Noroi pinched the bridge of his nose at Haruki's question, and he already looked genuinely numb from the sheer stupidity of that boy, replying coldly.
"For the weaker levels, we can disguise ourselves to blend into their society."
"Ohhh, right, disguise… sorry, I forgot."
But Yamika, who had been following the conversation with slight interest, tilted her head a little upon hearing the word disguise. Her lips parted in confusion as she asked.
"And why do we have to disguise ourselves?"
The boys turned to her, and the first to answer was Haruki.
"Because the monsters attack humans."
Haruki's answer increased Yamika's confusion even more, as yesterday's incident lit up in her memory. She shook her head in disbelief and said.
"But no one attacked me yesterday in the markets."
Haruki was surprised by her words, as the monsters had attacked him as soon as they discovered his species, while Yamika had remained unharmed. Noroi, however, responded with biting sarcasm.
"Maybe because they thought you were one of the wild boars."
Yamika's breathing quickened with rage; she clenched her fists tightly and pressed her teeth together, releasing her words in a sharp tone.
"You won't stay quiet before I turn your bones into a necklace!"
Noroi gave a look full of mockery and challenge, showing no fear at all.
"Oh, you've really terrified me."
Yamika's pent-up anger since their meeting exploded; she lunged at him quickly, grabbed his shirt collar firmly, and pulled him toward her.
"You're getting on my nerves, crow! I'm not someone to mess with!"
Haruki, who was watching the scene escalate before him, felt extremely tense and stepped forward, trying to intervene and break up the conflict, but Noroi pushed him aside, speaking in a sharp and annoyed tone, as a wave of negative emotions had accumulated inside him, overtaking his body entirely. He shouted at Haruki in anger.
"You are not a goodwill ambassador or a peace adviser, Haruki, so stay out of this for a moment and don't stick your nose in!"
Noroi shoved Yamika's body back, creating distance between them, declaring the start of their battle.
Her expression darkened at his declaration, for a Viking never retreats from a fight. She clenched the wooden handle of her axe so tightly her knuckles turned white, leaning slightly forward in a savage battle stance as strands of hair fell over her forehead.
"Oh, if that's how you want it… then so be it!"
At that ferocious sight and those dangerous words from Yamika, Noroi pressed the buttons on his iron wrist device, releasing the hidden blade with its sharp edge. His expression was devoid of friendliness or intent to withdraw, determined to fight as his eyes tracked every movement of her body.
Their gazes locked, brimming with hatred and hostility. With the spark of tension flaring between them, Haruki felt extremely uneasy, torn between stepping in or staying back to watch.
He didn't want them to fight, yet he seemed hopeless to stop them.
Dust scattered as they launched toward each other at the same moment.
Yamika struck first, raising her grip high as the shining blade came down directly toward Noroi's head.
Noroi slipped lightly to his left just before the sharp edge could touch him, then lifted his leg to strike at Yamika's grip, attempting to force her to release it.
Her body was driven backward with force, but her feet refused to leave the ground or yield, leaving twin grooves in the dirt from the push.
Still, her joints had already begun to bleed from the blow. She readjusted her stance.
"Your end will be at my hands."
Noroi paid no attention to the direct threat in her tone, lunging forward once more to continue the fight.
His blade slashed toward her, dangerously close to Yamika's nose.
But she clenched her other fist and delivered a direct punch to his face, knocking him to the ground.
His body hit the earth with a dull thud, air bursting from his lungs as he lay still for a moment.
A red line marked his cheek, and soon he felt the warm, metallic-scented liquid dripping from his nose in a dark crimson.
Yamika began to advance toward his fallen body, dragging her axe slowly behind her, her eyes blazing with dark, ominous shadows….
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Thank you for reading! If this moment touched you even a little , please consider adding it to your library.💐