"Is anyone there?"

Was it the advice of a "human god"?

Since we're already here, a little longer won't hurt.

I plan to go in and check, and if no one's there, I'll head back quickly.

Thinking this, I arrived at the entrance of the small house.

"Um...is anyone home?"

"Huh... the door's open?"

A putrid smell wafted out. When I tried to knock on the wooden door, I noticed through the slightly ajar crack that it wasn't locked at all.

Peering through the crack in the door, it was very dark inside; even with the faint light of the sky, it was still difficult to see clearly.

"Um...is anyone home?"

I stuck my head in, but it was still pitch black, and no one responded.

"Shall we go in and take a look?"

With this in mind, I decided to push the door open and go in.

"Um... I'm coming in."

creak...

This is a very old wooden door. When you push it open, it makes an unpleasant creaking sound, which sounds particularly jarring in this quiet place.

After opening the entire door, I was able to see the layout inside by the dim light.

There were many chairs lying on the floor, and a counter?

Behind it were shelves-like structures, making it look like an abandoned shop.

"Is nobody here?"

The rat probably knocked over something, which caused the loud noise.

After looking around, I didn't find anything unusual.

Just as I was about to enter.

"Um……?"

It felt like the soles of my shoes were on something.

It didn't feel like stepping on a hard object; on the contrary, it felt like stepping on something sticky, which was quite unpleasant.

I brushed some of the sticky substance off the soles of my feet with my hands, and sure enough, it was that sticky, gooey stuff. I couldn't see exactly what it was, but it made me very uncomfortable.

"What exactly is it?"

I brought it close to my nose and smelled it. It had a very unpleasant odor. It wasn't the smell of this thing, but rather the room was already filled with a putrid smell, so I couldn't smell the thing at all.

In this situation, all you can do is put it in your mouth and taste it to see what it tastes like.

Of course, I don't have the courage. What if it's something disgusting? Then I might not be able to eat dinner.

Let's go!

Just as I was about to turn and leave, I finally discovered the source of the anomaly by the dim light.

"Um……?"

Among the broken chairs, there was something—a human hand!

However, no connection was found between the upper arm and the body; it was just a gruesome severed hand.

"This...this is..."

I think I understand now what that sticky substance was.

Looking in the direction of the severed hand, roughly where the sofa was, there was a pair of legs connected to the thighs, and the torso above was also there, but it was too dark to see clearly.

The only thing that's certain is that there was indeed a person sitting there.

Because the room was too dark, I didn't observe it very carefully.

I don't know if the severed hand belongs to that person, nor do I know if the person sitting there is alive.

However, I am certain of one thing.

It must have been an unauthorized intrusion into a place where it shouldn't have been.

Whether it was a deliberate arrangement by the "human god" or not, the light suddenly became a little brighter.

Following the faint light, the figure sitting on the sofa suddenly came into my view.

The legs are firmly attached to the body, and the rest of the torso is also intact.

However, the murder weapon appears to be something like an axe.

The man was actually split in two from head to toe!

"..."

My mind went blank. I felt like I had been tricked by the "human god." What a lousy "human god."

"..."

Before I could think any further, I knew the murderer was still lurking somewhere, watching me!

He practically took off running towards the door.

Thump...

But the door was suddenly slammed shut by something with a dull thud.

The entire room instantly became pitch black...

"Oh dear... we've been seen. Well, there's nothing we can do about it!"

It was a woman's voice.

The sound was low and indifferent, yet tinged with a hint of pleasure; its source was the direction of the main entrance.

I was only two body lengths away from the gate.

In other words, that woman is right next to me!

"..."

Before I could even gather my magic, a strong feeling of palpitation came over me.

This feeling was exactly the same as when I was in Goblin Slayer.

"It's a broken water flow."

Splash...

Immediately afterward, I quickly crouched down and hid behind the chair. The old chair was knocked apart by my impact, making a clattering sound.

"..."

I don't know the enemy's exact location, so Rashomon and the quagmire are useless at this point.

The only option is to use wind and fire magic to create a shockwave, but at such close range, one will also be heavily affected.

There was no time to think about it anymore.

That intense feeling of palpitations surged into my brain again.

Boom...

A huge blast of air exploded around me, and I felt something fly out from the side and hit the wall with a dull thud.

I didn't get the benefit at all; my whole body flew backward and crashed into the shelf. At this critical moment, I suddenly lost my hearing, leaving only a continuous buzzing sound.

"Giant Fireball"

Enemies that cut off the water flow are the most difficult to deal with, and I know that the shockwave from the explosion is far from enough.

As magic gathered, a giant fireball condensed in the air, illuminating the entire room.

That's when I got a good look at the woman.

Beneath his short hair are pointed ears—he's an elf!

She was wrapped in a tight, short leather jacket that didn't cover much of her body, revealing her bare, snow-white skin.

However, beneath that slender face was not the gentle and sweet appearance of Marta.

Although she is stunningly beautiful, she gives off a very alluring and dangerous vibe.

He was holding two broken blades, which didn't look like daggers. To be honest, I'd never seen such weapons before.

It appears to have a wide belly, with the blade curving forward, and is about 30 centimeters long. It's powerful enough to cleave a person open from head to toe; its power should not be underestimated. (This is a reference to the Nepalese kukri in CrossFire.)

"Is this the unknown risk that the gods and men mentioned?"

The woman in front of me gave me a tremendous sense of pressure, making me involuntarily swallow hard.

"Giant Fireball"

I unleashed a massive fireball at the woman, and I could see that she didn't dodge; the fireball struck her squarely.

"Did you get it?"

But I always felt that things wouldn't end so quickly. In other words, the danger that the "human god" specifically warned about wouldn't be resolved so easily.

Without the illumination of the large fireball, the entire room became dark again. In such an environment, it was impossible for me to keep gathering the large fireball to achieve the effect of lighting.

Cutting Water Flow is an assassination-type sword technique. For the elven woman in the present situation, it is like her main battlefield, which is too disadvantageous for her.

"We have to get out of the room!"

Having already memorized the location of the gate, we must seize this opportunity to bring the battle to the outside in one fell swoop.

I quickly ran towards the gate. Although the tables and chairs slowed me down considerably, I finally made it to the gate.

"Huh? Are you trying to run away?"

Just then, the woman's voice suddenly rang in my ears, only half a body length away.

"Oh no...it's too late..."

I could feel something slashing down at me, aimed right at my head!

Does it have to be like that corpse?

Being split open from head to toe looks incredibly painful, but no matter what kind of magic it is!

In the current situation, it's already too late!

"..."

My mind went blank, as if the area outside the door was no longer an alley, no longer a commoner's district, no longer the capital.

It doesn't belong to this world; it's the empty space where "humans and gods" reside!