episode_0217

‘Sad…. My heart aches….’

The emotion of sadness boils fiercely.

Why am I so sad?

Emotions I can’t understand crash in like waves, and then disappear like waves.

The waves crash in, once, twice, three times, continuously.

At the same time, after the waves recede, a strange emotion is deposited in their place.

‘I miss them….’

It is an intense longing.

An intense longing for someone I will never see again, affection, something that combines all of those things.

The heavy emotion is so heavy that it is difficult to even utter the feeling.

A dizzying onslaught of sadness and longing.

Maintaining my sanity in this tide of emotion was no easy task.

You….

Why are you so sad and longing?

“Because he disappeared.”

Was he someone you loved?

“I don’t know. But, he was a very precious person.”

Why did he disappear?

“Human desires killed him. They pursued power they couldn’t handle, and as a result, he died.”

But…. I don’t feel anger from you.

“It’s an old story. Now I don’t even remember his name, or my original name. I became a Demon King to avenge all those who killed him, but all that remains at the end of revenge is a dark chain strangling my neck.”

Why?….

Did you…, fail in your revenge?

“No, I killed all those who killed him, and all those who condoned his death. But…. all that was left afterwards was emptiness and void. Because he won’t come back. In the end, I was left alone in this world, and the devil’s burden I accepted has become a black chain binding me.”

Do you regret it?

“I don’t regret it. Even if I went back to that moment, I would make the same choice. Even if I am dragged by the black chain around my neck for the rest of my life, and used as a part in a play called the world.”

Really….

Is that really okay with you?

“….”

* * *

Clang!!!

“Amazing. To be able to rampage like this even after being pierced through the heart.”

“Is he some kind of immortal?”

“Heuh…. Heuh…. It’s just that I’m a little…. sturdy.”

Although my heart was pierced, surprisingly, I was able to avoid immediate death.

I don’t know how that’s possible, but if I think about it briefly, it seems to be thanks to the ‘game system’ that I haven’t paid much attention to until now.

The condition of my body is reflected in the system’s health and mana, but conversely, the system’s health and mana also affect my body.

Even if my heart is pierced, as long as I have at least 1 health point left, I won’t die.

It seems I survived based on this rule….

But that doesn’t mean it’s a good situation.

“Kuuh!!”

A scarlet sword aura reminiscent of blood collides with a white ray of light, tinged with golden color.

But there’s no time to pay attention to that.

I immediately move my body to avoid the chains piercing my body.

And using the gap created in a very brief moment, I launch a slash at Tamiel.

Thud!!

“Oh my…. Your slash doesn’t have as much power in it.”

“…Damn it.”

Hp cut down in large quantities because my heart was pierced?

Doesn’t matter.

In the first place, I’m in a state where I can continuously recover hp and mp with a passive, so I can recover over time.

As for the near-death penalty, I can continue fighting sufficiently because I obtained a passive that alleviates it.

The problem is….

‘Every time I try to land a finishing blow on Tamiel, my memories hold me back!….’

In the past, the method the Sword King used to quickly learn the Sword King’s Secrets was to pass on his memories to me.

As an additional effect of that, I indirectly experienced some of the Sword King’s years through his memories, which helped me with things like emotional control.

But now, by chance, memories of the ‘Prince’ I had with Tamiel are imprinted in my head, and I hesitate to cut down Tamiel.

Even if I forcibly put strength into my hand and swing my sword, I keep letting the power out at the end, so I can’t break through Tamiel’s defense.

‘If only it was the Holy Sword!!’

With the Holy Sword’s overwhelming power, I would have been able to split the defense apart even if I slightly weakened my power….

The Blood Demon Sword is still lacking in power.

“Then shall we get started in earnest?”

“You can look forward to it.”

Until now, Tamiel has been fighting in a simple and primitive form, simply amplifying her power using magic circles, and releasing the amplified power as is.

It’s fast to activate because it’s simple, but it’s not enough to call it ‘magic’.

Okay, so….

“Burn, divine flame.”

A pure white magic circle made of divine power begins to glow.

Then, in an instant, pure white flames containing brilliant divine power flicker from the magic circle.

“Burn, demonic flame.”

A jet-black magic circle made of magical power begins to glow.

Then, in an instant, jet-black flames containing ominous demonic power flicker from the magic circle.

“Mix together.”

“Dance with the sinner.”

“!”

The flames move.

