Chapter 43

It’s amazing how the pain is so intense that it renders humans speechless!

I was on the brink of a panic attack from the pain, but my cursed sword managed to keep me under control. The way it did that was by lunging towards the neck of the Skoll that was attacking me, and with one swift motion, I decapitated it. The Skoll, now separated from its body, fell to the ground with a thud due to gravity.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, no problem.”

“What do you mean you’re fine? Clearly, you’re not!”

Even though it was a big problem, I reflexively answered that I was okay.

“GAGUGAAGGA!”

“Tsk, this one is still not dead…Hey!”

As I was talking, the Mad Bear that the chestnut-haired man had been fighting earlier stood up and lunged towards me with a strike. I grabbed the man’s collar and forcefully rolled him to the side.

Sorry, but I couldn’t think of any other way!

Then, I lowered my body and cut the Mad Bear’s leg with my cursed sword, while licking the ground.

“GAGAAAA!” the Mad Bear let out a painful scream.

However, the cursed sword wouldn’t stop there. It continued to control my body. I took advantage of the opportunity while the Mad Bear was motionless and plunged the tip of my sword into its heart.

“GAH, GAGUGAAAA!!”

The Mad Bear, with the sword in its heart, staggered back. Unexpectedly, something happened to me and probably to the cursed sword controlling me.

Due to the thickness of the Mad Bear’s fur and fat, the sword that had been plunged into its chest couldn’t be withdrawn. Furthermore, when the Mad Bear staggered back, I unintentionally let go of the sword.

“Oh no…!”

My body collapsed to my knees. That cursed sword had a ridiculous side effect of attacking its user with status abnormalities when it was released. Based on how I felt, it seemed that the status abnormality this time was paralysis.

“I messed up…!”

I cursed as I knelt on the ground, and the chestnut-haired man beside me panicked.

With trembling lips due to the paralysis, I managed to ask him to retrieve the sword that was still embedded in the Mad Bear. He nodded once and ran towards the fallen Mad Bear.

“Takumi, are you okay?!”

I looked up when my name was called. It was Felix.

He didn’t appear to have any injuries, and I breathed a sigh of relief, “Felix…I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Forget about me, what about you?! We need to treat your wounds now!”

“But there are still monsters around.”

“We’ve already taken care of the monsters that entered the walls. We’re currently sealing the southern gate. Now, come on!”

I looked around, and as Felix said, most of the monsters that had been there before had been defeated. Although there were still some ongoing battles, we should be fine. With Felix’s help, I began to walk while being partially carried.

“Takumi…why do you always do these reckless things…?”

For some reason, Felix looked like he was about to cry, even though he was unscathed.

“Felix, you’re so kind.”

However, this wound wasn’t a big deal.

It hurt like hell, but I’m glad that I’m the one who got injured. After all, this monster attack might have been my fault. If I hadn’t done something unnecessary…

If I hadn’t forcefully changed the game scenario, then maybe the protagonist of “Change the World” would have been properly summoned to this world, and this incident might not have happened.

That’s why I decided to intervene, between the chestnut-haired youth and that Skoll.

Even though I knew I would get injured, I couldn’t just stand by and watch someone else get hurt because of me. I really hate myself for being so cowardly and useless…

Trying not to let Felix notice, I lowered my face and exhaled.

Felix led me to a small house a little away from the south gate without anyone noticing. It seemed like the residents of this house had already evacuated, as the small single-story house was empty and there was no sign of anyone inside.

Felix slowly helped me sit down on a chair inside the house. By the time I sat down on the chair, the numbness in my body had improved slightly. Using the remaining alcohol and cloth in the house, Felix treated the wound on my arm. The wound from Skoll’s bite had torn the flesh roughly in the shape of fangs, but it didn’t seem to have reached the bone.

When Felix disinfected the wound, it hurt a lot and I inadvertently let out a groan. However, when Felix heard my voice, he grimaced as if in pain, and I quickly stifled my voice.

