Chapter 29. Why I Devour My Kind with Drowsy Eyes (7)

Most Skeleton Soldiers used rusty weapons. If, by any chance, a randomly swung blade grazed a human, they might contract tetanus. Using a shield, however, effectively prevented such things.

So, you came prepared, I see.

Unlike using both hands to swing, even if the attack failed, they could protect themselves with the great shield. It was a solid, commendable weapon choice. However, more than anything, it was clumsy. There were too many openings to exploit. Even if I wanted to be hit, I couldn’t.

It's slow.

"

Hiyaaat!

"

The man charged forward, and for a few seconds, our movements unfolded like lines drawn in the air. I moved instinctively, without much thought.

Whoosh!

He swung his flail.

Clang!

I lightly caught it with the blade of my sword, pulled it back to throw it off balance, and then immediately swung my sword forward again.

Clatter!

The thrown-off flail fell to the floor behind him.

Slash! Splat!

The forward-swinging sword severed the man's arm. It grasped nothing and spun in the air, splattering blood all over the silver-haired woman’s face as it fell.

"

Aaaaargh!

"

The fight was decided in an instant. The man couldn’t even use his shield due to the significant difference in power and speed. Most importantly, I felt the impact that a skill could make.

In this case, it was the effect of swordsmanship. When the man swung the flail, I thrust the tip of my sword into the connecting chains of the iron parts. Then I yanked it back hard. His arm, which had been swinging the flail, was pulled forward with great force. I brought my sword down sharply on his exposed shoulder, severing it. All of this happened naturally, as if I had been trained for it.

I believed that this would be the outcome, but it was still surprising. I looked at the man who had been shouting so confidently. The cut on his arm was wide, and the bleeding was severe.

"

Aaaaaaagh!

"

I stood still, looking down at the human male rolling on the ground with his arm cut off. It was not a particularly pleasant sight.

"

Guh, guwaaaah!

" he screamed loudly, desperately trying to escape from reality.

His face grew thinner and more distorted with every moment due to the pain and blood loss.

"

Eeeeeek!

"

"

H

-

hiiik!

"

It seemed they were more surprised by how quickly the fight had ended than by the sight of blood. Gripped by fear, the women did not even think to pick up their weapons.

The man with the severed arm continued to scream.

"

Guwaaah!

"

His agonized wail echoed as he kept painting the cave floor with blood.

He looked at the silver-haired woman and shouted, "Potion, potion!"

Whoosh!

At that moment, the woman in leather swiftly snatched the man's bag from the silver-haired woman’s hand.

She then threw the bag at me and pleaded, "P-please spare me!"

Interesting

.

She was the type who would do anything to cling to her miserable little life. Such people were certainly more entertaining. Some tended to panic when faced with death, screaming in shock as their only response. They refused to grasp the situation, burying their heads in the ground and trying only to run away.

But then there were others. There were those who would become more proactive in the face of crisis.

I looked down at her and asked, "Why?"

"I know a lot! You wanted to ask something, didn’t you? I’ll tell you everything! I am—!"

She was one of those types. The woman desperately read my expression. Faced with death, her mind worked quickly. Beyond mere quick adaptation, she showed an instinctive cunning.

Of course, she was better than those who were dull and clumsy. She was a much more communicative target. Oddly enough, I thought of Rubia.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

If she had been like this, would she have survived longer? How would she have survived?

"

Ah, aaaah!

"

Even while I was lost in thought, the silver-haired woman’s screams did not cease. She struggled as she tried to push the man’s severed arm off herself. I watched the man thrashing around, spattering blood everywhere. Then he stopped moving.

Is he dead?

Just moments ago, he had been rolling on the floor, screaming, but now he seemed to have just breathed his last.

[Level Up!]

[Dungeon Affinity has increased!]

[Current Dungeon Affinity: 6.15%]

I had leveled up. It seemed killing him had meant that much. Along with the level, my Dungeon Affinity had also increased. I still didn’t know what the Dungeon Affinity was for. It had gone up after I earned favor from the other skeletons, and it increased after I killed a human.

In any case, now wasn’t the time to be looking at this. I moved the window floating in the air aside and looked at the silver-haired woman. She was sitting on the floor, scooting backward. Her long silver hair was drenched in blood, making it messy, but her hair still seemed to be in good condition.

"

Uh, uh, ah!

"

Is she trying to flee outside?

She barely managed to stand, turning her back to me. At that moment, the woman in the leather pulled a dagger from her chest. The tip of the dagger in her hand gleamed with a bluish hue. I realized something was smeared on it.

Whoosh!

It was a clean throw. Her posture even seemed neatly aligned, and it was clear she had clearly thrown many daggers before. Her stance was solid, and there wasn’t even a hint of hesitation in the way she threw the dagger.

Thud!

"

Guh!

"

The dagger lodged in the silver-haired woman’s back. Something was strange. Although the dagger was embedded in her back, she clutched her throat and collapsed.

Tap, tap.

"

Gah, gah!

"

I walked closer to her. Bluish veins surfaced on the woman’s face and turned darker. It was a ghastly sight, as if death itself were blossoming on her. Blood foamed at her mouth, and the area around her lips was turning black.

Poison?

"

Guh!

"

The silver-haired woman fell to the ground. I turned around. The woman in leather stood calmly where she was. When our eyes met, she smiled faintly.

