Chapter 80

Chapter 80

My gaze towards Caron turned sour.

To give Luna an S-grade endgame item.

It was impossible to explain except for him being a lolicon.

'I need to be cautious. That's an incurable disease.'

Rustle-.

I distanced myself from Caron.

Who knows? He might have a thing for boys too.

Being a (questionable) pretty boy, it was only right for me to be cautious.

It was when I was desperately trying to put distance between us in the cramped room.

"I get what you're thinking, but it's totally not like that, so don't worry."

"Ke, keke... Well, that's good to hear. Don't worry, I won't disclose this information to anyone."

Caron let out a deep sigh.

Rubbing his forehead as if exhausted, he finally spoke.

"I told you, didn't I? I had a deal with Renia."

"Keke, what a convenient excuse."

"Isn't that the same for you?"

"Me?"

Caron's gaze was filled with annoyance.

Well, I did swear on Renia's name to escape my predicament.

But isn't it a different case?

I used it to escape being labeled a pervert, but Caron used it to escape being labeled a criminal(?).

Pervert vs. Criminal.

Anyone would say the latter is more problematic, right?

"Anyway, that should be enough for the price of the information. Now hand over what you know about the Creator of Madness. I'll pay well, so don't worry."

An S-grade artifact that can overcome death once in battle.

Indeed, it was more than a fair price.

Except for the part where it was supposed to be given to Luna, not me.

Puff-.

I puffed up my cheeks in dissatisfaction. Then,

"What's that? You want to die?"

Of course not. I immediately deflated my cheeks.

Imitating Luna didn't quite have the desired effect.

Had I been a girl, surely, as a super cute girl, it would have worked.

'Sigh, finally got that sorted.'

I might have unintentionally angered Caron, but it wasn't without results.

Information I could share and information I couldn't.

I was able to sort it out in my mind.

With a seemingly serious expression, I spoke.

"I've had dealings with some low-level black mages. Weird guys with one part of their body or another ruined."

A common trait among black mages who follow the Creator of Madness.

One or two parts of their body missing or fused with a demon's body.

And this trait becomes more pronounced as their rank increases.

"They said their leader was even more extraordinary. Carrying demons within his body. I thought it was impossible, but..."

"No, it's true. I've seen it myself, so it's confirmed."

"Carrying demons and still being fine?"

Recalling the Creator of Madness, Caron slightly furrowed his brows.

Well, I understand.

The one and only illustration of the Creator of Madness.

But no one could forget that illustration, even if they saw it just once.

It became famous on internet communities as a disturbing image and still occasionally makes appearances.

It was such a grotesque illustration that one could easily imagine what he might look like in reality.

'I hope Caron kills him before I have to see him.'

I'm a fragile and innocent child.

Seeing something so horrifying might cause me to faint.

"Whether he should be called human is questionable, but his mind seemed human."

"I see. So the one they follow is indeed the 'Creator of Madness'..."

I raised my left hand to my chin, adopting the pose of someone deep in thought.

Quietly muttering to myself in this posture.

"I thought it was impossible, but if what they say is true, could that mean this is also real?"

While pondering, I inadvertently murmured to myself.

Caron didn't miss my words.

I had walked into my own trap.

"What do you mean? What's real?"

We'll be exchanging various pieces of information going forward, and I'll be able to receive compensation for that.

He said, trying hard to hide his excitement.

"Lizbeth... With this, it's confirmed. There are at least two, and at most four, beings who can oppose you."

"Not to the extent of opposing. He fled, after all."

He grumbled.

It seems the Creator of Madness really infuriated him.

Well, hearing what Caron went through, I too felt anger rising within me.

'Using even young children as experimental materials...'

In the game, the death of young children is a common occurrence.

But facing that reality didn't feel good at all.

"Preparations to defend against chimeras will soon start throughout the empire. Although no special measures have been devised yet, we are researching the corpses, so we expect results soon."

It was regrettable that research on chimeras couldn't be delayed, but it wasn't bad.

This alone would significantly change the future.

"High-ranking black mages... It seems certain that there are at least two. The problem is whether the other two actually exist..."

The claim that there are four high-ranking black mages capable of communicating with the legion commander.

This information came from the mouth of a mere low-ranking black mage.

It was natural for Caron to distrust it.

The existence of the Creator of Madness and Lizbeth was confirmed, but it's hard to be sure that such powerful beings could exist beyond them.

The typical bluster of the lower ranks. Caron did not dismiss this possibility.

"But if we can confirm just one more, it wouldn't be wrong to say the information about the existence of four is accurate."

"...Right."

Two out of four, three out of four.

If three exist, the probability that the fourth also exists is high. No, it's certain.

This is rational thinking and logic.

In other words, my current task is to inform Caron about the existence of another one of the Four Heavenly Kings.

"..."

He walked around the room in a posture that suggested his deductive skills were increasing.

Pretending as if something was on the verge of coming to mind.

The reaction came immediately.

"Do you have information?"

"...Not that I don't, but this seems off."

"I said earlier, didn't I? Your role is to expel information."

...Didn't he say it was my role to spit it out? I'm not sure why it suddenly changed to expelling.

But this was according to plan.

"I heard it while wandering through the black market. There's a rumor that corpses are wandering around."

"...Corpses?"

Caron frowned.

It must be because I blurted out something nonsensical.

Zombies, ghouls, skeletons, death knights, etc.

Because it's a time when undead monsters haven't appeared yet.

That's right. They haven't appeared 'yet', but they will soon.

'That's why it will bring even more tremendous fear and plunge the continent into chaos.'

These beings are quite familiar to us, but not to the people of this world.

If they encounter for the first time the sight of corpses they thought were dead moving and increasing their numbers.

Anyone would be consumed by fear.

"Well, if there's no significant information, there's nothing we can do. We have no choice but to track that down. Where is it?"

"Kalos."

"Kalos? That place is definitely..."

A kingdom that had achieved a brilliant civilization and was on the verge of proclaiming itself an empire, chasing the Annwood Empire to its limits—the Golden Kingdom.

And.

"40 years ago, the place where the 5th legion commander of the demon realm, Crowley, descended..."

"The capital of Rohan Kingdom, Kalos...!"

And it's not just that.

An enemy that grows the more you fight.

The increasingly grim prospects as time passes.

The worst battlefield where you have to kill even your allies, who were comrades.

Yes, in Kalos right now, he is there.

The pinnacle of necromancy, commanding the corpses and bringing death.

One of the Four Heavenly Kings.

The Maestro of the Battlefield, 'Volkan'.

--TL Notes--

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at /MattReading