Chapter 42: Detective Games (6)

“Aria? Aria!”

“Aria!”

“…”

Leon’s calls went unanswered.

Only a chilling silence remained.

“I really didn’t expect this…”

“You…!”

The blood flowing from Aria’s arm was the only proof of what had just transpired.

Fortunately, faint breaths indicated she was still alive.

“Sigh… Calm down, Elena.”

“But…”

“She’s not dead yet.”

If he’d heard correctly, the poison was a soporific, not lethal. He found solace in the fact that she wasn’t dead, though he wasn’t happy about the situation.

“Well, not yet.”

The imposter shrugged, unconcerned.

“But will she stay that way?”

“What?”

“Unlike you, with the Empire, the Church, and the Great Forest backing you, she’s just a commoner, right?”

“…”

“It wouldn’t be a problem if she died, would it?”

Her words were a provocation, and despite knowing this…

“It would be better to just kill her now…”

“Leon!”

Leon lunged forward.

Clang

Sparks flew as their swords clashed.

“Charging in blindly is a demerit in combat.”

“…”

“Or are you still a novice who hasn’t experienced real combat, despite being the Hero?”

She spoke leisurely, contrasting with Leon’s tense focus.

“Or maybe they don’t teach these things anymore?”

“Elena!”

As Leon spoke, an arrow flew from behind him, but the imposter effortlessly dodged with a graceful spin. Her sword flashed towards Leon’s face.

Clang

“Ugh…!”

The force of the impact rattled his bones. She was stronger than anyone Leon had ever crossed blades with.

No, was she?

A formidable opponent in front, Elena supporting him from behind… Leon felt a strange sense of familiarity.

Something similar had happened recently.

‘Leon, let’s subdue her and talk.’

The girl they’d encountered while pursuing Elena’s younger sister, Lena.

The day he and Elena, the Hero and Divine Archer, first encountered a true obstacle.

Although the fight had been inconclusive, they would have lost without Alicia and Lucia.

“Leon!”

Alicia entered through the hole in the wall before Leon could finish his thought. She surveyed the scene, her gaze settling on Aria.

“Aria…?”

“Yes?”

“She’s been hit by a sleeping poison on that sword.”

Alicia’s gaze shifted to the imposter, her expression hardening as she saw the poisoned blade.

“What should I do?”

“Just hold out until the professors arrive. Help me.”

“…Understood.”

Alicia drew her weapon.

“I thought I’d finished one, but another appears? You’re quite popular with the ladies, aren’t you?”

“…”

“Is that how Heroes usually are?”

She spoke mockingly. Receiving no response, she attacked again.

As their swords clashed, Alicia struck, exploiting an opening in the imposter’s defense.

“Tch…”

The imposter deflected Alicia’s attack, but Elena’s arrow followed close behind.

The situation was similar to that day.

“Haa!”

“What…?”

Unlike then, when he’d been on the defensive, Leon now held a slight advantage in strength.

He pushed the imposter back, creating an opening for Alicia.

However, Leon had forgotten something.

“Tch, how annoying!”

The imposter suddenly charged, not at him, but past him.

“What?”

“Don’t tell me…”

Leon and Alicia swung their swords, but she leaped over their attacks, crashing through the wall and ceiling behind them.

Leon suddenly remembered something he’d forgotten.

That day, Aria’s first target hadn’t been him…

“Elena, dodge!”

…but the archer at the back.

“What…!”

Elena fired an arrow, creating distance, but the imposter closed the gap rapidly.

That day, Alicia had been there to protect Elena. Not today.

He and Alicia rushed towards Elena, but they couldn’t match the assassin’s speed.

The imposter dodged the arrow, grabbed Elena’s face, and slammed her into the ground.

Boom!

Elena’s body crashed through the floor. Leon and Alicia rushed through the dust cloud, but it was too late.

“Ugh…”

“Elena!”

“Elena!”

Thud

“Now, that’s two.”

The poisoned blade was embedded in Elena’s abdomen. Her struggles ceased as she went limp.

The imposter turned back to them.

“I’m out of time. Let’s finish this quickly.”

She spoke with an annoyed tone.

Then, she vanished.

“Ugh?!”

Clang

Sensing something amiss, Leon and Alicia raised their swords. Sparks erupted in the air.

Their defenses, caught off guard, were ineffective. They were sent flying backward.

“I didn’t want to use this technique, it takes a toll… But, this is the end.”

The voice came from behind them.

Leon turned, heart pounding, to see the imposter standing there.

“What…?”

Thud

A collapsing sound beside him.

It wasn’t him.

“Alicia?”

Alicia lay unconscious on the ground, a cut on her shoulder.

Leon’s head swam.

He stumbled, barely managing to stay upright by planting his sword in the ground.

“You’re still standing? As expected of the Hero.”

A voice reached his fading consciousness. He finally understood what had happened.

Magic? Teleportation? No. She was simply too fast for his eyes to follow. She hadn’t been using her full power.

“That girl was quite impressive too, you know? She fought me for several minutes after being cut by this sword.”

She… endured the poison for minutes?

He, the Hero, still relatively weak, had some poison resistance due to the Goddess’s blessing. But even he felt the poison’s effects immediately.

“Well, it seems she’s reached her limit.”

“…”

“Now, let’s end thi… Oh? You…”

The last thing he saw before losing consciousness was…

“How is she up?”

“…?”

…Aria, somehow standing up.

“How is she up?”

“I wonder… Are you curious?”

F questioned Aria, her eyes flickering with surprise before regaining their composure.

“…It doesn’t matter what you did. I just need to finish you off.”

“Finish me off…”

F lunged at Aria, sword raised.

Unlike before, when Aria had merely blocked, the outcome was different.

Crack

F’s sword froze mid-air.

“…What?”

“You asked how I woke up, right?”

Aria’s hand, now enveloped in darkness, gripped F’s blade inches from her face. It held the sword firm, unyielding.

“The reason is simple.”

Aria’s eyes glowed red. F’s instincts screamed danger.

“I’m. Stronger.”

No. It wasn’t an illusion.

As darkness enveloped the surroundings, the remaining light intensified.

Starting from Aria, the floor, walls, and ceiling were consumed by her shadow, as if the room were a bottomless abyss.

“That’s all.”

“Y-You… Who are you…?”

“Shh, now’s not the time for questions.”

Aria smiled, placing a finger on her red lips.

F realized, looking at that beautiful yet terrifying sight, that this girl…

“Let’s start again.”

…no, this something…

“A fight to the death.”

…was a predator far above her, perhaps at the very top of the food chain.