Calix tightened the bandage around the wound with determination.

From the moment he stepped outside the castle, he knew Bake would be chasing after him, but the number of pursuers was more than he had anticipated.

Just evading the pursuers took more time than necessary. It seemed that Lord Crayton was more concerned about his wife’s injustice than the security of the castle.

To be precise, it seemed like it wasn’t just about finding his wife’s injustice but for some other purpose.

Calix exhaled slowly.

There was no actual wound to speak of; he had only been pricked by a needle, but the sharp sensation cutting through the flesh instinctively told him it wasn’t an ordinary attack. Soon, suspicion turned into certainty. He could feel a slight numbness spreading from the pricked area.

He hadn’t fought with conventional methods. All the equipment covering his body served as weapons. Even the gloves he wore had poisoned needles attached on the inside. He had realized this fact too late.

During the battlefield, he wouldn’t have tolerated such methods, but now he was anxious. Despite trying to conceal it, the small gap visible to the enemy proved that fact.

But there was only one mistake, and he immediately retaliated. Excluding the strange equipment, the difference in skill was evident. Calix’s sword accurately dealt a fatal blow to the enemy, who promptly fled.

“He’s no ordinary person. An experienced mercenary.”

Usually, when receiving a fatal injury, people hesitate, but the enemy didn’t. As if accustomed to wounds, the enemy willingly exposed himself to injury and promptly fled without hesitation.

The enemy didn’t intend to win through skill from the beginning. The goal was to administer a poisonous sting.

Calix finished tying the knot and stood up. He tied his arm with a handkerchief, preventing the poison from spreading further, and chewed on the antidote he carried. However, he couldn’t know if it would take effect.

Doubtless, the poison prepared by the one who came prepared wouldn’t be an ordinary substance. He could only hope that the resistance built up from enduring countless near-death situations would help.

Calix roughly crumpled the gloves he had taken from the enemy and put them in his bag before swiftly mounting his horse.

The prick from the poison was uncomfortable, but it didn’t matter. Now, he instinctively distinguished whether it was a moment to die or not, perhaps due to overcoming innumerable near-death experiences.

Calix turned his head from the direction the enemy disappeared and looked in the opposite direction. He thought about pursuing, but there was something more urgent.

He resented. If it wasn’t for that, it would be a lie.

But at the same time, he was seeking reasons to abandon the resentment. Since the day he looked into those azure eyes again, he had only thought about the advantageous position for her and not made any cold judgments. And above all…

Calix tightly closed his eyes. He couldn’t tell whether Chimi’s fever was due to the poison or something else.

He just ran. Then, now. Always.

“So, what happened? Is he dead?”
“It’s as good as dead.”

“In the end, couldn’t finish it, huh?”

A rough sound of wind escaping through Bake’s teeth was heard.

Gallan, in response, spread his arms wide towards Bake.

“He’s not an ordinary skilled person! Because he reacts even when the distance is a little close, do you know how long and how far I had to chase him?”

Although he had temporarily bandaged the wounds, just moving a little roughly caused blood to quickly seep out due to the deep wounds. Gallan bravely extended his injured arm.

Knowing the wounds were deep, Gallan had more urgent matters than a doctor.

“Bring me some alcohol.”

“What did you do well? In the end, you only managed to leave a small scratch.”

“A small scratch is fortunate! And is that an ordinary scratch?”

“What if it’s not an ordinary scratch?”

Bake’s eyes narrowed like a thread. Gallan made a triumphant expression, curling his lips.

“I coated the weapon tip with poison.”

“Is it really poison?”

“Considering its infamous reputation, I applied a very, very potent poison. Even if a tiny amount penetrates the body, it will be highly lethal.”

“If that’s the case, you should have finished it altogether!”

“In that case, my neck would have been chopped off. Look. If I had rushed in with a straight attack, it would have been not just poison but a life already lost.”

Gallan trembled, shivering as he extended his neck. He also had a bandage wrapped around his neck.

Even after being hit by poison said to make an elephant fall asleep, Calix continued swinging his sword until the end. How accurate and swift the sword was, he doubted several times if he had actually been hit by the poison.

Except for his face, gradually turning pale, Calix looked really fine. Not that he wasn’t, but if he had been a bit more greedy, Gallan wouldn’t have been a person of this world anymore.

“Still, opportunities like this don’t come often.”