it’s probably because I know you can’t fight like just now. If we keep going, we’d just end up with more wounds.”
So, it seems a fight that merely results in mutual wounds isn’t what you desire.
It was a somewhat futile reason, but Robert realized that his own physical condition was pretty bad.
He had recovered his energy, but his body wasn’t trained to the level it had been after decades of training.
Even if I tried to fill that gap with divine power, the difference would still arise.
The more I forced it, the more recoil there would be.
There was bound to be some recoil.
Although it looked like he was standing fine, it meant that his insides were breaking down, causing Robert to smirk as he felt his gradually healing body.
If he swung again like before, his arm would disappear.
Noticing that, he stopped fighting, but it was hard to tell whether that was a demon or just a monster crazed for battle.
The Minotaurus, feeling the gaze upon him, realized Robert was worried about something.
Was he concerned about what would happen if the fight stopped here?
Anyone watching might think he was just a being that kills anyone.
Despite appearances, he was still a demon. In the demon realm, he was treated as a noble among humans; surely, he wouldn’t just kill indiscriminately.
Other demons might, but he had only killed those he deemed normally strong.
Naturally, he swept away the army that rushed at him, but
charging into the middle of a village to wipe everyone out was something other demons often did, not him.
He enjoyed battling, not slaughtering.
The Minotaurus chuckled to himself, sitting atop a corpse and flicking his lips.
“If you think I’m going out to kill someone, you don’t need to worry. There’s no need to waste time on that, and I have to check if the others got up. Besides, I’ve got to leave this place anyway.”
“…If I die here, then irrespective of those words, I could feel at ease.”
“Could you?”
If you asked if it was possible, then maybe sharing a fate would be the best option.
The chance of Berod aiding the Minotaurus in battle was slim.
Hadn’t he just barely made a hit while regaining his original power?
Even that was a weakened demon. If they failed to capture him here, the entire North could be in trouble.
Thinking wisely, it was better to engage in conversation without resistance.
However, he couldn’t fully trust that, so when Robert asked how he could believe him, the Minotaurus swallowed a small gulp.
What should he say to make this believable? It was clear he wouldn’t be trusted if the roles were reversed,
so if it hadn’t been for the thought that popped into his head, he might have been pondering for a long time.
“For now, I want you to understand that I have no intention of following the Dead Dragon.”
“That’s the first problem—how do I believe that?”
Adrian shared the concern about that, and before long, he had drawn closer to Robert, infusing divine power as he glared at the monster.
It was a relief he wasn’t hurt; had he been, it would have been enough to order Berod to take action right away.
What was this monster’s intent behind saying that? Watching him with narrowed eyes, the Minotaurus sighed and shook his head.
“Even if you don’t believe me, I’ve got nothing to say, but should I share a secret?”
“Even if you say so, I have nothing to say, but should I tell you a secret?”
“Anyway, I was going to tell you once I severed your arm, so it’s fine to let it slip out now.”
“In the past, I followed the Dead Dragon because I found it interesting, but now that I’ve confirmed there are even more enjoyable beings, I see no reason to follow it any longer.”
“The other demons can take care of themselves, but there’s no need for me to force myself to follow.”
“After glancing at Robert for a moment, the Minotaurus felt the ‘something’ within him and let out a small chuckle.”
“The prank of the Dead Dragon resided in this man.”
“It’s likely that reaching such a level was accumulated over time through repeated cycles. Perhaps even more could be visible.”
“To witness that kind of level, it was probably my job to help resolve the worries he might be harboring right now. For example, things related to reincarnation. What is this 101st life for?”
“Considering that the other two men probably wouldn’t know, the Minotaurus chose its words carefully and quietly moved its lips.”
“Then let me tell you one thing you don’t know. You might find it interesting, even if you weren’t planning to have a conversation with me.”
“…What are you trying to say?”
“The Dead Dragon and the Moon Stone.”
“The Moon Stone is a relic that does not exist in this time. It can only be recognized by those who acknowledge the truth of reincarnation, and only if they realize it has disappeared for some unnatural reason can they uncover it.”
The monster, realizing the expressions of Adrian and Robert had changed, continued to speak with a curious smile.
“I’ll tell you what kind of relationship the two have.”
#
The countless letters drawn on the wall pointed solely to one existence.
The wall, completely darkened from repeated narratives, and Arwen’s hand, which had been fidgeting and mumbling something, suddenly froze in mid-air.
“…If this is true.”
The material Robert provided completely shattered the hypothesis Arwen had built up until now.
The hypothesis that she had accidentally started reincarnation and coincidentally arrived here was now discarded, reduced to a scrap of paper.
A hundred deaths, a 101st life. And the special phenomena triggered by that singularity.
This was all intended by someone.
If Robert harbored a certain purpose, it must have failed for bizarre reasons up until now.
What should have led to success ended in failure, and thus the broken mind should have fallen apart by now.
What that someone didn’t consider was probably that Robert would overcome that death and move forward.
Only those who have traversed through eternal death can bring everything to an end, which meant that the one intending reincarnation was the Dead Dragon.
And the one who could kill it would be—
The 101st Robert.
