Arang promptly analyzed the situation as the armored cavalry hesitated to approach.
Forty-seven enemies had been destroyed. Two hundred three enemies remained.
A severed realm.
A mysterious environment hostile to life.
A blood-lit moon hanging in the sky.
And, finally, the distant presence of a priest.
Arang smiled silently and spread his arms wide.
Clunk.
Two independent power units mounted in his upper back extended like wings.
Zzzzzzzt...!The two units released stored energy, emitting a force field like a canopy.
[...]
[...]
The enemies did not attack immediately. Their reddish glowing eyes observed the force field instead.
They were being cautious. It seemed they possessed at least some small amount of intelligence.
Though the barrier had been deployed for defense, it also bought time.
“Who... exactly are you...?” came a voice from beside him.
Arang glanced at the old man. He seemed to be a companion of the girl who had tossed the coin.
Aran didn’t know the full details, but these two, at least, didn’t seem to be enemies.
Arang looked at the old man, Alderson, and said, [Go.]
“What do you mean?”
[I will handle things here. It seems you have other matters to attend to, so you are freed to leave.]
Alderson’s voice deepened slightly as he asked again, “Who are you?”
[Rest easy. I am not your enemy.]
“Are you sure you actually understand the situation?”
[Not entirely, no. I am still assessing the situation. My decision was based on instinct.]
Alderson was at a loss for words. Did this mysterious being even possess instincts?
As the continent's best puppeteer, Alderson had a keen sense of judgment. He had quickly discerned that this being was, essentially, an artificial lifeform similar to a golem.
Beyond that, however, its construction was so complex, precise, and beautiful that it was beyond his understanding.
Even Alderson's greatest masterpiece—the armored cavalry—were like toys next to this being, their design no more intricate than the mechanism of a child’s toy train in comparison.
An artificial being with emotions...?
Wasn’t that one of the greatest unsolved challenges for a modern puppeteer?
A magician’s greatest weakness, their insatiable curiosity, was threatening to show itself... but Headmaster Alderson held his back.
The newcomer was right. Though Alderson’s insides were a mess, he still had mana to spare, and there were things he had to do with it.
At this moment...
One of the armored knights approached the force field and thrust a spear-like weapon. With an electric crackle, the attack was deflected.
[Detected impact-rebound force from the intangible barrier.]
[Determined: penetration in current state is impossible.]
[Deter... mined. Determineddetermineddetermineddetermined...]
The voices of the armored cavalry hovering in the sky echoed endlessly.
Were they malfunctioning?
Crrraa... Craaccck...
Cracks appeared and began spreading across their radiant pale armor, and from those cracks, a mass of festering flesh began to surge out.
“What the...!” Arin shouted, panicked, before she slapped her hand over her mouth.
The armored knights had begun to transform into something terribly horrifying.
The artificial lifeforms, modeled after the legendary Platinum Knight Order, now resembled demons as grotesque tumors grew out of them.
Alderson's body went slack. “This... this can’t be,” he croaked. Watching hundreds of his golems self-destruct simultaneously wouldn't have made him feel nearly so empty and guilt-ridden as this.
“What... on earth...”
[There was a seed inside, implanted deep within their core, the very heart of their function. It was fused too deeply to be removed, and it grew out of control.]
That made sense.
At this moment, the headmaster’s armored cavalry had fallen to the level of puppet demons wandering the Veiled Side.
Graaaaaaaahhh!
Letting out an eerily lifelike roar beyond what any artificial being should be capable of, the armored knights stretched out their gnarled, blistered hands.
Clang!
The force field held strong, but that changed as hundreds of knights surrounded it.
Arin forced down her nausea. “Urhp...”
It was as disgusting as a swarm of mosquitoes clinging to a streetlight. She could clearly see the writhing, tainted flesh, as well as the thick worm-like veins popping out.
The headmaster observed the scene and said, “...I can see that you are strong.”
[...]
“But most of the armored cavalry are still intact, and even stronger now. And you can’t indefinitely unleash attacks like that big one, I assume?”
[That is correct.]
“And yet, you still intend to face them alone?”
[Yes.]
“...”
Alderson, the headmaster, knew nothing about this mysterious individual. Given the circumstances, he could trust that this person was an ally, but was the individual strong? He didn’t know.
Was it confidence? Or arrogance?
In this moment, all he could do was rely on his gut instinct and personal judgment.
Headmaster Alderson closed his eyes tightly. “...May I ask you one favor?”
[Speak.]
“Please let them... finally rest in peace...”
Arang's eyes sparked with interest.
He knew little about these people, but he was extremely impressed that the old man treated artificial lifeforms that lacked proper cognition, that had been built with only inferior functions, like they were real humans.
For an android equipped with artificial intelligence, such words naturally appealed to him.
[I will.]
“Then... I’ll leave it to you.” Alderson nodded, and they immediately left the rooftop.
Arang's gaze lingered for a moment on where the headmaster had disappeared.
What a peculiar technique. A form of teleportation?
Mulling it over, Arang lifted his gaze to the sky once more.
His flickering eyes instantly identified the enemy’s exact numbers, strengths, weaknesses, and characteristics. It was an analysis almost on the level of a divine instrument.
Of course, it wasn’t without its flaws.
Arang could only discern the outer shell with his keen perception. If given the opportunity, Arang could tell the exact process of one’s digestive system producing waste in vivid detail, but...
Arang well understood what people meant by “outer shell” and “essence.”
He could analyze his opponents’ physical traits, weaknesses, and muscle density. He could determine the rigidity and flexibility of their joints and even the location of their vital organs.
However, faced with a true master deliberately concealing their energy, it was hard for him to analyze their true level. The total amount of internal energy stored in the inner core wasn’t visible to the naked eye, after all.
