Khunak didn’t know how to respond to the greeting.
After a brief hesitation, he gave a nod of acknowledgment.
“… Miss Doah.”
Doah’s first thought was about the cursed sword.
She knew very well how unsettling it felt to walk around unarmed.
She pulled the cursed sword from her pocket.
Her movements were slow and cautious due to her injury.
Yan’s eyes widened as he watched the large sword emerge from a small waist belt.
“Here, the one I was holding for you.”
“Thank you.”
Khunak carefully accepted the sword but then looked up, startled.
Doah, noticing his reaction, asked curiously,
“Is there something wrong with the sword?”
“No, it’s nothing… hmm.”
Khunak shook his head and coughed a few times.
Hearing his hoarse voice, Doah scratched her cheek awkwardly.
“Sorry for being so rough with you.”
“… What?”
“Huh? You don’t remember? Your voice is like that because you drank that water.”
Khunak rubbed his neck.
“… Drank water…?”
Muttering to himself, Doah nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, you drank a lot and threw up a lot. If you don’t remember, that’s probably for the best. If you did, you might have ended up resenting me.”
Khunak lifted his head at those words and stared at Doah.
“Wouldn’t it be you who ends up resenting me, not the other way around?”
His voice was smooth but had a cold, sarcastic edge to it.
Doah, oblivious to his tone, flapped her hands dismissively.
“What are you talking about? Why would the victor hold a grudge against the loser?”
“… Loser…”
It was a word Khunak had never heard in reference to himself, so he muttered it as if in a daze.
Robern burst into loud laughter.
“Haha! A cursed sword, and an S-rank at that, losing to a B-rank? Embarrassing. You should probably return your S-rank certification.”
Doah snickered.
“Things would’ve been different if Khunak had been in his right mind. It’s a relief he wasn’t.”
She spoke casually about a serious topic — a cursed sword wielder losing control and rampaging.
“Oh, right. Also, Khunak.”
“Yes?”
“Are your eyes naturally golden?”
Surprised, Khunak blinked.
“No… I don’t remember, but… I don’t think so.”
“Really? But they’re golden.”
“… What?”
“What did you just say?”
Ignoring the astonished gazes of the men, Doah continued checking over her own body.
“Must be from all that vomiting. My lungs feel sore.”
Using a water crystal worth four large gold coins, Doah instantly filled the sewer with water.
Then, she shoved Khunak into it.
Of course, she entered the water with him, but it wasn’t the same situation.
Doah had prepared for underwater combat, while Khunak had lost his composure.
On top of that, as the sap of the World Tree dissolved in the water, the pollution was forcibly purified.
Doah used a simple, brutal, and reckless method — she hit him to force the air out of his lungs, making him inhale a large amount of water and lose consciousness.
‘At least it’s fortunate that he has a human body.’
No matter how much he rampaged, it wasn’t like he could live without breathing.
‘I drank water too.’
In the end, she didn’t know how it happened, but during her scuffle with Khunak — and it was a real scuffle — she ended up grabbing his hair while kicking him.
Her eyes felt like they were burning, and at some point, she felt her strength drain away.
Then, she blacked out.
‘And when I came to, I was here.’
“Wait a moment, Doah. Did you say Khunak’s eyes were golden?”
Grasping onto a faint thread of hope, Yan desperately asked again.
Doah nodded.
“Yes, from what I saw, they were golden. The pollution looked a bit strange too.”
Now that she thought about it, she remembered that the cursed sword had to be ‘purified’ rather than ‘destroyed.’
Even Doah found it odd.
Khunak spoke in a low voice.
“You must have seen it wrong.”
His tone was firm and decisive, as if cutting off the conversation.
Hearing that tone, Doah glanced at Khunak.
He returned a soft smile, as if everything was normal, and spoke in a gentle voice.
“Miss Doah, your mana has the light attribute, right? Since it gives off a golden glow, it might have reflected off my eyes, making them appear golden to you.”
For a moment, Yan thought,
‘Does he expect us to believe that golden light can reflect off black eyes and make them look golden?’
He barely held himself back from voicing his thoughts.
He’d been led by hope and fallen into despair too many times.
But even so…
It was Azure Nazac talking, after all.
So, he stayed silent and just looked at Doah, hoping she would say something.
Doah scratched her cheek.
“Is that how it works?”
That was all she said.
Yan swallowed a disappointed sigh.
Khunak subtly lowered his gaze, and Robern’s eyes gleamed with curiosity.
Doah, out of habit, snapped her fingers twice.
Her first concern was to check the status of her quest.
🍓🍓🍓
The emergency quest has been completed.
