Chapter 23 – Beast Hanger (3)

“Uh…?”

Nadia stared blankly this way, terribly perplexed, as if she had been overheard. But I didn’t think it was a matter of comprehension. It was just an attitude as if he didn’t know that the blade of revenge would reach him.

“I heard you.”

“That…I heard that, but what the heck…”

“You fucking bitch!”

As she hesitated, Rick screamed and went mad. The voice that came out of her throat resting on her rest was pitiful and desperate, like the cries of a crow that had lost its mother.

“Fuck…Don’t pretend you didn’t hear it now! This…I’m not saying that if you put this in your herbal pussy and wake up, you’ll reduce mine by that much!”

“That…That…No. I can’t mean that. Luca? Why should I be like that? Now…It was Rick who was at fault, right?”

“Don’t fuck with me, bitch! Fuck anyway, you fucking slut with nothing but sex on your mind… If you don’t know anything about anything, make fun of that fucking body and be of some help!”

“What… What?”

She, who was squashed like a bug, raised her voice as she chewed her lips carefully, as if her years had been suffocated by Rick’s words.

“You want to be of some help? My… How much I’ve given you all this time! I… How could you say that to me? I don’t know anyone else, but Rick, if you say that… “

“What else did you do for me besides giving me a body! Tell me once, bitch. You, do you think you could have reached this place without me? If you hadn’t taken care of me, you would have been rolling around as a street slut! Fuck it in the bottle, bitch!”

“Rick!”

Nadia screamed at her, then she suddenly crawled over to her rick, rubbing her own belly. Then she shook her head and spoke in a voice mixed with tears.

“Don’t…Don’t say that, Rick. Yeah, I know I’m a worthless bitch. Ha…But I’m not single right now. Huh? You know…I’m pregnant with your child. This kid could be the normal kid you’ve been longing for. The kid who will lead our baron family…”

“Damn it…Where is this idiot who can only give birth to retards…”

“No! I feel really good this time. Really. This child will be fine. Huh? So…”

“It’s obvious that I’m going to be an asshole because I look like Jimmy, but what the fuck! Do you think I’d want a kid that crawled out of your belly in the first place, you asshole? Please don’t fuck!”

In pain, sincerity always comes out. There is a reason why torture is the most basic yet effective method of interrogation. Therefore, it is not unusual for unintentional truths to emerge from my aimless torture.

The moment Rick’s voice resounded desperately, silence came to the dinner hall, which was stained with pain and screams. Even in a situation where he had the upper hand, the Fallen Knight, who had been clinging endlessly, finally showed a shocked expression.

“Rick…”

She blankly repeated his name. Contrary to Rick’s raging voice, her words, which seemed rather calm, lingered in my ears for a longer time.

I know the essence of the saying that even an earthworm wriggles when stepped on. It is not a word that misleads the inevitability of revenge, but it contains the meaning that a young earthworm can do nothing except wriggle even if stepped on. Nadia, too, who had been told, perhaps of her own life, had been denied anything but a wriggle of her hands.

However, even such an earthworm can at least bite if it has a poisonous stinger in its mouth.

“Nadia.”

“Huh…?”

“If you can’t do it instead.”

I held the potion bottle in her hand as she stared at me.

“You put it inside the rick and wake it up.”

“Uh…?”

“What… What?”

Nadia looked at me with a little surprise, and Rick shook his head in complete astonishment. However, his voice no longer came out, perhaps because he overreactedly used evil. As if he finally realized his situation, he spoke to Nadia as if pleading.

“Uh…That Nadia. Ah…Isn’t it?”

She didn’t answer Her silence shocked him more than mere denial. She couldn’t seem to accept the fact that she had shown even a hint of her rebellion against herself.

“Answer me Nadia. That…I was talking too much…It was because it was in too much pain. Please…Nadia…Nadiaaagh!”

The desperate voice turned into a scream in an instant and was torn like open skin. Nadia was pushing the potion bottle inside him.

“Rick… Rick…!”

“What the fuck… You fucking bitch…!”

