Stigma Effect

Translator: Skye  Editor: thursdays

“...Are you all right?” Yuriel carefully asked as soon as they left the passenger car.

Helio didn’t answer her question. He just continued walking in silence until he reached the cabin where they stored their belongings.

Yuriel had seen him store his light luggage, such as his books and outer garments, in one of the lockers earlier. But the locker he was opening now was not the same one.

This locker contained a large sword and bag inside.

First, he took out the bag and unfastened the lock to open it. The bag was full of what appeared to be an official Albraca uniform, guns that looked similar to the one he handed over to Yuriel earlier, and explosives.

Yuriel, who checked the contents, murmured sourly, “It seems the one who was carrying explosives was not me, but you, Sir Helio.”

“It’s for fighting against the monsters. Here, you take some too.”

“I just light it up then throw it, right?”

“If you don’t throw it far enough, I’ll be caught in the blast, so only use it when I’m out of range.”

“I understand. So, what you’re saying is, if I’m going to die, I should die alone.”

“Well, it wouldn’t be bad if you went in between the monsters and exploded. That explosive is more expensive than you think-it’s quite powerful.”

Taking the explosives Helio handed her, Yuriel rubbed the thick wick and nodded.

“Yes, well, I have no intention of hurting my master’s colleague. Don’t worry!”

“...Master?”

“Oh, come to think of it, I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m-”

The moment Yuriel-who was wearing the explosives around her neck-bowed her head and was about to introduce herself, the train jerked roughly.

“They’re here.”

Helio steadied Yuriel’s staggering body and looked at the window.

The eyes of a monster, large enough to cover the entire window, were pressed against the glass. It was a monster with a large head and an overall bizarre appearance.

Helio let go of Yuriel and pulled out a gun from his bag, aiming it at the fiend.

“Look carefully, miss. This is how you use it.”

He released the small safety lock and aimed precisely at the monster’s eyes before pulling the trigger.

Bang!

An intense blast pierced their ears.

A large shriek was heard and the monster’s blood splattered all over the window. Although the bloodstains covered the window and blocked his view, Helio fired two more times in a row at the window. The hand holding the gun shifted slightly from the recoil.

The window broke and the monster lay on the floor, shaking.

It had made a tremendous noise.

Helio turned to Yuriel, whose eyes were wide open, and pointed his chin at his bag.

“I don’t have time to explain further, but if you can do what I just did, you’re free to use one of the guns in my bag. The bigger the gun, the stronger it is but…”

“The bigger the burden, right?”

Yuriel nodded and pulled out a smaller gun than the one Helio was using and held it in her hand. Its weight was slightly lighter than the gun she had been forced to carry earlier.

Helio’s eyes narrowed when he saw Yuriel holding the gun and turning her wrist to check the weight.

“That’s a good choice-you don’t want to break your wrist after only using it once. Good. Now, I need you to get on top of the train and tell me what direction the monsters are coming from.”

He said as he opened the small door on the ceiling of the car.

However, Yuriel had a hard time trying to climb up on her own while wearing heavy explosives around her neck as well as carrying a gun in her hand.

Noticing her struggling, Helio grabbed her waist and lifted her up easily.

“Ack-thank you.”

Yuriel looked down at him, shooting him a smile. Then, she disappeared for a moment before sticking her head back over the opening. Her long hair stretched into the cabin.

Helio stared blankly at Yuriel’s neatly braided hair that hung down like a rope but came back to his senses when he heard her voice.

“I got it! We have two approaching us at two o’clock! But Sir Helio, can I try throwing this? I think I need to get an idea of how powerful it is if I’m going to help you…”

“I’ll throw it this time. If you think you can watch and follow-”

“I’ll throw it in the opposite direction of where you are, Sir Helio.”

Yuriel finished quickly and looked back at Helio, who had climbed onto the top of the train to join her. He had changed out of his suit and into a knight uniform, holding a sword in his hand.

Glancing in the direction Yuriel had mentioned, Helio confirmed there were indeed monsters approaching.

Yuriel took out a match to light the wick of an explosive, which she then handed to Helio.

“...Miss, have you ever received training as a knight somewhere?”

“No, but I have studied how to use it by myself with items that my master used to use… Oh, Sir Helio, throw it! Hurry! The wick, it’s burning!”

Helio was distracted when he saw her skillfully light the wick, and he foolishly asked her questions in the middle of an emergency.

He nodded his head and threw back the arm holding the explosive, revealing the taut muscles. When he swung his arm and threw the weapon, the explosive fell exactly between the two monsters.

