Chapter 273
Chapter 273
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 273
Chapter Title: Straying from the Path -1
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Tick. My vision spun. I could tell even without seeing it.
The doppelganger had no intention of hiding the resentment and rage in his voice. He was probably pleading with Yuna in a desperate tone, speaking softly to her.
"You make it sound so twisted. You think I hate happy endings? No way. I love happy endings too. That's why we're doing this right now—so we can all be happy together. By getting rid of the fake."
"...I'm not the fake."
"Can you even tell the difference? Our components are identical... but I have a higher percentage of the fragments. And right now, this bastard's the one holding 'that thing.' The one soaked in malice isn't me—it's him."
So.
If you're calling me a fake based on the impurities mixed in my body, then I'm closer to the fake because of that massive piece of trash called 'that thing.' Otherwise, there's no reason at all to think of me as the fake. That's what the doppelganger seemed to be saying.
But Yuna didn't waver.
She stayed silent, but that was answer enough. The light from her 『Subtraction』 swelled brighter and brighter. The traitorous Evil God-chan tugged cautiously at the doppelganger's sleeve.
"Dragging this out any longer is dangerous. We couldn't convince the Violet Tower Master—this place is enemy territory now."
"I see. Fine, then I don't need you either. A heroine who's so deluded by the fake she can't even recognize me? Not at all."
"...Hey."
"Let go, Evil God-chan. We've got plenty of time on our side. Why worry when we've got such a fine hostage right in our grasp? Evil God-chan, defend."
『Dragon Scale - Branch』
Black scales erupted across Evil God-chan's arm, covering everything ahead in a fractal, geometric structure.
The doppelganger grabbed the back of my neck to use me as a shield, yanking me to my feet, and Yuna fired her 『Subtraction』 right away. A soundless death hurtled toward the doppelganger to carve away his information.
Clank.
Shwooom—!
After the sound of information being gnawed away—something I couldn't even name—『Subtraction』 erased about 90% of the scales in one go, but it couldn't break through.
An application of power I'd never seen before. Far beyond the Evil God-chan I'd known—the scale and precision were incomparable. The fact that it withstood Yuna's 『Subtraction』 proved it.
The doppelganger took cover, holding me up from behind like a shield. Yuna's attack stopped immediately.
Our builds were identical, and my body was limp from the Soul-Piercing Hypnosis. It couldn't hide me perfectly, of course.
There was enough of a gap for me to bypass a human shield and strike, but Yuna was different.
Her precision was relatively lacking, and above all, 『Subtraction』 was too powerful. With me as a hostage, she had to worry about friendly fire.
The doppelganger judged he couldn't beat Yuna in a fight. If I were him, I'd think the same. Once Yuna started using her sublimation abilities, it'd be unstoppable—so escape first. Like this.
"Evil God-chan, open a dimensional gate."
"...See? It's just the one holding the leash that's changed."
"No, I'm different. Once we get out of here, I'll feed you tons of souls. You've been starving, haven't you, Evil God-chan? I'll allow it. I'll forgive you. So hurry up."
"........『Demon Realm Gate』."
『Demon Realm Gate』
Cracks split the air. It was called a dimensional gate, but it seemed similar to teleportation magic in function. Their escape plan.
Crack, rip.
"Don't go, I-if you move...!"
"If I move, what?"
At the same time, to shake Yuna's resolve and buy Evil God-chan casting time, the doppelganger spat venom from his mouth.
"Yuna, you've always been half-baked from the start. You can't run a session, can't manage the tower, all you do is break things and ruin everything. You think... you can save this fake bastard unscathed?"
"........"
"No way. I've watched you all this time, so I know. Our Yuna... can't save anyone. Just like back at the old Violet Tower."
"D-don't, not like that... don't do that..."
Yuna's face went pale. Her lips dried out, her hands trembled.
"Truth is, I hated you for being the same. Look at what you did trying to 'remove that thing,' huh? Strutting around with nothing to show for it. I'm him, so this fake you think is real will feel the same."
"No, no...!"
"I love Yurim. But not you. I hung around out of pity because we'd spent so much time together, but honestly... I just want you to take the hint and leave. Why would I feel attracted to a childish girl like you? Let me beg you instead, okay?"
"........"
Insults from the form of someone she loved. He stabbed sharply at Yuna's insecurities, and soon tears were dripping from her big eyes.
The doppelganger grabbed my arm, swinging me around like a doll.
"Go ahead. Huh? Fire 『Subtraction』. You have to save him, right? You said you'd save him. Don't touch him, you said. Come on, if you miss, you'll kill him with your own hands. If you hesitate and don't shoot, you'll still kill him with your own hands."
