Chapter 104: Volunteer? Activity (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 104: Volunteer? Activity (5)
Every now and then, the world produces natural-born crazies.
However, most lunatics have their own stories to tell.
Silence, with his vendetta against Dale, was one such case, and so was the man known as the Liberator, Belex.
He was born into a baronial family in a kingdom called Pater—a place only those perverts who memorize the names of every minor nation on the continent would know.
A small rural estate in an even smaller kingdom.
Since he wasn't even the eldest son, he became a soldier just to make a living.
Then, war broke out.
Well, it was a war from Pater’s perspective.
From the opponent's perspective, it was a one-sided massacre.
Even though their opponent was the Empire, the strongest power on the continent, it wasn't even a matter of an honorable defeat.
That war wasn't a clash between nations.
No matter how much the Empire claimed to be the strongest—a claim no one could deny—and no matter how obscure the small nation was...
An entire country had been defeated by a single lord.
To forget that shameful history, the Kingdom of Pater struggled to erase the records of the war.
Consequently, all of Belex’s efforts to protect his motherland were buried.
All he had left were the eye and the left arm he lost in the war.
His honor had vanished.
His body was crippled.
All that remained was endless pain and self-loathing.
A life where surviving each day on booze was everything.
The ones who saved him from that life were, ironically, the dark mages he had considered evil his entire life.
Body modification magic.
To call it dark magic made it sound similar to alchemy.
Well, "similar" was just a way of putting it; the method was fundamentally different from conventional magic.
But that didn't matter to him.
He gained a hand.
It was a hand far stronger than the one he had lost in that damn war.
He gained an eye.
Though it wasn't human, it didn't matter.
Its performance was incomparable to a human eye.
But he wasn't satisfied.
There were plenty of even better parts out there.
The world is governed by the law of the jungle.
The weak are eaten, and the strong survive.
Thus, Belex preyed on the weak and grew stronger bit by bit.
Step by step, he replaced his body with better materials.
Not just the hand and eye he had lost.
Starting with his perfectly fine hands and feet, he began replacing most of his physical form.
By the time his original body had almost entirely disappeared...
Belex destroyed Pater, the country that had abandoned him, and called himself the Liberator.
The one who liberated his body.
The one who liberated Pater.
Having hunted a nation, albeit a small one, he became a "named" figure even among dark mages.
With their support, he was able to grow even further.
That was why Belex was confident.
His skin was made of ogre hide, not human flesh.
And his right arm, in particular, was the entire limb of a beastkin, boasting power comparable to a Sword Master.
A mere Academy student couldn't possibly land a proper hit on him.
That was how it should have been.
"…?"
But these brats were swinging their swords at a person without a shred of hesitation.
Even if their opponent was a dark mage, how could they be so ruthless?
Furthermore...
It hurts.
He felt pain.
It wasn't immense pain, but the mere fact that he was feeling it forced him to question everything.
His body, which had undergone modification after modification...
To feel pain from a mere Academy student, not even a Sword Master!
"What in the—?!"
What’s more, their numbers had increased!
The two swordsmen had been joined by a third.
Wait, was it two?
Belex breathed a sigh of relief as he looked at the figure in the distance who was using magic while holding a sword.
I’d rather deal with magic.
It was difficult for mere magic to damage his modified skin.
After all, his skin wasn't just modified; it had been granted all sorts of magic resistance by other dark mages!
"…?"
However, feeling a chill in his left hand, Belex silently looked down.
Unlike his right hand, which was a beastkin's, his left was human.
But it was also a high-grade part reinforced through numerous processes; mediocre magic shouldn't have been able to even scratch it.
"What is this?"
Yet, that arm was frozen solid.
Did I accidentally equip an arm without magic resistance?
"Gwaakh!"
The moment that thought crossed Belex’s mind, his back was slashed, and blood sprayed out like a fountain.
"You cowardly bastards!"
Despite his words, Belex felt a chill run down his spine.
These kids really had no qualms about cutting a person down.
To be this relentless against an opponent whose body was half-frozen...
Is this the Empire?
Is the Imperial Academy an institution for raising killing machines?!
"Goddess, please grant me strength."
Seeing Daisy prepare her finishing move the moment she spotted a lethal opening...
Belex had no choice but to use his trump card—
"Aaaargh! You brats, stop it!"
"Kill him!"
"He's a dark mage! Don't give him time to do anything!"
He wanted to use it, but under the relentless, infinite assault of his opponents who wouldn't give him a single turn, Belex found himself curled up, unable to do anything but try to block the attacks.
By the time I snapped out of it, the dark mages had all been sliced up.
I felt a bit grateful, so I gave them a clean send-off.
"This is getting pretty big."
"Tell me about it."
The Fire Spammer, who had been happily roasting people, had also come to her senses, so we went to find the RoFan party.
"I don't think they need us."
"…Yeah."
What we saw was the RoFan party beating the living daylights out of something that was presumably a dark mage.
If you didn't know any better, the scene of collective assault looked so brutal that the RoFan party seemed like the villains. We quietly backed away.
Looking at that, even if the opponent underwent a three-stage evolution, they wouldn't stand a chance.
Thus, the Fire Spammer and I moved without hesitation to find Uncle Aeryun.
And then...
"…Is there no middle ground with this guy?"
Unlike the RoFan party who were doing the beating, Uncle Aeryun was the one getting his ass kicked.
Imperial agents were sprawled out all over the place.
