Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Maria Kepler
'What is this person?'
Maria's gaze became slightly rigid.
The Rudian who was requesting an alliance with them was directing his attention not toward Elvin, but toward Maria herself.
'He's requesting an alliance with me, not with my brother?'
Publicly, Maria Kepler was known merely as a gentle noblewoman and an ordinary academy student.
No further information about her was disclosed to the outside world.
But...
'How did he know that my brother isn't the leader?'
Even if the other party knew they were members of the Psychic Empire, she had not yet received the 'succession.'
The organization itself was still led by her father, Matheus Kepler, and she was merely the 'Princess.'
'And to think I couldn't notice him even though he was this close.'
In fact, stealth and presence concealment abilities were unique powers possessed by Diablo, but she had no way of knowing that.
"What will you do, ma'am?"
Elvin was already watching for Maria's reaction.
Just looking at this was enough to make it clear who was at the center of the group.
Maria sighed and shook her head.
"I refuse."
By now, her tone had turned cold.
"Do you think I would accept a proposal from a suspicious person like you?"
"Is that so?"
"Forget about an alliance, I have no intention of letting you go now that I'm certain you've been following us."
"..."
"After we deal with that man, you're next. Be prepared."
As soon as Maria finished speaking, Elvin and the Luda siblings surrounded Rudian from the front and back.
'Well, so it comes to this after all?'
Rudian raised both hands in a gesture of surrender, as if he had expected this.
Seeing Rudian surrender more readily than expected, Maria's gaze turned toward the viscount who was emanating an ominous aura.
'Now, what are you planning to do?'
Rudian watched the situation with an excited expression.
This incident was not the result of his intervention.
In other words, this situation was one of the events that had also occurred in the original work.
'I remember that Gude Belstad was still alive until the beginning of the original work... Which means the outcome is pretty much predetermined.'
He could certainly win if he fought head-on, but he was certain that if a fight broke out here, many people would die.
At the very least, the numerous spectators and staff inside this theater would be caught in the aftermath.
'They're not stupid enough not to know that.'
If that were to happen, even if they killed Gude, the Psychic Empire would repeat the same fate it met in the original work.
What method would they use to corner Gude?
As Rudian entered spectator mode, Viscount Gude Belstad, who had been quietly observing the altercation until now, slowly opened his mouth.
"Well, are you two done with your little show?"
The viscount's eyes narrowed like those of a snake.
"Although I'm the manager of this theater, I never expected to witness such an amusing farce like this."
Especially, the sight of them ignoring the person they came to capture while getting distracted by other matters was more novel than absurd.
"Your skin and complexion look good, like well-fed nobles. My master will like that."
Maria's eyes narrowed slightly at the viscount's remark, which bordered on sexual harassment.
"...How dare you."
"If an incident happens here, you're the ones who will be in trouble. Feel free to go wild if you want. I'm curious to see what you're relying on to crawl in here."
Viscount Belstad had accurately assessed the situation.
"Now, what will you little cubs who've stuck your heads into the tiger's den do?"
ZIIING!
As black magical power gathered in Gude's hand, Elvin's expression hardened.
"A black magician!"
"Didn't you already know that when you came looking for me? Well then, shall we see who ends up in a worse situation?"
After all, this theater was just one of many businesses owned by the Viscount.
If this theater were destroyed, it would somewhat reduce Gude's assets, but in exchange, he could bring the Psychic Empire into the public eye.
When the word "secret" is stripped from a secret society, all that remains is concentrated fire from power holders who exist in the open.
The Psychic Empire absolutely had to kill Gude here.
"Now, let the festival begin!"
But before the magic in Gude's hand could be completed, Maria was faster in taking out an hourglass-like artifact and activating it.
"Hmm?"
'What's this?'
The design was simple with no special decoration, but the power flowing from the artifact was definitely extraordinary.
SWOOSH!
The light flowing from the artifact enveloped Maria, Gude, Elvin's group, and even Rudian, creating a strange spatial distortion.
And the moment the light faded, Rudian saw that his surroundings had completely changed.
***
A highland surrounded by mountain ranges.
With his view suddenly changed in an instant, Viscount Gude Belstad frowned and surveyed his surroundings.
"Spatial movement... No, spatial separation?"
Being both a nobleman and a magician, he immediately understood what Maria had done.
"A subspace? Is that the effect of that artifact? Very tempting."
"You catch on quickly."
A kind of subspace that doesn't actually exist in reality, but is composed solely of the power contained within the artifact.
