episode_0122

Disrupting the man’s mind, temporarily rendering him powerless.

It only takes a moment.

Just a brief moment while creating the body.

The ‘voice’ penetrated into Eugene’s mind with a slim chance.

But it quickly faltered.

|How can a human’s mental barrier be so impenetrable…!|

It won’t break.

Not a single crack.

The race that primarily focuses on physical training shouldn’t have such a strong mental barrier.

No. Even in the case of a powerful dragon with a strong mental barrier, there should be some vulnerable spots when prodded.

However, this man showed no weakness in any area.

It felt like facing an inanimate object.

Or, it felt like facing a collective entity.

A collective entity formed by dozens of consciousnesses.

Or perhaps, dozens of spirits clinging together to protect the mind…?

|Who is this guy?!|

Initially, it sent shivers down the spine.

Such individuals occasionally appeared.

For example, being born as a lone survivor among twins, or having the souls of two individuals.

But this man’s soul seemed to be more than ten in number.

Does that mean he’s the sole survivor among ten sets of twins?

It was an absurd notion.

It didn’t make sense.

He belonged to a category of beings that shouldn’t exist.

No. He belonged to a category of beings that must not exist.

Whatever he was, he was very dangerous.

They needed to get out of here quickly.

As the ‘voice’ began to panic with such thoughts,

The thick mental barrier began to open on its own.

|Huh?|

A sinister light emanated from within.

At this, the ‘voice’ froze.

It must be him.

The great one.

He shouldn’t be here.

Don’t make eye contact!

You’ll go mad! You’ll face a fate worse than death!

The ‘voice’ began to frantically flee, trying to escape the giant entity emerging from the mental barrier.

|This guy! Did he make eye contact with the great one?! How is he still sane? No, is he already insane?!|

Just then, an exit that had been completely blocked opened up.

The ‘voice’ sprang towards the exit, successfully entering the body.

There were some troubles along the way, but they had achieved their goal.

Now, all they had to do was control the body.

Since it was a body created using a massive amount of magic, they should be able to extract about a third of the main body’s power.

During the time with Lawrence, they couldn’t even use one-tenth of it, but this time was different.

…It had to be different.

|Huh?|

The form of the body began to change strangely.

It moved on its own, beyond the control of the ‘voice.’

The carefully crafted beautiful form disappeared, replaced by a grotesque appearance.

The ‘voice’ screamed, but there was nothing they could do.

Trapped in the dough of magic, they could only wail.

At the end, when the final form was completed, the ‘voice’ screamed in horror.

|My body is nothing but a sword’s shape! The essence of a demon turned into a mere imitation of a piece of metal!|

It was a sword.

It had been fixed in the form of a sword.

No, it seemed possible to make it unstable again, but as ‘voice’ had completely lost control over the magic, it was impossible for them to do so.

|Aaargh!!!|

The ‘voice,’ once part of Velfegor, let out a silent scream.

.

.

.

[Magic Sword]

[The sword is made of the devil’s magic. It has properties similar to metal, but also possesses the nature of flowing magic and mana. A skilled user may be able to transform it into an unstable state.]

Truly, it’s an excellent sword.

It seems that only the metal part is implemented, up to the hilt.

This is a problem that can be solved by carving the sword handle.

The specs of the sword itself are considerable.

The external blade shape is similar to the Tran Silvia sword.

The blade is sturdy and sharp.

The smooth flow of magic, it seems like it could be quite helpful in magic control.

It seems to be more efficient than attaching a magic stone to a cheap sword.

Seeing the flow of magic, it seems like it could be utilized as a totem as well.

Since I don’t know how to use it, I’ll just acknowledge that it has this function and move on.

“······That. Shape. Possible, thing. Seems like.”

“Shape?”

Momentarily puzzled, I catch on to what Mijung is saying.

The last sentence in the information window.

It mentions that a skilled user may be able to transform it into an unstable state.

With that, I close my eyes and grip the sword in my hand.

It feels as hard and cool as metal.

But as I slowly infuse my will, it transforms like a squishy slime, changing shape and crumbling.

And when I grip it firmly again, it becomes a solid sword.

However, this time, the shape is different from before.

It’s not an external blade, but a large double-edged sword.

It resembles the two-handed swords mainly used by Frost types.

“Oh. A variable weapon.”

Once again, I break the shape and grip it, turning it into a one-handed sword used by Merida types.

With this, I can maximize the capabilities of the three sword skills.

Of course, there seems to be a limit to the transformations.

It doesn’t change completely freely.

It only changes within the category of a ‘sword’.

I tried to elongate it like a spear, but that was impossible.

Trying to change it into an axe shape or extend branches like a seven-branched sword was also impossible.

Trying to reduce it to the size of a small bead was also impossible.

Since I will only use it as a sword anyway, this doesn’t really matter.

“There are a couple of drawbacks though······.”

Of course, there are clear drawbacks as well.

One is that only the blade of the sword is implemented.

Even if I make a handle and attach it, it’s useless.

The custom-made handle breaks every time the shape changes.

