The Author's Playground
Chapter 47: Betrayal (2)

Chapter 47: Betrayal (2)

"Is this really okay...?" Quasolium’s voice wavered, uncertainty filled her words. "Leaving them behind like that?"

Elijah didn’t even glance at her.

"Why? Do you want to join them?"

Silence...

He tilted his head, almost amused. "Didn’t you say, back on the first day of school, that you wanted to be my friend?"

Quasolium hesitated, then gave a small nod. "Yeah, I did. We never really talked, but I always thought... maybe I should’ve approached you in class—"

SWING.

The cold bite of steel pressed against her throat.

Her breath hitched.

"O-oh...?" A nervous chuckle slipped out, masking the tremor in her voice. "W-what’s the meaning of this...?"

Elijah’s gaze darkened as he spoke.

"Aren’t you tired of pretending?" he murmured, pressing the blade tighter.

The edge dug in just enough to make a point—just enough to warn.

"I think it’s time you start talking. Don’t you?"

For a moment, there was nothing but silence. Then—

"Fufu... Haha..."

Quasolium lowered her gaze, clutching her stomach. A small giggle turned into a chuckle.

Then, like a dam breaking—

"FUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

Her laughter tore through the room, echoing off the walls. It started high-pitched and melodic, but then—it shifted.

Lower. Deeper.

A male voice.

Quasolium smirked, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. "I thought I played my role well. Tell me, what gave me away?"

Elijah didn’t flinch. "I was warned. Someone in Class F would be pretending to be human." His voice remained steady. "Though I didn’t expect there would be two."

Quasolium clicked her tongue. "Humu I see, I didn’t expect that. Looks like that person who warned you has intel that I didn’t expect huh? So what’s more?"

"I also figured out the moment you said those words. I never attended class on the first day."

A beat of silence.

Then—she chuckled. "Looks like I miscalculated."

Elijah’s grip on his weapon didn’t falter.

Quasolium’s smirk widened. "But tell me something—if you knew from the start, why did you still let that poor student die?"

She leaned in slightly, letting the blade touch her neck and bleed, as there were only a few inches between him and Elijah’s face.

"Because of your decision, he was killed. By me."

Elijah didn’t react.

"Let me guess," she mused, tapping her chin. "If the enemy is pretending to be Class F... might as well kill both of them, just to be sure?"

Elijah gave the faintest of smiles. "Something like that."

"Fuhahahaha!" Quasolium erupted in laughter again. "And here I thought I was the only monster here!"

"You amuse me! Maybe it’s for the better Beelzebub was devoured by you!"

"How cruel, didn’t you consider how your kin will feel being rejected by its own kind?" Elijah asked back.

Quasolium snorted. "Tch. I never had any attachment to my siblings." She waved a hand dismissively. "Besides, Beelzebub was just born. Surely, another will take his place soon enou—"

SWING!

A blade sliced through the air, aiming straight for Quasolium’s throat.

With a smirk, she stepped aside, letting the attack pass harmlessly by.

"Oh my, impatient, aren’t we?" she purred.

Before Elijah could react, she closed the distance, her fingers trailing along his waist and arms—guiding him like a dance partner.

His expression didn’t change. Then—

Crack!!

Elijah broke free with a brutal upper kick, aiming straight for her ribs.

But Quasolium simply laughed, leaping back with effortless grace. She spun mid-air, landing near her hammer—her real weapon.

Lifting it with ease, she rested it on her shoulder.

"You can’t win against me."

Elijah exhaled, steadying his stance. Sweat dripped down his temple, but his smirk never faded.

"Hah... I know." He rolled his shoulders, loosening his grip on his blade.

"I’m just buying time."

Quasolium’s smirk widened. "Oh? Buying time? And here I thought you were actually trying."

She lunged without warning, swinging her hammer down.

BOOM!

The ground beneath them shattered, dust and debris flying as the sheer force of the impact cracked the stone floor.

Elijah barely managed to twist away, his movements sharp but a second too slow—the shockwave sent him skidding backward. He coughed, the metallic taste of blood already on his tongue.

Quasolium twirled her hammer with one hand, the weight of it seemingly nothing to her. "You’re getting sluggish," she teased. "Nervous? Or is that body of yours finally reaching its limit?"

Elijah didn’t answer. He gritted his teeth and adjusted his stance, but his arms ached, and his legs felt heavier than before.

He knew it.

His body wasn’t keeping up.

The previous fights, the injuries, the constant strain—they were stacking. His breaths came shallower, his vision flickered at the edges.

Quasolium tilted her head, amused. "You’re still standing. I’ll give you that much." Then, in a blur, she closed the distance.

Elijah barely saw it coming.

THWACK!

A heavy backhanded swing slammed into his ribs, sending him flying like a ragdoll. His body crashed into the cavern wall, pain exploding through him.

His back collided with the cavern wall, the jagged stone splitting on impact. Pain erupted through his body. He gasped with his breath knocked clean out of his lungs.

The world spun. His vision blurred, darkness creeping at the edges.

Elijah tried to move, but his limbs screamed in protest. His arms trembled as he forced them beneath him, pushing against the ground—but his legs wouldn’t listen.

A bitter taste filled his mouth—blood.

Every inhale was sharp and ragged, each breath a battle of its own. His ribs—broken? Fractured at the very least. His body felt like it was caving in on itself, every nerve ablaze.

Quasolium approached, slowly. She was enjoying this.

She crouched slightly, resting her hammer’s handle against her shoulder.

"You entertained me a lot, can you try harder? I will feel bad if I killed you like this."

Elijah’s fingers curled into the dirt. His breath was ragged, uneven.

And for a second, his lips curled to a smile.

"Say... that body... you just stole it right?..."

"What?"...

[ Beelzebub Unique Skill Has been Activated. ]

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