Chapter 102

Sky-blue liquid sprayed from the shattered container. Gravity claimed it as it fell, but the liquid never reached Vincent’s mouth.

"Guh..."

Vincent’s face twisted in agony as a low groan escaped his throat.

A splash of vermilion mixed with the blue dancing in the air. The blood sprayed from Vincent’s right hand, the one that had been clutching the container.

Harold, his focus sharpened to the absolute limit by his previous inability to move, saw everything. He witnessed the exact moment an arrow, flying from behind him, pierced through Vincent’s hand.

Before he could even process who had fired it, Harold closed the distance.

One more strike was all he needed. No matter how much Vincent ignored the damage to his body, every vessel had a limit. The damage had already reached critical levels; that Astral Potion was supposed to be the final ace in the hole to let him push beyond those limits. Harold merely had to squeeze out the dregs of his strength and deliver his fastest blow.

Having dropped the potion, Vincent tried to shift into a defensive stance, but he was too late. At a timing that rendered counters, blocks, and evasion impossible, Harold drove the hilt of his sword into Vincent’s abdomen—an area now exposed by his shattered armor.

The hilt buried itself deep into Vincent’s sturdy frame. By now, there were few parts of the man’s body that weren't already a mess of injuries.

Vincent spat a mouthful of fresh blood and slowly toppled onto his back. Harold stood over him, refusing to lower his guard for even a second.

But the man did not move an inch. This time, he truly fell silent.

"Aren't you going to finish him off?"

The voice came from behind him. Harold was still caught in the afterglow of victory—or perhaps more accurately, he was dazed by the fact that he had actually survived this encounter. The speaker was exactly who he expected, yet simultaneously someone who, according to the original story, had no business being here.

"There's no need. More importantly, what the hell are you doing here, Cody?"

Cody Luzial. He was Vincent’s best friend, and in the original story, he was the man destined to kill Vincent with his own hands. Yet here he stood.

"His behavior’s been a bit off lately, you see. Finally, he tried to sneak off somewhere without permission, so I decided to tail him."

So that’s it, Harold thought. Unlike the original timeline, Cody was still a member of the Knight Order. That meant he was in a position to observe Vincent’s condition daily.

Given their history as childhood friends, it wasn't surprising that he’d noticed a change.

"So you were lurking in the shadows, peeking at us? What a loathsome hobby."

"No, no, there’s no way I could’ve jumped into a fight like that. You two had both feet—hell, your whole heads—shoved into the realm of monsters." Cody gave a frivolous laugh. "I value my own life, you know."

It was impossible to tell what he was really thinking, though Harold suspected that deep down, Cody simply couldn't bear to watch his friend die.

Well, he did end up helping me, so I won't complain, Harold thought as he knelt to cast healing magic on Vincent.

Due to the game’s mechanics, Harold’s healing magic was extraordinarily potent. In numerical terms, it restored over two thousand HP. Even compared to Erika, the protagonist's primary healer, Harold was in a different league entirely.

Naturally, he hadn't had the luxury of using it while dueling. In the game, healing was instantaneous once the spell was cast, but in this world—with its selective sense of realism—it took time for wounds to actually knit together.

Healing leisurely in front of an opponent like Vincent would have been a death sentence.

"Oh? Is it really okay to save him? If he wakes up, he might just attack you again."

"As long as he’s in his natural state, it won't be an issue."

Harold could recover his own stamina by drinking Ether. As long as he restrained Vincent, suppressing him again upon his awakening wouldn't be difficult. Though Harold’s mental and physical energy were drained, he hadn't actually sustained much physical damage himself.

He moved the weapons a safe distance away. Even with healing magic, Vincent’s wounds would close, but he wouldn't regain consciousness immediately. Besides, if left alone, Vincent would surely die. Even for someone like Harold, that would leave a bitter taste in his mouth.

"Or would you prefer it if he died?"

"...Isn't that a little cold, even for you?"

"Then keep your mouth shut."

"Yes, yes, I hear you."

This was the first time they had spoken since Harold left the Knight Order. A five-year gap stood between them, yet Cody’s lighthearted, breezy attitude remained unchanged.

Nostalgia flickered briefly as Harold finished the treatment. The major wounds were sealed and the bleeding had stopped. As a final precaution, he began to strip the man of his equipment.

"And what are we doing now?"

"Searching for anything dangerous he might be hiding."

There was no guarantee that the one Astral Potion was all he had. Harold decided a thorough search was necessary.

Furthermore, Vincent might have been carrying the secret treasure. Though, considering he was lying in wait here, it was more likely the item had already been delivered to Justus.

"...Nothing, then."

It was a total miss. He hadn't found the treasure, and the battle with Vincent had yielded little information. The only real gain was that he had neutralized a dangerous pawn like the brainwashed Vincent.

