Chapter 13

Rebirth (3)

Bellebago's body collapsed and struck the ground.

The impact nearly made me lose my balance, but I managed to regain my footing.

Feeling as if I had narrowly escaped the brink of hell, I looked at the fallen creature.

Its eyes were wide open, and it lay motionless, as if its soul had vanished, leaving only a massive shell.

'That was really close... '

The size difference was so great that it could be compared to the difference between a human and an ant.

If the creature had flicked its tongue even once, I would have been flung away and died a miserable death. I was incredibly lucky.

When I finally made contact, a surge of exhilaration welled up inside me, and I even let out some nonsense.

To have such composure even on the verge of death—there was no doubt that my mind had been slightly affected by the king's spirit.

"Ugh... Uh... "

Hearing a weak groan, I turned to look at the two people.

Kan was sitting on the ground, his face drained of all color, as if his soul had left his body.

Ashell stood there, her eyes wide open, staring at me blankly. She finally seemed to have come out of the fear.

The silence was so thick that I felt compelled to say something.

"This isn't the kind of monster that should be here."

"..."

There was no response.

Kan was almost exhausted from the shock of the fear, so we decided to take a short rest before continuing our journey.

"I'm sorry."

While sitting on a rock and looking at Bellebago's corpse, Ashell suddenly spoke.

I turned to look at her.

Ashell, whose face was usually expressionless and hard to read, now had a clear look of dejection.

I wondered why she was apologizing and then realized.

'She feels bad for not protecting us properly?'

This was a completely unforeseen disaster, far beyond her capabilities.

There was no way she could have handled a monster that even a king would have struggled with.

But she seemed unable to forgive herself for not fulfilling her duty. That was just her nature.

She was always serious and extremely strict with herself, a personification of old-fashioned values.

'Or is it something else?'

Perhaps the shock of being completely helpless in front of Bellebago was too much for her.

I opened my mouth to speak.

"Some monsters and races rarely emit fear."

Ashell blinked.

She didn't understand what I was saying, clearly unaware of this ability.

Fear is a rare ability, possessed by few monsters and without a clear physical form, so it's not well-known.

Moreover, at her level, even if she had encountered a monster that emitted fear, it likely wouldn't have affected her.

So, it wasn't surprising that this unfamiliar experience had hurt her pride.

"It's an ability that particularly induces fear in weaker opponents. Usually, it completely destroys their will to fight and sends them into a panic."

"Ah."

Ashell finally looked surprised and turned to look at Bellebago's corpse.

"It seems you've never experienced it before."

"Yes."

"That creature was one of the strongest even in the Demon Realm. It wasn't because your mind was weak, so don't worry about it."

Ashell looked slightly flustered at my words of comfort.

She nodded without a word and fell silent again. She's really hard to talk to.

Kan finally regained his senses.

"If you're not feeling well, take more time to rest."

"No, no. I'm really sorry for the trouble."

Kan looked exhausted but seemed to have recovered enough to move.

Being exposed to the fear of a level 90 monster and not fainting was impressive.

This trip would likely be a memorable adventure in his life as an adventurer.

"Really, if such a creature had come to the city, it would have been reduced to ruins..."

Kan still seemed to be in disbelief as he stared at Bellebago's corpse and muttered to himself.

He then turned to look at me, and our eyes met. For some reason, he flinched and bowed his head.

...Did he just look at me the same way he looked at Bellebago?

'Is he treating me like a monster too?'

I couldn't blame him.

From their perspective, it probably looked like I just touched the creature and killed it.

Ashell, pretending not to notice, was still glancing at the corpse.

In any case, we had safely overcome the crisis, so it was time to complete our main objective.

"Let's move."

The surroundings were now darkened by the dense black trees.

We were close to the place where the secret was hidden.

***

As Kan had said, it didn't take long to reach our destination.

A massive rock, standing alone in the middle of the forest.

Its shape, with a narrow middle and wide top and bottom, resembled an hourglass.

'Finally, we're here.'

Now that we had found the hourglass rock, all that was left was to find the entrance.

There was a cliff not far from the rock, lower than the one we had climbed earlier.

