"Fuck! I'm an idiot!"
I was the last one to go through the portal. The moment I arrived on the other side and didn't see any of my allies, I realized I had screwed up. The barrier interfered too much with my sword's magic, distorting the spatial link and causing this mishap.
If my calculations were correct, they should have appeared at random points across the city. I prayed they hadn't been teleported inside a wall, fused with someone else, or sent somewhere dangerous.
"I can't even be responsible if I try..."
Now, the only thing I could do was cause chaos in the city. That way, all enemies would focus their attention on me, giving my allies plenty of room to maneuver.
From what I could tell, I was in the commercial district, or District A. It was a full-fledged black market, where all kinds of shady—and of course illegal—things were sold.
Looking around, I saw plenty of unpleasant sights, mostly those bastard criminals buying slaves or weapons made from mabeast parts.
Even if I hadn't known, the empty expressions on the slaves' faces revealed how rotten this place was. When I was here in the Hunter timeline, I killed all the residents and freed the slaves, only to discover their minds were so broken they could no longer think for themselves.
I still remember what I felt back then. It wasn't sadness or anger—it was something worse: understanding.
I realized that humans aren't born good or evil. We have the potential to become kind saints or atrocious monsters. The key is empathy: if you see others as equals, your actions will have limits. But if something in your mind places them below you, you'll see them as...
"Scum," I said with contempt.
"Huh?"
I didn't even realize when I had grabbed one of those pieces of scum by the arm, just before he could take hold of his newly purchased slave.
The brute was a man in his forties. His thin, sickly body matched the twisted look on his face: he stared at the demi-human girl he had just bought like a hungry, sadistic beast. It didn't take much imagination to guess what he planned to do to her.
"I'm saying people like you are scum. You live by hurting others and enjoy savoring the pain you cause." I tightened my grip, making his joints crack. "Actually, I take that back—you're worse than scum."
"Let me go!" he shouted indignantly. "Who the hell do you think you are, picking a fight here!?"
"Hey, look at that."
"What's going on?"
The situation quickly escalated into a public commotion. Some residents looked at me warily, but most were enjoying the show.
"That idiot just broke the non-aggression rule. He dug his own grave."
"I hope they don't kill him too fast. It'll be fun to see how far he gets."
It seemed my audience was intrigued. My adrenaline rose along with a sense of euphoria.
They wanted something impressive? I'd be happy to oblige.
"Where I come from, I never tried to take justice into my own hands... but that doesn't mean I was against it. On the contrary, I always wanted to try."
As I spoke, the Yin sword appeared in my hand, which I raised threateningly. The man in front of me panicked and struggled desperately to break free, but it was useless.
"Hey!" my captive suddenly cried out. "Don't just stand there—help me deal with this bastard!"
But all he got were laughs and mocking replies.
"You're on your own."
"I'd help, but my leg hurts."
"Rest in peace, buddy."
Hearing all the refusals, the man gritted his teeth in frustration—then his expression changed again.
"Fine! Then how about this?! I'll buy a top-quality slave for anyone who protects me!"
"Oh?"
The promise of a juicy reward caught everyone's interest. Nearly all of them moved closer, opportunistic smiles on their faces.
"Any slave? Even the most expensive one?"
"Yes, any!" the man replied immediately, constantly glancing at my sword.
"Does that include Blue?" someone in the crowd asked.
An odd silence fell. I frowned at the mention of that alias—it sounded familiar.
My captive hesitated for a few seconds, then swallowed and answered in a resigned tone.
"It does! Now hurry up and kill this son of a bitch!"
"Deal, old man!"
Suddenly, a dozen men lunged at me. Just before their attacks could reach me, I flooded my limbs with mana—and there was a flash.
It didn't seem like I had moved, but a second later, blood flooded the ground around me. They had all become dismembered corpses.
"Ugh..."
The recoil was quite painful. I had forgotten I no longer had regeneration or a resilient body. My muscles and bones, forced to move far faster than they should, could now break easily if I overdid it.
In fact, I could feel that using the technique had damaged my body, though for now it wasn't anything serious.
"I can't believe it... Who the hell are you?!"
The voice of the last piece of scum snapped me back to reality. The poor bastard was trembling in fear—not because of the grotesque scene, but because he knew he was about to die the same way as his companions.
Ignoring his question, I grabbed him by the neck and lifted him off the ground, tightening my grip just enough to cut off his air.
"Ghhk! P-please, have mercy!" he choked, clutching my arm while kicking uselessly.
"Mercy? How strange. Your kind always acts like they've never heard that word. It's pretty hypocritical to ask for something you've never shown anyone."
I wanted to kill him right away, but something still bothered me.
"Hey, I've got a question. Who's this 'Blue' you were talking about?"
"Uff!?"
"Oh right, I guess you can't answer without air."
I let him go. He collapsed to the ground, coughing and clutching his neck. I sighed and kicked him, making him writhe in pain.
"Come on, I don't have all day."
"W-wait, I'll tell you everything I know! Blue is—"
A sharp bang cut him off. It also blew a hole through his forehead, and he collapsed, clearly dead.
My eyes scanned the area, but the one who stole my kill wasn't hiding. He stood right in the middle of the street, holding something I immediately recognized.
