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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Overeating is Harmful to the Body - 4
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I glanced back over my shoulder.
Neril was continuously rotating her left hand from side to side.
I remembered that gesture.
"Sound Adjustment Magic."
It amplifies desired sounds in a specific location and silences unnecessary noise elsewhere.
It was one of the rare practical spells in Neril's arsenal of destructive magic.
Right now, my conversation with Ters must be booming like thunder to the gathered crowd.
The stunned expressions on the spectators' faces proved it.
Conversely, their rowdy murmurs weren't reaching our ears at all.
*Click.*
Neril raised her empty right hand with a thumbs-up.
Having confirmed the most reliable assurance, I turned back around and continued.
"I'm talking about Dwayne Marco. You remember him, right?"
"Yes, you bastard."
"Shall I be more specific? No one can hear whispers here anyway."
The secret I'd uncovered was too old to find concrete evidence for.
But what proof in the world is more certain than a confession?
Sure enough, Ters lowered his voice with a cautious expression.
"How much do you know?"
"Everything. Let's start with how you killed the lord's son... the young lord, using some method."
"...!"
"I don't know the method of murder, but during the young lord's funeral, you locked yourself in your room and let out mad laughter. You sent all your subordinates away, but you were too careless."
"..."
"'Kahaha. He's finally dead, dead. To think he forced my hand in the end—the persistent bastard. But it's over now. This territory is mine!'"
Ters's face twisted as much as it possibly could.
Ignoring him, I continued softly.
"That's what you shouted, right?"
"..."
"Dwayne ignored your orders and came to inform you that the lord was looking for you. And he heard your outburst."
"..."
"He tried to report it to the lord immediately, but you caught him first and captured him. After that, no one could find Dwayne in the territory."
I narrowed my eyes and turned the question back on him.
"What did you do with Dwayne?"
"Heh. That fool must've become beast food long ago. It was quite the ordeal dragging his bulk out in the middle of the night."
"..."
"How did you learn of this?"
This was where I had to bluff a bit.
I wet my lips and said,
"Before you caught Dwayne, he'd already confessed everything to one of his soldiers he trusted."
"...!"
"Don't worry. That subordinate knew my head was valuable. He saw his superior, Dwayne, meet a pathetic end at your hands and fled the territory."
"..."
"And became a mercenary."
"I see. So that's how the story spread."
Ters nodded as if convinced.
*Shing.*
He slowly drew his sword.
Unlike before, where I'd only used hand-to-hand or daggers, I properly drew my longsword and assumed a stance.
"That friend was my best comrade too. We'd entrusted our backs to each other for quite a while."
"Hmph. As if mercenaries have any camaraderie."
"But in the end, he met his end on a job. Before dying, he said, 'Avenge me against the Martial King—the man who deceives people and killed the superior I respected.'"
"Haha. Is that why you came to challenge me to a duel?"
No. It was all a lie.
But it painted a pretty coherent picture, didn't it?
I glanced at the crowd one last time.
They weren't stunned anymore—they were furious.
Directing their rage at Ters for stealing their beloved young lord from them.
Of course, not a single cry reached our ears.
Neril's magic was impressive no matter how many times I saw it.
[Your little tricks are impressive no matter how many times I see them.]
'Hm. Thanks.'
[Sigh.]
'Anyway, looks like the interrogation and confession time is over. That guy's aura has changed.'
*Step.*
Ters pointed his sword at me and said,
"Now I have one more reason to kill you."
Who was going to kill whom?
You, who stole the primal energy of two million before my regression, couldn't kill me either.
Well, I won't kill you either.
*Boom! Kwang! Kwagwang!*
Jenia couldn't believe her eyes.
She'd learned Ters's shocking secret just minutes ago.
She thought nothing could surprise her more, but the duel unfolding before her made the Martial King's atrocities seem trivial.
'Did I miss it? Did I just miss it?'
The third time already.
Not as fast as that insane technique from two days ago, so she could track Maide's movements overall.
Yet she'd missed it three times.
He casually deflected the Martial King's mountain-like downward strike with an ordinary kick.
She heard the Martial King's wrist snap with a *crack* from here.
She saw that much, but not why the Martial King spat blood and staggered back five steps.
"Kraaaah! I'll kill you!"
"Hoo. Tingles. If you could kill with your voice, I'd be dead hundreds of times over already."
"You bastard!"
"Oh, should I drop the formalities too? I didn't ask for permission, so don't answer."
*Shiiik.*
Maide thrust his sword once more.
The Martial King desperately blocked his entire body with his greatsword, but Maide twisted his body mid-leap—like a salmon swimming against the current—and slashed the Martial King's side.
*Slash.*
Blood sprayed from his side.
'Fourth time. I missed how he landed the attack at the last moment.'
Cold sweat beaded on Jenia's forehead before she knew it.
Then Neril's voice came.
"Hmm. Seeing that confirms it. He was definitely holding back two or three moves when he fought me."
"In Quelk Territory?"
"Yeah."
"You're awfully casual about saying he went easy on you."
"I don't have the sentimentality of those dumb warriors whining about being underestimated or to fight at full strength. Maide was stronger than me and held back because he wanted me. Makes me proud, actually?"
Jenia clamped her mouth shut.
The duel was nearing its end.
The Martial King, covered in blood and staggering.
Maide approaching him leisurely.
Without realizing it, Jenia muttered,
"I had confidence I could've won too. Against that Martial King."
"..."
