Sorcerous Stabber Orphen Rogue Journey Vol 3 Chapter 6

Sorcerous Stabber Orphen Rogue Journey Book 03 - Spectre, Sleeping on My Chest - Chapter 6 - The idiot who stops an idiot   Chapter 6 – The idiot who stops an idiot   “Sword of Light, whom I do release!” A wave of light and heat hit the “snake” in the head. The snake man acted as if he was. .h.i.t by a large hammer, it was knocked to the floor. Orphen continued: “——Sword of Light!” A white light cut vertically into the snake man’s body. Then—— “Sword of Light, whom I do release!” Whack! The snake man was. .h.i.t with a wave of light and heat three times, it was now consumed in a raging inferno. But——amidst the fires, Orphen could see that the snake man didn’t suffer any major injuries. Orphen could sense it’s eyes looking at him, he jumped backwards. After he jumped, he continued to jump out of the bas.e.m.e.nt, slamming the door after he exited. With his hands firmly holding the door in place, he shouted: “I close thee, border of fate!” Thud——the heavy door shook. Now, the door wouldn’t be opened so easily. And—— “I giveth thee, giant’s fortune!”
As he shouted, the door began to shake. He could see that the door was swelling little, expanding into the surround wall. The door and the wall were now melded together. Orphen breathed, and wiped the sweat from his chin. “It’ll be impossible to open that without some explosives——Samii and that suit of armour should be okay, but if that snake tries anything, he’ll surely suffocate in the raging fire……” Orphen was finished, all he had to do now was climb the dark stairs. However, Orphen was scared, he hands were trembling. He reached down to the floor, he was going to rest——but —— Hissss! A shrill voice could he heard from the other side of the door, small gaps started to appear in the door and the wall——yellow venom oozed out. It had a strong odour. He could see that parts of the wall and door were now being dissolved. A moment later, the door fell down. “Ahhh!” Upon seeing this, Orphen jumped backwards. The “snake” stood at the entrance, there was residual venom hanging from its mouth. Behind the snake, there was no flame, just a gas lamp lighting the room. “b.a.s.t.a.r.d……” Orphen cursed under his breath. “How the h.e.l.l are you still alive?” Orphen could feel his scalp itching, he remembered. (This guy’s skin……and Hirietta’s clothing. Are they the same thing?) He thought. If the snake man’s skin was the same as Hirietta’s leather clothing, then physical attacks won’t do any good. If that’s the case—— Just as Orphen was lost in thought, he heard a hiss, the snake man raced towards him. (No way——Hirietta. She can’t be a man-made beast, can she?) The “snake” opened it jaws. It was clear to Orphen, it was going to spit venom, he was going to jump backwards, but suddenly——it was like his right foot was nailed to the floor. (————!) A deadly chill raised throughout his body, he couldn’t move. Looking down at his st.u.r.dy boots, he saw something——there was a knife lodged into the sole of his right boot, the “hand” was holding it tightly.   Then, he got a taste of the venom. “Ah————!” He lurched his head to the left, he was able to avoid some of the venom, luckily none landed on his face. However, there was a strong odour coming from his left shoulder and abdomen, he could see smoke rising——his clothes were being dissolved, the stench was intense, his entire body was instantly wrought with pain. He could see parts of his skin being dissolved, the pinkish muscles beneath the skin were now visible. Yellow smoke started to rise from his wounds, his blood and the snake’s venom had intermixed, creating an unbearable stench.      “I heal thee——” Orphen put his right hand over his wounds, he screamed the rest of the incantation. “——scar of the setting sun!” Physical pain is very dangerous, more dangerous than even spiritual damage. Treating the trauma is simple, but enduring the pain is not an easy task. Especially when the state of the wound is very bad, scaring yourself to death is always possible. Once the incantation is said, the wound will be reversed due to the manipulation of time using magic. His clothes are easily repairable, but new flesh had to be laid on his body due to the damage. After his wounds were healed, Orphen waved his hand towards the snake man, and cried: “I call thee, sisters of rupture!” An invisible shock wave struck the snake man, at the same time, Orphen was also affected by the shock wave——he had trouble breathing, his body was going numb, he threw his body backwards, he was trying to get free of the grip of the “hand”. He violently fell backwards onto the stairs, Orphen then tried to climb the stairs. At the same time, he pointed a finger towards the “snake”. “Guide me, O Starling of Death!” A burst of sound waves struck the “snakes” body, its body was twisted all