Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Don't Mistreat Your Subordinates – You'll Regret It (7)
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Kogel charged at them, sword in hand.
What the hell? Where did this guy suddenly come from... No, that's not important right now.
That bastard's completely lost it.
He's coming to cut us all down.
Crazy son of a bitch!
I figured even a dimwitted hack adventurer wouldn't stoop to attacking his employer.
Guess my assumption was way off.
"Get out of my wayyy!"
"...!"
Seeing him rush in, Reina stepped forward.
No...!
Her aptitude had kicked in the moment she picked up the spear, rapidly building her spear skills.
But she was still a total beginner on day one.
Kogel, on the other hand...
Idiot or not, his sword skills were solid enough to earn him D-rank adventurer status.
No one here could stop him...
Claaang!
"Ngh, haa...!"
"You bitch..."
His strike was so fast it was a blur to my eyes.
Yet Reina swiftly raised her iron rod to block it.
That was a seriously quick slash, but she parried it perfectly.
Her reaction speed and movement screamed pro, not newbie.
...I see.
Come to think of it, she's not a complete beginner.
She'd spent tons of time training with a bow, a ranged weapon, building focus to hit distant targets.
And she'd practiced swinging the bow stave for close-quarters defense.
She might be green with spears, but not with combat overall.
Right. So if she can just hold him off a bit, I'll head to town and grab the guards.
Tell 'em some thug's attacking women, and they'll come running.
Not stepping up doesn't make me less of a man or anything.
This is the smart play.
Someone like me, who's spent life nose-deep in books, jumping in would just get me killed for nothing.
That's not manly—it's stupid.
Anyway, while Reina can buy some time...
"I'll go get the town guards..."
"No, it's fine, Mr. Kane."
But then Sonya flashed a chilling smile—familiar, somehow—and stopped me.
"...I think I can handle it now."
...Now? What does that mean...?
"Mana, grant mighty strength. Strength!" "Mana, grant swift movement. Haste!" ⟨ Enhancement Magic ⟩
Fwaaah!
Sonya suddenly unleashed buff spells.
Blue mana enveloped Reina, boosting her strength and agility.
With Sonya's buffs, Reina would definitely get stronger.
But the gap in close-combat experience and technique was still huge.
This alone wouldn't be enough to win...
"Mana, seize the enemy's ankles. Slow!" "Mana, drain the enemy's strength. Weakness!" ⟨ Debuff Magic ⟩
"...?!"
Huh? What? Huh?
Shhh─
Purple mana, the opposite of Reina's, began swirling around Kogel.
And right then...
"Guh...?!"
Kogel suddenly staggered, like all his strength had drained away!
No way... actual Slow and Weakness...?
Buffs and healing magic are similar, and so are curses and debuffs.
But they use different mana attributes and opposite mental images.
Mastering them takes serious time.
Yet she nailed them on her first real try, no practice?
"Nailed it. Finally."
She let out a creepy chuckle.
And then...
"...I've always wanted to slap debuffs on a monster instead of buffs and watch it get pummeled. Finally achieved my goal. Hehehe."
She's muttering something terrifying...!
Ah, so she's been vividly imagining this for ages—that's why she pulled off the debuff on Kogel in one go.
Who knew my explanation of buff and healing principles would lead to this?
"You fucking bitch... You had debuffs too? Sonya, you ain't dying easy."
Kogel backed off, glaring at Sonya and grinding his teeth.
Though... the effect seems weaker than in the books.
Even basic debuffs like these...
Combined Slow and Weakness should've cut a mere D-rank like him by 40-50% speed.
But he's only down maybe 20%.
Other stats probably dipped 10% at best.
Just like her iffy healing spell earlier, these debuffs are half-baked too.
Then again, landing aptitude-less debuffs first try is insane anyway.
But it's enough.
This tips the scales toward Reina.
Reina's buffed up a level.
Kogel's down half a level.
And his speed's effectively halved.
Plus, Kogel just made the worst mistake against someone with a longer weapon.
"Perfect range."
"...What?"
Whiiiish─ Thunk!
"Gahk?!"
From a distance his longsword couldn't touch, the sharp tip of her iron rod flew at him.
