Chapter 247: ■■■■ ■■■ ■■■ (4)

Chapter 247: ■■■■ ■■■ ■■■ (4)Ferzen, who was taken aback for the first time since Lizzy had found out about his obsessive-compulsive disorder, had no idea what decision to make right now.

He thought that he had definitely never let it slip,

So, just when did Gremory notice?

Even though he had waged psychological warfare using the goods he possessed as the pieces, he never gave anyone a hint about his unique ability that would only be activated when he faced death.

Crack-!!

“Keub!”

When Gremory momentarily raised her knee and slammed it down to break his jaw to prevent him from biting his tongue, Ferzen realized that she was 100% sure about his unique ability.

No, even if her conjecture was not exactly correct.

It was probably very close to hitting the mark.

“Ugh......!”

Furthermore, as Gremory gradually crushed his diaphragm by putting pressure on her legs which were pressing down on his arms to make it difficult for him to breathe, Ferzen easily realized that she was aiming to make him faint.

......What should I do, he wondered.

In fact, even if Gremory didn’t break his jaw, Ferzen wouldn't have done something disgraceful like biting his own tongue.

Facing deadly situations and dying.

Both of them had something in common; satisfying the trigger condition of his unique ability. But at the same time, there were clear differences between the two.

Didn't he already prove that by sacrificing himself in order to save Princess Elizabeth back in the Roverium Kingdom?

In the case of his dying, there was a very high probability that what would be summoned was a monster with the ability to heal and repair body defects as well as wounds.

The valuable number of uses of his unique ability, which only had two uses remaining, should not be used to summon a monster that was not specialized in combat.

"Keu...... ! Cough......!”

Because of that, Ferzen used all of his recovered magic power, which was not a lot, to raise a corpse lying nearby.

However, since it was only the corpse of an ordinary soldier and was highly damaged on top of that, it was simply impossible for it to defy Gremory who was pressing down on him.

Crack-!!

“Keuk!”

The sound of his ribs breaking rang clearly in his ears.

The buzzing sound that assaulted his ears that followed hinted that he would soon lose his mind. Unfortunately for him, there was absolutely no resistance that a warlock like him, who had suffered from magic exhaustion and had consumed all of his goods, could put up against an Auror knight who had reached the peak.

If he could do that in the first place, it would be an insult to the natural order of this world.

“Count–!”

But if he couldn't get the results he wanted alone, shouldn’t he enlist the help of others?

That is precisely the reason why humans build ties, form relationships, and live within the boundaries of society.

Neeeiiighh-!!

Holding the reins to their horse tightly, Prince Raymond and his escort broke through the enemies and quickly closed the distance between them and Ferzen.

However, the enemies also chased after them and made them pay dearly for their sudden action of turning their backs against them.

In the end, Prince Raymond and the two knights were the only ones who completely shook off the chase and continued.

“Ha.”

Seeing them, Gremory looked away with a sneer on her face.

After all, the intrusion of two knights and an ordinary person was not a variable significant enough to warrant attention.

No, it was embarrassing to even call it a variable.

After all, she was able to push away the body of the horse that was approaching her by shaking her head.

On top of that, the knights' swords that landed on her couldn't even leave a scratch on her body.

“......”

Then, suddenly, Gremory focused her gaze on Prince Raymond, who was raising his sword with a determined look on his face.

She tried to just ignore him, but deep down she was curious.

She wondered how his expression would distort when he realized that he was powerless to do anything in front of her and when his loyal subjects who supported his country were taken away.

At the same time, she was also curious about what kind of expression Ferzen would show when he was captured and saw the Empire he supported being devastated while his precious people were being trampled.

For her, victory in this war was like having no more mountains to climb; in other words, it was losing her sense of purpose. That was why an intense feeling of emptiness and boredom rose.

Because of that, the moment of joy that the winner would enjoy from the loser, however brief, must be sweet.

Woosh-!!

However, the tip of Prince Raymond's sword, which was coming down, was never aimed at Gremory.

Rather, it was aimed at Ferzen's neck, who was on the verge of losing consciousness while being crushed underneath her.

No matter how much Ferzen had told him in advance to trust him, Prince Raymond was unable to properly concentrate on his battle and just kept looking at Ferzen because he thought that his words were just a lie to ease his mind.

Because of that, he was able to see it with his own two eyes.

Just before Ferzen was subdued by Gremory, he had taken out a dagger and aimed it at his own heart.

Even though it was an act in that he could not determine the reason behind it, if Ferzen had lied just to ease his mind, he would have sacrificed himself and opened the gate of The Underworld long ago when he had the opportunity.

