Chapter: 149
As Kraush hurried outside with No. 8, he looked up at the changing yellow sky.
The moment he saw it, he bit his lip.
[ So it finally moved. ]
The disapproving voice of the Crimson Garden echoed in his mind.
As she said, it was none other than Aliod causing the world erosion.
The sky darkened by the world’s erosion radiated a sickly yellow light.
“Ah?!”
At that moment, a scream mixed with horror came from behind.
Turning around, Kraush spotted Haring, her face blank as she stared up at the yellow sky.
Simultaneously, her lips trembled, and her complexion turned ghostly white.
Haring’s breathing started to become labored.
Noticing her clear signs of distress, Kraush took a puzzled expression.
Then it hit him; it was the fact that her brother had died due to the world eroder’s influence.
“Haring, don’t tell me…”
“…It’s this sky.”
The yellow sky.
That day, the image of the red-haired man laughing atop a roof flashed vividly in her mind, just like yesterday.
She remembered her brother, holding her hand and leading her away.
At the same time, she recalled the last smile he flashed as he shoved her into that solitary cell.
“This sky, it was created by the world eroder that killed my brother.”
Haring’s eyes began to flood with intense hatred.
Her body shook uncontrollably.
It seemed as if she might lose her sanity at any moment as her breaths quickened.
In that moment, an aura of murderous intent surged, and poison energy erupted chaotically from her body.
It was the manifestation of her aura going out of control.
“Kraush!”
No. 8 called out, urgently warning Kraush to be careful.
The overwhelming poison that surged from Haring was intense.
Drip, drip—
The surrounding snow and withering grass began to dissolve in her poison.
At that instant, Haring’s mind was slipping back to that time, losing control of her body.
Haring still hadn’t reached mastery.
In fact, she was right on the threshold, just hanging on.
Perhaps that’s why her psyche reflected her turmoil and began to rampage even more.
Ironically, she was on the brink of entering mastery at that moment.
But this could put her in even more danger.
Being one step away from mastery wouldn’t help if her body couldn’t handle it.
Kraush had seen countless beings like her before.
Some had gone berserk from trauma just like this.
He had to intervene.
The thought crossed his mind as his hand reached out without hesitation.
Kraush firmly grabbed Haring’s arms.
At the same time, his expression tightened slightly.
A sharp pain coursed through him, like his skin was peeling away.
Despite enveloping himself in aura, Haring’s poison was still penetrating.
That showcased just how far she was spiraling out of control.
“…Haring, get a grip!”
Yet, Kraush held her arms even tighter, determined to bring her back to her senses.
He couldn’t let her lose herself now.
With things this serious, her invisibility was absolutely crucial.
“Listen well. The one who caused this sky is targeting Hardenhartz. I’m going to stop that.”
Kraush’s firm voice made Haring’s gaze shift up to his.
As she locked eyes with his azure gaze, her frantic breaths began to slow.
Looking into Kraush’s eyes reminded her of her late brother.
Amidst her fading consciousness, she focused on Kraush’s words.
“What are you going to do?”
For Haring, being passive was the most unbearable thing.
Kraush had seen through this, so he intentionally pushed her towards action.
As past memories momentarily flooded her mind, her gaze met Kraush’s.
With her dimly open eyes, Haring looked up at Kraush.
Here he was, supporting her all this time.
Wasn’t it her who decided to repay Kraush’s kindness?
Determination filled her teary eyes.
“…I’ll go. I’m going.”
Haring’s sanity began to return, and at the same time, the poison spilling from her body was gradually receding.
In its place, the presence of Kraush began to fill the void.
“Can you really hold back after seeing the world eroder?”
Aliod was a dangerous creature.
Kraush knew he was a monster that couldn’t be faced without preparation.
If Haring lost her cool and charged at him, it would be game over.
Kraush reminded her of that fact, and she tightly gripped her poison pouch.
“I’ve held back my hatred until now.”
Her expression changed profoundly.
“I won’t do something so reckless.”
That was enough.
Kraush released his hold on her arms.
At that moment, Haring’s gaze finally met Kraush’s body.
His skin was already peeling away, revealing bright red muscle underneath.
Having used Annihilation Erosion, the heat soaring could damage Haring if he unleashed it further, which was why he had protected himself with his aura.
“Kraush…!”
Haring exclaimed, glancing at him in shock.
Her face drained of color.
But Kraush didn’t seem concerned as he pulled out a vial and poured its contents.
The sound of sizzling filled the air as his skin began to heal rapidly.
It was some medicine he had received from Darling.
With this kind of wound, recovery was swift.
“You’re not in a position to comment on me.”
Kraush said, and she glanced back at herself.
Her uniform from Rahern Academy had great defensive properties, with self-repair functions, but due to Haring’s potent poison, it was failing her.
Haring’s cheeks flushed an embarrassed red.
As she hurriedly wrapped her body, Kraush tossed her another vial.
After all, she wasn’t in a normal state either.
“Sorry for showing you such an ugly sight.”
She felt more embarrassed about exposing her flaws than him seeing her like this.
‘…Thanks to Kraush again.’
She once again realized the debt she owed him.
But, for some reason, the more debts she piled on him, the more comfortable she felt.
It was as if she’d found a place to lean on under the name of debt, a support she desperately needed.
The existence of Kraush inside Haring’s heart was steadily growing larger.
When she lifted her head, she saw Kraush tidying his clothes.
His back seemed like the most reliable place to lean on.
With Kraush around, she felt like she could never fall apart.
Thump—
A strange heartbeat echoed somewhere.
Following that sound, Haring felt as if her late brother’s presence in her heart had faded a bit today.
She was aware that Kraush was subtly occupying the place her brother had held for so long.
At this moment, Haring was still unaware of it.