"So, Harold-kun. What’s the plan now?"

"...First, we move to the town."

"And how are we getting there?"

"I have a carriage waiting nearby. One call and it’ll be here."

In small moments like this, Frieri proved its worth.

The plan was to have a doctor examine the injured Vincent. If he was stable, Cody would take him back. Even if the brainwashing held, Cody wouldn't lose to a weaponless Vincent.

"Let’s go."

"Righto."

"You’re carrying him." Harold pointed at Vincent.

Even without his armor, Vincent’s tall, muscular frame likely weighed well over a hundred kilograms. To get out of the cavern, someone had to lug that weight up a steep, treacherous path. Given that Harold had just finished a grueling duel, the choice of porter was obvious.

"Hahaha, you’re hilarious."

"...Hmph!"

"Guhof!?"

Cody’s pained gasp echoed through the cavern.

Harold’s left fist was buried deep in his midsection.

◇

Cody rubbed his stomach, wincing as he hauled the restrained Vincent over his shoulders. Harold had grown taller than he remembered—they were about the same height now. He’d turned into quite the handsome man, too, though his personality was as sharp and abrasive as ever. If anything, his maturity only made his arrogant attitude feel more natural.

Harold had dumped Vincent on Cody and headed further into the cavern, mentioning that he had a slim hope of finding something in the depths.

Cody had no idea what could be hidden in a remote hole like this, or if it had anything to do with whatever had broken Vincent’s mind. Thinking about Harold was a headache; every time Cody tried to make sense of the man, he ended up more confused. He let out a long sigh.

His immediate concern was whether his best friend would ever regain his sanity.

What the hell is going on? Cody wondered as he stepped out into the night air.

It had been nearly sunset when they entered, but several hours had passed since then. By the time Cody had found them, they were already locked in a fierce struggle. How many hours had those two been trying to kill each other?

To engage in a life-or-death duel for that long and then immediately trek into the depths of a cave—Harold was truly built different. Even if Ether could restore physical stamina, it did nothing for mental exhaustion. A normal person would have been catatonic.

"Well, I guess 'normal' never applied to Harold."

The boy had defied every standard and common-sense metric since the day they met.

Cody took out the light Harold had given him and pulsed it toward the woods at the intervals he’d been taught. Moments later, several men emerged from the shadows.

"You the boss’s man?" one of them asked.

"If the 'boss' is Harold, then yeah. He wants this guy taken to the nearest hospital."

"State the code."

"'Brave Hearts Gathering at the Solasphere,' right? And this."

Cody produced the silver key Harold had handed him.

The code and the key were supposedly the proof that he was an ally. Cody couldn't help but marvel at how elaborate Harold’s secret network was.

"...This way."

Having passed the inspection, Cody was led to a small carriage.

"You and the man get in. It’s not fast, but we’ll hit the nearest town by dawn."

"What about Harold?"

"Don't worry about him. He can take care of himself."

It was a casual answer, but it spoke volumes about the trust Harold’s subordinates had in him.

Cody remembered the mission to the Bertis Forest years ago; Harold had moved on foot at a speed that nearly rivaled a horse. He’d been thirteen then. He was likely much faster now.

In fact, the speed he’d shown in the cavern was so extreme that Cody had struggled to keep track of him even from a vantage point. In a real fight, Cody was certain he’d lose sight of the boy in seconds.

Accepting that Harold would be fine, Cody boarded the carriage. Hours later, he arrived in town and had a doctor look over Vincent.

By the time the treatment was finished and Cody received word that Vincent would likely wake up soon, the sun was high in the sky. Harold joined them shortly after.

When asked how he’d gotten there, Harold simply said he’d asked his men where the carriage went and then ran the entire way after finishing his exploration of the cave.

Exploring a cavern, running back to the entrance, and then sprinting dozens of kilometers on foot immediately after a near-death duel was nothing short of insanity. The fact that he could do it was one thing; the fact that he considered it a logical course of action was quite another.

"Seriously, Harold, you aren't human."

"Do you want another punch?"

"You're a paragon of humanity, truly."

Harold didn't swing his fist this time. Instead, he kicked Cody in the calf, sending him doubled over in pain.

So much for logic, Cody grumbled internally.

"Try not to add to the hospital’s workload..." Cody groaned. "Anyway, how’s Vincent?"

Harold looked down at the man lying in the hospital bed.

"Going straight to business, are we? The doctor says he’s stable. He should wake up before long."

He had sustained injuries that should have been fatal, but Harold had saved him. Cody wasn't sure whether to be grateful or to scold the boy for the violence that caused the wounds in the first place.

"I see," Harold replied with his usual curtness. He seemed indifferent, but Cody knew Harold wouldn't have wasted mana on healing or checked on him now if he didn't care.

"So, do you know why he ended up like this?"

