Chapter 34: Silent Envy (3)

A chilly wind blew past, accompanied by a flurry of snow and ice. Clouds of fog billowed out from every exhale of the Frost Trolls' breath, their chests heaving menacingly.

Towering over the trio, one of the monsters slowly took a step forward, crunching the deep blanket of snow below their large feet. It's hands clenched and unclenched as if imagining the bones of their prey already within their grasp.

Only the sound of the sharp, cold breeze could be heard around them, engulfing all in a disquieting atmosphere. The Frost Troll took another step forward, its silent stare filled with overwhelming bloodlust.

Not even a moment later, it suddenly dashed ahead, kicking up a veil of powdery white that obscured its surroundings. The other two ferocious monsters watched on in anticipation as the first brandished its deadly sharp claws, fully prepared to tear the trio of humanoid creatures asunder.

However, what the monster had originally assumed to be scared witless, suddenly came barreling toward it, their small, white haired figure speeding through the air making it look like a ball cotton.

"AZIELLLLLLLL!!!"

Enraged screams resounded in the distance as they swiftly arrived in front of the first Frost Troll in an instant, causing it to swing its monstrous arms in an attempt to ward off the unexpected attack.

And yet, the contact it had expected never came. Instead, the only thing it saw was a spray of crimson gradually fountaining out in huge quantities, slowly dyeing the pure white snow a deep red.

Which was also the last thing it ever saw before it died a brutal death, its huge body tumbling to the ground, vertically split in two halves.

Like that, one of the powerful Frost Trolls of this floor had perished.

After witnessing this scene, the other two monsters immediately went on the attack, charging toward the foolish humanoid duo who stood stationary in the back.

From the way it looked, it seemed as though there was an ongoing feud between the two, consisting of a petite girl with golden blonde hair latching on tightly to another tall young man who was clearly trying to pry her hands off of himself.

And not even a second later, the young man proved successful in his endeavors, prompting the girl's expression to become hopeless. The remaining Frost Trolls had no clue as to what was happening, but they didn't care to find out either.

However, regardless of their desires, they soon became aware of why these humanoid creatures were engaged in such strange actions as the young man finally picked the blonde-haired girl up by her waist and…Threw Her.

"AZIELLLLLL!!!!"

Once again, another furious scream echoed throughout the area, her figure shooting toward the Frost Trolls like a golden bullet. Remembering the scene that had occurred just moments ago, the monsters opted to try their luck on blocking in lieu of facing her direct attack.

Utilizing their massive arms to cover most of their body's, they braced themselves for the head on collision. But, of course, the only thing the monsters could see from their hampered vision was the thin outline of a massive dark red great sword arriving at their side almost instantaneously.

Then, as if on cue, their upper bodies slowly began sliding off of their lower halves, consigning them to death at once. A loud thud rang out from the impact of their corpses hitting the ground, scattering large clouds of snow.

Blood seemed to flow endlessly, spreading across the previously untainted ground in broad streams.

Meanwhile, the young man standing not too far back, Aziel, gazed at this scene with a serene expression, his hands comfortably tucked into the pockets of his black, thigh-length, overcoat that possessed tufts of soft, brown fur outlining the hood.

Wearing his usual semi-formal attire consisting of a long sleeve white shirt, slim fit black pants, and black dress shoes, he looked nothing like an individual scouring the depths of a labyrinth.

Opening his mouth slightly, he exhaled, releasing a misty cloud of air.

"We had some misunderstandings, but everything turned out alright…"

His nonchalant tone made it obvious that he felt his decision was the correct one, especially so as he nodded a few times in agreement with his own words.

At this moment, he noticed the two girls he had so graciously assisted suddenly pop their heads out from beneath the deep snow, a place in which they'd no doubt been buried under after their 'fight'.

Since they could hardly move from being waist deep, both girls slowly trudged over, their expressions dark. Aziel casually stood above; his figure untouched by the field of flakey white.

Eventually, a girl with golden blonde hair, Yue, and her fellow victim, a girl with hair that blended in with her surroundings, Suzu, arrived in front of him, their hair covering their faces.

"Ready to go…?"

Not minding the increasingly ominous atmosphere one bit, Aziel asked genuinely, as if nothing was wrong.

But all he got was silence in response, prompting him to tilt his head to the side, not only out of confusion, but also to dodge the incoming snowball hurtling toward his face.

The wind whistled as it passed by, shooting rapidly into the sky until it could no longer be seen.

Looking down at the two silent girls, he clicked his tongue inaudibly.

"...Now what would you do if that had actually hit me?"

