I had seen Yor fighting quite a bit.
Between the Aulbear and the time he guarded Yoo Chaerin, there were tons of his combat scenes on YouTube.
But if you asked if I had ever seen him fight properly, I would definitely shake my head.
The enemies he faced usually went down in a single blow.
There was no way to see his true combat skills or methods.
What kind of opponent could possibly take him on when even an Aulbear gets one-shot?
I had just vaguely assumed he would be somewhat strong…
But seeing it firsthand, I realized his abilities far exceeded that vague expectation.
“Oh my…,”
Haneul gasped in shock.
Who would have thought he would engage in a duel with a Grand Demon and actually gain the upper hand.
She was aware of how strong a demon with a rank was from her previous participation in the Andromalius raid.
Even with hundreds of players charging in, a Grand Demon could take them down with just a single move.
Though Seere looked a bit weakened right now… it didn’t change the fact that these demons were not to be trifled with.
So seeing him win against such a foe was shocking.
Another thing that surprised her was how brutal his fighting style was.
“What kind of man…”
He didn’t seem to fear getting hurt or hurting others at all. Blood sprayed everywhere, yet he didn’t care.
His approach to combat was almost reminiscent of a berserker.
To plunge through a storm of attacks with just his bare body while forsaking any reduction in damage. It was impressively audacious.
‘Could it be that he doesn’t feel pain…?’
For a moment, I almost believed that.
But no.
Seeing his brows furrow every time he got cut proved he certainly felt pain.
He just chose to endure it and take a step forward.
A faint hope began to swell within her.
If the fight continued like this… he might really take down Seere.
But that expectation was short-lived.
“Stop!”
Reinforcements had arrived in the slums.
*
Clomp- clomp- clomp-
Knights in military boots advanced into the alleyway, presumably because news had spread that a demon had descended upon the area, causing a replacement of troops in the slums.
I frowned.
‘Why now of all times?’
I had anticipated the reinforcements’ arrival.
With all the commotion, someone must have notified the guards.
However, the timing wasn’t great. If only I’d had a bit more time, perhaps we could have captured him.
“Seere is here?”
“Where? Where is he?!”
The reinforcements weren’t just knights. From behind them, individuals wielding various weapons appeared. These were Otherworlders.
News of Seere’s appearance had drawn these guys in as well.
As those looking around finally spotted the scene, they shouted.
“I found him! He’s over there!”
“Whoa, it’s really Seere!”
“Me too, please let me use him as a footrest! Huh…? But who’s that next to him?”
“Is that a guy…? Oh, I can’t tell because of the hood.”
I sighed. Useless bunch.
As I hesitated for a moment, Seere spoke.
“Heh heh, how about we call it a day? After all, you’re an Awakened one too, so getting caught would be a hassle.”
He suggested that we should withdraw and go our separate ways.
I felt a bit frustrated, but he did have a point. To be honest, I wasn’t exactly thrilled to deal with the imperial knights either.
Although it was fine for now since I was disguised with the hood… there was no need to attract their attention more than necessary.
“Now would be the perfect time to escape. Most of the attention should be focused on me. So hurry up and go.”
But should I really just let him go?
It felt a bit uneasy no matter how I thought about it. If I ever ran into him again later, it would be problematic if he held a grudge.
‘At least I need to hurt him badly.’
Honestly, I didn’t think I would meet him again, but I had to ensure he wouldn’t be much of a threat even if we did.
Of course, catching him here would be the best scenario, but it seemed like that ship had sailed.
These knights were just too fast for no good reason.
Fortunately, an opportunity to injure him soon arose.
“Get away already!”
He used his ability again.
“Oh? My sword!”
Whoosh-
As his weapon vanished, a sword appeared in one of his hands.
Since one sword wasn’t enough, he decided to use two to fend me off.
And that eagerness turned out to be a mistake.
That meant he had to drop the dagger he was holding in his other hand.
His ability might be limitless, but as a human, he could only wield two weapons at once.
I quickly rolled toward the area where he dropped the dagger. Then I grabbed it with both hands. The familiar grip enveloped my senses.
“Prepare your formations! Let’s drive away the wicked demon!”
Thinking of the approaching knights, this would likely be my last strike.
So I didn’t hold back. I poured all the mana in my body into the blade.
Whoosh-
The dagger gleamed with energy.
Despite its crude nature, the energy packed within could not be dismissed.
This was a decisive strike with absolutely no thoughts of a follow-up.
I finished my preparation and slashed the dagger upward.
Fortunately, it hit. Incredibly hard.
Slash-!
“Gyaaaaaah!”
The dagger’s course followed through, and Seere’s arm was severed at the elbow.
His left arm revolved in mid-air before ultimately landing far away on the ground.
