In the Abyss (4)
“Incredible…”
Lucy unconsciously swallowed. Her lips parted on their own, a quiet gasp of admiration slipping out.
And why not? The sight unfolding before her eyes was utterly unbelievable.
The man standing tall ahead—Arnold. His body was smaller than hers, yet right now, he was overwhelming a giant several times his size.
And this wasn’t just any giant.
“No way… He’s toying with Ballan…”
She knew exactly what Ballan was. He wasn’t some mere hulking monster. He was another creation of the ancient god Luisil, who had crafted him personally—a weapon born for slaughter.
The transcendent strength pouring from that massive frame, the overwhelming speed no normal senses could track. His body, clad in unyielding black iron armor, shrugged off any attack without a single scratch, like an unbreakable fortress. And thanks to the runes etched into that armor, even magic was useless against him.
A colossal physique, perfect defense, speed, and power all in one. Ballan wasn’t just an enemy—he embodied irrationality itself.
Yet that Ballan…
“Grrrh…! How dare you, how dare you!!”
Ballan roared in fury, swinging his enormous fist. An explosive boom ripped through the air, as if space itself were tearing. The ground quaked, and nearby stones shattered into fragments. His strike wasn’t mere violence—it was a calamity that could split the earth.
But Arnold didn’t dodge. He took just a single step forward.
The instant Ballan’s fist was about to connect—crack—a vivid fissure spiderwebbed across the black iron armor.
Ballan’s pupils trembled violently. He instinctively sensed that pushing further would shatter even his remaining hand into pieces.
“Why don’t you stop yelling and come at me properly?”
Arnold’s voice was calm, laced with mockery.
Ballan’s eyes blazed with hatred, blue flames roaring to life.
“You filthy human… Where does a worm like you get this power?!”
He gnashed his teeth in a scream. To him, Arnold was nothing but a puny human—unworthy of facing him. But now, that tiny figure was playing him for a fool. For Ballan, there could be no greater humiliation.
“Rrrraaagh!!!”
Unable to contain his rage, Ballan exploded forward with cataclysmic force. But that move was a fatal mistake.
His fist sliced through the air, plummeting toward Arnold. This time, it was a sure hit.
BOOM!!
A deafening shockwave tore through the air, and Ballan’s arm vanished into thin air. The steel armor didn’t just break—it pulverized into fine dust-like fragments, scattering everywhere.
“Grrraaah…!”
Ballan groaned, a mix of rage and agony. Where his hands should have been, only cracked remnants of armor lingered, like shattered glass.
“That… a human?!”
Unbelief dripped from his voice. The body he’d trusted to be unbreakable crumbled like a falling leaf.
Arnold flicked his sword casually through the air and stepped forward again.
“Want to try that once more?”
His smile radiated leisure, his face devoid of any tension—as if everything was well within expectations.
“Tch…!”
Ballan let out a frustrated grunt.
“I can’t think of anything but ‘incredible’…”
Lucy murmured in quiet awe as she watched. His movements were effortless yet precise, his dominance over the foe unwavering. Just watching inspired trust.
‘Senior, please fall back and stay safe for now.’
Those words he’d tossed out moments ago echoed in her mind.
“Stay safe…”
Her eyes wavered subtly as she whispered it. It might have sounded like a simple order, but Lucy read the clear intent beneath.
“It’s like… he’s protecting me…”
Her cheeks warmed at the unbidden thought. At first, it had been mere respect. But now… something different was blooming in her chest.
Her heart raced.
‘Arnold is protecting me.’
It could be her imagination. But the vivid wave of emotion made it hard to dismiss as delusion.
Lucy quietly pressed a hand to her chest. She could feel her heartbeat pulsing through her fingertips.
Unable to tear her gaze from Arnold, she bit her lower lip softly.
She couldn’t name this feeling. But one thing was certain: even in this hellish pit, being here with him felt profoundly special.
“Arnold…”
That small yet immense emotion stirred her heart.
“I can’t accept this…!”
Ballan’s voice trembled with agitation. His eyes, wreathed in massive blue flames, shook.
“I won’t accept it!!”
Fueled by fury, he hoisted a massive foot high, poised to crush the ground like a hammer.
Thud!
But before it hit, a sharp sword slash whistled through the air.
“Guh?!”
Ballan’s body lurched, losing balance. His enormous knee slammed into the floor with a heavy thud.
Crack!
Fissures spread from his ankle upward, like a colossal boulder crumbling apart.
“My leg…?”
