«N-no...!» Those were the man's last words, but Amelia paid no attention to him and crushed his head with her foot as if it were a watermelon.
Chomp.
It felt a little pointless, to think that a fierce battle was ending like this.
«Barbarian». Soon, Amelia's attention turned to me. «You are very hurt.»
«And you're missing an arm.»
«Lack of time.»
What does time have to do with it? Is this conversation correct?
Just as those questions arose, Amelia searched the man's body and found the amputated arm in his subspace. «And to think I even had this».
What the hell? Why is that there?
I frowned involuntarily, but Amelia just calmly brought her arm to the severed place.
Do you think that's going to stick?
«It will take a day for the nerves to return to normal». All he did was press it there for about ten seconds, but his arm stuck to his body as if he had applied glue to it. Seeing that the proportions were correct, it seemed to be his own arm.
Come to think of it, he told me that his body couldn't stand potions.
I remembered a brief conversation I had with Amelia in the past, in the sewer.
«...Didn't you have a potion?»
«It's my body type».
So it does have that essence.
Fountain of Youth was a passive ability unable to accommodate any healing effects, including potions, but greatly increased natural regeneration. It was a profitable skill as it had the property of healing even amputated limbs over time.
«B-Bjorn! You're OK?! Why are you so hurt again?!»
Oh, right. This is not the time for that.
I belatedly came to my senses and got up from the ground. I was crazy curious to know what had happened to Missha, but that could come later. «I'm fine. Help me move».
«Oh, okay. Come here».
I walked towards my companions with Missha's help. Everyone gathered in one place.
«Miss Karlstein... I'm so glad you're okay. Mr. Yandel was so worried...»
«Ah, sorry I'm late. There was an incident. But who is this lying on the ground...?» Then, checking the fallen man's face, Missha jumped up. «A-Abman?! E-Is he dead...?».
Raven didn't respond. He just looked at the ground with sad eyes.
When I removed my hand from his shoulder, Missha quickly approached Mr. Bear and checked him. «No... breathe...». Missha turned to me with surprised eyes and quickly put her hand to Mr. Bear's heart. «He doesn't have a pulse either... Really...?». He lowered his head, unable to finish.
«...Yes.» Raven spoke with tight lips as if she were about to cry.
There was no greater comedy.
What «yes»? Ugh, I'll die first at this rate.
«Why do you kill someone alive and healthy?». I dragged my tattered body to Mr. Bear and turned his wrist bracelet to make it look good: No. 7,611, The Necromancer's Deception. When the wielder took deadly damage, they fell into a state of suspended animation and gained immunity to damage for a certain period of time. Of the jewelry on the bracelet, there was now only one that emitted light. «It seems that... it worked well».
But didn't Raven know about this object? «Excuse me? What...?»
I didn't have the energy for a long explanation, so I simply removed the cap from a potion and poured it over Mr. Bear's body.
Chhhhhhh.
His slightly dried blood began to boil and create bubbles. It was proof that Mr. Bear was still alive. A potion had no effect on someone who had left.
«Ersina, what... are you doing? Try it, quickly».
«A-ah...yes! I will!» When the priestess's healing was added to the potion, Mr. Bear's wounds began to close rapidly.
It should be safe to say he's alive now.
It was a real relief that I could go to him before the object wore off, that he would hold back the urge to pass out right away and keep me awake. Without me, everyone would have been crying over what they thought was a corpse.
Then Erwen approached me. «Lord, come too. Needs quick treatment...»
But did confirming Mr. Bear's survival release the tension in my body? «Ah.» Yes, I needed treatment too.
«¿Eh?»
Just as I was about to move, the ground began to tilt.
Desplome!
That was my last memory of that day.
***
When I woke up, the surroundings were dark. A small night sky revealed itself among the dense trees and dark leaves.
¡Crackle, crackle!
I heard the sound of a bonfire. The strange cozy atmosphere created the desire to stay that way a little longer.
First, identify the situation.
I held on to the ground and forced myself to lift my upper body. From the shoulders to the calves, to the back, there was not a point that was not sore. However, thanks to the resistance to pain, it was a different sensation than pain.
«Ugh». I let out a long sigh.
Did you wake up to that little sound? The arboreal girl in the sleeping bag next to me rubbed her eyes and poked her face out.
«...Lord! You're awake!» It was Erwen. «Are you okay?»
«...For now», I responded and looked around. Seeing that there were several sleeping bags around, it seemed like everyone was sleeping.
I guess we were camping.
When I looked closely, I could see monsters obstructed by a translucent barrier, the Evil Destruction effect. Of course, there was someone watching.
