I stood there, staring at the bloody chaos before me.
In the past few minutes, I had torn open that slit in the worm’s body to see what lay beneath it.
In the end, I found something interesting.
If I could stab this worm at the right angle, my sword would reach its brain—or at least get close enough to it.
After ripping it open, it turned out that this small slit opened to take in air... In any case, I was here to discover the weakness of this type of monster, not to dissect and study its body.
All that time, Izel had been staring at me with a strange look on her face... perhaps she felt disgusted, but I didn’t care.
I turned and looked at her while shaking the blood off my sword. "So, what about having this for dinner?"
The moment I said that, her expression changed into complete disgust. "No... you can have all of it for yourself."
I raised an eyebrow. "Then do you have food or any supplies in your storage ring?"
She sighed. "No, I barely have anything... All the snacks I was carrying were used up in the ruins... even the water."
"It’s not like I knew things would end up like this to carry supplies in my ring."
I stared at her calmly. "Then what do you have in your storage ring?"
Izel hesitated a little before answering, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Just some clothes... and essence stones with a few other simple things."
Well, what did I expect from a noble?
I shook my head in disappointment as I returned the sword to my ring, but it seemed my reaction displeased her. She glared at me with burning eyes, crossing her arms. "Then what do you have?"
I raised an eyebrow. "And why should I tell you?"
Izel opened and closed her mouth several times as if trying to find the right word to curse me, but in the next moment, she seemed to change her tactic.
A smug smile appeared on her lips. "Come on, stop pretending to be cool. It’s obvious you don’t have anything useful either."
Ignoring her words, I turned toward the direction where I had seen the light and began moving again... There was nothing left to do here anyway.
And it seemed our short battle hadn’t attracted anything here so far.
"I’m talking to you. Stop ignoring me!" I looked at the source of the annoying voice beside me to find Izel still clinging to that topic.
I let out a tired breath. "What do you want now?"
Izel gritted her teeth. "I’m asking you what’s in your ring. If you don’t have anything useful, just say it... I won’t mock you... maybe."
She said her last words in a confident tone, as if she were sure I was a fool like her.
I smiled and raised my hand to show the storage ring on my finger. "Sorry to disappoint you, my lady. I have enough food and water here to last me several months, along with plenty of clothes and swords I stole from the temple... just ignore that last part."
Izel narrowed her eyes. "You’re lying, right? Who would carry months of food everywhere along with an arsenal of weapons?"
Well, she kind of had a point.
But I wasn’t lying. I truly had plenty of food and everything needed to survive.
Why did I carry all that with me everywhere?
Of course, to be ready for any emergency I might find myself in... Who knew? I could have ended up fleeing at any moment.
So after I had enough money, I changed my storage ring to a larger one and filled it with supplies in preparation for any grim future.
And it seemed my preparations hadn’t gone to waste... though I hadn’t expected things to end like this.
I smiled as I looked at Izel. "No, I’m not lying. And why would I?"
"The question is why you carry all that with you?" She seemed determined to know.
I shrugged. "Who knows when I’ll get hungry, so I carry plenty of food with me."
This time, Izel was the one who sighed in exhaustion. "Why do I even try to understand someone like you... But you’re not lying, right?"
"No," I answered simply.
With that, Izel fell silent, and so did I, and we continued on our way.
But it wasn’t long before the conversation resumed, and Izel was the one who started it. "So... you don’t mind... sharing some?" she spoke, her tone filled with hesitation.
"What is it?"
She seemed dissatisfied with my response. "You know what I mean... the supplies and food..."
Now I understood what she was getting at. "Sorry... but I really do mind."
I looked at her with some amusement. "Ha, I told you earlier to take some meat from that worm, but you refused in disgust like a delicate princess."
Izel gritted her teeth. "Do you want me to eat that thing while you enjoy good food?"
It was true that we were Awakened and could endure hunger better than ordinary humans, but we also consumed a lot of energy, so our bodies needed food and water constantly.
And it seemed she was starting to feel hungry.
I shrugged indifferently. "Well, the food is mine... so I’ll do what I want with it... Besides, the supplies that should last me several months won’t even last two if I share them with you and the others."
"How selfish! You see that we’re in this together, and you still refuse to cooperate... I’m even forcing myself to act kindly toward you."
I almost laughed. "Well, thank you for that, but I still don’t see how that benefits me in any way... unless you give me something in return."
Izel stared at me in disbelief, and it seemed she was still trying hard to act with some respect. "What do you want?" Her tone was sharp, as if she wouldn’t hesitate to stab me when the chance arose.
"It’s simple... just money. I’ll sell you food and water in exchange for points."
She raised an eyebrow. "Are you insane? We’re here in this place, and you’re thinking about money... And how am I even supposed to transfer points to you here?"
"You can pay when we return."
Izel exhaled sharply. "You’re the strangest and most foolish person I know... but I agree."
I nodded. "Then, ten thousand for each bottle of water, and ten thousand for each meal."
If there had been anything in her mouth, she would have spat it at me now. "Ten thousand for a bottle of water? Will it make me live forever?"
"Hey, don’t complain, or I’ll raise the price... Besides, you’re a noble and can afford a few million easily." At those words, she fell completely silent.
She seemed to think for a moment before replying, "Fine, I agree." I smiled... This was the fastest way to get rich; buy something and sell it at many times its price at the right time.
I knew it would end with me sharing my supplies eventually, so I decided to take a little advantage of it and earn some money.
While I was thinking about the money Izel would owe me, I felt a presence enter the range of my senses... another worm.
I drew my swords. "I think we should postpone the trade. There’s a new guest coming toward us."
As soon as I said that, the sand began to tremble around us, and with every passing moment, the shaking intensified.
Then another worm appeared and rose above the sand, revealing its circular jaw as it headed straight toward us.
"Izel, draw its attention!"
The moment I said that, Izel responded, gathering flames in her hand before launching them directly into the worm’s mouth.
At the same time, Izel turned and moved away from me, and the worm followed her.
As for me, I rushed toward its massive body, and in the next moment, I was beside it.
I jumped, my feet landing on its hardened skin, and without wasting any time, I moved toward the location of that slit at its front while it was still trying to swallow Izel.
But it seemed the worm noticed I had climbed onto its body, and in the next moment, it abandoned the chase and began diving into the sand.
The worm’s head entered first, then the rest of its body followed, and before the opening on its head disappeared beneath the sand, I reached above it and stabbed into it.
My sword plunged inside the worm, and I was dragged into the sand along with it.
The grains tore at my skin, entered my ears and nose, and blinded my eyes.
But I didn’t let go of the sword. I pushed it in deeper, and in the next moment, the worm changed direction and headed upward, emerging from the sand.
Half of its upper body rose above the sand, and it began shaking violently to throw me off.
But I refused to let go of the sword and even stabbed my other sword into it.
Essence surged from my body, flowing into the swords and condensing there.
When I judged it was enough, I released it into its body—toward where the brain was located.
With one final screech, the worm’s body fell lifeless onto the sand, scattering it everywhere.
When I saw that, I pulled out my swords while standing on the worm’s body, healing the torn skin from diving through the sand.
"That was very fast."
But the moment I said that, I felt another presence heading toward us.
I looked at Izel as she approached.
"Get ready... there is more coming."