Chapter 155

R‍e‍​ad ​o​n ​K​a​​t‌R​​ead‌i​n‍g​Ca‌f‍e​​

The throbbing pain brought my consciousness to the surface.

Only after regaining my senses did I realize I had been unconscious.

How long had I been out?

Without panicking, I calmly retraced my memories.

To save Eugene and Alice, I accepted the offer of the mysterious woman.

Leaving behind the sound of sobbing, I followed her.

After that, there was no memory.

My vision had suddenly gone black.

Ah, so that’s when I passed out.

So quickly that I didn’t even realize I’d been subdued.

There was no need to wonder who the culprit was.

Of course, she could overpower someone like me in an instant.

I had suspected as much, but experiencing it firsthand was different.

‘I don’t get it…’

In exchange for sparing Eugene and Frey, she had asked me to come willingly.

Why had she made such an offer?

She could’ve just knocked me out and taken me.

It was all so puzzling, but I didn’t have the luxury to dwell on it now.

My body had instinctively activated super regeneration.

What was happening to me?

I opened my tightly shut eyelids.

The darkness faded, and light struck my retinas.

“Hello?”

Filling my vision was the Red Fox Mask.

A laugh I’d heard many times tickled my ears.

I blinked a few times, then spoke in a choked voice.

“…Astaroth.”

The girl with the Red Fox Mask.

When I had gone to find Eugene and Frey, the mask had already been broken, but the woman had also been wearing a Red Fox Mask. 

So, I had wondered if ‘that person’ might be Astaroth, but I couldn’t think of any reason why Astaroth would kidnap me now. So, I had left it as a possibility, but…

“How are you? Does anything feel off? Any discomfort?”

Astaroth’s hands were glistening with blood.

I immediately realized whose blood it was.

A sharp pain was stabbing at my brain.

“What did you do to me?”

“Oh, nothing much. I just tested your regeneration.”

Astaroth casually shook her hand.

Flames erupted from the blood staining her hand.

In an instant, the red was gone, and she poked my chest with her now-clean fingers.

“I stabbed your heart. It regenerated quickly, but… hmm, the recovery speed is slower than I expected.”

“What…”

I flinched and tried to sit up, only to realize I was tied down.

I looked around. White ceilings and walls.

It looked like a hospital operating room.

My arms and legs were tightly bound, immobilizing me.

I pulled with all my strength, but they didn’t budge.

Lucia might look frail with no visible muscles, but as a supernatural, she was quite strong.

Yet, the restraints showed no signs of loosening.

They must have been specially designed to bind supernaturals.

“You look like you have a lot of questions. Okay, I’ll explain. Ask away. What do you want to know?”

Astaroth clapped her hands as she spoke.

For me, it was a welcome offer.

After all, I had more than a few questions.

Before Astaroth’s whims changed, I voiced the thing I was most curious about.

“Eugene and Alice… are they okay? Are they safe?”

“Heeh, the first thing you ask about is someone else’s safety?”

Astaroth crossed her arms and tilted her head to one side.

The Red Fox Mask stared at me. The fox’s eyes on the mask gazed intently.

“They’re both fine, so don’t worry. Our Ere handles things well.”

“That’s a relief…”

I let out a sigh of relief.

Finally, I could set aside the anxiety that had been gnawing at me.

Truthfully, I had been so worried I couldn’t stand it.

Both Eugene and Frey had been severely injured.

Eugene’s arm had been severed, and Frey had been stabbed in the chest.

If left untreated, they would undoubtedly have died from excessive blood loss.

“Really, that’s such a relief…”

Devils don’t lie.

They might omit the truth or play word games, but they don’t outright lie.

If the two of them were safe, there was no need to tremble in fear anymore.

With a more relaxed expression, I looked up at Astaroth.

Now that the most pressing concern was addressed, I moved on to the next question.

“Why did you kidnap me?”

“…Shouldn’t that have been your first question? Hmm, well, fine. I needed you. What other reason would there be?”

Well, that made sense.

If someone kidnapped you, it’s because they needed you.

The question was why she needed me.

“I need your regeneration.”

Astaroth slowly reached out her hand.

I flinched and trembled.

The girl’s fingers stroked my cheek.

Her touch was hot, like a burning flame.

“I need someone who won’t break, no matter how much they’re broken.”

“Why…?”

“Hmm, why do you think?”

Astaroth giggled and burst into laughter.

The hand caressing my cheek moved downward.

Her index finger touched my chest.

She playfully poked at my heart, which was pounding rapidly.

“But I’m a bit disappointed. Your regeneration is much slower than I expected. At this rate, you’ll degenerate faster than you can regenerate.”

