Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: The Impostor's True Face
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I had no idea what the true identity of that suspicious pedestrian was, but the demonic energy I’d sensed before entering this place was anything but weak.
It was strong enough that even I had to stay on high alert to handle it.
Yet the scene unfolding before my eyes showed Kayla overwhelmingly dominating the pedestrian.
The unexpected turn of events left me utterly dumbfounded.
“You thought it was dangerous…… but it was the opposite, huh?”
Thompson seemed just as stunned.
He stared at Kayla with a look of utter disbelief on his face.
“Kayla, what the hell happened here?”
“Oh, well, you see……”
At my question, Kayla scratched her head awkwardly and began explaining the situation.
She’d been waiting for us at the temporary hideout when she suddenly sensed demonic energy, followed by the pedestrian’s abrupt ambush.
Up to that point, it was all easy enough to imagine without her saying a word.
“So we ended up fighting out of nowhere, and the bastard totally underestimated me. This is the result.”
Kayla added that her decision not to reveal her full strength until now had played a big part.
It wasn’t an impossible story by any means.
We had deliberately hidden our power in front of the pedestrian, after all.
‘……Though letting your guard down in front of a mage has to be the dumbest move possible.’
If our ploy had lulled the pedestrian into complacency even a little, it made sense that the fight had ended so easily.
But still.
‘……Something’s off.’
What was this nagging feeling?
Had things really gone this smoothly just because of that?
No matter how careless he’d been…… was the pedestrian really that pathetic?
Harboring these doubts, I approached Kayla.
“This got torn.”
I pointed to the back hem of her robe.
The spot was pristine, without a single scratch.
But it was in a tricky position that she couldn’t check without taking off the robe.
“How about switching it out while we’re at it? You always said this robe’s color was too flashy and you didn’t like it.”
“Oh…… yeah, I did.”
She replied with an oddly stiff expression, and I pushed further.
“What about that one we saw recently? The purple one with the checkered pattern.”
“Uh, yeah…… that’s not a bad idea.”
“Right?”
The more she answered, the more my suspicions hardened into certainty.
I hit her with one final question.
“Did that artifact you bought last time activate?”
“……Artifact?”
“You know, the one-time-use artifact you got because your mana reserves were low.”
“Oh, that one?”
She paused as if thinking it over, then opened her mouth with a look of realization.
“Of course it did. Things could’ve gotten pretty dicey without it.”
The shamelessness of it all, not a flicker of change in her expression.
It went beyond infuriating—straight into loathsome territory.
“Ah, I see.”
But I kept my cool, smiling back without a hint of suspicion.
Shing-.
In my right hand, I gripped the ‘Sword of Light’ I’d been hiding until now.
The blade, forged of magic, hovered threateningly at her throat, ready to sever it in an instant.
“But here’s the problem. Things already seem pretty dangerous.”
“What the……!”
“Number One!”
Thompson, still not grasping the situation, lunged to grab me in a panic.
I hardened my expression and said,
“What did you do to Kayla, you son of a bitch?”
It looked like Kayla had been kidnapped.
***
……
A suffocating silence stretched on.
Thompson was the first to break it.
“Number One, what are you talking about……?”
Keeping my eyes fixed on the sword at her throat, I replied.
“This isn’t Kayla. It’s that shady pedestrian bastard.”
“What?”
I already had more than enough proof.
The way she’d nodded along when I said she disliked the robe she’d once raved about fitting her taste perfectly.
The fact that she hadn’t batted an eye when I suggested a purple robe—a color she hated.
How she’d claimed to have used a mana-related artifact I’d never even mentioned.
It was all lies.
Thump!
My pounding heart was just the cherry on top, confirming I was right.
In other words, the woman standing before me wasn’t Kayla.
“How long are you gonna keep this up? I’m getting bored.”
As she spoke and pressed the sword even closer—that’s when it happened.
“Kehehe…… keheheheh!”
Her face twisted, and she let out a grotesque laugh.
At the same moment.
Rooooar-!
The chilling demonic energy I’d felt before entering the building erupted from her.
Finally showing its true colors.
“Guess it was a bit too rushed and sloppy, huh?”
She spoke nonchalantly, then glared at me with wide eyes.
That instant, her eyes flashed.
Crack-crunch!
Along with a piercing killing intent, one of her ribs pierced through her flesh, jutting out sharply.
I’d half-expected it and swung my sword immediately.
Slash-!
The rib flying toward my neck was severed clean off.
But she hadn’t aimed to land a real hit in the first place—she instantly widened the distance.
And that’s when the truly grotesque spectacle began.
Crack, crrrack!
Her body swelled unevenly as she retreated.
As if bones were reshaping her form from within.
Crrrack, crack!
Wrists, ankles, thighs, collarbone……
Pure white bones burst through her flesh in multiple places.
I’d seen something like this once before, but it still turned my stomach.
Especially with Kayla’s face doing it.