over. It was like a piece of clothing being wrung dry, it then smacked the floor. (For Hirietta and that snake guy to have the same kind of protection, it’s got to be more than a coincidence.) Whatever it is, he’s got to find its weakness. (Since these are test subjects, that means they aren’t the finished product, so they’ve got to have some kind of defect.) “Come on, Samii! I’m Fonogorosu! I’m escaping!” Orphen ran up the stairs, yelling at the unseen creatures behind him. He made every effort to run as fast as he could, stumbling all the while. He could hear the sound of a whip behind him, the armour downstairs must have released its black tentacles. Orphen barely dodged the first attack, it sunk deep into the wall beside his head. "————!" Orphen silently screamed. He could now hear the armour thrashing behind him, he didn’t want to look back, for he knew it was right behind him. Whoosh! Suddenly, the suit of armour jumped in front of him using its tentacles. He saw its helmet open up a little, Orphen shouted: “I dance in thee, mansion of heaven!” Bang——flash. In a moment, he jumped ten meters ahead of the armour. It uttered a sharp sound from its helmet, and in a flash, wires appeared in front to blow Orphen’s path. (Steel wires——) If Orphen didn’t time this right, he could be cut into shreds. (d.a.m.n it, these monsters are tough.) He could feel a stinging sensation coming from his head, he must have been scratched by a steel wire. Orphen felt his head get wet, but he didn’t let this get to him. Remembering his training in the Tower of Fang brought him great pride, he wasn’t going to let something like this put him to shame. (Now……I feel weakened.) But—— “You killed Cleo, I should let you have a taste of h.e.l.l!” He said angrily, the “armour” was ready to launch a second attack, Orphen stretched his arm out. “Sword of Light, whom I do release!” The “Armour” swallowed the attack, Orphen turned immediately, and jumped into the hall. (d.a.m.n it, looks like I’ll be fighting near the G.o.ddess’. However——) However——will he rely on someone else to win? He thought.     (I seems I might need some help……Cleo——) Orphen said inside himself, while running.   ***   “Really, he’s here? Business member A.” “My name is Louis.” “What?” “I said……my name is Louis.” Vulcan stared at the names of the children, he certainly recognized the name of business member A. He then snorted, and said: “You don’t have a past anymore! Abandon your name!” (These guys are pests……) Dortin looked anxious, he was silent. He looked at the flag made out of sheets that his brother made. He didn’t know where he got it from, but apparently he had got more bed linen, he used paint to write “Master of our destiny, Vulcan’s chamber of Commerce. Never apologize to the loan shark”. Then Louis said: “Give up your name, do you want to join?” “Business member A.” Vulcan pointed to one of the children. The child stood still for a moment, he said: “I am Davis. Louis——” “Yes, just like that.” “My name is Mike……” “Continue.” “I am Lambert.” “What about you?” “Toby.” “My goodness, this is taking forever!” “I have the cool name of Kaufman!” “Nina.” Vulcan continued to look at the kids, while Dortin stood behind his cloak. He quietly whispered into his ear. “Brother, we’ve got more names than people.” “…………” After listening to Dortin for a moment——he looked towards the sky, it was the afternoon, the sun was shining, there was a cool breeze, and birds were chirping. For a while, he wanted to learn more about them. However, Vulcan had business to attend to. “You! Are you kidding me!?” Vulcan waved the flag at the kids, four of the children screamed and ran away. He stared coldly at the children that remained, then he turned around and faced a mansion—— The building was known as the “haunted mansion” by the locals, all the windows were boarded up, n.o.body could see inside. From the information Vulcan had obtained, he summarized that this place was the hideout of that spectre. Then—— “You guys, behave yourselves, if you don’t value your lives, you will die!” Vulcan then swung the flag, and went on to say: “Listen up! We have a task, it’s related to my fate! That b.a.s.t.a.r.d loan shark, that heartless b.a.s.t.a.r.d. If he comes near us, let’s hang him upside down from a bell tower!” Just then, the front door of the mansion opened. A blonde kid ran out of the haunted mansion in a panic——it was Majic. “Huh?” The young boy had just noticed them. “What are you doing here?”    “Ah, well……” Dortin was hesitant to answer, he pointed towards his brother. Vulcan stared at Majic. Meanwhile, the sheets with blue painted words fluttered in the wind. “Oh…..never mind.” Majic said breathlessly. Then he said: “Did you see a woman come out before me?” “A woman?” “Her name……is Hirietta. She looks very dangerous. We got separated on the way out.” “No, we didn’t see anyone else come out.” Dortin said as he shook his head, Majic was frustrated. “This is trouble……I might be scolded by master.” “We’ve been here for a while though.” Then—— Smash! Overhead——a window was broken, someone came flying out and gla.s.s fragments flew everywhere. The body rapidly fell down, like the person was thrown out the window. Like a stone, the person whacked the ground with a loud thud. “Ah, it’s an a.s.sa.s.sin!” Dortin cried. The a.s.sa.s.sin——a man called Kozen, his face was full of fear, he pressed down on his left shoulder. He then noticed Majic and the others, he looked curiously at them. Kozen slowly, angrily said: “In the end, that woman……” “Hey!” Dortin shouted. Kozen stumbled as he tried to stand up, Vulcan and his chamber of commerce (plus one) stared at the a.s.sa.s.sin.   ***   While running down the hall, Orphen managed to avoid the whips of the “armour”. If he stopped or messed up even once, he would surely be cut into pieces by the numerous whips. The only thing that could be heard in the deserted mansion was Orphen’s footsteps and the Armours movements. Finally——Orphen had reached the main hall. He ducked under the state of the G.o.ddess’, this served as an obstacle to block the “armours” attacks. Also, the state was four meters tall, which gave him a sense of security. However, it wasn’t the suit of armour that came after him——it was the snake, it rushed towards Orphen’s position. (d.a.m.n it, that b.l.o.o.d.y came can probably smell me.) Orphen left the shadow of the statue, he rolled on the floor and shouted the following incantation: “I see thee, Lady of Chaos!” Like being surrounded by a lady wearing a black dress, shadow-like swirls of gravity struck the snake man to the ground. It wouldn’t kill the snake, but it was more effective than using physical attacks. The snake tried shooting venom as it saw Orphen running towards it. He jumped on top of the man-made beast, putting his hands on the snake’s throat. “I tear thee, wall of the earth!” Whack! It was like a giant sickle hit the snake man in the head, it opened its mouth and screamed——Orphen quickly stuffed his left fist in its mouth. “Goodbye.” Then, he immediately cried: “I call thee, sisters of rupture!” ——In an instant, the snake man’s body rapidly expanded, whether it was its eyes or nose, fluids and flesh began to pour out of all its holes. The shockwave was tearing apart the snake man’s organs. Orphen used his right hand to wipe the blood from his body, and pulled his left hand from its mouth. His leather glove had been eroded by the snake man’s horrendous venom, while the venom hadn’t reached his skin, Orphen threw the glove to the floor. “First I’ve got to——” He saw the armour standing at the entrance, it lunged towards him, almost like giving his lover a hug. “What?” Orphen muttered, as the “armour” opened up its helmet. Numerous metal whips made out of steel began to form a human shape. Then—— Orphen didn’t even have time to think, as the a.s.sault began. “You idiot!” Orphen blurted out, he grabbed the corpse of the snake man and flung it towards the “armour”. He could hear numerous puncture sounds as both bodies flew across the hall. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Orphen started moving. He looked at the suit of armour, stretch out his right hand, and exclaimed: “Sword of Light, whom I do release!” A wave of light and heat flew from Orphen’s hand, and hit the “armour”. Although it struck the armours chest, the result was no different than before——the “armour” calmly stood up. The snake didn’t move one bit, it was certainly dead. (How the h.e.l.l am I supposed to destroy this "armour".) Although it wasn't entirely impossible—— Orphen's heart was beating wildly, he ran back behind the statue of the G.o.ddess'. Blood rushed to his face, sweat was dripping from him uncontrollably, and he was out of breath. (I'm almost at my limits——I don't think I can use much more magic.) As a result, he'd need to avoid unnecessary attacks. If he made any hasty movements, the last of his strength would be wasted. Orphen put his hand on the statue. Then suddenly—— "——I'm done for!" The hand came out from inside the statue of the G.o.ddess', it seized Orphen's left hand. It's thick fingers dung into his skin, causing his hand to go red. The "hand" had a surprisingly strong grip, it was like it was made out of stone. Orphen tried with all his might to remove the hand, but he couldn’t make it budge one bit. The suit of armour then began to stand up, it turned to face Orphen. Numerous whips flew out from it's body, and went towards Orphen. (This is it.) Orphen determined, with the hand stilling holding onto him, he shouted: "I dance in thee, mansion of heaven!" In an instant, Orphen teleported not far from the ceiling of the hall. It was such a long distance——moving ten