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Chapter 6
“That’s Not What I Meant by Kissing!”
Because aura does not harm its master, Theo had no choice but to keep Evelyn close to him.
Theo gathered the mana within his body and infused it into his aura.
Then he swung his sword in a long horizontal arc toward the line of monsters.
Shhhhk—
A force fiercer than a storm split the air.
The raging aura cleaved through the monsters in a single sweep.
Kyaaaak!
As the massive attack crashed over them, the monsters began to collapse with short, shrill screams.
The destructive force did not stop there—it dug deep into the ground itself.
The earth split apart.
The mountain was torn open, fragments scattering everywhere. Where lush greenery had once grown, dark soil was laid bare.
“……”
“……”
“……”
The three researchers could only stare, mouths agape at the unprecedented sight.
Only the Ashford Knights spoke as if nothing unusual had happened.
“Shall we head down now?”
“We could’ve just sent the Duke alone, right?”
Catherine finally snapped back to her senses and squeezed her eyes shut.
I told him to eliminate the monsters, not destroy the mountain…
‘How am I supposed to report this…?’
But what worried her more was the newcomer.
Evelyn was standing on the other side of the massive crack in the earth.
Together with the Duke.
Oliver and Catherine could retrace their path with the knights.
But behind Evelyn was a steep cliff.
“Let’s hurry. We’ll miss dinner.”
The knights paid no attention to their superior.
Flustered, Catherine blurted out, “W-Wait! What about the Duke?”
“He’ll manage. You could toss him into a fire and he’d come back smiling.”
“And Evelyn?!”
“She’ll be fine if she’s with him.”
Let’s go, let’s go.
The knights pushed the two researchers forward.
Even as his subordinates abandoned him, Theo remained calm.
As if he had expected it.
“Shall we have dinner too?”
He asked Evelyn casually.
She stared at him in disbelief.
“How exactly are you planning to get down from here…? No, more importantly, are you all right?”
She had heard that for magic swordsmen, mana was like stamina.
The aura she had just witnessed was terrifyingly powerful. It had to have taken a toll on his body.
But contrary to her concern, Theo replied indifferently,
“I suppose I am a bit hungry.”
In truth, that level of aura barely affected him.
His innate power was simply that great.
Moreover, the attack had been one-sided. Nothing had threatened to injure him.
Shrugging, Theo said, “Let’s head down first. I’ll go ahead—follow me.”
“Where are you going? It’s a steep cliff…!”
“There seems to be a gentler slope beside the cave.”
Without waiting for her response, Theo moved.
Evelyn hurried after him to stop him.
His steps were so fast that he had already reached the cave, widening the distance between them.
‘Is he trying to get himself killed?’
Even if it was gentler, a drop was still a drop.
Perhaps he had used too much mana and his judgment was impaired.
The fallen monsters gradually turned to dust and vanished.
As most of them scattered into the air, something twitched.
Krrr… Krrrk!
Near the cave Theo was approaching, one monster that had narrowly escaped the earlier attack rose again.
Even from afar, it looked twice Evelyn’s size.
“What is that?!”
At her shout, Theo calmly explained—raising his voice in what he considered consideration.
“It’s a Tasken. A top-tier monster. It specializes in inflating its body.”
“That’s not what I meant to ask—!”
There’s a monster right next to you!
Evelyn felt even more terror than before.
True to his words, the Tasken’s body was swelling. Green slime thickened and congealed like pudding.
It was enormous. It already covered half the ground it stood on.
The Tasken rolled its eyes and spotted Theo nearby, then roared.
Krrr! Krrrk!
It seemed to remember the one who had attacked it.
Its slimy forelimb swung toward Theo.
“No!”
A desperate cry rang out.
Preparing to counterattack, Theo glanced toward the voice.
“Evelyn…?”
Her pink hair streaming behind her, Evelyn was running toward him.
Why was it—
‘Trust no one.’
That voice echoed in his mind again.
‘Only when you can see their sincerity with your own eyes, when their heart is conveyed to yours…’
‘Only then should you give your own.’
