Chapter 62 : Play hunting

Last night, with a crash, two tall men entered the mansion. A tall man with dark red hair, struggling to support a muscular man bleeding profusely, collapsed to the floor.

“Huey, Dustin…!”

Sora rushed over and helped them up. The tall man called Huey released his arm from around Dustin and carefully handed him over to Sora.

“I was hit in the shoulder while shaking off pursuit. Those Spirit Master bastards were determined to follow us to hell…”

“Are you alright, Huey?”

“Well, compared to Dustin, this is nothing.”

Sora put Dustin’s arm around her neck and stood up.

“Let’s go to your room, Dustin. I’ll treat you.”

“…Ugh.”

Watching this from afar, I approached them.

“…Is he okay?”

As I reached out my hand toward him, Sora sternly shouted at me, “Don’t touch him!”

At her words, I had no choice but to back away.

“…”

She helped Dustin into a room and disappeared.

“…Whew.”

The man called Huey, who had been watching the scene, approached me.

“I haven’t seen you before. Judging by your hair color, I have a rough idea who you are. You’re Saya, right?”

The man speaking to me was covered in wounds, just as much as the one who’d been helped inside.

“Our Sora is a bit prickly, isn’t she? She doesn’t usually talk to Spirit Masters. She’s a bit twisted, but she’s not a bad person… so please don’t hate her too much.”

“It’s okay. I’m used to it by now.”

As he said, only Sora was particularly wary and avoided me.

“…Are you also one of the people who use the Barnaba name?”

“What a question. Everyone living here has the same last name. I’m Huey Barnaba.”

The man in front of me, Huey, was noticeably tall. He held a huge spear that was much taller than himself.

“Chris will be back soon. He was trying to save us, but he ended up being chased himself. That guy—he looks young, but he’s like the leader here. Whew…”

Huey leaned against the wall, finding it difficult to stand.

“Well, see you tomorrow. I need to rest today.”

“…Rest well.”

“Hey, why so formal? We’ll be spending a lot of time together, so just call me casually.”

“Ah… Okay, Huey.”

He smiled contentedly at my response and went into his room. Invidia sent me a thought as I sat alone on the worn sofa in the empty living room.

[…Anyone would think there was a war going on. Do you intend to keep staying here, Saya?]

‘…For now.’

That day, Chris didn’t return to the mansion until dawn, completely exhausted.

Everyone in the mansion surrounded me, sitting at a table in the kitchen. After confirming that everyone had gathered, Chris introduced me.

“Then, I’ll introduce you. This is Saya. She’s the last descendant of the Sarkas clan that we’ve been searching so hard for.”

At the table sat Chris and Sora, whom I already knew, and Huey and Dustin, whom I’d seen last night. Dustin, the muscular man who was the only one I hadn’t yet greeted, spoke up.

“So you’re Saya. I was out of it yesterday, so I couldn’t greet you properly. I’m Dustin. Nice to meet you.”

Dustin, with his dark brown hair, had a build and appearance that could intimidate others, but thanks to his gentle tone, he didn’t feel particularly difficult to approach. Huey, sitting next to him with his feet up on the table, yawned and said, “Ah, I finished greeting yesterday.”

Chris’s gaze, having scanned everyone’s expressions, now turned to me.

“Well, now that the pleasantries are over, I’ll tell you the reason I brought you here, Saya.”

“Reason?”

“Our resistance needs the power you possess, Saya.”

“…Are you talking about magic?”

“No. We need that too, of course, but I’m talking about a different power.”

He reached under his neck and pulled out a black cross necklace, showing it. Now that I looked, everyone in this place was wearing the same black cross as I was, each in their own way.

“We need the power of Sarkas that you possess.”

Everyone fell silent at Chris’s statement. It seemed to be information he hadn’t shared with his other companions, as everyone’s eyes widened except for his. Huey, who had been listening quietly, repeated his question.

“What are you talking about, Chris? Sarkas’s power…?”

“Let’s hear about that part directly from the person in question. Saya, if you don’t mind, could you explain the power you possess?”

“…”

[This is it. The reason he came to save you.]

Chris Barnaba knew that a Sarkas existed within me. The reason he’d tried to save me, even turning the entire empire against him, was because he was interested in the power of Invidia within me.

‘…What should I do? Should I tell him honestly?’

When I was captured in Semal for treason, a part of my body had transformed into the form of a Sarkas. Because of that, only rumors of “a human with the power of Sarkas” had spread, but only I knew that the power belonged to the ancient species Invidia.

[…I don’t think there’s any benefit in revealing my name.]

It didn’t seem necessary to tell Chris that the Sarkas inside me was Invidia.

After a long silence, I opened my mouth.

“…Yes. Like Chris said, I possess the power of Sarkas.”

When I readily admitted it, the others seemed mildly surprised. Dustin, with an awkward expression, scratched his face and said to me, “…But, miss, I don’t really understand what Sarkas’s power is exactly. If it’s not too much trouble, could you show us?”

“I will.”

Since it was already revealed, there was nothing more to hide. I stood up, closed my eyes, and focused my mind.

“…”

“…Uh… is it not working, Saya?”

‘What’s going on…?’

For some reason, not even the slightest change occurred in my body. Chris, noticing my hesitation, smiled and said, “Maybe you’re nervous in front of everyone? Let’s go outside and try it, Saya.”

Following Chris’s words, everyone went outside and watched me, but still, no change occurred in my body.

‘Damn it, why doesn’t it work when I need it?’

[Don’t you not know the exact trigger condition? You only changed by chance back then.]

