**Mental Illness**

—

****

“Seriously? Did you do that on purpose? Trying to get me killed?”

“What are you talking about? You really went all out, didn’t you? I never thought you’d go this far…”

“Are you disappointed? Hmm~. No way, right? I was just surprised to see a different side of you. I told you, it’s the first time I’ve laughed since you started your little adventure.”

“My honest feelings? Haha… Well, to be honest, I’m a bit excited. No, very excited.”

“So, you’re not just a kind-hearted show-off, huh?”

“What are you going to do? Looks like you won’t be getting any sleep tonight. Having all the fun by yourself.”

“I told you I’m excited. Are you going to keep making a lady say embarrassing things?”

“If you don’t believe me, why don’t you check my underwear? It’s soaking wet right now.”

—

In front of me stood two opponents: a mage and an axe-wielding warrior. Despite the sudden attack, the mage stepped back while the warrior blocked my path, showing they weren’t complete fools.

“───. Shield.”

With a husky incantation, a translucent barrier formed around the warrior. I was confident I could reach them before they cast any spells, but this was unexpected. Perhaps they had mastered rapid incantations like Jeong Ha-yeon.

“Hyah!”

If my sword had a cutting force enchantment, it could be countered by the shield spell. The axe warrior seemed to trust the mage’s shield, focusing solely on attacking with all his might. The problem was, my sword was just ordinary steel, not enhanced by cutting force magic, but by the power of a .

Before the axe could swing down, I used a technique to close the distance rapidly. The warrior’s eyes widened, but he responded by putting more force into his swing.

As I got within striking range, I felt the cold edge of the axe above me. At the same time, my sword tip touched the shield spell. The warrior grinned confidently as he brought the axe down. And then…

Crack! Shatter!

My sword pierced through the shield spell, tearing it apart. The warrior’s eyes filled with shock, his last expression before my sword cleanly pierced his throat.

“Gurgle… Gurgle…”

Blood bubbled from the warrior’s mouth, and the axe, losing its direction, embedded itself uselessly into the ground.

“Holy Strike! You bastard! Die!”

Before the warrior’s body even hit the ground, I heard a heavy whoosh behind me. Glancing back, I saw a mace glowing with white light and the twisted face of a battle monk.

These guys were definitely rogues. Except for Kim Seung-beom, the others showed no reaction to their comrade’s death. Instead, they seized the opportunity to focus on taking me down. However, my agility was a specialized stat, both in my first and now second life. Even if they attacked first, I could easily turn the tables with my agility. I quickly raised my sword horizontally and spun my body with force.

Slice. The sensation of cutting through soft flesh and hard bone traveled up my blade. I saw the upper half of the monk, split in two, fall to the ground with a look of disbelief. My agility stat was nearly maxed at 98. Unless they drastically increased their speed, closed the distance, or attacked from multiple angles, it was nearly impossible for anyone to take the initiative from me.

With that, I had taken down five, including Choi Joo-hyun. Only two rogues remained: the mage with the ominous voice and a female archer wearing a hood. It had been less than 30 seconds since the battle began, and I had already eliminated more than half of them. I decided to deal with the nearby mage first and turned my body.

“───. ───. ───.”

The mage had put more distance between us, sweating profusely as he prepared a powerful spell. I wasn’t particularly afraid, but I didn’t want to get caught off guard. Just as I was about to close the distance again, the mage’s eyes flashed. This is why I hate mages who master rapid incantations.

“───. ───. ───. Flame Spear! Rapid Fire!”

With the incantation, flaming spear-shaped spells rushed toward me. One, two, three, four, five, six. Oh, he even mastered magic circuit applications. No wonder he seemed like the leader. I let out a short sigh of admiration, raised my sword, then lowered it again. There was something I wanted to test.

Seeing me abandon my defense, the mage burst into laughter.

“Kahaha! Yes, give up! Just die already!”

At the same time, a message appeared in the air.

『Battlefield’s Blessing (Rank: EX) activates.』

Boom! Boom!

With a deafening roar, the Flame Spears exploded against my body. Smoke and sparks erupted everywhere, scorching the surrounding grass. His magic power was around 90, or was it 89? Either way, I felt the heavy impact shaking my body.

“Kekekeke. Finally got him. It hit perfectly. An So-yeon! Go check it out! Kekekeke.”

Annoyed by his laughter, I took a step forward. As I emerged from the smoke, the mage’s laughter abruptly stopped. Several messages appeared in the air.

