CH 83

—————–The “Vampire of Frelia” Event is a long-time event that spans multiple Era Divisions.

In the First Era Division, we meet Roze, in the Second Era Division, Werther would cast his curse on Roze, and in the Third Era Division……

A clue to the solution to that incident could finally be found.

It’s the rumor of a “Curse-Breaker” with strong power.

Thinking that she might be able to somehow deal with the “Curse Mark” on Roze, the “Hero” and their party went to search for this Curse-Breaker.

After a great deal of effort, they find her, and with her katashiro, she is able to trace the curse backwards and detect the “source of the curse”.

And after a ritual has been performed, the location of the “source of the curse” has been shown.

————–That is, the <House of Roses>.

It isn’t exactly the same as that fable BlueBird of Happiness, but the result of traveling around the world in search of the source of the curse was surprisingly back at the starting point.

After hearing this information, the party talks to Roze, and she mentions how “she once saw her uncle heading underground”.

And so, the dungeon that is finally opened by investigating the building’s study is a special dungeon that extends underneath the <House of Roses.

Of course, the diary that I had just taken out of the house can be found only at this stage.

The contents of the diary are a record of Werther’s struggle to revive the <Demon Lord>.

To begin with, the <Demon Lords> are monsters given power by the Evil Deity.

Although they have obtained unparalleled power through their demonic powers, their existence, which is tied to the Evil Deity, wouldn’t be possible without the Evil Deity themself.

Therefore, after the Evil Deity was sealed away, the <Fourth Demon Lord> entrusted the “Demon Lord’s Relic” to his subordinates and went into a long sleep, deep beneath the <House of Roses>.

Werther’s diary also contains a copy of that <Demon Lord>’s will.

After…… the light awakens……

Stand…… before me……

And offer me…… the heart.

As time has passed since it was written, the letters have been blurred here and there, but in essence, the message is “After the oracle of the <Goddess of Salvation>, if you offer the heart, I will be resurrected”.

In other words, from the beginning, the <Demon Lord> had planned to resurrect himself after the <Goddess of Salvation> awakened, that is to say, when the seal on the Evil Deity was about to be lifted.

Werther’s words, “The time has come”, must have meant that.

Naturally, as the “Warrior of Light” who travels to protect the world, the Hero couldn’t allow such a thing to happen.

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And so, after learning of Werther’s goals, the “Hero” and their party confront Werther beneath the <House of Roses>!

They are to defeat Werther and prevent the resurrection of the <Demon Lord>……

————-but B&B is a game that takes that to a whole new level.

There is one more twist in this scenario.

At the end of that scenario, the dying Werther bursts out in loud laughter and declared out curse-like words.

————-The “Curse Mark” is just the key that releases the technique contained in the “Demon Lord’s Relic”, and it’s not he who has been casting those curses.

————-In other words, in order to stop the surge of curses assaulting Roze, one must kill the real caster of the curse, the <Fourth Demon Lord>, not himself.

(……You gotta be kidding me.)

Werther’s face in the game, disappearing with a look of satisfaction on his face from the bottom of his heart, overlaps with that of the Werther standing in front of us now.

I can still vividly recall the despair I felt from the subsequent battle against the <Demon Lord>, as if it were only yesterday.

I don’t want to go through that again.

(I will definitely finish him off here.)

I won’t let the situation turn out just like in the game.

If I could defeat Werther here, I would be able to stop the whole series of events.

I tighten my grip on the hand that holds my sword.

[……Old man.]

Without me needing to say anything, Radd and the others lined up beside me as if to protect Roze.

I felt my head cool down a little at the sight of them.

……Werther is a formidable opponent.

The underground floors beneath the <House of Roses>, which can only be entered after the Third Era Division.

He was the Boss monster waiting close to the deepest part of the building, and there was no reason he would be weak.

However……

(————We have a chance to win against him.)

While Undead has powerful characteristics, they also have many weaknesses.

The battle against Werther is a clear reminder of this, and in a manner of speaking, you could really feel that the battle against him is a gimmick battle.

In particular, Werther, who has high survival capabilities due to his vampiric characteristics, has low endurance according to his data.

If we simultaneously overpower him, the current us should be able to cut down his physical strength.

(Moreover……)

I glanced behind me.

Unexpectedly, even though it was at the last moments, I had given “that” to “her” just in case.

It’s an equipment with a pun-like name, filled with factors that you would want to throw a tsukkomi at, but the effect of that thing itself is real.

If it works properly, it has a good chance of turning the tide of events away from what it was like in the game.

(Alright!)

……Taking a deep breath, I exhaled.

This isn’t something I can fail, so I need to stay calm.

With removing my gaze from Werther, I spoke to Radd and the others, who had become stronger from all their adventures.

