Chapter 129: That’s Enough (4)

Chapter 129: That’s Enough (4)

Should I kill him, or should I not? I pondered for a bit while watching him squirm.

According to my character setting, killing him would be the right thing to do, but that failed skill activation due to an error made me pause.

【P-Please spare me...】

[Rage] had indeed been canceled due to an error. That confirmed my hypothesis that the trigger for [Rage] was my genuine anger, and by appropriately venting my anger without suppressing it, I could still express anger without the skill activating.

Of course, the error appearing was a slight miscalculation on my part, but that was a problem for another time.

What bothered me now was that the skill activation was ‘canceled due to the error’.

It wasn’t like the skill didn’t activate; it activated but got canceled due to an error.

This naturally raised some questions: did the skill really get canceled, or was it not visible but still active?

So, would killing this guy benefit me? Looking back, the Madness Gauge seemed to rise significantly every time I killed someone. Wouldn’t killing him fill the Madness Gauge?

【P-Please wait!】

At that moment, someone came running. It was Akata.

【L-Let me kill him.】

In her hands was a knife with an ominous glint. I didn't know where she’d gotten it from.

The clear intent to kill and rage flowed from the girl's eyes down her cheeks.

【I know my parents were wrong. I also know that you aren't to blame! But him, that bastard, Atarte...!】

I didn't know what exactly she was saying, but I had a hunch. Would it be strange to put it like that?

【You little...!】

At that moment, Atarte began to struggle. Seeing him react so desperately to the girl's words, my desire to kill him waned considerably.

“Damn it, kill me! Kill me with your own hands!”

Especially when he said stuff like that.

I bit my lip slightly. Should I let the girl kill Atarte, or should I kill him first to protect her?

But would killing him really protect this child?

However, as an adult, could I really just stand by and let her kill someone...?

“What are you hesitating for?”

At that moment, Berserk spoke up, still looking pretty sullen about losing her prey to me.

“If you're going to let her do it, do it quickly. Revenge changes nothing, but if she doesn't get her revenge now, she'll hold on to this grudge forever.”

Despite her whining about losing her target, her words were surprisingly quite helpful.

After a bit more thought, I finally lifted my foot off Atarte's chest. Akata's face instantly lit up, while Atarte's twisted in despair.

“You...!”

Stab!

My sword's blade bore right into his heart. ‘Urgh!’ His dying scream quickly dissipated into the air.

【...Why, why?】

“There is no salvation at the end of revenge.”

A person who’d thrown away their own life for the sake of vengeance had no right to deny another’s desire for it.

But still, I didn't want to see this child taking a life.

【Why...】

“So don't ruin yourself by killing something that can’t even be described as a person anymore.”

The madness that came with killing to settle a grudge wasn't something a child should bear.

“Live your life.”

Was this the right choice? Who knows. Maybe it wasn't. Maybe it would have been better for the child to exact her revenge.

Given the times, even if I didn’t kill this man, that girl might still end up with blood on her hands one day.

But still.

Even so.

I didn’t want her to carry the burden of having killed someone in her childhood. Even if she remembered me as the bastard who took away her chance at revenge, at least her young hands would remain free of blood for now.

“You're still a person.”

Killing someone, even for the sake of justice, meant sacrificing a piece of one's humanity.

【Why...?! Why did you stop me from taking revenge?!】

“If the resentment and hatred left behind are too much to bear.”

【Why, why did you take away the only thing I could do?!】

“Pass it on to me.”

【WHY?!】

“I will bear it all.”

I passed by Deb and Berserk, who were holding back Akata while comforting a child—the one Atarte had taken.

I considered confronting the Jatav about the curse, but other people were already handling that. Since it was a priest brought along by the Mountain Lord, communication might not be so easy.

So, naturally, I headed toward White Wind.

“We’ll need to pinpoint the exact origins of this curse.”

“Of course, of course. Don’t worry. If anyone’s connected with this, no one will be able to protect them in the Great Forest. And when we catch them, we’ll make sure to hand them over to you.”

As for where I would go next, hmm, I wasn’t sure. I didn’t have a particular destination in mind.

But that wasn’t a big issue.

That’s how it always was.

* * *

“...Good. Well done.”

“Do you think their Arcane power-devouring snakes will come up while the Jatav get punished? If so, I’d like the authority to investigate that matter more. I also want to speak with the Mountain Lord.”