Looking down, Ballan saw countless cracks racing up from his ankle.
“Tch—!”
“How’s it feel to kneel before a human?”
Arnold’s tone was relaxed, almost taunting.
Ballan’s eyes flickered blue with rage.
“You bastard—!”
Crunch!
Another sword strike rang out.
“Gah?!”
Only then did Ballan realize: his cracked ankle was no longer whole. It shattered like a sandcastle, and his massive leg collapsed.
“Next, the other one.”
Whoosh!
Another slash.
“GRRAAAH!”
The opposite leg pulverized. BOOM!! His colossal form toppled helplessly. A dull thud echoed as steel and flesh met stone, dust swirling into the air.
And so he fell.
No longer able to loom superiorly. The giant, his limbs shattered, looked pathetic. For one who had trampled and dominated every human to enter this place, it was a wretched end.
“Urrgh…!”
A groan escaped him. Gazing down, Arnold chuckled lowly.
“Now you can finally look me in the eye.”
Ballan’s face was mashed against the temple’s cold floor. Only in ruin could he meet a human’s gaze. The insignificant pest he’d always overlooked now loomed above him. That simple reversal was an unbearable insult.
“You… I won’t let you get away with this!!”
Ballan spat his rage. His voice still boomed with menace, but defeat laced it now. His initial menace had vanished.
“And what can you do if you won’t?”
Arnold remained unflappable. He raised his sword lightly and pressed the tip to Ballan’s forehead.
“…!”
Ballan swallowed instinctively. That steel-hard gaze held no hesitation.
He knew it clearly.
“Y-You…!”
Terror. Pure terror.
He was meant to instill that in the living. But now, he felt it himself.
Terror and despair—the faces of his prey. Now etched on his own.
And as that fear peaked—
“It’s over.”
Shing!!
Arnold swung down. The motion was swift and decisive. Even the whirlwind of the slash felt razor-sharp against the skin.
“Guh?!”
A deep crack split Ballan’s helmet. It spread slowly across his entire body. Tiny fracturing sounds echoed from all sides.
And—
“Urrrrgh!!!”
Ballan wailed in agony. The steel flesh he’d deemed unbreakable crumbled away.
A first for him. A sensation he’d never known in life.
Pain, fear, despair. They swirled into a storm, ravaging his core.
“A—AAAAAAGH—!!”
The most tortured, wretched scream in the world.
Crack, crack!RUMBLE—!!
At last, the black iron giant shattered into fragments, scattering into the void.
“…Hoo.”
With Arnold’s light exhale, the battlefield fell eerily silent.
Ballan, the colossal being dubbed an ancient god’s creation, had crumbled in mere moments—pathetically so.
“Arnold!”
Lucy stared in disbelief, eyes wide. Then, awe flooded her voice as she cried out.
“That was amazing…! You took down Ballan!”
Joy and relief mingled on her face. She clasped her hands before her chest. In truth, he’d saved her life twice now—once from the amalgam, and now this.
But Arnold just smiled faintly, brushing dust from his clothes.
“It was nothing.”
Then he turned slowly to her.
“Anyway, Senior, you’re not hurt anywhere, right?”
His gaze, laced with concern, met hers directly.
Lucy’s heart thumped wildly at that instant. His deep, piercing eyes seemed to see right through her.
“Uh…?”
Suddenly realizing how close he was, her body froze.
“A-Arnold… I appreciate the worry, but your face is a bit too close, isn’t it?”
Her face flushed crimson as she averted her eyes. Her cheeks burned, but she couldn’t help facing him.
“Is it?”
Arnold replied calmly. But spotting her blush, he tilted his head curiously.
“But Senior, your face is all red. You sure you’re okay?”
With that, he stepped even closer.
“?!”
Now his breath brushed her skin. Any slight lean forward, and their lips would touch.
Lucy’s breath caught. Her mind blanked, heart pounding furiously.
“I-I’m fine…!”
Clutching her chest, she barely squeezed out the words. Her voice trembled more than expected.
“……”
Arnold eyed her suspiciously a moment longer, then shrugged.
“Alright then. Let’s keep moving ahead.”
He turned casually and walked forward.
“Uh, uh-huh…”
Lucy steadied her breath, watching his back. Her heartbeat hadn’t slowed.
She bit her lower lip softly.
‘I feel like… I can’t control myself…’
She’d studied countless theories as a researcher, but this emotion? Uncharted territory.
What was this feeling?
Clutching confusion and that persistent thrill, Lucy followed him.