Chapter 93
Chapter 93
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: Dragon King (4)
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[...Do I really need to go that far?]
Tatiana bit her lip hard at the response coming from across the communication screen.
Originally, she had no intention of asking the Foreseer for help. The Foreseer had simply ordered her to kill that man, without providing any specific tools.
But considering the power she had witnessed recently.
There was no way she could handle it with her own strength alone.
[Isn't just calling the Great Chieftain enough? Do you really need to pull out that relic too?]
"...Circumstances suggest the timeline has been twisted once already."
Tatiana managed a dry reply.
"Only the strongest among Hell's rulers could pull off something that absurd. It must be because of the Gray Devil's fragment."
She had known for some time that the Tristan Duchess was possessed by the Gray Devil, but she never imagined it would lend that man such... 'devoted' power to this extent.
However.
[Well. Probably not the kind you're thinking.]
The Foreseer's following response veered completely off from what Tatiana had in mind.
"...Pardon?"
[It didn't pop out specifically to help that man. If it had only twisted the timeline that much, the Devil itself didn't manifest.]
Tatiana blinked.
"...What do you mean?"
[If the Gray Devil's true body had emerged, it wouldn't have stopped at twisting the timeline. That was just the vessel going berserk, that's all.]
"..."
Tatiana fell silent, at a loss for words.
Right now, this woman.
Was dismissing even that phenomenon as 'nothing much' compared to the Devil's full manifestation.
[And a vessel going berserk... the Devil itself wouldn't welcome that. No matter how much of a constitution he has for being unconditionally loved by villains, a vessel bloated with malice to its limit might not even respond to it.]
The explanations were utterly incomprehensible.
Though it made sense, given who she was.
When it came to understanding devils, she was arguably the human with the highest knowledge in the material world.
"...So you're saying there's no need to worry about it...?"
[No~ well. That man probably won't try to force the vessel to berserk for that power, but I can still provide it. It'd be trouble for me if he dies this time too.]
"...?"
Tatiana looked at the Foreseer with a puzzled expression.
"...'This time' too?"
[Yeah.]
The Foreseer chuckled softly.
[That man got badly burned by the devil before. He died.]
"...?"
Wasn't this supposed to be about a man who was clearly alive right now?
That doubt crossed Tatiana's mind, but the Foreseer continued nonchalantly.
[If it happens again, I'd be pretty sad.]
Tatiana's eyes widened.
That response undoubtedly.
Was laced with a tangled mess of complex emotions.
Had this woman, who always wore a mask of inhuman lightness, ever revealed so many feelings before?
Regret, sorrow, anger, irritation, and above all.
Remorse.
This woman who acted like she knew everything in advance. This woman who despised even the slightest backtalk about her choices.
As if there was something even she couldn't control.
Tatiana froze stiff in shock, then suddenly realized something odd and spoke up.
"...But, Foreseer. Didn't you order me to kill that man?"
[I did?]
"Then why—"
Show an attitude like she didn't want to see him die?
Hadn't she herself declared just recently that she was throwing a trial at him with full intent to kill?
As she voiced that question.
[That guy's like a coil spring.]
An unexpected answer came back.
"...Pardon?"
[The harder you press down, the more forcefully it bounces back. Keep threatening him with death, and he'll grow even faster.]
"..."
[The more you try to kill him, the stronger he'll get in response. If you succeed in killing him... well, it just means he was fated to 'fail' this time anyway. Something like that?]
Fail at what?
Tatiana's expression hardened.
The Foreseer's attitude carried an inexplicable sense of dissonance.
"...Foreseer."
[Yes?]
"If it's not too rude, may I ask one thing?"
Right now, this woman's words and actions seemed almost.
"As if everything you're doing, Foreseer, is to 'make that man stronger'—"
[Hey.]
Tatiana clamped her mouth shut.
Cold sweat trickled down.
She could sense the chill in the Foreseer's voice.
[Let's leave it at that?]
"..."
