Ugh, I didn't want blood all over me again.

Shaking off my hands, disgust lay bare across my face, and I soon stepped away.

Why had this angel come for us?

It felt too soon—too quick.

Did they find her body, deduce it was me, pinpoint my location, and send an assailant all in the span of an hour or two? Or was it something else?

Hmm... No, it doesn't line up.

'I' was supposedly a talented apprentice of sorts.

This guy...

I looked to the window at my side.

[[You have killed lvl16 Angel: Maro

exp + (188 / 240) * 2367 = 1854 ]

[You have killed lvl17 Rotta*2 (Soul shattered):

exp + (188 / 320) * 1550 * 2 = 1821 ]]

...was too weak.

And that other 'Rotta' must have died when I killed him; were they connected somehow?

Dammit, maybe I should have tried to keep him alive, but I couldn't be certain of any cards he had hidden away.

The angels should have a keen understanding of this body's original strengths... The martial arts helped me at the end, but if I'd had the experience of this body's previous owner as well as access to light magic, I would have been fine.

Hmm... was he betting that hard on the stealth? With my massive health pool, I'm not sure I would have died, and then there is this siege skill on top of that...

[Siege:

Applies the force of a strike to an area inversely proportional to the area of the blade's edge.

The sharper the blade, the wider the area of effect; if enough mana is used, the force of the strike will not diminish anywhere within this area.]

I'm starting to think I should skip the first sentence...

Regardless, it's ludicrous skill, but then again, I don't know how much mana it wastes—it's almost like a... trump card.

Oh, what if they don't know about it? In fact, I don't think any of his points have gone into mana at all, so it must have been new for him.

That, or he just didn't grasp the abilities potential; I can't be sure.

Rolling my shoulder, I let the tension release from my body in one large breath.

I was eyeing the glint of that blade—the short sword—while in thought. Originally, I'd just tossed it to the ground, but it was still in extremely good condition.

As if on cue, I could hear Rena tentatively making her way over to me.

"Are you okay?"

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I spoke up and turned away, concentrating on pulling the scabbard from the angel's waist; thankfully, it was dry.

"You're asking me if I'm okay? You were the one fighting!"

She had picked up speed but seemed taken aback by my question, slipping into a tone I didn't know she had.

I paused for a moment and turned to face her a little inquisitively.

"I'm... fine, well, except for the searing pain on my back."

I spoke jokingly, knowing I'd be fine by morning, even without any magical healing, but I didn't miss the faint 'That's good' she muttered under her breath.

Her eyes were fixated on the Angel for some time, but I didn't miss her break away to look at the short sword in my hand; ideas were obviously sprouting in her mind.

I didn't hide the body this time; it was plainly visible on purpose; if she was fleeing with me, she'd have to get used to it.

Still, I smirked at her passive understanding and made my way over to the water nearby, to which she followed close behind, apparently unwilling to look at the corpse any longer.

"Do they already know what happened?"

She suddenly asked; it was a natural question—I had asked the same thing myself.

"I don't know; perhaps the news has already spread and he took matters into his own hands based on assumptions, or perhaps they're extremely decisive and have some way of tracing who did it."

I listed my thoughts quickly. I wanted to ask who he was, but the question would be too suspicious from Rena's perspective, so I could only purse my lips in annoyance.

Kneeling down, I began washing the blade and sheath.

"I don't think there's anyone other than Maro who controls beasts like that."

I briefly turned to Rena; she had crouched next to me, the gaze of her purple eyes lost in the water.

That was the name on the interface...

"Do you know about beast users?"

I asked quizzically, hoping to gain information in a roundabout way.

"Uh, not really, but I heard about him in passing because beast taming is often a Demons work..."

She trailed off at the end, clearly envisioning some painful memories.

"I see."

I paused for a moment. Was he ostracised too?

Abruptly, she looked up, and I stopped wiping the blade.

"Maybe he knew I had fallen... Smelt me. "

I cocked an eyebrow, still confused as to what she was getting at exactly.

"Apparently he used to live with us when I was young but left soon after. He only became more hated because of me..."

"Because of us."

I briefly corrected.

There wasn't really a me in 'us' but I don't want her blaming herself for nothing...

Actually, back when we'd first been attacked, the rat monster dove for Rena first; I was only attacked after I defended her.

Rena's expression faltered—we both realised the same thing, and I pretended not to notice; instead, I continued to watch the water run across the sharp point of the shortsword.

"So we're probably alright then."

I finally added after zoning back in.

Pulling the blade up from the water, I flipped it around and pinched it between my thumb and the flat of my finger, pointing the hilt towards her.

"Take it."

My tone was decisive, and I wasn't leaving much room for argument.

There was hesitation in her eyes—a reluctance—but also acceptance; she'd already expected this outcome, that much was obvious, and had prepared herself somewhat.

Tentatively, she reached out.

She flinched at the cold, wet touch of its grip, but only took a short breath to herself before grasping hold of its full weight.

I slackened my grip before releasing my hand, letting her figure out its weight on her own.

Slowly, she moved it through the air in a few different motions; she grasped its basic flow after a short while.

I'm not sure I can compare to my limitless self, but I'm sure this is talented. Maybe she's practiced some weapons before... Strength is obviously important.

I held out the scabbard, to which she stopped and took it from my hand.

She met my eyes again; it's like there's a dialogue going in the back of her eyes...

"Thank you... again."

I snorted slightly; even she was getting a bit tired of her numerous thank-yous.

She likely wanted to say sorry as well but was overthinking it. This was technically her fault this time, but I don't actually mind—this was a great source of exp in this safer than expected forest.

Were there even many creatures that lived here? So far, I hadn't seen a single body; I'd smelt one or two small animals and heard a few rustles, but that was it.

"We should rest."

I got up, and we both eyed the ebbing flame. Fortunately, I had collected enough wood to keep it going through the night.

"Okay. "

She replied, slowly placing the blade within its sheath.

She hadn't been as reluctant to take it as I thought she would be; perhaps she figured it out with herself on her own, or she just needed some time to come out of her shell after that experience in the library.

Regardless, I didn't respond again; the last of my energy had already been sapped, mostly from putting on such a mature act. It wasn't all false, but the style of speech was a pain in my ass, and I'm not sure how long I can keep it up for.

The stone, embedded with my sword, had actually landed near the fire and made for a good back rest, so I set myself down against it.

Feeling Rena's strange look, I spoke again.

"I'll keep watch, so you just sleep."

I could tell she wanted to complain, but at the same time, she didn't want to disagree with me.

With practiced motions, she set herself down near the fire, quickly falling into rest.