Chapter 290
Chapter 290
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 290
Chapter Title: Elfheim (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Crimson flames swept through Bantadi's subordinates.
Bantadi's unit was mostly composed of Dark Knights, granting them strong resistance to black magic.
But no matter how much they were Dark Knights, they couldn't withstand a sudden attack.
Moreover, the black mages who assaulted the unit were elite subordinates of the colossal beast.
“Gaaah! S-someone, put out this fire!”
“My arm…! My arm! Aaaah!”
Over half of the troops turned into piles of ash. The survivors fainted, covered in severe burns.
“You… you bastards…!”
Witnessing the scene, Bantadi trembled with rage.
He had been backstabbed by those he thought were allies.
His head grew hot, and his blood boiled.
“What did you do to my men?!”
Bantadi bellowed in fury.
At the resounding roar, the black mages halted their attacks and glared at Bantadi.
“What did we do? We came to execute you on the orders of the noble and beautiful one.”
“W-what? N-noble? B-beautiful?”
The bizarre descriptors left Bantadi momentarily forgetting his anger in sheer bewilderment.
“You don’t mean Lord Dorgo, do you?”
All the villains of Pandemonium gathered in Elfheim served Dorgo. Thus, Bantadi's deduction was perfectly reasonable.
“Shut your mouth, you fool!”
“How dare you mistake Her for that pathetic skull-head!”
“Shall we burn your tongue right now to knock some sense into you?!”
But the black mages reacted differently. They flew into a rage as if suffering a grievous insult, veins bulging in their necks.
Bantadi was dumbfounded by their fury.
“Have you lost your minds, you traitorous scum…? Is this the time for you to be angry?!”
“Will you not shut up?!”
“Damn it, I don’t know what’s going on, but…”
Bantadi gripped his spear shaft. Black mana gathered at the blade, forming an Aurablade.
“First, you’ll pay for touching my unit!”
The traitors immediately unleashed black magic. A massive explosion engulfed Bantadi.
“Is that all you’ve got?!”
But such an explosion couldn't stop Bantadi.
Bursting through the blast, Bantadi swung his spear at the black mages.
As the spear traced a circle, five heads flew off in an instant. The air filled with the thick scent of blood.
“You think you can backstab me with that level of skill? I’ll kill every last one of you right here!”
It was then, as Bantadi shouted in excitement from the smell of blood.
“That won’t do.”
A stranger's voice rang out, and a young man appeared.
At the youth's entrance, the black mages immediately bowed at the waist.
“Lord Demian! Why have you come to such a dangerous place instead of resting in the rear?!”
“With your skills, you can’t beat him.”
“Ahh… For Lord Demian to worry about the likes of us… This honor, I’ll engrave it not just in my heart, but in my very soul!”
The black mages collectively wore ecstatic expressions.
The youth looked at them with a grimace of disgust.
“…The effect being too strong is a problem too. It’s making me sick.”
“To think lowly creatures like us would disturb Lord Demian’s mood! We’ll atone with our deaths!”
“No, enough. If you’re going to kill yourselves, take at least one more enemy with you.”
“Understood!”
Listening to their exchange, Bantadi felt his head spinning.
He addressed the youth.
“Did you turn these bastards into this mess?”
“And if I did?”
Bantadi drew up even more black mana. Potent black mana filled his entire body.
“If I kill you, will these guys snap out of it?”
“Who knows? Even I’m not sure.”
“Then I’ll have to check with my own hands!”
Bantadi thrust his spear at the youth. The spear drew a black trajectory, aiming to pierce the youth’s face.
Just before the blade impaled him, the youth slapped the spear with his palm.
A sharp sound rang out, and the shaft snapped.
“…Huh?”
He shattered an Aurablade-coated spear… with his bare hand? And so easily?
As Bantadi faltered in shock, the youth closed the distance.
“Y-you bastard!”
Bantadi swung the spear shaft at the youth.
But the youth struck various points on Bantadi’s body with two fingers first.
“Guh! Ack!”
Each time a finger hit, Bantadi felt pain like being skewered by an iron rod.
Yet, unlike the agony, no wounds appeared on his body. Bantadi sneered.
“A technique that can’t kill? You’ve wasted your time learning useless crap!”
Bantadi moved to counterattack immediately. But suddenly, his black mana supply cut off.
Not only that, his strength drained from his entire body. Bantadi collapsed to the ground.
