When the assailants appeared, everyone froze.
The strongest member of the group was killed in an instant.
With this alone, they must have realized the difference in power between them.
Lumia didn’t seem to understand what was going on yet, but she instinctively sensed that the situation was extremely dangerous.
The leader of the Red Wolves shouted,
“Who the hell are you? Are you from another organization? You bastards have no sense of honor… trying to encroach on our territory?”
He yelled again, “Not going to answer, you sons of bitches?!”
While everyone else was overcome with fear, he alone seemed composed… but that wasn’t entirely true.
He, too, was hiding his trembling hands, pretending to be angry.
The assailants—or rather, the puppets—did not respond to the leader’s questions.
Instead, they moved in eerie motions and charged at the members of the group, seemingly intending to silence the loudest first.
As the room descended into greater chaos, a hooded woman remained motionless outside the door.
That was Elia.
She had come to kill me and Lumia, just as I had anticipated.
Although she had been tasked with a mission in the eastern region, it wouldn’t have been difficult for someone of her skill to annihilate those there and make her way here.
Amid the screams and shouts, Elia stood still, staring at Lumia.
The group members resisted fiercely.
Unlike when they fought me and Lumia with some room to spare, they now understood there was no retreat.
Even those who had been attacking me and Lumia were now preoccupied with fighting the puppets controlled by Elia.
“Aaagh!”
But it wasn’t a proper fight.
The puppets moved beyond human limitations, taking the lives of the members one by one without showing any signs of fatigue.
To make things worse, the fallen members began to rise and attack the living.
It was a scene straight out of hell, and Lumia stood frozen, unable to do anything.
“Wade, this… this is a dream, right?”
“Get a grip. Once they’re all dead, we’ll be next. If you just stand there, you’ll die.”
“This is a nightmare… a terrible nightmare…”
Perhaps it was all too much for her.
She ignored my words, let her sword fall from her hands, and slumped to the ground, staring blankly at her impending fate.
Meanwhile, every member of the group had been killed.
Even the leader, who resisted until the very end, lost his life and turned into one of Elia’s puppets, now staring at us.
Finally, Elia, who had been watching the situation unfold, stepped into the room.
“Looks like the cleanup is mostly done.”
Though her face and voice were concealed, I could tell her lips were curling into a smile.
I finished stopping the bleeding from my injured arm and faced her.
“Don’t come any closer.”
“Trying to protect your friend? How touching. But… how long do you think you can last in that condition?”
“I’ll hold out until she gets back on her feet.”
“Hmm… I don’t know. From what I see, she doesn’t seem to have the will to fight anymore. Her eyes are already dead.”
Elia chuckled and clapped her hands.
“Then let’s do this. I’ll spare you.”
“You’ll spare me?”
“I’m not interested in you. I’m only after her. But… you’ll have to leave her behind and walk out of this room right now.”
At her words, Lumia flinched, her shoulders trembling.
She looked into my eyes for a moment before lowering her head again, as if to say it was okay to leave her behind.
But I shook my head.
“Forget it.”
“Hmm~ Why? Could it be that you like her or something?”
“Because there’s no way you’d keep that promise. You crazy murderer.”
“I was really looking forward to seeing her expression when she realized she’d been abandoned… What a shame. You’ve ruined it for me.”
Elia stroked her chin and smirked.
“Still, I bet her face would be just as entertaining if she saw you die right in front of her. Will you help me with that?”
“Help you? You’re insane.”
“Oh, don’t be so cold~.”
The puppets surrounded Lumia and me.
If they all attacked at once, there was no way I, pretending to be an underachiever, could fend them off entirely.
But as I expected, Elia didn’t want to kill us right away.
She wanted to torment us, to toy with us slowly.
I faced the puppets one by one as they attacked.
These were once insignificant gang members, but as puppets under Elia’s control, they were stronger than most knights.
As I exchanged blows repeatedly, small openings began to show in my defense, and soon enough, shallow wounds appeared all over my body.
“Why don’t you just give up already? You know full well you can’t accomplish anything with your skills.”
“I won’t give up.”
“I don’t understand… What makes that foolish girl so valuable to you? Why do you hold her in such high regard?”
Thud.
A blade pierced my thigh, forcing me to my knees.
“Ugh!”
“Have you reconsidered? I’m starting to get bored. Why do you keep standing in my way with your pathetic skills? You should just know your place and back off.”
“You sure talk a lot.”