Having realized this fact, Gude openly displayed his greed.
"An Oparts-level artifact that even the Masters of the Four Magic Towers would openly covet..."
Artifacts that interfere with space are unconditionally classified as special grade, regardless of their effect.
Gude wore a smirk on his lips.
"A pearl necklace on an orc's neck. I'll retrieve it for you."
To that, Maria calmly replied.
"You still haven't come to your senses, I see."
"Haven't come to my senses? Do you think you have the upper hand just because the terrain has changed, you childish girl?"
SWOOSH!
Black energy began to flow blatantly from Gude's entire body.
"Magic!"
"...I guess there's no need to be discreet anymore."
The magic that shot out from Gude's hand drew numerous magic circles in the air.
And from between those completed magic circles, something black began to surge out.
-GRUUUUUU!
-GRUK! GRURUK!
Elvin and the Luda siblings were shocked when they recognized what those things were.
"Demonic beasts from the demon realm? So he's a summoner!"
"HAHAHA! With the power I received from them, I have been reborn! Do you really think that mere youngsters like you can do anything to me?"
CRACK! CRACK!
By now, even Gude's appearance had begun to change gradually under the influence of magical power.
Rudian's expression stiffened slightly as he observed this.
'His power is being amplified!'
The change wasn't just in appearance.
'His combat power is also rising rapidly!'
When he first saw him, he had been puzzled by the lack of difference in combat power compared to Alec Hyuma, a mid-level vassal.
But watching this transformation now, Rudian realized what he had missed.
'Right, there was a setting that high-level vassals could temporarily transform into demons. I completely forgot about it.'
Gude's status window was changing in real-time with his demonization.
The final confirmed combat power of Gude was...
-Name: Gude von Belstad
-Race: Half-demon
-Age: 53
-Title: Seoris Union Trading Company Head, High-level Vassal of Demon King Asmodeus, Servant of Nightmares
-Strength: 58
-Agility: 50
-Vitality: 85
-Magic: 352
Total Combat Power: 4,070(+7,970)
Characteristic: Temporarily gained immortality through a servant contract
'...12,000.'
Power surpassing that of Simir Dran, the Death Knight of Caslay who had gained infinite magic and immortality!
Especially impressive was the three-digit magical power.
"Kekek, with this much power, I could certainly compete even if all the Masters of the Four Magic Towers came at me. You should have been content with just squabbling over petty interests in the shadows."
"..."
"I'll make you pay dearly for stirring up the beehive out of greed."
By the time his demonization was complete, a horn as thick as a child's forearm had sprouted on Gude's forehead.
Elvin shuddered slightly seeing the Viscount's appearance.
"That... Is just a mere underling? Not a demon realm noble?"
"That man is stronger than any ordinary demon realm noble right now. Don't let your guard down!"
Maria urged her companions who had been overwhelmed by Gude's presence.
If a mere underling was this powerful, their contractor was undoubtedly a Demon King-level entity.
Gude's laughter echoed all around.
"HAHAHA! Now, quietly accept your death!"
CRAAACK!
As soon as the Viscount extended his hand, hundreds of summoned demonic beasts began charging with terrible screams.
In particular, the giant hydra with nine heads among them exuded an overwhelming presence.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
The black wave tinted the earth, creating waves.
Gude was convinced that no one could maintain their sanity in the face of such a wave of demonic beasts.
'...What's this?'
But when Maria, who had appeared to be an ordinary noble lady, stepped forward, those who had initially seemed tense quickly began to compose themselves.
'Do they have something they're counting on?'
The reason soon became apparent.
KRAAACK!
KYAAAAAK!
"...What?"
If the earlier cries of the demonic beasts had been close to roars, the current cries were much closer to screams.
CRACKKKK!
As soon as the hundreds of demonic beasts crossed a certain line, they all began to be shredded as if they had thrown themselves into a giant meat grinder.
"Im-impossible!"
Gude quickly realized who was responsible for this spectacle.
'I-I couldn't sense any power from her!'
He had suspected she might be a magician when she took out the artifact, but there are plenty of artifacts that don't require the user's magic.
The magic Gude had detected from Maria was merely at the level of an ordinary person.
That's why Gude could be so arrogant in front of Elvin's group.
"Haven't you realized it yet?"
"Wh-what are you talking about?"
Maria, who had pulverized hundreds of demonic beasts in a single blow, calmly gazed at Gude.
