Chapter 48

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In the pursuit of strength, memories of comrades are nothing but a hindrance.

But even so, he couldn't bring himself to discard his past.

Gadio understood that this was his weakness.

But at the same time, it was the driving force that made him strong.

After that, the two of them dressed and lay on the bed, shoulders touching for a while.

But it seemed her interest was not there.

She kept looking towards the church—no, the laboratory—and finally got out of bed, wandering aimlessly without a word to Gadio.

"Hey, Tia."

But there was no response, even when he called out.

He remembered six years ago.

The scene of the massacre where no bodies remained.

After everything was over, Gadio returned to the place and called out to Tia multiple times.

"Hey, Tia. What should I do now? Hey, Tia. Say something—"

Of course, there was no response, just like today.

The living cannot converse with the dead.

An absolute truth in this world.

Perhaps the Origin could transcend even that, Gadio had hoped—but—

"Hah, I'm being too naive."

The world isn't that kind.

"I have to go to the same place to see you. I thought I knew that much."

It was just a monologue now.

There was no one left in the house except Gadio.

"Sorry, Tia. I haven't become a person worthy of facing you yet. But I don't intend to leave you alone for too long. You might be surprisingly carefree, but... I'm the one who feels lonely."

He got out of bed and picked up the sword of his late friend, Som.

"I'll fulfill my duty. No, it's not a noble duty. This is my personal revenge."

He approached Tia, who was about to leave the house.

"I'll destroy the Chimera. Once that's done, I can come to you right away."

With trembling hands, he raised the sword, a memento from his best friend—

"So, just wait a little longer... Tia."

He thrust the sword into her back.

The precise strike pierced only the area around her heart.

With a thud, the core was pushed out of her body and fell to the ground.

Gadio looked down at the beautiful form of his beloved, even in death, feeling only a sense of emptiness.

He lifted her body, laid her on the bed, and touched her cheek.

He gently closed her eyes with his palm, kissed her forehead, and put on his coat to go outside.

"Gadio, you're late."

Eterna glared at him with a squint.

"Ugh, it stinks! My nose is about to fall off..."

Ink, carried in her arms, was hugging his own shoulders and complaining.

Indeed, for those unaccustomed to it, the smell of the dead is unbearable.

"That's why I told you to wait inside."

"What's going on?"

"Beats me. I just got out, so I don't know much. But screams were heard from all over the village, and the dead were all heading towards the laboratory."

"So... you took care of them all by yourself, right?"

The main street of Sheol, once so beautiful and peaceful, was now a hellish scene with countless bodies strewn about.

"Not all of them, there are still many left."

In the direction Eterna pointed, countless expressionless people were approaching.

It seemed the job wasn't over yet, and Gadio heaved a sigh of relief.

"When did you realize it, Eterna?"

"That the dead wouldn't come back to life?"

"Yes."

"I was sure when Ink arrived. But when it came to killing, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I'm still not ready."

Even though she seemed calm, Eterna still felt the pain in her chest.

That feeling would not fade for a long time.

"That's just how it is, Gadio and Eterna are human, after all."

Ink's words made them both smile faintly.

"By the way, I think Flamm is in the laboratory. I'm really worried."

"We need to apologize to him."

"Yeah, so we need to go get him. But before that—there are too many of them, probably more than the people inside."

"Right, let's clear these out first."

Gadio and Eterna approached the approaching horde of the dead.

Facing the two heroes, they were powerless and fell one by one.

◇◇◇

Suzy effortlessly dodged the Prana blade Flamm released.

She then placed Ruko on the floor and picked up a metal pipe that had fallen.

It was part of the window bars.

Gripping the pipe, she twisted it with a spiral force, extending it into a long, sharp spear.

This was her prey.

She tapped the floor twice with the tip of the spear, as if confirming something.

Koong, Koong.

For a mere stick, the sound resonated unusually well.

Was it the nature of the material, or her skill?

Meanwhile, Flamm released another air sword slash, this time horizontally.

Whoosh!

But it was easily deflected by the spear Suzy thrust forward.

"Seems like you're in a different league from the others."

Flamm said, sounding exasperated.

He then performed a scan to check her status.

--------------------

Suzy Sharma

Attribute: Light

Strength: 1768

Endurance: 891

Health: Unknown

Agility: 3861

Perception: 1749

--------------------

Seeing the displayed text, Flamm clicked his tongue.

The will of the Origin was interfering, preventing the numbers from displaying properly.

However, thanks to the "control" Dafiz mentioned, the degree of corruption was low, and the numbers were still readable.

As far as he could see, his magic power was higher, but her agility was far superior.

Depending on her health value, she could be considered to have S-rank level strength.

In addition, she had easily deflected his knight sword technique with the spear, and Ruko was approaching him in a creepy manner.

If he didn't hold back from the start, it would be difficult to win.

