Chapter 45 

I didn’t expect it to hit me this hard.

I thought I’d written them off, but seeing them like this… Yeah, that’s a shock.

What’s bubbling up inside me is disgust—and anger.

But it’s definitely not the kind of anger that comes from “my classmate got turned into a monster.”

It’s not because they were classmates, not because they were close to me.

It’s because, categorically, Muraki is like me—a fellow human from Earth.

So, my emotions—whether I liked or disliked him—don’t matter. The fact that he’s one of the very few like me, that’s what hits hardest.

And honestly, my personal dislike for Muraki wasn’t that intense.

So the anger I feel at seeing one of the few “same-species” turned into this… outweighed any dislike I had for him personally.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me. How the hell did it come to this?!”

Like Melt said—this thing can’t just be killed. At least, not before we find out what’s going on.

Can we bring him back? Do we have to kill him? What caused this?

Well, either way…

“I’ll hack off your arms and legs and make you writhe in agony, you goddamn piece of crap!!!”

The battle cry “Crimson Howl”—a skill that buffs myself through raw screaming emotion.

My voice roared out on its own, my whole body brimming with adrenaline.

With my sword in hand, I stepped forward, mimicking the moves in my mind. At the same time, I activated Rapid Step.

That combo boosts attack power and hit count at random. The range? Anywhere from 1x to 9x.

Right now, with a full-power strike, I could at least slice flesh. And if I hit 9x multiplier? I could obliterate it.

I kicked off the ground, sprang off the wall, weaving unpredictably as I aimed for its limbs and swung.

Its tongue lashed out at blinding speed to block me, but I dodged and went straight for its right front leg—slicing clean through it.

…Guess I got lucky with the multiplier. Not only did I cut through the flesh—I severed the leg entirely in one blow. Unfortunately, seems like the number of attacks didn’t increase.

Still, the sheer power of that one strike sent the massive body crashing into the wall.

“I’ll carve you into scrap! Stop squirming, you worthless trash!!”

Crimson Howl only applies to the first attack after activation, so now I’ve gotta keep yelling these ridiculous threats just to keep my momentum up.

Yeah, not the best look. But that’s what it takes to stay sharp and finish this thing off.

If it were like a Dungeon Master with obvious weak points, I could go for a clean exploit. But this one? I don’t even know what it is. So for now, brute force it is.

I rushed the creature again as it writhed against the wall, aiming to hack off its remaining limbs.

“Jackpot.”

My body moved on its own, slashing again and again, far beyond what I consciously intended.

Its left front leg and both back legs were shredded to ribbons, the monster crumpling under its own weight and collapsing to the floor.

The individual hits were weaker, but it looks like I landed nine strikes in total.

“…Melt, what about the wounded?”

“It’s incredible… This stuff… the wounds faded almost instantly.”

“So… not healed, just improved. Got it.”

“Rikka-chan… she still has bad bruises on her arms and legs. But they were broken before. Kash… I think he’s still internally injured—his face is way too pale. But… he’s stable.”

“I see. Once I’m sure this thing isn’t moving, let’s get them out of here.”

“Okay. But… Grant’s the worst off… What do we do…? He’s breathing, but… his body is ice-cold from the waist down… He might already be…”

A wound that bad to the lower body… What is this monster? It’s way too strong.

Could it be that Muraki’s abilities were transferred to it…?

“Melt. Are there any packing chains or ropes in the warehouse? I’ll keep watch—go look.”

“Got it. …You really pushed it back into a completely immobile state. You’re strong.”

“…Honestly, I think I was walking a really dangerous line.”

My weapon’s power played a big role too. But even with the multiplier from Crimson Howl, all I did was slice off its limbs and knock it away. A direct hit could’ve been fatal—its endurance was way beyond what I expected.

Even considering the power difference between Silent and me, this thing was way tougher than the monsters near the summit of that mountain.

“Found some chains! Also got this iron string!”

“That’s wire. Perfect—give it here.”

I immediately wrapped its mouth in loops of wire to hold it shut, and tied up its entire body.

But strangely enough—there was no blood flowing from its severed limbs.

…Is this thing even alive?

“Alright… Melt, head outside and get someone. Reinforcements should be coming from upstairs soon.”

“Got it. Be careful, Same. We still don’t know what this monster is. It might explode or release poison when it dies.”

“Understood.”

Before long, museum security and knights from the kingdom arrived.

Since Melt and Letty were the ones who really knew what was going on, I left the bulk of the explanation to them.

“There was a suspicious group. Another guard and I went after them. I think… they originally had three members.”

“Originally? What do you mean?”

“The monster we captured… I think it used to be human. There were three shady people, but only two escaped. And inside the monster… I saw a human face buried in its body.”

I followed up on Melt’s statement.

