Chapter 128

EP.128 We’re Screwed

A woman with pale red hair and matching eye color.

Exotic to the extreme, exuding a cold beauty vibe, her name is Silvia Reeves.

A Beast Slayer who wields dual swords and incredible speed as her weapons.

Her activity name is Caroline, shortened to Carol, the heroine of Volume 4.

Next to her, a woman with bright yellow hair and green eyes.

Her name is Adeline, looking even more innocent than Sehwa.

A Beast Slayer who uses a massive battle hammer.

Her activity name is Celine, the heroine of Volume 5 who killed me last.

In simple terms, you could call them the agile type and the strength type.

Both are heroines from another world.

As I watched the monitor, stroking my chin, I saw the two standing on a sheer cliff in the Grand Canyon.

“How did they appear?”

“A massive beam of light struck the ground, and they emerged from it.”

“Did they seem panicked?”

“No, they were calm.”

If so, that means they’re aware of using a portal…

Those two didn’t return to the past like I did. I’m certain of that.

Why? If they had returned to the past, they would’ve come to Earth via a portal before I approached Sehwa.

Or they would’ve dropped straight into the base, slaughtered the demons, and taken my head.

For now, I’m relieved we’ve avoided the worst-case scenario… but the fact that they’re together is a big problem.

“What are they doing over there?”

“I-I don’t know either… They just arrived…”

“Can we get the tracking demon closer?”

“I’ll try. Just a moment…”

Marcella clacked on the keyboard, sending the tracking demon right up to them.

Then, the shorter Adeline looked up at Silvia and hopped around like a child throwing a tantrum.

She then pointed into the air.

Right where the tracking demon was.

“What the…?”

As I muttered in shock, Silvia pulled out a hidden weapon from her waist, one she brought from her planet, and threw it.

*Thud!* The monitor filled with static.

The demon transmitting the feed was dead.

Marcella was stunned.

“H-How is this possible…!”

Though I didn’t show it, I was equally shocked.

How did they detect its presence? Adeline never had this ability before.

Quickly regaining her composure, Marcella sent out another tracking demon, this time keeping it at a distance and zooming in to watch the two.

Fortunately, they didn’t seem to detect its presence from this range, silently walking along the cliff edge.

They didn’t exchange a single word.

Do they not understand each other? It’s possible.

They’re from different planets, after all, speaking different languages.

But from the way Adeline was chattering earlier, they seem close…

Plus, if they arrived together at the same time, they must’ve come from the same place.

Then they should at least be using basic body language.

“Do they think they’re being watched?”

“Most likely.”

“Let’s send out a demon.”

“Which one should we send?”

“An A-rank should do. Send Aloken.”

Aloken, a warrior clad in blood-red gemstone armor, riding a crimson chariot pulled by two demonic horses.

A powerful foe wielding a massive axe, an A-rank demon close to S-rank.

“Isn’t Aloken too strong…? We don’t even know if they can transform.”

“You’re assuming they can transform.”

“W-Well, yes… but Devices aren’t easy to make. It’s just a guess.”

True.

Only two people on Earth can make Devices: Dr. Jennifer Cash and Marcella.

Dr. Cash’s husband is long dead.

If they have Aiter and can transform, they’ll be different from the usual Beast Slayers.

“Tell Aloken. If they seem weak, just capture them.”

“Got it! Should I send it without triggering the Evil Energy Gauge?”

“Right.”

**

“@&!*(@&$*!”

Adeline flinched and muttered something strange to Silvia.

I know all Earth languages, but I couldn’t understand a word.

Must be her planet’s language.

But…

*Whoosh…!*

What’s that bright yellow light surrounding Adeline?

A new ability. Adeline’s a hammer-wielding warrior; she shouldn’t have magical powers like that…

*Rumble…!*

The entire Grand Canyon trembled slightly, as if an earthquake had struck.

Not caused by Adeline’s spell.

It was the vibration from Aloken’s arrival.

Silvia spun her dual swords, gripping them in reverse, watching intently, as if Adeline’s behavior was normal.

Not long after,

-ROOOAR!

The Grand Canyon echoed with a deafening roar.

Aloken, having quickly mobilized from the base, had arrived.

Charging at Silvia and Adeline with a whip in hand, he yanked the reins hard as he got close.

*Neigh!*

The two demonic horses reared up, stopping in place.

Why’d he stop? What’s the reason?

Fear? Or caution?

Aloken’s helmet hid his expression, so I couldn’t tell.

For a moment, he seemed to stare intently at Adeline, then flinched.

-R… Run away…

What…? Run? An A-rank demon, close to S-rank, is saying to run?

And Aloken, who’s as aggressive as they come?

“Did I hear that wrong?”

I muttered without thinking, and Marcella gulped, agreeing.

“I… I heard it too…”

I felt the situation was taking a strange turn.

Aloken tried to turn and flee.

But Silvia was faster.

She appeared in front of him in an instant. Like teleportation—on the monitor, she vanished and reappeared.

-Ugh…!

Aloken, trembling in fear, swung his axe.

*Whoosh!*

A powerful strike, filled with force.

But driven by fear, it was a wild swing, easily dodged by Silvia.

Leaning back like a limbo dancer, she dodged the axe and closed in on Aloken.

Moving at incredible speed, she circled around him.

Aloken swung his axe wildly, trying to break free from her net.

But it was futile.

Not a single effective hit.

