"I am a knight of the Melronia Empire and the Empire's Master of the Sword. Also… one of the wielders of the Saint's Blade," she said calmly, as if she were merely talking about the weather.
The moment those words struck my ears, my entire body froze. My throat dried up. My mouth stopped functioning. I couldn't move a muscle.
'This… this can't be… The Saint's Blade… If she truly has it, then… she's the one who killed that man?'
I tried to steady myself, slowly lifting my right hand with a tremble, gripping it tight. My blood had drained away, and my freezing fingers no longer trusted their owner.
This could only mean one thing — the girl standing before me was the one who killed the Lord of Darkness I had seen inside the cave.
In the stories and comics I'd read, the Lord of Darkness was always portrayed as the villain. Most people hated him, and heroes would appear to strike him down.
'If my guess is right… then I might be her next target.' I glanced at the mark on my right hand.
Just the thought made my skin crawl. I tried not to show it on my face.
Elira seemed to sense something was wrong. A look of concern formed on her face as she asked,
"Are you feeling alright? Looks like the healing didn't help much," she said, taking a step toward me.
Seeing her approach, I waved my hands frantically.
"E-everything's fine! I just… got a bit warm. I should probably wash up in the river."
As soon as I said that, Elira's expression shifted, and she agreed,
"Yes. Please do," she said, plugging her nose with her fingers.
Embarrassed by her reaction, I sniffed my own clothes. A horrible, stomach-turning stench hit me.
"Ugh, the cave smell stuck to me!" I groaned and sprang to my feet in disgust.
I spent a long time in the river, scrubbing myself to get rid of the stench. It took quite a bit of gilunus flowers to finally feel clean.
When I returned, I found Eli standing near the dead firepit, holding a sword in her hand.
That triggered something inside me — a survival instinct.
Because when a beautiful girl who could end your life at any moment stands there holding a weapon… anyone would feel threatened.
I immediately started scanning for something to protect myself with.
'My dagger! Where's my dagger?!' I began frantically patting down my clothes.
Noticing my panicked movements, Eli asked,
"Are you looking for something?"
Her question startled me, and I stumbled over my words.
"N-no, nothing. I just forgot," I mumbled and quickly sat down, hoping she wouldn't ask more.
As I sat, thoughts raced through my head.
'She definitely saw the mark on my hand… but she still hasn't tried to kill me. That means… she doesn't recognize what the symbol means. This could be my chance to learn more about it — from her.'
Once I calmed down a bit, I turned to Eli, intending to ask her a question. But before I could speak, she held something out to me.
"Oh, by the way, I think these are yours," she said, handing me my Thorna mask and dagger.
"Yes, I was just about to look for them."
I examined the items in my hands and became even more certain — she truly didn't recognize the symbol I bore.
No sane person would give a dagger and a mask that could make someone invisible to a person branded with the Lord of Darkness's mark. That would be like handing a stranger a knife and telling them to walk in front of you.
Eli stared at me for a moment and then continued,
"When I woke up in the cave, I found them beside you. I assumed they were yours and brought them with me. Also…" — she paused, a faint blush coloring her cheeks — "Thank you… for saving me. I'll never forget what you did. I promise — one way or another, I'll repay you."
I froze where I sat.
'She… she just said what?! I saved her?' I tried to recall what had happened at that moment in the cave.
'I fought to save myself. The Thornas surrounded me. They beat me like a ragdoll and flung me into a wall. Then—' I remembered the rest.
I had hit the wall hard. The impact had left me severely injured. I coughed up blood… and some of it had landed on her helmet.
'Wait… I remember now. I had eaten gilunus flower before that — with water. It must've mixed in my stomach. When I coughed up blood, the gilunus-infused mixture must have splattered onto her.'
I stared at her, frozen, my face betraying everything I had just realized.
That was it. The blood, laced with the flower's healing properties, had trickled down her helmet… and into her mouth. That's what revived her. That was how she regained consciousness just in time to kill the Thornas.
'Oh god… what the hell just happened.' I tried my best to hide my astonishment.
The realization hit so hard it made my head pound. I had to take several deep breaths to center myself. Eventually, I began to feel better.
Eli, sitting in front of me, was now watching me with an utterly confused look.
"???"
Seeing her expression, I pulled myself together and replied,
"No need to thank me. When someone needs help, you help them. That's just how it is. Also… I had a question for you."
Eli turned toward me, listening closely.
"Can you explain how the system works?"
She looked a little surprised, then asked,
"What rank are you? Has yours awakened?" Her bright eyes locked onto mine.
I summoned my status screen and looked at it.
[Status Screen]
Name: Rayan Velion
Rank: Warrior of Darkness
Core Type: Sephir Core
Core Status: Active
Sephirs:
Forest Terror
Unique Sephir: Core Devourer
Rank Fragments: 4/100
Core Fragments: 2/1000
Title: None
Mark: Lord of Darkness
'If I say "Warrior of Darkness" now, she'll figure it out right away. I'll just go with the one right next to it.'
I turned to her and said,
"It says I'm a Warrior."
She raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.
"Your mark?! It's already awakened?!"
She stared at me like she was witnessing a miracle.
"Yeah, you seem shocked. What's so strange about that?"
Realizing her reaction was making me uncomfortable, she composed herself and asked,
"You got that mask after killing a Thorna, right?"
I nodded. "Yeah."
She continued,
"The surprising part is that you, a basic warrior, managed to kill an E-rank beast. That's pretty rare. Usually, it takes at least two trained warriors to bring one down."
Her mention of "two" reminded me of something. Every time I had killed a Thorna, I received two rank fragments.
'So that's why my status says I have two rank fragments.'
She went on,
"But still, you did it. That's impressive."
Her tone sounded more like praise than an explanation. Like I was some kind of hero.
"Ah, I almost forgot the most important thing," she said. "Your mark changes everything. It can take you one rank higher than your natural limit."
I asked for clarification.
"You mean, even if I'm just a basic warrior, I could reach the next stage?"
She nodded.
"Yes. Just one rank above your current potential."
So, if I could climb all the way to the top, I would become a Lord of Darkness. And if I trained hard enough… maybe even create a rank beyond that.
'Now I understand why people here value marks so much.' I glanced again at the mark on my hand.
Then, out of nowhere, Eli asked,
"So… what kind of mark do you have?"