Book 8 Chapter 17

Chapter 191

Resurrect the Demon Slayer?

Miria and Milla blinked, but the elders' reactions were close to horror.

"Anyone to guide us? If not, I'll beat it out of you one by one, and that won't be pretty, will it? I'll count to 10 starting now."

No one readily stepped forward.

The tomb of the Demon Slayer, Cassel Lingkan. It was said that artifacts that should never be opened were also buried there.

"I'll guide you."

In the end, the one who took the lead was Captain Dos.

It was something someone had to do; he intended to resolve it before anyone got hurt.

It's fine. They don't know how to use that power anyway.

However, contrary to Dos's expectations, Arthur Breus showed an evil smile.

"That bastard Zernix said that children with the Demon Slayer's blood have high compatibility with that power, didn't he?"

"…!"

"Hey, find two or three kids under ten. That guy said he'd guide us, but we need to bring the suitable ones too."

Just as the rowdy adventurers were about to rush into the village, Miria and Milla caught the eye of the Witch Slayer, Spiela.

"No, wait. They're here too."

Spiela took out a gem redder than blood from her pocket.

When she held it out to the sisters, oh, the gem began to shine dazzlingly.

"Arthur, did you see that? It's bingo from the start!"

"Damn, your luck is still amazing. Stop the search. We're taking these two."

Spiela snapped her fingers, and the hems of the two girls' clothes were caught by psychokinesis, pulling them towards Spiela.

"U-Uncle Dos, save us!"

"Don't lay a hand on those children!"

Dos swung his fist and charged, but…

It was a futile resistance.

The moment Spiela extended her hand, his body was flung like a cannonball by an invisible force and slammed into the embankment.

"Let's get Miria and Milla back!"

"Fight!"

The villagers each came out with iron tools or clubs and confronted the adventurers. Spiela sighed as if annoyed.

"It seems you think we're playing around… Should I kill ten as an example?"

The fight was one-sided.

In an instant, all the strong men of the village lay scattered here and there, suffering serious to minor injuries.

"It seems you thought we were trash like bandits or pirates, you're messing with the wrong people."

They were a mercenary group that had been highly active on all fronts 500 years ago. Even descendants of the Demon Slayer stood no chance against them.

"Don't, stop! Stop it! We'll go with you, just please don't!"

"Please don't kill us! We'll follow you willingly on our own!"

As people groaned and struggled, Miria and Milla screamed. Then Spiela asked Arthur.

"They're doing this, what do you want to do?"

"You two, do you know where that ruin is?"

Miria, her face streaked with tears, nodded vigorously. The tomboy she was, she used to adventure all over the island.

"Then there's no need to kill them, I suppose. But if this is a lie, I'll kill 30 people as an example for breaking trust."

"…!"

"Spiela will go to the tomb. Lucia, Aaron, you two keep these villagers from doing anything foolish."

"What about you?"

"From now on, I have to go seize the city. The rest of you, follow me."

Demon Slayer was the alias of Cassel Lingkan, the legendary berserker who massacred demonkind during the turmoil 300 years ago.

The Demon Slayer ruin was the place where he fell into eternal sleep, in other words, his tomb.

Since the weapons he used in life lay dormant there as artifacts, his direct descendants were guarding the tomb.

Since Friede, Link's close friend, had placed a seal with the highest-level sorcery, only his descendants knew how to enter the ruin.

Thanks to Miria's guidance, the Slayers were able to easily navigate through such a labyrinthine seal and reach the tomb.

"What, there's hardly anything different from the information that bastard Zernix gave us. It's real, huh?"

Spiela whistled as she flipped through an old, mold-stained book.

"Embed this gem here, and this one here… turn the dial like this…"

The moment the manipulation was complete, the altar began to roar chillingly. Red beams of light shot up, then writhed into translucent tentacles.

"Good! Alright, you lie down here first."

"Lie down? Here?"

"Yes, quickly! I'll make you an incredibly strong human."

But the tentacles were too horrifying… they stimulated instinctive fear.

As the two girls dared not step forward, Spiela's patience reached its limit.

"Ugh, seriously. Didn't I tell you to lie down?"

Miria's body was lifted by psychokinesis. As she was dragged to the altar, Miria cried and reached out her hand to Milla.

"Sister, sister, save me, sister, I'm scared! Sister!"

"Miria!"

It was at that very moment.

Suddenly, a scream echoed from afar, followed by repeated metallic sounds of flesh being torn.

"Hmm?"

It was Gin, Gin.

Gin skillfully cut off the adventurers' arms and legs, neutralizing them and clearing a path.

A look of delight simultaneously appeared on Miria's and Milla's faces.

"Dad!"

On the other hand, a look of bewilderment appeared on the faces of some adventurers who were carefully examining Gin's shabby combat gear.

"Oh, that, that guy?!"

"Who is it?"

"It's the Goblin Slayer! He's a Silver-rank adventurer known by everyone near the Tyris River. He's incredibly strong for a Silver-rank!"

