A battle to the death was unfolding between Hugo and a new assailant on the rooftop.
He had been able to kill the first assailant with ease. That assailant had taken the full impact of the blast, and his one-on-one combat ability hadn’t been that great either. Considering the fact that he had tried to make Hugo fall asleep, he probably had a rearguard Job that specialized in causing abnormal statuses.
That was why Hugo had been able to win.
However, his current opponent was different.
「St, strong!」
The enemy was a great-sword user. He was swinging around a double-edged great-sword, which was about the height of a person, with ease and was mounting an onslaught to try and cut Hugo into two. That seemingly superhuman physical strength was unmistakably that of a close combat type Job.
He had been able to keep on dealing with the attacks using the spear-wielding puppet somehow, but the situation was disadvantageous to him. If he lost focus for even an instant, death awaited.
Since he was sent to kill the A Rank Hugo, he couldn’t possibly be weak. Hugo understood that. But even so, he was too strong. Hugo couldn’t see a chance of winning at all.
No, that wasn’t it. --Hugo's abilities had deteriorated much more than expected.
His body felt heavy. His control of magic power wasn’t going smoothly, and the amount of magic power he wasted was huge. He wasn’t able to manipulate the puppet soldiers as skillfully as before.
The number of puppet soldiers he could create at the same time was also limited to one. In the past, even if he was in the midst of battle, he had been able to create multiple puppet soldiers according to the battle situation…… His current strength was probably less than half compared to his heyday.
Hugo was certainly A Rank, but the Rank of the Job didn’t necessarily bestow absolute strength. If anyone neglected their training like Hugo did, their abilities would deteriorate like they were sliding down a slippery slope.
Not being able to fight like he was able to in his heyday was frustrating. Hugo started to think that it had been terribly foolish of him to have willingly turned his back on those days of battle.
Even if he had quit being a Seeker, he should at least have continued his training. Those who had no power would only be trampled upon. Even though Hugo had the power to fight, he had scorned it himself.
He had been imprudent, arrogant, and thoughtless. Now that things had come to this, such obvious things were weighing heavily on him.
「If I get out of here, I’ll have to retrain myself as if my life depended on it!!!」
Puppet Skill: Union Burst, activated.
A Skill that can only be used when Ether Link was activated, it has the effect of unlocking all the limits on the puppet soldiers that were connected by the magic thread.
The puppet soldiers’ abilities will actually increase by 100 times. It's an extremely powerful skill, but for that reason, the targeted puppet soldier will fall apart in just a few seconds.
In other words, the most effective use of that Skill is a suicide attack.
「CHARGEEEEEE!!!」
Hugo screamed his order for the puppet soldier to charge at the top of his lungs.
He had screamed because he was at his limits. In order to wring out the last bit of strength from his completely weakened body, he needed to rouse his spirit by screaming. It didn’t matter that he was unsightly. It would be alright as long as he won. Even if he was covered in mud, only the last one standing earned the right to laugh.
Moving faster than the speed of sound, the puppet soldier left a storm in its wake as it charged forward.
The black-robed assailant used his great-sword as a shield and blocked the puppet soldier’s spear. The ear-shattering crash of the collision reverberated through the air.
「Blocked it, huh!? But that’s not all!!!」
The effect of Union Burst raised the power of puppet soldiers to the utmost limit. The puppet soldier didn’t stop even though its charge was blocked, and steamrolled the assailant backwards. The assailant put strength into his legs and tried to hold his ground, but his feet only left furrows in the ground as he continued to be pushed back.
Even this attack would likely not be able to kill the assailant. But if he kept forcing the assailant back like this, he would be able to push him off the rooftop. There was no need to win one-on-one. Hugo was planning to meet up with Noel and his clan once he threw off the assailant.
「FALL!!!」
Hugo yelled. One more step, and he would have succeeded in pushing the assailant off the rooftop.
But--
「What!?」
Hugo’s eyes widened at the unbelievable sight before him.
At the exact moment the assailant was about to fall off the rooftop, several tentacles emerged from his back and thrust themselves into the ground, securing the assailant’s own body in position.
