Chapter 89

"Hold it, Master! Another round! Bring me more drinks!"

"Hey, you demon guys sure have a way with words, don't you?"

"I'm pretty good with drinks, you know."

At night, Zyon appeared at a bustling bar in this city.

The criteria for choosing this place were, first, the wide variety of drinks, and second, the generous acceptance of customers, whether they were demons, beastmen, or anything else.

"Still, the people here seem pretty relaxed even though the king has been killed..."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it, so it'll turn out how it will."

"Exactly, and there are a lot of adventurers in this bar. They make a living hunting monsters, so it doesn't really affect them much."

"I see..."

Amid the bustling market and transportation, only this place remained as usual, and it was thanks to these people that such an unusual state could be maintained, Zyon thought while talking with a customer he had somehow started drinking with.

"Anyway, you just got to this city today, right? If you're out at night, be careful. You might end up dead."

"Huh? Are there ghosts or something?"

"If it were just ghosts, they would have been taken care of long ago. We're considered better than the people in other cities, so we don't just get pushed around. The problem is that there's a serial killer in this city whose identity and strength are completely unknown."

The man picked up a coin nearby and placed it on the table one by one.

"In the past few days, the bodies of citizens have been found in the early morning. Some of them were well-known colleagues. There are two patterns: either they were crushed or cut to pieces. They all died instantly, it seems."

"Wow... some people are really cruel."

"One of my acquaintances was also killed! What's going on, damn it!"

Another man finished his drink.

The man who had been talking about the incident also looked pale.

"Hey, don't bring up such gloomy topics in a drinking place."

"Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, but it's just that I don't want a good drinker like you to end up in a bad situation..."

"Heh, I won't end up in a bad situation..."

Zyon drank the overflowing drink in his hand in one go.

The drink seemed to be quite strong, as the surrounding customers murmured in surprise.

"Someone who makes me feel a sense of crisis? I'd like to see them! If there is such a person!"

Amid the cheers of the customers, Zyon reached for another mug.

◆◆◆

"Hmm, a serial killer, huh."

"Yes, so please don't walk around the city late at night. The area around the bar and this guild is relatively safe even at night, but incidents have occurred in places with fewer people."

"I appreciate the warning. I don't have the habit of walking around at night anyway, so I'll head back soon."

"Yes, please be careful!"

Lamina was sent off by the guild receptionist and left the guild.

Today, she had completed a quest to hunt a large monster that had made its nest near the city and earned enough money to live comfortably for a week.

Since it was a quest that should have been taken by a party of more than ten people, Lamina was feeling a considerable amount of fatigue.

(With this, I should be able to sleep comfortably tonight...)

The sun was setting, and she walked toward her inn on a moderately dark road.

She had considered taking the head of a serial killer if one appeared, as she had heard from the guild, but fortunately or unfortunately, none appeared before her.

◆◆◆

"Alright, everyone seems to be asleep now."

"Couldn't we do this without waiting until midnight?"

"This task requires a lot of concentration... At this time, no one will disturb us."

"True, I guess."

"Come on, let's get it over with! The more time we have, the better."

"Sure."

When the city was quiet, I and Straw were facing each other on the bed in the room.

Zyon hadn't come back yet.

He's probably still drinking somewhere.

I've never seen him drunk before...

Lamina is probably sound asleep in the next room.

She seems to have taken on a decent job.

I wonder what she meant by "getting used to the shoulder."

Gruus should be in the same room, but... it doesn't matter.

"Let's start then. Hold out your hand."

"Okay."

I obediently held out one hand.

"Sorry, both hands."

"Say it first."

In the end, I held out the other hand as well.

Straw took it in his hand and closed his eyes.

"Close your eyes too. Don't let your concentration waver until I say so."

"Alright..."

"First, I'll flow my divine power into you. Just feel it for now."

"..."

I felt something flowing into my body, which had lost all magic power.

No, wait. This is...

"Hey, Straw."

"..."

"I don't feel anything, it's like my heart is gone."

I could feel my heart and emotions growing cold.