“Ugh…”

Astaroth’s finger dug into my chest.

It tore through my skin and scraped away my ribs.

My body trembled. I bit my lip hard.

“This is a problem. A huge problem.”

“Ah, ah, hng, haah…”

Every time Astaroth’s finger moved, my limbs shook.

Moans escaped through my parted lips.

I tried to hold it in, but, well, it felt good…

Blood vessels snapped, and muscles tore.

She was targeting the most sensitive and painful parts of my body…

“So, before I hand you over to Belial, I think I need to do a bit of prep work.”

…Belial?

Why was that devil’s name coming up?

Wait, I had seen a woman who resembled Belial.

Belial’s vessel.

The new body Belial had reincarnated into after being slain by the Celestial Corps.

But she wasn’t Belial.

My blood-rushed brain began to spin quickly.

The clues started to fall into place, one by one.

The puzzle pieces clicked together, and the picture began to form.

“Alright.”

“Ah, ah, kyaa, ah, haa…”

But just as the puzzle was nearing completion, it scattered into chaos again.

My mind went blank. Astaroth pushed her entire hand inside.

A hole was torn in my chest. She crushed my bones and gripped my heart tightly.

My toes curled. My clenched lips parted, and a faint moan escaped.

“First, I need to enhance your regeneration.”

“Ugh, kuh, hng, haa, what, what are you trying to…”

“Do you know how supernatural abilities grow?”

Of course, I do.

As a student of the academy, it would be strange not to know.

Supernatural abilities are like muscles.

The more you use them, the more they are trained and grow.

“If your super regeneration output is weak, just grow it.”

“Kuh…!”

Crack.

My vision flashed white.

A loud thud seemed to echo.

I tilted my head back.

My spine trembled uncontrollably.

If my limbs hadn’t been tied down, I would have arched my back like a bow.

“Supernatural abilities grow the more you use them, right?”

“Hah, haa, ha, ah, ahg, ugh…”

Astaroth, who had casually crushed my heart, pulled her hand out of my chest.

A metallic taste filled my mouth. The scent of blood. Saliva and blood mixed and pooled in my mouth.

“Then.”

Astaroth placed her hand on my cheek again.

Her fingers, soaked in my blood, stained my cheek hot.

Drip, drip. 

Blood droplets flowed down my jawline like sweat.

“Lucia, won’t your ability grow the more you regenerate?”

“…”

My pupils trembled. Beyond my blurred, tear-filled vision, I saw the fox mask. I bit my tongue slightly to keep the pleasure-filled moans from escaping. 

I didn’t fully understand Astaroth’s words, but I could grasp one thing. Astaroth wanted powerful super regeneration. Lucia’s current output wasn’t satisfactory. So, she would forcibly grow her ability. In other words, that meant…

“How about it? Are you worried about your situation now?”

Astaroth burned away the blood with flames, just like before, and asked me.

I blinked away tears and glared at her silently.

My fingertips trembled. Even though my heart had regenerated, the pain lingered.

Really, how did I end up in this situation?

Captured by a devil threatening this world.

Bound so tightly I couldn’t resist.

Subjected to horrific torture.

…How terrifying.

Yes, it’s terrifying. Lucia, I feel like crying.

What will happen to me now?

I don’t even want to imagine.

Hehe~♡

◈

Darkness, like the night sky, rippled.

As Ere moved, the light was swallowed like ink spreading on white paper.

She gently closed her eyes and swung her sword softly.

The demonic sword, imbued with death energy, split the air.

It was like watching a beautiful dance.

Graceful and elegant, a painting-like sword dance.

She replayed the battle in her mind.

No, it was hardly a battle to call it that.

But for Ere, it was a valuable experience.

Her first real combat since becoming Ereshkigal.

The perfect opportunity to test the capabilities of her new body.

Back when she was the Black Knight.

Though her abilities were suppressed by her armor.

And she had been careless, not using her full strength.

Even so, the fact that she had lost remained unchanged.

Against the boy and girl who had once defeated her, Ere unleashed her abilities to her heart’s content.

‘I’ve crossed the wall.’

And she realized it clearly.

The level she had now reached.

She had broken through the limits that had always held her back.

She shattered the wall and entered the world beyond.

A named monster at the pinnacle of pure monsters.

The death energy that had grown too vast for even herself to control.

The ultimate vessel, capable of containing even a devil god.

All of it combined, and she had transcended the limits of a monster.

‘A Demonic Beast.’

A higher species of monsters.

A living, moving natural disaster.

A calamity.

‘I’ve taken one step closer to the realm I dreamed of.’

