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Chapter 93 The Second Foe
A network of vents spanned throughout, delivering air to the underground. It was connected to all the rooms, and you could see what was going on in the rooms through the gaps in the wire mesh. It was quite narrow, and one had to crawl on all fours to move forward, but it was far more comfortable than the attic of an ordinary mansion.
"Toka, isn't it too cramped?"
I spoke in a hushed tone to Toka, who was following behind. I had to lower my volume significantly; otherwise, my voice might echo.
"What's up, Kyrie? Making fun of me for being small or something?"
"No, it's not that. Just being considerate; no ill intentions."
"Well, no need to worry about me. You know my physique. If anything catches my attention, it's probably your big butt swaying right in front of me."
"I'll kick you, you know?"
"Just kidding. It's just an older sister's consideration to ease the tension, no ill intentions."
No, I seriously considered giving her a swift kick with my shoe on her face.
We got the location of the minister from the leader. He's somewhere in the section where they conducted experiments on artificial heroes. He gave us a rough idea of the area, and now we're heading there.
(It would have been more reassuring if the leader had come with us.)
As soon as our conversation ended, he bolted out of the room at an incredible speed, saying he had other matters to attend to. But before that, he first handed us a magical key to open the door.
Although called a key, it looked like a thin card. It held magical power, and when held against a white plate, the door opened.
(No wonder we couldn't find or open the door.)
If Mel-chan knew, she'd probably be quite interested. Speaking of Mel-chan, I wonder what Beato, who's always with her, is doing right now.
○○○
"Beato-nee-san, why are you up so late?"
As I sat in a chair, crafting accessories, Mel-san asked me.
A handmade hair ornament for Kyrie-san. It's still far from completion.
"..."
Unlike Kyrie-san, I couldn't communicate with her by heart. I wrote on parchment to convey my thoughts.
"I want to wait until Kyrie-san comes back."
It was about time to sleep. Grandma had already gone to bed. Even though Mel-san was in pajamas, I was still in my day clothes.
"Is it because you're worried about Kyrie-neesan?"
"..."
That's part of it. If something were to happen… just thinking about it fills me with anxiety. But it's not just that.
"Kyrie-san can't sleep without me. If I'm not there when she comes back, even if she's tired, she won't be able to sleep. Also, there's the matter of treating her injuries. If she comes back with a serious injury, I need to heal her right away."
"It's love, isn't it..."
"...!"
It's love!
"All right, I'll stay up with you. When Toka comes back, I'll hear all about it and bombard her with questions."
Mel-san also sat next to me, starting to watch my work. It seems she's genuinely worried about Toka-san.
(Kyrie-san, please come back safely.)
I didn't have any faith in any gods, so I prayed directly to Kyrie-san. Please, come back alive as always...
xxx
Now, it's time to head to the experimental area of the artificial hero that the leader told us about. From here on, we'll take it slow, peering through the mesh to observe the rooms as we advance.
...Even though I said that all these rooms seem to be empty. Some rooms had lights on but were vacant, while others only seemed to store documents.
"Hey, Toka. Are we sure about this area? We didn't get lost, right?"
"We got the number on the duct, E-25. The E signifies the artificial hero experimental area, so there's no mistake."
Yeah, we shouldn't be lost. But seeing so many empty rooms was making me a bit uneasy. Maybe they had halted the experiments because of the intruders.
Relying on the numbers engraved on the duct, we turned and advanced through the ducts, peering through the mesh into the rooms. And then, we reached E-50. The moment I looked into the room indicated by this number, I held my breath.
"...He's here."
In a voice reduced to a whisper and supplemented by gestures, I signaled Toka. Discovery of the target we need to eliminate.
"These intruders, it must be him... Escaping from experimental animals, as expected from him..."
The one muttering to himself in irritation was a slightly overweight middle-aged man, Gustav Maximilian, former minister of the Deltirad Kingdom. He then spread documents on his desk.
He's one of my hated enemies who issued orders through Carion to attack my village.
"Kyrie, stay calm. Approach with composure."
"I know..."
Thank you for your concern. I'm okay; I'm calm.
