As Dr. Debronx's fist was just about to crush the foolish boy before him into paste, it suddenly phased through, and before he could even react, his fist was sent flying backwards along with his body being pulled along by the fist.
"...Young Master?" Jerman uttered.
He had never seen that ability before. It wasn't one of Solmire's abilities, and he already knew, just like the rest of the manor, that Bell had severed his link to his Familial God.
Which god was this?
A few names ran into his mind, but he couldn't afford to be distracted as he dashed in to attack the monster.
Bell wasn't going to miss the opportunity either as he torqued his body, twisted his arm, and plunged the spear inside Debronx before pulling it back out.
The wounds healed as before, but not before a spray of blood shot out everywhere.
Just because he was a giant monster with the strength beyond comprehension, that didn't mean Dr. Debronx didn't feel pain.
The two men continued to hound the monster, disregarding the fact that all the damage they did was being healed.
There was a clear difference in physical abilities as Jerman was much faster, stronger, and his attacks dealt more damage, and yet, it was Bell who would catch the eye of a spectator because when he dodged, he did it with minimal movement. He shouldn't have been able to survive the encounters, let alone come out on top, yet he was doing just that.
It was like he was a few steps ahead. Not because he was seeing everything with enhanced senses, but rather, he had predicted the movements of the monster based on the patterns, habits, and behavior that it had shown him.
There was a map in his head of numerous actions that could potentially happen, and in each action, more steps would split off from there, so on and so forth.
It was like there were a million possibilities of a future inside his mind, and he was reacting accordingly to the ones that were coming true.
How was this even possible?
"You must be observant. You must be smart. Be one step, no… two or even three steps ahead of everyone. Only then can you survive."
"Why can't I hit this bastard?!" Dr. Debronx screamed. "Die! Die for my daughter's sake! DIE!"
Bell spun his body, avoiding the kick, then thrusted his spear upward, driving it into the monster's chin.
Before Bell could retrieve his spear, Debronx grabbed the shaft, pulled it out of his chin, and attempted to hurl Bell backward.
Bell didn't hesitate to release his weapon and rolled backwards before landing on one knee, then pushing off his feet to dash and slide before the monster's legs.
Two daggers entered his neck as Dr. Debronx tried to turn around.
"AHHHH!"
Bell had already reached the corpse of one of the guards whom Dr. Debronx had killed. As a matter of fact, all of the dead guards in the room — none of them were killed by Maya, who was only trying to knock them out or injure them enough so they couldn't retaliate.
The mad scientist, however, killed all of his allies for no reason other than to test the strength of the potion.
Picking up the dual axes, Bell charged back into the fight.
Jerman was thinking to himself, 'He knows how to use those as well?'
He had already been shocked earlier when his young master showed proficiency in using a spear when he had only wielded a sword his entire life, but now he also knew how to use dual axes?
When did he have time to learn any of those?
A few minutes later.
'It's subtle, but his regeneration is slowing down,' Bell thought.
The entire time they had been fighting, he had been keeping track of how long it took each wound to recover down to the thousandth of a second.
It was very small changes, but as more time passed, the time it took for the regeneration to start increased. Not only that, but the speed at which the regeneration healed the monster was also slower.
'Either the damage we dealt is working, or there's a time limit on whatever he consumed to turn into this. Either way, we just have to continue doing what we're doing,' Bell concluded.
Enraged even further as he was failing to deal any damage to either man, the monster stomped towards Bell, floor tiles breaking under each step.
"You think you can do this all day?! You're nothing but a mere human! You'll tire eventually! And when you tire, I'll send you to the afterlife! Say hello to my wife for me!"
"That is true," Bell said as he stood still, lowering his weapon. "I will tire and slow down."
As a fist was about to land, Unbound Step activated.
Dr. Debronx was sent backwards.
"But that doesn't mean my timing will," Bell said with a sharp and cold voice.