Tatiana bowed her head silently.
She felt the intense pressure of crossing a line.
This topic was undoubtedly the Foreseer's 'reverse scale'.
Fortunately, seeing her go quiet, the Foreseer quickly reverted to her usual light tone.
[Anyway.]
The Foreseer stretched as she continued.
[I can give you what you asked for. The strongest relic only seals a devil's presence temporarily... but that should be enough, right?]
"...Yes. Thank you."
[Alright, I'll have it delivered then. Do your best with the request~]
The Foreseer spoke in a casual voice.
[While you're keeping him distracted, I'll go after the 'real target'.]
"...Understood."
The communication ended there.
Tatiana stared at where the Foreseer had vanished, biting her lip until it bled.
Still, the Foreseer prioritized that man over her. It came through crystal clear just from her words.
"..."
So, her task was.
To meticulously plan and crush that man.
If the devil's power was sealed, no one in this academy could stop the 'ancient being' she could summon from the sea depths.
Arranging it in the most efficient way wouldn't make subduing him all that hard.
All that remained was predicting what 'preparations' he could make until the relic arrived.
'...Where is that bastard right now?'
A hologram displaying the academy's overall status appeared in her room. Finding Dawood Campbell's current position wasn't difficult.
If she could see where and how long he spent time, she could roughly gauge his plans. He wasn't the type to sit idle sucking his thumb.
Right in the middle of the ocean.
Since it was Hunter's Night, he must be participating and moving around.
"..."
And then.
Tatiana's expression froze the instant she realized what was at the spot where Dawood had anchored his boat.
Though it quickly relaxed.
'...No way.'
No matter how insane he was, they only had a handful of students here. He wouldn't dream of making contact with the creature there.
And even if he did.
It'd be suicide.
Tatiana shut down the hologram with that conviction.
'...He's wasting time, that fool.'
She sighed, thinking that.
Whatever his reason for going to meet the 'King of the Sea'.
It'd only be shooting himself in the foot.
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"Huff... huff..."
I catch my breath and look down at the guys sprawled at my feet.
These were the ones who charged out in rage right after I knocked out the fat slob who spewed insults at Liru.
"Not as strong as I thought."
They came charging in looking so menacing, but if I could handle them all alone without Talion or Liru, they really must not have much going for them.
Desperate Situation only kicked in at B-rank too.
"..."
Of course, even so.
I did want to test how much stat bonus bare-handed combat gave.
'Feels better than expected?'
It's not just stats going up—it's like my motor nerves themselves have changed.
Moves I couldn't even imagine before are now possible.
Like somersault kicks, triple spinning heel kicks, or naturally countering an opponent's attack with a punch.
'...At this rate.'
Before, it only hit 10% progress, but if it performs like this, completing it before the main quest boss fight isn't impossible.
If my memory serves, there's an event coming up soon where I can skyrocket unarmed combat proficiency.
Probably right after we leave this sea and move to the next Hunter's Night stage.
"..."
"Isn't it a bit much to be so casual after taking down this many?"
Talion, who was gathering all their gear on my orders, spoke in disbelief.
"Aren't tribal alliance warriors in proper equipment supposed to boast combat prowess surpassing imperial regular knights?"
"What are you comparing academy students to them for."
In truth, the fight itself was nothing special.
Sure, they were wrapped in top-notch gear, but with skill backups, I can pull off a one-man army this easily now.
I got this tired just blocking them all here with Talion to prevent any accidents if they broke toward Liru.
"..."
From the moment that fat guy started yapping, with the blue energy swirling—it was touch and go.
If we'd gone into combat in that state, something definitely would've gone wrong...!
"Anyway, gather the gear carefully. We'll use it all later."
"Got it."
Talion sped up at my command.
The tribal alliance's 'smithy' is renowned as the most technologically advanced among all academies. Can't pass it up now that we're here.
Thinking that, I mentally list the 'materials' I've gathered so far.