meters isn't that easy. Orphen didn't even know if he would succeed, but he'd rather suffer a fall than he hit by the "armours" attack. He looked over at the "hand". It was still stuck to his left arm. The hand was very hairy, he thought that it belonged to an ape or some other creature. What looked like veins stretched for about half a meter from the hand, at the end was a "brain" the size of a fist. It was the "hand", and the rest of Kenkurimu. Orphen didn't want to teleport again, he was afraid of appearing inside a wall or in the floor... Right now he was in the air, he couldn't escape. Orphen grabbed the "hand" as he fell, and reached towards the brain, he crushed it with all his might, the "hand" then let go of Orphen. During this, he continued to fall——he was directly above the statue of the G.o.ddess', he saw the "armour" waiting below. (I hope this works...) "Sword of Light, whom I do release!" His target wasn't the armour, but the feet of the G.o.ddesses——the lower part of the statue exploded, the statue began to tilt—— Orphen's feet touched the head of the statue, his body was like a pendulum, in a flash, he jumped along the heads of the G.o.ddesses, almost superfluously. In short, he wanted the statue to fall upon the "armour". Orphen flew from the statue and landed on the floor, breaking a few ribs in the process. He looked up, the armour had been crushed by the statue, an invisible shadow moved through the dust, Orphen's breathing was intense, he though: (Great, so that leaves......) Orphen said, as he stood up, and looked around the hall. At this time—— A shadow stepped out from a corner of the hall, it moved towards him. It had a slender figure, it's long black hair swinging wildly, as it started clapping. Orphen whispered: "Majic?" "I let him go outside, then I came back." The figure——it was Hirietta, she was smiling. Orphen angrily wiped the sweat from his forehead. "So you've been hiding in the dark watching from the side-lines?" "I wanted to see how things played out." Hirietta said, as she looked at the statue of the G.o.ddesses. "You seem very happy." Orphen touched his inured left hand with his right hand, he didn't think the wound was that deep, there was excessive bleeding and paralysis setting in. If possible, he wanted to use magic to heal his injuries, but he didn't have the strength to do so. "It seems I was right." "About what?" Orphen asked. She replied: "You really are a strong sorcerer, one of the best on this continent." "......So what." Orphen unhappily said: "I've defeated those man-made beasts, all that's left is Samii. But I don’t have the power to——" He said in a very small voice. Thud! They both heard the opening and closing of a door, it sounded like it came from the second floor. Tap, tap......he could hear soft footsteps, Orphen's ears stood up. It was coming from the second floor balcony, he glanced at Hirietta, she heard it too, but she just stood there with her arms folded. Orphen whispered: "It can't be Samii, he can't make noise walking. It must be another man-made beast." Hirietta shook her head. She then spoke in a calm tone: "Do you know why they call Samii the strongest man-made beast?" "Why?" Orphen was confused, she kept talking: "He can appear anywhere, and attack from anywhere. He also has the ability to control other man-made beasts......and more..." "That means......" Orphen had a surprised look on his face, Hirietta pulled a dagger from her leg. "I don't know how he does it, but Samii can possess any creature, and control it. That kid Majic, didn't he say something about Cleo being dead?" Just then, the footsteps stopped. They looked up——at the top of the stairs stood a girl, her pet.i.te body was standing still. Orphen felt his heart wavering. "Cleo?" It was her, she stood at the top of the stairs, holding a blade in her hand. Her eyes were dull, like she had just been woken up. Since Orphen used so much magic in the windowless hall, the air in the room was hot, it produced some airflow.  Hirietta suddenly said: "I don't think I need to remind you, but she is still alive. Don't be too reckless, or you'll injure her." "That goes for you too——" Then—— Thud! Something landed behind them, they turned around and saw Cleo on the floor. (Did she jump from the stairs?) Orphen instinctively jumped backwards——Cleo threw her sword at him, and quickly ran towards him. Orphen easily rolled out of the way, Cleo immediately picked up her sword, and attacked again. Orphen ducked——he just barely avoided her attack. He could hear the sound of the air above him being cut, the sound was slightly painful. It was like being in a dream, a hot, slow moving scene, Cleo attacking without the slightest pause, her blade reflecting the coldness—— (She's trying to kill me!) Orphen cried in his heart. Since his opponent was Cleo, he decided to attack her