Rick clung to the brutally collapsed authority and screamed, but Nadia, who was already drunk with blood, couldn’t hear it. She continued pushing her potion bottle in, her arms shaking.

“Ughhhhh!”

“Aaaaagh! Nadia! Please…! Stop it…!”

“Fuck…Fuck…How long…How long did you think I would hold out…”

“Nadia…Nadiaaa!”

Perhaps because of her weak strength, Nadia took longer than I did to insert the bottle into Rick. But because of that, her pain was prolonged and cruel. The pieces of glass and nails that had already been driven inside met the smooth surface of the glass and were driven deeper. The medicinal effect of the potion had already disappeared, and blood and body fluids mixed with each other and leaked into the inside. Perhaps what makes Rick suffer now is the by-products that invade the inside rather than the wounds.

“Haa…Haaa…”

Nadia finally pumped her potion all the way in and gasped for a while, holding her breath. Even that little labor seems to have put a lot of strain on her. But she had no intention of stopping. Because the revenge that started is not over yet.

Soon, her tightly clenched fists rose above Rick like hammers. She was rather emotional to be a referee, and lacked the will to be revenge, but at least her purpose was clear. The two fists that managed to rise through the oppressive years only trembled for a while.

“Huh…Huh…”

Rick looked at her for the first time, her eyes full of fear. The weakling she looked down on and ignoring until now, the worm that she regarded as an expendable item, now gripped her leash tightly. That night, the twisted master-servant relationship that was entangled in a single argument was about to be twisted again.

“Aaaaagh!”

Eventually, Nadia slammed her fist down with all her might, as if to relieve her sadness. Unlike when I hit it, the bottle didn’t break all at once, but rather shattered little by little, and the duration of the pain increased very slowly. Rick couldn’t even scream anymore, but his mouth was open and bloody saliva flowed out.

“Ah…Aaaaa…!”

“Huhhhhh!!!”

She had to hit her fist several times until her bottle completely shattered. With each puck, puck, puck, the pain she must have felt from her first illness came back again, and her unknown pleasure found its way over the pain, so Rick had to feel both her humiliation and anguish. With the shattering bottle, Rick’s last sense of self-respect was thoroughly shattered.

“Haa…Haaa…”

Soon, the bottle broke completely and Rick trembled and convulsed all over his body. Rick looked at Nadia incontinently, as if the strength he was barely holding on to was completely released. She met those eyes with her frightened expression rather than exhilaration.

“Ah…Ah…Black…Three…Oh my god…”

I’m not sure what she might have found in his eyes. Is it a sense of frustration? Or is it a sense of self-doubt that still feels fear from such a helpless person? Whatever it was, it was clear that it would not be a pleasant feeling.

I looked at her and slowly lowered her body. Nadia raised her head as if she had finally noticed my presence. Suddenly, there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

“Lu… Luca…”

“Nadia.”

Her name floated in her mouth. Still, those three letters contained a subtle feeling of hesitation. I still couldn’t figure out how to treat her. You are the one who became the starting point of my life, and at the same time announced the end of my life. The one who promised to give everything and took away even what was left. Nadia was, in a sense, like a god to me.

And she was like a god in that there were so many things that shone on me.

“…When I was cursed, Rick took a ring off my finger. A ring of solid gold.”

“Ring…? I can’t remember…”

“You’ll remember it. You saw it and even evaluated it.”

“Ah…Yeah…That’s right. I think I can remember.”

Nadia couldn’t make eye contact with me and kept avoiding her gaze. But I looked at her through her eyes.

“The ring. How did it go?”

“Well. I’m not sure…Maybe Rick has one?”

“Rick didn’t have it.”

I didn’t even bother to look back. Nadia was taken aback by my words and bit her fingernails, she said.

“Ah…Really? Then maybe…Haven’t they already sold it? Like I said, it’s quite expensive…”

“I remember it well, too. But not that either. Rick doesn’t throw away his loot so easily. Just like she never abandoned you when she’s tired of it.”

“Is it right? Yes, it is… Yes, it is. Yes, it is. Yes…”

Watching her hurriedly lower her hand after biting her nails again, I wondered how long she would have to wait. You may have to be patient for a very long time. But I really wanted to hear the answer from her mouth.

