Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Tarros's Tower (6)
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━Clink
It was a sudden sound from the direction of the door, beyond Tirpione's shoulder as she clung to me.
"Ken, would you become my master?"
She looked up at me from within my arms, her eyes filled with a familiar gaze.
I had seen those eyes often before.
Rafne's eyes when she saw me as prey.
The eyes of someone overflowing with greedy desire.
"Master... you mean..."
"I mean the owner of the demonic sword Tirpione, of course."
Just as I thought.
I placed my hand on her shoulder, pushing her away, and faced Tirpione directly.
"Um... Miss Tirpione. You might not know this, but if I take you out of here, monsters will swarm us. ...That's what demonic swords do."
If I left this house possessing Tirpione, a horde of monsters would come rushing in.
I vaguely attributed my knowledge to the typical traits of demonic swords.
Anyway, the important thing was that my life would be in danger.
No matter how strong someone was, fighting a horde of enemies put their life at risk.
No way could I take on that monster swarm, even if I'd boosted my stats through dieting.
But at my words, Tirpione just giggled.
"How wise you are, too."
Then she looked up at me with eyes full of admiration.
Like a fanatic lost in a cult.
I couldn't fathom why she'd come to value me so highly in such a short time.
"But it's fine, Ken. You won't be in danger if you don't go out."
"Pardon? What do you...?"
"We can just stay together from now on."
Her lips curved into a gentle smile.
That greedy smile gazed at me.
No way...
I shoved her aside and dashed desperately toward the door.
━Clink, clink.
"D-Damn it, what the hell is this...!"
The door was locked from the inside, but no matter how I fiddled with it, it wouldn't open.
"Hee hee, Ken. Even you won't open it easily."
Tirpione's voice came from behind me amid this incomprehensible situation.
I whipped around to look at her, and she kindly explained.
"Why do you think monsters don't swarm when my main body is in this house?"
She slowly approached me and pressed herself tightly against my back.
The warmth of her unmistakably solid flesh—hard to believe she was a sword's spirit—seeped into me.
"Because this house itself is a monster that has absorbed tons of demonic energy from this place."
"...This house... is a monster?"
The house was infused with demonic energy.
It wasn't an impossible story.
Tirpione herself had started as an ordinary sword and become a demonic sword by absorbing demonic energy.
"This house protects what's inside. Its purpose, crafted with care by my first master, has awakened its power through the demonic energy of this hell."
Her arms wrapped around my waist, and I felt her face pressing against my back.
At the same time, her voice, thick with desire, echoed through the house.
"We'll stay together forever. Master."
At her words, I thought:
'I'm screwed.'
Having been imprisoned by Rafne once before, I realized she was dead serious.
I had no idea why she was doing this to me.
But the key point was that I was trapped now.
In a monster house that had grown even tougher through monsterization.
But calm down, Ken Fine Stein.
You're an experienced prisoner who's been confined once before.
Not something to brag about, but...
Since this wasn't my first time, I wouldn't panic. Let's stay calm and act rationally.
I can definitely get out.
With that resolve, I turned around and grabbed Tirpione's shoulders.
Her eyes, sparkling now that she had what she wanted, gazed at me in ecstasy.
I smiled at her and replied.
"Looks like you've got me good."
What Tirpione wanted was for me not to leave.
In other words, for me to stay with her forever.
But I had to get out of here. And I couldn't take her with me.
So, I'd act like I was fulfilling her wish.
"Guess I have no choice. Looking forward to our time together, Miss Tirpione."
"...Ahh."
I worried my acting might seem awkward, but Tirpione's face lit up with emotion.
She'd bought it completely.
Tears welling in her eyes, she threw herself into my arms.
"Ahh! Ken! I believed you would understand!"
"...Y-Yeah... urgh."
She suddenly pressed her body against mine, and I felt her soft curves all over.
But don't panic.
This was nothing compared to the mental assaults from the much larger Rafne.
I couldn't lose my reason over this level of skinship.
"Um, Miss Tirpione. To celebrate us living together, could I take another look at your main body?"
"My main body?"
"I've thought it was beautiful since I first saw it. I want to take a closer look."
"...Hahh!"
Tirpione suddenly clutched her chest, her face flushing red.
Why was she reacting like that?
From my perspective as its creator, the demonic sword—her main body—was undoubtedly a beautiful masterpiece.
But what did that have to do with grabbing her chest?
Soon, smiling, she held out her main body to me.
"H-Here...! But it's a girl's body, so please be gentle..."
"Y-Yeah..."
To me, it was just a sword, but to Tirpione, who was the sword itself, this was her true form.
I gently ran my finger along the blade I'd taken.
Hmm, the edge was definitely sharp...
"Ahh! K-Ken...! That's too stimulating there...!"
"Whoa! Sorry!"
What part of her was that, anyway...?
Anyway, the longsword-form demonic sword was now in my hand.
It truly seemed like a high-value sword in every way.
"Nice. It's a really great sword, Miss Tirpione."
"...Ugh, saying that makes me so embarrassed..."
Ignoring her bashfulness, I turned around.
And what entered my view was the locked door of this house.
"...Ken?"
Tirpione called my name from behind as I silently stared at the door.
But before she could catch on to my intent.
Leveraging my heavily boosted physical abilities from dieting.
━Slash!!
I swung the sword in an instant.
"K-Ken?!"
Tirpione was startled by my sudden action.
But it was already too late.
━Sizzle...
The demonic sword Tirpione's ability was corrosion.
