Chapter 156
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 156
Chapter Title: Artificial Demon -2-
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The event concluded without a hitch as the Saintess recited her prayer and, for the finale, scattered holy power like glittering flower petals.
The public officials serving the Empire let out sighs of relief at having passed the time without any incidents.
Now the low-level staff just needed to handle the cleanup, and starting tomorrow, things would return to the usual routine.
But even among the low-level staff, there was one person whose duties would drag on the longest.
"You've worked hard, Saintess."
When the Saintess was indoors, Eclair and the Saintess's personal Holy Knight handled her protection together.
She had escorted the weary Saintess, who had been reciting prayers and greeting guests at the event, into the reception room.
"Hardly. I showed up without warning and without manners, yet one of the Empire's Five Knights, Eclair Dreitna herself, has graciously joined me. It's truly an honor."
"I'm merely doing my duty as the Empire's sword."
She had been frail since birth, with particularly poor stamina, and she already looked quite fatigued.
No matter how elite female Holy Knights attended her every step to assist...
Her dedication and spirit of service, dragging that fragile body across the continent, seemed utterly genuine and remarkable.
"I'll just catch my breath for a bit... and head back soon. I don't want to take up any more of your or the others' precious time."
"Please, take your time. It's fine."
It was a perfectly reasonable statement, but the Saintess looked at her in surprise, sensing a warmth from Eclair she had never felt before.
"Is this our... third meeting now, Knight?"
Eclair recalled their encounters and replied.
"By my count, it's the fourth."
"Not a small number, yet we've never properly talked. The Church and the Empire may have close ties, but if the people involved are this distant, doesn't it lack sincerity?"
Eclair nodded at the Saintess's words, which brimmed with pure innocence and no ulterior motive.
"...You're right."
There was no hierarchy between Eclair and the Saintess.
They belonged to different organizations, and their fame peaked in their respective fields.
Mutual maximum respect and elevation was the safest approach, so they had avoided personal chats even during breaks.
"Truth be told, the reason I'm bringing this up now is... well~ You seem to have some peace of mind lately, Knight, so I finally felt bold enough for some small talk."
"Is that so..."
At the Saintess's words, Eclair unconsciously smiled faintly, thinking of Roman and Chloe.
Seeing this, the Saintess clasped her hands with a satisfied expression.
"What wonderful energy! Last time I saw you, you looked tired... and like something was chasing you..."
"Saintess! Such words to a knight could be disrespectful. Remember, this isn't Church grounds."
A sturdy woman who was indistinguishable from the man standing behind her.
The Saintess's personal Holy Knight sharply admonished her, and the Saintess turned her head with a snort.
"Hmph! Unlike Mazella, the Knight isn't narrow-minded!"
"...I apologize on behalf of the Saintess. The word 'chased' was just her poor word choice without malice. Please understand... I'll discipline her strictly upon our return to the Church."
Mazella, her guard and direct subordinate, ignored the Saintess's muttering as if accustomed to it and bowed politely to Eclair.
"It's fine. You two are as close as ever."
As Eclair had long observed, they had traveled together for so long that they were more like best friends than mere colleagues.
"Don't be fooled, Knight! If you knew how much Mazella nags me every day..."
Knock knock!
A frantic knock on the reception room door made Eclair seek the Saintess's permission first before opening it.
She saw a knight pale-faced and sweating profusely.
"What is it? The Saintess is resting."
"S-Sorry! There's an urgent message from the Church—"
Boom!!
The explosion cut off the conversation, and all three heads in the room snapped toward the sound.
Even from this far end of the capital, a chilling, goosebump-inducing sensation prickled their entire bodies.
The Saintess's expression hardened, and Mazella, the waiting Holy Knight, swiftly donned her helmet.
"Mazella."
"Yes, Saintess."
The woman behind her approached quickly and bowed.
"Will you carry me?"
*****
On the way back after leaving Chloe and Rike at the Church—neither of whom had grasped the situation—there were more than a few odd signs.
I plunged into the back alleys without avoiding the far more ominous mana than before.
Human blood, presumably, soaked the ground damply, filling the air with its metallic tang, amid chunks of flesh half-eaten by beasts.
Kicking off the walls to gain height, I spotted swarms of flies in view.
"Knew it. You little pests."
Amid countless corpses, the ones still alive and unscathed weren't the alley vagrants.
The first one I detected visually was a man handling a bat-like familiar.
"...Permil—!!"
Crack!
I smashed the head of the black mage trying to cast some useless spell with my Gleipnir-wrapped fist and checked the corpse.
Unrolling the parchment in his pocket revealed numbers like times and unfamiliar characters recording something.
The context made the content predictable.
I tore the potentially traceable parchment to shreds, discarded it on the ground, and smeared it in blood for good measure.
