The Butcher of Sargon (Patreon)

 Volume 1 Chapter 68: Thank You for Being With Me

"Why did I lose a tooth? Is it time to change teeth again?"  

Garde sat leaning against the wall, reaching a finger into his big mouth, only to find that he had lost just one tooth.  

"Oh, it must be because I've been using my teeth too much lately."  

Garde remembered how recently he had been biting into the weapons of Abyssal Hunters—spears and swords alike. 

He had used his mouth in battle so many times that it wasn’t surprising his teeth would start to fall out.  

Ordinary crocodiles replace thousands of teeth in their lifetime. 

Although he wasn't a crocodile but a crocodile man, losing a few teeth didn't seem like a big deal.  

But then, when he turned his head and looked...  

"Oh my god, what happened to me?"  

Garde was horrified to find himself wrapped up like a mummy, his entire body from head to toe in pain.  

How did he end up like this?  

Garde struggled to recall what happened before he lost consciousness, but his memories were fuzzy, like sleepwalking. 

It's not like a normal person could remember what they did while sleepwalking.  

Thinking about the situation he faced before entering the mind space, once he lost consciousness, only his physical instincts remained. 

Without the power of Ascension, no matter how strong his physical abilities and combat instincts were, he wouldn't be able to withstand a group attack!  

But when Garde saw himself wrapped in bandages with part of his tail missing, he almost broke into tears.  

Where was his tail? His smooth and beautiful tail tip?  

Garde held onto his large tail with heartbreak. 

Although it would definitely grow back, it wasn't going to happen quickly, unlike a lizard. There was no way it would heal in just ten days or so.  

He shifted his body a little, but many of his wounds had already scabbed over.  

The moment he moved, he reopened some of the wounds.  

“Hiss~”  

Garde inhaled sharply. 

It was one thing to be in battle, but now, when he was injured, the pain was still very real.  

“Ah, Garde, you’re awake!”  

Garde's movement caught the attention of others. 

First, he saw Chris, the medical operator, and then a large group of people walking towards him, led by Saria.  

“You’re awake.”  

Hearing Saria’s steady and stern voice, Garde felt a bit of regret for some reason, but he mostly felt relieved.  

“Yeah, how long was I out?”  

“Not long, you just lay down for a bit. You can continue to rest; leave the rest to us.”  

Saria said, and not just her—the other Rhine Lab operators around also nodded.  

“That's right, Garde. You’ve always protected us, and now it’s our turn to protect you!”  

“At least for now, let us be the ones to do something.”  

“We’re elite members of the company, after all. Don’t underestimate us!”  

No matter what, Garde had saved their lives. 

Even someone with little sense wouldn't question why they had fallen into a nightmare for no reason at a time like this.  

They just needed to know that they were trapped in a nightmare and came out alive. 

Knowing that was enough.  

“Haha, once I get back, I’ll make sure to brag about this. I’m a man who survived the Nightzmora army’s dream!”  

“Who would believe that? A Nightzmora that's been dead for over a thousand years, and their corpses can still create such terrifying dreams. I really thought I was going to die in there.”  

“Heh, we weren’t the only ones who fell into that nightmare. Didn’t the director have a nightmare too? Actually, I’m curious—what kind of nightmares does the director have? Does the director even have nightmares?”  

The last Rhine Lab operator was talking when they noticed their colleagues quietly distancing themselves. 

Realizing something was wrong, the operator awkwardly turned their head, only to see Saria's expressionless face.  

“Charles, it seems you’re not very busy right now.”  

“No, Director Saria, let me explain…”  

“You’re on night watch duty tonight!”  

“What?”  

Seeing the expression of the Feline operator, the other Rhine Lab operators burst into gloating laughter.  

In fact, pulling an all-nighter wasn’t much for a Feline operator, especially considering they had slept for a whole day, even if it was during a nightmare.  

But staying up all night would still be exhausting.  

At first, Saria thought she had only slept for four hours. 

Later, she realized that the time on her watch showed it was already the next day.  

In other words, Saria had slept for a full twenty-eight hours.  

And during that time, Garde was the only one outside the sand fortress.  

He had been out there protecting them from harm.  

Knowing all this, and seeing Garde’s injuries, even the most cowardly of operators no longer had any reason to feel sorry for themselves.  

No matter what lies ahead, they only needed to know that they were still alive. 

Knowing that was enough.  

“Garde, thank you.”  

“Uh, it’s what I should do.”  

“No, I meant to say…”  

Saria leaned down, her body almost pressing against Garde’s, her soft pink lips close to his ear, and whispered gently:  

“Thank you for being with me.”  

Warm breath brushed against Garde’s ear, and from this close distance, Garde could see the beautiful earring by Saria’s ear, the sweat sliding down her fragrant neck, and the delicate collarbone inside her conservative neckline.  

The crocodile man’s long snout was almost touching Saria’s chest line, and it felt like if he moved just a bit, his mouth would touch her.  

Garde didn’t move.  

He was a little scared. 

His posture with Saria felt too intimate, and there were so many people around. 

What if they misunderstood?  

But the other operators around them didn’t react to this scene at all. 

They went on with what they were doing, completely indifferent. 

If asked, they’d probably say the director was just discussing something with Mr. Garde.  

However, just because the Rhine Lab people didn’t react didn’t mean no one did.  

Almost at the same time as Garde woke up, someone else did too. 

She had wanted to find Garde immediately, but as soon as she opened her eyes, she saw Saria leaning in close to Garde, looking very intimate.  

Carnelian squinted her eyes, stood up, and angrily walked over to tap Saria on the shoulder.  

When Saria turned her head and looked at her in confusion, Carnelian pointed at Garde, then at herself, and then crossed her arms.  

It was a gesture of declaring ownership.  

Saria frowned slightly, not understanding what Carnelian was trying to say. 

After all, Carnelian couldn’t speak Columbian, and Saria was also only somewhat familiar with Sargon.  

So, Saria looked at Garde and asked, “What is Miss Carnelian saying?”  

“Uh...”  

Garde scratched his head, also not quite sure.  

“Maybe she’s still not fully awake.”