Chapter 173 – A New Phase (3)
“Come at me, go.”
Shia’s eyes sank. Just a moment ago, she was ready to fight, but now, she remained still, staring at Ashburn.
[Why? Why aren’t you attacking? The evil you should be stopping is right here!]
Ashburn, flustered, continued to provoke her, never dreaming that the Saint would hesitate.
“…I’ve seen and heard everything.”
[What do you mean… ?]
“The testimonies of the survivors. Your Undead Army may kill the monster’s soldiers, but the weak humans who trembled in fear were not attacked, so your true target can’t be anything but the monster’s soldiers.”
Shia recounted the radio messages she had just received to the bewildered Ashburn, but he looked utterly confused.
[What does that even matter? I am your enemy! Don’t you need to prove yourself to the angels who are disappointed in you!]
“No. That’s not what I need to prove.”
She shook her head. She had confirmed that the Sacred Sword was gone and made her decision. She didn’t believe the reason the Sacred Sword left her was to go against the sky, as Ashburn said.
“Go, Commander of the Demon Realm. Go and eliminate the monsters and achieve your desires.”
[How could this… ?]
As Shia stepped aside without any interference, Ashburn muttered in a daze. But for Shia, this was a reasonable and righteous decision.
She had learned about reason and harmony since coming to Earth. She even learned to communicate without being bound by the identity of the other party.
She felt it was right, and that’s why she could make such a decision.
“If I prove this, surely the Sacred Sword will return.”
Although the Sacred Sword was taken, the angels had not abandoned her yet. If they had truly turned their backs on her, she wouldn’t be standing here now.
So, she thought it was enough just to prove it.
[This is ridiculous!]
Ashburn gritted his teeth at her reaction but couldn’t bring himself to launch a preemptive attack.
[It’s just that I don’t like it! All units, advance!]
In the end, Ashburn had no choice but to fight Razak’s Legion Soldiers as Shia intended. He commanded all his forces to smash the nests of those monsters scattered everywhere and search for Razak’s main body, located deeper within.
His blue eyes flared with anger. He had been pushed back by an inexperienced and ignorant Saint.
[Attack!]
But that anger was felt directly by Razak’s Legion Soldiers. They retreated helplessly against the increasing fury and relentless attacks of the Undead Army.
“Heh, now that I’ve added new characteristics, it won’t be easy.”
Razak faced the Undead Army with the belief that he wouldn’t be pushed back either, and he deployed the newly created soldiers he successfully made in just one day.
These new soldiers had evolved to resist Ashburn’s magic. Believing in his own strength, Razak was confident that if he could just hold on, he would continue to evolve and eventually win.
‘What am I fighting for?’
Shia watched that scene. Instead of blindly following orders like a tool, she suppressed her overflowing emotions to understand and utilize the situation.
“Did Shia and the skeletons not fight against each other?”
“Y-Yeah. The Allied Forces were also tense and watching, but from what I observed, they just stood opposed for a moment and didn’t actually fight.”
“…That’s amazing.”
The news reached the ears of a girl currently in Korea through the mascot communication network.
*
“Isn’t it amazing? So that skeleton army is indeed related to you!”
“I thought if I left it alone, there would be no answers. I only gave them a support point. If the enemies expose a gap while fighting the Undead Army, the Allied Forces will also be able to make a proper counterattack.”
I frowned at Ren’s exclamation. It was undoubtedly my decision to call Ashburn to deal with the annoying task of sneaking against an enemy who was hiding and commanding a large army, but I certainly didn’t explain it to the others regarding Ashburn.
Even so, it seemed like Rene and Shia had caught on to some extent, but I was relieved that the Earthlings who couldn’t grasp the situation didn’t recognize Ashburn’s Undead Army as the enemy and bomb them.
So, all I had to do was to find out where the monster Razak was located and head out there to snatch his head off easily.
“Your point isn’t wrong, but doesn’t it confuse people?”
