Ch.111Fireworks Festival

“Ahahahaha! God? You call that a god?”

Uncontrollable laughter burst from me.

God, you say? GOD? You dare speak of such things?

If gods were watching this scene, wouldn’t they be giving me a standing ovation right now?

After all, I’m working so diligently on their behalf!

I shook with laughter for quite some time.

I simply couldn’t contain it.

“Haaa… that was a good laugh. Really now, searching for gods at this point? Do you think they’ll save you?”

None of them seemed to have enough sanity left to refute my question.

“No answer… I’m asking you a question. Do you really believe that?”

I approached the one who had been calling for divine intervention.

When I leaned in close to ask my question, the trembling man foamed at the mouth and fainted.

“Sleeping, are we? Well, it is nighttime. That makes sense.”

It didn’t particularly matter. He’d wake up soon enough anyway.

I continued speaking to the unconscious man.

“Still, I think it’s a bit too dark here. Even for the middle of the night. Don’t you agree? At this rate, even your gods won’t be able to see you.”

The man with his eyes rolled back still had nothing to say.

No objection means agreement, right?

“Don’t worry. I have a solution. Let’s all make a light so bright it reaches the heavens. You’ll help me, won’t you?”

I brought a burning stick to the unconscious man’s clothes.

As the fire caught on the fabric, his body began to burn instantly.

“Huh, HUAAACK! HUAAAAAACK! Fire! FIIIIRE! AAAAARGH!”

The man awoke from the searing pain, screaming and rolling on the ground.

To ensure the fire wouldn’t go out, I pressed down with the stick, carefully coating his entire body with flames.

“Good. That should do it. Don’t squirm too much. You should endure better than Johan did, right? You’re an adult after all.”

I slightly lifted the man’s body with my foot, then kicked him away.

Not too high, and not too fast. I had to be careful.

If the fire went out from blood spray or air pressure, that would defeat the purpose.

The man’s body flew like a shooting star toward the western sky.

Eventually, he crashed onto a distant rooftop and began sharing his warmth with the surroundings.

“Hmm. That’s a great success. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if this would actually work.”

With enhanced physical abilities, you really can do all sorts of things.

Nodding in admiration, I carefully lit fires on the others as well.

“KEEEEEEEK! IT’S HOT! PLEASE!! PLEASE PUT IT OUT!!”

“WAAAAAATER! I NEED WATER!! IT HURTS! GYAAAAAAAK!!”

“OGEEEEEK! GREEEEEEK!!”

“AAAAARGH!! I’M SORRY! I’M SORRY!! SPARE ME! AAAAAAAK!!”

Along with the fragrant smell of roast pork, a quartet of agonized screams filled the air.

I then carefully kicked the four fireballs, sending them flying to various places in the west.

After succeeding once, I felt more confident.

The fireballs traced parabolic arcs before landing safely. One fell and burst on the street, extinguishing the flames, but still.

Four out of five is a pretty decent hit rate, isn’t it?

As the fire spread to the buildings, the western part of the village gradually began to burn.

One house must have had a liquor storage, as it burst into flames explosively.

There probably weren’t many left… but this would drive them all eastward.

It’s the basics of a drive hunt.

Block one direction with fire. Whether you scatter incendiary bombs or have soldiers set fires directly.

This would flush out the hiding ones like cockroaches.

There was no concern about the flames harming innocent children.

Along the path I’d walked, there were only exploded corpses and squirming maggots.

May you all become roasted vermin together.

I approached the one-legged man who remained.

The sight of five people burning alive didn’t seem to sit well with him; the sprawled young man was crying and wetting himself.

“This is… a dream…! Just a dream…!”

A dream?

“Well, let’s see. You’ll know once you burn.”

If it’s a dream, he’ll wake up on his own.

After setting him on fire, I left him where he was.

After all, if I kicked someone who’d wet himself, it might splash on me.

“KYAAAAK!! IT’S HOT!! IT’S HOOOOOT!!”

Behind me, desperate screams echoed.

Seems like it’s hard to wake up from this dream.

What a shame?

—-

The sin-filled village burns.

Crackling embers shoot into the air, and charred pillars collapse with thunderous sounds as houses crumble.

Tilting walls and roofs spread the inferno to neighboring buildings.

I shot the legs of those trying to escape, then approached to set them ablaze—ten more times.

The spreading flames consumed everything in their path, extending eastward.

Thanks to the fire reaching toward the sky, the surroundings were already as bright as day.

Yes. This should be visible even to the gods said to be in heaven. Watch carefully.

I’ve done my part sending them up; sending them down to hell is your responsibility, right?

I lit a cigarette while watching the burning village.

The screams of burning maggots echoed faintly.

A requiem for the victims, this chorus.

The heat-laden wind tickled my hair.

I savored the warm sensation while leisurely inhaling the smoke.

“Hoo—”

I added white smoke to the air already filled with ash and fumes.

A cigarette after healthy exercise always had a special taste.

The bloodlust that had been heightened gradually subsided.

The instinct that had pulsed through my veins fell asleep, satisfied with its rare feast.

About a dozen remained.

Millia would have taken care of that many.

Among those panic-stricken wretches were four children without even a beard.

They looked like they’d burst like water droplets if touched, so I left them alone.

I planned to smoke just one cigarette before finding Millia.

After that… I suppose we should head to the chapel.

That should be wrapping up by now too.

=======[Millia]=======

Eastern outskirts of the village.

