Chapter 16
Somehow, doesn’t this story sound very familiar?
When I first came to this world and heard this legend, I even shouted plagiarism at the author in my heart. The setting felt like a perfect mix of Greek–Roman mythology and the Bible. I could clearly imagine where the author must have taken inspiration from when building the world.
“You know it well. It never used to come out in groups big enough to cross the city walls like this, but lately it’s gotten much worse. There’s definitely been an abnormal change.”
Lloyd finished his speculation and fell silent.
I followed behind him, deep in thought.
Hmm. An abnormality in the Holy Land…
In the novel, the villainess broke all the seals of the Holy Land and summoned demons onto the continent. But I didn’t have that kind of power, and I had no intention of touching a perfectly fine Holy Land either. So I had always brushed off the newspapers’ talk about abnormalities as nothing serious.
With the villainess gone from this world, shouldn’t it be pure peace?
Anyway, the biggest problem right in front of me right now was—
My feet! My feet hurt so much!
I frowned at the pain shooting up from my feet. They were screaming, begging me to stop.
Wondering how long we had been walking, I took out the pocket watch I had tucked inside my clothes. Exactly four hours had passed since we left Dorkan.
Four hours of walking!
Healers aren’t meant for physical labor. This kind of endurance training was a first for me, and my body was creaking and crying out in pain. I thought we would finally rest, but Lloyd just kept walking in silence.
Dragging my aching feet, I followed after him again.
How much longer did we walk?
Since we hadn’t stopped at all, my breathing naturally grew rough. I was panting hard, but Lloyd continued forward without a word.
I really couldn’t go on any farther.
Gathering my courage, I spoke to him.
“Um… e-excuse me…”
“What is it?”
He turned around. Not a single drop of sweat was on his face. Meanwhile, I was drenched.
How could someone walk for four hours without sweating even a little?
Admiring the inhuman stamina of the protagonist, I made the most pitiful expression I could.
“C-could we rest… just for a bit?”
Lloyd clicked his tongue when he saw me.
“You’re troublesome. This place is dangerous. There’s nowhere to rest.”
The moment he finished speaking, a low growl echoed from deep within the forest.
Grrr…
Startled, I hurriedly pressed myself close behind Lloyd.
“That’s the sound of a High Orc. It’s nearby.”
Nearby? The sound had seemed really far away.
As I was confused by his words—
KROAAARGH—!
Something huge suddenly screamed and charged at me from the side.
Instinctively, I shrank back, squeezed my eyes shut, and screamed.
“Eek!”
Thud.
A metallic smell of blood spread, followed by wet, heavy sounds. Then everything went quiet.
I slowly opened my eyes.
In front of me stood a massive monster with a pig’s head. It wasn’t moving.
Gurgle.
Finding it strange, I looked closer. Lloyd’s sword had pierced straight through the monster’s heart, sticking out the other side.
Lloyd met my gaze and smiled briefly. Then he pulled the sword out and, in one swift motion, split the collapsing monster clean in half. What had once been vaguely human-shaped was now torn apart, its organs and bones spilling out.
I couldn’t even clean a fish.
Seeing a monster being butchered right in front of my eyes shattered my sanity all over again. Lloyd dismembered the monster while staring straight at me with a terrifying expression.
With each slash of his sword, the monster disappeared without a trace. Only chunks of red flesh were left scattered on the ground. The stench of blood mixed with the monster’s foul odor, filling the air with nausea.
Soon, more growls echoed around us. I wasn’t the only one drawn by the smell.
This time, it wasn’t just one. It sounded like dozens.
Hearing that, Lloyd muttered,
“If you can’t endure it, then you don’t have to. There’s no one here.”
After saying those cryptic words, he threw something from his coat.
Clang.
A dagger fell at my feet.
What is this? A dagger? Was I supposed to fight too?
Before I could even process it, rustling sounds came from all directions.
“They’re coming.”
Lloyd tightened his grip on his sword.
ROOOAAARR!
Pig-headed monsters appeared from everywhere. Their massive bodies shook as they moved. Seeing their butchered companion, they seemed enraged.
They charged toward us at full speed.
Startled, I reflexively shrank back again.
In the blink of an eye, Lloyd’s presence vanished from in front of me—and appeared behind me.
So this is what it feels like when someone is so fast they seem to teleport.
I collapsed to the ground, trembling, and stared at Lloyd.
He was cutting down the monsters one by one. No—he was deliberately slicing off their heads, tearing open their bodies, as if he wanted to show me exactly how cruelly they died.
