"...hk"
I instantly drew in a sharp breath, staring at the gruesome state Lycrane was in.
Rising to my feet, I instinctively assumed a defensive stance, grappling with the chilling thought that had just crept into my mind.
'The B-Rank Monster is still alive, lurking around us, hiding from view.'
That had to be it.
With that conclusion, I narrowed my eyes, scanning the area for the dreadful creature that had somehow managed to slip past the gaze of Lycrane—the SSS-Rank Swordsaint.
I was acting on impulse, but so what? Sometimes rash decisions proved useful.
Just as I considered rushing to Lycrane, scooping her into a princess carry—as she had once done for me—and bolting out of here, a sudden realisation struck me.
I could stand.
Yes, that in itself might not sound strange.
But…
Wasn't my left leg heavily injured, missing a huge chunk of flesh?
There should have been no way for me to stand with that kind of wound.
Looking down at myself, I immediately noticed something bizarre.
My leg was healed.
Completely, and absurdly so.
As that thought sank in, another followed.
I turned toward Lycrane.
She was still kneeling on the ground, clutching her jaw, massaging the torn flesh and skin as blood poured freely.
After observing her for a moment, a vague understanding dawned on me.
Her injuries were identical to the ones I had sustained—injuries that had suddenly vanished from my body, leaving me perfectly healed.
She must have somehow transferred them onto herself.
Which meant this grotesque display wasn't caused by the monster.
I was probably right in assuming it was already dead.
'But why go to such lengths for me?' I wondered inwardly, before voicing my confusion in a trembling voice, pretending I hadn't quite figured it out yet.
"What did you do?"
Lycrane's blood-streaked face slowly turned toward me.
Even in that state, her beauty was undiminished—if anything, it only grew more captivating, tinged now with a mysterious allure.
Her voice was hoarse, but steady.
"I can't use healing spells, and your injuries looked rather fatal, so I used a wound-transferring spell to fix them."
She paused, then added with a sly smile,
"Ah, but don't worry. My injuries heal on their own, so I'll be fine…"
Hoh…
So even though she was an SSS-Rank talent, she couldn't perform healing sorcery.
Not that it mattered much—healing magic was rare to begin with.
Only one in a thousand possessed the affinity for it.
It was the one thing I prided myself on, being able to use healing sorcery—even if only at basic and intermediate levels.
Lost in thought, I soon noticed what she meant about her injuries healing on their own.
Around her wounds, small fleshy tendrils writhed, intertwining with blood and muscle as they reconstructed her jaw—layer by layer: muscle, underskin, and then outer skin.
'So her body heals automatically…' I thought, awed by the strange abilities Lycrane—or rather, people of SSS-Rank—possessed.
It was said that those of SSS-Rank were beings beyond mundane comprehension, brushing closer to the realm of divinity.
I let out a quiet sigh as my initial shock faded, calming down considerably.
Closing my eyes, I dropped my defensive stance and slowly sat back down.
With a soft thud against the ground, I shook my head.
"Really, if I'd known there would be monsters like that here, I never would have agreed. Hah… Guess it's just my rotten luck to blame."
Lycrane, her skin and flesh still writhing around her wounds, glanced at me.
"I'll pay you extra…"
I gave her a sidelong look, considering how long it might take for her injuries to fully regenerate, before replying,
"Yes, I was going to bring that up. How about double the previous amount? Too much…?"
She remained silent, not replying with a 'yes' or 'no', only nodding slowly with a defeated sigh.
Realising it must be difficult for her to speak with such wounds, I refrained from pressing further.
A serene silence settled between us.
But it didn't last long.
The narrow, already unstable tunnel suddenly trembled, dust and debris raining down from above.
A sense of something being terribly wrong crept over me.
My scalp tingled, and small beads of sweat began forming on my forehead.
'What now?!'
I shot a glance at Lycrane.
She looked as calm as always, her wounds steadily closing up and nearing full recovery.
My voice wavered as I stood up once again.
"What's happening?"
Her midnight-blue eyes met mine.
In that same calm manner, she simply said,
"Duck."
My pupils constricted with choking fear.
I didn't even think—whether it was pure instinct for survival or something far deeper within me, I didn't know.
The moment her voice reached me, I dropped my head low.
A sharp object cut through the air above, whistling past me.
I had narrowly avoided being beheaded.
My heart hammered in my chest, and I felt my stomach twist.
And right then, a wave so nauseating it almost knocked me down filled the very air around me.
The very air itself had changed, becoming thick, heavy, and suffocating.
It was overflowing with palpable malice.
It was pure, untainted hunger for life itself.
At that moment, I knew with absolute certainty: one wrong move, and I was done for.
Slowly, cautiously, I lifted my head.
My eyes widened, a gasp escaping me as I registered the scene laid before me.
A long sword was pointed directly at Lycrane's neck.
And the person holding it… was a little girl.
Petite in stature, with a mane of fiery red hair that billowed as if caught in an unseen wind.
Her crimson eyes burned with concentrated bloodlust, locking mercilessly onto Lycrane.
My body froze.
That same suffocating pressure coiled around me tighter when I noticed something else.
There was a sword at my neck too.
I flinched, swallowing hard, my throat dry.
What shocked me wasn't just the danger but the fact that this second figure was identical to the one standing before Lycrane.
It felt like I was staring at a perfect reflection, as though reality itself had duplicated her form.
Before I could even begin to process it, the one near Lycrane spoke.
Her voice was ethereal, distant, yet heavy with authority.
"You've broken my Master's seal… trespassed into the sacred labyrinth of Lycus. Tell me one good reason I shouldn't kill you right NOW."
Her words rattled me more than the sword against my skin.
'Trespassed? Sacred labyrinth?'
My mind struggled to piece it together while my body remained tense, still locked in that survival state.
Lycrane, however, didn't flinch.
She calmly eyed the girl in her strange red, frilly outfit—like something out of a fairy tale, almost resembling a princess costume.
With unshaken composure, she simply pointed toward me.
"I've brought what you asked for. Someone with an affinity for the sorcery of spectrums."
My breath hitched, a frown creasing my face.
'What did she say? Spectrum Sorcery? Me… having an affinity for it?'
What did that even mean? Since when? Why hadn't I known about it?
The words repeated in my head like an echo.
While I was still wrestling with those thoughts, both of the identical girls suddenly shifted their gaze toward me in unison.
A cold shiver raced down my spine.
My skin prickled, and I found myself fighting the urge to look away