Chapter 210 - How It Feels To Be The Loser (19)

Caleb catiously looked at the man lying on the ground, who was now facing his way and slowly opening his eyes. He frowned under his helmet as he felt something wrong with the man.

Although he could clearly feel the man was, in fact, a civilian, there was something about the man that made him worry.

'The eyes—those are not the eyes of someone who has lost their everything. Those are the eyes of someone who has seen too much death.'

He was aware that as the sole survivor, to have those eyes are normal but there was something different about the eyes of the man. 'It seems to me that he didn't just watch it; he did it himself.'

While Caleb was pondering over the man's "authenticity," the man showed the people a relieved and grateful smile, then extended his hand at them. "Please... H-Help me. My fa..mi...ly." Everyone could see that lifting a hand was a labour to him.

In the end, upon seeing the man's display of helplessness, Caleb sighed to himself then approached the man. He knelt on the ground when he arrived in front of the man, and grasped the hand of the man in assurance.

"We will get you to safety first."

"N-No... My fa-family! They... They are in—"

"We understand your concern, Sir. However, there is no point in rescuing your family, if we end up losing you too."

Caleb grasped the hand of the man tighter. He had thought the man was fishy due to his overly cautious nature, but upon holding the hand of the man, he was sure the man was the real deal; he felt slightly guilty about it.

'This hand—this powerless hand... Only belongs to those who have lost everything in their grasp.'

Caaden, who was the first person to find the man, also finally stepped forward then knelt on the ground. Taking a canteen water bottle out of her Spatial Ring, she supported the man, and helped him drink the water.

The man gulped the water like a fish, showing how thirsty he had been for all the time. Although his face was still pale, his complexion looked slightly better after he emptied the water in the canteen.

"T-Thank you, Esteemed Knight," the man said with sincerity.

Caleb frowned under his helmet. "We are not Knights." Although he was aware of the fact that not just anyone knew of their existence, he was still unhappy they were being confused with Knights. "We are Paladins, the protectors of the Church."

"Ah! What kind of offence I have done! I'm sorry for not recognizing you, a person blessed by the Gods."

The man was about to get up and do a kowtow, but Caleb stopped him even before he did it. "Calm down. None of us felt offended by your ignorance." He tenderly pushed the man down, and continued, "Besides, all of us are blessed by the Gods."

"T-Thank you, esteemed Paladin." The man was visibly touched judging by the tears coming out of his eyes. "My family... Are they blessed by the Gods too?"

"Of course, they are."

"Then, they should still be alive, right?" The man looked at Caleb expectantly, but Caleb kept his silence." Turning to Caaden with a desperate, pleading look, the man begged, "L-Let's go save them. They are still out there!"

Caaden put her hand on the man's chest, and said reassuringly, "Of course, sir. We will go save your family." Turning to Caleb as if asking for confirmation, said person nodded his head immediately. "Cadmon, carry this man with you!"

The Paladin named Cadmon stepped forward, then carried the man wordlessly. The man was visibly flustered at the gesture, apparent by the uncomfortable expression he was showing on his face.

"I—I can walk on—"

"Just let Cadmon carry you. You don't have any energy to move yet." Caaden smirked mischievously, and she was lucky she wore her helmet, so the man couldn't see it. "Kuhum! Can you show us the way to your family?"

"O-Of course." The man nodded slightly. Pointing slightly to the east, the man said, "A few kilometers away from here, there is a small village that is invaded by Monsters ... My village."

Caleb didn't question the man's statement in the slightest, as he could also sense there was quite an amount of Demons there. Furthermore, that was coincidentally the area they were initially heading to.

"We're moving!"

Paladins and Mages alike resumed walking wordlessly, letting Caaden take the lead with Cadmon, who was carrying the man in his hands like a bride. This time, Rose and Elaine were walking right behind the three people.

"It might be late, but what is your name, sir?"

Due to his position, the man did his best to look at Caaden before answering. "My name is Kuzo."

"Hoh? That's a unique name. What does it mean?"

"It means nothing, esteemed Paladin."

"Huh? What kind of parents name their child 'Nothing?'"

At Caaden's genuinely confused tone, the man sighed lightly. "My name doesn't mean 'Nothing,' but it has no meaning. I don't even know the origin of my name."

"That's even worse! What kind of parents name their child a meaningless name!"

"My parents..."

At Kuzo's empty and helpless tone, Caaden immediately remarked, "I-it's alright, sir! You don't have to feel down! A name is nothing but the way people call us. It's okay even if it's meaningless!"