'Their private language? No need to translate—it’s obvious who they belong to...'
No one in the Empire but Nematos would pull this crap.
Following the ominous pull on my senses, I cleanly dispatched the surrounding grunts.
Over ten foes, small familiars suggesting special purposes, high-grade parchment in their gear—they’d clearly put effort into this.
'Can’t let that slide.'
Crunch—
"Guhk...!"
I crushed the fallen black mage’s windpipe underfoot, kicked his head to instant death.
Then, closing my eyes in the alley, I focused on detection.
'Nothing more.'
Whether something was there but evading or truly gone, I’d done my best.
The miscellaneous undead creeping up in the alleys? The Church would handle them.
Free service for unknown Empire citizens or vagrants? Not my thing.
But Chloe nearly got hurt, and if any of my women could be targets, I needed to excise this filth fast to sleep soundly.
For foes like these, handling it myself was less hassle.
"Hold still. I’ll clean you up now~"
Slosh—!
I pulled out two vials of holy water and wiped down Gleipnir and my fist, soaked in black mages’ blood.
Now only one target remained.
A single demon, incomparably stronger than at first in that short time.
No longer fleeing like before, it exuded a fierce aura inviting me into its tiger maw.
I leaped off the wall, scanned the surroundings one last time, then dove straight at the target.
Thud!
"You fucking bastard."
...
...
"Shut up!! I’m not... not running... No shame!!"
-■.
The black sword it summoned from the ground after chanting was crude but no ordinary weapon.
"Fine by me. Let’s do this."
The thing got wildly excited over words not even meant as provocation.
Its initial calm, demonic poise had vanished with growth, now resembling 'that guy' from its human days.
'Acting...? Split personality? Meaningless.'
Just in case, I considered possibilities.
Crack—
As the demon flexed its muscles and shoved off the foot pinning its sword, I slammed a Dragon Fang Kick into its chest, creating distance.
Slash—!
Dark flesh tore messily, then worm-like strands twisted, healing rapidly like rewinding time.
'...Figured as much!'
Expecting it, I reset my stance for the next move.
Ignoring the kick, it yanked the greatsword from the ground—the blade longer than my height.
"Raaahhh!!"
I poured mana into Gleipnir as I tracked the descending sword with its roar.
[White Flame]
Using the surging white flames on the chain, I blocked the sword’s descent like judgment, my feet cracking and sinking into the stone pavement.
Craaack—!!
No aura, maybe couldn’t use it or saving it, but its raw strength was impressive.
The chain wrapped around my arm strained, muscles nearly tearing under the weight.
'Heavy.'
Satisfyingly, Gleipnir held without severing despite the destructive power.
Hard to believe given its massive size, the demon’s greatsword swiftly swung horizontally.
Whoosh—
I jumped rope-like over the gale-force swing, whipping and yanking the chain in complex motions.
Clang! Zap!
Gleipnir’s wounds weren’t deep, but in that brief moment, they traced patterns across the demon’s huge body.
Flame-infused—not aura—Gleipnir couldn’t cleave the tough bulk, but...
The lingering white flames clung to impure flesh, melting blackened muscle like paper and burrowing in.
"Mraaa—!!!"
Clank!
Gripping the returning chain clump pulled to my shoulder, I drove my fist into its abdomen in my sights.
"Guhk...!"
Elbow-deep punch bent even a demon in agony—a perfect opening.
I withdrew my fist buried in muscle, stepped back.
[First Form - Raksha]
The mask flipped on after ages, mana ejecting a familiar sword.
Output spiked—white flames and Raksha’s blade.
The demon instinctively sensed the crisis, dropping its late greatsword and sacrificing thick arms to block the flame-charged slash.
Slaaash—
"Urk...!! Hiding your power, eh—!!"
"Pain dumbing you down? Intelligence and speech regressing?"
Sacrificing both forearms to protect eyes and head—shrewd call for such bulk.
I sneered outwardly but admired inwardly.
To block the follow-up, it cast magic and soared airborne like a bird—nimble evasion.
Its improvisational speed matched a veteran mercenary.
"Not bad."
Holds the greatsword to swing, but as expected, no aura.
Despite parasitizing a knight’s body, it was a typical mage mismatched to its form.
About to reveal its true specialty now.
Arms still aflame with white flames, unregenerated, the demon flicked its long tongue and began chanting black magic I knew from the game.
"O darkness of sin."
"Etch that one's name in flame within the deep, dark cavern."
"Torch of Aim."
⟨ Torch of Aim ⟩
Its language transcended into clear intent, incantation resounding deliberately.
Hummm—
The black magic I’d set to hide presence and impurity twisted in the mana vortex.
Intent seeped into the earth, engraving it, flipping the ground.
Boom!!!