Upon hearing his words, both of them seemed to freeze in place, their hands slowly creaking upward like rusty cogs, finally revealing a pair of expressionless faces.

His remark was likely the final nail in the coffin, that much was abundantly clear after noticing their hands sink into the soft, cold snow around them before grabbing fistfuls and—chucking them at Aziel's face.

Still, his entire head left behind afterimages as he evaded every last one of them, their assault proving futile in the face of his formidable speed and reflexes.

Despite having monstrous stats themselves, they still couldn't seem to bridge the gap even while both of them tried to land a hit at the same time, further intensifying their visible frustration.

"Damnit, just stay still…!"

"Stop dodging and accept your punishment, Aziel…!"

Yue and Suzu yelled, gradually becoming infuriated by his unrepentant attitude.

"Don't be stupid. Why would I let you hit me…?"

He looked down at the two with squinted eyes, as if they'd just said something absurd.

Suzu deadpanned while Yue merely stared at him in disbelief.

"You literally threw me at a fucking Troll, Azi. Should I not be mad?"

"Hm, Hm…!"

Raising his brows at their reasoning, he pondered over it for a moment and realized how messed up that scene might've looked to a bystander.

Nodding his head somewhat reluctantly, he acknowledged the issue.

"Ah… That was kind of fucked up, wasn't it…"

"You think so…!?"

"You're realizing this now, stupid Aziel…"

The girl's wore exasperated expressions upon hearing his words.

Although he still didn't care all that much, he, at the very least, recognized…that it wasn't his fault.

'If you don't want to get thrown, don't be a pain in the ass…'

It was the simple but complex thought process of Aziel Nox.

Even so, he didn't bother showing this much on the surface, only twisting up one corner of his lips wryly before stretching his hand out toward them—a silent appeal at stopping this farce.

He truly didn't want to stay on this floor longer than he had to.

Yue and Suzu looked between him and his outstretched hand, still not entirely convinced.

"You wanna be here all day, or what? Hurry up and grab on…"

Seeing their non-compliance, Aziel voiced in growing frustration.

However, the two only gazed back and forth at each other, seemingly coming to an implicit agreement.

By now though, he was already teetering on the edge of just simply grabbing them and leaving, and his words reflected such.

"I'm not in the mood for this playing and joking shit, so—"

But before he could finish his sentence—

*PUFF!*

Two fist-sized balls of snow impacted the center of his chest, splattering across his shirt as it also left two corresponding wet spots.

"....."

"..."

"…"

Aziel stared listlessly up toward the sky, failing to comprehend the level of childishness being displayed at this current moment.

Silence engulfed the entire area completely, leaving only the sound of rushing wind that accompanied the ongoing mild snowstorm.

Until—

"Pfft…!"

"A-ahem~"

Both girls broke out into feverish giggles, their previously rigid expressions morphing into one of pure satisfaction and delight.

The thought of finally getting back at him for his actions had made all the tension drain from their body's, it was too stimulating.

However, as the two girls looked at each other once more, they realized now just who they were interacting with, and simultaneously averted their gazes with a mixture of awkwardness and slight irritation.

Neither of them wanted to actually get along with the other.

"Happy now…? Then let's go…"

"Ah!?"

"Wait…!"

Without waiting for an answer, Aziel pulled them out of the snow, eliciting a squeal of surprise from both girls. Holding them in his arms, he ignored their dissatisfied groans due to his sudden actions and continued forward.

Still, as they weren't ones to back down without a fight, they both teased him by playing with his hair or tickling his ears, giggling with each other in amusement all the while.

Aziel merely 'smiled' and bore with it, after all, this was much more tolerable than hearing their incessant arguing every second of the day.

And if one were to look at it from another perspective, Suzu and Yue seemed to bond over their shared conflict with him even if only slightly.

It was said that those who shared common enemies tended to get along quite well.

Although Aziel wasn't an 'enemy' per se, it was definitely something that put them under similar circumstances.

It was unknown whether or not he'd intended for this exact result by antagonizing them both, but in the end, it proved rather effective.

At this moment, Aziel walked by one of the corpses of the dead Frost Trolls, prompting the previous merry atmosphere to vanish completely for whatever reason.

A second later, Suzu's voice rang out, her intentions clear.

"Go on, suck its blood, Yue…"

"Go die."

Well, it seemed…they wouldn't be getting along just yet.

*

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*****

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*

Crackling flames danced along the black coals, emitting a soothing warmth as it illuminated the dark, damp surroundings. Directly above it, multiple skewers of meat slowly spun, roasting under its heat.

A slightly pungent stench wafted throughout, no doubt caused by the distinct smell of monster meat.

