Chapter 156
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 156
Chapter Title: I'm Home
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"Subdue... subdue, huh... Hmm..."
Rill, rushing outside with the other staff members (excluding Rio) to join the other demonkin, was racking her brain over the word "subdue" that the Master had used.
"Hey. What exactly do you do to subdue someone?"
As one of only two high elves after Renee, Rill had received all sorts of training as the next queen candidate, but she had no experience personally stepping up to subdue anyone. Besides, the elves' dungeon where she lived was designed to exclude intruders as much as possible rather than subdue them, so she asked the other staff.
"One. Heart."
"Ugh... What're you saying, you slime-lookin' thing!"
"Praise. Thank you."
"...You're really weird."
Rill snapped at the Mimic, who seemed to ignore her by bringing up the slime comparison to insult it, but the Mimic actually liked the comment and jiggled its body happily.
No, more than that...
"Can't you transform? Why not transform and go like that? Why stick to that slimy form...?"
"My woman. Familiar."
"...Ah. Right."
Rill gave a cold side-eye to the Mimic, who insisted on its gooey body every time just to woo the dungeon's new cutie pie "Whitey," then turned to the others for advice.
"Whirrr. Whirr whirr. Whirrr whirr."
"...Um... Sorry, Siren sis? I can't understand what you're saying..."
"Whirr."
Aqua, transformed into her human form and running on two legs, tried to say something, but since no one could understand, they skipped it.
"I-if I step up..."
"Ah! If it's sis...!"
When Lilith, approaching from behind, timidly raised her hand, Rill perked up, recalling how she had once enchanted every member of the dungeon. Back then, even Rill—who only cared about the Sacred Tree—had felt her heart race at Lilith's beauty.
Arriving at the site where the demonkin were facing off against the Empress without thinking they'd lose, the staff eyed the minions barely holding the front line thanks to the [Robot Vacuums] and the [Janitor's Uniforms] everyone wore.
"Get out of my waaaaay...!!!!"
The Empress rampaged like a vengeful ghost, shedding bloody tears. Every time she manipulated her blood, the staff with [Robot Vacuums] rushed forward to suck it up.
But there was a limit to how much they could absorb at once, so the leftover blood smashed into the demonkin. The [Janitor's Uniform] blocked the blood from invading their bodies, but the pure physical force still sent the minion flying several meters.
"Kuhak...!!!"
Thanks to the [Janitor's Uniform]'s infinite durability, the minion avoided being bisected, but suffered massive internal injuries and spat up blood violently.
The other minions trying to block the Empress's rampage all met similar fates.
"Uwaaaah...! She's scarier than I thought...! Lilith sis! Hurry!"
Rill had known from Erzsebet—someone with the exact same ability—how effective the master's distributed magic tools were against Blood Demons. She hadn't expected the minions to take such heavy damage and panicked, urging Lilith on.
And so, denying her true form that she'd always hidden, Lilith willed away the partial illusion concealing it.
"Huuuu..."
She trembled. Afraid that once again, everyone would fall under her spell, lose their minds, and leave only doll-like husks by her side.
But it's okay.
'Because the Master is here...'
Because the Master saw her true self as it was. She was fine now.
Of course...
"Cl-close your eyes."
Maybe because she always wore an illusion like a veil, Lilith felt an inexplicable shame like stripping naked and quickly told the others to shut their eyes.
She had the courage to reveal her original power and true form, but showing it to so many people was still too hard and scary.
The moment she confirmed everyone had closed their eyes, Lilith dropped all illusions and flaunted her full allure.
"Huuuu..."
"Uuu..."
Even with eyes squeezed shut, hearing the faint sigh right beside her made Rill's urge to rush over and hug Lilith surge wildly. Rill bowed her head deeply.
"One. Heart. Males. Don't. Stray."
Surprisingly, the Mimic seemed to have a pure, devoted mindset and treated Lilith nonchalantly. Lilith erased the Mimic's image from her mind and, layering her dreamlike magic with the succubus trait of 'Enchantment,' declared toward the rampaging Empress.
"Hee hee... Look this way?"
"Urk. Blech."
"......"
Her voice dripped with seduction, but the Mimic's retching nearby nearly broke her focus. Lilith steadied her quivering voice, mimicking her illusion-clad self, and spoke alluringly.
