Chapter 13: The Guard's Joyful Inspection Life (13)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 13: The Guard's Joyful Inspection Life (13)
For a fleeting moment, Tanya saw a vision. A figure descending from the void, clad in a black robe that completely concealed its head, wielding a massive scythe.
Even though the robe was so dark it swallowed all light, a pair of piercingly bright red eyes glared out, weighing down on her. It was a gaze that stirred a primal human fear, more terrifying than facing a High-Rank monster she couldn't hope to touch.
Tanya couldn't even move; she could only tremble in terror. In her mind, there was only one being that fit such a description: the Reaper who ferried the dead to the afterlife.
Am I dead?
She tried to process the situation, her sluggish mind barely functioning. She had definitely used a return scroll just before the Dryad could get to her, and then... that guard. The guard who had played a massive role in protecting her purity from the monster had raped her.
To think she had died after being raped by a mere guard, before she could even fulfill her dreams. If she had known it would end like this, she never would have entered the dungeon; she would have just followed her father’s wishes and entered an arranged marriage.
Just as regret began to consume her, she heard the Reaper click his tongue.
—Tsk.
The vision vanished along with the Reaper. When her eyes finally cleared, what she saw was the guard’s face. He was pressing down on her head with all his might, covering her ears.
The guard’s face was a total wreck. Blood streamed from his eyes and ears, and a nosebleed had run down past his philtrum to stain his lips. His lower lip was also gushing blood, marked by the deep indentations of his own teeth where he had bitten down repeatedly.
—SCREEEEEEEEE!
A bizarre sound pierced the air, causing her consciousness to flicker before snapping back. The guard’s eyes were completely bloodshot, the capillaries having burst. They looked as red as the eyes of the Reaper she had seen in her vision.
Yet, despite his horrific condition, he was moving relentlessly. She couldn't see his whole body, but she could feel the strength in the hands covering her ears waver and then return, and his shoulders were shaking constantly from the exertion.
Why was he moving with such desperation? She began to think again. Then, the words the guard had spoken came back to her.
“The Mandrake’s seed could take root inside you, using you as nourishment to bloom.”
“I can’t let that happen. If I stand by and let this go, not only you but innocent citizens could be in danger.”
“If my sacrifice can ensure the safety of you and the citizens, then I am willing to pay that price. That is what it means to be a guard of the Kingdom.”
Honestly, she had dismissed it as a mere excuse to rape her. Tanya hadn't even allowed the Dryad to touch her maidenhood, after all.
But what if she was wrong? What if there really was a Mandrake seed inside her, and the guard had been forced to take the infamy of a rapist upon himself just to save her?
—Screee...
“Cough!”
Along with that unpleasant, metallic screech, the guard coughed up blood. It was only when the metallic scent of blood splattered across her face that she fully snapped out of it.
“Are you okay?!”
The guard said something, but she couldn't hear him. Even with her ears covered, she should have heard something, but his voice must have been that faint.
Oh, no... what do I do?
Given the circumstances, that metallic screech was undoubtedly the Mandrake’s death throes. If her body had been normal, she would have wanted to help him, but she couldn't move properly. She was exhausted from the Dryad’s assault and the consecutive orgasms, and her mind was weakened and neutralized by the Mandrake’s scream.
But Tanya had to do something. This foolish guard could have just covered his own ears and ignored whether she lived or died, but he didn't. He was sacrificing himself to save her.
It was a spirit of sacrifice that could only be found in old tales of chivalry. It was a noble, lofty grace, as benevolent as a mother’s love and as pure as the morning star.
Tanya slowly raised her arms. They felt as heavy as waterlogged cotton, but surely not as heavy as the sacrifice this guard was making.
The Mandrake’s scream rang out again, but she grit her teeth and forced herself to stay conscious. She bit down so hard she thought her teeth might shatter, and she tasted blood, but it was nothing compared to the pain the guard was enduring.
Finally, her hand reached the guard’s face. Her trembling hand brushed his cheek before moving up to his ear. She didn't have the strength to cover his entire ear with her palm, but she managed to stick a finger into his ear canal.
—SCREECH!!!!
The blood the guard spat up got into her eyes. It stung like crazy, but Tanya didn't close them. Through her blood-red vision, she saw the guard’s eyes, burning with the will to live.
As long as he was trying to save her, as long as he didn't give up, Tanya wouldn't either. Finally, she managed to block the guard’s ears.
“…….”
The guard said something, but she couldn't hear. Her eyes were so full of blood that she couldn't see clearly, but it almost looked like he was smiling.
Tanya made a silent wish.
It’s only a small help, but please, let it give the guard strength.
She closed her eyes and waited for the next scream, still gritting her teeth. She vowed to hold onto her consciousness no matter when the Mandrake screamed again.
But the scream never came. The hands covering her ears lost their strength and fell away, and something heavy and hard slumped onto her chest.
When she opened her eyes, all she saw was the guard’s black hair.
“Did you get it?”
There was no answer. Growing anxious, Tanya asked again.
“I asked if you got it!”
Her heart sank. Was he dead?
To save me?
They weren't even close; he had died trying to save a stranger he’d only met yesterday? No. She felt a faint breath against her chest. The guard wasn't dead yet, but he was clearly in critical condition.
