Chapter 131 The sound of the Long River Shattering Star sword piercing flesh was utterly silent...

The sound of a sword piercing flesh was utterly silent; all that could be heard was the roar of a heart and blood vessels.

Eleanor's smile was fleeting; the pure, intense emotion brought about by killing and the power of the strong flashed through her mind for only a moment before being replaced by heavier and more fervent thoughts.

For the sake of peace in these waters, I must slay you here.

Sleep peacefully, sea monsters.

The raging flames were extinguished in an instant, and what reignited was a chilling killing intent that sent shivers down the dragon's spine.

"Your talent is truly remarkable... Fortunately, you work very hard."

Not only Andra, but every swordsmanship teacher she consulted said something similar.

Even in her previous life, when she possessed superhuman perception, she didn't initially display any particularly impressive abilities.

She was always a step behind, hesitant when drawing her sword, unable to "see" her opponent's trajectory, and unsure how to retaliate.

The princess's slow reaction was "adorable"—was she really unable to see clearly?

No, with superhuman perception, he became very proficient after years of practice.

However, she was still not fast enough, not decisive enough.

Even after so many years of training, possessing brute strength even greater than Andra's is still the same.

She never enjoyed fighting.

The battle was cruel and unpleasant; it left an indelible mark on the heart that has never healed.

But the feeling right now—at this moment—

The princess's face was flushed crimson, and her amber eyes shone brightly as blood splattered.

Her hands gripped the sword hilt tightly, drawing one, two, three crescent-shaped lines through the dragon's layers of wounds.

"Hooohoohoohoohoohoo—"

It was impossible to tell whether it was a dragon or a princess roaring.

Sword light flashed like a ribbon, blood churned, and the girl's figure appeared and disappeared amidst the dragon's return.

"Eleanor!" Andra stepped onto the small boat without hesitation and leaped over the tail that the sea monster was about to paddle away.

The dragon struggled in excruciating pain and instinctively darted away.

It was in pain all over its body and didn't notice that another person had leaped onto its badly injured tail.

Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!

In the midst of the pain, it finally had a sudden idea: drag that damned monster into the sea and drown it!

Gesha.

Before the dragon sank, a tremendous force twisted open its reverse scale, followed by the icy, snow-white blade of a sword.

"Awoooooo!"

The swordsman's eyes were calm as still water, but his heart was pounding.

Eleanor spun around, stretching the wound, as countless thoughts raced through her mind: she had to kill the dragon immediately; it was too fast, as fast as flying.

If this continues, who knows where it will take her? She might even drown in the deep sea.

"Huff...huff."

She took a deep breath, her chest heaving, and a slight smile finally appeared on her face.

Fortunately, she has the ability to travel back in time. I wonder what Andra was feeling when she fought the dragon in the sea back then...

"call......"

Another breath came from behind, and Eleanor felt a shiver run down her spine.

Her hands didn't stop moving, but she couldn't help turning around to look again—

The young man's long, golden-red hair was in harmony with the storm, blending seamlessly with her jet-black hair.

The blood on their faces mingled with the seawater in the gale, and then smiles appeared on their faces.

Crack!

The longsword in Andra's hand sliced ​​into the huge wound she had made, and the young man twisted with her, the two spinning in opposite directions as if dancing together.

Whoosh—

The sea wind howled, and the dragon's mournful roar was swallowed up by the whirlpools.

They lost their balance in the violent jolts and fell one after the other onto the water.

"——"

"——"

They reached out their hands at the same time, but crossed paths before calling out each other's names.

Thump.

Thump!

The icy seawater, colder than night and winter, swept over Andra's mouth and nose.

Guh.

She instinctively held her breath, then suddenly opened her eyes in the seawater, braving the strong fishy smell to search for that one and only figure.

It's so dark underwater!

Andra looked up at the water's surface as he remembered it, but saw no light.

It seems that blood and storm have completely obscured the sunlight.

Thump, thump thump.

A rapid heartbeat, which should have been a very "interesting" situation, actually made my heart ache.

Eleanor...Eleanor!

"Eleanor...!"

A hoarse voice rang in her ears, almost indistinguishable from her own.

Andra ignored the noise in her head and swam quickly in the seawater.

We must surface as soon as possible... The sea monster's body was cut off at the last moment, and a section should be floating on the surface.

As long as, as long as you hold on to that thing tightly during the storm—

The will to survive surged within her, but Andra did not surface immediately; she was still searching for Eleanor.

Where is Eleanor?

If she sinks too, there will be no way to save her once she floats to the surface.

"Eleanor—Eleanor!"

The noise in his mind continued to howl, but Andra ignored it, preoccupied only with searching for his lover.

Crack!

A sharp pain suddenly came from below.

She couldn't see what was in the darkness, but she could feel the biting sensation: Damn it, another monster was lurking underwater and had bitten her ankle!

...That wasn't another monster, but the severed head of a dragon.

The single eye embedded in it had been completely extinguished, and even some of its teeth had been knocked out by Eleanor with her sword during the recent struggle.

