༺ Blue Devil (1) ༻
“So, what’s the plan?!”
Talion skillfully turned the helm and threw out such words.
I knew it, having him practice was a good decision. He was able to keep the balance and steer the ship even in the middle of this mess.
“Plan… Plan, you say…”
Right, I had something you could call a plan, but…
Could I even call it as such, though?
“First, let’s make use of this situation.”
“…Excuse me?”
I looked at Riru, who was rapidly catching up in the distance. Her running speed was even faster than the boat, which was already at full throttle. The distance between us was shrinking at a quite frightening pace.
Considering how pissed off she was, I had to offer something pretty valuable to calm her down.
For example…
Something pretty precious to me.
That was why, as an exchange for that, I should at least make use of this situation to the fullest.
“…You’re still thinking of satisfying your greed in this kind of a situation?”
“…”
Towards Talion’s words, which almost sounded like a scolding, I kept my mouth shut.
So what, you brat? You had a problem with that, huh?!
I did feel my sense of crisis turning into something more like a life-risking game in such situations, but it was much better than trembling and getting squashed under pressure.
In any case…
“With this, one of them will remain subdued for a while…”
As I said this, I looked at the first tentacle wriggling out of the sinkhole in front of me.
After getting thrashed by Riru while trying to make a majestic appearance, it was now stuck motionless with its body twisted.
This wasn’t an unfamiliar scene to me as I’ve seen it a few times before in the game. Whenever it took heavy damage, it would enter this exact groggy state, unable to regain its senses for a period of time.
‘…With this, the intro is skipped.’
After fighting the first tentacle that popped out, the next phase in the boss battle was to dive into the sinkhole below and face the ‘main body’.
But, I could save a lot of time and resources by ‘tossing’ Riru inside.
“…”
“…”
I ignored Talion’s unpleasant and hesitant gaze.
Yeah, yeah, the way I expressed it was a little off, but…
You got my point, right?
It would make things easier if I were to toss her onto all of the three bosses.
‘…The only problem with that is…’
She’d inevitably go berserk during the process.
After all, Tatiana must have embedded ‘that kind of thing’ in Alan for such use.
Considering the mechanism of the Incarnation shown in the game, Alan was definitely stuck into one of those three giant cephalopods.
“…”
I gritted my teeth.
Honestly…
If possible, I didn’t want to let Riru see that,
After all, even I almost threw up when I saw it. It really was such a disgusting sight.
However…
‘…It’s something that’s bound to happen whether I like it or not.’
Even if I tried to prevent it from happening, Tatiana would force it on Riru somehow.
Especially now, while I was drawing Riru into a berserk state, entirely skipping the first phase. Chances were, she’d make Riru go fully berserk and get her to kill me in the process.
That was an effective solution for her to utilize. As seen with Eleanor before, I had to rely on my luck to subdue a Devil who had gone berserk.
“…”
Well, except that bitch overlooked one thing.
The fact that it would be better for the Blue Devil to go all out in her berserk state.
That way, it would give me a much higher chance of survival. I wasn’t kidding.
“For now, just take this.”
With a sigh, I took out Ultima and handed it to Talion.
“What’s this?”
“A holy relic. Even someone who can’t handle Divine Power like you should be able to resist curses somewhat.”
“I appreciate the thought, Senior Brother. But I can handle this much!”
Talion replied with a vigorous voice, his face was filled with sweat but he still looked energetic.
Around us, black fog billowed out from the flesh scattered by Riru’s explosive power.
Those were the residue of malignant curses that would drive any ordinary person mad upon contact.
“Take it. Even if you’re fine, that thing you have with you could still be affected.”
I pointed at the ice cat suffering above Talion’s head. As I did so, Talion’s expression changed to one of realization.
“Wait a moment, then what about Senior Brother…!”
“I’m fine.”
I actually needed to ‘reduce’ such resistance.
And Desperate enhanced ‘all stats’. The Devil Conquest state on my status window was also under that effect.
That couldn’t happen.
“If my resistance is too high… Uh… You see…”
I scratched my head before continuing.
“I can’t get ‘devoured’ by her.”
“…”
Could you please…
Stop looking at me like that…
Her head felt hazy.
Everything in front of her eyes was painted blue.
As if the whole place was enveloped in a blue mist.
‘…Why am I so angry?’
It wasn’t that she couldn’t think of why.
All she heard was a proposal of friendship from that bastard. It really wasn’t something one should get mad about.
