Ch.268Chapter 10. Public Enemy (3)

Though called the Demon of Omniscience, it doesn’t actually know everything.

It doesn’t know everything—it only knows what it already knows.

Even if its knowledge exceeds the combined contents of every library book, it cannot know information that exists outside those libraries.

Mateless doesn’t know “patriotism.”

Mateless doesn’t know 5,700.

Mateless doesn’t know that I’m a possessor.

“Wh-what…?”

The Marksman’s seventh bullet pierced through Mateless’s heart.

Being an S+ class entity, on the same level as Dueoksini, it wouldn’t die from a single bullet.

However.

This bullet reached Mateless.

And Mateless doesn’t understand “how” the bullet reached its heart.

“H-how did you…?”

Mateless clutches its head.

Unlike the other clones, its brain didn’t explode, but it’s clearly suffering, tearing at its head.

“By what method…? A causality-reversing bullet? Timeline deletion? Speed that surpasses cognitive processing? H-how? Where is the process?”

The extraterrestrial demon, a demon from beyond Earth, trembles with fear.

Confused, it places its hand over the gaping hole in its chest, tracing the bullet’s trajectory.

“H-how? Ah, aaaaargh…!”

Splat!

One of the nearby clones begins melting from the head down.

Whether from brain overload or actual melting, the clone slowly dissolves like slime due to excessive thought processing.

“T-The Marksman…? A contract with a demon…? It should be Zamiel, not Samael…? According to my information, the seventh bullet should fly toward a lover, not me…?”

It searches for information about the original source after hearing “The Marksman.”

Based on all the information in its head, it’s trying to compile data related to The Marksman to understand how it was attacked.

‘How foolish.’

It could just ignore this, think about it simply, but it can’t.

This demon of intellect, which steals others’ attacks, abilities, and histories to make them its own, must figure it out.

It needs to know who the malicious author is that adds NTR to romance stories, and it needs to know how the bullet pierced through it.

“Ugh, uuugh, aaaaargh!!”

The Mateless clones begin screaming.

With hysterical shrieks, blade-like claws extend from their hands like werewolves, and they charge toward us.

Clang clang clang!

As they begin slashing at the golden sphere from all directions, they look like specially evolved zombies swarming us, giving me goosebumps.

[It’s okay. We can endure this indefinitely.]

Ymir reassures me, infusing more magical power into the barrier.

[Shall we assess the situation?]

[No. Time isn’t on our side.]

Going to an earth battle might be an option, but then Qiongqi’s barrier would disappear.

[If it thinks it can’t get information here, it will definitely try to escape somewhere else to find information.]

Whether books, historical records, or the internet, it will certainly try to leave to find information about this ability.

[It’s working. Look at that.]

Splat.

The head of a Mateless clone that was slashing at us melts away.

Even while attacking us, it’s trying to trace the trajectory of the seventh bullet and analyze the ability, using the brains of its clones to the point where their heads are melting.

“Ugh, uuugh, aaaah…! How, how did you do it!! Answer me!!”

[Do you want to know?]

Between the clones wildly swinging their blade-like claws, a kneeling Mateless blankly nods.

[Then, watch carefully.]

I tapped the Goblin Club, now a rifle, on the ground to change its form.

A revolver.

The cylinder shows six chambers.

[Six Pistols.]

As I pull the trigger forward, the first bullet fires.

With perfect timing, Ymir creates an opening, and the first bullet flies straight through, piercing a clone.

Bang, bang, bang.

I continue pulling the trigger in succession.

The second bullet pierces a clone behind, and the following bullets spiral toward Mateless.

[The sixth.]

Before firing the sixth bullet, I slightly turned my body sideways and swung the gun to the side.

Ba-a-a-ang!

A clone throws itself forward to block the bullet entering the hole, but the bullet curves like a breaking ball, bypassing the clone.

The curving bullet.

Its trajectory bends like a crescent moon, precisely piercing Mateless’s shoulder.

“…Ah, ahaha!!”

Mateless starts laughing.

Simultaneously, the clones’ hands begin dropping off, and gun barrels emerge from the severed surfaces.

“Bullets that defy the laws of physics—amazing! An ability that seems straight out of a movie!”

Rat-tat-tat!

Bullets hammer against our barrier.

It fires bullets at me that curve just like mine, not flying straight or in spirals.

[Wow, that’s insane…!]

Ymir briefly curses.