The adventurer has escaped the ‘resonance’ of the base.
With the power of Azure Nazac, part of the opponent’s pollution has been purified.
It was determined that the hostile cursed sword wielder died thanks to quick judgment.
Reward
▸ 500 World Tree Points have been awarded!
▸ A fairy seed has been awarded!
🍓🍓🍓
‘The power of Azure Nazac?’
Doah frowned at the unexpected message.
‘What is this? Did some kind of power activate because I was in a life-threatening situation? I have no idea.’
“Miss Doah, are you feeling unwell?”
Yan asked as he noticed her serious expression.
Doah shook her head.
‘I’ll check on this later. At least it’s over now.’
Whatever the method, as long as the result was the same, it didn’t seem to matter.
It was a relief that the quest hadn’t ended in failure.
‘Besides, they think Khunak is dead.’
Anything caused by the opponent’s misjudgment was always welcome.
“Cough, cough.”
Doah coughed a few times, and a bitter taste filled her mouth.
‘Ah.’
When she opened her palm, she saw a black liquid smeared on it.
It wasn’t blood — it was contamination.
‘Even after using a crystal, this happens.’
Since she wasn’t a mage, using a crystal must have built up contamination in her body, and it seemed to be forcibly discharged.
If it’s thanks to Azure Nazac, then it’s pretty impressive.
“Miss Doah! That contamination—!”
Startled, Yan grabbed her arm — the broken one.
Doah let out a scream.
Yan froze in shock, and Robern quickly stood up.
“B-rank, are you alright?”
“M-my arm… it… hurts…”
Doah spoke weakly, almost whispering.
Yan quickly let go of her arm.
Doah’s body trembled.
At that moment, Yan became acutely aware of how small and fragile she was as a woman.
Robern approached and carefully examined Doah’s arm.
“Was pulling on a broken arm one of the guild master’s hobbies?”
“N-no, I just—”
“I know you didn’t mean to. But if you mess with me like that again, I won’t let it slide.”
Doah glared at him with sharp eyes, putting him on alert.
Robern shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m just checking the injury. I have no hobby of tormenting the wounded.”
Though still doubtful, Doah relaxed her guard.
Robern’s hands moved gently, running over her limbs.
The delicate trembling caused by the pain was palpable beneath his palm.
He deliberately ignored it and spoke calmly.
“There are a few fractures, but none of them are severe. Isn’t Azure Nazac supposed to be immune to contamination?”
Doah nodded.
“It’s because I used a water crystal. I’m not even a mage…”
Robern was stunned. He stopped and stared at her.
“Does this B-rank have no intention of living a long life?”
“I do,”
Doah replied bluntly.
She was in the middle of a grand main quest to survive, after all.
“Coming from someone who uses hallucinogens and crystals, that sounds rich. There are plenty of people who say one thing and do another. Does this part hurt too?”
“Ah, ugh… yeah. But it’s not a fracture.”
“Looks that way. Since it wasn’t your fault, the cursed sword wielder should be happy.”
Hearing Robern’s comment, Doah raised her head.
Khunak’s face had turned pale.
Feeling troubled, Doah spoke up.
“It’s okay. This contamination isn’t Khunak’s fault. It’s because I recklessly used a crystal—”
“It’s the fault of that cursed sword that drove you to such recklessness,”
Robern interjected. With that, Robern pressed down on Doah’s eyelid, tilting her eyeball upward for a closer look.
Doah, who had been about to protest, was so startled by his sudden action that she asked,
“Huh? What? Did my blood vessels burst or something?”
“Don’t worry about it,”
Robern replied as he let go.
He sat there for a moment, resting his chin on his hand as he gazed at her. Then, he stood up.
“There’s no more reason to stay. Are you heading home?”
“Yeah. By the way, what happened with that person? The cursed sword wielder, Ksatul or whatever?”
“She suddenly vanished.”
“You didn’t catch her?”
“That’s on me,”
Robern admitted readily.
He drew his sword and showed it to her.
Doah winced at the sight of the blade, which was broken clean off.
“It’s broken?”
“More or less. When I jabbed it into some weird space she escaped into, it closed up, and this is the result.”
“Good thing you didn’t put your whole body in there.”
Hearing her comment, Robern chuckled.
“Since I’ve lost my beloved sword, how about you offer me that dragon’s fang as compensation?”
“Sure, if you buy it at a high price.”
Robern flashed an elegant smile.
“I’ll pay whatever price you name.”
“Alright then.”
Since the enemy had appeared, strengthening their side’s forces was the smarter move.
Doah decided to sell the fang without any fuss and slowly stood up.
