Science/Magic

Half a day later, the group stopped in front of a swamp.

Countless trees grew in muddy waters that emitted a pungent odor. The intertwined trees seemed to extend until the horizon, stopping the sunlight from reaching the swamp. Due to it, the swamp was dark, damp, and dangerous.

"Bloed, you are not thinking about entering, right?" Liu Ying asked with a frown.

Bloed looked at Liu Ying with a bitter smile. "I don't want to go inside either, but I fear we don't have many choices."

The frown in Liu Ying's face became deeper. "Are you crazy? This is the death swamp! One of the most dangerous zones in the exiled lands! The exiled lands are paradise compared to it!"

"I know." Bloed nodded.

"Then–"

"But if we take a detour, we will need one week to leave the exiled lands. And the horde of monsters chasing after us only needs one day to catch up."

Liu Ying was stunned.

She looked at the dark and tenebrous swamp in front and then at the dry and hot sand behind and gulped a mouthful of saliva.

Bloed carried Tito on his arms and sighed. "We have two options. One, we go through the swamp and with a bit of luck, we go through it in one day and left the exiled lands, or we take a detour and are chased for thousands of monsters for seven days. Tell me, what do you think is the best option?"

Liu Ying looked at the sky before heaving a big deep sigh.

"I just hope that the crocodiles are not very hungry… Hey Bloed, do you know if the crocodiles prefer human meat or demon meat?"

Regina was the one that replied.

"I'm sure that demon meat is tastier. Master, we can use her as bait if the situation turns hard."

Liu Ying gritted her teeth. "Woman, why did you hate me so much!?"

Regina just looked at her indifferently before moving her gaze away in disdain.

How could she not hate this girl that forced herself inside her master's life?

Regina knew how much suffering other people had caused to her master. He was betrayed by his family, by the people he loved, and finally, even the person he loved the most and respected the most preferred to leave instead of staying with him.

Regina respected Camilla as her mother, but she hated her for dying. Camilla could have chosen to sleep in a cryogenic chamber and wait until Bloed found a cure to her condition, but she instead decided to die and leave Bloed behind, even although she knew all the pain her death would cause him.

So, now that someone else wanted to be part of her master's life, she was not going to allow it.

Her master did not need people that could betray or abandon him. She was more than enough for him. She could take care of him, hear him, talk to him, cook for him, and maybe… love him.

In fact, if not that she was afraid her master gets angry with her, she would have killed the demon long ago.

Fortunately, the demon would leave soon enough, or Regina would be unable to endure the urge to strangulate her.

The group of three plus two mechanical pets entered the swamp.

Leto's body was too huge and heavy to enter, so Bloed put most of Leto's nanorobots inside a space capsule and reduced Leto's size to one meter tall. This size was perfect to walk and fight in the swamp efficiently.

But once they entered the swamp, the faced their first great obstacle.

The stench.

The entire swamp reeked of rotten meat and gastric juices. The intense stench assaulted Bloed and Liu Ying's enhanced sense of smell and forced them to cover their noses. Even the usually expressionless Regina frowned facing such a stench.

It was as though the smell of thousands of rotten eggs combined with rotten fruits.

*Retch!* Liu Ying put a hand on her mouth and suppressed the impulse to vomit.

Bloed frowned and looked at Regina. "Regina, breathing masks, please."

"Understood." Regina nodded and took out two breathing masks. One for Bloed and another for her.

She then looked at Liu Ying with a look of pride.

Even although Liu Ying never had seen masks like those, she instantly realized their function.

So, seeing that Regina was not planning to give her one, she looked at Bloed with pitiful eyes.

Bloed did not know whether to laugh or cry.

"Regina, give one to Liu Ying too."

"Hmph!" Regina snorted angrily but obeyed her master orders.

Of course, she did not forget to give the demon a hateful glare that Liu Ying returned with a smile of triumph.

The group sighed in relief as soon as they wore the breathing masks. Now that they could finally breathe, they focused on examining their surroundings.

Due to the trees blocking the sunlight, the swamp was rather dark. A normal person could see at most a few meters ahead, but neither Bloed nor Regina nor Liu Ying were normal people. None of them was troubled by the lack of light.

When Liu Ying felt the mud in her feet, she grimaced.

"It feels disgusting."

Bloed nodded. Walking in the swamp was not only tiresome but also disgusting. Moreover, the mud was the perfect hiding place for depredators. Bloed was not even sure if his thermal vision could detect the monsters if they hid in the mud.

THis world was a magic one, after all.

Thus, he had to be wary of ambushes.

"This is a bad idea…" Liu Ying mumbled with a despondent look.

Regina did not hesitate to shot back. "Stop being a wuss. Nothing will happen."

Liu Ying just shot her a displeased look and looked away. She was not in the mood to bicker with Regina now, not when she had to be wary of serpents or crocodiles.

But suddenly, she felt something grabbing her ankle.

Liu Ying turned completely pale.

"B-Bloed?"

"Hmm?"

"T-There is something below…"

Bloed stopped walking. When he turned towards Liu Ying, he realized that her expression was filled with fear.

"B-Bloed…"

"Don't move." Bloed extended his hands and tried to calm her down while he unsheathed his saber. Liu Ying nodded nervously, but then, her expression changed.

Before Bloed could react, her body was swallowed by the mud.

...

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