Chapter 116: Realization(2)
Chapter 116: Realization(2)
The legend the White Witch told me was, just as she’d said, a little absurd.
In short, it was about an ancient man who gained divine power, became immortal, and founded a kingdom.
“It is the ancient kingdom from which your relic bracelet originates. But it is such an old tale that it is treated as myth, so you need not take it too seriously.”
A man who gained divine power and became an immortal king. Not bad.
It didn't matter whether the legend was true or not.
And since the White Witch herself said it wasn't very credible, I figured it wasn't worth worrying about.
“Also, your concern about being controlled by Elena just because you gain divine power seems a bit excessive.
If such a thing were possible, there would be no apostates, nor would there be a need for inquisitors to judge corrupt clergy.”
Sweet.
Doesn't this mean I can keep sucking down the Saintess's breast milk—no, her divine power—without any worries?
The memory of that addictive milky taste made my mouth water. I wanted a sip right now.
I wanted to have fun with the White Witch today, too, but it was getting seriously late.
I could guarantee that if we indulged now, I definitely wouldn't make it back on time.
“My lady Witch. I think I must be going now.”
“Is that so... You are returning early today?”
“It’s almost morning.”
“Right... It is almost morning.”
Seeing the witch's crestfallen expression, I couldn't help but feel sorry. Maybe I should have just left and come back tomorrow to give her all the attention she wanted.
“Ah, speaking of which, did you not once tell me there was a way for you to use magic directly?
When will you begin learning that in earnest?”
Even though I’d said I was leaving, she kept throwing out topics to try and keep me here.
It seemed she was truly sad to see me go.
Lately, this behavior had been getting more pronounced, to the point where I felt she was becoming anxious about me leaving.
Kerry noticed the White Witch's intentions but pretended to be oblivious as he spoke.
“I need to learn that soon, too.”
“Yes. You certainly do.”
Come to think of it, I still hadn't replaced the magic in the hero-grade orb.
That meant the dream-stealing magic was still stored inside.
Dammit. The Saintess had thrown me off so much.
I suppose because I had the sturdy bracelet Lina gave me, I’d stopped paying attention to the orb.
Can't let my guard down. I'll have to be more careful from now on.
“My lady Witch. The sun is really coming up, so I have to go. In return, I’ll make you twice as happy next time I come!”
“Make me twice as happy? What do you mean by that?”
Kerry slapped his hands together lewdly. It meant he was going to fuck her.
The White Witch understood the sign, and her face instantly turned beet red.
“Y-you don't have to do that! Twice... I can't even handle it normally.
No. In the first place, isn't that for your sake, not mine?”
“Anyway! I’ll be sure to make up for what we couldn't do today! Even if it’s tomorrow night!”
“I said you don’t have to!”
“My lady Witch. Well then, I’ll really be on my way now.”
The White Witch waved at Kerry.
Kerry vanished abruptly, as if he had never been there.
The White Witch was left alone in the silence of the bedroom. Sometimes she wondered if Kerry had ever really been there at all.
She felt so lonely that she even wondered if he was just a phantom she had created herself.
“I should... change my underwear.”
I was hoping he would do it today.
To think he would just leave like that. But when he promised to do it twice, the thought alone was enough to make her pussy ache.
As if that intense sex wasn't enough, he was talking about doing it twice...
The White Witch recalled the scent she had caught when Kerry had playfully approached her.
Another woman's scent.
Kerry sometimes came bearing the scent of a woman, but for some reason, it felt more bitter today.
A man like Kerry was hard to find even 100 years ago. He must be popular in the outside world.
The White Witch didn't want to let Kerry out. She was afraid of losing him to another woman.
But the White Witch knew. The more she clung to him, the more he would find her difficult.
The White Witch could only soothe her bitter heart alone.
*
Kerry returned to the abandoned house where the party was staying. As expected, dawn was breaking outside. I really took my sweet time getting back.
Fortunately, everyone in the party was asleep. The Saintess must have fallen asleep quickly, too, as she was breathing softly.
Kerry carefully lay down in his original spot.
Just then, Lina, who had her back to Kerry, slowly opened her eyes.
