Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint
chapter-269

A master of Qi used Qi even while they were walking.

When their feet touched the ground, they pulled themselves forward by anchoring their body to the ground with Qi.

By gripping the ground with Qi, they could move their body faster and stronger.

In that sense, Hughes was not a master of Qi.

His steps were incredibly light, and his demeanor was frivolous.

He didn't exude an aura strong enough to warrant caution, making him easy to forget if one wasn't careful.

However, his unique, odd sense of ease, which only he displayed, gave off the impression of a strong person's eccentricity.

The man known as Hughes was difficult to grasp.

And now, that man spotted Tyrkanzyaka and approached her with quick steps.

"Tyr!"

Tyrkanzyaka called out to him in confusion.

[Hu? What are you doing here?]

"I came to see you, Tyr."

[Hmm?!]

After flashing a natural smile at the slightly bewildered Tyrkanzyaka, he turned to Shei with a frivolous demeanor.

"I asked Tyr to help. To get the laborers out of here. If the laborers escape and scatter, we can avoid pursuit when we sneak out!"

He explained excitedly, like a child seeking praise.

After hearing his story, Shei nodded but felt a sense of discomfort.

The face, actions, tone, and demeanor were all the same… but something was off.

Thump, thump.

A small metallic sensation hit her chest.

The arm that triggered her strange intuition, shaped by numerous deaths, grabbed her.

Shei moved suddenly, following the intuition.

"Mr. Shei!"

Shei responded as if awakening from a dream.

"Oh, yeah."

"Why are you drawing your sword...?"

"Huh?"

Shei was startled, seeing Chun-aeng half-drawn.

She realized what she had been about to do.

If he hadn’t pointed it out, she would have swung Chun-aeng to cut off his right arm.

Memories from her days in Tantalus came back.

She had tried to cut off his right arm and tried to do so again for days.

Shei sheathed Chun-aeng, pretending nothing was wrong.

"Oh, this. Don’t mind it. Just a habit."

"That’s quite an unusual habit. Well, some people can’t feel safe without holding a sword."

He smoothly took over the conversation with a gentle smile.

Still, something was off.

Even though she instinctively realized it, Shei tried to suppress the unease.

Hughes had been suspicious from the start and remained so even after getting to know him.

Hughes was someone who wouldn’t be strange doing strange things.

If, by any chance, a Star General suddenly appeared claiming to surrender, Shei would first suspect what Hughes had done.

If she cared too much, she’d lose.

[…It is strange.]

Tyrkanzyaka, too, felt a similar unease and placed a hand on her chest.

The faint pulse felt through her thin skin, usually excited and happy just by his approach, was quiet today.

Could her feelings have changed?

Perhaps.

Human hearts are fickle after all.

Hiding her regret, Tyrkanzyaka called out to him.

[Hu. You should have called for me. I would have come to you.]

"How could I dare summon the Progenitor?"

[You usually do so without hesitation.]

"Today, I felt like coming to meet you."

Something was definitely strange.

The voice, the gestures, the face were his, but there was an awkwardness in his behavior.

Having fought countless battles over many years, Tyrkanzyaka trusted her intuition well.

She subtly brought it up.

[Right, Hu. Is it not time for me to return your card?]

"My card? What card?"

[You do not remember the card you gave?]

"There are so many cards. The variety is vast."

The Ace of Heart.

Heart, blood, or life.

Tyr remembered, and so should he.

Tyrkanzyaka’s suspicion took shape.

Now, with a cold smile, she pointed a finger.

[Enough. Take it yourself.]

"Where did I put it?"

It was none other than Inside her body.

He asked with an innocent smile.

The pure, gentle smile felt disgustingly repulsive.

Tyrkanzyaka clenched her fist.

The shadow, responding to its master’s emotions, surged wildly.

Despite the clear hostility, he wasn’t flustered.

As if expecting this, Hilde, disguised as Hughes, erased the smile from his lips and spoke softly.

"Hmm. It’s not working well~. Well, I didn’t know much about him to mimic him perfectly."

His face was undoubtedly his, but his movements became softer and more graceful.

Even in tiny gestures, there were subtle skills that ordinary people would hardly notice.

Seeing familiar faces with unfamiliar actions, Tyrkanzyaka felt a primal rejection.

The dark knights reflected her uneasy feelings, revealing their menacing forms.

Hidden in the shadows, she growled like a beast.

[What did you do to Hu?]

"Me? What did I do? The real question is what did he do to me? Yes, that’s more appropriate."

