Chapter 45
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 043
Chapter Title: Gotta Suck Lady Withbel's Breasts When I Get Back
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While regressing, I'd hunted down every manner of demon out there.
In the process, I'd died several times over.
But in the end, I drove my sword into the hearts of every last one of those bastards.
Low-rank or high-rank.
Slash, stab, slash, stab.
I'd killed so many demons, I deserved a title like Demon Hunter at this point.
"The King has descended...!!"
Thud.
Roll, roll, roll.
The head of a demon that had been crawling out of the magic circle, just coming into existence, hit the floor.
"Eh...?"
The heretic's body, mid-ecstatic praise, froze solid.
Sizzle.
The demon's head melted away like organic matter dissolving into the mountain.
"H-How... Kuak!!"
A blade shot out of the heretic's gaping, stupid mouth.
The sword had pierced through the back of his skull and out his mouth.
There was a metallic taste.
Of course there was.
A steel sword was stuck to his tongue.
"Keurk! Gack! Keuk!!"
Spitting blood, the heretic's body pitched forward.
With the sword embedded in the back of his head, it looked just like that legendary sword you pull to become king.
"Cult Leader!!"
Not only had the head of the demon they were summoning fallen off, but now the cult leader conducting the ritual had dropped dead on the spot.
The heretics buzzed in confusion at the sudden turn of events.
Step, step.
A clean-cut man strode through the midst of the babbling, clueless heretics.
The man walked haughtily, boasting legs as long as a model's.
"Wh-Who are you?!"
Ignoring them, he approached the fallen cult leader.
Schwick, shling!
He yanked the sword from the cult leader's head.
Casually flicked the blood off the blade.
"I'm sick of introducing myself to trash like you."
Vera's golden eyes flashed.
Krunch!!
She smashed her sword into a heretic's skull.
It split the cranium, cleaving the face in two.
Brain matter poured from his nostrils as he convulsed.
"Kyaaak! That murder ghost!"
"Hah."
Vera snorted as she pulled her sword free.
"Every time I hear it, it pisses me off. You lot, who used 666 hearts to summon a demon, calling me that?"
Of course, they hadn't used human hearts.
Beast hearts.
Human hearts are more effective for rituals, but they knew the knights were terrifying, so they'd stuffed it with pig and cow hearts.
Krunch!!
She split another heretic's skull.
The sensation of the cranium shattering and the brain pulping transmitted through her sword.
A feeling all too familiar now.
The first time she'd felt it, she'd been busy vomiting in revulsion.
Now? Total detachment.
Desensitized to killing.
In a way, maybe Murder Ghost wasn't wrong.
Whatever.
"Let's wrap this up quick."
Krunch!!
"Gotta get back to my man... wait, my woman now? Anyway, someone cute I need to dote on."
Lady Withbel in her milk-cow bikini shimmered in her mind's eye.
Her lower half had ached like hell.
She'd wanted to pounce right there.
That innocent face paired with such a bold swimsuit was straight-up cheating.
When she got back, she'd have to make a tail for that huge ass.
Krunch!!
She split the last heretic's skull too.
Shaking the brain bits off her sword, Vera sheathed it indifferently.
Time to head back.
She turned—
"Groooaaarrr."
A guttural groan like from someone with loose screws came from behind.
"Knew it."
Vera sighed deeply and drew her sword again.
"Figured a guy like you wouldn't just slink back to hell from a severed head."
She turned around.
The demon was regenerating.
Flesh clung to a complex skeletal frame like building girders.
The blood the heretics had splattered pooled and surged into the demon's throat, gulp gulp.
She'd expected as much...
But of course it wouldn't end easy.
A king-class demon, huh.
Failed the pull? Maybe aim for it next loop.
"...Nah."
This loop felt different. Really different.
Too good to give up on.
"After all the ass-kissing I did for that artifact."
Start over from scratch?
No way.
Not happening.
Luckily, the thing wasn't fully summoned.
Incomplete.
At least two ranks above anything she'd faced so far, but thinking she couldn't take it... Ah, no, bad thought.
Hubris is always dangerous.
She'd learned that the hard way through all these regressions.
I'll win for sure?
Don't think like that.
She'd died countless times from that mindset.
So focus on one thing right now.
"When I get back, gotta suck Lady Withbel's breasts."
Ah.
Death flag much?
"Ha! Haha!"
Vera let out a hearty laugh.
Living without acting crazy had built up some stress.
She—he or she—was already plenty insane.
"Chased after her on impulse, but..."
The trail led the princess to the very edge of the beach.
"Didn't know there was a path here."
With the tide out, a path appeared that hadn't been visible that morning.
Led beyond the cliffs.
"This has gotta be it, right?"
The footprints were a bit washed away by the waves, but they were there.
