Chapter 320: Slave Experience (13)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 320: Slave Experience (13)
The people of House Laurentius greeted Elize.
“Welcome, Saint. Welcome to the Duchy of Laurentius.”
“Thank you for the warm welcome, my lord.”
Elize bowed her head lightly. The Duke scanned her from head to toe.
Though she was the Saint revered by the Church, to the Duke, she was just an unremarkable woman.
He couldn't understand why the Order of Balance revered her as their Saint.
As if she herself was engrossed in this childish role-play, she held her head high and met his gaze, as if to say, We are equals, or perhaps I am your superior.
The Duke did not like it one bit.
But he couldn't treat her with disrespect, as she was also considered the Pope's representative.
“Saint, what brings you to our duchy without any prior notice?”
“I heard your son is in need of treatment. He is the precious son of the duchy; how could I entrust his care to anyone else?”
“You truly live up to your name as the Saint. Thank you. I will guide you to my son.”
Elize followed the Duke toward Evan's mansion.
“I've heard the stories. That you have the Slave Reaper in your possession.”
“That is correct. My eldest daughter bought her from the slave market. You could say we were fortunate.”
“Where is he… where is she now?”
“I'm afraid that is a confidential matter I cannot disclose. But since you seem so curious about her, I will tell you this much: she is currently being… educated, for refusing to show loyalty.”
“Educated… you say. To her…”
Elize muttered to herself.
This time, the Duke asked a question.
“But why is the Holy Kingdom searching for the Slave Reaper?”
“She is a great sinner who inflicted immense damage upon the Holy Kingdom in the past. We seek to make her pay for her crimes. Therefore, I must ask.”
Elize stopped walking.
The Duke stopped as well.
“Hand her over to us. We will provide a commensurate reward.”
“Even if it is a request from the Saint herself, I'm afraid that will be difficult. She is a slave of the duchy, a valuable asset. More importantly, why would I kill the goose that lays the golden eggs?”
“Do you truly believe she is a golden goose?”
“If she weren't, would the Saint herself have come all this way to make such a request?”
“That is regrettable.”
“I apologize for not being able to give you a positive answer. We have arrived.”
They arrived at Evan's room.
But Evan was not inside.
“Where did Evan go?”
“I-I don't know. He was definitely in his room just a moment ago?”
The open window suggested he had snuck out. That troublemaker. He's sick, yet where has he run off to now? To show such a disgrace in front of the Saint, of all people.
The Duke clicked his tongue.
“My apologies, Saint. It seems there's been a problem. You may have to wait a moment.”
“It's fine. It seems there's no point anymore.”
“What do you mean by that…?”
Elize cast her gaze toward the distant sky.
At a glance, she seemed to be spacing out, but her eyes were unmistakably watching something.
“We have uninvited guests.”
Just as the Duke was puzzling over her cryptic words, he flinched, startled by a sudden, immense aura.
Ten liches floated in the air, backlit by the sun. They moved their skull-topped staves in unison.
Crack.
Cracks began to form in the empty air, then shattered like glass.
A massive vortex appeared. From it, spewing a sinister energy, demons began to pour out like a tidal wave.
“Geheheheheh! The human realm!”
“Her Majesty the Demon Queen is arriving! Everyone, bow your heads!”
Led by skeleton soldiers, a legion of Dullahans and Death Knights marched proudly.
Devils flew about with frivolous smiles, like fish in water, while Bone Dragons dominated the sky.
“D-Demons! The demons are invading!”
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
“Help me!”
The duchy was thrown into chaos by the sudden appearance of the great demon army.
“Do not panic! Sound the alarm and summon the soldiers!”
The Duke hurriedly tried to take command, but the chain of command had already shattered, and his knights, bewitched by succubi, had lost their will to fight.
It was a situation that would fluster even a battle-hardened duke like him.
A carriage pulled by Nightmares rolled out of the sky.
The demon inside was the Demon Queen, Liliabel.
“Is the Slave Reaper here?”
“There is no doubt.”
“Find her and capture her alive. We will use this place as a foothold, so make the preparations.”
The environmental differences between the human and demon realms are immense, after all. And we must block out the sun so the vampire legion, our reinforcements, can arrive.
Having seized control of the duchy with her mere appearance, Demon Queen Liliabel gazed down at the land with impassive eyes.
The one called the Slave Reaper must be here somewhere. I'd like to see what kind of human she is.
“Hm?”
Liliabel felt a gaze. Her eyes met with Elize's, who was looking up from the ground.
“Hoh, a vampire who doesn't die when facing the sun. I see you are that famous Saint.”
