Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: What? Give It Back (2)
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To me, there was the Succubus Queen, Rephe.
There was a reason I had to hunt down this bat bitch. Because she killed people? Because she was a demon? No. If that were the case, how many bastards in this world deserved to be torn apart?
"Hng, so you're that guy? The infamous virgin mage who just trails after the Hero's ass?"
Not because she mocked me...
"Hey, this is pretty."
"Can I take it?"
No, it was because she'd laid her hands on my stuff.
While Sara and Remia were going berserk, this bat bitch had stolen something from me. It was a shame, but since I figured I'd never cross paths with the Succubus Queen again, I'd half-forgotten about it...
'But if the little bat waltzes right up to me on her own two feet, that's a different story.'
I extended my hand toward Rephe, who was on her knees.
"Hand it over."
"W-What are you...?"
Oh, right, I was wearing a robe.
I pulled back the hood. When my face came into view, Rephe gulped hard.
"A-Ah, that virgin mage...!"
"Hng."
I deliberately raised my left hand.
Though I'd used up all the spells stocked in my right hand, I still had plenty stocked elsewhere. Seeing the mana rippling at my fingertips, Rephe clamped her lips shut.
"...No, you're Raniel, right?"
"You recognized me. I was gonna beat you until you did."
"Beat up a woman? Is that how the Hero Party rolls?"
"Didn't the Hero Party nearly beat me to death? Now you bring it up?"
I hadn't bothered mentioning that I'd quit the Hero Party. No real need to.
"I'm saying it again. Hand it over."
"W-What?"
I crooked my finger.
"That badge you stole from me back then. I'm telling you to give it back."
"Oh, that old badge?"
"It's not old, it's got history."
The badge of an Ashen Mage Tower mage.
The thing this bat bitch had snatched from me in the middle of all that chaos.
Honestly, the badge wasn't all that useful. It wouldn't even get you into the Ashen Mage Tower.
But if you asked whether it had no meaning just because it wasn't useful, that wasn't true either.
That badge had been pinned on me by my master.
"Shoulders back, Raniel."
"So what if your origins are humble? A mage just needs skill. Live proudly, Raniel."
To me, it was a precious item.
"...You don't seriously think I still have that thing after all this time, do you?"
"It'd be better for you if you did."
Crack, pop.
I cracked my knuckles roughly, and Rephe's face drained of color.
"I-I'll look for it. So loosen these chains a bit..."
I snapped my fingers lightly.
I didn't release all the restraints, just freed one hand.
"Try anything funny, and you're dead."
"I-I only die to holy magic, you know? You can't use holy magic."
"Pour enough mana into it, and anything's possible."
"......"
Rephe shut her mouth and rummaged around in thin air with her hand. After a while, she pulled out a weathered badge.
"Th-This the one?"
"Yeah, that's it."
I examined the badge resting in my palm, turning it this way and that. It looked exactly as I remembered. As if it had never been worn.
"But why'd you steal this in the first place?"
"...I thought it was."
"What?"
"I thought that badge would let me into the Mage Tower."
What would you even do in a Mage Tower?
I shot her a look, and she mumbled in a shrinking voice.
"I heard there were a lot of virgin mages in the Mage Tower."
"......"
"What?"
"...You crazy bitch."
"Can't you say it's just succubus nature? Crazy bitch is a bit harsh, don't you think?"
To think she'd stolen my badge for something that stupid.
Suppressing a sigh, I asked her.
"Hey, Rephe. How long have you been holed up in this city?"
"...About two months."
"What? Then why isn't there a bounty on you?"
Come to think of it, there were some odd things.
"You're a famous lady around these parts."
The tavern keeper had definitely said that. Famous woman around here. For that to come up, she'd have been walking around in that form for a good long while...
But rumors wouldn't fail to spread in that case?
If Rephe had been seriously draining life force, there'd be desiccated husks littering the streets. And the guards wouldn't fail to think of the Succubus Queen upon seeing them.
Besides, Cardinak was a city that had suffered blood loss from this bat bitch before. If mummies started rolling around, the lord would've frothed at the mouth and issued a bounty immediately.
'But there haven't been any recent wanted posters.'
The wanted posters regularly sent to the Hero Party.
I remembered Rephe's face not being among them.
As I tilted my head, Rephe answered.
"Because I held back."
"What?"
"I didn't drain one guy to death. I brought in several and took just a little from each. Turns out killing them is a waste. Plus, I didn't want to get chased by monsters like you guys again..."
Indeed.
"So you do use your head sometimes...?"
"You know that's actually insulting, right?"
Anyway.
I sighed and stood up.
"So now, what to do with you..."
"I-I gave it back! I returned the badge! I'm living carefully! Just let me go!"
"Why should I?"
Crack, pop. I cracked my knuckles as I approached Rephe.
Truth be told, though I talked tough, I had no intention of killing her. More precisely, I couldn't kill her. The Succubus Queen's existence was on a higher plane, regardless of her personal strength.
