Sword of Faith [1]

Chapter 18

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Episode 6 - Sword of Faith [1]

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"Listen, Seth, about the question I wanted to ask you..."

"Yeah, I know. I know exactly what you want to tell me, but I already told you: you're the one I trust the least."

Yuri pressed her lips together.

Then she turned to Seth, tightly clenching both fists.

"Damn it! And what do you see in Zeth that's so great? I don't understand why you distrust me when I haven't even done anything wrong to make you feel that way."

Yuri shouted in frustration.

She looked at Seth with immense anger. She thought he was different from Zeth, but the way he simply distrusted her... it bothered her. It bothered her so much that she wondered, over and over again, why Seth acted this way when she had never done anything.

"It's not that you haven't done anything yet, but in the future..."

Seth stopped.

He didn't want to continue. He knew that, either way, Yuri's complaints would keep coming, each one more annoying than the last.

At that moment, both were sitting around a makeshift campfire on the top floor of a ruined building. The crackling of the fire broke the silence, and the monsters outside couldn't hear them there.

"Just tell me..."

Yuri's eyes filled with tears. She covered her face with both hands and curled up between her knees.

Seth looked at her, expressionless. As if his face were a carved stone.

'How strange...'

He raised an eyebrow.

For a moment, his instinct shifted. It was almost imperceptible, but he felt it. Something inside him reacted differently upon seeing Yuri's genuine sadness.

'Before, my instincts reacted with unease toward her, but just now...'

It was different.

'There's something strange about her...'

He frowned, more and more deeply.

He observed Yuri closely.

"....."

His instinct turned hostile again. Like an alarm ringing in the deepest part of his mind.

Seth clenched his teeth.

'I trust my instinct. The last time I ignored it, it nearly cost me my life.'

He recalled that moment when he encountered the black-flame python while trying to escape the underground prison. Back then, he thought his intuition was useless. He climbed with his companions, ignoring the internal warning.

The result was the death of everyone... except him.

Since then, he had learned to listen to himself. It was because of that instinct that he managed to survive the giant rats in the sewers.

His salvation came from his instinct.

That's why he hesitated now. Because there was something inconsistent about Yuri. Two different reactions in a matter of seconds.

'My instincts don't react to Zeth... but they do to Yuri, and to many in the village. But just now...'

Something changed in her for a moment.

And Seth noticed.

Then he spoke.

"Yuri... what do you think makes me distrust you?"

It was a strange, direct question that made Yuri grit her teeth.

"How should I know!"

Seth sighed, remaining calm.

"The reason is that I feel danger from you. It doesn't matter if you haven't done something 'bad,' even knowing that concept no longer makes sense in this world."

Because in this world... no one was good. But neither were they entirely bad.

An ordinary person could be a hidden killer. A smile didn't mean peace.

Yuri fell silent.

Then, something clicked in her mind.

'I have something that makes him distrust me... but what is it?'

She searched her entire body, checking her pockets, touching her clothes, her boots, her neck. Seth frowned as he watched her act this way.

"I'm not talking about your body or whether you're carrying something physical."

Yuri stopped, feeling foolish. She lowered her gaze, embarrassed.

She remained thoughtful for several minutes that felt like hours.

'Why do I distrust Zeth...? Because I saw him kill his companions. But besides that...'

Then she remembered that day in the Nightmare Forest.

Her eyes widened. She quickly looked at her Survival Window.

There was something there, something that appeared after accepting the sponsorship of a constellation.

'A stigma... could this be what makes Seth distrust me?'

She looked at Seth, determined.

"Seth... I'll explain this to you, but promise me you'll never tell Zeth."

Seth frowned but eventually nodded.

"Alright."

After hearing his confirmation, Yuri took a deep breath. Then she spoke.

***

I quickly descended from the building.

I looked at the street in front of me with a serious expression.

Shortly after coming down, I heard the roars of monsters that seemed to be very close, which made me sigh.

"Alright… I should test the new ability."

I thought about it for a moment, keeping my gaze fixed on the horizon.

It was clear that the ability was related to speed, more precisely to accelerating to great speed in an instant.

But we're talking about something that makes me faster and allows me to move from one point to another almost instantly.

However, that's where the problem comes in.

"I could crash into something… and die from the impact."

A cold sweat ran down my back.

Just thinking about it once made me realize that the best abilities, often, were also the most dangerous.

So, I thought it over more carefully.

"I could crash and die, but that would only happen if I'm near a wall or something else I'd collide with."

I looked to the left.

About a hundred meters away, there was half of a massive building in the middle of the road, blocking the way.

Then I looked to the opposite side.

"….."

"That place is full of monsters… and debris."

Instant Acceleration was similar to the 'Blink' ability, as it allowed me to move from one point to another by guiding myself with my sight.

But if I wasn't careful, I could die if I used the ability in the wrong place.

That's why 'Blink' and 'Instant Acceleration' were almost identical abilities in effect, but with a clear difference.

The difference was that one functioned as magical teleportation, while the other used the body's agility to move at overwhelming speed.

I let out a sigh, trying to calm myself.

Then I looked at Clarisse and said in a firm voice:

"Clarisse, do you think you could wait for me here?"

"Huh… why? I want to go with you."

I sighed again, this time with resignation.

This was why I had wanted to come alone from the start.

The company of someone was a huge hindrance, especially considering the three E-rank monsters that were near the great museum.

I already had the location of the church. Now I just needed to get there without being detected by those monsters.