「Is he…… not human?」
He did have a hunch about that. The movements showed by the assailant during the battle were certainly extraordinary, but he had a nagging feeling that something was off.
Technique--that’s right, he had no technique.
Even though he boasted superhuman strength, he lacked the technique to back it up, and was merely swinging the great-sword around with all his might. Of course, that alone was more than enough of a threat, but it had felt like he was facing a wild beast.
He wasn’t human. No human had tentacles sticking out from their back. Hugo understood that.
Then, what on earth was this mysterious being in front of his eyes?
Thinking back, even though the first assailant that he fought had such strong hypnotic abilities that Hugo couldn’t resist, he had virtually no fighting ability at all.
Rather than saying that he specialized in that ability, it felt right to think that he only possessed that ability. Moreover, he had the feeling that it wasn’t something that the assailants themselves had wanted, but was the will of someone else.
Assuming that was true, were these assailants perhaps beings that had been modified by someone?
During the instant that Hugo was overcome with surprise, the puppet soldier, which had exceeded its limits, fell apart.
「Oh no!」
He tried to create a new puppet soldier right away, but with his weakened and tired body, it was taking him some time. The assailant wasn’t going to miss that opening, and closed the distance immediately.
And in the instant before that great-sword was swung downwards--
The assailant was suddenly enveloped in bright red flames.
「GUOOOOOO!!!」
The assailant writhed with agony as the flames covered his entire body.
Hugo was so surprised that he was at a loss for words, and then he felt a presence behind him.
He turned back, and behind him......
「The moon is beautiful tonight, isn’t it?」
......stood a Snake holding a Silver Flame.
†
†
There was a full moon today. The beautiful faded blue moonlight was illuminating the rooftop.
I walked up to the dumbfounded Hugo, and took out a silver brooch from my pocket. It was shaped like a winged snake.
「Choose」
I didn’t say any more about what he was supposed to choose. Even if I didn’t say it, Hugo would understand.
「Fuu, kukukuu…… I see, so this is Snake?」
Hugo burst out chuckling, and spoke understandingly.
「You’re truly a tempest, aren’t you? You don't care about things like other people’s will at all. --But that's exactly what I like about you. Very well, you're my clan master from this day on」
He took the brooch from my hand and pinned it on his chest, then bowed reverently.
「I swear my loyalty to you, my master」
「I accept your loyalty, Puppeteer Hugo Coppelius」
The oath was pledged here under the moon. Snake had obtained a new wing.
「GUOOOOOO!!! NOERUUUUUU!!!」
Having rode out the flames, the assailant stood up and bellowed loudly. On his back, several tentacles were wriggling around. I see, that certainly wasn’t normal, was it?
And--
「Hey, have I met you before somewhere?」
The assailant didn’t answer my question. --A strong wind started blowing. It blew away the assailant’s robe, which had been burnt to tatters.
Even I couldn’t help but be surprised at the identity of the assailant that had been revealed.
「You are……」
The assailant was a big man who was wearing black armor.
His face was covered in scars--and he had no nose.
「Are you Edgar of Metalhound Army?」
「NOeRUuuuu…………」
There was still no reply from him, but there was no doubt about it, he was that Edgar. From what I could tell, he had completely lost his mind. His eyes were out of focus and saliva was dripping from his mouth.
「Noel, is he an acquaintance of yours?」
When Hugo asked from beside me, I nodded.
「Yeah, of sorts, you know?」
「To know a man with tentacles sticking out his back, you have a diverse circle of acquaintances, don’t you?」
「I'm also in the midst of feeling shocked at my own surprising nature」
「NOERUUUUUU!!!」
As we joked with each other, Edgar's tentacles attacked us. We were able to immediately dodge the attacks, but they were terrifyingly quick. It seemed like it would be difficult to dodge such attacks repeatedly.
「He seems to hate you very much, doesn’t he? What did you do?」
「That guy’s nose, it’s missing, right?」
「Yeah, it’s indeed missing」
「I was the one who did that」
「......I, I see. I get it now」
「GUOOOOOO!!!」
Edgar attacked us with the tentacles a second time. Moreover, sword strikes were added as a bonus this time. We took a big leap backwards, and rolled while we dodged.