«It seems like you've finally woken up». Amelia Rainwales was a woman I had crossed paths with several times by chance so far, although I wasn't sure if that was dire or not.
«...What happened?»
«It's been about a day since you passed out. That's all.»
Hmm, I don't think I was asking how much time has passed.
«I was referring to why you were with Missha, why your comrades betrayed you, and if there is anything else I need to know.»
«I see.» When I explained it to her so that even a three-year-old could understand it, Amelia nodded and replied: «Listen to him from your comrades».
Ja, peleona.
«Erwen, tell me». I brought the subject of the interrogation to Erwen and listened to the gruesome story.
«I don't know where to start... First, I'll start after you pass out».
Apparently, when I fainted, my classmates were in a mess because they couldn't take care of me. Mr. Bear was in an incurable state due to the Drake's skill, but the swordsman's poisoned sword caught up with me so it was difficult to solve that easily.
«He will surely die at this rate».
«That? We can use magic!»
«Detox magic is only versatile, it is not specialized, so it is impossible.»
«So what about divine power?»
«The poison is so extreme that it is miraculous that it has come this far. In my state, there is not enough divine power to expel this poison.»
«Bjorn is not a warrior who can die in a place like this! Save him!»
Detox using magic was difficult. Even the priestess was completely empty, making healing impossible. That's when Amelia stepped forward.
«Use this. It's probably an antidote».
Amelia found the antidote in the swordsman's bag and handed it to us, and the poison was neutralized by that.
«Fortunately the medicine worked well. When we gave you the potion after that, your wounds began to heal».
That put an end to the recounting of my health problems, but what came next remained chaotic. Monsters kept coming from everywhere, and everyone was in the worst condition. Meanwhile, they had to take care of me and Mr. Bear unconscious, which made the difficulty increase even more.
«Still, thanks to that person's help... we were able to hold on until the priestess was able to use Evil Destruction again».
«Cut so far.»
«Excuse me? No. This is the third time we've taken a break like this.»
When Ersina first extended the barrier, the atmosphere was apparently as bloody as fighting monsters due to none other than Patzran and Amelia.
«So far we may have had no choice but to join forces, but that woman is a Noark looter. She can't be trusted. It was she who attacked us in the first place».
«¡¿E-eh ?! ¡¿N-Noark ?!»
«Didn't you know while traveling with her? You were lucky in many ways».
Patzran made no secret of his animosity toward Amelia, and Amelia was no different.
She wasn't hostile towards him first.
«You are a talkative man. If you want to fight, let's fight».
Without avoiding her hostility, she poured water on the seeds of the conflict. Just as the murderous energy circulated inside the barrier, Missha defended Amelia.
«Stop everyone! I didn't know this woman was from Noark, but still, she's not a bad person!».
Raven also judged the situation rationally and attempted to mediate the fight.
«What are you going to do without this person? Mr. Patzran, think rationally. She was also betrayed by her comrades. Although there are only two left, I'm sure he won't attack us. If she wanted to, she would have done it a long time ago».
Of course, the parties in question did not even try to listen.
«Do you mean I should forget my resentment just because the situation is different now? That woman hurt Drous and even sent pursuers after us. If we hadn't treated her well then we would be dead».
«How unfortunate. If you had died then, I wouldn't have had to hear this whining now».
«What did you say? Looting bitch...!»
Patzran drew his second sword, which he was carrying as a reserve, and Amelia took out her dagger and faced him.
«Yeah. You thought carefully, Mr. Patzran».
Patzran did not wield his sword. I didn't know him that well, but I knew he wasn't that stupid.
«I'm watching you, so don't even think about doing something funny».
After that, an awkward pause followed. Once the barrier was raised, they fought monsters again, and once the Evil Destruction cooldown time was up, they took a break. It was during the second break that Mr. Bear woke up.
«Haha... Keep today's secret from my wife. She will definitely make me stop working as an explorer».
Mr. Bear became concerned about the aftermath of this day as soon as he woke up, but quickly regained his energy and joined the front line.
«From that moment on, the monsters that appeared suddenly changed».
While he was unconscious, the third wave began. The middle boss was a rank 4 monster. The priestess was beaten by the chief and fell unconscious, and there were other attacks by the skin of her teeth, but Amelia overcame by acting as the main harm.
«Essence?»
«Ningi».
Ugh, sure. Is there only the final boss left? I really hope that guy drops an essence. Before that, I should probably worry about whether we can catch him or not.
Many thoughts came to mind, but I put them all aside and continued listening to Erwen's story. There wasn't much to listen to. The explanation was long but in the end all that happened were fights, breaks and tension between Patzran and Amelia.