Goblin?

Goblin Slayer?

At the absurd combination of words, Spiela clutched her stomach and burst into laughter.

"How strong can a guy who only kills goblins possibly be? Are you guys not doing your job right?"

"That guy is really strong, I'm telling you! Look! He only hunts goblins, but he's strong enough to have reached Gold-rank!"

Indeed, already about twenty rogue adventurers were writhing on the ground in pain, having lost one of their limbs.

"Damn, it's hard to use psychokinesis inside the ruins. If I go all out, I'll be buried alive."

"Milla, Miria!"

"Dad, Dad!"

Dad?

Aha, so that's how it was.

A wry smile formed on Spiela's lips as she clacked and spun two iron orbs in her right hand.

"You lose because you try to fight fair."

Miria's and Milla's bodies, who were about to run to Gin, shot into the air. And in an instant, they were dragged close to the altar where tentacles writhed.

"Goblin Slayer, you don't want to see your kids die, do you?"

"Let the children go!"

"Oh, how scary. I'll let them go. That is, if you put down that sword and shield first."

Gin glanced down at his sword and shield, then glared at the adventurers surrounding him, his eyes blazing through his helmet.

"Do you expect me to believe such words?"

"What will you do if you don't believe me? You must know what happens when a suitable one connects to this altar."

Spiela stroked Miria's and Milla's faces like a snake and smiled wickedly.

"Do you want to see your cute daughters end up like that? I value trust, you see. Believe my words. I swear on my platinum badge. Though I don't know if that still works these days."

"……"

"Hurry up. Do you want to see your daughters die?"

Was it an adventurer's intuition?

Before putting down his sword and shield, Gin first lifted his helmet and met his daughters' gaze.

"Milla, listen carefully."

"…!"

"Miria is Dad's daughter, no matter what anyone says. So she's Milla's real sister. Got it? An older sister has to take care of her younger sister until she becomes a proper adult."

"…!"

"Answer me!"

"Ah, I understand, Dad!"

"You're playing around! Aren't you going to throw away your weapons?"

Gin threw his sword.

And the moment he even discarded his shield, which could block attacks from mages or archers.

"Bang."

The moment Spiela made a motion as if drawing a bowstring, a large hole was pierced near Gin's heart. It was an iron orb launched by psychokinesis.

There was no time to react.

Gin vomited blood and sank to his knees weakly, Miria wailed and ran to Gin, and Milla struggled to assess the situation amidst hyperventilation that turned her mind blank.

"Miria… my beloved daughter…"

"Dad, Dad…!"

"Yes, Miria… Thank you for calling me… Dad… Now go back to Mom, to Mom…"

That was all. Gin's eyes seemed to roll back, and he collapsed, leaning against Miria's body. The adventurers chuckled.

"Hehe, our captain, used a cowardly trick again."

"What's cowardly or not in a fight? Winning is all that matters."

"So what do we do now, Captain? Do we let these brats go?"

Spiela glanced at Miria and Milla, then licked her lips and nodded.

"What do you take me for? Trust must be kept. And with how many villages there are, won't at least one suitable person show up?"

"Indeed, Captain, you value trust above all else."

"Send the children to other villages. If they resist, kill about ten as an example."

"I'll do it! I'll do it, so don't give that chance to anyone else!"

The one who screamed that was Milla.

Her face was drenched in tears from the grief of losing her father, but her resolute words made the adventurers whistle.

"Hey, are you serious?"

On the other hand, Spiela narrowed her eyes as if she didn't understand.

"Your dad died by my hand to save you? And you're saying you'll do as I say? Don't play games, just get out while I let you go."

"He didn't die by your hand, ma'am. He was just an adventurer who only hunted goblins, that's why it happened."

"Eh…?"

"I'd just become a pathetic adventurer like Dad, living a normal life. Rather than that, I'll become strong with the power of this Demon Slayer. What a great opportunity this is!"

Spiela stared intently at Milla, then exclaimed "Oh!" and clapped her hands.

"Good point! Perhaps you need some obsession with power to awaken as a Demon Slayer."

At that moment, Miria, who had been burying her head in Gin's corpse and wailing, looked for Milla.

"O-Older sister, Dad, Dad, Dad isn't breathing, Dad's, Dad's body, body is cold… blood, blood, the blood won't stop--"

"--I'm not your older sister! You were picked up! So don't call me older sister!"

Milla's eyes as she spoke, shedding tears, her expression was uncontrollably sad and poignant… Miria could never forget that face from that day.

Everything was for her younger sister.

Milla had seen it. When Spiela held out the gem to the sisters earlier, it reacted most strongly to Miria.

If they didn't find a suitable person, those guys would come back… and that's when they'd take Miria.

And in other villages, many people would lose loved ones, just like Gin.

And if she could control this power, she might even be able to get revenge on Spiela immediately.

"Understand? If you pretend to be my younger sister again, I'll blast you away! Take her out of here, I don't even want to look at her…!"

