Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Adma (2)
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A mad king who offered everything to a demon in exchange for eternal life. And the Empire, which is clearly up to something in the Demonic Realm.
Madmen understand each other. Not that it's anything like that.
No. Maybe they do have something in common? In that they're both out of their minds.
“Last one—!”
The hammer shattered the head of the charging monster.
“There are more monsters than I expected.”
“It’s a monster wave. In fact, this number should be considered low. It means the monsters are moving through a different route, not this one. This path might even be protected.”
It wasn't a common sight to see so many monsters patrolling an area as if guarding it. I thought it would be completely empty because of the monster wave.
In other words, this path is used by someone who comes here without passing through Rzhev. Whether that's a slave trader or someone else.
“This makes it even more suspicious.”
“Now that you mention it, yes. Especially these ones.”
The monsters we just fought aren't the type to live in packs.
“I don't know if we can make it there in one piece. We might get exhausted first.”
There were still quite a few monsters detectable by my Spiritual Power.
“Is the Empire really here?”
“The possibility is high. To them, demonic energy is probably as familiar as holy power.”
It had been two days since we started following only monster tracks, with no sign of humans. It was an environment where any normal person would think the same.
A barren and dangerous environment.
“I've been here once before. There should be a place with tents up ahead. Ah, there it is. It would be best to rest there for the night.”
And on the night of the second day, after the sun had set, Seamus, who was at the very front, spotted a place with tents in the distance.
The place where I had woken up, the place where Unit 10 had searched for traces of the leaked booklet.
When we arrived, the area was littered with weathered corpses that had been mauled by monsters, and burnt tents and materials were scattered about.
“This place is…?”
“It's where the group of slave traders was.”
I felt a distinctly different emotion from back then. At that time, my entire being had been dominated by the shock of being alive again, the desire for revenge, and the will to survive.
Reinhardt started a fire in a relatively intact space. Making a fire in the midst of skeletal remains was unsettling, but we were grateful to have such a place near the Demonic Realm.
Since it was already in ruins, there was nothing to salvage. We just flattened the piles of debris enough to clear our line of sight.
“I’m in your care again today.”
I stood facing Niceta, sword in hand.
“Let's fight with a different sword today. That sword of yours must be called a treasure for a reason. Whether it enhances the user's combat power or has some other function.”
“That's right. It amplifies holy power, assists in combat, and has a couple of other functions I can't yet control.”
There's always a reason why a treasure is a treasure.
If you want to build true skill, you have to do it without relying on items. If you rely too much on a sword like that, you'll often end up dead when you're forced to use a different one.
Especially in a situation like this, where Niceta needs to play a major role.
“Are there any other weapons you can handle?”
“Hmm... I mainly use swords. I'm most familiar with greatswords.”
“Hey, Reinhardt. Can I borrow a sword?”
At that, Reinhardt gladly tossed over his sword.
“Is there a particular reason you chose the greatsword?”
“Because it has the greatest destructive power per hit.”
“Tsk.”
What an absurd reason. To think she chose a greatsword just because she thought its damage would be the highest.
I can't criticize her personal choice, and I have no obligation to correct her. Well, if she handles it well, it could become an advantage.
“Don't think of a greatsword like a regular sword. It has its own unique characteristics. It's more about crushing or tearing than slashing. And you'll often swing it horizontally rather than from top to bottom.”
Unless you have insane strength like me and can swing a greatsword just like a regular one.
Once she put down the Holy Kingdom's treasure, a difference in her skill became apparent. Of course, her skill wasn't bad even now. It was just that the gap was noticeable compared to before.
That sword really inflates her abilities, doesn't it?
“Don't get agitated. When you're agitated, your openings become obvious. If you want to kill yourself, go do it quietly somewhere I can't see.”
Whenever she gets excited, her movements become too wide. Even now, if I were fast enough, there were more than a few places I could strike, from her neck to her chest and legs.
It would be better for her to practice with Reinhardt's sword or fight monsters with it. She's a priestess, after all. She can heal her own wounds, can't she?
“Reinhardt, have you ever thought about using an axe and shield?”
“An axe and shield? Well, I don't mind. I just kept using a greatsword because my mission performance was good with it. As long as it has a blade, it's fine by me.”
Look at this massive brute and his superstitions. In reality, wasn't his good mission performance due to the destructive power from his physical abilities? He practically tears his enemies apart.
The Reinhardt I knew wasn't the type to be picky about weapons. Of course, given his size, he didn't use slender swords like rapiers.
Even back in Granok, he swung any blunt weapon he could get his hands on indiscriminately.
Besides, that sword he's using now isn't his old one; it's new.
“How about trying this? It's a weapon from the Pope himself.”
I took out the axe and shield I had received from the Pope from my inventory. I'd been saving them for an occasion just like this!