“May I speak? What she said is true. I arrived later and fought the monster myself. Inside its mouth, I clearly saw a human face.”

“Couldn’t it have just been someone it ate?”

“No—it was something else entirely. I’ve sealed its mouth for now, but you’ll see for yourself. Originally, I planned to kill it. But considering the abnormality of the monster and the possibility of a human will being involved, I decided to capture it.”

“…I see. I’ll report this immediately. Please vacate the warehouse for now. We’ll take over the watch.”

“…Forgive me, but I have items I won at auction stored in this warehouse. Could you first contact the merchant company that owns it?”

I didn’t trust them completely. If this knight was in on it, they might destroy the monster and erase the evidence.

“Well… it seems the person who brought the items down for storage may have been eaten. No trace remains. We also tried to contact the company’s headquarters, but got nowhere. They insist, ‘We didn’t participate in the auction,’ and won’t say more.”

“What…?! …So this isn’t just a simple raid.”

“Right. That’s why we, as low-ranking knights, can’t handle this ourselves. We’re stuck guarding the place until reinforcements from the capital arrive.”

“I understand. In that case, please contact Shuris-san, one of the Thirteen Knights. I was bidding on her behalf today.”

“What?! You’re with the Thirteen Knights?!”

“Well, something like that. She must’ve been expecting trouble. So, can I leave the rest to you?”

“Yes—no problem at all!”

Their change in attitude was obvious, but I didn’t blame them. They seemed genuinely committed to their duties.

Leaving things in their hands, Melt and I exited the warehouse.

“Same, let’s go to the old building. I’m worried about Rikka and the others.”

“Alright, let’s go. And… about the monster’s true identity—keep that between us.”

“…Okay. Se–cret…”

Even now, with everything going on, she still had that childlike way of speaking. Somehow, it relaxed me a little.

“…Let’s hurry, Same.”

“Right. Lead the way.”

Guided by Melt, we arrived at the old building, where the two other guards from the Pigeon Company rushed to meet us in the grand hall.

“Sounded like there was trouble. What happened?”

“Well—”

I gave them a quick summary of the events:

A monster appeared. Melt and Letty handled it.

Letty was now pursuing the two fleeing thieves.

“…Looks like we’ll need to report this to the Clan Home. Hey, I’m leaving that to you.”

“Got it. What about the leader? He probably isn’t around at this hour.”

“Oh, in that case, I already asked one of the kingdom’s knights to head to Shuris-san’s family estate.”

“Nice, that’s our Same-san. That helps a lot. Then I’ll leave the report to the Clan Home to you.”

“Alright. And Melt-chan, you can go home when the time’s right. From here on out, it’s a clan matter.”

“Okay. But my friend’s in critical condition, so I’ll stay a little longer.”

“I see… if it’s the injured one, I saw them taken to the second floor just now.”

“Got it.”

As Melt rushed off, I turned to speak with the remaining clan members.

“If Shuris-san arrives, please ask if she can meet with me as soon as possible. I’ll be with Melt.”

“Yeah, got it… This looks like it might turn into a major incident… not just an attack, but monsters showing up too.”

I hadn’t told them yet that the monsters had transformed from people.

It’s the kind of incident that could have an enormous psychological impact. The idea that people could turn into monsters…

Still, if necessary, these subordinates of Shuris-san would likely be given the full information.

The second floor of the old building seemed to function as a storage area for unexhibited items.

In one room, goods had been pushed aside to make space to rest the injured.

There weren’t any doctors—just people laid out to rest. Honestly, not what you’d call an ideal environment.

“Rikka-chan… her breathing’s stable, and her arm injury is already healing pretty well. And it doesn’t seem like the monster was poisonous either.”

The girl adventurer was just sleeping for now.

But the other two—

“Kash… we need to get him somewhere for proper treatment soon… his complexion’s bad, and this isn’t just anemia or something…”

“Yeah… it’s like that unhealthy pale color… I think it’s a sign that his lymph flow has gotten messed up…”

“Lymph…? Same, do you know medical stuff? And that medicine from earlier… can it help Kash?”

“…I think it can. But if we use it, Kash is definitely going to feel indebted. Melt, how valuable do you think a panacea that could cure this kind of condition is?”

“…I don’t know. But it’s probably insanely rare… even I couldn’t make something like that.”

“And if we used that on a rookie adventurer, what do you think would happen?”

I know it sounds cruel. But I wanted Melt to think about it.

She’s too straightforward, and I can do too many things easily—that’s exactly why.

I want her to think about the consequences of this choice, and how she should act afterward.

“…I think they’d be really grateful. And maybe… they’d feel like they’d have to do whatever you say for the rest of their life.”

