A Vow for the Princess (1)
The sight of a tall, handsome young man bleeding profusely as he transformed into an unrecognizable lump of meat was truly horrifying. Even more chilling was the way the meat lump continued to thrash and scream in agony. The banquet, once filled with fervent praise for the Platinum Princess, instantly descended into chaos.
Suitors scrambled over one another in their desperate flight. The villa servants who had been serving food moments earlier fled in panic.
“Your Highness!”
At the same time, knights burst through the doors with swords drawn. Cecilia, the Lady Knight, and her elite subordinates rushed to shield Elizabetta, who sat at the head table.
“Escort Her Highness away at once!”
“This place is dangerous! We must reach the safehouse immediately—!”
Elizabetta, cradling the green-haired girl in her arms, stared in shock at the writhing mass of flesh. Her trembling gaze then shifted to Edanant, who stood facing the creature.
That thing… was really Dagileg Branon?
Not a single trace of the refined young noble remained. The memory of having calmly conversed with such a monster made her stomach churn.
The knights, under orders to protect the princess, roughly guided her away, their faces etched with anxiety over her safety. Surrounded by a solid wall of guards, Elizabetta reached out toward Edanant.
“Edanant!!”
“I’m fine. I’ll deal with him and follow right after.”
He offered a grateful smile to both Elizabetta and Lue, who had willingly cooperated despite the reckless plan. Then his expression hardened as he turned to face the lump of flesh, raising his pistol once more and aiming at the writhing monster. Even with a bullet hole through its head, the creature still radiated an unnatural vitality.
Its body should be a mess of overlapping spells and blessings… How is it still alive? Is an Apostle blessed by a forgotten god truly on another level? Tougher than even the Bomb Maniac who resurrected as a monster.
When the bullet fired from the muzzle struck the creature’s head, a metallic clang rang out. Though its entire body had melted into a wax-like state, it had hardened like steel. Edanant narrowed his eyes.
Hardening. So that’s the blessing’s ability. This just got annoying.
As if to prove that its unique power was hardening, the monster’s body—formerly disguised as Dagileg Branon—began to be covered in black-gray metal.
Creak, creak, creak—!
Crack-crack-crack-crack—!!!
Tch. Apostles who wield hardening are always a pain.
The monster, now encased in black-gray metal, slowly rose to its feet and regained a humanoid shape. The spells and blessings that had been rampaging through its body after being torn apart by the Holy Sword were rendered useless.
Clicking his tongue, Edanant raised the Holy Sword Aldebaran.
“It’s definitely a demon! Strike it down!”
“I’ll take its head right now—!”
The doors flew open again as knights in full plate armor charged in. They froze momentarily at the sight of the metal-covered monster, but quickly regained their composure and pointed their blades at the creature.
The plan’s gone to hell. I only told them to stay on alert…
Edanant felt a wave of exasperation at the knights who had recklessly charged in, driven by their desire for glory. How did they think they could handle this? Even veteran senior knights risked their lives fighting demons.
—Graaaaaaaaaah!!
The metal-reinforced monster kicked off the ground and slammed into the knights like a cannonball. The knights swung their mana blades, attempting to bisect the creature, but—
Clang!!
The mana blades shattered. The black-gray metal had won the clash. The result was devastating. The knights who took the monster’s frontal charge were crushed along with their armor, flattened like aluminum cans. With a single scream, they were sent tumbling across the floor, paying the price for their recklessness.
—What the hell are you? How did you see through my identity… How did you pierce my perfect disguise?
A grotesque voice, like nails scraping across a chalkboard, echoed from behind the metal. Having abandoned all pretense of disguise, the monster spoke to Edanant in its own chilling voice rather than Dagileg’s refined tone.
“You always make me sick. So I can instinctively tell when you rats are hiding nearby.”
—……
Any conversation steeped only in hostility was meaningless. Even a moment’s respite was a luxury. As if to prove it, Edanant and the monster charged at each other simultaneously.
Maximilian…! Lend me your swordsmanship like always!
