HPV 19

When I stared at him, Paronai just smiled foolishly like it was nothing, and wiped the soup from the corner of my mouth with his sleeve.

What the—? For a moment, I was taken aback by the casual contact.

“You do know I’m older than you, right?”

Was he treating me like a kid? I snapped, and Paronai raised both hands in surrender, chuckling softly.

“Sorry. But it’s only a one-year difference.”

“With one more year, I’ve eaten at least three hundred more bowls of soup than you—”

I trailed off mid-sentence. Come to think of it, Paronai had probably eaten way more warm meals like soup than I ever had.

Not like I could switch the example to worm-eaten fruit or rock-hard bread, either.

Still… He hasn’t brought up what happened last night, even while venting.

Paronai believes he saw something he shouldn’t have—overheard Yurichen’s prayer, felt guilty that he was chosen by the sword instead, burdened by all kinds of guilt.

And the fact that, despite it all, he finds himself nodding more along with Penzey than Yurichen—that’s yet another layer of his guilt.

“Does a body without a soul even matter? He said they’d just check the coffin and close it again. If I were a dead soul, I think I’d overlook that much for the villagers’ sake…”

“That is a desecration of the dead.”

When I turned, Yurichen was standing there. A white veil that obscured his face hung over his head.

“You must not disturb a soul at rest. The grave must remain undisturbed so the soul can find its path to the divine. Some believe that defiling the corpse of a criminal is a form of punishment… but judgment of the dead is for the divine alone. We must not interfere.”

Paronai looked puzzled. That grave was ancient—wouldn’t the soul have returned to the divine long ago? He probably wanted to ask, but couldn’t meet Yurichen’s eyes.

He would rather return the sword and be his friend, but he knew better than anyone that doing so would only backfire. So he kept silent.

“Bzhan.”

Yurichen suddenly called out to someone who wasn’t even present at the moment. Then he coaxed, gently, as if speaking to a child.

“I know you hate all humans, including me. But please, I ask this of you as a small act of mercy. I appeal to your strength… Watch Penzey. Make sure he doesn’t remove anything from the coffin.”

And surprisingly, Bzhan agreed. A human had lowered himself to ask, and that softened his heart—just a little.

Paronai soon followed after Penzey. The dining room, now quiet, was left with just the three of us.

There wasn’t much conversation to be had among those remaining. While we idly swung our legs or dozed off, the sunlight pouring in through the windows grew heavier.

At a good moment, I gave my body a push and stood.

“Shall we go, too?”

Yurichen immediately showed hid disapproval. Though his shoulders didn’t so much as twitch and hid face was hidden, I could feel it.

“Once the work is complete, they’ll return here. I don’t wish to witness the cradle of the dead being desecrated.”

“No, we have to go.”

I didn’t back down. I brushed the dust from my pants, and Banwes abruptly yanked a veil over my head with a loud thwack. I didn’t protest and calmly adjusted it.

My mind was full—buzzing with the events that were about to unfold.

“There might be something down there the three of them can’t handle.”

Bzhan had only been asked to watch Penzey. He wasn’t told to help if anything happened.

In other words, even if a monster burst from the grave and attacked Penzey and Paronai, he might very well stand by and watch without lifting an arrow to help.

That’s how it went in the game, too.

Besides, the monster was an incorporeal type—it wasn’t something an arrow could even hurt.

“We can’t let that thing make it to the village!”

I could tell Banwes, walking beside me, flinched at my sudden shout.

—

The grave was a mess of dug-up dirt. Beside it lay an open coffin, and next to that, burial items reeking of foul energy were scattered. Just looking at them, I could piece together the sequence of events.

And at the end of that trail… was Penzey, collapsed on the ground.

Blood, black as the kind found in the mountain, was dripping from his arm. His lips moved as he chanted a spell, trying to bind the monster hovering above him.

Paronai, sword drawn at his waist and locked in battle with the giant beast, heard me running and turned.

When he saw me, real fear flickered in his eyes for the first time.

“Ria! Stay back! Get to the village! Warn the others to run, too!”

But I brushed off Paronai’s concern like a kicked pebble. Instead, I forced my breathing steady and raised my chin.

“We screwed up digging up the grave, and now we’re telling people to flee? That’s pathetic.”

I said it with bravado, but my head was spinning.

Penzey was injured? Here, in what was supposed to be just a tutorial-like section?

That black blood—just like the traces found in the mountains. This was no ordinary wound. If I didn’t purify it soon, Penzey’s arm would rot.

I scanned the surroundings quickly and spotted it—the difference between the game and reality.

I was right.

As expected… it was because of me.

Paronai’s sword was strapped quietly to his back, hidden beneath a cloth. He was trying to fight the demon that had emerged from the ancient corpse with a plain, nondescript iron sword he always carried.

You know that won’t work.

Magic, by its nature, goes against the order of the world. Penzey’s mana would only empower a spirit-type monster like this—not weaken or purify it. Paronai’s sword aura could cut a spirit, but with the village so close, having someone witness it would be a serious problem.

In this situation, only holy power would work. And Paronai was carrying the key to it on his own back. Yet he still hesitated.

“Draw the sword!”

Just then, Yurichen arrived. Paronai’s eyes trembled. Even his sword tip shook as he glanced nervously at him.

“I…”

I couldn’t just watch him waver. I stumbled, nearly falling, but forced myself forward and lunged onto Paronai’s back, yanking away the cloth wrapped around the holy sword.

“Ria!”

The moment the sword was half-revealed, the specter let out a monstrous roar. Pitch-black cursed energy exploded out—and poured straight down onto my head.

Noise and shouting tangled together in a blur. Clinging to the holy sword, all I could register was a massive shadow soaring over me.

A furious shoulder struck the corrupted soul and flung it back by sheer force. The monster’s aura dispersed for a moment.

A red, deadly glint flashed in Banwes’s eyes. He lowered himself like a beast, raised arms thick as old tree trunks, and growled at the demon from deep in his throat. As a half-beast, half-man, Banwes had vocal cords capable of roaring like an orc.

The shock of it made me stare at him.

This isn’t a moment Banwes was supposed to act in. Why…?

That chilling, scraping snarl sounded like a territorial warning—don’t cross this line.

Anyway, I had to set the story back on track. I took the chance and fully unwrapped the holy sword from Paronai’s back. The cloth dropped to the ground, and the weight of the massive blade dragged down my arms.

Dropping it in front of Yurichen was not an option. I forced strength into my grip until veins popped on the back of my hand—

And then, something overlapped my hand.

“…I get it, Ria. I know what you’re trying to say. Sorry for making you push so hard.”

Paronai’s calloused hand wrapped around mine. In the next moment, my hands felt light—the sword was gone.

A silver blade clad in radiant light shot toward the sky, as though splitting the heavens. Paronai’s brown hair shimmered white in the brilliance.

He handled the holy sword like an old companion—effortlessly skilled. Gripping it with both hands, he leapt high, even past Banwes’s head, and cleaved the demon’s body clean in half just as it began to collapse under the pressure of holy power.

The sweeping arc of the sword carved through the blue sky, leaving a stark white line behind.

And with that, I collapsed onto the ground.

Even with Banwes shielding me, some of that filthy aura had stuck to my body. My left ear and shoulder were burning—like I’d pressed hot stone against them.