Quickly, very quickly.

“”Manifest. Black and White World””

The jet-black flames burning the ground devour everything.

The pure white flames reminiscent of heaven’s judgment fall to the ground.

“Huuuh!”

“Flame Split”

I swing my sword around me.

By accurately overwriting dozens, hundreds, and thousands of slashes within the area my sword reaches, I create a kind of pseudo-barrier.

So that the black flames don’t reach me.

So that the white flames don’t reach me.

As a result, I inevitably had to stop in that spot.

“Crush the sinner. Divine Judgment.”

What appeared from the sky where the pure white flames were falling, along with the magic circle, was a giant hammer.

The hammer of God that confirms the sin of the sinner and punishes the sinner.

“Swallow the sin. Demon Eater.”

What appears from within the black flames is a flame monster with a giant mouth.

The mouth of a greedy monster that swallows sin and turns it into its own power.

It traps me like an anvil and a hammer, and slams divine attacks on top of me.

Kwaaaang!!!

“Keuheok!….”

Even if I have resistance to divine power, it’s not immunity.

When the divine hammer with its massive mass hits my body, I take damage from its heavy weight.

My body rises high due to the recoil from the impact.

And the monster of black flames devours it.

“Ignite.”

Following Tamiel’s starting words, the black monster fiercely burned its body, and soon detonated, creating a pillar of black flames.

My body, which had soared high into the sky due to the pillar of black flames, crashed helplessly to the ground.

“Damn…, it…”

The penalty is alleviated, but it doesn’t mean it’s completely gone.

In that state, 1:2

I can’t properly land a critical hit on the opponent,

The opponent is relentlessly attacking me while spamming some ridiculous magic.

‘The situation is more serious than when I fought ….’

I plant the Blood Demon Sword in the ground as a cane and stand up.

In front of me were Tamiel who had taken over Leviya’s body, and Tamiel, the two of them were looking at me.

“For someone who spoke so confidently….”

“Wouldn’t it be a slightly bland ending?”

“Haa…. Haa…. Just a moment, time….”

Catching my breath, I try to fix my body that has been burned and beaten into a mess.

Tamiel looks at me like that and just keeps watching without actually attacking.

“Ah, that’s right.”

“There’s one thing you should know.”

“…?”

Something I should know?

When I frowned and glared at her, she shrugged and said.

“It seems to be quite a mess outside right now. It seems pretty chaotic with the Demon King’s followers who came to awaken me….”

“I think it’s because of that influence that you woke up in the middle….”

“If we stay here any longer, what will happen to the Holy Kingdom….”

“I have no idea.”

I, who was catching my breath, let out a hollow laugh at Tamiel’s words.

“Nonsense. Do you know who’s outside? My master is there. The Sword King. Do you think your subordinates can beat that person even if they rampage for a hundred days?”

“…If you think so, I won’t say anything more.”

“So? Is waiting enough now?”

“Yeah, thanks for waiting, you damn bastard, it brings tears to my eyes.”

I pulled out the Blood Demon Sword that I had planted in the ground and pointed it at the two Tamiels.

The original body of Tamiel looked at me and then fiddled with the chain around her neck.

“That’s right…. It seems like we can’t afford to be so relaxed anymore either….”

“Because the time when you’re being consumed by ‘memories’ is my only chance.”

Clatter

A heavy metallic sound rings out.

…Come to think of it, there is something strangely strange that I haven’t paid attention to until now.

Until now, I thought that chain was a ‘seal’ placed by the goddess.

But that chain doesn’t seem to suppress Tamiel’s power or restrict her movements.

If I think about it for a moment, in the first place, this ‘mirror world’ itself is a seal.

It’s just that she was imprisoned here so that Tamiel couldn’t cross over to the real world. In other words, that chain is an external factor other than a seal….

“…That chain. What the hell is it?”

“This is…, my ‘fate and destiny’.”

“Fate and destiny….”

Tamiel’s fate and destiny.

That is….

“That?!”

“You realized it?”

Crack

The chain around Tamiel’s neck is breaking.

At the same time, the world is shaking.

“Come. Leviathan.”

Kwaaaaaaaa!!!

A part of the world is breaking.

And a large amount of seawater that had been sleeping there is pouring down.

“■■■■■■■■■■■!!!!!”

『The demonic monster that swallows the sea』Leviathan.

The witch Tamiel’s ‘fate’ began to run wild.