Already, everything seemed unimportant.

I've experienced this a few times before.

"That's good. Only gods can handle divine power. In other words, you are now a pseudo-god. Gods don't have emotions; they don't need them to rule the world."

"..."

"Can't even think anymore, huh? I'll let go for a moment."

Straw's hand left mine.

As the divine power left my body, I gradually regained my consciousness.

Well, I wasn't really unconscious, but that's the closest way to describe it.

"How does it feel to lose your emotions?"

"It's not a good feeling. Besides, you said gods don't have emotions, but you and Creasill do. What's that about?"

"Yeah, we've lived for an unimaginably long time. If you live long enough, emotions will sprout."

"Really? Have you lived longer than thousands or billions of years?"

"What? Have you lived longer than that?"

Straw asked with a grin.

It's annoying, but there's nothing I can do about it.

But if I keep going like this, even if I get divine power, I'll lose my emotions.

I don't want that, even if it's inevitable.

"Don't worry, since you have emotions, you can easily get them back... though I can't be sure."

"..."

"Such things can be fixed later! For now, we'll repeat this to awaken the divine power within you!"

"Alright..."

Once again, my arm was grabbed, and divine power was poured into me. I lost my emotions and received the divine power in a state of emptiness.

◆◆◆

"Huff... huff... serve you right, you fools."

While Setsu and the others were training, Gruus had cut the ropes with a hidden knife and escaped.

The knife he used was a family heirloom that changed shape in response to the magic power of the royal family.

He had made it extremely small and hidden it in his body, taking it out when needed, so it was understandable that Setsu and the others didn't notice.

However, it was their mistake to think that the ropes, which were infused with magic power, would be unbreakable.

A blade passed down through the royal family would easily cut through ordinary ropes.

"I have to somehow get back to the capital... I managed to escape being killed by them, I can't let my bloodline end with me...!"

The city was vast.

If he took this road, which was a bit away from the main street, it would take some time.

The main street led straight to the outside, but the risk of being seen was too high, so this was the only way.

"I'll be out of the city by morning! Until then—"

"Target identified, I will kill."

"Wha—"

Gruus involuntarily gasped.

Suddenly, a giant man over two meters tall appeared in front of him.

His massive build blocked the moonlight that had been illuminating Gruus.

"Understood, another step closer to Lady Creasill's ambition."

"Wha—?"

Before he knew it, a woman was standing right behind him.

Though completely opposite to the man, her presence was just as intimidating.

He was trapped between these two strange beings.

"Judgment of the gods on the hateful one—"

"Stop! I'm of the royal family! You shouldn't even be able to—"

"Shut up, you mere human."

"Can't—"

The giant's iron hammer came down.

Gruus, struck by the powerful fist, was slammed to the ground, scattering everything and dying instantly.

Despite the loud noise, no one in the city noticed.

The wind swirling around them absorbed all the sound.

However, the sight was different.

"What the hell are you doing!?"

"Hey! Aren't these the serial killers we've heard about!?"

The two adventurers who had been drinking with Zyon at the bar appeared.

They had prepared to protect their city and started patrolling at night from today.

At this moment, other adventurers were patrolling different areas, but their bad luck brought them to this spot.

"Another hateful one has appeared."

"I will pass judgment this time. Judgment on the hateful one..."

"What are you mumbling! You've been terrorizing the city...! I'll kill you!"

"Let's go!"

The two drew their swords and charged at the source of the serial killer incidents.

"Annoying."

However, their feet were suddenly cut off, and they flew into the air.

Without support, their bodies fell to the ground.

"What, what?"

"Ah, ah!"

Blood spurted from the two men's legs.

In the next moment, their heads were severed.

They died with their eyes wide open, not even realizing they were dead.

She just stood there.

"Pitiful... humans are so fragile."

"This is not worth troubling Her. Being the one closest to the <Seven Holy Swords>... we should continue to hide in this city for now to deal with more hateful ones."

The two, or rather, two bodies, disappeared into the night.

And once again, unheard screams echoed somewhere—.