Demonic Beasts. Their strength is incomparable to that of monsters.

Even the devil gods who rule the vast skies do not take Demonic Beasts lightly.

Just as there are differences in strength among monsters, there are differences among Demonic Beasts.

The Demonic Beasts at the pinnacle are close to becoming devil gods.

Demonic Beasts who have been granted the title of god.

For example, the giant Typhon.

Even the devil gods acknowledge Typhon’s strength.

What else would be the reason for granting him the title of god?

‘Because Typhon has the qualifications to ascend to the status of a devil god, he was given the title of god.’

Of course, the number of Demonic Beasts granted the title of god can be counted on one hand.

Even Typhon, the strongest Demonic Beast, never reached the realm of a devil god.

‘I’m still far, far away.’

In reality, I’ve only just reached the starting line.

The ideal realm is still a mountain peak with no end in sight.

But Ere smiled faintly.

The road ahead was still long, but she smiled at the fact that she had crossed the wall.

She sheathed her demonic sword and swept the hair covering her eyes behind her ear.

“Except for this lump of fat, it’s really a good body…”

Her gaze drifted downward.

She couldn’t see her own feet.

The round, soft hills blocked her view.

Ere looked around.

This was the training room her master had prepared for her.

A place where only she existed.

“…”

After confirming with her eyes that no one was there and sensing no presence.

Ere swallowed dryly.

She raised her hand in a hesitant motion.

Her hand hovered near her chest.

Almost touching but not quite, Ere tightly closed her eyes.

“…It’s not like I wanted to touch it. Really.”

As if making an excuse, she muttered and let out a deep sigh.

She covered her face with both hands. Her earlobes were dyed bright red.

What was I about to do just now?

Her master enjoyed teasing Ere’s chest.

Every time, her waist would tremble uncontrollably.

Her head ached from sensations she had never felt before.

Her throat itched, and moans that sounded like screams escaped.

At first, it was just embarrassing, shameful, and unbearable.

But today, it felt different.

After completing her mission and returning, Astaroth said she had worked hard and grabbed Ere’s chest.

Every time the shape of her firm breasts was distorted by Astaroth’s hands, tears welled up in Ere’s eyes.

She covered her mouth with her hand and clenched her legs.

Otherwise, she would have collapsed in an unsightly manner.

As a reward for her hard work, she was teased more persistently than usual.

Ere recalled the sensation. She didn’t dislike it.

It was the first time she thought she didn’t dislike it.

‘…It’s a pointless thought.’

Emptying her mind, Ere shook off the distracting thoughts with a sigh.

Forcing her gaze away from the tempting fruit below, Ere shifted her thoughts to another topic.

‘Lucia.’

The girl she had kidnapped.

What kind of state was she in now?

It was her master’s order, so she felt no guilt.

But she was slightly concerned.

If it were back when she was the Black Knight, she would have forgotten about it long ago.

Had this body made her softer?

‘Come to think of it…’

After completing her mission, she asked Astaroth one question.

Why go through such a troublesome method?

Isn’t that right?

Lucia’s location could be tracked through the ring.

So, she could have just gone and kidnapped her secretly.

The simplest and easiest way.

But Astaroth didn’t do that.

Instead, she chose a troublesome, annoying, and hard-to-understand method.

Murmur opened a spatial rift to lure Lucia.

Saying that if Lucia came, Eugene would follow.

And then, she left one instruction for Ere.

‘Kidnap Lucia in front of Eugene’

As miserably and wretchedly as possible.

Crush Eugene’s limbs and render him powerless.

Then forcibly take Lucia away in front of him.

It was a hard-to-understand order, but Ere followed it as much as possible.

She subdued Eugene and made Lucia follow willingly.

She made the boy’s object of protection sacrifice herself to protect him.

How miserable and bitter.

Ere felt a suffocating feeling about her actions.

If it weren’t for her master’s order, she would never have done it.

‘Why did you give such an order?’

So Ere asked, risking rudeness.

To that, Astaroth smiled and answered.

What did she say? Ere recalled her words.

‘I wanted to make him feel powerless.’

That way, he’ll move according to my will.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Only terrible torture is presented as the kidnapped Lucia trembles.

She’s so pitiful.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Astaroth is a better teacher than Angelica. Look at her being nice and personally raising Lucia’s ability! 

On a side note, she is also a terrible teammate. Astaroth is like that one friend who says he’s a god in gaming, only to lead you down a despair-filled hole called losing streak. 

I guess overpowered villains gotta be handicapped one way or another. This one being deprived of intelligence and also told that she’s cunning and smart (not really).