Chapter 261
"Heh, heh heh. Oh, was it a misunderstanding? You should have said so earlier..."
Rezé gave an awkward smile. But it wasn't a situation that could be brushed off with a smile.
"You're laughing after turning me into this mess!"
"Eek! I'm sorry!"
My face was currently covered in bruises.
Rezé had shot dozens of wooden shafts from her bowstring.
The number was one thing, but her accuracy was insane. Even when I blocked with my arms, they curved and hit my face.
As a result, my face was a disaster.
It was hard to tell if it was a human face or a purple slime.
"My handsome face is ruined! Take responsibility!"
"Your face was weird from the start...?"
"What did you say!?"
"Eek! Don't shove your dirty face at me!"
When told not to do something, the urge to do it grows stronger.
I brought my face close to Rezé's and whispered.
"Isn't it ridiculous? That I would bully Luna. If anything, it's the other way around."
"Luna would never do that. Besides, I saw you making her cry earlier!"
She was referring to the time we made up behind the rock.
Even from far away, amidst the chaos, she saw everything while sniping wind bugs.
Her battlefield awareness was incredible.
"Apologize."
"Excuse me?"
"Apologize to Luna!"
Rezé shouted in a crawling voice. Her gaze was still fixed on the ground.
Considering Rezé's timid nature, this was a huge step forward.
'Did this rabbit eat something bad? Why is she acting up?'
To me, it was an insolent act.
It seemed a mental education session was long overdue.
"Keke, Rezé, please follow me for a moment. I have something to discuss."
"What if I refuse?"
"Then I'll have to take you by force."
"Huh...?"
I grabbed Rezé by the waist.
She tried to kick with her rabbit-like hind legs, but she was already securely tucked under my arm.
She couldn't harm me at all.
"Let's go. I have a delightful torture... I mean, happy torture technique I learned from Mr. Caron."
"Both are torture!"
"Now that you mention it, you're right. But what's important is that one can become happy."
"How can someone be happy while being tortured?"
"I think you misunderstood. I never said the tortured person would be happy."
"Huh...?"
That's right. The tortured person can't be happy. Only a perverted person who finds pleasure in inflicting pain might be happy.
And that torturer.
"Is me. I will torture you for my happiness, Rezé."
"Eeeek!"
Rezé started screaming as she grasped the situation.
While dragging her to a secluded place, I watched Luna's reaction.
Hmm... At this point, Luna should be foaming at the mouth and charging at me, but she wasn't reacting.
Does Luna also agree with the torture?
"Ahahaha!"
It was then. Luna burst into loud laughter.
Far from foaming at the mouth, she was busy laughing heartily.
What? Is this a new attack method?
Is she trying to catch me off guard and then suddenly attack?
While keeping an eye on Luna, she wiped away a tear with her finger and spoke.
"Ahaha! This is how friends should be. I'm glad you two are getting along."
I'm dragging her for torture, and it looks like we're getting along.
As expected, she was as strange as Rezé.
Maybe I'm the only sane person in this world.
"Keke, you've grown."
"Huh?"
"You were crying earlier, telling me not to get closer to her."
"When did I say that!"
"I didn't say to get closer to her than me. You idiot~."
I mimicked Luna's voice, raising it high. Then she pounced immediately.
"Shut up!"
Crack-!
Luna twisted my neck. My neck turned about 45 degrees to the left.
Hmm, a familiar view. I used to attend classes like this before.
"Let's stop joking around... What are we going to do now? It looks like demons have appeared in Area 3 as well."
Looking at the distant Area 3.
Holy power was blazing up brilliantly.
"Keke, of course, we should go. It's a chance to grow."
-Moving to Area 1.
-Move to Area 3.
-Stay in the current zone.
Choices given at each maintenance time. Since I had no more business here, I didn't hesitate and selected an option.
I chose 'Move to Area 3.'
"Wouldn't it be more helpful if a weak-willed person like me didn't go?"
Came the Rezé's words from my side.
I gently set her down on the ground and whispered.
"Keke, there's a saying that when the rabbit dies, the dog gets cooked. Or, in this case, when the demon dies, the rabbit gets cooked." (TL Note: It's an ancient chinese saying (兔死狗烹), which means that, once someone's usefulness is over, they are discarded)
"Such a terrible saying!"
"But as you know, I am a kind person. If you achieve a great feat this time, I might 'specially' spare you. For instance... if you reach Area 3 first and secure a good sniping spot?"
"Eeeek!"
Rezé, wearing a box, sprang forward.
She quickly melded with the surroundings, disappearing in no time. Luna mumbled as she watched.
"Rezé seems more excited than usual."
"It might be the opposite."
"Huh?"
"I mean she might be overdoing it."
With the ongoing fight against demons, she might be losing her mind.
Her defiance against me might be part of that.
"It will be a good test."
"A test? Isn't she already passing? Honestly, she’s done more than I have."
No, she still has a long way to go. Not just her tendency to run away when attacked.
‘The fact that she hasn’t scored a single critical hit despite so many attacks is disappointing.’
It’s not dissatisfaction, but a sense of regret.
Rezé’s attacks are already powerful. If she landed a critical hit?
‘It would be like shooting a bomb with a gun.’
The bugs would vanish without a trace. The same would go for the demons.
Imagining Rezé killing ground worms and wind bugs with one shot, I realized one thing.
‘Hmm... I might be in that category too?’
Cold sweat ran down my back.
I looked around, but there was no sign of Rezé.
