Chapter 356

The blizzard was abating.
The confrontation between the two beasts was silent.
The flesh on Jaifa’s shoulders fluttered, but Varen never averted his eyes.
Zaifa glared at him for a long moment, then finally spoke.
“——Yes, I remembered. You’re the kid who cut in front of me at the palace the other day.”
“I’m honored that you remember, it really sent chills down my spine.”
Varen smiled.
From the moment I blocked the shot, I felt a sense of foreboding.
In fact, decades earlier, he had stopped a Zaifa from approaching Ronan with murderous intent.
Varen looked Jaifa up and down, then spoke.
“That’s the second time I’ve seen you do this, congratulations on cutting through time.”
“The first would be Nabirozé the snake.”
“Exactly. You were always strong, but now you’ve reached a point where you can’t keep up.”
“I’ve never lost in such an ugly way. But now that I’m in your shoes, I can understand.”
Zaifa snorted.
I could tell because, like Nabirozze, it was rejuvenated.
It was a losing proposition.
It wasn’t just my body returning to its prime, it was my performance itself.
‘I’m glad you’re feeling better, I wish we could talk about it.’
Varen swallowed hard.
Sweat was forming on the soles of my feet.
I was scared to death, even though I was doing my best to block it.
His right arm, which had blocked Jaifa’s blade, was still throbbing.
‘I’m not kidding, we have to stop him before he reverts to his true self.
That’s what I get for having the humanization curse.
Going mano a mano was no way to win.
You won’t be able to block it like you did before, but your limbs will be cut off like paper.
Varen said with a wry smile as he caught Jaifa’s eye.
“When you’ve calmed down, why don’t you come back with me and I’ll clean up the mess.”
“That’s not necessary. It’s my job to tie the knot. Step aside.”
“Yes?”
Suddenly, Zaifa, who had pushed Varen away, drew her sword.
The auror leapt up and instantly dyed the blade a bright red.
With a light flick, a black line appeared in the air.
“Now, wait a minute!”
Varen reflexively stretched out his arms.
He grabbed Jaifa’s wrist, and her trajectory twisted.
The spatial bombardment was not on the village, but on the shoreline next to it.
Kaaaaaaaaaah!!!
A black line crossed the ocean and an explosion occurred.
A wall of water rose up and blocked the horizon.
As the water poured out of the sky, an unbelievable sight unfolded.
“Oh, my God.”
A waterfall had formed in the middle of the ocean.
It was the exact spot where Zaifa’s Auror had left his mark.
A fissure in the seabed, carved by the space, was hungrily swallowing seawater.
“What, what is this?!”
“Hiiiit! Ba, ba, ba!”
Screams erupted from all over town.
Residents didn’t even realize what had happened.
The people who had just gathered to support the North Winds dispersed.
I was less worried about civilian troops coming in, but that wasn’t the issue at hand.
Zaifa growled low as his second attack was blocked.
“Why are you interrupting me?”
“What do you mean disturbed—! Please calm down, Ms. Jaifa. They are civilians!”
“I know. They are civilians who harbor blind hatred for the Suin. As long as they remain, there will be no peace in the north.”
“But are you going to kill people who are still innocent? Some of those people have children, and blood can never wash away blood!”
“I used to think so, too. I’ve spent decades trying to make amends for my mistakes, but hatred is never fully erased.”
Jaifa glanced at Lethe.
He was still struggling to get out of the wreckage.
A pitiful scream erupted with each crack of his leg, but there was no one left to come to his rescue.
“The old man was right. I can’t go back to the way things were, no matter how hard I try. Before the inherited hatred spreads further, I’m tying the knot.”
“Is that knot killing innocent people?”
“They are a small part of the whole. Only those with deep-seated grudges like theirs will be weeded out. It’s like quarantining a plague patient.”
“Such sophistry—!”
Varen was stunned.
It was bullshit and not even plausible.