Princess's mana lingered too.
She said she was going to clean... so why come out here?
Weird.
Her going out armed with a sword had bugged me from the start.
"No!"
Not my business.
Whatever the princess does, none of my concern.
Head back.
No good getting involved.
Stick my neck out, and I'll just end up in trouble.
"...Still, just in case."
I started to leave, then followed the coastal path instead.
From living in the Imperial Palace,
Unlike the rumors, the princess wasn't a lunatic.
She played mean pranks sometimes, but the way she treated me showed consideration and manners.
Not a bad person.
She'd even come to my rescue when I was in danger.
Sure, her swordplay looked brutal, but from what I'd seen, the princess was kinder than I'd thought.
Her grabbing a sword and heading out here must have some reason.
I'd briefly wondered if she was bored and off slicing up serious criminals.
But I believed she wasn't the type.
The coastal path led to a cave.
And.
"Uh...?"
A headless corpse sprawled at the entrance.
So much blood, the black rocks were dyed red.
"Wait... that robe..."
The corpse was one thing,
But the black robe it wore caught my eye more.
"Feels familiar..."
The floral emblem on the robe nagged at me.
"Hmm..."
Couldn't place it.
Felt like I'd seen it, but no memory.
Not important now.
I steeled myself and entered the cave.
"Ugh."
A chilling cold hit me the moment I stepped in, making my body shudder.
One step past the entrance, and the air was totally different.
Moisture clung stickily to my arms.
The fishy blood stench overwhelmed the sea air, numbing my nose.
Purify
I purified the surrounding air as I pressed forward.
"What the hell is this place?"
The deeper I went, the heavier the mana pressure grew.
Pushing me back like stay out.
This level of pressure meant experimenting with top-tier magic.
A normal person would have their mana circuits crushed.
If they were lucky.
The pressure could compress flesh like a balloon.
Clang!!
A sound echoed from deeper in.
Like slamming a pickaxe into hard ore.
The princess wouldn't be mining ore here.
Swords clashing, then.
The sounds grew louder.
Faster.
Desperation and ferocity seeped through.
"Wh-What is that...?"
I reached the end of the cave.
First thing I saw: a massive upper body.
Like a half-formed human, blasting magic from its mouth.
Boom!
A magic circle flashed in its throat.
At least 7th circle magic.
No joke.
Plus, a barrier enveloped the cave interior.
Draining life force from everything inside.
My fingertips tingled.
No blood loss, but anemia hit.
For now.
I thrust my hand forward.
Gathered mana at my fingertips and waved gently, like conducting.
Drew a line straight through the barrier.
Reverse the drain.
Expel life force.
Modified the circuit so the mystery giant spat back out what it'd sucked in.
Complex spell, but
Compared to the curses I was researching? Piece of cake.
Not even ancient magic level.
A bit below the Millennium Formulas those genius archmages made for the new millennium.
"Ngh!"
Killing intent pierced me.
The giant stared.
Flames burned in its empty sockets, glaring this way.
Rage at having its magic tampered with.
I got it, as a mage.
If someone saw through my spells that easily, I'd rage too.
"Ah."
The giant's mouth gaped wide.
Layered magic circles flashed.
No time to dismantle before the light fired.
Ah... screwed.
My reflexes suck.
Can't dodge.
Gonna get hit.
I'm great at analyzing formulas, but suck at attack or defense spells.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
Then my waist got yanked hard.
"How'd you know to come here...!"
A scolding voice rang out.
I cracked one eye.
The exhausted princess's face.
Angry.
Why?
Couldn't read her emotions at all.
"That would've been instant death."
I know.
"You okay? Not hurt anywhere?"
The princess checked me over with a grave face.
Why?
That was all I could think.
Why does she worry about me like this?
"Thanks to you."
"Haa..."
The princess sighed in relief and released my waist.
"Go back to the villa."
"Princess."
"I said go back."
Voice strained, holding back anger.
Did I do something wrong?
Couldn't fathom why she was this mad.
It was dangerous.
But overreacting like this?
"I'll escort you to the exit, then to the villa—"
I moved my hand.
Drew a line on the summoning circle on the floor.
Nullify the summon.
Made the ongoing contract as if it never happened.
——————!!!
The giant wailed like hundreds of beasts howling in agony.
Its writhing muscle fibers melted away.
The giant's body got sucked back to its original world.
Resisting, it flailed an arm.
Thud!
A massive arm tore off.
——————!!!
Insane mana output.
If it'd fully summoned, it'd have been a disaster.
"This was your 'cleaning'?"
I stared at the wide-eyed princess.
"You should've called me. Cleaning's my specialty."
The pinnacle of Purification.
Is elimination.
For the next master of the Green Magic Tower, this was nothing.