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Chapter 70
“The Reason That Villainess Took Up the Sword
“Come at me.”
Helix had no intention of giving up on either Erin or Isis.
As long as he still drew breath, he would make sure they couldn’t be harmed, not even by a finger.
“I hate hypocritical people like you.”
“……”
“I really, truly hate the look in your eyes!”
Helix charged at Charlotte. Yet his sword never reached her. The fight was one-sided.
Charlotte, now a monster, had arms sharper than any blade. Blood flowed from the wounds on her pierced limbs. Still, Helix did not stop.
His legs were cut. His back, his stomach—wounded, yet he refused to collapse.
Helix felt his head going numb. Rational thought was slipping away.
‘It hurts. I want to rest.’
Only a simple thought continued, and his mind grew hazy.
‘No, if I stop…’
If he lost consciousness, Erin would die. Helix felt his mind drifting, despite his will.
In that instant, memories of the past before the previous saint’s death flashed in his mind.
A young Helix once asked the saint:
“Saint, I don’t understand what it means to protect someone.”
“……”
“Why do you sacrifice so much for others?”
“……”
“Why do good people always lose?”
Helix could not comprehend it. The reality of the saint dying. The oppression faced by the people of the west.
In his eyes, no one was kinder than the saint. She lived for others, more than herself.
Why do good people always die young? Not only the saint; the paladins he knew also met early deaths.
When they died, people called it noble sacrifice. They said they were great beings who died protecting others, that their lives were not in vain.
Helix could not understand it. If they had lived, they could have protected and saved even more people.
The saint smiled faintly and said:
“Helix, one day you will understand. And when that time comes…”
The saint had been right.
Helix finally understood what it meant to sacrifice oneself to protect someone. Sometimes, there were things worth more than one’s own life.
“Now die, you worm.”
Helix felt time slowing down.
In that moment, he realized he had reached a higher level.
Helix’s sword blocked Charlotte’s attack.
Clang!
The sound was unnaturally clear, almost impossible to believe that sword and arm had collided.
“How dare a pathetic paladin block my attack?”
Charlotte’s face twisted in rage. Transformed humans were strong.
Moreover, she had enhanced her physical abilities with the abundant mana of a mage.
Normally, only a Sword Master could contend with her. Yet Helix blocked her.
Charlotte soon smiled. She realized that Helix’s ability to stand was a result of sheer luck.
The momentary defense was the limit of his strength. Charlotte assumed he had fainted while standing.
‘Disgusting mental fortitude.’
But that was all. Soon, he would be her prey.
Charlotte despised people like Helix. Sacrificing oneself to protect others…
Standing and fainting just because of that “will”?
‘So what? You couldn’t even protect them.’
The fact was, Helix would soon die, and so would Erin Liscus.
Charlotte thought this as she reached for his neck.
But her hand was severed before it could touch him.
Helix’s resistance had meaning.
If he hadn’t blocked Charlotte’s strike, he would have died instantly. Erin would never have opened her eyes.
But by holding the attack, Helix bought enough time.
As Charlotte moved to strike him, Erin opened her eyes.
In a flash, she assessed the situation and swiftly swung her sword at Charlotte.
“Erin Liscus!”
Charlotte widened her eyes in disbelief that Erin was attacking her.
But her shock lasted only an instant. She assumed Erin had injured her arm because she believed Charlotte was a monster.
Killing a human was far different from killing a monster.
Charlotte glanced at her arm. She could see it slowly regenerating.
Erin saw it too.
“How… did she wake up?”
Charlotte spoke as Erin scanned her figure, quickly realizing that the monster before her was indeed Charlotte.
“You’re the one who turned Helix and Isis into this, Charlotte.”
Charlotte did not answer, instead checking Erin’s condition. Having collapsed once, Erin did not look well.
Furthermore, a valuable hostage was beneath Charlotte’s feet.
She assumed the fight wasn’t completely hopeless.
Besides, her opponent was Erin Liscus—a Sword Master who hadn’t even been able to kill a single bug until recently.
A human who had cried all day after accidentally killing a cat she cared about.
Charlotte hadn’t even considered the tiny possibility that Erin could kill her.
Perhaps boosted by mana stones, Charlotte felt a surge of competitiveness against a Sword Master.
She thought she could even defeat Erin in her current state.
‘It’s surprising she killed all those monsters, but that’s where it ends.’
Erin followed Corellia’s instructions faithfully, even if it meant endangering others. No matter how badly injured they became fighting, Erin wouldn’t kill her opponent.
“What if I did it?”
“You deceived Lilia, didn’t you?”
“And then? Are you going to kill me for it?”
“……”
“Killing a person is completely different from fighting a monster. Even if it’s someone you hate, hesitation will creep in.”
Erin didn’t respond but instead continued with another question:
“Were you the one who turned the people here into monsters and controlled them?”
“Yes, that’s right. This research was fascinating. If it weren’t for you, I could’ve created more, longer.”
Charlotte looked at Erin, her body shaking as she struggled to stand. She even breathed heavily.
Charlotte examined her arm. It had fully regenerated by now. Erin must have noticed it too.
‘If she wants to kill me, she’d have to strike my neck at once, but Erin has never killed anyone before, so she can’t do that.’
She could block attacks and defend herself for a while, but if she couldn’t kill Erin, victory would ultimately belong to Charlotte.
Just as Charlotte readied her attack, Erin said something unexpected:
“Have you never felt any guilt?”
Erin often wondered if those behind all these events had truly never regretted anything.
In truth, Erin regretted everything. Every choice she made, every tragic outcome she suffered.
After living three lives, she could finally look at what had happened to her clearly.
Why did this happen to me? Perhaps those people had their own reasons.
She always wanted to ask:
Charlotte, have you ever felt regret?
Did you ever feel guilty about deceiving Lilia or assisting Corellia’s evil deeds?
“Why should I feel guilty?”
“Really… you’ve never once felt sorry?”
“Never. Those here were Western humans, not treated properly as people, with no talent for swords.”
“……”
“Even if they became knights, they were worthless humans who would live meaningless lives.”
“Worthless?”
“Yes, like that Calypso.”
Erin froze at Charlotte’s words.
“Calypso?”
Charlotte laughed, amused. No matter what, Erin Liscus was still Erin Liscus.
The same naive girl who cried when Corellia insulted her.
Even now, she asked foolish questions.
Are you not sorry? Should I forgive you if you say sorry?
Asking such a question proved she had not changed.
