Chapter 30
Chapter 30
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: Clash in the Black Cat Village
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"Mmph! Mmmph!"
Lana thrashed with all her might. But bound as tightly as she was, she couldn't put up any real resistance.
The moment Previa's slender fingers touched her temples, Lana's head lolled forward as if her very soul had been sucked out.
"Hmmm."
At the tip of the dragon's delicate finger hovered a translucent orb, glowing faintly like will-o'-the-wisp. Previa parted her lips slightly, drawing it in before closing her eyes to savor it.
A moment later, her lips parted again.
"...No surprise from a demon. What a repulsive thing to do."
"Pardon? What happened?"
Previa shook her head incredulously at Philip's question.
"You'll see when we get there."
With that, she opened a portal. Now that he was used to it, Philip quietly followed her through.
They arrived in the central square of the Black Cat Tribe village.
Dozens of Black Cat Tribe members had gathered. They stood in neat ranks like fresh recruits, their faces a mix of fear and resolve.
A strange tension hung in the air, and Philip soon spotted Stella.
"...You've arrived?"
Chief Stella wore black-dyed leather armor, twin daggers strapped to her waist.
"All preparations are complete. We're leaving the village to attack Nepen's hideout. It's in a warehouse in a village about three hours from here..."
Previa raised a hand, cutting Stella off.
"No need for that anymore."
"What?"
"Look."
With a wave of her hand, the fog barrier enveloping the village began to fade. It was a barrier that had protected the village for over a century, at least.
"Wha? Wh-what?"
Chief Stella stared at Previa in shock but couldn't bring herself to stop her.
She simply assumed there was a good reason and put on a grave expression.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ But the moment the barrier vanished, presences began infiltrating the village. Philip let out a gasp as he saw figures in the tight-fitting clothes typical of assassins surround the square in an instant.
"Ah."
It seemed the ones preparing an attack weren't just the Black Cat Tribe.
'...Not a bad plan, really.'
Nepen's reason for targeting the Black Cat Tribe was their innate talent as assassins.
Until now, he'd been coaxing and brainwashing those who fled the village. But after something went wrong at the academy, he'd decided to take the loss and strike directly.
'He must have taken those two failures at the academy pretty seriously. Smart call to take the risk before some unpredictable variable ruins everything.'
It was a bold, solid choice. If not for the dragon with ink-blue hair at his side, Philip would have had to risk his life to navigate this mess.
Crescent's intent was clear.
Kill the resistors, capture the surrenders.
He didn't know how many assassins Crescent had in total, but with dozens here, it looked like most of their forces had been committed.
And then, flanked by three Black Cat Tribe guards, the final boss of this stage made his entrance.
A man with violet skin and ram's horns sprouting from his head, his demonic beauty on full display.
Succubi and incubi could fully transform into human guise, but Nepen had chosen to reveal his true form.
The incubus Nepen himself had appeared.
"Nepen..."
Stella murmured.
"Dissolving the barrier yourself? Finally made up your mind to come into my arms?"
He crossed the square, stopping a short distance from Stella to face her. Then, like some theatrical actor, he spread his arms wide with exaggerated flair.
"Living as my pet cat wouldn't be so bad. Especially a pretty one like you—I could dote on you for a good long while."
Philip glanced at Stella's face. She opened her mouth with remarkable composure.
"...Where's Tania?"
"Oh, your niece? That cute little thing's right here."
The incubus snapped his fingers, and a small girl in a deep-hooded robe stepped forward. She slowly approached Stella and removed her hood.
"..."
She resembled Stella. Stella reached out to take Tania's hand.
"Tania..."
But the heartfelt reunion never came. The instant Stella entered her range, Tania sharpened her claws without warning and slashed.
Black Cat Tribe claws were harder than most metals, making even a simple swing lethal.
Aiming for the throat like this? It could kill in one stroke.
But as chief, Stella's prowess outshone the average tribe member. She jerked back just in time, and Tania's claws merely grazed her neck, sparing the artery.
The violent motion spiked her blood pressure, and crimson sprayed like from a mist sprayer. Stella cried out at Tania in disbelief.
"Tania!"
But Tania bared her fangs like a cat in heat and pressed the attack. Stella retreated without countering, unwilling to harm her.
"Your kind is just so amusing. So feisty, I locked her in the basement and tortured her for years... and out comes not a person, but a cat?"
Nepen's laughter grated on Philip's nerves. He glanced at Previa; she looked irritated too, raising her hand.
"Insolent pest."
Her finger pointed at Nepen, and mana surged in the air—dozens of times the power Philip could muster.
The mana coalesced into long spears, three of them launching at arrow-defying speeds to impale Nepen straight through.
"Don't worry, I'll treat you speci—gurhk!"
Nepen, arms casually crossed, ended up pinned to the ground like a speared fish.
"Finding you was the hardest part. How thoughtful of you to come out like this."
Previa floated into the air. All manner of spells erupted from her hands without respite.
Ice pillars, lightning bolts, fireballs, poison mists—none fatal to demons, but plenty painful.
Cast on pure will, no chants, no gestures, no staff. Destructive magic no sage could replicate.
Only a dragon could pull off this acrobatic display of sorcery at present, steadily shredding the incubus's body.
"Gaaargh!"
"I do love the sound of vermin sizzling."
The final spell on Nepen's mangled form was time stop.
Frozen like an ice statue in his ragdoll state, Nepen was done. Previa exhaled in satisfaction and spoke.
"The rest is yours."
"Pardon?"
Philip, who'd been dazedly watching the magic show, blinked in surprise.
"Are your ears clogged? Clean up. Those assassins and Black Cat Tribe aren't demons—I can't touch them."