Crack, pop—!
The dimensional gate shattered open with a breaking sound. I didn't know where it led, but a chilling wind blew through. Was the doppelganger planning to drag me along and escape?
Was this the end for me...?
At that moment, Yuna—who'd been trembling and crying silently—gathered something in her eyes. Resolve, or perhaps something else entirely, unshakeable. She lowered her voice, speaking clearly like someone else entirely.
"Let him go. If you don't put him down, I'll kill you."
"Yuna... if you cast magic, that precious guy of yours dies, you know? Can't you see him flapping around as my shield right now...?"
"If you take him, he'll die anyway. Better I kill him myself. And you—I'll tear your soul apart. If you don't have one, I'll make one just to kill you."
"........"
That's right, Yuna, good...!
You don't negotiate with terrorists. That's the proper attitude in a hostage situation pushed to the brink.
Setting emotions aside, it was the right call. If the doppelganger dragged me off, I'd end up absorbed and dead in some nameless mountain.
And this bastard had shown hostility toward Yuna. That made him our enemy.
So better to eliminate the threat, no matter what. I strained my unresponsive neck to nod. Your judgment's right, Yuna.
How could I stand by while this shit threatens the people I love? I'm fine, so just shoot.
I'll survive somehow. Don't hesitate or grieve.
She seemed to get my look. The resolve in Yuna's eyes deepened. The doppelganger let out a hollow laugh, as if giving up, convinced.
He knew dragging out the hostage drama would get his head blown off for real.
"Fine, then take your fake. 『Soul-Piercing Hypnosis』."
"...!!"
Thud.
My body was shoved forward, and another shot of Soul-Piercing Hypnosis hit the back of my head. You son of a bitch. One more of those would really hurt...
I braced myself inwardly, but luckily, it didn't come to that.
Yuna urgently reached out, halting the Soul-Piercing Hypnosis, and caught my collapsing body. In that moment, the doppelganger vanished into the dimensional gate with Evil God-chan.
"Ugh, uuuuh...!"
Yuna didn't have the strength to catch my falling body. She wobbled and toppled with me. A loud thud echoed.
My quantum-physics-level cushion of Yuna's chest kept me from hurting. I was worried about her, though. You okay?
"Hic, sob... no? Y-you like me, right? D-don't hate me...!"
Oh dear. It wasn't her body she was worried about.
Yuna clutched my head to her chest, sobbing pitifully. She wailed about messing up the session, how she'd tried her best in her own way, how she'd eat hard to get big and busty so I wouldn't abandon her.
Unnecessary worries. Wasn't it all for me? Besides.
Didn't I have that phase where I acted like a thug to build a simulation world? So even if there was any guilt, it canceled out.
I strained my unresponsive mouth, forcing out slurred words.
"I... I really... like Yuna...?"
"...For real?"
"I like you so much. Don't worry."
"...Really, for real?"
I told you.
I tried to move my hand to stroke her hair, but when I lifted it, the strength drained out, landing unintentionally on Yuna's butt.
A squeak-like yelp sounded, but she seemed relieved in the end. Good thing—the whining tapered off.
With the tension gone, tears welled up. As a tough guy, I could've controlled a few tears normally, but.
After the Soul-Piercing Hypnosis, the pain, the frustration, my body unresponsive—I cried a bit. That mad doppelganger had nearly replaced me. Even I was shaken; I'm human too.
"...Thank you for choosing me. Really."
"...Thank you for not abandoning me, yeah...!"
We clung together and bawled. Gratitude, that's why.
More poetically, we cried like crickets together. That alone was comforting. The information in tears is minimal, but enough to share hearts.
We stayed like that for a while.
What a clusterfuck.
Even scattered across the world like shards of the Soul Orb, I never worried about a fragment turning dark and backstabbing me. I trusted myself.
But this proved it was hubris. What the hell did that guy pick up to pull this shit?
This was the most dangerous situation since reincarnating into this fantasy world.
51% of my computational power to suppress 'that thing' had gone rogue.
And that bastard was targeting my neck. On top of that.
Now that the 『Kingoa』 restraints were gone, Evil God-chan could freely draw any power from her 'Evil God's Toolbox' if she had the resources.
The moment she collected and devoured mass quantities of human souls, she'd become a threat beyond any black mage.
I had to fix this. The instant 'that thing' Mark II was born, it'd be unstoppable.
And... even without this crisis, I'd dive into this more passionately than any other incident.
Real or fake doesn't matter. Ship of Theseus bullshit aside, that bastard broke an unspoken rule.
The moment he scratched Yuna's heart, he became my blood enemy. He hurt someone I love. Even if I'm the fake, I can't forgive that.