I don't use shields in the first place. I either block or dodge. Besides, I have the pauldron that covers one shoulder and arm, and its automatic defense system.
“Oh. This is... really nice.”
“Of course. It's a weapon personally provided by the Pope.”
“My word. Is it really okay for me to accept something like this?”
Reinhardt seemed to really like the axe and shield. After a few swings, a wide grin spread across his face.
“You'll practice with that greatsword for a while. That goes for combat, too.”
“Understood.”
Niceta swung the sword, trying to get used to the feel of it, looking either disappointed or awkward at her diminished combat sense.
Anyway. Thanks to this, Reinhardt is complete. It's a shame it's not a hammer, but oh well. I'm the one who uses a hammer.
***
“We should be able to reach the city that was once the front line by around noon today.”
“The front line. Will there really be people there?”
“If my guess is correct?”
I once had a thought. Where were those slave traders heading? Especially with the booklet containing the Resistance's secrets.
At first, I thought they were heading to the front-line city beyond Rzhev, taking slaves there to fight.
But that city had fallen. Hadn't Rzhev become the new front-line city defending against the Demonic Realm?
In that case, the slave traders shouldn't have been heading there. It wasn't like they were on a suicide mission.
Looking at the circumstances, there were too many suspicious points. Like how the monsters arrived in Rzhev before news from Adma even reached them.
I don't know why, but I have a feeling that place hasn't fallen yet.
It's a vague intuition. If the Empire is using the Demonic Realm, they would surely need a place for humans vulnerable to demonic energy, a place that serves the Empire's needs.
Adma, the city built on the very front line under the pretext of conquering the Demonic Realm.
It was the most likely candidate.
“I see the city walls up ahead.”
“Everyone, be careful. And move quietly.”
In the midst of the demonic energy, Adma looked perfectly intact. Anyone could see it hadn't been invaded by monsters.
All the many villages we saw on the way here were destroyed. What's more, wasn't that smoke billowing up from beyond the walls, a sign of human habitation?
“The demonic energy is so thick it feels like it's piercing my skin.”
Even though we were still some distance from the true start of the Demonic Realm, Niceta grimaced as if she felt unwell.
I can feel it too. The demonic energy that feels like it's piercing the skin.
There aren't many places to hide nearby. I wonder if it was razed by monsters, or if someone did this deliberately.
“I'm detecting about a hundred people.”
A hundred people in an abandoned city? Isn't that suspicious on its own? A city right on the doorstep of the dangerous Demonic Realm.
Isn't this a place where ordinary people shouldn't be? If so, it can only mean some kind of shady business is going on.
“We wait until nightfall. I'll go in first and open the gate. Come inside then. ”
I sent a message to Luther back in Rzhev.
[Demonic Realm border. City intact. Personnel present. Preparing to enter.]
He'll pass this on to Krain Rzhev. He should also understand what it means.
We sat behind trees and rocks, waiting for night to fall. With the monster wave ongoing, no one would expect someone to break through this far.
It's possible news of our arrival has already reached them. They might have received information from Rzhev somehow.
Well, not that it would change anything.
.
.
.
.
.
“Everyone, get ready.”
Late at night. The sun had set, and faint lights began to appear from within the city. I put away all my weapons and approached the wall.
Perhaps because it wasn't well-maintained, the wall had many cracks. I channeled Spiritual Power into my hands and feet and began to climb it like a spider.
Hooray for Spiritual Power—
There was no one on top of the wall. When I dropped to the ground, the area near the outer wall was filled with only dust and silence, as if no one had passed through in a long time.
Then how are supplies and personnel being brought in?
Teleportation? It's possible. Just like in the capital. It's the cleanest method, isn't it? With little chance of being discovered.
Screeeech—
The tightly shut city gate opened with a grating shriek. In this silence, someone must have heard a noise like that.
Even if there are no guards out here, there must be some further inside.
“Move quickly.”
“Yes, sir—!”
When the gate leading from the outer to the inner city blocked our path, I smashed it to pieces with my hammer.
A small gate like this.
“Intruders—!”
“Niceta—!”
“Confirmed—! These damned bastards—!”
The one who first shouted "Intruders" was clearly a priest. And not a priest of the Holy Kingdom, but a priest of the Raelian Church.
As Niceta, her eyes red with fury, split the priest in two with her greatsword, Imperial soldiers rushed out.
Behind them stood a massive antenna tower. And priests of the Raelian Church alongside Imperial soldiers. Well, that basically secured Niceta's testimony.
Of course, what we needed for irrefutable proof was evidence. Someone would surely refuse to believe testimony alone, no matter if it came from Niceta.
“Just as I thought. These bastards.”
“Not that! Stop him—stop him—!”
As I moved to destroy the antenna tower, the Raelian priests who had rushed out began screaming like madmen.
How thoughtful of them. To so clearly point out their own weakness.
Isn't it only proper to smash it to bits?