Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: Savior
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I don't know what it was, but I strongly felt that something inside me had broken.
That's why, perhaps.
The sense of repulsion I'd felt until now when handling souls had completely vanished.
[Graaaah!]
[You bastaaaaard!]
[Aaaaagh!]
That's why, perhaps.
Even the pitiful screams of the souls, even the souls suffering under my magic.
No thoughts came to mind at all.
That's why, perhaps.
Against the great warrior and Horua, the forest god, who had even given Gloria the knight captain and Pindenai the scrap merchant leader such a hard time.
I was holding a rather advantageous position.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The souls I kept unleashing were killer blows, each one pouring everything they had.
The Marias Great Forest was a place steeped in history and tradition, a massive jungle of sorts.
Naturally, there had been many tragic sacrifices, which meant I had an abundance of ammunition at my disposal.
The staggering great warrior.
In desperation, flames erupted from his body, enveloping him in protection.
Even souls infused with my mana and the power of Remegaton hesitated to cling to the flames of Horua, the so-called forest god.
In that case.
Flick.
I shifted the direction of my hand.
Beyond the great warrior at its tip stood a trembling member of the Marias Tribe.
Men, women, elderly, children.
A diverse gathering of the clan, and toward them, I unleashed souls brimming with resentment.
“Kyaaah!”
“Please spare us!”
“Great Warrior!”
The clan members screamed.
Startled, Valkzar hastily withdrew his flames and threw himself toward his people.
“Urk!”
He blocked the incoming souls with his body, letting out a faint breath, yet he straightened his posture and glared at me.
His eyes held a tumult of emotions, but he did not voice them.
It was an act that felt repulsive.
Truly, it was something the old me.
Would never have done.
But whenever I closed my eyes, even for a moment.
Iluania's face, having been kidnapped, floated into view.
When I opened them, Pinden A's injured form, looking up at me, flickered in my mind.
Close them again, and the voice of the Black Necromancer, worrying about me despite her own wretched state, echoed.
And every time I recalled them.
My strikes grew increasingly ruthless.
Necromancers are inherently adept at aggressive magic.
They wield souls and, through their mana, perform feats impossible for ordinary mages.
For such necromancers, the greatest weakness is said to be.
Souls themselves.
They must handle souls, yet finding them is no easy task.
Even those with some talent in soul-sight cannot see all souls.
Most can only perceive evil spirits with deep-seated grudges that have taken form.
Yes.
I'm different.
What is a weakness for necromancers poses no problem for me.
I have Remegaton, which can awaken the dead, and eyes that can see them all.
The moment the limitations of a necromancer are breached.
I extend my hand upward.
The scattered souls begin condensing into my palm, forcibly twisting into the shape of a greatsword.
The soul greatsword grows enormous, large enough to engulf not just Valkzar, but the countless tribesfolk behind him as well.
“……!”
Realizing even he couldn't block this, Valkzar's eyes widened as he gripped his spear and charged at me.
Whoosh!
Along with a shrill whistle.
As if waiting for the signal, countless magic beasts burst from the underbrush.
They were loyal magic beasts coming to aid their former master, Horua, the lord of the forest.
Crunch! Crunch!
Semitransparent figures rose from the ground, simultaneously biting the necks of the charging magic beasts.
As I showed when facing Dina before, souls aren't limited to humans.
The souls of magic beasts were plentiful, and handling them was no more difficult despite the pain involved.
Rather, the attacking magic beasts died by my hand, becoming souls that followed me and turned on Valkzar instead.
“Urgh!”
He swung his spear to fend them off, but overwhelmed by their numbers, Valkzar took bites to his shoulder and thigh.
Yet his flaming wings did not falter, carrying him right before me.
The spear thrust back and aimed once more for my heart.
Crunch!
A massive maw blocked the spear.
It was a woman.
A huge mouth protruded from her chest, and her hands were shaped like beast jaws, clacking with horrifying teeth.
Her identity was uttered by the four-limbed sorcerer from Dante watching from behind.
“D-Dina!”
Dina, the first Dante beast sorcerer I had killed.
Her soul was still in my possession, so I could wield her forcibly.
Of course, even she couldn't fully block the flaming spear.
She only halted it momentarily; as her soul began to burn away, I gazed at her indifferently and lowered the hand gripping the greatsword.
At the same moment, Great Warrior Valkzar desperately spread his wings and soared upward.
Boom!
“Grrrrrrgh!”
Valkzar blocked the soul greatsword meant to crush the entire village with his slender spear.
