Blood and Alcohol (2)

3.

Just before the crocodile gentleman charged at me, he opened his long snout.

"O Tower! Fulfill the promise!"

Behind the crocodile, dozens of butlers were lined up. Clang! The wine bottles they were holding dropped. Clang. Shattered glass burst into pieces. Dyed in wine, the fragments bloomed like Royal Azalea petals.

['Most Crimson Sommelier' requests an oath to the tower.]

[Sanctuary designation.]

[Approved.]

The crocodile gentleman's authority was manifested.

[From this moment on, this place belongs to 'Most Crimson Sommelier.']

[He who drinks blood and spits it out, worship him.]

It was a dense fog.

The glass fragments sparkled and scattered in all directions. Red. Where they passed, a bright red haze remained. A red mist bloomed in the world.

"I am strong to the weak,"

The crocodile gentleman chuckled deeply. That was the sound of a crocodile's laughter.

"And stronger to the strong!"

And then we collided. Bang! The crocodile's staff and my holy sword clashed. Of course, I intended to slice through him at once by infusing my aura. However, the crocodile, engulfed in the red mist, seemed unharmed.

"Hmm."

I frowned.

"You didn't seem like a martial artist."

"To be honest, you don't look much like a martial artist either, young man! You'd suit being a butler more than a swordsman! How about it? I'm recruiting butlers, have you thought about changing jobs?"

"I've already decided to become a ghost for the Ivansia ducal family."

"What a pity! I'll prepare a new house for you in the graveyard!"

I increased my speed a bit more. I divided my sword strikes into three paths and poured them out. Bang! Surprisingly, the crocodile gentleman caught up with my speed. With one hand, he adjusted his tie, and with the other, he swung his staff to block my sword.

'What.'

I was honestly surprised.

'Was he skilled enough to attack me? His realm seemed low.'

Just when I wondered if I had misjudged my opponent's skill, the bracelet on my wrist vibrated.

['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' manifests its authority.]

[Exposure.]

[Your opponent's authority is revealed to you.]

Hishmith Kritz. The constellation in charge of information and now my subordinate, Jörmungandr, exposed the enemy's true nature.

Letters appeared in front of me, wriggling like a snake.

+

[Evil parasitizes on goodness.]

Owner: Most Crimson Sommelier

Effect: The authority of a vampire disguised as a crocodile. When the opponent uses their strength, that strength becomes his own, a truly simple yet troublesome authority.

He collects the life, emotions, and souls of his opponents. If you sincerely connect with him and feel you are equals, it's merely a delusion. He sweetly savors the look in your eyes caught in the illusion. His true nature is a parasite.

[Most Crimson Sommelier] is a parasite among parasites, and no one can withstand his authority alone.

+

I laughed lightly.

"So it wasn't that his martial skills were high."

"Hmm? Ah, ha! Oh. Hishmith Kritz, is it!"

The crocodile gentleman clicked his tongue as if it were troublesome.

"So, it wasn't just being captured; you're actually delivering information to this young man! Oh, greatest of snakes! Aren't you embarrassed! I've always admired you, yet instead of seeking revenge on the one who brought you low, you've become subservient! Disappointing!"

[That's a lie.]

The bracelet hissed sharply.

['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' points out particularly that 'I've always admired you' is a lie and hisses at it.]

There was a reason why constellations found it difficult to cooperate with each other.

"Twins! What are you doing! It's your turn!"

That difficult cooperation was, at least here, happening.

"Don't," "order us around."

From the back, the twins kissed. The angle of the lips and the direction of their heads were exactly the same, causing their small noses to press against each other slightly. But without caring at all, the twins slowly parted their lips, looking into each other's gradually distancing eyes.

"O Tower." "Promise."

For the first time, the twins let go of each other's hands.

['The Eternal Dance of the Twins' request an oath to the tower.]

Rustle.

The twins' hair, which had been holding shades of gray, changed. One turned stark white, and the other pitch black. The distinction between the White One and the Black One was clear.

Such sharp contrast between black and white.

