Chapter 82 – The Flame That Fades in the Bosom (3)
The two wounded beasts crashed into each other, scattering blood and dust. The hem of the clothes that had fallen off and the scales that were crumbled here and there. Even though we hadn’t lived in the same world, we knew instinctively that the other person’s appearance was shabby.
That’s why their fight was filled with just desperation without any honor. Without the slightest respect for the other person. Without the mercy of humanity. I could even feel the hatred in the mere roar.
The audience who watched it was also shabby. With the blind girl. An elf whose forget-me-not scent has faded. And equally hungry rats. The final audience is probably rooting for both beasts.
May they fight more fiercely than anyone else.
So let both beasts fall, that they may be their daily bread.
A parasite called greed was wriggling in their stomach skins, which wished for mutual destruction.
The boy and Hetzling clenched their fists and teeth, whether they knew the hearts of the audience or not. Although it was a bit sloppy because there was no opportunity to grow, it seemed clear that he had a mindset for bloody battles.
If this fight is over, will the boy be able to become a man? Or can he grow into a dragon in Hetzling? Such questions naturally arose. But well I don’t know if they had such thoughts in their minds.
You probably can’t afford it. There will be no place in their minds for idle questions. There was no hint of complicated circumstances in the fiercely running run.
Having lived alone all their lives, they have only one purpose.
I just wanted to live.
“Keeeeeg
Hetzling let out a shriek as soon as he approached me. Perhaps because of the long starvation, the sound was not grandiose and even felt a little weak.
But his misfortune was my luck. The long hunger made not only his voice but also his gait weak. He couldn’t even make as much leap as the Hetzling he had first seen.
It’s probably preparing for when the hunt fails. It was the first time I had seen the impatience in Hetzling. He must have never learned the feeling of arrogance because he was only hit and rejected by his own people.
Of course, that didn’t mean it was relatively relaxed either. Still, his movements were quick, and I didn’t have many chances. I took a deep breath and pulled the lever on the gauntlet.
Then the very symptoms Rebecca warned about began to appear in my body.
“Aww…!”
The entrails being eaten was not a metaphor. In fact, my stomach was seething with heat, and the blood in my chest surged up. If the magic cannon sucks mana from the body, it felt like it would scrape everything inside.
Okay. In the midst of ranged weapons, these melee weapons are usually aimed at suicide or last stand. Probably the same for this gauntlet. It would have been designed to use all mana as much as possible for the user’s last moment.
So, in a way, it was the best weapon for me. After all, from now on, every moment we meet is the final moment. I clenched my fists tightly as I braced my body that was about to collapse.
“Ki-yi-yi…”
“Huh…”
He came right in front of me and slammed his forepaw on the floor. It seemed to be preparing for the perfect hunt. The guy who grabbed the ground like that, soon let out a roar and rushed at me.
“Keeeeek…!”
“Huh!”
But I kicked off the ground and jumped up before he was ready. As if this behavior had not been expected, a bewildered cry leaked out. In the dust that was scattered under my feet, the vertically torn eyes collided head-on.
I hit the guy’s eyes with all my might. Through the blue smoke that exploded in an instant, bright red steam rose like a fountain.
“Keeeee!!!”
“Huh…!”
While he screamed in agony, I sat down on the floor in an awkward position worse than dust. My fists and intestines twisted at the same time, and blood sputum came out regardless of my will. Enduring the pouring pain, I raised my head toward Hetzling.
Then, the eyes of the half-shattered guy turned towards me at the same time.
“Ki-yi-yi…”
“Shit…”
It was an almost self-destructive attack, but unfortunately my fists weren’t as powerful as Rebecca’s. Proficiency, total amount of magical power, condition. Probably because everything was bad.
In the meantime, I couldn’t even ask for help from anyone. Haru was still down and Saya was still preoccupied with stopping the rats. The guys attacked them more fiercely when the obstacle that was me was gone.
The only consolation was that Hetzling had also suffered a clear blow. It would take a few more shots to completely silence it, but at least it wasn’t impossible.
“Haaa…”
Naturally, I was out of breath. But I couldn’t stop like this. With that mindset alone, I pulled the lever once again.
“Ahhhhh…!!!”
