I’m the Only One With a Different Genre

21 – Suffocating in His Tenderness

From Noble mtl dot com

“Hah, ha…”

The moment he spotted the slightly ajar door of the lab, his steps abruptly halted. Swallowing dry saliva, he took a deep breath before approaching the door.

Swoosh, click… swish.

The experiment was still ongoing. With each swing of Mia’s hand, Lian’s skin cracked, and blood dripped down.

The experiment table and the floor were now lively with red blood. Noah clenched his fists, tears streaming down, capturing the cruel scene with his eyes.

“Go in there.”

At Mia’s words, Noah’s gaze followed where she pointed. It was a bathtub where the contents from the oak barrel were poured.

“That is…”

“Artia’s poison, one of the most malicious poisons in this world. It’s a terrible poison that can’t even be stored without magical treatment.”

“Oh…”

Upon hearing Lian’s exclamation, he somehow felt his body relax.

‘What kind of life have you been living?’

To find experimenting with poison comfortable, to say that horrific experiments aren’t distressing.

Until now, facts that had been dismissed simply for their convenience to willpower returned as question marks.

One thing could be certain: Noah’s life was more dreadful than any life he could imagine.

Sizzle!

As his foot entered the bathtub, the sound of flesh melting echoed. At the horrifying sound, tears welled up in Noah’s eyes once again.

“Oops!”

“…!”

At the scream from Lian, unheard until now, Noah’s eyes widened.

“Did you finally feel proper pain this time? Or perhaps a threat to your life…!”

“Oh, that. It’s just that I don’t have many clothes. It’s a bit inconvenient if they melt away.”

…”

Noah tightened his fist harder. Sharp pain surged as his nails pressed into his palm.

“Are those clothes really more important than you?”

Shocked by the fact that Lian did not value his body this much, Noah looked at him with trembling eyes.

“!”

“!”

At the same time, their eyes met. It felt like their hearts sank.

“Uh, um… Can I be excused for a moment, Mia?”

“Well, it’s really because of the clothes, right? It’s not that you’re running away because you’re scared, right?”

“No, not at all.”

Lian scratched the back of his head and approached the door. Surprised by the unexpected move, Noah stepped back.

Thud.

Hastily retreating, he ended up falling. Sitting on the ground, he shivered, glancing through the door.

‘Why is he coming closer?’

Countless thoughts raced through his mind. Could it be that he wants to experiment on me, turning me into a test subject because he doesn’t want to enter that horrific poison? Even though he knows Lian wouldn’t do such a thing, instinctively, Noah couldn’t help but entertain such thoughts.

Click.

“Heep…!”

Suddenly, Lian, who had approached the door, looked down at her. She stared up at him, frozen.

“Noah, is something urgent?”

With a casual tone, Lian squatted down to her eye level.

“I’m a bit busy right now, but is it okay if I talk to you later?”

“Uh…”

Noah’s tongue stiffened, and he couldn’t come up with a proper response. Upon realizing this, Lian tilted her head, then looked down at her clothes and scratched the back of her head.

“Oh, it’s a mess. Did you get startled because of this? I’ll come find you as soon as the experiment is over, so can you go back for now?”

“Uh, yeah.”

With Lian’s affectionate tone, Noah could barely manage to respond.

“What’s going on?”

…!

When Lian didn’t return to the door, Mia walked up to it. She sat down, observing Noah, who was shivering, and raised an eyebrow.

Mia’s expression turned chilly.

“You didn’t secretly peek at my experiment, did you?”

In response to her words, Lian turned to Mia and said, “Oh, no. I couldn’t help with the dinner distribution tonight, and it seems there’s a problem there.”

“Hmm…”

Mia wanted to kill Noah right away, but she decided to yield to Lian’s pleading eyes. After all, he was an important test subject.

“Sigh, then go back quickly.”

“Yes!”

Lian nodded and wiped his hand on a clean part, avoiding the blood. Then, he took out a neatly folded handkerchief from his pocket. Fortunately, the handkerchief was unblemished.

It was a handkerchief used to wipe away the stains when the children got something on them. Although it was cut into a small piece, it should have no problem wiping away Noah’s tear stains.

“I don’t know why you and Nero fought, but for now, use this to wipe your tears. Nero is probably feeling sorry too.”

“Huh…?”

“Oh, that’s not it? When I saw you crying, I naturally thought it was because of Nero.”

Noah couldn’t say anything in response to Lian’s words, as he continued to scratch the back of his head.

“Ahem.”

“Oh, I have to go in. Sorry, really sorry!”

After Lian apologized to Noah several times, he closed the laboratory door with a thud.