Doppelganger bastard, I'll grind you to dust no matter what it takes.
Definitely.
As I steeled my resolve inwardly.
Yuna, pondering something, dropped a sudden bombshell.
"Sh-should I wash you? I'll wash you... Y-your body doesn't seem to move."
"...???"
"We haven't bathed together lately. I-I was actually waiting, you know. You wouldn't ask, but you said you like me. If I'm not a burden... yeah?"
Hold on.
Let me think rationally for a sec.
I deleted my lust suppression module, Yuna! That's why I didn't go in together!
We shared a bathroom back when I was basically a walking sage. Not now—there are lines between men and women!
But Yuna, anxious that the doppelganger's words might be true, desperately wanted reassurance of my affection.
In the end, we bathed together after a long time.
Clackety-clack. The carriage rattled.
It ran regular routes between a nearby satellite city and the imperial capital. Big enough for about thirty passengers, popular for its reasonable price.
Today, it was packed inside, but quiet.
With thirty people, you'd expect noise, but only two voices sounded: a girl's and a young man's.
"What're you planning next?"
"What else? Take back my place, obviously."
"...You couldn't convince the Violet Tower Master."
"Don't mention that Yuna whatever. And... she's not the only one I know. Right? I've run tons of sessions, got loads of friends."
The doppelganger grinned slyly, like he had a scheme brewing. Evil God-chan scratched her oddly empty-feeling neck—where the Kingoa had been—and glanced around.
All thirty-two passengers sat with blank eyes, drooling.
The fake illusion mage's handiwork. His simple 'packed lunch' for Evil God-chan. Devouring them all would secure plenty of resources.
With Kingoa gone, she could eat people, torture and kill brutally—no pain would come.
The freedom she'd longed for. Infinite freedom to play in the world as her playground, treating all things like toys.
But... she couldn't bring herself to. Evil God-chan propped her chin, staring out boredly, and the fake illusion mage prodded.
"Why, not eating?"
"Nah... just not hungry."
"I went to the trouble of preparing them—least taste one..."
"Force food when you're not hungry and you'll get indigestion. You gonna take responsibility?"
Motion sickness? Unlikely. Weird.
The fake illusion mage exaggerated a hurt look. Behind those eyes, anxiety hidden in smoke seeped out bit by bit.
The Violet Tower Master's 'negation' had torn the fake illusion mage's heart. The wounded heart needed refuge, and that emotional torrent poured toward Evil God-chan, who had 'chosen' him.
He gripped her hand tightly and asked.
"...Hey, Evil God-chan. You won't leave me, right? Yeah?"
"Like I said, you're holding the leash. How could I run?"
Yeah.
If choosing sides, this was better. Sticking with the 51% fragment was more rational, the shortcut to restoring his original self.
The Violet Magic Tower Master threat? Long-term, no big deal.
Collect souls, draw out 『Authorities』. The 『Heroine』 the succubus queen stole and used, all the things other black mages coveted—they were originally Evil God-chan's.
She could wield them with mastery beyond the queen. Even in her incomplete state, enough to fight the Violet Tower Master.
But she'd need to eat all thirty-two here without leftovers.
Still, her appetite plummeted; nothing appealed.
"I get it. You want thrills, huh, Evil God-chan? Yeah, recovering full power at once would be boring. I'd wipe out the Violet Tower Master and everything in a flash."
"........"
"So watch from there. See how I unravel this mess."
A familiar expression.
Whenever the mad mage faced crisis... he'd make that face and pull a solution, dragging the story to a satisfying happy end, annoyingly cleanly.
Evil God-chan watched the doppelganger with faint expectation. He explained his plan.
"We're going to Irid. Ask for 'help.' My doppelganger showed up, total mess... so request some boy knights. Boosts our forces nicely, right?"
"What if the Violet Tower side contacts first?"
"Before escaping, I planted an info bomb in the Violet Tower comms network. Recovery'll take time. That Yuna whatever's doting on the fake—her timing'll lag too."
"But will Irid believe you?"
Hm.
The fake illusion mage shrugged it off with a laugh.
"Brainwash him if he betrays. Easy."
"........"
"You know best what a top illusion mage can do, right, Evil God-chan? And... plenty other means. Centra, for one?"
I see.
Heading down the black path, huh.
No holds barred, victory odds skyrocket. The mad mage's abilities, unbound from pointless morals or goodwill—backing him with the empire would be child's play.
But Irid... wasn't he someone the mad mage had grown somewhat fond of? Already resolved to 'discard' him, even hypothetically.
For some reason, that fact... didn't sit well with Evil God-chan.