Millia stopped her horse on a low hill, drew her bow, and waited silently.

Thanks to slowing down and walking quietly from near the village, no one seemed to have heard her horse’s hooves.

The village was dark and quiet. Unnervingly so for a place where such terrible deeds had been committed.

Of course, the men gathered inside the houses were busy exchanging dirty jokes and chatting, but Millia’s hearing wasn’t keen enough to make out their voices.

Perhaps that was fortunate. Had she heard them, she might have lost her composure from the start due to their horrific content.

‘They’re Kobolds. Just Kobolds…’

Repeatedly muttering to herself as if in self-persuasion, Millia took slow, deep breaths.

Her protruding white top fluttered with each exhale.

The repeated affirmations seemed effective as her mind gradually stabilized.

The cold sweat running down her cheeks stopped, and her trembling fingertips grew steady.

‘It’s okay. I can do this. I too…’

Millia steeled herself as she looked down at the village.

Haschal’s words were not wrong. A knight should be able to handle this much.

Eliminating heinous criminals was also one of a knight’s duties.

That’s what summary execution rights were for.

And Millia herself was already a knight.

Though it didn’t feel particularly real, and she was still better with a bow than a sword… she was still a knight.

One who defeats evil to save people. Like Demian back then.

So she had to fight. Like a proper knight.

She couldn’t hesitate forever.

Having regained her composure, Millia placed an arrow on her bow.

The signal fire was burning.

Soon after, a thunderous sound echoed as dust rose from the western part of the village.

The vibration in the air reached all the way to where Millia was. Probably Haschal’s doing.

‘Haschal…’

Princess of Ka’har. Dane Killer. Imperial noble. Were Eater. Master-level knight. Slaughterer. Friend.

Millia’s feelings toward her remained complicated.

Affection and fondness as a friend. Gratitude toward a benefactor. Reverence for strength and… a bit of jealousy.

And the bewilderment she felt whenever Haschal revealed her alien side.

The ferocious aura that flowed when she was irritated. The violence and cruelty that occasionally erupted as if she were a different person.

This was still an uncomfortable aspect for Millia.

Frider was also violent, but… even with similar cruelty, the fundamental nature was different.

Frider’s brutality was based on rational reasons.

Since he mainly fought werebeasts, he used a saw to maximize bleeding and wounds.

As a result, his opponents were torn apart horribly. That was all.

In contrast, Haschal’s cruelty was steeped in deep malice.

The sinister intention to instill terrible fear in her opponents, deliver excruciating pain, and enjoy mocking their screaming.

Had she done this to innocent people rather than evildoers, she would immediately become an enemy of the Empire.

Nevertheless, to Millia, Haschal was a precious friend. Now.

Millia recalled the past while waiting for the enemies to rush out.

——–

When she first saw her, she felt nothing but fear and wariness.

She was terrified of those fierce eyes that emanated a terrible aura.

After recovering from the injuries of their duel and starting to converse, her thoughts changed a bit.

The Haschal she actually spoke with was quite different from the rumors.

Though still full of killing intent, her friendly approach was unimaginable considering her infamy.

It was somewhat bewildering. Like encountering a wolf eating leaves instead of meat.

After all, the notorious slaughterer rumored to have massacred thousands of Danes acted more like a slightly twisted youth.

A rough manner of speaking mixed with subtle consideration. Joking around and laughing like a boy.

Delinquent enough to smoke mana herbs in the classroom corridor, but not bullying other students.

Rather, she showed surprisingly favorable attitudes toward people who didn’t show hostility toward her.

And occasionally displaying eloquence that seemed to contain intelligence.

She was a peculiar person difficult to describe in one word.

Millia remembers feeling some curiosity about Haschal’s character.

When Haschal returned battered after fighting Knut, Millia was shocked.

Revealing her weakened state and limply sprawled, Haschal seemed like a completely different person.

It was then that Millia properly faced Haschal for the first time.

Though she appeared a couple of years older than Millia herself, her exotic features still retained youthful traces.

Her pale face was beautiful like glass work.

Millia realized anew that Haschal was also still under twenty, a young age.

Her listlessly relaxed eyes looked pitiful.

When she hesitantly asked if Millia blamed her, Millia even felt an inexplicable sympathy.

What kind of life had Haschal lived?

Was this life of fighting until she was battered what she had wanted from the beginning?

Probably not, Millia thought. She still remembered that Haschal’s habitual phrase was “It can’t be helped.”

It must have always been that way.

Not the life she wanted, but simply the one she had no choice but to live.

If she hadn’t been born in the land of Ka’har, wouldn’t Haschal have lived an ordinary life?

Growing up loved by her parents, becoming an adult and loving someone… such a peaceful daily life. Like everyone else.

No. Perhaps she might have become an Empire’s female knight praised by all.

Maybe even joining Princess Leonore’s knights.

Seeing Haschal’s expression, blankly shedding tears like a child with many wounds, Millia also made a resolution.

To accept her.

To ignore appearances and rumors, and to properly see and believe only in what she showed.

As a friend.

After that, Haschal became the closest person to Millia after Demian.

Though it was embarrassing whenever Haschal teased her about Demian, she was always a reliable friend who helped them.

In fact, rather than a friend, Millia thought this might be how it would feel if she had an older sister or brother.

——–

Screams began to echo from across the village. Along with confused murmuring.

Millia stopped her reverie and nocked an arrow to her bowstring.