Again, the mana that remained in the body was sucked out, and I felt extreme pain. Apparently, my magic efficiency was so bad that I couldn’t draw all the mana out before.
I never thought my incompetence would work as luck. It wasn’t such a situation, but I laughed without knowing. Then he struck a second punch at Hetzling, who barely got up.
“Aaaaa!!!”
“Keeeeeg
Then the guy struck him in the head, and even though he was unconscious, he raised his front paw in response. He probably intended to block it with his claws, but his fist landed on his elbow, shattering the creature’s massive forelimbs.
“Kwueeeee!!!”
“Kuhhh…!”
A bundle of veins protruded from his arm, and a dark red shower fell. I knelt on the floor, soaked in Hetzling’s blood. Now, against my will, lumps of brown blood gushed out.
“Wooooo…”
“Keeeee…!”
“Keuhuk…Wook…”
“Kwueeeee!!!”
But the guy inevitably stood up. At this point he might have given up, but somehow he turned his snout this way. As soon as I saw him, I instinctively clenched his fist.
Then, after barely avoiding the muzzle of the slowly attacking creature, I approached his side this time and put his fist into it.
“Keuhuhuh…!”
“Keeeee!!!”
The same process was repeated again. Blood that is spit out. Shattered scales. Hetzling’s dark red bodily fluid splashed all over the body.
And, Hetzling raises his head again.
Haha…”
“Ki-yi-yi…”
“Ah…Haha…”
Now there is a laugh Even though his whole body was shattered as much as I was, he struggled to the end. Still, at least at the last moment, I wonder if I want to swallow even a little bit of flesh from this hungry snout.
“Kwuh…Kwuh…”
“Haaa…”
“Kkuiik…”
Okay.
You, too, want to live as much as I do.
“Keeeeeg
“Eww…!”
I dodged his desperately outstretched arm and jumped onto his arm with all his might. Then, it climbed onto his shoulders and ran over his head. Even though he must have felt the steps he was taking, he lowered his head helplessly.
Then, in the cracks in his split head, a pulsing gray lump caught his eye. That was a dragon’s weakness that would never have been seen under normal circumstances.
So, is this the surest way to end him?
Half mad, I raised my fist at just the thought.
And he, too, began grabbing his one remaining forepaw as a last resort.
“Huh…Huh…”
“Ki-yi-yi…”
“Huh… Uh…”
“Keeeee…!”
Will he be able to deliver the fourth blow? I also questioned myself. Is there any magic left in my body? I don’t even know if there’s more blood to spit before that. However, once started, his fierce sense of purpose already pointed his hand at the gauntlet lever.
So I raised my fist again. And at the same time as the desperate Hetzling, he let out a scream.
“Keeeee!!!”
“Aaaaa!!!”
The fluttering snowflakes clung to her cheeks. We struggled, unaware that each other’s bodies were clinging to our eyes. That moment when the two beasts raised their paws with their last strength.
Saya’s hair covered my vision.
And at the same time, Hetzling’s body collapsed in vain.
“Keeeee…”
Thud.
…
“Haha…”
“…”
“Haa… Lope…”
“…”
Saya looked at me, scattering wet sweat and blood at the same time. The sword she clutched in her inverse pierced her brain precisely through her wound in Hetzling’s head. I couldn’t even lower my clenched fist, and my whole body just trembled.
Then, very slowly, the mana that flowed into her fist flowed back into her body. Her body collapsed at the first touch she felt and buried her face in Jaya’s arms. Saya hugged me and patted me on the back.
“It’s okay. It’s all…It’s over, so take a break.”
“Ha…”
“…”
“…How about you?”
“Yeah. I got bitten by the rats a little, but there are no major injuries.”
“Then how about a day?”
When asked helplessly, Saya couldn’t answer and shut her mouth. Then she hugged me by the shoulder and whispered in a low voice.
“I think I’ll have to come and see. Can it happen?”
“Of course. Now…The strength is slowly returning to the body.”
“Lean on me. I’ll support you.”
Leaning on her shoulder, I barely descended from her torso in Hetzling. There was quite a bit of snow on the floor before I knew it, and I almost fell over. Even so, I walked almost like a crawl and somehow made my way to where Haru was.