"Captain? What should we do?"

"Do as she says. Take her father's corpse only as far as the village. It's a bit of a shame to have to use such a spirited girl as a sacrifice."

As she was being dragged away by the adventurers, Miria could hear her sister's scream echoing from deep within the ruins.

"To think, that it would come to that…"

The villagers couldn't stop weeping. The next day, when they went to bury Gin's body in the tomb, Miria said to Linda.

"Mom, I want to become a Goblin Slayer."

"What…?"

"The guy who brought Dad's body said so. Whether he felt sorry for me or not, he said the goal of creating a Demon Slayer is money."

"Money?"

"But Dad said, because no one else does it, goblin hunting pays well… I'll earn money that way, so that my sister doesn't have to fight. I'll make sure she doesn't go to dangerous places."

Linda, with a pale face, hugged Miria tightly.

"No, no. I can't let both of you be in such danger! Miria. Just forget about Milla…!"

Miria swallowed her tears, and with a voice that sounded as if it would break, she continued to sob.

"By getting, by getting that strong… much stronger than those bad guys later on… I'll definitely… get my sister… back someday. So Mom… please wait for me…"

Miria shook her head, pushing away the past.

Perhaps because a large number of administrative personnel had left, the inside of the golden pyramid was even desolate.

Corridors where an ominous chill flowed, rooms smelling of blood and oil…

It was when she suppressed her presence, navigated through all of that, and reached the top floor.

There was nothing there.

Not just nothing, but dust had accumulated thickly, as if no one had been there recently.

'Nothing?'

She felt her breath catch in her throat.

Then where on earth could it be? She had searched everywhere except Island No. 3…

"Looking for this?"

Miria held her breath at the sudden thumping sound from somewhere.

It didn't take long for her to realize it was her own heartbeat.

Turning her neck, which felt as stiff as lead, she saw… when on earth had he arrived, the Dragon Slayer stood in the doorway.

"If I, of the Special Operations Division, were to step in directly, it would be over, so you should have at least thought about why I made such a big fuss. I intended to weed out traitors. Because a rat has been scurrying around recently."

And what he held in his hand was… a large disc.

It was an artifact that the Demon Slayer was said to have originally worn around his neck, used to control his berserk power.

Although now it was being used to control Milla.

"Anyway, they say you can't change people, but did you really have to stab me in the back like this to feel satisfied?"

"Give it back."

"What do you intend to do by getting your hands on this? Your family and village are all held hostage."

Arthur smirked, and Miria's mind went cold.

She drew her sword and lunged, but the moment she saw a golden radiance flash from Arthur's hand, her body was thrown backward.

An immense pain exploded in her chest, as if her body had been severed in two.

"Don't worry. I hit you with the flat of the blade. It's the legion's rule not to kill traitors easily, you see."

A golden flash of light was concentrated in the form of a sword, glinting from Arthur's hand.

It was neither sword aura that enveloped the blade with mana chains, nor sword ki that blasted mana chain power as slashes… but an absolute realm beyond that.

It was manifesting one's magic in the form of a sword, a Heart Sword (心劍).

"Battles should be fought rationally. Getting caught up in emotions leads to engaging in unwinnable fights, and this is what happens. Combat is a business, after all."

When Arthur tightly gripped Miria's neck, Miria could do nothing but weakly flail in mid-air.

"Your sister made such a tearful sacrifice to somehow save you, but this… it's a shame."

Sacrifice, could one call that a sacrifice? Strictly speaking, one could say yes.

But even more strictly speaking, it wasn't necessary.

Miria weakly gripped Arthur's wrist and barely managed to force out her voice.

"If only you… if only you weren't here…"

Milla wouldn't have needed to end up like that in the first place. Uncle Gin wouldn't have needed to die.

"After rushing in blindly, is all you can do just whine? This means nothing has changed from 10 years ago."

"Shu… shut up…"

"Still, I am grateful for one thing. Thanks to you, while your sister was stuck on the island, Herman discovered various other uses for her--"

For an instant, something interrupted Arthur Breus's words.

An otherworldly sense of intimidation washed over him, and the shuddering tremor that instinctively ran through the dragon pearls imbued in his soul resonated in his heart.

The first thing that tangibly embodied that presence was heat. A fierce heat, as if thrown into the heart of a flame, swirled around.

"Dhur-Moris, the Dragon Slayer Slayer."

Arthur, who reflexively turned to look at the source of that presence, then had to narrow his eyes at the greeting that flew in with the sound of clasped hands.

"Death to the Dragon Slayer."

As Arthur shifted into a defensive stance, Miria, freed from his grasp, tumbled to the floor. The silhouette that formed in her blurry vision was--.

Uncle Gin is gone now. There are no gods who answer prayers. There's no one to extend a helping hand.

Surely, surely that was how it was.

"Aren't you going to properly greet? This is a Dragon who came a long way just to beat you."

"Aki is Aki!"