Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: What's This? Give It Back (4)
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A city located directly opposite Cardinac.
In an inn in the water city of Rappelrn.
"Mm..."
After draping blankets over the exhausted, sleeping Sara and Remia, Kyle stepped out of the inn. Even in his light attire of leather pants and a simple shirt, he felt no chill whatsoever.
The body of a Hero was always like that.
The Hero's body wasn't bound by trivial things. It required no special training or maintenance. Crafted solely to slay the Demon King, it maintained peak condition in any situation.
A Hero chosen by the stars.
That body had to be perfect at all times.
As the cool air only made his heated body warmer, Kyle flashed a sardonic smile. To cool off, he strolled the predawn streets, when suddenly his eyes caught sight of a boy.
The early dawn hours.
The boy ran diligently down streets still shrouded in mist. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he stuffed newspapers from his armful into homes door by door.
"..."
Soon, the boy brushed past Kyle.
As they crossed paths, old memories flooded Kyle's mind. Times from before he became the Hero—horrific days.
'Doesn't matter anymore.'
He shook them off like dust from his clothes.
'It's different now.'
No one ignored Kyle anymore. No one could touch his achievements. He was no longer that pathetic boy from back then.
He'd cast aside the past of groveling at nobles' feet.
He'd killed every noble tied to that past.
So no one knew Kyle's history. No one would link that wretched, servile boy to the radiant Kyle of today.
'Except for one person.'
Raniel.
Kyle ground the name between his teeth.
-Hey, Kyle.
-How long are you gonna keep this up?
A voice.
-I'm not gonna rag on you for running from the Demon King. It was the right call. Even if it meant Sara, Remia, or I died, the Hero—you—had to survive.
-So I'm not holding that against you.
-But seeing your attitude now, I have to say something.
That voice that had lifted him up time and again.
-Get up.
-Grab the holy sword.
-How long's the so-called Hero gonna lie there? If there's no answer, find one. That's what that sword's for.
That voice never let him go. No matter the crisis, no matter his disgrace, it sighed and extended a hand every time.
-If you can't, I'll help.
-Hey, asshole, who am I? Next Lord of the Ashen Mage Tower. Who'd dare ignore you with me backing you?
Kyle couldn't stand that voice that never gave up. Standing before him made Kyle feel small.
Before Raniel alone.
Being beside that mage who always looked straight ahead.
It felt like his old self was exposed.
"..."
But that was over now. Finally, that guy had given up on him. Let him go.
-Live well without me, you bastard.
Chewing on Raniel's parting words, Kyle sneered bitterly. Live well without you? Who should be saying that?
"You're lucky you don't know, Raniel."
That day you bound the Demon King's feet at the cost of half your lifespan.
About the deal I made with the stars.
2.
Blink.
I blinked at the flooding sunlight. Forcing my eyes open, unaccustomed to the light, I slowly raised my upper body.
"Mm."
Crack. Every movement cracked the dried blood caked on my clothes. I stared at my robe, shedding dark red flakes.
The robe I'd worn constantly since leaving the Mage Tower.
Today, it felt strangely large.
"..."
Squinting, I raised my arm. My arm, crusted with scabs. No stocked spells filled my forearm as they should have.
'...Well, yeah.'
To counter the black mist, I'd infused spells into my mana. Losing this much was getting off cheap.
'First time I met it, half my lifespan vanished.'
Compared to that, dozens of stored spells were...
A tolerable loss.
Anyway, I'd focus on surviving the clash with the black mist. My magic had worked on it—a small satisfaction.
"Sigh."
But that was fleeting.
I sighed deeply and bowed my head.
'Too late to figure it out now.'
What good was realizing how to fight the Demon King?
I'd already been expelled from the Hero Party, and I had no desire to tangle with those Demon King goons anymore.
And the results? Dismal.
All my stocked spells gone.
Lost the Succubus Queen and the Black Knight too.
All I gained was this badge on my chest.
'What shitty cost-performance.'
I smiled wryly, brushing my chest where I'd repinned the badge the moment Rephe returned it. Hey, getting this back was something.
That was when I swept my hand down my chest.
