NABC Chapter 15
Chapter 15
[translator - night]
[proofreader - gun]
chapter 15
"remember, our top priority is securing leon's safety!!"
"my lady! please step back! it’s dangerous!"
"if i don’t go, who will? stop spouting nonsense and follow me!"
she swiftly entered an isolated alleyway.
the place where the traces left by leon had led was filled with the overwhelming stench of blood.
even the most hardened scoundrels would grimace and avoid entering such a scene.
thanks to that, there was no issue with the knights entering the area.
"ugh?!"
how far had they ventured?
melissa, along with the knights and soldiers of the count’s territory, clamped their hands over their mouths, their faces stiffening.
"my god... what is this?"
a horrific scene of hell lay before them.
not a single body had died peacefully; they were all brutally mutilated.
everywhere was soaked in blood, and the faces of the deceased were frozen in a mixture of terror and regret.
"leon... leon!!"
overcome with fear, melissa dashed forward, terrified that her only family, leon, might be among the casualties.
"my lady!!"
hearing screams not far ahead, she quickened her pace even further.
"please... please!! save me!"
the anguished cries, so broken that it was impossible to discern whose they were, made melissa tremble with fear, dreading that the owner of the voice might be leon.
ignoring the goosebumps prickling her skin, she pressed onward.
when melissa and her party finally reached the end of the narrow alleyway, they froze in shock.
slash!!
leon, drenched in blood from head to toe, was ruthlessly slashing the throat of a terrified knight without hesitation.
they had already encountered countless bodies on their way here.
if that was the case...
did leon kill all of them himself?
"brother?"
melissa slowly approached him.
leon's eyes, dripping with blood from who knows whose body, looked cold—frigid, even.
"melissa."
eventually, leon's voice, weary and worn, reached her ears.
"huh?"
"on your way here, you’ll find the body of vishiri cascadia. make sure to retrieve it."
with those words, leon staggered forward.
"finally..."
muttering blankly, leon collapsed flat onto the ground without hesitation.
"ha, damn it... i can finally sleep."
his voice, tinged with incomprehensible pain, carried an overwhelming sense of relief and happiness.
for someone who had created such a horrifying scene, his tone was unnervingly peaceful.
watching leon lie down without a care, melissa, feeling both exasperated and bewildered, cautiously gave her orders.
"take leon back... the rest of you, stay with me to recover the bodies and search for any remaining enemies."
"yes, ma’am!!"
at melissa’s command, the knights, still pale with fear, began to move.
how did this catastrophe happen?
did that frail young lord really kill all of these people by himself?
the questions piled up like a mountain, but the one person who could provide answers was already fast asleep.
* * *
"ha... hahaha... hahahahaha!!"
one of the continent’s greatest swordsmen, the star of the sword, osberg mielephon, burst into hearty laughter.
"uh, elder?"
had anyone ever seen osberg laugh so freely?
the man accompanying him stared blankly at the family elder, his eyes wide with surprise.
"sir, are you alright?"
"khehe... yes, i’m fine. living long enough, you get to experience everything."
"i’m sorry, sir, but i don’t understand what you mean."
"what comes to mind when you see that boy?"
at that question, the man shifted his gaze to the young boy lying flat on the ground.
to be honest, it was astonishing.
“that boy isn’t your disciple yet. and i can’t help but feel wary about the temperament of someone so ruthless.”
osberg chuckled at the man’s remark.
“true, he may seem ruthless. but you never truly know someone until you meet their gaze and have a conversation.”
“considering the adversarial relationship, it’s hard to dismiss that boy as a mere killer. still, it’s not even certain he’ll accept you...”
the sword saint, osberg mielephon, remained unhurried.
“after all, am i not one of the continent’s greatest swordsmen? there’s no way he’d refuse—”
[i’m sorry, but i must decline.]
when the boy woke up two days later, osberg’s hopes were dashed with those very words.
* * *
the act of sleeping itself was a source of deep trauma for me.
i couldn’t bring myself to sleep voluntarily.
the solution was simple:
first, somehow fall asleep.
second, come to terms with the fact that it’s okay to sleep.
whether this would lead to a complete cure was uncertain, but with repeated attempts, progress would eventually come.
i had expected to fall into a dreamless sleep.
but when i became aware after falling asleep, i found myself in the scenery of labyrinthos.
wait... this isn’t right.
labyrinthos was supposed to be gone.
it was said to have vanished forever, that no one could ever enter it again.
my hands and feet trembled uncontrollably, and rage welled up inside me.
“hey, librarian.”
i called out to the one i could always vent my anger on, but there was no reply.
instead...
shhhhhhhh.
familiar letters of a different form and color appeared before my eyes.
[red moon]
red moon?
raising my head to the crimson sky at the floating words, i saw it—a sinister, blood-red moon that resembled an ominous eye.
it was the same grotesque moon that had never disappeared since i first came to labyrinthos.
[prepare for the red moon.]
“what am i supposed to prepare for? what the hell is going on? why am i here...?”
[prepare for the red moon.]
[prepare for the red moon.]
[prepare for the red moon.]
[prepare for the red moon.]
the same words echoed repeatedly, filling every corner as if trying to break my mind with their unyielding repetition.
finally, after the maddening sequence:
[good luck. ^#$^#$%% this time, you must %$&$^.]
with that single phrase, the surroundings instantly changed.
“huh!”
jerking awake, i gasped for breath as i looked around at the familiar scene of my room.
“hah... hah... what a crazy nightmare.”
thankfully, it wasn’t the hellscape of labyrinthos this time.
“ah... i want some ice cream.”
the fatigue that had been gnawing at my mind was gone, replaced by a sense of lightness and clarity.
at the same time, memories from both my previous and current lives grew even more vivid.
[you are nearly ready to receive the memory of the third sanctuary.]
the third?
looking at the librarian’s words floating in the air, i debated asking about the dream but ultimately shook my head.
it was probably just a random nightmare.
if it wasn’t, the librarian would’ve brought it up immediately.
“what happens when i receive it?”
[currently, you are not in an optimal state, so there is a risk of severe physical strain and mental fragmentation.]
“then let’s wait until i’m fully prepared. no need to push myself to the point of breaking when i’ve got plenty to handle already.”
[understood.]
for now, my sword and fists were enough to keep me alive.
still, i felt that i could now break through the wall of expert if i wanted.
with my body now accustomed to aura and properly nourished, surpassing the expert barrier wouldn’t be difficult.
‘if i push a little harder, i might even break through to swordmaster...’
[translator - night]
[proofreader - gun]
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