“Move aside, human. The one I have business with is the human behind you.”
“She’s my wife.”
He didn’t add any other words, but his strong resolve was evident in that simple statement.
Berache’s brows furrowed deeply.
“I’m not trying to harm her, so please step aside.”
“No, just kill her right here, Berache.”
A chill ran down her spine.
Another servant of God spoke behind them.
Agnes took a sharp breath.
As she turned to look, sure enough, a white-clad man with an icy expression stood there.
“But, Kishua…”
“I said kill him!”
“Understood.”
Hesitating earlier, Berache now gripped his sword tightly and swung it down towards Laslo.
Clang-
The metallic clash sent shivers down her spine.
The two traded blows, their swords clashing. Agnes backed away, pressing herself against the wall.
Strangely, the servant of God, who shouted to kill her, kept a close eye on Agnes but did not try to harm her.
‘Why me?’
Agnes was confused by their senseless hostility.
The only connection she had with them was with Eugene.
“Agnes, run!”
Laslo shouted in the middle of the fight.
Agnes hesitated for a moment, then bolted in the opposite direction.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Kishua darted over in a blink and grabbed Agnes’ wrist, dragging her to a spot a little further away.
Kishua’s grip was unnaturally strong, eliciting a groan from Agnes.
“Ugh.”
“Damn it.”
Laslo saw that Agnes had been caught and tried to rush over, but Berache wouldn’t let him.
Clang clang-
Their skills were evenly matched, so the outcome wasn’t decided quickly.
Laslo was growing impatient.
Meanwhile, the eyes of Berache, who was exchanging blows with him, gleamed.
“Not bad, human.”
At that moment, a tremendous roar shook the castle.
Kishua’s expression hardened.
“Berache! Don’t waste time, just kill them all.”
Kishua commanded coldly. Berache nodded. Then he swung his sword with all his might.
“Ugh!”
Laslo couldn’t withstand the force and was flung against the wall.
“Laslo!”
Agnes was alarmed and tried to run to him, but Kishua’s firm grip on her prevented her from moving.
“Let go of me!”
She twisted and turned her wrist, but to no avail.
Berache, sword in hand, walked towards Agnes.
The pallid blade gleamed as it caught the light. When he raised the sword, Agnes instinctively closed her eyes and covered her head with her hands.
“Ugh…”
The groan did not come from her lips.
“Gasp.”
Berache, with Laslo’s sword piercing his back, let out a ragged breath.
“Right now.”
Laslo’s dark green eyes shone darkly in the dark.
“Take your hands off my wife.”
He pushed the sword in deeper.
Berache collapsed to the ground, groaning in pain.
Laslo’s gaze met Kishua’s, who was gripping Agnes’ wrist.
“How dare a human like you!”
Kishua trembled with rage.
But he only glared at Laslo, not threatening Agnes.
Laslo pulled out the sword he had stabbed into Berache’s abdomen with an impassive expression.
“Let go.”
The bloodied blade tip touched Kishua’s white neck.
Kishua released Agnes’ wrist with a disgraceful look.
As soon as she was free, she rushed to Laslo.
“Laslo!”
“Are you hurt?”
Agnes shook her head.
The ache in her wrist was only momentary.
Boom!
Another deep, heavy sound reverberated. The massive castle shook like a tree in a storm.
“I will never forgive you…”
“Can’t forgive me?”
Eugene chuckled.
Somehow, he appeared behind Kishua and grabbed the back of his neck.
“No wonder I couldn’t see Kishua and Berache; you were here. Were you having fun without me?”
“Eugene!”
Kishua struggled violently.
But realizing that alone wouldn’t free him from Eugene’s grip, he gritted his teeth and tensed his back.
Soon, two magnificent white wings sprouted from his back.
The powerful flapping of the wings loosened Eugene’s grip on his neck. Seizing the opportunity, Kishua surged upward.
“God will punish you. Your dirty body will be stuck deep in the ground, and your wings will tear apart so you can never fly again!”
Eugene flicked his finger downward. That alone sent Kishua crashing to the floor.
“Say that again.”
“Aaah!”
Eugene grabbed Kishua’s wings with a chilling gaze and tore them off.
“I told you to repeat what you said earlier.”
The servant of God’s blood flowed like a river on the floor.
Agnes could barely breathe as she watched the scene.
“I will, ugggh, curse you. You’ll wander endlessly in the dark…”
“Oh, so you still have the strength to curse me.”
