Chapter 199
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 199
Whether out of foolishness or sheer panic, she fired another <White Flash> at Swallow.
This time, Swallow simply waved a hand. The condensed ball of mana glanced off his palm, redirecting its course toward the human territory. A moment later, a dull BOOM! echoed in the distance, followed by the sound of crumbling castle walls.
A little surprised himself, Swallow chuckled.
The next spell was…
"Kiahhh!"
…nonexistent.
The patterns on her shell began to glow as it overheated, radiating intense heat. Steam billowed from its surface like a volcanic crater. Unable to endure the agony, Calamidad let out a pitiful shriek.
Unconcerned, Swallow continued his leisurely stroll toward her. The distance, easily over a kilometer just moments ago, shrank with impossible speed. Despite his small steps, he closed the gap until only a few dozen meters remained. Given Calamidad’s massive size, he was practically standing at her feet.
"How should I deal with this…"
She was a precious, egg-laying turtle. It was irritating that she’d beaten his hard-won subordinates to a pulp, but Calamidad was also a victim here.
If anyone was to blame, it was the humans who provoked her in the first place. Unfortunately, the instigators were already corpses before he could even get his hands on them.
"Still, killing her would be a waste."
Besides, if he killed Calamidad, Patrick would never let him hear the end of it.
He had already “dealt with” so many Great Evil Caves lately. If he got rid of the turtle, it would become seriously unclear whose side he was even on.
So…
"Kiaaaaaaaah!!"
As if making one last threat, Calamidad craned her neck and thrust her face toward Swallow.
Seizing the opportunity, Swallow laced his fingers together and cracked his neck.
"Let's settle for a light punishment."
A colossal shriek echoed, loud enough to be heard dozens of kilometers away.
Phase. 8
"What am I, your lackey? A dungeon subordinate? An errand girl? You just show up out of the blue and ask me to heal someone? You must have sold your conscience to the Leprechaun Merchant Guild…"
"For payment, I asked Rene for a bit of her blood."
"Bring in the patient. I can fix anything short of death itself."
Bathory snatched the pouch from Swallow’s hand, a wide grin spreading across her face. Her speed was so blinding that even Swallow’s normally narrow, slit-like eyes widened in surprise.
Bathory caressed the pouch lovingly with both hands. Only when Swallow muttered, “Stop that,” did she snap her fingers. Immediately, an ideally handsome retainer materialized in midair and bowed deeply.
"Keep this chilled in the freezer. It’s precious. If you lose it, I’ll kill you myself."
Startled by her violent choice of words, the retainer flinched before awkwardly accepting the pouch and vanishing. Only then did Bathory turn to look at the patient Swallow had brought.
"Is this the only one I need to heal?"
"Melju managed to treat the others with <Cure>."
"The young Demon King. Not bad... Ah, speaking of which." Bathory chuckled, continuing as if she’d just remembered something.
"...That’s right, I remember now. Melju’s name reminded me—her blood tasted strange the last time I drank it."
"A strange taste?"
"A really unpleasant, impure taste. You know, the kind that’s similar to your energy."
"Ah, that."
"What on earth did you do to a child who hasn't even finished growing?"
"I had my reasons."
"Then why don't you just use <Cure> on this girl yourself, like you did with Melju?"
It didn’t take a genius to figure out what those reasons were. Bathory spoke mockingly, testing him.
Of course, she already knew. He had only attempted to use <Cure> on Melju because she was both a Demon King and a mage. Her large vessel could accept his mana, so he had taken a desperate gamble in an emergency.
But this patient—the younger Yaksha sister—was different. She didn't use magic, nor did she belong to a race that specialized in it. Her vessel was small. Forcing mana into such a body under the guise of casting <Cure>…
The outcome was obvious.
Deciding she had teased him enough, Bathory focused on the younger Yaksha sister.
The girl lay limp and unconscious. She had passed out around the time Calamidad, soundly beaten by Swallow, had fled north in tears, and she hadn't woken since.
"I’m only doing this because you, lazy as you are, came to ask me in person. If you had sent a subordinate, I would have kicked them out without a second thought."
"Ah, thanks a bunch," Swallow replied half-heartedly.
Of course, he hadn't come out of a sense of duty or any other noble sentiment. He was here because Bathory's castle was stocked with high-quality sweets, and he fully intended to steal a decent amount while visiting.
Bathory gently closed her eyes.
The mana that blanketed the castle like a thin veil began to ripple, illuminating the room. Multicolored spheres of mana manifested around them, soon enveloping the younger Yaksha sister.
"...Looks like she was pushed to her limit."
"I never told her to push herself that hard."
Activating a high-tier healing magic on a completely different level from <Cure>, Bathory swept her mana across the younger Yaksha sister's body.
...
Her life wasn't in immediate danger. There were traces of basic first aid from a <Cure> spell. Even if left alone, she would have survived for another two or three days. Knowing that, that lazybones Swallow must have walked all the way here himself.
But…
She's a living corpse.
The scars from her brush with death were etched all over her body.
Although the Yaksha had drawn out her power with the resolve to die, she had never actually been pushed so close to the brink before. As a result, her body had instinctively preserved the bare minimum of energy required to sustain life, but to compensate, her organs had begun to shut down.
In short, she would be crippled. In her right arm alone, the backlash from concentrating her power had ruptured every blood vessel, leaving them tangled with her muscles.
It was completely necrotic.
"How did she end up like this?"
"She fought the turtle."
"Hmm."
Bathory gave a noncommittal response and continued scanning the girl’s body. Since she also used the merchant guilds, she was aware of most of the news concerning the Primordial Core and the Leprechaun Merchant Guild.