『Luck stat 88… Defense reduction check. Battlefield’s Blessing EX rank confirmed. Defense check upgraded. User’s magic power stat 96 confirmed. The absence of anti-magic ability reduces the impact. Fire-type magic detected. Internal fire element reacts. Defense check upgraded to complete defense.』

As expected. The mage must have received a message saying, “Complete defense. No damage inflicted.” The mage, staring blankly at the air, stammered in disbelief.

“What, what the hell? C-Complete defense? No way! How does a zero-year user have anti-magic? Even if they did… Oh. D-Don’t come any closer! Aaaah!”

“It’s not anti-magic.”

I calmly replied, quickly closing the distance. The mage, looking like he’d seen a ghost, stumbled back but was soon caught by me. As he stared at me with a dazed expression, I grabbed him by the collar and lifted him.

“Uh, uh…”

“What was it you said? Raping kids in front of others, cutting people to pieces? Ah, An So-yeon, was it? Put down your bow. If you shoot, I’ll tear your arm off like the last guy. Stay quiet, and I’ll make it quick.”

Without looking back, I sensed the female archer flinch and step back. I raised my sword to decapitate the mage but then had a better idea. I swung my sword, severing his arms, which fell to the ground, spraying blood.

“Aaaah! Aaaah!”

The mage screamed hoarsely, shaking his head. Much better. His smug face earlier was really annoying. I cleanly severed his legs and let go of his collar. Among the scattered limbs, his torso lay on the ground.

“Aaaah! Aaaah! Spare meee! Aaaah!”

“Whining about the priestess being yours? Wondering how she’d cry? The foul-mouthed one is yours? Curious about her screams?”

Of course, he didn’t say those things, but he was the one who started it. It was irritating. I had raised those kids with so much care. Feeling a bit upset, I stomped on his lips, crushing them. I might have put a bit too much emotion into it, as I felt his teeth break.

“Eeek! Kill me! I’m sorry! Kill meee!”

Watching him cry like a child, the frustration in my heart eased a little. Just then, I felt a chilling, hostile presence behind me. I sighed and spoke quietly.

“I told you not to shoot the bow… huh?”

Thwip!

“Ugh!”

The arrow she shot whizzed past me, piercing the neck of the howling sorcerer with pinpoint accuracy. It was never aimed at me in the first place. Feeling a mix of disappointment and disbelief, I slowly turned around. There, a cute young girl, her hood now down, was glaring at me with fierce determination, her bow still aimed in my direction.

She didn’t seem to be an adult. Her face still had traces of baby fat, giving her a youthful appearance. Of course, not everyone in the Hall Plain was an adult. But for someone so young to be running with vagrants meant she had a strong will and considerable skill. Intrigued, I spoke to her in a gentle voice.

“Hey, kid. Why don’t you put the bow down?”

“……”

No response. Instead, she tightened her grip on the bowstring, her hostility towards me burning brightly. Soon, an undeniable aura of magic gathered around her, and the arrow on the string began to glow with a yellow light. I chuckled softly and raised my sword. This ability was unmistakable…

“Fine Sight.”

Her youthful voice reached my ears, and the flickering yellow light concentrated at the tip of the arrow. Then, with a voice full of resentment, she released the string.

“Collapse Arrow!”

I quickly summoned my magic, calculating the exact point where the arrowhead would meet my sword. I never imagined I’d encounter one of the archer class’s unique abilities, the Arrow of Destruction, here. And to see her focus its power with Fine Sight… If it were me from the first round, my body would have shattered the moment the arrow grazed me.

Crack. Crackle.

“Hup!”

Clang! Clang!

The arrowhead met the tip of my sword, filling the clearing with a grating metallic sound. The air around us felt like it was being torn apart. I began to understand why she hadn’t participated in the battle until now. Ordinary arrows wouldn’t have been effective, and using the Collapse Arrow might have endangered her allies. Or perhaps she was still troubled by the loss of the priest due to her supposed misfire (though it wasn’t a misfire). Either way, it was behavior uncharacteristic of a vagrant.

But remarkable as it was, I wasn’t in any real danger. Unless I left my back completely exposed, the arrow, which initially seemed like it would destroy everything, lost its power as it clashed with my magic-infused sword. With a sound like a firecracker, I easily sliced the arrow in half.

Watching the arrow fall to the ground in two pieces, I saw An So-yeon collapse to her knees, her legs trembling. It was probably hard for her to believe, but it seemed she had put all her strength into that last attack. Curious, I activated my third eye to take a closer look at her stats.

