Chapter 131
Chapter 131
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: Chapter 26: Fallen Demon (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
1
Having left the border region, Azel and his group cautiously headed toward their destination. The area was known as a dragon habitat, so they wanted to avoid attracting the dragons' attention as much as possible. True to its reputation as a dragon habitat, there were plenty of magical beasts and demons, so they conducted thorough scouting and moved stealthily to avoid combat.
As night fell and they prepared to camp, Yuren asked,
"Why not perform the Dragon Slaying Ritual right now?"
"Not yet."
Azel shook his head. Thanks to the training method from the secret arts tome, the speed at which he assimilated the dragon's power had increased, but he still needed a bit more time.
Yuren asked Leticia,
"What do you think, Leticia?"
"You're talking about fighting a dragon one-on-one like it's a casual meeting between a young man and woman. If the Dragon Slaying Ritual seems that beneficial, why don't you try it yourself?"
"Honestly, I'm not confident. They say it's even more disadvantageous for a mage. Besides, I need to properly master my current mana before Dragon Demon mana..."
Black mist-like energy rose from Yuren's hand. Fundamentally, Yuren was a black magician. He demonstrated magic operation close to that of an orthodox mage, but an ominous black magic aura wafted from him.
Moreover, that energy was overwhelmingly denser and more sinister than that of ordinary black mages. The reason was the forbidden secret art he had mastered according to the Guide's teachings: Demon Fusion with demons.
The mana obtained through Demon Fusion with demons didn't dissipate easily and greatly amplified Yuren's mana, but at the same time, it eroded his spirit veins like a curse. Just as demons corrupt and destroy humans to claim their souls, the mana gained through fusion contained a ferocious will intent on devouring its user.
Yuren had always strived to control it, and recently, after using the training method from the secret arts tome, the burden had lightened considerably. The process of gathering all participants' mana, achieving qualitative integration, and then imbuing it with the properties of Dragon Demon mana had served as a form of purification.
Laura said,
"You handle such dangerous power remarkably well. That's taboo even from the perspective of pursuing black magic."
"...Well, that's true, but somehow hearing that from you makes me feel aggrieved."
"Why?"
Laura tilted her head as if she couldn't comprehend. Yuren clicked his tongue in disbelief.
"You're asking when you know? In the Frozen Wastes, they try to artificially create beings like me. Though success cases seem almost nonexistent..."
As Yuren spoke, he naturally shifted his gaze toward someone before hurriedly stopping himself. Leticia then said flatly,
"You don't need to make such pointless considerations."
"Ah, no, that's..."
"I never told you, but asking how I knew... it's honestly too obvious. Since you're insane enough to voluntarily summon a demon and fuse with it, you must have realized I'm the same kind."
At those words, Laura asked in surprise,
"You fused with a demon too?"
"It infuriates me to hear that from you, but... yes. In a sense, you're the same as me. Like Jephers Almaric."
Leticia gave a bitter smile. The reason she had betrayed the Dragon Demon Worshippers was because she had been subjected to black magic experiments. In a calm tone, she recounted her past.
"It's not much of a story. Laura Aunsor, it's similar to what the Aunsor clan did to produce you as their sole result. The Almaric clan did something much the same. The difference is they preferred the natural method when it came to making children."
"What do you mean?"
"Exactly what I said. The men of the Almaric clan had human women and Dragon Demon women bear them numerous children."
"......"
At first glance, it might sound like they simply produced offspring naturally. But from Leticia's nuance, it was clear this had been far from a gentle process.
"To obtain over a hundred children, they needed many women. Their backgrounds varied, apparently. Residents of the Frozen Wastes, external test subjects, and abducted individuals... all became tools for the Almaric clan to create the children they desired."
Leticia didn't know who her mother was. The Almaric clan had isolated the children before they were even weaned. She later learned that the women had their minds destroyed by magic from the outset to eliminate any chance of clan secrets leaking. Their bodies were modified to maximize 'production' of children, and once done, they were all 'disposed of.'
"...Blissfully ignorant of all that, I lived solely to become the ideal Almaric successor as they desired. The education we received was quite harsh."
With each advancing stage of the education process, the number of children steadily dwindled. Some died during training and experiments, while others, branded as failures, vanished somewhere. She hadn't known what happened to the failures back then, but now she did.
"I was one of the failures too."
The failures were sent to black magic research facilities to serve as test subjects. Leticia had been one of them.
The experiments inflicted there were brutal. The training to become successors had been inhuman as well, but the black magic experiments treated them as less than living beings with personalities.
