Scarlet

Even as I fight the monsters, often times getting wounded, the girl just continues watching me with a wide grin on her face – respecting my desire to take them on myself. And more importantly, not lose the EXP they’d give me.

But I do notice over time that she seems to be growing a little bit more respectful in her posture, likely due to seeing me in action personally. And eventually she even stops following me, staying only at the entryways of each floor to make sure that no other demons enter the floor. Specifically ones that she believes I wouldn’t be able to handle.

At the same time, I hear her enter a call with the others.

“Yeah, she’s quite powerful for a newbie,” Alex says, a hint of surprise and respect in her tone that wasn’t there when she was talking to me. “She’s taking out entire floors of level twenty and above demons down here on what should only be her third Fracture, I believe?”

“Yes, it’s her third,” Bridget responds, no surprise in her voice as if she had already assumed I was this strong.

Surprisingly, Zachary actually stays silent this time. Probably because he knows I’m likely listening in on them and doesn’t want to say anything to tick me off. Which – if that’s the case – is smart.

My thoughts blank as I hear the sound of something smashing into something else on the floor above me, followed by yelling, the sound of something akin to glass shattering, and then footsteps. Two sets of them. One heavy and sounding like they belong to a knight, and the other the light footsteps of a human.

I stop walking down the hallway I was going through for a second to focus on the noises. By the sounds of it, some demon knight is chasing someone down the halls of the floor above me. Which doesn’t really make much sense unless that someone took whatever it was the demon knight was guarding. Because the knight should’ve been stationed as something’s bodyguard, and who would be stupid enough to do that? Especially as a regular-

A thick sword suddenly slices through the ceiling of the hallway, following which the entire ceiling begins to cave in, making me jump backwards in surprise. Then I watch as both a demon knight and a… Guardian? What?

I blink in surprise as I stare at the kid who looks to only be about fifteen or sixteen years old falling from the ceiling while scrambling in the air. He is wearing expensive clothing just like basically everyone else in this building and has a very silky looking tail of a nice silver color.

After a second, I jump through the air and catch the kid before landing on my feet a few meters away from where the demon knight lands. Then I turn around again to check out the knight’s level.

|Demon Knight – Subspecies: None – Level 30|

Uh, okay I’m not sure if I can take that. Maybe?

I narrow my eyes as the creature slowly tries to climb to its feet before I decide to go store the kid someplace safe first. So I run down the hall, very much wishing I had some stacks of blood thirst built up right now. But that skill has become a lot less useful since reaching demons who are at the same level as me. Seeing as I can’t just mass kill them all and get the stacks built up.

As I run, I glance down at the kid to find him blushing rather hard, which also makes me realize that despite me calling him a kid, he’s actually taller than me. Which probably makes this awkward for him, being held in what’s basically a princess carry. But apparently I’m easily strong enough now to lift him up, so who cares about his dignity.

After a few seconds of running, I turn the corner, open a door, and toss him inside onto a large bed where he lets out a yelp before I slam the door shut and go back to the demon knight. Who I quickly find turning the corner, so I duck under him before activating and swiping my claws across its shin, only for them to barely even scratch the surface.

Hmm. Yeah, that’s not going to work.

Time for plan B.

The creature – having missed me with its strike and instead slamming its sword into the wall which it is currently trying to get it out of – lets out a simple grunt when I start using both blood boil and life drain on it, following which I repeatedly tear streaks across its body with my claws. And even after it manages to free its sword from the wall, it doesn’t manage to do much as the sword is way too big for this hallway, making me grin wide in excitement.

Our little game continues on for several minutes until I see the kid – who I should probably stop calling that, considering he only looks to be about four or five years younger than me – poking his head out of the room. This immediately gets the attention of the demon knight who directs its gaze towards him the moment he enters its vision.

Yeah, he definitely has the knight’s charge.

Either way though, I use the knight’s distraction to tear my claws straight across its back, in a place I’ve already done so a few times before. This finally makes a crack in the scales instead of just the scratches it’s been making, and I further that crack by slamming my other fist into it, knocking the knight a step forward as it stumbles.

Then the thing just tightens its grip on its sword, climbs to its feet again, and begins charging after the boy like I’m nothing more than air.

“Seriously?” I shout, not really used to the demons just ignoring me like this.

Before I can actually get irritated though, I notice the completely wide open back of the demon knight and my grin returns.

Maybe it’s not a bad thing to be ignored like this.