Koong, Koong.

Suzy readied her spear and tapped the ground with its tip.

Was it a provocation?

Flamm's left eyelid twitched at the annoying sound, and he charged forward with a look of irritation.

He wasn't lured by the sound; he remained calm.

At his maximum speed, he slammed the ground with his greatsword.

Gong—A storm of Prana blew, lifting debris.

It blew Ruko away and slammed her into the wall.

"Kyaa!"

Splat.

The lifeless mass of flesh was crushed, blooming with blood.

But Suzy, despite the wind's power that could destroy a human body, charged forward.

Like an arrow, she didn't slow down at all, thrusting her spear straight at Flamm's head.

Flamm blocked it with the flat of his blade.

Giiin!

The sound of metal clashing echoed.

Suzy then unleashed a barrage of rapid, almost invisible strikes.

Flamm deflected them with Soul Eater.

But the skillful attacks that slipped through left definite wounds on his body.

"Ugh... Gah!"

At that moment, Flamm deliberately dropped his guard.

Zash!

The twisted spear pierced his abdomen deeply.

Suzy tried to pull it out immediately, but Flamm gripped the twisted handle to prevent it.

He was stronger, so she couldn't pull it out.

Flamm kicked her in the stomach with his foot.

The spear fell from her hand, and Suzy retreated, clutching her stomach in pain.

Flamm, still impaling her with the iron rod, slashed at her abdomen—

"Gotcha!"

He was sorry for Dafiz, but he had to defeat her and eliminate all the dead to clear the way.

Besides—while Suzy lived, it would be difficult to make him give up.

With the intention to kill, he raised his sword to strike with all his might—

"Da."

A baby's voice came from under Flamm's feet.

Looking down, he saw the distorted, monstrous form of Ruko clinging to his legs.

"Why!?"

—She was supposed to have been slammed into the wall just now.

He tried to move away quickly, but it was too late.

The oval-shaped Ruko's hand-like appendage touched Flamm's left leg.

His leg bent with a dull crack.

"Ah...!"

Flamm braced his right leg to keep from falling.

Suzy, who had picked up the iron pipe and created a new spear, approached him.

Swinging his left leg, he sent Ruko flying in an arc and slamming into the floor.

With his body tilting and Suzy's thrust approaching, he couldn't completely avoid it. To avoid a fatal wound, he deliberately leaned further, letting gravity take over.

The tip of the spear touched his shoulder—Bach!—and blood spurted as it pierced his neck.

"Huh?"

Flamm was stunned.

Suzy pulled back the spear and retreated.

Why the neck?

He had clearly seen it hit his shoulder.

It didn't seem to curve at the last moment.

Then why—was he now bleeding profusely from a hole in his neck?

"Gah... Bleh... Cough... Gah... Buh..."

Flamm spat out the iron-tasting fluid rising in her throat.

A red puddle formed on the floor.

The metallic, raw taste in her mouth was nauseating.

It only intensified her urge to vomit, but as the wound in her neck healed, the sensation gradually faded.

Before the complete healing was finished, Suzy launched another attack.

Flamm swung his sword wildly to intercept it.

He didn't expect it to hit; it was just a feint to buy time.

Koong.

But just before that—Suzy's spear tapped the floor, making a sound.

Her vision warped, and the trajectory of the sword flash deviated.

Suzy easily dodged the attack aimed at a completely different direction and thrust her spear at his heart.

What was happening? Unexplainable phenomena kept occurring.

Flamm stomped the ground hard, twisting his body forcefully.

Thud!

The spear pierced his right chest, opening a hole in his lung.

The iron rod was pulled out of his body with a squelch.

Ignoring the pain, Flamm, with both feet on the ground, struck Suzy's side with the black blade.

Giiin!

She blocked it with her spear held vertically.

The twisted metal rod vibrated, and a high-pitched sound echoed.

The moment he heard it, his strength drained, and his body swayed.

"What... Damn it, aaaaaah!"

Whoosh!

Suzy aimed straight for Flamm's forehead this time.

Avoiding it was impossible, so she let go of Soul Eater.

She tried to grab the spear with her right hand just before it pierced her brain.

...She thought she had grabbed it.

She clearly saw the sharp tip fit into her black gauntlet.

But when she clenched her fist, there was only air inside.

The thrust aimed at her head had pierced her shoulder instead.

"Zuuu... Again!?"

Flamm's mind was in chaos.

What kind of trick was she using?

Faced with Suzy's continued attack, she deflected the spear with her left hand, which was still in the gauntlet.

Snap! The severed hand fell to the floor, and Flamm's gaze naturally followed it.

When she saw it hit the floor, she noticed Ruko approaching her on all fours again.

Why—The first Ruko was supposed to have been slammed into the wall.

The second Ruko, thrown far away, hadn't moved at all.