“Uh…That’s right, Luca. Actually…”

She finally let out her long-suffering breath and opened her mouth.

“I know where the truth is. But I think you’ll get a little angry if I tell you…”

“Tell me.”

“…That is…”

Instead of her answer, her other hand, which was barely holding on, came up slowly. On the hand that had caught my eye from the moment she first entered the room, the moonlight that had faded from my hand that day was shining faintly.

I grabbed her finger with the ring. She couldn’t resist and looked at me with a restless expression.

“Lu…Luca. You’re not going to get angry, right? I just did it because I was scared. I never did it to hide it…”

“Nadia.”

“Huh?”

“A little bit now. You’ve become useful.”

Her expression softened a bit at the words that seemed to have been heard somewhere. But that didn’t add any more incontinence to her now shattered pride.

“Yeah…Thank you.”

“Congratulations on being pregnant. I never thought our party, who only knew about killing, would conceive a life.”

“Huh? Uh…Right…? Yeah. Yeah. That’s right.”

“That’s Rick’s child, who was always violent. He didn’t say it, but he must have blessed the birth of his own life.”

“Ah…”

Nadia’s eyes fell momentarily to Rick’s miserable body. Fear, which had disappeared for a moment, returned to her expression.

“That…That’s right, Luca. If you’ve been watching, you’d know, but I was actually forced to. You know? I… I don’t really like guys like that. You know.”

“I know. You really loved Rick. He gave everything for him.”

“No Luca. No. I…I…Yes. I actually loved you more. Do you remember Luca? The first night you became like this, I kissed your forehead? Maybe it was so long ago that you don’t remember. But it was, because I loved…”

“It was Rick. He loved him even when he was treated as less than human, even when he suffered all kinds of violence and humiliation.”

“OMG…”

Has the effect of the drug gone again? Rick’s moans of pain leaked out. Upon hearing her voice, Nadia shook her head more desperately and clung to her me.

“No, Luca! It’s not like that. Oh, you have to do it. Everything I’ve done so far has been because I’m afraid of that guy. I’ve been afraid of getting hit, so I did it simply because of that. You know. If you’ve seen everything, you know everything, right?”

“So. Did you break Ellie’s hand and slap her on the back of the head for the sake of a man you didn’t even love?”

For the first time, the emotions that I couldn’t suppress leaked out a little. Maybe I was frowning. Nadia looked at my face and smiled as if she had seen something she couldn’t see, but she didn’t say anything.

I no longer despaired of her low humanity. She wasn’t even angry about it. It was only now that I felt like I was vaguely grasping what I had to do.

“Yes. Maybe not everyone in this room has to bear the sins of the day.”

“Huh…?”

A blush came over Nadia’s face. I looked down at her a little, still holding her ringed finger.

“Not everyone will have to die for past sins.”

“I…Really?”

“Yes.”

I looked into her eyes And she opened her mouth about the fact that she had been thinking about for a long time.

“So, I’ll save your baby, Nadia.”

My words grabbed her hair. Nadia repeated what I said as if she didn’t understand.

“You’re going to…Save the child?”

“Even though it’s a life born from garbage, you can’t blame a child who never saw the light of day.”

“What do you mean Luca…?”

“The child will be saved.”

He repeated that one word. Just in case her little head doesn’t understand.

“You must die, of course.”

“Now…Wait a minute, Luca!”

Nadia hurriedly tried to get up from her seat, but as she still held her fingers in her me, her posture gave way and she landed on the floor. She ended up looking up at me on her knees and saying.

“What are you talking about? That… To save a child, not me… That’s nonsense…”

“It’s natural, Nadia. Rather, isn’t it a good thing? Because you’re the child you cared so much for.”

“What…What…No Luca! Luca! Hold on!”

Her voice became desperate. The sound of her heart beating madly came from her gripped fingers.

“Lu…Luca. It’s not like this. Huh? My…How much I’ve done for you. Why…Why would you want to have mercy on someone with Rick’s blood…Huh?”

