13 – monster

Noise comes from the end of the silent hallway where only footsteps and breathing can be heard. As you reach the end of the hallway where the noise rushes in and exit, the noise attacks you as the gaze and heat of the crowd.

The gaze and enthusiasm of the crowd, who expect the struggle of the participants to be an escape from monotonous and difficult daily life and a festival that makes the heart beat, make someone shrink and make someone else’s heart beat.

Such gaze and heat lift my heart and the spirit of a warrior who has lived through struggle.

Putting aside my headaches and unsolvable worries for a while, I take the stage as a warrior at this festival of warriors and draw my sword.

Amidst the stifling heat and shouts, the sound of the horns announcing the start rang out, and a melee in which a huge crowd mingled and fought began.

He swung his sword towards the center of the battlefield where blood and iron screams rang out. The line the sword passed through was covered with red blood, and the more lines the sword created, the shorter the distance between them. Cut that line and repeat the cutting. Soon, two lines run towards me at the same time.

When I try to counterattack by drawing one line and cutting off two lines, three lines rush at me and covet my blood. The lines approaching from the side and from the back are threatening, but the sum is a mess, so I take a step forward to avoid it, and the lines twist among themselves to create a gap.

They dig into the gap they created themselves, catch the small man with their left hand, throw it, completely tangle the lines, and cut the remaining two lines diagonally. Right away, he harvested the tangled lines by swinging his bloody sword like a blunt weapon.

As the tangled lines are harvested, the sound of a horn announcing the end is heard. The number of people who could not be seen at a glance were all miserably rolling on the floor or being carried out. Seeing that scene, he still calms down his longing for battle, and comes down from the stage listening to the cheers of the crowd.

I showed the wooden plaque to the official who came to the waiting room and recorded that I had passed the preliminary round, and when I headed back to the entrance to return to the waiting room, the monster was waiting for me. Looking at that scene, the worries that I put down for a while come back, and the feeling of being elevated falls into abyss.

“There wouldn’t have been a need to come out and wait.”

“I was curious about your skills, so I came to see you. You are good at it.」

I feel uncomfortable with the attention of the monster who still calls me brother.

“It’s noticeable here, so let’s go back.”

The monster shook his head and scribbled on a book and showed it to me.

“I’m in Group B of the preliminaries, so I’ll start soon and wait here.”

“Then let me be with you.”

Seeing the monster’s eyes widen at those words makes me annoyed. My head hurts because I found out a fact I didn’t even want to know, but my stomach turns upside down when the monster who provided the cause is happy. Still, there are things left to find out about the monster, so bear with it.

“Hey, while I’m waiting, I’m not bored and it’s nice.”

I take the monster’s book and write down what I want to say.

“Is there a cost or side effect to Kai’an’s blessing?”

Seeing the article, the monster frowned.

“Please call me Kaian-sama!”

I didn’t want to call the god who gave me the unknown blessing by an honorific title, but since it was an unfortunate position, I obediently followed it.

“yes. Kaian-sama, is there a cost or side effect to blessings?」

“There are no side effects, but Kaian-sama has a price, although it depends on the size of the blessing.”

The sound makes your mouth dry.

If the pendant is truly a relic of Kai’an and thus received the blessing of return, what is the cost of the absurd blessing of return?

I forcibly calm my mind, which is fluctuated by such thoughts, and continue writing.

“What are you receiving in exchange for Kaian-sama’s blessing?”

“Well, it depends on the situation, but if it’s an ordinary blessing, receive something like the blood or heart of an animal, and if it’s a special blessing, get something unusual.”

“Anything unusual? What is it exactly?」

“I don’t know that either. I heard from the high priest that there are cases like that too.”

As this monster only says he doesn’t know important parts, the frustration only grows.

“Is there ever a case where you get a blessing even though you didn’t pay anything in return?”

“That is not true. Kaian-sama, please get paid in any form.”