"But not by overwhelming him like that. What the hell is that guy?"
"They say he's the next hero."
"..."
"Funny, right? I thought so too at first. But the more time I spent with him, the more I believed. From 'he might really become a hero' to..."
She hesitated briefly before continuing seriously.
"'If he's not the hero, then who is?'"
"So that's why you're with him? Forgetting everything you've done up till now?"
"Kid. That Ophelia girl..."
"..."
"Never mind. Maybe I'll get a chance to explain later."
Irritated by Neril's evasive response, Jenia nitpicked.
"Anyway, Maide's too calculating for a hero."
"Is that bad?"
"..."
"He's that strong and smart too. Sounds like you're saying he's perfect in both martial and literary arts."
Jenia fell silent for a moment.
But shortly after,
She murmured so softly even Neril right beside her couldn't hear—truly softly.
"You're right about that."
It was then.
"Uwaaaaaah!"
The loudest roar yet echoed out.
From the Martial King's quivering throat.
Maide had sliced open the Martial King's stomach with his sword—perfectly clean!
Jenia's face fell, caught off guard.
"Ah. He really did it."
"From what I saw, you weren't really trying to stop him either? Don't you despise vile villains like the Martial King? Like you despise me."
"I..."
"Well, either way, it's too late now. Might as well join the play since it's come to this."
"The play?"
"I'm going to extract the jewel from his stomach. I'll handle covering the crowd's eyes. You heal the Martial King."
"Why heal him instead of killing him? Maide."
Neril shrugged once.
"That name's not going anywhere."
Oh, so this is the Withering Jewel.
I found the red-glowing gem in the slit-open stomach.
Buried in undigested food scraps, but its presence remained unchanged.
[Now hurry up and pull it out and close the stomach. The stench is brutal.]
'You can smell too?'
[What's it to you.]
'Do you have taste buds or something?'
[Yeah. What's it to you.]
'No way you have to use the bathroom too...'
[No. As if.]
Classic Trail—backpedaling on anything unfavorable.
Anyway, I grimaced and shoved my hand into his stomach.
The Martial King frothed at the mouth and shouted.
"Grgh. Y-You bastard. What do you think you're doing?"
"Don't worry. Neril's illusion magic is hiding this gruesome sight."
"How did you even know about this jewel?"
"I hear I'm pretty capable. More importantly, you should just pass out. Want help?"
I raised my hand to strike his neck.
*Thud.*
But the Martial King grabbed my arm.
With blazing eyes, he shouted,
"I won't give it up. I won't give it to anyone!"
"..."
"I... I was a weakling from heaven. Born the youngest of a woodcutter's family, but too frail to help the household. My father saw me as an abandoned child. My mother publicly called me a failure!"
"..."
"Everything changed when I got this jewel. From a mere guard, I became knight captain and one of the empire's top ten experts. This jewel is my life itself. If you take it..."
"Shut up. Just pass out."
*Thwack.*
I lightly struck the back of his neck.
He stuck out his tongue and fainted.
By then, Neril and Jenia had approached behind me.
"Still? Hurry up and finish. Maintaining an illusion over this whole area is no joke."
"Sorry. Almost done."
Ugh.
The slippery stomach acid made it harder to find than expected.
Jenia muttered anxiously.
"God, forgive me for taking part in this gruesomeness."
"While you're at it, throw my name in there too. You know, as a bonus."
"Ugh, seriously! I really don't like you."
"I hear that a lot. Huh?"
*Click.*
Finally, the gem touched my fingertips.
The moment I grasped it.
*Whirrr.*
The jewel suddenly vibrated violently.
"Urk."
I yanked back in alarm.
The gem slipped from my grasp and fell to the ground. No—it didn't fall!
It floated in midair, as if hung on an invisible thread.
And then.
*Whoosh.*
Faster than anyone could react, it clung to Martial King Ters's chest.
*Wriggle wriggle.*
The jewel burrowed under his skin.
I knew that scene.
'Damn it!'
[Isn't this exactly that?]
'Yeah. The Lie Demon King's core that burrowed into Kaild. The exact same thing.'
One difference, though.
Idria, who took over Kaild's body, definitely had reason.
With that reason, she calmly mocked me, Kaild, and our heroes.
But this one had none of that.
"Grrr."
Ters drooled and growled like a monster.
"Danger! Fall back!"
At my shout, Neril and Jenia retreated dozens of steps from Ters.
"What is that?"
Then Neril spoke gravely.
"It's rampaging."
"What? Why?"
"Whoever gave that bastard the Withering Jewel engraved a message on it. 'If anyone but Ters touches the jewel, fuse with Ters. Then rampage.'"
"..."
I didn't ask how she knew.
From our last conversation, I'd guessed Neril had quite the connection to the fourth demon king, the Withering Demon King.
What mattered was how to handle this.
"What happens when it rampages..."
My question answered itself.
"Kraaaa!"
Ters slammed his foot into the ground with a *kwang*.
It instantly created a small earthquake.
The ground cracked open, the impact reaching even the spectators.
"Huh? W-What's that?"
"What happened? Weren't they in the middle of the duel?"
Neril clicked her tongue.
"The illusion broke. My magic shattered from sheer physical force."
"He's been siphoning the territory's primal energy bit by bit for twenty years—now it's all rampaging at once."
"...What now? I recommend running. Even a real hero might not stop this."
"What are you talking about?"
I shrugged and continued.
"I'm the hero."
Neril and Jenia's expressions turned peculiar.