Dashing forward again, his axes flashed. Sparks burst as metal met flesh and a little bit of bone. His precision was surgical, landing at vital points where even if they reformed, the monster's movements were hindered greatly, even for a split moment.
As more time was passing, neither Bell nor Jerman failed to notice that the monster's movement was getting more sporadic and desperate.
"All three of us know that you're at your limits," Bell uttered. "Do us all a favor and give up."
"You speak as if you're winning! I'm still unharmed!" Debronx bellowed, his tone triumphant although that was merely a front. "Every blood I shed, I regain right back. Cut off my arm and it'll grow like nothing happened. Soon, you will—"
BANG!
Dr. Debronx had been so lost in his own words that he didn't notice that the tendons in his arms and legs had been severed at the same time by the young master and his retainer.
He was on his knees, and the regeneration would take a little longer before it would activate.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
If one shot wouldn't get through the skull, then how about he shot in the same spot over and over?
"Hmm… I'm almost through," Bell said as he reloaded the widowmaker and emptied another round.
Debronx's body staggered forward and with a—
THUD!
The giant body of a monster collapsed face-first onto the cracked ground.
It twitched once. Twice. Then it spasmed like crazy as the thick sinews that once made him this giant, unstoppable monster began to recede. His red skin tore, shrank, and reverted back to its original color.
The monster was gone. And now all that was left before him was a human.
A human who was no less than a monster.
Debronx coughed up blood, trembling as he looked up at the boy.
As he began to lift his torso off the ground with shaky arms, Bell thought to himself, 'He's still alive?'
"You… you won. But you don't understand. I did evil, but I had to. She's all that I have left in this world. She's my everything. My wife—"
BANG!
The echo of the widowmaker cut through the silence, and Jerman stared at his young master a little intimated. His lack of reaction to killing the man who was in the midst of explaining himself was similar to Kai Agnus, the 2nd son and older brother of Bell.
With even a blink as the doctor's body fell limp, he thought, 'There's no need to hear a villain's tragic backstory. Nothing justifies what you did to those poor children.'
There was only one bullet left.
'I'll have to ask grandfather to get me some more.'
Turning his gaze toward the corner of the lab, it was the one place that the monster never ran towards. It was like there was something there he was trying to protect, and although Bell could've used it to his advantage, he also avoided the corner because he had seen what was there.
Sitting on a table surrounded by medical instruments was a young girl.
Approaching slowly, she looked alive to Bell. Her miscolored patches of skin was warm, her breathing was steady, and the stitches on her body were flawless.
This was the work of a genius and a madman indeed.
"You're his daughter, aren't you?" Bell asked quietly.
The girl blinked, then nodded her head weakly.
"What's your name?"
"I'm Judy."
"Nice to meet you, Judy. I'm Bell Agnus. And I'm the man who killed your father."
"I know. He's gone, right?"
Bell nodded.
"Is there an afterlife after we die?" she asked.
There was a long silence before Bell answered, "If there are gods in this world, then there's a chance that the afterlife does exist."
"That's good," Judy whispered.
He couldn't help but feel like she was far more mature compared to her age.
"Thank you," she muttered. "He… he shouldn't have done any of this. Thank you for putting an end to it." Her voice was fragile but clear. It was obvious this wasn't a recent thought of hers. It was something that she's been aware of for quite some time.
"You're not mad at me for killing him?"
"No. I'm grateful. I know that it's wrong what he was doing, regardless of what excuse or explanation he would give me. What he did to those children… and to himself, the blood on his hands… I knew it from the very start."
"Then why didn't you stop him?" Bell asked. He didn't sound like he was blaming her. He was merely curious.
Judy's eyes welled up, but no tears fell as she tried her hardest to remain strong.
"Because I couldn't. Even though he's a terrible person… I loved him too much to tell him the truth of how I felt."
Bell didn't respond to that and only continued listening.