“Oh, still trying to stand up?”
I pushed off the ground, rising to my feet again.
Pointing my sword at Elia, I declared with determination,
“I know I’m not skilled. But that doesn’t mean I can’t help someone. I won’t abandon my friend.”
“What a noble sentiment. It would’ve been admirable if you weren’t such a mess. Do you even realize how pathetic you look right now?”
“Even if I’m a mess, even if I have to crawl in the dirt… I won’t abandon my friend.”
“Haha, you’re an amusing one. Do you really think acting so self-righteous will make me spare your life?”
No.
These words weren’t for you.
They were for someone sitting helplessly on the ground right now.
“Well, whatever. I’m bored of playing with you. Let’s end this now.”
Thwack!
A puppet struck me, sending me flying to the side.
Elia approached the defenseless Lumia.
Lumia’s gaze flickered briefly to me before shifting back to Elia.
“You’re utterly hopeless trash. Your friend is risking his life to save you, and all you can do is sit there like a fool.”
“Lumia, Lumia. Where should I start tormenting you? It’d be a waste to kill you right away… Hmm~ Maybe I’ll just stab you somewhere and see what kind of scream you make.”
A puppet raised its blade, aiming for Lumia’s abdomen.
Thud.
But Lumia wasn’t the one who got hit.
Instead, I had stepped in and taken the blade.
“Ugh…!”
“Oh my, you’re still capable of moving? I thought you’d die right away.”
The puppet pulled the blade from my abdomen, and blood poured out like a river.
I lost my balance and collapsed in front of Lumia.
“W-Wade…?”
Lumia muttered as her eyes met mine.
Now is the time.
This is the most critical moment.
A friend who sacrificed his life for her.
The last words I utter before facing death will serve as the turning point for Lumia’s dramatic transformation.
The stage is perfect.
All I need now is a convincing line.
What should I say…
“Lumia…”
“Wade…”
“I… I…”
Wait, what do I say?
Now that it’s time, I can’t think of anything good.
“I… want cake…”
Damn it, that’s not it.
Hearing my useless dying words, Lumia began to cry, nodding her head.
“I-I’ll make it. I’ll make you some, so please don’t die… Don’t leave me alone…”
“Okay… but next time, don’t throw it at my face… Then I can rest easy…”
“Don’t die! Wade! Wade!”
As I slowly closed my eyes, she panicked and shook my body.
I opened my eyes again and grabbed her hand.
“Lumia, there’s nothing shameful about wanting to survive. So… if you want to run, it’s okay to run.”
“But if you want to change, someday you’ll have to face your fear. When that time comes… close your eyes and take just one step forward. If it’s dark and scary just one step ahead, take two more steps and find the light…”
“Wade…”
“You can… do it…”
Thud.
I let my hand fall limp like a dead man.
An extreme crisis.
A friend who risked his life to protect her.
And the desperate death of that friend… With this, my plan is complete.
Now, all I have to do is wait.
Wait for Lumia to overcome her fear and reclaim her true self.
Lumia was silent.
I couldn’t see her expression with my eyes closed… but surely, she hadn’t broken down from the shock, right?
If that were the case, I’d have no choice but to reveal my bluff.
If I stayed like this, Elia would kill me.
Elia muttered,
“I’ve been thinking since earlier… It’s so irritating. Acting like the whole world belongs to her when she’s nothing.”
“Does she think the world is some kind of flower field? To die spouting such innocent, blissful delusions in this hellhole. Then again, maybe being that stupid is a kind of blessing.”
“Why are you still sitting there? No matter how much you stare, your dead friend isn’t coming back. So why don’t you play with me instead?”
Elia spoke to Lumia, but she didn’t respond.
Elia moved her puppets.
“This is more boring than I expected. A reaction would’ve made it fun, at least. Forget it. I’ll just kill you and your friend.”
One puppet thrust its blade toward Lumia, and another aimed for me.
It didn’t matter if I was attacked, but Lumia being hurt was unacceptable.
Clang!
But Lumia grabbed the puppet’s blade.
The one that had been aiming for my heart.
Blood flowed from her hand as she tightly gripped the blade.
The puppet struggled to pull the sword free, but it didn’t budge an inch.
Meanwhile, a blade was buried in her shoulder.
Blood from the wound soaked her clothes and armor, but she ignored it entirely as she spoke.
“Don’t… lay a hand on him.”
To be continued.