ROOOAA—! SCREEEECH!
The monsters’ screams tore at my ears. One by one, the countless monsters turned into lumps of flesh before Lloyd’s blade.
It was one-sided slaughter.
Blood splattered across Lloyd’s face, his expression cold and merciless.
Drip. Drip.
Before I knew it, my surroundings were covered in monster flesh and blood. Watching Lloyd massacre them, I finally understood what the dagger he had given me meant.
In the novel, Iveliana slowly went mad, addicted to killing.
At first, she satisfied her urges by killing small animals. Later, she needed to kill larger beasts—or even humans—to avoid withdrawal symptoms.
Whenever she stood at a scene of slaughter, she couldn’t resist and would swing her blade like a madwoman. In the end, she even started wars just to indulge in mass killing.
Judging by this, the protagonist clearly knew all of that—and was deliberately testing me.
That must be why he dragged me all the way here under the excuse of being his personal healer.
After finishing off the monsters, Lloyd stared straight at me, as if waiting for me to go insane.
Unfortunately for him, I wasn’t the villainess Iveliana.
Only my fragile sanity shattered completely.
Roll.
Something rolled to a stop in front of me.
A monster’s eyeball.
I had seen blood and death many times while working at the infirmary. But witnessing such vivid, one-sided slaughter right before my eyes was a first.
The stench of blood rushed into my nose. The moment I saw the bloodstained eyeball, an overwhelming wave of nausea hit me.
“Ugh…”
I vomited right there.
My vomit covered the eyeball, and the brown iris rolled slightly—then met my gaze.
It looked just like a human eye that had been ripped out.
The sheer disgust sent shivers crawling all over my body.
Already exhausted from walking four hours and mentally worn down since morning, I finally snapped. As my vision darkened and spun, I screamed inwardly,
If I was going to pass out, I should’ve done it back at Dorkan Castle!
* * *
When I came to, it was deep night.
I was inside a soft sleeping bag. A campfire crackled in front of me, warmly heating my body. Across the fire, Lloyd was staring at me. Our eyes met.
His face, which had been filled with anger until now, was completely expressionless.
Was that… a good sign?
When our eyes met, Lloyd quickly looked away.
“…I passed out without realizing it.”
Worried he might start suspecting me again, I hurriedly sat up. My body was still shaking, but I rushed to tidy the sleeping bag.
Lloyd stepped forward and grabbed my shoulder.
“You must’ve been badly shocked. Rest.”
“I’m fine.”
I wasn’t fine at all, but I didn’t want to experience anything like that again. Who knew what he might do if he suspected me?
“It’s too late to move forward tonight anyway.”
Looking around, I saw nothing but darkness beyond the campfire and the starlit sky.
“Then… I’ll take the night watch.”
Judging by how soft it was, the sleeping bag was clearly high-quality—something a commoner like me shouldn’t use. It had to be Lloyd’s.
When I firmly refused, Lloyd sighed and suddenly stepped closer.
His handsome face was suddenly right in front of me, and my heart started pounding wildly.
Calm down, heart. You’ve seen handsome people since you were young!
I desperately thought of the Apostle to steady myself.
Lloyd grabbed my shoulders and forcefully laid me down in the sleeping bag.
“That’s an order.”
His grip was so strong that my body stuck to the ground against my will. Well, if it was an order, then fine.
I adjusted my position while lying down. The softness of the sleeping bag made drowsiness wash over me.
Lloyd sat down beside me.
“…I’m sorry.”
Sorry for what?
For trying to kill me the moment we met?
For grabbing my arm so hard it bruised black and blue?
For deliberately slaughtering monsters in front of me?
There were too many things he should apologize for, so I honestly didn’t know which one he meant.
After all, to someone destined to become a duke, a commoner like me was worth less than a fly’s life. I never expected an apology in the first place.
“Sleep well tonight. I won’t trouble you anymore.”
I cheered silently.
Yes! Is this a permanent goodbye to all death flags?
Then a thought crossed my mind.
If I was going to keep pretending to be Kaera, not the villainess Iveliana, I needed to ask him why he tried to kill me in the first place.
I already knew the reason from the novel, but Kaera wouldn’t know anything.
Hoping this question would erase every last bit of his suspicion, I spoke.
“Um, Young Duke.”
Lloyd, who had been staring into the fire, turned and looked at me quietly.
My heart fluttered again at his handsome face so close. I calmed myself and asked,
“Why… did you try to kill me at the beginning?”
