Hiyate slowly sheathed onikiri.
onikiri, which had enjoyed a thrilling night of killing, finally quieted down.
After sheathing onikiri, Hiyate, exhausted from using up all his stamina, felt his vision go black and fainted, collapsing to the ground.
Nami and the villagers were like those police officers in TV dramas who always arrive late.
They only came after the battle was over.
“This!”
Looking at the Fishman corpses scattered all over the ground, they were so shocked they couldn’t speak.
“He did it…”
Looking at Arlong’s corpse, the torch in Nami’s hand fell to the ground with a clatter, sparks flying everywhere.
Her hands trembling, she covered her mouth, tears uncontrollably welling up in her eyes.
The nightmare that had weighed on her heart for five years had been completely ended by that man.
Nojiko hugged her younger sister’s trembling body.
As the older sister, she wanted to comfort her.
But at this moment, she too couldn’t control her emotions and started crying along with Nami.
The villagers gradually gathered around.
Someone tentatively kicked Arlong’s corpse, and after confirming that this demon was truly dead, they erupted into earth-shaking cheers.
Several young men excitedly hugged each other, some knelt on the ground wailing loudly, and others frantically hacked at the Fishman corpses with knives.
“Quick!
Quick, go check on our benefactor!”
Kensuke was the first to react, rushing toward the unconscious Hiyate with a few strong men.
Nami wiped away her tears and stumbled, running at the front.
When she saw Hiyate’s pale face, her heart tightened sharply.
“Carry him to my house!”
Nami directed the villagers.
Hiyate slowly opened his heavy eyelids.
The glaring sunlight shone through the gaps in the curtains, just falling on his face.
Hiyate felt dizzy, his throat as dry as if it had been burned by fire.
He tried to move his fingers and felt a warm touch—Nami was sleeping soundly by the bed, her slender fingers tightly holding his hand, the knuckles slightly white from the force.
Nami’s orange short hair was messily scattered around her cheeks, and there were still undried tear stains on her eyelashes.
Perhaps Hiyate’s finger movement just now startled her.
Nami’s eyelashes fluttered lightly, and then she suddenly lifted her head.
When she saw Hiyate awake, her amber eyes immediately lit up, and tears welled up in her eyes again.
“You’re awake!”
Nami’s voice carried a sob but couldn’t hide her joy.
She frantically wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, then hurriedly turned to pour water.
“I…”
Hiyate wanted to speak but found his throat too dry to make a sound.
Nami carefully lifted his head and brought warm honey water to his lips.
The cool liquid slid down his throat, and Hiyate finally regained his voice.
“How long have I been asleep?”
“A day and a night.”
Hiyate struggled to prop himself up, all his muscles protesting the intense battle from the previous night.
Nami quickly supported him, her eyes full of worry.
“Don’t move around!
Dr.
Nako said you have internal injuries and need to rest quietly.” The source of this chapter is g.com.
From outside the window came waves of cheers, and faintly, the villagers could be heard singing and dancing.
Nami followed Hiyate’s gaze, and a gentle smile unconsciously curled at the corner of her mouth.
“Everyone is celebrating.
Arlong Park has already been demolished.
Cocoyasi Village is finally free.”
Hiyate assessed his physical condition.
Actually, after a night’s rest, his internal injuries had mostly recovered.
Hiyate had discovered long ago that although he didn’t have a system or other cheats, he did have a golden finger.
That was his powerful recovery ability.
This was also why he dared to train desperately day and night these past two years.
This abnormal recovery ability was very similar to Life Return but also different from Life Return.
It wasn’t a skill; it was more like some kind of monster constitution.
Just like Big Mom’s Iron Balloon.
The reason Hiyate’s body still felt uncomfortable now was mostly due to fusing with the demonic power inside onikiri last night.
At the end of the battle last night, Hiyate’s stamina was about to run out, so he could only fuse with the demonic power to deliver the final blow.
Fortunately, Hiyate relied on his own will and effort to subdue onikiri.
Otherwise, that risky move last night could easily have led to onikiri controlling his body.
“My sword…”
“Here, here.”
Nami placed onikiri in Hiyate’s hand.
“Your sword is so strange.
Kensuke and the others feel a stinging pain when they pick it up.
But when I pick it up, I don’t feel anything.”
Nami watched Hiyate stroking onikiri and spoke up.
“Perhaps it considers you one of its own.”
“But Kensuke and the others aren’t outsiders either.”
After saying this, Nami saw the strange look in Hiyate’s eyes.
She immediately understood what Hiyate meant by “one of its own.”
“Who’s one of your own~”
Nami’s cheeks instantly flushed red.
She flusteredly turned away, pretending to tidy the medicine bottles by the bed to hide her shyness.
“I’ve fulfilled my promise.
Someone shouldn’t go back on their word, right?”
Hearing Hiyate bring this up again, Nami felt both shy and angry.
“I’ll go get you some food!”
Nami flusteredly ran out of the room.
After a while, Nami, Nojiko, Kensuke, and Dr.
Nako walked in.
Both Nami and Nojiko were holding two large plates of food.
Dr.
Nako was carrying a medical kit.
“benefactor, you’re awake.
After entering, Kensuke knelt on the ground with a thud.
“Uh…
no need to be so polite.
This is what I promised Nami.
If you want to thank someone, thank her.
Nami, quickly help him up.”
Nami placed the food tray by the bedside, first helped Hiyate turn over, and then helped Kensuke up.
“Hiyate, let Dr.
Nako check your body first, then eat.”
Nojiko, standing to the side, noticed her younger sister’s clearly different attitude toward Hiyate, and a knowing smile flashed in her eyes.
She placed the food tray on the table and said softly.
“Dr.
Nako, thank you for your trouble.”
The old doctor carefully examined Hiyate’s injuries, his brow gradually relaxing.
“It’s truly incredible.
Such serious injuries have recovered so quickly.”
He put away his stethoscope and exclaimed in amazement.
“Young man, your constitution is truly rare.”
Hiyate smiled slightly and didn’t say much.
His gaze unconsciously drifted toward Nami, and he found her secretly sizing him up.
The moment their eyes met, Nami quickly looked away like a startled deer, but the tips of her ears quietly turned red.
“Here, eat something first.”
Nojiko handed the steaming stew and steak to Hiyate.
“This is the best ingredients from the village.
Everyone wants to express their gratitude.”
The aroma of the food made Hiyate feel ravenously hungry.
He was about to reach out but found his arms still somewhat weak.
Seeing this, Nami immediately sat by the bed and naturally picked up a spoon.
“I’ll feed you.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, her face flushed even redder, but she stubbornly scooped up a spoonful of stew and gently blew on it to cool it down.
Kensuke and Nojiko exchanged a smile and tactfully retreated from the room.
The old doctor also sensibly packed up his medical kit and walked toward the door.
The room fell quiet for a moment, leaving only the soft sound of the spoon touching the bowl.
Nami focused on feeding Hiyate, her movements gentle and meticulous.
Occasionally, a few strands of orange hair fell, shimmering with warm light in the sunlight.
“Um…”
Nami suddenly spoke up, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.
“Thank you…
for saving me and the village.”
Her eyes moistened again, but this time she didn’t avoid Hiyate’s gaze.
Hiyate swallowed the food in his mouth and looked at her seriously.
“This is what I promised you.”
Nami looked into Hiyate’s eyes, and a warm feeling surged in her heart.
“I’ll keep my promise to you too.”
After saying this, a blush appeared on Nami’s face, but her gaze remained firm.