Veins bulged across his body, his face flushed red, as he let out a strained groan.
“Graaaah!”
His resolute determination to protect his tribesfolk was truly pitiful.
But it unfolded just as expected.
One of the basics the Black Necromancer taught me.
Since necromancers wield souls, one must not judge a spell solely by its appearance.
Like this.
It took the form of a greatsword.
But in truth, it was merely a conglomeration of souls.
The greatsword's shape began to crumble, and the souls within poured along the spear toward the great warrior.
It felt like watching a swarm of insects.
“Gr, guh-aaaagh!”
Letting out a grotesque scream, the great warrior dropped his spear and plummeted to the ground.
A dull thud echoed, but the souls, compelled by my command, kept forcing their way into him.
They entered and exited through every orifice—eyes, nose, ears—repeating the cycle.
I stood before Valkzar, who writhed in agony at the same relentless pace as when I arrived.
I shielded my hand with mana.
Then plunged it straight into his chest.
Squelch.
Whether due to his heavily trained musculature, I couldn't tell.
I'd never pierced a reinforced human body before, so it was quite taxing.
I precisely seized and yanked out the searing heat source near his heart.
Splurt!
Blood sprayed, but the pouring rain washed it away.
What I held in my hand, shining like the sun, was none other than the guardian spirit Horua.
[Hu...man!]
Crunch!
I slammed the protesting Horua into the ground. Then I summoned the magic beasts' souls.
They howled like beasts and began tearing into the rolling guardian spirit.
“Hah! Hah! Hah!”
Valkzar, collapsed and gasping raggedly. His eyes brimmed only with fear, and his trembling lips slowly parted.
“Pl, ple, please... the tribesfolk... they among them... are innocents...”
Crunch!
His words could go no further.
My mana shattered his skull precisely, leaving only a foul remnant as he died.
That he could speak even after his heart area was pierced was quite mysterious.
Crunch.
My hand extended into the air, grasping something.
It was Valkzar's soul.
[Ah.]
His form was intact, but his eyes were dyed in utter terror.
“Your death is no repose.”
Realizing escape in death was denied, he began shuddering and pleading toward me.
But I didn't even want to hear his voice, so mana chains from my palm bound his entire body.
The pain was far from over.
“Behold them.”
Pointing to the Marias Tribe members weeping, kneeling, and begging me, his eyes widened.
“They will all die.”
Despite my unyielding declaration, the great warrior writhed in desperate pleas.
But hesitation was gone.
A price had to be paid.
He, bearing the name of great warrior, had massacred countless kingdom citizens.
Thus.
‘To fight monsters, please don't become one yourself.’
Me too.
‘Master, just stay put for now. I'll handle it...!’
Likewise.
‘Deus, hold to your convictions. Don't become like Dante or me... other black mages.’
I would kill them.
[The night is dark.]
“……!”
For a moment, a familiar voice I hadn't heard in so long made my eyes tremble.
I instinctively looked around, but as expected, nothing was there.
[Is it a new moon tonight?]
Because it came from within me.
I longed to hear the voice again, but it fell silent.
Had I awakened her sleep?
Doubt crept in, a chill running down my spine.
But it wasn't enough to halt my actions.
A brief hesitation.
Just that much.
A fleeting spark to numb senses.
Yet that's why the booming cry I'd overlooked reached my ears.
My gaze turned.
At its end, a woman holding a swaddled infant close.
Iluania, clutching the baby to shield it from the cold rain, gazed at me in her haggard state.
Splash.
I stepped into a puddle.
My footsteps had already turned toward the child, opposite the trembling tribesfolk.
The booming cry.
The stir of life.
Iluania, approaching cautiously, offered the baby with a weary smile.
“It's a girl.”
“…….”
Warmth touched my palm, spreading through my body.
Not my child.
But a child I had vowed to protect.
The life Deus Verdi entrusted to me, forsaking his own body.
“Will you name the child?”
With trembling hands, I carefully took the baby.
I am not your blood.
But I will be your family.
I slowly turned my gaze.
Toward them, still watching me with eyes of fear, emotions still boiled within.
But as I gently stroked the baby's forehead.
The child, whimsically ceasing its cries, stared intently at me.
“You have saved many.”
I couldn't stain your birth with blood, screams, and slaughter.
I didn't want to ruin your first meeting with the world.
“Saviour.”
Born and already saving countless lives, you will surely become a great person.
“Sevia, that is your name.”
As if understanding my words, the baby let out a gurgling laugh.
And the falling rain began to taper off.