Chapter 205
Chapter 205
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 205
Chapter Title: The Worst Enemy
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There was no table.
Four chairs were placed in the center, facing each other with their backs, and one person sat in each.
Their weights, age groups, heights... Their standout features varied, but the people sitting there had one thing in common.
They were tightly bound to the chairs.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
The men were struggling to break free from their restraints without exception.
One shouted at the top of his lungs despite his mouth being gagged.
Another rocked back and forth, trying to escape.
Some flexed their arm muscles to the point of bulging, desperately trying to snap the bonds, but it all seemed futile.
From the situation, it wasn't hard to realize this was Ekaterina's doing.
But why?
I was bewildered.
And understandably so—I hadn't been tracking her as a suspect.
It was like not even knowing the question before trying to solve the answer.
I'd witnessed her crime scene through the Eight-Colored Pearl.
That place, which she'd probably reached after gathering circumstantial evidence and clues through logical deduction...
I'd casually peered into it using a tool powered by divine strength.
If anything, that made it even more confusing.
What question was this the answer to?
Why had Ekaterina tied up these men?
With the scene right in front of me, the only thing I could barely guess was
that Ekaterina wasn't your average hero candidate trainee.
"Investigator! You okay?"
"Ah, uh... Yeah."
Noticing my pale face as I stood there, some passing female trainees called out and moved on.
Let's watch first. Think after seeing it all.
If I got distracted, I might miss something happening on the screen.
I looked around, sat on a bench in the corner, and focused on the screen.
Ekate seemed about to do something.
Her long, slender fingers gently stroked the cheek of one captured man.
The man's face drained of color as he squeezed his eyes shut.
"Hmm..."
Ekate cleared her throat.
Ekate was a trainee who'd taken classes with me back when we were Rabbit Rank.
I'd creampied her enough to earn promotion points.
I'd given her the Eight-Colored Pearl, but after that day, I'd never spied on her or met her separately.
So I had no idea what she'd been up to since.
"I am Ekaterina, leader of the Demon King Army Human Dismantlement Unit..."
"..."
I gulped.
...She could just reveal it that easily?
No, she had no idea I was watching...
Should I be thrilled?
Me...
Was I really cut out to be an investigator?
I'm seriously scared of my own talent.
...Of course, I didn't really think that.
This was what they call beginner's luck—a lucky break.
Ekaterina's true identity... a Demon King Army officer...
It wasn't as shocking as I'd thought.
Because I'd never once seen her as hero candidate material.
Just looking at her, she screamed witch.
"I am Ekaterina, leader of the Demon King Army Human Dismantlement Unit..."
Huh? She repeated herself.
Ekate was mumbling quietly to the wall, with no one to address.
Come to think of it, she probably wasn't saying it for me.
Then she looked this way.
Not eye contact, but it was a creepy moment.
"Please look at the faces of those... sitting... seated before you..."
...
I had no clue who they were.
"I'm sure you know them. Though mouths have been shut for two days now...
The missing dignitaries of the Daytoon Kingdom. Those with top access in Melbrit... Yes... Names are..."
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
"Mmph! Ngh!"
The men's resistance intensified.
"In order: Grand Inquisitor Perrion, Dean Glahm, Chancellor Nakelius, Education Bureau Chief Tlenner.
Ah, by 'in order' I mean... the black magic basic array order..."
Ekate paused for a moment.
"No. Clockwise, normally.
Nakelius, Tlenner, Perrion, Glahm..."
Then, as if realizing something was off, she shook her head.
"...I am Ekaterina, leader of the Demon King Army Human Dismantlement Unit."
Back to the start.
Was she rehearsing her criminal declaration?
It looked like she was practicing with the imaginary audience from the Eight-Colored Pearl I'd given her.
A hollow laugh escaped me.
"Grand Inquisitor Perrion, Chancellor Glahm, Dean... Ah, wrong."
Ekate made one adorable slip-up after another, relaxing into it and resetting to step one.
Her mistakes varied: misnaming people, biting her tongue, tripping over her feet.
...How did a girl like this kidnap heavyweights like the Grand Inquisitor, Dean, Chancellor, and Education Bureau Chief?
Was it just a prank show?
As these rational doubts crept in,
Ekate finally passed the dreaded introductions.
"By the Demon King's command to destroy humanity,
the Human Dismantlement Unit will... take Melbrit. Surrender... Those who surrender will be livestock...
Those who resist will be destroyed. That is the Demon King's command, and we will take Melbrit as ordered... Ngh..."
Ekate noticed the needless repetition and tried to recover, only to bite her tongue.
"~~~!"
That hurt.
Her expression didn't show it, but a faint groan slipped from her slightly open mouth.
"If you s-surrender, you'll be made livestock.
Cease meaningless resistance... and pledge loyalty to the Demon King."
A warm smile crept onto my face unbidden.
Ekaterina's clumsiness was just too cute.
Public speaking wasn't her forte, but I got the gist.
In short, she was the Demon King's vanguard, targeting Melbrit with thorough preparations.
