Defend the Dungeon! #6
"I asked you who you were!"
Vanessa shouted, glaring at me with eyes full of fury. If we’re talking about sheer ferocity, she might even have Reika beat. And yet, she still looks nothing but beautiful.
I want to make her mine.
My instincts as a demon were exploding, standing before such a beautiful female that I could claim for myself.
Of course, to do that, I have to win. With minimal damage. Those thoughts swirled in my head, and I spoke exactly what I was thinking.
"The master of this dungeon. The Demon King."
"What...!"
Vanessa’s eyes widened in an instant.
Her gaze was locked onto my face. Jet-black hair, monstrous vertical pupils. And on top of that, the horns of a devil rising from my head.
I had intentionally worn the attire I brought from the Demon World rather than my usual clothes. The visual impact alone was a shock. It would be hard for anyone to find words in a moment like that.
Currently, Vanessa had discarded her weapon and was carrying the collapsed Sister Liza on her back.
Sister Liza had taken a Wind Cutter to the torso. She should have been able to heal herself, but I didn't know why she was still down. Regardless, if they couldn't handle the situation, it was a win for me. The fact that their combat strength had decreased was a boon. I had to exploit this. I would use verbal provocation to break their focus and then launch a surprise attack.
Even without a weapon, she was a tricky opponent.
I had to use everything at my disposal.
If I could make that beautiful female knight mine, the strength of the Demon King's castle would be significantly bolstered.
"Human. Are you trying to run away from me?"
"Kuh...!"
"You are a dishonorable existence."
"What kind of bullshit are you spouting!"
"Heh heh heh, you have nothing to do but shout loudly, do you? Very well. I will spare you. Put the nun down and leave. Get out of this dungeon."
"The nun...?"
Vanessa, who had briefly expressed doubt, shouted while glaring at me.
"Did you kill Sister Reika too, you bastard!"
An instinctive realization. She assumed Reika had been captured and killed by me. I decided to correct that rich imagination of hers a little.
"No. Sister Reika is alive."
"Whaaat!"
"I happen to like beautiful women."
"Y-you despicable son of a bitch! Give her back!"
"Heh heh heh, I can't do that."
—*Thud.*
I raised my hand.
"I'll say this one last time. Hand over the nuns and leave. If you do, I will let you live."
"You intend to defile the sisters! I will never allow that!"
"'Never allow that'? Why do you think so?"
"That is...!"
"Look behind you."
"What!"
Behind Vanessa.
"Ugh, ughhh... Ahhh..."
Sister Irene, who had fled for a moment but returned after seeing the fire at the dungeon entrance. She was currently intoxicated by the fairy powder, stumbling around in a daze.
Honestly, I didn't expect it to work so well on a nun. Couldn't she recover somehow with holy power? No, wait. Since she lacked combat experience and was in a state of panic, she might not have been able to handle it.
"Poison!"
"Correct. It’s poison. In a little while, you, too, will be intoxicated by the poison, along with the sisters."
"You cowardly act...!"
That is my way.
To survive, one has no choice but to be cowardly. In fact, cowardice can be called a strategy. The courage to be cowardly. The courage to be cowardly in order to survive.
I have that kind of courage.
Therefore, I am the Demon King of Courage, Kimculus.
"So, I will say it one last time. Abandon the sisters and run away like a coward. If you do, you will be able to save your life."
"I will never do that...!"
—*Grind.*
She shouted with her teeth clenched tight. Would the fairy's hypnotic powder work on Vanessa, too? I couldn't be sure.
But right now, she was feeling the pressure.
Whether to run away. Or whether to rescue the sisters and fight in this absolutely disadvantageous situation. She couldn't make a judgment call.
"Heh heh heh, is that so? Well, fine. Female knight. Did you say your name was Vanessa?"
"Do not call me with that filthy mouth!"
Stubborn.
"You can stay still if you like. You will eventually collapse anyway. When that happens, I will take you into my grasp along with the sisters."
"So that’s the despicable way you’ve been violating women!"
At that moment.
—*Thump.*
Sister Irene, who had been stumbling behind, collapsed.
"I won't forgive you!"
—*Whoosh!*
Vanessa, having put down Sister Liza, rolled her body like lightning and grabbed her sword that had been lying on the ground.
And!
