Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Demon King's Subordinate
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Everyone should have been asleep in the dark of night,
but a sweltering heat was seeping out from the tent where Nameless and I were.
"Ugh... how's it feel?"
"Yes, it definitely... ugh... feels like it's widening...."
I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my hand and placed my palm back on Nameless's body.
"Ugh, Master, it feels so hot inside...."
"Just hang in there a bit longer... it's tough on me too if you keep tensing up like that."
Nameless let out a deep breath, trying to keep his wits about him amid the scorching energy enveloping his body.
"Hoo...."
"Finally... ugh... I've reached the end...."
Unable to hold back any longer, Nameless grabbed my hand on his body and furrowed his brow.
"...Master, this is my limit."
"Ugh, just a little more... it'll be over soon."
As if determined to endure somehow, Nameless bit his lip hard and trembled convulsively.
After a short while,
I pulled my hand away from Nameless's body and collapsed onto the ground, wiping the sweat from my forehead.
Nameless, his tension finally easing, flopped face-down on the floor and turned his head to look at me.
"Hah... is it over?"
"...Yeah, it's done. You did great."
I gently stroked Nameless's head, knowing how hard it must have been for him after removing my hand.
"Want to try circulating your qi once?"
Nameless exhaled raggedly, then wrapped his body in qi. His eyes widened in surprise at the amount flowing through him.
"...It really does feel like the amount of mana I can circulate has increased."
"Phew, good thing it worked."
Still slumped, I lay flat on the ground.
It succeeded.
Finally, I'd injected my qi into Nameless's body and forcibly widened his meridians.
I had no prior experience widening someone else's meridians, so I'd been a bit anxious, but seeing the results on Nameless brought a smile to my face.
I lifted my head briefly to look at him.
Perhaps because I hadn't quite gotten the feel for it and pushed too hard, Nameless was breathing heavily nonstop.
It was something that had to be done eventually anyway, and since I'd exhausted my focus as well, all I could do was pat his back sympathetically.
"Glad it went well. Now you just need to get used to it."
Having gone through it once this time,
the process of expanding Nameless's meridians would be much smoother from now on.
After lying there on the ground together for a bit to rest,
Nameless peeled off his sweat-soaked clothes and lightly wiped his body with a towel.
'Hmm, sleeping like that would feel sticky.'
There happened to be a lake nearby where we'd pitched the tent.
"Want to go wash up?"
"Yes, I don't think I could sleep like this."
I felt a bit sticky myself and could use a wash.
I glanced at Nameless.
A mischievous urge struck, and I flashed a teasing smile.
"Hmm, I sweated a lot too. How about we wash together?"
Of course, it was just a joke.
I wouldn't mind if Nameless took me up on it, but even as master and disciple, our bodies were different genders, so washing together would be a stretch.
Besides, even for Nameless, having his naked body seen would be embarrassing.
Well, he'd refuse anyway since he hates looking childish.
As expected, he shook his head vigorously at the idea of washing together and averted his gaze.
His voice came out tiny, like a mosquito's buzz.
"...I'll go after you, Master."
Hmm, was the joke too much?
His ears, peeking out, were bright red—he seemed pretty pissed.
Not wanting to hear a lecture, I quickly grabbed a change of clothes and a towel and headed to the lake.
"I'll be quick, so wait here."
"Yes, take your time."
"Alright."
I set my clothes and bandages on a nearby rock, twisted up my hair that reached my calves, and dipped my feet into the lake.
"Hmm, it's cold."
I wanted to dunk my whole body in, but with hair this long, drying it would take forever.
Suppressing the urge as much as possible, I scooped water with the ladle I'd brought and poured it over myself.
"Eek."
My body shivered from the sudden chill of the water.
That said,
why was I sensing Nameless's presence nearby when he'd said he wouldn't come?
Did he change his mind?
'This is awkward.'
As I tilted my head, pondering how to send him away, Nameless's anxious voice called out.
"Sorry to interrupt while you're washing, Master, but the coachman is gone."
"What."
The coachman disappeared? When?
Did I focus too much on widening the meridians and miss the surroundings?
I lowered my voice to ask back.
"The coachman is gone?"
"Yes, I thought at first he just stepped out to relieve himself, but even after time passed, he hasn't come back."
So he ran off on purpose?
"The carriage?"
"The carriage is still there."
Hmm, he didn't abandon us and leave ahead.
I sighed in relief, slowly pulled myself out of the lake, and went to the rock with my clothes.
"Did you check around?"
"Yes, I looked through all the safe areas nearby."
As I wrapped the bandages around my chest, I racked my brain for reasons the coachman might have vanished, but nothing came to mind.
'Hmm, should I look for him myself?'
I dressed, tied my sash, and approached Nameless behind a tree.
His cheeks were a bit flushed, but I ignored it.
"Let's check the coachman's spot and where we were staying first."
"Yes."
There were no conspicuous traces near the tent the coachman had set up.
Only footprints leading to the tent—no prints showing he'd walked out.
Vanishing into thin air like that... was he a mage?
I slowly shook my head.
'Too early to conclude.'
I flung open the flap of the tent where the coachman had been staying.
Inside, a sleeping bag was laid out halfway, as if he'd been about to rest.
No signs of a struggle, no missing items.
I asked Nameless, who was gravely scanning the tent.
"Doesn't look like he left of his own accord. What do you think?"
"I think so too."
"Hah...."
He'd vanished without a trace.
The sudden event left me dumbfounded, and a sigh escaped.
How long had it even been since we ventured into the world, and this happens?
No solutions came to my mind, so to resolve it quickly, I closed my eyes quietly and spread my qi wider than usual.
"Hmm, I sense two presences right now...."
One of the unfamiliar energies felt oddly familiar.
"Two? Nearby?"
"Not too far. About three minutes' run east, I think."
I opened my eyes and stepped out of the tent.
"Is the coachman safe?"
"Hmm, seems like it."
The coachman didn't seem in immediate danger, but the energy from the other one felt deeply unsettling. Who knew what might happen if we left them.
I grabbed my wooden sword from our tent and glanced sideways.
There was Nameless, frowning as if displeased with the situation.
"Nameless."
"Yes, Master."
I hesitated, lips twitching.
"Hmm, if I told you to wait here, would you refuse?"
"How could I let you go alone to somewhere that might be dangerous?"
As expected, the answer I'd anticipated.
I shook my head and lightly patted his back.
"...Fine, let's go."
What we found upon arrival was someone completely new, unlike the familiar energy.
Small horns like those demons might have protruded from her head, tiny wings adorned her back, and she wore dizzyingly revealing clothes that barely covered her vital spots.
With her voluptuous figure and seductive smile suiting her outfit perfectly, she looked like what I'd imagine a succubus to be, though I'd never seen one in person.
I glanced back, wondering if Nameless—who'd probably never seen such a pretty woman—had fallen for her.
Hmm, relief?
Nameless's expression hadn't changed at all.
My mood felt oddly mixed.
"I've been waiting for you!"
Unlike having kidnapped the coachman, the woman with the seductive smile greeted us politely.
Nameless positioned himself protectively in front of me and spoke.
"Who are you?"
Hearing Nameless's question, the woman made an expression unfit for her alluring smile and lightly smacked her own head, sticking out her tongue.
Sure enough, even her silly gesture looked cute on a pretty girl.
"Oh right! I forgot to introduce myself!"
The woman pointed to her cleavage with one hand and bowed at the waist.
"I'm Lily, diligently working for the Demon King's revival!"
The woman who introduced herself as Lily straightened up and flashed her seductive smile again.
"Nice to meet you."