“…”

“Did you say it wrong? Huh? Is that so? Actually, you meant the opposite? If you give up the child, you will spare my life. If you erase Rick’s traces from your body, you will forgive me. You meant to do that, right?”

I didn’t answer. However, she was indulged in fantasies on her own and smiled madly.

“Yes, that’s right. That’s right. I’m sure it is… Nonsense. How could Rick’s baby be more important to me than me. No matter how little I made a mistake, he would still choose a child over me…”

Her face, which was muttering to herself with a faint smile, suddenly turned bright. Nadia began to untangle her own clothes with her sudden, uncaught hands. Soon, her filthy body was revealed, full of blood and bruises.

“Now… Now Luka. How about it. Joe… There’s a little scar, but it’s still not bad. Huh? Luca. Huh? Then…Then I’ll conceive your child this time. I’m still quite useful. Let’s erase this dirty bastard and have our own child. You must have accumulated a lot while you were petrified, right? Luca. During that time Forget about your bad past, I’ll give you a chance to move forward. Let’s start fresh, huh?”

Nadia now took her hand back and rubbed her own nipples over it. She must have felt a shudder of hers even in the meantime, and as soon as the rough backs of her hands touched her nipples, the skin under her eyes trembled lightly.

But I didn’t feel any excitement. It just felt like rubbing my flesh against the skin of a tree. But thanks to the feel, I finally realized exactly what I had to do.

I put my finger on her forehead and pushed her away. Nadia let out a cry mingled with her laughter as her eyes still forced a smile, but her lips expressed an inconceivable fear. The sound resonated deeply with me like a funeral ode.

“You’re the worst teacher ever, Nadia. Everything you’ve ever done has failed.”

Like most flowers that bloom in spring, her hand with her five fingers spread out in a daze looked like a flower bud that had broken out of winter. I quietly picked up one of the petals with a ring on it.

Then, very slowly, he began to pluck the petals.

“Aaaaa!”

Bright red pollen smeared as the fragile leaves tickled the tip of his nose. I carefully put the first petal I harvested into my pocket and moved my hand towards the next one.

“You didn’t become anything after all.”

“Luca…Luca please…!”

“You gave up being a knight.”

It was similar to playing flower petals as a child. All you have to do is pull out the words in your heart one by one and tear off the leaves. I plucked another petal and she screamed.

“Aaaaa…!”

“I’m sure Rick would agree, but she hasn’t been a good woman either.”

“Stop it…Stop it!!!”

“It’s clear that he failed as a colleague. He couldn’t be of any help to the party.”

“Luca…Luca…!”

“And now…”

Before I knew it, only one petal remained. My share as a failed teacher was quietly sleeping in my pocket. I spat out her last words as I looked at her stomach, which I had cherished until just now.

“You’ve given up on being a good mother.”

“Lucca!!!”

Nadia begged me by name until the end. But I couldn’t stop. This game ends only when all the petals are plucked.

In the end, I mercilessly plucked even the last remaining petals.

“Aaaaagh!”

She fell to the floor, screaming more in fear than in pain, as all of her single finger, which was barely hanging on, was ripped off. When I saw the dream of becoming a knight, which I once aimed for, was shattered, memories of the past came like a wave and washed away again, leaving only salty salt behind.

Suddenly, I looked at the pure white beam of light shining from the ceiling. Nadia was my dream and future itself when I was immature. It took so long and I had to sacrifice a lot to realize that it was just a speculative delusion.

“Ah… Ah…”

The dream was still struggling on the floor. It wasn’t until I heard Nadia’s groan that I realized I had one last thing to do and slowly approached.

I couldn’t let her stay in my life any longer.

Now it was time to tear the entire faded dream to shreds with my own hands.

”Luca…Up!”

I covered her mouth with her hand. And this time he held one of her ears in her hand. It was still as fragile and soft as a petal.

“Huuuuu!”

Very slowly, I grabbed her ear and ripped it out. Again red blood flowed like pollen. Maybe I should waste some potions. I hope she doesn’t die and feel all of this until the dissolution of the dream is all over.