TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 16
“You’re a villain, but I’m an artist.”
With a repulsive, sneering smile, the Adventurer Hunter drew the dagger at his waist, its blade gleaming blue as he threatened Hanna and me, his eyes narrowed into slits, reminiscent of an insect.
“This is my first time fighting an insect-like creature.”
“I’m not an insect magic practitioner, I’m an artist who creates beautiful magic to sculpt people.”
“But you look just like one… head, body, and abdomen, though you only have six limbs, not eight.”
The Adventurer Hunter, seeming to notice my insult, asked me with narrowed eyes.
“Which part of me resembles an insect?”
The Adventurer Hunter’s gaze was unsettling, as if he would strike me down at any moment if I said something to provoke him.
I shrugged.
From the way he crept up, dagger at the ready, he was the spitting image of a Mantis.
I had sworn not to judge people by their appearance, but the Adventurer Hunter’s face was uncannily insect-like, to the point where calling him human seemed like an insult to humanity.
I decided to enlighten him, for the sake of humanity’s dignity.
“You resemble a Mantis, which is why I mistook you for an insect.”
“Really?”
“Yes, you have a repulsive appearance, like you’d die from a single flick.”
You.
Are really ugly.
“You look like a Mantis.”
The Adventurer Hunter’s face began to crack, as if the uncomfortable truth was sinking in, perhaps because he had been gaslighted by someone, like his Mother, into thinking he was handsome.
Too bad.
He really does look like a Mantis.
The Adventurer Hunter forced a smile, trying to appear nonchalant, but it only made him look more unlikable.
“You say I resemble a Mantis?”
“Yes.”
“Hahahah… I’ve never met someone who speaks to me like this before.”
“You must have had a good friend.”
“Do you want to die?”
My honest words didn’t seem to get through to the Adventurer Hunter, who was still under the delusion created by his Mother’s lies.
I recalled the scene in the novel where Mikhail was stepped on by this guy.
-Archbishop of Madness…! How many innocent people have you killed!
-Hehe, I just created art pieces using the magic of death to purify the world’s filth.
-I’ll kill you…
-You said that before, but you couldn’t, Mikhail… it’s a pity. I want to make you into one of my art pieces someday.
The Adventurer Hunter’s madness was overwhelming, and he had dominated Mikhail in the novel, but not now.
Now, he was just an insect-like artist.
I spoke to him seriously.
“This is also my first time.”
“…”
“Meeting someone who looks like a Mantis, that is. If I were an elementary school student, I would’ve caught you with a collection jar and kept you as a pet.”
The Adventurer Hunter’s smile grew more forced, perhaps because he had never realized the truth about his appearance before, or maybe he had just never seen a mirror.
It was possible that he had always thought he was handsome, but I unintentionally hurt him with my careless words, and now I felt sorry for him.
“I apologize, but you really do look like one, so I made a mistake.”
“I…”
The Adventurer Hunter’s voice trembled, filled with anger and resentment.
I felt a pang of sympathy for the antagonist.
My heart ached.
If only this were the modern era, I could’ve used medical technology to help him, but alas, he was born in the wrong time. Poor Mantis.
“I…”
A dark, chilly aura began to gather around the Adventurer Hunter’s dagger.
It was a haze-like black aura, filled with an ominous, chilling energy.
It was Dark Magic.
The Adventurer Hunter’s eyes snapped open.
“You say I resemble an unattractive creature?”
I drew my sword and replied.
“Yes.”
In an instant, the Adventurer Hunter lunged at me, a haze-like black aura swirling around him, but.
With a soft sound, his attack was neutralized, leaving only a faint, powerless afterimage.
[Dark Magic Resistance neutralizes Pascal’s magic.]
I flashed a ruthless, yet elegant smile.
A smile that could overwhelm my opponent.
“What’s wrong? Did you just try to use a poisonous needle on me?”
A provocation stronger than any mental magic reached Pascal.
“I thought you were a Mantis, but I guess you’re a different insect. My apologies for the mistake.”
Pascal’s sanity seemed to snap at that moment.
***
“Hah… hah…”
Rowen rushed towards the source of the sound.
The location was the mountain summit, where a loud noise and an intense, bloody smell wafted through the air.