"Haaaaah!"
She kicked off the ground and rushed toward me! She was charging straight at the Goblin Phalanx. What was she thinking?
"Keruuuuk!"
As the goblins raised their spears a little higher.
—*Crash!*
"Kerup!"
Vanessa jumped, trampling the shield of the shield-bearer in the front line! And she flew toward me with her sword aimed! I see! She decided to aim for me to create an opening or take me hostage!
There was probably no other way for her right now.
But it was exactly as I expected.
"Lumika."
"Yeah."
When I called Lumika calmly, she stood up from where she had been crouching in front of me and gestured.
—*Swoosh!*
—*Swish.*
A murderous stream of water was fired continuously from her hands. Toward the flying Vanessa.
"What!"
For Vanessa, it must have felt like arrows were suddenly flying at her face. As expected of a female knight, she struck down the incoming water streams with her sword, but—
—*Splatter!*
She couldn't cut through all of them while in mid-air, and one shot struck her abdomen! At the same time!
"Sharan! Demon Breath!"
—*Whoosh!*
I called Sharan while spewing flames!
"Shaaaaa!"
The spewed flames obscured Vanessa's vision. At the same time, Sharan, who had been waiting, thrust the long spear she was holding!
—*Boom!*
"Kuh...!"
The spear embedded itself perfectly. Sharan's momentary physical strength is very powerful. When that spear strike, imbued with that power, hit her side, Vanessa, who had been flying, slammed into the dungeon wall.
—*Crash!*
"Let's go!"
"Sha!"
At the same time, I threw my body with Sharan and grabbed Vanessa!
"Let go!"
"Hold her! Grab her no matter what!"
"Shaaaa!"
As if playing two-on-one wrestling, Sharan and I combined our strength to hold Vanessa down! Vanessa tried to struggle, but she couldn't immediately shake us off as we clung to her from an awkward position.
"Buril! Drop the spears and beat her to death with stone axes! Gang up on her! Gang up on her!"
"My King! Understood! Keruuuuk!"
"Keruuuuk!"
I gave the order to engage.
"Ugh!"
A flustered voice.
"Keryaaaaak!"
And the battle cry of the furious goblins.
—*Pat-pat-pat!*
The goblins, having discarded their spears, rushed in and beat the hell out of Vanessa, avoiding Sharan and me!
—*Thwack!*
—*Thwack!*
—*Boom!*
"Hit her! Hit her! Hit her! Beat the shit out of her!"
"Keraaak!"
"Keruk!"
"Khaaaaaaaak!"
A merciless, full-body stone axe beating service!
"What do we do! What should we do!"
"The human has broken through!"
"If we use magic now, we'll hit our own!"
And the flustered voices of the pixies coming from behind.
"Lumika! Take the pixies and go to the back! And the fire at the entrance! You said you could put it out!"
"Yeah! I can put it out!"
"Then go and put it out!"
"Got it!"
Lumika answered my command. Then there was no problem. Now, if we just completely capture Vanessa, our victory is assured!
—*Thwack!*
—*Thwack!*
—*Thwack!*
"Khaaaaaaaaaak!"
Vanessa screamed while being beaten to a pulp while held down. Even if they are goblins, it hurts to be hit with a stone axe.
"Shaaaa!"
"Hold her!"
Sharan choked Vanessa, and I held her body firmly.
Now.
"You bastards, how dare you! Kuh!"
She was being beaten to a pulp by the goblins, but there were no visible external injuries. Naturally, it was hard to see since she was wearing armor, but Vanessa was currently operating her mana.
She was protecting her body with mana. So, as long as her mana wasn't exhausted, hitting her wouldn't be very effective. But if I kept hitting her, I could prevent her from unleashing superhuman strength!
"Mana Injection!"
I'll strip all that mana away!
—*Zing!*
I gathered mana at the tip of my finger. As soon as the mana gathered into the shape of a sphere, I stabbed Vanessa in the forehead!
—*Poke.*
—*Crackle!*
"What... Kuh, khaaaaaaaak?!"
Electricity sparked.
—*Crackle-crackle!*
The mana wrapping her skin unleashed supernatural electricity as it tried to push away my mana injection sphere. It was a kind of repulsion. A repulsion that rejected my mana. However, she couldn't reject it forever.
