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Chapter 38 – part 14

Cordelia drew her sword, while Lilith poised her staff.

Under the hostile gazes of the two, the young boy raised an eyebrow in confusion.

「Huh? That’s strange, isn’t it? You understand the difference in power, right? Still, you’re going to oppose me? Well, fine. In that case, let’s raise the penalty level a bit. Since it seems you don’t fancy being pickled.」

「Raise the penalty level? What do you mean?」

「I’ll shatter the bones in both your hands and legs and then hang you upside down. And for the next month, you’ll receive water and food through your anus.」

「…? Sorry, I don’t quite understand what you’re talking about.」

「Well, you won’t die easily. Rather, I don’t intend to kill you easily either. So, to prolong your life, we’ll introduce liquid food like yogurt directly into your small intestine through your anus.」

「…」

「…」

Cordelia visibly paled, and Lilith seemed to be overcome with nausea, bringing her hand to her mouth.

The two exchanged glances, then nodded in silence.

Cordelia’s eyes turned crimson.
In response, Lilith began chanting a spell.

「I won’t become a submissive plaything, just so you know!」

Following Cordelia, Lilith said,

「…Five seconds will do. Stall for time. If I can lift the restrictions placed by Lute and unleash Golden Roar (Drags Genocide) at maximum output… I think we can create a small opening.」

Midway through Lilith’s words, at a speed no one in the area could react to, the young boy had somehow moved behind Cordelia.

A blink—or perhaps less.

He struck Cordelia’s spine with a knife-hand strike.
Simultaneously, Cordelia collapsed on the spot.

「You’re really off your game. Besides, with this half-baked, incomplete hero, you can’t keep me pinned down for five seconds.」

「And,」 the young boy continued.

「Your Golden Roar, or whatever it’s called… is the colossal magic you used today, right? It was undeniably powerful, but do you think it can deal effective damage to me? I’m at the pinnacle of the demon race, after all. I have confidence in my toughness and resilience.」

「…What you saw was an incomplete Roar. It wasn’t a full Golden Roar.」

Upon hearing Lilith’s words, the young boy picked up a fist-sized stone that had fallen at his feet.

「Oh, is that so? Well, it doesn’t matter anyway.」

With a smirk, he casually threw a small stone.
The stone curved and grazed Lilith’s chin at the perfect angle.
Lilith’s brain was rattled, and her consciousness was forcibly stripped away as she collapsed on the spot.

「Originally, the plan was to destroy this town before retreating, but things have deviated significantly from the expectations. Well, we’ve captured two people of A-rank caliber, so let’s call it quits here.」

The young boy carried Cordelia then proceeded toward the fallen Lilith.
He picked up Lilith just as he did with Cordelia.
He turned on his heel and changed direction from the town towards the forest.
He began walking while carrying both of them.

「Hey, you there? Are you ignoring me?」

In response to the question, the young boy replied with a laugh,

「Yeah—trash like you is not needed.」

Upon hearing this, Saegusa made a dumbfounded expression.

「Trash? Who are you calling trash?」

With a snap of his fingers, the young boy made it happen.
At the same time, Saegusa fell to her knees and collapsed on the spot.

「Ah, what? I certainly had God’s presence just a moment ago… What in the world is happening now?」

「I’ve scattered the divine aura within you. Well, in this case, it might be a great spirit that naturally resides in you. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. You summoned a god, but the person inside… you don’t know how to control that power at all. If you could use it effectively, you might have been able to fight me for about 30 seconds.」

「…Scattered the divine aura?」

「Your skills are nothing more than those of a commoner. However, I do think that skills inherited through bloodline are effective. But I don’t need you. Even if you mix in the blood of demons, the gods won’t lend their power to your descendants. So… you’re just trash to me, after all.」

With that said, the young boy turned on his heel once again and continued walking towards the forest.
However, Saegusa stood up again.

「W-wait… please wait!」

With an annoyed expression, the young boy turned around once more.

「Not only are you trash, but you’re also dim-witted… Well, it can’t be helped. I’ll explain everything from scratch. Basically, I’m saying I’ll let you go. Well, there’s a reason for that, of course. As the living witness who witnessed my spectacular debut as a demon god, you’ll spread the word to the human authorities.」

With a sigh, the young boy continued speaking,

「And even if you say ‘wait’, what do you intend to do by making me wait? Are you planning to fight me?」

Saegusa closed her eyes.
Electricity ran through her surroundings, and her black hair stood on end due to static electricity.
However, the upright hair soon flowed downward following gravity.

「It’s obviously impossible to have two descents in such a short time, right? When higher-level spiritual beings manifest their power in the mortal realm, there are certain constraints. It’s prohibited to interfere in the mortal world repeatedly within a short time frame; there should be a minimum interval of several days for reusing one’s power.」

「That’s right. But… there’s a way.」

「A way?」

「Strictly speaking, the gods Saegusas calls upon are bound by ancient covenants. So, Takemikazuchi-san generally cooperates with me reluctantly… that’s the stance.」

「…And?」

「Breaking the constraints is taboo among the gods… but it’s just a taboo, not something impossible.」

「Making the highest-level spiritual beings take risks due to human convenience? Those beings withdraw into the otherworld as spiritual beings and refrain from excessive interference in the mortal realm for a reason. Of course, breaking the constraint of multiple interferences in a short time frame carries penalties, you know?」

「But I can’t… give in here.」

In the end, Saegusa thought to herself.
What she had the most trauma about, or rather, what she couldn’t forgive.
It was undoubtedly the result of her inability to do anything when her birthplace was annihilated.

At that time, she could only cower in an underground cellar, trembling.
Her beloved ones were getting hurt, dying, and becoming victims, and all she could do was cower in fear in a dimly lit underground room.

Certainly, at that time, her power to summon gods was nullified by a special magic, and her combat abilities were probably less than that of an average man.
But even then, men who weren’t even combat personnel stood up to demons with farming tools.
Even women and children tried to protect her by using their own bodies as bait.

She, weaker than them all, just trembled and cowered, using them as shields.
However, Saegusa knew.
Her hands moved at that time, despite her apparent powerlessness.

She could fight, even if she might be weak, and she could serve as someone’s decoy.
That’s the role of a leader.
It might be a waste of everyone’s wishes to go to a place of death just to preserve herself, who possessed the ability to host gods.

But… Saegusa thought.
If that were the result of the negotiations with everyone, then there was no choice.

When she realized that she couldn’t summon the gods.
And when she realized that demons were approaching the village.
She just froze, her mind going blank.

She was led underground as she was told.
In the first place, there was no choice but to escape to a safe place as instructed, without the option to fight.

「In the end… it’s probably something like that.」