Chapter 179: Nightmare (15)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 179: Nightmare (15)
It was after that day that Han Jisu no longer found Einar's meddling irritating.
He had never pushed her away too forcefully before, but now he accepted it as part of his daily routine.
“Hero, come on, come on! Victory high-five!”
“Alright. Stop nagging me.”
And sometimes.
On very rare occasions, he would play along.
Not because he wanted to, but because she would make a disappointed face if he didn’t.
He couldn’t bear to see that face, the spitting image of Ash, look so dejected.
She must have figured it out, judging by how she’s been acting lately.
She looked on the verge of tears at the slightest thing.
Honestly, it was infuriating, but the moment the corners of her eyes drooped, his heart would soften, and he couldn’t do a thing about it.
“Hmph...”
The most he could do was sigh and pinch her cheek.
Every time, she would struggle to get away, whining that it hurt, but he wouldn’t let go. After pinching it for a while, he’d release her, and she would mumble to herself while rubbing her reddened cheek.
Of course, this playful banter didn’t mean Han Jisu had completely accepted Einar. He still remembered the excruciating pain of opening his heart only to be deeply wounded.
He didn’t want to go through that again.
But without him realizing it, she was slowly carving out a space in his heart. Part of it was because she was a good person, but the deciding factor was her strong resemblance to Ash. Because of that, he sometimes treated her as he would have treated Ash.
It was just as his affection for her was gradually growing that a crisis befell them.
“If you offer your necks willingly, it won’t be painful.”
They had fallen into a trap during a mission and were now facing all the remaining Legion Commanders. Han Jisu had defeated many commanders before, but each time, a new demon was immediately appointed to the position, as if the post could never be left vacant. As a result, they were now confronted by every single one, from the 1st to the 13th Legion Commander.
A single stick breaks easily, but a bundle of ten is hard to snap. The same was true for the Legion Commanders. Individually, they were weaker than Han Jisu with his Holy Sword, but when they united, even he found it overwhelming.
To make matters worse, he had to protect Einar, who had no talent for combat.
In the end, he couldn’t hold out any longer and dropped to one knee.
“H-Hero!”
Startled, Einar rushed to his side. She intended to heal him, but he reached out an arm to stop her.
“I’m fine. So don’t look away.”
His breathing was ragged as he spoke. It was the first time she had ever seen the Hero without his usual composure. There was no way she could remain calm.
So she prayed.
After casting every buff she could, she continued to pray. Did her sincerity reach the heavens? The dark clouds covering the sky split in two, and a pillar of pure white light descended, enveloping Han Jisu.
It was a strange feeling.
Not only did his wounds heal and his body feel lighter, but even his mind, once foggy and dull, became crystal clear. And that wasn’t all. His other senses—his sight, his hearing—were all enhanced.
His senses, which had already far surpassed those of an ordinary human.
Feeling as if he had been blessed by a god, Han Jisu, though bewildered, did what needed to be done.
He stomped his right foot on the ground.
Crack. A distinct fissure appeared in the earth. He stomped again, and chunks of earth erupted around him, forming a barrier between him and the Legion Commanders.
The commanders considered the act meaningless. In a battle of their caliber, no matter how large the chunks of earth were, they wouldn’t even serve as a shield to reduce damage.
If his plan was to obscure their vision and escape, it was even more pointless.
They were surrounded; there was no way to slip past the Legion Commanders unnoticed. Trying to flee would only lead to being hunted down and killed.
But Han Jisu was not a man who made meaningless moves in battle.
With his vision obscured, he took a deep breath and swung his sword through the air. Whoosh. The dust scattered and the earthen wall split apart.
When their vision cleared, they saw the cleanly severed corpses of the 1st and 3rd Legion Commanders.
It was the mark of a technique Felix had left behind during his battle with the 4th Legion Commander.
A technique he had named ‘Space Sword.’
“...?!”
Cracks appeared in the commanders’ expressions. It was only natural. Two of their most skilled members had been suddenly cut down along with the earthen wall, without any warning.
I didn’t sense any energy at all.
There was no trace of mana moving—no sword aura, no magic. Because of that, the commanders couldn’t react, and the 1st and 3rd Legion Commanders had met a futile end.
They didn’t know about the technique Felix had left behind.
This was the first time Han Jisu had ever used it since acquiring it.
A lack of information breeds fear.
That held true even for the demon Legion Commanders. They, too, were living beings who feared death.
Of course, fear alone wouldn’t weaken beings of their stature.
But it could restrict their actions, and for Han Jisu, that was enough.
In a fight decided in tenths of a second, even a moment’s hesitation was a deadly poison.
