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Episode 47: I feel like I’ve won the battle and lost the war
The demon is astonished.
There are two possible actions that the demon can take in this situation.
Surrender quietly and beg for your life. Or–
“I’ll kill you and bring back your head!”
It was a decision typical of a single-celled demon.
The demon tribe pointed its longswords at me and rushed forward.
There’s no need to use my magic sword against someone like this.
I’ll admit that he has a lot of guts and grit, but that’s not enough to overcome the difference in status.
If you have a special skill, or if you are superior in technology, your chances of winning will increase. However, just as you can’t win against a superior player in a level-based MMORPG, you can’t win against an opponent who is significantly superior in status in a different world, even if he stands on his head.
Kiiiiii!
With a shout, the demon swung his longswords sideways.
I dare to dodge with a paper-thin margin and move behind the demon tribe.
“Instantaneous movement!?”\n
</ins>\n“No, I just went around you at a speed you can’t catch. You should be more worried about something else other than that.”
“Wha–what the hell?”
He finally noticed.
In my hand, I’m holding the longsword that the demon had.
In other words, the demon has lost its weapon.
“What a magic! You must’ve used Steal!”
“Steal? It’s just a technique. Have you ever heard of the ‘Swordless Duel’?”
“The Swordless ……”?
“You don’t look like you know of it. It’s the art of defeating the sword without holding it. It’s only good against lower-ranked opponents. More importantly, how are you going to fight without a weapon?”
“Ah!”
The demon’s face distorted.
He seemed to be quite anxious and his forehead was covered with sweat.
“Now, you’re going to tell us why you’re here, what you’re doing, and what you’re going to do. Depending on what happens, you may be the only one I let live.”
“I will not give in to human kindness!”
“What’re you going to do? You can either tell me after the pain, or you can tell me now.”
I’m not lying to him.\n</ins>\n I’m going to keep my promise as long as this demon tribe answers my questions properly.
I can use him for research and experiments by disabling him later.
If I can find out their biological weaknesses, they might not be a threat.
I take out a rope from the item box.
I tied the demon’s hands and feet with the rope.
“Oh, I also have pride as a demon! no matter what kind of hand you use, you won’t fess up!」
“I see. But you’re not the only demon. If you don’t confess, someone else will. Not everyone is as proud as you. It’s the same for humans and demons right?
“…… If I don’t talk, you’ll be beaten to a pulp by Kerkass-sama!”
Kerkass ……? I’ve heard that name somewhere before.
I think the demon I fought before said something like that.
“Just so I’m clear, it’s not a demon that respects Kerkass is it?”
“Of course not!I will not allow you to insult Kerkas-sama!”
It seems safe to assume that the trusted Kerkas of the demon tribe is in control of the elven village.
He’s part of the Four Heavenly Kings, so he’s probably strong.
But the unity of the demon tribe is also quite troublesome.
Let’s break it down from here.
“But this esteemed Kerkass, he doesn’t even notice when his ally is in trouble and leaves them alone.”
“…… Kerkass-sama is a busy man.”
“I hope so. Actually, he’s probably aware of your news and is working hard to prepare a great spell right now.”
“If he’s making such preparations, perhaps he’ll help me.”\n</ins>\n“No? No? He might just throw the spell on you.”
“No, that’s not possible…….”
The denial was as small as a buzzing mosquito.
He’s probably not confident himself.
“…… human, untie me. Untie me and I’ll talk.”
“I don’t have to untie you to talk. Talk to me and I’ll untie you.”
“I don’t feel like being tied up while speaking. I want to speak from my own will. You can do whatever you want, no matter how violent I get can’t you?”
I don’t know what he was trying to do, but he had a point.
He can’t attack me or escape, even if I untie the rope. Aleria and Aina aren’t weak enough to be taken hostage.
“I understand. But don’t do anything stupid.”
I untied the ropes that bound the demons.
The demon staggered to its feet.
“Thank you. Now, let me tell you what I really think…”
The demon put his hand in his pocket.
I didn’t expect this, so my reaction was delayed for a moment.\n</ins>\n What he pulled out of his pocket was a short knife.
Did he still have a weapon hidden in his pocket?
But what is he going to do with such a short knife?
I wondered.
“Dieeeeeeeeeee!!！ Kiiii!!!!!”
The demon stabbed his knife into his arms and legs one after another, repeatedly pulling it out and stabbing it back in.
It’s a strange action, not attacking anyone, but attacking himself.
“Yuki, it’s dangerous! run away!”
Aleria, who had been watching me and the demon, called out in a panicked voice.
“What’s dangerous?”\n</ins>\n“The demon might self-destruct! I’ve heard that before they blow themselves up, they have a habit of doing strange things to hurt themselves.”
“How did you know human? But it’s too late! The more it hurts, the more firepower the explosion will have. -Banzai, our Lord Kerkass!”
“Thank you, Aleria. Seems there’s nothing I can do about the self-destruct, but I’ll try to limit the damage as much as possible.”
Since I reached barrier magic Lv2, I could build barriers not only around me but anywhere I wanted.
I build at high speed to surround the demon’s body.
When the demon stabbed the last one in his chest, there was a huge explosion.
There was a flash of white light and a shock that made the barrier vibrate. It seemed to be so powerful that it almost destroyed the barrier.
As expected, there was a little sound leaking out.
After the dust and smoke settled, I checked inside the barrier and couldn’t find the demon’s dead body.
It’s not that he escaped, since he was covered with the barrier. He was shattered to the bone and disappeared.
“I wanted to gather as much information as possible,……, can’t be helped.”
To be honest, I feel like I’ve won the battle and lost the war.
I guess the demon wouldn’t have answered my question whether I untied the rope or not.
“You don’t need to be depressed, Yuki! It’s a miracle that all of us are unharmed when facing a demon and it even blew itself up nearby!”
“Just the fact that you defeated a demon race is amazing…….”
“Well, that’s true. Let’s switch our minds and move on.”\n