“But I never paid the price.”

“really? This is the first time I’ve heard of it, so I don’t know.”

Also, when the monster says he doesn’t know about an important part, I feel annoyance beyond frustration.

“Then, how about visiting with the high priest? Since the ambassador knows quite a few things, I don’t know if you can answer me.”

My head gets complicated at the monster’s words. As the monster said, if you meet the existence of the high priest, you will know about the blessing, but the fact that you meet the existence of the leader of those who are designated as heretics by the church every other day, and to meet such an existence, you have to go to their lair. And you can’t follow the monster in a state where you don’t even know the identity of the monster yet.

“I don’t even know who you are, so what are you telling me to believe in and follow you?”

“Ah, I forgot and didn’t introduce myself. I am Rachel.”

I don’t know if it’s stupid or if he doesn’t want to know, but when I ask about his identity, I feel upset when he sees him only saying his name.

“I didn’t ask for your name, I was asking what your identities are when you serve a god whose records have been expunged from the empire.”

“Ah, that’s right. Every time I talk to the brothers, the people of the Empire forget that they don’t know us.」

I am annoyed by the text, but I return the book, and when the monster scribbles on the book, people rush out of the aisle, and the person who called Group A earlier approaches.

“Group B participants must go to the stage.”

At that, the monster put the book he was writing in his arms and went up to the stage. When I try to find out the identity of the monster, I get annoyed because the conversation is cut off, but I can hear it again soon, so I watch the monster go on stage in anger.

The monster, who stands out wearing a flat black robe and mask, takes out two uniquely shaped black swords that are slightly longer than daggers from his bosom. The monster, who took out a dagger, disappeared from the look that seemed a bit lacking until now, and the atmosphere of an assassin preparing for an assassination with his breath and breathless appearance.

As the sound of the horn announcing the start resounded, the monster fluttered the hem of his clothes and headed towards the center. The monster who has moved to the center dances with the loose hem of his clothes flying around. No, he dances a sword dance. The hem of the robe of the monster dancing the sword dance flutters, and each time a line is drawn, one person spurts blood and falls down.

The sword dance is beautiful and eerie, stimulating old memories.

The monsters I met in the forest called the Cursed Garden, deep in the southern lands I found during my wanderings looking for the Haeju law, danced sword dances like that toward me.

When it comes to beauty, the first elves and skin color are different, and a lifespan of several hundred years. Darker and more exclusive than any other race, and no matter who you ask, the Dark Elves, who are called cursed beings, can’t understand the appearance of the sword dance here.

And the fact that I had to win against a monster that might have lived and practiced for hundreds of years, the fact that I was blessed by the god that the cursed beings serve, and being called brother by the Dark Elves strangled me.

The dark elf, who is the cause of my worries whether they know or not about my situation, and who provided the cause, sweeps the stage while excitingly continuing the sword dance. The sword dance is repeated line by line, and stops only when there is nothing to sweep away.

The spectators cheer and applaud the beautiful sword dance that looks like a picture and the overwhelming power to wipe out everyone alone. As if to reciprocate, the monster bows once and jumps with a frivolous gait unlike before. Then he scribbles on a book and presents it to me.

“Are my skills okay?”

The elated appearance of the monster in front of me, as if asking for praise, made me bite my innocent lips in annoyance.

“…yes, a little bit.”

In an irritating mood, a modifier is attached to an opponent who cannot guarantee victory. And yet, the monster’s eyes smile like a praised child. I couldn’t help but feel worse about it.

Feeling annoyed, the main line is tomorrow, so I turn my back to get out of the Colosseum. The monster grabs me by the hem of my clothes and pushes me through the book.

“Coming to think of it, I have no place to stay. Can I be taken care of by my brother?”

I want to ignore it and refuse it, but I have no choice but to accept it because I am anxious to leave it alone.

“do whatever you want.”

Ignoring the blinding monster again at those words, I accelerated my steps.