There is only one solution.

I have to become the handle myself.

You might think this is nonsense.

If I fix the shape with a thick blade, I can grip it without a handle.

Wearing thick gloves would prevent my hands from getting hurt, and the grip would be somewhat decent.

But the real problem is the second one.

While the first one is solvable, the second one has no solution.

That is.

|My essence is reduced to just the shape of a sword! The essence of the devil has turned into a mere imitation of a piece of iron! Aaargh!!!|

This sword is quite noisy.

“Overall, it’s excellent except for the noise.”

“The sword is noisy?”

“Yeah. This one is talking.”

“Eugene. Finally, gone mad. Abandoning, it?”

“No, it’s really talking?”

Mijung sighs as if she finds me pathetic.

No, really, Bellpegor’s voice is coming from the sword.

Mijung, looking bewildered, listens to the sword, and her eyes widen.

“······It’s real.”

“What did it say?”

“······Remove the corpse. Hiiing.”

I thought I might be going crazy and hearing things, but that’s not the case.

Indeed, the voice is coming from this magic sword.

It must be the personality of Bellpegor’s magic that flowed into it.

I thought I had destroyed it when I shaped the magic stone.

Somehow, the personality remained and survived within it.

Maybe the Magi Sword itself is filled with his personality.

“Crazy bastard! This crazy bastard! Out of his mind!”

Is there no mute mode for this?

Other than the voice flowing out, there is no major issue.

Now that the Magi has completely lost its function and merged with the Magi Sword, there is no way to contact the main body.

With the situation stabilized, there is no need to worry about scattering the Magi around.

Even if I were to thrust this in front of Velfegor, he wouldn’t even imagine that it’s an item made of his own Magi.

The loudness offsets all other disadvantages…

“Why do you keep calling people crazy bastards?”

“Don’t call a crazy bastard a crazy bastard! What should I call you then? How can you look the Great One in the eye and still be sane? Are you really a human being?”

“…”

What is he talking about?

I’ve never met Drakken face to face.

Even though I saw his massive body in front of the final boss, I couldn’t bring myself to look him in the eye.

“What are you talking about? We never made eye contact.”

“Don’t lie! If you didn’t make eye contact, how did his influence penetrate your mental barrier? Accepting his influence and still maintaining your sanity! If this isn’t truly a crazy bastard, what else can I call you?”

“…”

Drakken’s influence is inside me?

At that, the setting regarding the final boss flashes through my mind.

Most of the setting is undisclosed (read as: not yet created), so there isn’t much.

I remember the setting that those who gaze into Drakken’s eyes will be brainwashed.

And the ‘Drakken’s influence’ mentioned by the Magi Sword is probably the subject of that brainwashing.

But for some reason, I didn’t get brainwashed.

There might be a reason for that.

‘Did I erase my own memories?’

I have no memory of seeing Drakken’s eyes.

As far as I remember, I escaped the other world without ever seeing Drakken’s eyes.

According to the Magi Sword, I made eye contact, but it seems like I erased that memory.

Perhaps I erased the memory to isolate Drakken’s influence and prevent brainwashing.

But I wouldn’t have done that myself.

Did my ‘mental fortitude enhancement’ trait handle it automatically?

‘That doesn’t seem likely.’

Then who erased my memories?

It’s full of questions.

But reopening the sealed memories and risking brainwashing is not an option.

For now, I’ll express my gratitude to the unknown person who sealed my memories.

“Thanks for the information. So, I’ll give you a special choice. First, shut your mouth and become my sword. Second, keep making noise and get buried in concrete, sinking to the bottom of the sea.”

“And third?”

“There’s no such option.”

“You… you… demon!”

Is hearing ‘demon’ from a demon a compliment or an insult?

Ah. It’s just a lump of Magi now, so it’s not even a great demon anymore.

“Make your choice quickly.”

“Alright… I’ll obey. If my true form sees me now, he’ll probably try to destroy me for betraying him. In that case, I’d rather grovel and continue my existence.”

Surprising.

I thought he wouldn’t bend due to the pride of a great demon, but he quickly backed down.

Perhaps there has been some change in his personality since separating from the main body.

Or maybe Velfegor’s main body has become powerless, making him so submissive.

I became curious to capture him later and find out.

“Do not expect to extract any information about the host from me. I am just the leftover magical residue separated from the host. Originally, I planned to possess a body and share memories with the host, but now I am practically a blank slate. Besides resembling some aspects of the host’s personality, I have virtually no memories, so you can consider me a completely different personality.”

“I can tell. Your tone is different.”

“Is that so…”

His voice sounded slightly gloomy for some reason.

I chuckled and transformed the magical sword back into its shabby form from before, then sheathed it.

The blade sticking out of the sheath looked oddly out of place.

I should make a cover for it later.

“So, what’s the plan now?”

“What’s the plan? We’re going to kill your host starting now.”

“I see. Okay. Huh? Huh? What…?”

I’ve obtained a reliable magical sword.

Now it’s time to go capture this guy’s host.