‘That’s true, but…’

The first time I transformed, I was so enraged that no one around could stop me, due to the fact that Heukgyeon had died. Because of that, I had no idea what the exact trigger condition was.

“…Are you having trouble using your power, Saya?”

Chris asked, watching me struggle.

“Well, I don’t know the exact trigger condition. I remember being very agitated at the time…”

“Very agitated…”

Chris, lost in thought, seemed to have an idea and said with a bright expression, “In that case, our Sora can help!”

“…Yes?”

He went to Sora and asked for her opinion.

“You’ll help, right, Sora?”

“…Yes.”

Sora walked forward, and I watched, not knowing what was going on.

“…How exactly is she going to help…”

Swish.

At that moment, a metal object spun and flew past my head, embedding itself in the tree behind me.

“…?”

I turned my head to look at it closely and was shocked by what it was.

‘An axe…!?’

The small axe, with its uniquely curved blade, was designed to be easily grasped and thrown. As I broke out in a cold sweat and looked at Chris, he smiled and said, “Sora is a master of throwing axes. If you run away from her axes, wouldn’t you reach the agitated state you mentioned, Saya?”

Before his words were even finished, another axe flew over my head. Whether it hit a vital spot or not, getting struck by something like that would be fatal. Without a moment to protest, I started running into the forest to avoid the axes. From afar, I heard Chris’s voice.

“She’s accurately aiming only at places that won’t kill you, so you don’t have to worry about dying…!”

“It’s strange that she’s trying to hit me in the first place…!”

Judging by how deeply the axe was embedded in the tree, it was definitely a real axe.

‘Fuel me, Invidia…!’

[Hmm… I refuse.]

I requested Invidia’s summoning, but he refused.

‘Why!?’

[I’m also personally interested in that trigger condition. If I come out, I can’t analyze the condition, can I? So I’ll watch from here.]

‘Even you…?’

Hearing a whirring sound from behind, I rolled my body to avoid the axe.

“Ugh…!”

The axe I avoided landed exactly where I had been, standing upright.

‘Crazy btch, crazy btch…!’

I was thinking I shouldn’t have come to this place, trying to get as far away from Sora as possible.

From afar, Huey, watching the scene, asked Chris with a worried expression, “Hey, is that okay? She’s going to kill someone at this rate…”

Unlike Huey’s expression, Chris’s was surprisingly calm.

“Don’t worry, Huey. If Saya were going to die from something like this, she wouldn’t have survived until now.”

Dustin, who was watching with his arms crossed, added a word with a pitying expression, “It seems like Sora is pretty serious, though. She’s definitely throwing with the intention of killing her.”

Sora threw the axes at me with all her might, without holding back. She was clearly no amateur, as her axes followed a parabolic trajectory to avoid obstacles and accurately target only me. I climbed up a tall tree to hide and escape her range.

‘At this point, it would’ve been better to be hanged back then…!’

[Calm down, Saya. The throwing speed is average, and you can predict the trajectory to some extent, can’t you?]

Certainly, compared to the magic fired by skilled Spirit Masters, it was a much more human attack. However, while I could withstand one or two magic attacks, I couldn’t afford even a single mistake with the axes she was throwing.

‘No, why aren’t those damn axes running out?’

From afar, I saw her retrieving her axes. The longer I hid, the more she would collect them and attack me again.

[What about using magic?]

‘…I don’t think it’s necessary.’

I was in a desperate situation, but I didn’t want to use spells and hurt her. To safely stop her attack, it seemed better for me to approach her and incapacitate her.

I jumped down from the tree and faced Sora directly from a distance.

‘Lend me your vision, Invidia.’

[Alright.]

When Invidia shared his vision, the trajectory of the axes she was throwing was roughly drawn in my mind in black and white. The senses of a Sarkas were different from those of humans, allowing them to react more sensitively to external attacks. The moment Sora released the axe from her hand, I rolled my body in advance to escape its trajectory.

‘I can avoid it…!’

As I continued to avoid the axes and approach, Sora looked surprised and attacked even faster. As I became accustomed to reading the trajectory, I was able to gradually narrow the distance from her. When I could predict the location in advance and run, her expression grew serious, and she shook her hands.

‘…What is she trying to do?’

She changed her posture and took out an axe in each hand.

‘…Crazy, both hands…?’

Swish.

I rolled to avoid the axe flying from Sora’s left hand, but I ended up directly in the trajectory of the axe she was about to throw with her right hand. The moment Sora was about to throw it, Invidia sent me a thought.

[It’s dangerous, use magic!]

‘If I do that, Sora will…’

The only magic I could use right now was Thanatos, the instant-death spell that could be activated immediately. Although Invidia had forcibly reduced its power, it was still strong enough to kill a normal human like her at this distance.

‘Ah, whatever…!’

In the end, I didn’t use magic and braced myself, guarding my face with my arms, prepared to sacrifice them.

“…”

Time passed, but I didn’t feel the sensation of the axe hitting me.

‘…?’

I opened my tightly closed eyes and saw Sora’s face looking at me with a bewildered expression. Then I noticed my arm, which had turned black and large.

“…Hmph.”

Sora lowered the axe she was about to throw and turned her head away from me. I caught my breath and examined my appearance again. My arm, covered in black tissue and transformed into the shape of a large claw, indicated that I had successfully unleashed the power of Sarkas again.

‘It’s a different form than last time…?’

As if reflecting my will to block the axe, my arm was much larger and thicker than its previous form.

From afar, Chris approached and said, “Wow, you succeeded, Saya.”

I quietly called out to him as he clapped and smiled brightly.

“…Chris. Come closer.”

“Yes?”

“Closer.”

I struck Chris’s head hard with my blackened arm.