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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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My eyes widened.
“…What?”
It was because the words she had just spoken were so shocking. And it was information I had been waiting for all this time.
“Berserk… can be eliminated forever?”
The biggest shackle on my body. This damn curse that torments me every month. She was saying it could be removed.
I asked her, my voice filled with urgency,
“How? What’s the method?”
Thump, thump-
My heart pounded at her words. I tried to calm myself, but it was difficult. This information was that crucial to me. If she was just trying to mess with me, she had succeeded.
Fortunately, as a fellow Carrier, she seemed to understand my feelings and didn’t drag it out.
“Well… the method itself isn’t difficult. You kill the demon that is the source of your blood and absorb a part of its body. I don’t know how to absorb it since I’ve never actually seen it done, though.”
As she said, the method itself was simple. But whether it was feasible was another matter entirely. It was incredibly difficult.
I didn’t even know which demon my blood came from, and I had to kill it? And it might not even have appeared in this world yet?
Even if it had, I wasn’t sure I could defeat it.
Every demon I’d encountered so far had been extremely powerful. I might be able to fight them, but taking them down was another story.
And there were other questions. I looked at her and asked.
“…But how can I trust that?”
“Hah.”
Niki let out a short laugh, a hint of annoyance in her expression as if offended by my suspicion.
“Believe it or not, it’s your choice. I’m just relaying the information.”
“…Hmm.”
I nodded.
She was right. There was no evidence, so there was no way to know if it was true. But I had more questions.
“Where did you get that information?”
“I don’t know the exact source. But a long time ago, I overheard the Assembly President and a District Manager talking about it in secret.”
I continued my questioning.
“…And why are you telling me this?”
“I told you already. I’m starting to resent those Lemegeton bastards.”
Her lips curled into a crooked smile. It looked like a mischievous child playing a prank.
“We’re the same kind, after all. Shouldn’t we share this kind of information? Besides, those guys who treat us like tools would never tell us anyway.”
“…”
That was true.
Those who worshipped demons wouldn’t tell us a method that required killing one. It was baffling.
These high-ranking members of Lemegeton were at least A-rank adventurers. They could have lived comfortably anywhere.
Yet they had given up money and honor to join this group… I couldn’t understand it.
‘Maybe they did some kind of drug-fueled sex cult initiation?’
It would make sense if they had.
I thanked her, putting aside those useless thoughts.
“Well… thanks. For coming all the way here, even though you’re tired.”
Even though they were technically my enemies, she had shared valuable information that I might never have learned otherwise.
Ironically, the Carriers knew the most about Carriers, and Lemegeton would definitely hide this information.
She might have told me out of spite, but it was still information I desperately needed.
Niki smiled slightly at my words. But with her naturally fierce features, it looked more like a sneer.
“Hmph, aren’t you being a bit slow with the thanks?”
Of course, the information wasn’t guaranteed to be true. I didn’t know if I could even defeat a demon if one appeared.
Nothing was certain.
But so what? At least I had a lead. A somewhat distant, but tangible goal.
I calmed my racing heart and asked her.
“…So what are you going to do now? Are you planning to leave that group?”
“Haha, of course not. Where else would I go?”
“…”
Right, Carriers had nowhere to go. I understood her position. She couldn’t just leave on a whim.
“Then I’m off. I’ve been running all night, and I’m tired.”
With that, she turned and walked back the way she came. Her staggering steps looked weary. I felt a pang of sympathy, but I didn’t offer any words of comfort.
Carriers were all burdened with their own sorrows.
“…”
I watched her leave for a moment before returning to my cave. I was exhausted, too. I spent the rest of the day sleeping.
Two weeks later, I heard some bad news.
News I was starting to get used to.
A new demon had been summoned.
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Humans are creatures of habit.
Sometimes, they forget even lessons etched in blood. Especially after hundreds of years, those lessons become nothing more than dusty stories in old history books.
And it was no different now.
Andromalius, Seere, Amdusias. And even Kimaris, though not summoned.
In just over a year, humanity had faced four demon-related incidents. And while there had been some damage, all four had been dealt with relatively smoothly.
Most were quickly taken down by a subjugation force.
So, they couldn’t help but think, maybe demons weren’t so bad after all. It was the same complacency humans of the past had felt, but it couldn’t be helped.
The people of today didn’t know the past.
This complacency was even more pronounced among the otherworlders. The Gaians at least risked their lives, but the otherworlders would simply respawn if they died.
Moreover, the otherworlders’ skills had noticeably improved over the past few months.
You could even find a few otherworlders among the ranks of A-rank adventurers. Their confidence was at an all-time high.
+
[Aren’t demons just a bunch of pushovers? lol]
Honestly, the ones that have appeared so far haven’t really shown much
Andromalius got one-shotted, Seere got his arm cut off by some unknown NPC
Amdusias was just a comedian. I think these guys are all just for show
+
[Right? lol]
[I miss you already, Seere-nim…]
[The next one will probably be all talk and no action too lol]
This complacency continued even as they gathered a subjugation force for the new demon.
And so, the day of the demon’s arrival came.
Like the first subjugation against Andromalius, the location of the summoning was known.
Thanks to this, a large crowd had already gathered at the summoning site, waiting. Knights, mages, and otherworlders, all preparing for the subjugation.
The demon’s first appearance was underwhelming. At the far end of the allied camp, a single figure began to walk towards them.
At first glance, it appeared to be a thin, hunched-over man. A frail body that looked like it would collapse with a light kick. But its face was undeniably grotesque, constantly shifting.
One moment it was an old woman, the next a beautiful maiden, then a hideous man.
Squirm squirm…
The facial muscles moved grotesquely with each transformation, features disappearing and reappearing in a truly bizarre display.
Finally, the figure reached the subjugation force and spoke with a polite smile.
“Ah, so everyone’s gathered here?”
There was no need to ponder. This was the demon they had been waiting for.
“Take this, monster!”
The first to charge was an otherworlder. An A-rank adventurer, one of the higher-level players.
He was probably overconfident due to the demon’s frail appearance. Or maybe he wanted to take all the credit for himself.
But the otherworlder’s charge was halted by a single sentence from the demon.
“Oh dear, I haven’t even introduced myself yet. Please stop.”
Thud.
The otherworlder froze mid-stride, as if a ‘Freeze!’ spell had been cast upon him. The demon continued.
“Very well. Now, please die.”
But this time, nothing happened. As if the command had no effect, the otherworlder remained unharmed.
The demon muttered, perplexed.
“Hmm… It seems imitating Paimon-nim is more difficult than I thought. Oh well. I’ll just do what I do best.”
The demon’s finger twitched. A seemingly meaningless movement.
But the mages present would have sensed the vast amount of mana consumed by that simple gesture. It was magic. The demon had cast a spell without any incantation.
Whoosh-!
And the result was swift. A spike suddenly shot up from the ground, piercing the frozen otherworlder’s chest.
“Gah…!”
The otherworlder could only gurgle as he was impaled, unable to resist.
A flicker of fear appeared in the eyes of the onlookers.
Even though he had rushed in recklessly, he was still an A-rank adventurer. At least level 110. And he had died without any resistance.
Swish.
The otherworlder’s body dissolved into particles of light, and the demon bowed in introduction.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Dantalion.”
A relaxed and courteous smile still adorned its face.
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[Your Text Here]
I caught up damn also oooo words