A revolver.
"You again...?"
It was the man who stole the revolver—the killer merchant, Gilbert Von Falkenhayn. A living reminder of my bad decisions.
"What a delight!" he grinned sadistically. "I just got out of that damn prison yesterday, and today I get a chance to take my revenge! To think you'd come to me on your own! That guy wasn't so crazy after all."
"Who?"
"Oops, slip of the tongue. Pretend you didn't hear that."
"I won't."
"Well, it doesn't matter. I'm going to kill you anyway."
"...Right. Hey, before you do, how about telling me where you got that revolver? There's only one person who can make them."
"Correct. Your blacksmith friend helped me with that. I brought him along. It wasn't easy convincing him to work for me, but it was worth it."
"Nadir working for this guy? Yeah, I don't buy it. He must've forced him somehow."
Grinning wider, Gilbert stepped closer.
"Want to hear something funny? I still vividly remember the pain when you shot me in the crotch. The day I lost what made me a man."
"Pfft."
I didn't bother hiding how hilarious and satisfying I found that. Gilbert kept walking, unfazed.
"I know, it's funny. Enough time has passed that even I can laugh at my own misfortune. But the best part is, there's always a second chance. While I was escaping, I remembered there's a powerful healer in this kingdom—someone who can restore lost limbs."
Understanding struck me.
"Felix! Of course—those guys were talking about him. Blue is his nickname, because of his water magic."
Gilbert nodded.
"That's right. Felix Argyle, knight of Crusch Karsten and member of the royal guard."
"How did you abduct him? No one saw him disappear. Can you turn other people invisible too?"
The merchant grimaced.
"Unfortunately not, though I wish I could. That job was done by someone far more skilled than me."
Someone more skilled than a guy who can turn invisible... That sounded like trouble.
"And who would that be?"
"Nice try, but I won't tell you." He raised a hand. "Not because I want to hide their identity—I just don't know who they are. What I do know is that you have more enemies than you realize."
"What a surprise..."
"Anyway, out of all of them, I'm the lucky one who managed to corner you. Now I'll take my time repaying all the pain and humiliation you caused me—multiplied a thousand times!"
"Have you heard the news, Gilbert? You're talking to the man who defeated the White Whale and two Archbishops of the Witch Cult."
Gilbert stared at me blankly—then burst out laughing.
"That's impressive. But how well do you handle bullets?"
Just as he pulled the trigger, I activated the Authority of Sloth and moved his hand, deflecting the shot.
"That's not the point. The real question is: how well do you handle me?"
"Alright then, how about we answer both questions? Mine first!"
Gilbert snapped his fingers, and more than twenty men emerged from the shadows, aiming revolvers at me.
"Oh, for fuck's sake," I muttered before being riddled with bullets.
***
"I love you, I love you, I love you..."
"Stay away."
For the first time, I pushed Satella away. No matter how much my soul longed for her, my anger and sense of betrayal outweighed everything else.
"Why? Why do you reject my love? Why are you so cruel?"
Satella asked, her eyes filling with tears. She looked like a frightened girl—but that couldn't be further from the truth.
"I begged you to let me save Rem. You were supposed to help me with this power, weren't you?"
My answer was a direct counterattack. Satella flinched and became hysterical, shaking me.
"Rem!? Her?! Do you love her more than me?!"
Grinding my teeth, I grabbed her wrists and pressed my forehead against hers.
"That's not even the point!"
"Yes, it is!" she shrieked, her voice piercing my ears. "Forget her—she's already dead! Love only me!"
"Seriously?! That's all you care about?!"
"I won't let you love anyone else! I'm the only one for you! I love you more than anyone!"
"That's not true... Rem loved me sincerely. You're just... obsessed with me—or with what you think I am."
Satella choked on a cry as those words left my mouth. Tears streamed down her cheeks almost instantly.
"THAT'S NOT TRUE! I REALLY LOVE YOU! YOU'RE EVERYTHING TO ME! THAT WILL NEVER CHANGE!"
One part of me—the same part that made me love Emilia—ached at seeing Satella in pain and wanted to comfort her. The other part—the one that was free and had chosen to love Rem—filled with indignation.
"THEN PROVE IT! SHOW ME YOU'RE NOT JUST WORDS!"
I lunged at her and pushed her down. Satella looked at me in surprise—her veil had vanished, and now I could see her clearly. She was identical to Emilia, yet different in a way that drew me in like a moth to a flame.
She gasped when she felt my hands on her.
"H-How...? How can I prove it?"
"By listening to what I say. By letting me make my own choices. Only then will I believe you truly love me."
Satella nodded frantically.
"I will! I really love you, I swear!"
"We'll see. For now, you'll have to work very hard to make up for your mistakes."
I had been furious with Satella ever since she deliberately changed the save point to stop me from saving Rem. Now that I had her right where I wanted her, I had no intention of holding back.
"Ah! You're... touching me a lot."
"You don't like it?" I raised an eyebrow. "Do I disgust you?"
"No, never!" She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me closer, as if to prove it. "It's just so sudden..."
She couldn't reject me, couldn't deny me anything right now. With her will broken and ready to obey, I could do whatever I wanted to this psychotic witch.
And then I would force her to let me go back in time and save Rem.