Now, first, let's assess the situation in the room. Inside, there's only Gustav. The room contains a bed-like platform resembling a hospital examination table. There's also a shelf with many small orbs, likely Gift Spheres.
Other than that, there were filing cabinets, shelves with medical-looking instruments that I didn't quite understand, and an entrance that could have been an escape route, leading to the corridor.
Furthermore, beyond a large glass window, there's a spacious area with another door. Unfortunately, due to the angle, some places were not visible from here.
After confirming various details, the most crucial thing is that he's alone in the room.
"...Toka, wait here for now."
"Understood... If anything happens, I'll cover for you..."
I removed the mesh without making a sound and placed it under my armpit. If I turned this thing into magma and shot him, I could have killed him in one shot. But if he died that way, my anger wouldn't be satisfied. He had to suffer, endure, and experience hell before I killed him.
"I'm going."
From the duct hole in the ceiling, I jumped down into the room. Now, what should I do first? Crush his vocal cords so he couldn't make a sound... oh, but then I wouldn't be able to hear his screams. In that case, maybe I could cover his mouth with something while he was surprised by my appearance.
"...Well, well, an unexpected prey has fallen into the trap."
Huh, he's not surprised to see me...? In fact, he looked delighted. Well, whatever. I landed gracefully and headed straight for Gustav.
"...!?"
A chill ran down my spine, as a tremendous killing intent pierced through me.
"Yeah, unexpected. But it's a pleasant surprise."
"I agree. It looks like we're in for the thrill of a lifetime."
When I quickly turned around, there was a silver-haired female demon rushing towards me, wielding a single-edged sword aimed at me. She swung the sheathed single-edged sword, unleashing a horizontal slash. I dodged it with a backflip and unsheathed my crimson Sword Breaker, and we locked eyes.
"Hero...! I wanted to meet you, wanted to kill you so badly...!"
"What a coincidence. I also wanted to kill you."
I tried saying something provocative, but right now, I really didn't want to meet her. Damn it, why is she in this room? I made sure there was no one else but the minister. Did she hide in a place not visible from the ventilation shaft?
"Hey, what were you doing in the minister's room?"
"The user of the 【Mechs】 is Blum. If she came here, regardless of her intentions, she must have something for me in the area of the artificial hero experiment. I thought so and was waiting, but—"
While she was blabbering, Toka jumped down from the ceiling. She then created a gauntlet with iron sand on her back and immediately struck Levia.
"So, Blum got killed, huh?"
Before the Renki-infused punch reached her, something pink came crashing from the side.
"Agghh!"
Toka's small body was sent flying, shattering a large window.
"TOKA!!"
"Are you in a situation to worry about others?"
During the moment when I followed Toka with my eyes, a fierce roundhouse kick hit my side.
"Ugh...!"
Due to the intense impact, my body was sent flying outside the window Toka broke, into a vast open space.
Damn, what kind of absurd strength is that? I rotated in the air, adjusting my posture, and landed lightly.
I checked on Toka, who was lying down.
"Toka, are you okay?"
"Somehow... managed it."
Good, it seemed she was not injured. Toka jumped up energetically.
The walls in this space were covered with the same light green color as the corridor. The height was enough for twenty people to stand vertically. As for the size, it's as vast as the square in front of the castle in the capital city. And the ground was an exposed sandy area, perhaps designed for some kind of combat.
"But seriously, what was that just now...?"
"I don't know, but it seems like there are a lot of them."
The one who threw Toka away was a disgusting monster that looked like a gooey mass. It crossed the window and about ten of them emerged from below the ground. The fact that they can seep into the ground means they were probably lurking in the cracks of the room like that.
"Hey, have you ever seen a monster like this? It looks a bit different from what I imagine monsters to be."
"Unfortunately, I've never seen or heard of it before."
"That's natural. Monsters like these don't exist in the natural world."
The voice belonged to Gustav. He's babbling from the safety of the room through the broken window.
"Well, to be precise, they're not even monsters. They are all failed experiments for creating artificial heroes."
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Thanks for the TL!
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