Chapter 32- The Light Of Day
It didn't take a long time for Victor to start feeling cold in his back. Now that he was aware of the poison, his mind started getting a little foggy and his vision was growing a little weaker. The change was very subtle and could even be ignored considering he was as exhausted as he was.
But, knowing that something was threatening to turn him into a crazed beast made his senses more… sensitive.
'Is this the effect of the poison? I don't think it reached my brain yet.' He thought to himself. He couldn't see what Nameless was doing or if her idea was even working, but he remained silent and waited.
He knew that his life was on the line, but for some reason, he wasn't nervous or scared. Perhaps it hasn't sunk in yet, or maybe the confidence Nameless portrayed has reached him. Either way, his heart was beating very calmly.
A few minutes passed in silence, the coldness in his back was growing more prominent for Victor. Meanwhile, the girl continued sucking his blood endlessly.
Eventually, when he was about to ask what was happening, Nameless suddenly pulled her fangs out before she fell to the ground, coughing and vomiting. Looking back, Victor saw a huge amount of blue blood coming out of her mouth as she coughed her lungs out.
"Hey, are you ok?" He asked with a frown.
"... I'm… Cough! Fine, I almost swallowed some of the blood." She said as she held her throat. "I think I have gotten rid of all the poison. You should be fine." Then, she fell to the ground, completely spent.
Victor instinctively looked over his shoulder. Apart from some blood stains and the trace of two fangs, he didn't see any blue veins. That made him exhale a small breath of relief. 'She really did it, huh.'
To think that the girl's idea succeeded was quite impressive. He knew that sucking the blood out was a very good way of getting rid of poison, but he didn't think it would be to this extent.
That was when Victor was hit with the second realization. 'What if I didn't get her out of that cage? I would've been long dead by those spiders.' Looking at her, his eyes flashed with a weird glint. 'They would've already killed me. Her eyes and blood-sucking fangs saved my life.'
It felt rather funny, how that simple decision of getting her out and even going as far as to put his life at risk to bring her with him would immediately reward him back by saving his life. Victor was certain that if Nameless wasn't there, he would've never made it out of that ship alive.
"... I appreciate your help. I would've been dead if you didn't do this." Shaking his head, the boy said in a calm tone.
Nameless' eyes shifted to look at Victor with a surprised look on her face. She didn't expect him to show gratitude considering how stoic he seemed. But, she was certain she didn't hate that at all.
"No problem. I was just repaying your kindness."
"... Mm." Humming quietly, he approached her and crouched down before he extended his hand. "I'm Victor, by the way. I didn't introduce myself properly."
The girl blinked a few times before she nodded. "I'm… I have no name." She realized the problem almost immediately.
"Well, can I call you Nameless from now on?" He asked. "Very original, and quite easy to remember, I dare say."
"That's fine." She nodded as she finally extended her hand and shook his. "Nice to meet you, Victor, and thanks for helping me. I won't forget your kindness for as long as I live."
Staring into his eyes, she spoke in a serious tone. Even though it felt really weird to say such a thing to a human, this particular human seemed to be completely different from the ones she knew of. He had shown her so many weird things that she didn't even think humans had.
'I thought they were all evil bastards.' She squinted her eyes. 'Maybe he's also an evil bastard that is just a tad bit smarter than the other humans. But…'
Even that thought didn't feel logical. As cold and distant as Victor seemed to be, Nameless didn't get that feeling from him. That disgusting feeling she gets whenever she looks at any human.
That was what intrigued her about him for the most part and what also convinced her that he might be different.
"You've already paid me back." He said as he stood up again and walked away. "I think we can agree that we both made good use of one another."
Then, he walked inside the cockpit, leaving Nameless alone. His words resonated in her head a few times as she dazedly stared into the distance.
"Made good use of one another… Huh." She muttered. Nobody knew what was going through her head at that moment.
***
With that, the boat continued its trip through the treacherous stretch of ocean. The giant waves posed some problems for them. But, it wasn't anything Victor could deal with. Using his knowledge, he was able to navigate it to the best of his ability, avoiding danger as much as he could.
It was very difficult, but it wasn't something he couldn't do. The fact that the boat was still in good shape helped a lot. The engine wasn't ruined by the water which gave Victor a lot of relief.
Eventually, the duo saw the light at the end of the tunnel of darkness. The endless storm seemed to have an end and they had reached it after long hours and a lot of work, the end was in the distance.
Standing near the front of the boat, he looked at the sun rays with a calm expression. The wind hit face and yet he felt quite good.
"This was unnecessarily hard." He muttered. "But, that was an interesting experience."
Even though he almost died a few times in the span of an hour, Victor felt more alive than ever during that time. It's something he had forgotten about a long time ago. He had lived a long time with a cold heart and a numb mind that didn't distinguish between death and life.
Yet, he had gained some of that feeling back after seeing that terrifying monster and meeting Nameless.
'If everything is going to be like this… I might've underestimated this world, in all kinds of ways.' Without realizing it, a cold smile appeared on his face. Just imagining what was waiting for him in the future gave him a sense of thrill.
Even if it was dangerous, and even if he was certainly going to risk it a lot, he was certain that he was going to have fun doing it. That was his ultimate goal, to find a purpose, something that he likes doing.
"Hey, Nameless." He suddenly called for the girl not that far away from him. Nameless was completely silent the entire time, seemingly deep in thought.
"Hm?"
"Say, do you have any idea what's the name of the nearest island from here?" He asked.
So far, the only information Victor had about the island they were heading to was that it was inhabited by people and that something big was going to happen on it two weeks from now. So, he decided to ask Nameless since there was a chance she knew something he didn't know.
"Hmm, it's name is 'Gikan'. I have been there before." She said.
"Gikan, huh…" Victor muttered. "Is there anything special about this island?"
"Special? Like what?" She asked.
"... No, nothing particular. I was wondering if it had anything that differentiated it from any other island in this archipelago."
Thinking for a moment, Nameless snapped her finger. "It's the biggest island in this area… Uh, it is quite known as a tourist destination for the northern region of the upper continent." She said.
'Upper continent… I think the map mentioned that name. I can't remember the name of the other continents. I will need to check the map more thoroughly after we reach the destination.' He mused.
"That's it? Nothing else?" He asked.
"No, nothing else. Though, we might find the island bustling with more people than usual." She said.
"Why?" Victor turned around and faced her with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, I have heard bits and pieces of rumors before I got captured. It seems this year's 'Admission Rune' might appear on that island." She said. "Though, I don't know if that's the case. Almost everyone is headed there. I was also heading there before I got captured."
"Hold on a second, 'Admission Rune'? What's an Admission Rune?" Victor asked with a frown.
As he looked at the girl, waiting for an answer, Victor still felt deep within him, almost for certain… That what the God was talking about had just been mentioned.
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