"Let go of everything... Relax your body... Come here..."
A being who could enchant thousands just by showing herself now unleashed her full power to enchant one person. Lilith felt a twinge of shame and reluctance, but her confidence in her ability made her certain the stranger would fall for her.
'Heh heh... She looks just like Erzsebet too, so if I catch her...'
She even resembled Erzse, who treated her like a blood bag all this time. Lilith planned to trap her in an illusion filled with her dark fantasies. As the Empress's expression grew dazed, stepping toward Lilith one foot at a time, it suddenly twisted.
-Stab!!!
"Eh...?"
In that instant, the blood swirling around the Empress sharpened into a blade and pierced her own eyes. A method only possible for a Blood Demon who regenerated wounds instantly.
Lilith hadn't expected her to gouge out her own eyes—not just before seeing her, but after already witnessing her form and hearing her voice, even under the enchantment. Lilith panicked.
"How dare you... A whore not even worthy of Erzsebet-sama try to bewitch me!"
"Wh-whore...?"
"Pfft."
"Whiii~♪"
Hearing the insult for the first time in her life, Lilith flushed beet red. The Mimic and Aqua, overhearing from behind, burst into laughter simultaneously.
"One. Heart."
Deeply wounded, Lilith shrank back into her timid self, sniffling and retreating. This time, the Mimic stepped up confidently.
"Stupid. Fighting. Inefficient."
Sneering at the minions punching away diligently or Lilith trying enchantment, the Mimic targeted the gap while the Empress's eyes hadn't regenerated and changed form.
"Mm. Ah. Ah."
"Ah...!"
The jiggling Mimic took shape into a familiar form for everyone present.
A woman with pure white hair, strikingly similar to the rampaging one before them.
Just like before when it mimicked Erzse's speech to fool Eugene, the Mimic naturally copied the target's speech patterns and some memories, opening its mouth.
"Bathory."
"......!!"
A nostalgic voice. The moment she heard it, the Empress—who had still been wary of Lilith—regenerated her eyes without hesitation.
"Ah... Ah..."
"Bathory. My one and only maid. The child who stayed by my side. You've come all this way searching for me?"
Even colleagues who knew it was just the Mimic in disguise were momentarily confused by the natural speech.
And the faint blood scent blooming, the blood rippling with every hand movement.
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like Erzse had come to her senses and emerged. The other staff couldn't shake the feeling that the Mimic's approach, though creepy, might work.
The Empress would probably fall for it too...
-Step. Step.
"You look like you've seen a ghost. Yes... You must have many questions."
Assuming the Empress had fallen for it and brimming with confidence in its ability, the Mimic went further, slowly approaching the trembling Bathory.
Yes. Trembling violently... like a volcano about to erupt in rage...
"How dare... How dare... How DARE you impersonate her before me!"
"...? Hm?"
Impersonate. Sensing something off at the word, the Mimic tried to back off, but it was too late. Channeling fury into the blood runes across her body, boiling it to focus blood magic solely on physical prowess, the Empress punched straight. The Mimic in Erzse's shell took the hit squarely and flew off pathetically.
".........Sigh."
"...Whirr."
"............."
The smug Mimic shut up and reverted to its original form. Realizing their subdual methods had all failed, the staff reluctantly prepared for real combat.
Pandora scattered curses, Rill nocked an arrow while hiding among trees, waiting for an opening. The Mimic, seeing the Empress's rage... or perhaps because of it, transformed back into Erzse to provoke her further.
Aqua dominated the battlefield by blasting water from the mighty male's gifted [High-Pressure Cleaner]. Lilith, still sniffling a bit, spread illusions.
"How dare... How dare... HOW DARE YOU!!"
The Empress, fury unquenched at the Mimic mimicking Erzse, decided no more games and charged, kicking off the ground. Right on cue, Aqua manipulated the [High-Pressure Cleaner]'s water mixed with [Detergent (Blood)].
-Splash!!
"Eut...!!"
Like erasing with an eraser, the Empress's blood vanished in an instant. Seizing her confusion, curses and arrows rained down.
She hastily formed a barrier to block, but the inevitable [Detergent (Blood)] wiped it away, exposing her to the barrage of curses and arrows.
