Chapter 93
Chapter 93
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 93
Chapter Title: The Four-Armed Knight's Demise
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'It worked!'
The Heaven-Severing Cataclysm, after shattering all four weapons, finally managed to pierce the enemy's tough skin.
"Gurgle! Gurgle!"
The Four-Armed Knight flailed its arms, its eyes wide with disbelief.
Such a reaction was only natural.
'It must be because no human has ever pierced its hide.'
The Four-Armed Knight's body was covered in various wounds.
Scars left from slaughtering hundreds of expedition members, no doubt.
But not a single one among them could be called a significant blow.
Its skin was as hard as steel.
*Thud!*
Soon, the light faded from the Four-Armed Knight's eyes, and it collapsed powerlessly.
Surprisingly, the horse it had been riding also keeled over.
Considering it collapsed without being attacked, it seemed the two were connected as one.
"Phew!"
I let out a long sigh and grabbed my spinning head.
It was because I had forced myself to use the incomplete technique, the Heaven-Severing Cataclysm, and poured out a vast amount of aura.
Even with the Demonic Soul's assistance, I had clearly overexerted myself.
*Crumble!*
But then, the massive body of the Four-Armed Knight began to turn to sand and crumble away.
'They said it was like a gargoyle, and it even dies like one.'
I shuffled to the side to avoid the cascading pile of dirt and sand.
Just then, I spotted something shining amidst the pile of sand.
"Huh?"
The object, which looked like a dark red mineral cluster, was squirming slowly.
Like a living jewel, perhaps?
My gaze was captivated for a while by the object, the likes of which I had never seen before.
*Rustle!*
'What are you hesitating for? Just take it.'
Hearing the sound of someone approaching, I quickly moved my hand.
I deftly hid the jewel cluster in my sleeve and turned around nonchalantly.
Adelle came into view, struggling to carry the unconscious Camille Felton.
He must have been too heavy, as she gave up on carrying him any further.
But suddenly, I felt a pang of doubt about what I was doing.
'Isn't this a legitimate acquisition?'
I was the one who defeated it, after all.
So it's only right that the spoils of war belong to me.
The feeling of being a petty thief lasted only a moment before I rationalized my actions with the speed of light.
Besides, the important thing right now wasn't some jewel, but the fact that my face had been exposed.
Of course, Adelle had already seen it, but I couldn't reveal my identity to Camille as well.
'I might run into someone else, so the sooner, the better.'
*Swoosh! Crack!*
Drawing up my aura, I used the Seven-Joint Face-Changing Technique, and my face changed to that of the scholarship student, Ray Carter.
'Using it again so soon is quite a strain.'
Changing one's appearance through means other than magic was no easy feat.
The Seven-Joint Face-Changing Technique was also a secret art that was quite taxing to use consecutively.
But since the Demonic Soul provided an abundance of aura, I was able to succeed without much difficulty.
While I was doing that, Adelle Richter approached and spoke to me.
"He was much heavier than I expected."
"How is he? Is he okay?"
"I've treated his visible wounds, but he won't wake up. His internal injuries must be quite severe."
"You did well."
"All I did was find him and splash some potion on him. Anyway, did you defeat the Four-Armed Knight?"
She stared at the pile of gray sand with astonished eyes.
The four guardians of the Colossus Inget were monsters beyond comprehension.
It was no wonder she was surprised, since I had handled such a creature all by myself.
Adelle would surely become even more suspicious of me.
And just as I expected, she asked about my identity directly.
"Who... are you?"
I placed my index finger on Adelle Richter's lips and said.
"Shh! You'll get hurt if you know."
"Ah!"
*Cringe!*
It was a cringeworthy, cheesy line, but it was sure to be effective in this situation.
If I were in her shoes, it would have definitely worked on me.
Didn't she just let out a gasp?
But Adelle's response was not what I expected.
"Can't you do that with your other face? This one's a bit nauseating."
"Wow! Now I see your personality is even worse."
"You said it's okay to have a bad personality. So change it back."
"Change what back?"
"Bring back the handsome guy."
"Hey, looks aren't everything."
"Still, the difference is just too great."
I shook my head, looking at her.
But then, a thought crossed my mind.
'Wait a minute, doesn't this mean my real face was a big hit?'
Just as my happy thoughts were spinning, Adelle Richter's voice brought me back to reality.
"You have some unspeakable reason to hide your identity, don't you? A hidden master! Something like that?"
"Something like that, yes?"
"Your secret... I'll keep it."
What, just like that?
She said exactly what I wanted her to say before I could.
I thought she would ask for something in return, at least something small, so this was quite unexpected.
Sensing the question in my eyes, Adelle smiled brightly and said.
"Somehow, I don't think you'll bring harm to His Highness Ellington or me. In fact, I have a feeling you'll be a great help."
