The twisted shriek of Baphomet rang through the broken chapel like thunder ripping the sky. A towering demon cloaked in black muscle and bone, its glowing scythe pulsed with unholy energy, carving the air with every swing.
The Cold Clouds party stood bloodied, panting, and barely holding formation.
It stepped forward, a hulking demon cloaked in rotted fur and stained leather, with a scythe large enough to bisect a carriage. Its breathing was heavy, each exhale like a blast of corrupted wind. Its black horns curled backward like a crown of death.
The Cold Clouds party was falling apart.
Yori collapsed to one knee, her last mana crystal shattering in her hand. Hiro gritted his teeth, his quiver empty, arms trembling. Phoelyna's healing light had dimmed, her divine chants slowed to a whisper. Nadia staggered, blood trickling from a cut on her temple.
And at the center, armor cracked, sword planted into the ground to keep herself standing, stood Akane.
Red watched from the shadows of a nearby stone ruin. His arms folded, one boot resting on a jagged slab of rock.
He could see it clearly now, their HP bars, flickering, one by one.
Akane's was already below half.
Her crimson eyes burned with will, but her sword arm trembled. And yet... she stood tall.
Of course she does, Red thought silently.
She always did.
She had no player controlling her, no metaknowledge of tactics. She was just an NPC. A character designed with a script. And yet, she burned brighter than most players he had ever met.
Even as Baphomet raised its scythe, charging dark magic into its final, deathblow strike, Akane didn't move. She couldn't. Her knees would fail first.
Red's hand slowly dropped to the hilt at his waist.
Red: "…No."
His heart stirred.
My beautiful crush… Not you. Not like this.
The scythe came crashing down, like judgment itself.
Too fast. Too close.
Akane braced herself, body frozen in stubborn pride.
CLANG!
A sound like metal breaking the sky rang out.
A blur of black stepped between them, cloak flaring, one sword drawn and the other still sheathed.
Red stood there, one hand gripping Storm Wheel Wind, held behind his back, absorbing the brunt of Baphomet's blow.
His other hand hovered slowly over his second sword, still sheathed at his waist: Obsidian Destroyer.
His expression didn't change.
But his eyes, cold and dark, moved only to one thing.
Akane.
She looked up at him, stunned.
Time slowed.
Her crimson eyes widened. Her breath caught. Her cape fluttered in the breeze between them. Blood and dirt streaked her cheek, but to Red, she looked more divine than any high priest.
A rose pinned to her black hair still held its shape, despite the battle.
She's really beautiful up close...
Goddess-tier.
He stared at her face, taking in every detail. Every angle. Every strand of hair dancing in the dusk light.
If she were real... I'd kiss her on the spot.
He turned around slowly, now facing Baphomet directly.
One swing.
Just one was enough to shatter the beast's scythe if he wanted.
But he didn't.
Red exhaled, lowered his stance slightly.
Red's twin swords moved in a blur. Baphomet swung wildly, bringing down its scythe with monstrous force, but Red didn't move an inch more than necessary. He parried with ease, each clash sending echoes through the ruined cathedral.
This was just play.
To the Cold Clouds watching from the ground, the next few moments looked like something out of legend.
The clash between a scythe and twin swords.
Steel screamed.
Shockwaves blasted outward.
Each strike of Red's blades created ripples in the air, his movements impossibly clean, smooth, terrifying.
Baphomet, a monster that once crushed entire teams with one cleave, now fought like a cornered rat, lunging, spinning, roaring, desperately trying to keep up.
The two traded blow after blow with such speed and power that the guild's strongest NPCs stared, wide-eyed and speechless.
"…What is that sword style?" Hiro whispered, jaw slack.
"I can't even see his feet," Yori muttered, trembling.
"That's... That's not human," Phoelyna whispered.
Akane, still kneeling, said nothing.
Her crimson eyes followed every movement. Her lips were parted just slightly.
That man… blocked Baphomet barehanded?
No… that wasn't just blocking. That was protecting me.
Red's blade cut Baphomet again, and again.
He wasn't even trying. No skills. No buffs. No tactics. He was just… dancing.
And now Baphomet's HP is nearly gone.
A sliver left.
Red stepped back.
He turned his head slowly and looked at Akane again.