Eugene smiled menacingly and plucked off the remaining pair of wings. His blood splashed on his face; it was grotesque.
“Aaaah!”
“Ki, Kishua!”
Berache, kneeling on the floor, staggered up from his place.
If he were a human, he would die immediately, but his vitality was very strong because he is a servant of God.
“Be… Berache.”
Kishua, lying in a pool of blood, panted.
Eugene reached out to pluck off Kishua’s last wing.
Kishua mustered his final strength and silently mouthed something to Berache.
– Kill
Berache instantly understood what that meant. He conjured a sword out of thin air, gripped it, and swiftly charged towards Agnes.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion.
Kishua’s last wing being torn off by Eugene’s hand, and Berache rushing towards Agnes with a gleaming sword, appeared and disappeared simultaneously.
Swish-
“No!”
Agnes cried out involuntarily.
A white knife sprang out of Laslo’s stomach, which was facing her.
Laslo’s body trembled.
Berache wasted no time, pulling the sword out of Laslo’s body and swinging it towards the screaming Agnes.
“Tsk.”
Eugene clicked his tongue.
He dropped the wings of Kishua, whom he had been holding on the ground, and swung his arm towards Berache.
“Aaaargh!”
Black lightning fell from the sky, burning Berache’s body.
Eventually, he couldn’t withstand it and dropped the sword.
“La, Laslo! Laslo! Wake up, okay? Eugene!”
Agnes collapsed over Laslo’s fallen body, weeping, and when she saw Eugene approaching, she cried out.
“Please save Laslo, sob, save him.”
“You’re crying with that face again.”
Eugene looked down at Agnes, tears streaming down her face, with a mysterious gaze.
“Please, save him. Please… please…”
The blood flowing from Laslo’s body was increasing. Along with it, his complexion was turning deathly pale.
She grabbed the sleeve of Eugene’s robe.
“Eugene, please. I don’t care what the price is.”
“This is quite a predicament.”
He bent his knees to meet Agnes’ eye.
“For me to back down like this.”
Eugene reached out and lightly brushed Agnes’ wet cheek.
“Don’t cry, Agnes.”
He sighed softly.
“I could use my power to fully revive him, but then you would have to give me an equivalent life force in return.”
“I don’t care.”
“No.”
Eugene shook his head.
“But I do.”
He stood up and dragged the fallen Berache over.
Then he grasped his arm, making a sharp cut. The blood dripped down.
“Open Laslo’s mouth.”
Agnes forcefully opened Laslo’s mouth as instructed.
A few drops of Berache’s blood fell onto it.
He pressed on his throat to induce swallowing.
“It’s slower than what I can do, but I’m sure he’ll recover naturally because I’ve fed him the blood of the servant of the god.”
“Th-thank you.”
Agnes finally had the presence of mind to wipe her wet cheeks.
Around then, Berache faintly regained consciousness.
“Eu, ugh, Eugene.”
“Ah, Berache. Speak. I haven’t torn out your tongue yet.”
“Ki, Kishua, Kishua, he…”
“Didn’t you know that a servant of God whose wings are torn off dies?”
“Ugh, uhuhu.”
Berache then broke down and started sobbing.
“You. Do you really have to cry for him? He, who ignored and used you every day and insulted you for being lowly?”
Berache wept silently, looking at Kishua’s corpse.
“Kishua…”
“Stupid fool.”
Eugene muttered low and kicked his back.
“Disappear from my sight on five counts.”
“Huh?”
“One.”
Berache, looking up at Eugene with tear-filled eyes, realized the meaning of his words and abruptly rose from his spot.
“Two.”
Berache spreads his wings. Unlike Kishua’s, he had a full pair, and they were a dove-gray color, not pure white.
“Three.”
Quickly, he flew to Kishua’s bloodied corpse and embraced it.
“Four.”
“Eugene.”
Berache briefly looked into his eyes.
And before Eugene could even reach five, Berache soared up into the sky.
“Why are they trying to kill me?”
“Because they want to kill me.”
Eugene approached Agnes again.
“What does that have to do with me?”
“Agnes, everything in this world comes with a price.”
Instead of answering the question, he made a strange remark.
“I’ve done things that the logic of the world can’t explain. You’ve benefited from that.”
“………”
“Think that you’re paying for it.”
“Paying for it?”
“Don’t call my name for a while. Until I appear again. Otherwise, you’ll be in danger too.”
Eugene glanced briefly at the sky where Berache had disappeared, then vanished suddenly.
