Chapter 22
Chapter 22
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Traces of the Demon (2)
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-Screeeeech!!!
The arrow that flew swiftly didn’t strike the cultist priest’s head. Instead, it embedded itself in the cracked ground beneath the pool of blood.
“Who’s there!”
There it was—the standard line from the bad guys.
“How dare you interfere with the ritual!”
Sprouting life from land already defiled was no easy task on its own. And in a place contaminated by all sorts of demonic energy like this, it was even harder. I glanced at the moonflower just barely breaking through its shell and putting down roots, then shouted at the cultist priest to buy some time.
“You’re the ones hiding like rats in a place like this, up to your filthy deeds—who the hell are you?”
“Filthy deeds?”
The cultist priest burst into laughter.
“You ignorant worm, deluded by the lies of the Twelve Gods, dares to wag your tongue! Fine, since you’re going to die anyway, blabber all you want. Soon, the great Citra will descend and tear your heart to shreds!”
As expected, villains loved their long-winded speeches.
Citrra must be the name of the demon they were trying to summon.
‘Crazy bastard….’
Demons.
Dangerous beings with power rivaling the gods.
In truth, they were far too diverse to lump together under one name, but they all shared one thing in common.
Evil.
Every last one of them was evil. They lived for their own pleasure and the suffering of everything else.
Having lost the war against the gods and been cast down to the lower realms, demons couldn’t “officially” appear on this land.
Which meant they could appear “unofficially.”
‘Through rituals like this one.’
The cultist priest raised a grotesquely shaped staff high. Yeah, if you’ve got any brains, you’ll attack now.
But it was already too late.
-Poof!
The moonflower bloomed its yellow petals at just the right moment. Ah, what a good girl!
He told me to blabber all I wanted? Fine, I’d blabber. I offered a short, very fervent prayer to Nemea.
‘Goddess, please smite this rotten bastard.’
-Roarrrrr!!!
My prayer must have pleased her, because an enormous silver flame erupted from the moonflower—one big enough to devour the writhing pool of blood and then some. The silver flames burned voraciously, incinerating the blood pool. The cultist priest let out an undignified scream at the sudden event—or what seemed like a sudden event.
“W-what is this?! No! Nooo!!!“
Even as he screamed, he didn’t dare approach the silver flames, which were his natural bane. Meanwhile, the writhing pool of blood shrank away under the blaze.
“Lord Citra! Lord Citra!!”
He called the demon’s name over and over, but nothing happened.
Of course not.
The most crucial part of a summoning ritual was the sacrifice. With that ruined, it was only right that the demon didn’t respond.
The blood pool grew smaller and smaller, while the flames grew larger and larger in contrast.
The ritual was ruined.
With the intent to capture him alive, I signaled El and Ayla. Handing this guy over to the Arjan Grand Temple would fetch a nice reward. That place was packed with holy knights who wanted to slaughter every cultist they saw. Maybe three gold coins?
El pulled out a rope, and Ayla growled as she closed in on him. The cultist priest was panting, his face deathly pale. I was about to tell him to just give up already when…
“Gaaaahhh!!!!!”
The cultist priest let out a beastly howl and plunged his knife into his own stomach.
-Squish!!!
Unlike the dark, clotted blood in the pool, fresh crimson blood spurted out. Crazy bastard. I immediately tried to use [Plant Bind] to restrain him, but for some reason, no vines grew. A bad premonition flashed through me. No way?
“I… offer… Citra… my… life….”
The cultist priest couldn’t finish his words before collapsing. But the blood that gushed out hung motionless in the air.
Oh.
Shit.
“Fall back, El.”
I understood now why the vines wouldn’t grow. The demonic energy seeping into the ground was growing stronger. That ominous aura was absorbing all life force. I couldn’t waste skills in a situation like this. I watched silently to see what would happen.
The cultist priest’s blood spread thin, smothering and extinguishing the [Moon Light] flames. Then, it merged with the remaining blood pool. The mass condensed, taking on a form. Human-like, but definitely not human.
-Splatter!
Something unfurled with a spray of blood droplets. Black, massive wings.
‘Ah, I should’ve just killed him….’
Who’d have thought he’d make that choice at the last second? Cultists were usually greedy and ambitious, prizing their own lives above all. Suicide hadn’t even crossed my mind. My mistake.
‘Guess I’m meeting a demon after all.’
The blood mass took on a complete form. It was a half-human, half-beast creature—human from the waist down, but with the upper body of a black panther. The black wings were a bonus, I suppose?