Soon, the bombs exploded and the bodies of the monsters were thrown back, but they were twitching about, slowly regenerating.

“That’s how powerful they are-they look like they’re dead, but they’ll only stop moving when you pull out their core. Even if a monster stops moving after being hit with an explosive, report it to me immediately.”

“Got it.”

Helio pulled out his sword and jumped off the train after hearing her answer.

It was due to this special nature of the monsters that the presence of the Albraca Knights did not decrease despite the development of weapons like the explosives.

Bombs weren’t what destroyed the cores of monsters; it was humans.

“Wow.”

While she was reporting the direction of the approaching monsters from her spot on the top of the train, Yuriel watched the scene before her in admiration.

Helio was disposing of the monsters without a single trace of exhaustion. If she had to exaggerate a little, it almost seemed like he was flying.

Her eyes followed his movements, marvelling at his strength and stamina.

Then, she spotted something other than the monsters that had been gathering relentlessly. There were people on huge warhorses approaching the stopped train.

She noticed their clothes were similar to Helio’s.

“Sir Helio, the knights are coming!” Yuriel shouted happily after narrowing her eyes to check their attire-the uniform of the Albraca Knights.

Helio nodded at Yuriel’s cry and let out a sigh. It was quite difficult to carry out a fight while simultaneously protecting the train. In order to make sure the monsters’ attention didn’t stray to the crowded cabin where all the passengers were gathered, he had to use larger than usual movements against the monsters.

He shook off the blood from his sword and jumped onto the train car where Yuriel was.

“Now, please return the gun.”

There was no doubt that if the knights, especially the one running the front line-a man who held the same rank as himself-saw a civilian holding a gun that was only issued to officers, he would be criticized for days.

“They said it was an injury, but you look just fine,” Helio grumbled while taking back the gun from Yuriel.

Despite the fact that there were still monsters approaching, Helio flopped down on top of the roof of the train.

“Um, Sir Helio? The monsters are still coming.”

“It’s fine. There’s a scarier person over there who will arrive first. But enough of that. Let’s hear more about you,” Helio replied, patting the spot next to him.

“About me?”

Yuriel glanced at the approaching monsters before hesitantly sitting down next to Helio. She sat down for now because she had been told to, but she felt anxious because the monsters were drawing nearer.

However, Helio began his questions, not caring whether Yuriel was feeling nervous.

“You mentioned earlier that your master is my colleague. What did you mean? Do you know someone in Albraca?”

“Oh, that!”

Yuriel, who had been restless staring at the monsters, suddenly looked at Helio with shining eyes. Her light eyelashes fluttered like the wings of a butterfly which easily caught people’s eye.

“My master! I’m his personal maid!” Yuriel said proudly, showing off a broad smile. The edges of her eyes had curved upwards to the point her green irises could no longer be seen.

“What I meant was, who is your master? I don’t know how you figured out monsters were going to attack, but since you helped me, I’ll return the favor and help you meet him.”

“Really?”

“Yes, so tell me who he is.”

Helio suggested lightly. It was quite an unprecedented offer on his end.

But whether Yuriel was aware that he wasn’t the type to do such a thing or not, she pondered over his offer with a hand on her chin.

Helio silently watched the woman contemplating over what to do before picking up a gun and aiming it at a monster that had gotten a little too close to the train.

Despite the loud noise, Yuriel remained in deep thought.

Helio wondered who her master could possibly be to cause her to be in such a troubled state. After shooting several more bullets at the regenerating monster, Helio couldn’t wait anymore and opened his mouth.

“I’m Albraca’s second division commander. I’m someone who keeps his word so you don’t have to be so hesitant.”

“You’ll really let me meet my master?”

“Of course.”

Having made up her mind, Yuriel nodded her head.

“I’m here to see Sir Raphlet Mogris.”

“...Who?”

“Raphlet Mogris.”

“Hold on. That person…”

Helio, who had been staring at the smoking barrel of his gun after a series of shots, turned his head stiffly and hurriedly closed Yuriel’s mouth.

“Miss. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but it’d be best if you stayed away from him, and be careful of what you say. It might be hard to tell, but that person over there who is heading this way is him.”

“Eh?”

“If you want to live a long life, watch your mouth,” he whispered, pointing to the knights that came closer.

The man at the forefront checked Helio’s face and frowned when he saw a woman in his arms. He dismounted his horse and addressed Helio coldly.

“What are you doing, not even cleaning up the rest of the monsters, Commander Helio?”

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