Everything in my field of vision freezes and becomes motionless, to the point that I feel like time has stopped.
The Greed-Gore, or rather, the Sloth-Gil, probably saw a static picture of the world like this as well. Seeing my magic bullets aimed at its eyes would have been easy for it.
This is the third divine protection. An ability that stops time â no, an ability that enhances my concentration.
I had Nell castăConcentration Boostăon me in the battle at Iskia, but it was something that increased my ability to internally process spell formulas for magic.
If my ability to concentrate increases, Iâll naturally be able to complete spells more quickly and it even becomes possible to construct multiple spell formulas simultaneously. To put it more simply, it increases my imaginative ability, making the images I create in my head more vivid and more precise, producing more refined spells.
The martial skill calledăConcentrationă, purely improves the concentration, reflexes and eye movement needed to read an enemyâs movement while not affecting anything to do with dealing with complicated calculations.
ThisăOver-Accelăcombines the effects of both theăConcentration Boostăspell and theăConcentrationămartial skill, acting as the ultimate thought acceleration ability.
However, what I need right now is not only for my eyes to see the enemyâs attack, but for my body to actually move to avoid it.
In this frozen scene, I can see the Mythril flamberge heading slowly but surely towards my neck. Silently doing nothing like this would be simply delaying my inevitable death.
So Iâll move. Iâll avoid it. Iâll push my strength as far as it can go, no, Iâll overcome my bodyâs limits.
ăMove!ă(Kurono)
I intend to shout, but my voice doesnât form an actual sound. Iâm sure Iâll hear it when I undo concentration-enhancing effect.\nMy body is as still as the rest of this frozen world, to the point that my vocal chords canât even vibrate. Itâs like sleep paralysis.
Even so, I force myself to move. I should be able to move. The Sloth-Gil controlling the Greed-Gore managed to do it.
I have to force my body to move using my super-fast nerve transmission that is greatly enhanced by the lightning element.
ăMove!ă(Kurono)
My body leans backwards just a tiny amount.
Itâs a stiff and awkward movement, as if every joint in my body has rusted, but itâs still a movement.
There are less than ten centimeters between the blade and its target.
Not yet, this isnât enough. I still wonât be able to avoid a deep slash to my Adamâs apple at this rate.
Move, move more. I donât care if I need to collapse backwards. As long as I can evade this one attack, I can manage the rest!
ăMOOOOOOOOOVE!ă(Kurono)
The world begins to move once more.
I hear my own shout echoing across the arena as I feel the dull pain of my back striking the hard ground.
I see a silver trail being drawn across the place my neck was a moment ago. Evasion successful.
ăGrenade Burst.ă(Kurono)
I canât see the Undead knight as I lie here face up, but itâs still definitely right in front of me. If I fire at this point-blank distance, Iâll definitely hit.
Eat this, my full-strength Grenade Burst that I prepared while evading your attack.
I launch a projectile containing black flames from the fingertips of my right hand towards the enemy that should be right there.
A huge explosion occurs right on top of me. My vision turns black and the world spins around me.
ăâ Whoa!ă(Kurono)
The explosion is powerful enough to send my body flying away with ease, but myăNanablast Amuletăblocks out the heat.\nI fly through the air, trapped by the swirling air currents, but I donât have such weak nerves that I would panic over something like this.
I twist my body, regain my posture and make a landing before I crash into the wall like Kai did. Iâve landed with one knee on the ground. I suppose my landing wasnât all that magnificent.
ăYou surprised me. To think that you were able to avoid that.ă(Safiel)
The explosion disperses just as I make my landing and face forward once more.
I hear the voice of the girl who called out to me earlier, coming from the other side of the faintly-lingering black smoke. The one actually standing in front of me is the skull-faced knight in Mythril armor, however.
ăI didnât think that my attack would be blocked, either.ă(Kurono)
The Grenade Burst that I unleashed as a counter-attack after my evasion was blocked by the buckler attached to the knightâs left arm.
Itâs a shield made of Mythril like the knightâs sword and armor, but after being stained black by the explosion, itâs lost its shine. If I look at it the other way, itâs a sign that my explosion only managed to dirty it a little, dealing no damage at all.
I see. Itâs not just equipped with expensive equipment; itâs got some pretty high specs to match that equipment.
No, I donât give a damn about that. Thereâs something else that I should be worried about.
ăSo what exactly were you trying to do with that surprise attack?ă(Kurono)
Jokes aside, Safiel Maya Hydra is the master of the Undead knight that unleashed an attack that could have really killed me. What is her true intention?
ăYouâre the one who said to come at you as if we meant to kill you, arenât you?ă(Safiel)\nYou idiot, those words were directed at Helen and Kai. Youâd apply those words to yourself when in full spectator mode?
Well, considering that Safiel is smiling as if to say,ăIâm very malicious, do you have a problem with that?ăitâs easy to tell that sheâs not being serious.
