Chapter 59
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Chapter 59
A giant fashioned from mud dragged Shay along by a noose clutched in its massive hand. So that was why she couldn't cry out. The girl's limbs flailed helplessly against the choking grip. She was still alive. Without hesitation, I charged forward and severed the giant's arm clean from its body.
The severed limb collapsed with a wet thud, scattering into mud across the ground. The giant was not particularly slow, but Echinacea Loaz moved with such blinding speed that it only realized its arm had been cut off after she had already caught Shay along with the noose.
Echinacea Loaz swiftly sliced through the noose around Shay's neck. Freed from the strangling cord, the girl gasped desperately, her eyes glistening with tears.
"Hack... hack..."
"Are you alright? Just wait a moment."
Echinacea Loaz positioned Shay behind her and turned to face the mud giant advancing with heavy, deliberate strides. The right arm she had severed had already regenerated. The giant extended a fist the size of her head. The blow came with such force that the wind scattered her hair.
But it was far too slow for her. Echinacea Loaz evaded it effortlessly and slipped inside the giant's guard as if embracing it.
[Since it's regenerating, is it a slime? A golem? Either way, I just need to destroy the core, right?]
The Demonic Sword chattered idly. Echinacea Loaz shared the same thought. Though this was a monster she had never encountered before, when had the Nodule ever produced unfamiliar creatures? There had to be fundamental patterns. A creature that regenerated like this would surely fall once its core was destroyed.
She could have located the core by tracing the flow of mana, but Echinacea Loaz had no need for such methods. The Demonic Sword, specialized in slaughter, instinctively revealed to its wielder the most efficient path to kill her opponent.
'There—between the chest and abdomen, at the solar plexus.'
She simply thrust her blade toward the location her instinct had identified. There was no need to channel mana. The sword glided smoothly through the mud and sank deep with a soft squelch. Then it struck something within.
'Hm?'
The sensation at the blade's tip was disturbingly familiar. The feeling of cleaving through flesh and bone, of tearing through organs. A chill ran down my spine. Yet my body moved with practiced efficiency, twisting the blade and wrenching it free.
Bright crimson blood erupted from the wound I had made, and the mud giant collapsed. Echinacea Loaz retreated, avoiding the cascading blood and mud. As the giant fell forward, mud poured from its body. What remained was only the 'core' she had pierced.
"...This is sickening."
[Wow, what a prize! It's dead, right? I killed it!]
The Demonic Sword spoke with elation. The core was a human man. Blood gushed from the back of an elderly man with graying hair—precisely where Echinacea Loaz had struck. She sank to her knees, her face drained of color, and examined the old man. It was not instant death, but he would die soon. Though she had never studied medicine, her vast experience of killing people allowed her to recognize this immediately.
Who was this man? Someone swallowed by the Nodule alongside us? Why was there a person inside a monster? Had I just committed another unintended murder? Again?
Nausea welled up inside me. The sticky sensation of blood—blood I hadn't asked for—clung to my hand holding the blade. Echinacea Loaz threw down her amethyst and pressed her hand to her mouth.
"Ah... Merene..."
Behind her, Shay's thin voice trembled. The girl staggered forward and placed her hand on the blood-soaked old man's back.
"He's... he's hurt..."
Echinacea Loaz stared blankly at the panicked girl. After examining the wound, Shay turned to her with confusion in her eyes. Then she asked:
"Can I heal him?"
"...What?"
"I... I can actually heal wounds. Illnesses disappear too. I can make it so nothing hurts anymore. It's strange, isn't it? To you, I must seem like a witch, right? Am I really a witch?"
What was she saying? Healing wounds was witchcraft? Echinacea Loaz was too bewildered to respond immediately. In that moment, Shay, her face still confused yet resolute, reached out her hand.
"You... you might hate me for this, but... but I don't like pain. I wish no one had to suffer. Sister, I'm sorry, I... I want to heal him..."
A faint light emanated from Shay's tattered clothing at her chest. Echinacea Loaz glimpsed a distinct pattern on the girl's grimy skin between her collar—a pale green tree design. From that pattern, a small dagger emerged.
A silver dagger wrapped in pale green vines bearing red berries. A blade forged by a blacksmith with human compassion and bound with human love. A Giosa that chose its owner without regard for swordsmanship aptitude. The healing blade, Elgiosa, revealed itself.
Shay grasped the dagger. Though Elgiosa was small, Shay herself was so tiny that she needed both hands to hold it. With trembling hands, the girl drove it into the wound. Even Echinacea Loaz, who knew of Elgiosa, flinched at the sight. Had this been an ordinary blade, the old man would have died instantly.
But a sword forged with compassion inflicted no wound upon a human. From where the blade entered, pale green vines began to spread with a soft glow. The vines wrapped around the wound, blooming into white flowers that then bore red berries. Then they transformed into light and vanished.
"Good heavens..."
It was a wondrous sight. Echinacea Loaz exhaled in awe. Shay collapsed, still gripping Elgiosa. Not even a scar remained where the blade had pierced. The wound Echinacea Loaz had inflicted had also disappeared. All injuries were healed completely. The old man would not die.
