Chapter 254: Die like the pigs you are

As Lucian looked at the woman’s blank expression—

[STATUS WINDOW]

Name – Susan Ward

Race – Human

Rank – Unawakened

Titles – None

Bloodline – Longbreath Bloodline

Affinity – None

Talent – D

[Attributes]

Strength: G

Agility: G-

Endurance: G-

Charisma: C+

[Evaluation — An ordinary woman who lost her beloved family during the apocalypse. She survived alone for months, desperately searching for other survivors, before eventually being kidnapped by criminals and... losing her will to live.]

[Affection: 0% (Fear, distrust)]

A few minutes passed.

Susan continued staring at the dagger resting in her palms, her expression completely blank. Her fingers remained wrapped around the handle, trembling faintly as she struggled to make sense of what was happening.

"What is it?"

She slowly lifted her head, finding the young man staring at her with an expression of mock confusion.

"You wanted to die, didn’t you...? Go on, stab yourself and end it all."

Hearing his words, the woman looked down at the dagger once again, her gaze shifting between the blade and Lucian, moving back and forth as though she were trying to understand whether he was serious.

Then, slowly... her fingers tightened around the handle.

She grasped it with both hands. Her knuckles turned paler as she raised the dagger towards her neck.

Her eyes closed as she brought the blade closer... closer...

The other women sitting nearby watched the scene unfold with various expressions. Some looked away, unable to bear watching, while others stared silently, their hollow eyes following Susan’s trembling hands.

But none of them tried to stop her.

Perhaps because they understood what she was feeling.

A few more seconds passed, and seeing the woman hesitate so much, Lucian eventually clicked his tongue.

"Susan Ward."

Her eyes snapped open, and the dagger stopped moving.

"H-How... do you kn—"

Before she could even complete her words—

"If you want to die... then fucking do it and don’t waste my time."

Lucian’s expression twisted faintly as irritation surfaced in his voice.

Susan stared at him, her lips parting slightly.

"Those bastards brought you here, took advantage of you, and kidnapped you, as if you were livestock... and now..."

He leaned closer, bringing his face nearer to hers, making the woman’s expression tremble faintly.

"The moment you get out of this shithole, the first thing you want to do is... kill yourself?"

He tilted his head slightly as his words hung in the air.

A few of the women nearby lowered their eyes, since... all of them had entertained similar thoughts... of ending their lives.

Some had already given up on the thought of ever returning to the lives they once had. Others couldn’t bear the memories that continued haunting them, no matter how desperately they tried to push them away.

Were they wrong...?

They didn’t know.

And neither did Lucian.

But there was one thing he knew.

And that was... he was instinctively disgusted by this sight, by their decision to kill themselves... especially when they didn’t even seem to have the courage to go through with it.

His face grew colder.

"How are you any different from pigs? Getting stored in this place, only to be slaughtered eventually."

His gaze swept across the women around him, and several of them lowered their heads. A few gritted their teeth, their faces twisting with anger and humiliation upon hearing him compare them to pigs...

After everything they had already suffered, his words felt like another slap across their faces.

"Do you even know what we had to endure?!"

A woman suddenly shouted, her voice echoing through the basement, cutting through the silence and catching Lucian’s attention.

Her body trembled as she looked at him, her eyes filling with tears.

"I-I just wanted to go and take shelter... and... and..."

Her lips quivered, but then—

"You don’t have any right to tell us! So don’t speak lik—"

"I already told you, I don’t want those ’You don’t understand us’ or ’What do you even understand’ kinds of lines."

Lucian calmly turned towards her.

"I don’t understand anything. I don’t know anything.

Your lives are yours, so if you want to live despite whatever happened to you... then live."

He then glanced at Susan, the woman kneeling before him.

"...Or you kill yourselves with your own hands."

Seeing the violent shudder that ran through the woman’s hands, causing the dagger to almost slip from her trembling fingers...

Lucian chuckled.

"That is, if you even have the guts to kill yourselves..."

The woman who had shouted at him fell silent.

She wanted to say something. Anything that might let her express the anger and frustration building inside her chest, but...

The words wouldn’t come.

Around them, the women remained quiet, their chests tightening as Lucian’s cruel... yet honest words settled over the basement.

"So, Susan Ward, are you going to do it...?

Your father and mother would be proud of your decision, knowing that the daughter they helped escape from the monsters is finally going to kill the very life they once saved."

Susan’s eyes widened in shock as her head snapped towards him once again, unable to understand how... how did he know all that?

And hearing his words—

"I... I..."

Seeing the uncertainty in her gaze, Lucian suddenly reached forward.

Before she could understand what he was doing, he took hold of her hand and gently guided the dagger towards her neck once again.

"Go on. Kill yourself."

The Boss, who had been watching everything from behind, stared at the scene in confusion.

What the hell was going on?

He didn’t understand what was happening in here.

Was this man trying to save them... or was he simply trying to get rid of them...?

"I... I don’t... thi..."

Susan’s body trembled violently as she felt the tip of the dagger touch her skin.

Her pupils dilated as the fear of death suddenly became all too real. Her hands shook uncontrollably, and her breathing grew ragged.

The thought of death, which had once seemed like an escape, now filled her with a terror she could barely endure.

"Tsk, then forget it."

Before she could even say anything, Lucian snatched the dagger from her hand and rose to his feet.

His gaze shifted towards the other women.

With his Blood Sense, he could see that at least two of their heartbeats were unusually weak and unsteady, while their bodies seemed so frail that even the simplest tasks might have been difficult for them.