“I didn't know Demon Lords actually existed. I thought they were beings of a bygone era, but to think I'd see one in person. How fascinating.”
“As fascinating as I may be, it pales in comparison to a vampire becoming a Saint. What say you? Join the side of the demons, even now. The Vampire Lord is very eager to meet you.”
“I refuse. I have already pledged my loyalty to another.”
“A pity.”
Liliabel didn't dwell on it. In the demon ecosystem, if you wanted something, you took it by force.
However.
“It would be troublesome if you interfered with our great cause, so perhaps I should clean up first.”
Liliabel stretched her hand toward the sky. A black haze began to gather above her palm.
In an instant, the sky was stained with a sinister energy.
Just as Liliabel was about to drop what she held in her hand to the ground…
“That's far enough, Demon Queen Liliabel.”
A dazzling radiance flashed.
Beings wreathed in halos descended from below the clouds. With halos floating above their heads, their divine descent revealed their identity: the Celestials.
Clad in helmets and armor and holding weapons, they resembled the celestial warriors, the Valkyries. They descended slowly, flapping pure white wings.
“My, my. I'm seeing many esteemed guests today. Is that not Chairman Zacariel? What brings you to such a humble place?”
“We are here to punish the sinners who seek to destroy the world's order.”
“Sinners? We simply desire more than others. We're just a little greedy.”
“I have no intention of playing along with your trivial word games. More importantly.”
Zacariel looked at Elize.
“The Saint is here.”
“Hah, all sorts of things are crawling out of the woodwork now.”
Elize sighed as if she were already exhausted.
“You are the Saint. Why are you with the demons? Do you intend to forsake the grace of the Lord God and side with them?”
“I'm just here looking for someone.”
“Is that person the Slave Reaper?”
“Why is a Celestial speaking her name?”
“The Slave Reaper is a great sinner who has thrown the world into chaos. As God's representatives, it is our duty to deliver divine punishment.”
“This is not your affair. I will handle things here, so back off.”
“We cannot do that. Tainted blood flows through your veins. It would be problematic if you were to side with the demons. In that case, it is better to eliminate you beforehand.”
Elize shook her head. They're all the same, impossible to reason with.
More importantly, the Celestials and the demons have appeared at the same time.
Even for Elize, facing both factions at once was impossible. She needed an ally, at the very least…
“Who did you say was delivering divine punishment to whom?”
Just then, a voice came from somewhere.
A voice that would normally have been irritating to hear now sounded welcome to Elize.
Atop the spire of the lord's castle.
Rin sat there, her nine pink tails fluttering, with Heukbi standing beside her as if in attendance.
Zacariel narrowed his eyes.
“A Gumiho…”
“Say it again. Who is delivering divine punishment to whom?”
“As God's representatives, to the great sinner, the Slave Reaper—”
Shwing!
Two of the Celestial warriors standing guard by Zacariel's side suddenly thrust their spears at him.
Other Celestials jumped between them and blocked the attack.
“You bastards! How dare you attack the Chairman!”
Saaaa…
The white wings of the two Celestials who had attacked Zacariel turned black.
Corruption.
It was the mark engraved upon sinners who turned their backs on God and walked the path of apostasy.
Rin grinned.
A gleam flickered in her heterochromatic eyes.
“What's this, internal strife? Looks like your own subordinates want to deliver divine punishment to you.”
The Gumiho's Fate Twist.
In a single moment, she had turned those who had served God their entire lives into apostates.
“…As I thought, you are a being that should not exist in this world.”
“You started it, what are you talking about?”
“Nothing changes just because you've gained one more person.”
“Are you sure it's just one?”
As soon as she said that, an arrow flew through the air, distorting the very atmosphere.
A spirit storm.
A single arrow, containing that condensed and re-condensed storm, exploded in the center of them all.
Whether Celestial or demon, all those who had been engaged in a war of nerves in the sky were pushed back without exception.
‘From where?’
Zacariel looked in the direction the arrow had come from, but there was no one there.
However, as time passed, figures could be seen riding the wind from beyond the horizon.
Zacariel muttered their name.
“The Guardians of the Great Forest…”
If there are angels in the sky, there are elves on the earth.
Alfia and the elven warriors landed lightly in the garden.
“Whoa, what's with the crowd? Is there a festival going on?”
“They're all here to take the Master.”
“Ah, so it's a funeral.”
They keep saying ‘Reaper, Reaper,’ but it seems they've all forgotten something important.
Those who encounter the Reaper meet only one fate: death.