Something’s wrong.
Yuri withdrew the black sludge beneath her feet, that shadow-like substance she’d used earlier to ensnare Brohl’s ankles and drag him into her consciousness space. But now, a sudden change had occurred—Brohl was dead before her eyes.
There was no time to dwell on the reason behind it, because the knights, noticing something amiss, quickly surrounded her.
“There she is!”
“Hurry, catch her!”
Could this timing be any worse? With no time to figure out why Brohl had died, Yuri could only evade the knights’ pursuit, spending a fair bit of time before finally escaping the black market.
Making sure no one was chasing after her, Yuri took off her mask and drew in a deep breath of fresh air from the street.
Phew…
Alright, she was safe for now. It was time to sort through what had happened in Brohl’s shop.
The only regret was that the knights had arrived a bit too quickly. She hadn’t even had time to snatch something from Brohl’s shop as compensation, and ended up fleeing empty-handed.
What a pity.
She shook her head. Now was not the time to dwell on that. The real key was figuring out the cause of Brohl’s death.
When his body turned to black water, Yuri had caught a fleeting trace of Abyssal aura. It had only appeared for a split second, but with Yuri’s sensitivity to the Abyss, there was no way she could be mistaken.
Was it the power of the Abyss that killed Brohl?
The instant she realized this, Yuri’s pupils trembled.
In the blink of an eye, a living person had been dissolved into a puddle of black water—just how was that possible?
Yuri had a suspicion about the culprit. Maybe, since Brohl had exposed Peggm’s identity and leaked secrets, he’d been directly erased.
If there hadn’t been that hint of Abyssal aura, Yuri might have chosen to believe Peggm used some kind of special method to execute Brohl from afar. But the presence of the Abyss changed everything.
Peggm using the power of the Abyss to kill Brohl… A human being who can wield the Abyss? What kind of joke is that?
Absolutely impossible.
But if she ruled out that possibility, she’d have to accept that maybe her senses had failed her, that the Abyssal aura had never appeared and she’d just misperceived it.
Maybe that’s all it was… No, her senses couldn’t be wrong. She was sure—even if it was only for an instant, there really had been a trace of the Abyss.
Which meant she had to accept it: Peggm, whoever or whatever they were, had truly used Abyssal power.
This… This was impossible. It sounded like something out of a wild fantasy. If she said it out loud, it would draw laughter from everyone.
Her gaze instinctively fell on Iris. She must know the reason behind this.
“Oh my, Yuri-chan seems to have gotten herself into some trouble.”
“Iris, do you know what happened back there?”
“It’s complicated, but, Yuri-chan, you don’t need to know why.”
With a smile tugging at her lips, Iris continued, “I don’t know who the little rat hiding behind the scenes is, but Yuri-chan, you saw your consciousness space shatter. So, take my advice—don’t try to investigate the person behind this. They’re not someone you can handle right now.”
Yuri hadn’t planned to investigate anyway.
From the moment Brohl died by the power of the Abyss, the situation in Anvil City became even more complicated. With things like this, jumping in recklessly—who knew what would come of it.
She had no desire to invite trouble unless it came looking for her.
If it didn’t, she’d just slip away, getting as far from the whirlpool of trouble as possible.
Anvil City seemed peaceful for now, but with what Yuri had learned, it might just be the calm before the storm.
Anvil City might be in for some real trouble.
She was only a traveler here, seeking a way to save her life. Now that she hadn’t found a way to break the curse, it was time to leave Anvil City.
She’d leave tomorrow.
There was still an afternoon left before sunset, so before then, Yuri had to prepare for the journey.
For example, food, water, and camping gear like a tent.
In the past, Yuri would just sleep on the ground, or at best lay down some fallen leaves. But now that she had a bit of savings, she could try buying a cheap single-person tent.
After making the rounds and spending more than a dozen silver coins, Yuri looked at the bundle in her hands and thought of the pile of stuff still stored at the inn. For a moment, she felt at a loss.
So many things would be inconvenient to carry.
Gritting her teeth, Yuri walked into an alchemy workshop and spent a gold coin to buy a magitech item.
It was a storage pouch—looked like an ordinary cloth bag, but inside it had a one-cubic-meter storage space. No matter what you put in, the bag wouldn’t get any bigger or heavier.
For someone like her, who always carried her belongings and wandered from place to place, it couldn’t be more suitable.
Still, the price was a bit steep. The moment she took out that gold coin, Yuri felt as if her heart was bleeding.
At sunset, Yuri finished shopping and returned to the inn. After dinner, she took a quick shower in the private bathroom in her room, changed into the camisole nightgown Iris had picked out, and sat down on the bed.
Before sleeping, a question came to her.
“Iris, I have a question—about the power I traded for.”
“Oh? What does Yuri-chan want to know?”
“If I use that power too often, will it speed up the process of you taking over my body?”
“Umm… Sorry to say, but yes, Yuri-chan—the more you use it, the faster it’ll go.”
The little Evil God stuck out her tongue and made a cute face.
“I see.”
Yuri wasn’t particularly surprised. After all, it was a deal with an Evil God—of course she’d try to squeeze as much as possible out of it.
Looks like the power she’d gotten from the deal could only be used as a trump card at critical moments.
She still needed to find a way to strengthen herself. As for the next city, Yuri already had some ideas. If she could, she’d like to solve the threat of Iris taking over her body along the way.
She took off the pendant at her neck, turned it back into a longsword, and placed it across her fair, soft thigh.
Given the sword’s illustrious origin, if she could bring out its true power, maybe she’d be able to quickly boost her own strength.
But how?
If only she could drag out the sword spirit hiding inside. From her previous observations, if the sword really did have a spirit, it should be a timid one.
Maybe she should try threatening it again?
“Listen, I’m seriously talking to you. If you don’t behave from now on, I don’t mind throwing you away and feeding you to those vicious Abyssal beasts.”
Before the sword responded, Iris rolled her eyes.
“Yuri-chan, are you an idiot? Or did your brain get soaked?”
What’s gotten into her all of a sudden?
Yuri ignored Iris’s jibe, staring at the dim, lusterless longsword in her hand, trying to sense any sign of strangeness. She tried a few more threats, but there was still no reaction.
Maybe everything that happened before was just her imagination?
It didn’t look like she’d figure anything out tonight.
Turning the sword back into a pendant, Yuri put it back around her neck.
“Iris, good night.”
She got into bed. Just as she was about to turn off the light and sleep, Yuri’s mind suddenly went blank for a moment.
The next instant, it was as if countless red-hot brands were seared into the depths of her soul. That bone-gnawing, heart-searing agony crashed over her like a flood breaking through a dam.
“Ugh…”
Curled up on the bed, Yuri’s body shuddered, cold sweat soaking through her nightgown in an instant.
The sudden, intense pain nearly knocked her out.
She couldn’t be mistaken about this feeling… It hadn’t even been a few days since last time.
This time, the curse erupted with a force so swift and savage—it was coming for her life.