Chapter 159
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 163
Chapter Title: Reason
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Beric's face turned beet red with rage, but perhaps thanks to his experience rolling around in Green Jack, he didn't lose his reason.
─Ku, kuhehe... Not bad, Alzen. Worried that squashing me like a fly would be too anticlimactic, so you even prepared this... Thanks to you, I can savor your despair even more...
"You're flustered. It's obvious, Beric."
─......
I sighed as I watched the guy clamp his mouth shut, his face flushed red and then pale with complex emotions.
As expected, compared to the enemies I'd faced so far, this one was on a completely different level—far too inferior.
There was no sharp sting, no heavy weight to it, so no real tension built up.
That's why I kept underestimating him and letting my guard down.
Even when I tried to steel myself and stay vigilant... somehow, it felt like there was no need. It was bizarre.
It was as if someone was convincing me I didn't even need to feel threatened... Could this be Kubel's doing?
Come to think of it, earlier when Cecilia said she wanted to purify the undead, I'd brushed off that odd feeling... Normally, I wouldn't have let it slide.
"Hoo... This feels shitty."
Thinking that even my emotions might be swayed by some divine being made negative feelings boil up into my throat.
"Hey, Beric. How the hell can you even handle Kubel's corpse? With your abilities, it seems utterly impossible."
─...Ha! Looks like even your superior abilities have their limits! But you think I'll fall for your scheme to uncover the secret of my power?
"Telling me that changes nothing, you damn bastard."
I smashed the empty bottle on the ground, ran a hand through my hair, took a deep breath to tamp down my anger, and held out my hand to Murel.
"Here you go."
She quickly passed me a new bottle.
"Well, obviously the Death Demon King Annus designed the whole thing from start to finish. You're just a pitiful pawn being used... Ah, right. Now that I think about it, Annus's 'Authority of Death' has the property of drawing in holy power. So it absorbed Cecilia's holy power by applying that, huh."
─Wha, what...!? How do you...!
I continued while savoring Beric's flustered expression.
"Using the saintess's holy power to temporarily nullify the 'death' status on Kubel's corpse and make it move like it's alive... and using you as the brain in place of the real one. Yeah, that clears up all the mysteries in one go. Pretty ingenious, right? I was wondering how Annus, who could only collect corpses without knowing how to use them, pulled this off... Guess he put some brainpower into it."
─Sh, shut up! I was chosen! He recognized my utility and talent! He willingly selected me! I'm not some tool being exploited! I'm his trusted servant! This power is the blessing he bestowed upon a man like me!
"Sure, keep telling yourself that. You really believe a nobody like you is special? Hmm... But still, why pick you of all people..."
─Didn't I just tell you! My talent...!
"Probably because of me."
─What...!?
Shock, panic, disbelief.
I smiled sadistically as various expressions flashed across his face.
"The Life Demon King Otilliv even created a duplicate body just to kidnap me... So yeah, I must've shown up on Annus's radar with his own intel network. Damn. Demon Kings really are all so bored. They come charging in like they want to die if something looks fun... Should've killed Rubias back then..."
I stared straight into the eyes of the massive wolf, presumed to be Kubel's incarnation.
The focus was a bit blurry, but there was definitely a flicker of intelligence in those huge eyes.
"......"
I tilted the bottle back for a swig, then lit a cigarette.
"Phew... I've got the gist of everything. Let's get this over with, bro. Won't take long."
Thanks to the 'Open Cage' expanding the space, the battle between the barbarian warriors and the wolfmen had been pushed to the edge of my vision, but right up until then, the barbarians had been taking heavy losses, so it was probably still the same.
Even if Charhella was fighting valiantly, she had her limits alone... I'd need to wrap this up quick and help out to minimize casualties.
─You figured everything out...? With that ability of yours?
"Roughly, yeah."
─Then surely you know why I betrayed humanity too...!
"Huh? Do I need to know that? Probably some lame reason. No one in the divine realm caught your eye more than the Third Imperial Princess, so when a Demon King conveniently approached, you defected, right? Rationalizing it like 'humanity can no longer contain me' or whatever."
─...!!
"Ooh, nailed it. Man, my head's pretty useful sometimes... Nah, you're just that predictable, aren't you? Beric."
I grinned mockingly, and his expression was quite the sight.
─No, that's not it! I—this body—to guide humanity, beyond salvation, back to the right path by serving the Demon King...!
"Wow, you rationalized it that far? What a spectacle."
Beric had disgustingly strong self-esteem and couldn't tolerate anyone above him, so he'd do anything to grow stronger or elevate his status.
Paradoxically craving recognition from someone higher up... Leaving the ducal castle to serve under the Third Imperial Princess fit that pattern.
Unlike Urtega, she infinitely adored those who became hers.
To me, it was all idiotic, but to him, it probably seemed rational.
"Can't believe you don't realize you're being used lock, stock, and barrel—petty psychology included."
─No way! The Demon King saw me, chose me! Acknowledged me!
