Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Spoils of War
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"Kuhuk... Kuaaaah...!"
Black smoke erupted from the severed cross-section of Vector's body like an explosion after it was rent apart by the light sword strike.
Shifting my gaze to Ravi, I saw she had finally broken free of the black energy's restraints, regaining control of her body as she rushed toward me.
"Alvis!"
Vector was still alive.
I slammed the light sword into the ground as a crutch and struggled to rise, preparing for another attack, but the damage from Ravi's strike was too severe—my arms lacked any real strength.
Blood streamed down from my forehead, blurring my vision.
If that bastard somehow survived and lashed out, I wouldn't have the power to stop him.
Please... just die...
The effects of Eye that Pierces Truth had worn off, and now the monster—once a grotesque silhouette dotted with dozens of eyes and mouths—looked like an ordinary human man again.
The black smoke pouring from Vector's body continued surging skyward until, at some point, it simply stopped.
Before I knew it, his severed flesh had knitted back together into a normal form, not a drop of blood spilling from his body.
Ravi, Elfin, and Lenis trembled in despair at the sight.
"How... This can't be..."
"Even after that attack..."
"Not even bleeding— is that thing even human?!"
But their despair only gripped our group for a moment.
Soon enough, Vector dropped to his knees with a thud, his entire body going limp as if all strength had fled him.
"Kuhk... Huhk... To think... I, the great Vector... defeated so ridiculously..."
With those words, Vector's body began crumbling to dust, starting from his fingertips.
"Our plan was right on the verge of success... To fall to the likes of you... Damn it... Goddamn it!!"
"Did we... win?"
"Everyone! Look around! The castle, the courtyard... even the forest..."
In sync with Vector's dissipation, the surrounding landscape crumbled to dust as well.
The baron's castle, fences, gardens, pond, lake... and even the guards at the entrance.
So that's how it was.
The guards had let us in without my prior approval, acting on their own, and Vector—who hadn't been informed of our visit—had come out to greet us as if it were the most natural thing. I'd wondered about it then.
From the start, even those soldiers were illusions crafted by Vector for deception—no need to report what he already knew they saw and heard.
As all scenery dissolved around us, Vector—now missing both arms—muttered on his knees.
"Heh... heh heh... Fine, you bastards won. This time, anyway."
"What the hell are you?! What's going on here?!"
"You even knew Lady Liniaras's name! Who are you?! Spill it!"
"Was tricking me into heading to Libertà part of your scheme too?! What's your goal?!"
The three shouted, but Vector slowly lifted his head, grinning so wide his mouth seemed to split his face.
His eyes now held no pupils or whites—only pitch-black darkness welled up within.
"Heh... heh heh... Fine, I'll let you in on something good before I go. We are those who will surpass the weak, incompetent goddess and become the gods of this age. Even if I die, it won't hinder our plans. The whole world—even the Holy Warrior—is on our side. Whatever petty tricks you pull are just minor variables that can't touch the greater flow. Struggle all you want... The day will come when you despair in powerlessness and turn blades on each other's throats..."
"Holy Warrior? You don't mean Brayden..."
"Shut your lying mouth!"
"Brayden's a noble soul—nothing like the likes of you! How dare you wag your rotten tongue—"
The three erupted in fury simultaneously, but their target was already gone.
Vector fully vanished, and with him, the entire landscape. Only then did our location revert to the empty cavern I knew.
A barrage of messages cluttered my vision, but dizziness made the text hard to read.
"Alvis!"
Someone called out to me urgently—it was one of the three, but I couldn't even distinguish whose voice it was.
With my stamina depleted, I felt severe anemia and vertigo wash over me before collapsing and closing my eyes.
When I opened my eyes again, I was lying neatly in a bed in some inn room.
"Ugh..."
Pain flared hot in my abdomen and face as I tried to sit up.
Bandages wrapped various parts of my body, and a damp cloth rested on my forehead.
Oddly, my nose felt no major pain. Touching it lightly, the nose—surely crushed by that kick—remained surprisingly intact.
I was the only one in the bed. On the floor beside it, Ravi slept soundly under a haphazardly spread blanket. She must have been the one nursing me.
My battered old iron sword by the bedside window had failed to withstand the Light Saber's output—only a fragment of the blade's base remained, the rest vanished without a trace.
Essentially just a hilt now, unfit even to call a sword anymore.
Instead, a pile of unfamiliar items sat stacked beside it.
Right—we'd fought in the Deceiver's Lair, a field dungeon.
In Holy Warrior Brayden NX, field dungeons had no party size limits but correspondingly brutal difficulty.
You could brute-force them with sheer numbers if needed, but clearing with a small team yielded far better rewards.
Only four of us fought Vector, including me—so the clear rewards should've hit the max grade for a field dungeon.
Tch, if only I could activate my ability to check.
The thought triggered it automatically—light gleamed in my eyes.
Reached a higher realm, huh? What humble rewards.
Shouldn't a "higher realm" mean some real generosity? Bumping from 3 to 5 minutes and 3 daily uses to 4? Barely qualifies as a reward.
Grumbling inwardly, I inspected the new items' stats.
It resembled that black shard from the goblin camp before.
Gripping and squeezing it lightly, it crumbled to powder effortlessly.
Only then did a satisfied smile cross my face.
Now that's a reward.
I'd handed all the goblin camp loot to Carrot Duchy, and the gargoyle cave yielded nothing noteworthy. This was my first real haul.
And every piece was top-tier gear that'd make your head spin.
I'd used the boots and knuckles in-game before—the knuckles were brutally straightforward powerhouses, and the boots situational but godlike when conditions aligned.
The wing staff was new, but Lenis—our closest thing to a magic user—could take it.
Perfectly distributed for the party, too.
Boots to Elfin, staff to Lenis, knuckles to Ravi.
I got an extra skill, destroyed another curse fragment for another effect. Worth every bit of hell fighting Vector.
"Mm..."
Rummaging through the items must've woken her—sharp-eared Ravi rubbed her eyes and slowly sat up.
Snapping alert, her mouth fell open in shock.
"Ah... aaah..."
Tears welled instantly in Ravi's big eyes.
As if afraid of hurting me, she embraced me gently, then tightly, sobbing as she clung.
"Waaah! Uwaaaah! Alvis, you're okay! Thank goodness... hueeeeng..."