Chapter 51 : Monster Hunt – 4
Chapter 51: Monster Hunt – 4
“Damn it! Ian!”
At that moment, Ian’s condition was far from good.
Unlike what was written in the Future Diary, Sienne was now wearing the brooch.
One of his arms had already been blown off and was lying somewhere far away.
His entire body was covered in deep wounds, and a stream of blood trickled down from his mouth.
Even in such a pitiful state, Ian withdrew from Sienne like lightning and approached Edgar.
“W-What is this? What’s going on?”
“We have to… hurry… and run away.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We must run. Please… support me.”
Like hell I’d let that happen!
I shouted toward Sienne.
“Sienne! Your enemy is trying to run away!”
Sienne answered me with her sword instead of words.
Whoooosh!
Even from an incredible distance, the invisible aura that burst from her blade surged toward Edgar and Ian.
Ian threw himself in front of Edgar, shielding him with his whole body.
“Kuugh.”
The light vanished from his eyes.
The most severe wound was the one on his neck—half of it had already been cut away by the sword aura, hanging on by a thread… that was how it looked.
Even in that state, he spoke.
“Run away, Edgar.”
“How could I…”
“M-Magireta.”
Ian squeezed out his remaining strength and muttered the name.
Then, as if answering a spell, Magireta’s figure appeared out of thin air.
Her expression was far more serious than usual—something almost never seen on her face.
“What is it?”
“Get Edgar… out of here.”
“The price?”
“Any of my organs.”
“‘Any’ you say? You said it clearly.”
The next moment, the light faded from Ian’s eyes.
He coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The blood splattered across Edgar’s face.
But unlike my blood from before, his skin didn’t burn at all.
‘What the hell… Why only mine…?’
Magireta murmured indifferently,
“Took his heart.”
“Gguhh…”
Ian let out that final groan as his last will and collapsed lifelessly.
Magireta glanced back at me.
“Thanks, little brother.”
“Huh? For what?”
“For landing a hit on Edgar. Honestly, he was getting on my nerves.”
“Can’t believe there’s a day when I’d actually agree with you, sister.”
“Hehe.”
At that moment, Edgar spoke.
“This isn’t the time to be chatting, sister.”
“……”
“You took your payment. Now, you have to get me out of here.”
“Sigh. Seriously.”
Snap.
Magireta snapped her fingers.
Edgar’s body began to fade away.
He left one last line behind.
“Mason. Just what kind of man are you?”
I’d like to know that too, man.
Step, step.
Just then, the sound of Sienne’s footsteps approached.
She looked back and forth between Magireta and me before turning her gaze toward the fallen companions.
Even though she couldn’t see, she assessed their condition in an instant.
“This isn’t good.”
“Eh?”
“They’re all on the brink of death. They need immediate treatment.”
“Damn it.”
I looked toward Magireta.
She tilted her head slightly, a faintly bored look on her face.
“Want me to heal them?”
“Yes.”
“But all three of them are standing right at the edge of Yohas River. A kidney or something won’t cut it. Since I like you, little brother, I’ll give you a hint.”
Damn it.
Then what part of my body do I have to give this time?
An arm? A leg?
Or should I sacrifice an eye like Sienne?
‘No… There are three people who need healing.’
No way she’d heal three people for the price of one body part.
If this went wrong, I might save them but die myself.
At that moment—
The Diary Book’s voice echoed in my head.
[Just let her go, Mason.]
‘What?’
[There might be another way. Let her go.]
‘…Are you serious? My comrades’ lives are on the line here.’
[It’ll be fine. Probably.]
That kind of lukewarm answer wasn’t helping.
…
No. Wait.
No matter what happened, the Diary Book had never led me astray.
I steadied myself and spoke.
“It’s fine. You can just go, sister.”
“Really? Don’t bluff. You care a lot about these guys, don’t you?”
“I’m serious. It’s fine.”
“……Hmm. Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter.”
She slowly floated up into the air.
“Do you remember what I told you before? That I was looking forward to the day you and Edgar would clash.”