So the one reaching for her leg now was the third Ruko.

Where were they coming from, and why were they multiplying? Unfortunately, she had no time to think.

First, she needed to put some distance between herself and Suzy to avoid being killed.

"Reversal!"

She cast the reversal spell on her body and retreated.

Suzy calculated the trajectory and launched a counterattack, but it missed.

Because Flamm's body didn't fall to the ground as the laws of physics dictated.

She landed on the ceiling and immediately kicked off, landing in a place further away from Suzy.

This "gravity reversal" was so convenient that she found herself using it repeatedly.

However, it consumed a lot of mana, and Flamm could feel the resources being drained from her body.

She couldn't use it for long and needed to use it wisely.

But, at the very least, it gave her a brief moment to think.

She needed to catch her breath and come up with a strategy.

There were three mysteries about Suzy.

First, where were the Rukos coming from?

Flamm hadn't seen any Rukos in her field of vision.

Yet, during the battle, they suddenly appeared at her feet.

Why, and how?

It was more of a guess than a certainty, but she had an idea.

But it was the worst possible scenario, and she didn't want to think about it.

However, given the current dire situation, she had to consider it as a strong possibility.

That is—the theory that Suzy was giving birth to them while fighting.

They weren't human.

They were masses of flesh modeled after humans, created by the Origin to replicate human reproductive activities using the bodies of the dead.

In other words, she could give birth without the need for a partner.

The only way to suddenly place Ruko at her feet during the battle was this.

Next, the sudden loss of balance when facing Suzy.

Regardless of the detailed principle, there was something suspicious in Suzy's actions.

That "sound."

The spear she created on the spot with a spiral force didn't seem to have any tampering.

So, it might be a technique to emit a special sound—perhaps the essence of Suzy's spear technique.

It caused abnormalities in the opponent's vestibular system by making them hear it.

A troublesome "technique."

Finally, the phenomenon where the spear pierced one place but the wound appeared in another.

This was the biggest mystery.

What kind of tampering could interfere with Flamm's vision?

Did the Origin have such a power?

Spiral, rotation, twisting, connection, proliferation—what kind of force did it correspond to?

It was unpredictable, and of course, there was no way to come up with a countermeasure.

"Even if I'm losing in stats, how am I supposed to win from here?"

Flamm muttered.

The fatigue and exhaustion from the battle so far.

A prolonged fight would only be to her disadvantage.

Holding the heavy sword, she readied herself and glared at Suzy.

She was about to charge for the second round.

But she stopped, temporarily losing her fighting spirit when faced with a horrifying sight.

"Ugh..."

The flesh fragments of the first Ruko, which she had slammed into the wall, were clinging to Suzy's body and entering her mouth.

Once the first absorption was complete, the second Ruko, which had been crushed on the floor, climbed up her body as a large mass.

Ruko twisted and elongated, entering Suzy's mouth, which was wide open.

"Even if you're reusing them, couldn't you have done it a bit more tastefully...?"

Even if Flamm complained, it wouldn't change the Origin's taste.

With the energy absorption complete, Suzy immediately charged at Flamm.

Koong.

She tapped the floor with the spear and leaped, spinning sideways and slashing quickly.

The sound resonated in her ears, and her vision swayed.

Flamm braced her feet and blocked the attack with her sword.

At the moment of contact, she channeled the curse power in her boots to the blade.

The power she used was "freezing."

The frozen spear changed in weight and vibration.

Suzy retreated and tried to attack again with another sound—

Clank.

But the sound was dry, and it didn't cause the same dizziness as before.

"Hah, your proud spear technique is broken, huh?"

Flamm smiled smugly and dodged the thrust by twisting her body.

Suzy immediately pulled back her spear and retreated out of range.

"I won't let you escape...!"

As Flamm tried to advance, Ruko was expelled from between Suzy's legs.

Ah, of course, she was giving birth to Ruko every time she was destroyed.

Flamm felt the utmost insult from the Origin.

This time, she calmly tapped her foot.

"Crush it."

In a cold voice.

The floor in front of her flipped over, crushing Ruko.

She stepped on the flipped floor, crushing the flesh mass further and advancing.

She slashed at Suzy, who was still regaining her composure.

But—S-rank agility wasn't for nothing.

She kicked the ground from an unstable position and backflipped to dodge the slash.

"Haahaaa!"

On the other hand, this was also part of Flamm's plan.

She channeled the reversal magic into Soul Eater and swept it horizontally, releasing a Prana slash.

In other words, her will and knight sword technique—anti-Prana slash.

Suzy could only block it with her spear and minimize the damage.

Zash!

Her left arm was blown off, and a deep gash was carved into her chest.

Despite this, she didn't change her expression, as if asserting that this body had no pain.

However, the "reversal" was still in effect.

It began to take effect