It was natural, as she had blended into the natural environment with the box. She was far enough that even my [Hyper Sense] couldn’t detect her.
‘She might suddenly shoot me. The current Rezé is a crazy pufferfish rabbit.’
I might just shoot!
- I could almost hear Rezé's voice saying that.
I quickly hid behind Luna.
"A test... You won't kick her out if she fails, right?"
Maybe the word ‘test’ made her anxious. Luna’s eyebrows slightly twitched.
"No, I won’t. There’s still value in studying her. She’s too valuable to give up on."
"Rezé isn’t a research animal. Well, as long as you're giving her more chances, that’s fine. Let’s go quickly. We need to help!"
Luna grabbed my hand and started running.
Luna was right. We needed to help...
The poor demon getting beaten by Victoria.
*
[Turn 17]
As soon as we reached Area 3, a hologram window popped up, forcibly stopping our actions.
We had cleared Area 2 in Turn 16.
Turn 17 was entirely consumed by moving, so it was natural to be halted.
‘We can only act from Turn 18.’
The problem was that the demon in Area 3, Balmonga, would disappear on Turn 22.
This meant we had at most 5 turns to act.
It might seem like a tight schedule, but the reality was different.
"Argh! You filthy humans!"
The demon Balmonga in Area 3 was busy screaming.
It was to be expected. The team in charge of Area 3 was from the Holy Kingdom, specifically Victoria’s faction. They followed the goddess Gaia, who loved violence.
There was no way a weak(?) demon could withstand it.
"Die! Fire Field!"
Fire Field. This was Balmonga's gimmick.
Each turn, it deals damage to a radius of 10 tiles around it. It inflicts 20% of a character's max health in fire damage.
Since it was fire magic, its damage could be reduced with magic resistance or attribute resistance, but in the early stage of Chapter 2, no one had such resistance.
As the battlefield blazed, the children started screaming one by one.
"Ugh! The flames again!"
"Oh goddess!"
"Heal each other!"
The children began to heal one another.
The Victoria faction consisted entirely of priests who could use the healing skill [Healing].
And this was the reason Balmonga was suffering.
"Argh! You dirty scum! How are you any different from cockroaches?"
Balmonga cried out, pounding the ground.
It was understandable. The priests' health hadn't decreased even a bit from 100%.
[Turn 18]
"Huh? Zero? And Luna?"
Victoria noticed us as we entered Turn 18.
"Keke, we've come to help."
"I see. It looks like things are settled over there?"
"More or less. There are some injured, but the priests you sent should be able to handle it."
"Oh~ Hohoho! As expected of me. You must admit, my foresight was brilliant, wasn't it?"
Victoria lifted her face, letting out her characteristic laugh.
Well, let's go with that. Thanks to Victoria's decision, the children weren't dying, as per the game's story.
The problem now is...
"May I assist you?"
"There's no need. I don't want my achievements to be stolen."
It meant it wasn't easy to intervene in Victoria's fight. The Victoria faction alone could kill the demon.
To get involved in this fight, we needed to:
[1. Offer Victoria a reward.]
[You must give up the highest-grade item your party currently holds.]
[2. Defeat the demon without negotiating.]
[Victoria's faction's favorability towards your party will drop significantly.]
We had to pay one of these prices.
For reference, I was thinking of choosing option 2.
The highest-grade item our party had was Luna’s ‘Spirit’s Breath.’
'If I recklessly give away the item Caron gave us, I might have to give up my life too.'
Although it would be troublesome to become enemies with Victoria's faction, it wasn't more important than my life.
Just as I was about to choose option 2.
"Help me! Not them, help me!"
Victoria’s eyes widened. It wasn't a human voice.
"A demon...?"
Yes, it was the fire demon Balmonga who had spoken. He was shouting for help.
And the person he was asking for help from was...
"...Zero?"
It was me.
It seemed my skills were causing another problem.
"Such good energy. Keke, it's comparable to ours."
"..."
"You must have been hiding in the human world, waiting for an opportunity. Now is the time! Join me and let's crush these damn humans!"
Luna scratched the back of her head and gave me a look.
'Is it you again?'
-That's what her eyes were saying. Something similar had happened with the demon's shard before, so it was bothersome but understandable.
Of course.
"A demon acting friendly! Zero, did you make a pact with the demon?"
Victoria was different. She summoned her holy power.
She was ready to purify me at any moment.
"Keke, how could that be possible."
"You seem pretty close."
Close? Sure. We’ve met thousands of times in the game.
"That's impossible. Keke, Balmonga. Just the name itself is terrifying."
"...I don't think the demon mentioned his name since you arrived. Do you know him?"
Oops. Did he not?
"Keke, of course not. I just mistook him for someone I know."
"Who?"
"Luna. The names sound similar, so I got confused."
"...?"
When our Luna gets mad, she looks just like that.
Look, see how she’s glaring at me? Doesn't she look exactly like a demon?
"Sigh... I don't want to suspect you, Zero, but this is too suspicious."
"Keke, it’s just a misunderstanding. Don’t you think the demon is trying to deceive us with lies?"
"A misunderstanding... Yes, that could be. But in case there's a slight chance... you need to prove it."
Victoria took a step closer and whispered to me.
"Kill that demon yourself. Then your innocence will be naturally proven."
A new option was added to the two choices floating in front of me.
[3. Kill the demon yourself to prove your innocence.]
[Victoria’s favorability towards you will increase.]
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