-I like you, Riru Garda.
“…”
Oh. Right.
On second thought, she had all the right to be angry.
‘That damn womanizer, playboy, piece of shit!’
Unwittingly, her head went white with rage, obliterating the ‘obstacle’ rising before her eyes.
“I said get lost—!”
On her way here, she had encountered a bunch of similar beings to this bastard.
She didn’t know where they came from, but for some reason, these Demonic Creatures kept rushing at her.
Normally, she would be filled with questions about her current situation.
Like, how was she running on water?
What was the identity of these things? Why were they attacking her?
And how was she obliterating them all with just one punch?
She would have at least tried to grasp such basic aspects of the situation at hand.
However, at the moment…
She couldn’t think of anything other than punishing that guy at least once in the jaw.
That had been the only thought in her mind since the very beginning!
“Stop… Getting… In my way—!”
Even as she pulverized the third giant tentacle with her fist, she maintained this same momentum.
It had also almost become a routine to see pieces of flesh raining down before her eyes.
However, this time…
In the middle of her rampage, something caught her eyes.
“…”
Amidst the chunks of exploding flesh…
She saw someone ‘buried’ within them.
A giant body. And a lion’s tattoo engraved on the abdomen.
It was an unforgettable sight.
Alan Ba-Thor.
The person who abruptly challenged her grandmother, whom she respected more than anyone, to a Great Duel.
And during that Great Duel, he was the person who attacked her clan’s territory, took their lives, and even cut off her grandmother’s limbs.
Even with her reason blurred by such engulfing rage, she recalled these facts one after another.
A part of her mind, consumed by wrath, awakened.
Her thoughts, previously creaking like unoiled metal, started to move.
Thanks to that…
Riru could fully focus on the ‘scene’ before her.
Something ‘emerging’ from Alan Ba-Thor’s body caught her eye.
It had the appearance of a ‘sculpture’ that seemed crafted with twisted imagination.
A grotesque chunk of flesh that clearly held some sort of shamanistic significance.
“…”
Instinctively, Riru realized that this was related to the giant tentacles she had been smashing.
These things probably had a great contribution in summoning them.
She put in all her efforts to make her consciousness even clearer.
It looked like clay dolls left unfinished were haphazardly tangled together.
But instead of clay, they were all ‘human bodies’.
These sculptures were made using the remains of the deceased.
And on those bodies…
‘Tattoos’ shared within the clan, engraved on the flesh, were clearly visible.
All of them…
Bore the Garda clan’s symbol.
“…What is this.”
Such a murmur trickled out unintentionally.
The bodies making up this ‘sculpture’ all bore that pattern.
She could never forget it.
After all, it was the pattern that her family proudly bore on their bodies, teaching her to never lose pride in it.
But…
Those who taught her, those who were her family…
Were now being desecrated…
In such a miserable manner, even after death.
“…”
She didn’t need to think deeply to know who did this.
After all, she could vividly recall the person who took their remains, even in her current state. The one who claimed she would conduct a ‘funeral, refusing to hand them over to Riru.
Tatiana.
The Chief Priest.
The bitch who, even if she ripped to death, it wouldn’t leave her satisfied; it was that bitch’s doing.
“…”
The next moment…
A blue aura started to undulate explosively around Riru’s body.
“…That’s the third one.”
Talion muttered, watching the tentacles being torn apart and flying away.
This meant the first phase had been skipped for all three bosses. Which meant we’d be facing all of their main bodies soon.
But there seemed to be a problem…
“…Something’s off.”
Talion squinted his eyes, observing Riru stopping in her tracks.
She had been chasing me at a terrifying speed, but for some reason, she suddenly stopped.
System Message
[ Target ‘Riru’ is enraged by an unthinkable sight! ]
[ Corruption Value of target ‘Riru’ has exceeded 300%. ]
[ Target is entering a ‘berserk’ state! ]
[ The estimated damage range is a ‘10km radius’! ]
[ The probability of survival is 0.3%! ]
“…”
I tightly closed my eyes and apologized to Riru.
‘Sorry.’
‘I’m truly sorry.’
‘Please, forgive me for making you see such a thing, Riru.’
“…”
‘I swear, I’ll make sure…’
‘That the one who did this will pay the price.’
And I was about to take the first step in that process.
“Stop!”
As soon as I saw Riru’s movements stop, I immediately instructed Talion.
Then, as soon as the boat stopped, I used it as a springboard to ‘fly’ towards her.
