Chapter 251: Let’s Play with the Saint and Her Party! – Sequel
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Not only did the saint’s adventurer guards stop at once, they actually backed off straight away.
“What’s wrong? You’ve got your hands on your weapons, don’t you? Come and get me. Regardless of ranged or close combat, I won’t mind either way, you know? I’ll deal with attacks from all directions and pay them back a hundredfold! What, don’t fret, you won’t die. I can use healing magic, you see? Now matter how much you’ll hurt from it, I’ll heal it up and resume the torturing over and over again. That’s incredible, isn’t it? Hihihihi…ahahahahaha! Now I’ve become pumped!”
One of the guards abruptly whirled around, trying to escape, and since this lured several more into following his example, I deployed a barrier.
“W-What the hell’s this!?”
“The fuck! We can’t get out!”
“You thought I’d let you get away or something like that?”
When I mumbled that, the adventurers stopped banging against the barrier’s wall, and turned around with ghastly pale faces.
“Let’s play, okay? …I’ve been hoping for this kind of trouble all the time, and yet trouble has been avoiding me for some reason, so I got bored. Even monsters won’t come anywhere near me. Only dungeon monsters actually take me on. So you think I’m going to let my prey get away after it finally came to play with me? Don’t worry about the small stuff, and let’s have some fun?”
When I repeatedly beckoned them over, they started to shake violently, flopped down on the ground and prostrated themselves.
“I! I haven’t done anything! Nothing at all! I won’t ever go against you!”
“Me neither! I’ll become your slave! I’ll obey your every word!”
Somehow they all began to beg. But, that’s kind of not the development I was looking for, you know?
“Bah. Isn’t that dull? You guys are retards who can’t tell the strength of your opponent, right? You don’t get that I’m strong, correct? So come at me.”
Everyone on the ground violently shook their heads.
＊
I was disappointed, but not all hope was lost yet. Not everyone’s hearts had broken.
“…No helping it. The numbers have gone down, but there are still some left. Now then, let’s play!!”
“Please wait!”
The woman planted herself decisively in my way.
“I got it! You’re a demon!”
“Just what are you talking about?”
Am I exuding an aura like Spirit World dwellers do? I don’t feel like I have such imperturbability, though.
“I have several demon acquaintances, but I’m not always as calm, collected, and resigned to the future as they are. If I had to describe myself, I’d say I’m always seeking pleasure.
“I’ll exorcize the demon! Back me up!”
“As you order, Lady Saint!”
She didn’t listen to me at all.
＊
Somehow a third-rate drama of sorts has started, it seems?
The saint brandished a somewhat luxurious wand and began chanting in a pose making it very clear that she was going to use holy magic. The high-handed guy took just one step forward, and retrieved something out of his bag with exaggerated motions.
“You bloody demon! Eat this!”
Given that he sprinkled holy water or something like that at me, I caught it and tossed it right back.
“Here. You can have that back.”
“Gyaa!” The saint screamed.
“Pfft, you squeal like a little girl just because I returned your own stuff to you.”
When I reflexively retorted like that, it earned me a teary-eyed glare.
“Humph, that girl’s a saint or whatever, right? Tell me, what’s a saint anyway?”
Since it’s such a rare opportunity, I’ll just take her magic head on.
“Accursed demon! Don’t insult Lady Saint!”
“I’m going to insult her after this. But for now I’m just asking about the definition of a saint. Or in short, I want to know what makes her a saint.”
The man cast a fleeting glance at the saint, and then went along with my plan of stalling for time.
“…Lady Saint can use holy magic. Moreover, she can hear the voice of god.”
“Eh? The voice of god? Seriously?”
……No, no, wait. I mustn’t doubt her right off the bat. This is a different world, so maybe a god might actually exist.
“I see…she can hear the voice of god, huh…? …Okay, whatever that is, it’d be wrong of me to arbitrarily decide things, I suppose. So you can hear god’s voice, eh…? Okay… …Well, she might become unable to hear it once she grows out of puberty. Well, yeah. …Let’s not touch upon that topic too much,” I muttered.
Hearing that, the man became angry.
“Don’t phrase it so contemptuously! You’ve never heard god’s voice, have you!?”
“Hoh. Does that mean you did?”
My question caused him to become hard pressed for words.
“Looks like you didn’t. …By the way, the infamous brave has the same sickness that allows him to hear such voices.”
“It’s no sickness!”
I stared at the man and the saint with eyes full of pity.
“Yeah, I totally get the feeling of not wanting to admit it. That’s why I said I wouldn’t touch on this topic too much, didn’t I? …By the way, you’re still not done casting? Sword activates spells in under a second, but why is everyone else so much slower than him?”
Either way, it’s taking so ridiculously long.
“Don’t lump it together with the magic spells of adventurers! Lady Saint’s magic is high-ranking holy magic!” The high-handed man roared.