Any living thing slashed by its blade would have that part corrode.
And if this house had become a monster by absorbing demonic energy...
Then it was just another lifeform.
'It works!'
The lock precisely slashed by the blade began to corrode and loosen.
I turned to her, who was staring blankly at me, and smiled.
"Sorry. There's only one person who can lock me up."
"Ah... A-Ahh!"
━Boom!!
I launched myself forward, shattering the door and escaping the house.
Of course, leaving Tirpione inside.
After rolling on the ground from the momentum, I immediately looked back into the house.
Just in case she chased after me or attacked.
But contrary to my fears, Tirpione just stood at the doorway, looking down at me.
A face smiling with regret.
'...Why isn't she coming out?'
That question didn't last long.
Seeing what emerged from her pocket, I let out a hollow laugh.
In her hand was a stone slate engraved with a mark.
The key I'd been searching for.
Confirming my expression, Tirpione covered her mouth with the slate and spoke.
"You need this, right? Then you'll have no choice but to come back here someday."
As her giggling laughter rang out, the key right before my eyes slipped from my grasp, leaving me at a loss.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In the midst of the silent cluster of pillars.
Rafne's group, who had come to the 10th floor's stele to rescue Ken, finished their preparations wordlessly.
The morning of the seventh day, as Ken had explained.
Soon, the stele would react according to his plan, drawing countless monsters to destroy it.
And to fend them off, the group steeled their faces and completed their preparations.
"Emily, if the monster swarm breaks our formation, stick to me or Mary."
Adjusting the gloves Ken had made, Adrian approached Emily, who sat by a pillar.
She nodded silently, head bowed.
As the party's sole healer, her safety came first.
"...They're coming."
Rafne's voice rang out from where she stood by the stele, gazing toward the forest.
And at the same time, the ground began to rumble.
━Thud thud thud thud.
The earth shook so violently it felt like an earthquake.
Emily stood from her seat, and the others gripped their weapons.
And then.
━Weeeeng.
With a strange resonance, the hitherto silent stele began to glow.
Seeing it, Rafne smiled brightly for the first time in a while.
"Ken will be here soon, right?"
"Yes. We just have to protect this stele from those bastards until then."
Mary stepped up beside Rafne, scattering cold mana.
Ken would arrive soon.
Even facing the oncoming monster horde, that's what they believed.
They just hoped he'd return safely.
"Then, shall we begin?"
Adrian extended his hand with a faint smile.
His mana flared with heat and swelled enormously, raising the surrounding temperature.
And like conducting an orchestra, he waved his hand.
━Roar.
A massive blaze roared before him, and the fire magic he'd gathered.
Shot into the enemy horde like a cannon.
━Kaboom!!
Flames soared, accompanied by a massive explosion.
And.
[ Roooaaarrrr━!!! ]
Starting with one monster's cry, the battle to protect the stele for Ken's return began.
"Rafne! Mary! You two handle the small, numerous ones. We can't let any slip through to attack the stele!"
Among the charging monsters, swarms of small, quick ones approached.
Rat-like, tiny insects, or small humanoid monsters.
Following Adrian's orders, Mary's ice bolts poured into the swarms like machine-gun fire.
And Rafne handled those dodging the magic and pressing forward.
"Siegfried. You and I take those big ones."
"Yeah."
Adrian and Siegfried eyed the horde of massive monsters.
Finally, Adrian glanced at Emily.
"Emily, healing for the injured. And seal any monsters using skills."
Emily nodded firmly, and mana chains shot from her hand, binding a harpy using a sleep skill.
━Kaboom!!
Another blaze erupted from Adrian's hand, striking the enemy horde.
Beside him, Siegfried blurred into afterimages and leaped high.
Floating in the air, he targeted one thing.
Giant worm.
His sword slashed toward the enormous larval monster, bisecting it.
━Kaboom!!
━Shatter shatter shatter!!
Fire and ice barrages swept through the monster horde.
'...We can do this!'
Emily, initially overwhelmed and anxious by the swarm, smiled seeing the group handle them flawlessly.
At this rate, holding out until Ken returned wouldn't be hard.
Just as she glimpsed victory and smiled early.
━Thud thud thud!
━Thud thud thud thud!
From the forest center where monsters swarmed.
Footsteps of even more monster hordes echoed from both sides.
[ Kyyyaaah━!! ]
Monsters charged with roars.
What started as a single stream of monsters had swelled with reinforcements from both flanks.
"A-Adrian...!!"
Emily froze at the sight and called out urgently.
"Damn it! Mary! Left side━!!"
Adrian, seeing the same scene, yelled desperately at Mary.
The two with the greatest firepower now.
They needed to unleash wide-area magic to wipe out the foes.
'...A-At this rate, their mana...'
But even the strongest had limits.
More monsters meant more firepower they had to expend.
Siegfried and Rafne moved without rest, cutting down intruders.
Incredibly fast, but...
Against overwhelming numbers, blocking everything was tough.
[ Keeeaaah!! ]
"Ngh!"
━Slash!
Finally, a poison rabbit broke through Rafne and Siegfried's barrier.
Not a high-rank monster, so Emily's sword dispatched it in one stroke.
But.
'It's starting to break through.'
Cracks appeared in their ironclad defense.
"...Ken."
Emily gazed anxiously at the stele where Ken would emerge.
Still just glowing.
No sign of him.
"...Hurry."
For some reason later than planned, Emily gripped her sword with unease.