But that Demon King guy had no originality.
Destroy and conquer? What era is this? The orders were so outdated.
And apparently, this world's demons treated humans as livestock.
Being Ekaterina's livestock didn't sound half bad.
Ekaterina.
Like a witch from a fairy tale, with black hair reaching her ankles and a hunched back.
Her weary eyes dulled her beauty a bit,
but her ample breasts and sturdy hips were enticing even through her clothes.
I'd had sex with her, so I knew—Ekate's pussy felt incredible. How much she'd milked me in class.
Though that was because I'd hypnotized her to comply with everything I did.
If only I could figure out where this was, I'd go to her right now...
But.
Why were the men trembling like that?
Was the room cold?
"Ah. And..."
Ekate spoke as if something had just occurred to her.
"See the example."
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
Example?
Ekate conjured a black orb in her palm and slammed it into the man's head.
"Mmmph! Mmmph!"
The man's head swelled like a balloon, then burst.
I turned away before seeing the end.
When I looked back, there was nothing above the man's neck.
"..."
Damn...
The amusement vanished.
I'd never imagined something like this.
Ekate was the girl I'd pinned and creampied in Rabbit Rank class,
and watching her bungle things made her seem cute, so I hadn't taken it seriously.
This was real.
The captives' lives were truly at stake.
Ekaterina wasn't playing around.
She didn't blink as a man's head exploded in front of her.
Her speech was clumsy, but when it came to killing... she hesitated not a bit. Not even a tremor from excitement.
"Ah. My mistake."
I couldn't bear to look at the neck stump, so I'd covered it with my hand and watched Ekate.
"...Resist, and you'll die like bugs. Here's the example.
The example... like bugs... Yes. Again..."
...Again?
"...I am Ekaterina, leader of the Demon King Army Human Dismantlement Unit."
Back to step one.
That's when I realized.
Why the men were trembling.
Ekate was repeating until she got it perfect.
Killing someone? She didn't see it as a mistake.
Or maybe, with three left, she figured she could practice twice more.
...How many were there originally?
"In order: Grand Inquisitor Perrion, Dean Glahm, Chancellor Nakelius.
Black magic... Ah, not that. Clockwise..."
The three bound men shook in terror.
I pushed the screen aside and stood from the bench.
I had to find her.
Find her and stop this.
But if she was casually rehearsing her declaration, wasn't the terror plot already set?
If I moved to locate Ekaterina, something might happen to Melbrit.
There was only one thing I could do at once.
"..."
I dashed to the student council room.
If I could only handle one thing, ask someone who could juggle ten, a hundred at once.
"Sia!"
I burst into the student council room.
"...Decal Trainee?"
The trainees inside turned to stare at me.
Lots of visitors today.
I flashed my student handbook.
"Decal. Special Investigator.
Here on urgent business for the Student Council President. Everyone else, clear out.
Now!"
"Y-Yes!!"
Who knew special investigator status came in handy like this.
The trainees scurried out without questions.
Neris crossed her arms.
"What is it?
You wouldn't cause this ruckus for anything minor."
"There's a Demon King Army exec in the school...!"
Neris's eyes sharpened.
"Is that true? How do you know? Where is this Demon King Army exec now?
Name? Description...!"
"Neris. Calm down."
Sia gently chided her.
"Sorry."
Realizing she'd lost composure, Neris stepped back.
"Demon King Army Human Dismantlement Unit Leader. Name's Ekaterina.
Registered as a Melbrit trainee, and up until recently... no, probably still Rabbit Rank."
"I'll check."
Sia reached into the air, and white particles gathered like my status menu.
A glowing orb of countless infos flashing and vanishing.
Sia reached in and pulled out one trainee's data.
Ekaterina's ID appeared before us.
"This the trainee?"
"Yeah. Check this out."
I showed the screen from the Eight-Colored Pearl to both.
Neris leaned in close.
...Her cleavage blatantly visible down her uniform.
"This her?"
"She's already killed one. Treats human lives like nothing."
"The captives?"
"Dean. Chancellor. Something. Anyway..."
"The Chancellor is captured?"
"Heard the Grand Inquisitor too. Ah, Education Bureau Chief just died."
"..."
Neris and Sia's faces darkened.
"Good job, Uncle.
Too late once it happens. This lets us respond sooner."
"Can you pinpoint the location on this screen?
No, before that—something might go down in Melbrit. We need manpower."
"Neris. Herka..."
Sia hesitated.
"Herka is currently detained by the executive department."
...Still locked up?
"...After 13 escape attempts, we finally have her secured."
"The enemy's a high-level hi-caster. We need Herka."
"Shall I go?"
"No. Decal Trainee, you retrieve Herka."
"Me?"
"You can handle something only you can do."
Something only I could do...
Anyone following procedure could release Herka,
but that wasn't it.
Hypnosis.
Sia wanted me to meet Herka.
She was one of the cards to face the Demon King later—or even the gods.
Checking on her was only natural.
"Got it. I'll meet Melbrit's ultimate weapon."