I look at Evelyn lying on the ground. We spent three hours looking for a place to hide and found a deep, six-meter hole with a seven-degree slope, which created a spot where we wouldn't be easily found.

After we got here, Evelyn gave me some food and said we should rest so we could continue the journey toward the 3rd wall behind us.

Now we're here "resting," but I can't sleep. My heart races, my breathing becomes a mess, and I break out in a cold sweat every time I try. But Evelyn is managing to sleep.

She's sleeping after setting up numerous lines outside to alert us if anything gets close.

I stare at her sleeping. It's strange. She doesn't move at all; the sound of her breathing is almost zero, and her chest barely moves, as if her heart has stopped. But she's alive.

I don't understand how she can slow her heartbeat and breathing so much that she seems dead. It's kind of scary because I really thought she had died until I saw her chest rise and fall slightly every two minutes.

I even thought she was awake and just pretending to sleep, but she really isn't awake. So it's just too strange for me. To deal with the onset of panic attacks, I'm doing what she told me to do: count to ten using only odd numbers.

'Why... is she trying to help me?' I can't understand Evelyn... she's stupidly kind. Almost no demon would try to help me in this horrible situation.

I'm a burden, and I know full well that I'm a burden, so it would be natural to abandon me. And yet, Evelyn still tried to save me, and that makes me feel strange. Until now, no one has ever helped me besides Yter.

Everyone ignored the fact that my innocent family was destroyed for disagreeing with someone in power. I was thrown out to die, and even becoming an adventurer was difficult because of "conflicts of interest."

Which is a "nice" way of saying I picked a fight with dangerous people and would face even more risks by joining the guild, to the point where I had to go to seven different guild headquarters to finally be accepted.

So having Evelyn help me makes me feel bad for attacking her before. I have a hard time trusting people. Yter is the only one I trust, so knowing that I can trust Evelyn makes me feel more... calm with her.

'I should apologize to her when we get out of here...' I look at her lying there as if she can do anything. Her confidence is somewhat inspiring. She didn't panic and give up on everything in this horrible situation.

"E-Evelyn... th-thank you..." I murmur to her, knowing she can't hear me. As soon as we manage to get out of here, I'll tell Yter that I've finally met someone who truly cares and is genuinely kind.

I'll be able to tell Yter that I finally made a friend who isn't afraid of me, doesn't look down on me, and doesn't leave me to die when things get tough.

'Yter... I really want to see you soon... I think E-Evelyn and I could have a good meal together as friends at the guild...' I try to think of happy things with a small smile.

...

...

...

"Eve, what will you do with him?" Syl'Vyr asks me as we look at the tied-up Yter. I'm furious because it was their fault this happened. If it weren't for Yter and Ylya, Evelyn-sama would never have come to this dungeon and gotten caught in a trap.

"Syl'Vyr, let me think..." I stare at the unconscious Yter. After Evelyn-sama and Ylya fell into the teleportation trap, Yter and I continued our fight.

But he didn't stand a chance. Since his class is assassin, he relies on stealth and speed, but he's slower and physically weaker than me, despite being Rank B. With Syl'Vyr here supporting me, beating him without taking much damage was relatively easy.

And now I'm thinking about how to bring Evelyn-sama back safely. I can't let her stay in danger, but I can feel that she's far away.

"Syl'Vyr, knowing Evelyn-sama, she'll probably decide to risk trying to return to Wall 1... We should try to go back to Wall 1 by walking normally, since we're probably about 15 to 23 walls away from the entrance. Normally, I'd want to head toward Evelyn-sama... but that's realistically impossible."

"She's too far away, and I know she'll also consider the distance. So we can only hope she reaches Wall 1, or that she uses her domain and forcibly summons us to her position."

"Regardless of her choice, trying to go find her now is too unrealistic considering our strength..." Syl'Vyr seems tense when I say this.

"So... we should go to Wall 1 and wait, right? That makes sense... but what guarantees that Evelyn-chan can make it to Wall 1 safely?" She raises the worst possible question.

"Nothing guarantees it..." When I say this, she looks shocked.

"But then..."

"Then nothing, Syl'Vyr... I know Evelyn-sama. I know she will undoubtedly choose to try and return to Wall 1 through the area that ejects to Wall 1. We have no safe way to go find her so far away; we wouldn't even make it in time."

"We can only hope that she makes it safely..." I say, disappointed, knowing this is horrible, but it's our only choice right now.

"...You're the one who knows... but if she dies..." Syl'Vyr stops talking when she meets my gaze.

"She won't die. Evelyn-sama may not be physically strong or magically powerful, but she is an incredible person, and I know that when she doesn't yield to fear, she is extremely intelligent."

