Chapter 109
Chapter 109
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: Chapter 3. Flag Tournament
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Judah.
Judah Arsher.
Asmodeus murmured the name. Recalling where she had heard it wasn't all that difficult. The name itself wasn't common to begin with.
'The kid who killed Count Jinmu, right?'
But for someone like that, he seemed far too young. Even though she was a demon who could live for hundreds or thousands of years with enough magic power and sustenance, she wasn't ignorant of human notions of time. Quite the opposite—she knew them well. That was why the boy flailing in midair with Count Geneur's help looked far too young by her standards. To her, he was little more than a bloody lump, a mere infant.
"......"
She could accept that he had resisted her charm and swung his sword. But it was hard to believe that this boy had killed Count Jinmu. The man had been skilled enough to be called a hero among humans. Sure, he was old and weakened in body and mind from being possessed by specters, but in her eyes, he could still devour most skilled opponents whole. Asmodeus stared intently at Judah. He looked inexperienced, but his eyes, swirling with red light, never let her out of his sight.
'No way it's just a coincidence with the name.'
Asmodeus glanced at the count, who was preparing magic while watching her. Perhaps because traces of her magic power still lingered in his body, he flinched the moment their eyes met.
'Ah, it's such a shame to let him go like this.'
She smacked her lips. It had been a golden opportunity to easily claim the fragment by sacrificing her subordinate, but this young boy had ruined it.
Even if the charm's effects remained on the count, it wouldn't be much help now. At this point, his mind was probably filled with thoughts of capturing her for some lecherous deed. She judged it was time to retreat.
"Who are you? Why were you with the demonic beasts?"
At the count's question, Asmodeus set aside her thoughts and tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
"Well~ Who do you think? Personally, I'd love it if you just remembered me as a woman who needed that fragment."
"You're not going to reveal your identity?"
She placed her index finger at her chin, seeming to ponder for a moment with a tilt of her head, then slowly nodded.
"For now? Yeah, it's better if I don't. For your sake and mine."
"...Then I'll have to capture you and find out."
The count waved his hand. In an instant, a small-scale magic circle formed, and dozens of chains shot toward her. Each link was as thick as an adult's thumb, so getting caught would mean no escape. She let out a leisurely laugh as she watched the chains fly at her with fierce speed.
"Hehe! Fun, Count. But no matter how powerful your magic is, it can't catch me~"
She stuck out her tongue and evaded just like when she had dodged Judah's sword. The chains passed through her like mist. Then, atop the chains, she appeared again, gracefully standing on them in her high heels.
"Ta-da~!"
Annoyingly, she stuck out her tongue and grinned playfully.
"See? I could probably hold my own in a fight like this, but I'm not confident enough with this body right now. So I'll take my leave. You should thank that boy."
The count glanced at Judah, who was still looking down with uneasy eyes from the side. Seeing that gaze, Asmodeus grinned wickedly.
"If that boy, Judah Arsher, hadn't been here... the fragment would be sparkling pretty in my hands by now. Right?"
"......"
"Hope you keep the fragment safe. I'll come retrieve it soon. No coincidences like today next time. Bye-bye."
Asmodeus vanished without a trace, as if she'd just gone for a picnic stroll. The intense magic power was no longer felt. Confirming she was completely gone, the count let out a small sigh. She seemed to be a succubus, but not an ordinary one. Her image still lingered in his mind, and his heart raced like that of a lovestruck innocent youth.
"She's gone."
A hint of regret colored his voice as he unwittingly replied. At that moment, Judah reached out from beside him and grabbed his collar. The count flinched, worried that Judah had noticed the emotion in his voice.
"Could you lower us down now?"
"Why? Scared?"
Judah nodded with a stiff expression.
"Of course. You have no idea how terrifying it is to be unable to move of your own will."
The distance to the ground was considerable. Jumping up by kicking off the building wall had been fine, but landing would hurt, even if it wouldn't kill him. Seeing Judah's anxiety, the count slowly descended. When they were about 5 meters from the ground, he paused and stroked his chin.
"But leaving the arena like this feels wrong."
He had summoned pillars of fire indiscriminately to deal with the gaols, turning the arena to dust. Restoring it would take ages. If they billed him for the repair costs, he'd be in real trouble. Judah had no idea what he was planning, but he felt an enormous amount of magic power flowing from the count's body.