“When did I ever care about that?”
I scoffed at Ren’s complaints.
More than anything, since the Dimension Gate opened, terrible monsters had appeared like no other, leading to complete chaos, and now one country had collapsed to this extent, and she was worried about a mere skeleton.
“Hey, aren’t you coming out? What are you talking about for so long?”
“…Let’s go. Now.”
What was bothering me now was none other than the girl calling me from outside.
“You can go ahead first, you know?”
“Our teachers asked us to stick together, so I can’t help it.”
Jeon So-hyun, holding a pile of recyclable trash, looked down at me and shook her head. I clicked my tongue and picked up my share of the trash.
Trash collecting is done by students rotating every day by floor. Today was my turn, and the upper floor only had Jeon So-hyun.
“I let you have some time to yourself, and you’re so clueless.”
I chuckled and intentionally nudged her. Last time, I got caught in a secret cigarette rendezvous on the rooftop. If I say anything about it, she’ll get annoyed.
“You enjoy having time to yourself, don’t you?”
“I don’t smoke.”
Her rebuttal was cute. Of course, I did need my own time a lot, but that was something she couldn’t even dream of imagining.
What if Jeon So-hyun found out my true identity? Would she fall over in surprise?
“That’s…”
“A Magical Girl. Who is it?”
Just then, a figure the size of a bean shot across the sky with sparkling crimson light above us as we left the Main Building towards the Trash Dump.
That nameless Magical Girl disappeared from sight in an instant. It was a common and familiar occurrence.
“It happens often, but it feels like it’s happening more frequently lately.”
Out of the blue, Jeon So-hyun spoke while we were sorting the trash together and turning our backs. She was talking about the Magical Girl we just saw.
“News said they’re openly collaborating with the Magical Girls to strengthen the defense.”
“Isn’t that expected? Some of the Magical Girls in Korea participated in the Allied Forces. That means the domestic forces have weakened, and it’s the perfect time for criminals, whether they’re monsters or not.”
Jeon So-hyun seemed very interested in the recent Magical Girls. It made sense since her friend Aria had just returned. But Aria, due to her character, would want to head back to the battlefield as soon as she recovered her strength.
Now that Jeon So-hyun also had fighting power, I speculated she might want to go there too.
“You know a lot about this stuff, huh?”
“It’s just a causal relationship you can figure out with a bit of logical thinking.”
I smirked as Jeon So-hyun tossed the can she was holding into the trash bin. It was clear to me that despite having various types of subordinates, she was definitely not a brainiac.
“But in our country, there’s Takilas, right?”
But at that moment, her name suddenly popped out of her mouth.
“I heard he vanished in China after the Allied Forces landed. Isn’t it possible he would come back to Korea?”
“…Why do you think that?”
“It’s just my thought. Takilas seems more protective of his surroundings than you’d expect.”
There was no hesitation or wavering in her answer. We had our backs turned to each other, but I could tell her sincerity just from her voice.
I crumpled the can in my hand without a word.
“That’s interesting. I thought you didn’t like Takilas much.”
My connection with Jeon So-hyun, a Magical Girl, was inherently a bad one. I had killed people in front of her, alive or dead, stabbed and beheaded them, and made them kneel and beg for their lives.
Then, I connected Gabi to her and put her through a training that bordered on abuse, making me a figure of terrible fear to her.
“In the end, meeting that girl only had benefits for me. I didn’t get off track or dirty my hands. More than anything, I don’t think those appearances of hers reflect her true nature.”
“On what basis?”
This was the first time hearing Jeon So-hyun’s true feelings. I turned my head, letting go of my smile, and she was already looking at me.
“Well, if that appearance were her entire personality, how would the people around her survive? It’s so outrageous.”
“…”
She chuckled. I felt like I was being insulted, but if I reacted now, it could get awkward.
“Once you’ve thrown everything out, let’s head back.”
I tossed the last remaining PET bottle with a crumpled thud.
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