ocean-life Chapter 58 – Human? (4)
Chapter 58 – Human? (4)
Chapter 58 – Human? (4)
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
Chapter 58 – Human? (4)
‘Is that a characteristic of the barbarians of the White Snowfield? Or is it unique to Ketal?’
He wanted to study it.
He wanted to dissect that body piece by piece and understand its principles.
But he can’t.
He must resist.
Suppressing his desire, he spoke up.
“You are truly strong. To defeat the knights so effortlessly.”
“Is that so.”
Ketal replied without much reaction to the Tower Master’s words.
“I’ve heard that many times, but honestly, it doesn’t move me much. I just did what I had to do to survive.”
“Survival... you say?”
Such power, merely for the sake of survival.
Is the White Snowfield that harsh?
He knew it was an extraordinary place, being the largest of the Forbidden Lands, but if someone like Ketal needs to struggle to survive, it’s difficult to imagine what kind of beings inhabit it.
He wanted to ask, to analyze everything.
But he couldn’t.
For now, he was just a mere citizen admiring Ketal.
He forcibly suppressed his desires.
The next day, they began their journey to the Denian Kingdom.
No longer avoiding the public eye, they walked boldly along the path.
Inevitably, the knights blocked their way.
Swish!
The sound of an arrow piercing the air.
Ketal moved his hand and caught an arrow.
“This time it’s guerrilla tactics. I guess they decided they can’t stop me by force. Not a wrong decision.”
Whoosh!
Dozens of arrows flew simultaneously.
Ketal waved his hand lightly.
As if swatting away insects, the arrows fell to the ground.
Boom!
Then, three knights jumped out from the nearby forest, aiming their swords at Ketal.
He casually raised his fist.
“But not the right answer either.”
Crunch.
Swords shattered and armor crumpled.
The knights coughed up blood as they were sent flying.
“Monster...!”
They gritted their teeth and ran away again.
Watching this, Elene couldn’t help but admire.
“You’re amazing. Those knights aren’t weak by any means, yet you handle them like children...”
During the battle with the knights, he couldn’t fully grasp the situation, but now, in this moment of calm, he understood.
Ketal was incredibly strong.
He could see why the knights called him a monster.
Breaking through the Blue-Green Knights with his bare hands, catching aura with his teeth.
Even a layman like Elene could see how extraordinary that was.
At least a superhuman level of strength.
It was puzzling why someone like him would be a mere mercenary.
So he had to ask.
“Why do you let them live?”
The knights came in shifts.
And Ketal defeated them all.
But he didn’t kill them.
He incapacitated them by destroying their armor and weapons, but he didn’t take their lives.
Considering they were trying to kill Ketal, his restraint was saintly.
Elene spoke with a somber expression.
“If you’re sparing them for our sake, there’s no need. They’re no longer the people we know. They’re something else imitating them.”
These were originally people Elene and Aaron knew.
Ketal’s consideration of not killing them seemed evident.
But Ketal shook his head.
“It’s not particularly for your sake.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Elene’s expression turned sheepish.
Ketal murmured.
“I want to confirm something. What you know about them is that they don’t fear death. Is that all?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
When she said it like that, it sounded trivial.
“I believe you. But that’s not enough evidence. So, I need to find out more.”
Ketal hummed as he continued walking forward.
‘His understanding of anomalies is quick.’
Is this also a characteristic of the White Snowfield?
It was an analysis that couldn’t be seen in the rigidly minded fools who believed they were smart.
Of course, Ketal hadn’t figured it out without any basis.
The knights, once chased off, kept a certain distance.
And when they reached a certain point, they suddenly disappeared.
Then they reappeared.
The process was so fast it was almost instantaneous, but Ketal had definitely noticed it.
They disappeared and then reappeared, as if they were being refreshed.
No matter how much he broke their armor, destroyed their weapons, or threw them far away, they reappeared in the same state after a refresh.
Now, only the final confirmation remained.
The knights once again blocked their path.
Ketal didn’t raise his fist.
This time, he held an axe.
“Elene.”
“It’s fine.”
She said firmly.
“You scum!”
“Hand over the princess...”
Crash.
The axe shattered the knight’s armor.
The knights, with the axe embedded deep in their chests, collapsed.
They were dead instantly.
They continued forward. Exactly five hours later.
“Release the princess!”
“Damn barbarian!”
Once again, they appeared before Ketal.
* * *
That night.
With the sun set and no moon in the sky, the darkness was impenetrable.
Elene and Aaron sat with pale faces.
“They were definitely dead.”
Their chests had been split open and their pupils dilated.
It was a death so certain that no doctor needed to confirm it.
Yet, they reappeared.
With perfectly normal faces, they shouted to release the princess, as if they had never died.
Ketal stirred a pot as he spoke.
“Aaron mentioned that the girl named Cassie almost got crushed by a statue but felt no fear of death.”
The reason was simple.
Death held no meaning for them.
Ketal stroked his chin, intrigued.
“Is such a mystery possible in this world? Is it impossible to revive the dead with magic or alchemy?”
“It’s not impossible, but...”
“So it is possible.”
Ketal smiled.
Indeed, in a fantasy world, overcoming death should be achievable.
“But the conditions are stringent, and there are many limitations. They couldn’t come back in such a short time, perfectly intact.”
“...What kind of beings did we live with for a year?”
Elene bit her lip.
She had laughed and chatted with such beings in the royal castle for a year.
The thought gave her chills.
Ketal spoke.
“If what you say is true, then they are not human.”
A delicious aroma wafted through the air.
Ketal served the food into bowls.
Elene, with a dazed expression, poked at her spoon.
Despite it being Ketal’s cooking, which she loved so much, she couldn’t taste it.
“Then what are they?”
“...I don’t know.”
Elene shook her head.
“In my knowledge, there are no such beings. Coming back from death... that’s not life.”
By this point, the Tower Master had also changed his mind.
The princess’s words were true.
‘I came to see the barbarian of the White Snowfield, but this is an unexpected discovery.’
The regeneration of inorganic materials they wore, and the revival of life itself.
They disguised themselves as humans, wielded aura, and exhibited human emotions.
According to the Tower Master’s knowledge, no such race or monster existed.
This was something he had never encountered before.
After a moment of thought, the princess cautiously spoke.
“...I suspect they are beings from the Forbidden Lands.”
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]