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Chapter 11 - That's who I am.

Edgar gripped the red sword with all his ignorance and courage, his grasp so tight the white knuckles seemed ready to burst from the tension. The air around him grew hot, gradually shifting from a cool breeze to a scorching current that stung the skin. Every breath he took was filled with ash and sparks, as if the sky itself had ignited in rage.

The giant approached with heavy steps, Dooom... dooom... dooom..., each step shaking the entire mountain. The very air trembled, and the earth breathed beneath its feet. Duncan watched the scene from above in shock, his wide eyes reflecting the giant's immensity. He couldn't contain himself and whispered with genuine fear and tension:

"Is this really a Door of Level E...?"

But the question was too late. Because the trouble had already begun.

Booooosh!

Edgar leaped with his sword towards the giant. The air split behind him into two halves, and the pressure from his jump dug into the ground beneath his feet as if a small explosion had occurred there. Soil flew in circles, rocks cracked, and the wind twisted behind him in a vortex of dust and fire.

The moment was decisive. The giant raised its colossal sword, formed from hundreds of intertwined warriors fused into one body. Every movement of its sword produced the sound of thousands of swords clashing simultaneously, Craaaaak... dooooom!

As for Edgar,he swung his red sword with all his might. A single blow was enough to fell three of the warriors forming the sword.

But that very blow was also enough to send him flying through the air like a human projectile, Fshshshsh....B-OOOOOM!

He crashed into the ground with force,tumbling dozens of times over the rocks, his ribs breaking with each impact. His sword fell far away, sinking into the dirt leaving a smoldering trail.

Duncan was muttering from above, his steps echoing anxiously, retreating slightly then taking a step forward, trapped between his desire to save his friend and the knowledge of his own limitations.

As for Edgar, he was trying to rise again. His breaths were heavy, his chest emitting bestial snarls, like a dying beast refusing death. He crawled on the ground with scratches on his face, his blood mixing with the hot soil, reaching out with difficulty until he grasped his sword's hilt once more.

He looked at his feet and found them twisted in the opposite direction, a sight that would make bones scream.

Edgar screamed at the top of his lungs,a shriek that tore through the sky, until blood came from his nose. Yet, he didn't release the sword from his hand.

The giant approached slowly, Dooom... dooom... dooom... each step filling the horizon with shadows. The old man below moved his hands in that strange way, as if a puppet master manipulating thousands of warriors with invisible strings. The war he waged wasn't from his own will or regret, but a curse… punishment for his past brutality.

Duncan, realizing time was running out, began running quickly, dust flying behind him.

He reached Edgar,looked at him in shock, his breathing ragged as he said quietly, tinged with panic:

Get on...

Duncan knelt before him, but Edgar couldn't lift his exhausted body. He tried to reach out but fell to the ground again.

Suddenly, Edgar shouted in a hoarse, angry voice:

"Run!"

Duncan gasped, saying in shocked disbelief:

"What?"

Edgar raised his head, his eyes bloody, and said in an angry, broken voice:

"Don't you understand, you donkey? I told you to run!"

Duncan froze in place, stared at Edgar with trembling eyes, then said with faint sadness:

"Ed… Edgar… I'm sorry, this is all I can do… I've failed you."

Edgar couldn't respond, his lips moved without sound, finally saying only in a faint, pain-filled whisper:

"Just… go… please…"

Duncan ran away, his steps hesitant, his heart burning with guilt. He glanced back one last time and saw the giant standing beside Edgar—massive, dark, cold. Edgar raised his sword and struck the giant's foot with all his strength, Craaaaak! But nothing happened.

Duncan's eyes widened suddenly when he saw the giant lift its foot high, then... Doooom! It stomped on Edgar.

Then again...Dooom... dooom... dooom... Five times, as if the giant enjoyed crushing the small body that had challenged it.

Duncan could no longer bear the sight. He turned his head, his tail stiff, walking in the opposite direction with suffocating silence. He didn't look back again. His mission as a companion was over.

Whooooom...

Duncan's eyes snapped open. Everything had changed and reversed. He was in front of the same haunted house. The air was cold, the sky gray. Before him stood Edgar, looking at him with a weary smile, saying:

"Ooooh, you donkey."

Duncan, half-unconscious, slowly raised his head and said:

"Don't enter that house… please."

Edgar furrowed his eyebrows and said with sharp surprise:

What are you saying? Have you lost your mind, donkey, or what?

Then he added in a more serious tone:

"And where did Alexander go?"

Duncan quickly turned around, searching for Alexander, but the place was empty. He whispered in a trembling voice:

"It's him… but why…"

Suddenly, Alexander emerged from the house. He was holding the Door System Key, flipping it between his fingers and playing with it with a cold look.

He said with deadly calm:

"You can enter your house now, Edward. The place is safe."

Edward approached slowly, looked at the house, and saw that it had truly changed. Light now reflected off the walls and wooden floor, the air had become light, and the mysterious sounds had completely disappeared. He smiled slightly and said:

Than...

But Alexander interrupted him with sharp coldness:

"Don't thank me."

He approached Edgar, handed him the key, and said:

"Here's the key."

Edgar said, his features tense:

"Why did you take the mission from me?"

Alexander smiled a mysterious smile and said calmly:

"It's a mission not yet at your level… There was a mistake with the cards."

Edgar gripped the key forcefully, his veins bulging, and said nervously:

"And how would you know my level?"

Alexander didn't answer, only smiled and began walking away.

Suddenly, Duncan shouted:

"Wait a moment! I want to talk to you!"

Alexander stopped, smiled lightly without turning around, then hid the smile and said in a cold voice:

"What do you want?"

Duncan said:

"In private."

They moved a little away from the others, then Duncan said in a faint but serious voice:

"You're the one who changed the cards and the doors, and the color of the road… Why?"

Alexander laughed lightly, a mocking laugh:

You're a smart donkey… Well, you're right, I did that.

But he added calmly:

[ But it didn't have any real effect on your lives, because even if Edgar had died two thousand years ago, and without me seeing his form, I could have brought him back to life.]

Duncan was shocked, his eyes widening. Alexander continued with a twisted smile:

[ I just wanted to show you, Duncan, the difference between logic and illogic. The Door was Level B, but your friend defeated its evil soundly. This doesn't mean he's weak; he just needs to continue progressing to reach that level. ]

Duncan asked him with sincere emotion:

"But why did you do this in the first place? What's the reason?"

Alexander answered with philosophical coldness:

[Edgar is different, but his difference would have led him to ruin. I just showed you the meaning of ruin. And since you're his companion, you'll make him submit to logic and not imitate me… because I am completely different.]

[But really, why did I do that? The real reason isn't Edgar. It's something you can't understand, nor can the reader understand, or even the writer. It's just me, because that's who I am.....]

Then suddenly, with a cold wind sweeping through the place, Alexander transformed into that same old man, the man who had controlled the giant, and walked away towards the horizon, leaving behind the echo of his footsteps and the sound of the faint wind?

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