As if the world itself had split in two between them.

[Sanctuary designation.]

[Approved.]

"Good!"

Someone moved upon confirming this scene. It was the crocodile gentleman. The crocodile leaped backward in an instant. Swish! I launched a chasing strike, but it was blocked by the staff the crocodile swirled.

"Useless effort, Death King! Your realm is now my realm!"

The crocodile chuckled deeply.

"As the master of this place, I generously acknowledge the twins' intervention!"

The crocodile stepped back, and one of the twins, taking the vacated spot, rushed in. It was a substitution. The white twin, the White One, swung a punch at me with an expressionless face.

[From this moment on, this place belongs to 'The Eternal Dance of the Twins'.]

[Joint ownership is recognized.]

I thrust my sword forward.

[He who inflicts and suffers wounds, worship him.]

Cleanly.

The tip of my sword pierced the White One's shoulder.

"Ah! Aah, aaaaah!"

The White One clutched his shoulder and screamed. Unlike the crocodile gentleman, the White One did not display any skill to simply fend off my attack. One half of the constellation writhed in pain, shedding tears.

Wondering why they recklessly charged in, at that moment.

"It's okay."

Far across the table, standing quietly, the Black One smiled broadly. His jet-black hair seemed to absorb all gaze, whispering flowed.

"You're not hurt."

"...!"

Blood returned to the White One's eyes.

"I'm, not hurt!"

It was madness deeper than pain.

The White One swung his fist. As if he had forgotten the fact that his shoulder was pierced. I naturally extended my sword to deflect the punch, and in doing so, I cut off the enemy's arm.

"Ah, hee?! Uh, uh, aaaaaah!!"

And right after I cut off the arm, I realized.

"It's okay."

The wound I had opened on the shoulder was, before long, completely healed.

"You haven't been damaged."

I unleashed a series of sword strikes. Left, right, uppercut, with a speed that the opponent couldn't possibly follow, I launched a relentless attack. The enemy's limbs were torn apart. Each time, the White One screamed. And each time, from afar, the Black One softly whispered.

"You haven't been wounded, right?"

"Eung! Yes...!"

Where an arm fell off, another grew. Crushed knees stood up again. I didn't hesitate to strike the opponent's neck, but it was futile. That neck shed its layer and grew anew.

The Black One chuckled.

"You are noble. No one can wound you."

"Except for you!"

"Ah, right. Except for me."

The black screams and the white whispers intertwined, muddying the air.

"We are complete."

I narrowed my brows.

'Troublesome.'

No matter how fatal the wounds inflicted, they seemed meaningless.

Even at this very moment, the White One, turned into a wreck, swung his fists. I turned the wreck into even more of a rag, but the enemy quickly recovered.

"You're not hurt! You, are nothing! Nothing at all!"

The Black One, with madness flowing in his eyes, kept charging relentlessly.

While pondering what strategy might work, new letters were engraved in front of my eyes by the bracelet snake.

['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' manifests its authority.]

[Exposure.]

[Your opponent's authority is revealed to you.]

And the power of the twins was laid bare.

+

[The Triad Complete Alliance]

Owner: The Eternal Dance of the Twins

Effect: The authority to complete the world. If I interpret the world you are looking at, and you interpret the world I am looking at, then the world is complete just by that.

A sorcery that closes the world. If I collect 'everything' to match my size to the width of the world, the twins adjust the width of the world to fit their size by collecting 'nothing'.

If one of the twins is attacked while the other is unharmed, the attack is nullified. This applies to both physical and mental attacks.

+

"...."

So, if the vampire parasitizes, the twins symbiotically coexist.

The former being [DPS] and the latter [Tank].

"No choice then."

In that case, the solution was to strike both the White One and the Black One simultaneously.

I instantly extended the shadow of my holy sword. The four swords unfolded were the authority of [Goddess of Protection], the sister swords. Swish! While I was dealing with the White One, I leisurely sent the remaining swords with shadow sword techniques towards the Black One.

"Ah!"

