Chapter 66: Are Sneaky Snakes the Doom of a Swordsman?
Some distance away, William felt Klein reunite with a person. This person was definitely a Beyonder, probably Sequence 6 or 7, and was on the verge of death.
"It seems Klein is healing him. The next few days will probably be quite hectic, Darling," Debris commented, to which he simply nodded.
'Anyway, he'll probably be able to manage on his own. We should continue on our way after resupplying,' he thought, not too worried. Klein wasn't just anyone; he had all sorts of strange methods, and even he wasn't sure he could hunt him down if he wanted to. "He seems to be doing quite well; he even dresses better than I do..."
William pursed his lips as he realized that his Red Gloves trench coat was quite dirty from the rain and sea salt. He hadn't bothered to clean it over the last few days, and coupled with his long hair and scars, he now looked a bit barbaric.
He decided he would clean it before leaving. After all, he couldn't make the Church look bad as a candidate for Deacon. He let out a weary sigh.
After this, he wandered around the city until Anna appeared.
"We've already found a good place to stay," she commented as she walked toward him.
Of course, William didn't bother asking her how she had found him. He also found it a little difficult to talk to 'Anna' without getting nervous.
As if sensing this, she laughed maliciously.
"Come on, Captain, it's getting dark." She grabbed his hand and pulled him along like a lovesick schoolgirl, to which William immediately tried to react by shaking her off, only to realize he wasn't capable of such a thing.
Thus, he found himself being dragged through the streets of Bayam, maintaining a stoic face to try to demonstrate the dignity of a high-ranking member of the Church. It was a difficult task for several reasons.
Finally, they arrived at a small, well-kept-looking inn.
"Your Holiness." Arthur approached them, seemingly unaware of the situation. "I've already prepared the rooms and gone to buy supplies. We can leave first thing tomorrow morning."
His tone was very professional, and William realized with joy that Arthur was a very capable subordinate.
"Good." He nodded. "We should arrive in the Southern Continent in a couple of days. Can you keep up?"
Arthur quickly nodded. "No doubt, Your Holiness."
Anna simply waved him off with her free hand.
"We also need to think of a way to find Enzo." William thought of Klein, who by now had surpassed him and had reached Sequence 6. However, he decided it was best not to get involved so as not to attract investigations from the Church. "Do you have any ideas?"
Anna seemed to ponder for a second. "A Winner's intuition might help Enzo anticipate our arrival, but this ability works through spirituality."
She clearly had an idea, but she was leaving it to him to discover it for himself. And so he did.
"I see," he murmured, remembering the strange ability Debris had demonstrated in Bansy to devour spirituality. No, he'd tested it later, and instead of 'devouring,' it was more like 'severing.'
If he had to say how it worked, he'd say it was severing the spirituality around the sword.
"Then I'll try that. If it doesn't work, I still have a backup plan, though I'd rather not resort to it."
Arthur seemed a little excited about going up against a Sequence 5 Beyonder; William just wanted to get back to them as soon as possible so he could advance on his pathway.
They decided to go to sleep early, and it was then that William realized Anna was still holding his hand.
He gave her a quick glance, to which she responded with a giggle that made William's heart skip a beat, leaving him in disbelief for a second.
'What...?' She finally let go of his hand, but he struggled to concentrate.
In his previous world, he had never felt anything like this for anyone, much less in this world, where he had to be constantly fighting for his life. Besides, his number one enemy had been a cult of the most beautiful women in the world.
Because of this, he was in disbelief when he realized what had just happened.
'D-Did she do something?' he wondered worriedly.
'Is something wrong, Your Holiness?' Arthur asked when he remained silent.
'...' William quickly focused and looked at Arthur, noticing Anna with a sly smile out of the corner of his eye. "It's nothing; let's go to sleep."
"Right." Arthur seemed to accept this without much concern. After all, according to him, nothing could affect William.
"Sure, let's go to bed." Anna seemed to be completely unhinged today, and he decided it was a good idea to whisper this into the Deacon candidate's ear.
Throughout all this, William seemed to hear Debris cursing, saying things like 'cat burglar,' 'sewer snake,' 'home wrecker,' and many others that finally brought his mind back to reality.
"Arthur, how many rooms have you booked...?" He asked, fearing a certain answer.
Luckily, it wasn't what he'd feared. It seemed this place was quite cheap, and they'd been able to get a room each. He couldn't help but appreciate once again a subordinate as capable as Arthur.
Unfortunately for him, he could escape in reality, but his mind would take over his dreams. The next day, he woke up feeling... too refreshed.
"Shit."
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Our poor William is being attacked by a terrible snake, will he be able to survive this life or death duel?
Thanks for reading and as always please make me notice if there's any mistake I could correct, I will do so gladly.
(Casual nonchalant comeback after months).