No matter how thorough the purge, there will always be survivors.
The survivor, having lost everything and barely escaped with his life, would once again nurture the embers of a great conflagration somewhere on the continent.
As does Lethe screaming in the background.
Is this the same Jaifa I knew?
Varen snapped his fingers in frustration.
“—Okay, I just realized that.”
“Get it?”
“Yes, sir. Zaifa is out of her mind right now, and I don’t know if it’s the humanization curse or the transmogrification, but it seems like she’s in shock and out of her head.”
It’s a poignant accusation that I hadn’t heard before.
In reality, Jaifa had gone off the rails.
An indescribable madness flickered in his red eyes.
Intrigued, Jaifa raised an eyebrow.
“Ho-ho. I didn’t think you’d say that.”
“I pride myself on having an eye for people. To me, you are not the swordsman you were, nor the boss my wife admired.”
“So you’re quite an orator, then who are you?”
“Who is this? The slayer of the Night of the Fangs, tricked by my brother into unleashing the Night of the Fangs, a creature that vented its fury by slaughtering innocent citizens of the Changeling Realm.”
Varen said, his expression unchanged.
When you have something to say, the odds don’t matter.
He would have said the same thing even if he had been a water man instead of a human.”Jaifa’s face hardened.
“——fluff. Do you want to die?”
“I’m not going to change my mind if you glare at me like that. I wonder how General Adeshan would look if he saw what’s going on right now. Wasn’t it the loss of your innocent daughter-in-law to Imperial forces that caused the Night of the Fangs in the first place?”
“If you want to die, that’s what you do.”
Jaifa didn’t ask any more questions.
The family were his few backbone.
I was about to pull the hilt without hesitation.
‘You little brat, your strength is—.’
Jaifa’s brow creased.
The arm holding Varen stilled.
It felt more like I was being crushed by a giant rock crevice than by a grasp.
It was an impressive feat, considering he was under the Humanization Curse.
“Oh my God, this is why I have to self-monitor.”
Varen’s eyes widened in surprise.
The struggle of being human was not in vain.
His physical performance was noticeably better than it had been when he was shredded.
“Let go.”
“Sure.”
Varen obediently released his grip.
It wasn’t going to be a close call anyway.
Zaifa’s wrists were heavily bruised from her capture.
“Anyway, I’m going to have to stop you Jaifa, I forgot for a moment, but you have the best solution, and it’s one we can all live with.”
“What is that.”
“You’ll like it–it’s a time-honored–warrior’s way.”
Paaaaaa—.
A golden glow blossomed over Varen’s body.
The glow that covered his entire body like armor was highly condensed auror.
“I, Varen Panasir, challenge you to a duel.”
Where the fat had gone, muscle had come in.
The veins that were clearly visible were pulsating with life.
Varen, assuming an imperious stance, spoke sternly.
“If you have the courage, say yes. Jaifa Turgun.”
“Ha.”
Zaifa was stunned.
It’s been a while since I’ve gotten a legitimate duel request.
A trial of strength in which the loser must submit to the winner, no matter what the circumstances.
Wiping the blood from his sword, he turned to face Varen.
“I accept.”
The madness that had been hovering in his eyes eased.
A duel request from a kid who wasn’t even half his age was just as irritating.
And a kid with the qualities of a good warrior.
“I’ll be ready—”
Zaifa’s voice was a warning.
The Varen rushed in and took power.
A sharp metallic sound rang out.
Zaifa, defending with her sword sheathed, raised a brow.
“No bullshit.”
Jaifa didn’t blame Varen.
The moment you accepted, the duel had already begun.
The car he was trying to back out of.
Shriek!
Varen’s tail flicked like a whip, wrapping around Jaifa’s body.
“——!”
“Go.”
It was a temporary bond, but it was enough.
Varen’s fist slammed down like a meteor.
Jaifa defended again, but the floor was unable to overcome the force and collapsed.
