Chapter 60: This Is Mercy

The monster sensed his bloodlust, bolted without a second thought. ’This is bad, so he knew about me following them all this time? Dammit, I was too careless.’ She pushed her muscles to their limit, her breath coming in ragged gasps, until the mountains faded behind her. Finally she let herself stop for a moment, her lungs burning. ’I need to inform his Highness about this. A dangerous human has entered our world.’

She tried to push herself forward, but a hand clamped down on her face before she could take another step. The world flipped, everything spinning, before she was slammed face-first into the ground. Pain ripped through her body, the scent of damp earth filling her nostrils along with the copper taste of blood. She tried to push herself up but a crushing weight on her back pinned her down, grinding her into the dirt.

“Running away?” His voice was cold, empty. The oppressive weight of his mana settled around her, suffocating. She craned her neck, her vision swimming, to see him. His eyes pierced right through her.

“I knew you would try to bolt the moment you saw an opening,” he continued, his tone laced with disdain. “You’re the cautious type, aren’t you? The type that watches from the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike, or in this case, flee. How pathetic.”

She struggled beneath his grip, her claws scrabbling uselessly against the dirt. With a desperate cry she summoned her mana, a barrier flickering to life around her. But his hand tightened, a cruel smile playing on his lips, the barrier shattered instantly, dissolving into nothing.

“Don’t bother,” he said, his grip unyielding. “If you were strong enough to fight back, you would have tried already. But here you are, squirming.”

Her mind raced, frantic, trapped. ’I have to escape. If I don’t… no, I can’t die here. Not like this… my king…’

“You don’t understand!” she gasped, her voice muffled against the dirt. “I was only following orders! I—”

He picked her up, only to slam her back to the ground with bone-jarring force. “I know that much, but what I’m really curious about is who gave you those orders. It can’t be mother, since you didn’t fight alongside those guys, you’re also running in a completely different direction.” He leaned in closer, his grin barely contained. “Is there another powerful entity in this dungeon?”

Her blood turned to ice. ’No, how did he figure it out so fast? This is bad, I need to protect his highness.’ Her lips pressed together in a thin line, refusing to utter a single word. But Vell’s grin widened, his expression mixing amusement with cruelty.

“Oh, I see. That silence says more than words ever could,” he said, his voice mocking. “There is indeed something else. And judging by that look in your eyes, someone important enough to make you willing to die to keep their secret.”

She flinched, her claws digging into the dirt as she tried to summon her mana again, but his grip was too strong. That wasn’t the only reason though, she could feel her mana being drained. She was no match for him in this state, she knew it.

“So you really won’t talk, huh?” He mused, his tone almost playful. “That’s fine. I have other ways to make you speak.”

He grabbed her by the throat, lifting her off the ground as though she weighed nothing. Her legs kicked weakly, her claws scratching futilely at his arm. The aura radiating from him made every breath a struggle.

“Last chance,” he said, his eyes narrowing as his grip tightened. “Who are you running to? And don’t even think about lying. I’ll know.”

Her vision blurred, her chest heaving as she struggled for air. She couldn’t give up the information, not to him, not to anyone. If she did, it would mean doom for everything she’d sworn to protect.

“I… I would rather die,” she rasped, her voice barely audible.

He tilted his head, his expression hardening. “Wrong answer.”

Without warning he hurled her into a nearby boulder. The impact shattered the stone, sending shards flying as her body slumped to the ground. Pain wracked her frame, her senses screaming in protest.

She looked up, her vision swimming, to see him walking toward her with a calm, measured stride. His presence was overwhelming, bearing down on her, yet there was something else. A flicker of curiosity, of genuine intrigue, behind the menace in his eyes.

“You’re brave, I’ll give you that,” he said, stopping a few paces from her broken form. “But bravery won’t save you. If you won’t talk, then I’ll just have to find this ’important’ person of yours myself. You were going in that direction, right?” He looked behind him.

Her heart sank. “No… please…” she croaked, her voice a broken whisper.

“Then talk. Where is he? What is he planning, why did he send you after me?”

She hesitated, her mind a storm of conflicting emotions. Loyalty warred with fear, her instincts screaming at her to protect her master even as her body screamed for mercy.

“I… I won’t…” she began, but her words faltered as his aura flared, pressing down on her harder than before, even her eyes began to bleed.

“Wrong again,” he said, his tone cold, final. “But I’ll let you live. I need you to deliver a message to your leader.” He dug deep in her eye with his finger, carved out her eye, popping it. “Tell your leader that I’m coming for him. And when I find him…” his voice dropped to a whisper. “…he’ll wish he had stayed in the shadows like the little bitch he is.”

The monster screamed in agony, clutching at her ruined eye socket as blood streamed down her face. Her cries echoed through the wasteland, raw, unfiltered, but Vell’s expression remained cold as stone.

“Now get moving, or do you want me to send you back in pieces?”

She trembled, her body wracked with pain, but the sheer force of his presence compelled her to obey. Struggling to her feet, she staggered backward, one hand pressed against her face as she slowly walked away, not daring to look back.

“Remember, this is mercy. Next time you won’t get the chance to crawl away.”

She didn’t respond, her breath ragged as she disappeared from view, driven by a mix of terror and resolve. ’I must warn His Highness… even if it costs me the last of my strength. This human is the devil himself.’

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