eyes with his right hand—— Suddenly, Cleo disappeared. He looked around, he saw the girl lying on the ground. Hirietta had kicked her from the side. "You okay?" Hirietta asked. Orphen stood motionlessly as he looked at Cleo in horror, and said: "Yeah, I'm fine." He took the sword from Cleo's hands. Her hands were cold. Hirietta put her dagger back in her sheath, she sighed, and said: "It looked like you were going to die, and I thought you were good." "Sometimes, I forget to use my reflexes." Orphen unhappily said, as he threw the sword to the second balcony. "Since I left the Tower of Fang five years ago, my combat skills aren't what they used to be." Clatter, the sword landed on the second floor. Orphen smiled. "Anyway, Hirietta......what is Samii really?"     "Huh?" Orphen left Hirietta puzzled, he the pulled Cleo's body closer. He touched her belly like a doctor, tapping it slightly——he stopped. "Here?" Orphen threw himself backwards, Cleo silently wailed. "————!" She began to cough. Lying on the floor, she wanted to take a deep breath, but she couldn't, she could only keep coughing. Orphen observed this, and wiped cold sweat from his head. A black mist then began to form around her face, it swirled around her and then dissipated. Cleo stopped coughing. She lay there motionless, her face buried in some dirt on the floor. Orphen felt uneasy, as he quietly watched her. "Hey......Cleo?" "You did a good thing!" Cleo suddenly stood up, she then slapped Orphen's face. Facing such an attack, he took a few steps backwards. "Is this how you treat your saviour!" "Saviour? I was coughing wildly! I even saw my father waving to me on a flower filled sh.o.r.e!" "Well, I——" Cleo silenced him with a movement of her hand, she pointed at him and angrily said: "And you had the nerve to hit my stomach! If something happened to me, you are the one to blame, Orphen!" (I'm the one to blame?) Orphen thought. "Listen, I——" "Where's your common sense? How could you hit me?" "But I was——" "I was out for a long time, you could have kissed me. One time I fell down the stairs and hit my head, I wanted to live in a monastery! Heck, I even got some brochures!" "Shut up!" Orphen was running out of patience, he tripped her with his foot. "If I really wanted to do some damage, I would have hit your stomach or uterus, that way you would be vomiting blood right about now." "Listen——" Hirietta spoke. "What can we do to get her back to normal?" "Well, your guess is as good as mine." Orphen said, as he scratched his head. "Anyway, we should be able to handle any attack she throws at us." The girl was sitting on the ground. Orphen shrugged as he continued "However, when I was almost killed last night, I think Samii was trying to control my consciousness. I was unable to breath, I think Samii's body is some type of gas that enters the lungs and dominates the body——he possesses people and makes sure they don't suffocate, I suspect he is also made out of a high concentration of oxygen." After he had finished speaking, Cleo spoke with a sinister tone: "That's just speculation, why don't you try hitting me again?" Orphen looked at her, and said: "Even if I can't force you out from her lungs, there are a couple of other methods I could try." Cleo momentarily had a puzzled expression, but it quickly turned into a mischievous smile. "If you want, you could help me find a certain place." "…...Cut it out, you d.a.m.n five year old......" "But——" Hirietta interrupted them. "If Samii is actually gas, how do we fight him?" "Simple, we just gather him inside something." Orphen joked. He then turned to Hirietta. "One way or another, we'll think of something." "…........." Hirietta didn't say anything else, she took a deep breath and looked around, it was like she was looking for something. Orphen sighed. "Come on, let's get out of here. We'll need to prepare to remove Samii." Orphen said, helping at the dust off Cleo. Much to her dismay. "This place is full of dust, I can't stand it." "…...If you two want to go, you can leave first." ——Listening to her words, Orphen couldn't help but feel that something bad was going to happen. Unexpectedly, he put his hand on Cleo's shoulder, his hand was bright red. "Cleo, can you do something for me?"
