Unable to Understand This Fear

"Phew... phew..."

Beneath Aragane Station's Steel Walls, Fang Li braced one hand against the wall and panted heavily.

"How long had it been since I'd run like this?"

Ever since becoming a shut-in, Fang Li had found even climbing stairs troublesome. A fierce battle followed by an all-out sprint like today was something he could never have imagined before.

"Looks like my stamina has improved somewhat too. Otherwise, there's no way I could have run for this long."

After all, no matter what attribute it was, it required stamina to use.

Attacking required stamina.

Defending required stamina.

Running away required stamina.

Fighting required even greater amounts of stamina.

Therefore, aside from INT (Mystery), raising the other three attributes also increased stamina to varying degrees.

If stamina was measured in units, raising STR (Strength) increased stamina by one unit, raising VIT (Endurance) by three units, raising AGI (Agility) by two units, while raising INT (Mystery) did not increase stamina at all.

In other words, the ratio of stamina increases provided by the four basic attributes—STR (Strength), VIT (Endurance), AGI (Agility), and INT (Mystery)—was 1:3:2:0.

That was why Fang Li had been able to fight and sprint for so long. Otherwise, he would have collapsed from exhaustion back in the forest.

"I exchanged for an item that restores stamina precisely to deal with situations like this."

Having recovered a little, Fang Li touched his Leg Pouch. Rather than taking out a Stamina Recovery Potion, he quietly adjusted his breathing and recovered on his own.

Now that he had a chance to rest, of course he could not waste a precious recovery item.

Otherwise, discovering that he had none left when he truly needed one would be fatal.

"Still, being this tired was worth it."

After all, he had killed twenty-four Kabane in this battle, earning 2,400 Exchange Points.

That meant Fang Li was only 600 Exchange Points away from completing Main Mission Three.

"Just a few more Kabane."

Saying that, Fang Li turned and looked toward the forest ahead.

That forest was no longer as tranquil as it had been at first. An atmosphere of unrest filled it everywhere.

Clearly, Fang Li's rampage in the forest earlier had been like pouring gasoline on a fire, completely stirring up the army of Kabane within.

"It'll be bad if I don't get back quickly."

That was easy to say, but Aragane Station's city walls were not only fortifications made entirely of steel, they were also incredibly high. With Fang Li's current abilities, he simply could not climb them.

Even if he could climb them, it would be best not to let the warriors on guard discover him. Otherwise, he would definitely end up with a bullet through the head.

"So, I'll put some trash to good use."

Fang Li took something from his Leg Pouch.

It was the mirror Fang Li had exchanged for 10 Exchange Points at the very beginning.

After taking out the mirror, Fang Li crouched down, pressed its edge against the ground, and shoved it forward with force.

The mirror immediately rolled away.

Sunlight from the sky shone onto the mirror, reflecting streaks of light.

Those streaks of light were promptly noticed by the warriors atop the city wall.

"W-what was that just now?"

"Why is there light?"

"D-don't tell me the Kabane are attacking?!"

"I've never heard of Kabane being able to glow!"

"No! Kabane hearts already glow! Those lights just now could very well have been the light from Kabane hearts!"

"N-no way?"

In an instant, an atmosphere of unrest and panic spread across the city wall.

Clearly, their fear of the Kabane had ignited the tense atmosphere on the wall.

"Quick! Go check over there!"

"Maybe Kabane really have climbed up!"

Amid the chaos, a group of warriors wielding Steam Guns all gathered in one direction.

That direction happened to have its back turned toward Fang Li.

Fang Li took in the entire scene, unable to stop a trace of confusion from rising in his heart.

"Fear of death?"

Without any decisive means of dealing with the Kabane, humanity could only barely protect itself from their attacks.

By now, fear of the Kabane had already seeped deep into everyone's hearts.

Especially for these warriors, who had to confront the Kabane on the front lines, that fear would only be even stronger.

Compared to them, Fang Li—who had been an ordinary student just one day ago, yet had plunged into Kabane territory to slaughter those monsters—was abnormal to the extreme.

But then again, Fang Li simply could not feel any real sense of death.

"So I have no way of understanding this fear."

Leaving those words behind, Fang Li raised his head and looked at the steel wall before him.

His dark pupils suddenly contracted, transforming into Magic Eyes carrying an icy-blue glow.

At once, crack-like lines appeared across the steel wall within Fang Li's vision.

"So this is what they mean by saying that all things have their Death Date?"

It was not only living things. Inanimate objects had their own Death Dates as well.

Fire would burn out.

Water would evaporate.

Steel would rust and decay.

Those were all their Death Dates.

As long as there was a day when they would "die," the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception could perceive that death.

It was just that, compared to living things, the "death" of inanimate objects placed a far heavier burden on the human brain when one tried to comprehend it.

Naturally, the more abstract the death, the greater the burden it caused.

For that reason, the "death" of living beings was the easiest for those with the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception to perceive. Non-living things were far more difficult.

In the world of Tsukihime, Tohno Shiki's Magic Eyes had become specialized in dealing with living beings. Thus, he could see not only "lines," but even "points" that directly led existence itself to "death."

However, Fang Li and Ryougi Shiki could not see such Death Points.

Yet Tohno Shiki had great difficulty comprehending the "death" of non-living things, which also placed a severe burden on his brain.

In contrast, although Fang Li and Ryougi Shiki could not see Death Points, they could use the power of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception perfectly, without any side effects on their brains.

"I just don't know why I can ignore this burden too, compared to Ryougi Shiki."

That was not a question Fang Li, who had only just entered the space, could figure out.

At once, Fang Li shook his head, drew his dagger, and thrust it forward, effortlessly piercing the steel wall.

(Starting today, there will be three updates a day! Ru Qing is working so hard! Everyone has to support me!)

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