Agony's Ecstasy (3)
Agony's Ecstasy (3)
I stepped out into the hallway outside the room, still holding Agony's Ecstasy.
The silence stood in stark contrast to the bloody struggle from moments ago.
Only moonlight seeped quietly through the collapsed gaps in the fortress.
It was late at night.
Perhaps because I had just accomplished a great task, the air felt particularly refreshing.
I gauged the direction and began walking toward one of the passages.
Though I hadn't been anywhere except where I was dragged during my captivity, there was no hesitation in my steps.
Thanks to Jenna, I had already familiarized myself with most of the fortress's internal structure.
After moving for a while, I reached my destination.
The dormitory for the low-ranking bandit rabble.
In a large, otherwise empty room, crude makeshift beds were lined up.
There probably weren't many intact spaces in the fortress, so they must have gathered here.
That was good for me.
I drew my blade and approached the one lying closest to me.
A bandit traveling comfortably through dreamland, even drooling in his sleep.
I pressed my hand over his mouth while simultaneously driving the dagger into his chest.
"...Ghk!"
I forcefully stifled the scream trying to force its way out with my palm.
His wide-open eyes darted through the darkness before finding me.
"Mmph! Uuugh...!"
Horror was evident in his constricted pupils.
I stared expressionlessly at his form as I applied more force to the dagger.
Agony's Ecstasy, soaked in blood, tearing and mincing his flesh from within.
The bandit, who had been struggling, soon met his death.
Though it was a somewhat simple assassination, I felt no regret.
Extreme agony had been his final companion on his last journey.
He probably experienced pain more terrible than most tortures, though I couldn't know for sure.
Even I felt a momentary shudder at his gaunt face, as if his soul had been drained away.
Many more scum remained to be dealt with.
I moved to the next bed and continued the stealthy assassinations.
Being completely naked was optimal for moving quietly.
"...Huh? Sh-shit. What the hell are you?"
Around the twentieth kill, one bandit noticed the disturbance and woke up.
The bastard who made eye contact with me spat out curses with a trembling face.
A blood-soaked naked woman illuminated by moonlight. Even holding a black dagger in her hand.
How must I look through his eyes? Probably like a ghost that just leaped out of a nightmare.
I immediately rushed forward and slashed his throat with the dagger, then drove the blade deep into his solar plexus.
The bastard let out a death rattle as he collapsed, vomiting blood.
"Ah shit, which bastard is making all that noise..."
Bandits began rising one by one, having heard the commotion.
Without panicking, I quickly approached and severed their windpipes.
Only about five or six remained anyway.
"A-attack! You motherfuckers, everyone wake up!"
The bandits with sleep-filled faces soon panicked and began scrambling about.
Of course, even then, there was no way they could oppose me.
I directly received the flying hand axes and clubs while continuously swinging my dagger.
Their pitiful attacks couldn't outpace my recovery speed in the slightest.
They weren't even worth a Bronze Badge if they were mercenaries.
Without the renowned aura expert, they were just a disorderly band of bandits.
"R-run! Hyungnim...! Call Hyungnim, gahk!"
Agony's Ecstasy pierced the back of the head of the bastard attempting to flee.
The merciless slaughter ended with that.
I calmly regulated my breathing and counted their numbers.
Twenty-eight total. Now I just need to eliminate the six executives.
I walked through the corridor again, dripping with sticky blood.
Though there had been noise, it probably didn't reach the executive quarters located far on the opposite side.
I soon arrived at the far end of the fortress.
Six private rooms arranged with pairs facing each other.
So the executives get their own rooms, huh? How pretentious.
I stopped before the door of my first target and listened carefully.
The sound of snoring came through clearly.
The soundproofing isn't great. I should handle this as quietly as possible to avoid trouble.
I carefully pushed open the creaking wooden door and entered.
A bandit sprawled out arrogantly, reeking of alcohol, was immediately visible.
An astonishingly defenseless appearance.
Typical of these bastards who didn't even post proper guards or sentries.
They must have grown this complacent since they'd subjugated all the kobolds who ruled this area.
That complacency and arrogance ultimately led to their death.
As before, I covered the bandit's mouth with my hand and stabbed with the dagger.
"Uh, ugh...!"
The bastard struggled with all his might but couldn't escape my grip.
Unless he was an aura user, it was impossible for a mere criminal to overcome my strength.
After dealing with that bastard, I continued my rounds through the remaining rooms.
I bestowed painful deaths upon each one, making sure they clearly saw who had stabbed them.
Only one private room remained.
Again, I stopped before the door and listened for sounds.
But unexpectedly, it was quiet inside.
He should have been snoring normally after drinking himself crooked.
Though curious, I paid it no mind.
This was probably Jugeokteok's room.
The bastard who had given me the most humiliation deserved an appropriately horrific death.
The moment I moved my hand to open the door, something suddenly shot out and pierced through me.
The sensation of metal digging through my skin and entering.
Enduring the vague, piercing pain, I lowered my head.
A sword that had burst through the door was stabbing through my abdomen and out my back.
An ambush from inside the room.
It was suspiciously quiet - he must have been awake after all.
"...Kgh."
The sword slid out smoothly, tearing through my insides once more.
I covered the gushing blood with my hand and stepped backward.
Soon after, with a creaking sound, the room door opened.
"Wondered which bastard it was, but it was you after all?"
Jugeokteok, holding a bloodied longsword, looked at me with his vicious face.