My bullets are one thing, but to see them once, get hit by them, immediately understand and copy them—that’s truly impressive.

I’m almost envious.

While I’ve seen various abilities through different media, Mateless’s ability to analyze and copy is truly terrifying.

‘Definitely the most troublesome demon.’

For an ability user, having their technique copied means having their secrets exposed.

If we let Mateless escape now, it would have secured three abilities simultaneously.

Dragon Killer, Six Pistols, and curving bullets.

The more diverse abilities a being has, the harder it becomes to capture Mateless.

Indeed, it’s worthy of being a boss from the original work’s second part.

Like Dueoksini with its super-speed movement and regeneration, this ability is certainly fitting for an extraterrestrial demon.

Still.

[Last one. Zamiel’s bullet.]

Though all six bullets in the cylinder were fired forward, I pulled the trigger with an incantation.

Bang.

With the firing sound, red blood splatters.

“……Ha.”

The bullet passes through space, precisely hitting the already empty heart.

Since it had already been pierced once, not much blood sprayed, but it scattered the blood flowing inside the hole backward.

“H-how…? It wasn’t even curving…?”

[Do you want to know the answer?]

Mateless nods again.

I pulled out the revolver’s cylinder to the side, keeping only my index finger on the trigger, and shrugged lightly.

[I won’t give you the answer you want.]

“……!!”

If its head was hurting from not understanding the ability, now it’s time to increase the stress and overload its brain.

[Can’t you figure out something this simple?]

“Y-you…!”

[I’ll show you once more. Platinum Sun, join me this time.]

[…….]

I approached behind Ymir, then extended the gun forward from behind her.

[Take it.]

[Should I fill it with my magical power?]

[Good.]

Click.

Golden magical power begins to shine in the cylinder.

Ymir aims the gun forward using the grip technique she learned at the academy, and I support her from behind, extending my hand forward.

[First bullet.]

The moment Ymir pulls the trigger, a golden laser shoots forward, blasting away all the clones in front of us.

“A magic-concentrated bullet…! This brute force…!”

[It’s just overwhelming power.]

Indeed, if my previous attacks were like regular gunfire,

Ymir’s attack was like a beam cannon itself.

[Second bullet.]

Ymir slowly twisted her foot sideways, and I moved my body in sync with her steps.

Zzzzing.

The magical light erupting from the muzzle surges forward like a laser beam.

The beam slices through the clones’ necks like a blade, cutting them all down before they could even melt.

“Ha, haha….”

We only pulled the trigger twice, only made one turn, yet all the clones on the rooftop were destroyed.

Creep, creep.

The remains of the destroyed clones begin gathering toward Mateless.

It seemed the main body was reabsorbing what it had multiplied, and the main body slowly rose, filling the wind-hole in its chest with flesh.

“This…!”

[Three, four, five, six.]

Golden bullets precisely embed themselves in its limbs.

As soon as they leave the muzzle, the bullets spin like circular saws, each rushing toward Mateless.

[Origin-seeking bullets. Hehe, how do you like them?]

[Next time, we could try making and throwing them by hand instead of using a gun.]

[Hmph.]

After blasting off both arms and legs, the golden light shimmers at the severed surfaces, preventing Mateless from regenerating.

Thud.

Mateless’s body crashes to the floor.

Now like a mannequin with severed limbs, Mateless is still muttering something.

“Monomolecular cutter….”

[Wow. To identify it immediately after being hit. Truly terrifying. Then.]

Click.

[What do you think the seventh bullet will be like?]

“……!”

Ymir half-pulls the final trigger.

I placed my index finger on the trigger alongside Ymir’s, and pulled it in response to the signal from her body pressing against mine.

Bang.

Again, a bullet pierces the heart at exactly the same spot as before.

Hit by the seventh bullet, Mateless spits blood and drops its head to the side.

“H-how…?”

[Hmm.]

Ymir deactivates the barrier.

Lowering the gun still flowing with magical energy, she nods leisurely while leaning against me.

[You still don’t understand…?]

“……!”

[Such a simple principle.]

There is no process.

Let me say it again.

The fatal bullet leaves only the result of killing the target, ‘omitting the process.’

If you try to think about the process, your head will hurt.

In truth.

Ymir doesn’t know either.

I don’t know either.

There is only the result.

If I had to guess.

Perhaps what made this ability ‘possible’ was the will of a god in this world.