Chapter 125: Chapter 125

I took a step back. It’d momentarily slipped off my mind.

I definitely made a promise.

I’d assured her that I’d teach her swordsmanship. I’d even spouted something noble, saying she was far more important than such a thing.

I recalled how she flinched in surprise, her pitch-black eyes quivering while reflecting me.

I did something cruel.

And yet, I’d left without saying goodbye. I vanished for two months, leaving behind only a single letter that didn’t even state whether or not I was alive.

Now, Rena stood before me with a sword, emanating a chilling aura.

"I'll go first, master."

Rena immediately swung her Cutting Rapier.

A sharp slicing sound cut through the air. I drew my steel sword, deflecting the thin blade as it lunged toward my left side. When our swords clashed, I realized I had completely underestimated her.

Her sword was far faster than I had anticipated.

The sound of three rapid strikes rang out. With fierce momentum and spin, her thin sword whipped like a storm, its ornate guard aiding her agility.

Her sword wrapped around my half-broken steel sword as if devouring it.

If I blocked rashly, my weapon would break completely.

Rena's sword darted toward my neck without hesitation.

I parried the blade with the hilt of my sword and opened Rena's status window.

[— Distorted Affection (B): Rena was abandoned by you, but she grew tremendously from the things you left behind. Throughout this process, she constantly thought of you, building a strong internal image of you, which in turn continuously increased her affection.

— Rena's affection toward you will never decrease.

— If you perform actions that should lower her affection, special events are more likely to occur instead.]

What the hell is this? This is terrifying...

[Talent (B+): Gains +2 to 3 stat points per level up]

[Combat Instincts (B): This perk allows the user to demonstrate superior combat skills even when possessing identical stats to others]

...She's fully unlocked everything.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Four consecutive strikes overlapped, blending acceleration and rotational force. Dodging or blocking wasn't easy.

[Warning! Weapon durability has dropped below 18%!]

I took two steps back. Rena's growth was astonishing. Her Affection had risen on its own, unlocking perks that required high affection to activate.

Did she clear all three dungeons?

Her level was significantly higher than when we had explored dungeons together. She had probably cleared every dungeon I had introduced her to, reaping all the experience by herself.

The early difference is manifesting as a massive gap now.

Her sword colled like a snake, wrapping around me in all directions. I planted my foot and swung my blade.

Rena was lifted off her feet and thrown backward.

She quickly regained her stance and changed forward even faster. Her blade moved so swiftly that it left afterimages.

[Warning! Weapon durability has dropped below 17%!]

My sword was about to break. As I absorbed the impact while retreating three steps back, my back hit a stone wall.

"Master... should we stop here?"

Rena hesitated when she saw me pressed against the wall. Her killing intent momentarily subsided.

I closed her status window.

Ending it isn't an option.

If I wanted to end this in one move, I could use Sword Energy, but that was risky. Forcing my damaged sword to channel Sword Energy would shatter it completely.

I thought of another way and provoked Rena.

"No. You should go faster."

"You're too slow right now."

Her blade shot toward my face at an incredible speed—it was her fastest attack yet.

I caught the sharp blade with my gauntlet. The sound of metal scraping against metal wasn’t even there. I absorbed the force completely, pulling her rapier into my grasp.

Rena's eyes widened in shock.

"Whoa!" Chandler exclaimed in awe as a notification appeared, indicating that his affection had increased. "How did you even catch that...?!"

Even Christina let out a small gasp. However, I wasn't in the mood to relish their reactions. That was close.

I almost embarrassed myself.

It had been a gamble. I hadn't been entirely sure that my Suction skill would work through the gauntlet.

I was about to release her sword and hand it back.

Rena suddenly let go of her sword and threw her arms around me. I tried to step back, but my back was against the stone wall.

As I pulled my left hand away from the sword, Rena pressed herself against me. Stat differences aside, this was an inescapable attack. She buried her head against my chest and wrapped her arms tightly around my waist.

"...Ahem." Chandler cleared his throat. "Let's head inside. That duel was exhausting. Christina?"

Chandler, ever casual, led the way into the inn.

Rena, however, paid no attention to them. Keeping her eyes locked on me, she said, "You left just like that... without a word."

"Are you planning to leave again?"

She had no hesitation when it came to killing others, yet her gaze toward me was strangely soft. Her black eyes, fixed on mine, glistened with emotion.

I had nothing else to say.

Rena slowly parted her lips. "You don't need to apologize. I was useless, after all. That's why you left, right?"

That wasn’t the case at all. I’d left Rena because of a misplaced sense of responsibility toward Gith-Za-Rai—a responsibility that ultimately meant nothing.

The necromancer had still died before me, riddled with holes, and all that had come of it was an increase in my Essence Absorption level.

Still, I said nothing.

"I've worked hard to become useful."

The rain, which had stopped for a while, began to fall again. The cold raindrops soaked her hair. Her words pressed me hard, so the rain was a welcome interruption.

Rena turned to me. "Shall we go inside?"

"Yes, let's do that."

As I stepped into the inn, I scanned my surroundings. Aside from the staff on the first floor and Chandler’s group, I couldn’t detect any other presence, so he had probably rented the whole place. The place itself carried a luxurious, fresh scent of wood. What a refined and pristine establishment.

"The inn is made of Smeedish timber. It's a remarkable wood that maintains warmth in the cold and coolness in the heat. It even exudes a different fragrance when it rains,” said Rena as she walked beside me up the stairs. "There used to be even more special trees in the ancient Elven forests..."

"Aren't the elves extinct?"