"Basing your judgment on a mere feeling? That's not like the comet of the ducal house."
"I came here in the first place because of a miscalculation, didn't I?"
"In any case, you'd be wise not to try and gain anything from this. I can just disappear, you know."
"That's not something I want either. I have to stick with you for a long time if I want to see your real face again, right?"
"..."
Why is *that* the goal!
I was about to shout that but ended up just letting out a short sigh.
Whatever the case, she didn't seem to have any intention of revealing my secret.
Plus, she'd taken quite a liking to me.
'I'll just watch her for a bit. I'm not letting this slide because Adelle Richter is pretty. Definitely not.'
Chanting that mantra to myself, I approached the sprawled-out Camille.
He looked fine on the outside, but traces of potion treatment were visible all over his body.
He must have been in a state of considerable injury when he was first found.
But now, he was...
"*Snore...*"
...just sleeping soundly.
"I can't exactly tell him to wake up."
With no way of knowing how severe his internal injuries were, I hoisted Camille Felton over my shoulder.
It looked like we'd have to travel like this for a while.
'My shoulder is no place for some random guy, but I'll make an exception for today.'
He did his part just by taking the first hit from the Four-Armed Knight.
He deserves at least this much.
"There are tracks over here. I think they belong to a survivor."
Just then, Adelle, who was looking around where the Four-Armed Knight had appeared, discovered a new clue.
I went closer to look, and they were clearly human footprints.
But I couldn't conclude that they belonged to the expedition members.
This forest wasn't just populated by ordinary humans.
"They could be druids who haven't transformed."
"Ah... you're right. What should we do?"
"Let's retreat for now. We have an injured person with us."
"Right. We can always come back to explore later."
Adelle readily nodded, and I immediately turned around and started retracing our steps.
The Forest of the Dead was a terrifying place where even veteran explorers could easily get lost.
The forest itself moved, causing confusion.
However, since we hadn't gone too deep yet, we were able to find our way back without much trouble.
But it was at that very moment.
"Shh! Stop for a second."
Sensing a strange presence, I urgently motioned to her.
Sure enough, a group soon appeared and was moving somewhere.
We held our breath, waiting for them to pass.
But they only loitered nearby, showing no signs of leaving.
Just then, their voices reached us.
"He's late. Tetra Manus should have wiped out the intruders by now."
"Still, they seemed quite skilled. Even in a brief clash, our Second-Order members were killed off in droves."
"They certainly didn't seem ordinary. But he's a guardian of the Colossus. Youngsters like them can't possibly win."
"Perhaps his patrol is taking longer than expected."
Listening to their faint voices, I quickly figured out who they were.
I gave Adelle Richter a hand signal and slowly backed away.
Once we were a safe distance away from them, we could finally talk.
"They're druids."
"I think so too. It seems they have some connection to the Four-Armed Knight."
"And did you see? Those guys... they're Fourth-Order."
I gestured with my chin toward the silver emblem of a strange spirit peeking out from under their hoods.
We were quite far away, but she was also able to quickly identify the necklace.
"Still, they should be weaker than the Four-Armed Knight, right?"
"Probably. But we can't beat them in our current state."
I'd also sustained minor internal injuries from forcing out the fifth form of the Heaven-Severing Demonic Chain Sword.
Of course, the Demonic Soul was rapidly healing me, but that wasn't the only problem.
There were two Fourth-Order druids.
I might be able to win somehow, but I couldn't guarantee Adelle's and Camille's lives.
"We've gathered the information we need. Let's get out of here."
"Okay."
We carefully turned and escaped the Forest of the Dead.
* * *
Despite the tragic fate of the expedition and the results of their investigation, the group couldn't return to Venderford right away.
Camille still hadn't woken up.
Traveling a long distance with internal injuries was out of the question, so they decided to stay in Marquis Penant's domain for the time being.
"Oh... The grounds are spacious. It's nice."
"Of course. The previous Marquis Penant gave us the best spot."
They were headed to the Richter ducal family's villa in Marquis Penant's domain.
'This place is nice, too. The problem is that the high-ranking nobles from the capital have already snatched up all the land, leaving no room for anyone else.'
As a historic resort area, they probably wouldn't give up a spot easily even if one became available.
It seemed to be used by Marquis Penant for managing his connections.
*Clack!*
As they opened the main gate and went inside, they saw servants moving about leisurely.
Soon, the gazes of those managing the villa were fixed on them.
After all, not many people could enter this place so confidently.
"Ah, Young Lady?"
"What brings you here without any notice? Please, come inside."
Naturally, they recognized Adelle Richter at once.
The servants rushed over, bustling about to take their luggage.
Then they noticed me standing there blankly with Camille on my back and shouted.
Their faces were filled with shock.
"The Young Lady... brought a man home?"
Is this really something to react so strongly to?