Gasps of horror erupted from the onlookers.
“N-No?!”
“What the hell…!”
Everyone’s eyes were drawn to this scene.
I prepared to withdraw before they could recover from the shock.
Collecting the blood I had spilled so far, I slowly took steps back.
“Now’s the chance! Everyone, chase after him!”
Knights who regained their senses started to rush towards Seere.
I quietly approached Haneul and whispered to her.
“Hey, let’s bail.”
The duration of my ‘Illusion’ was running out. I needed to remember to gather my magical tools when escaping.
*
Was it because Seere had drawn the aggro? Thankfully, it was easy to escape.
After all, Yor’s markings weren’t discovered, and people were too busy chasing Seere.
Thanks to that, Haneul was able to leave the city without attracting anyone’s attention.
Man, I didn’t even know there was a secret passage in this alley.
“Haah… haah…”
Once we reached the plain, she gasped for breath.
Her heart felt like it was going to burst. It was too harsh for a mage like her to keep up with Yor’s speed.
Eventually, when she couldn’t go on, he stepped in to support her.
…Being supported by a ‘guy’ was a little embarrassing, but given the difference in skill, I just let it go.
Honestly… feeling his body press against mine while being supported didn’t feel all that bad either.
“Let’s take a break here.”
As they caught their breath, Yor spoke. Thanks to his regeneration, his wounds were almost fully healed now.
Yor glanced around before his next action caught Haneul by surprise.
He started to gather all the blood covering his body into one hand.
“Wait, you can do that?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“I don’t think I saw you do that earlier…”
“It was crowded with people then.”
He explained that with so many beggars around, he was reluctant to use it.
Though regeneration could be overlooked, moving blood around would definitely attract weird looks from people.
Of course, engaging in a fierce duel with Seere was already bound to raise eyebrows.
Regardless, while saying this, he buried his blood beneath the ground. Haneul was astonished.
‘Was that not even his full power back there?’
There was still something he was hiding.
Haneul regretted that she couldn’t see Seere’s level.
It was too unclear whether Seere was weak or if the guy was abnormally strong.
Having successfully escaped safely, Yor’s expression remained tense.
It seemed that letting Seere go had weighed heavily on him.
‘If I had known this would happen, I might as well have used my blood…’
For a moment, a wave of regret surged through him.
He realized that since he knew I was an Awakened one, how he would act with that information was uncertain.
However, at least it was fortunate that the ‘Illusion’ had covered him…
‘Well, whatever.’
After briefly worrying, Yor decided to push that concern to the back of his mind.
Thinking about it now wouldn’t yield any answers. The priority was to return home first.
“Ah, speaking of which, I brought something…”
As they rested, Haneul opened her mouth again. Throughout their rest, her breathing had stabilized a bit.
She pulled something from her inventory.
When she held it out, Yor’s eyes widened, and he slapped her hand.
Smack!
“Ow!”
“Wait, why did you bring this?!”
It was impossible not to be shocked.
What Haneul had pulled from her inventory was Seere’s severed left arm.
Was she into some sort of severed limb fetish? Even for Yor, this was a bit eerie.
“Just listen to me for a second!”
Of course, Haneul felt misunderstood. She had her reasons for taking it with her.
*
Let’s rewind some dozens of minutes.
When Yor severed Seere’s arm, instead of paying attention to him, she saw something else. The arm flew through the air and landed right in front of her.
At the same moment, a system notification popped up in her view.
[Would you like to acquire the item?]
It was a notification indicating that the arm was an item.
Naturally, it made sense for her to take it, especially since it came from a raid boss.
After all, leaving it there would only allow someone else to pick it up, which was merely a waste of an opportunity.
Haneul offered the severed arm to Yor.
“Here, I’ll give you this. It’s a bit gross, but it’s originally yours. I took it since it’s an item.”
“…You call this an item?”
Yor tilted his head but then accepted it anyway.
At a glance, it looked just gross and grotesque.
Thinking back, Andromalius had also left his arm as an item after he died.
When a tiger dies, it leaves its skin, do demons leave their arms behind too?
‘So what effect does it have?’
Since she so emphatically said it was an item, it must have some kind of effect.
Suddenly, a thought came to Yor’s mind.
The ability Seere had been constantly using during their battle.
The ability to transfer objects from somewhere to his hands.
Since this was a body part that had fallen from him, it was likely that this arm possessed a similar ability.
‘Bring me anything.’
Thinking this, Yor commanded the arm.
Whoosh-
Just as he expected, something materialized in Seere’s left arm.
A strangely warm item.
It was a black garment that could probably cover Yor’s face twice…
“Hmm?”
In other words, it was a bra.
“?!”
Haneul hastily checked her upper body.
Oddly, her chest felt empty.
