Chapter 22: Despair? And Hope!

Sunlight shone through the leaves onto our faces, despite the dense foliage of the forest.

The sunlight, which gives humanity light and heat, why do I feel so cold all over now?

What is despair? To be given hope again and again, only to be disappointed again and again. Every time the seed of hope is ignited, it is destroyed again by the demon of disappointment…

Holding Liya, I looked at the smiling blonde young man in front of me. To be honest, he was one of the few handsome guys I’d ever seen, especially when he smiled, giving off a very resolute feeling. No matter how you looked at it, he would be the gentle, sunny type of boy.

But, who would have thought that a person like this on the surface would be the demon who killed his own parents?

“I remember you, from the grand ceremony.” The charmingly smiling Bailey was the first to break the silence.

“Mmm, I remember you too.” I don’t know why, but suddenly facing such a person, my heart was very calm. Perhaps it was because I had just escaped death.

“Thank you for taking care of my dear sister, but now, I’ve come to take her away.”

Although he said it with a smile, his tone gave off a cold feeling, especially when he mentioned his sister, as if he were talking about someone who had nothing to do with him.

“Take her away? I’m sorry, but I won’t hand over a friend to a murderer, especially… when this murderer killed his own family.”

‘Boom… boom… boom…’

The sound of falling boulders came from behind. Even though it was still some distance away, I could still feel the slight tremor of the earth. I didn’t need to look back to know that the girl named Vivian had escaped. I thought she could be trapped for a longer time, but it was only for such a short while. Even without Bailey’s obstruction, after running out of the forest, we would have been caught in an instant.

Noticing the commotion behind me, Bailey only glanced at it, and quickly withdrew his gaze, continuing to watch me.

“To be honest, I think it’s better for an outsider not to interfere in other people’s family matters. So, give her to me.”

His gaze shifted to Liya in my arms, as if he were looking at an object.

“Well, it doesn’t matter if you refuse, it’s just… that it will be a little more painful for you when you die.”

Hearing the dangerous words, my heart felt no fluctuations. Because of exhaustion, is my brain unable to feel fear anymore? Right now, I’m just holding on. The arms holding Liya are already trembling non-stop. My thoughts are also a little sluggish.

In this state, I still have to face a person who is a thousand times stronger than me. Is there anything more desperate than this?

As it turns out, there is…

A gust of wind suddenly rose behind me, and a small figure appeared behind me.

“Oh? Are you waiting for Vivian? Does Yuren Xing want to play hide-and-seek again? But Yuren Xing is really naughty, you almost escaped. No, you can’t. If you escape, then big sister Yuna will be unhappy. Sister won’t be happy, and she won’t praise Vivian…”

As if to prove my thoughts, she caught up in just a dozen seconds…

‘Sister? Although I really want to ask her about her sister, it’s obviously not the time right now.’

This is not good, in every aspect… It seems that today is a must-die situation…

“Who is that person?” Noticing Bailey in front of me, Vivian asked me.

“Is he here to play a game with Vivian too? That’s fine. After I kill you, Vivian will play a game with him…”

…I listened to Vivian’s speech with some speechlessness. Playing a game with Bailey after killing us…

‘Wait, maybe I can…’

Suddenly, a bold idea came to my mind… if Bailey and Vivian fight… although from the result, no matter who wins, I’m dead.

But the point is not the result, but that Liya and I might be saved because of it, because Erisburg is just outside the forest. There’s still some distance to the city gate, but I don’t think their fight won’t alert the guards at the gate. After all… neither of them are normal people…

Vivian wants to kill me, although I don’t know why, that’s for sure. And I, who know about Bailey’s affairs, will only be silenced by him. So now, the only one who can turn the tide is the blonde loli in my arms (flat-chested).

Vivian’s target seems to be the two of us, while Bailey’s target is only Liya. But Bailey didn’t explicitly say that he wanted to get rid of Liya or anything… so now… does it depend on Bailey’s attitude towards Liya? Does he want Liya alive… or does he want a corpse?

“Hey, Bailey, do you want Liya alive, or does her life and death not matter to you?”

I shouted at Bailey, my eyes fixed on him. A sense of tension suddenly appeared in my heart.

“Haha… I know what you’re thinking. Playing petty tricks. But Liya’s life and death don’t matter to me.” Bailey looked at me with ridicule.

Did I fail? That’s right, how could someone who could poison his own parents care about his sister’s life and death?

“But… it’s more convenient if she’s alive than dead.”

The sudden turn of events made my calm heart tense up again. It was like being on a roller coaster… I looked at the unconscious Liya in my arms.

‘It seems you’re going to save me again.’

“Oh? Are you going to save Yuren Xing? Are you going to duel with Vivian?” Vivian, who was not clear about the development of the situation, asked Bailey with confusion.

“Duel? Don’t worry, I’ll finish you in an instant.” As Bailey spoke, his right hand grasped in the air, and a ball of light appeared in his hand, which then turned into a longsword. I have to say, it looked very cool. And, Bailey looked very confident.

