Chapter 101
Chapter 101
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Touching Their Pride (10)
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Because its vocal organs were devoured first, the bastard could no longer make a sound.
Gulp, gulp.
Each time Requiem swallowed a sip of life force, a moan of ecstasy leaked out.
"Haaah……."
It was impossible to tell if that sound came from Requiem or from me. At some point, the boundary separating me from Requiem had vanished.
[More, more.]
"Yeah, more."
[All of them.]
"Let's kill them all."
The price for suppressing Requiem for so long and then stimulating it in such a destructive way was enormous.
A traveler parched by thirst for ages loses their reason upon finding an oasis. They plunge in without realizing their body is sinking deeper and deeper.
"……Hurry."
My mind was filled only with a ravenous hunger for the next life. The Gauntlet's green glow flickered perilously.
In my entirely red field of vision, the human in front of me—who was no longer red—came into focus.
Slash!
I sheathed Requiem and turned around. My eyes shifted toward the next prey.
"Still not enough."
My jet-black, twisted hair fluttered in the wind. Through the gaps, I counted the number of red humans around me.
"……Eighteen, nineteen. Nineteen in total."
I had no idea when the feeling of fullness would come. At the very least, it felt like I had to devour all the lives here.
[Just eat them all.]
"Yeah, let's eat them all."
Heh heh heh. A cruel laugh scattered through my gritted teeth.
"All of them."
The red lives were gradually closing in on me.
The bandits had failed to catch Blackstar. Instead, they approached me, who looked like easy pickings.
Their gazes swept over the corpses strewn around me.
"W-What the hell is that?"
"Are those really corpses?"
The bandits murmured uneasily. They stared at me, standing crookedly in front of three bodies.
They must have sensed it subconsciously too. The faint killing intent emanating from me like a heat haze, the calm demeanor that didn't fit this chaotic situation.
That it resembled the presence of a predator.
"Check on the missing ones right now!"
One particularly burly bandit with a fierce face shouted.
"Vice Boss! Charlie, Tom, and Nick are gone!"
As the other bandits reported one after another, the vice boss's face darkened.
"No way, that guy……?"
He gripped his weapon tightly and stepped forward.
"Who the hell are you?"
Instead of answering, I stared at him silently.
"You don't look like you're from the guard or a knight order."
The vice boss scanned me from head to toe.
"Sent by another bandit gang? Wolf? Or Topo?"
"What's it matter to a guy who's about to die?"
I snickered back, and the vice boss's nostrils flared.
"You crazy bastard……."
"……."
"You thought you'd get away with this?!"
The vice boss gestured toward the other bandits.
"Make him regret messing with the Rato Bandits!"
"Yes, Vice Boss!"
With a leader to follow, the bandits quickly regained their composure. They huddled tightly around the vice boss.
"Eyaah!"
"Die!"
The bandits charged at me with their weapons raised. I watched them and giggled.
'I can eat faster now.'
I was truly thrilled. It was like a feast begging to be devoured—how could I not be excited?
'Gladly.'
Thud!
My figure blurred as I kicked off the ground.
"Huh?"
"He vanished……."
Amid the bandits' puzzled cries, a black wind streaked past.
"Gurk!"
A sudden scream erupted.
Only then did the bandits realize where I was. But by the time they turned,
"Grrk……."
The vice boss's body was splitting in two from both sides.
Thud, plop.
The body, precisely bisected, spilled onto the ground.
"Haha."
I retrieved Requiem and turned around.
Even after cleaving that massive human in half, not a drop of blood stained Requiem.
Sizzle—
The vice boss's corpse on the floor began to wither and twist.
"The Vice Boss is down……!"
"What the hell is that sword?"
The bandits recoiled in horror. Having lost their center, they lost their courage as well.
"U-Uwaaaah! Help! Someone save me!"
A bandit who had been standing next to the vice boss turned to flee.
"You bastard!"
The other bandits shook their fists at him.
"If you run now……."
"Kyaaak!"
The fleeing bandit suddenly tumbled to the ground. When he groped at his legs, there was nothing below them anymore.
"Hik, hiiik!"
The ear-piercing scream cut off quickly.
Psssh—
His face shriveled as Requiem pierced it.
"Shut up."
I yanked Requiem out with a flick and swung it horizontally using the momentum.
Boom!
The severed head rolled across the floor. Next to it lay the two legs that had already been cut off.
"Don't run. It's annoying."
I muttered softly as I sheathed Requiem.
'Seventeen.'
Like punching numbers into an abacus, I counted the remaining.
"W-W-What the……."
Some bandits trembled, their lips quivering,
"D-Don't chicken out! We outnumber him!"
"Everyone, group up! Stick together to live, scatter to die!"
A few who still had some guts shouted.
"Bullshit."
I scoffed and charged at them.
Requiem flew. My body followed like the wind.
"Aaak!"
"Kk, kheuk."
I didn't even need Ovest Swordsmanship. I just closed in, stabbed throats, pierced hearts, and drove Requiem into the crowns of their heads.
'Fourteen.'
I lowered my body and swung Requiem horizontally, then swept it upward from below in the same motion.
'Twelve.'
I bent at the waist to dodge an attack coming from behind, then kicked it upward.
"Uwaaak!"
The bandit who took the hit to the jaw crashed into the one behind him. As their bodies overlapped, I thrust Requiem deep.
"Eyaap!"
A sword aimed at my neck came flying down from above. I spun and sliced from the shoulder to the opposite waist in one go.
'Nine.'