'I think it was around here... or was it over there?'

I tried to gauge the direction, but my memory was vague, and the actual surroundings were confusing. I decided to put in some effort. We had come this far relatively easily.

I carefully examined the cliff face, moving around the base.

The two of them followed me silently, looking puzzled.

After a few minutes, I noticed a narrow vertical crack about my height in the cliff face.

Feeling a faint cold air coming from inside the crack, I said with half a certainty:

"Ashell."

"Yes."

"Break this crack wider."

Ashell looked at the crack I pointed to and raised her hand without a word.

I stepped back slightly.

BOOM!

When she pressed her palm against the cliff and released her energy, the wall crumbled.

Inside the crack, a cave-like space opened up, creating an entrance large enough for a couple of people. This was the right place.

Ashell and Kan's eyes widened at the appearance of the hidden passage.

"Wait here."

I left the two of them at the entrance and cautiously entered the passage alone. The air was cool.

The passage led to a gentle downward slope. As we descended, the light from outside disappeared, and it quickly became pitch black.

I took out the luminescent stone I had brought and held it in my hand.

Unwrapping the cloth, a bright white light spread, instantly illuminating the interior.

"Whoa."

At the same time, insects that had been attached to the walls of the cave revealed themselves. There were quite a few cockroaches and centipedes.

I clicked my tongue and continued forward.

The slope gradually became steeper, so I had to be more cautious.

When I finally had to use my hands to support myself, I felt a cold sweat.

'If I slip, I'll be in trouble.'

Was the slope always this steep? How much deeper do we have to go?

I held the luminescent stone in my mouth and used both hands to support myself on the ground.

Fortunately, the ground was rough and uneven, providing many places to step.

As long as it didn't get steeper and I didn't slip, I wouldn't fall...

Thud.

"Ah."

My foot slipped, and I lost my balance.

Damn, I thought it, and it happened...

I desperately tried to catch myself with my hands, but it was no use.

My palms were badly scraped as my body rolled down the slope like a wheel.

BOOM!

My head and arms were hit with a dizzying shock before the fall finally stopped.

I lay there for a moment, dazed, and then managed to get up. My whole body ached, and I could taste blood in my mouth.

"Ugh..."

Something was trickling down my cheek.

Wiping it, I found my hand covered in red. It was blood.

I grimaced and wiped the blood from my chin, then looked at my left arm.

It was covered in blood and torn up, as if it were broken.

"Damn, this is bad."

I had never been injured this badly before, so I was momentarily stunned, but I quickly regained my composure.

The pain in my arm was excruciating, but my mind remained clear.

After taking a few deep breaths, I shakily got up and looked around.

The slope had ended, and a small passage led to the side. I must have hit the corner and stopped.

Despite my injuries, I had at least made it down the slope quickly.

I picked up the luminescent stone with my good arm and continued down the passage.

My ankle seemed to be sprained, and I felt a sharp pain with each step, but it wasn't bad enough to prevent me from walking.

As I moved forward, the passage gradually widened, and a faint green light began to shine from inside.

"Wow."

When I finally reached the end, I let out a short exclamation.

A wide, empty chamber, with a green pattern engraved on the floor in the center, emitting a soft glow.

I forgot my pain and approached the pattern with a bright smile.

I knew what it was, so I wasn't worried.

I had finally found it. The Rebirth Secret.

'It's bigger than I thought.'

The pattern was circular, like a magic circle, and several meters in diameter.

I stood in front of it and stared at it for a moment.

I had found it, but I didn't know how to obtain the secret.

In the game, once you discovered it and approached, a message would appear saying you had obtained the secret.

'Maybe I just need to touch it?'

With no other options, I knelt on one knee and reached out my hand.

Whoosh!

The pattern's light suddenly burst brightly.

I almost pulled my hand back in surprise but stopped.

The light was being absorbed into my body through my hand.

Soon, all the light was absorbed, and the pattern disappeared without a trace. The chamber was plunged into darkness.

"..."

Feeling a bit bewildered, I lifted my hand from the ground and looked at my left arm.

The broken wound was healing and regenerating rapidly.