ăIf you murder someone at the academy, wonât you be in a lot of trouble even if youâre from a noble family?ă(Kurono)
ăTo stop an evil rapist, to protect an important friend, there are plenty of excuses I can use.ă(Safiel)
What a demon. Iâve been called a demon plenty by the Crusaders, but the ones who really deserve to be called demons are cunning people like her.
Even though Iâm cursing her in my mind, thereâs no change to the fact that I look like the villain in this situation.
The annihilated guards and Helen, who is still crying in the corner of the arena right now. And Kai, who is lying on the ground, the Berserkerâs newest victim.
Uwah, this scene really is a nightmare.
ăWell then, do you really intend to kill me here?ă(Kurono)
ăNo, Iâll stop here. Fighting you directly would be the act of a fool â Reverse.ă(Safiel)
As if proving that she has no intent to fight anymore, Safiel unsummons her servant, the Undead knight.
A magic circle is drawn in purple right above the skull-faced knightâs helmet. Poisonous-looking purple smoke appears from it. It wraps around the Mythril armor and helmet as if it has a mind of its own, completely blocking out their silver light.
In the next moment, the smoke disappears into the magic circle as if sucked into it, and the Undead knight that was there is now suddenly gone. Itâs a strange unsummoning spell, as if the knight was dissolved in the smoke and sent beyond the magic circle with it.\nBut itâs not the time to be admiring that.
ăYou nearly killed me. You think Iâm just going to let you go because you said you donât intend to kill me anymore?ă(Kurono)
ăIf someone sees you attacking a beautiful girl who isnât showing any resistance, it really will become something more than a simple misunderstanding, you know?ă(Safiel)
ăI see, misunderstanding, huh⌠You knew right from the beginning that I was innocent, didnât you?ă(Kurono)
There was no reason for me to make excuses in the first place. Well, even if Iâd wanted to try and make excuses, I didnât have the time to.
Still, sheâs pretty confident to be able to call herself a beautiful girl as if itâs an obvious thing. Well, itâs frustrating that I canât deny that itâs true.
Keeping Safielâs beautiful face in the corner of my vision, I take a quick look at the area around the arena. As I thought, thereâs nobody here. Thereâs no sign that thereâs going to be some new intruder appearing.
ăHavenât you two been watching ever since these guys picked a fight with me?ă(Kurono)
ăWe just came back to the school after finishing lunch. If we had been watching you from the beginning, that idiot would have jumped in before you annihilated the guards.ă(Safiel)
ăThe timing of your arrival was pretty convenient, though.ă(Kurono)
ăThe fact that Princess Nellâs guards picked a fight with the Nightmare Berserker has already caused quite a commotion.ă(Safiel)
Eh, seriously? I almost give this response out loud, but manage to stop myself in time.
But I guess thatâs how it is; thereâs no way I can see whatâs going on outside from inside the colosseum. I was facing them one at a time at the start, so quite a lot of time has passed, too.
There are probably a lot of people who are free right now gathered around here, full of curiosity. If something were to happen, theyâd rush in here straight away.\nIf itâs become known that the guards picked a fight with me, then it seems that the misunderstanding should solve itself, but if Iâm seen trying to make a serious attempt to kill Safiel, that would cause new problems. As unfortunate as it is, I canât do anything more here.
ăTell me the reason you tried to kill me.ă(Kurono)
ăYes, I suppose itâs alright to tell you that much âă(Safiel)
Safiel brushes aside her characteristic purple hair as she continues.
ăâ Itâs because you used theăAmethyst Gaze.ăă(Safiel)
The Demon Eyes behind her glasses are gleaming dangerously⌠I think.
ăIt seems that the story being told to the world is that you beat the Greed-Gore to death with your bare hands, but what cut off its head was the crystallization effect of theăAmethyst Gaze.ăThat would be very clear if you were to have taken one look at the cross-section of the wound.ă(Safiel)
I suppose I canât truthfully make an excuse and say that I didnât use it. Not that I think that such an excuse would fool this cunning Necromancer in the first place.
ăSo are you trying to say that your pride has been hurt by the fact that the prided Demon Eyes of the Hydra family were used by a mere adventurer?ă(Kurono)
ăCertainly not; there is no way that someone like myself would get so serious over something as worthless as a noble familyâs pride, is there?ă(Safiel)
No, I have no idea what kind of person you are.
ăI wonder if my explanation was a little insufficient. The problem lies not just with the fact that you used the Demon Eyes, but also with their original owner. Since you defeated him in theăCursed Carnivală, you should at least know his name, right?ă(Safiel)
The image of a screaming, insane man with shining Demon Eyes flashes in my mind. Thereâs no way I could forget.\năYou mean Saeed.ă(Kurono)
Safiel gives a broad, evil grin, as if congratulating me in a condescending way for getting the right answer.
