I snapped the statue’s hand like a toothpick, for something made out of stone, it was surprisingly brittle.
[Bottomless Daggers (S)]
But I still wasn’t dumb enough to try to punch through solid rock; even with my strength, it would definitely give me a hard time.
CRACK!
A simple stab to the statue’s chest, and it was done.
The dagger’s magical effects were more than enough to disable the magic that animated it.
Although fighting while protecting Evelina was more than enough to even the playing field despite the strength difference.
"To your right!"
Evelina spoke just in time, allowing me to dodge another punch from a statue and planting a dagger in its arm.
Another one down.
But the longer we stayed in one spot, the more they started to gather.
They weren’t actual fighters.
And that made them dangerous.
They’d rather trample us to death with their numbers than fight conventionally.
"I got it handled!"
I took hold of Evelina, carrying her as I swiftly broke through the statues’ encirclement.
And once we were on the other side of the room, I quickly let go of her, focusing back on the statues.
But this time, they were screwed.
[Bottomless Daggers (S)]
The great thing about daggers is that they were versatile.
Which meant they could also act like a throwing weapon, and in which case, those statues had absolutely no counter whatsoever.
And even better, I basically had a gun that used daggers for bullets.
CLICK-FWOOSH!
CRACK!
CLICK-FWOOSH!
CRACK!
I took out two before they managed to reach our new location, but at this point.
They no longer had the numbers that required me to retreat.
And also... these daggers were dangerously sharp...
Didn’t even expect them to cut through stone like butter.
SLASH!
SLASH!
"That’s all of them..."
I panted; it had been a while since I used that much energy in a fight.
Made sense considering I couldn’t use any magic while being careful to make sure Evelina was fine.
"Are you okay?"
I looked back to see if she was okay, but her expression was more than just okay.
She looked... impressed, but not like in a way I was used to.
"Did you just... all of that without magic?"
"Yeah, I’ve got some experience fighting without magic before."
"G-Good to know."
She cleared her throat, realizing that she was acting weird and immediately snapping out of it.
"Is there anything you need?"
"N-No, it’s just... never mind."
Evelina walked off, heading to the exit that was now open after the defeat of all the statues.
"What was that about?"
I followed behind her, trying to read her movements to see if I could notice anything else useful about her strange behavior.
And I did.
At least... I think it was useful.
Because after every second or minute or so, she would look behind to look at me, not in a calculating way, but something else.
Like... nervousness?
Odd considering her character.
But... if I learned anything from the novel about this tomb, it’ll eventually reveal itself at the final trial, at least, for couples who fit the emperor’s criteria.
A love-themed tomb isn’t a love-themed tomb for nothing.
"Where’d you learn to fight like that?"
She asked while we were on our way to the last trial. "Even your memories didn’t show anything about it."
’It didn’t show up?’
I tilted my head, confused, but I guess even her newly enhanced mind-reading ability had a limit; it couldn’t access something that specific from my past life, even if I currently had access to it.
Although... that same limit didn’t apply to the fantasies she did manage to access.
’Just my luck...’
"Guess it was a fairly hidden memory, I learned to fight when I was young."
"Without magic?"
"It wasn’t my priority; it wasn’t the skill I needed back then."
It was a simple lie. I couldn’t exactly tell her that I was a trained assassin from a past life, transported to this world by a strange panel that ordered me to love her just as I had before.
Even when this world was dominated by magic, that was still an over-the-top explanation.
Evelina looked conflicted about my answer, not sure if she should speak or stay silent.
But, she decided that she should, after all, this entire date was a reward for me after all.
She couldn’t just leave me out of the dark, both for her safety and out of common courtesy.
"I like it..."
"Hm?"
"I like the fact you can fight without magic and still win."
Evelina answered quickly, returning focus to the path ahead.
But that small answer was enough for me to find out what was happening.
[Photographic Memory]
Back during the tournament, when I first spotted a sign of attraction, and second, her whisper to me at the first trial, and now her strange behavior after the second trial.
And if I dug deeper into the novel.
There it was...
The smallest passage in a filler arc that I ignored when I first read it.
[Evelina noticed the way Corvus moved, his precision and accuracy deadly even without the use of magic. To her, it was... interesting, beautiful even.]
H-How... how did I miss that!?
Everything from then and now...
Was she attracted to the way I fight?
’But even if that was true, why would she react that strongly?’
"You’ve been silent for quite a while. Isn’t this supposed to be your chance to swipe me off my feet?"
Evelina briefly interrupted me from my thoughts, her voice in a slight hum.
Her earlier awkwardness was gone after noticing and swiping a few more interesting artifacts on the way.
Guess even she wasn’t immune to stuff like that.
Well...
Guess I’ll find out the answer in the third trial.