The beast’s bright yellow eyes fixed on me. They weren’t asking if I was the one who summoned it. The demon already knew I wasn’t. Those yellow eyes held only curiosity.
Why was a druid standing before it, having descended here?
-Gulp.
I swallowed hard. The air around me shifted the moment the demon appeared; I could feel it on my skin.
[Overwhelming Terror engulfs you.]
[You cannot move.]
Damn it, stunned too. Facing such a surreal being triggered fear, confusion, or shock that paralyzed you briefly—and this was exactly that. Once stunned, you lost your first-strike chance, a massive drawback.
Cold sweat trickled down my back. Facing the demon head-on, its presence was terrifying. As a druid—its natural enemy—it probably felt even worse. The totems around my neck were vibrating nonstop.
-Cute little toy.
A growling voice emanated from it.
Fortunately, Citra seemed intrigued by me. That spared me from dying in one hit while stunned. I racked my brain furiously. Any skills useful right now? Damn, I regretted not having [Beast Summon] yet. If only I’d leveled up [Moon Light] more steadily to 2 or 3…
[The Goddess of Luck, Riadel, bestows a minor blessing upon you!]
[Achievement Unlocked: Spring of Life Discovered]
[You acquire Spring of Life (Medium).]
…Huh?
Spring of Life?
My mind cleared in an instant.
I recalled the purification tree I’d planted in the swamp where the beast had emerged.
Thanks to generously using [Breath of the Forest], its roots had delved deep into the earth and found the Spring of Life.
‘How the hell here…? Even that old hag in the forest couldn’t find one when she sent me looking.’
Thanks to my [Lucky One] trait? That’s some insane luck.
‘Anyway, thank you, Lady Riadel.’
Consuming the Spring of Life dramatically boosted physical abilities. Forests centered around it grew vast and deep, their beasts larger and stronger than normal. Humans who drank it healed from illnesses and grew robust—true water of life.
‘Finding it is insanely hard, and even if you do, kings, lords, and temples monopolize them. Seeing one is like reaching for the stars….’
They say discovering a Spring of Life means three—no, eight generations won’t starve. That says it all.
‘No, not the time to think about money.’
Selling it all would be great, but not now.
I was about to die— who cared about cash?!
It pained me to use it all here, but to survive, I had to go all-in on the purification tree.
-The sound of that tiny brain whirring reaches even here.
“...Was I that loud?”
I replied nonchalantly with a grin. Meanwhile, I used [Voice of the Forest] on the purification tree behind me.
Find the ‘Spring of Life.’ And drink it all.
-Rumble…
I felt the roots shift, the mine shaking. Pretending nonchalance, I looked at Citra.
“Sorry, but the party’s over. As you can see, the host is dead. So how about heading back to your cozy home?”
-Cozy home? Hahaha. It is cozy. But boring.
“This place isn’t much different.”
-Nonsense. I’ve already found something fun.
Citra’s yellow eyes gleamed. Ah, bad feeling.
-Child of Lynshaka, a scent I’ve never smelled wafts from your shell.
“Must be a mistake?”
-You look human, but what is this smell? Shall I peel off the shell to find out?
Casual horror. I soothed Ayla, who was baring her teeth and growling, while backing away slowly from the approaching Citra.
‘Just a bit longer….’
-Come closer. I need to smell you.
“Sorry, but this isn’t rated for that.”
Little by little, as Citra advanced, we retreated.
-Rumble rumble rumble…
The shaking intensified. I glanced at the ceiling sidelong. Rock fragments trickled down. Good. Just a bit more…
-Boom!!!!!!!
A deafening roar echoed as the ceiling collapsed, and massive roots from the glowing purification tree crushed Citra. The roots were so enormous, Citra vanished beneath them.
“Ayla!”
I grabbed El, leaped onto Ayla’s back. She bolted through the cracks in the shattered ceiling like the wind—so fast the surroundings blurred. Clinging tight to not fall, I kept chanting spells. Focusing to ensure the purification tree held Citra was grueling, but thankfully the connection held, letting me exhaust the Spring of Life to supercharge it.
-Crash!!!!
-Boom! Thud!!!
The moment we escaped, the mine entrance collapsed entirely. El, Ayla, and I lay sprawled, gasping for breath. Voices approached from afar. Yeah, the mine collapsing would’ve alerted everyone in Ravata.
“Huff… huff…”
Panting, I looked back. Behind the rubble, the purification tree towered skyward. Grown massive on the Spring of Life, it was insanely huge. No more worry about beasts around here.
[Quest: Ravata Mine Purification Operation - Great Success!]