Special steel, adaptive leather from that beast earlier, ectoplasm, mid-grade relics... Add what we're salvaging from these guys, and I can craft something pretty helpful.
Something that'll greatly empower me and this person.
As I glance at Liru thinking that, she looks back with a headache expression.
"...Why'd you do that?"
"Pardon?"
"Why fight. And you wouldn't even send a single one my way."
"..."
Well, because sending any your way risked the blue devil berserking and wiping us all out.
But how do I explain that?
"Fine. Don't wanna explain, got it. Whatever."
Liru sighed deeply, then muttered softly.
"...Starting from silently doing well for me, huh?"
"...Pardon?"
"Nothing. And more importantly."
Liru continued with a pout.
"...What do you plan to do with this one?"
We sent the gear-stripped guys back to the dock via rowboat.
But the fat slob who first insulted Liru was tied up tight right now.
"Use him as bait."
Perfect timing since I hadn't found any yet.
No teeth? Use the gums. No suitable beast? This guy's it.
"...Bait?"
Liru narrowed her eyes and scanned the tied-up pig up and down.
It did look a bit odd.
So to speak.
"...Looks like bait on a fishing rod?"
I chuckle at Talion's observation.
Pretty spot-on description.
"You said you needed... bait. But is there a situation calling for human-sized bait...?"
"There is."
I have Talion grab his ends.
"On three, throw as far as you can. One, two, three."
His body arcs through the air—whoosh. Thanks to Talion and me throwing full force, the hefty guy shrinks to fist-sized in the distance.
Splash—came the sound of a person hitting the water, along with a scream.
He'd been limp till now, but hitting the water woke him up.
Ignoring his sputtering screams, I check my watch.
'Haven't missed the time.'
This one's so rare, even in the game you had to meet a ton of conditions to encounter it.
Exactly during Hunter's Night, exactly at the set time, waiting here with 'bait' of similar size.
Then it comes to feed.
A very, very terrifying thing.
Recalling that, I adjust the 'fishing rod' line tied to the fat guy's rope.
Dip in water, pull out. Dip in, pull out.
Make it dance enticingly like tasty prey.
"Guh, glub, y-you bastards! What the hell! I'm Krun Gerdo! Next chieftain!"
"Is that so."
"What do you mean 'is that so'! Pull me out now or pay dearly—!"
"I see."
"..."
Liru, watching me handle him so indifferently, sighed and cut in.
"Still, maybe be careful. Even if he looks worthless, he's the chieftain's heir. The alliance won't let it slide."
"That's the idea."
"...What?"
"They're picking a fight with you anyway, so they're at odds with me too. No helping it."
"..."
And that.
Liru closed her eyes and rubbed her temple.
Like she was wondering why such words came so naturally to him.
"...Why is that so obvious to you."
Liru said it with a voice drained of energy, but I couldn't focus on rebutting now.
The 'bite' was coming soon.
"...The wind stopped."
Talion noticed first.
The raging wind and rain around us halted. The churning waves settled.
Like the calm before a storm.
"..."
Thinking about it, apt description.
Nothing fits the being about to appear better than 'storm'.
"Hold tight."
I tell Talion and Liru, who look around puzzled.
"Or you won't keep your balance."
Then.
In Krun's former spot ahead.
'Something' slowly revealed itself.
First, enormous horns.
Liru saw the two horns on its head and stiffened, realizing something.
She probably knows.
What kind of existence that is.
"You."
Liru said in a trembling voice.
"...Didn't you say we'd only encounter native creatures?"
"It is native."
"That?!"
I chuckle at Liru's scream.
Well, strictly speaking.
It's been nesting around here forever, so native fits.
Just that calling it a 'magic beast' feels... too lowly for its stature.
After the horns, scales covering its body emerge. Whiskers. And, even from afar, unmistakably... the 'dragon heart' pulsing in its chest.
Sea Dragon. Sea Dragon.
A monster belonging to the dragon race—one of the world's strongest magic beasts, even if a distant branch.
Appeared before us.
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