episode_0093

There was a little demon ghost named Shari that always stuck around in my head.

Since Shari was a ghost, she could easily pass through obstacles like cliffs without any trouble.

Moreover, she had the ability to vividly unfold scenes in the human consciousness as if they were directly experienced.

Isn’t she the perfect candidate to fulfill the conditions for spatial teleportation magic?

“Shari.”

I quietly called out Shari’s name.

And then, Shari, who was attached to my head, floated up and appeared in front of me.

But there was a slight problem when it came to asking Shari for a favor.

Shari couldn’t be seen by Mariel.

In order to use this method, Shari’s appearance needed to be visible to Mariel so that she could accept Shari’s existence.

Otherwise, Mariel might not fully accept the scenes shown by Shari.

“Mariel, I know this is sudden, but I have something to ask.”

“Huh? What is it? Do you want to know my three sizes or something? That’s a secret.”

No, not that.

“Are you afraid of ghosts by any chance?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden? A great wizard like me wouldn’t be afraid of ghosts.”

Mariel looked puzzled, not understanding my question.

Selphee, who was listening to me nearby, looked towards where Shari was and spoke.

“Senior, are you…?”

“Yes, I’m introducing Shari.”

“Is it okay?”

“It’s fine. He’s a friend of Alcott’s.”

It was actually Selphee who needed to be careful.

Selphee could see Shari, but she was unaware of the existence of the demon sanctuary.

Mariel didn’t know about Shari’s existence, but as a friend of Alcott, she knew about the demon sanctuary.

Even if Selphee knew about the demon sanctuary, it wouldn’t cause a big problem, but it was still important to be cautious about revealing the existence of that place to a new person without consulting Alcott.

On the other hand, Shari’s existence didn’t matter as long as the person who saw her accepted her.

At first, she would show her appearance to anyone without me asking.

“Mariel, there’s a ghost that always follows me. If we use her, we might be able to greatly improve the accuracy of spatial teleportation magic.”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about!”

“Shari, can you show yourself to this person?”

When I asked Shari, Mariel’s gaze shifted towards where Shari was floating.

Then, with wide eyes, she exclaimed, “What is this! You!”

“This is the ghost that accompanies me. Her name is Shari, a demon.”

“Goodness! Is this really happening? A ghost, not a familiar or summon?”

Mariel’s reaction was more intense than I had expected.

But I didn’t sense any hostility or negative emotions from her.

What I felt from her was pure and explosive curiosity.

Well, I had expected that.

I briefly explained Shari’s existence to Mariel.

Mariel reached out to touch Shari and spoke to her, her eyes sparkling like a child seeing something amazing.

“Anyway, if we send Shari over the cliff, we might be able to improve the stability of spatial teleportation magic and see the scenery on the other side. Mariel, I don’t doubt you, but wouldn’t it be better to go as safely as possible?”

Actually, Mariel’s magic was unreliable… Based on the information provided by the narration, this seemed to be the best way.

Sending Shari first would allow us to confirm if Milaia was really on the other side.

“To secure the stability of spatial teleportation magic, we obtain information about the destination… Your words are indeed correct. It would be much easier to teleport that way. By the way, can you lend me this ghost?”

Mariel approached Shari, who was floating in the air, and asked while getting close to her face.

Shari seemed to find it burdensome as she flew up to a higher place to avoid it, only to return to my head.

“Shari is not an object.”

“Uh… But I’ve never seen such a vivid spirit before. It’s worth researching!”

“Give it up. Anyway, let’s focus on what we need to do now.”

I said firmly.

Ignoring the very disappointed Mariel, I asked Shari.

“Shari, could you break through that large cliff ahead and see what’s on the other side?”

Shari nodded.

Shari’s small body disappeared through the cliff.

We took a break while waiting for Shari to return.

* * *

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The heavy footsteps of the Bloodstain, the Lord of Blood, echoed through the ground.

The elite demons following him were approaching to end the life of the hero.

But there was one woman standing in the way of protecting the hero.

Bloodstain could recognize that woman at a glance.

Muscular arms holding an axe with bulging veins full of strength.

The woman who had faced his axe head-on in the Horn Canyon.

But even then, he felt somewhat familiar.

Had he seen her somewhere a long time ago?

He briefly tried to remember, but nothing came to mind.

It didn’t matter much.

After all, the hero would die today with this annoying human woman.

Milaya was looking at Bloodstain and his demon army expressionlessly.

Without taking a step back, she prepared to face them.

Although she usually had no expression, today she had no fear of death.

She was actually pleased.

She had been using the hero as bait to provoke them, but so far only small fries had attacked.

At this moment, which could be the last battle of her life, she was glad that Bloodstain, one of her big goals, had come.

“Charge.”

Bloodstain finally raised his large axe and ordered.

Dozens of skeletal knights and Behemoths rushed in response.

To definitively eliminate the hero, Bloodstain had gathered the most powerful demons he could find.

Milaya also infused magic into her longsword, storing her signature Time Slash around her.

Countless invisible shields were protecting her.

And as the battle began, the hero Cain was still far away behind Milaya, doing nothing.

He was waiting for an opportunity.

This time, he would escape from Milaya’s grasp and flee from here.

