C372 - The Reason They Visit Temar's Tomb (4)
[Aa, aaah! This btch... my wings, it hurts, ugh! It feels like my whole body is on fire! I'll kill you, I'll definitely kill you! Btch!]
Myla, lying on the ground, screamed and cursed at Valeria in every possible way.
The heat from the Lightning Chains still lingered on the ground, causing Myla unbearable pain throughout her body.
Amidst the continuous screams, Valeria confirmed that Myla was in a state from which she couldn't escape, then leaned against a tree and took a breath.
Corpses were everywhere.
Every Magician from the Third Magic Tower who had come to the Wantaramo Forest had died, without exception.
And it was a girl who had just turned seventeen who had done it.
No one would believe it.
Even Jin, who had personally experienced Valeria's previous life and had witnessed this kind of battle, was stunned.
"I knew my Master was a monster, but I never imagined she'd be this strong at seventeen. No wonder they never caught her until now."
Naturally, Valeria's Mana was far from enough to match the twenty Magicians of the Tower.
Drew Malaga and his subordinates were not weak at all.
However, the overwhelmingly decisive victory was due to Valeria Histor's overwhelming and unexpected talent.
Just as it had happened in Jin's previous life.
It felt to Jin as if he were glimpsing a new horizon of Magic from his Master's hands.
"When I met Master in my previous life, I wondered what she believed in and acted so arrogantly. It gives me vertigo to think about it now."
Suddenly, Jin remembered the moment when Valeria had taught him how to use Lightning Magic, and he shivered.
Tk...
Valeria took a crushed cigarette from her pocket and lit it.
It wasn't for smoking.
She expelled the smoke that remained in her mouth when lighting it and placed the cigarette in the midst of the dead Magicians.
It was a commemorative cigarette from the Gray Owl Mercenaries. Valeria stared at it for a while.
Valeria, contemplating the gruesome corpses and the desolately burning cigarette, and Myla struggling and cursing, created a scene of confusion.
And the Demon Men sensed that she was in a vulnerable state.
Indeed, she had helped the Cat Tribe Members create the passageways and had almost exhausted all her Mana due to the recent battle.
Splat!
All the Demon Men rushed towards Valeria at once. Their aura-stained scimitars were aimed at Valeria.
Of course, their strikes never reached Valeria.
Although the physical abilities of the Demon Men had improved significantly compared to when they were human, they weren't as fast as Jin had remembered.
When Bradamante and the two curved swords clashed, sparks flew.
Jin tried to use his scissor technique once more, but as if they didn't want to fall victim to the same move again, the Demon Men defended each other, deflecting the scissors to both sides.
"Don't disturb the duel."
Thudd-!
Bradamante moved in a trajectory and swung a slash at Rick's chest.
Although it would have been a mortal wound for a human, the wound quickly healed.
Jin used the scissors again and examined where the dead Demon Man's body had been.
As Valeria had explained, the deceased Demon Man had already rusted, leaving only black residue and disappearing completely.
"I need to control my strength properly. To leave evidence without any difficulty."
Capturing them alive seemed to be a challenge due to the Demon Men's regenerative abilities.
Furthermore, the Demon Men were weaker compared to Jin, but not weak enough to be bound with ordinary tools.
Regeneration, physical enhancement, oxidation to prevent information leakage and sanity.
Is it okay for now?
Oh, one more thing.
Battle power level.
Rick Helter.
When he was human, he was the leader, which made him much stronger than the other Imperial Guards.
However, after becoming a Demon Man, he showed no difference from the others.
Whether an ordinary guard or Rick, they now possessed the same level of battle prowess.
The importance of this fact was enormous.
"It's possible that Transformation Magic to become a Demon Man doesn't require elite Imperial Guards but individuals with a certain level of skill. Or perhaps even common people could become Demon Men with this level of battle prowess..."
Considering that she had managed to kill three during her transformation, if all six had completed their transformation into Demon Men, Jin wouldn't have been able to deal with them so easily.
"If Transformation Magic can be applied to ordinary people, and if Vermont controls more than just a few Demon Men... the world's balance of power could change completely."
Jin had already experienced something similar in his previous life.
Using the 'Mirror,' Colon's artifact, Zipple had mass-produced 7-star Magicians, solidifying their dominion over world power.
Jin had been a direct witness to how they had further consolidated their dominion.
"I need to collect the body of a Demon Man as evidence and investigate thoroughly. I have to find out how far the Demon Man Transformation Magic has developed. The reason it hasn't been mass-produced yet is probably because it's incomplete."
Step!
Jin increased his speed, forcing the Demon Men into a defensive position.
Although they had become stronger with the transformation, the initial difference was too great.
Despite the element of surprise, even if the Demon Men's weapons struck Jin, they wouldn't pierce his Shadow Energy Armor and cause him mortal harm.
"Considering their response to the Scissors, it seems they have a learning capability, but it appears they don't retain memories from their time as humans."
If the Demon Men had retained memories from their time as Imperial Guards, they wouldn't have aimed at Jin's throat while sacrificing their bodies.
Thunk...!