For some reason, I felt a sense of urgency.
Despite thinking that nothing was amiss, my anxiety only grew.
I kept imagining the Youngest Daughter dying, her lifeless body, and the Divine Healer’s mournful expression.
‘Damn it….’
As I rushed to the location, various thoughts crossed my mind.
‘Did I do something wrong?’
‘If the youngest child dies, can I handle it?’
‘Will I be able to live without regret?’
One thing was certain.
If I were to find the Youngest Daughter as a cold, lifeless corpse, I wouldn’t be able to think rationally.
If any of the worst-case scenarios I imagined came true.
I wouldn’t be able to maintain my sanity.
I might end up destroying all the Orc encampments in the Hamel Mountain Range or even eradicate the Orcs from the Empire.
I’d find any excuse to do so.
I’d tell myself that if there were no Orcs, the Youngest Daughter wouldn’t have died, and I’d use that as a justification to avoid reflecting on my own culpability.
I, Rowen, am a stubborn, unyielding perfectionist, and I know myself all too well.
‘Fool.’
The source of the sound was coming into view.
I saw corpses between the trees, some clearly killed by Orcs, while others seemed to have been killed by human hands.
I gripped my sword tightly.
I was anxious.
The lifeless bodies reminded me of my daughter, and my resolve wavered.
I thought I was desensitized to death, having witnessed countless battles and taken lives, but now I was more afraid than ever.
The familiar scenery before me was terrifying.
-Father…
In my hallucination, I saw the Youngest Daughter dying in the Orc’s habitat.
I kicked the ground, wanting to confirm if my daughter was there, but instead of her, a massive dust cloud rose.
I couldn’t see anything.
‘Damn it…’
I had a hunch.
That I was already too late.
In my hallucination, my daughter’s last appearance was a dense dust cloud, and her breathing stopped amidst the dust cloud that obscured my view.
As I walked aimlessly through the dust cloud, losing my sense of direction.
Clanging Sound.
A familiar sword had fallen at my feet.
The sword had a luxurious golden hilt and a golden ruby embedded in the center, with our family insignia engraved on the blade.
It was a memory from when Hanna was first born, and I had given her this sword as a gift, telling her to use it to make a name for herself in Histania when she grew up.
I didn’t think I still had this sword.
The blade was worn out.
The hilt had fingerprints on it, showing that it had been used for a long time.
I had given this sword to my other children many times, but I had only given it to Hanna once, and now it felt like a thorn in my heart.
More than anything, it was sharp, cutting deep into my heart and leaving a severe wound that no other sword or swordsmanship could match.
The sword I had given her lay coldly on the ground.
“…”
The ground was stained with blood.
Most of it was the green blood of the Orcs, but there was also a significant amount of human blood, creating a murky color.
Rowen spoke in a trance-like state.
“…No.”
A negation burst out in a loud voice.
It was unbelievable.
It couldn’t be true.
As a Father and a Sword Master.
As the Sword of the Empire.
It was unacceptable for her to die in such a meaningless way.
What was the point of swinging my sword?
Why had I treated my daughter so cruelly?
Rowen’s mind couldn’t find the answer.
Only now did Rowen remember the words written on the Blue Window.
‘Criminal’
That’s right.
I was a criminal.
Rowen’s lips uttered a name they hadn’t spoken in a long time.
“Hanna, where are you?”
Towards the dust cloud that was slowly rising, Rowen called out in a hoarse voice.
“Let’s have a duel, like we promised…”
But there was no response.
Rowen regretted neglecting Hanna on her birthday.
What kind of tragedy would await me when the dust cloud settled?
Would the nightmare I saw in my hallucination become a reality?
Rowen was afraid.
“Father…”
Now, I could finally admit it.
“Father is sorry…”
At that moment.
Pfft!
“Miss Hanna, you’re hitting the wrong spot. You should hit the part that’s covered by the armor so it won’t show.”
“A perfect crime, huh?”
“That’s right.”
Through the dust cloud, Rowen saw Hanna beating someone together with a man.
“Hehe…”
Hanna’s expression, as she beat someone with her sword sheath, was the happiest Rowen had ever seen.