There was no friendship in slums, only survival through any means. There was not a single person in the world who cared whether Noah died or survived.
But Arthur called him a friend and proved that he meant it. No one in their sane mind would sacrifice themselves to save a stranger they just met a few days ago.
Noah rubbed his eyes and asked, "Why did you save me?"
"Bro! Don't give me those questions like you're some jade beauty saved by the main character. Wait! Don't tell me you fell for me? Ahem! I'm sorry, but my girlfriend wouldn't allow this!"
The ground below Noah cracked slightly as he punched it. His lips twitched as he thought, 'Maybe I really should let this bastard die! The world would be free of this burden!'
Arthur felt very happy seeing his friend's expression. Even in his past life, this was his favorite hobby as even after years of their friendship, Noah still got irritated by his nonsense.
"You have short-term memory or what?" Arthur chuckled. "Did you forget about my plan of gathering a team already? Since you are in my team, I need to save you too."
"I have never seen anyone as stupid as you," Noah scoffed. "I don't even get why you are so fixated on gathering this mythical team."
"Because I can't survive alone," Arthur shrugged. "The world is dying, my friend, and you can't survive alone in this hell. Unless you are willing to sacrifice yourself for others, don't expect others to sacrifice themselves for you."
Raising his hand before him, Arthur continued, "If I had not put my life on the line, you would have abandoned me to drown in the lake."
Light sparkles formed before him as a small duct tape appeared in his hand. He smiled and looked at the shimmering Runes before his eyes.
[Name - Etherpatch]
[Tier - 1]
[Type: Healing Artifact]
[Durability - 15 uses remaining]
[Description - A versatile roll of silver tape infused with basic healing properties. Created by weaving Ether into adhesive material, it is ideal for emergency treatment in the field.]
It was an Artifact they had gotten after killing a monstrous tree and was one of the three Artifacts Arthur had, along with his Abyssal Destroyer and the dagger he had given to Noah.
He passed the tape to Noah, who just took it absentmindedly. There was so much going on in his mind, and he couldn't find an answer to them. What should he do?
As much as Noah wanted to deny it, he knew Arthur's actions had touched something he had always longed for. Unfortunately, his upbringing had made his heart so hard that he was having problems accepting selfless kindness.
His heart wished for it to be true, that there was someone who cared about him. Someone who would remember him if he died. He had always wanted someone like this, but in the slums, where even their survival wasn't guaranteed, how could he find such people?
Even if he had met some people like that, he had most likely shoved them away from him with his personality. Arthur's life-sacrificing act had much more impact on him than he was admitting.
Noah wanted their friendship to continue and maybe hoped to have such a cohort that Arthur spoke of. Wouldn't it be nice having someone to back you up?
Somehow, Noah couldn't see himself doing that, but he still wanted to try at least. The world had already forsaken him, so why not take one more risk and decide to trust Arthur on this?
The temptations were strong, but years of trauma couldn't easily be defeated, so he sighed and said, "You will have to fight alone. I am not risking myself for a stranger."
Noah expected many reactions from Arthur—anger, disappointment, and many more. So, he raised his head to see what Arthur was showing. And what he saw left his heart shaken.
Arthur showed none of the emotions he expected and simply smiled, "While it is a pity, I can understand. I hope you have a good life ahead of you."
Saying that, he stood up and began to walk away, not once looking back at the man he had put his life at risk for. The more Noah looked at Arthur, the more fake he seemed.
Why wouldn't he? He was everything that Noah considered to be a myth. There was no way he could accept the fact that Arthur wasn't pretending. However, the scene where Arthur almost died flashed through his eyes.
Gritting his teeth, Noah asked, "Why are you like this?"
Arthur stopped in his tracks and turned around. With a face full of confusion, he asked, "What do you mean?"
"I am talking about your nonchalance over everything. We agreed to be a team, and now I am betraying you even though you saved my life. Don't you feel anything?" Noah shouted, forgetting everything about where they were.
In response, Arthur just smiled warmly at him and said, not losing his composure for even a moment, "You really don't understand, do you?"
He closed in on Noah, who was a mess from his conflicted emotions, and crouched near him, "Tell me, what is the first thing I said about our cohort?"
"You didn't say anything," Noah replied, a little taken aback by how calm and composed Arthur was, despite him being so unreasonable.
"Haha, I may have forgotten then," Arthur laughed. "Well, I will repeat it then. The trust I will have in my cohort will be selfless. I don't expect others to give up their lives for me or anyone. What I want is just that you accept my trust and put your trust in me."
Then he suddenly noticed something and chuckled, "Wait! That is being selfish. Anyways, you understand now. You are a part of my cohort, and I will do my best to keep you safe and provide you the best things the world has to offer. That is something I have decided, and I will see it through."
Sitting down, he continued, "As for you betraying me? I won't say so, as I never asked you to give me your life. Don't feel burdened."
The more Arthur spoke, the worse Noah felt as if someone was attacking some walls inside him. He looked down and asked, "Why me? Why did you choose me?"