Evelyn’s worry—her palpable concern—washed over him.
In that instant, the wall he had built so firmly since that day collapsed.
The image of Evelyn running to save him etched itself deep into his mind.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion.
Neither theater nor literature, no matter how moving others claimed them to be, had ever stirred him.
He had never seen a scene as striking as this.
Spellbound, he watched her.
But Evelyn could not outrun the monster.
Realizing it, she pulled a thick book from her large bag.
It was her treasured ancient language translation.
With all her strength, she hurled the heavy book at the monster.
Splat!
The book flew surprisingly high and struck the Tasken’s head.
Because of the sticky slime, it slowly slid downward.
The Tasken grew even more enraged.
It immediately changed direction and charged toward Evelyn.
“Haah…!”
She had thrown the book without any plan.
Her only thought had been to save Theo. She hadn’t considered what would happen next.
‘Damn it, I shouldn’t have thrown it!’
I should’ve just left it alone!
But it was too late.
The monster’s soft, massive forelimb came down toward her.
Shhhhk—
A heavy gust split the air.
Theo’s blade.
This time, there was no blazing aura.
In an instant, Theo leapt up, stepped on the monster’s head, and drove his sword deep into its forehead.
‘When did he even get here…?’
Evelyn blinked blankly at the speed.
He was strong not only in mana, but in real combat as well.
‘And I was worried about him?’
She felt embarrassed for having stepped forward out of concern he might be exhausted.
Krrrk!
Struck at its vital point, the monster staggered violently.
“Just a moment—over there.”
Even in that moment, Theo adjusted the direction of its fall.
With a kick, he sent the enormous creature toppling.
Thud!
It fell across the crack he had made earlier.
“Good. A bridge.”
The monster’s massive body was large enough to span the gap.
Using a monster as a bridge… she hadn’t even imagined it.
“Let’s go. It’ll turn to dust soon.”
“Y-Yes… all right…”
So we’re really crossing that?
Sudden exhaustion washed over Evelyn. She wanted nothing more than to get back to the lodging, eat, wash up, and collapse onto her bed.
Theo extended a hand toward her.
Her eyes widened as she looked at it.
“Are you hurt?”
“Hmm?”
His palm was stained red.
“So it seems.”
He must have cut himself using the real blade.
As he had stared blankly at Evelyn, he had missed the moment he needed to protect her.
He had fought countless battles, but never experienced anything like this.
He didn’t even remember the exact moment it happened.
All he could think about was protecting Evelyn—and when he came to, he had been standing atop the monster’s head.
He had even foregone activating his aura, drawing his true blade instead.
In the rush, he must have nicked his hand.
“Let’s treat it quickly.”
Evelyn hurriedly pulled out her handkerchief.
“As soon as we get down the mountain, let’s see a doctor.”
“……”
Theo stared at her intently.
The mere act of watching her filled him with a strange sense of satisfaction.
“What about the book?”
He asked.
The book she had thrown was dissolving into the monster’s slime.
The translation was a precious ancient text passed down through the imperial family.
This would put Evelyn in a difficult position.
Though, of course, Theo intended to handle it.
She glanced around.
“There’s no one else here, right?”
“And?”
“It wasn’t me. The monster did it.”
Since there were no witnesses, it would be their little secret.
Theo burst out laughing.
Her unexpected answer amused him.
Wouldn’t it be more interesting if they stayed together longer?
He found himself wanting to spend more time with her.
But the situation did not allow them leisure.
Light began to emanate from the cave behind a fallen monument.
A brilliant white glow drew Evelyn’s gaze.
“Oh, what now?”
She was starting to feel irritated.
“The last monster?”
“There are more?!”
“I’ll handle it in five minutes.”
Theo drew his sword and headed toward the cave.
“Wait, at least stop the bleeding first—!”
Evelyn hurried after him.
But what awaited inside the cave was not a monster.
It was something that would bind Theo and Evelyn together for the rest of their lives.