But if he just sneaked away, he could still be caught by Milaya.

And if he were caught this time, he might do something terrible.

Cain was at a crossroads.

* * *

Shari finally returned from her reconnaissance.

While waiting, I heard a distant sound that seemed to make the ground tremble.

And through Shari, I could immediately know the identity of that tremor.

“Milaya is really over there, beyond that cliff….”

The landscape beyond the cliff that Shari shared with me mentally was shocking.

Milaya was alone, facing off against the demon army led by Bloodstain.

The battle seemed to have already begun.

And there was a man behind Milaya, looking confused and blinking his eyes, not knowing what to do.

Considering the information gathered so far, that suspicious man must be the hero.

“Let’s go over there right away.”

There was no time to waste.

I shared the scene Shari had seen with Mariel.

Mariel trembled with excitement when Shari showed her the scene in her mind.

“Wow! This is incredible! It feels like memories of actually being there are flowing into my mind! This is truly an amazing inspiration of magic…”

“No, there’s no time to be amazed. We need to help over there quickly, it might be dangerous.”

“Hmm! Got it! I’ll go right away! Hold on tight!”

You can only catch something that’s there to catch.

What do you want me to catch?

As I mentally tackled the question, Mariel’s staff shone brightly.

In a flash, the surroundings disappeared, and I found myself standing alone in a space filled with blue.

And in that mysterious space, a crack appeared with a crackling sound.

Is this the dimensional rift created by teleportation magic?

Through the opened crack, I could see the scenery Shari had shown earlier.

Without hesitation, I threw myself through the crack.

And…

Thud!

I arrived safely on the scene where Milaia was, tumbling over.

“Ow…”

Did everyone else arrive safely too?

We arrived behind Milaia, where the hero was standing, through the dimensional rift.

One by one, the dimensional cracks opened, revealing Sylphie and Mariel as well.

“Hahaha! Great success!”

As soon as Mariel arrived, she laughed triumphantly.

Fortunately, this time everyone completed the teleportation without any incidents.

But before we could admire the successful teleportation, we were immediately shocked by the scene before us.

Crash! Whoosh!

Milaia was fiercely fighting through the monsters.

Just like the last time we saw her, her skills were formidable.

But where is the hero who was here?

He was definitely around here when Shari showed us.

As I thought about it, I saw a strange scene.

Three skeleton knights were being fought by Milaia, and behind her, the hero was lying down as if about to stab her with his sword.

Logically, it would make sense that the hero was joining the battle to help Milaia.

But something was off.

“Yunoa’s intuition was right. The hero Cain’s target is not the monsters but Milaia. In a state practically kidnapped by Milaia, the hero took the opportunity to attack her instead of being chased by the monsters. Milaia may not have been a match for such a hero, but the hero’s holy sword from behind was deadly.”

Even with the narration explaining the situation, I still couldn’t understand.

Why did Milaia kidnap the hero? And why is the hero trying to kill her now?

If Milaia dies, she won’t be able to stand against those bloodstains and terrible monsters, right?

What is he thinking?

Is that hero or lunatic idiot thinking he’ll be safe if he kills Milaia?

“Milaia! Behind you!”

I immediately drew my sword and ran towards Milaia, shouting to warn her.

But in the midst of battle, my voice didn’t reach her.

For a moment, a thought crossed my mind.

Could it be that the threat to Milaia’s life was because of that hero?

The hero was about to stab Milaia in the back with his sword.

There was no choice.

I had to block it for her.

And then retreat with Milaia.

I filled my Dragoonite sword with magic and sent a blade towards the hero’s sword.

Of course, I had no intention of hurting the hero.

I just wanted to disrupt his attack on Milaia and buy some time.

Swish! Clang!

The blade from my Dragoonite sword deflected the holy sword the hero was wielding, cutting through the air sharply.

The hero was greatly shocked as he dropped his sword from his hand.

And Milaia, upon hearing the sound, turned towards this direction.

“…!”

Surprise spread across Milaia’s face, which had always been expressionless, as her eyes turned towards me.

Yes! I’m still alive! So, let’s not waste our lives in a place like this and retreat for now!

I wanted to say that, but I didn’t have the luxury to speak.

That’s when it happened.

The fearsome demon with a terrifying bull’s head, Bloodstain, leaped to an unbelievable height.

And he landed where Milaia and the hero were.

Thud-!

The ground shook as dirt and dust scattered in all directions, obscuring the view.

What, I can’t see anything.

But shortly after, Milaia broke through the dust and ran towards where I was.

Milaia was unharmed.

Alright, Milaia has come this way too, so now we just need to run away.

…Where should I run to?

Why is the terrain like this here?

Surrounded by a huge cliff, the only exit towards the demon realm was blocked by monsters and Bloodstain.

I have no choice but to break through forcefully if I want to retreat.

As I was thinking that, the dust gradually cleared, revealing the figures of Bloodstain and the monsters once again.

“Uh….”

And I was slightly shocked.

Bloodstain was stepping on the hero with one foot.

The hero lay motionless on the ground.

Thud-!

Soon, a large axe came down on the hero’s head.

The hero became a mass of unrecognizable flesh without any resistance.

…The hero was dead.