"Are you mocking me?"

"Pfft! Ha-ha-ha!" Caaden held her stomach, and laughed merrily. "You are a funny guy, Mr. Kuzo."

She was about to laugh more, "Caaden," but when Caleb called her name, she stopped entirely. "Joking around with someone who has just experienced a misfortune is not a quite right thing to do."

"Y-Yes, I know."

"You're leading all of us, so take your responsibility seriously."

"Understood!"

With that, Caaden stopped fooling around, and Caleb sighed in slight exasperation. It was silent right after, but some of the people were thinking about something that made them uncomfortable.

'How could the man manage to run away from the Plucker that is known for their agility for dozens of kilometers?'

Their journey to save Kuzo's family went on, and it was mostly filled with the doubtful thought of the Mages.

...

It had been a couple of minutes, and Basil hadn't separated with the three girls yet. They were still chasing the Middle Class Demons, and had only managed to kill a couple of Demons so far.

Humming to himself, he observed the girls with a slight frown. "Hmm... I can make them lose consciousness right now, but I don't want to leave behind my Mana Signature." Sighing to himself, he took out a sword from his Spatial Ring. "Should I kill them? No."

Controlling the sword with [Master of Weapons], it floated right above his head while precisely pointing at Alexandra. "Knights are not allowed to get involved in Mages' matters, and vice versa."

If a feud happened between two Mages, Knights were not allowed to meddle in the feud. In other words, the only person who would call him out if they witnessed he killed Eugene was only Alexandra; the two Knights would definitely turn a blind eye on his deed.

Boom. Boom.

Basil was about to launch his sword at Alexandra, when suddenly he heard a heavy step coming from a kilometer ahead. Even without seeing who the owner of the footstep was, he knew it belonged to a Minotaur Warrior.

"I guess she has quite a luck herself." Basil stored the sword back, and took out a dagger instead. "Jaden's Dagger... It's been a long time." Controlling the dagger with his Aura Ability, he sent it toward the incoming Minotaur Warrior.

As it had [Frictionless] casted on it, the dagger flew at the Demon so fast, it looked like nothing more than a brief flash of light. Although not as fast as the late Dunstan's [Warrior of Light], it was fast enough to be unnoticeable.

Stab!

The dagger hit the Minotaur Warrior right in its solar plexus. It didn't kill it or give it a heavy injury, but it wasn't Basil's intention since the very beginning.

"Miasma Root—the place where Demons store their Mana. With the right pressure applied on it, one can make a Demon go on a rampage."

Basil lightly smirked, as said Demon went berserk in the next moment. Its eyes shone brightly in red as if a literal fire was burning in them, and they were planted on the three girls.

"At least, this is enough to distract them from noticing my presence ... As long as they are not stupid enough, they can survive this."

The berserk Minotaur Warrior charged at the three girls, causing the other Middle Class Demons that were running in front of them to turn around, and also charged at them. The girls were visibly flustered, but they quickly got into a formation.

[Slip]!

[Feather Step]!

Basil activated his Step Art and Movement Technique consecutively as he dashed forward, while utilizing his Mana and Qi as effective as he could. Muttering the short version of a Spell he rarely casted, Mana immediately surrounded him.

[Reflection Veil]!

Light briefly covered him, before his body entirely disappeared. He was still there running, but no one could see him; with the Spell he had casted, he prevented any light from falling on his body, thus making it invisible to the people's eyes.

Of course, the Spell wasn't that perfect. Any capable Mage could still easily notice the presence of the person who was casting it on them, since the Spell made the Mana of the one who casted it cover their entire body.

This is the reason why Basil didn't do this since the very beginning. With how much Mana he was using, and the potency of his Mana, even though he controlled his Mana better than anyone, there was still a possibility that Alexandra could notice him.

Luckily, he had a chance to distract them with the Minotaur Warrior. With its Demonic Mana overwhelming the entire field, Basil could mask his Mana, and go unnoticed.

"They are coming!"

"Let me face them head on! You guys cover me!"

"Sylvia, don't charge recklessly!"

"I can't die easily! [Anesthesia]!"

When Basil finally passed them, he neutrally glanced at the girls, who were preparing themselves to engage in battle with the Demons. He could see them moving slowly in his eyes.

'I was ignorant like them; just being a pawn in someone's plan. Though I ended up doing the same thing as what those people did to me, I have no remorse .... Life is about eating and being eaten.'