—*Crackle.*
It was being consumed rapidly. My mana, too. And Vanessa's mana. In other words, it was Mana Burn! A technique that uses my mana to consume Vanessa's mana!
"My mana...! What on earth are you doing! Kyaaaaaaaak!"
As her mana was stripped away, her fierce scream turned into a frail one.
Like that.
—...!
All of Vanessa's mana was consumed.
My mana burrowed into her body.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaak! Aack! Aaaaaaaak!"
As the mana was injected, Vanessa let out a violent scream. Reika had been the same. She felt pain from my mana.
"All your mana has been consumed."
Her superhuman strength was all gone, and she had lost her weapon. Now, Vanessa was no longer a female knight. She was nothing more than a woman who was decent at martial arts.
"Sharan. Let go of her neck. Now, take off her armor!"
"Sha!"
"Keruk!"
At my command, the goblins, who had stopped the stone axe beating, began to strip off Vanessa's armor.
"Stop it! Let go! You bastards! Kuh!"
—*Boom!*
—*Crash!*
She was kicking and trying to push the goblins away, but because her mana was all gone, there was no superhuman power behind it. A few goblins were sent flying, but they weren't seriously hurt.
"Stay still!"
I also let go of Vanessa and started the work of stripping off her armor.
"Kyaat!"
Now she was just a woman. She couldn't withstand my strength. Vanessa's armor was stripped off helplessly.
No matter how strong you are, you can't do anything alone. And if you were ambushed within my territory, it’s only natural to be defeated like this.
—*Grind.*
Like that, I stripped Vanessa's equipment off one by one. I took off the pauldrons, the breastplate, the greaves, and the gauntlets.
"Y-you intend to... defile me! Defile me!"
When I tried to take off her leather coat, Vanessa shouted with her teeth clenched tight. It was true, but I always say things like this.
"You intend to strip my clothes and violate me right here...!"
I didn't intend to violate her right here.
Anyway.
—*Whoosh.*
It was the moment I took off the leather coat.
"Huh?"
I doubted my eyes for a moment. It was true that her elastic, feminine, and voluptuous sexy body... was revealed.
But.
"Bikini armor?"
Instead of underwear, Vanessa was wearing a metal bra and panties underneath. No. She was wearing bikini armor inside her armor?
"Kuh...!"
Vanessa, who had her eyes closed, made a sound like that.
"N-no. That’s not what I should be worried about right now. Everyone! Clear the battlefield! Tie up all the ones who are still alive tight!"
"Keruk!"
"Gyusatsat!"
"Human bastards!"
The battle ended in our victory. And without any significant damage at that. My subordinates moved busily at my command, and I stood up from my seat.
"My King...! We won! Again!"
"Yes. We won again."
"My King is the best!"
"Heh heh heh, Sharan is the best too."
I looked over the battlefield while stroking Sharan's head.
The male adventurers were all dead. Perhaps because they were hit in bad places, they died from excessive bleeding. In fact, it was natural. Humans are beings that die if a hole is punched in their stomach.
They couldn't have survived the barrage of the pixies' Wind Cutter.
"Ugh... Ugh..."
"Hut..."
But the beautiful blonde nuns were alive. Because they possessed holy power, they were holding on. I could save them all, right?
And.
"Vanessa."
I had captured the female knight.
"Our victory!!!"
I immediately let out a shout of victory!
* * *
Because the population was large, the cleanup was finished quickly.
Extinguishing the fire. Ventilating the room. And sorting out the loot.
I gave the injured nuns first aid, brought them to their senses, and then made them use their holy power themselves to heal their wounds. The nuns, having exhausted all their holy power doing that, became ordinary women.
I immediately had them tied up and locked in the master bedroom.
Let's face Reika with them later.
And.
"Vanessa."
I had her tied up in prison, wearing only her bikini armor. Whatever the case, this woman was the most important person. She must have all sorts of information.
"Then Sharan. Lumika. Serineu. I’m going to interrogate Vanessa, so please keep a good watch on the surroundings and do your work."
"Yes, My King."
"Got it."
"I’ll prepare the victory party!"
"Heh heh heh, do that."
After finishing delivering the orders, I entered the prison where Vanessa was locked up.
"Kuh! Kill me!"
Vanessa, who saw me, said exactly that.