Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: The Maniac Has Been Released (2)
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"Yes, the one they call the Fighting God, that maniac."
Cyan listened to Stran's words and quietly gazed out the window.
In Novel Online, there were NPCs for each class's final job advancement, as well as exceptionally powerful NPCs among the races to balance out the power levels.
And in Cyan's case, she had already met two out of the four NPCs required for her final job change.
- Swordmaster of the Ires Empire.
- High Elf Great Sage of Arke.
- Fighting God of the Grendel Mountains.
- Heretic Inquisitor of the Holy Order.
Among them, the one known as the maniac of the Grendel Mountains corresponded to the 'Fighting God' needed for a fighter's final job change.
To become the Heavenly Demon, she absolutely had to meet her.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 《 ~Dangerous Stage~ Grendel Mountains Ruins Sector 》
Noon, when the sun hung high in the sky.
-Boom! Thud!
In the ruins sector of the Grendel Mountains, massive explosions echoed alongside fierce gusts of wind.
Dozens of adventurers had gathered there.
They had all come to subjugate the maniac of the 'Grendel Mountains,' but two-thirds of them were already unconscious, sprawled on the ground.
-Thwack!
Among those adventurers, you could spot elves, beastkin, humans—every race without exception.
These were all veteran adventurers confident in their skills, yet this ordeal had shown them an overwhelming strength unlike anything they'd faced before.
And from just a single person, no less.
-KABOOM!
"Gaaah!"
At that moment, a deafening roar rang out, and every adventurer still standing in the ruins lost their balance and collapsed.
The source of the sudden quake and noise was right there.
"What's this, already done? Aren't you adventurers here to subjugate me?!"
From atop a crumbling pillar in the ruins, a woman with black hair whipping in the wind shouted those words.
Her chest was wrapped in bandages, contrasting sharply with her dark hair. She wore a white martial arts uniform, and glimpses of her apricot-toned skin revealed scars both large and small.
"Ngh... urgh... Damn it...!"
And those green eyes looking down at the adventurers.
"H-how many have we lost?! Are we the only ones left?!"
The adventurers staring up at her vented their frustration.
"Is that bastard the maniac Mares? She's way stronger than the rumors said... How the hell are we supposed to take her down...?"
⚔ STATUS ⚔ Grendel Mountains' Maniac - 'Mares' The woman's identity was none other than Mares, the maniac of the Grendel Mountains.
Known alternatively as the Heavenly Demon, she was said to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Arke's Great Sage, the Ires Empire's Swordmaster, and the Holy Order's Heretic Inquisitor.
So it was no wonder the adventurers were getting one-sidedly crushed.
Their level of power was simply on another plane from ordinary humanoids.
"Weren't you here to capture me?! Then pick up those swords and charge at me—keep moving until your hands and feet give out!"
Her personality was as fierce as her strength, making her quite the eccentric.
That's why she crushed anyone who dared intrude into the Grendel Mountains with raw power, ensuring no one ever set foot in the place she guarded, no matter what.
-Rumble rumble rumble!
The ground began to shake.
"Still not moving...? Fine then. Regardless, you lot are intruders who stepped into this sacred mountain range I protect. I hope you're prepared to pay the price."
That was the ki emanating from Mares atop the pillar—her robust life force originating from within her body, distinct from the mana used in magic.
"Ugh... We need to retreat, but how?!"
"No good! The teleport scroll isn't working!"
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Heavenly Demon Divine Art (Complete) - 3rd Form: 「Boundary」 ※Attribute: Physical / Range: 100m / Max Targets: 1
▶Transforms a set area into one's own domain. Within this range, external barriers have no effect.
"Anyone who dares set foot here cannot enter or leave without my permission!"
And right now, Mares was channeling all her ki into her right hand.
It was the preparation for a major technique meant to wipe out all the surrounding adventurers in one blow.
-Snap!
"Grgh...! It's coming! Everyone, dodge!"
With that, Mares leaped from the pillar.
The adventurers who could still move desperately tried to drag their wounded comrades away, but they already knew it was too late.
This attack would surely level the entire area.
She possessed the raw power to trigger an earthquake with a single punch to the ground. Teleportation was the only sure escape, but even that was impossible now.
"Fleeing won't save you. You intruders will never set foot on this land again!"
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Heavenly Demon Divine Art (Complete) - 4th Form: 「Giant Slayer」 ※Attribute: Physical / Range: 10m / Max Targets: 1
※Special: Nullifies giant traits of struck target.
▶A punch infused with ki that attacks the opponent, collapsing a giant's body from within.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ 1.
《 ~Neutral Stage~ Turk Merchant Company 'Villa' 》
-Splash
She slipped quietly into the pale green bathwater.
The warmth tickling her toes and the faint herbal scent filling the bathroom helped clear her mind.
The slightly slick texture of the water—this new bath additive she'd bought seemed pretty decent.
Worth splurging on the premium stuff, maybe?
"Nice..."
The water's subtle weight enveloped her thighs, pressed against her shoulders, and melted away her fatigue.
She'd buy more from that shop next time.
"...That maniac from the Grendel Mountains, huh."
Even during this satisfying soak, the keyword 'maniac' lingered stubbornly in her thoughts.
The maniac of the Grendel Mountains.
The guardian of that sacred mountain range said to house a holy sanctuary.
