Only I know that this world will end – 098 | Sousaku – 創作

Suspicious man

"I see. If that's the case, you should use this. I apologize for it being my own, but it's a knife I used for my hobby of outdoor activities. I haven't used it against a monster yet, so it hasn't been damaged. But it's good enough to be used in battle."
"Oh, no problem. Thank you――――"

As he spoke the words, Akira stopped moving.
He didn't recognize the voice that had naturally mixed in with his conversation with Nao.

"...!?”

With great momentum, Akira turned to look behind him.
How long had he been there? He wondered.
In the space between Akira and Nao, a man was standing with his back against the wall.
He has a chiseled face. First of all, he was definitely not Asian. He had aged well, with wrinkles etched thinly on his forehead and around his eyes, and his hair and the beard that covered his mouth were beginning to turn white. The clothing he wore was a black shirt and black jeans, his entire body covered in black as if dyed in the darkness of the night.

"What!?”
"Eh!?”

Akira and Nao exclaimed; their voices overlapped at the same time.
They looked startled, but quickly regained their composure.
In the man's hand was a small knife with a blade about ten centimeters long.

"W-where in the world did you come from!?”
Shouting, Nao stared at the man warily and reached for the pistol hanging from her thigh.

"……Who the hell are you? How long have you been there? I don't think anyone was here when we walked into this room."
In contrast, Akira slouched down so that he could move at any time, and quietly asked the man in a low, snarling voice.

The man chuckles at them, clearing his throat as if to say that the prank was a success, and opens his mouth with a small shrug.

"You ask a lot of questions. It's nonsense. If I were your enemy, do you think I would answer those questions properly?”
"……What?”

Akira narrowed his eyes at the man's words.
The man laughed another amused throaty laugh at Akira and cradled the knife as if toying with it in his hand.

"Oh, don't be alarmed. I said it, didn't I? I am not your enemy, and I have no intention of antagonizing you. Therefore, let me answer your questions. ……Well, it is the duty of elders to answer the questions of the young. Don't hold back, okay?”

The man grinned, the edges of his mouth lifted up.

"Well, let's start with how long I've been here…… Let me answer you in no uncertain terms! I've been with you guys all along!! I was able to see everything, including the time when you were snuggled up together and gazing at the moon as if you were having a sweet moment, the time when you were chummy and bandaged up after entering this room, and the time after that when you were so embarrassed that you were unsure of the distance between each other!! Well, it was indeed a profound and tantalizing time. Thank you for the treat!!”
"Wha-!!??”

It was Nao who immediately responded to his words.

"W-What!? Where on earth did that come from?! I mean, it's weird the way you say it!! Oh, my gosh……!! That's not what we did!!”
Nao immediately raised her voice and turned her face toward Akira as if to demand his agreement.

"What?! We weren't being chummy, right? !”
"……Nao-san, calm down a bit. He just meant it in a joking way."

Turning to Nao, Akira said with a sigh. Then, after casting a piercing stare at the man to straighten the relaxed atmosphere, Akira asked in a low voice.

"It seems that it is not entirely wrong to say that you have been with us for a long time. ……Where the hell have you been hiding all this time? Before and after entering this room. I didn't feel any sign of you. We were definitely the only ones around."
"I was not hiding anywhere. I told you I've been with you all along, didn't I?”

The man smiled at Akira's words.

"――――Stealth. Do you know what that skill is? It is the name of a skill that can only be acquired if you do not acquire skills such as Herculean Strength, Iron Wall, Dash, or the like. The effect is simple, though: it can erase your presence…… The effect is very powerful though, as you have experienced firsthand."

When told, Akira recalled the existence, or rather, the now lack of said skill from his own list of skills.

(Come to think of it, I've seen a skill with that name before…… I decided against getting it at the time, thinking that even if I could eliminate my presence, it wouldn't matter if I couldn't defeat the monsters…… I see, since that time when I acquired Dash, that name has been missing from the list of my obtainable skills.)

Perhaps there were other skills besides Stealth that were no longer obtainable.
Akira thought about this, and then breathed a sigh without the man realizing it and switched his thoughts.

"So, what's the point of going to all the trouble of using Stealth to spy on us?"
"Nothing in particular. If I had to say so, I just wondered how surprised you would be if an old man with a beard you don't know suddenly appeared in front of you!!”

Akira's eyebrows twitched at these words.

"What?”

A low, dusky voice escaped his mouth. She must have sensed such emotions in Akira. Nao called out to him, in a small voice.

"Calm down, Ichijou. Don't let it get to you. That's exactly what this guy wants."
"……hm. …………Now I know why you suddenly appeared in front of us."

After taking one deep breath between Nao's words, Akira said quietly, as if stifling his emotions.

"So, ultimately. Who the hell are you? Why are you following us?”
"『Who』, huh? ……Hmm. Is that question really necessary? Because as you can see, I am not a monster and if you want to know my name, you don't have to bother to ask. Isn't that right? Ichijou Akira-kun?”

Akira clicked his tongue in his mind at these words. Because he sensed that the man in front of him was using the 『Analysis』 skill.

(Damn, you mean you're not going to identify yourself. Then, as you wish――――)

Akira cursed in his mind at the man's words and used Analysis.

――――――――――――――――――
Arthur Noah Hyde ５４ years old Male Lv１２

Stamina：２１
Strength：１３
Endurance：２９
Speed：２８
Luck：１５

Points: 0
――――――――――――――――――
Individual information
Human race of the current world.
Ratio of magical element internal binding：０％
Physical Condition： Normal
――――――――――――――――――
Possessed Skills
・Necromancy
・Analysis Lv１
・Stealth Lv１
――――――――――――――――――

――――Arthur Noah Hyde.

This must be that man's name.
After learning the man's name, Akira looked briefly at the man's Analysis screen. And the far too low stat values and level lined up there left him speechless.

(What's with these stats……? His skills are…… only three? One of them has no level indicator. So Necromancy is a unique skill, right? )

"Apparently, you used Analysis. Surprised, aren't you?”

Seeing such an expression on Akira's face, the man―― Arthur must have guessed that Analysis had been used. He grinned and slowly stroked the knife in his hand.

"Then, as you can see. I am―――― Weak!! Far more than the young lady there, even!! ……So, don't even think of punching me in anger, okay? I'll die. ――――That's for sure!”

And for some reason, he said so with a smug look on his face.