Chapter 54

"Wow... That's terrible. To break the dolls I made into pieces like that..."

Elka and her companions, who had defeated a large group of magical soldiers, were pointing their swords at the black-robed figure who had appeared on the shoulders of a differently colored magical soldier.

This presence, which seemed to be a mixture of several different types of magic, let out a voice that sounded insincere as it looked at the scattered remains of the weapons.

"Most of the demons I controlled are gone too, so I'll have to replenish them."

"I don't know your circumstances... but I want to ask you something, assuming you are the one who created these weapons."

"Hmm? What?"

"What happened to that female demon?"

Elka pointed to the being near it.

A female demon who had lost an arm and whose once beautiful red hair was now dirty with mud.

The three of them knew her.

They had acted together for a while and taken care of her in various ways, so they couldn't forget her.

"This? This one, I found while hiding in a certain demon village. She was strong, so I wanted her and turned her into a doll."

As she said this, taking off her hood, the face of a young human girl with an innocent and childish appearance was revealed.

Three intense killing auras assaulted such an innocent girl.

The killing auras were so intense and terrifying that the demon soldiers behind them involuntarily sat down.

"Ah! Don't make such scary faces! Hmm? Could it be that you knew this girl? This Alize Ifrit?"

"…She was a companion."

"Really! I'm sorry! But if that's the case, if you become my puppets... you can be companions again?"

"!"

The black-robed girl extended her hand.

Then, Alize, with hollow eyes, began to move.

She readied her rapier, despite having lost an arm, and ran through the muddy ground.

Without being hindered by the mud, she leaped and thrust a powerful strike at Grain.

"Such a thrust won't reach me."

He grabbed it with his hand, which was equipped with a silver gauntlet.

He stopped Alize's movement in mid-air and threw her back at the girl.

"Wow... This girl is one of my stronger dolls... You are indeed people who, despite being human, possess power close to that of a king."

Alize, who had been thrown with restraint, adjusted her posture in mid-air and landed next to the girl.

Just as she was about to run again, the girl stopped her with a hand.

"Stop, Alize. You'll die if you rush in blindly."

Alize obeyed the words and stood still, rapier in hand.

The girl nodded in satisfaction and took a knife from her pocket.

"If one doesn't work, two will, and if that doesn't work, we'll just use numbers to force it!"

Without hesitation, the girl slashed her own wrist with the knife.

"!? Are you going to commit suicide?"

Elka and the others were surprised, but the girl watched the blood spurt out and fall to the ground with a grin.

The blood spread on the muddy ground and the rain, eventually creating a large, dark red area.

"It's a help that the blood spreads on rainy days. I don't have to carry it too much."

As the girl placed her hand on the wound, the blood that had spurted out disappeared as if it had been a mere illusion.

Tia realized this.

"...The blood that spread on the ground just now wasn't blood... it was magic."

"Correct! This knife is a bit special. It makes magic spurt out from the cut part. The amount varies depending on the part, like blood vessels."

The blood—no, the magic—on the ground gradually turned black and eventually became pitch black.

From the deep, almost sucking color, several ominous magics were felt.

Several—huge monster presences.

"This is bad."

"It's too late!"

Tia was the first to realize the threat, but it was already too late.

The girl called out to the ground.

"Come out! Everyone!"

The ground shook.

While hearing the panicked voices of the demon soldiers behind them, Elka immediately released a <Flying Sword> at the girl.

She had realized the threat from Tia's words.

Though not as powerful as Grain's, a terrifyingly precise slash approached the girl.

However, it was blocked by a giant arm that suddenly extended from below.

The <Flying Sword> hit the arm but only made a shallow cut before dispersing.

"This arm..."

Grain stepped back slightly and lined up with Elka.

The giant arm gradually revealed its full form, showing its grotesque appearance.

A red gorilla, about 15 meters long, emerged from the black ground.

And... several others.

"S-class monsters like the Death Kong, Death Snake, and Death Lizard, and an SS-class flying dragon... and it's a fire dragon. It's surprising to see three 'Death' series monsters together."

The monsters that crawled out of the ground were all huge and dangerous.

