Chapter 57 - A Rage Unlike Ever

A dozen soldiers loitered near the tree line, their swords catching the sun with a glint that mirrored their leers.

Their armor hung loose, scuffed and dusty—not with the honor of war, but with the grime of chasing terrified women through thickets. There was no formation, no discipline in their stance. Just laughter. Smug, filthy laughter.

One of them, tall with greasy hair slicked back and dried blood crusted on his cheek, scratched lazily at his scalp, the edge of his blade resting on his shoulder like it weighed nothing.

"Tch... we were just having some fun with those beauties," he muttered, his voice coarse. "Break them a bit, soften them up. Then maybe... see how much they can beg."

The one beside him chuckled, dragging the tip of his sword in lazy arcs across the dirt. "They should have cracked by now. They’ve got fight, I’ll give them that."

Another spat onto the ground, stepping forward. "But now... we’ve got to gut a rat first. One sorry bastard who thought playing hero was a good idea."

He grinned, lifting his blade. "I guess we clean this up quickly, then get back to finishing the party."

They moved with arrogance, no tension in their shoulders, no urgency in their steps. Confidence was a disease in their blood.

That’s when they saw him.

Vex.

Standing alone at the edge of the porch. His back was to them, slightly hunched. One finger touched the wooden floor.

A small knife rested there—its metal dulled, but still slick with a smear of blood. Asperia’s.

> [Item Recognized: Kitchen Knife.]

[Added to Mirror Inventory: Price – 100 Gold Coins.]

[Do you wish to purchase?]

’Yeah.’

[Confirmed. Purchasing x2...]

SHRING—

Two blades blinked into his grip. Identical. Balanced. Coated in a faint green shimmer that pulsed along their edges, fueled by something personal. Not magic. Not malice.

Rage.

Vex didn’t say a word.

Didn’t blink.

Didn’t breathe.

He moved.

And the forest cracked beneath him.

His feet burst forward, ripping clumps of grass from the earth. Air split behind him in a sonic wake, leaves spinning up like a reversed gust of wind.

"Huh—?" The soldier in front froze mid-step, his sword twitching.

"You really think you’re some—?"

He never finished.

Vex leapt.

Not like a man—but like something uncaged. Something that had tasted blood before and wanted more. His body twisted mid-air, knives snapping forward as he spun.

No wasted motion.

Just murder.

SHUNK!

Two clean hits.

One blade buried in the soldier’s left eye. The other ripped through the side of his neck, silencing the half-formed insult.

Vex landed with barely a sound—crouched, calm.

Behind him, the man still stood for a beat. Then—

Snap.

A fine red line slid across his throat.

His head wobbled. Then toppled off like a fruit from a branch, thudding onto the earth. His body followed, collapsing like a sack of meat.

The forest went still.

The birds stopped singing.

The others watched, dumbstruck.

Vex rose to his feet.

Turned.

No expression on his face.

Only a storm in his eyes.

They screamed and charged.

A blade swung down—Vex didn’t dodge. He stepped inside. His knife sliced upward in one smooth stroke, carving through the attacker’s jaw and up through the skull. The man’s body dropped mid-swing, the sword still clutched in lifeless fingers.

Another lunged in from the left.

Vex twisted, ducking the swing. His blade plunged into the man’s thigh with a meaty snap, then dragged upward—tearing muscle and flesh. The soldier screamed as his guts spilled out, steaming in the morning air.

Two more came fast.

Vex spun between them—his blade flashed once, slashing clean across a face, peeling skin like wet bark. The second raised his sword—

CRACK!

A kick snapped his knee backward with a sickening pop. He screamed—until Vex drove the knife through his throat and jammed it deeper with his boot.

PAH!

Blood splattered up Vex’s leg.

One tried to bolt.

Didn’t make it far.

The knife hit between his shoulder blades. He collapsed, limbs twitching, breath rattling in his throat like a punctured bellows.

"P-Please—!"

The next soldier fell to his knees, sobbing, hands up.

Vex didn’t hesitate.

He slammed the man against a tree, jammed his blade beneath the ribs—and pulled.

Wet, red slop spilled out. A twitching, bloody heart dropped to the ground.

Vex never looked back.

It wasn’t a fight.

It was a cleansing.

When only two were left, their faces had turned pale beneath blood-smeared helmets. Their hands shook. One dropped his sword with a clatter.

"This... this isn’t real..."

It was.

Vex appeared behind them before the last syllable left their lips.

Two clean arcs.

Two heads hit the dirt.

Their bodies dropped a heartbeat later.

Thud... thud...

"SISTER! W-wait, you will be alright, please—!"

The desperate cry sliced through the silence like a blade of its own. Vex’s eyes flicked sideways, the bloodlust in them fading just enough to register the voice.

He turned—there, just beyond the crimson-stained grass, Maira knelt in the dirt, arms trembling as she held her sister. Mirea’s body lay limp across her lap, her face pale, her lips parted but unmoving. Her tunic clung to bloodied ribs, torn where she had taken the blow.

Vex moved instantly—his boots thudding against the soil, blood mist still dancing in the air behind him. He dropped beside them, breathing hard, his face still emotionless but his gaze locked onto the girl’s wounds.

Without a word, he opened the Mirror Shop with a flick of thought.

> [Item: Host’s Tail – 1000 Gold Coins each.]

[Do you wish to purchase x2?]

’Yes.’

Confirmed.

Splat.

Two thick, glistening tails materialized into his hands—scaled, deep green, slick with regenerative aura, still faintly twitching with residual life.

"Ahh... S-sir Vex, my sister... please..." Maira stammered, tears streaking her face, her voice shaking as she gripped Mirea closer, her entire body shielding the girl as if to ward off death itself. "T-they hurt her... those bastards barged in, and she—she jumped in front of them to protect me... even the princess tried to—"

"I know," Vex interrupted softly, his voice low, grounded.

"Calm down," he said, his eyes softening just a touch. "Feed her this. She’ll be alright."

[ wait, Host, don’t—]

’Shut up, system. Tell me after I save them.’

He handed her one of the twitching tails. Maira blinked at it, confused, hesitant.

"This... what is—?"

"Don’t ask. Just do it."

Vex turned to Asperia, her body lying nearby, her breath shallow but still present. Carefully, he knelt beside her, lifting her limp frame with one arm.

The glow of her royal armor was long gone—what remained was torn cloth, bruised skin, and a bloodied mouth half-open in unconsciousness.

She looked so small now.

So human.

He pressed the edge of the second tail gently between her lips.

Maira did the same for Mirea, still trembling, whispering soft prayers as she guided the tail to her sister’s mouth.

For a moment... nothing.

Then—

Twitch.

Mirea’s lips quivered.

Her breath hitched.

Then, almost imperceptibly, her mouth opened wider... and her teeth sank into the tail with a soft crunch. The same happened to Asperia—her jaw moved, slowly at first, like a memory reawakening muscle.

Their throats worked.

And then—

Snap

Both of their eyes flew open at once, wide and alive—Asperia’s a sharp yellow glow, Mirea’s a hazy emerald burning back into focus.