Chapter 103
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: The Answer to the Problem Isn't Always Good (4)
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Lin Pacific.
She was the princess of the Pacific Kingdom and, at the same time, a sturdy vessel possessing the Hero's Quality.
The darkness in her heart hadn't formed long ago, but its depth relative to the time was so profound that even an upper demon like Craig could slip inside.
Her resilient body was more than sufficient to withstand the absurd demonic energy of an upper demon.
It would take a little time to fully seize control of the body, but that was fine.
A few others with the Hero's Quality had been visible nearby, but there was no one capable of blocking his infiltration or purifying it.
That should have been the case.
But then.
'...That one's a bit dangerous.'
A being with light magic power had appeared.
If it were his fully descended true body, he wouldn't lose under any circumstances.
But getting hit with light magic power while possessing someone was risky.
Not physically dangerous, but because the very gap he'd slipped through would close shut.
Or rather, before that.
'Is it planning to kill this woman outright?'
The approaching aura was far from ordinary.
It seemed intent on destroying the vessel entirely.
No, that might actually be better.
If they tried to purify him, it would deal some damage even to Craig's main body.
His demonic energy could be harmed, potentially preventing him from returning to the middle world for days.
If the vessel was outright shattered, at least Craig himself would take no damage.
In that case, he could just abandon it quickly and find another vessel.
That was what he had been thinking.
'What's this? That red-haired woman?'
Suddenly, a human woman with her red hair tied in twin tails approached.
She blocked the hero with light magic power and began the purification.
"Gaaargh?!"
An enormous surge of holy power erupted from the gap in the soul he'd pried open.
Craig felt a burning agony wrack his body from the unexpected attack.
It was horrifically powerful.
It felt like his soul was being torn apart by the holy power.
'Just how strong is this holy power?'
If the hero with light magic power had attempted the purification instead, he probably wouldn't have taken this much damage.
An upper demon like Craig, who could handle even ten average heroes.
This opponent seemed like one who'd give him a tough fight even against his fully descended body.
Naturally, his connection to the vessel he'd infiltrated severed immediately.
And his demonic energy was considerably damaged as well.
'This is a pretty big hit...'
A blow like this would require at least a few months' recovery time.
Restoring the damaged demonic energy would take that long, it seemed.
Though he'd squeezed through a narrow gap to possess a middle world human.
And his power was greatly diminished without a full descent.
For an upper demon like Craig to suffer this much damage from mere purification by holy power.
'...A mere human.'
Of course, he didn't feel the need to be cautious or avoid her.
To demons, middle world beings were fundamentally just worthless toys.
Or mere bridges to the middle world.
One doesn't flee in fear from vermin that stings just because it can inflict a scratch.
They get pissed and crush it flat instead.
"Once I descend fully, after carrying out Lord Jeral's command, I'll kill that woman first. No, not kill her outright—torment her until she begs for death, over and over."
Capture the precious humans around her and slaughter them before her eyes.
Extract their souls and devour them slowly, oh so slowly, right in front of her, letting her drown in despair.
Then resurrect the corpses to mock her.
Yes, an excellent idea.
Craig nodded in satisfaction.
Her interference had delayed his plans by two or three months, so that level of revenge was only natural.
With that resolve, time passed.
Once he fully recovered his strength, he began searching anew for a gap where he could descend.
And then, purely by coincidence.
He found a suitable gap in the place where the ones Kraksus had enlisted as middle world allies were gathered.
The body was that of an ordinary human, so it probably wouldn't last long.
But it was the perfect spot to disrupt Kraksus's plans.
Even if the body broke down quickly, he could wreak havoc first.
Whatever Kraksus's scheme was, he could ruin it in the process.
With that thought, he descended immediately.
"What the hell is this trash?"
Something attacked the body he'd descended into, so he casually flung it aside.
A motion as light as brushing dust off his shoulder.
But that alone ruptured the arm muscles of the human serving as his vessel, blood bursting forth.
"Tch. To burst like this from just that. This human's too soft. Did I pick the wrong vessel?"
But there was no helping it.
There hadn't been any good vessels available anyway.
Still, the darkness in its heart was deep enough to accommodate an upper demon.
A decent vessel.
Thinking he needed to act quickly before it broke down further, Craig surveyed his surroundings.
"Hm... Kraksus, you're up to something interesting."
He could roughly grasp the situation.
What Kraksus... no, precisely, Kraksus's followers had done to the middle world.
A curse.
True to form for the Curse Demon King.
Insidiously, he'd used his middle world followers to spread a wide-area curse across the entire realm.
He couldn't discern the exact details of the curse.
