But Yamka dodged the attack by pulling back to the side.

  Her skillful evasion only fueled the creature's anger and its burning desire to put the girl in her place and avenge its severed leg and the pain she had caused.

  It let out a sharp, irritated screech.

  It repeated its attacks again and again, and with every attempt, Yamka found a way to survive its blows.

  She did not strike back yet, instead focusing on evading, waiting for the right time and method to kill it. Her eyes darted across its body while her expression remained grim and focused.

  At last, her gaze stopped moving, fixing on a specific spot on its body, and her mind told her it was the perfect target for her next strike.

  Her lips curled into a dark smile as she muttered.

  "Found it."

  She stepped back as its body bent forward again for another attack.

  Yamka waited for the moment when it lifted its body upward, standing on its hind legs.

  At that instant, Yamka's green eyes gleamed, and she dashed toward it, both of her hands gripping her axe tightly.

  She swung it swiftly, striking the metal edge against the creature's abdomen.

  Slash! The cold metal cut through the arthropod's body diagonally, causing purple blood to burst outward in a violent spray.

  The creature's body writhed in its final moments before its soul was drawn away, then collapsed lifelessly onto the grass, still bleeding.

  Yamka took two steps back, distancing herself from the creature's severed parts.

  The adrenaline's effect on her body faded, leaving her exhausted.

  Her axe slipped from her hand as her shoulders slumped in fatigue.

  Her vision began to blur, everything becoming hazy and unclear.

  Her breathing was shallow and heavy.

  Slowly, she raised her hands to look at them , both stained with purple blood.

  She swallowed the lump in her throat as everything around her grew darker.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  A dark feeling began to seep into her chest , its source unknown, yet strangely painful, unlike anything she had ever felt before.

  Her movements started to waver slightly.

  At that moment, Haruki leapt toward her, wrapping his arms tightly around her shoulders in a strong embrace, his expression glowing with pure joy as he shouted with cheerful excitement.

  "You did it! You defeated the monster all by yourself! You're the strongest here, Yami!"

  That dark feeling faded the moment Yamika turned her head to look at Haruki's radiant expression.

  Her lips slowly curved upward as the heaviness in her chest lightened.

  Haruki's words filled her with pride, perfectly feeding her arrogant side.

  She puffed out her chest and threw an arm over his shoulders, confirming his words proudly.

  "Of course I'm the strongest!"

  Noroi watched them from where he stood for a few moments before his feet began moving forward in steady steps toward the creature's dead body.

  His eyes were narrowed, his expression dark.

  The sounds of Haruki and Yamka's voices faded behind him as he focused all his attention on the shape before him.

  He bent his knees, crouching down, and pulled a small knife from the pocket of his jacket.

  With it, he cut a few centimeters from the creature's outer shell.

  "Noroi!"

  Haruki shouted, calling out to the other boy, unaware of what he was doing.

  All he could see was Noroi's crouched figure from behind.

  Noroi closed his hand around the severed piece and turned his head to look over his shoulder at both Haruki and Yamka before replying.

  "I'm coming."

  He quickly slipped the piece he was holding into his pocket, hiding it, then pushed himself up to his feet, casting one last glance at the dead body before turning back toward them.

  ***

  On the next morning, when the sun took its place at the peak of the sky to cast its rays upon the whole world , including the waters of that lake that moved with a steady motion, producing a soothing murmuring sound , it coincided with the sounds of the creatures that had awakened to begin a new day of work.

  The sunlight struck Noroi's sleeping face, making him mumble in annoyance, his eyelids trembling as he tried to adjust to the morning.

  Finally, the boy surrendered to waking up, slowly opening both of his eyes, and his pupils shrank under the sunlight above him.

  He grumbled softly before lazily lifting himself up to sit.

  He was in a pitiful state; his body was stiff from sleeping in a bad position on the rocky ground.

  His eyes were blinking heavily with drowsiness, while his black hair was messy and tangled like a bird's nest.

  He looked to his side, checking the situation around him, only to find Yamka sleeping on her left side, her arm resting beneath her head, giving her back to both Haruki and him.

  Her axe was placed carefully in front of her so it would be easy to reach when she needed it.

  She was usually used to waking up at dawn, but it seemed she was still exhausted from last night's battle.

  Behind her, about a meter away, Haruki was sleeping with his limbs sprawled in every direction, a string of drool marking his cheek while the bird had made his chest its warm little nest.

  He let out a tired sigh, rethinking why he had agreed to those two idiots in the first place. He pushed the thought out of his head, he was stuck with them now.

  He turned his gaze away from them, directing his attention to the ruined place around him.

  This looked nothing like it did when they first saw it; the beautiful Lake Solmire had turned into a destroyed battlefield.

  Purple blood colored the grass and flowers and even extended to stain some of the tree trunks, while the creature's remains were scattered in certain spots as a sign of the battle that had taken place the previous night.