'If Sara were here, maybe, but alone? Nah.'
Of course, I could capture her by burning all my mana. But then I'd be laid up recovering until it refilled.
'I wanna get back to the capital ASAP. Why would I do something with no payoff?'
Since I'd already quit the Hero Party, I had zero interest in unprofitable heroics. Just drain enough mana to keep her from mischief and hand her over to the guards.
With that in mind, I reached out toward Rephe.
"Eek!"
Mana Drain wasn't a light spell.
Being a double-layered spell, it was stocked in my finger joints rather than my fingertips. I grabbed Rephe's head, pressing my knuckle to her forehead.
"L-Let go!"
"Stay still unless you want another Smite."
That was the moment I tried to drain her mana.
"Rephe! Are you there?!"
A booming voice rang out from outside the building.
Then came thuds on the door—thump, boom—followed by a crack! as the splintered door flew into the room.
"Rephe!"
"D-Dyke!"
Rephe, her hair gripped in my hand, made a tearful face as she looked at the man who'd smashed through the door.
Black armor covering his entire body.
A massive black greatsword in one hand.
At a glance, you might think heavy-armored knight, but I could see demonic energy rising from his body. Proof he was a demon like Rephe.
Dark Knight.
Probably what they called his kind.
"You're safe, Rephe! I saw the distress signal clearly..."
The black knight trailed off as he scanned the room.
I followed his gaze around the room as well.
A stick of unknown purpose.
Rope that looked like it was for tying someone up.
And a leather whip.
Hm.
'This crazy bitch...?'
The room was littered with tools this bat bitch had prepared for her fun with men.
Items that screamed only one use.
And me, gripping the Succubus Queen's hair.
'No matter who sees this...'
I slowly turned my creaking neck toward the black knight.
"......"
The black knight's face twisted viciously.
"No, wait. I know what you're thinking, but that's a misunderstanding..."
"You filthy human scum!!!"
Aw, shit.
2.
Succubus Queen, Rephe.
She pondered mages.
Didn't mages support warriors from the rear? While the warriors bought time, they'd unleash their stacked spells to annihilate the enemy.
At least, that's what the mages Rephe knew were like.
They weren't strong alone, but annoying in a group. That's how Rephe had always seen them.
So.
"What... is that...?"
What the hell was that?
Rephe blinked vacantly. The chains binding her had long vanished, but she couldn't move a single step.
-Boom!
The floor shook.
-Crunch!
Something crumpled.
"Gah!"
With a clamor, the black knight rolled across the floor. Cracks already spiderwebbed his prized black armor.
"Hey, quit throwing dust around already."
Someone emerged from between the half-collapsed building, brushing the dust off his robe with the back of his hand.
"......"
Rephe gulped as she watched. The man who shook off the dust: Raniel.
As Rephe recalled, he was the mage from the Hero Party. Not a martial artist or swordsman—a mage.
'That? How, in what way?'
Beating a Dark Knight barehanded without a staff—that's a mage?
Rephe couldn't believe it.
But believe it or not, Raniel advanced. Step by step toward Rephe.
"......"
He stopped right in front of her.
"Hey."
"Y-Yeah?"
"You're hiding something."
His blue eyes fixed on Rephe. Under that downward gaze, her shoulders trembled.
"You're out draining life force, so why's a black knight like that hanging around nearby? Looks like legion commander level..."
Hmm, he stroked his chin.
"Even with the Demon King's army's numbers, they wouldn't let a legion commander slack off like this, right?"
"H-He likes me! That's why he's stalking..."
Rephe scrambled for excuses.
But before she could finish, a red glyph appeared above her head.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Mid-tier Magic: Lie Detection (Red glyph: Lie detected)
The magic that showed a blue glyph for truth, red for lies.
Rephe's face turned ashen.
A smirk played on Raniel's lips.
"Bullshit."
He reached out.
Grabbed Rephe's head.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Spell-Reinforce Smite
Bam! The impact rattled her skull, sending Rephe tumbling to the floor. Her nose stung. Her mouth tasted metallic. Blood trickled from her face onto the ground.
"I'll finish that guy off and come back for the rest, so wait here."
"Not... your... call."
Amid the shattered bed and table, the black knight struggled to rise. Watching him, Raniel spat.
"Not whose call? Mine."
He rolled up his sleeves.
Rephe, right beside him, suddenly looked up. Through her blurry vision, she stared at his exposed forearm.
It wasn't the muscled arm of a trained warrior.
But something even more fearsome filled it.
Stocked spells.
Dozens upon dozens, waiting to be unleashed from his forearm.
Rephe gazed where those spells were aimed.
Half-destroyed armor, limping legs.
The Dark Knight Dyke, barely standing.
"Ah..."
No chance of victory.
Author's Note
It's getting so popular it's kinda scary.
Thanks for all the reads.
You might wonder why the protagonist let Rephe steal his badge back then while getting beaten like this...
Well, it's less the protagonist's fault and more because Remia and Sara were rampaging nearby.
I'll explain later.