“Yes.”
“Round one goes to you—by decision. Show me another good fight next time. See you again, little brother.”
Before I knew it, her figure completely vanished.
Sienne, looking flustered, opened her mouth.
“Are you truly sure about this? If she leaves now, your companions will…”
“Please wait a moment, Lady Sienne.”
I spoke to the Diary Book.
‘Alright, hurry up. What exactly are you planning to do?’
[Do you remember when the shop feature opened before?]
‘Huh? Of course.’
<Always with you. The On-the-Go Diary Shop.> <You can purchase the following items for a very low number of points.>
<Currently at lv.1, so only one item is available for sale.>
<1. Stimulant (For Armelia’s use only): 500 points>
What’s this?
[Try purchasing Armelia’s Stimulant.]
I decided to just do as instructed.
Then the Diary Book lifted itself off the ground, pages facing downward.
It flapped like a bird a few times, and then—
Plop.
Something fell from between its fluttering pages.
It honestly looked like a bird laying an egg.
This really wasn’t the time to complain, but it looked ridiculous.
I caught the thing that fell.
“What’s this?”
“W-What is it? Why? I heard something drop out of thin air.”
“It’s a vial. There’s some sort of dark, murky liquid inside.”
“How could something like that just appear out of nowhere?”
At that moment, the Diary Book spoke.
[Make the Princess drink it.]
I uncorked the vial and brought it to Armelia’s lips.
But she had already lost consciousness and couldn’t swallow.
‘No choice then.’
I took the unknown liquid into my own mouth first—then transferred it to her through mouth-to-mouth.
Sienne stared at me with a slightly awkward smile.
“Puh. What is it, Lady Sienne?”
“I just thought… you could’ve asked me to do it.”
“……”
Now that she mentioned it, she had a point.
“It might be a rude question, but how did you even know I used my mouth to feed her? You couldn’t have seen.”
“Your breathing stopped for a moment. The rest was imagination.”
“Ah.”
Just then—
“Cough. Ughh…”
Armelia’s eyes opened.
Her wounds had completely healed.
Oh, wow. This must be some ultimate healing potion.
Five hundred points was a bit pricey, but with this effect, it was worth every bit.
[It’s more than that. It’s not a healing potion—it’s a stimulant.]
‘What do you mean?’
Before the Diary Book could respond, Armelia’s voice cut in.
“Mason? What happened?”
“Your Highness collapsed in one blow.”
“I know… Don’t spell it out for me.”
“Please don’t blame yourself. Everyone was in the same situation this time.”
“Ah! The others?”
Armelia shot up and rushed to the two fallen companions.
She laid Aina down to check her condition—
And the next moment—
“Huh? Wait, what is this?”
Aina, who had been in a grave condition, suddenly regained consciousness!
I rubbed my eyes hard.
‘That’s odd. I think I just saw a faint golden light leak from the Princess’s hand.’
[You saw correctly.]
‘Saw what?’
[Lady Armelia has awakened her true ability—The Light of Healing.]
‘The Light of Healing?’
[Those classified as “Potential” each have their own special traits. I can’t say much more yet, but… yes.]
Potential, huh.
Then—
Aina sprang to her feet.
“Grandpa! Grandpa!”
“Don’t worry. Her Highness will handle it.”
“You’re joking at a time like this?”
“I’m not.”
I gestured toward Armelia.
Though she didn’t seem to fully grasp what was happening yet, she once again placed her hand on Berseum, just as before.
Then came another golden glow.
Soon after, Berseum regained his senses as well.
I had heard his ribs shatter earlier, but now he moved as if nothing had happened.
“What on earth just happened?”
“Are you alright, brother?”
“Too alright, that’s the problem. I’m sure Edgar struck me down.”
“Exactly.”
“Exactly? That’s not—”
Then it hit me—a great idea.
That healing power, maybe…
I turned to Armelia.
“Your Highness, could you try touching Lady Sienne’s eyes as well?”
“Huh? O-Of course.”
Armelia cautiously approached Sienne.
