"Looks like we forgot to bring a monster with us on our way here," Rose said, disappointed at having forgotten such an important thing.
The sky was already dark, with the moon high in the sky illuminating the vast forest, and the stars dancing brightly around it.
On the slope, Asher, Rose, and the three students were sitting in the felled trees, surrounding a blazing campfire in the middle.
"I'm going to go hunt a monster for us to eat," Victoria said, getting up and grabbing Alex's arm as well.
"Hey! Why do I have to go with you?" Alex cried, trying to escape her strong grip.
"Because I'm a girl, and you, as a gentleman and respectable man, wouldn't let me go alone in the dark woods and camp by myself, would you?" Victoria smiled as she pulled him by the arm toward the woods until they were out of sight. Alex could be heard screaming as she tried to escape her grip.
A little while later, Alex's voice faded from the vicinity, leaving the three of them strangely quiet and still. "Um, Mrs. Rose, I'm sorry if this is the wrong question, but could you tell me how all this happened? And who was that person there?" Nera asked, breaking the silence that had been quietly lingering between them.
Rose lifted her head, seemingly starting to remember bad things at this point.
"If you don't want to answer, that's okay..."
"No...it's not like that...it's just..." Rose was having a hard time telling Nera what really happened.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Rose, I can tell her everything you told me. You can go get some rest, you're tired." Suddenly, Asher spoke, giving Rose a meaningful look.
Rose smirked and stood up from her seat toward one of the tents in the back.
"So, Asher Darwin, the amnesiac, could you tell me what happened there?" After Rose left her tent, Nera turned to Asher, who was sitting opposite her and staring at her calmly.
"She was raped." It seemed like a simple statement coming from Asher's mouth, although it was something complex and not easily said. "..."
Nira's eyes opened wide when she heard what Asher had just said, but she tried to control her emotions and hear the whole story first.
"That's what she told me. When I met her, she wasn't wearing many clothes, and I saw that there were many bruises and wounds on her body, indicating what really happened," Asher said calmly, completely unaffected.
"But how? Did that person who was there have anything to do with it?" Naira asked as calmly as possible, trying to control her mixed emotions. Professor Rose had been like a second mother to her, especially to Naira. Although she was tyrannical and harsh, that was only with others.
To those close to her, she was extremely kind and compassionate, giving them many instructions to become stronger in controlling their bloodlines and skills.
So, hearing that such a heinous thing had happened to her had mixed feelings. On the one hand, she was angry, on the other, sad for her, and even more so, she couldn't understand how such a thing could have happened to someone of her strength.
"She was poisoned and brought to this place. When she woke up, there was a bracelet that prevented her from controlling her mana. It also manipulated her emotions, so she was still affected by it. When I asked her what happened, she didn't know how or what to say," Asher explained calmly, staring at Nira's mixed-emotional features in front of him.
'I thought she was a bit like me when I saw how calm and indifferent she acted, but it seems she's also like everyone else... She has feelings that she can express...' Asher thought gloomily.
'And how did she meet you?' Asher paused after hearing her question as he stared at her calmly. But inside, he was debating whether or not to tell her the truth. He doubted that if other people heard about this, they might question how Asher escaped and saved Rose. That's why he wanted someone else to back up his story, especially Rose. As an influential person in the city, all eyes would be on her, and they wouldn't pay much attention to what happened to Asher. Even if his family was powerful and influential, it was still understandable why they kidnapped him, unlike Rose, who was one of the most powerful people in the city. This is also one of the reasons he doesn't want to let her die. If she does, all eyes will turn to the survivor, Asher, and he might ask where he was while Rose was fighting. He certainly doesn't want to tell them about the bloodline, as its origins are still mysterious. From what he's seen so far, it must be extremely dangerous, and he doesn't want to divulge any information about it.
If he doesn't want any of this to happen, he has to manipulate the information and give them what they want, especially since Rose is still in a precarious state. When things calm down, he'll figure out how to deal with it to hide the fact that he disappeared and suddenly returned from a dungeon filled with Rank 3 monsters or higher.
He also doesn't want to tell anyone about Kira, as someone might discover his demonic identity and things would deteriorate for him. Asher has also become his follower and will not abandon him no matter what. This is how Asher treated his followers in the previous world, and this is how he will treat them in this world, especially since he knows they can never betray him.
"She saved me after I somehow escaped from them, and from there, I helped her unlock her bracelet somehow." Asher answered calmly and confidently.
"You weren't present at the fight, were you?" Nera asked suspiciously.
"No, when we were about to try to escape, that person you saw there attacked me with a strange attack that carried me away. But shortly after, I found a weapon there, and a system screen appeared in front of me showing me how to use it. I was able to return and use its effect on that person to save Miss Rose," Asher stated, confusing truth with falsehood. His expression was impassive, and he seemed completely honest, with no flaws in his words.
One of the system's general features was to display any information about a weapon, relic, or some popular monsters, but not all of them. Therefore, there was no indication that what Asher was saying was a lie.
"I see," Nera replied, calming down a bit and analyzing all the information she had just obtained.
'She seems intelligent and strong, but humans are humans... they let emotions cloud their judgment...' Asher thought, seeing that she was still reeling from what had happened with Rose, despite her attempts to hide it.
Asher had the ability to see some of her emotions through eye contact, a side effect of his Eyes of the Abyss, allowing him to see the emotions of those in front of him with just a glance.
'But even if she is, I won't allow her to sabotage my plans now...'
'Um, Miss Naira, if you would please leave this between us?' Asher suddenly said, breaking Naira out of her thoughts for a moment.
'What do you mean?' She didn't understand what he meant because this information was supposed to be revealed to the public after returning to the city, so she didn't understand what he meant by leaving it between them.
' "Even though I truly have lost my memory and don't remember anything, I felt sorry for Ms. Rose's suffering and didn't want everyone to know about it because it might affect her. I also don't think she'd be willing to open up about what happened here, given what she's been through." Asher paused, making a sad face.
"So I was hoping you could take over for her and tell them what happened here. Tell them what's in the cave and who kidnapped us, but leave what happened there out," Asher said, a slightly sad expression.
Nira stared at him for a few seconds before nodding quietly.
"I also didn't want to tell them all those details, so my friends wouldn't know. I was also thinking of ignoring the fact that you were the one who sent that person away, if you wanted to?" Asher's face lit up with a grateful smile at Naira after hearing that last sentence in particular.
He thought he'd have to deal with it, but if it was forgotten, it would definitely be better.
"I would really appreciate it if you did," Asher told her with a calm smile.
"I just thought someone with amnesia who had gone through such a traumatic experience wouldn't need the hassle of this," Nira replied in response to his thanks.
"Tell me, Mr. Darwin, don't you remember anything before your memory loss?" Nira asked with sudden interest.
"No... I don't remember anything. I even remembered my name from the system, and my powers were the same. I just woke up in the middle of the cave, not remembering anything, in the room full of corpses, until Lady Rose came and took me away," Asher replied calmly.
"So, by the way, your sudden thought of Lady Rose in such a caring way, it seems your memory loss has truly gone away and you've become much kinder than before," Nira said with a calm smile, trying to erase the gloomy and miserable atmosphere.
"Aww, wasn't I kind before I lost my memory?" Asher replied with a sarcastic smile.
"No, you weren't really kind. You were rather withdrawn and didn't talk much, but you were really talented."
"Why do you think I'm kinder now?" Asher asked. "I just think so," Nira answered vaguely.
As Asher was about to answer, he heard footsteps coming from their side. Then he saw Alex and Victoria returning with two giant bulls. Using his skill, he saw that they were third-rank.
'I guess I'm a bit weak in this body...'