But it was, after all, a dragon-like monster, and its strong vitality and unwillingness to accept defeat made it stubbornly bite one of the murderers even as death approached.

It's it...it's definitely it...!

Driven by intense hatred, the head dragged Andra's body into the deep sea, as the invisible, colorless ship of death approached them along the river of blood.

Countless memories float in the river; they all happened, only a small part of them remains unresolved.

It killed me!

In its final moments, the dragon finally realized, "Oh—it has killed me more than once?"

Haha, hahaha, I see!

The monster wanted to laugh, wanted to roar to the sky; it loosened its teeth slightly, but still refused to let them go.

Then let's die together!

The figure was dragged by the enormous head, falling from the deep sea into a ceaselessly flowing, boundless river.

Thump.

Andra felt himself emerge from the icy seawater, surrounded by warm currents.

I'm so tired, I want to sleep.

Her eyelids grew heavy, but she kept her eyes open, searching for Eleanor's figure amidst the boundless starry sky and blood.

"Eleanor...don't leave me!"

The voice behind me was getting closer and closer... No, it was no longer just a voice!

Andra's eyes widened suddenly as she realized something had wrapped around her neck, or worse—deep into her spinal cord!

That's another Andra.

Intuition, or perhaps inspiration, told her the right answer.

An Andra, completely different from "you," clung tightly to "your" body.

More than one.

There is far more than one.

The first person to grab her was a madman.

Madness, inability to communicate, and an intense obsession that can even distort the "truth".

[“My dearest princess is not dead—she is not dead!! She is my…my Angie…”]

The soul, constructed from fragments of madness, spoke in a pitiful tone, yet no one would consider her pitiful.

Thick, pungent blood mingled with the river of blood as she pressed forward, her eyes fixed only on herself and a shattered figure.

"Give me your body."

How could that be!

How could I... I'm giving it to you!

Andra struggled desperately, his eyes bloodshot, his hands rising frantically in the river of blood.

The waves propelled her forward, and more and more "Andra" appeared in her fragmented memories and fleeting "reality".

Some "Andra" looked indifferent, some "Andra" were disdainful, and some "Andra" deliberately kept their distance...

However, every "Andra" who pounced on her was filled with an extraordinary obsession.

"Why did she kill me! Why!!!"

"She didn't kill me... I killed her."

"No, no, I didn't kill her, I didn't kill her!"

Three figures overlapped, their souls filled with impurities, constantly exchanging blood and wailing as they convulsed.

What exactly is it...?

Andra once thought she was fearless, but not only were there tears and fear in those fragmented memories, she was also tearing out a strange and great terror from her multiple "selves".

I want to understand.

No, I absolutely do not want to understand these things!

"Andra... Andra!"

A ray of light shone down from the sky, illuminating the stars.

The light was soft yet radiant, dispelling the blood mist and the opaque past and future.

It's Eleanor.

"Eleanor..."

"Eleanor!"

【"Eleanor—"

Andra's smile froze completely the moment it appeared.

But she couldn't pull her hand away; her instincts, reason, and all her emotions sustained her... She reached out with them toward the thin, transparent ray of light, like a spider's silk.

"Andra, hold me tight!"

A pair of hands pierced the darkness and tightly embraced the young man's shoulders.

Andra felt the deepest shackle in his spinal cord being released.

...Andra let go, not because she wanted to let "me" go, but because she couldn't help but open her arms to Eleanor.

That was something she—that madwoman—couldn't resist at all.

Whoosh, whoosh.

But another force came rushing in, gripping her neck tightly and drilling into the depths of her soul.

"Ugh!" Andra cried out in pain, his consciousness plunging into a state of chaos, but his hands still reached out towards the starry sky.

......

Andra, don't let go, please don't let go!

Eleanor's face was covered in seawater as she prayed desperately in her heart. She was incredibly grateful that her body in this life was full of strength, allowing her to pull Andra to the surface.

Finally, she grabbed onto a floating section of the dragon's body and successfully surfaced.

"Guha—"

Eleanor spat out a mouthful of seawater, tossed Andra aside, draped herself over the serpentine corpse, pressed on her abdomen, and squeezed out a large glob of seawater mixed with blood.

They drifted in the storm, clutching the mangled remains of the dragon, with no ships in sight.

Andra was sometimes awake and sometimes asleep, and most of the time she needed to be pulled and supported to prevent her from slipping into the water.

They had no food or fresh water, and when they were hungry or thirsty, they could only eat the dragon and use its blood to moisten their throats.

I don't know how much time has passed, maybe only three days, maybe five.

She kept her eyes glued to the pendant, observing the sunrise and sunset, ready to rewind at any moment.

After a long journey, Eleanor finally spotted land, or more precisely, a narrow island.

Luck was on their side; the waves swept the dragon's corpse toward the island, where it landed on the beach with a splash.

"Cough cough cough..."

Eleanor dragged the unconscious Andra to the woods on the shore, where she fell into a deep sleep, using a rock as a pillow.

Rustling.

A moment later, the golden-red-haired youth opened her eyes. She slowly sat up, her eyes bloodshot.