Lina had been awake. Ever since the Saintess returned. Even then, she had pretended to be asleep.
Her relationship with the Saintess was still awkward.
‘Why did those two... disappear at night and then reappear?’
No. To be precise, she hadn't seen the two of them disappear together.
Lina had been asleep when Kerry and the Saintess left.
But the mere fact that they had disappeared and reappeared in the middle of the night was strange.
‘Why would Sir Kerry and the Saintess leave together? Don't tell me...’
No way. It couldn't be. Kerry had Natasha.
Then again, that was just Natasha's one-sided affection, so there would be no problem even if Kerry and the Saintess started dating.
A heavy feeling settled in Lina's chest.
She wasn't Kerry's girlfriend or anything. So why did she feel this way?
The man with the unseen face she sometimes saw in her dreams.
Her chest felt as heavy now as it did when she saw that man. Maybe it was just a simple misunderstanding.
Maybe they had just left at the same time by coincidence.
‘Besides, the Saintess and Sir Kerry... they aren't on good terms. There's no way they'd be dating.’
The weight in her chest eased a little.
‘Should I ask Sir Kerry in the morning? Why they left together...’
It was then that a palpable killing intent began to emanate from outside.
Lina shot up from her spot.
“Enemies! Everyone, wake up!”
At Lina's words, the party awoke. Kerry hadn't even gotten a wink of proper sleep. Let me get some sleep, for fuck's sake.
The party quickly prepared for battle and went outside the abandoned house.
Faint glints of light shone through the thick fog.
“We're surrounded.”
“Something's strange. Do monsters normally surround their prey like this?
Usually, they'd just charge instinctively. It's as if they were waiting for us to come out.”
“You're right. And judging by the shadows in the fog, there are even types of monsters that don't travel in packs.”
“Then this is...”
“Barikmeteo's handiwork, I'd imagine.”
The party members nodded.
The only one who would pull a stunt like this was that cat. Bring it on. We're not scared anymore.
Victoria moved to Kerry's side.
“Kerry. Don't leave my side.”
“Yes, Victoria.”
Just then, a beastly howl echoed.
Awooooooo—
The howl was a signal, and dozens of monsters charged toward Lina's party.
Lina was the first to dash forward.
Natasha glanced at Kerry, and after confirming he was safe, she too charged out.
Victoria protected Kerry and the grandmother. The Saintess subtly moved closer to them as well.
The party was stronger than before. Lina had obtained the Boots of Hermes, making her movements incomparably faster.
I’d thought she was fast before, but now she moved so quickly you could hear the wind part as she slaughtered the monsters.
It was the same for Natasha.
With her curse completely lifted, Natasha's movements were incredibly light.
She practically flew, as if her feet barely touched the ground, as she killed monster after monster.
Victoria, too, killed the monsters charging from the rear with her sword and shield. The sight of Victoria holding her shield was reassuring.
“...They're as strong as a hero party should be.”
The Saintess, seeing Lina's party in combat for the first time, muttered to herself.
They were truly overwhelming their foes, to the point where the rear guard felt no need to step in.
Before long, the surroundings were littered with the dismembered corpses of monsters.
Kerry didn't just stand by and watch.
He used the tracking magic inscribed on the low-grade Magic Storage Orb.
A pulse of mana spread out. In the returning pulse, he could feel Barikmeteo.
“Barikmeteo. Stop hiding and come out. You came here for a fight, didn't you?”
From the direction Kerry was speaking, a pair of large, yellow eyes began to glow.
It was the pair of eyes that hadn't moved an inch even as all the other monsters charged.
“Khuhuhuhu.”
With heavy footsteps, a lion-headed monster emerged from the fog.
Lina stood at the very front of the party, raising her sword toward the lion-headed fiend.
“To think you'd crawl all the way here. You bastards are truly relentless.
First, let me ask you one thing. Did you kill Nassen?”
Lina answered for the group.
“...Yes. And you'll be following him soon enough, Barikmeteo.”
“...”
Barikmeteo stroked his mane.
Nassen had definitely gone off, saying he would find a good item for him.
He worried that perhaps the heroes had taken that item for themselves.
Of course, the "good item" Nassen had been looking for, the Doll Ginseng, had been well-received by Kerry.