"He wasn't always like this," she said softly, thinking back on the past before the day the kaiju attacked their home. "Daddy used to smile all the time. He would read to me before bed, tell me stories about the stars, cook dinner with my mom, and do everything he could to make me the happiest kid. When I got sick, it was like the world ended for him, and he would do everything in his power to make me better."
Her breathing started to tremble, and her voice was showing cracks.
"But when my mom died after we were attacked by a kaiju, the state that I was left in… it caused him to become… that. He didn't tell me, but I know that he was the one responsible for the murder of all the scientists at his former workplace. I should've asked him to just let me die, but I saw how much pain he was in."
The image of her father flashed before her eyes.
"How desperate he'd become. And I couldn't say it. I'm all that he has left. The only way he can see my mom's image is through me. I should've told him, but I couldn't. I couldn't tell him that I didn't want it. That I'd rather die than have him commit all these crimes. I felt disgusted every time a part of my body was replaced with pieces from others. But if I told him, I would be denying the only thing he has left in this world."
"So you stayed silent for his sake?" Bell asked.
Nodding faintly, Judy asked, "Am I a bad kid? I know he was doing wrong, but I was selfish and tried to protect my Daddy instead of the other kids he was harming."
Bell rubbed her hair and answered, "You're not a bad kid. You're just a kid."
The silence that followed felt heavier than any noise could have.
Bell was the one to break the silence as he asked, "What would you have done? If you were healthy and your family was like how it used to be?"
She looked off into the distance before a faint smile tugged at her lips.
"I think I would've been a scientist like Daddy. Not one who hurts people. I want to study medicine. Maybe help people walk again, help them see, and cure illnesses. But maybe that answer is just because I'm like this, hehehe. That or… or maybe I could've been a hero, saving people from kaijus."
"I see."
"Hehehe… all my answers are just answers affected by what happened to me."
"That's fine. Both of your answers are wonderful. I think you could've done either… or both of them if you had the chance," he said while rubbing her hair.
Chuckling weakly, she said, "Yeah… maybe in another life."
Closing her eyes, her breathing began to slow.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead," he responded.
"Will you… end it for me?"
Bell didn't answer immediately. His expression didn't change, but his fists were clenched tightly.
"I'm not in any pain right now due to my father's work. But soon, my body will start to shut down again. And with Daddy gone, I'll just be in agony until I succumb to the kaiju venom. While I'm like this… just a normal girl, can you do me a favor and let me leave the world without pain?"
Blood was dripping down from Bell's hands.
"Okay, Judy. I'll do it for you," he said at last. "I'll make it quick."
"Thank you," she whispered. "For listening and… and for stopping him."
Closing her eyes, her expression was calm as if she were falling asleep.
"You're a good kid," Bell said.
A smile appeared on her face as a single, sharp sound reverberated throughout the room.
BANG!...
Bell didn't let the body hit the ground; he caught it on its way down and stared at it for a long time, expression unreadable.
Then, with a slow motion, he reached out and brushed a hand across her forehead, clearing the hair from her face.
As footsteps echoed behind him, he turned around.
It was Maya.
As her eyes darted from the blood, the girl, the smoke still being exhaled from the widowmaker, Maya's voice trembled as she uttered, "Bell…? Did you… did you kill the kid?"
He didn't reply.
She hadn't been here the entire time, so she didn't see or hear the conversation between the two of them. She got here a moment after the shot had been rang.
"Did you even hesitate?" she asked, her voice cracking. "She's just a—"
Then she stopped talking. Her eyes widened.
Because Bell was crying.
It was just one tear. A single tear was sliding down his cheek before falling to the floor.
Her breath was caught in her throat.
Turning his head slightly, Bell's tone was low and tired, "Jerman."
"Yes, Young Master?"
Jerman had been by his young master's side the entire time, so he had seen it all. He was even more shaken up than Maya because he could sense how much it took out of Bell to pull the trigger, and yet he did it because it was for the sake of the child's painless ending.
"Ensure that she has a proper funeral."