Hildegard, who had been walking briskly, paused for a moment and looked back.
"…Hm?"
"What's wrong?"
"No… it's nothing."
She couldn't understand why Carl Marcus was in such a hurry to send the scouting team back, but Hildegard couldn't shake the ominous feeling creeping up inside her.
'…That man I saw back then, he wasn't just an ordinary human.'
What Carl Marcus had said, and the way that man appeared through her Insight Eye—it was all simply incomprehensible.
A being she couldn't understand even by looking.
So, although Hildegard left the scene just as Carl Marcus had suggested, she couldn't erase the worry gnawing at her.
'Is it really okay to just leave like this?'
Of course, based on what she had seen of Carl Marcus so far, he would likely return to Akro as if nothing had happened.
But even with that knowledge, the unsettling aura that had radiated from that man earlier was enough to make her hesitate.
'I have to… save Carl Marcus.'
Then, a sudden thought struck her, and Hildegard couldn't hide her surprise.
Who was supposed to be saving whom?
Thinking rationally, the current scouting team wouldn't be able to rescue Carl Marcus—on the contrary, they'd probably only get in the way.
Her certainty in that came from their recent battle with the Turncoat, Fon.
'Fon, who we couldn't defeat even when attacking together—Carl Marcus defeated him alone.'
And not just defeated—he had done so with astonishing ease.
That alone made the difference in capability and equipment between the scouting team and Carl Marcus overwhelmingly clear.
So then, who was helping whom?
Though Hildegard knew how absurd her own thoughts were, for some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling that she had to turn back.
'If something were to happen to Carl Marcus like this....'
Hildegard considered it.
The value of the entire scouting team, and the value of Carl Marcus as an individual.
She didn't want to admit it, but in the current situation, she had no choice but to side with Carl Marcus's value.
'In that case....'
Hildegard didn't think long.
Even if it meant sacrificing the entire scouting team, Carl Marcus had to be saved.
That was the judgment of Hildegard, acting as the temporary scouting team leader.
'But....'
Was that truly the right choice for Carl Marcus?
What if they went and ended up only dragging him down?
Hildegard couldn't hide her tangled thoughts.
Her mind deepened.
* * *
Hmm...
Objectively speaking, the current situation could be described as quite the predicament.
'Is this a trap?'
My first thought, unsurprisingly, was whether the Immortal was trying to lure me in with some ploy.
Of course, from what I knew, the Immortal didn't have the cunning personality to set traps in combat—but that didn't mean this situation couldn't be an exception.
["…What do you think it is?"]
'That's what I'd like to know.'
Without letting my guard down, I slowly approached the Immortal.
Logically, the best move would've been to use this chance to escape from the Immortal. However, the issue was the presence of the Turncoat King somewhere nearby.
'If I clumsily flee this spot, the Turncoat King will either chase me down or try to absorb the Immortal completely.'
Though he wasn't currently in my line of sight, somehow, I knew.
The Turncoat King hadn't gone far.
He was watching from nearby, waiting patiently for the right moment.
'The right call in this situation is....'
I carefully approached the fallen Immortal and observed his condition from a short distance.
'He's not dead.'
Faint though it was, there were signs of life.
In other words, he was alive.
Well… describing an Immortal as "alive" might sound strange, but for now, that was the case.
["Master… what are you going to do now?"]
'I'm not sure....'
Even I couldn't easily make a decision.
If I followed my instincts, I wanted to absorb the Immortal right then and there—but to do that, I had to get close to him.
If the Immortal were to counterattack at that moment, I would have no choice but to regret that decision deeply.
'What now....'
It was a situation where I couldn't go forward or back.
But I didn't have much time, so I had to make a decision.
'If I can't consume the Immortal, there's no way to resolve this situation.'
In other words, I had to take this moment—when the Turncoat King had stepped back—as my opportunity.
["…Master? What are you planning?"]
'I'm going to eat that.'
["Huh? That thing?!"]
Esther was aghast.
That was how terrifying the Immortal was to Esther.
Not just because of his sheer power—his very nature was fundamentally incompatible with Ether.
'Just watch.'
["But… ah… I don't know."]
Esther averted her eyes.
Shhh…
Meanwhile, Janus's bone tendrils began to slither out on their own.
But not a single one dared approach the Immortal.
It meant that Janus, too, was being extremely cautious around the Immortal.
'Janus.'
[Giit....]
'Devour him.'
[Git...!]
Janus hesitated for a moment, then slowly extended his bone tendrils toward the Immortal.
Shhh──
Despite my initial worries, the Immortal didn't budge at all even as Janus's bone tendrils reached him.
It was obvious that ordinary bone tendrils couldn't pierce the Immortal, so I strengthened them.
['Hardening' has been activated.]
['Steelization' has been activated.]
Soon, Janus's bone tendrils were dyed in pitch-black darkness.
They now had enough penetration to rip through even steel.
Preparation was complete.
All that was left—was to consume.
Shwoooooooosh───!