Lifting Nepen's body with telekinesis, Previa opened a portal and vanished.
'Wait, she's really gone?'
With Previa gone, Philip quickly gauged the mood.
Stella was pinned by the girl Tania, unable to act. Crescent's assassins were thrown into chaos by their leader's ridiculous defeat and abduction.
If any commander had a brain, they'd order a preemptive strike now.
Without the dragon's asymmetric power, it was a winnable fight.
Philip slowly placed his hand on his sword hilt.
He drew on his aura and charged at Crescent's remnants.
The whip-like flexible aura shredded everything in a three-meter radius in a flash.
"Aaaagh!"
Arms and legs flew through the air in an instant.
Some assassins spilled guts from split bellies; others had skulls cracked open by glancing blows.
Assassins weren't trained for fair one-on-one fights. They excelled at killing the defenseless.
Once in Philip's range, they were just meat.
"Help him!"
A few quick-thinking Black Cat Tribe members joined in.
Crescent's assassins snapped to and countered, but none withstood Philip's single stroke.
A few higher-ranking ones barely escaped his zone.
'Got to kill them all here.'
He couldn't wipe them out entirely, but he couldn't let them regroup for revenge either.
Word that he was an academy instructor had already reached Crescent.
They might target or kidnap students for payback.
'I won't let that happen.'
Better to die here than see that.
As that thought crossed his mind, Philip sensed sharp killing intent. Looking down, his shadow writhed.
"Tch!"
A familiar Black Cat Tribe man burst from Philip's shadow, dagger swinging.
It was Kane.
An ace assassin once, Kane nailed the gap in Philip's breath perfectly. But Philip had been wary of their shadow-traveling since first encountering the tribe.
He dodged the poisoned dagger by a hair's breadth, reshaping his extended aura into sword aura.
Kane sensed his death in that instant and desperately opened his mouth.
"Wai—"
Maybe "Wait." Philip beheaded him swiftly, no mercy for a bloodsucking assassin.
Lips pursed, he sought his next foe.
"Hey, have you lost it? We're neighbors!"
"Why are you doing this? Why help assassins?"
Crescent's Black Cat Tribe showed no sign of turning. They stabbed kin in the nape and heart without hesitation.
A clear wall separated trained fighters from village hunters and farmers.
The villagers struggled against Crescent's ruthless kin.
But with Philip cutting their numbers by six already, they could at least hold.
Scanning the field, Philip spotted one assassin.
A stern-faced middle-aged man, skilled in close quarters—he'd already killed two villagers and was leaping into structures to escape Philip's sight.
Philip kicked off after him.
Letting him hide would be a pain.
"...Damn it!"
The assassin kicked open a warehouse door on the square's edge. To catch him, Philip would have to enter.
"Not going in, asshole."
No way was he entering the assassin's home turf in the dark.
He focused, reshaping his aura again. It coiled spirally around his blade, spinning rapidly.
Spiral Sword. Philip's ace move.
Though neglected for years, the aura potent enough to wound a baron vampire tore into the brick warehouse without resistance.
Stone ground and walls crumbled noisily.
Swinging hard erased the outer wall like rubber; sunlight hit the assassin's face.
"...Wait, just wait! You're in this because of Lizriel Yusuf, right? Aren't you curious who the client is?"
The middle-aged man yelled desperately.
"Don't care, asshole."
Lizriel was barely involved anyway. Philip just wanted Crescent gone before they became a huge pain later.
If it was just blocking her hit, he wouldn't have escalated this far.
Philip swung his spiral sword, pulverizing the man's upper body. The force shredded bricks too—no meat scraps left.
With the strongest down, the Black Cat Tribe could handle the rest.
Philip moved to aid Stella.
"Please... snap out of it, Tania."
Stella's movements were impressive even by Philip's standards. She dodged Tania's relentless assaults without countering, waiting for exhaustion.
But Philip could see Stella tiring first. No bleeding for Tania; plenty for Stella.
A few more minutes, and she'd take a hit.
Philip eyed Tania's eyes. Once pretty, they held no reason now—just instinct and implanted hatred.
He couldn't fathom the brainwashing method.
Probably years of torture and indoctrination; a child's mind couldn't endure.
Philip figured her psyche was shattered. Time for harsh measures to subdue her.
As he crept toward Tania, Stella spotted him and cried out in horror.
"Don't kill her! Please!"
He didn't know their bond, but her desperate plea halted him briefly.
And unfortunately, Tania exploited the opening.
Her claws raked Stella's throat. The long talons nicked the muscle-guarded artery.
Blood doubled in an instant.
As her knees buckled from massive loss, Philip tackled Tania.
"Please... don't kill her... please."
Subduing her flailing limbs methodically, Philip replied calmly.
"Just putting her to sleep."
He pinned her left arm with his knee, the other under his, exposing her bare neck.
Locking his arm around it and squeezing, he waited. Tania thrashed seizure-like for seconds before going limp.
Even lions couldn't take a choke; no way a cat-hybrid could.
Confirming she was out, Philip stripped off his top to staunch Stella's bleeding.
Hasty, but she'd lost too much blood. Not dying yet, but she needed rest now.
Philip sighed and plunged back into battle. Ten-ish assassins left to finish.
And before a minute passed,
Some fled, some surrendered, some captured.
Philip caught his breath amid the wrecked square.
"I was wrong. My fault. Please, have mercy."
A Crescent Black Cat Tribe member groveled. Their fate was the tribe's call now.
With it over, Philip had no taste for more killing—assassins or enemies.
'Wanna go home.'
The thought hit him.
Then he remembered riding Previa's portal here.
"...Huh?"