Extra in a Romance Fantasy - Chapter 128
128 – Intent (8)
Even after discovering the second corpse, our progress naturally did not halt.
However, as time went on, the atmosphere among our group grew tense.
There was one reason for this.
We had discovered several additional corpses along the way inward.
In fact, unlike before, there were instances where multiple corpses lay together.
Needless to say, the condition of those corpses was uniformly dreadful.
For an ordinary person, merely seeing them could induce fainting spells.
“What kind of monster could do this…?”
Baran muttered lowly, his hard face tinged with a subtle anger.
I didn’t know much about Baran, but I was aware of how he was perceived.
A figure of utmost righteousness and kindness.
That was the assessment the world had of Baran.
It wasn’t just a manufactured image; everything he had done stemmed from genuine goodwill, free from any entanglement of self-interest.
Thus, it was only natural for him to feel anger upon witnessing such a horrific scene.
Of course, I wasn’t visibly enraged like Baran, but I too felt a strong desire to capture whoever had committed this atrocity.
Even setting aside the fact that this individual seemed connected to the intentions of the cult, it would be a good thing to reduce even one victim.
However, contrary to our resolve, we were unable to find any trace of the culprit, let alone capture him.
Despite having encountered several corpses.
That fact plunged me into thought.
No matter how I considered it, it was strange that there were no traces left behind to this extent.
I may not be an expert in tracking monsters, but I could confidently say I excelled at locating living beings, even more so than an expert.
Expanding my magical senses to survey the area and picking up on signs was a simple task.
—
However, despite my senses being fully extended around me, I could not catch a trace of the creature.
The corpses continued to appear before us.
It moved stealthily, continuing its crimes without ever being detected by my senses.
I had experienced something like this before.
It was during the Shadow Monster incident.
The Shadow Monster had the ability to deceive magical detection, and I remember struggling quite a bit to sense it.
The current situation had a certain resemblance to that time.
The corpses were in a horrific state, the creature evaded my detection, and the setting was a forest.
These three elements gave me a faint sense of déjà vu.
However, I couldn’t be sure if it possessed a special ability like the Shadow Monster to evade detection.
I couldn’t be certain, but if that were the case, I would have caught its trace long ago.
Perhaps it was either completely outside the range of my senses or using some other method to continue its crimes.
Alternatively, there was a possibility that this very space was connected to that monster.
Considering that this place was essentially a stage set by the cult, it would make sense that the creature was one of their schemes.
To conclude, there was nothing that I, or my companions, could do.
At least not until that monster appeared before us on its own.
Since the others were also attempting to sense the creature in their own ways, I accepted this fact without hesitation.
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Pana and Johanna had been calm from the start, while Baran expressed his frustration but understood that there was nothing to be done, suppressing his anger.
There had been such an incident, but aside from that, there were no significant events.
Only the slime monster appeared to block our path.
Even that was not a major issue for us, and with Baran’s anger making his strikes even fiercer, we dispatched it in no time.
After proceeding for a while longer, we finally faced another door.
This time, we crossed the threshold without hesitation and took in the vast expanse of the field before us.
“It seems this is the end,” Baran remarked as he looked at the field.
“It does seem that way,” I agreed with his assessment.
In fact, anyone in this situation would have nodded in agreement.
In the center of the field stood a large altar, with a stone tablet placed upon it, and in front of the tablet was a large stone sarcophagus.
It was a sight that anyone could recognize as a grave.
“It seems we were the first to arrive after all.”
As Baran had said, our group was the only one visible in the field.
“Well then, let’s check the grave first—”
With the purpose of our entry right before us, our group was about to step toward the tombstone.
Suddenly!
A flash of light erupted, and someone appeared in the field.
“Hmm? What’s this? …Ah, is this the end?”
The figure that emerged with the light was someone I also knew.
And…
“…Brother?”
It was someone that Pana knew better than anyone else.
“Hmm? Oh? Pana?”
The tall man with striking white hair turned to us, his eyes widening in surprise.