The bone tendrils surged toward the Immortal with fierce momentum.
[Git!]
But… they bounced off the Immortal's skin far too easily.
More precisely, every time they tried to pierce his flesh, his extraordinary regenerative powers repelled them.
'…That recovery is still absurd.'
Even more astonishing—his regenerative ability was far greater now than when he was in perfect condition.
'But there is a way.'
Even after getting this far, the fact that the Immortal hadn't gotten up meant he was truly unconscious—or in a state close to it.
If that was the case, then I couldn't afford to waste this chance.
'Janus.'
At my call, Janus seemed to understand my intent and began reshaping the ends of his bone tendrils to resemble syringes.
They were, of course, thicker than actual syringes, but in this form, they could pierce through the Immortal's regenerative flesh and draw out his blood and meat.
'Go.'
Shwoooooooosh!
At my renewed command, Janus's bone tendrils pierced the Immortal's skin.
As expected, though they had bounced off pitifully the first time, now they were holding against the Immortal's regeneration.
'Good. Now then…'
Though the narrowed syringe-like tips would make absorbing the Immortal's blood and flesh take much longer, this was more than enough.
Slurp, slurp, slurp…
Just as Janus began the full process of absorbing the Immortal's blood and flesh—
["M-Master!"]
Esther's urgent cry rang out as a grim, oppressive presence approached from afar.
'So, he showed up after all.'
The Turncoat King.
He had arrived.
["What do we do now?! I told you we should've run…!"]
Esther shrieked.
That's how dire the situation was.
'Hrm…'
As I suspected, the Turncoat King had no intention of letting me devour the Immortal in peace.
Honestly, if I were the Turncoat King, I wouldn't sit back and let someone steal my prey either.
'The problem is… I've barely absorbed any of the Immortal's blood and flesh.'
What Janus had taken in so far was minuscule.
At this rate, I couldn't even be sure whether I'd gain the Immortal's abilities.
And unfortunately, the Turncoat King was closing in far too quickly for me to stall any longer.
Rummmmmbbblleeee───!
Like a sand-devouring predator ripping through the horizon, the Turncoat King charged forward—an unstoppable living disaster.
["Master! What are you doing?!"]
Now, I had to make a choice.
Do I give up on absorbing the Immortal and ready myself for battle?
Or do I stubbornly try to absorb a bit more of his blood and flesh?
["Master!"]
By now, I could already see the Turncoat King from about 2 kilometers away.
Two kilometers might sound like a lot—but given his speed, I had only moments left.
["Please, run! Hurry!"]
Of course, I knew.
Logically speaking, Esther was right.
But still, I couldn't shake the thought.
'…If I retreat now, there's no chance of survival. I have to gamble.'
Right now, I was facing two monstrous threats: the Immortal and the Turncoat King.
In a situation like this, survival by conventional means was impossible.
Yes, unless I made a move that bordered on madness.
'Janus.'
Having made my decision, I gave Janus a new command.
If Esther knew what I was planning, she would've screamed that I'd lost my mind—but there was no way for her to know.
[Gigit!]
Janus, hearing my command, stopped the extraction from the Immortal.
But not just stopped.
Instead, through the bone tendrils, Janus began injecting bone fragments into the Immortal.
Crunch, crunch, crackle…!
I used the same method I had once employed to subjugate the Turncoat Knight.
Instead of taking from the Immortal, I was infusing him with Janus's power.
It was, of course, a complete gamble.
And one with a very high failure rate.
'But right now, there's no other option.'
If I couldn't absorb the Immortal, and I couldn't let the Turncoat King absorb him either, then I had to turn the Immortal into an ally right here.
["Master! Over there!"]
In the meantime, the Turncoat King had closed the gap, now wielding a massive bone spear.
It looked like he was preparing to throw it.
'The Turncoat King's spears are too fast to dodge once seen. I have to predict it ahead of time.'
Dodge. Dodge. Dodge…
I repeated the word like a chant, preparing for the inevitable strike.
Then the Turncoat King's arm moved, and in an instant, the bone spear vanished from my view.
'Missed it. I have to dodge this one.'
But where?
From here on out, it wasn't logic—it was pure instinct.
If I moved the wrong way, I'd be skewered by the Turncoat King's spear and killed instantly.
I threw myself to the side with everything I had.
BOOOOOOOOOOM───!
Call it luck within misfortune.
The Turncoat King's spear landed just beside me and completely reshaped the terrain.
Even seeing it again, the sheer force of it was absurd.
'The Immortal…?'
Panicked, I glanced around—but the Immortal, who had been lying prone just moments ago, was nowhere to be seen.
'Where did he go?'
As I sharpened my senses through the rising dust cloud, Esther cried out.
["Master! Behind you!"]
And just as I turned around, I saw him.
The Immortal was right behind me.
I hadn't even noticed him approach.
'…Did it work?'
Tension crackled through the air.
And then, very slowly, the Immortal's lips moved.
"Obe… dience…?"