When I Cleared the Death Game World, I Reincarnated as a Villainous Noble Even if They Talk About Doom Flags, I'm Actually Immortal. - Chapter 24

Lior stood in stunned silence as the guild accepted the false report.

However, as he snapped back to reality, he immediately protested to the swordsmen.

“W-Wait a minute! I’m the one who defeated the Land Wolf, right?”

“Huh?”

The swordsmen raised their eyebrows, looking at him as if he were talking nonsense.

Sharp, judgmental gazes pierced through Lior.

“No, don’t try to brush this off! I was the one who defeated the Land Wolf! So why are you making a false report, claiming that you did it?”

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

“You just registered as an adventurer this morning, didn’t you? A rookie like you taking down a C-rank Land Wolf? That’s impossible.”

“Besides, we have the proof of the kill. You’re not even trying to make your lie convincing.”

The mage lifted the pouch hanging from his waist and handed it to the receptionist.

The guild receptionist peeked inside and nodded.

“Indeed, there are Land Wolf claws and fangs in here. This serves as physical proof of the kill.”

“No, that’s wrong. These people said they would teach me how to dismantle it, so—”

“Ah, and we did teach you, didn’t we? Right in front of you, we extracted the Land Wolf’s claws and fangs.”

“Exactly! From the Land Wolf that I killed!”

“Oh, come on, that excuse is ridiculous. Who in their right mind would let a complete stranger dismantle the monster they defeated?”

“Logically speaking, it’s far more reasonable to assume that we killed the Land Wolf while you simply watched.”

“Th-That’s…”

The swordsmen’s argument was painfully logical. No one would trust an unfamiliar adventurer with the dismantling of a monster they had slain.

After all, there was always the risk that the person could steal valuable materials.

In truth, Lior was the one who had acted outside of common sense—but there was no one here who knew that.

At the scene of the battle, only Lior and the swordsmen had been present.

And both the physical evidence and the circumstances made it far more plausible that the swordsmen had slain the Land Wolf while Lior merely watched.

“May I have a moment?”

The receptionist, who had been observing their dispute, finally spoke up.

“To begin with, why was he even with you in the first place?”

“We saved him from being attacked by the Land Wolf.”

“Yeah, there’s no way he’d willingly fight a Land Wolf on his own.”

“And yet, here he is, repaying our kindness with false accusations… It’s truly disheartening.”

Their words were a complete reversal of the truth.

It was Lior who had saved them. It was Lior who was now devastated by their lies.

But there was no proof. Nothing to back up his claim.

The bespectacled receptionist narrowed her eyes and glared at him.

“False reporting is a serious offense. Stealing credit for someone else’s achievements is an even graver matter. In the worst case, your adventurer’s license could be revoked.”

“N-No way…”

The verdict was clear: Lior had lost.

His protest had been crushed, and before he knew it, he had been branded a liar.

“Since this was not an official report, I’ll let it slide this time. However, I will be reporting this incident to the higher-ups. If something like this happens again, be prepared to lose your adventurer’s license.”

“……”

At this point, there was nothing more Lior could say.

Lowering his head, he turned toward the exit.

“…!?”

The moment he turned around, he was met with sharp, accusing stares.

The adventurers gathered in the guild all had their eyes on him, filled with contempt and disapproval.

Unable to withstand the pressure, Lior lowered his gaze and bolted toward the exit.

“What a disgraceful kid.”

“Well, it can’t be helped. He’s still a child—his judgment isn’t fully developed yet.”

“He must’ve been blinded by greed.”

“Regardless, there were some issues, but we recognize your achievement in slaying the Land Wolf. Given your past performance, your promotion to C-rank should be finalized soon.”

“Yes!”

“Haha, we did it!”

Their triumphant voices lingered in Lior’s ears.

Outside, the sun was beginning to set.

The orange glow of dusk painted the sky, as if it were moments away from sinking below the horizon.

(…First things first, I need to find an inn.)

No matter how awful the day had been, it would still come to an end.

Lior reached into his pocket to check his funds.

Although he had been told to earn money through adventuring, he had received an initial sum to cover his expenses.

That money should be enough to afford an inn for a few nights.

“…Huh? Wait, what? My wallet’s gone!?”

No matter how much he searched, he couldn’t find it.

He was sure he had it just a moment ago.

Had he been robbed…?

If so, it must have happened when he ran out of the guild.

At that moment, he had been so flustered that he might not have noticed someone stealing his wallet.

“Haah…”

Lior sank to the ground, exhausted.

His achievement had been stolen. He had been branded a liar. And now, even his wallet was gone—leaving him completely penniless.

Today was supposed to be a good day. His first time registering as an adventurer. His first monster subjugation. He was supposed to be enjoying the fantasy world he had dreamed of.

But reality had been cruel. Before he knew it, he had lost both his money and his credibility.

(Human society is tougher than I thought…)

Helping those three adventurers and trusting them had cost him dearly.

Lior knew it was his own naivety that had led to this.

It was all his fault. He had lost because he was weak. So, from now on, he just had to become stronger—strong enough to win.

Yet, even though he understood that he had been in the wrong, the frustration refused to fade.

His disappointment in people was impossible to ignore.

(Maybe… a world like ‘Drag Machina,’ where humanity was already extinct, would have been easier to live in…)

At that moment, the wind stopped.

The clouds in the sky came to a halt. The setting sun froze in place.

The orange glow of the sunset bathed Lior in light, casting a long shadow that stretched deep into the alleyway behind him.

But the alley was unnaturally dark. Pitch-black, swallowing all light—like an abyss ready to consume everything.

And from that abyss—a sudden, clawed grasp!

A thin arm stretched out. A rusted, metallic limb. Its hand bore long, razor-sharp claws.

Like something crawling up from the depths, it dug its talons into the wall of a nearby house.

Wherever it touched, decay spread.

The stone walls of the house crumbled, turning brittle as if worn away by centuries of erosion. The wooden framework disintegrated into ash, collapsing in on itself. The metal fixtures on the windows corroded, releasing a stench of rust and decay, like the scent of rotting bl00d.

Everything withered. Everything collapsed. Everything met its inevitable end.

At the end of this path lay destruction.

Just like the fate that befell the world of Drag Machina—a future where everything would come to an end.

“Huh? Lior, what are you doing?”

“Ah… Ren…”

Lior lifted his head to see Ren staring at him in confusion.

At some point, the wind had started blowing again. The clouds drifted across the sky, and the sun resumed its slow descent.

The alley, which had been as dark as an abyss moments ago, was now just an ordinary, dimly lit passageway.

Of course, no clawed hand reached out from the shadows.

As if nothing had ever happened, the world had returned to normal—without anyone, not even Lior or Ren, noticing a thing.

—Only, on the wall of that house, an eerie, hand-shaped patch of unnatural decay remained.