CH 202

The only weapon I'm carrying is a spear. However, it’s not my only weapon.

I've played my wild card.

There's nothing left undone.

This is a gamble with everything that I have on the line.

All that's left is to see what cards my opponent has in his hand.

That bunch of advanced adventurers, Rink………Wrinkle? Chinkurilin? Err, Rinponsunon, was it? Whatever their name is, this means that there's a good chance those guys have ties to Elysium.

It's not surprising, considering the connection between Avarak and Nanassy, who is now Arcane's partner.

I'll think about how to deal with those guys later, but my focus is on Khius right now.

「Yukikaze, have you seen anyone come here these past few days?」

『Not at all. It's just Khius, indeed』

After discovering his whereabouts, Yukikaze had independently conducted surveillance on the area.

I tried searching for presences myself, but sure enough, there was only the one big light of Khius.

「Well, let’s go」

I lowered my guard and entered the building from the front.

The grounds were in disrepair.

All of the golden statues had been stolen, leaving only their bases, which had been secured to the ground. The interior of the house was in a similar state, with the place ransacked and everything knocked over, leaving not a single thing of value behind.

This must have been the work of the hired hoodlums and the maids.

It seems that money hadn't bought him trust.

The presence of Khius was upstairs.

There were no traps and no sneaky surprises. I went upstairs without taking any precautions.

「Yo, hero-sama」

「Ohh, the beast hunter」

After an exchange of unpleasant pleasantries, I stood in front of Khius.

He was sitting on Avarak's bed, looking relaxed. The hero had hung his sword on the wall, leaving him unarmed.

He should have sensed my presence. The fact that he could afford to not even be prepared to fight was infuriating.

Khius opened his mouth.

「I want to confirm something with you. Since you've killed one half of the pair, can I assume that you're accepting my request?」

「I might accept it depending on the situation. But I also want to confirm something with you」

「What is it?」

「Where's the magistrate right now?」

「Give me a minute」

Khius suddenly started to retch.

I was made to witness something horrific.

His throat swelled up like a frog's and his mouth widened to the limit, and then he vomited up something.

It was a young girl's head that was covered in stomach juices and contents.

What was even more horrific was how quickly that thing regenerated and regained human form. In about ten seconds, there was a naked girl lying on the floor.

「Khius, I demand an explanation」

「Shut up, doll」

Khius reached for his sword and then plunged it through the magistrate's throat, pinning her to the floor. Perhaps she couldn't even feel pain, but the magistrate continued calmly.

「It's useless. Whether you try to dissolve me with gastric juice or cut me up with a sword, this body is―――――」

The magistrate finally noticed my presence.

「It's you, King of Beasts」

「Take a good look, Souya. Behold the demons that nest within Elysium, the dolls that would drive my friend mad and devour our kingdom. For so long, I've been searching for a way to kill them. And now, I've finally found―――――」

「AHAHAHAHAHAHA!」

The magistrate burst into laughter, literally like a broken doll.

「Khius, you’re a great fool, indeed. Us, drive Dilbert-sama mad? There's a limit to how misguided you can be. Dilbert-sama is our creator. We’re made to love him. If you call that "driving him mad," then there's only one thing you can do to change that」

「………………Don't be foolish」

At the magistrate's words, Khius lost his cool.

「No, you're the fool, indeed」

「Don't give me that nonsense! Are you saying that the evil you all have committed is his fault? Foolish acts like devouring babies and crushing the flames of civilization! Are you saying that those were done under the orders of the First Hero?」

「Yes」

The magistrate replied as if it were a matter of course. In direct contrast to the heated Khius, my psyche was chilled to the bone.

Dilbert.

So that's the name of the First Hero.

I've heard it before. It's a name that Varner had spat out in resentment as he descended into a beast. It had left an impression on me for some reason, but it sure is a rather mundane name for a terrifying hero.

「Take back those words that besmirch my friend's honor!」

「Even if I take them back, it won’t erase the truth, indeed. Your response is especially asinine」

「Wait, do the other representative heroes know about this as well?!」

That angry yell was the loudest so far.

「Not all of them, indeed. There are some who realized it on their own, some who were instigated by the Black Elf, and some who knew "all along"」

Khius was trembling.

「Th, this is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Why would a hero undermine his own country with his own hands?」

「An ignorant fool like you would never understand even a fraction of his suffering」

The magistrate gave Khius a look of disdain and then turned to me.

「Now come, King of Beasts. Destroy this body as you wish. But mark my words. If you're the real deal, then the true hero will surely appear before you. Curses are drawn to each other. No matter where you may run, there's no escaping it」

I raised the spear.

「Khius, I'll fulfill your request」

I thrust it through the magistrate's chest. The name of the spear was the Deep Emperor Bone. It was a weapon bearing the abyss that had been gifted to me by a fishman priest as a token of friendship.

「Garhh」

I gouged what appeared to be the magistrate’s heart, and as I twisted the spear about, she began to vomit blood and writhe in agony.

This was a bet with little evidence.

From the fact that Geto-san had mistaken her for me, it was my belief that the magistrate and her assistant had blessings that didn't exist on land. It was a foolhardy gamble based on that alone.

