Chapter: 150
Noah continued, her face flushed red, whether from the campfire or the emotions stirring inside her.
“Since I said we’re friends no matter what, I was wondering if it’s okay to be comfortable around you while we’re together.”
“Uh… yeah, right? That makes sense, right?”
“Thanks.”
Without hesitation, Noah popped the top button of her shirt. Lian’s eyes shook as if there had been an earthquake.
“W-why the button?”
“Well… if I transform like this, my clothes might get ruined.”
“Ah… I see… oh, haha… right…”
Lian’s eyes lost focus, and a painted-on grin appeared on his face. Wrong! The guy recognized by a unicorn was totally malfunctioning. Just as Noah was nervously reaching for the second button…
Rumble!
“AHHHH!”
“…!”
“….!”
The ground shook violently like an earthquake, and a blood-curdling scream echoed from outside the cave. In an instant, both of them froze and locked eyes.
Rumble!
Thud…
The ground trembled again, and dirt and pieces of rock began to fall. The thought of getting buried inside the cave spurred them to dash outside. The rain seemed to have stopped, but the fog remained thick.
“What is this… a plant?”
Thick, root-like tendrils emerged from the ground, resembling the roots of a gigantic tree. They writhed like stitching in the soil, popping in and out repeatedly.
Noah shouted, her expression hardening as the incoming tendrils drew closer.
“It’s a Plant-type Monster, Lapl!”
“Lapl?”
“It’s a monster that looks like a giant flower bed or tree and devours any creatures that approach. Those roots popping up are its… well, roots.”
One of the plant’s tendrils shot at Noah and was sliced in half by her sword. However, it seemed tougher than it looked, and it took a moment to completely sever.
“Be careful! If you get caught by those tendrils, you’ll be dragged underground!”
After deftly cutting down a approaching tendril, Noah continued,
“It won’t stop popping up unless we kill the main body. We need to find it.”
“More importantly! That scream we heard earlier—”
Before Lian could finish his sentence…
AAAAAH!
“…!”
“This voice is—!”
A horrible scream echoed from afar. The two bolted toward the source of the scream.
Splurt, splash!
The hidden roots sprang up and seemed ready to skewer Lian and Noah, but with a few swift slices, they were cut into five pieces.
“Ugh… hhh… it hurts!”
“…! That’s definitely Nero’s voice!”
“Damn it…”
As Lian shouted gravely, Noah cursed and surged forward even faster.
Thanks to the rain, the fog seemed to have lifted a bit, and they could see a large flower head clearly situated in an open area.
The first thing that caught their eye was a flower bud the size of a carriage. Between the tightly closed petals, sharp fangs jutted out, and a sticky liquid streamed downward.
SSSSHHHHHH…
The dripping fluid sizzled like acid on the ground. The stem was as thick as a human torso but seemed to tower as high as two carriages.
Instead of leaves, it had tendrils thick as wrists, moving like tentacles. As they drew closer, the tentacle-like stems coiled around something and began pulling it towards the flower bud.
“…!”
“Nero!”
Caught in the tendrils was Nero, limp as if he had fainted from the pressure. With his life seemingly in immediate danger, both rushed toward the threat, unhesitatingly pushing themselves forward.
SPLASH! THUNK!
Roots sprang from all directions, trying to ensnare the two, but they didn’t even leave a scratch.
“Nero!”
Noah quickly slashed through the tendril holding Nero. As he fell from mid-air like a puppet with cut strings, she swiftly caught him in her arms.
“AHHHH!”
The Lapl, angered at losing its meal, bared its teeth and lunged at Noah.
SWISH!
With a sound like soft petals falling to the ground, Noah streaked five lines across the giant flower bud.
BOOM, THUD!
A moment later, pieces of the flower bud broke off and crashed to the ground.
SPLAT!
Green liquid gushed from the severed stem like blood from a cut-off limb.
THUD, SPLAT…
As the pieces of Lapl thudded down, Lian quickly moved close to Noah and Nero.
