CH 119

[Nanashino’s Next Move]

“Just why did a royalty come to defend him?”

The academy dungeon, the innermost part of the undersurface floor.

In a dimly lit stone room that people shouldn’t be able to step into, Nanashino muttered while throwing away the report describing the details of Sakurai’s trial.

After the battle at the inn, he had offhandedly given instructions as a form of harassment, but his scheme to have the hostile reincarnated person restricted for a while ended up falling apart.

Scratching his head with one hand to try to forget his anger without having other ways to vent it, he took a deep breath to calm himself.

“Pygmalion, how’s that going?” (Nanashino)

“Slurp~! It went as you said it would~. I was doubtful at first~, but when I saw the result, it was truly as you said.” (Pygmalion)

“Told you, right?” (Nanashino)

The extermination of the boss of the ‘Black Sword’ was kind of unexpected to Nanashino, but he thought it that it was fortunate, unlike the result of the trial.

The ambition of the Nanashino Faction who had separated from the main faction… or to be precise, the ambition of Nanashino Katsumi was not in line with that of the man who led the ‘Black Sword’.

Nanashino’s plan would definitely turn him into the enemy of the whole nation, conflicting with the man (Boss) who wanted to take over the nation from the shadow. Which was why he was concerned that the ‘Black Sword’ would use the connection that it had cultivated over the long years to temporarily to work together with the nation against him, lowering the chance of his plan succeeding.

(In that sense, the trial ending up in failure actually worked in my favor, huh.)

What he used to charge Sakurai with crime was the connection of the ‘Black Sword’.

When the ‘fact’ that the ‘Black Sword’ was behind it got out, it didn’t have a big impact on the Nanashino Faction itself.

Using the information it got after consigning the boss of the ‘Black Sword’ to oblivion and from the matter of the trial, the nation had been moving to eliminate the members of the organizations who were deeply rooted in its center.

Due to that, the nation’s resources that were directed to search for the Nanashino Faction decreased, and as a result of the remnants of the ‘Black Sword’ fighting back to preserve themselves, the Nanashino Faction’s priority in the eyes of the nation ended up being lowered further.

“Now, if Asanaga manage to cause chaos, everything will be perfect.” (Nanashino)

The final stage of his plan was just around the corner.

Nanashino had already decided to stall for time using Asanaga as his next move, and he inwardly praised himself for that great, if not perfect decision.

“Slurp~? Speaking of which, where is Asanaga-san currently?” (Pygmalion)

“Elves’ territory. I ordered her to burn all information regarding dungeons.” (Nanashino)

“Slurp~, you’ve been sending out only Asanaga-san these days. I understand the saying of the right person for the right job, but I’d like to take a fresh air sometimes as well~.” (Pygmalion)

Pygmalion thought about Asanaga who was absent and frowned regretfully.

For a split second, Nanashino gave him a cold gaze, which seemed to say ‘idiot’.

Due to her special characteristic, Asanaga Ayako could regenerate her body as long as the skeleton growing from her nape was safe.

Making use of that fact, Asanaga used a trained bird to carry the skeleton at night to avoid people’s eyes and checking stations, and at the destination, the skeleton then regenerated her body. That was how she repeatedly moved from one place to another undetected outside.

In order for the skeleton to create her a new body, her original body must have vanished first.

Therefore, Asanaga needed to destroy her body every time she went back and forth between the dungeon and the outside.

But she did not hesitate to do the act, and it didn’t negatively affect her mentally.

Nanashino didn’t know if it because she had gotten used to it or she was just enduring for the sake of her goal, but one thing that was certain was that to Nanashino, Asanaga wasn’t a business partner like Pygmalion, she was just a convenient chess piece that could be used until she ran out of use.

(I’ve told Asanaga about the ‘Deadly Sins Holy Staff (Punisher)’ in the elves’ territory. She’d definitely try to get it no matter what.)

The cathedral in the elves’ territory hid a certain weapon – ‘Deadly Sins Holy Staff’.

It didn’t have that great of a performance as a weapon, but to Asanaga, it was an indispensable weapon to fulfill her goal.

Nanashino had told her about its existence and how to get it along with the instruction to erase the information about dungeons.

In the beginning, he had promised her he’d use his faction to provide information she needed to achieve her goal in return for her cooperation.

He had told her about it at this time because his plan was in its final stage. He had long planned to tell her the information at this stage.

(It’ll be great if she erases the information regarding dungeons as instructed. And even if she ignores it, if she were to try to get ‘Deadly Sins Holy Staff’, the great library would end up becoming inaccessible. Either way, she’d finish up her role.)

If he were to told her the information at inopportune time, there was a possibility that she would ignore his orders and start acting on her own because of her goal and obsession.

Due to that assumption, he told her the information when it was fine if she ignored his order; when the end result would be to his interest.

It would be no matter whether she got the job done or ignored it.

He was confident that Asanaga would create chaos in the elves’ territory based on the information she had obtained.

And if chaos ensued, the elves’ movements would be slowed down as they need to settle it.

Nanashino thought it would be great if the elves, many of whom had the skills to heal injuries as priests, got delayed, albeit a bit, when his own plan come to fruition.

So, what would be the end of Asanaga, who would act in the elves’ territory was of no concern to him. He didn’t like the character known as Asanaga, in the first place.

Which was why he classified Asanaga as ‘out of use’. Cutting off the thought in his terribly cold mind that had been used to think about her, he moved on to a task that he enjoyed.

“Now then, shall I finish up the last bit of my work?” (Nanashino)

He picked up his trusted sword and focused his mind to the object in front of him.

In the center of the stone room, there was a huge crystal that was glowing dimly.

When Nanashino touched it with his hand, a blue spark appeared upon contact, making a crackling sound.

It was showing a clear rejection. That being said, it was too weak compared to when he had first touched it. Feeling satisfied with the feeling of superiority from putting the mighty existence under his control, Nanashino grinned and held his two-handed sword while releasing his magic power.

“——World Intervention (System Command): Phenomenon Tampering (Cheat Code). Today, I’ll torment you to near death again, okay?”

Nanashino, who possessed deviated magic power due to being a reincarnated person and was capable of making impossible phenomena possible thanks to it, began swinging his sword with a deliberate slow movement while smiling sadistically.

To inflict pain on the crystal, to make it completely submit to him.

While sneering at the crystal that was releasing sparks as if crying from pain, Nanashino used his sword to scraped off its surface.