Lucian couldn’t help but wonder just how long some of them had been kept in here... perhaps since the start of the apocalypse...?

"So, anyone else... who wants to die too...?"

The dagger in his hand vanished into his inventory.

In its place, a long sword suddenly appeared.

A faint glow emerged from the blade, quickly growing into a bright blue light that illuminated the dim surroundings.

Lucian took a step forward, the sword’s edge grazing the floor as he walked, and the ground beneath it tore apart under the dense mana radiating from the weapon.

Scrrrrrk...

The harsh sound sent a chill down everyone’s spines.

"Just say the word, and I’ll kill you just like the pigs you think you are."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Silence.

Not a single woman answered.

Their eyes flickered uncertainly, and even the woman who had shouted at him earlier shifted backwards.

"No one, I guess."

The blue glow faded from his sword as he turned around and began walking towards the silent Kanna, who had been watching his actions throughout this time.

But just then—

"H-How..."

An uncertain voice came from behind.

Lucian paused.

He briefly turned his head, looking towards another woman who was speaking now—blonde hair and blue eyes, carrying what could’ve been a beautiful face if it weren’t for the dark bruises scattered across it.

Her appearance was battered, and her body looked weak, but unlike some of the others, she raised her head and... properly met his gaze.

Something no one else had done until now.

"H-How could we be sure y-you aren’t one of them...?"

Lucian tilted his head slightly.

For a moment, he simply looked at her.

Then—

[Analysing...]

[Analysis Complete.]

[STATUS WINDOW]

Name – Fiona Hayes

Race – Human

Rank – F

Titles – None

Bloodline – Stalwart Bloodline

Affinity – Earth

Talent – B

[Attributes]

Strength: G

Agility: F-

Endurance: G-

Charisma: B-

[Evaluation — A determined and hardworking woman who lost her husband and son during a dungeon outbreak that occurred outside her home. Though the tragedy shattered her will to live, she continues moving forward through sheer stubbornness, desperately clinging to the smallest reason to survive.]

[Affection: 0% (Fear, distrust)]

Lucian raised a brow as he noticed the B-Rank Talent and Earth Affinity she possessed.

She was awakened, too, which meant she had already killed a monster or another awakened individual.

That was certainly something worth noting.

However, he didn’t linger on those thoughts for long. With a casual command, he dismissed the panel before shifting his attention back towards Fiona.

"You want proof...?"

Fiona slowly, hesitantly nodded.

Her eyes remained fixed on him, filled with fear and uncertainty, but she still managed to give him a small nod.

Seeing this... Lucian turned towards the only other man in the basement, besides himself.

The Boss suddenly felt a shiver as Lucian’s crimson eyes settled on him, but he didn’t say a word.

"Kanna—wait."

Lucian paused before changing his mind.

"You know what? I’ll do it myself."

He didn’t want even a single strand of this disgusting bastard to touch his maid, so in the end, he decided to handle it himself.

His body suddenly blurred before their eyes, and before anyone could properly react—

The Boss felt a sharp pain in his stomach.

His massive body flew from the corner, crashing across the basement before coming to a stop right in front of the women.

"Aghh...!!"

The captives’ bodies suddenly went cold.

The sight of the large man tumbling towards them caused several to recoil in fright, while a few instinctively hid behind the others, their bodies shaking violently.

Lucian appeared right in front of the writhing man.

Without saying a word, he reached down and grabbed the Boss’s sliced arm, pulling it towards himself. He pressed his foot against the man’s stomach, keeping him firmly in place.

The Boss let out another pained yelp as he looked at Lucian with widened eyes, his expression twisting with pain and confusion.

Why was this man doing this?

What had he done now?

"I wanted to do this earlier, but... well, whatever."

Lucian gave the Boss a casual shrug, though his lips twitched into a smile—showing that he was about to enjoy whatever he was going to do.

And before any of them could understand what he intended to do—

Lucian’s arm moved, and the sword in his hand followed.

SLASH!

"AGGGKKKAAAAAAAA—!!!!!!"

The Boss’s bloodcurdling scream echoed throughout the basement as his arm was cleanly sliced off right through the shoulder.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he saw the blood spurting from his severed arm—the one now in Lucian’s hands—and the dark blood spilling across the floor.

Lucian, seeing the blood pooling beneath his shoes, immediately took a step backwards, throwing the severed arm towards the Boss.

"WHYYYY??!!! WHY... DID YOU DO THATTT???!!"

The man’s voice cracked as he cried out, his face contorted with agony.

Lucian calmly looked at the writhing man beneath him, and despite the sight of blood and the expression in his eyes, Lucian... still felt nothing.

"Well... they wanted proof, didn’t they...?"

Lucian shrugged it off as though it weren’t a big deal, then turned towards the same woman.

Fiona, as well as all the others, had their eyes widened in horror as they looked at the Boss—the very man who had mocked them after seeing them kidnapped, violated, writhing and crying.

But now...

He was the one lying helplessly on the floor.

Their eyes shifted towards the one responsible for this, who stood calmly before them, without even a hint of remorse on his face.

He faintly tilted his head as he looked at Fiona.

"Is this proof enough... or do you want me to kill him...?"

Hearing his casual tone, as though killing were his everyday job, the women suddenly felt their chests tighten.

If he could kill the Boss so easily...

Then couldn’t he do the same to them?

But if he could... then why hadn’t he?

The thought crept into their minds, bringing a new, even more terrifying fear after witnessing the sight before them.

They didn’t understand.

But...

[STATUS WINDOW — Fiona Hayes]

[Affection: 0...3% (Fear, Confused)]