「Noel, your friend is a formidable enemy! Please issue instructions for the battle!」
「I know」
In reality, the current Edgar seemed pretty tough. As I had expected, Hugo had been weakened by his blank period, and even if both of us faced him, our odds of winning were about fifty-fifty.
However, I wasn’t worried. Well, it should be any time now……
『Noel! We’re done on our side! Everyone has gone outside! That's why…… after this, do as you like!!!』
Through Link, I received a despair-ridden telepathic communication from Leon.
I cracked my fists at his perfect timing.
「Alright! Hugo, I’m issuing instructions. --I’m depending on you for the landing!」
「Wh, what!? What do you--」
Hugo started to say something, but realization dawned on his face mid-way through.
「H, hey, don’t tell me……」
I laughed and nodded as I took another detonator out of my pocket.
There were two types of bombs planted inside this prison.
The first was the bomb that sent out an explosive blast and flames indoors, which I had detonated at the outset.
And the other was planted on the supporting pillars under the prison.
What happens if I set this one off? The answer is--the collapse of the building itself.
「NOERUUUUUU!!!」
Edgar was approaching. Just before his great-sword reached us, I pushed the button on the detonator.
「Edgar, you're no match for me」
In an instant, the prison shook tremendously. Then, having lost its supporting pillars, as if pulled from the inside, the prison started to collapse inwards onto itself.
The rooftop also collapsed, and having lost our foothold, we fell.
「NOERUUUUUU!!!」
Edgar could do nothing but fall, yet he continued shouting my name.
「Shouting Noel Noel, it’s becoming tiresome」
I aligned Silver-chan’s sights on Edgar, who was unable to move in mid-air.
「Let’s see you avoid this」
Magic bullet--Garm Bullet, impact.
Due to the effect of the magic bullet, Edgar swelled up like a balloon, and then burst apart into fine dust. The instant the momentum of my fall slowed due to the shockwave from the explosion, a large hand grabbed me from the side.
「Noel, brace for impact!」
That hand belonged to a puppet soldier that had been created by Hugo. Hugo was held in the arms of another puppet soldier. Both of us, who were continuing to fall, would use the puppet soldiers as cushioning to absorb the impact.
But needless to say, it wasn’t like they completely absorbed the impact, and my whole body was bruised and painful.
「Hahaha, it’s our complete victory, isn’t it?」
As I endured the pain and laughed, Hugo heaved a huge sigh.
「What do you mean, complete victory…… Good grief, I’ve ended up working under a terrible man」
He talked as if he was fed up, but he started laughing like he was having fun.
「Looks like I’m not going to be bored from now on」
「Right?」
「Yeah, I'm looking forward to it」
As we shared a laugh with each other, we saw Leon and the rest coming from afar.
「Well then, shall we go?」
†
After the affair with the prison, Hugo was acquitted, just as I had planned.
We were visited by many newspaper reporters, and were asked to do interviews almost on a daily basis. Hugo wanted to decline the interviews, but I ordered him to do them. Certainly, we had been able to clear his name, but considering the future, it was better if we were thorough.
Of course, it wasn’t just Hugo. I had once again become the center of attention and applause. I, who had worked hard to get Hugo acquitted, exposed the wrongdoings of the Justice Department, and slain the culprits who attacked the prison, was now a hero of the imperial capital.
Wild Tempest’s reputation soared sky high, and many patrons unconditionally offered their support.
That had gained so much momentum that even the amount needed to build an airship would be collected before long
「――So you see, Andreas. We don't particularly want something like money. All I want is only your sincerity」
I smiled at Andreas, who was right in front of me.
Today, Hugo and I were visiting Andreas at his place. We didn’t make a proper appointment. We had sneaked unnoticed into Andreas' office and were negotiating with him while we had him confined.
「Don’t worry. We haven't told anyone that we’re meeting you. After all, isn’t that also more convenient for you?」
「I, I……」
Andreas stammered as his sweat poured like a waterfall. Placed on top of his desk were the documents that I had prepared. Written on them was a record of Andreas’ smuggling.