I don’t get what he’s saying at all.
“Oh really. You see, I’m waiting for her to finish, but any short-tempered guy would have torn you to pieces by now, you know? At the very least, the saint and you’d have been killed by any other demon by now.”
The Taking It Easy members got bored of this a while ago and have gone back to their work.
Meanwhile Ryoku sang, “Anytime soon? I wonder whether it’s going to start anytime soon? How much longer for the holy magic to activate?”
How lovely!
＊
After I did a theatrical yawn, I muttered, “Hey, you’re still not done? I’m getting bored over here. I guess I’ll kill some time by torturing you for the time being, huh?”, while deliberately cracking my knuckles.
“Hiii!” The high-handed man shrank back.
On the other hand, I took a step forward.
“You pulled that small act just now, didn’t you? If you don’t stall for time, I’ll finish off your saint, you know? If you believe that I’m a demon, I should probably torment the saint with some demonic magic. Guess I’ll imitate the magic of the demon I met on the lowest floor of the capital’s dungeon. Most people are going to die from that, but maybe she’ll be able to withstand it because she’s a saint!”
I’m talking about the space magic that shuts out all sound, light, and gravity.
＊
Apparently having heard me, the saint stopped chanting and began to tremble.
Girl, don’t mind me and go on with your spell chant.
The high-handed guy apparently went on with the acting, and thundered at me, ” Stop! I’ll take you on!”
…And then, just as I thought he’d come at me…
“Adventurers! Get him!”
…he didn’t come at me at all!
I almost ended up throwing a retort at his horseplay.
＊
But, not a single person attacked me. The adventurers only stared at me, fear written all over their faces.
I shrugged my shoulders and instigated them, “What’s wrong? Give it a go, boys. It’s a great chance to experience the true strength of a S-Rank adventurer party, you know? So far, no one has ever managed to hurt me. Are any of you going to try? If you hurl something, which is more incredible than the breath of the capital dungeon’s dragons, at me, you will be able to injure me. Maybe.”
In response to that, all the remaining adventurers discarded their weapons and prostrated themselves in front of me.
Why!?!
The high-handed guy clamored, “I-It’s a bluff! As if any human would remain unscathed after being hit by a dragon’s breath!”
…Just what is this bloke prattling about since a while ago now?
“Moments ago you agreed with that girl calling me a demon, didn’t you? And yet, you’re arguing on the premise of me being a human. Why? Haven’t you noticed the contradiction in what you’re saying? …In short, you believe me to be a human, but, you decided to 『kill me as a demon』 to align your story with that of the saint’s?”
The body of the last man standing shook with a start. Seeing that, I nodded in comprehension.
“I see. So that’s how you justified killing other people up until now, huh? Nothing less of trash. Dumb as a mutt and scummy as a piece of trash; that’s what being a saint is about, I suppose.”
“No!” The high-handed guy denied it angrily, but that in itself was already contrived.
I laughed scornfully at him, “Sword and I can use most of the magic in existence. Naturally that also includes holy magic. So, if Sword and I insist on being able to hear the voice of God, we can also become saints. …But, claiming that you can hear voices is silly as long as you possess a sane mind. You’ve got my deepest respect for being able to blurt out such embarrassing nonsense so brazenly… Honestly, that mental fortitude is on another level altogether.”
In response to my words, the saint squatted down and started to weep.
What about your high-ranking holy magic, girl?
“…Hey, hurry up with the casting. I’ve been waiting for it to finish all the time now, you know? I’m about to get completely tired of it, so I’ll have some fun by torturing you people.”
“Hiii!” The high-handed guy squealed like a frightened pig and backed off.
“I’m a demon according to you, right? Then I have to act like one, don’t I!? They’re Spirit World dwellers and I don’t know anything about that place since I never went there myself, but going by the name, they must be good at spiritual attacks, no? Alright, I’ll break your heart and spirit so badly that you’ll immediately slam your head on the ground, let alone bow it, whenever you see me!”
Once I snapped a finger, a hail of what seemed to be arrows rained down. Of course, me invoking that magic with a finger snap was totally meaningless. I just did it because it looks cool!
“Hii!”
Everyone froze.
“G-God… A divine technique…”
Don’t switch your opinion about me being a goddess or demon as you please.
“If you don’t dodge these, they’re going to pierce your heads, you know? Even I can’t heal someone who dies instantly. I’m no goddess after all. …Then, please do your best.”
Upon a second finger snap, another volley of sharp hail came down. Everyone began to drum against the barrier’s wall.
“Help!”
“Please!”
There’s no way you’re going to break the barrier by begging, is there?
…And just when I thought that…
BANG!
…I got startled by the barrier shattering, and once I looked in the direction, Sword stood there imposingly.
……
I-It wasn’t my fault!
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