Chapter 28
I struck down with all my strength at the demon’s hand as it brushed past while I dodged. But, as expected, the damage was minimal.
“Guess I’ll need to take a few hits. They say you get stronger when your health is low.”
I approached the demon.
The demon let out a delighted, eerie cry, as if thinking its prey had gone mad with fear.
Then, it raised its massive weapon high and brought it crashing down to crush me.
Boom—!
I couldn’t look away. I forced myself to keep my eyes on the incoming weapon.
The sharp blades were coiled around the long spear shaft like a writhing serpent.
If those blades cut me, it wouldn’t just reduce my health—it would cripple me or kill me instantly.
I braced and slammed into the blunt side of the weapon, careful not to let my body be cleaved in half.
The sheer force of impact hurled me away.
“Kuhk—! Cough, cough.”
When I covered my mouth, blood seeped through. My insides must have been damaged.
[You have damaged your mana circuits. Penalty to magic applies!]
[‘Berserker’ does not use mana circuits. Only vitality decreases!]
[Current Vitality: 60%]
All around the garden ruin were shattered temple columns and cracked temple floors.
Crashing against a wall, I looked upward.
‘Something usable….’
Then, I caught sight of a gleam.
What entered my vision was a decorative halberd.
It was far too large and heavy for an ordinary person to wield—clearly just for display.
That made it perfect.
I wrenched it free, the blade much sharper than expected.
“The ‘key’—both the heroine and the villainess are said to possess one.”
I no longer trusted Yeniel’s faction.
If I made it to the third floor, I would have to find the other keyholder—“the villainess, Evelyn.”
[Current Vitality: 30%]
Kiiiiii—!
The demon at first seemed to think I had simply failed to dodge, but when it realized I was deliberately taking hits, it swung even more violently.
It leapt high and tried to crush me from above.
I flowed with the attack and absorbed the blow.
My body felt lighter than ever.
Blood streamed down, soaking the white dress crimson.
[Current Vitality: 16%]
“The lower my health, the stronger I become… right.”
If possible, I didn’t want to kill humans.
I only wanted to return to my family—not as a murderer who couldn’t adapt back in the real world.
But if Evelyn was the same as Yeniel—
The demon lunged, slashing wildly. I met its attacks with the halberd, blocking with cold precision.
A single mistake meant death.
The halberd’s blade shone, spattering the demon’s black blood.
[9%]
[5%]
[3%]
-1% was what one might expect, but the lower my health fell, the stronger my attacks grew—overwhelming even the demon’s regeneration.
The wicked, grotesque face twisted in frustration.
Now it was the demon that grew desperate.
Its mocking contempt for humans was gone.
[1%]
At last, I had reached it.
The razor’s edge of life and death—where even a graze meant instant demise.
And yet, this was the state where April became the strongest.
Kieeeeeh—!
Sensing something, the demon began retreating from me.
Now I approached slowly, while the once-predator shrank back like prey.
I wasn’t the one trapped in this dungeon with the demon. The demon was trapped in here with me.
With cold eyes, I assessed the situation.
No amount of resistance could save it now. My halberd cleaved deep into the demon.
The creature sacrificed its arm to block, but its severed limb fell with a heavy thud, filling the air with the stench of blood.
Its attacks grew frantic, but also simpler.
Kiiieee! Kyaaaah—!
Its giant wings beat furiously, stirring the garden and trying to keep me at bay.
Then—it exhaled a black poisonous breath.
In that instant, my sharpened vision caught the movement.
The berserker’s trait drove my body beyond its limits.
With an impossible motion, I lightly dodged back, evading the breath.
Then, I slashed with the halberd.
“Ah, right. I almost forgot. The head must remain intact.”
That was the gift I would present to Yeniel’s faction.
I raised the halberd and severed the demon’s head.
Blood gushed, and I held the dripping head in my hand.
The demon was dead.
Blood spattered across my face.
Most monsters in this shadow world don’t die permanently—but unlike doppelgängers, demons do not revive.
Even if it did, I would simply kill it again.
‘Evelyn, huh.’
I hadn’t seen enough of her at the banquet to judge.
Back then, I chose Yeniel because she was the one evacuating people.
Hopefully Evelyn would prove better.
For now, it was time to act once more as the foolish noble lady, April.
Here, death was real death.
Suspicion must be avoided at all costs.
“I’m sick of the favorability stat already.”
I turned to leave with the demon’s head in hand—but glanced back at the barred gate in the garden dungeon.
Beyond the bars, doppelgängers lurked.
There were five, though four had vague, faceless forms—perhaps lacking a target to mimic.
I swung the halberd once, horizontally.
BOOM—!
The gate shattered in half with a deafening crash.
The doppelgängers dissolved into ash.
Whether it was the halberd’s enchanted metal or the demon’s blood on its blade, it didn’t matter.
With the demon’s death, the dungeon doors opened.
I stepped into the fourth floor corridor, dragging the bloodstained dress as I descended toward the third floor.
Thunder and rain roared outside, battering the windows.
I hummed softly, as though I really were April.
The once-white dress was soaked scarlet.
I left the blood splatters on my cheek unwashed.
The halberd still dripped demon blood.
After a long walk, I found the resting lounge—the floor’s reward.
I remembered clearly the pale, fearful faces of those who had wanted me dead.
I raised the halberd and smashed the door open.
Crash—! Crack—!
The lock gave way easily, shattering under force.
The noise drew the people inside out in alarm.
Still holding the demon’s head, I looked upon those who had once plotted my death.
With folded eyes, hiding my cold glare, I asked with pure innocence—just like the real April would.
“So, you were all here?”
Someone audibly gasped.
POP OFFFFFFFFFF