Chapter 28
Chapter 28 - Another Senior(2)
"Lord Margrave! Are you there, Lord Margrave!"
Kwang! I burst open the audience chamber door as if I were about to smash it.
When I turned my gaze towards where Margrave was sitting, there he was, blinking in surprise. He seemed to still be in the middle of neutralizing a curse.
Fortunately. After carrying the woman, I immediately ran to Margrave and knelt before him, bowing my head.
"We're seeing each other again after just two hours. What sudden matter brings you here, Sir Jeong?"
"Lord Margrave, you said you were a wizard!"
"Hmm... Indeed?"
"Do you happen to know healing magic?!"
Margrave's eyes grew even wider at my sudden question.
But soon, as if he had collected himself, he slightly nodded his head.
"Well, I do know it. It's the basics of water magic."
"Could you please heal this person?!"
As soon as I heard his answer, I set down the woman I had been carrying on my back.
The Margrave finally turned his gaze to the woman I had been carrying. The expression on Margrave's face instantly turned serious.
"She's on the verge of death. No, actually, she would have died in the first place."
"W-what do you mean?"
"Some kind of spell is keeping her alive. It's different from necromancy or a curse. It's closer to a blessing... but if she's sustained in this state, it can hardly be called a blessing."
Margrave clicked his tongue low and looked down at the woman with a pitying expression.
Then his gaze immediately turned to me. His eyes were filled with reproach and interrogation.
"How did she end up in this state? No, who is this woman in the first place."
"That... I don't even know who she is. Actually..."
I reported everything to the Margrave about what happened in the underground and the events Leila was conducting in the sewers.
I reported every single detail meticulously. I also reported all the pain and fear I experienced. It might be pathetic, but so what. We're doing this to survive.
"Hmm. Just as I expected..."
Margrave showed little reaction during the part about the hero massacre from Gwyn to Leila. He probably already knew about it.
However, when I mentioned that she had been imprisoned for three years, the Margrave's expression hardened terrifyingly.
"Leila! Have you already forgotten the days when you were just a youngling, to commit such a heinous act…?!"
Crack. Margrave's fingers, gripping the throne, dug into the metal chair.
I was almost suffocating from the murderous intent emanating from him.
"... Oh. I got too excited."
He belatedly noticed me, suffering, and the Magravine beside me, and suppressed his killing intent.
Perhaps the Magravine suffering more significantly influenced him. The world is so cruel.
Then Margrave rose with a sigh. He slowly approached me and extended his hand towards the woman.
"Well, the important thing now is to save this woman. We'll deal with the rest later."
"Ah, yes. Please, then."
“In this case, injecting vitality is a priority rather than treating the wound… ether heal”
As soon as Margrave muttered those words, a bright blue energy condensed in his hand and slowly permeated the woman. Color seemed to return to the woman's face little by little.
The Margrave repeated the spell several times even after the healing was over. His hand kept shining and the woman greedily absorbed the light.
How many times did he repeat this?
"... Ah, ah?"
The woman, whose complexion had completely returned, opened her eyes.
And she let out an exclamation with a severely cracked voice. At that point, I let out a sigh of relief.
She looked around with a confused face, seemingly trying to understand the situation. Eventually, she opened her mouth.
"Where... is this... Oh."
And then. Plop. The woman fainted again.
I looked at Margrave in surprise, but he was catching his breath while wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Don't worry. It's because the body has regained stability and waves of exhaustion are pouring in. I've done everything I can."
"Ah... I see."
"Her mana has returned to normal. Now, if she eats periodically and rests comfortably, she'll soon regain her strength."
Saying this, the Margrave smiled kindly.
I hesitated for a moment, then bowed my head and paid my respects. It was a greeting purely out of gratitude.
"Thank you, Lord Margrave. Well... I have nothing to offer right now. I will definitely repay this kindness somehow in the future. Please mark it in your ledger."
"Haha. You're truly an interesting fellow."
... Is there really some hidden motive for why he's being so kind to me?
Now that I've received help, such thoughts suddenly surged. I scratched the back of my head, feeling complicated.
Margrave stared at me and then asked, "Didn't you say you were complete strangers with this woman?"
"Yes, well... that's correct."
"Yet you're antagonizing Leila, who harbors murderous intent towards you, to save such a woman. You've come to where I am in the middle of the night and bowed your head. What's the reason?"
I was about to make an excuse like, "Because of my burning sense of justice, I couldn't ignore it."
But I closed my mouth after seeing Margrave's face. He was staring at me with an expression that seemed to see right through me.
I clicked my tongue and candidly told the truth. I received help, so at least I shouldn’t be joking.
"I heard it from Leila. She said that Margrave has also shed quite a bit of blood because of the heroes."
"... Hmm. Well, the expression is a bit crude, but it's true. So what?"
"So, to put it simply, no one can be trusted anymore. I thought I would need someone completely on my side in this castle right now."
Margrave's eyes gleamed at my words. I calmly stared back at that gaze.
"Someone completely on your side."
"Yes. Honestly, I can't trust Margrave, and of course, I can't trust Leila. But if someone is a benefactor of life, they at least won't stab me in the back. That's why I saved them."
Margrave's eyes momentarily turned sharp.
Considering the next question, my misunderstanding might not be wrong.
"In other words, you're saying that if you were me, you might stab someone in the back."