“Eek.”
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Zaifa crashed through five floors before hitting the ground.
Varen immediately jumped down the hole.
His mane, blowing in the high winds, resembled golden flames.
Gathering all his strength into his fists, Varen roared with a long-forgotten fury.
“Kaaaaaah!!”
****
The fight didn’t come to a head until late at night.
“Kwok! Kwok, I’m angry—!”
Varen lay back, breathing heavily.
The golden auror that had surrounded him had faded to a trace.
Upon his chest was a five-pronged scar that had never been there before.
“Nice. Fluffy.”
Zaifa snorted.
He sat on the rubble of the ruined fortress, smoking a cigarette.
The full moon was shining where the clouds had receded.
Varen muttered in an exasperated voice.
“Kuluk, if only the curse hadn’t been lifted—!”
“You might have won. You probably won.”
Zaifa replied, and was back in Su’in’s form.
The aging Weartiger’s body was also rejuvenated.
The moonlight streaming through his fur was beautiful.
“I’m in good shape after all, a curse that will be lifted in time.”
Jaifa smiled with satisfaction.
I felt a surge of energy flooding through my body.
This was a crucial factor in Varen’s defeat.
Varen, who had been pushing Jaifa all along, was one-sidedly pummeled as soon as he suddenly regained his form.
“You’ve got a great body, but your skills are terrible, shame on you.”
“Haa—haa—.”
“Well, I’m pleased with myself, better than all my men put together, and I never thought I’d have to get my claws into a fluffy like you.”
At Jaifa’s feet lay a shattered Unwaldo.
It had been broken by Varen during a long battle.
Varen held on for a while after Jaifa turned into a water man before collapsing.
It was only after enchanting the claws with Auror that I was able to deliver the killing blow.
“You should be proud of yourself, there are less than five people alive with that technology. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a good fight.”
“Stop the slaughter of civilians–stop it. People shouldn’t hurt each other…anymore.”
“Is that still the sound?”
What a selfless lion, no matter how many times I’ve seen him.
Zaifa’s mouth watered.
His head was as cold as ice after his rampage.
Jaifa shook her head as she considered her words.
“Good.”
Zaifa scrambled to her feet and approached Lethe.
He ended up fainting in the wreckage, unable to get out.
Thud.
Jaifa gave a light kick, and the debris weighing down his leg flew away.
“Off, off, off!”
Lethe let out a gut-wrenching scream as she came to her senses.
The pain had returned because the blood was flowing again.
His eyes locked with Zaifa’s and he sucked in a breath.
“Huh-huh-huh-huh-huh, Jaifa?!”
“You’re alive. Go fuck yourself.”
Jaifa twitched.
Lethe turned her back and crawled away, unable to say anything.
Varen blanched at the unexpected behavior.
“Ms. Jaifa.”
“I admit that I spoke nonsense. Blinded by hatred, I almost started the cycle all over again, and I will carry my sins with me.”
It didn’t matter whose conspiracy it was.
In the end, it was Zaifa himself who started the Night of the Fangs.
The resentment and hatred that resulted was as natural as a river flowing from top to bottom.
“Time will tell the prognosis of the wound. The circle of hatred ends here.”
“That was…really…really well thought out.”
The bloodshed of innocents seemed to have been averted.
A waterfall carved in the middle of the ocean was slowly closing.
Now it was just a matter of cleaning up the mess with Secrete.
Varen was about to breathe a sigh of relief.
“Come along, then. I’ve found one worth keeping after all these years.”
“Yes?”
“Your biggest problem is that you’re dull. It’s ridiculous to be born with a body like yours and get fat. I’ll fix that rotten muscle. Varen.”
Jaifa grabbed Varen’s arm roughly and pulled him to his feet.
Varen, groaning from his injuries, offered no resistance.
It was the first time I’d ever been called by my first name, and I had a terrible feeling about it.