Woong.

A magic circle appeared above the laboratory door. Mia had cast a spell to prevent external interference.

“What is this…”

Noah muttered as he looked down at the handkerchief in his hand.

“This… Fool…”

Tears welled up in his eyes, forming large droplets that fell heavily. Noah felt like he was choking on his tenderness.

“If I… do this…”

He tried to believe, for the sake of his younger brother and for himself. He tried to turn away. But he couldn’t do it any longer.

Thump.

Noah pressed the handkerchief tightly against his heart.

Thump, thump, thump!

His heart beat fiercely, revealing the lingering wounds within. Noah felt the faint traces of pain in his heart.

She, who had unquestionably believed his words all her life, would regret her past choices and shed tears. At the same time, she would try to atone for the sins she had committed forever.

By any means necessary.

“I can’t just… stay like this.”

Noah stood up restlessly. Then, he slapped his cheek roughly.

“I have to save Lian.”

If he saved Lian, Nero would die. If he saved Nero, Lian would die. Noah had decided to break that equation.

“All of it… I’ll save it all.”

A gleam seeped into her once clouded eyes.

“Whatever it takes.”

A brilliant yet not entirely beautiful light flashed in Noah’s eyes.

—

“Why is this…? Why? Why? How…?”

“Um…”

Click, click.

I looked at Mia, who had become mentally unhinged, feeling the teeth grinding together. She looked at me, who was moving smoothly as if I had turned into bones, and completely paled, collapsing helplessly.

And for the past 30 minutes, she had been muttering, “Why is this happening? How?” I scratched my chin bone with my bony index finger.

“Is it really that shocking?”

I thought I would be somewhat shocked, but I never imagined that Mia would turn into a recluse, shivering even when a knife was about to cut her throat.

“Well, it was supposed to be the last experiment, so I guess it’s okay to go now?”

Honestly, I was too embarrassed. Without even realizing it, I covered my pelvic and hip area with my hand.

“30 minutes should be enough since I waited. I’m leaving now.”

From Noble mtl dot com

I immediately turned my body. In an instant, my body turned around, but I was naked. Despite my plea for clothes, I had entered the bathtub wearing only underwear.

Thanks to that, my clothes remained intact. Quickly dressing and facing Mia, I spoke.

“Well, then, I’ll be on my way.”

“Why? What is this, what?”

Mia couldn’t pull herself together even as I was leaving. It was a pitiful sight.

Thud.

As soon as I closed the door and came out, Noah’s face came to mind.

“It seemed like a stroke of luck… What on earth happened?”

I moved quickly with a worried heart.

***

Ssssh.

“…”

Noah, whom Lian was desperately searching for, was looking at books in Mia’s study. It was a place not allowed for a slave like Noah.

If he were caught by Mia, it wouldn’t end well. But I couldn’t stop Noah, whose attention was focused.

Fortunately, the protective magic Mia had set up responded to those entering from the outside, so Noah could freely roam the study without any problems.

“I have to find a way to become stronger.”

The land of the demon king is power, law, and authority. To save both Nero and Lian, she ultimately needed strong power.

“This isn’t it…”

After reading a book that promised the acquisition of great power by sacrificing the lives of a thousand people, Noah closed it. Placing the book back where it belonged, she quickly moved between the shelves.

There were several books about becoming stronger, but, true to the nature of a dark magician’s books, none of them were conventional methods.

They involved stripping someone’s skin or sacrificing a loved one, cruel methods.

“Is there no way to become stronger?” Although the thought lingered, Noah did not give up.

As she wandered around the study like that…

Thump.

A book fell in front of her.

“What’s this…?”

Unlike other books with black or red hues, the book that fell before her was a pure white color. There were no inscriptions on the cover. Noah picked up the book as if bewitched.

“Ugh…”

As she picked up the book, a shiver of cold passed through her body. Noah had a hunch that this book was not ordinary.

In an instant, fear surged, but Noah, driven by a desire greater than fear, suppressed it and opened the book.

Shuffle.

As if the wind itself had turned terrifying, the pages began to flip on their own accord.

Rustle.

From the book, something new and white started to rise slowly. Translucent, it endlessly stretched until it reached the ceiling, then shrank to roughly the size of an adult woman.

The white mass suddenly transformed into the shape of a person. First, graceful lines formed eyes, nose, and mouth, and long hair flowed down to a slender waist.

Armor enveloped her entire body, and a sword at her waist indicated her status.

[Sigh…]

She opened her eyes with a breath-like sigh. Noah stepped back, his face paling as he muttered.

“Ghost…”