In the chaotic battle that erupted immediately after he killed the 1st and 3rd Legion Commanders, the heads of the 6th, 8th, and 4th Legion Commanders were sent flying.
Even after all that, he showed no signs of fatigue.
The 2nd Legion Commander, Lich, watched the fight with his arms crossed and muttered.
“When I first met him, he was nothing but a brat... Twenty years. In such a short time, has he surpassed my centuries of existence? A Hero is truly a Hero. A talent bestowed by the heavens.”
Regardless, what sustained him now had to be that pillar of light from before. After being bathed in it, the exhausted Hero was full of energy again. No, he was more than just energized—he was sharper.
A buff... Is it that girl’s doing?
Lich pondered for a moment before shaking his head. She seemed to be a high-ranking figure in the Church, but in the end, she was a mere human. She might be able to enhance the physical abilities of another human who wasn’t performing at their peak, but she couldn’t possibly augment the power of a superhuman who had already far transcended his limits.
Which means...
Lich looked up at the sky. The dark clouds remained exactly as they were when they had parted for the pillar of light.
I should get out of here.
Nothing was certain, but one thing was clear: staying here would do him no good.
Lich killed himself.
A black soul flowed out from his skull. Recognizing it as Lich’s soul, Han Jisu rushed forward to cut it down, soul and all, but then stopped.
If he had been alone, it would have been different, but now he had someone to protect.
Someone who had become too precious to lose for the sake of personal revenge.
And so, Han Jisu could only watch as Lich’s soul transferred to a Life Force Vessel hidden somewhere in the world.
“That old geezer bailed on his own?! Shameless!” the 12th Legion Commander raged. Yet, he didn’t charge at Han Jisu. With the 2nd Legion Commander, their greatest asset, gone from the battle, their chances of victory had dwindled to almost nothing.
The other Legion Commanders felt the same.
The 5th Legion Commander, the highest-ranking one remaining, ordered a retreat. There was no need to continue a fight they couldn't win and risk even greater losses.
Han Jisu didn’t try to stop the commanders from leaving.
If he left his position, Einar could be put in danger.
Only after confirming that all the Legion Commanders had withdrawn did he lower his guard, a grin spreading across his face as he turned around.
“That pillar of light just now, was that you... Einar?”
Einar didn’t answer. Her face was pale as she stared blankly, sweat pouring down her face. When he placed a hand on her shoulder, she finally snapped out of it.
“Y-Yes?”
“What’s wrong? You’re so pale. Is it a side effect of using that pillar of light? It’s not permanent, is it?”
“N-No. It’s not like that...”
“Really? That’s a relief, then. Anyway, thanks for before. That prayer was incredible. When did you learn something like that?”
“Ahaha...”
Einar laughed awkwardly, dodging the question. Han Jisu found her behavior a bit strange, but since returning to the city was more important, he didn’t press her further.
He took her back to the city.
“Get some rest, Einar.”
“Okay...”
She remained listless even after they returned to the lord’s castle. Han Jisu decided to talk to her the next day.
Lying in bed, he replayed the battle in his mind, as he always did.
A fight against all the Demon King’s Legion Commanders.
Without Einar’s prayer, it would have been impossible, but with it, it was manageable.
I also dealt a significant blow to the Demon King’s army.
No matter how quickly they appointed new commanders, it would be difficult to fill the void in their forces.
Maybe it’s possible now.
The war had been at a stalemate for the past twenty years.
If he just mobilized all his forces and pushed forward, he might be able to end this war. A smile bloomed on his face at the thought. It wasn’t his usual cynical smirk, but the bright smile of his younger, more energetic days.
What will happen to me when the war is over?
Would he return to his original world?
Or would he remain in this one?
He hoped for the latter.
It was true that he had little desire for wealth and power, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t attached to what he had built over the past few decades. He had earned it through hellish suffering, which made it all the more precious.
So, he had to find a way to stay in this world.
If the Goddess tried to send him back to his original world, he would have to get on his knees and beg. He saved the world; surely she could grant him something as simple as this, right?
Come to think of it, if the war ends, the biggest contributor will be Einar.
The kingdom and the Church would reward her, but he wanted to give her a separate reward himself. She was the benefactor who had ended his tedious life, steeped in swordplay.
What should I get her? A gift?
Han Jisu thought of things Einar might like. It wasn’t hard to recall, thanks to her constant chattering. But choosing a gift from the list was difficult.
Most of the things he could think of were things the Church could easily give her, the Saintess.
He didn’t want to give her something like that.