Kraush glanced over at her.
When their eyes met, for some reason, Haring instinctively looked down.
Her cheeks felt hot.
Was it because of her ugly appearance?
Or maybe because she felt too indebted to him?
She wasn’t quite sure, but looking him in the eye was just too hard.
Underneath the swirling yellow sky, Haring was engulfed in emotions she could hardly understand, more than fear or hatred.
＊ ＊ ＊
Afterward, Kraush waited until she healed her wounds and recovered her clothes.
Then he stared blankly at the yellow sky.
‘Aliod is definitely targeting Lai.’
Aliod’s world erosion was exceptionally peculiar.
The reason was that the more someone fought against the designated target, the stronger the world erosion reflected that power.
Because of that, defeating Aliod became even more complicated.
It wasn’t easy to kill him without an overpowering strength that could prevent world erosion from making a mess of everything.
If they didn’t manage the world erosion first, they wouldn’t be able to take down Aliod.
And right now, the strongest individual in Hardenhartz was none other than the Sword King, Lai Balheim.
‘I can’t let Aliod and Lai fight.’
If things continued like this, Hardenhartz would surely be left in ruins by the world erosion.
At the same time, Kraush began to understand why the Poison King had been gravely injured by Aliod.
Aliod was indeed strong.
However, that didn’t mean he could just wipe out someone of the caliber of the Ten Great Lords.
‘He provoked him.’
According to Haring, it was undoubtedly Aliod that had brought Lagrain to his knees.
For the Poison King, losing a child would be a trauma that couldn’t easily be washed away.
Aliod had definitely picked at that wound.
‘Fighting strong opponents leaves no room for error.’
Aliod was born to torment others in that regard.
Just looking at the way he manipulated world erosion made that crystal clear.
Kraush felt a deep frustration arise.
Because, truth be told, Kraush didn’t like Aliod either.
To be precise, he was sick of all those Ixion folks.
“Kraush,”
At that moment, a timid voice reached him.
As Kraush turned, he saw Haring, her clothes finally back in place, shyly wrapping her arms around herself.
She was evidently still worried about having hurt Kraush while losing control.
Kraush stepped closer, giving her shoulder a small pat, and turned back to No. 8.
“No. 8, please guide us immediately.”
“Yes.”
No. 8 promptly replied.
At that moment, just as Kraush and Haring were about to move together, a prickling sensation caught Kraush’s senses.
Turning in that direction, he saw someone slowly walking towards them, having removed their gloves.
Kraush’s body stiffened.
To show up at this timing… talk about bad luck.
‘Did she really follow us?’
With blonde hair and red eyes.
Kraush bit his lip as he recognized her identity—Senna Meyer, the professor from Rahern Academy.
“Kraush, I told you to avoid acting independently.”
Her icy gaze pierced through him.
Simultaneously, her eyes shifted to No. 8.
No. 8 was a body.
With her unique sensing ability, she must have felt that No. 8 was a dead body.
The fact that the Night Ravens were all made of corpses was already public knowledge.
So, it was clear she connected No. 8 with Ebelasque the moment she laid eyes on her.
In this urgent situation, there was no time to explain.
‘Showing up now is a real problem.’
From the professor’s standpoint, she’d definitely scramble to prevent anyone from heading toward the world eroder.
Just as Kraush was about to speak, she let out a sigh first.
“Ha, let’s discuss later. For now, we need to act.”
Kraush turned to look at her in surprise.
Then she swept her hair back and said, “Lead the way.”
Her next words were unexpected.
Feeling her gaze on him, Kraush blinked as she stepped beside him.
“I was about to move when the mischievous Sigrid popped up to talk.”
That was the rambunctious genius girl for you.
Senna glanced back at No. 8.
The way No. 8 appeared in Senna’s eyes clearly indicated the power of the world eroder.
Yet, she didn’t show any immediate signs of hostility towards No. 8.
It was likely because, when she had attempted to move, Sigrid suddenly intervened.
“Professor Senna Meyer, you shouldn’t move without knowing the situation.”
In that brief moment, it was uncertain how much Senna might have pieced together.
Regardless, Sigrid had briefed her about the real reasoning behind Kraush’s independent action.
Kraush had gone to seek cooperation from the leader of the Night Ravens, who was not the actual culprit behind the Poison King’s attack—there was always a bigger fish lurking in the shadows.
“I swear by the name of Princess Sizelry Ephania that the leader of the Night Ravens will not be our enemy. Or rather, Kraush won’t let it be so.”
Hearing that, Senna felt a wave of incredulity wash over her.
Yet, with some of the doubts she’d had about the mission slightly fitting into place, she realized there was something between Sigrid and Kraush.
“Don’t worry. I have no plans to interfere with you, Kraush.”
“Then that’s a relief.”
After receiving Sigrid’s message, she immediately pursued Kraush.
Then, out of nowhere, the sky turned yellow, and world erosion erupted.
Not able to leave Kraush and Haring to their own devices, she dashed to appear before them quickly.
From the looks of Kraush and Haring, it was clear they were up to something.
With a sigh, she remembered that professors at Rahern Academy weren’t meant to suppress students.
Her role was to support them in becoming better heroes.
Even if the students of Rahern Academy were young, they were also colleagues fighting against world erosion.
“I must have underestimated you, professor.”
“Oh my, if it weren’t for Sigrid, that assessment might have been spot on.”
She chuckled lightly before turning her body.
“If you’re going to do something dangerous, it’s my role as a professor to make it a little less risky.”
Hearing that, Kraush felt a weight lifted from his shoulders.
He thought he should thank Sigrid later for this.
Gaining a valuable ally like Senna was a win.
“Got it. I’ll keep talking while we move.”
They needed to find Ebelasque and Aliod.
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