「If this is put into the hands of the Justice Department, you'll be finished, won’t you? But I'm not a Demon either. I don’t wish for a moment to see a capable person like you get destroyed. Isn’t that right, Hugo? You think so too, don’t you?」
「Yeah, I think so too」
Hugo nodded, stood behind Andreas, and placed his hands on his shoulder.
「The past is the past. Shall we become good friends from now on, dear Andreas?」
「Ur, urghh……」
Andreas made a sound like he was being strangled. There was probably nothing more terrifying to him than having the person that he had framed for his crimes standing right behind him. He was undoubtedly scared to death. Hugo was also a pretty good actor. He was much more talented at acting compared to Leon and Kouga.
「I, I understand…… I’ll prepare the money…… How much should I pay?」
「Let’s see, for the time being, why don’t you prepare about one billion Fil?」
「Fo, for the time being?」
「Yes, it’s “for the time being”. I want to develop a long~ friendship with you. That’s why, for the time being, I’m fine with one billion Fil」
「You, you Demon……」
Andreas glared at me, but Hugo's hands were resting on his shoulders. With just a slight movement of Hugo’s hands, Andreas' spirit was dampened and he began to tremble.
「What’s your reply?」
「......I, I’ll obey」
Andreas, who had given in, hung his head dejectedly.
Hugo and I looked at each other and smiled at the fact that the negotiations had gone well.
However, at that moment--
「Gu!? Guggagagga!?」
Andreas suddenly stood up and began tearing at his head.
「Owww, it hurts!? It hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurtssssss!!!」
All of a sudden, a look of anguish crossed Andreas’ face, and he fell and rolled around on the floor while clutching his head.
「Noel, what in the world is going on!?」
「Get away, Hugo! Something is wrong!」
The instant we distanced ourselves from Andreas--
「Ahe」
His head exploded and a large number of flies flew out from inside.
The flies formed into the shape of a skull in front of us, who were taken aback, before flying out an open window. Only Andreas’ headless corpse was left behind.
「……King of Flies」
I whispered the name that I had Loki look into. Known as the King of Scavengers, it was the name of the person behind Edgar’s modifications.
Every single one of the other assailants that Leon and the rest had killed in the prison was a Seeker who had gone missing, and their bodies had all been modified heavily.
According to Loki, that appeared to be the King of Flies’ true ability.
「This is bad, isn’t it? At this rate, we’ll be thought of as the culprits」
Hugo pointed to the door as he spoke.
「Let's go, Noel. It’ll become a serious matter if we’re seen by anyone」
But I couldn't suppress the hearty laughter that was bubbling up inside me.
「Hahahahahahaha!!! Haven’t things become more interesting!!!???」
The King of Flies had killed Andreas for the sake of getting in my way. If not, there would be no reason to kill him. In reality, due to Andreas’ death, I could no longer milk him for money. It was still possible for me to take possession of the Hoger merchant company, but considering the cost involved to do that, it wasn’t advisable.
Why did the King of Flies interfere with me?
I could think of any number of possible reasons, but it was impossible to come up with an answer at this stage.
But that was why it was fun.
A one-sided game is just boring. The very fact that there were people who stood in my way only increases the worth of the peak that I was aiming for.
I felt hot flames burning deep inside my chest.
「King of Flies, I'll swallow you whole」
Hmmm…… That entrance isn’t bad, but I still like Noel’s entrance at the end of chapter 44 much better.
Finally, an enemy that Noel couldn't steamroll over immediately. Though he did "lose" to Noel this time, is he the start of things not going perfectly for Noel going forward!?
We have come to the end of Part 2, with the clan creation arc followed by the clan commencement arc, and I wish to thank everyone for reading this far. Next up is a side story, which is a good change of pace, and I hope you will enjoy it! And when that is done...... It'll be onwards to Part 3, the Regalia arc! See you all next chapter!
Just a quick mention that ebooks are available for patrons, and I would be eternally grateful if you'll consider supporting me by becoming one. Thank you in advance!
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