In an instant, the area was filled with blackened corpses. The bandits, having lost nearly half their comrades, turned pale as ghosts.
"P-Please spare me!"
"I-I'm sorry!"
"Please, just spare our lives!"
They threw down their weapons and prostrated themselves on the ground, clasping their hands in plea.
I brought Requiem down on them without hesitation.
"Gurk……."
"Gek……."
Killing those who didn't even think to resist was disgustingly easy and unsatisfying.
'Five.'
I stabbed wherever I felt like, not even aiming for vitals. Even so, the hyper-excited Requiem sucked their life force rapidly.
'Two.'
The body of the last bandit in front of me crumpled.
"Hahaha……."
A low laugh poured over the bandits' corpses. I swept back my jet-black hair and laughed and laughed.
"Hahaha."
It was too much fun.
The sensation of slicing through human skin and flesh, the vivid life force surging in from within, and finally, the smooth texture left in my hand.
"Why did I ever hold this back?"
Such a good thing.
From now on, I wanted to do it more often, eat more. No, it might be best to just devour every life in this empire.
"Where to start…… Right, the capital first."
There would be delicious lives scattered everywhere. A capital overflowing with them.
"Oh, come to think of it."
A few hours ago, there was some prey that seemed incredibly tasty. From the scent wafting off it and the quality of its flesh, it had to be the pinnacle of delicacy.
"Should've eaten that first."
I muttered regretfully, then burst into laughter.
"No, wait. The best should be saved for last."
That way the anticipation builds more.
"Hahaha."
I kept laughing as I turned my body.
My whole body felt languid, my steps floating lightly as if walking on clouds. Sounds came muffled, like I was underwater.
"Is this what being drunk feels like?"
Giggling, I trudged toward the two remaining lives.
[Bzzz, bzzzz.]
At some point, a buzzing like flies droned in my ears.
"Ah, shut up."
I waved my hand vaguely and kept walking toward the flickering flames of life in the distance.
I found the nearer of the two lives first. It was inside a building where one wall had completely collapsed.
Step.
As soon as I stepped inside, a rush of foul smell hit me. The stench of filth, dust, and damp moisture.
The reason was clear at a glance.
"A prison, huh."
Iron bars were firmly embedded. Inside, a single life huddled alone.
[Bzzzz. Bzzzzz.]
The fly-like buzzing grew louder.
"Ah, I said shut up!"
Irritated, I froze.
This wasn't flies—it sounded just like…… an animal growl.
"Who cares."
That wasn't important right now. I needed to shove something into this churning stomach fast.
I waved my hands around my face, then grabbed the iron bars.
Creeeak!
Pulling with both hands stretched them like taffy. I made a gap big enough to pass through and slipped inside.
What I sought lay collapsed on the floor.
"Unconscious?"
Looking closer, it was a fairly old human. His clothes were filthy but seemed high-quality, and oddly, the attire looked familiar.
"Not a bandit, huh."
Well, no need to lock up your own bandits in prison.
Frowning, I approached closer. I knelt and examined the human's face closely.
My brows furrowed deeper.
"A familiar face……?"
His face wasn't unfamiliar. He was definitely someone connected to me.
"What was his name again."
My mind was foggy like shrouded in black mist. My memory, which usually captured everything like photographs, wasn't working right, as if soaked in water.
"Name, his name……."
[Does it matter?]
Requiem snapped coldly.
[Just kill him.]
"……Yeah, you're right."
Thinking about it, that made sense. No need to know the name of someone I was going to kill anyway.
I gripped Requiem and aimed it at the human's throat. At that moment, the buzzing grew louder again.
[Whine! Whiiine!]
Ignoring it, I applied strength to my hand.
"……Ah, wait."
At the last second, a word flashed in my mind.
"Phil…… Philip or something. What was it?"
As I muttered absentmindedly,
Throb!
My head ached like it was being squeezed hard.
"Ugh!"
I clutched my forehead and squeezed my eyes shut. In doing so, I allowed something to approach me at high speed.
"Rurrung!"
Like emerging from water, the muffled sounds suddenly stabbed vividly into my ears.
Bang!
Something kicked my body hard.
"Ugh!"
With a stifled grunt, I slammed into the opposite wall. My side throbbed painfully from the kick.
At the same time, the voice in my ear vanished cleanly.
"……Huh?"
I blinked.
At some point, my red-tinted vision had returned to normal. My pitch-black mind lit up bright as day.
"Wait, what was I……."
Doing?
A dazed mutter escaped my lips. I rubbed my side and looked up.
"Rurrung! Rurrung!"
Blackstar pawed the ground with its front hooves, poised to charge at me. Only then did I realize the source of the pain in my side.
'That thing kicked me?'
Realization brought a surge of anger.
"Hey! Are you insane?!"
I raised my fist, and Blackstar halted. Its golden eyes blinked as it stared at me intently.
'Master? You back to your senses?'
It was an incredibly worried look.
"……Hm."
I sheepishly lowered my fist.
'Did this guy snap me out of it?'
I could feel full control returning to my body.
'That was close.'
I had nearly become a demon possessed by Requiem, devouring the lives of the entire empire. Ending up just like in the original story.
And this was near the capital, where all the canon powerhouses were gathered right now. I could've died even faster than in the original.
Really, what luck.
"Ugh, my head."
Of course, the aftermath was severe.
It was because I'd forcibly separated from my fusion with Requiem. My empty stomach was now full, but my head hurt like hell.
"Ugh, is this a hangover?"
One hand on my forehead, the other on my side, I groaned for a good while.