I also stared back at him with a frown.
Though I'd suffered a critical abdominal injury, it wasn't life-threatening.
"Heh heh. How does it feel to grow another belly button? Ah, though the hole's a bit big for a belly button. Just like your fucking cunt."
Having succeeded in his ambush, the bastard seemed extremely triumphant.
Looking at his ugly mug, I calmly opened my mouth.
"...How did you notice?"
"I have sharp ears. I won't go down as easily as those other bastards."
Well, it had been too easy until now.
Having a bastard who shows his teeth like this makes it more interesting for me too.
I healed the wound on my abdomen and straightened my hunched shoulders.
His face then colored with shock.
"Uh...? Th-this, shit! What! A-are you a witch?"
Holding Agony's Ecstasy in a reverse grip, I met Jugeokteok's gaze.
He was the only bandit left alive in this fortress.
No matter how much noise was made, there was no need to worry about it now.
"Yeah, I'm a witch. So what are you going to do about it?"
"Y-you...!"
Apparently quite shocked, Jugeokteok couldn't even complete his sentence.
Taking advantage of his confusion, I pushed off the floor and closed in on him.
It would be a waste to kill him instantly. Better to disarm him first.
My dagger, swung in an arc, grazed past the bastard's collar.
It was a close dodge, but he avoided it.
Unexpected movement. Seems he wasn't high-ranking for nothing.
"Y-you rag-chewing bitch! Stop swinging those tits around and fuck off!"
I easily dodged the wildly swung longsword and stepped back.
He's probably being vulgar on purpose to overcome his fear.
It was just laughable.
"Cr-crazy bitch! Your nipples are hard again! Are you getting excited even in this situation?"
"Why are you stuttering? Scared?"
"Y-you think I'd be scared of a whore like you!"
His terrified appearance, even spitting as he spoke, was quite enjoyable.
Should I torment him all night?
A sadistic thought briefly crossed my mind, but I soon shook my head.
For Jenna's sake, it was better to finish this quickly if possible.
"D-don't come! You fucking witch bitch!"
Jugeokteok shouted as if screaming and brought his sword down violently.
Instead of dodging the sword strike, I reached out and caught it.
My skin tore, but that would heal immediately anyway.
"Oo, ooooh!"
Jugeokteok, now making beast-like sounds, desperately tried to pull his sword back.
But I didn't budge. My strength was several levels above his.
"F-fucking bitch! What do you think will happen when our Hyungnim finds out! You think you can escape!"
"That wonderful Hyungnim of yours. Already died by my hand. Otherwise, how would I be here?"
Holding the longsword in my grip, I stepped closer to him one step at a time.
Jugeokteok's face rapidly paled as I approached.
Seized by terror, the bastard finally released his sword and collapsed to the floor.
"Sp-spare me! You, you enjoyed it too during this time, right?"
Did he really think I enjoyed being beaten?
I couldn't be bothered to correct that misconception with lengthy explanations.
I brought the reverse-gripped dagger down on the back of his hand.
"Ggh, ggaaahhk!"
A pig-slaughtering scream echoed through the quiet fortress interior.
Jugeokteok trembled all over, tears and snot streaming down.
Looking down at him with cold eyes, I made a proposition.
"I have a few questions. Answer them well and I might spare you."
"R-really? Really!"
"Yes. Why would I lie?"
I pulled out the dagger and wiped the blood on his clothes.
Jugeokteok was terrified by my every movement.
He was sufficiently cooperative without needing torture.
Despite appearances, he was an executive, so he should know much.
Even if I kill him later, it was right to solve the unanswered questions first.
"You guys controlled and manipulated the kobolds. How were you able to do that?"
"A m-mage! The boss got some stone-like thing from a suspicious mage! That's how we did it!"
So it was indeed a mage's sorcery.
But it still didn't make sense.
They controlled entire kobold settlements with just one stone?
If that was truly possible, the war between humans and monsters would have ended long ago.
"Th-that is... Fragment of the Pama! That was the stone's name!"
Fragment of the Pama. The name alone sounded ominous.
I pointed the dagger at him and questioned again.
"...Fragment of the Pama. You made the kobold chieftains kneel with that and controlled the settlements one by one?"
"N-no. It didn't work on chieftains and Great Warrior types. The regular kobolds would prostrate themselves just by showing the stone though."
That made some sense then.
If it didn't work on Great Warriors even aside from chieftains, then the control wasn't that strong.
"Why would a mage give such an incredible item to you guys?"
"H-he seemed to have some connection with Hyungnim."
"What kind of connection?"
"I don't know the details..."
His voice trailed off, whether he truly didn't know or not.
It wouldn't be strange for an aura expert to have connections with mages.
"That mage. What did they look like?"
"A w-woman with a young voice. But she wore a robe with a hood so I couldn't see her face... Ah, right! Her hair that stuck out was bright orange. And her, her breasts were enormous too."
"Bigger than mine?"
"Huh? Uh... probably?"
The bastard scanned my breasts with his eyes and nodded awkwardly.
A young female mage with bright orange hair and breasts larger than mine.
That was enough information to identify her.
"I, I told you everything I know! Now you'll, you'll spare me as promised...?"
Instead of answering, I instantly drove the dagger I was holding into him.
Agony's Ecstasy crushed and severed Jugeokteok's fingers.
Holding his agonized scream in my ears, I spoke indifferently.
"You believed that?"