"Hmm, did the Demon King leave any message or something?"
─That's...!
"None, huh? Obvious then. Using family ties to gauge my reaction. Demon Kings are all so damn insidious."
The three Demon Kings each had distinct personalities, so their ways of amusing themselves varied wildly.
A voyeur closer to death than anyone, thus envying and coveting life and vitality above all—that was the Death Demon King Annus.
Without any deeper meaning, just observing the reactions of the 'interesting human' that Rubias had marked and gifted with death via Otilliv's duplicate would have been decent entertainment for her.
In other words, high chance she just tossed it out without a second thought about the aftermath.
"......"
The problem was Kubel slyly inserting himself into it to lure me all the way here... No idea what he was thinking.
─Don't make me laugh! I! I'm not some pathetic human! Someday! I'll stand higher than anyone! Looking down on all you humans from above!
"...Pathetic, bro."
─Don't look at me like that!
Enraged, Beric charged in like a madman.
More precisely, the giant wolf he controlled kicked off the ground—but anyway.
"Where do you think you're going."
"Daring to attack who?!"
"Showing killing intent toward Incarnation-nim? You deserve death!"
In that split second, Murel and Rebecca's Aura Blades targeted the wolf's front legs, while Latifi's arrow homed in precisely on Beric's forehead.
─Kuhuuup!?
Flustered, Beric deflected the arrow first.
That tiny window was enough for the wolf's leg to be deeply slashed.
Of course, it regenerated right away, but by then it was completely surrounded by Master-level foes, unable to budge.
"...As expected, you're not cut out for this."
No matter how impressive Kubel's corpse was, with a controller like that, it just felt lame.
─Kraaaaa! You pathetic humans dare! This body ascended to divinity! I'll slaughter you all!!
"What a spectacle. Tsk tsk..."
I clicked my tongue and casually stepped back to create distance.
Beric might be lame, but the power he wielded was real—if I got caught in it carelessly, I could die screaming.
─Die! All of you die!!
The way he spewed ominous energy like a tantrum was honestly a pretty flashy show.
The power was no joke, either.
At least enough to threaten Master-level fighters.
...But compared to the indiscriminate barrages of massive demonic energy from Otilliv's duplicate, it was truly insignificant.
Pajajak! Kwazuzuzuk!
─Kraaaak!?
Aura Blades flying in from all directions struck the wolf's body all over, exposing raw red flesh and spraying black blood like fountains.
Even against that predictable assault, Beric couldn't respond.
Latifi's arrows relentlessly targeted only him, forcing him to devote every nerve to blocking them.
─Y-you damn bastards!!
Enraged, he wildly swung the wolf's jaws and claws to attack somehow, but the Masters dodged effortlessly and counterattacked.
─Kraaaaa! Why! Why!! I clearly obtained the strongest power—the power of a god!!
"Hmm..."
I tilted my head at his scream.
He wasn't wrong.
If Beric had been more skilled and could wield Kubel's divinity—the corpse's authority—freely, he wouldn't have been pushed this hard.
But even so, that was it.
No matter how strong, it was just a reanimated corpse.
It couldn't surpass a Demon King, so to us, merely a tricky opponent.
In other words, it felt slightly insufficient as a reason for Kubel to interfere in my movements, issue an oracle, and lure me here.
"......"
So what the hell reason did that bastard have for luring me all the way here?
Well, for me, I'd found a perfect sacrificial offering for the curse tattoo, so it was all good.
Just that, fused with Beric, there was a risk Beric could end up absorbed by me...
"...Huh?"
Wait—sacrificial offering?
A sudden thought flashed through my mind.
Just a hunch, but if it was right...?
I pulled the 'Invitation of the Forgotten' from my bosom.
"...In the name of the Goddess, I bestow upon you the 'Opportunity of Trial'."
The moment I intoned it, authority erupted from the world's underside—or the cracks in space—and recognized Beric as a transcendent being.
Thus, as one eligible for trial, he entered a state suited to stand alone.
In simple terms, all external interference and interactions were completely cut off.
─Wha—what!? What...!
What happened next was somewhat theatrical.
Very comically, like a farce.
Poong!
With a cheerful pop, Beric was yanked clean out from the giant wolf's forehead.
"...Wha—what!?"
Separated from the divinity, Beric plummeted with a dazed look, but managed a nimble twist to regain his balance and land safely.
"......"
But naked, he looked kinda gross.
"Haa... Subdue him."
"Uh, huh? Ah, yes... Got it."
"What the...?"
"Q-quite absurd..."
The women, thrown off by the sudden weird turn mid-fight, fumbled a bit but subdued Beric.
"Kuhk!?"
Still not grasping the situation, Beric was taken down far too easily while dazed.
"Alright then, now for what's left..."
─...Grrr.
I looked up high. A massive wolf, black as pitch, glared down at us with feral eyes full of wildness, baring its fangs.
─Finally, we meet. The Goddess's arrangement.
"...Didn't expect you to talk."
Absurdity made me chuckle despite myself.