〈 Chapter 148 〉 147th Chapter – VS CATS (3)
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“Oh my Lord!! With your last strength!!!”
Peria slammed the shield hard onto the ground.
Suddenly, a massive white barrier manifested from the shield, enveloping both Peria and Caressy.
It was the same barrier that had blocked all the students’ attacks in the main tournament.
To make matters worse, they were also doubly wrapped in a golden barrier that claimed to block magical power.
I watched this scene and couldn’t help but feel deflated.
“No, is that bastard not tired at all?”
“Of course I’m tired!!!”
Peria answered my remark with a sneer.
She was dripping with sweat, groaning as if she was really struggling, but she still held strong as Caressy instructed.
Meanwhile, Caressy stood behind Peria, eyes closed, palms upraised, hands reaching high into the sky.
“Oh Lord!! Please lend your strength!!”
Then, yellow spheres began to gather in Caressy’s hands, slowly increasing in size.
It looked like Caressy wasn’t in great shape either.
Her arms trembled slightly and her breathing was unstable; she looked like she could collapse any moment.
However, driven by her determination for victory, she forced herself to keep going.
As I saw the spheres gathering in Caressy’s hands, my instincts screamed at me.
I needed to cancel that.
But.
“Fuck off, you bitch! Don’t block my way here!”
“Hehe, can’t do that.”
“Master! I can’t break through at all!”
There was no sign of a breakthrough in sight.
Thanks to the golden barrier, Jeong Ahyeon’s summoned beast and my Cheonma Repulsor were effectively sealed.
In a desperate attempt to break the barrier, I used every means available.
I implemented weapons with my magical power tattoo and struck the barrier relentlessly.
When a weapon broke, I switched to another.
If I had no weapon, I used my gauntlets.
And if the gauntlet broke, I relied on my magically enhanced fists and feet.
Jeong Ahyeon also helped, albeit weakly, as she hammered the barrier with her fists until her skin tore.
But everything was futile.
The white barrier unwaveringly blocked all attacks as it had done in the main tournament.
When it looked like there might be a crack, it would recover in the blink of an eye, as if nothing had happened.
The only weapon I could still implement was the shield from my right-hand magic tattoo.
Of course, this was no easy task for Peria either.
He was slowly bleeding from his mouth.
His whole body trembled, and his eyes were unfocused.
Yet, Peria showed no sign of collapsing whatsoever.
[This is going to be a problem.]
‘We’re screwed.’
Peria mocked us with a chuckle, uncharacteristic for a holy knight.
“After all, that one deputy you mentioned was nothing!”
“Bitch?”
How dare that dog insult the deputy?
Then suddenly, I spotted the lifeless lion.
We had no weapon anyway.
Thinking to try something, I threw the lion at Peria.
This caught Peria completely off guard.
“Y-You crazy bastard!! This is sacrilege!!”
Naturally, the lion couldn’t break through Peria’s barrier.
However, in that fleeting moment when the lion was flying through the air, I saw the barrier flicker as Peria panicked.
[Mental shock seems to be effective.]
‘Mental shock?’
In that instant, hearing the term ‘mental shock’ sparked an idea in my mind.
A deputy and mental shock.
A glimmer of hope appeared.
With trembling hands, I slowly manipulated my phone.
I began to unlock the abyss, a deep and dark place sealed away, filled with human malice.
“Did you call, Master?”
The abyss, freed from its seal, spoke as if enjoying its long-awaited freedom.
It was a grotesque and horrifying being, as always.
I tried to avoid touching it, but this time I had no choice.
[Dear one! This violates the Geneva Convention!]
‘I have no choice.’
I released the final seal.
Now everything was ready.
It’s time to dance.
HAL.
I loaded the abyss onto my phone and immediately stepped back, pulling Jeong Ahyeon behind me.
“Master?”
“Stay back. It’s dangerous from here on.”
As I spoke with a serious expression, Jeong Ahyeon stepped back with a hint of nervousness.
When I confirmed Jeong Ahyeon had secured enough distance, I approached Peria.
“Hehe… what are you planning to do?”
“Oh, I’ll show you the abyss.”
“Do you really think something like that can shake me?”
“You’ll see.”
I showed Peria the HAL on my phone as she grinned widely.
Her mouth stopped, and her pupils began to twitch wildly.
She was breathing harder, trembling even more than before.