The White One's eyes widened. Even if the wound was nullified, the White One's martial skills were not impressive. He couldn't stop my shadow swords crossing through the air.

"No!!"

"...."

Seeing the four swords coming towards him, the Black One didn't move an inch. He just watched with a grin. There was a reason for that.

"O Tower."

The last remaining member of the enemy party, [The Noble with Dry Handprints], closed his fan.

"Keep the promise."

A voice imbued with aura echoed for a moment.

['The Noble with Dry Handprints' requests an oath to the tower.]

[Sanctuary designation.]

[Approved.]

[From this moment on, this place belongs to 'The Noble with Dry Handprints'.]

The crocodile gentleman urgently shouted through telepathy.

"I have nothing to do with this!"

[Joint ownership is recognized.]

A curtain spread over the table blocked my attack for a moment. Chaaang! One of the four swords was repelled. Three remained. The sister swords flew through the gap created by the repelled companion.

That was the moment the noble's authority was activated.

[He who is resented and despised, worship him.]

My swords sliced through the Black One's body.

Clearly, they cut.

"Hic?! E, uh, aaaaah!!"

But the one who screamed wasn't the Black One.

"Aaaah, uh… aaaaaah...."

It was the White One.

The White One, who had been swinging his fist in front of me, suddenly knelt down, clutching his arms. Drip. Blood flowed from a wound I hadn't inflicted.

I realized that all those wounds were supposed to have been inflicted on the Black One.

"Indeed."

I took a step back.

"There's no need to ask Hishmith Kritz for an exposure."

And I raised my hand to retrieve the sister swords.

"Is it damage transference?"

"That's right."

[The Noble with Dry Handprints] spread his fan.

"I can transfer the wounds someone suffers to another person, if it's justified."

"That's interesting. There's no way transferring wounds could be justified."

"I see it differently."

The noble glared at the White One.

"Uh…, black...."

The White One was still moaning, clutching his wounds. However, the noble's eyes, while looking at the White One, were filled with nothing but hatred, just as they were when he looked at me.

"It's your fault. You're to blame."

"Ah...?"

"If you had stopped the Death King, your other half wouldn't have been attacked. There would have been no danger to your other half. It's because you're powerless, because you're weak. Wretched thing. Lowly thing. Lacking from birth. Thus, everything is your fault. If blood must flow here, it must only be yours."

"...."

The sharp words mercilessly pierced the White One.

With a stunned face, the White One looked up at his other half.

"It's okay."

The Black One was smiling gently.

"It's not your fault."

"Ah...."

"It's all the fault of this Death King attacking us. You just tried to protect me. You wanted to protect us. You're fine."

A few words healed the wounds.

New flesh grew and swallowed the blood.

The White One stood up, as if he'd never fallen, harboring quiet hostility in his eyes.

"...."

I looked around.

[Most Crimson Sommelier].

[The Eternal Dance of the Twins].

[The Noble with Dry Handprints].

A complete dealer, a complete tanker, and a perfect supporter.

"Oh, didn't I say so, young man."

The crocodile gentleman spun his staff like a clown on stage.

"What it means to take on three constellations at once. Remember? You must have realized by now, but it's too late. Just fall from the night sky and hate your foolish past self."

"Certainly."

I nodded.

"When constellations set their minds to a combined attack, it's indeed formidable. I'm a bit impressed."

"That's good to hear! Better to be defeated in admiration than to fall in despair, it will at least give you some self-satisfaction."

"However, you're wrong about there being three constellations."

"Hmm?"

The crocodile gentleman blinked.

"What do you mean?"

"You don't know me well, Sommelier. Dueling isn't my forte."

I gripped the holy sword.

"Since the days of hunting Demon Kings, I've excelled in brawls."

Light flowed from the blade.

['Goddess of Protection' requests an oath to the tower.]

The crocodile gentleman opened his mouth in shock. But that brief moan was of no use in stopping me.

More precisely, it was of no use in stopping 'us'.

[Sanctuary designation.]

[Approved.]

The voice of the tower echoed.

[From this moment, this place belongs to 'Goddess of Protection'.]