The longest-range spear attack: a full-body-weight, one-handed thrust.
Lethal piercing power and reach, but risky if it misses—leaves you open.
Reina, though, thrust with total certainty it'd land.
It speared right through his right shoulder.
He might've dodged normally, but debuffs had weakened him.
Slower reactions, slower moves.
No escaping.
"Gaaah!"
Clang!
Unable to bear the pain, Kogel dropped his silver longsword to the ground.
He clutched his gushing shoulder, rolling in agony.
"Fuck, it hurts! It fucking hurts!!"
He writhed and screamed, but no one pitied him.
"Hoo... Did you think we'd follow you forever? Once we built some skill as adventurers, we planned to ditch trash like you."
Reina kicked his sword far away to ensure he couldn't fight back.
Sonya approached the writhing Kogel with a cold smile.
"Heh, and today is that day? You attacked your charge, so you're getting kicked from the guild and charged with a crime... Perfect timing."
Wow, they've been holding a lot in.
Makes sense... With his personality and stupidity, how much hell did they go through?
They probably planned to stick it out until D-rank for independence.
I'd heard F- and E-rank adventurers face heavy limits without a D-rank or higher—stuck with herb-picking, lost cats, toilet cleaning.
Yeah, that's rough.
Supposedly to protect newbies, but forces them under skilled-but-personality-bankrupt jerks like him.
"Finish this escort gig, and we've got the record for promotion exams. With our skills now, we'll pass easy. Meaning you're..."
Sonya said with a smile, then...
"...Useless to us now. You worthless criminal scum."
Her face hardened.
Oof... That's brutal.
How much did they suffer?
She shattered his already-broken spirit—snot, tears, piss from pain and all.
She's scary...
"Oh, one thing. There is a way you can still be useful to us."
"Guh... Ghha..."
"...?"
Sonya cast Low Cure—the same healing spell she'd used on the goblin—on Kogel.
Fwaaah─
It healed more than the goblin's wound, but Low Cure's limits meant not fully.
Mid Cure at least for a puncture like that.
Why heal him now...? Wait.
Useful.
And healing... No way?
"Kgh... Wh-why..."
"Reina, looks like we got a better punching bag."
"Oh ho~ Nice."
...She straight-up called him a meat dummy this time.
She said "meat dummy"!
"...Wh-what...? What are you planning, you bitches...? Uwaaaah!"
...Never mind.
They're not scary.
They're demons. Actual demons.
#
While Kane witnessed demons from hell get fired in real time...
Jenny was living her own hell.
"Miss Jenny, allow me to introduce. These are your selected 'hero party' members."
"...Ah, yes."
Jenny looked at the three people before her, as guided by the general.
"Hey, Jenny? Fancy meeting you here again."
The blond guy greeting her sleazily was Osta Serild—a swordsman with Hero's Quality from the esteemed Serild sword family.
Two years her senior, he'd formed a hero party after Hero Academy.
Disbanded it in a rush when he heard about her party and applied.
He'd been after her since academy days.
Already souring her mood, but it got worse.
"Tch, reeks of lowly non-mages in here."
The guy ignoring her, plugging his nose and sighing nonstop, was Hasgula Despair.
A magic Hero's Quality holder, rising star from the Magic Tower.
Long, unkempt black hair hanging limp.
Sagging skin, upturned eyes.
Forehead huge from receding hairline.
Looks 40s, but shockingly 23.
Mindset, though? Rotten old mage supremacist weirdo.
"All else irrelevant—do you know our goddess of light, Sera?"
The woman chattering like a street cultist, eyes sparkling, was Spia.
Senior priestess dispatched by the Church of Light Goddess Sera, a Hero's Quality healer powerhouse.
At 24, already senior priestess material—perfect for a hero party's healer.
But her blind fanaticism for Sera made her attack non-believers as "divine retribution for immorality."
A total nutjob.
"...This is my party...?"
All three were top-tier in skill and power.
But dig deeper...
Sleazy playboy. Mage supremacist. Cult fanatic.
What a clusterfuck.
"......"
Jenny's vision went white, head spinning.
Even sweet, gentle Jenny couldn't help but want to find whoever assembled this and lop off their head right then.