That's why I wanted to leave Clarisse here, in the building, while I quickly went for the Sword of Faith.

"If the call tab were active right now… it would be useful for Clarisse to guide me to safe zones while I moved toward the church."

Clarisse could be at the top of a building, guiding me and giving me directions to avoid most of the monsters.

"Tch."

I clicked my tongue in frustration.

The first and second scenarios were tutorials, and the Survival Window was incomplete, so it couldn't display all its options.

"Once again, I regret making this tutorial system so stupid."

Now I understood the complaints of some readers, asking why I didn't give all the system tabs from the start.

"I get it…"

"Fine, ask me for anything, but in return, stay here, okay?"

"Ask you for anything?"

I sighed inwardly. How could I convince this woman who was crazy about me?

Of course, the only way was to offer her something she couldn't refuse.

Now I was only hoping for one thing.

"Yes, but don't ask me for something weird."

"Alright."

Clarisse turned around without hesitation and entered the building.

"….."

Her retreat was so quick that I couldn't help but let out a sigh, somewhat regretful.

Then I looked in the direction of the museum.

However, before that…

「Skill: Instant Acceleration has been activated」

「Agility increases by 500% and has the effect of semi-teleportation」

My eyes lit up.

In an instant, I covered a considerable distance, reappearing dozens of meters away.

The air around me rippled, and a loud sound echoed everywhere.

It was the clear sign that I had surpassed the speed of sound.

When I stopped, I felt an intense tingling in my legs.

"It has a small flaw… but nothing serious."

Looking back, I realized the distance I had covered.

"More than 90 meters in less than a second…"

I couldn't help but feel a surge of euphoria coursing through my entire body.

"What will the second stage be…?"

While I was thinking about that, I didn't notice that several monsters were running toward me.

By using the skill and surpassing the speed of sound, I had triggered a shockwave that resonated throughout the area, attracting nearby creatures.

"Now... the museum."

I looked directly at the museum, which was almost a kilometer away.

But with this skill, I could reach it in the blink of an eye.

「Skill: Instant Acceleration has been activated」

***

I hid among some rubble, taking care not to make the slightest sound.

Then, upon slightly raising my head, I could see the imposing museum. According to the view from the building where the church was located, it was on the other side of the avenue.

However, something made me glance back.

"That's one of them."

One of the three E-rank monsters was patrolling the area. Its imposing figure, five meters tall, stood out among the debris. Its body was robust, covered in bony plates and muscles taut like ropes. Around it moved other smaller creatures, with estimated levels of 50 or less.

As I observed them, my thoughts raced.

'It should work…'

I picked up a rock from the ground, feeling its weight in the palm of my hand.

Then I fixed my gaze on a rusted car, a few meters away from the group of monsters.

I held my breath. My arm drew back.

Flap!

I threw the rock with all my strength. The air briefly distorted in its path, as if reality trembled for an instant.

A second later, the stone struck the car with a metallic crash. A curtain of dust rose, and the screech of twisted metal filled the air.

All the monsters, including the E-rank one, immediately turned their heads.

'Come on…'

A smile crept onto my face. Without wasting time, I activated the skill.

「Skill: Instant Acceleration has been activated」

In the blink of an eye, I covered dozens of meters, reaching the other end of the area.

'One down. On to the next.'

I repeated the maneuver with the second monster. Deceiving it was easier, and after a couple of seconds, I was near the church.

I paused for a moment to catch my breath and observe my target.

What remained of the church was barely recognizable: cracked walls, shattered stained glass, and a fallen cross among the rubble.

'Now this guy…'

At the entrance stood a monster covered in constantly writhing tentacles, as if they were tasting the air.

'It's sensitive to sound.'

I knew from the description that any noise within 30 meters would trigger an immediate attack. And, given its shapeless, swift body, it was likely I wouldn't even notice before being struck.

I scanned the surroundings with my eyes.

"That's it…"

A leaning power pole, its base barely holding onto the remnants of a wall.

I grabbed another rock, lighter this time.

'Make the pole fall and activate the skill at the exact moment. I can't fail…'

My breathing slowed as I prepared.

Flap!

The stone sliced through the air, whistling briefly before striking the base of the pole.

Crack!

The pole gave way and crashed heavily to the ground, making the surroundings tremble.

The monster reacted instantly, turning its tentacles toward the noise.

'Now…'

I activated the skill at the precise moment.

「Skill: Instant Acceleration has been activated」

I crossed the distance to the church in less than a second, stopping right in front of the entrance.

Without wasting time, I grabbed a massive piece of debris blocking the entrance. My arms trembled from the effort. The weight was overwhelming, and my breathing grew heavy.

Just as I lifted it…

"....."

A tentacle shot out beside me, grazing the air mere centimeters from my face.

'Shit…'

「Skill: Instant Acceleration has been activated」

I activated it at the last second, launching myself into the church. But…

"Ahhhh!"

I tripped over the remains of the altar, and my body slammed into the ground with a dull thud. I felt the bones in my shoulder and arm crack. The pain was so sharp it left me breathless.

Gritting my teeth, I forced my dislocated joints back into place. Sweat poured down my forehead. I used the ring to channel magical energy and heal myself as quickly as possible.

"H-haah… I almost died so stupidly…"

I forced myself to stand.

In front of me, at the far end of the church, a display case glimmered behind a partially destroyed statue of Jesus.

A golden glow emanated from within.

"Ha."

A smile spread across my face. My legs were still trembling, but that light…

That was the Sword of Faith.