«Anyway, that's how things got to this point».
«Yeah, did that solve your curiosity?».
«In a way. Thank you. You must be tired too. Rest a little».
«...Okay. I will stay by your side».
Mm, I mean, that's not really necessary, but...
It would be fun for me to say something here.
«But, Mister, um... Shouldn't you wake up Sis?»
«Sis? Nothing happens. She knows I'm alive and my body is fine, why wake her up? Let her sleep.»
Just watch how no one wakes up even while we're talking now.
They must have been exhausted from the arduous battles. It didn't matter if we talked later, so, it was time to listen to the other side now.
«So long no see, Amelia.» I completely got out of the sleeping bag, sat in front of the bonfire and expressed my gratitude. «Before... No, thanks for helping me yesterday».
«You talk a lot to be a barbarian. Ask me whatever you want».
Barbarians can talk so much too...
Well, it doesn't matter. Getting straight to the point was always welcome. «What happened to Missha?»
«Didn't you hear about that fairy?»
«I thought I should hear this from your own mouth.»
«...Tsk.» Amelia clicked her tongue as if upset, but surprisingly she didn't complain much and told me what happened. She was betrayed by Carmilla and Belverson and, while fleeing, met Missha and received her help. This part surprised me a lot.
«That? A scroll of Destruction of Evil? Did you have something as valuable as that?» The method of making these divine scrolls disappeared a long time ago and were no longer manufactured. Of course, they were priceless treasures.
Where the hell did he get it from... Oh. He probably looted it.
«Ahem, sorry for interrupting. Keep going.»
«It looks nasty.»
«It's just your mood.»
Thanks to the use of the Destruction of Evil scroll, Amelia and Missha were able to survive the wave of monsters. After that, their bodies recovered enough to move.
«I still do not understand it. How could you get through all those monsters and get this far?»
«...There is an essence like that. One that prevents monsters from attacking first».
Oh, did you have that essence? But why eat that? Even if you are an explorer, that can be solved by bringing a priest... Ah, there are no priests in Noark.
And now that I think about it, she was a looter. That essence would have been very useful for wandering the maze alone.
«So, is that the end of your questions?»
«No, I have some more».
«Question».
«Do you know what caused the island to become like this?» Who activated the event on this island?
When I went around the bush with this question, Amelia gave me the answer. «Carmilla and Belverson messed with Gabrielius' Arrangement. When I escaped from them alive, I guess they thought they had to somehow catch me here and eliminate me».
Hmm, so that's the story.
It was possible that there was also a player between those two. Gabrielius' Arrangement denoted a hidden piece, but it seemed that few players knew about the hidden piece on this island.
«Is this what you heard when you questioned the summoning woman yourself?»
«Sí.»
«What did you do to him?»
«I don't believe in forgiving traitors.»
So he killed her. Ugh, why kill her after just capturing her alive?
I couldn't contain my sigh of regret. After all, that woman was a rare type of scout who could wield a flying summoned beast. We could have used it to escape this island immediately.
But that's already in the past.
Instead of blaming Amelia and damaging our relationship, I focused my attention on something else. «Anyway, have you found what you were looking for?».
Amelia fell silent, as if she was hesitating whether to tell me or not.
I spoke in a suggestive voice. «Hey, what's there to hide between us now?».
«Hmm, between us?»
«I saved your life, after all».
«What do you mean by that?»
«If we didn't know each other, do you think Missha would have saved you?».
Amelia also seemed to think that way, since she didn't disagree. He just clicked his tongue and answered my question. «The object was recovered. Contrary to his words that he was hidden, he was right in his subspace».
«Somehow, I thought that would be the case. There's no way those guys kept that treasure away from them».
«So that's where your questions end?»
No, of course not.
«Just one more.» Finally, I asked: «What is that object? From what I've heard, it seems like it's powerful enough to change history...»
«Enough.» Amelia cut me firmly and wrinkled her face.
Oops, was it a sensitive topic? «Don't answer if you don't want to. I was just asking out of curiosity». Seeing the corners of Amelia's hardened lips, I quickly excused myself by saying that I didn't mean to go overboard. But had he misunderstood something?
Amelia stared into the air and made a random comment. «Monster».
...Monster?
¡Shaaaaa!
As soon as I tilted my head, a strong wind blew from all directions, shaking the branches of the trees. Only then did I understand what he meant. Ugh, and I wanted to rest a little more.
«There is a monster in this area. At least rank 3. Go wake up your comrades».
So, the last wave had begun after all.