But it appeared that I was right.

「Morniella , Dilbert-sa, ma―――――Prince」

The magistrate's life must be flashing before her eyes. She reached out to the illusion she was seeing. Then………………she stopped moving.

I pulled out the spear and examined its tip.

It was covered with a dark, tar-like liquid that stank of decay. It was the same as the stuff the assistant had vomited out when she took the curse.

That's all I could figure out.

What's the true nature of these things? Why did the First Hero create them? And the thing that bothers me the most is why she had called the representative hero “Prince”.

Suddenly, the room shook.

There was a loud thump.

Khius had slammed his sword down on the doll's body. Thump, thump, thump, he continued like he was beating a drum. The destruction he was inflicting was crude, less slashing and more bludgeoning.

「Hey」

He ignored me and continued to wreak destruction.

「Hey, Khius」

When I directed a mild killing intent at him, Khius turned to me with a fearsome expression and snarled threateningly. Half of him had turned into a beast.

It's just as well.

I threw several silver coins that I had in my pocket at him. For just one instant, the beast recoiled from the silver he feared.

I used that brief opening to hold my breath.

Using the core principles of iaido, I moved my body.

From perfect stillness, I exploded into motion. I drove the spear through Khius's heart and as my body spun around, I kicked the butt of the spear and sent him flying. Khius' body was flung into the wall and pinned there by the spear.

The beast let out a horrifying cry.

「Now, let's see what that does」

Flesh swelled and clothes ripped.

The beast grew even larger, and then……

「Grrrggrrhhh!」

……reverted back to the normal Khius. The hero gritted his teeth and pulled the spear out of his chest. Impaled on its tip was a beating heart.

Nevertheless, the wound in his chest had already closed. I had glimpsed a new heart beating within before it had closed completely.

What astounding regenerative ability.

「What was that for? Surely you don't think this is enough to kill me?」

Khius took a bite of his own heart. "It tastes awful," he said, frowning as he finished the rest of it.

「I just wanted to confirm if that spear could kill beasts」

In the past, I had pierced a knight that had turned partially into a beast with the Deep Emperor Bone. It hadn't hit a vital then, so I had the thought that maybe, just maybe it had the ability to kill beasts after all, but I suppose no one would have such a hard time with them if they were such an easy existence.

「It seems that the beasts and that doll have completely unrelated forms of immortality」

「What's the story with this spear?」

Even though I had just driven it through his heart, Khius tossed the spear back to me.

I wonder if it's carelessness or confidence. I can’t help but think he's a real asshole.

「I have a friend who is a fishman priest. This is a token of our friendship」

「Fishman, huh……… In that case, are the magistrates born of the demons of the ocean? No, at this point, learning that doesn't change anything」

I changed the subject before he could go deep into his own thoughts.

「I've fulfilled your request」

「That’s true」

Khius cast a glance at the remains of the doll.

「I want my reward」

「Name whatever boon you wish. In the name of the representative hero Khius Logret Londahl, I will give you the reward you desire」

「Then, the lives of all the Popes」

I'll start with something utterly impossible.

「That’s a request that will tarnish my reputation. I refuse」

That’s what I thought.

「Then, the lives of the remaining representative heroes」

「There are heroes whose reputations are greater than mine. That's a meaningless request that cannot be fulfilled」

Okay, now to take it down a notch.

「Your life」

「Words will not kill me」

Naturally, he refused.

Alright then, time to get serious.

「Tell me what your true purpose is」

「You want to know what my secret orders are?」

As I thought, this guy didn't come to this country of his own volition.

One of my faint hopes was extinguished.

「I have a rough idea of what your answer is going to be. But I want confirmation in words」

「Very well. You've done a good enough job that you deserve to hear it」

I had predicted three possibilities.

The first is that he's betraying Elysium. However, this possibility was extinguished immediately by the words "secret orders". This guy isn't acting on his own accord. I’m dealing with someone whose allegiance is to Elysium.

The second is a rebellion within Elysium. If the person giving Khius orders is someone who's dissatisfied with the current regime, then there's a good chance that this is the case.

The last one is the worst of the three.

「By order of the First Hero, Dilbert Duin Oruosuouru, I've come to destroy the Kingdom of Lemuria」

I've hit the bullseye.

Bad feelings really always come true.

Dun, dun, dunnn. The big bad evil guy that has been hinted at since volume 1 has finally come into the picture! And we’ve finally learned his true identity! He is…

I can’t help it alright? Souya said it too, but Dilbert is really such a lame name for a bad guy. Well, it’s this author, so of course there’s a reason behind it.

And yeah, the joke from the previous chapter…Khius sure spat out what he’s got in his stomach, huh? He wasn’t stingy about spilling his guts either. I love how the metaphors in different languages are sometimes so different yet alike at the same time.

By the way, Souya greeted Varner on that final night with a “Yo” as well. I don’t know about you, but if Souya greets me with “Yo”, I’m running for the hills.

Anyways, there’s still much to come! How will Souya defeat Khius now that he can’t/doesn’t want to use Wild Hunt? What have his preparations been for? Stay tuned!