[Radd, Nuku, Prana, Mana. He’s a strong enemy, but not one we can’t beat.]

Putting my will into those strong words, I believed that my intent would be fully conveyed to them.

[This isn’t the first Undead we’ve had to fight after all. Remember that <Elder Lich> who can use Instant Death Magic? If you fight calmly as you did then, we will definitely win.]

[Ah……]

The first to react is Nuku, sounding as if he was surprised……

[Hehe. Now that’s just like you, Old man.]

The next one is the nearby Radd, who let out a laugh, as if he found something amusing from the bottom of his heart.

He too is acting just like usual.

Filled not with enthusiasm, we waited for the battle to begin with our weapons at the ready.

And then……

[……How unpleasant.]

With Werther’s words, the battle began.

[How dare you lump me with a mere Lich!]

His outstretched hand is filled with Dark-colored Magic.

It’s ranged magic!

[————Spread out!]

I shouted, and we scattered in six directions.

And then, a beat later……

[Blood Bomb!]

The Vampire’s red magic blow struck a few distance away from my face and gouged into the ground.

[Ghuuuhh!]

With the blast occurring behind me, I dashed forward, feeling as if my body was sent flying.

Swinging my empty left hand, as if to keep my balance, I closed the distance to Werther.

[Tsk! Stay still, worm!]

From there, two, three magic projectiles flew toward me.

(I already know that attack!)

Reading the projectiles’ trajectories, I evaded all of them while on the move.

[<Square Cross>!]

My right-hand makes a complicated trajectory as I run.

Thereupon, finally catching Werther’s body within the reach of my sword……

[<Over-Art: Tri-E———]

[I said not to get conceited!]

Werther draws his weapon for the first time.

With lightning-fast movements, he holds up his rapier.

[It’s over, human!]

The rapier in his right hand firmly moves in the path of my slash, while on the palm of his left hand, more magic power is concentrated than ever before.

If I were to be caught and hit with magic at point-blank range, I would be helpless.

However……

[———–Or so you think!]

I retracted my right hand and stuck out my left hand, which had been showing that I had nothing in it the whole time.

Making use of <Quick Swap>, what appeared in my left hand was a bag of pure white powder.

—————An Obstruction Item exclusively used against Undead, <Sacred Ash>.

Werther is assaulted by the Obstruction Item with a special effect against Undead, which we had once used in the battle against the <Elder Lich>.

[Guh, stop messing around! This is……]

Unlike the <Elder Lich>, which had no resistance to any Status Ailment, Werther, a Boss in the latter half of the game, could only be stopped for a brief moment.

However, that was already enough.

[Now, do it!]

I didn’t even have to utter that cry.

The words I had said before the battle had already conveyed what I wanted to do and what I actually wanted to accomplish.

Within the moment that Werther was momentarily stunned……

[—————-<Crimson Lord Strike>!!!]

Radd, wielding a sword covered in flames……

[—————-<Flare Cannon>!!!]

This time, Nuku, steering his magic……

[—————-<Mirage>.]

———-and Prana, who has increased her number of attacks with her clones, unleashes their most powerful strikes.

Before finally……

[———–This settles it! <Judgment Ray>!!!]

The Ultimate Weapon against Undead.

The <Praying Little Saint>, Mana, unleashed an extremely powerful Light Magic that pierced through the Vampire’s body!

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[GRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!]

It was a crude cry that couldn’t be believed to be coming from a Vampire that puts on an air of elegance.

Amidst such cries, the ground exploded with the force of concentrated magic, and we were sent flying away.

The first to recover was Radd, who got the best STR among everyone.

[Did we do it!?]

Tumbling on the ground, this guy seriously had to raise that flag.

Even so, the answer to that……

[YOU MERE HUMAAAAAAAAAAANS!!!]

As jet-black colors filled the white and spread all over our field of vision, the deafening sound of wings resounded.

[Bats!?]

The light pierced through Werther wasn’t due to the power of Mana’s magic.

Werther, who didn’t want to be directly hit by that magic, transformed himself into countless bats at the moment the magic hit him and avoided that magic.

[Guh! <Over-Art: Tri-Edge>!]

I tried to slash at the bats with the Art I had interrupted in my right hand.

[Foolish! Such an attack will not catch me in this form!]

These bats were on a different level of skill movement from those beneath the <House of Roses>.

The uniformity and linear movements of the Arts aren’t enough to catch the bats that were moving erratically.

[How unsightly you are, human. Repent your foolishness and die!]

And so, as I continued my futile efforts, the bats rushed to me……

[————–Nah. This is enough.]

This is the moment I was waiting for.

With my right hand still swinging my sword, I held up my left-hand high.

And held in my outstretched hand is a dagger, <Goblin Slaughter>!