“One last question.
How did you find this place? How do you know where the organization's important hideouts are and go looking for them?”
Because our Lina is a Regressor, of course.
“We have no obligation to tell you that.”
“...You annoying bitch of a hero. If you're that eager to die, I'll grant your wish.”
Barikmeteo snapped his fingers.
At that moment, five figures appeared behind him.
The five figures looked identical to Lina and her party.
“Another troublesome spell...”
Lina glared at Barikmeteo's missing left arm. This had to be a spell that used that arm as a sacrifice.
Lina knew this was originally a spell used by the Idol Worshippers.
“Kekekek. This will be the last time I have to deal with you troublesome pests.”
The dark figures in the shape of the hero party charged.
Lina's dark figure rushed toward Lina.
Natasha's dark figure rushed toward Natasha. Each one had targeted its double.
Even the grandmother had a dark figure latched onto her.
“...”
Everyone was facing a dark figure that resembled them.
Amidst it all, one person was left feeling awkward.
“...What about me?”
It was good that I didn't have one, but then again, maybe not. This is a little awkward.
It was then.
Barikmeteo dragged his massive body over to stand before Kerry.
“I will play with you, you bothersome man.”
“...”
Why is it always me you're fucking with?
Barikmeteo was so large he could have swallowed Kerry in one bite if he'd wanted to.
There was no way to win in a head-on fight.
Kerry glanced at his party.
They were all struggling, fighting their own shadows.
“Husband!”
Natasha, seeing Kerry in danger, began to get agitated. Just then, Lina shouted.
“Natasha! You mustn't get excited! These shadows mimic our forms!
If you go berserk, the shadow will go berserk too!”
What kind of annoying bullshit was that?
Just as Kerry's attention was momentarily diverted to the party, a dark shadow fell over his head.
Feeling a chill, Kerry immediately cast his shield.
“Shield!”
CRASH—
Holy shit. I thought I was going to die. Barikmeteo's front paw was blocked by Kerry's shield.
“What kind of magic is this? It feels different from what you used before.”
“Fuck me. You damn pussycat. You sure ask a lot of questions.”
“...P-pussycat?”
Barikmeteo growled, extending his claws. He began to attack Kerry's shield indiscriminately.
SCREEECH— KRA-KAAANG!
Barikmeteo only had one arm, but that one arm was threatening enough.
Sparks flew violently as Barikmeteo's prized claws clashed with the shield.
But it was useless.
The bracelet Lina had given him was glowing, keeping the shield firm.
It was a relic-grade bracelet, after all.
Hooray for Lina! All hail the Regressor!
Barikmeteo's attacks were fierce, and it was draining a lot of mana, but the shield didn't even crack.
The relic bracelet Lina had given me was a strange artifact that created a stronger shield the more mana you poured into it.
Even for Barikmeteo, it would be difficult to instantly break the shield of Kerry, who possessed twenty years' worth of mana from consuming two elixirs.
“Haa... haa... ha... What kind of shield is this... Weren't you an intermediate-level mage?”
Judging by the shield's integrity alone, it seemed on par with that of a high-level mage.
Of course, if Barikmeteo had both his hands and his full strength, he might have been able to break Kerry's shield.
“Serves you right, you damn cat.”
Kerry leisurely observed his party from within the safety of his shield. They were all locked in combat with their shadow-like doppelgängers.
It seemed their skills were as similar as their appearances, as neither side was gaining an advantage in the evenly matched fights.
It was then.
Lina staggered, and her shadow began to push her back.
‘Why is our most reliable Regressor being pushed back?’
Kerry didn't know it, but Lina was finding it impossible to concentrate.
It was because she had discovered Kerry and the Saintess returning late at night.
Lina parried the shadow's sword, her thoughts racing.
‘I can't let myself be shaken. Why does the image of Sir Kerry coming back late at night keep popping into my head?’
The shadow before her was unfazed by any worldly troubles, simply swinging its sword.
Lina wanted to be like that.
She wanted to become a single sword, to fulfill her duty as the hero.
But in reality, her mind was filled with thoughts of Kerry.
Just then, Barikmeteo began to move toward Lina's party.