Chapter 128
Chapter 128
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 128
Chapter Title: The Battle With The Fake Victoria
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Memoria couldn't hold back her laughter, watching the unfolding situation like a madwoman.
The Harmless Mage who declared he would kill her, and the Saint who, even without her memories, was willing to sacrifice herself for love.
"Ah-hah, ahahahah…!! Truly amazing! You two are the best…! As expected, the heroes representing humanity are different!"
If they were ordinary people, they would surely have treated the fake Victoria—the one with memories—better.
No matter how great love is said to be, humans are creatures that value memories.
She had seen cases where parents and children couldn't recognize each other after losing their memories, or where lovers who had promised each other a lifetime acted like complete strangers.
"This is a new research finding…! Just what is this detestable emotion called love that produces results I couldn't even predict?"
Yet, the Astal and Victoria she was observing now were behaving in a way she'd never seen before.
As if memories didn't matter at all, defying her expectations.
After all, the mage who wanted to die and the saint who should have died were individuals who could readily throw away their lives for the sake of defeating the Demon King.
Something like love could be postponed for a greater cause, and personal desires had long since been abandoned.
"The real one giving a chance to the fake… isn't that just too hilarious? What do you think you can do with a slime body…?!"
Memoria tried her hardest to suppress her laughter, but stifled giggles kept escaping.
The real Victoria, aware that the being before her was a fake, said she'd give her a chance if it was for her lover's happiness.
"And you, instead of begging or trying to bargain with me, who can freely manipulate Victoria Everhart's memories, you just say you'll kill me?"
Astal, unable to maintain his usual composure after Victoria's memories were split, had declared without hesitation that he would kill her.
It was so absurd she couldn't help but scoff. There's a limit to bluffing or hypocrisy; their refusal to despair even in a disadvantageous situation seemed utterly foolish.
If they lost all their memories, even forgetting they were the Hero's Party, they'd become nothing.
"…Ah, I shouldn't laugh, but I just can't stop. I think I'm starting to understand why humans feel pity or contempt when they see beings weaker than themselves."
Memoria was densely scribbling the emotions and physical changes she was currently experiencing onto parchment. These were insights she hadn't grasped while torturing other humans or observing them in various situations.
"Although I still don't quite understand my ideal 'human,' which made me reluctant to mimic them…"
Memoria had lived almost her entire life as a sticky, viscous green slime. A creature so weak even an ordinary child could kill it.
The reason she had survived until now was due to the whim of a certain little boy, and she had repaid that kindness with betrayal by absorbing the boy's memories.
Because of this, Memoria was somewhat afraid of transforming into a human form.
What if she also became aware of such emotions and couldn't stop mimicking or splitting?
"…But now, your forms seem like the most ideal humans! A bit foolish, but fitting for heroes who save the world!"
However, actually mimicking a human form felt delightful. Even the damp, stuffy air and humid environment of the underground where she hid her true body felt pleasant.
Memoria was beginning to understand why humans would defy the Demon King Ergothum and stake their lives on an unwinnable fight.
The reason they tried to fight and defeat an existence so powerful that even Memoria, who could steal the memories and abilities of those she consumed, had completely given up any thought of fighting…
"Seeing you, I realize that what defines the human creature isn't being smarter than other beings or being able to use tools… It's not knowing their place and rampaging recklessly!"
Hope.
She couldn't help but think that this curse called 'hope' was gnawing at them from within and corrupting the collective.
"All previous generations of the Hero's Party besides yours have already died. Even Durahan, considered the strongest among them, swore fealty to His Majesty the Demon King."
If they had even a shred of rational judgment, they wouldn't have so readily stepped forward as heroes on a path to certain death.
What does posthumous honor or anything else matter?
Memoria, who had often seen her fellow green slimes become motionless blobs of mucus, let out a derisive sneer.
"Ah, right. What if I directly control the fake Victoria this time and create a situation where Lord Astal has to kill her? No matter how fake she is, killing a being with the same memories and appearance as the lover you cherish must carry weight."
Feeling a slight inferiority complex on this point, Memoria was thinking of ways to torment Astal using the fake Victoria.
Astal's abilities wouldn't allow him to pinpoint her underground location anyway.
No matter how much he could surpass the preordained realms of a mage, Memoria wasn't foolish enough to be unprepared for that.
"Or, I could use the fake to target Victoria Everhart again. This time, completely steal her memories, turn her into an idiot, and force her to make a choice with the fake!"
Just imagining the delightful scene, Memoria's mouth corners twisted upwards into a grin almost against her will.
What would she do later, if she succeeded in collecting all the memories and abilities of this generation's Hero Party?
"…Maybe instead of storing them in a museum, I should just devour His Majesty the Demon King and become something akin to a god?"
The sudden thought made Memoria break into a slight cold sweat. As one of the inner circle like the Four Heavenly Kings, she knew best the depths of Demon King Ergothum's power.
"But… maybe it's possible now."
However, even he, who usually reveled in waging war and slaughtering people, had barricaded himself in his castle and refused to come out ever since Astal and the Hero's Party entered the Demon Realm.
Thinking of the Demon King's suspicious behavior, as if waiting for something, Memoria felt a wave of displeasure.
"I'm starting to not understand what he's doing, all for the sake of sparing one little girl."
Unlike in the past, Memoria was now voicing complaints about the Demon King.
Having transformed into a human form and gained the ability to fully utilize others' powers and memories, she now felt an omnipotence she hadn't before.
"…An immortal being who has cultivated power for centuries, destroyed other parallel worlds, and slaughtered humans… can't forget a single girl named Arian?"
Memoria muttered to herself, revealing a bit of the truth the Demon King Ergothum had been hiding from humanity, a twisted smile on her face.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Currently, I was trying to track Memoria's location using the fragments she left behind.
She wasn't a fool either; as a high-level mage, she wouldn't have revealed her true body while leaving clones behind.
"Damn it, not this one, not that one either. It seems she planted dozens, maybe hundreds of clones specifically to prevent me from pinpointing a single location."
I unfolded a map, marking all the locations where Memoria's mana could be felt, and began categorizing them.
Looking at what filled my vision, I couldn't help but curse. She had planted clones incredibly densely, as if deliberately trying to mess with me.
There were even a few visible around me. She must have hidden slime fragments underground or in water veins to mislead us.
"…Is there truly no way? We cannot possibly search all these numerous locations."
- Dragging this out will surely be dangerous…
Victoria1, who had lost her memories, frowned as she looked at the current situation. Listening to her inner thoughts, she seemed to desperately want to defeat Memoria and recover her memories as soon as possible.
Earlier, she had even ignored my orders, picked up her hammer, and chased after us to fight Memoria.
"It's useless even if we fold the map into 3D. The number is so vast that separating underground and surface locations holds no meaning."
I could only give Victoria that disheartening answer. No matter how hard I racked my brain to figure out Memoria's location, no clear solution emerged.
"…May I try touching it?"
At that moment, the other Victoria—the one I call Victoria2—raised her hand slightly. What was she thinking, asking to touch Memoria's fragment?
"What are you thinking?"
"The likelihood that I am a clone created by Memoria is high. Therefore, I might be able to trace back to the main body."
"……?!"
I couldn't understand Victoria2, who revealed her own identity as a fake. If she had memories of the past year, she would be the last person to want this fact exposed.
"Isn't this exactly the kind of choice anyone would expect from a woman named Victoria Everhart?"
In response to the fake's statement, the real Victoria, who had lost her memories, nodded with a gentle smile.
These two… something must have happened between them while I wasn't around.