ăI met Saeed-ojisan before. But it was only once, when I was only a child.ă(Safiel)
I see, so he was her uncle and she was his niece. Itâs only natural for them to be related in some way since theyâre both from the Hydra family, but Iâd totally assumed that Saeed was someone who had lived in the distant past.
I donât know what the results would be if I had the Demon Eyes appraised, nor did I get a glimpse of the memories within them like I did for my cursed hatchet and Evil Eater.
However, I can say one thing with confidence.
ăItâs not like I killed him. By the time of my match, Saeed was nothing more than a severed Undead head.ă(Kurono)
ăI know. I know that he was tricked by a filthy prostitute, exiled from the clan and then killed by her, meeting a foolish end.ă(Safiel)
Eh, Saeedâs past had a story like that?! Uwah, what should I do, I really want to see the results of an appraisal for the Demon Eyes. I suppose I should give up on itâŚ
ăThen you should resent the woman responsible for that. It doesnât have anything to do with me.ă(Kurono)
ăYes, youâre right. I donât have any particular resentment towards you as an individual, but I canât stand the fact that you still possess Saeed-ojisanâs Demon Eyes.ă(Safiel)
ăI expended Saeedâs Demon Eyes to defeat the Greed-Gore.ă(Kurono)
TheăAmethyst Gazeăthat I shoved into the Greed-Goreâs neck was lost. Physically, they were just a pair of eyes. Thereâs no doubt that they were crushed by the Greed-Goreâs rock-like body as it collapsed.
ăBoth eyes awakened for him. With that being the case, you have one eye remaining, donât you?ă(Safiel)\nTch, I wasnât able to fool her after all.
Indeed, I still have one Demon Eye remaining in a jar in my Shadow Gate.
TLN: In chapter 342 I translated it as Kurono having used both eyes. The author made use of the fact that in Japanese, singular/plural objects are often impossible to distinguish unless specified so I (and all the other Japanese readers) had no way of being able to tell whether Kurono used one or both. Iâve now fixed it this in my translation for that chapter.
ăIf you were to willingly hand it over, I wouldnât mind letting you go here, you know?ă(Safiel)
ăEven if you had 10,000,000 Klans to pay me, I have no intentions of giving it to you.ă(Kurono)
When I first acquired them, Iâd thought that Iâd be better off selling such dangerous things, but since one of the eyes played a huge role in my victory, Iâve changed my mind.
The Demon Eyes are dangerous but useful. Theyâre so powerful that they might even work against the Apostles. You think Iâm going to hand it over that easily?
ăI see, what a shame. Well then, Iâll be sure to target you at the next opportunity, so it would be helpful if you could let down your guard.ă(Safiel)
She gives a dark smile so that I donât know whether to interpret her words as being serious or a joke. Seriously, spare me⌠As I begin to feel fed up with all of this, one doubt suddenly surfaces in my mind.
ăThatâs quite the sense of duty you have, to be so obsessed about a relative you met only once.ă(Kurono)
She herself denied that she had the pride of a noble family, but this is how sheâs acting. Doesnât that mean that she kind of has strong feelings towards her own clan?\năNot really; even if you were to take the Demon Eyes from both of my parents, I wouldnât really think about taking them back.ă(Safiel)
Safiel looks incredibly exasperated. Itâs not like sheâs letting out crystallizing beams of light from her eyes, but I feel an unpleasant sensation.
ăYouâre quite dense, arenât you?ă(Safiel)
ăHuh? What are you saying all of a sudden?ă(Kurono)
ăCome to think of it, your party members are the famous Fairy and witch bishoujo combination⌠Fufu, youâre going to go through hard times from now on, you know?ă(Safiel)
ăItâs none of your concern.ă(Kurono)
ăUfufu, well, it doesnât matter. If youâre that thick-headed, Iâll explain it for you clearly. Saeed-ojisan was âă(Safiel)
As Safiel speaks, she gives an incredibly happy smile, as if sheâs truly enjoying herself. Her face is undeniably that of a beautiful woman, but anyone looking at that smile wouldnât be able to help feel aăshadowăthat causes them to shudder.
I can instinctively sense it. This girl is broken somewhere.
ăâ my first love.ă(Safiel)
Honestly, the idea of wanting to own the eyeball of someone you love is a little repulsive to me. But now I understand.
As if there is nothing more left to say, Safiel turns her defenseless back towards me and begins to leave. I donât ask her any further questions.
There are some things that Iâm curious about, like whether itâs alright for her to just abandon Kai like this, but even so, I donât say anything to her. No, I canât say anything.
ăKuh⌠As I expected, using my divine protections three times consecutively was pretty roughâŚă(Kurono)
I canât move my arms; my joints are creaking and my vision is blurry. An easy victory for me has turned into a battle that I barely managed to win, and now my body is in a terrible state.\nIf some new intruder were to appear now, I would meet my doom.