“Exactly. That’s the kind of thing I mean. So—”

I pulled out the highest-grade healing item from my item box:

‘Elixir +15 Blessed by the Cathedral of Oracle’

Fully restores health

Cures all status ailments including incapacitation

Grants resistance to status ailments

Effects last until logout

Cancels death penalty

Top-tier stuff from the game era.

To put it in perspective, one of these was worth enough to buy a full set of endgame equipment.

Status resistance and penalty cancellation? Every top-tier player would want at least one.

The acquisition process was: self-crafting + tons of rare materials + crafting during a specific event in a specific location. The market price was absurd.

…But I had seven full stacks. I mean, I made them myself.

Crafting professions are tough to level, but once mastered, you’ll never worry about money again.

“That’s why, Melt—what I’m about to do must be kept absolutely secret.”

“…That’s all? You’ll save them just for keeping it secret?”

“Yeah. They promised me a good meal when they grow up.”

“! Yes! That’s right! I’m sure the three of them know all sorts of delicious things! They’re the ones who taught me about pie!”

If she’s thought it through, that’s all I need. As long as Melt keeps growing, that’s enough.

So, I take two of the beautifully crafted bottles and use them on Kash and Grant.

Shimmering like liquified rainbow light, the potion is absorbed into their mouths and envelops their bodies.

And while I’m at it, I might as well use one on Rikka too.

Melt said her injuries were minor, but her arm was clearly in bad shape.

It wasn’t just bruised—there were full-on puncture wounds from the monster’s teeth.

“Amazing… Grant’s leg was completely white earlier, but now there’s color in it again…! This is really amazing…”

“I’m glad. I used the best medicine I have. But please, don’t tell anyone. I only used it because I happened to be here, they’re your friends, and I know them too.”

“Yeah, thank you so much. I’m sorry for asking for so much. I promise I won’t tell anyone, and I won’t ever ask you to use something like that so casually again.”

Even so, there’ll be times when I’ll want to use it based on my own emotions.

At the very least, this time, fellow Earth people were indirectly involved, and behind it all was someone’s malicious intent. That’s why I couldn’t just ignore it.

Yes—malice. This was clearly more than just an incident. My classmates were caught in some major conspiracy, used as pawns, and Melt’s friends were hurt.

There was no way I couldn’t step in.

“Melt. The two who ran away—did they seem to know who you were?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“They’re probably… the ones we were with in that canyon dungeon back then.”

“Ah… that’s pretty likely, isn’t it? There aren’t many people who know me.”

Nine times out of ten, the people working with Muraki were our classmates.

Melt had said they were men, so that narrows it down to Isaka Iori and Kazunuma Kohei.

Even if the girls in the class were acting separately, it’s pretty obvious now that the nation of Golda is involved behind the scenes in this incident.

…Actually, just the fact that those people are in this country is unpleasant enough.

Honestly, if the opponent hadn’t been Muraki but that woman—the rotting witch and undisputed current #1 on my “May You Never See Another Sunrise Again, You Bastard” Rankings, Inami—I wouldn’t have hesitated to wipe her out completely.

“Same, your face looks scary. What’s wrong…?”

“I was just thinking about what might be behind this incident… There’s a chance this might get messy again.”

“Really? Are you okay, Same? You’re not going to disappear on me, are you?”

“I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen. Don’t worry. I’ve finally got some serious money now—I’m going to buy a house and make sure we can live peacefully.”

“That’s great! That’s amazing, getting enough money to buy a house! If there’s anything I can do to help, just say so, okay?”

They’ll probably suspect that Melt and I know something.

Even though it’s been in bits and pieces, we’ve already let some information slip. If they connect the dots… they’ll realize we crossed the Scorched Earth Canyon and are somehow connected to why the dungeon got closed by the kingdom.

Back when I registered Melt with the guild, I said a few things that might have hinted at it.

“Melt. There’s a chance that both of us might get taken in by high-ranking officials. If that happens, you just say, ‘I’m sorry, I don’t really understand.’ That’s all you need to say. I’ll handle the rest.”

“Eh… what do you mean?”

“It’s just a ‘what if’ scenario.”

She’s still a child.

She looks like an adult, but she’s really just a kid.

That’s why—even if it’s arrogant, even if it’s selfish—I have to be her shield.

“It’s okay. Once everything works out, we’ll go get that meat we promised, alright? We made a lot from the sale, so even after buying a house, we’ll still be able to eat well.”

“Yay! Then… I want to try beef. Real beef—not dried meat! There were no cows or cow-monsters in the forest, so I’ve never had it before.”

“Alright, it’s a promise. I’ll find a place where you can eat as much beef as you want.”

And so, as I prepared for the inevitable scrutiny to come, I began planning which information to reveal, what cards I could play, and how to negotiate—so that even if I were up against a nation, I’d be ready.

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