Ch.235Chapter 235: Unpleasant Reunion and Confrontation (1)

#

Watching the veil of Desire shatter with the same sound as a glass tumbler thrown to the floor and breaking.

[Hey.]

‘What is it?’

[Why did it break from just that?]

‘How would I know when even you who threw it don’t understand?’

[…I wasn’t really asking for an answer.]

‘I see.’

Pafnir and I were busy exchanging questions and answers filled with sentiments that could be summed up in one word: bewilderment.

One might wonder if we should be engaging in such leisurely conversation right now.

But it was possible because Desire, who seemed paralyzed after watching her own veil shatter, showed no movement whatsoever.

If circumstances allowed, I would have loved to exploit that crack in the shattered veil and give Desire a good taste of my blade.

[Stop it, stop. It’s beyond your current capabilities.]

But because of Pafnir’s immediate restraint, I could only entertain such thoughts.

“Tsk.”

I merely clicked my tongue as I watched Desire’s thick veil of malice crumble from a distance.

Though it was disappointing, the unexpected scene unfolding before my eyes was dulling that disappointment somewhat.

Even in an incomplete physical form that couldn’t fully manifest her divine body in the material world, she was still a demon god.

Against the veil of malice, which normally couldn’t be physically damaged except by a holy sword…

Watching and hearing repeatedly how it partially broke with a loud noise the moment it was touched by the flame arrow cast by Pafnir, who likewise couldn’t fully exert his power…

The confusion I felt when first witnessing it began to creep up again.

Moreover, this confusion wasn’t felt by just Pafnir and me.

Even Desire, who couldn’t properly speak to me except when she first appeared due to the aftereffects of manifesting incompletely in the material world, seemed to feel similar emotions.

『…?? ……..??』

I could tell that Desire’s emotions were greatly fluctuating as she uttered indiscernible words while her distortion field of malice shattered with a fleeting sound.

Well, since her words weren’t clearly audible, there was no way to know what kind of emotions were stirring within her.

One fortunate thing was…

Despite my blatant hostility toward a demon god, the possibility of her inflicting immediate physical harm on me seemed significantly low.

[How can you be so sure?]

‘You’ve experienced it, haven’t you? I think you know as well as I do.’

[What are you talking about?]

‘Even though she’s manifested here in an incomplete state, if she had any intention of causing me physical harm, she would have tried to destroy me somehow instead of greeting me. Even though I’m just a fragment, she thoroughly beat up a demigod she favors, yet here I am unharmed despite having plenty of reasons to punish me.’

[…I can’t argue with that.]

Of course, even as I provided a convincing explanation to Pafnir who questioned my reasoning…

My gaze remained fixed on Desire’s veil, which was making shattering sounds and gradually developing larger cracks.

While I could be certain that a demon god who revealed herself, even in an incomplete state, wouldn’t inflict any physical harm on “me”…

My concern that she might display her power and engage in destructive acts against everything else kept my eyes from wandering elsewhere.

As I mentioned earlier, while she shows dignity and benevolence as a ruler to those who rely on her shadow…

Having personally experienced the temperament of the transcendent being called Desire, who was recorded as being so cruel to others that even other demon gods clicked their tongues…

I feared what might happen if even a portion of that power was projected onto this land.

[You say you’re afraid, yet you don’t even consider running away.]

‘Running away would be pointless against a demon god who’s already showing signs of awakening. Besides….’

[Besides?]

‘I have someone I need to protect here, so where would I go?’

[Oh, that’s the most appealing thing I’ve heard from you since we’ve been together.]

‘…Somehow that sounds like everything else I’ve said hasn’t been to your liking, but—’

I was about to respond to Pafnir who was teasing me while naturally leading the conversation, but…

[Shh. It’s coming.]

With his somewhat tense voice in my head…

Crash-!!

The conversation with Pafnir in my mind ended once again in an incomplete form as I saw the veil breaking more violently with the same clear sound it made when the flame arrow touched it.

The veil of malice, which had been showing signs of recovery bit by bit after breaking with a loud noise when the arrow touched it…

KWAAANG-!!!

Disappeared without a trace, accompanied not by the clear sound of breaking glass but by a thunderous explosion.

Now, in place of the thick veil, a dense fog settled, making it impossible to discern what had originally been there.

That fog was surely a phenomenon created when the demon god, feeling both confusion at seeing her veil unexpectedly shattered and anger at being struck by a being of lower rank, removed the cumbersome veil to project her power…

And tried to release her momentary passion in some form.

I tried to prepare for any contingency by maintaining a vigilant stance and gradually infusing my dragon sword with fighting spirit, but…

My heightened vigilance, with all senses and spiritual perception sharpened, became instantly useless.

『Hmm. Perhaps I failed in distributing my power. It has been a while since I revealed myself here. But even so, it’s quite humiliating for my veil to break without even facing a holy sword.』

This was because the demon god Desire, who had finally revealed herself from the fog that filled the area, appeared before me while muttering to herself.

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I’m tense. My entire body is filled with tension as I face the demon god much sooner than I had anticipated.

Even just hearing her voice in dreams was enough to make me shudder; now her voice was clearly trying to suppress the malice within through playfulness.

The pitch-black fog completely concealing her appearance despite being right in front of me confirmed my suspicion that Desire cannot fully manifest her divine body in the material world.

This must be the limit of how much the demon god can reveal her physical form in the material world right now.

There’s nothing more to describe even if I focus my gaze more intently.