"Fun."
Enjoying toying with the foe in its new form, the smiling Mimic-as-Erzse wielded blood as a weapon, mimicking her abilities, and lunged.
"Ah. That doesn't distinguish friend from foe."
"Guh."
The moment it joined the fray, it got hit by Aqua's water stream, its blood wiped clean, tumbling comically.
A disaster because the Mimic hadn't experienced Eugene's blood-erasing ability yet.
But everyone present ignored the Mimic and poured attacks on the Empress.
"Wait. Me. Still. Guh."
"....!!!"
In the midst of the Empress and incoming assaults, she tried squeezing out blood for a counter, but Aqua's water streams erased it every time.
Yet seeing the power that countered her ability perfectly, the Empress didn't panic or fear—instead, her rage exploded further.
"So... You used that power on Erzsebet-sama...! You bastards...!"
In her mind, the scenario was complete: these insolent fools had imprisoned her master by force, subdued and tormented her with that ability.
Even if untrue, it didn't matter. Trying to bewitch her and mimicking Erzsebet-sama was reason enough to eliminate them.
-Crunch! Crack!!
"......Wai...!!"
Red steam rose from the relentlessly pummeled Empress's body with ominous sounds. Lilith, watching from a step back, noticed the anomaly first and tried to warn everyone, but it was too late.
The one now called Empress. Bathory, the Blood Demon.
But originally, she was rejected by her kin for her abysmal blood manipulation. What changed her was solely the pure blood Erzsebet bestowed.
Her power had changed, but her essence hadn't. The various blood magics she wielded were mere amateur tricks mimicked from years imitating Erzsebet-sama. Her true essence was...
-Gurgle! Grind!!
So inept at handling blood that she could only brute-force it into physical enhancement. An immature, crude Blood Demon. That was Bathory's core.
She abandoned her 'Empress' fighting style. Useless against that perfect counter anyway. Instead, she recalled her external blood inward, burning it all for total physical focus.
-Boom!!!
Kicking off the ground unleashed a massive shockwave rivaling the fallen giant's foot stomp moments ago. In a flash, Bathory closed on Aqua, the trickiest with that ability, and swung.
Aqua urgently shifted from land to Siren form, sprouting scales.
-Crack!!
"Whiiiik...!!"
Her scales, which blocked hero assaults, shattered, blood flowing as she crashed. Lilith tried enchanting to grab her, but Bathory manipulated internal blood to deafen and blind herself, then back-kicked Lilith away.
"Kyaa...!!"
Her regeneration surged explosively. Arrows embedded like a porcupine were pushed out by swelling flesh; cursed parts sloughed off as new grew.
-Boom!!
Another explosive leap. Next targets: Pandora and Rill firing curses and arrows from afar.
They dodged desperately, but her momentary physicality rivaled—no, surpassed—the former glorious hero. Escape was impossible.
-Thud! Smack!!
"....!!!"
They flew without even screaming. Rage etched Aqua's face as she rose, bleeding.
"Whiiiing...!!"
Not just Aqua—the staff, who had treated this as playful subdual testing, changed expressions. Murderous intent overflowed.
-Szzz...
Whether their Master watched, the injured staff's bodies healed. Flexing recovered limbs, all banished 'subdue' from their minds.
-Kwaaaang!!!
The Empress charged straight indifferently—or blindly in rage—to the healed foes and leaped again.
-Kwaduduk!!!
Before her, a lake's worth of water compressed to a point insanely. Beside it, Lilith bared her true form, densifying her dream-mist aura.
Revived Rill sought Dryad's aid via link; Pandora prepared curses risking backlash.
Just before collision,
-Light step.
"Ah...!"
One being intervened between them.
"Again...!!"
The Empress's face twisted upon seeing her, exploding in rage and punching—but the intruder whispered.
"Bathory. You've become beautiful."
"......!!"
-Halt!!!
Hearing the voice, Bathory's fist froze inches from striking.
Sudden braking from top speed shocked her body massively, but she ignored it, trembling.
This time, not from rage, but sheer ecstasy.
"Erzsebet...sama?"
In disbelief, shedding clear tears instead of bloody ones, the Empress asked. The intruder—Erzsebet—embraced her warmly.
"I'm home, Bathory."