Especially the flying dragon was stronger than the one Setsu had defeated in Alize's village before.

"I used to be a monster tamer, and for a while, I was a bit famous as 'Monster Tamer Melar.' You didn't know? You probably didn't."

"...'Monster Tamer Melar'... the S-class criminal who sold vicious monsters in the black market and staged shows where human slaves were cruelly killed by monsters."

"Oh? You knew about me!"

"I used to visit the black market for magic research, so I saw you a few times. I only just remembered from the black ground. I believe it's called 'Monster Hole.'"

"Exactly! I keep the monsters I capture and tame inside my body. Well, I create a separate space inside my body and isolate them there."

There are quite a few people who can do this.

For example, hiding weapons inside the body allows one to assassinate enemies, and it's a necessary skill for spies to use if they are captured.

Technically, it's not inside the body but in a different space created by magic, a type of <Spatial Magic>. However, those sensitive to auras can somehow sense the weapon's presence inside the body and easily see through it.

No matter how much they struggle, they can't separate the aura from the body, and it's now considered a defective magic.

The method of connecting to a different space by creating a <hole> with magic or blood is also a reason it's called defective.

Incidentally, the reason Melar wasn't suspected when she approached Setsu was that she had left the monsters in her different space in another place.

"I see... The mixed and somewhat bad aura was due to this."

Elka muttered, looking at the monsters roaring with power.

The soldiers behind them were thoroughly intimidated by the monsters, whose strength was clearly ranked.

Though they didn't intend to have the soldiers fight, Grain sighed quietly at the sight of the soldiers who couldn't even escape.

Even for Grain and the others, it would be tough to protect this number of people while fighting S-class and above monsters.

"Tia! Guard the soldiers in the back! The front ones are for me and Elka!"

"Ugh... I want to go to the front."

"I'll treat you to cake later!"

"I'll comply."

"Tia, you're supposed to be a rear guard..."

Elka and Grain ran to the monsters, pacifying Tia with sweets for not being able to fight on the front line.

"You won't have a later! Go!"

*Roar!*

The two of them fearlessly charged at the giant monsters rushing towards them.

Tia jumped off the bound magical soldier she was riding and stood in front of the soldiers, assuming a natural stance.

"Grain, please take the Death Kong in front! I'll take the Death Snake!"

"Understood!"

They confirmed their targets with a few words, and Elka kicked off the ground, dancing over the Death Snake's head.

"Stitch it! <Icicle Drop>!"

A magic circle as large as Elka's carefulness appeared in the trajectory of her dance.

Elka, who had flown over the snake and landed, thrust her sword into the ground, and a huge ice block emerged from the magic circle.

The sharp tip of the ice block, thrusting down with momentum, pierced the Death Snake and instantly pinned it to the ground.

*Screech!*

The Death Snake, with several large holes in its body, screamed and writhed.

When Elka twisted the sword she had thrust, the ice block moved in sync, causing the snake more pain.

A few seconds later, the Death Snake died easily.

"S-class monsters... I don't think they can stop us."

Elka pulled her sword from the ground and pointed it at Melar, who was looking at her in shock.

"<Flying Sword>!"

*Roar!*

Grain's <Flying Sword> cut into the Death Kong's body.

However, it didn't cut it in half and only caused the Kong to suffer.

"Indeed, Death Kong, this level isn't enough."

*Roar!*

"Whoa!"

The enraged Death Kong swung its massive arm.

Grain dodged by diving under it and took the opportunity to release a <Flying Sword>... but the skin was too hard, and the lightly thrown <Flying Sword> couldn't cause a fatal wound.

"There's no time to hold back..."

While dodging the wildly swinging arm, Grain infused his sword with magic and put strength into his arm.

"<Flying Sword: Blade Blossom>!"

It looked like Grain had swung his sword once.

In the next moment, countless sword cuts ran across the Death Kong's body, blooming red flowers in the air.

The Death Kong, already dead, fell to the ground without making a single cry.

"My sword is called <Light Sword>... you couldn't see it, could you?"

Grain, sheathing his sword, muttered while looking at the fallen Death Kong.