“Wait, Senior Brother?!”
Talion’s cry of horror echoed from behind me.
Charging at full speed towards a human who had been effortlessly destroying everything in her path seemed crazy, but…
System Message
[ ‘Skill: King of Pandemonium’ is activated. ]
[ Gained an absolute advantage against Devil-type enemies for the next 5 minutes! ]
[ Facing a target with parallel abilities. ]
[ Resisting target’s unique ability ‘Authority: Pulverization’! ]
Fortunately, I had the ability to resist such Authorities, even if it could only last for a few minutes.
I flew swiftly and crashed into Riru, who was standing dazed above the sea.
Normally, my body should have been completely destroyed upon contact, but thanks to the skill, I remained relatively intact.
System Message
[ The Aura of the ‘Blue Devil’ is felt! ]
[ ‘The Fallen’s Seal’ reacts! ]
While noting such messages were popping up, I clung to Riru, supporting my body with hers.
It felt similar to when I clung to Eleanor, who was floating in the air.
Apparently, those on the verge of going berserk wouldn’t react much, even when I stuck to them like glue.
“…Hello. Nice to meet you.”
And…
Amidst the surging blue aura that was about to explode…
I whispered carefully to Riru.
“I’m Dowd Campbell.”
As if I was greeting someone for the first time.
“…I have come with an offer you can not refuse.”
I continued while letting out a sigh.
“Shall we talk? Blue Devil.”
-…
Silence.
Followed by another silence.
At that moment, suddenly…
The blue aura emanating from Riru’s body swiftly ‘wrapped’ around me.
System Message
[ Detecting a ‘Mental Barrier’ activated against you! ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Resistance failed! ]
[ Entering the target’s ‘Image World’! ]
Good. That was how it should be.
Judging by the number of resistance rolls, it was a close call. If I had Ultima with me, I might have actually resisted this attempt.
As my consciousness faded, I chuckled with such thoughts.
[Nice to meet you too, Dowd Campbell.]
And beyond my waning consciousness…
I heard that voice.
It was definitely…
[I have been waiting to meet you like this.]
An extremely calm and composed voice.
[My Husband.]
So much so that it could make one forget for a moment that this was the voice of a ‘Devil’.
༺ Blue Devil (1) ༻
“So, what’s the plan?!”
Talion skillfully turned the helm and threw out such words.
I knew it, having him practice was a good decision. He was able to keep the balance and steer the ship even in the middle of this mess.
“Plan… Plan, you say…”
Right, I had something you could call a plan, but…
Could I even call it as such, though?
“First, let’s make use of this situation.”
“…Excuse me?”
I looked at Riru, who was rapidly catching up in the distance. Her running speed was even faster than the boat, which was already at full throttle. The distance between us was shrinking at a quite frightening pace.
Considering how pissed off she was, I had to offer something pretty valuable to calm her down.
For example…
Something pretty precious to me.
That was why, as an exchange for that, I should at least make use of this situation to the fullest.
“…You’re still thinking of satisfying your greed in this kind of a situation?”
“…”
Towards Talion’s words, which almost sounded like a scolding, I kept my mouth shut.
So what, you brat? You had a problem with that, huh?!
I did feel my sense of crisis turning into something more like a life-risking game in such situations, but it was much better than trembling and getting squashed under pressure.
In any case…
“With this, one of them will remain subdued for a while…”
As I said this, I looked at the first tentacle wriggling out of the sinkhole in front of me.
After getting thrashed by Riru while trying to make a majestic appearance, it was now stuck motionless with its body twisted.
This wasn’t an unfamiliar scene to me as I’ve seen it a few times before in the game. Whenever it took heavy damage, it would enter this exact groggy state, unable to regain its senses for a period of time.
‘…With this, the intro is skipped.’
After fighting the first tentacle that popped out, the next phase in the boss battle was to dive into the sinkhole below and face the ‘main body’.
But, I could save a lot of time and resources by ‘tossing’ Riru inside.
“…”
“…”
I ignored Talion’s unpleasant and hesitant gaze.
Yeah, yeah, the way I expressed it was a little off, but…
You got my point, right?
It would make things easier if I were to toss her onto all of the three bosses.
‘…The only problem with that is…’
She’d inevitably go berserk during the process.
After all, Tatiana must have embedded ‘that kind of thing’ in Alan for such use.
Considering the mechanism of the Incarnation shown in the game, Alan was definitely stuck into one of those three giant cephalopods.
“…”
I gritted my teeth.