‘Whoa, ah… no, wait! I have this, don’t I?’
Pain Off!
The moment she mentally shouted it, all the pain disappeared completely.
‘Whoa…’
It was astonishing.
She tried moving her broken arm slightly and felt no issues.
It seemed like she could fight with the broken arm if she had to.
‘Don’t move too much. Let’s be careful.’
“Cough, cough.”
Her coughing started up again.
The contamination stuck in the back of her throat kept forcing its way out.
Yan spoke up.
“Why not stay here for the night instead of going home? It’s already too late, and after everything that happened today, security outside is tight.”
“But Berry, ah! I sent Berry here! Did he arrive safely?”
Leaving a child alone was naturally cause for concern.
Yan smiled.
“If you’re talking about Berry, he’s here safe and sound. He’s already asleep.”
“Ah, really? Thank you so much.”
“The rider is really clever. It stayed close to Berry and didn’t leave his side.”
“Sea King did…? I see…”
Doah smiled, imagining the heartwarming scene.
“Then, I’ll rely on you. Thank you so much.”
“No, no. Please, don’t mention it. In fact, I should be the one thanking you…”
Yan gazed at Doah.
It still felt unbelievable that she had saved his little brother twice.
And on top of that — ‘golden eyes.’
Now, even hope was starting to grow in him once again.
“Thank you for your kindness,”
Despite making an effort to speak, the still-young Azure Nazac just smiles.
Yan felt a surge of emotion welling up, but he swallowed it back down.
“Then, this way…”
The top floor of the Adventurer’s Guild was filled with various rooms.
There were also several bedrooms, mainly for high-ranking adventurers without residences in Gran, or for guests from outside the city.
Doah was guided to a room where Berry and Sea King were already sleeping.
When she saw the two bundles of fur curled up together on the bed, a smile naturally formed on her face.
The ever-alert Sea King was the first to open its eyes and lazily wagged its tail.
Doah mouthed, “I’m back.”
Then, she sat down on the floor next to the bed.
With her creaking, aching body, she slowly removed her outer garment and began meditating.
Honestly, with wounds like these, consistent meditation over three or four days would heal them better than using sap.
They weren’t severe injuries.
However, this was the first time she’d ever coughed up contamination like vomiting during meditation.
Later on, she coughed so much that she tasted blood.
It seemed like the blood vessels in her throat had burst.
But after spitting everything out, she felt much lighter, and the pain from her wounds had become bearable.
With just one night’s rest, her bones would likely mend well enough — one of the perks of training for a hundred years.
Even so, Doah still crawled onto the bed and fell asleep.
I’ll clean up the mess tomorrow, she thought.
❖ ❖ ❖
For the first time in a truly, truly long while, Khunak’s mind was clear and transparent.
The constant, messy noise that he had always heard was gone.
There was only a faint, intermittent murmur, but compared to before, it was nothing at all.
His once foggy vision had cleared, and the burning sensation in his head had cooled.
‘So, is this what it’s like for normal people?’
It was so astonishing that it almost felt unfair.
He drew the magic sword out just a little.
Normally, it would have let out a long, wailing cry, but now it was silent.
His whole body felt light.
Even the pain in his body was clear and distinct, and it made him want to burst into laughter.
He looked down at his palm.
His gloves were nowhere to be seen, and only one glove remained on his hand.
He felt as though he could sense the soft texture of fingertips brushing against his palm.
When he thought about how she had come to find him, a burst of emotions surged up in his heart like a shower of stars.
The moment the magic sword resonated and its power pressed down on him, all Khunak could do was run.
He ran underground, into the sewers, and even deeper, so he wouldn’t harm anyone or let them see him.
He kept running, but that was as far as he could go.
He had tried to block out the annoying sound of the magic sword by striking his ears, but even that didn’t work.
In the darkness, he was alone.
He knew this was something he had to face alone.
He didn’t want to be alone, but he had to be.
Then, Doah came for him.
How had she found him?
How had she managed to track him down?
She took the magic sword away from him. She took it away…
Everything after that was a blur.
When he woke up, he was soaking wet, lying on the floor of the sewer.
The lantern at Doah’s waist was flickering on the surface of the water, casting rippling lights.
At that moment, he couldn’t approach her.
What if he had been the one to kill her?
He lay there for a long time before slowly crawling toward her, trembling all the way.
Doah’s face was pale, but she was breathing.
Her heartbeat was strong and steady.
Her arms and legs were intact, and she didn’t seem to have any serious injuries.
He felt such overwhelming relief.
Afraid that the sensation of those soft fingertips on his palm might disappear, he slowly clenched his fist and brought it to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on it.