Desire is currently in such a weak state that not even a tenth of her power has been manifested.

Of course, even in such a weakened state, the total amount of power she possessed was on a completely different level from Adorator’s fragment that I had been confronting until just now.

[Uuugh…]

Not long after she appeared before me, Pafnir’s heavy groan filled my mind as he reacted sensitively to the waves of malice she emitted.

Unlike when he had shown unbridled anger toward her from a safe distance…

The pitch-black malice emanating from Desire was a considerable burden even for Pafnir.

“…”

Though I didn’t groan like Pafnir, I too was struggling not to be overwhelmed by the pressure emanating from the demon god’s presence that I was facing after so long.

It was an undeniable fact that the current situation was objectively extremely dangerous.

No joke. I know all too well from my experiences before regression that a being of Desire’s caliber could reduce this place to ruins with just her will, even in her current imperfect state.

How could I not feel fear?

But unlike the fear I felt in this objectively dangerous situation…

『Well, such trivial matters aren’t important right now.』

The very source of that fear seems to be in a good mood right now.

『Having confirmed that my agent, to whom I can bequeath everything, is stronger than at any moment I can remember, why should I care about pride?』

…It was quite vexing how she casually called me her agent while caring only for her own feelings and not mine.

So I swung my dragon sword at Desire, who was expressing her joy at our reunion, to show my own kind of welcome.

The fighting spirit I had gathered in preparation for an emergency created a brilliant trajectory as I swung my sword.

At this rate, when the sword’s trajectory ended, it should have cut through that fog surrounded by malice, giving me a peculiar sensation in my fingertips, but…

『…Perhaps too strong is a problem?』

Desire, showing composure while watching my sword strike, blocked it with two fingers aligned with the sword’s trajectory, preventing that from happening.

The dragon sword, which normally had the power to purify malignant energy upon contact, wasn’t working as usual even with Pafnir’s flames.

Or more precisely…

Hiss-!!

Judging by the black smoke rising and scattering from Desire’s two fingers holding the sword, it was working, but…

It just stopped there, unable to cut through Desire’s physical form.

『Hmm, not bad. This is enough to leave a meaningful mark even on my divine body.』

Despite her fingers burning as she blocked the sword, Desire consistently praised my sword strike with a relaxed attitude, seemingly feeling no pain.

But how could such praise make me feel good?

I simply added my left hand to the sword handle, which I had been holding with just one hand, to apply more force.

“Huaaah!!”

With a battle cry, I tried to cut through Desire’s physical form made of fog, beyond the two fingers blocking my dragon sword, but…

『Oops.』

Desire noticed my intention and immediately released her two fingers from the sword, widening the gap, causing my attempt to end in failure.

Seeing how easily she deflected my attack, which I had launched with the intention of destroying her, I couldn’t feel good even as a mere expression.

After regressing, I had anticipated that someday I would face a situation like this.

I had countless times vowed in my heart that when that time came, I would definitely take revenge for those days.

I had built up my strength, even sacrificing sleep time, to fulfill that vow.

Yet, just because I faced such an opponent a little earlier than expected, the result was that my sword strike, delivered with all my might, was blocked by just two fingers.

The feeling of emptiness and dejection that came from realizing that my power was still insignificant even to a demon god who hadn’t properly awakened from her sleep felt like a sharp pain piercing my lungs.

But now was not the time to writhe in such pain.

『Since we’ve met after so long, wouldn’t it be better to put away that blade and have a smiling conversation?』

The demon god, whose smiling face I couldn’t confirm due to the fog but was surely displaying one, had not yet retreated from this place.

How could I have time to sit down and feel miserable?

That’s why I prepared to fight again.

I properly gripped the dragon sword with both hands, which I had carelessly wielded with just one hand before.

I switched to the high stance I always take against opponents I face.

『Hmm.』

Seeing me like this, a sound of interest flowed from Desire’s lips, and then…

『I don’t have much time. But I can play with you for a bit… right?』

She said this while pointing both hands toward me.

Judging by her posture—left hand wide open and right hand lightly clenched—she lacked the seriousness that would match her words about playing.

…While I’m in a state where the boundary between life and death is wavering, she’s in the mood to play with me.

In the past, I might have felt passionate about such an attitude from an opponent.

But having thoroughly understood the opponent’s temperament from experiences before regression to the point of being sick of it…

I didn’t feel much emotion now.

“I’ll help you play properly.”

Instead, I responded to the opponent’s lightness with lightness of my own.

Then I took another light step toward the fiend.

Seeing this, Desire maintained her stance and watched me.

Due to being shrouded in fog, I couldn’t tell what expression she was making.

But judging from the lightness felt in her posture, it was easy to see that she was confident she could handle whatever movement I made here.

Yes, keep standing there defenseless.

That’s the only way I can deliver something proper to you.

Though its significance might be diminished since I’m facing a fake body made of fog rather than a real divine body…

It would still be a perfect strike to show that I’m not going to be your puppet.

As I strengthened my resolve to deliver a fatal blow, my left foot, which I had slowly stepped forward, was about to touch the ground.

[Let’s go.]

The moment Pafnir’s calm voice, having read my thoughts, echoed in my head…

Paang-!!

I lunged toward Desire as my leading left foot fully touched the ground.

With the fighting spirit I had gradually gathered and stored in my heart…

Thump-thump-!!

And by fully opening the dragon heart that had been quietly refining fighting spirit at the symmetrical point to that heart.