"But you didn't kill Calamidad, did you?"
"I hear they’re calling me the Great Evil Cave Slayer these days."
"Oh my, that rumor already reached your ears? Who told you?"
"Patrick."
"...I can guess how that conversation went."
Bathory nodded in understanding. She could vividly picture their exchange without needing to hear the details. After all, they always bickered in the exact same way. It would be stranger if she didn't know.
"This is going to take some time."
Having finished her examination, Bathory addressed Swallow before beginning the treatment in earnest. There was a lot to fix. An ordinary body would have been a quick job, but the Yaksha's anatomy was unique.
Blood vessels, muscles, bones.
Between them ran pathways of an unknown energy that her power flowed through. Reconstructing those pathways by referencing the undamaged parts of her body was going to be far more difficult than expected.
"It'll take at least a few days. Go back to your dungeon."
Swallow seemed to ponder her words for a moment before replying firmly.
"...I can't do that."
"I know you're worried about the girl, but I really don't know when I'll be finished."
"I want to stay here and eat sweets."
"You bastard. That’s the real reason you came, isn’t it?"
Swallow fell silent. He was particularly prone to silence around Bathory. Most of the time, it was his silent affirmation—an admission that she’d hit the nail on the head and left him speechless.
Sighing, Bathory turned her head away.
"Fine, eat them."
Swallow beamed. Of course, he had no intention of eating only what she offered. Stealing some to go was another matter entirely.
What on earth goes on inside that head of his? Sighing again, Bathory turned her gaze back to the younger Yaksha sister.
"Still, this is unexpected. How many years has it been since you personally came to ask me to heal a monster? Is this girl that precious to you?"
"Administrators aren't easy to find. And without the Yaksha sisters, we wouldn't have gotten the eggs."
"My, showing an unexpected side of yourself. Were you always the type to care so much for your subordinates? In that case, why don’t you take better care of our poor Rene?"
"Why are you bringing that up now?"
"...No, never mind."
She let out a long, drawn-out sigh.
Wearing a sullen expression at her exaggerated reaction, Swallow changed the subject, his voice flat.
"Putting that aside, can she make a full recovery?"
"You never know until you try. ...Well, anyone else would have deemed it impossible before even starting, but I think I can do it."
"That's a relief."
"But why? Were you planning to discard her if she couldn't be fixed?"
Bathory nudged him playfully with her elbow. But contrary to her expectations, Swallow met her jest with silence.
As a sudden chill filled the air, Bathory glanced over, carefully studying his expression.
"...Oh my."
Reading the meaning in his face, she raised an eyebrow and muttered, "I can't tell if you're kind or heartless."
*
"That’s when Lord Hyeong-ak appeared out of nowhere and caught Lady Yaksha! It was so cool! Right after that, Lady Rene and Lord Swallow arrived to stop Calamidad!"
"As expected of Lord Swallow… He made it in time despite the ridiculous distance!"
"I heard Lord Hyeong-ak's Ghost Warhorse is miraculously fast."
"Lord Hyeong-ak, saving Lady Yaksha in her moment of peril… He’s so chivalrous."
"So, where is Lord Hyeong-ak now?"
"I don't know. I saw him heading deep into the dungeon with Lady Rene earlier."
"Huh? With Lady Rene?"
"The two of them went somewhere private?"
"Smells suspicious!"
"Isn't that extremely dangerous?!"
—It is dangerous. For Hyeong-ak’s life, that is.
It seemed some of the monsters from Room 2 who had been on the battlefield had witnessed the scene. Having quickly bonded, the monsters were now huddled together, chattering away after the expedition.
Patrick, who was on patrol out of concern for their morale, mused to himself.
Adding to the heroic tale, Swallow had apparently ended the fight by giving Calamidad a good thrashing. But since Swallow himself had only brushed it off with a simple “I handled it,” and every monster had a different story, no one knew exactly how he’d done it.
Some said he delivered a flick to her forehead so powerful it shook the earth. Others claimed he grabbed Calamidad by the leg and slammed her into the ground. One monster even swore he shattered her shell with a single punch.
...It didn't really matter. Either way, he hadn't killed her. That was enough.
The egg recovery had also concluded better than expected. The scouting party from Room 4's Demon King's Army had made significant contributions, and Melju's judgment had yielded the greatest results. Just in case, they had split the party to retrace Calamidad's path and luckily found another nest. Of course, not all the eggs were intact.
Although only about half were salvageable, finding even that many was a massive win.
"Well, I suppose this is a decent conclusion."
I should pocket an egg for myself later. Hatching one of Calamidad’s offspring would be a huge boost to the dungeon’s military strength. With his secret plan in mind, Patrick finished his inspection of Room 1 and returned to his quarters. Contrary to his worries, there were no major issues.
"Has the Boss not returned yet?"
"Yeah, he seems to still be at Cheite Castle."
Swallow was apparently staying there for a while after going to see Bathory about treating the younger Yaksha sister. Though Patrick had plenty of complaints about that as well, he chose to let out a sigh instead.
"I should tidy up."
Returning to his room, he found it in disarray. No one had messed with it; it had simply become cluttered as he went through past transaction records with the merchant guilds.
"Now then."
Assuming the egg recovery was well in hand… one last, important problem remained.
Contact with Scobina had been cut off.
Phase. 9
The constant tension had made her lose all track of time.
"We must walk from here."
Scobina had been trapped in a daze, only snapping back to reality when a voice pierced the silence. It was Rocheisa, the envoy of the Beast Kingdom Rium and its Holy Flower.