"Yes, they perished with their forests. Now, they're either displayed like trophies in the secret chambers of nobles... or, well, that's basically the same thing, isn't it? Our room is here."

Rena opened the door, revealing an incredibly spacious room. Divided into five sections, it could easily accommodate over a dozen people at once. From the furniture to the layout, everything exuded elegance and refinement.

[Accounting Lv. 1 activated!]

[Proficiency slightly increased!]

The skill activated naturally. At a glance, anyone could tell that this wasn’t an inn for ordinary travelers. Even the sleek bathroom was as large as the lobbies of some other inns. Through the bathroom window, I could see an old courtyard with aged trees, stone carvings, and a small pond.

"This is an Eastern-style inn. Baron Chandler is fond of them."

"He booked this place?"

"Yes. He rented out the entire inn."

"He's quite capable."

"Well, he's the next lord. The only heir, in fact. I hear his father treasures him more than anything."

Something about that statement didn’t add up. If his father cherished him that much, why hadn't he stopped him from going on a martial pilgrimage to the East? There was no telling what dangers he might have encountered there.

Maybe he just respects his son's wishes.

I dismissed the thoughts. What mattered was Rena. Despite speaking normally, her body language and voice were subtly unstable. Did she get poisoned?

I examined her condition.

Her heartbeat is fast, and her breathing is slightly uneven.

She was gradually becoming more rigid. She hadn't shown any of these symptoms outside. But now that we were alone in the room, her posture was slowly changing.

"...Huh? Ah, yes! I'm... fine!"

As the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, something interrupted us.

The wolf cub in my pocket stirred.

Rena's eyes widened. "Huh? What's in there?"

Before I could answer, the thing bolted out.

I instinctively reached for it, but it was too late. I had been too focused on Rena's unsettling expression to react in time.

"It's just a wolf skeleton."

It shouldn't matter in front of Rena.

The cub dashed around my feet in a small circle.

"Look at this little thing... Come here."

Instead of being surprised, Rena reached out playfully, as if inviting it to play. The creature, which had hidden under the table, peeked its head out and clacked its teeth together.

"I'll catch it. Watch! Hiyap!"

Rena lunged forward, pretending to catch the wolf. The little creature dashed away, hiding momentarily before peeking out from the other side, rattling against the floor.

"Oh? Running away, are you? Come here~ I won't eat you~ Hiyap!"

Rena playfully chased the rattling cub around the table, circling it a few times.

Wait, is she purposely not catching it?

Either way, I was relieved to see Rena's expression finally relaxing.

"Where did you find such an adorable thing?"

She looked at me with a much softer expression.

"I just picked it up in the mountains."

"Did you reanimate it?"

Having realized Rena wasn't actually trying to catch it, the wolf cub stopped running and lay down on the floor.

Rena gently stroked the wolf cub's spine as she spoke, "I was wondering what you had been doing these past two months... Does it have a name?"

"Of course! You haven't named it yet? Can I call it Acorn?"

"Yes. Its skull looks like an acorn."

[Would you like to name the Small Wolf Cub as Acorn?]

I glanced at the yes sign to confirm and nodded toward Rena.

[The Small Wolf Cub has been named to Acorn]

[Acorn likes its new name]

[Lord of Bones proficiency slightly increased]

[Affection increased by 3]

[Agility increased by 1]

[Evolution probability slightly increased]

[Acquired E-rank autonomy due to name assignment]

So even stats go up from naming... Should've done this sooner.

Names. Everything had a name. Rena and Rubia did—and now, so did the wolf cub. Names were spoken, called, and remembered. They were even recorded and carved into stones.

Suddenly, I felt an eerie sensation.

[Assimiliation Rate is decreasing!]

[Assimiliation: 81.13%]

I placed my hand on the table.

"Are you alright?" Rena spoke up.

"Ah... It's just that it's kind of cute."

"Acorn? It's adorable! Hehe."

Rena repeated the name a few times while stroking the little wolf cub.

The cub twitched in response, wriggling around in her arms. After a brief moment, Rena's expression turned serious.

I sat across from her in silence.

"I still don't fully understand who you are or what you're trying to do. But one thing is clear... You're after the Necron Society, right?"

Even if that goal had somewhat faded over time, that had been the original plan when I first spoke with Rena.

"I’d guessed as much. I felt uneasy looking into them with low clearance since all the records could be monitored. So, as we discussed, I focused on becoming a branch leader."

I had almost forgotten. The plan had been to make her a branch leader of T&T.

The Necron Society? We can investigate them. I just need to rank up within my guild. T&T branch leaders can access information without leaving records.

That had been our first conversation—the foundation of our relationship. Having repeated so many regressions, I had momentarily lost my grasp on how things stood between us. And there was something else I had forgotten.

The scenario I was given.

I pulled it up and searched for a while, finally finding the scenario log I hadn't checked in a long time.

[B-Rank Scenario: Rena's Story has been unlocked]

[Appoint her as a branch leader of T&T! Ally in the Shadows scenario will be activated]

What happens when I complete this scenario?

Back then, I simply wanted her to become a branch leader out of curiosity. However, my previous attempt failed when Purson's followers inside T&T assassinated me.

At the rate Rena was growing, it seemed entirely possible.

While I was lost in thought, Rena continued speaking, "On the day we parted, I registered as a full member. Since then, I've accumulated enough achievements to rank up once."

That was much faster than last time.

"It's thanks to you, Master. Still, at this rate, it'd take me five years to reach my goal. There's an annoying rank restriction, but I found a better way."

Rena pulled out an old book from her coat.

"Also, I'm sorry I couldn't be at the city gate to welcome you properly. I wanted to greet you right on time, but I was busy getting this."