Sitting not too far from there, a white-haired girl sat alone, staring dazedly at the fluctuating fire. Yet, even then, her attention was not on the cooking process, but on something else entirely.

Suzu watched out of her peripheral vision as Yue clung onto Aziel from the front, her face buried in the crook of his neck. Her sensual moans leaked out at odd intervals, a clear, undeniable satisfaction.

'...What the hell am I even doing here.'

Suzu unconsciously bit the corner of her lip, feeling a stinging sensation of bitterness coursing within her chest.

After a couple hours of walking, they eventually stopped at a small cave opening and decided to rest for a moment.

Since the monsters inhabiting this floor posed not even a modicum of a threat to them, the trio harbored no worry over their safety and killed everything that came for them in droves.

Most commonly seen were the Frost Trolls, while another would be a type of creature that bore close resemblance to sabretooth tigers.

"Aziel, why'd you bring her along?"

Suzu abruptly snapped out of her daze upon hearing Yue's serious tone. Out of the corners of her eyes, she noticed that the blonde vampire's face had also lacked any sense of amusement.

This time, she wasn't joking around.

But even then, she had to know that Suzu was capable of hearing them, and in spite of that, she'd still said it without a care.

'Bring me along…? What am I, useless baggage, you asshole…'

Suzu furrowed her brows, ignoring the anger building in her heart at being talked about like this. Still, she opted to listen in instead of making a move, though also not exactly sure why she herself made that decision.

"What's wrong with you…?"

"Aziel…"

"Nah, what're you getting so serious for? You were just hee-hee and haw-haw'n with her a moment ago, what's the problem now…?"

"...I'm being serious right now."

"I still don't see the issue…"

Suzu's expression went blank for a moment.

Why did it sound like Aziel was defending her…?

She wasn't sure of it, but it definitely…

'Isn't she supposed to be your girlfriend, what's going on here…?'

From the moment she'd first come across them, they seemed like an inseparable couple, or at least, from her perspective they did.

But, on the off chance that this was false, didn't that mean she had been making assumptions all this time about their relationship?

Now that she thought of it, her words had never been confirmed nor denied, which meant that it was likely an unclear situation.

"Why…do you still want her here, do you like…her?"

Yue suddenly asked in doubt, her eyes blinking faster than normal.

"...And if I did…?"

There was only silence in response, but Suzu felt as if her heart was beating loud enough to be heard from outside.

'What the hell…? Why would you even… No, why am I reacting like this? No, no, no, no, it can't be, that's bullshit, it's not true…'

She clutched her shirt tightly, the place right where her heart would be.

However, Yue's voice broke the silent atmosphere as she spoke quietly.

"I…I s-see, do you…like me, then…?"

"I think about you sometimes, yea…"

"That's not what I asked."

"....."

"But, you like…you like her, right? That girl you just met…?"

"No, I don't…"

"Exactly, you…huh?"

After not receiving the answer she wanted, Yue was slowly starting to get worked up at the thought of him liking Suzu instead of her.

But upon hearing his response, she was, once again, stupefied.

"You asked me if I liked her…and I never said I did."

"What…?"

"You should listen carefully nexti—"

However, just before he could finish his sentence, Suzu suddenly stood up, her snow-white hair obscuring her features.

Both Aziel and Yue stopped what they were doing and turned toward her, the former gazing on with raised eyebrows, while the latter stared back in mild annoyance.

Still, Suzu paid no attention to their reactions and turned on her heel, speaking in a tone just above a whisper.

"...I'll step outside for a bit."

Without waiting for an answer, she began walking forward, her legs moving on autopilot. She walked and walked, long enough until she could finally feel the chilling breeze caress her skin.

Raising her head up, she saw nothing above except the harsh blizzard snow. And in that moment, her face was fully revealed, from the caustic smile currently spread across her lips, to her slightly sunken eyes, everything she'd hidden was out in the open.

'What was I even expecting…?'

In the first place, she had no reason to believe that he had any interest in her other than the fact that he'd brought her along for whatever hidden purpose.

Hell, she wasn't even sure herself what exactly was going on.

From her somewhat vague feelings, the attitude of 'that' man, and why she was here, she had no idea.

Suzu sighed, releasing a breath she didn't even realize she was holding.

A small cloud of mist formed in front of her, something she thought closely resembled her mental state at this moment.

Miniscule, fleeting, and vague.

"Haa…I guess I'm still the same… The same dumbass, huh…"

______________________

Oh man, Oh my.

How about you drop those power stones right inside my pocket.

Just...drop em' in there...

How about it...

C'mon, I posted earlier this time, I don't want any excuses.

Do it