While Silvia kept Aloken’s attention, Adeline chanted a strange spell, spreading her arms wide.

A yellow light left her body and began absorbing into Aloken.

-AAAAAH!

Screaming in agony, Aloken writhed.

The two demonic horses neighed wildly, rearing up and thrashing.

Soon, a dark energy rose from Aloken and the horses, swallowed by the yellow light.

Aloken’s movements slowed, and soon he collapsed, motionless.

*Poof…!*

His entire body turned to dust and vanished.

As if Aloken’s existence was erased.

I stared wide-eyed, muttering.

“Purification?”

The demonic energy, bathed in the sun-like yellow light, faded away, turning to dust and disappearing.

If that’s not purification, what is?

And… with Aloken’s death, my chest turned cold. I noticed Adeline was wearing priestly robes, like something out of a medieval temple.

Without looking away from the monitor, I asked Marcella.

“Do we have any info on Silvia Reeves and Adeline’s world?”

“N-No…”

Are they from a planet that uses divine power? All I know is Adeline’s from another world—it’s frustrating.

Plus, Silvia’s physical abilities are astounding.

She was just an ordinary civilian before transforming… moving faster than the eye can see.

Did she absorb Aiter or something?

The appearance of these two, strong enough to take down Aloken with ease, is a huge problem.

And Adeline. She purified Aloken with some weird, messed-up power.

Well, I’m not sure if it’s purification, but it’s equally absurd.

Aloken’s a demon that even Sehwa and Yuria couldn’t guarantee defeating one-on-one in their current state.

And seeing Adeline’s ability, even an S-rank demon would likely fall easily.

If we sent everything we have, we might stand a chance, but who knows what other tricks they have.

Facing them head-on now would be suicide.

In that sense, I’m impressed by Marcella’s foresight, and I’m glad I followed my instincts.

I can’t be sure if this situation is an opportunity or a crisis, but it’s definitely leaning toward crisis.

We must not reveal our identities.

Staying hidden was the right move, and I’m incredibly lucky.

“Demon King… what do we do?”

“We’ll have to see how far they can detect evil energy. If…”

If Adeline can detect my energy within Sehwa and Yuria…

Just the thought is terrifying.

Thinking more experiments are needed, I asked Marcella.

“Do we have any humans captured here?”

“We have humans captured for S-rank demon awakenings. They’ve lost their sanity.”

I generated malice in my body and directed it to my fingertip.

Then I made a small cut.

Dark red blood flowed out.

Marcella hurriedly brought a vial to collect it.

“Inject this into three humans and drop them nearby. Vary the amounts. One should get the minimum. Understand?”

“Yes!”

**

Silvia and Adeline continued wandering through the Grand Canyon.

Clearly lost, they roamed aimlessly.

‘They must’ve just randomly landed there.’

They also started talking.

This means they’re unaware of the tracking demon.

They likely think they’re no longer being watched, which is a relief.

Silvia’s speech was halting, stumbling a bit, as if she was using Adeline’s planet’s language.

‘Did Silvia go to Adeline’s planet first, then come to Earth?’

As I speculated, a human man approached them, groaning.

One of the humans Marcella sent, injected with a significant amount of my malice.

Like the mage in Yuria’s lucid dream, his mind was completely wiped, so even with malice injected, he just acted like a zombie.

Adeline, spotting the human, tilted her head, then gave a hostile glare and began chanting the same spell as with Aloken.

But something was off.

Adeline had been wary of Aloken from a distance.

But now, she only sensed the energy after seeing him.

She only dealt with the tracking demon after it got close, and didn’t detect the new one further away…

“It seems her detection range depends on the strength of the evil energy.”

“Yes, I think so too.”

I called Marcella over and draped my arm over her shoulder.

She flinched, then smiled brightly.

But soon, she looked at me with concern.

“Demon King… my shoulder hurts…”

“Huh?”

Snapping out of it, I loosened my grip.

I must’ve been squeezing too hard out of anxiety.

“Sorry.”

“N-No… things will work out. Don’t worry too much.”

“Right.”

Marcella’s reassurance was comforting.

Or so I thought, but…

*Whoosh!*

As the yellow light seeped from Adeline’s body, I couldn’t help but gulp.

She’s going to use it on a human, not a demon.

No, since malice was injected, does she consider him a demon?

Silvia didn’t move this time.

She just watched over Adeline, keeping her eyes on the human.

The yellow light Adeline created soon entered the human’s body.

And… something incredible happened.

“Ugh… AAAAAH!”

The man, who had only been groaning incoherently, suddenly screamed in pain.

If it were just screams of pain, I’d have ignored it, but as the malice left him, his eyes regained focus, making me want to scream myself.

“…..”

“…..”

Marcella and I stared at the monitor, mouths slightly agape.

The man, kneeling with his upper body upright, had all the dark energy leave him.

“Ugh…! Grrr…”

After a moment of painful groaning, he clutched his head, as if suffering a headache.

Shaking his head quickly, he smiled softly at Adeline and spoke.

“Where… am I? Who are you?”

His eyes were focused, his speech clear.

The human, bathed in Adeline’s light, had returned to his former self, his personality restored.

Complete eradication of malice. That was definitely purification.

Watching the scene, I could only blink.

I couldn’t hide my shock. No words came out.

All I could think was:

‘We’re screwed.’

She’s not even my counter-character… Are you kidding me?

To be continued―――――――――――――――――――――

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