Chapter 1522: Chapter 216 - Samui (1)
The cursed sword clung to my hand as though it had already made the decision that it would never let me go.
The strange thing was that the longer I held it, the more bizarre the entire sensation became. Technically speaking, I was the one holding the sword. My fingers were wrapped tightly around the hilt, and from a logical standpoint, I was the one exercising control over it.
Yet, despite that obvious fact, the sensation I was experiencing told me something completely different.
Instead of feeling like I was holding the sword, it felt like the sword was holding me.
That feeling alone was enough to make me realize just how dangerous this weapon actually was.
The sword itself almost felt alive. It was as if an invisible hand had reached out from within the blade and wrapped itself around my arm, refusing to release me no matter what I wanted. The sensation wasn’t painful, exactly. It wasn’t even particularly uncomfortable. What made it disturbing was how natural it felt, as though the sword believed that I belonged to it.
At the same time, I could feel a massive amount of mana and life force being pulled out of my body.
And when I said massive, I really meant massive.
The amount the cursed sword was taking wasn’t even remotely comparable to what Ayuru usually consumed. Ayuru’s drain had always felt more like someone borrowing a small amount of money from me every once in a while and promising they’d pay it back eventually.
Samui, meanwhile, was acting like she’d just discovered an unlimited source of wealth and had decided to spend all of it immediately.
"Master, who is this woman?!"
The familiar voice echoed inside my head.
The voice belonged to Ayuru, without a doubt.
She sounded offended.
Actually, offended wasn’t even the right word to describe it. She sounded like she’d just walked into a room and discovered that I’d somehow acquired another cursed sword behind her back.
Honestly, considering the situation, I couldn’t entirely blame her.
"Well," I said inwardly while trying to maintain some degree of composure, "I was thinking of trying dual wielding, so please bear with me for a little while."
"I don’t think I can get along with this one," she replied immediately.
That response came far faster than I had expected.
"She’s trying to push me out of your body. She’s trying to drain your mana and your life force so she can take control of you."
"Don’t worry," I told her. "I don’t plan on losing. Besides, I don’t think she’ll actually be able to drain me dry. You know that better than anyone else, Ayuru."
The moment I finished saying that, another voice suddenly entered my mind.
Unlike Ayuru’s voice, which had become familiar to me over time, this one felt completely different.
The voice was soft.
The voice also sounded incredibly sultry.
More importantly, it was the kind of voice that sounded dangerous long before the speaker actually said anything threatening.
"Oh, my."
I blinked after hearing those words.
"I didn’t think someone would be confident enough to claim that he wasn’t going to be drained," the voice continued. "You certainly are confident."
She laughed quietly.
The laugh itself somehow managed to sound both amused and dangerous at the same time.
"Evidently, you possess an extraordinary amount of life force. I can feel it quite clearly. Even after taking this much from you, your reserves don’t appear to have decreased at all."
Her voice became softer.
"But you won’t be able to continue forever, you know. Even if it takes ten years, I’ll continue draining you for everything you’re worth. Eventually, you’ll become mine. Then I’ll take your body and finally free myself from this curse of being trapped inside this sword."
I couldn’t help smiling after hearing that.
"You sound like some kind of parasitic lover."
A brief silence settled between us.
"But don’t worry," I continued. "My life force isn’t going to disappear, even if you spend ten years trying."
"Then I’ll take a hundred years."
She sounded completely serious.
"Surely a hundred years would be enough."
"I don’t think so."
"You bitch," Ayuru interrupted immediately. "You already know Master isn’t going to run out of life force just because you keep draining him."
"Oh?"
The other voice became colder.
"And who exactly do you think you’re calling a bitch?"
Suddenly, the atmosphere inside my own head became tense.
Thinking that sentence alone felt ridiculous.
"Just so you know," the other cursed sword continued, "a weak cursed sword like you never had any chance against me. I am Samui. Surely you’ve heard of my name before."
"I don’t know who you are."
The response came so quickly that it almost sounded rehearsed.
"What?!"
Samui sounded genuinely shocked.
She sounded so shocked that I almost felt bad for her.
"Why would I know your name?" Ayuru asked. "Do you think cursed swords spend their time sharing rumors and gossiping with each other?"
An awkward silence followed.
"I spend most of my existence sitting in one place until someone picks me up," Ayuru continued. "How exactly am I supposed to know who you are?"
Honestly, that was exactly what I’d been wondering myself.
Samui’s confidence regarding her own reputation felt a little strange.
After all, cursed swords weren’t exactly known for their active social lives.
They couldn’t walk around.
They couldn’t visit one another.
They couldn’t attend some annual Cursed Sword Convention and exchange stories about their latest victims over tea and biscuits.
Most of the time, someone picked them up, got drained dry, and died shortly afterward.
That was essentially their entire lifestyle.
"Master," Ayuru said, "I don’t think I can get along with this woman."
"Don’t say that," I replied. "I think the two of you could become good friends."
"I refuse."
"I also refuse."
At least they managed to agree on something.
Despite all the arguing, however, I’d already realized something important.
Samui could probably be tamed.
It certainly wasn’t going to happen immediately.
It definitely wasn’t going to be easy either.
Still, she wasn’t draining me fast enough to actually kill me.
The sensation itself was strange.
Honestly, it reminded me of a mosquito bite.
A mosquito bite that refused to give up.
A mosquito bite with a terrible personality.
A mosquito bite that somehow possessed the ability to hold conversations.
The experience wasn’t pleasant.
At the same time, it wasn’t particularly dangerous either.
"W-What is this...?"
Samui’s voice suddenly changed.
There was confusion in her voice now.
"Why isn’t your life force decreasing?"
It sounded like she’d finally realized that something was wrong.
Or rather, something was wrong from her perspective.
She was trying as hard as she possibly could.
I could tell that she was putting everything she had into draining me.
She was pulling on my mana and life force with every ounce of strength available to her.
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