Honestly…
If possible, I didn’t want to let Riru see that,
After all, even I almost threw up when I saw it. It really was such a disgusting sight.
However…
‘…It’s something that’s bound to happen whether I like it or not.’
Even if I tried to prevent it from happening, Tatiana would force it on Riru somehow.
Especially now, while I was drawing Riru into a berserk state, entirely skipping the first phase. Chances were, she’d make Riru go fully berserk and get her to kill me in the process.
That was an effective solution for her to utilize. As seen with Eleanor before, I had to rely on my luck to subdue a Devil who had gone berserk.
“…”
Well, except that bitch overlooked one thing.
The fact that it would be better for the Blue Devil to go all out in her berserk state.
That way, it would give me a much higher chance of survival. I wasn’t kidding.
“For now, just take this.”
With a sigh, I took out Ultima and handed it to Talion.
“What’s this?”
“A holy relic. Even someone who can’t handle Divine Power like you should be able to resist curses somewhat.”
“I appreciate the thought, Senior Brother. But I can handle this much!”
Talion replied with a vigorous voice, his face was filled with sweat but he still looked energetic.
Around us, black fog billowed out from the flesh scattered by Riru’s explosive power.
Those were the residue of malignant curses that would drive any ordinary person mad upon contact.
“Take it. Even if you’re fine, that thing you have with you could still be affected.”
I pointed at the ice cat suffering above Talion’s head. As I did so, Talion’s expression changed to one of realization.
“Wait a moment, then what about Senior Brother…!”
“I’m fine.”
I actually needed to ‘reduce’ such resistance.
And Desperate enhanced ‘all stats’. The Devil Conquest state on my status window was also under that effect.
That couldn’t happen.
“If my resistance is too high… Uh… You see…”
I scratched my head before continuing.
“I can’t get ‘devoured’ by her.”
“…”
Could you please…
Stop looking at me like that…
Her head felt hazy.
Everything in front of her eyes was painted blue.
As if the whole place was enveloped in a blue mist.
‘…Why am I so angry?’
It wasn’t that she couldn’t think of why.
All she heard was a proposal of friendship from that bastard. It really wasn’t something one should get mad about.
-I like you, Riru Garda.
“…”
Oh. Right.
On second thought, she had all the right to be angry.
‘That damn womanizer, playboy, piece of shit!’
Unwittingly, her head went white with rage, obliterating the ‘obstacle’ rising before her eyes.
“I said get lost—!”
On her way here, she had encountered a bunch of similar beings to this bastard.
She didn’t know where they came from, but for some reason, these Demonic Creatures kept rushing at her.
Normally, she would be filled with questions about her current situation.
Like, how was she running on water?
What was the identity of these things? Why were they attacking her?
And how was she obliterating them all with just one punch?
She would have at least tried to grasp such basic aspects of the situation at hand.
However, at the moment…
She couldn’t think of anything other than punishing that guy at least once in the jaw.
That had been the only thought in her mind since the very beginning!
“Stop… Getting… In my way—!”
Even as she pulverized the third giant tentacle with her fist, she maintained this same momentum.
It had also almost become a routine to see pieces of flesh raining down before her eyes.
However, this time…
In the middle of her rampage, something caught her eyes.
“…”
Amidst the chunks of exploding flesh…
She saw someone ‘buried’ within them.
A giant body. And a lion’s tattoo engraved on the abdomen.
It was an unforgettable sight.
Alan Ba-Thor.
The person who abruptly challenged her grandmother, whom she respected more than anyone, to a Great Duel.
And during that Great Duel, he was the person who attacked her clan’s territory, took their lives, and even cut off her grandmother’s limbs.
Even with her reason blurred by such engulfing rage, she recalled these facts one after another.
A part of her mind, consumed by wrath, awakened.
Her thoughts, previously creaking like unoiled metal, started to move.
Thanks to that…
Riru could fully focus on the ‘scene’ before her.
Something ‘emerging’ from Alan Ba-Thor’s body caught her eye.
It had the appearance of a ‘sculpture’ that seemed crafted with twisted imagination.
A grotesque chunk of flesh that clearly held some sort of shamanistic significance.
“…”
Instinctively, Riru realized that this was related to the giant tentacles she had been smashing.
These things probably had a great contribution in summoning them.
She put in all her efforts to make her consciousness even clearer.
It looked like clay dolls left unfinished were haphazardly tangled together.
But instead of clay, they were all ‘human bodies’.