Soon, Haru was seen lying down with his coat covered. His body, lying alone in the snow like petals blown away by the winter wind, looked so fragile today. It even looked like he was dead, so I called his name without even realizing it.
“Day…”
“…”
“Shit…”
There was no answer. I almost fell to my knees beside him and immediately brought his hand to my forehead.
Then, hotter than ever, the heat covered his palms. At the same time, Haru shook his face as if he had a seizure and let out a violent breath.
“Haa…Haa…Haaa…!”
“Oh my god…”
“Ha…Ugh…Huh…”
“Haru. It’s me, Lope. Come to your senses.”
“Haa…Ugh…Uh…Mom…”
As if she was strangled by a rope, Haru gasped for her breath more than necessary and wept sadly. This was the first time Haru was looking for her mother, so I held her hand tightly without realizing it.
Hahamother…”
“I’m by your side Haru. Saya is also by your side. So it’s okay now.”
“Ha-he-he-he-he… Mom… Mom…”
“Day…”
After a day of struggling in her pain, she even shook my hand and her throat trembled. It was to the point where I wondered if her body was fluttering because she couldn’t handle her own heartbeat. Then, suddenly, he held his breath as if he was sobbing, and said a word he had been holding back.
“Sorry…”
“…”
“I don’t like it anymore… I hate it mom…”
“…”
“It hurts…I was wrong Mom…Please don’t tell Dad…”
“Ah…”
At that moment, I unknowingly dropped my hand. For a moment, it was so difficult that I instinctively thought that she was looking for her mother. But it wasn’t like that. The guy was hearing hallucinations now.
The hallucinations of the most painful period.
Extreme fever. Hyperventilation. And hallucinations. The knowledge I had learned in the past informed me that Haru was now suffering from sepsis. The most representative disease that afflicts soldiers on the battlefield where wounds cannot be managed cleanly. Many soldiers died of the disease without receiving proper treatment.
And that was still the case today. It was clear that if I couldn’t find a doctor’s treatment, or at least antibiotics, I would meet the same fate every day.
But now, all that was in the bag was the food the rats had eaten.
“…Damn it.”
Unknowingly, I hugged Haru’s body tightly. Amidst the fluttering snow, Haru slowly burned in my arms like a small flame. And it’ll probably fade before tonight’s over. Saya must have noticed that too, so she told me in a trembling voice.
“Lope. You need to move.”
“…”
“I’ll take the lead. Go to the port as soon as possible and get on board. Then…”
“No matter how much you hurry, it will take another day. You won’t last that long.”
“Then let’s go get something. Huh? Like you said, there might be herbs.”
“If we can’t find it, it’s the end. We can’t go on an adventure like that.”
“But…Then…Then…”
“…”
“Then what should I do…?”
There was fear in Saya’s voice. And it was the same for me. The cold reason was forcing a conclusion he did not want to accept.
Have to give up
Because you can’t save everyone.
The last word came out with the voice of Saya, not anyone else. I never thought that one day her words that she said to comfort me would come back like this. In the end, what betrayed me until the end was time, nothing else.
…I am.
Can’t you protect a single person in your arms?
A familiar feeling of hopelessness gripped his heart. White snowflakes landed on my eyebrows and flowed instead of tears. I wondered if it was my fate to fall helplessly to the floor like that in the end.
But I just couldn’t accept it.
So, without realizing it, I looked up at the indifferent sky.
“Haaa…”
Without a word, I scattered pure white steam across the gray sky. Strangely, the more I exhaled shapeless cigarette smoke, the clearer my mind became. It felt as if the cold morning dew had filled my mouth.
“Rope…”
Meanwhile, Saya cautiously approached me. And with great difficulty she opened her mouth.
“We…”
“It’s okay, buy it.”
“Huh?”
“I won’t give up.”
Saya looked at me with round eyes, as if surprised by the clear voice like never before. But instead of meeting her eyes, I looked back.
Then the image of the burning city that we desperately passed came into view.
Black smoke was still rising from there. It seemed that the hatchlings, enraged by the snowflakes, were breathing fire again. However, the direction was the sky, not the ground. However, there were still buildings that were still standing.
And among them was the building I was looking for with my eyes. I smiled at Saya, holding her last hope in my heart.
“It’s still available.”