“Are you okay, Noah?!”
“I’m fine, but Nero…”
Concern etched on her face as Noah looked down at Nero slumped in her arms. Lian swiftly pulled out a blanket from his bag and laid it down on the ground.
“Let’s get him on this.”
“Yeah, we need to do first aid.”
Finally regaining some composure, Noah firmly laid Nero on the blanket. At that moment, Nero groaned and opened his eyes.
“Ugh…”
“…! Nero!”
“Bro..?”
Nero slowly blinked up at Noah, his expression full of worry, just as he began to speak.
“Noah! Watch out!”
“What?”
Before she could even grasp what had been said, something tugged at her neck from behind. Her eyes widened as time seemed to stretch on.
She saw Lian diving forward to protect her and Nero’s face, which was smiling brightly despite just having fainted.
SPLASH!
With a sickening sound, Noah was flung sideways, rolling in the Lapl’s spilled blood. The metallic scent of blood wafted as it dripped and pooled on the ground.
“Huh?”
Nero tilted his head, staring intently at his hands. The blade that had pierced Lian’s abdomen shattered into pieces and fell to the floor.
SSSSHHHH…
As the blood soaking the ground evaporated like it was being absorbed somewhere, a voice echoed.
[ How dare you covet my blood…! ]
‘No… that’s my blood.’
[ Since we made a contract, my partner’s blood is my blood, and my blood is my partner’s blood! ]
‘But you don’t even have blood!’
With a grin, Lian glanced down at his abdomen, where the dagger had punctured and torn his clothing.
‘Ah… a cold draft is coming in.’
[ See, you shouldn’t have been so stubborn… ]
‘But the clothes you made me wear are way too flashy.’
[ Hmph, even flattery won’t make the foolish choice disappear! ]
‘…Well, I appreciate that you think of me.’
Lian finished up with his banter and glanced at Nero, who wore an oddly joyous expression.
“Bro.”
With eyes unusually bright, Nero spread his arms and hugged Lian, leaving him stunned.
‘What? Has he lost his mind from a mental attack? He’s not attacking, so should I stay still?’
As he thought this, a clattering sound echoed behind him. Noah, who had been launched some distance away, hurriedly rose to her feet and ran toward them.
“Lian!”
Noah’s pale face called out Lian’s name as…
RUMBLE!
The ground shook even more violently than when the Lapl had uprooted it, and the earth split beneath Nero and Lian’s feet. It yawned open like a creature’s mouth, pulling them both down into darkness.
“Huh?”
Realizing the situation had taken a turn for the bizarre, Lian quickly whipped his head around to look at Noah. He wouldn’t die from a fall, but Noah could be in danger, so he instinctively glanced her way.
“Lian!”
“Ah.”
Seeing Noah reaching out desperately towards him, Lian relaxed and smiled. The pit seemed smaller than he thought, and Noah wasn’t affected.
As the relief washed over him, his body was swallowed by deeper darkness.
“NO!!”
Noah screamed, trying to throw herself into the pit after Lian, but the earth sealed its mouth before she could react. Before the Duke disappeared like a flash, the ground smoothed out instantly.
THUD!
Noah slammed her magically charged fist harshly onto the ground. It sank like a massive stone dropped from a height, leaving an indentation but nothing more.
“NO… NO… NO!!”
The cold earth, soaked by rain, had hardened like rock, but Noah frantically dug, channeling her power to unearth it.
Mounding dirt began to flow into the pit she created, filling it with green blood.
Drip, drop.
“No, no… Lian… please…”
Tears streamed from her face, mixing with the green blood. Disgusting as it was, she wouldn’t stop. She simply couldn’t.
‘Lian… Lian…’
An endless pit, cloaked in darkness, with gentle curves he once made while leaning in, and unconscious lips that had once smiled.
‘I’m so glad you’re safe.’
The murmurs of Lian echoed like scars in her mind, leaving her in endless agony.
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