No matter how hard he focused, the black mana wouldn’t budge. His limbs refused his commands.
“N-no way… W-what the hell did you do to my body…”
Suddenly, the youth seized Bantadi’s crown.
“I hope this works this time.”
A pattern embedded in the youth’s hand glowed.
At the same time, an unknown energy poured into Bantadi’s head.
“Gaaah! Graaaah!”
Bantadi screamed from the pain that felt like his brain was being scrambled.
* * *
Demian released Bantadi’s head.
Bantadi stared at Demian with his mouth agape and a dazed expression.
“Did it work?”
Demian waved his hand frantically in front of Bantadi’s face. Bantadi reacted.
“Oh…”
“Oh?”
“Ooh…”
“Ooh?”
“Ooooh… My master…!”
Tears streamed down Bantadi’s face. He even prostrated himself flat on the ground.
“To only now realize the beauty of my master’s form! This Bantadi has wasted his entire life until now! Please punish this foolish sinner at once!”
“It worked this time.”
“Success! Yes! This Bantadi’s life is a success just from meeting my master! This joy! This ecstasy! I don’t know how to express it!”
Bantadi showered him with endless praise.
Demian looked down at Bantadi with a grimace.
“Ah, this isn’t the time.”
Demian left Bantadi and approached the elves.
The elves who had been fighting Bantadi were frozen, unable to process the sudden turn.
“I’d like to talk. Who’s in charge here?”
Right now, Demian needed someone to tell him the state of Elfheim.
He had to extract detailed information from these elves somehow.
“Are you ignoring me?”
Even after Demian asked again, the elves gave no reply.
“Why are they acting like this?”
“They must be so awestruck by Lord Demian’s divine form that they’ve forgotten how to speak! Such irreverent wretches!”
Bantadi shouted loudly. Demian glared at him and said,
“Cut the crap and shut your mouth.”
“Lord Demian has given me an order! The glory of my house!”
“I’m gonna lose my mind.”
It was while Demian pressed his brow with his thumb.
“…Human, why did you save us?”
One of the elves asked Demian.
She was an elf woman with sturdy limbs and deep black hair.
Atop the elf woman’s shoulder perched a spirit resembling an eagle.
The eagle spirit exuded a tremendous presence.
It meant she was an exceptional spirit user.
“Are you their leader?”
“That’s right.”
“Good. I’m Demian Haksen. I need information on Elfheim. I’d appreciate your cooperation.”
“…Why should we give you information?”
“I’m not your enemy. If anything, I’m an ally. I came here to help you.”
“…I can’t believe that.”
The elf woman continued firmly.
“The elders said humans are beings whose outsides don’t match their insides.”
Strong hostility laced the elf woman’s voice.
Anyone with even a basic knowledge of elven history would understand her reaction.
In the past, there had been a brief period of exchange between elves and humans.
From a human perspective, elves were not only incredibly beautiful but also a mysterious race.
Thus, incidents frequently occurred where humans captured elves to sell as slaves.
In the end, the elves severed all ties with humans and hid away in Elfheim.
“I know how you feel about humans. But I saved you. Isn’t that worth a little trust?”
“You saved us…? Not to kill your own kind and monopolize us?”
“What a ridiculous misunderstanding.”
The elf woman silently pointed at the black mages Demian had brought.
“…Aren’t those black mages?”
*Ahem.*
Pointed out like that, even Demian had nothing to say.
“To me, it just looks like infighting among humans.”
The elf woman spoke in a resolute tone.
“If you’re really our ally, just let us go.”
Demian had a premonition that no words would sway the elf.
‘This is a headache.’
Demian had come to this island to kill Dorgo.
To kill Dorgo, he needed information first. Only then could he find out where Dorgo was.
‘Should I look for other elves? No, they’ll probably be the same.’
Judging by the elf woman’s attitude, the other elves would surely be hostile to Demian just for being human.
“If that’s your will, no choice.”
“Thank you for understanding our si—”
“We’ll have to capture them all.”
Demian gestured. Bantadi and the black mages surrounded the elves.
The elf woman then confronted Demian with a flustered expression.
“Human! What is this?! Didn’t you say you were an ally?!”
“I am an ally. But right now, getting information from you is more urgent.”
Demian pointed at the elves and issued a command.
“Subdue them all. Injuries are fine, but don’t kill them.”