Among everyone she'd encountered so far, this one was the most belligerent—and notoriously unreasonable.
If the memory of meeting her in the game still lingered, she might get past her without much hassle.
But based on past experiences, that was unlikely.
'Even the Great Sage didn't remember me. The timeline in this world is different from the game's to begin with.'
She scooped up some bathwater in her hand and stared at it intently.
Her reflection shimmered faintly in the pale green liquid.
Obviously, she wasn't wearing anything while bathing.
A towel wrapped around her body aside, she was naked.
-Drip!
"Hmm."
A droplet clinging to her ear trailed down her jaw, along her neckline, and vanished into the deep valley of her cleavage.
Even a tiny droplet like that sent ripples across the water to the tub's edge.
-Splash
She quietly draped her arm over the tub's edge.
"Maybe just overpower her with brute force?"
She pondered.
How best to deal with the maniac of the Grendel Mountains.
[ "That maniac beats up anyone passing through the mountains. Good thing she doesn't steal like bandits, but there are more than a few adventurers laid up in hospitals right now." ]
The character was modeled after the Greek god Ares, so she wielded equally formidable martial prowess.
Even compared to her motif, she was less reasonable than the Great Sage, Swordmaster, or even demons—she was worse than the Heretic Inquisitor, who charged at any demon like a rabid dog.
'If we fight, I win.'
She'd win if it came to blows.
The maniac might outclass her in Heavenly Demon prowess, but the gap wasn't that wide—and with magic factored in, Cyan would definitely prevail.
The scariest mage wasn't one with vast mana reserves, but one who could match physical powerhouses toe-to-toe.
A mage who covered physical strength was unstoppable.
'But I don't want to run into her.'
Still, she didn't even want to cross paths.
Not because she was a pervert like the Great Sages, or a mindless zealot lunging at demons like the Inquisitor.
Surprisingly, the maniac had a solid grasp of common sense.
She just refused to listen in certain situations, no matter what.
Might be better if she were a pervert...
"Tch, what a pain."
Even so, she'd eventually have to head to the beastkin nation of Sabna, so she'd accepted Stran's request for now.
'The world's rift, Cresia's domain.'
There was one place in this world where a shard of the world—a rift—had opened.
More precisely, a portal that could temporarily open it existed, and the one Cyan sought was in the beastkin nation of Sabna.
"Either way, I'll have to meet her."
The problem was, just like with Dawn Forest's portal, this one had a guardian.
And that guardian was the maniac in question, the one called the Grendel Mountains' maniac.
That's why she'd been putting it off.
She didn't want to face her.
If even the annoying encounters in Novel Online were this bad, how much worse would it be in person?
She probably wouldn't get a wink of sleep or a proper bath while in beastkin territory.
-Splash!
"Haa, I'll think about it when the time comes."
But brooding here wouldn't change anything.
So she decided to focus on the bath.
Her one true hobby, the thing that soothed her weary body and soul—bathing in the tub was practically her reason for living, if she exaggerated a bit.
-Splash
"...If only I could set it aside for a little while."
But thoughts of the maniac kept surfacing, and even submerged, she gazed down at her buoyant chest.
Her pale, smooth breasts floated above the water's surface.
Even pressing them down by hand, they bobbed right back up the moment she let go.
It happened every time she tried, and for a fleeting moment, she wondered what others would think if they saw.
But with double barriers in place, no one could sneak in unnoticed.
"These breasts."
Honestly, they were inconvenient in so many ways when moving around.
Sleeping, fighting, picking clothes—everything.
Still, she liked how they looked, so she left them be.
Getting rid of them because of the hassle would feel empty, and it'd diminish Cyan's charm as a character.
-Crackle!
"Hm, even Transform doesn't change my figure, huh."
But considering what she had to do next, she wished they'd vanish, just for a bit.
On a whim, she'd tried transforming into a beastkin race known for flat chests, but all she got were cat ears—no real body change.
Her breasts still floated defiantly.
"Even binding them with bandages... at this size, they wouldn't stay hidden."
-Crackle!
In the end, it was pointless, so she released the Transform.
'Only one way, then.'
Truth be told, the reason the maniac beat people up wasn't just for 'passing through the mountains.'
She claimed to be the mountains' guardian, using that as justification, but it boiled down to a deeply personal issue.
Nothing she could voice aloud, of course.
'Gonna have to make that potion and feed it to her.'
This was a fact uncovered not from game data or settings books, but from a story writer's interview—and Cyan remembered it clearly.
The maniac beat up anyone with 'bigger breasts' than hers.
Everyone except kids, that is—and somehow, that had become her criterion, even for men.
'Two days until the next caravan, was it?'
In the game, it came up differently, but subquests involving her implied meeting while under the effect of a 'special potion.'
That potion wasn't store-bought; players had to gather materials and craft it themselves.
'No choice. Hope the Turk Company or a general store has the ingredients.'
-Splash!
"...Tch, if not, I'll just pound her into submission. It'll be a hassle, but whatever."
Anyway, no more thinking.
Just melt into the moment.
The sensation of warm water seeping into every inch of her body—this tub even had a massage function with gentle bubbles.
It was weak, but better than nothing.
Asking someone else? Louise didn't know massage, and tentacles felt good but the sticky residue made her reluctant to repeat it.
So this would have to do.
After the caravan trip, she'd have Stran find a decent masseuse.