Even in the face of the Progenitor’s wrath, Hilde was unafraid.

It wasn’t an act—she truly felt no fear.

Lacking knowledge?

No.

She knew enough to understand the other’s skills well.

Lacking emotions?

Not that either.

Actors need rich emotions.

Those who don’t understand emotions can’t act.

Yet she felt no fear.

It was the privilege of those who lost themselves.

Only those abandoned by fate and lost to themselves could become fearless warriors.

Tyrkanzyaka felt a strange familiarity.

The attitude of facing the progenitor without an ounce of fear was familiar.

[The Crusaders?]

But that was a fleeting thought. Tyrkanzyaka dismissed her guess.

[No, it is different. Those guys are annoyingly rigid, but you are different.]

"Thank you. Such praise really makes a maiden blush~."

[It should make you feel disgustingly slimy.]

Tyrkanzyaka approached, flinging her arm.

Hilde was already surrounded by shadows.

If Tyrkanzyaka willed it, she could be swept away and drowned in the darkness, regardless of her abilities.

[You have not answered my question yet, low life. if you do not speak now, I will personally kill you. I will drain all your blood, leaving just a pinch, and let you suffer eternally from that tiny bit of blood.]

"Can you really?"

Hilde cupped her face in her hands and nodded with a fresh smile.

"Can you really treat this face so harshly?"

Of course.

Tyrkanzyaka, with her cold heart, wasn’t swayed by sentiment.

She recognized that the same face belonged to a different being, so she could act rationally.

She had done so before and was confident she would do it again, but found herself momentarily speechless.

Her hostility hit a mental block.

"You’re hesitating~. How cute. Did he give you something too?"

Hilde caught that fleeting emotion.

Her eyes darkened.

"The reason the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka is here. It’s not a political move. If it were political, you would have shown your intentions clearly. Personal revenge? No. The target wasn’t clear. Then, the remaining possibility is that you followed him without a clear purpose. It was just a hypothesis, but it seems to be the correct one. So, the Military State invasion was entirely his idea."

Tyr, angry at revealing information and weaknesses to the enemy, reached out.

The dark knights advanced, brandishing shadowy swords and spears.

[You have crossed the line. Do you not value your life?]

Yet Hilde remained composed.

She lightly touched the shadow spear aimed at her neck, flashing a wicked smile.

"But you’re not actually attacking~. Is it hard to strike this face? How valuable was his gift?"

[Ugh….]

"Hahaha. It’s so obvious. Everyone here received something from him and followed him to the Military State…"

Sensing something, Hilde abruptly collapsed to the ground like a doll with its strings cut.

It was a sharp movement, more like pulling herself down to the floor than falling.

Immediately after, an unseen sword strike slashed through where she had been standing.

"Tsk."

The air shimmered, and Shei’s mirage-like figure appeared.

Having failed her sneak attack, Shei clicked her tongue.

Rising from the ground in a springing motion, Hilde spoke.

"Oh, my? You’re quite aggressive. You even attack someone with your companion’s face?"

"Companion’s face? Tch, so what?"

"Hmm. Is he sincere? Is it because of experience, or are you inherently unemotional? Considering your age, probably the latter? I wonder~."

"Don’t make assumptions about my personality!"

Shei grumbled.

Shei had experienced all kinds of events in several timelines.

Friends today could be enemies tomorrow.

She had faced countless betrayals.

Once, a dear companion had tried to kill her with a hideously twisted face just one timeline later.

Having killed the same person multiple times, seeing a familiar face meant nothing to Shei.

Gauging the opponent’s strength, Shei wielded Chun-aeng and Jizan, clearly showing her intent to fight.

"If you have any last words, say them now. Both me and Tyrkanzyaka are busy."

"I didn’t come to fight. I came because an acquaintance recommended it. He said you might help me find what I lost."

"Him? You mean Hughes?"

"Yes. He said you might help me find what I lost."

"If you’ve lost something, go to a fence. Or consider it a donation and forget about it."

"I’ve tried that. Which is why I’m like this now."

Hilde chuckled.

Seeing her demeanor devoid of hostility, Shei frowned.

Hilde adjusted her voice and changed her face.

Hughes' face and voice gradually faded, becoming increasingly feminine.

"My name is Hilde. That is the name I was given."

Hilde, fully transformed from Hughes' appearance, spoke to Shei.

"Shei, I have a request for you. If you grant my request, I will give you some information you want to know."