She was still watching him. Eyes wide. Silent.
"…Your kill," he said softly.
Akane's breath caught.
For a moment, she didn't move.
But then she pushed herself up, legs shaking, gripping her sword tightly with both hands.
She stepped forward, wounded, barely standing, but still strong.
With a scream, she charged and cleaved upward, slicing through the demon's neck.
Baphomet's head fell with a heavy thud.
And with it, so did the silence.
The Cold Clouds panted, bloodied and exhausted, yet victorious.
Baphomet was dead.
Its black horn, the reward, pulsed with residual energy, glowing faintly. Akane picked it up with one hand.
She didn't say thank you.
She simply looked at him, just once, then turned and walked away.
She turned her head away, glaring.
"You... didn't need to interfere," she muttered.
Red said nothing. He just watched her again.
Even covered in blood and dust, she was beautiful.
She's so proud. So stubborn. Just perfect.
By nightfall, the Cold Clouds party limped back toward Silverhaven, Red walking silently behind them, always five steps behind.
Akane, as always, let her mouth move faster than her heart.
"I could've handled it."
"You just wanted to show off."
"You didn't need to act like some dramatic savior, just stay out of it next time."
Red didn't reply.
Akane: "You hear me? Don't follow me like some creepy bodyguard. I'm a Mithril Rank, not some damsel in distress!"
Still no response.
Akane: "Why are you so quiet?! Say something!"
Red blinked.
Red: "You're welcome."
Akane nearly tripped.
Akane: "…Hmph."
She turned and marched forward faster, cape fluttering behind her.
Back at the Guild Hall, Sophia waited, arms crossed and paperwork in hand. The Guild Card terminal glowed as she checked the report.
Receptionist Sophia: "Confirmed: Baphomet Slain. Kill registered to Akane Hiromoto and Red. Reward: 8 Gold, 800 QPS."
She raised an eyebrow.
Receptionist Sophia: "Split 50/50."
Akane froze.
Akane: "What?! Why half?!"
Sophia tapped the terminal again. "Your team dealt 32% of the total damage. Red dealt 68%."
Akane: "…But he didn't even use skills!"
"Yeah. That's the scary part," Sophia muttered.
Akane clenched her fists, glaring at Red. He stood still, as if none of this concerned him.
But then.
"I challenge you!" she declared.
Everyone in the guild went silent.
Red raised one eyebrow.
"I want you to take a bunch of rookie adventurers," Akane continued, "and train them. Raise them all the way to Gold Rank, in one year."
Red turned his head slightly. "…What if I fail?"
Her crimson eyes locked onto his. "If you fail, you pay me 250 gold coins… and you retire from being an adventurer."
A pause.
Red blinked slowly. "And if I succeed?"
Akane crossed her arms, lifting her chin. "Then… I'll pay you 250 gold coins."
Red was quiet for a moment.
Red: "...That's unfair."
Akane smirked. "Afraid?"
"No," he replied. "You're asking for my entire life, while you're only risking your coins."
He turned to face her fully.
Red: "Then I'll add a clause."
Akane narrowed her eyes. "...What clause?"
"If I succeed," Red said plainly, "you'll become my wife."
The entire guild gasped.
Voices whispered all around the guild.
Red remained completely calm.
Akane's face turned bright red.
Akane: "W-WHAT?!"
Red didn't flinch. "A fair trade. My life… or yours."
Akane: "You're insane!"
Red: "...Do you accept?"
Akane's mouth opened, closed, then opened again.
Her voice cracked.
Akane:"…Fine! ButI get to choose your rookies! And if even one of them fails, it counts as a loss!"
Red nodded once. "Agreed."
She still wasn't facing him.
"Tomorrow morning," she muttered, "we meet at the Guild again. Sophia will witness the agreement."
Red: "Contract format?"
"Standard guild seal," she said. "We both put in 250 gold coins. You'll need to prepare your retirement letter. And…" She hesitated, cheeks reddening again.
Akane: "The… m-marriage form."
Even Sophia blinked at that one.
"Understood," Red said simply.
Akane turned sharply and marched off, muttering curses under her breath.
Red, however, stayed a moment longer, eyes lingering on her back as her red cape flowed behind her.