But it seemed like the type that absorbed power and sent it to Kraksus.
Probably scattered to reclaim his lost strength.
"Whatever. Lord Jeral's command was to disrupt him as much as possible."
It didn't matter what it was.
If the followers had spread the curse, the course of action was already set.
He tested moving the body roughly.
It seemed the limit would be two or three days at most.
After that, the body would shatter completely into dust.
And that was just for normal movement.
Using magic or moving vigorously would probably destroy it in less than a day.
'Even a normally trained human body has its limits like this.'
"Eh... Would've been nice to descend into a stronger body. That previous woman would have been perfect."
What could he do?
He had to make do with the meal set before him.
With that thought, Craig raised his hand upward.
He gathered demonic energy, forming a black orb the size of a human head.
Detonating this alone would turn the surrounding area into a wasteland.
It packed that much destructive power.
Of course, to an upper demon like Craig, this was mere low-grade magic, insignificant.
Unfortunately, the current vessel seemed to have reached its limit at this level.
'Well... there's nothing worth targeting here anyway.'
Honestly, there was no reason to raze the area.
So why waste the precious life force of his vessel on this black orb?
'...Just because?'
Truthfully, there was no special reason.
He'd simply lost the vessel he'd taken a liking to, thanks to that hero woman who butted in suddenly.
And because of that, his demonic energy was damaged, causing further delays.
Irritation boiled over to the top of his head.
Everything just made him want to smash something.
And then.
"Instructor Kane?! What in the world is going on right now..."
Someone appeared beside the vermin he'd just flung away.
An unusual aura.
Clearly someone with the Hero's Quality.
'Tch, of all times... This is annoying.'
He couldn't wield his full power in this state.
Even a decent hero could exorcise him.
'Damn it...'
The fact that he had to flee from humans no better than insects infuriated him to no end.
But there was no choice.
To obey the command from his master, the Weapon Demon King Jeral, he had no option.
But then.
"...Huh?"
The hero's face looked familiar.
"Huh? Oh! You!"
Craig recalled immediately.
Sky-blue long straight hair, brown eyes.
Magic power thickly imbued with ice attributes.
The very princess hero he'd first targeted as a vessel.
In that instant, a brilliant idea flashed in Craig's mind.
'Yes! Abandon this crappy body and switch to that woman.'
She'd nearly been possessed once before.
And now, with his soul half-extracted through this vessel named Marco.
If he timed the contact with her just right.
It seemed possible.
Humans can't so easily overcome the deep-seated darkness in their hearts.
Especially if it's trauma carved by fear.
Even though she'd been purified and saved once, the same darkness surely lingered in her heart.
There had to be a gap to exploit.
So Craig thought.
'Perfect. Switching to her solves everything.'
Even reconsidering it, it was a great idea.
Lin was a hero, so her body was inherently strong.
He could fully possess her and later aim for a true descent of his body.
Disrupting Kraksus's plans would be a piece of cake.
And that wasn't all.
That red-haired hero who pissed off Craig.
He could exact proper revenge on her too.
For the one she'd purified and saved to become possessed by a demon again.
And come to kill her—what could be more horrific?
"Kuhuhuhu."
Just thinking about it was delightful.
"...This is fun. My first demon hunting target turns out to be... you."
Conveniently, the sky-blue-haired woman showed no sign of fleeing; she intended to fight.
Perfect.
He didn't even need to fight properly.
Just a moment of contact.
Having attempted possession on her once before.
If he matched the soul's wavelength precisely.
He was confident he could slip into the lingering darkness.
No one capable of purification was nearby, so that worry was gone too.
'The problem is how to make contact.'
The opponent was a hero.
And though worthless vermin, two more humans were with her.
Could he reach her with this pathetic body?
After a brief deliberation, Craig made his decision.
'Even if this body shatters, I'll draw up maximum demonic energy and charge.'
If it failed, the vessel would break, and he'd return to the demon world.
But that was fine.
'If it fails after trying, whatever. I can search elsewhere.'
Since part of his soul had already crossed over, destroying the vessel would hurt.
He'd need another few months' rest.
But since it had come to this.
It was all or nothing.
If it worked, great; if not, wait a bit longer and try again.
Kraksus's plan didn't seem fully complete yet anyway; time remained.
"Kyahahat! Eat this!"
With that thought, Craig hurled the black orb in his hand toward Lin and her group.
Swoosh─
The black orb flew swiftly.
But he didn't expect it to hit.
The hero Lin would surely block it.
The moment he threw the black orb, regardless of whether Marco's muscles burst.
Craig began gathering demonic energy from his soul.
'Come on... hand over that body, hero!'