1. Name: An So-yeon (3rd Year)

2. Class: Normal Archer Expert

3. Nation: Babara

4. Clan: Middle Path

5. True Name · Nationality: Destroyer of Evil – The One with the Fifth Wing · South Korea

6. Sex: Female (18)

7. Height · Weight: 165.8cm · 47.2kg

8. Alignment: Neutral · Wanderer

[Strength 64] [Endurance 62] [Agility 88] [Stamina 70] [Magic 78] [Luck 82]

1. Collapse Arrow (Rank: B Zero)

1. Fine Sight (Rank: A Zero)

1. Insight (Rank: B Plus)

2. Tracking (Rank: A Zero)

3. Clairvoyance (Rank: C Zero)

Her strength and endurance were a bit lacking, but as an archer, her high agility made up for it. More importantly, her class, special abilities, and potential abilities were well-balanced. The rank of her Collapse Arrow was a bit disappointing, but having a unique ability was significant in itself.

Considering she was in her third year, she must have entered the Hall Plain at 15. For someone so young, especially a girl, to have survived this long, there had to be a reason. Her stats weren’t extraordinary, but she wasn’t a common user either, if I were to exaggerate a bit.

Whistling, I walked over to her. An So-yeon, who had been so bold earlier, was now retreating, pushing herself back with a frightened expression.

—————————= Author’s Note —————————=

Hello, this is Ro Yujin.

Haha, I thought I was going to die today. I got home at 7 PM, and it was exhausting. Why are there so many people at Gangnam Station? I went to eat spaghetti and had to wait 40 minutes. It was delicious, though, so it was a fun day overall.

With this, the incident with the vagrants is almost wrapped up. Thank you for all the comments. I’ll reveal the answer in the next reply. Four of you got pretty close this time. While some were similar, I chose the one who wrote the most detailed response. Thank you. 🙂

PS. The reason I’m not doing a female character popularity poll right now is because I plan to introduce Hanbyeol first. If I do it now, Hanbyeol might end up being the least popular… ㅜ.ㅠ

『 Reader Comments (Episode 143) 』

1. MT Bear: Congratulations on being first. It’s been a while. I haven’t been able to reply to your messages because my inbox is full. I’ve replied to about half, so I’ll get back to you soon. Thank you!

2. Ga Hanna: Haha, thank you. I’m happiest when readers enjoy my work and leave recommendations and comments. Please wait a bit for Go Yeon-ju. I’ll decide what to do after the part.

3. Arrogant Cat: Hahaha. Your one-line comment was very impactful. Yes, just a good stab will do.

4. This is a Cave: Yes, yes. It’s not good to keep such people around. It’s best to cleanly eliminate them.

5. Parka Sari: Happy birthday! Did you have something delicious? I’m jealous that your birthday is on a Saturday. Mine rarely falls on a weekend. ㅜ.ㅠ

『 Reader Comments (Episode 144) 』

1. Kajimas: Congratulations on being first. Hahaha. Rather than this and that, given the opponent, it seems natural to move on. (Spoiler alert!) The character will appear in the next episode, so please wait a bit.

2. Juan: You were slightly off with mental illness and rampage, but you weren’t entirely wrong. And you got the answer right. A gentler way to put it might be . 🙂 and were spot on. Congratulations on winning the 10th reader comment!

3. Punishment + Broken Fan: Punishment, you captured 80% of my intention in a single line. Rather than , it’s more like for a heart steeped in blood for ten years. And Broken Fan’s comment about was also insightful. Both comments had correct and incorrect parts, but combined, they were closest to the answer. Congratulations! Clap clap clap! 🙂 (Juan took first place. ㅜ.ㅠ)

4. Passion: The trauma related to the girlfriend you mentioned wasn’t intended, but you interpreted the subtitle most accurately. I was surprised someone got it right. Congratulations! (Juan took first place. ㅜ.ㅠ)

5. Human Life: Haha, it’s a reader comment! You got the first part of number 3 right. That part. However, once he identifies someone as an enemy, he crushes them thoroughly, regardless of their strength, using any means necessary. 🙂 As for the works, well, I’ve read almost everything on Noble Best, except for one or two. ^^ And I’m replying to messages in order, so please wait a bit! Haha.

Your recommendations and comments are the driving force behind continuous updates. (This is the truth.)

I always read all the comments repeatedly.

Please don’t be too disappointed if you’re not in the reader comments.

If you’re really curious, send me a message, and I’ll reply!

That’s all for today.

I hope you always read my work with a relaxed mind.

Favorites, recommendations, comments, critiques, and questions are always welcome.