And there was Uncle Aeryun, screaming while being held by a dark-red giant.
"…This is problematic."
If the Department Head dies, I’m the next one in line.
Being a sub-admin is miserable enough; I can't end up as the head admin.
So, I jumped into the fray and swung my sword.
Clang!
"…?"
I wasn't dealing any damage.
"Get back, Adam!"
Aeryun, noticing me, shouted at the top of his lungs.
"He's immune to physical damage!"
"Oh, for f—"
Kwang!
With a heavy impact, my body was sent flying.
Fortunately, I blocked it with my sword, but I couldn't completely negate the shock.
"How pathetic. I am a demon of the Steel Demon Tribe… what is this?"
Without hesitation, I threw a poison bottle from my coat, but it had little effect.
Damn, my underhanded tactics aren't working.
Is this even real poison?
"You said it was reliable Imperial-made stuff!"
"It's not like it's doing nothing!"
A bizarre sound was coming from the demon's face, but it was short-lived.
Whether it had adapted to the Imperial poison that was melting its skin like acid or not, the demon's skin regenerated in an instant.
"I heard human swordsmen were full of pride."
However, it seemed it wasn't completely undamaged.
The demon was looking at me with a gaze that said, 'What is this guy?'
And that was enough.
"Burning Sky."
The Fire Spammer, who always claimed she would show us "true flames," finally launched a serious attack.
"……Huh?"
I guess his anger in the club room hadn't been his true self.
"Gwaaaaaaaaakh!"
The Fire Spammer’s "serious" mode was actually quite powerful.
Literally, the fire magic that flew out scorched the sky and dyed the world crimson.
The demon, caught in the blast, let out a blood-curdling scream.
"Gwaaaaaaaaakh!"
And naturally… Uncle Aeryun, who was still caught in the demon's right hand, screamed as well.
It was only natural.
This wasn't a game where allies were immune to friendly fire.
At this rate, Uncle Aeryun was going to be turned into a rotisserie chicken first, but fortunately, the demon didn't seem to have much patience.
"Ugh."
Escaping from the loosened grip, Aeryun quickly rolled toward me.
I cracked open a potion and poured it over him, resulting in a loud hissing sound.
"Is it that bad?"
"I almost got roasted just from the heat coming off that demon's back. That bastard's body is literally melting right now."
He called himself a member of the Steel Demon Tribe, and it seemed it wasn't just a title; his body was actually made of steel.
Watching the demon gradually soften and melt, Aeryun spoke with a dead-serious expression.
"Don't you ever mention fire magic in front of Marie again. You'll literally die."
I nodded as I watched the flames, which refused to go out, still clinging to and burning the demon's body.
It wasn't even Amaterasu, yet the fire wouldn't extinguish.
"Still, we have to do what we have to do."
I cautiously raised my sword and struck the knee of the demon, who was screaming in agony.
"Gwaakh!"
"Oh."
Unlike before, I was dealing damage.
The knee didn't just dent like human flesh; it felt like denting a part of an actual steel statue.
"……"
Looking at that, a sudden curiosity struck me.
If the properties of this demon's body were truly steel...
What would happen if I made a weapon out of it?
Would it be a demon?
Or would it be a special type of iron?
The deliberation didn't last long.
Men are driven to act the moment such thoughts occur.
"Whew."
Taking a short breath, I struck his knee with all the mana I could muster, timed perfectly with the Fire Spammer’s second hit.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The loud metallic ringing, like a hammer hitting iron in a forge, echoed through the air.
But it wasn't louder than the screams of the Steel Demon.
Clang!
After several more swings...
The demon's leg snapped off.
I quickly grabbed it and ran to Uncle Aeryun.
"Uncle. That artificial magic sword crafting method you found before. How much has it progressed?"
"……Wait. You're actually going to do it?"
"Aren't you curious?"
Realizing the meaning behind my words, Aeryun stared at the demon's leg with trembling eyes.
A dark mage's magic sword recipe made from a demon's limb.
It sounded like a cooking recipe, but it was the pinnacle of magical engineering.
"You crazy bastard…"
Aeryun looked at me with an appalled expression, but my hands still hadn't forgotten the feel of Daisy's magic sword.
Even if I couldn't make the exact same thing, I had to try to make something similar.
"The Empire can have the rest."
"……A demon's body?"
Aeryun looked like his common sense had gone on vacation, but the severed limb was, quite literally, steel.
"If you don't want it, fine."
I looked at the demon, who was melting into a puddle, sword in hand.
It seemed the Fire Spammer had launched another shot in the meantime.
"Do whatever you want…"
Staggering to his feet, Aeryun went to check on his fallen subordinates.
It seemed a few had died, but fortunately, not all of them. They limped away, supported by their comrades.
"…I think I can grab one more leg."
As I approached, the demon thrust out a fist as if to deliver a final blow, but there was nothing he could do with an arm that had already melted away.
Having secured the remaining leg, I looked at the Fire Spammer.
"I think you can turn it off now."
The Fire Spammer’s eyes, which had been glowing red, regained their usual light.
"…I can't?"
"What?"
"I—I can't turn it off!"
I turned my head to look at the flames clinging to what used to be the demon.
The fire, having consumed the demon entirely, had turned him into molten iron, and was now spreading to the surroundings...
"You crazy bitch!"
Typical Magic Spammers.
They only know how to let it out; they have no idea how to clean up after themselves.