Tanya was someone who had grown up receiving many things. The love of her father and mother, the affection of her older brother, the respect of the family servants, and the goodwill of the people in their fief.
Because of that, she was used to receiving, but the weight of a life offered by a complete stranger—someone who owed her family nothing and had only given her help—was different.
In her entire life, a man like this had never existed. Her first kiss, her first time having sex, and the first person to sacrifice himself to save her.
She couldn't let this guard, who had taken so many of her "firsts," die. A strength she hadn't even felt when she was being raped surged through her. It was actually the result of the Mandrake’s curse of neutralization breaking, but Tanya perceived it differently.
I have to find the strength to save this person.
She was the only one who could help him. Tanya moved the guard’s body aside as gently as possible and climbed down from the desk. She saw the remains of the Mandrake, crushed under the guard’s foot.
Beside it lay her clothes and the potion the guard had given her yesterday. The potion! If she gave him the potion, he might be okay.
“Quick, drink this.”
Tanya hurriedly uncapped the potion and poured it into the guard’s mouth. But the guard couldn't swallow. The liquid overflowed and ran down his cheek.
“You idiot. Why can’t you drink it? You’ll live if you just drink this, so why can’t you...”
If he couldn't drink it himself, someone else had to feed it to him. Tanya had never learned emergency first aid, so she didn't know any professional techniques. But she knew the one thing an untrained person could do.
Tanya took the potion into her own mouth and kissed the guard. She pushed air into him and stimulated him with her tongue. Slowly, the amount of potion in the guard’s mouth began to decrease.
It worked! He swallowed it!!
Overjoyed, Tanya continued the process of transferring the potion with her mouth until the bottle was empty. Finally, a miracle happened.
“Tanya?”
“You’re alive!!”
Tanya hugged the guard tightly. He let out a cough.
“Cough. Hey, that hurts. You’re gonna break my ribs.”
“Is that what’s important right now? You’re alive!”
“Yeah, yeah. I barely survived, and now it looks like you’re trying to kill me. Let go.”
How could he choose such cold words when he didn't even know how she felt? Tanya pouted for a moment before pulling back.
This guard had played the villain just to get the Mandrake seed out of her. His blunt way of speaking might just be his way of trying to lessen her guilt.
As she pulled away, she saw the guard’s battered face. It was too early to say he was safe. The potion she’d received yesterday wasn't the only one. Tanya opened another bottle that was rolling around.
“Why are you drinking that? It’s a low-grade potion, so it won't do much more. We should go to the clinic...”
Tanya silenced the rambling guard with her own lips. The potion was passed from mouth to mouth, and their tongues intertwined. Unlike before, the potion disappeared in a single exchange.
Even so, their tongues lingered for a moment longer before they pulled apart. For the first time, Tanya saw a dazed expression on the guard’s face. So he was capable of making a face like that.
If his struggle to protect her had been cool, this face was... a bit lovely. Even if the situation hadn't been like this, she might have fallen in love just by seeing that expression. No, she definitely would have.
“...Thanks.”
“It’s nothing compared to what you did for me.”
“But hey. You see that?”
Tanya looked in the direction the guard was pointing and saw that the color of the crystal had changed.
“Someone’s going to come in soon. You planning on showing them your naked body?”
Only then did Tanya realize her state of undress.
“Kyaah! Don’t look!”
“We’ve already done everything there is to do, so what are you so embarrassed about?”
“Still, don't look!”
Tanya quickly threw on her clothes. She pulled the fabric that had slipped past her chest to her side to cover her nipples and hooked the scrap of cloth that served as her panties back into place.
The guard watched Tanya as he put on his own clothes. She was embarrassed, but she didn't say anything. As he said, they had already done everything, and he was her savior.
No sooner had they finished dressing than someone emerged from the dungeon.
“Man, another refreshing— Guard! What the hell happened here?!”
“I feel like I’m gonna die, so get out there and call another guard.”
A tanned, blonde delinquent of a man ran back outside. Through the open door, she could feel the gazes of the passing citizens.
Tanya waited for another guard to arrive, then suddenly remembered something and asked.
“By the way... what did you say to me earlier?”
“When?”
“When I covered your ears.”
“Just... that you did well. That I lived because of you.”
He lived because of me? When he was the one who had actually saved her.
“No. I’m the one who’s grateful. I lived because of you.”
“I just did my duty as a guard, so don't worry about it too much.”
How could he be so frustratingly humble? But she didn't hate it. Even the way he leaned against the wall in exhaustion looked cool to her.
She wanted to be that wall for him. Tanya quietly moved to support him. His weight pressing down on her shoulder was heavy, but it was warmer than anything else.
*
I almost fucking died. Goddamn Mandrake piece of shit. I thought I could just stomp the life out of it, but it had to go and roll around like a maniac.
And Tanya, that bitch... if she’s a Hunter, she should’ve snapped out of it sooner. I was screaming at her to wake up, and she only comes to right before I kick the bucket? I almost slapped her.
Well, whatever. Now that I’ve framed myself as her "savior," she won't say no if I tell her to put out. I’ve got myself another fuck-toy, so I guess it’s fine.