"......What is it?" "You leave first, go outside and see if Majic is there." "Alright, but aren't you coming?" He looked directly at Cleo, then simply pointed at Hirietta. "This mansion, these monsters lived here. It's too dangerous for you to stay, but me and Hirietta should be fine." "…........." Orphen avoided direct eye contact with Cleo, he went on to say: "Once you find Majic, tell him to put oil around the house and set it on fire, that should be enough." "Fire?" Cleo said with a puzzled expression. "If we set the mansion on fire, what about you?" "We'll find a way to escape, don't worry about us." Orphen finisehd talking, he the pointed towards the exit and told Cleo to leave. "Please, don't leave too late. You've got to get out before all the exits are blocked." "I know......" Orphen pushed her, and turned his head. She took a couple of steps forwards, she stopped——turned her head, and gently said: "Orphen, am I a burden to you?" "Yes, most of the time you are a burden to me......" Hearing this, Cleo was instantly hurt, her face became distorted. Orphen looked at her face, and said: "Not in that way, both you are Majic are burdens that weigh me down——without you, G.o.d knows where I'd be drifting." "….........?" Cleo didn't say anything. She quickly ran towards the exit, she turned back, with mixed feelings, she said: "Don't get burned." "…...Huh. No matter what you say, she still listens." Hirietta joked. Orphen was too lazy to correct her. (If I go back to being Krylancelo——I will return to the life of a combat black sorcerer. But since Cleo is still alive, I will remain a loan shark for the time being.) In short, he's doing it all for her.   "…...Is this it?" Orphen crossed his arms. They were on the second floor. After a decade of no one cleaning the house, dust piled up everywhere, though this room was fairly clean. It didn't feel natural at all, all the rooms windows were nailed shut, the room was very dark. They could make out a bookcase, an empty vase on a table, also on the table was a black and white photo. The bed in the room had a doll in the shape of a bear between the two pillows. "Yes. I forgot something." Hirietta said as she stepped into the room, Orphen followed her, and said: "Is this your room?" "Yes. Here......look, I found it." On the table was a beautiful diary, she picked it up. Then he patted the dust off of it, and held it close to her chest. Orphen was more interested in what was next to the diary, it was a picture frame——an old black and white photo, it was a man and a woman standing together. The tall young man looked familiar, upon closer inspection, the girl beside him looked like Hirietta. She hadn't changed much over the years, but for some reason the girl in the photo looked more mature, she had long hair, some flowers, and was wearing a long bow. Both the young girl and man stood side by side, they had their hands on each other’s shoulders and were smiling. Orphen could tell that the man was Samii, he had changed much from his picture. "Is this you in the photo?" "…...Yeah." Hirietta then turned towards him, exposing a sarcastic smile. "I bet you want to ask me some questions." "No, none." Orphen shrugged. After he regained his strength, he healed his wrist injury. Even though his entire body hadn't fully recovered, this was no problem for him. "For some reason, I feel like I can't let this place go." "…...Can you think of a reason?" "Maybe its Samii, maybe I want to burn with him in this place." After he listened to her words, for a slight moment, her lips trembled. "I think its my duty, I need to be here until his very last moment." "Is it because you love him?" "Yes." "I was just fifteen years old at the time." "Its because you were a young girl." She touched the cover of her diary——then looked around for a place to sit, she sat on the dust covered bed, and continued talking. "Samii was really good to me——I was just some wandering homeless girl. This diary, he gave it to me for my birthday——he prepared everything in this room, Samii said he got most of the things after the death of his sister, I could tell that he missed her dearly, but I tried not to think of myself as her replacement. You know, he taught me everything from reading to writing, he even got me to live here with Fonogorosu......" "Regardless of Samii's intent, Fonogorosu had his own plans." Orphen knew Fonogorosu had ulterior motives——he took the words right from Hirietta's mouth, she wanted to say this, and Orphen could see the rising anger in her eyes. "It's obvious that a man like Fonogorosu would not feed and clothe someone he didn't know for no reason." "That's right, he wanted to use me for an experiment, not Samii." A sarcastic smile went across her face, as her fingers touched the cover of her diary. "As far as common sense is concerned, no one would willingly sacrifice their body. All the a.s.sistants were afraid......and then Fonogorosu went mad, when it came to my clothes——" She was referring to her black leather clothing. "This is something that was involved in the development of a man-made beast, it was made for my fifteen year old self, now it's a little uncomfortable. Fonogorosu wanted to use this for killing sorcerers." (Is this what happened to Hirietta after being merged with a man-made beast?) Orphen thought, but he didn't want to ask her if it was true. He decided to ask something else. "In the end, you weren't transformed?" Upon hearing this, she