These sculptures were made using the remains of the deceased.
And on those bodies…
‘Tattoos’ shared within the clan, engraved on the flesh, were clearly visible.
All of them…
Bore the Garda clan’s symbol.
“…What is this.”
Such a murmur trickled out unintentionally.
The bodies making up this ‘sculpture’ all bore that pattern.
She could never forget it.
After all, it was the pattern that her family proudly bore on their bodies, teaching her to never lose pride in it.
But…
Those who taught her, those who were her family…
Were now being desecrated…
In such a miserable manner, even after death.
“…”
She didn’t need to think deeply to know who did this.
After all, she could vividly recall the person who took their remains, even in her current state. The one who claimed she would conduct a ‘funeral, refusing to hand them over to Riru.
Tatiana.
The Chief Priest.
The bitch who, even if she ripped to death, it wouldn’t leave her satisfied; it was that bitch’s doing.
“…”
The next moment…
A blue aura started to undulate explosively around Riru’s body.
“…That’s the third one.”
Talion muttered, watching the tentacles being torn apart and flying away.
This meant the first phase had been skipped for all three bosses. Which meant we’d be facing all of their main bodies soon.
But there seemed to be a problem…
“…Something’s off.”
Talion squinted his eyes, observing Riru stopping in her tracks.
She had been chasing me at a terrifying speed, but for some reason, she suddenly stopped.
System Message
[ Target ‘Riru’ is enraged by an unthinkable sight! ]
[ Corruption Value of target ‘Riru’ has exceeded 300%. ]
[ Target is entering a ‘berserk’ state! ]
[ The estimated damage range is a ‘10km radius’! ]
[ The probability of survival is 0.3%! ]
“…”
I tightly closed my eyes and apologized to Riru.
‘Sorry.’
‘I’m truly sorry.’
‘Please, forgive me for making you see such a thing, Riru.’
“…”
‘I swear, I’ll make sure…’
‘That the one who did this will pay the price.’
And I was about to take the first step in that process.
“Stop!”
As soon as I saw Riru’s movements stop, I immediately instructed Talion.
Then, as soon as the boat stopped, I used it as a springboard to ‘fly’ towards her.
“Wait, Senior Brother?!”
Talion’s cry of horror echoed from behind me.
Charging at full speed towards a human who had been effortlessly destroying everything in her path seemed crazy, but…
System Message
[ ‘Skill: King of Pandemonium’ is activated. ]
[ Gained an absolute advantage against Devil-type enemies for the next 5 minutes! ]
[ Facing a target with parallel abilities. ]
[ Resisting target’s unique ability ‘Authority: Pulverization’! ]
Fortunately, I had the ability to resist such Authorities, even if it could only last for a few minutes.
I flew swiftly and crashed into Riru, who was standing dazed above the sea.
Normally, my body should have been completely destroyed upon contact, but thanks to the skill, I remained relatively intact.
System Message
[ The Aura of the ‘Blue Devil’ is felt! ]
[ ‘The Fallen’s Seal’ reacts! ]
While noting such messages were popping up, I clung to Riru, supporting my body with hers.
It felt similar to when I clung to Eleanor, who was floating in the air.
Apparently, those on the verge of going berserk wouldn’t react much, even when I stuck to them like glue.
“…Hello. Nice to meet you.”
And…
Amidst the surging blue aura that was about to explode…
I whispered carefully to Riru.
“I’m Dowd Campbell.”
As if I was greeting someone for the first time.
“…I have come with an offer you can not refuse.”
I continued while letting out a sigh.
“Shall we talk? Blue Devil.”
-…
Silence.
Followed by another silence.
At that moment, suddenly…
The blue aura emanating from Riru’s body swiftly ‘wrapped’ around me.
System Message
[ Detecting a ‘Mental Barrier’ activated against you! ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Rolling ‘Devil Conquest’ stat for resistance… ]
[ Resistance failed! ]
[ Entering the target’s ‘Image World’! ]
Good. That was how it should be.
Judging by the number of resistance rolls, it was a close call. If I had Ultima with me, I might have actually resisted this attempt.
As my consciousness faded, I chuckled with such thoughts.
[Nice to meet you too, Dowd Campbell.]
And beyond my waning consciousness…
I heard that voice.
It was definitely…
[I have been waiting to meet you like this.]
An extremely calm and composed voice.
[My Husband.]
So much so that it could make one forget for a moment that this was the voice of a ‘Devil’.