But he didn't do that.

He felt like he was repaying a debt and also felt like Ferzen was slowly becoming less tied to the family called Brutein.

No matter how much of a reason there was for the evil deed he committed to completely trampled on a family, a household, and a girl.

The biggest reason why Ferzen, who he had watched from the side, suffered seemed to be because of the fact that Brutein's history and honor had been tarnished and that it had become a stain on the family.

However, he was changing little by little. Eventually, he began to suffer not as Brutein's second son, but as a person named Ferzen von Schweig Louerg.

Rather than because he was the descendant of Brutein, he pursued the happiness of a human named Ferzen.

Yes, just like when a child grows up, becomes an adult, becomes independent, and starts a family.

Did their parents regain their lives, this was the Brutein's twilight after a long period of time.

So, how could he want to be held in their arms until the end even after seeing that as the Imperial children of the Ernes Empire?

Just like how their life's meaning was not limited to Brutein.

Brutein's lives’ meaning did not necessarily have to be themselves—The Imperial Family.

Crunch-!!

In the end, Prince Raymond used his molars to pop out the poisonous substance hidden in his mouth.

It was given to prevent major powers and key personnel from being captured and got their corpses controlled to get their secrets, but it was not given to those who must be reclaimed through negotiations.

After all, if it was distributed to those who must be reclaimed through negotiations and they were taken a hostage, the enemy would kill them and then announce that they had committed suicide by the poison they were carrying. At that point, they would not be able to do anything.

However, Prince Raymond did not want to be a burden in this war, so he always took the poison with him to the battlefield without anyone knowing.

Come to think of it......

If the last resort that Ferzen was hiding was related to his death, it would have been better if they had given him the poison too.

Of course, even if Ferzen had received it, he would not have bothered to take it with him.

After all, if he bit the poison sac in his mouth, the monster that would descend would be a monster with the ability to repair the defects and wounds in his body.

However, Prince Raymond, who did not know that fact, somehow felt relieved about the fact that a Brutein descendant had kept a secret from them.

Even though they were always dependable and trustworthy......

The extreme perfection they had around them created a strange sense of distance and always reminded him of a strict father or mother.

But now he could smell a very familiar human scent from Ferzen.

If only he could have a drink with him without this crisis, they could have become really good friends without any awkwardness.

"Keu...... ! Keuk!”

The poison, which was closer to acid than anything, caused a violent reaction when it met his flesh. It soon melted his skin and lower body before flowing out of his ragged mouth and falling towards Ferzen’s neck together with bright red blood.

Because it was right in front of Ferzen’s nose, even Gremory who was watching them with her eyes open could not react.

Rumble-!!

At that moment, part of the monster's body that protruded from the opening gate of The Underworld cleared the deadly poison that fell toward Ferzen.

“Tsk!”

Then, It instantly attacked Gremory who was sitting on Ferzen's stomach.

Unfortunately, the attack didn't land.

Bam-!!

Gremory, who did not ignore her intuition, voluntarily stood up and moved back a few meters.

Then, after the gigantic trembling tentacles, a woman's cries which sounded like she was venting her anger, were heard from beyond the opened gate of The Underworld.

Fortunately, due to losing her hearing, Gremory did not hear it. However the same could not be said for the other soldiers as they all fell to the ground.

Before long, their convulsing stomach slowly swelled. When it finally expanded to its limits, it exploded. From their stomachs, small black goats crawled out and feasted on their dying bodies like it was nothing but grass.

Kwajik-!!

But soon after, all the black goats met their death.

It was not like they were killed by someone. It was just a matter of the world’s providence not allowing that kind of interference.

In fact, the sign, which had indicated what floor the door was connected to, on the gate of The Underworld behind Ferzen, kept showing higher and higher numbers chaotically as if it was broken.

Gremory, who was watching it, could not help but swallow without realizing it and straightened her trembling body.

That's because she thought that Ferzen had made a deal with the monster of the Third Floor in advance and set the situation and conditions for its descent.

Creak-!

But fortunately, no matter how hard the monster struggled, it could not crawl out to this world.

Wriggle-!

Rather, a scene where the huge tentacles which were sticking out being sucked back into the gate of The Underworld, unfolded.

Struggle-!

**Wriggle-!

However, the huge tentacle resisted the force and began to give birth to a hideous monster.

Then, the sign which had been showing higher and higher numbers fell exponentially, eventually showing that it was connected to the Third Floor.

Bleat-!!

When the gate finally closed, it left an ugly monster that did not match the bleating of a sheep that it had let out.