“I’ll ask about the former. As for the latter, no.”

The Archmage began listing all the tasks he had to take care of. His emotions were a tangled mess, yet he still had a lot of work left to do.

* * *

* * *

Worried the Madness Gauge might suddenly fill up and trigger the berserk debuff, I distanced myself from the village as much as possible.

Eventually, I found myself at the waterfall—the place I’d discovered on my way from the Serhan to the Vigabol—and...

Whooooosh!

I sat down on the same rock I’d been seated on before. It almost felt like that soft moss-covered rock welcomed me.

There were fewer trees around this place, allowing some sunlight to filter through. It wasn’t intense enough to hurt my eyes, but I could feel its presence, gently warming me and making me feel relaxed and drowsy.

The surrounding temperature didn’t really affect my body, so I didn’t feel hot, which was nice. My mood also seemed to improve slightly.

「HP: 2,457 / 2,457

MP: 2,941 / 2,941

Fatigue: 17

Satiety: 84」

However, now wasn’t the time to just sit idly. I debated whether I should drain some of my HP in case of an emergency.

I knew the Madness Gauge would increase whenever I killed someone, but I didn’t know the exact criteria for it to rise.

In other words, I wasn’t sure whether it would increase even if I stood still.

And if it’s the former and not the latter... Well. That would be a bit problematic.

I recalled when I was tightly restrained and the sight of the pulverized castle that served as evidence for my actions.

If something like that were to happen again... Yeah, I’d probably lose my head for real this time. I absolutely had to avoid that.

“Ah, the seal...”

It sure would have been nice if I had one right now.

Since I didn’t, I had to find other ways. Deciding I would carry multiple spare seals in the future, not just one, I took out a dagger.

I would decrease my HP by exactly two-thirds, no more, no less. I briefly remembered that one game where I had to intentionally keep my character in a near-death state and constantly poisoned to master healing skills.

I almost went crazy with the need to carefully maintain that state. Ah, memories.

“Uwaaaaah!! Mister, what are you doing?!”

Thud!

It seemed like I’d gotten lost in my memories for a moment.

I felt like a car hit me.

Splash!

I was sitting on a rock when someone approached me from behind—I was about to dodge but stopped when I heard the voice—and collided with me.

Naturally, since I had been sitting on a rock, that collision made me fall off. The rock was right in front of the waterfall.

Deb and I both ended up submerged in water.

“Glub, glub, glub!”

Thankfully, we landed in the pool right below the waterfall, so the current didn’t sweep us away. It was also quite lucky that the water only reached my chest.

“...Do you want to die?”

But regardless of that, this wasn’t at all fortunate for my character!

I shook the water off my head and turned around. Deb, whose fur began standing on end like a startled cat’s as soon as he touched the water, let out an audible shriek and stiffened.

“M-Mister, self-harm is bad...”

Wait, when did I ever want to do something so outrageous?

Before I could think any further, my thoughts came to a screeching halt. From my gamer perspective, all I wanted was to lower my HP, but from another person’s perspective, this was no different from self-harm.

Ah.

“Y-You should just use the seal instead. Why are you committing self-harm...”

Erm, this was a misunderstanding. Well, not exactly, but it was. I was trying to lower my HP just in case I went on a rampage, not because of something like self-hatred. Anyway, it wasn’t what you were thinking!

I bit my lip, unable to explain the complex and profound reasons for my actions.

I hadn’t planned on it, but my character’s low self-worth setting somehow intensified. This was troublesome.

“Hah!”

At that moment, Deb, who had been watching me anxiously, lunged forward to snatch away my dagger. I reflexively pulled the hand holding it behind me.

You idiot, what if you end up grabbing it by the blade! You’ll cut your hand!

“Get lost...!”

“I will, if you give me the dagger!”

I won’t! I definitely won’t!

I pushed away Deb’s head while keeping the hand holding the dagger behind me.

Squashed up against my hand, Deb flailed his arms, but unfortunately for him, my character was almost ten cm taller. That meant my arms were longer, as well.

So, he’d never be able to reach it. Go away, you thief!

“Damn it. Mister, why are your arms so long?!”

“I told you to get lost...!”

You’re going to catch a cold, you idiot! Get out of the water!!Fôll0w current novÊls on n/o/(v)/3l/b((in).(co/m)