Then, she slowly raised her hand and touched the bandages.
A few seconds later, I spoke.
“Lady Sienne. Please try removing the bandages.”
“I’m not sure what you’ve been talking about since earlier.”
“There’s nothing to lose, so please, just try.”
“Ah, alright.”
Rustle.
She unwrapped the bandages.
The last time I saw her, there had been nothing but empty hollows where her eyes used to be.
But now… huh?
“There’s no change.”
Sienne’s eye sockets were still empty.
[It’s impossible for Lady Armelia’s current power to regenerate an organ as complex as an eyeball. She can’t heal an injured eye because there is no eye. It’s closer to creation than recovery.]
‘I see. That’s a shame.’
In her prime, Sienne’s greatest talent had been her astonishing dynamic vision.
Even blind, she’d reduced Ian to a lump of meat. If she regained her eyes, just how powerful would she become?
All I could do was click my tongue in regret.
But it seemed Armelia’s regret ran deeper than mine.
She gently touched the area around Sienne’s eyes and spoke softly.
“I’m sorry. It seems my ability wasn’t enough. I honestly don’t even understand how it works.”
“Please, Your Highness, there’s nothing to apologize for…”
“I wished for you to regain your light. To win this game—and to ‘see’ your beloved once again.”
“Your Highness…”
Though Sienne couldn’t shed tears, she sniffled quietly instead.
“You’re quite different from the other royals, Your Highness.”
“I hear that often. I lack much compared to them.”
“I meant the opposite.”
“In any case, your eyes… perhaps someday again—”
Armelia’s words suddenly cut off.
Her body swayed, then leaned heavily against Sienne.
Before long, she was practically hanging onto her.
“Your Highness?”
“Snooze… snooze…”
She fell asleep.
She actually fell asleep—at this dramatic moment!
[Ah, right. Since she just awakened, the recoil will put her to sleep for a while. She’s still too inexperienced to control that power. Please be careful.]
‘And you’re telling me this now?’
[That’s a relief. I was worried I might be too late.]
‘You really don’t understand sarcasm, do you?’
[Anyway, there’s something I need to tell you.]
[You have successfully cleared the Sudden Quest “Monster Hunt.”]
[Records during the Sudden Quest “Monster Hunt” have been altered.]
[Due to these changes, part of the Future Diary has been modified.]
[The Diary Book’s “Shop Lv.2” feature has been upgraded.]
[Sudden Quest: Achieved survival of Armelia. Reward: 100 points.]
[Sudden Quest: Achieved survival of Aina. Reward: 100 points.]
[Sudden Quest: Achieved survival of Berseum. Reward: 100 points.]
[Sudden Quest: Achieved survival of Sienne. Reward: 100 points.]
[Current points: 422]
Edgar was dead.
Mason’s blood had seeped deep into his body.
It had burned and melted his flesh like a deadly acidic liquid.
And several minutes later—
The melted corpse began to return to its original form, as if someone had rewound time.
After a while, he opened his eyes, completely restored.
“So, I ended up dying after all.”
Just because a bit of blood splashed on him?
He stared silently at his own hands.
Soon, he noticed they were trembling.
‘Damn it.’
Edgar muttered under his breath.
“Magireta.”
“I told you not to call me that.”
Magireta’s figure slid into view from the air.
She seemed pleased—because that ever-present smirk was gone from Edgar’s face.
It was the first time I’d ever seen that expression on him.
“I wish you’d always keep that look. Just like my little brother said.”
“Do you hate me that much, sister?”
“Yeah. I do.”
“Why? I’m a five-time regular, you know. If this were a restaurant, I’d be their best customer. Shouldn’t you be offering better service?”
Magireta’s smile vanished completely.
Then, with a voice so chilling it made one’s knees tremble, she spoke.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never given you a serious warning before. This is a good time to say it.”
“……”
“You’re interfering with my fun. That’s why I hate you.”
She spoke each word with precision.
“You keep playing this game to escape boredom and chase excitement, right? Then you should understand me. Your very existence is what makes me bored.”