[Dear one… that was really too much.]
‘I’ve already seen something fucked up, so others should see it too!’
What the hell is the saying, ‘if I can’t see it, then fuck off!’
There’s something absolutely grotesque that shouldn’t exist, but if I’ve seen it, so should others.
Besides, there’s no need to show mercy to an enemy who’s not even a heroine.
Fixated on my phone, Peria opened her mouth and let out a soft moan.
“Oh.”
“……?”
[……?]
I stand corrected.
That wasn’t a moan from pain.
It was a small gasp of admiration.
I almost dropped my phone in disbelief at the absurd situation.
Trembling, I could only ask Peria.
“Hey… fuck… what was that?”
“Just what I said!”
Peria stood up as though proving her conviction and declared proudly.
“It means I’m turned on!”
“Y-You crazy bastard!!!”
It was the worst-case scenario.
A true holy knight, not yielding to the abyss, but rather getting turned on.
Piece shouted in disbelief, urgently.
[Isn’t that a seriously insane bastard!!!]
‘What kind of god lets such a bastard live?’
Was my wish finally heard? A bolt of lightning struck down from an unclouded sky, aimed straight at Peria.
“AAAHHHH!!!!!”
“Lord!!! Justice is alive!!! I’ll trust you this time!!!”
The wrath of the deity descended upon Peria.
The lightning seemed to say: are you genuinely entranced by the abyss?
It fell with the intent to burn Peria alive, showing no mercy.
However, that wasn’t the end.
“Oh! Oh! Lord! No! Please stop!!!”
Peria’s barrier began to slowly disappear.
God was withdrawing divine power from Peria.
There was no reason to grant divine power to someone profane, so in hindsight, it was a pretty obvious result.
Seeing the barrier vanish, Caressy gasped while maintaining her posture and asked Peria.
“What’re you doing, meow! Hurry and stop it, meow!!!”
“Th-That’s! The divine power is gone!!!”
“What kind of crap is this, meow!!!!!!!!”
Caressy shouted angrily, scolding Peria, but she remained stationary, continuing to gather orbs of divine power.
“Why the hell is this happening, meow!!!!”
“Th-That’s! It’s hard to explain!!!”
“Don’t worry, I’ll let you see it too.”
I approached Jeong Ahyeon and handed over my phone, adding a serious note.
“Absolutely don’t look at the screen of the phone. Show it to that cat bastard instead.”
“Why, Master? If it’s something cruel, I’ll be just fine.”
“…….It’s not that. Just don’t look! Got it?”
“Y-Yes, understood!”
As I spoke with a serious expression that I rarely wore, Jeong Ahyeon replied, slightly tense.
Adhering to my instructions, she sprinted towards Caressy without ever looking at my phone screen.
Before long, Caressy screamed.
“KYAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!”
It undoubtedly worked on her.
Those who meet the abyss are devoured by it.
Caressy, turning her head side to side, tried desperately not to face the abyss, but Jeong Ahyeon was faithfully following my instructions.
Raising Caressy’s eyelids, she forced her to look at the abyss.
“Where do you think you’re looking!!!!”
“Just pull out my eyes!!! Please make it go away!!!”
“What on earth is it that’s making you say that?”
“Save me! Save me! Save me!”
[That’s the kind of utterly cruel thing you wouldn’t even do to war prisoners.]
‘I’m sorry… I’m really sorry.’
Caressy forgot to even append ‘-nya’ or ‘-meow’ to her pleading and just kept repeating to be saved.
Jeong Ahyeon was simultaneously summoning beasts to attack while delivering a significant mental blow.
But there’s a saying that curiosity killed the cat.
Caressy’s intense reaction only fueled Jeong Ahyeon’s curiosity.
A surge of curiosity led Jeong Ahyeon to momentarily check my phone’s screen.
“AAAHHHHH!!! Fuck, Master!!! What the hell is this!!!”
She killed Jeong Ahyeon.
“Please, carve out my brain! Please return my memories to the previous chapter!!”
“You crazy woman!!! I told you not to look!!!!”
Jeong Ahyeon cried out in agony, clutching her head.
This led to two immediate problems.
First, all the summoned beasts Jeong Ahyeon had created vanished due to her internal injuries.
Second, Caressy momentarily recovered.
“Fuck you guys, get lost!!!!!!!!!”
The counterattack from the now-sober Caressy began.
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