[Take this!]

If the power of the <Final Break> on my left hand can get transferred towards the Arts in my right hand……

It would make sense that the power of the Arts from my right hand could also be transferred to the “technique” in my left hand!

[——————-<FINAL BREAK>!!!]

A flash of light.

An amount of light that surpasses even Mana’s Light Magic enlightens the town dyed in the darkness of the night.

And when the retina-burning flash subsides……

The bats…… Werther’s body had already burned to the point that he was no longer able to retain his original form.

※　※　※

(……We’ve somehow dealt with him huh.)

Because it was a sudden battle, I didn’t have the time to change my equipment from what I had been wearing when I was helping Roze level up.

(I thought it would be tough with just one ATK+ ring equipped, but we had unexpectedly pushed through.)

Werther’s trump card, his Bat Form, allows him to avoid all attacks, and is the strongest means of evasion.

However, as taking on that form increases the number of targets that can be attacked at the same time, into bats that have defenses that were substantially lower than his base form, this would also be the best chance to crush him.

As I breathed out a sigh of relief and retracted the weapon I had been gripping tightly……

[—————-I had underestimated all of you.]

The voice of the monster, which should have disappeared, echoes from the darkness of the night.

And as if in response……

[Wha!? This is……!?]

With the sound of something slithering around us, what seems to be Werther’s remains gather from the surroundings.

Just as if we’re watching a video being played backward……

What should have been reduced to mere pieces of flesh just a few seconds ago, is now taking the shape of a humanoid being, just like playing an unsightly puzzle.

[……No…… way.]

The words Radd mumbled melted into the darkness.

The wriggling mass of flesh then formed hands, legs, and a pair of beautiful eyebrows.

[I am a Vampire, a being who rules the night. Even if you wield thousands of weapons and mastered thousands of magic, I could not be killed. No matter how many times I am killed, no matter how many times I am burned, I will rise again and again and again————]

[—————No. You’re already finished.]

—————Prick!

Something sprouted out from Werther’s chest.

[Wha……]

Blood spurted from Werther’s mouth.

At that moment, Werther saw “that thing” protruding from his chest, and looked at it in disbelief.

[What in the world? This is……]

“It” was too strange to be called a blade, and it looks too rustic to be called a weapon.

The whole thing, from the handle to its point, is made of wood, so it would be ill-suited to call it a knife, and rather, it would be more appropriate to call it a “stake”.

[It’s apparently called <Knife of Regret>.]

Resilia, who had disappeared in the midst of the fierce battle, with a perfect backstab, had thrust “that weapon” into Werther’s chest, replied solemnly.

Its name holds a double meaning to it, as “regret (kui)” could also mean “stake(kui)”.

This is the fruit of the obsession left behind by a man who had his wife and child killed by a vampire, and died filled with disappointment and regret.

Not to mention its shape, even the material used in this mysterious weapon makes it the one and only weapon to defeat Werther in the true sense of the word.

—————-The Vampire, with the wooden stake driven into his heart, dies.

The future, following the words of legends, was able to accomplish it.

[Urghaaak…… My body…… My body is…… ]

Werther’s body, which should have boasted extremely powerful regenerative capabilities, begins to crumble from the tips of his fingers.

His black hair quickly turns gray, and his skin becomes wrinkled and dried out.

(This certainly doesn’t feel very pleasant but……)

This is the only way to beat him.

From the beginning, I knew that Werther couldn’t be killed by normal means.

After all, at the time he casted that curse on Roze, even if the “Hero” and their party won the battle and reduced his HP to zero, he would just regenerate.

And so, <House of Roses>, which was originally supposed to be entered yet……

I was allowed to collect the essential equipment to defeat “Werther, an enemy who appears in the latter half of the game”, on the underground floor.

And then, while it hasn’t fully recovered and regained all its HP, I can have Resilia, who is the best at removing her presence, conduct a surprise attack with the <Knife of Regret>, which will fulfill the condition required for Werther’s death.

(This changes the future. This also brings about the possibility of an ending that’s not in the game……!)

Perhaps, I may have overstrained my nerves, as the moment I relaxed my guard, I wobbled and almost fell over.

[Rex-sama!]

The one who noticed my state first was Roze.

She, who should have been shaken by the transformation and final moments of her precious “Uncle”, still cared for me with all her might and tried to run up to me……

[……Eh?]

But at that moment, a blood-red magic circle surfaced beneath her feet.

(Don’t tell me……)

The night of nightmares never ends.

At the end of my gaze……

Werther, wrinkled and coughing up blood, glared at me……

[—————The last of my magic power, I offer for your sake, <Demon Lord>-sama!!!]

In his hand was a red, pulsating Cursed Object, the “Demon Lord’s Relic”.