‘In an instant? That’s an exaggeration. I’ve seen how strong Vivian is. No matter what, it’s impossible to finish her in an instant…’

…

…

Blood… dripped… drop by drop.

And I could only watch it all with wide, horrified eyes.

Bailey stood behind Vivian, a longsword directly piercing her chest from behind. Blood dripped continuously down the blade.

“Oh? Oh?” Vivian also didn’t react. In the blink of an eye, a sword had appeared in her chest, and she didn’t feel any pain.

“You’re kidding… right?” I watched it all in disbelief. The process was too fast, my brain hadn’t even reacted.

Pulling the sword out of Vivian’s body, she collapsed to the ground. The blood from her body flowed continuously onto the ground, forming a large pool of blood. Bailey, holding the sword, walked towards me.

Fear? Terror? I didn’t have time for these emotions to emerge. Bailey, with a sword in his hand, was like a demon…

‘Blood… Vivian… I… I’m bleeding… it hurts… sister… Vivian… it hurts so much.’

Lying on the ground, tears flowed from the corners of Vivian’s eyes.

“Sister… sister… Vivian just wants sister to praise Vivian… Vivian just wants sister to look at Vivian… Vivian likes sister… I like you the most…”

Tears dripped drop by drop, mixing with the blood on the ground. Vivian’s aura began to change…

Finally, Bailey walked in front of me.

“I’m sorry, we’re not familiar with each other, but it’s a pity. You can only blame yourself for getting involved in this matter. So… see you in the next life.”

Bailey raised his sword high, ready to strike. And I could only close my eyes and accept what was to come.

‘It seems I’m really going to die this time. I can’t escape this time.’

“Hmm?” Noticing the aura from behind, Bailey lowered his sword and turned around.

“Oh my, oh my, I have to say, your vitality is really tenacious.”

Waiting for Bailey to strike, I heard his words and opened my eyes, looking at Vivian behind him.

Vivian had already stood up. Although she was still bleeding, she seemed to not feel it at all. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she was panting heavily, a trickle of saliva at the corner of her mouth… like a wild beast.

“You look much more interesting now than before. I’m quite bored, so I’ll have some fun with you!”

After speaking, Bailey ignored me and walked directly towards Vivian. I collapsed powerlessly to the ground. Approaching death several times in a row today. I don’t think anyone could bear it.

Vivian let out a loud roar and charged at Bailey. Her speed was so fast that I couldn’t even see her figure.

With a loud “boom!”, Bailey’s sword blocked Vivian’s fist. A powerful shockwave spread out from around them. I was directly sent flying by the shockwave. Liya also fell from my arms beside me.

“Mmm, you’re quite strong. But fighting relies on… not just brute force.”

After saying this, Bailey disappeared from in front of Vivian, and immediately appeared behind her. By the time Vivian turned around, it was already too late.

With just one punch, Vivian was sent flying tens of meters away. After crashing through several trees, she finally stopped after hitting a large tree. And Bailey didn’t stop his attack, appearing in front of Vivian in an instant, and directly thrusting the sword in his hand into her chest.

Vivian obviously didn’t have time to react, and thus, she was pinned to the large tree by Bailey.

“Still not dead? Mmm, you’re really strange. You wanted to play a game just now? Then let’s play an interesting game.”

With that, another sword appeared in Bailey’s right hand, and he thrust it into Vivian’s right palm.

“How does it feel? This game should be quite fun.”

With that, another sword appeared in Bailey’s hand, and he thrust it into Vivian’s left hand…

Five swords pierced Vivian’s body, pinning her completely to the tree. Blood flowed down the tree trunk…

“Oh my, oh my… it feels so comfortable.” A charming smile appeared on Bailey’s face.

“…Sister… sister… sis…” Vivian’s eyes were vacant, and tears flowed continuously from them. Her blood-stained mouth kept repeating the word ‘sister’.

“Still not dead? To be honest, you’re the first person I’ve met in so many years with such tenacious vitality. Although I’d like to play a little longer, it’s not much fun now.”

Shaking his head, Bailey turned to look at me.

“So, now it’s our turn.”

A demon, this guy is an out-and-out demon…

My legs trembling, I stood up, my eyes filled with fear.

‘Will I be killed like this? Killed with such torture?’

I wanted to run, but my trembling legs had no strength at all.

“Don’t think about running. Don’t worry, I’ll finish you quickly.” A sword appeared again in his right hand, and Bailey charged directly at me… The sword was already in front of me. Bailey’s face once again showed a charming smile. It’s over…

A black greatsword fell from the sky, blocking Bailey. Bailey leaped back, instantly creating a distance of tens of meters, and looked at the black greatsword with a grave expression.

And I, faced with the sudden accident, hadn’t had time to react when someone hugged me from behind, their body carrying a very fragrant scent…

“Did you miss me, darling❤?”

“Aisi… lis…”

“It’s your lovely wife~”