“……What the hell is that?”
Thompson sidled up beside me, assuming a combat stance, and asked.
It must’ve been his first time seeing something like this.
Keeping my gaze locked on the thing, I answered.
“It’s a demon kin.”
More precisely, kin to the redhead—the first demon I’d encountered in this world.
Valefor kin, just like him.
I had two reasons for thinking that.
‘They’re masters of disguise.’
Valefor kin possessed two standout abilities.
One was their tenacious vitality—they could revive as long as Valefor remained, even with a pierced heart or severed neck.
The other was their ability to reshape their bodies at will, allowing them to impersonate anyone.
Of course, disguise on that level required a certain threshold of power.
In simple terms, the thing in front of me was far stronger than the redhead I’d faced before.
Which meant……
‘Strike first!’
I kicked off the ground, launching a preemptive attack.
Waiting around for it to finish transforming was cartoon bullshit.
I wasn’t a pushover.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Crackle-crackle-!
Electricity crackled around my legs, propelling me forward at explosive speed.
I closed in on it in an instant and dropped low, swinging my sword.
-All bladed weapons gain 300% proficiency bonus.
My body moved fluidly, like a master swordsman of decades.
Of course, I didn’t intend to kill it with this strike.
That might mean losing any chance of finding out where Kayla was.
For now, slicing its legs would suffice.
Whoosh!
But.
Clang!
Even that wasn’t easy against this thing.
I pulled back my rebounding sword and eyed its legs.
From the ankles, calves, and thighs up.
Pointed bones had already sprouted, encasing its legs completely.
Like its own bones were armor.
Kaaang-!
The bone’s durability was insane—Thompson’s follow-up attack, heavier than mine per hit, bounced off mercilessly.
He retracted his fist and stuck close to my side.
“Damn it all…… What kind of freakish monster is that thing?”
He had every reason to be shocked.
Thompson’s punches packed way more raw power than mine.
Yet they weren’t even scratching it, meaning this thing relied on sturdy defenses despite its frail appearance.
‘Well, yeah.’
It was a common trait among Valefor kin specialized in physical prowess.
Fortunately, it wasn’t invincible.
“There’s gotta be a weak point somewhere.”
Another Valefor kin hallmark.
No matter how tough their bodies seemed, they always had one vulnerability.
Even Demon Legion Commander Valefor himself wasn’t exempt, so this one wouldn’t be either.
The problem was……
“Weak point? Where?”
Finding it.
No need to overthink it, though.
“We’ll find it if we beat it half to death.”
There was no special method.
If anything, just keep hammering away until it showed.
“I’m going in first.”
Even straightforward Thompson would get that much.
Flash!
I kicked off again without further explanation.
From here, it was a battle of endurance.
Either we wore out first.
Or its weak point emerged first.
That would decide the winner.
***
Meanwhile, in a pitch-black void where not even an inch ahead was visible.
“Shit…….”
“Sniff, sob…….”
Curses filled with rage and muffled sobs echoed through the darkness.
The sobs came from the survivor lady.
“Argh, damn it!”
The cursing was Kayla’s.
Boom!
Kayla slammed her fist into the wall beside her in frustration.
But the wall didn’t budge an inch, standing firm.
Her patience finally snapped, and she bellowed at the top of her lungs.
“Where the hell is this place?!”
At this point, a thought crossed her mind.
Maybe her fate was to be locked up forever.
“Why do I keep getting kidnapped no matter what?!”
What pissed her off even more was that last time, at least she’d known where she was being held.
Now? Not a clue.
Surrounded by pitch-black walls on all sides, it felt like another dimension entirely.
“Sniff, sob…… K-Kayla…… Can we…… survive this?”
“Ugh, enough! Shut it for a sec! My head’s already a mess!”
After snapping at the lady, Kayla took a deep breath.
“Haa…….”
Sure, the situation was hopeless, but she was a mage, wasn’t she?
She knew staying calm and figuring out an escape was far more efficient than panicking.
She even had experience breaking out of a prison that way.
Sure, Yoo Han had been the brains back then, but that didn’t matter now.
She could handle this on her own.
‘Think. Think…….’
She closed her eyes tightly and recalled.
How she’d ended up here, and by what means.
Her brain—now fully that of a mage after months of desperate training—sorted through the details.
The conclusion Kayla reached was simple.
‘Subspace.’
This wasn’t a pre-existing space; it had been artificially created by some force.
Like spatial magic, for example.
Which meant……
‘I can get out.’
Escaping might not be as hard as she’d thought.
Spatial powers were something only top-tier experts could wield casually.
In short, this was probably a shoddy imitation of a subspace—impressive-looking but flimsily made.
Which meant all she had to do……
Was shatter its balance.
“I’ll bust this place open right now.”
Whoosh-!
With renewed resolve, she began radiating mana in all directions.
The pedestrian had only imprisoned her without fighting.
Time to make it pay dearly.