"Presumably, Justus did something akin to brainwashing."

"Justus... Dr. Freund? 'Brainwashing' is a heavy word..."

"What about it?"

"No..."

Cody was surprised to hear the name of the Kingdom’s most famous genius, but his hesitation stemmed from a memory triggered by the word 'brainwashing.' He saw a link between Vincent’s condition and a ghost from his past.

It went back to the Bertis Forest incident, around the time Harold was nearly executed.

To find the truth behind the suspicious verdict, Cody had slipped a truth serum to a colleague named Finnegan, who had been involved in the deliberation. Finnegan had fallen into a state of total delirium and started bashing his own head against a pillar.

Cody and another man had barely managed to restrain him, but the sheer wrongness of that scene was burned into Cody’s mind.

It was just like...

"'It was like he was possessed by a demon,' huh..."

Cody hadn't meant to speak the words aloud. He remembered saying them back then, a cold shiver running down his spine.

Since that day, Finnegan had done nothing but babble incoherently. He’d left the Order and was now bedridden at home, unable to communicate with anyone.

Cody felt a surge of grief and anger. Would Vincent end up like that, too?

"What are you talking about?" Harold asked.

"Ah—well..."

Cody hesitated. He didn't know for sure if Finnegan’s case was related to Justus, and Harold was currently working for Justus’s institute. He wasn't sure if Harold was someone he could trust with this.

But the doubt only lasted a second.

He hadn't spent a vast amount of time with Harold, but Cody felt he understood the boy's core.

Harold had risked his life in the Bertis Forest. Without him, the casualties among the Order and the Stella Clan would have been staggering. Some in the Order claimed he should have shared his intel sooner, but Cody knew that a green recruit like Harold wouldn't have been taken seriously. Harold had known he was alone, so he fought alone.

And today, Harold could have easily killed Vincent, yet he chose to save him. Whatever Harold’s ultimate goal was, Cody believed he wasn't the type of person to steal a man’s life or dignity.

"...Actually, a few years ago, I saw a man fall into a state very similar to Vincent's."

Cody explained the situation with Finnegan and the suspicious death-penalty deliberation. Harold listened in silence, his expression unreadable.

"The truth has been buried in the dark all this time, but hearing you say that... I think Dr. Freund might be the common link."

"...I can't say for certain, but it’s highly probable. He has the technology to suppress a human’s ego and turn them into a puppet."

"That’s terrifying. Is the doctor really that kind of man?"

"He was the mastermind behind the Bertis Forest incident. For that matter, he’s the one who framed me for the death penalty—and the one who had it revoked."

"Wait. Does a mere researcher really have that kind of pull?"

In response, Harold drew his sword.

"Justus created this. It absorbs the wielder's magic power to boost their combat ability to an insane degree. The price is the wielder’s lifespan."

Cody went pale.

Harold was using that sword right now. He didn't know the specifics, but it meant Harold was literally trading his life for power.

"If the research progresses, he can fix the lifespan issue. But for that, he needs human subjects. From a humanitarian standpoint, that’s impossible to clear. So, he figured he’d just use people who were already sentenced to die."

Harold spoke with total detachment, as if he were discussing someone else's problems.

It would have been easy to scold him for being a fool. But Cody knew that if Harold hadn't taken the sword, he would have been executed. Justus had rigged the game from the start; Harold never had a choice.

"Once perfected, he’ll have the ultimate army. Do you think the higher-ups in this country would hesitate for even a second to trade the life of a single death-row inmate for that?"

"...No. They wouldn't. Not for a second."

Cody knew the Kingdom was built on a foundation of sacrifice. The dark underbelly of the state was its cornerstone. He understood that.

But he couldn't accept it. If it were a genuine criminal, maybe—but Harold had saved lives. To see such a man trapped, his life toyed with by a villain... Cody felt a cold, sharp anger beginning to boil in his chest.

Vincent, Finnegan, the forest... everything was coming together, and it made him want to burn something down.

But he forced himself to stay calm. Anger wouldn't help. He needed to understand the situation.

"But if he went to all that trouble to make you his pawn, why are you and Vincent trying to kill each other? You’re both technically on the doctor’s side."

"Justus has a specific goal. I cooperated with him on the surface, but the moment I betrayed him, he sent someone to kill me. It’s that simple."

"Well, that I can understand."

That was very 'Harold'—betraying his master from the start while pretending to play along. Even with his life on the line, the boy’s will was unyielding. Unless Justus brainwashed him, Harold would never be anyone's puppet.

Cody gave a small, wry smile. It was so like him.

"So, what’s this 'troublesome doctor' actually after?"

"That is—"

"Wait..." a voice interrupted. "I want to... hear this, too..."

The voice was weak and trembling, but Cody knew it well. It was a voice he’d heard a thousand times before.