"Even without strength, as long as she uses her intelligence, she will manage to get out of here... Don't forget, Syl'Vyr, above all, we are Evelyn-sama's servants. And a servant must always know how to choose what's best for their master."

"When Evelyn-sama returns to Wall 1, she will undoubtedly try to come looking for us. If we are deep inside, we will only put her in more danger. That's why we must be waiting at Wall 1, no more, no less." I'm stressed. I feel like a failure for letting this happen.

I should have been faster. I should have gotten Evelyn-sama out of that ridiculous teleportation circle. But because of my fault, because I was too slow, Evelyn-sama is now at risk.

'I just hope that useless bitch is dead.' I wish with all my might that Ylya has died. That bitch is the main culprit in this. If she hadn't fought with Evelyn-sama, none of this would have happened.

"Okay, Eve, you're in charge... what do we do with Yter?" she asks while I look at him.

"We'll kill him. He tried to attack Evelyn-sama. He's not trustworthy and doesn't deserve a second chance." I draw my sword again, looking at the unconscious Yter.

"May he and that whore Ylya die for attacking Evelyn-sama. I'm still being merciful by not torturing this worm." Syl'Vyr looks at me in astonishment.

"Y-You know, I've never seen this... side of you," she says, holding her staff. But she's wrong. She has seen this side of me, just not this intense. It was when I hit her; at that very moment, I made it clear to her that this is who I am.

"Do you disagree with me? Do you need me to knock some sense into your head?" I threaten her with my gaze.

"Evelyn-chan wouldn't want you to kill this guy. And anyway, if you want him dead, why not just leave him here? The dungeon will probably kill him regardless, so why dirty your hands with blood?" She talks as if she knows things.

"It doesn't matter. I need to make sure he actually dies and pays for his mistake. I know full well that Evelyn-sama wouldn't want this, but she's not here right now, is she? If she doesn't know anything, then it's fine. We just need to say he died to a trap, and she won't be sad or angry about it. He's just a stranger anyway."

"...You're quite cold... Does Evelyn-chan know that you..." I appear in front of her with my sword at her throat.

"No, she doesn't know, and she doesn't need to know. If you talk too much, you can be sure that this sword will be the least of your problems... Everything I do is for Evelyn-sama's good." I walk back over to Yter and raise my sword.

"..." Syl'Vyr looks like she wants to stop me, but she just stops and watches. As she should. I bring the sword down at once, cutting Yter's head in half. He's unconscious, so he'll die without pain and without knowing what killed him.

Blood gushes from the cut as I swing my sword, flicking off the excess blood.

"..." I take a cloth and carefully wipe it clean so it's not noticeable. I must say, Kjori made a truly magnificent sword. I like this sword.

"Let's go. I'm finished here. Now we must wait and hope that Evelyn-sama arrives here completely well and without a single injury..." I start walking, leaving the body there. It will be monster food anyway.

"What if... Evelyn-sama brings Ylya with her?" she asks, making me stop.

"...If she brings that treacherous whore... well, then I'll accept it with a smile and say that everything is fine and that I'm happy both of them survived and returned," I say with a fake smile that makes Syl'Vyr shudder.

"..."

"That's..."

"Any problem, Syl'Vyr?"

"...None..."

"Syl'Vyr, we are living beings. Evelyn-sama created us, gave us form, gave us life, and above all... gave us freedom... We are independent beings. Do you know what that means?"

"It means that not even Evelyn-sama knows exactly what we think and who we deeply are. She may have defined our personalities from scratch, but Evelyn-sama can only define the foundation of the personality."

"I may even resemble Evelyn-sama, but I am not her. I am not kind. I am not someone who forgives others, and above all, I am not someone 'good.' I am the one who does what must be done for Evelyn-sama's good."

"No matter how monstrous my actions are, if it's for Evelyn-sama, I would kill anyone, destroy anything, and erase my own existence if it protected her."

"I am loyal to her, and my loyalty goes hand in hand with who I am. And Evelyn-sama doesn't need to know I'm a monster if I need to be. Evelyn-sama only needs to know that I am her loyal servant who will do anything for her and protect her, because I was born to protect her." This is my life's mission and the reason for my existence.

"So, Syl'Vyr, what happened with Yter here today?" I question her.

"...He... was killed by a monster."

"Exactly. And if Ylya, by some miracle, survives and shows up with Evelyn-sama... well, I'll just hide my hatred for her and act as I should act. Evelyn-sama's well-being is always my priority."

"Now, let's go." I resume walking, ignoring her discomfort while thinking about what story to fabricate that has no holes, so Evelyn-sama won't suspect anything.

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