Chapter 36
Zeth stood in the middle of the storage shed, facing Erza, who stood between him and the exit.
Part of him just wanted to sprint out of there and never look back. But there was no way that would work. Erza knew his face and name—if he spread word about him, Zeth would never know another peaceful day of his life. And, more importantly, it’d become basically impossible to get the drop on Garon or to kill the Blood Mage.
Plus, he had no idea how feasible doing such a thing would be. He was only now realizing just how much Erza had obfuscated his power. Sure, Zeth was able to glean some knowledge about a few of his capabilities, but he didn’t know the man’s actual Skills, what Level he was—hells, Zeth didn’t even know his Class. He was a complete enigma. If Zeth tried to run, there was a chance he’d be instantly killed.
Other than fleeing, he had two options for defense. He could somehow lead Erza back to where he’d stowed the Hellfire Circle and use it on him, then run before anyone saw it was he who did it, or he could shout and call for his demon hiding in the woods. Both involved killing Erza and running a huge risk that he’d be caught and exposed. And Zeth wasn’t ready to do either of those things just yet.
“You have some sort of magic-based Class,” Erza said. “That much is clear from everything you’ve demonstrated yourself capable of.”
Maybe Zeth could just charge at him? Erza wasn’t too muscular—at least, not compared to the workman’s physique Zeth had built up from years in the mines—and likely wouldn’t have too many Stats in his physical attributes to back him up in a fistfight. Zeth might be able to catch him off-guard if he rushed him. And even if Erza did gain the upper-hand, Zeth could always go to his last resort of just calling the demon to come and slaughter him.
He frowned. No, Erza was clearly too relaxed up-close. Even if he didn’t have high Strength or a powerful physique, the number of magic items that surrounded them would definitely include at least one object that would allow Erza to fight Zeth off. A Stat-boosting piece of clothing, or a hidden weapon, or maybe just a real bomb. Perhaps it really would be best for Zeth to call the demon right now and kill Erza before anything bad could happen. Even if the man was far more powerful than he anticipated, he was confident nobody could get in a fight with a demon and not at least be kept busy for a while, which would give Zeth time to run.
“I would certainly like to know why you would hide such a thing. Did you conceal your Class out of an abundance of caution around strangers? Because your family wouldn’t approve? Or because…” Erza looked at Zeth, “you’re the Blood Mage?”
Okay, it was officially an emergency. Scorched earth time. Zeth braced himself to shout for help and watch the demon tear him to shreds.