He brought down the violet blade in a whirlwind of rapid strikes. The hero’s swordsmanship rained down blow after blow, as if it would tear through alloy at any moment. With each clash of metal, countless sword marks appeared on the monster’s hardened body. But that was all. The marks were shallow; they failed to cut deep.
Too tough. Even Maximilian’s swordsmanship couldn’t break through.
—A futile struggle. Trying to cut through Gray Demon Iron with mere swordsmanship.
If the one who had created the swordsmanship had wielded it, the monster would have been bisected without a second thought. But Edanant’s technique was only an imitation, so it naturally couldn’t match the original. He knew that better than anyone. Yet he swung his sword anyway, fully aware that it wouldn’t work.
The monster’s face, once relaxed, twisted in an instant.
—Graaah! Y-You bastard…!!
Through the cracks that had formed in the black-gray metal, the Holy Sword’s divinity began to seep in. The monster, which had once been reduced to a lump of flesh when its spells and blessings were destroyed all at once, now felt the chilling fear of death.
The divinity was eating into it. It was trying to destroy the hardening blessing that formed its armor. It was a terrifying attack. To a demon, Aldebaran’s divinity was like a plague that rotted the body.
—But the same trick won’t work twice.
Whoosh—!
The metal that had protected its body like an exoskeleton fell away. Just before Aldebaran’s divinity could reach its insides, the monster had cleverly shed the infested bio-armor, like a cicada shedding its shell. The attack was rendered completely ineffective.
Good enough. The Holy Sword Aldebaran is no longer a concern. All that’s left is to turn the man in front of me into pulp with everything I’ve got.
Having seized the advantage, the monster smiled viciously and raised its arm, now encased in black demon iron.
* * *
It had neutralized the Holy Sword Aldebaran’s terrifying ability to destroy blessings. The tide had clearly turned. Now the man was no different from an unarmed weakling. What could a Holy Sword user do without their sword? He was nothing more than a pathetic human who worshipped the Earth Mother. As a true devotee of the real god, the monster believed an insurmountable gap existed between them.
Therefore, it intended to prove that gap from now on.
—Graaah!!
But why—
Why couldn’t it land even a single counterattack?
The monster glared at Edanant, who was raising his pistol while clutching his tattered, rag-like body.
“What’s wrong? Weren’t you supposed to win?”
The advantage the monster had been so certain of remained firmly in Edanant’s hands. Edanant von Hohenberg wore a relaxed expression, like a seasoned hunter. He had fired the moment the monster shed its bio-armor after being infested by the Holy Sword’s divinity. The bullet that left the muzzle struck the now-unprotected flesh with perfect accuracy. It was nearly a guaranteed hit. No matter how the monster tried to block with its armored hands or create distance to dodge, the bullet always found its mark, tearing through its defenseless body.
Faced with marksmanship that targeted vital points with unerring precision, Meyros began to feel the fear of death.
“It’s easier to hunt a fully fallen demon than one that’s only halfway there. In that sense, you’re worse than the Bomb Maniac.”
—Shut up!! You dare say I’m inferior to some mere criminal?
It was humiliating. It felt like a desecration of his devout faith. But at the moment, there was no way to retaliate. Edanant’s combat instincts, which perfectly handled every variable and even turned them against his opponent, were nearly flawless. As expected of the War Maniac who had sent countless demons to hell.
—Grrrgh!!
His left eye was gone. His shoulder and side were in tatters. His left arm, riddled with bullet wounds, could barely move. At this rate, he would lose. He would die without even landing a single counterattack.
The descent of the god is near…! I can’t die before achieving our grand goal!! Even if only to repay the blessing granted by the holy god, I must reach the Platinum Princess…
Elizabetta, who had willingly acted as bait, was escaping the scene under the cover of Cecilia and the knights. If they gained just a little more distance, even their presence would become undetectable. He needed time to regenerate his body. He also had to deal with the spells and blessings still rampaging inside him.
Sensing the disadvantage, Meyros quickly turned and fled. With a bio-armored fist, he smashed through the thick wall, creating an escape route.