Chapter 10

Drip... drip...

Feeling the droplets on his cheeks and the taste of them flowing into his mouth, Aichi's consciousness slowly awoke. He opened his eyes slowly, feeling a sense of wonder at the situation.

(...Am I alive? ...Saved?)

Rising with a question, his head bumped against the low cave ceiling.

"Ouch!?"

Only now did he remember that the height of the cave he had dug was less than fifty centimeters. Aichi reached up to the ceiling, intending to use alchemy to increase the height. However, he noticed that the only thing in his field of vision was a shaking arm.

Aichi was momentarily stunned, then he remembered that he had lost his left arm. At that moment, a sharp pain seemed to come from the missing left arm. But it was just phantom limb pain. Aichi grimaced and instinctively pressed his left arm. However, he noticed that there was no exposed flesh or blood on the severed surface; the wound had already healed.

"Why? ...And there was so much blood..."

Although it was too dark to see clearly, the area around Aichi must have been a sea of blood. The amount of blood loss would have been fatal for anyone. Using his right hand to feel around, the surface was slippery, indicating that the blood had not yet dried.

Indeed, the blood was from his own wound. Aichi deduced that he had been unconscious for a short time because the blood was still wet. Ignoring his confusion about the healing wound, another droplet fell on his lips and cheeks. At that moment, Aichi noticed that his strength had been restored a little.

"...Impossible... Could this be?"

Enduring the phantom limb pain, Aichi extended his right hand toward the source of the droplets and used alchemy. Stumbling, he continued to use alchemy as he moved deeper. Strangely, the liquid dripping from the rocks seemed to restore his magic power, and no matter how many times he used alchemy, his magic power did not run out. Aichi, drenched in sweat from the effort, repeatedly used alchemy to seek the source of the liquid. Soon, the mysterious liquid increased in volume, and the droplets formed a continuous stream. Moving closer, Aichi finally reached the source.

"This... this is..."

There, a mineral the size of a basketball emitted a bluish-white light. It was embedded in the rock, dripping water. The stone was mysterious and beautiful, its light more intense than a deep blue sapphire. Aichi momentarily forgot his phantom limb pain, entranced by the sight.

As if not wanting to let it go, or perhaps drawn to it, Aichi extended his right hand toward the stone and pressed his mouth directly against it. The dull, fog-like pain in his body disappeared, his mind became clear, and his fatigue was alleviated. Indeed, the reason Aichi had survived was the liquid flowing from the stone. The liquid seemed to have healing properties. While the phantom limb pain was not cured, his other injuries and bleeding had healed.

Aichi did not know that this was actually the legendary "Divine Crystal," the highest-grade treasure in history, sometimes believed to exist only in legends. The Divine Crystal is a product of magic power flowing through the earth for over a thousand years, crystallizing by chance. It is about thirty to forty centimeters in diameter. After crystallization, it took several hundred more years for the contained magic power to saturate and overflow in liquid form, known as "Divine Water." Drinking it could cure any injury or illness, though it lacked the power to regenerate lost body parts. Drinking enough of it could grant eternal life, and it was also known as the elixir of immortality or the potion of eternal life. In ancient stories, Eshid used Divine Water to heal people.

Feeling the gradual return from the brink of death, Aichi slowly crawled to the wall and leaned against it. Embracing his body, which trembled with the fear of death, he buried his face between his knees in a fetal position. Aichi was mentally and physically exhausted, with no energy left to escape.

If the gaze directed at him was not one of hostility and malice but of help, he might have been able to stand up again with joy. However, the eyes of the grizzly bear were not helpful; they only saw Aichi as prey—predator's eyes. Standing at the top of the food chain, it was indifferent to human gazes. Looking into those eyes, and in reality, having his arm eaten, Aichi's heart was broken.

(Who... save me...)

This was the bottom of the abyss, and Aichi's cries could not reach anyone...

～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～

How long had it been? Aichi now lay on the ground, curled up tightly like a fetus.

Actually, it had been four days since Aichi's breakdown. During this time, he had barely moved, surviving only on the Divine Water that dripped. However, the period of drinking Divine Water was not without consequences. As long as the drinker was alive, they would continue to feel an unquenchable hunger. Aichi was now being tormented by intense hunger and phantom limb pain.

(Why am I so unlucky?)

This question had repeatedly crossed his mind over the past few days. Unable to sleep due to pain and hunger, he would drink the Divine Water to recover, only to feel even more intense pain and hunger afterward. He would lose consciousness like in hibernation, only to wake up again due to pain and hunger, and then drink more Divine Water. His body refused to think, and he had been alternating between light sleep and wakefulness.

Unconsciously, Aichi stopped drinking the Divine Water. Without realizing it, he had chosen the easiest way to end his suffering.

(If this pain continues... might as well...)

Muttering this to himself, his consciousness once again fell into darkness.

Three more days passed, and the hunger that had subsided returned. The phantom limb pain had never subsided, continuously eroding Aichi's spirit, as if the tip of his left arm was being slowly filed away.

(Still... not dead... Ah, hurry, hurry... I don't want to die...)

Desiring death while unconsciously seeking life. Contradictory thoughts alternated. He could no longer think clearly, muttering broken words.

Three more days passed. The effects of the Divine Water had worn off, and without food or water, he might die within two days. (Author's note: The Divine Water is powerful, taking three days to digest!)

However, something strange happened over these three days. Since the eighth day, Aichi's mind had begun to deteriorate. He alternated between praying for life and death, waiting for the hellish pain to end. A dark, murky substance began to bubble up from the depths of his heart. It flowed like gelatinous mud through the cracks in his heart, eroded by pain and fear, gradually corrupting Aichi's innermost being.

(Why must I suffer... What have I done...)

(Why am I suffering like this... What is the reason...)

(God unjustly kidnapped me...)

(My classmates betrayed me...)

(The rabbit despised me...)

(That thing ate me...)

Aichi's thoughts gradually turned black, seeking someone to blame for the injustice, the harm done to him... Unconsciously, he sought an enemy. The intense pain and hunger eroded his body, the dark, enclosed space corroded his mind, and the black emotions were accelerating...

(Why does no one help me...)

(What if no one helps me?)

(What can I do to make this pain go away?)

On the ninth day, Aichi began to unconsciously think about how to break the current situation. Hoping to be freed from the intense pain, he began to discard unnecessary emotions like anger and hatred. His heart, already tinged with black, gradually lost its gentleness in the pain...

(What do I hope for?)

(I hope for 'life'.)

(Who is hindering this?)

(The enemy is hindering it.)

(What is the enemy?)

(The enemy is anything that hinders me, anything that is unjust and forceful.)

(But what should I do?)

(I am, I am...)

On the tenth day, Aichi's heart had no anger left. The unjust actions of the gods, the betrayal of his classmates, the hostility of the monsters... even the smile of someone who said they would protect him... it didn't matter anymore. To live, to gain the right to survive, these were trivial matters. Aichi's thoughts found a single answer: ...

(Kill)

There was no malice, no hostility, no hatred, just the necessary act of killing to survive, a pure killing intent.

Anyone who threatened his survival was an enemy, and the enemy must be...

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