"...?"
A strange sensation under my fingers.
I blinked blankly and looked down.
"...What the hell is this."
Tilting my head, ash-gray hair rustled down. Its length was unnatural.
"What is this."
Something's off.
"And why's my voice like this, damn it."
My voice sounded weird too. That's when it happened, as I tilted my head at the inexplicable.
-...!
-...Ra...!
A presence somewhere. Voices. I paused, listening.
-Search!
-...said she put up a barrier. Recover it before the knights notice. Hurry!
-Move it, it's ...'s orders!
Voices.
-The Succubus Queen said it's definitely in here.
-Fist-sized orb. Find it!
Footsteps.
Clanking armor.
"..."
I narrowed my eyes, scanning around.
Ruins of collapsed buildings everywhere. The structure had crumbled, but by chance, a small space formed around the pillar I leaned against.
I looked up.
Layered walls overhead.
A small gap in them. Light and sounds filtered through.
-Black orb!
-Find it immediately...
Orb.
I remembered only one.
The orb Rephe shattered last night. The one that summoned that damned black mist.
'It was around here, I think.'
Rephe had dropped it amid the black mist. If she hadn't taken it...
It had to be nearby.
I slowly stood.
My body felt off, but I'd ignore it for now. My body wasn't the priority.
-Follow the battle traces.
-Heard there are claw marks like something slashed through.
Those intermittent voices were probably Demon King's army. Their words and the stench wafting through the gap confirmed it.
Monster reek.
Demonic flesh rotting.
Why the Demon King's forces were in a human city at midday, I didn't know. Worst case: Cardinac fallen to them.
'Unlikely.'
Small city or not, Cardinac was near a knight outpost. Conquering it overnight would take the Demon King himself.
So, one possibility left.
'That orb Rephe dropped.'
They came for it.
Risking major danger.
Thud.
I planted my feet firmly.
Then turned toward the approaching presence.
-Crunch!
The ceiling wall tore open by someone.
The gap widened, more light pouring in. Sounds. Stench.
"Empty space here! Hurry, call the Legion Commander...?"
A voice.
"Huh?"
Startled eyes.
I locked eyes with the soldier who'd ripped the wall.
Demonic energy, naturally. As he opened his mouth to speak, I seized his nape.
And yanked him in like a fish on a line.
"Gahk!"
I tripped the dragged-in soldier. Down he went. I jammed fingers into his mouth.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
Rough tongue texture at my fingertips. Not human—a lizard's forked one. I shoved deeper.
"Urk! Urrgh!"
My fingers reached his throat.
There, I cast a spell.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Spell-Smite Improvised cast – Piercing throat
Ashen mana flashed at my fingertips.
The makeshift spell pierced his throat.
"Kek!"
Blood sprayed.
I withdrew my fingers from the limp soldier's mouth. A shake sent a bloody clump splatting to the ground.
Improvised spells were slow and weak. For efficiency, this dirty method was necessary.
That realization unsettled me.
Normally, no spell needed for trash like this. Trip him, snap his neck or knock him out—done.
But why?
The moment I tripped him, instinct hit.
This body couldn't.
Lacked the strength.
I trusted it, cast immediately.
And it was right. This body didn't have the power.
"..."
I eyed my bloodstained arm.
Pale, slender.
I could guess how my body had 'changed.' A little thought gave the answer.
Succubus. Body mutation. Black mist.
The odd feel at my chest earlier.
Unusually thin voice.
Only one conclusion.
"Ha..."
I sighed, rubbing my eyes.
I wanted to throttle that bat bitch right then, but sadly, no time for that.
-...
Voices stopped.
Scattered footsteps now stomped one way. From all sides.
Yes.
Presences closing in.
"..."
Ignoring the sounds, I steadied my breath. Cleared my mind. Checked my conditions one by one.
Enough stocked spells?
No, not even one.
Terrain favorable?
Opposite. Sealed on all sides. No escape.
Enemy numbers?
Ten-plus, roughly.
Finally, I asked myself.
'So, what do I have?'
The answer was always the same.
'Mana.'
Overflowing mana.
That was enough.