Just like Pana had, he immediately recognized his younger sister.
Though it had been quite a while since they last met.
“…You look fine.”
Pana’s change was limited to her eyes widening slightly.
“Do you think I’d get hurt in a place like this?”
Kahim’s reaction was surprisingly indifferent.
Their reunion in such a location was met with an almost casual demeanor, but I decided to overlook it, thinking it was a sign of their mutual trust in each other’s abilities.
“I was wondering where you had gone, and here you are with some strange folks.”
As he said this, Kahim scanned our group.
Johanna passed by with an indifferent gaze, and when he reached Baran, his eyes widened slightly, revealing a hint of intrigue.
And when he got to me… his eyebrows twitched once.
Then he asked.
“…Is one of them the guy you mentioned?”
He directed the question at Pana.
It was a rather unexpected inquiry.
Pana showed no reaction to the question, however…
“…Well, there’s probably no need to ask. If there were, you wouldn’t be accompanying me.”
Kahim nodded, drawing his own conclusions.
“So, this guy is…”
His gaze first settled on Baran.
However, after a quick glance at Pana’s face, Kahim immediately shifted his attention away from Baran.
“…Probably not.”
Next, his eyes turned to me.
“…So, this guy, huh…”
With a scrutinizing look, Kahim scanned me up and down.
Naturally, I was at a loss, feeling somewhat flustered, as I had no idea what Kahim was talking about or why he was acting this way.
If I had to guess, perhaps it was concern for his younger sister.
Though he appeared to be fidgety on the outside, seeing his sister hanging around with some unknown men must have made him uneasy as an older brother.
“…Hmph. You look rather weak, don’t you?”
Tilting his head, Kahim approached me.
Then he examined me again, looking me over.
Under that gaze, I pondered.
I didn’t know Kahim well, but I was aware of the rumors surrounding him.
He was said to act before thinking, and if something displeased him, he wouldn’t hesitate to throw a punch.
If even half of those rumors were true, it could lead to quite a troublesome situation.
He might suddenly cause a scene just because he didn’t like me, or, in a more extreme case, resort to violence.
What if he decided to use force right here and now?
I couldn’t reveal my abilities in front of this many people.
My companions might try to help, but that could escalate into a much bigger problem.
With those thoughts swirling in my mind, I was trying to figure out how to navigate this situation.
Swoosh—
Finally, Kahim raised his hand.
And the hand that was lifted…
Without swinging it, slowly settled on my shoulder.
Before I could even feel any confusion from that hand.
Tap, tap—
Kahim moved his hand and slowly patted my shoulder.
“……?”
Taken aback by this unexpected gesture, I looked at Kahim with a puzzled expression.
“Tsk tsk… You really have a long road of hardship ahead of you.”
Kahim clicked his tongue, looking at me with eyes that didn’t feel hostile, but rather filled with pity.
“……?”
I couldn’t understand the situation.
Why was Kahim acting like this?
So, I turned my gaze to Pana, who knew Kahim well, hoping she might have some answers.
I wondered if she might know something.
However, what caught my eye was—
“…….”
Pana was looking this way, or rather, at Kahim, with a gaze that was noticeably colder than usual.
Something felt off.
A chilling sense of unease crept down my spine.
Flash!
Once again, light flashed, and this time, other people appeared in the field.
And those people had very familiar faces to me.
“This place… Huh? Johanna? Andel?”
“What the! You were fine!”
It was Max and Hector.
They looked noticeably more fatigued than before entering the grave, but they seemed to be okay overall.
I wanted to rush over to greet them, but my intention was thwarted.
Flash!
Once more, light flashed, and more people began to appear.
No, this time it wasn’t just a single instance.
The light flashed repeatedly, and new faces started to emerge one after another.
Among them was—
“Hmm.”
A knight clad in silver armor.
“Hmm… I thought I was picking up the pace…”
There was a woman with striking crimson hair.
Watching the two of them, and those who were still revealing themselves in real-time, I realized.
All those who had entered this tomb and were still alive were now gathering here.