Though they'd accomplished defeating the monsters, Malic had yet to grab the heart of the Panthera serpentes when he had dropped from mid-air into Nikolai's manifested hand.
Had he been anyone else, perhaps the remaining survivors would have already made a move on his prey.
But they didn't.
The ones who still stood—who stayed at shore with heaving breaths either because they had struggled with their own prey, or because of sheer fear—just watched, their gazes sharp as they followed his every move.
Months after the beginning of the end, when he'd already established his reputation as the world's hero, the people had gotten to understand just how difficult it would be to cross him. Though he wouldn't resort to murdering an innocent, he had no compunctions in dealing with people who got in his way.
All human beings had the fate of dying in the end, apocalypse or no. If anything, he found it to be a mercy to die so swiftly by sword instead of becoming food for monsters, chewed up and grinded into chunks of meat between sharp teeth.
It took reaching the shore for him to realize that he was being followed, and not by one of those envious gazes.
He turned around.
"What are you doing?"
Nikolai cocked his head to one side, having halted in his walk right after him. "We're going to get its heart, aren't we?"
"You think you'd be of any help?"
Nikolai held out his hand to him, as if asking for something. "Yes."
There was a moment's pause before Malic sighed, taking Nikolai's hand in his own. So he was the man's escort now? He had Danseur's Flight as a skill, yes, but it wasn't like he provided his services so freely. "You just got healed, and you'd dare to use another skill?"
"The difference is—ah!"
Malic held in a laugh. He'd been rough in pulling Nikolai in by the hip, true, but did it deserve that much of a reaction? "You're sensitive," he said, pulling a blank face in spite of the incredulous glare Nikolai was throwing his way. "You should fix that."
[ Danseur's Flight Lv. 93 has been activated! ]
"Sensi—! I'm not!" Nikolai hissed, clinging with both arms around his neck as they flew up towards the fallen monster's body. Once they landed, he said even more fervently, "You could have given me a warning! I thought holding hands would be enough for us both to fly!"
He squeezed the hand he had around Nikolai's hip, and bit back another laugh when the man squeaked. He didn't bother to hold on when he was promptly pushed away. The reactions that he got so far were satisfying enough as is, considering the man's odd confidence while talking to him.
"It is," he said.
Nikolai looked back at him. "Huh?"
"Just the hand is enough."
"Eh? Then what—"
Malic shook his head. "More importantly, what skill did you plan on using to get the monster's heart?"
The man did not look at all appeased at his clear avoidance of his question, though he chose to let it go regardless. "I have a skill…well, it's a bit difficult to explain for non-artists. I'll just show you."
[ Panel Cut Lv. 34 has been activated! ]
A huge, comic-like panel was drawn into the air in front of Nikolai, before he expanded it and sent it forward onto the monster's body. They walked, and walked, following after the floating panel, until—
"Here."
When Malic looked into the panel as it stopped in front of a portion of the monster's body, he ended up freezing in place for a moment.
Within the previously empty square was an image of the creature's blood and guts, as well as its now-frozen heart. It was as if it were a high-quality x-ray into the monster's anatomy, revealing the treasure they'd need instead of having to dig too hard or too deep.
He readied his sword. "Then, I'll cut it open."
"No need for that."
Malic frowned, his sword pausing as he held it mid-swing. "What?"
"I'll cut it for us."
That was all the warning Malic got when Nikolai sent that same panel down, literally cutting into the creature's body until the heart was forced out through the space between those four corners. Blood spilled every which way as the panel went down, some of it even splattering upon Nikolai's sneakers, though the man didn't seem to care when he picked the heart up and held it over to him.
He shook his head. He himself didn't mind the blood given what he's had to go through already, but Nikolai clearly did most of the work here. He said, "Put it in your inventory. You did most of the work in getting it."
"You were the one who actually killed the beast, though."
"With your assistance. It would be remiss of me to act like you didn't just use your own skill to get the creature's heart either." He glared when Nikolai began to open his mouth to refute again. "Keep it or I'll kill you, Nikolai."
"...so demanding."
Nikolai put the heart into his inventory.
"The heart is a reward because it works as a long-lasting healing potion when crushed and grinded down to its juices," Nikolai bothered to explain as they walked down the creature's body. He was still frowning as he spoke. "It could make two at most, so I wonder about your confidence in giving it to me."
"I wonder how you have the bravery to mouth off against me when I'm the one who has a sword as well."
"You wouldn't kill me, though."
Malic cocked an eyebrow. "Do you not watch the news? I'm called the world's hero, but I'm just as much a murderer in some other people's eyes."
"I know. I don't care."
Malic observed those eyes of his. So full of intent and belief, so determined even while barely meeting his gaze, as if he hadn't just admitted to not caring that the man in front of him could potentially murder him. "You're that confident I won't kill you?"
"Well, yes. You don't kill people without a good reason, after all."
He barked out a laugh at that. A good reason? Since when was there a good reason to kill someone? For all that he gave out death threats as if it were commonplace, be it with his friends or the media, he himself knew how heavy the weight of murder was. Even if the other person was a heinous criminal, even if they had the most minor of crimes, a life was a life.
He was no judge or jury to pass judgment on people, and yet, he still made the choice to do so.
"You keep acting like you know me." Nikolai's lip twitched and he looked away, letting Malic know that he had, perhaps, hit somewhere a little too close to home. "Did we know each other, before all of this? You may as well tell me so I don't have to strangle it out of you."
"Such violence…one would think you're a middle-schooler with the way you talk."
"Your arguments are more befitting of a middle-schooler than my own words."
"Maybe because I never learned to grow up. What can you do?"
It was strange, how easy this was. Even acknowledging Rhiannon as a friend took a while, while Renato was a relatively easier case. Yet talking with this man that he'd only known for a day felt like bantering with a long-time friend.
When Malic offered a hand, Nikolai made sure to take it while keeping his distance.
His lips twitched upward into a smirk. For a man who'd blushed from shame at having been outed on his personal interest in him, it was entertaining to see him acting like a little hip-holding was a major offense.
But then, he did call him sensitive.
"Do you think we'll need to get a few more to have one for each of us?"
Ji-yeong took to asking her question the moment they'd landed on the ground. Everyone else seemed to be thinking the same thing, the way they eyed the ocean shores filled with floating monster corpses. There were none left for them to kill even if they wanted to, and the delay in announcement from their usual status window made it all the more curious.
But then, Malic found something else more curious.
It was the fact that Nikolai didn't look quite as bothered as the rest. There was no blood dripping from his nose either; it seemed even his Panel Cut skill wasn't so dangerous that he'd have a nosebleed again, though the thing had been small in comparison to the multiple giant hands he'd summoned that it made sense the impact would be weaker.
He looked like he was waiting. Expectant, almost.
Then—
[ You have obtained 400 coins! ]
[ You have obtained 400 coins! ]
[ You have obtained 400 coins! ]
The status windows popped into existence like annoying, virus-riddled ads, floating up in a stack with its repetitive words. As if it wasn't bad enough that the reward announcements were delayed, they had to be bombarded with them like this in one go.
Bzzt.
[ Apologies for the delay, hero! But it seems like you succeeded pretty well, even without me? ]
He closed his eyes.
Even worse was this grating, tinny, child-like voice. The status window coming up separately from what the others were seeing, colored red to let him know that this was a direct message rather than a public announcement.
[ Hey, you can't ignore me, you know? I'm the reason you have so many cheats in the first place..! ]
This damn System that started everything.