Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Fortuitous Encounter
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"...Ugh."
As soon as I opened my eyes, a tingling pain radiated from my left arm.
Every part of me ached, but someone must have treated me because aside from my left arm, the pain elsewhere was mostly minor.
'What happened?'
The last things I remembered seeing were Northern Duke Polar Icicle and Carmen, along with the knights.
The final sight before blacking out was Ariana riding on Polar's back.
"...First things first, I need to get a read on the situation."
I pushed myself up from the bed, opened the door, and stepped out.
The moment I did...
"Ah."
"Ah, fuck."
For some reason, a very familiar man emerged from the room next to mine, opening his door at the exact same moment—and we came face-to-face.
Ruin.
The instant I saw him, a smile crept onto my face unbidden.
"You're up, Hero."
"Don't grin like that when you see me. That's a privilege reserved for pretty girls."
"Haha, seeing you talk just like always, I can guess you somehow took down that demon."
Thank goodness his skills were enough to crush the demon.
If not, he wouldn't be reacting like this.
Seemingly confirming my words, Ruin nodded with a displeased expression before smirking.
"Ha! While you were passed out in Ariana's arms, the Hero—that's me—took care of that white-furred bastard. You weakling."
"That's a relief. As you said, Hero, my limit was holding out for about five minutes. You're truly impressive."
"Yeah, how impressive I—"
Just as Ruin started to boast...
He suddenly clutched his mouth and turned his head away.
"Cough! Cough! Ugh, cough!"
Blood sprayed out with the coughing fit.
I couldn't hide my shock at the sight.
"Hero! What's wrong all of a sudden?!"
I hurriedly channeled holy power and reached out to him, but Ruin shoved me away like I was scum and yelled weakly.
"Lib High Priest...! Get over here, you bastard...!"
At that moment, Lib High Priest burst out from the room Ruin had come from and immediately began treatment.
"Hero. Didn't I tell you to rest for the time being?"
"Shut... up... I need to get stronger quick, prove that I'm right..."
Unable to follow their conversation, I shot Lib a questioning look, and he smiled warmly as he explained.
"The Hero obtained his holy power as a chosen one at a young age, so the backlash from using it is tremendous. If he'd learned to handle it from childhood and trained his body, he could wield far more... but he's only just started training now..."
"Ah...!"
His words made my mind go blank for a moment.
Sure enough, Ruin had neglected training—actually, skipped it entirely—due to his personality since childhood.
After coming to the Holy Kingdom, he'd probably only bothered with the easy stuff and let the rest go in one ear and out the other.
By the game's lore, the protagonist trained diligently from youth, allowing him to handle anything without issue.
In other words, Ruin—who'd only played around as a kid—lagged far behind even the player's base stats.
He couldn't even properly control the basics like holy power.
"...Hero, it's okay. You can start working hard from now on."
At least he was making an effort now, which was something.
Though the situation was still precarious.
Hoping he'd keep at it, I encouraged him—only for him to suddenly glare at me with resentment.
"Fuck, do I look like a damn kid to you?"
"Pardon...?"
Ruin's sudden outburst.
A massive amount of holy power—far beyond mine—gathered in his hand.
"I can tell just by looking. You're thinking, 'Good, if he's willing to try hard now...' You don't give a shit about how I feel."
"Hero?"
He looked ready to explode at the slightest touch.
I'd poked a sore spot.
"What I mean is... trying hard is fucking annoying. Why? Because effort is for talentless losers. But... but...!"
-Crunch!
"Ugh...!"
Before I could react, Ruin grabbed my throat.
He glared up at me with a murderous expression.
Then came words like a death sentence from his lips.
"It's all because of you that I'm having to 'try hard,' you fuck!!"
"Guh, ack...!"
I couldn't breathe.
No intent to kill—just enough to make it hurt.
"I'm the Hero, a bundle of talent. But the people I like keep praising you—the worthless guy who only tries hard—instead of my talented ass! And I don't know how because I've never tried! Fuck!"
Immense holy power churned in his other hand.
Just like his unstable mind.
"This damn holy power—they say even if I'd tried like you, I couldn't handle it! Poor talented me! No way someone could control this shit with mere effort!"
At some point, even Lib High Priest was grabbing Ruin's right arm, but sadly, a mere priest's strength wasn't enough.
"Hero! Reel in the holy power now!"
"Fuck, does this look like something a human can control to you, you bastard?!"
The hand blazing with holy power closed in on my face.
An aura on another level from when I used it—instinct told me mortals weren't meant to wield this.
But...
'The game's protagonist could control this kind of holy power from childhood training, using it properly without risk.'
Sorry, Ruin, but if he'd trained from youth, he could've freely handled the power before me right now. Risk-free.
"Don't look at me like that!!"
Unknowingly, my gaze must've betrayed my thoughts, and Ruin flew into greater rage than ever.
And at that moment...
-Fwoosh!
"Ugh! W-What?!"
The holy power in Ruin's hand began writhing like a snake.
"Hero!"
"What the hell is this?! Why does this shit only happen to me!!"
From his state, the holy power was rampaging out of his control.
In short, a time bomb ticked in his hand.
"Lib High Priest! What do we do?!"
"F-First, calm down! Holy power comes from the heart—"
"Whoa! It's spreading out?!"
"Oh, Goddess preserve us..."
To make matters worse, the holy power suddenly stretched out from his hand like it was trying to escape.
Its tip twitched like a head, then locked "eyes" with me.
No eyes, but that's how it felt.
'What the...?'
The moment I turned my head in the weird atmosphere, it charged at me like it'd spotted prey.
"Wha...!"
"No! Stop!"
Ruin desperately reached out, but the holy power touched me anyway.
It plunged toward my heart and burrowed straight into my body. Immediately after, tremendous holy power swirled through me.
"Wha...!"
Ruin covered his eyes as if bracing for a gruesome sight.
The moment I thought I was screwed, a sharp prick hit me.
Followed by tearing pain ripping through my entire body.
"Gah?!"
"Brother Is!"
Ruin blocked Lib High Priest as he reached for me.
"If that blows, you won't survive either! I'll hold it—you fall back!"
He shoved Lib behind him and spread his arms wide.
"Fuck, sorry!! I didn't know it'd end up like this!"
His face showed genuine remorse.
At least dying with a slightly improved Hero in my last sight might be some consolation—
-Whumm...
The light enveloping my body slowly receded, and the agonizing pain stopped.
"...Huh?"
"Fuck?"
"...Wow."
The holy power Ruin Hero couldn't handle...
I'd absorbed it.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Is! You're awake!"
Ariana peeked cautiously through the door, then bounded in like a happy retriever upon seeing me up.
The sight brought an involuntary fond smile to my face—until her next words froze it solid.
"But you feel different from usual? Your holy power... Did something happen while you were sleeping?"
"N-No, nothing while I was asleep, but something did happen after I woke up."
"What?! What happened?!"
She jolted at the mention and clung to me.
Looking at her, I gave an awkward smile and explained what had just gone down.
"I absorbed the Hero's holy power."
"...Pardon?"
She stared blankly, not comprehending.
Then...
"...So Is is the Hero now...?"
"No..."
She looked subtly pleased as she asked something ridiculous.
What a disaster waiting to happen...