Chapter 99: Descent
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 99: Descent
“……”
Silence. More silence.
Even Pink Bear, who prided himself on having seen all the world's nonsense, found himself at a bit of a loss.
He had killed plenty of fanatical evil cultists, but this was the first time he’d seen one turn coat and surrender like this. What was the protocol here?
“Does the Great One not believe me?”
Seeing Pink Bear’s silence, Scarface assumed he wasn't trusted. He snatched up his heavy blade, marched over to the withered figure he had kicked across the room, and brought the blade down. Slash, slash, slash.
The way he raised his blade and struck with such ruthless, cold-blooded efficiency made one wonder if the withered figure had murdered Scarface’s entire family.
In reality, the two of them had only met for the first time today. Until moments ago, they had been allies.
“Stop, stop, stop! That’s enough.”
Seeing the withered figure about to be minced into fine meat filling, Pink Bear finally couldn't help but call a halt.
“I’ll believe you for now. Stop chopping. If you mince him that finely, cleaning the floor later will be a nightmare.”
“Really?”
Scarface’s face lit up with joy.
He immediately scurried over to Pink Bear, grabbed the bear’s paw, and shook it vigorously.
“Thank you, Great One! Thank you! Your kindness is like that of a second parent to me, it’s like—”
“Stop, stop, stop…”
Pink Bear pulled his paw back with a look of disgust and glanced at Scarface.
“Let’s get one thing straight: I don’t fully trust you. I’m only sparing your life for the moment. If you try anything suspicious, I’ll immediately—wait.”
As if suddenly discovering something, Pink Bear grabbed Scarface by the shoulder, sensing something intently.
After a moment, he said in astonishment, “You haven't been corrupted by the Evil God?”
“Eh? Evil God corruption? What do you mean?”
“Aren't you a believer of that disgusting Love God?”
“Love God?”
Scarface scratched his head, looking bewildered. After a moment, a look of realization dawned on him. “Oh! You mean the one the High Priest is always talking about? The one he makes us bow to every day? Why would I believe in Him? He doesn't pay me.”
“But if you aren't a believer of the Love God, why were you hanging around those guys?”
“Oh, that. I was just wandering the streets when I saw them handing out flyers. They said they could help me find my true love, so I went.”
At this, a flash of anger crossed Scarface’s face.
“Now I realize they’re just a bunch of scammers! Once I got in, they made me memorize scriptures and hold judgment meetings. Now they’ve sent me on this dangerous mission to invade the Academy. And I still haven't found my true love!”
Pink Bear was even more shocked. “You walked right into an Evil God’s den, and you think believing is optional?”
“Wait, could it be…”
Pink Bear rubbed his chin, studying Scarface closely. “You don't possess even a shred of Twisted Love? Is that why the Evil God’s whispers don't work on you?”
“What do you mean, Twisted Love!”
Scarface was indignant. “Even a Great One shouldn't insult my pure feelings like that! What I have is True Love!”
“……”
Pink Bear was silent for a moment before suddenly asking, “I recall that so-called True Love Cult is a rather famous gay cult in Belland.”
“Yeah, it’s for men. Why else would I join?”
“If I may ask… your true love is…”
“It’s him!”
Scarface suddenly pulled a portrait from behind his back and unfurled it in front of Pink Bear, a blissful blush creeping onto his face.
“The man who will eventually be my brigand’s bride.”
“…This is.”
Pink Bear leaned in. Looking at the lifelike portrait of the handsome blond man, he couldn't help but feel puzzled.
“Strange, this guy looks awfully familiar. He seems to be that famous someone-or-other from the Academy… and he seems to have a connection with little Celicia…”
“I think… I’ve discovered something very interesting.”
“Hm? Does the Great One know him?” Scarface’s eyes lit up. “His name is Muen Campbell. Do you know where he is?”
“Well…”
Pink Bear’s smile became meaningful. He patted Scarface on the shoulder and said, “Work hard for me, and sooner or later, you’ll meet your true love.”
“Yes, sir!”
Scarface immediately stood at attention, looking like a loyal lackey.
“By the way, what’s your name?”
“Kelun.”
“Alright, Kelun. Go clean the floor first.”
“Understood!”
Kelun took the cleaning tools that Pink Bear pulled out of his pitch-black, black-hole-like bear mouth and trotted over to the withered figure’s remains, ready to scrub away the gore.
But just as he was about to start, he felt a bone-chilling cold.
It was as if he were being watched by a pair of malicious eyes.
Kelun instinctively turned his head. He saw that the withered figure, despite having only a single intact head left, was still alive. He was staring at Kelun with a frigid, deathly gaze.
“Holy crap, what the hell?”
Startled, Kelun instinctively reached for his blade to strike again.
But then, he heard a sharp shout.
“Get down!”
Without thinking, Kelun obeyed the command and ducked.
A gust of wind whistled over his head, making his scalp tingle.
Pink Bear had appeared beside the withered figure in an instant, raising his mace—and smashing it down!
In a flash, half of the withered figure’s head was pulverized. Red and white matter splattered everywhere, a nauseating sight.
Yet the remaining half of the head remained alive, casting a mocking glance at Pink Bear.
“Heh… heh… it’s too late… actually… my presence here… was only to confirm the existence of that thing… and that was enough…”
The withered figure’s half-mouth curled into a grin, emitting a harsh sound like metal scraping against metal as he cried out fanatically:
“The Moon… is eternal!”
In an instant.
The meager amount of blood that had flowed from the withered figure’s mangled body began to writhe of its own accord, swirling into a bizarre pattern.
At the same time, the lantern—which both Scarface and Pink Bear had strangely forgotten—appeared beside the pattern.
The light in the lantern suddenly died. In its place, an azure glimmer lit up from the pattern, like moonlight, tracing it with a sense of deathly silence and cold.
The blue moonlight pulsed rhythmically, as if echoing a presence from a vast distance.
“Is this… a coordinate altar for the Evil God?”
Pink Bear’s pupils shrank. Ignoring everything else, he slammed his mace down, shattering the pattern along with the surrounding floor!
But, just as the withered figure had said, it was too late.
He didn't have time to worry about how much of a fit Professor Prang would throw over him smashing a giant hole in the rare-metal floor. Pink Bear looked up in horror.
Even through the hundreds of meters of thick rock above them, Pink Bear felt it. High above in the infinite sky, a terrifying existence was slowly turning its gaze toward this place.
That gaze was so horrific it felt like an absolute suppression of life itself. Even across an infinite distance, it made Pink Bear’s soul tremble.
In the heavens, a massive, azure moon hung high.
“Crap, crap! There really was a Plan C?”
Kelun, who had also sensed something, turned pale. He began to wonder if turning coat so quickly had been a mistake.
He wondered if he switched sides again right now, would that big boss called the Moon-whatever forgive him?
“Wait.”
Ignoring Kelun’s petty thoughts, Pink Bear sensed something else and turned his head toward another direction.
That direction was… the student dorms!
His tone grew increasingly grim.
“There’s… more than one?”