[Tch, what a waste.]
The Demonic Sword grumbled. Echinacea Loaz rubbed her trembling face. She had thought she was about to commit another unintended murder. But the old man lived. Because of this child. Relief flooded through me, warmth returning to my fingertips.
Shay turned to face Echinacea Loaz, her gray eyes brimming with tears, her small frame quivering. Before the girl could speak, Echinacea Loaz stepped forward and pulled her into an embrace. Burying her face against the small shoulders, she whispered with genuine sincerity:
"Thank you, Shay. Thank you so much..."
"Oh, big sister?"
Shay startled, her body trembling. The voluminous folds of her dress billowed outward, enveloping her small frame. She became buried within the ruffles. A pleasant fragrance emanated from Echinacea—something like sweet floral perfume.
The girl hesitated before carefully grasping Echinacea's collar. The silk fabric that brushed her palm felt as though it might dissolve from its softness. The arms holding her were strong yet gentle. Shay's voice wavered as though she might weep.
"You're... you're not upset? About this? The villagers all said it was strange that I suddenly recovered, that maybe I was the one spreading the plague, that I must be a witch..."
"Not upset in the slightest. If anything, I'm grateful. And Shay, you're not a witch."
I stroked her disheveled hair, tilted my head to meet her gaze, and smiled.
"You are a Giosa Owner, Shay."
"A Giosa... Owner?"
"Once we escape this place, no one will torment you again, and no one will call you a witch. You will become the saint of Agenka."
"A... a... saint? What? What are you saying?"
Shay stammered, her expression vacant. She clearly didn't understand yet. Comprehension would take time. I could explain gradually, and once we left the Nodule and returned to Agenka, there would be plenty of people far more eloquent than I to elaborate.
"I couldn't possibly be someone so important! Aren't you mistaken?"
"Don't worry, Shay. I'll vouch for you. You're already a saint."
"That can't be..."
The trembling girl with her wide eyes was endearing and pitiful. Impulsively, I pressed a kiss to her round forehead. Shay's face flushed crimson.
"You'll understand once we leave. So for now, let's get out of here."
I held her tightly once more before releasing her and rising to my feet. Then I turned my attention toward the elderly man lying unconscious yet otherwise unharmed.
'A person inside a mud giant...'
I examined the old man carefully. Nothing seemed amiss.
I had never witnessed the Nodule transforming a person it had swallowed into a monster. Yet I recalled reading records of such cases occurring. The Nodule is influenced by the location where it manifests, and the strong obsessions present in that place are projected onto it. The mud giant wielding a noose resembled the image of the villagers who, from Shay's perspective, had sought to burn her alive. Massive and terrifying.
"Shay, you said you knew this person? Who is he?"
"He's... he's Merene, the grandfather who lives in Goth Village."
Shay answered haltingly, her gaze fixed on my left hand—the one wrapped in cloth. I discreetly concealed it within my skirt folds and asked again.
"So he was one of the people who dragged you here?"
"Yes."
Shay nodded. Just as I suspected. I furrowed my brow. So he was one of the villagers who had tried to burn a child alive as a witch. Even if I had accidentally killed him, there would be little reason to regret it. I had been startled thinking he might be some innocent passerby near the valley.
"...Shay. Didn't you hate that grandfather?"
"Hate him? Why?"
"That person tried to..."
Burn you alive—the words rose to my throat but I did not speak them. Yet Shay seemed to understand regardless. She fidgeted with her fingers and spoke softly.
"They all had sorrowful things happen to them. They must have suffered greatly from such sadness... I was frightened, but I don't hate them."
"Sorrowful things? What kind?"
"A plague spread. Many people died... My mother too... After my mother died, I became able to use this strange dagger, and I thought if only I had obtained it sooner, my mother wouldn't have died. And then I began to hate myself for finding it so late. Why did I only discover it now, I wondered."
Shay rubbed her glistening eyes with her clenched fist. She continued speaking with her eyes covered.
"The villagers too, they were so sorrowful that they wanted to hate someone. If no one had fallen ill, none of this would have happened. So the evil is the plague, not those people."
I stared down at the small girl in bewilderment. I could never think such thoughts. She understood the hearts of those who sought to burn her alive? She absolved them of blame?
[Wow, what? I'm scared of her. Is it possible for a human to live with such a heart? Humans I can't use are rare, but I can't use her.]
The Demonic Sword spoke in a voice trembling with fear.
To become the owner of Bardegiosa, one must have harbored malice or murderous intent at some point. Since few humans lived without ever entertaining a single malevolent thought, most could wield the Demonic Sword. The problem was merely that they became controlled upon becoming owners.
But Shay seemed incapable of wielding the Demonic Sword. She was too pure. She had saved the very person who sought her death and harbored no hatred toward them. At that level, living an ordinary life would be difficult. Rarely, I found myself sympathizing somewhat with the Demonic Sword's sentiment.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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