The curved sword was deflected by Jin's Shadow Energy Armor and bounced back.
Taking advantage of the recoil, Jin wielded Bradamante and struck the Demon Man's waist.
The blade enveloped in Shadow Energy silently pierced flesh and organs.
The dull sensation of a severed spine was transmitted through the blade, and Jin wielded his weapon again, cutting the mine in a cross.
Despite being divided into several pieces, the twisting body segments seemed to possess enough regenerative power to recover.
However, the Demon Man preferred oxidation over regeneration.
It was a clear indication of the creator's intent: leave no evidence behind.
Now only one remained, the Demon Man known as Rick Helter.
He too was about to fight to the end and then oxidize.
Swiish...!
Suddenly, sparks of blue flames flickered around Bradamante.
The power of Tess, blue flames.
As that energy accumulated, the Demon Man's weapon noticeably slowed down.
It was the power of 'Heavy Pressure,' suppressing it to the point where it couldn't move properly.
Even when it could exert its full power, it was no match for Jin.
All the Demon Man could do at that moment was oxidize.
Although only his arm had been cut, the Demon Man showed signs of oxidation.
He was turning into ashes, like other dead Demon Men.
Normally, oxidation occurred very quickly.
However, the strong pressure was affecting not only the Demon Man's movements but also delaying his disintegration.
"Valeria, now!"
As Jin closed in on him like an arrow, he cut off the Demon Man's two arms and shouted.
As Valeria had requested, Jin signaled her before delivering the final blow to the Demon Man. It was time to act according to her words.
Despite the pressure slowing the pace of oxidation, every passing second noticeably shrunk the Demon Man's body segments.
Phwooosh-!
A single thread of mana, imbued with the freezing attribute, flew from behind.
When the mana touched the Demon Man's body, it quickly formed a magical ice barrier with a melodic sound.
Fortunately, the completion of the magical seal occurred faster than the oxidation process.
The seal, which had fallen to the ground, produced a dull sound. It took the shape of a sphere, containing only the Demon Man's head and chest inside.
Jin had already cut off the two arms in advance, and the rest of the body had already turned to ashes in the air.
"If you had been a little late, we might have missed it."
Jin wiped his forehead as he looked at the magic seal. Valeria approached him and nodded.
"If it weren't for the power of the blue flames inside your sword, it would have been much more precarious. I could barely seal half of the head."
"Anyway, you did well. Now, we just need to visit the grave before more reinforcements arrive."
For a moment, the two remained silent, gazing at the seal containing the head and chest of the Demon Man.
"Jin Runcandel."
"Yes."
"You told the Demon Men not to disturb my duel. Why did you do that?"
"It's hard to think of anything other than mourning when you're lighting a cigarette that you don't even smoke. Besides, you spoke to Drew about the people trampled by Zipple and your deceased brothers."
In reality, Jin knew that Valeria's actions were a tribute to him due to memories from his past life, but responding this way wouldn't be strange either.
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
"And you didn't seem particularly surprised that I used a dagger."
"Among Magicians, there are those who train their bodies and martial arts. Your dagger skills were quite impressive. It's a shame you couldn't use aura."
"It was the first time I revealed my true name, and you casually called me Valeria a while ago."
He could barely suppress a start.
"Is it strange? I'm not quite sure what you mean."
Valeria shrugged.
"Well, it doesn't mean much. I was just curious why you did it."
"That you revealed your true name when I was listening means I've earned that trust with you. I liked it, so I thought about calling you by it."
Valeria stared at Jin.
Jin looked at her calmly, waiting for her next words.
[Kuugh! Aaaah!]
The sound that came first wasn't Valeria's response, but Myla's screams as she continued to roll on the ground.
"...First, we have to ask the Queen of the Descendants of the Fairy Tribe how to deal with that."
"I agree, Valeria Histor."
Meanwhile, at the edge of the Wantaramo Forest.
Two Magicians with perplexed expressions searched for their horses.
They were Magicians from the Third Magic Tower who had accompanied Drew Malaga into the Wantaramo Forest.
Originally, their purpose was to locate Jin.
However, Drew had ordered them to report to Zipple's main house as soon as possible.
The content of the report was about the presence of a magician using 'Record Magic' within the Wantaramo Forest.
"A Record Magician... Things are going to be chaotic for a while."
"Just by reporting this, my promotion is practically guaranteed, and I can raise my access level to the library..."
Chak!
The Magician who was responding suddenly slumped forward.
"Hey, you! What's wrong with you? Are you okay...?"
The other Magician couldn't finish his sentence either.
A long stinger of unknown origin had pierced his throat.
The two Magicians didn't even realize that they had been killed until the moment of their death.
"Hmmm, hmm-."
And behind those two steps, there was a woman humming a tune.
The woman cheerfully rummaged through the belongings of the deceased Magicians and found a letter with her beloved younger brother's name on it.
She smiled broadly as she looked at it.
"Well, it seems my little brother has a cunning side when you look closely. Hehehe."
It was Yona.
After picking up the letter, she said,
"I was thinking about what to do during the holidays, should I spend the time killing those guys who come looking for our little brother?"
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