laughed out loud. "No——when I was thrown into the culture tank, Samii pulled me out at the last moment. However, he fell into the tank while pulling me out, Fonogorosu then transformed him instead of me." At the same time, she hit the bed with her hand. "There was nothing I could do——every day I went down to the bas.e.m.e.nt and looked into the culture tank that held Samii, on the last day, before he lost consciousness——he said to me, kill me now. Right after that——" A cold smile froze on her lips. "He became the first client of the foolish dog Hirietta, and the last." "I see......you've had a lot to think about." After Orphen said that, she laughed. "Don't take me for a fool, I wasn't born yesterday, Samii is——he's just a memory of my first love. In the eight years since I lost him, I haven't really loved another man. But even so, I couldn't let him suffer like that, that's why over these last eight years I've been looking for a sorcerer that could kill him. When I heard news that you disappeared from the Tower of Fang, I became overjoyed, I knew that would be able to kill Samii. I didn't hesitate using Ostwald to help find you, because I couldn't afford to fail in my endeavour." "There's something I don't understand." Orphen sternly said. He asked: "After Samii left Cleo, I didn't see him go anywhere. Where is he now? You know, right?" "He's somewhere in this house, probably waiting to seize an opportunity." "Why hasn't he come to attack?" "Since you killed all the man made beasts, he's probably confused. He must have believed that such a thing was impossible. You said that you were going to burn the mansion, will that kill Samii?" Orphen felt that she wanted to take revenge. He replied: "If he's dispersed throughout the house, then nows a good time." He then went towards the barricaded window——he punched through the wood, opening a hole in the window, dazzling white light shot into the dark room. It was the afternoon, there was some time before it was evening—— Smoke could be seen from outside the window. Orphen waved the smoke away, and said: "It's begun. Cleo has done her job, Majic and Vulcan have been mobilized. Vulcan is just like a child......he's quite the fire starter." "Will this fire kill Samii?" Hirietta asked, Orphen said that it would. "His body is composed of gas, though its probably closer to oxygen. This buildings made out of wood......his body will surely react with the flammable substances. If he can't get out, he'll turn back into dust." "…........." Hirietta swallowed. Orphen said to her: "We can escape using my magic. If you want to witness Samii's last moment, then I won't stop you. If you stay here, you will die within ten minutes." After listening to Orphen, Hirietta nodded——she didn't say anything. Orphen didn't know if she was going to stay or not. "Hirietta——eight years ago he died, even if you don't want to admit it, what's left of him will die. You will be burdened no longer." "You know, there's something I want to say to you." "What is it?" "Thank you." "Huh?" Orphen shrugged. "After listening to what you said about Fonogorosu and Samii, it made me happy." "…...Listen......" Orphen clenched his fist, and said: "If you really want to stay here, then——I won't stop you. People die all the time for nothing——but I'd rather have you listen to my opinion on the matter——" "Your opinion?" She asked, Orphen didn't speak for a moment, he didn't know what to say—— "I don't want someone like you to die." Unconsciously his face went serious. Then—— She laughed out loud, she found this hilarious. Orphen maintained a look of displeasure on his face, he regretted uttering such words.     *** "Haha, haha!" Vulcan was swinging his arms like a mad man, as he laughed in front of the burning house. His flag was sitting on his shoulder, it read: Vulcan's third Chamber of commerce, let's laugh as the marvellous fire consumes the monsters and the loan shark! Vulcan proudly shouted: "This is it! This is what I've been waiting for!" "…........." The a.s.sa.s.sin Kozen watched as Vulcan directed his brother Dortin and the children to pour oil around the house. "Hey! Don't get too close to the fire! Lloyd!" Cleo skilfully ordered the children, Majic stood behind her. Dortin tugged at the hem of his shirt, the blonde haired boy turned around. "What?" Dortin anxiously said: "Ah......is this okay? Will the  village people just let us burn down this house......" "I don't think so......" Majic said, with a blank expression on his face. Dortin then whispered: "Although I'm not my brother, it wouldn't be good if the loan shark burned to death. Especially if you guys were to blame us." "You really do talk too much......" Majic stopped talking, he saw that the flames were now reaching the roof. "I hope Master knows what he's doing......he's responsible for all of this." "You really have no sense of responsibility." Dortin said, Majic disagreed with him, he said: "How can you say that? This whole thing was Master's idea, he should be the one to take responsibility. This is a very rational way of thinking." "Really? Because that sounds like something Vulcan would say." Dortin asked, he was puzzled. Suddenly, he heard a scream, it was his brothers voice.                  "Whaaaaaaaat?" Looking back, Dortin saw the little children pouring oil around Vulcan, it seemed they wanted to take revenge. One of them threw a match, the oil was set alight—— "Fire." "Fire!" Majic and Dortin shouted, Vulcan ran around in a circle, desperate to escape. Cleo saw this, and quickly said: "Ah! Kaufman, get some water!" "Yes, sister." "I poured some! Uh, ah! My mistake, that was oil." The fire grew larger, Vulcan was flung into a frenzy, Kozen then walked towards Majic. The a.s.sa.s.sin had bloodstained clothes from a previous battle, however his injuries weren't deep. He said: "If it's alright with you, I'm going to leave." "Um, okay......" Majic said, he was surprised, and asked: "But, aren't you going to help?" "…........." Kozen deliberately ignored him, then a moment later, he spoke: "No, I'm not." His gaze drifted in the direction of Cleo. Majic noticed this, and said: "Well, if you are interested in Cleo I suggest you give up, you'll find out she's nothing but trouble." "I'm not interested  in a little girl like her!" Kozen shouted in a loud voice. Dortin and Majic were both visibly shaken. Dortin looked up to the a.s.sa.s.sin, and said: "Anyway, please take care, mister." "Call me Kozen." "Hey." Majic interrupted. "No matter what you do, your still a good for nothing a.s.sa.s.sin. Your kind is despicable." "…...That wasn't very nice......" Dortin said. Kozen squinted, his face was difficult to see, but he only sighed, he quickly forgot about it and turned around. "Maybe......" Majic said slowly. "That man has no sense of presence, something in his life would need to chance before he stopped being an a.s.sa.s.sin." (Though I think that's highly unlikely.) Dortin didn't answer, he just watched Kozen walk further away. Now the house was completely on fire, the only thing that could be heard was the burning of the house, and the yelling of Vulcan.     ***     He knew that he could just leave these people—— However he couldn't feel any pain, but that was exactly what he needed to remember. Over time, he had the feeling that he was getting "thinner", the howling flames were all around him, taking apart his body——there was no way of knowing where it would go. He only knew that his body was destined to go somewhere. But after he departs, what would he be leaving behind? This vague question plagued his thoughts. However, he knew that his true self died long ago, what remained was only that sh.e.l.l that wouldn't last much longer. After one hour, the big house burned to the ground, and what was left of him disappeared. He didn't know where most of his body has gone, but his consciousness remained. ......... "Ever since I came to this village, it's really been a nice long day." He heard those words before, it was a familiar voice, a voice that filled him with nothing but horror and despair, but he couldn't remember it. Who are you? Fonogorosu? This world, will it end because of him? "I intend to repay you, Orphen." That voice was also familiar, upon hearing it, it filled him with grief. "It doesn't matter, I wasn't expecting any kind of compensation." "Your welcome to it. Anyway......the house has been completely burned down." "It was old, and the wood was very dry." "Huh?" "Look, it's him." "…........." Naturally, he was speechless. "Samii doesn't seem to be completely burnt." "…...Only a little." "Its possible that he regenerated, or maybe there wasn’t any combustible materials near him to burn him." "…...There was some." "Hey, Hirietta?" She pulled on the back zipper of her outfit, she pulled it down and a handful of mist fluttered into the air——It was the part of Samii that didn't burn, Hirietta held it in her arms like a mother would hold a child, she the picked up a red hot iron from the still burning rubble, and plunged it into her chest. "Hirietta!" Someone screamed behind her. She refused to respond to him——she just wanted to think of that vision she had in her mind. In that vision she saw the hot burning iron burning her skin, her body sweating——the pain was getting more intense, but her brain could only think of one thing. (I will never forget about you——) Her chest was badly damaged——but in this wound she saw Samii disappearing, she said: "Rest in peace, in my chest." The fog then dissipated, it was gone. She looked back, Orphen looked like a fool, she said to him: "Could you do me a favour and heal my wound?"   She propped up her upper body, pulled the zipper back up, and smiled.