Unused muscles, weakened joints, faces etched with countless wrinkles... He had seen such old humans, near the ends of their lives, shatter mountains and part seas.
Inversely, enemies incapable of such deception were as transparent to him as the blueprint of a machine.
They all look alike, but they each have their own subtle differences, as if the same model was customized differently.
While each knight had unique traits, the customization had likely been done by a single individual. There was a distinct trace, one that humans could not completely erase, of what might be called habit.
Habit, instinct... it was one of the things Arang had once pursued.
Habits were not necessarily bad. And in Arang's opinion, even bad habits—or bad instincts—could serve as clues to developing one’s own martial truth, if used correctly.
[With two hundred scarecrows... this could be useful to practice developing new habits.]
Although his first attack had reduced their numbers significantly... As a foreign being in this world, Arang was naturally limited in his power.
This would undoubtedly be a difficult fight.
Arang was thrilled.
* * * * *
* * * * *
I was still battling Deathberry when I suddenly sensed a familiar presence. When I noticed it, I couldn’t help but laugh.
Sellen, struggling beside me, shouted, “Are you seriously laughing in this situation...?!”
“Of course, I just can’t help it.”
It was a strange feeling, one of my senior brothers being here, in my home world.
It felt entirely different from when I’d met Eldest Senior Brother. Back then, I’d been in Hell, and I had just met with Tangtata, so my mind had been in chaos.
Actually, isn’t this situation similar?
Tangtata had simply been replaced with Hadenaihar.
This place, this Veiled Side, was just as hellish.
If anything, things were even worse right now than they’d been back then.
I assume he’s only been summoned temporarily.
Which was a bit disappointing. It would have been nice to exchange a few words at least.
Anyway...
I didn’t have to worry about the situation over there anymore, thankfully. What mattered now was this situation. If we couldn’t drive out the demon lord, this whole struggle would become pointless. That was a fact.
I examined Charon and Sellen. Sellen seemed to be in better shape, so I tossed her an item from my pocket.
[Catch,] I told her, deliberately using sound transmission to avoid speaking aloud as I passed the object where the demon lord couldn’t see.
Sellen managed to catch it even in the midst of battle. I was incredibly thankful that she wasn’t slow.
She raised an eyebrow in question, not directly saying, What is this?
[A divine artifact, the Scissors of Amon.]
“...!”
I never thought they’d be used like this.
The Scissors of Amon, Headmaster Alderson's most prized possession, a genuine divine artifact from his treasure vault... this was the trump card that could save us from this situation.
Though rusted and with limited uses, they should still work once or twice, which was more than enough.
I explained, [The Deathberrys are controlled by that blood-lit moon in the sky. One puppet in particular is closely linked to it, the one with the black and white of its eyes reversed.]
Sellen’s eyebrows twitched as she scanned the faces of the Deathberrys for a moment before she stopped, presumably having found it.
[If you look closely, there is a thread attached to its spine, somewhere on the back of its neck. Cutting it should be the key to victory. The problem is the damn thread is ridiculously tough, but that’s why I gave you those scissors. They should do the job.]
Sellen tilted her head at an angle.
I could tell she wasn’t confused by my explanation or the plan, so...
Her lip parted slightly as if to ask, Why?
[I'm the one the demon lord’s most wary of. I already tried cutting it once and failed. Since then, it’s been keeping that body as far from me as possible.]
“...”
[Which means either you or Charon has to cut it. Between the two of you, you seem to be in better shape.]
I ended up saying more than I’d intended, so—not wanting to waste any more internal energy on sound transmissions—I simply looked away, indicating I was done talking.
Right before I turned my head, though, I caught the slight nod of her chin. That was enough for me.
First things first...
I needed to draw more of the demon lord’s attention.
Baaang...!
I stamped my foot hard, and the floor shook violently.
Then, as the tremor quieted down, I dashed toward the window.
Hadenaihar. The Demon Lord of the Blood-Lit Moon.
Unlike Ahop, who had not spoken a single word, this one, like Tangtata, had intelligence. Ego. A will of its own.
With its unsettling eyes, it was observing the entirety of the Veiled Side, analyzing the situation.
To it, this entire catastrophe was probably nothing more than a game, a joke.
I don't know what kind of personality it has, I don’t know why it’s doing all this, but...
I did know at least one of its goals.
Hadenaihar wanted me.
Perhaps it was salivating over my very soul. And, to claim my soul whole, it seemed that all of my regressions had to be consumed.
The quickest way to understand someone was to figure out what made them tick.
Of course, I had no idea whether such logic could be applied to a demon lord...
But I figured, why not give it a try?
“Hey, you ugly bastard.”
[...]
“Have you ever looked in a mirror? Oh right, your face is as big as a damn moon, all you probably saw was your nose. Listen up, I have no plans to marry a demon, not now, not ever. But if you really want to go on a date, get your ugly ass over to my dad and ask for his permission first, you Babybel-looking piece of shit.”
[...]
Okay. So that kind of bullshit got zero reaction.
Understood.
I turned my back to the window for a moment to cut down the incoming swarms of Deathberrys.
Even as I fought, I kept thinking, trying to come up with something.
On the third floor, back in that unknown space... Hadenaihar had shown more of its true nature.
What was it that bastard had said back then?
—Their... desire... I... understand.
—Possessiveness.
—I... too... want... to have... you.
A wave of disgust swept down my spine, but I didn’t let it show.
It said it wanted to have me.
It almost seemed to be keeping the other demon lords in check.
If that was the case...
“Honestly.”
[...]
“I’d rather go play with Tangtata than be yours.”
[...!]
The floating blood-lit moon twisted into a demonic grimace.
Oho... That actually worked?