"Hehe."

This woman had thrown the dagger. She extended her left thumb, clasped it with her right hand, and brought her right hand to her chest. I recognized that gesture—it was used in the southern part of the Empire, a sign of pledging obedience until death. She performed such corny things without batting an eye.

"Did you think I would recognize that gesture?" I asked.

The woman nodded. As if prepared, she answered, "Yes, sir. You seem to be quite knowledgeable about the human world."

Quick to adapt, as expected. I did not reply. The woman cautiously watched my expression and continued to speak.

"I am Rena of the T&T Guild. It’s a guild that deals in assassination, thievery, and information. Is there anything among these that you need?"

I hadn’t heard of the T&T Guild, but the explanation piqued my interest.

I approached her sternly and asked, "You threw that dagger without permission."

"Wouldn’t it be troublesome for you if she escaped?"

No.

I could have easily caught up with her anyway. This woman was playing tricks I could see through. She had another purpose for throwing that poisoned dagger. She wanted to make herself the sole survivor between the silver-haired woman and herself, and prevent herself from being killed recklessly.

When we first met, I had indicated my willingness to talk with them. There were many things I wanted to know. I wanted to know about the group that killed Rubia, the human trafficking syndicate, the mercenaries, the lord of Erast, and the guards of Grassmere.

Who are these people?

Right now, I knew nothing and needed a guide. If the silver-haired woman were alive, I’d have more choices. I could listen to either of them. I could toss a coin, kill one as an example, and start from there. Even if I tortured them, having a spare would make things convenient. This woman had narrowed my two choices down to one.

"You said your name was Rena. Do you always carry poisoned daggers like that?"

"I’m a woman, after all. Shouldn't I always carry poison and a dagger?"

Her answer seemed natural, but she was quite nervous. I could see her slightly bitten lips. The power over life and death in this situation rested with me. She clearly understood this. I could kill or torture her at any moment.

"Didn’t you think of using a weapon against me? That would be your usual tactic."

"You don’t seem like someone I could take on. You’d be at least C-rank if you joined a mercenary guild. Besides, it doesn’t look like poison would work on you, so I have no choice but to beg for my life, don’t I?"

A mercenary guild. Right, I should’ve headed there. She was a woman who could guide me.

I lowered my sword completely and grabbed Rena by the neck. I could feel her pulse racing, but she didn't resist at all. She relaxed entirely and went limp in my grip. I slowly walked to a corner of the hall, where an old cobweb hung high above. They said giant spiders had once lived in this catacomb, but they were gone now.

I had never seen them myself—only these sticky, tough, and elastic cobwebs remained. Unless the creature that wove it was cooperating, even a large animal caught in it wouldn’t be able to escape and would die. The cobweb seemed too valuable to waste. I might as well use it now.

Whoosh!

I threw her into the large cobweb. The sticky strands spun by the giant spider clung to her. Her pretty face tensed with anxiety.

"Are you going to leave me as food for the spiders?"

"There’s no reason for that if you answer properly," I replied.

In truth, there were no spiders here. Rena wouldn’t die unless she held her breath or bit her tongue, but I doubted she would do that. This woman was the type who wouldn’t kill herself even if I had a knife to her throat.

"You should start by explaining the circumstances that brought you here," I said.

Rena glanced sideways at the dead man.

"To be honest, I followed him to swindle him," she admitted. She swallowed hard, then continued speaking.

"He seemed like a fool. There are those who are born rich, spend their items carelessly, and treat dungeons like they’re playing around. He was that type."

She watched my expression carefully and added, "It seemed like that silver-haired woman followed him for a similar purpose."

"You were planning to swindle him?" I asked.

"Yes," she replied.

I wasn’t convinced. Bringing a poisoned dagger just to swindle someone seemed a bit much. The poison on the dagger wouldn’t work on a skeleton like me. She clearly had come prepared to stab a person.

"Let’s be honest," I said.

I left her hanging in the cobweb and turned away because I wanted her to give up everything. She wasn’t ready for that yet.

"Think carefully about what you can say. Organize the useful things in your head," I said.

"W-wait!" she pleaded.

It would be better to talk to her after she became a bit more desperate. I turned my attention to the corpses of the silver-haired woman and the man. I rummaged through their belongings, looking for anything useful.

The potions might be useful.

[Obtained: Lowest-grade Healing Potion!]

[Obtained: Low-grade Healing Potion!]

[Obtained: Low-grade Aphrodisiac Potion!]

There seemed to be a strange potion among them, but I ignored it. I also remembered to collect some food. I might have to feed it to the woman hanging there, but only when she became sufficiently compliant. After retrieving the useful items, I rolled the corpses into a pit. I then stepped outside and lowered the mechanism.

Rumble!

The woman was trapped inside the hall with the broken skeletons. She seemed to have cried out for mercy a few times. I wondered why she was pleading so desperately when I had already spared her. I walked away.

With every step I took, the broken skeletons caught my eye. The first one I noticed was the skeleton that had once guarded the entrance. It was the one I had placed in the sarcophagus, the one I had leveled up for a long time. Its body had been shattered to pieces.

A bit too much

.

It seemed to have resisted until the end. I quickly put the bones back together so it could get up again.

Ding!

[Dungeon Affinity has increased!]

[Current Dungeon Affinity: 6.19%]