"...But escape was impossible."
The test subjects were perfectly restrained and forced to endure hellish days every single day. Even death as an escape wasn't permitted. It was a black magic research facility where mocking human death was routine. A place teeming with demons that could demonstrate suffering worse than death itself... truly the bedrock of hell.
Leticia's voice, now fixed on the campfire, began to tremble slightly. She always appeared cold and composed, but at the bottom of her heart lay layer upon layer of painful, fearful memories that fueled her hatred and animosity toward the Dragon Demon Worshippers.
"I was able to escape because they lusted after the power of demons."
The black magic research facilities in the Frozen Wastes had continuously attempted to extract useful knowledge from demons by using test subjects as sacrifices. The forbidden experiment that went a step further was fusing test subjects with demons.
"As you can see from that fool, they determined they could obtain tremendous power through that madness. But there were no success cases."
At least not before Leticia.
Demons crave human souls. Yet upon direct fusion, rather than seizing the body, they immediately annihilated it. An unbearable tsunami of malice shattered the mind and killed the body. Even the dead couldn't be raised as undead.
"But I succeeded. I still don't know why. Lumping it together as demon fusion doesn't quite fit, since it seems different from Yuren's case."
In the first experiment, the fusion state lasted about 10 seconds before releasing. Leticia's mind and body emerged unscathed.
The researchers naturally prepared a second experiment. Based on accumulated results up to that point, outcomes like hers were rarer than one in ten. She was an exceedingly valuable test subject.
The results of the second experiment were astonishing. The fusion state persisted for over three minutes before releasing. Ordinarily, even a second experiment only lasted slightly longer before ending in destruction, but Leticia had maintained fusion for far longer and endured until release.
The researchers rejoiced, cheering that they had finally achieved the results they sought...
And promptly turned into pillars of ice.
"Looking back... I've never felt more wronged than in that moment."
She had endured every manner of torment because of them. Yet she hadn't even properly exacted revenge before cleanly freezing them to death?
Through the two instances of Demon Fusion, enormous changes had occurred within Leticia. It was gone now, but at the time, malevolent mana had overflowed, devouring everything, and shattered every restraint the researchers had imposed on her. Her Dragon Demon mana had surged, surpassing that of ordinary Dragon Demons, and she could wield the power of freezing as naturally as breathing.
"...But I'm not crazy enough to voluntarily summon a demon and fuse with it like that idiot. I never want to go through that again."
"I'm not doing it because I want to. I have no choice."
Yuren grumbled.
He had learned Demon Fusion from the Guide's Dream and used it as a trump card, but he had no desire to employ it unless absolutely necessary. Even when controlled through secret arts, the burden was immense.
While his mind wove reason and senses together to construct spells, one side was assaulted by the malice poured forth by another, eroding his sanity, while overwhelming power flooded in—accompanied by the horrific sensation of leeches writhing through his spirit veins, devouring him from within.
Leticia, who had been regarding him with displeasure, suddenly turned to Azel and asked,
"There's something I want to ask while we're at it. Azel Zestringer."
"What are you curious about?"
"There's no need to show such zealous willingness to answer everything. I'm not revealing my past as a bargaining chip for you. It's just..."
Leticia chuckled in mild exasperation.
"I thought it would be fine to tell you all. Even the Frozen Wastes scum know, so it shouldn't be bad for the comrades I've chosen to know."
The first time Azel had asked about her past, she had shown strong resistance. But as they traveled and fought together, the walls had gradually come down through their attitudes toward her.
After betraying the Dragon Demon Worshippers, aside from the time she spent learning from her master, Leticia had been utterly alone. After parting from the master who had taught her, amid her madness, how to live like a human, she had formed no bonds with anyone and thought only of fighting the Dragon Demon Worshippers.
But meeting Yuren had sparked change in her heart. Now, having overcome hardships with him and joined Azel—sharing the same goal—she found herself thinking that having like-minded comrades wasn't so bad.
Leticia asked,
"You've experienced the Dragon Slaying Ritual. In your view, do you think I should attempt it?"
"Yes."
Azel answered without a moment's hesitation.
"Hmm. If you judge so..."
"But the Dragon Slaying Ritual is something that demands staking your life, no matter who attempts it. Even if you've built up the skill to attempt it, there's no guarantee of success. The stronger the challenger's Dragon Demon mana, the stronger the dragon becomes. Don't forget that."
"I have no intention of taking the world so lightly."
Leticia snorted.