"Yes. Well, if I were in Margrave's position, I would definitely have done so. Because I'm petty, and when I get upset, it lasts a long time."
Margrave remained silent at my words.
I, unable to bear that silence, finally added one more thing.
"Ah, well, honestly, I first approached Leila with such calculations. But when I saw her state, it was beyond words. She was trembling as if she would die right away, so I rushed over without caring about face or anything. I guess I'm not that cold-blooded after all."
"Hahaha!"
As I laughed helplessly and scratched my head, laughter soon burst out.
It was the Margrave. He extended his hand to me with a delightful face. A handshake offer.
"You're refreshingly honest. When I look at you, it reminds me of when I first saw Gwyn."
"... Is this a compliment?"
"It's the highest compliment I can give. Be happy."
"Then I'll gladly accept it."
I smiled back and lightly grasped Margrave's outstretched hand. Then, following his leading force, I stood up. I immediately picked up the woman and began to leave the audience chamber.
Just before opening and going out the door, Margrave spoke softly behind my back.
"Are you a hero who has come to save this chaotic world... to save Halcenberg?"
It was a meaningful question.
Well, it's a question thrown at someone summoned as a hero, so in some ways, it's natural?
I decided to be completely honest since I had already started being honest.
"No. I'm just a random person who was somehow dragged along."
"I see. Good."
Margrave seemed to like that answer and nodded satisfactorily. Then he spoke to me in a voice filled with more trust.
"Starting tomorrow, we'll begin hunting the demon race. Take care of me, Jeong-yong."
"... Yes. Likewise."
Anyway, what a strange emotional owner. This guy too.
I thought this to myself and closed the audience chamber door.
* * *
So, how was the demon race hunting that started the next day?
One word is enough.
Hell.
Yes. Just pure hell.
There's no other way to describe it. Not more, not less, just hell.
Kka-ga-gak! Ga-ga-gak!
Kkie-eek! Kkie-eek!
It had been about 10 minutes since we set out from the castle's outskirts with the Margrave.
White skeletons, zombies, ghouls, wraiths, and all kinds of undead surrounded us from all directions. Their number easily exceeded several hundred.
An undead army large enough to fill a typical school playground was instantly closing in on me from all sides. That shocking experience is still unforgettable.
"So, as I mentioned before. Take care of my luggage. Stay right behind me."
"Yes,! Of course! Certainly!"
But the Margrave, unfazed by such a massive army, naturally handed me his luggage and took a step forward.
In one hand, he held a long sword, and in the other, a staff with a bright red crystal embedded in it.
Margrave closed his eyes, concentrated for a moment, and then swung his staff forcefully forward.
"Avalanche."
Barely had the short incantation ended when a thunderous sound of the sky tearing apart erupted.
Simultaneously, hail the size of fists began to pour down like crazy, obscuring visibility. It was like watching a snowstorm falling from the sky.
Kkie-gi-eek!
Geu-eek!
Approximately 100 undead were swept away at once. I stood still and blankly took in the scene.
But it wasn't over yet.
He immediately turned his staff to the right and began another incantation.
"Storm Roller."
There, razor-sharp winds overlapped to form a massive tornado.
In its path, only debris of what were once undead were scattered everywhere.
Eventually, he swung his staff behind.
"Ether Volcano."
The ground split open, and lava erupted. The lava, as if alive, tracked and melted the undead. The undead couldn't even cry out their last breath before turning into a handful of ash.
Margrave swung his staff to the left one last time.
"Cataclysm."
The ground roared and cracked open.
The ground that swallowed the undead rose and contracted repeatedly, dancing, during which numerous undead were smashed.
"Phew. This should be enough."
After that, Margrave casually threw his staff to the ground. When I picked it up, he finally gripped the sword in his left hand with both hands.
"Now it's time to clean up the remaining ones. Let's go, Jeong-yong!"
"Ah, yes!"
"Haaaaaaah!!"
Lord Margrave, I don't understand why you're shouting the same thing.
Anyway, since you're going to run like a bullet and get a kill streak.
And I, whose shield that was protecting me had disappeared, fell into becoming a delicious prey for the surviving undead remnants from the magic.
Kyaaaao!
Gieek!
Several surviving undead surround me.
I look at the Margrave with a "Oh no" feeling, but it's useless. He was already immersed in his own battle, busy destroying the undead.
"T-this damn... Can't be helped! Until Margrave arrives…!"
I pulled out Bestak.
As if reading my intention, the undead simultaneously rushed towards me from all directions. I wanted to call for time. But they won't listen.
“Arghhh, f***! Water, fire, wind, earth—just absorb it all!”
Swallowing down the feeling that I might cry, I frantically inhaled ether.
Like a traffic light, I emit brilliant light in red, green, and yellow, and charge towards them.
"Uwaaaaa! Spartaaaa!!"
... Such days have been going on for a full two weeks.
Honestly, I can't believe I'm still stuck in my 21st reincarnation.
Am I really alive? Did I unknowingly die? Did I lose my memory and not notice? Such thoughts constantly crossed my mind.
Seriously. How else would you explain that the first thing I do every morning now is check the Box of the Dead.
If there's no response, I fall into a self-satisfied thought, thinking ‘I've safely opened my eyes today.’
"Today... I survived... Hu, huhuhuh..."
Muttering like this, I return to the castle and collapse as if i was dead.
When I wake up the next day, I repeat the same process again.
... Somehow, that's how my life has become.