Fragments of the demonic beasts were still lingering in the air.
From beyond those fragments, Maria spoke calmly.
"This place is your grave."
SHIVER!
Her eyes, which had been emerald green, were now golden.
And golden particles had begun to swirl around her.
Rudian stared blankly at this sight.
'Beautiful.'
In the novel, there was a description: 'Whenever she exerts her power, her telekinesis always manifests in a golden light that orbits around her.'
Her followers in the story described her like this:
'The Golden Empress.'
Certainly, Viscount Belstad was in the strongest class of humans in terms of pure ability.
However, the one he was facing now was a superhuman who had proudly served as the final boss of a chapter in , a story filled with numerous overpowered characters.
'Even if her prime is still 10 years in the future, an ant cannot defeat a hatchling.'
Isn't the content of the status window before his eyes proof of that?
-The information of the target cannot be known with the current user's capability.
No matter how close Viscount Belstad had come to the limits of humanity, he had no way to resist a being who was inherently free from those limits.
BOOM!
Just by manifesting her power, the earth was vibrating.
"Wh-what is this..."
Gude finally realized that he had greatly misjudged the opponent's strength.
"This is not a power that humans can possess."
Being a magician sensitive to power himself, he understood how absurdly powerful his opponent was.
In his common sense, there were only two types of beings that could emit such power in human form.
A polymorphed dragon, or a god.
"D-don't tell me. Are you a dragon?"
If it was a dragon, the apex of life forms said to rule the monster continent beyond the southern sea, that would make sense.
Of course, his guess was completely wrong.
"...You refuse to trust your eyes until the very end."
Maria responded coldly to Gude's disgraceful behavior.
"Whatever you do, whatever action you take..."
"GRRRR!"
"The result will not change!"
Gude screamed in rage.
"AAAARGH! Kill that woman!"
Befitting his title as "Servant of Nightmares," Gude could summon an almost infinite number of demonic beasts as long as his magic allowed.
Certainly, if his opponent had been a swordsman, even if they were a Sword Master, he could have worn them down to death.
But his opponent too was a bad match.
GRUK?
GRRRR!
The demonic beasts that were charging at Gude's command suddenly hesitated when they saw a massive shadow blocking out the sun.
"Am I... Hallucinating right now?"
WOOOOSH!
What had blocked the sun was not a cloud.
What had created the enormous shadow cast on the ground was one of the peaks of the mountain range that Maria had 'pulled' from nearby.
This was overwhelming violence that made numerical differences meaningless.
Gude hurriedly collected himself and shouted at Maria.
"W-wait! Let's make a deal!"
"...A deal?"
"I'll hand over all the underground interests to you! I'll speak to my master and arrange for a non-aggression pact with you!"
"..."
"Wasn't that what you wanted in the first place? If you want, I'll even transfer my shares in the Union Trading Company to you..."
Gude's words couldn't be completed.
"How ridiculous."
Maria lowered her finger, and drove the peak she had pulled straight down at Gude and his demonic beasts.
"W-wait! AAAAARGH!"
If Gude were a normal 8th-class magician, he might have been able to chant a defensive spell to block that massive object.
But someone who had increased his power through shortcuts could never withstand that.
CRAAASH!
The view shook and eardrums rang.
CRUNCH!
The nine-headed hydra, which had been the largest, was the first to be hit directly by the mountain peak, and as the hydra's heads were crushed, the fragments covered the remaining demonic beasts.
KYAAAAK!
'My goodness...!'
Rudian stood with his mouth agape as he witnessed this natural disaster descending upon the ground in real-time.
Each of those demonic beasts would have been a match for a knight-class opponent, yet they were losing their lives pathetically to this violence of mass falling from the sky.
Rudian looked directly at Maria, who was still floating in the air.
'Indeed, the queen of espers.'
A woman born as the monarch of espers, educated as a monarch, and raised as a monarch.
An iron-willed woman who doesn't hesitate to bloody her hands for those who follow her.
'I must persuade her.'
She must be made an ally for the sake of future plans.
BOOM...
The earthquake caused by the peak Maria had driven down finally subsided after nearly a minute.
After a long while, when the surroundings quieted down, Elvin, who had been watching, clenched his fist triumphantly and exclaimed.
"Did we get him?"
"No, wait!"
Rudian urgently grabbed Elvin's shoulder and covered his mouth as he was about to say something disastrous.
"Huh?"
"...Senior, that's not something you should say."
Rudian advised Elvin with a serious expression.