Since he was repaying her kindness, he wanted to give her something that would make her the happiest.
Lost in thought, Han Jisu remembered Einar once mentioning that she wanted to go on a journey someday.
Having spent her entire life in a convent and the Church, she’d never had the chance to travel freely.
Alright. A journey it is.
Once the Demon King was defeated, peace would return to the world. Wandering through a world at ease. It didn’t sound bad.
It would be best if it’s just the two of us, right?
Having escorts would just be a hassle. With his overwhelming strength and more than enough money, the two of them could enjoy a comfortable journey on their own.
If the Pope says no, I’ll just have to slap him.
How dare he question the words of the great Hero?
Uh... wait a minute. If I slap the Pope, I won’t get kicked back to my original world for insubordination, will I?
The Goddess hadn’t said a word when he killed the previous Pope, but he couldn’t shake the sliver of doubt.
Tsk, so that means I have to persuade him... How do I do that? All I’m good at is swinging a sword.
He clutched his head, deep in thought, until exhaustion washed over him and he fell asleep as if he’d passed out.
The next day, all his worries became meaningless.
“Einar...?”
She was dead, hanging from a rope in her room. The wealth and fame he had accumulated lost all their value now that the woman he would have shared them with was gone.
“This is a lie, right...?”
He staggered forward, cut the rope, and caught her body. It wasn’t warm like it usually was; it was cold.
Han Jisu lost his mind.
When he came to his senses, he realized he was stomping on a dying demon.
And that the demon he was stomping on was the Demon King.
The first thing he did upon regaining his senses wasn’t to survey the half-destroyed Demon King’s Castle, the mountains of corpses inside and out, his own severed left arm, or the intestines threatening to spill out. It wasn’t to mock his nemesis, the Demon King. It was to ask a simple question.
“The Saintess, Einar. Did you kill her?”
“No.”
“Is that so?”
The Hero tortured the Demon King for three straight days.
Through the hellish pain, the Demon King’s words remained the same.
“I did not order her death.”
“...”
Han Jisu cut off the Demon King’s head. He felt nothing as he slew the nemesis of half his life. He simply pondered calmly.
“Then who did it?”
*
The Hero did not believe the Saintess had committed suicide. It made no sense. As a Saintess of the Church of Meria, which considered suicide a sin, there was no way she would take her own life.
If she had wanted to die that badly, she would have charged into the Demon Realm alone, not hung herself.
Dying while fighting demons would be ‘martyrdom.’
Therefore, the Hero decided to capture and interrogate suspects one by one.
First was Lich.
“If it were me, I wouldn’t have left her hanging. I would have made her into an undead. An undead created from the body of a Saintess would surely be a masterpiece.”
The explanation was plausible, but his words were insolent. The Hero plunged the Holy Sword into Lich’s skull and absorbed his soul into the blade. From now on, the arrogant Lich would live for eternity as a power source for the Holy Sword.
After interrogating Lich, he sought out the other hiding Legion Commanders. They all claimed they hadn’t done it.
It seemed to be the truth.
If they had killed the Saintess, her body wouldn’t have been left intact.
For that reason, all the demons were removed from the line of suspects.
His suspicion now turned to the human nations.
“W-Why would I kill the Saintess... No matter how much influence she had, second only to mine, I am still the head of the Church. This is an authority granted by the Goddess herself!”
The Pope.
“Eliminating a rival? Hero, I am a devout follower of the Church of Meria before I am an Emperor. What reason would I have to harm the Saintess?! So untie me at once!”
The Emperor.
“W-We really didn’t do it... We were all friends with Einar...”
The nuns who were Saint Candidates.
“Am I crazy? Why would I harm the Saintess?! It’s obvious you would kill me, Hero!”
The bastard who had hit on the Saintess.
And so on, and so forth.
Everyone denied the accusation.
It was natural for the culprit not to confess, but the problem was that the Hero’s patience was wearing thin.
If I just kill all the suspects, won’t the culprit be among them?
His thoughts had reached such an extreme point when it happened.
“You’re looking for the one who killed the Saintess, right?”
A bewitching voice brushed past his ear. There was no one around. It wasn’t telepathy, either.
The woman’s voice continued.
“But did you know? The one you’re looking for isn’t human.”
Not human?
For some reason, he heard those words as an instruction to slaughter everything that wasn’t human.
“And so, he did just that...? What is this? What kind of ending is this? You should at least reveal the culprit before finishing! This leaves such a bad aftertaste, I won’t be able to sleep.”
The Succubus Queen frowned and closed the book.
“Right, guys?”
She asked, looking down at Cloud’s companions below.