The count's magic formed a large-scale magic circle in the sky above, and the severely damaged arena began to restore itself, as if time were rewinding to the past. True magic was at work. Witnessing this miracle, impossible without immense magic power, Judah let out a hollow laugh.
'He's a monster.'
It wasn't resurrection of life, but perfectly restoring a structure this massive was incredible. The arena floor, reduced to powder, returned to its original state, and the building reverted to before the gaols and the mysterious woman had attacked. Without setting Judah down, the count returned to the VIP seats where they had been.
"Daddy!"
The count spread his arms with a pleased expression as his daughter leaped from Jeanne's arms. The girl beamed and threw herself into Count Geneur's embrace, soon bursting into tears.
"Hic."
Judah landed by stepping on the railing and looked at Jeanne and Arhil. He had told them to watch his back while he rushed off to help the count mid-battle, and fortunately, the two had handled the remaining gaols well.
"No injuries?"
"Those things were half-dead already, so they weren't hard to deal with. No injuries on our end either. But what were you thinking, rushing up to help the count?"
"Yeah! We were more shocked. You can't even fly—why'd you jump up there?"
Caught off guard by their sudden worried interrogation, Judah couldn't respond. It was unavoidable. He had seen the count on the verge of losing the fragment, so he had no choice but to act. Amid the dust and explosions, the count had looked helpless, about to hand over the ring to the beauty embracing him. If he'd stayed put, he would have just watched the fragment get snatched away. Judah gave them an awkward smile, looking embarrassed.
"Don't smile! Even as leader, you should care more about your own safety. Seriously! Jeanne was about to jump down to catch you. If the count hadn't... ugh."
Judah thanked Jeanne and apologized to Arhil, who was shaking her head. Jeanne scratched her cheek with her index finger, looking sheepish. As they chatted and laughed together, a message window appeared before Judah's eyes.
[You have repelled the assault of one of the Seven Deadly Sins, Asmodeus.]
[Had you not helped the count, Asmodeus would have taken the fifth fragment 'Valentine' from him.]
[If the fragment had been taken, the seal binding her in the labyrinth would have broken, and two fragments would have gone to the [Fragment Retrievers].]
[Repelling Asmodeus's assault increases Strength and Vitality by 1 each.]
[Proficiency in Shadow Heresy Arts/Sword Arts increases by 1.]
──────────────────────
「Status Window」
[Name: Judah Arsher]
[Title: Little Hero of Selenia Castle (2)]
[Level: 36]
[Job: Black Claw _ Shadow Magic Swordsman (Hidden A)]
[Revival Count: 2]
[Strength: 43 (C) / Potential A]
[Vitality: 46 (C) / Potential S]
[Agility: 46 (C) / Potential SS]
[Magic Power: 44 (C) / Potential B]
[Magic Resistance: 54 (C) / Potential S]
[Charisma: 8 (F) / Potential A]
[Knowledge: 17 (F) / Potential B] ◀ Special
[Luck: 84 (A) / Potential S] ◀ Special
[Remaining Points: 21]
──────────────────────
The status window updated automatically and appeared before his eyes. His party had only taken down a few gaols, but thanks to sharing the experience from the ones the count killed, his level had shot up by a whopping 6. He felt like he'd accomplished something major, but it was frustrating that all his stats except Luck were still stuck at C-rank.
'That aside.'
Distracted by the unexpectedly updated status window, Judah reread the messages and felt his mind grow confused.
'One of the Seven Deadly Sins, Asmodeus of Lust.'
Sure, her looks, figure, and allure made sense for that. It was understandable why the count in her arms had foolishly tried to hand over the fragment. But how was she, who should have been sealed in the labyrinth, wandering around unscathed?
'Wait.'
Judah looked at Arhil with a knowing expression. He didn't know what trick Asmodeus had used to escape the labyrinth, but if he had arrived just a bit later and Cherry Village had been destroyed by specters, Asmodeus roaming outside might have found Arhil and made her an apostle.
The diary and pendant from Count Jinmu's mansion pointing to the [Fragment Retriever] were undoubtedly connected to her. Otherwise, the message about two fragments nearly going to that mysterious group if she took Valentine wouldn't have appeared. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision to help the count, but it had unexpectedly yielded a huge gain.