“Felix, I’m sorry. I caused you trouble.”

“Please don’t say such things. I know that you risked yourself to help others.”

“It’s not like that.”

Felix looked surprised at my words. “Takumi?”

“It’s not like that, I’m… I’m not that kind of person. I just…”

“Hey, Felix, Takumi, are you here?”

With a rattling sound, another person entered through the door of the house.

It was Gazelle who appeared from the door. His black armor and uniform were covered in blood and dust, but he didn’t seem to have suffered any serious injuries so I was relieved.

In Gazelle’s hand was my cursed sword, which he apparently received from the young man with orange hair from the White-winged Knight. While thinking that I would thank him later, I accepted the cursed sword from him. In an instant, the weariness and numbness that had covered my entire body dissipated all at once.

“Gazelle… I’m sorry, I slowed you down,” I said.

“If a man like you is slowing us down, then all of our team members must be the same. Anyway, how’s your injury?” Gazelle replied.

“It seems that my nerves are not damaged, but it’s better not to move too much. Gazelle, what’s the current situation of the battle?” I asked.

“It’s not good, but it’s not bad either. Right now, Ortolan is regrouping at the barricade of the south gate, and Leon has returned to the west gate. The monsters might be heading there next. Felix, can you lead the first and second squads to the west gate?” Gazelle asked.

“Understood. And what about Takumi…?” Felix asked, looking at me after nodding to Gazelle once.

“Yeah. Takumi, you should go back. There are injured people gathering at the city’s medical clinic, so you can receive proper treatment there…” Gazelle said, but I interrupted him.

“Gazelle, I will stay here,” I objected, determined.

Gazelle and Felix both looked surprised at my words.

“Takumi, I understand that you don’t want to leave alone. But, sorry to say, we don’t have the luxury to fight while protecting injured people,” he replied.

“I don’t need you to protect me.”

“Takumi…?”

“I don’t need you to protect me. Even if I die, it’s my own fault. That’s why I, and only I, can’t escape from here…!” I said firmly.

“Hey, Takumi!” Gazelle grabbed both of my shoulders. As I looked up, I realized that Gazelle’s face was much closer than I had expected. He was looking at me with a deeply worried expression.

Feeling like he could see through my cowardice with his golden eyes, I averted my gaze as if to escape. Then, Gazelle’s fingertips gently touched my skin. “Takumi… Are you crying?” he asked.

“Huh?” I touched my own eyes. I was immediately caught off guard. They were indeed wet with tears.

As I stared at my wet fingertips, something warm enveloped them. As I turned my head, Felix was kneeling on the floor, looking at me with a pained expression.

“…Takumi, what’s wrong? Come to think of it, you’ve been acting a bit strange since the joint conference. And earlier, you seemed like you were about to say something,” Felix said softly, his amethyst eyes shimmering as he gently stroked my palm with a delicate touch.

Even in a moment like this, Felix’s hands were as gentle as handling fragile objects, and his kindness made my vision blur even more.

“Can you tell me what happened? And is there anything we can do to help you?” he continued.

“N-No, it’s nothing. It’s not that I can’t rely on you two or anything like that,” I replied.

“But you’re crying. And you said something like ‘it’s your own fault if you die.’ What’s that supposed to mean? If something like that were to happen, I would never forgive myself for the rest of my life,” Felix said with surprise, looking at me intently.

What should I do? But even if he said that I absolutely couldn’t run away from here. No matter how much the pain in my wounds throbbed, and no matter if I might die, I couldn’t afford to run away.

“Because… this is all my fault,” the words that came out weren’t something I had intended to say. It was something that had been swirling and stagnating inside my chest, and finally burst through the dam, unconsciously spilling out of my mouth.

Gazelle’s eyes widened, and Felix looked puzzled as he stared at me. “What do you mean by ‘this’? Are you talking about the situation in Menonu City?”