Chapter 73: Why handsome?
Why long white hair?
’Erness has it, and it’s amazing.’
Why handsome?
’That’s one of the best privileges out there, honestly.’
Why blue eyes?
’Only blue eyes could represent a gentle, friendly gaze—red just wouldn’t work!’
And then... what about the name?
A name...
That was something Eiros had never once thought about. He’d rushed in without a plan, greeting a woman who clearly carried an unusual presence. Watching how she went after Black Genesis head-on, with her Soul Tier already sitting at Luminous.
It would’ve been genuinely dangerous if she’d turned out to be Black Genesis herself. Luckily she wasn’t, so before the misunderstanding could spiral out of control, Eiros had immediately stated his purpose and introduced himself.
So, again, what about a name?
He’d racked his brain over it, only to recall a moment when Estiel had been feeding a beautiful swan. Right, that was it—White Swan!
"In that case, I’ll take you up on your help, Mister White?"
And here he was now.
Even though the woman still seemed wary of him, Eiros just smiled. Just as the system had said, he genuinely felt at ease with the personality of the wanderer character he’d created.
Cheerful, free-spirited, friendly. He was a character who went entirely with the flow.
"I’m Bell, just call me that. So, mind helping me figure out a way to save that ordinary civilian?"
Eiros’s gaze shifted briefly, looking at the Black Genesis operatives, who stared back at him as though he were some kind of annoying pest.
Then, his eyes landed on the unconscious dark-skinned man. He was the one who’d bought that necklace, and just like the merchant had said, he’d almost certainly been hypnotized.
Since Bell was a Luminous-tier fighter herself, she’d surely be able to handle them easily. But the Black Genesis operatives weren’t exactly ordinary either, even if they were still only Awakened, same as Eiros.
"They’ve got an artifact."
Those words slipped out of Eiros’s lips, which made Bell raise an eyebrow, while both Black Genesis members went noticeably pale.
"Really? How do you know that?"
Friendly as ever, Eiros, wearing his White Swan face, just smiled and shrugged. "They’ve got an artifact they can use to teleport."
That’s what the merchant had told him. That they’d seized some kind of teleportation artifact for themselves. So why hadn’t they fled yet?
"Hmmm..." Eiros thought it over for a moment, watching the pair break out in cold sweat, then gave a small smile. "Seems like they need time—"
His words cut off as the man dissolved into the shadows. Eiros barely had time to react, sensing the man’s presence appear right behind him.
The dagger swung in a curving arc, aiming to slit Eiros’s throat without a shred of hesitation.
Slash—!
That made Eiros’s expression twitch for a moment, his heart pounding hard as he shifted his body as fast as he could.
His sword rose, quickly blocking the dagger’s attack. The sword and dagger clashed with a sharp clang of colliding metal.
The air burst apart, sparks of red lightning crackling relentlessly, alongside a pale green energy continuously seeping out from the man’s dagger.
Clang—!
Swaaa!
The man poured in even more soul essence, forcing Eiros back several steps. Their weapons ground against each other, scattering sparks through the air.
Not willing to let up for even a second, Eiros felt a force building up behind him. He glanced back and found a twisted spiral of water shooting straight toward him, tearing through the air along every inch of its path.
’Damn it.’
Of course, there was a massive gap between them. Both of them were stigmata users belonging to Black Genesis, trained and hardened by plenty of firsthand combat experience.
Eiros, meanwhile, was different. He glanced across the way—right as that water pillar closed in, the man had already sealed off his escape route, appearing directly beside him, intent on killing him with every move he made.
The worst part was, Bell had simply decided to sit back and watch.
"Ugh...!"
Eiros pulled his sword back—since things had come to this, he did whatever he could, twisting his body to dodge the water pillar. But just as expected, that ended up creating an opening the man could exploit.
The water pillar shot past behind him, tearing through the air and shredding through trees. Then, the man had already drawn his dagger, one free hand grabbing at Eiros’s clothes while his other hand rose high.
Stab—!!
The aim was to shatter his leg. For any other stigmata user, that would’ve been a fatal blow, but for the immortal Eiros, it was actually still a viable trade-off worth making.
So he made the call fast, choosing to take the hit head-on.
Spurt—!
"...!"
Eiros felt a searing pain shoot through his thigh, his eyes trembling slightly as he forced an awkward smile, staring at the man.
He had no intention of letting that man attack him without consequence. Right along with that stab, he’d already raised his own free hand, gripping the man’s collar and yanking him close.
His free leg finally touched the ground beneath him, and pouring even more soul essence into it, he lifted the man’s whole body and slammed him straight into the earth.
"Gah!"
Bamm—!
Dust billowed up, along with the man’s pained groan. Eiros gasped for breath, stepping back awkwardly to put some distance between them. His left thigh showed blood seeping out, and at the same time, something else went wrong when Eiros realized the dagger had apparently been coated with poison.
"Hahh..." He let out a hollow snort, giving a small, irritated smile as he glanced over at Bell, who was just watching him with obvious amusement.
As if realizing what she’d been doing, Bell blinked and gave a lopsided smile.
"Ah, sorry, Mister White. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t actually working with them," She drew her weapon, chains rattling alongside her green lantern. "Since you’ve proven that now, I’ll count on your cooperation!"
Hearing that left Eiros genuinely, stiffly speechless. I mean, his leg was busted now, all thanks to a poison, and Bell was acting like that?
Her personality was becoming crystal clear—she was a cold, indifferent kind of person. That left Eiros’s smile turning awkward and forced.
He let out a small sigh, then glanced over at the man, who was glaring at him with obvious frustration.
"I don’t know who you are, but... you’re going to regret this. Since things have come to this...."
The man groaned, a flicker of madness flashing across his pupils, and along with it, he pulled out something sticky and dark, kept in a small glass container.
The woman, watching what was happening, felt her body shudder with a chill, her expression turning grim.
"H-hey? You’re serious...?!"
But the man just laughed, laughing in a way that sounded genuinely twisted, making both Bell and Eiros go quiet, both on high alert.
Whatever the two of them did, it was going to end up messy no matter what. Something Bell clearly understood, and something even Eiros, who’d only just met these two, could already sense.
That’s exactly why neither Bell nor Eiros gave them a single second to spare. Both of them shot forward at the man, intent on stopping whatever he was doing.
Eiros surged forward, red lightning crackling tighter around him. Meanwhile, Bell, with impossibly fluid movements, twisted her hand, her chains vibrating and extending, reaching the man at a terrifying speed.
But...
"HUHU!! HAHAHAHAHA! TOOO LAAATE!"
Crack—!
Shatter—!
The container cracked, releasing that sticky black slime. The atmosphere around them shifted instantly, and the very next moment...
***