In the distance beyond the horizon, the dawn’s dim light is once again engulfed by darkness.
It seemed as if the approaching morning had retreated, and night had returned, but that was obviously not the case.
What appeared like the sky and ground turned black with darkness was merely a spectacle caused by the miasma emitted by the Witch of Gluttony.
Miasma was not an unfamiliar occurrence for the heroes standing right here.
After all, the area beyond the Boundary Area always looked hazy and dark, veiled by miasma.
Yet even those heroes found themselves instinctively taking steps backward from the sight before them, as the overwhelming power of the miasma spreading toward them in real-time was formidable.
To compare, it was like the mist rising from a river at dawn versus the smoke billowing from a burning building.
While the river mist had minimal effect, the smoke could kill those who inhaled it.
Thus, if such a huge difference existed in miasma harmful to humans, it hardly needed an explanation of how dangerous it was.
The Witch of Gluttony spread such dread simply by existing.
Only after witnessing that spectacle did the people seem to grasp the reality.
Most of the miasma out in the world, which was the reason people were holed up in this city, was merely remnants left behind hundreds of years ago when the Witch of Gluttony rampaged.
And now they had to fight against such a being.
The sound of swallowing echoed everywhere.
As everyone tensed up, staring at the approaching darkness from afar, that thick darkness rippled like a mirage.
And within it emerged the silhouette of something.
“Th-that…?”
“What kind of size is that…?”
People gasped and held their breath at the revealed figure.
Now, it only looked like a small dot.
However, considering that the mountains nearby looked like tiny dots of similar size, one could tell just how enormous the Witch approaching them was.
With the added presence of its massive size, every time that little dot grew larger, the psychological pressure was horrifically palpable.
“Oh, it’s coming… It’s coming this way…”
The figure, once a tiny dot, had grown to a size recognizable by the naked eye.
It resembled a giant girl.
However, no one would think it resembled a human.
What crawled on all fours, bracing itself with its hands and resting on its knees, was covered with countless writhing tentacles, resembling a monster straight out of hell.
And that monster was manifesting hell in this world.
The ground was drenched in miasma, appearing like a black marsh, with hellish creatures rising from it.
The abundant miasma naturally caused demonic beasts to emerge.
It was as if they were popping out of a factory, demonic beasts emerging everywhere.
The sudden influx of demonic beasts made the heroes flinch for a moment, but what followed was even more horrifying.
“What the… What is that…”
“Ugh…”
The newly birthed demonic beasts were all turning black and slowly melting away.
The melted demonic beasts dispersed into a handful of miasma as if returning to where they were born.
Tentacles sprouting from the Witch’s body sucked in that released miasma as if it were a vacuum.
The demonic beasts that had attacked the city had shown similar abilities, but what was happening now was far more terrifying and potent.
An ability named ‘Devour,’ the Witch of Gluttony’s power to consume everything around her by converting it into miasma.
The range of that ability encompassed all of the miasma scattered by the Witch.
Thus, the Witch of Gluttony would indiscriminately consume even the demonic beasts that were like her children born from her own power.
So, the stronger the Witch became by devouring miasma, the more miasma she spread, and she absorbed the demonic beasts birthed from that, growing even stronger.
An ability to grow infinitely just by existing.
That was why the Witch of Gluttony had been able to reach the point of nearly conquering the world.
“…Can we beat that?”
Someone mumbled absentmindedly.
In the face of such a gruesome and terrifying scene, anyone would naturally think to ask that.
At the moment when the fear that had been forcibly suppressed began to rise up among the crowd, Ms. Eve’s voice echoed softly.
“…In her prime, she was much larger than this.”
Was she trying to encourage them in her own way?
Ms. Eve muttered to the people.
At her words, the people could gather at least a little of their lost will.
Yes, compared to hundreds of years ago, it was only natural for the current Witch to be weaker.
It hadn’t been long since her resurrection, so she probably hadn’t recovered her previous power.
Moreover, humanity had once defeated the Witch of Gluttony, who was several times stronger back then.
So, there was no need to be scared; there was no reason that they couldn’t achieve what their ancestors had done long ago.
Thus, everyone encouraged themselves.
And they steadied their hearts while waiting.
For the Witch to draw a little closer.
Due to her ‘Devour’ ability, the fundamental strategy they had to employ was to defeat the Witch with ranged attacks.
However, as a rule of thumb, even ranged attacks tended to weaken the further away one got, so they needed to lure the Witch to a precariously close distance where her miasma wouldn’t reach them.
Therefore, until the Witch came within the predicted range, they had to wait and wait.
Enduring the intensifying pressure and fear of the Witch.
But then, they heard a sound.
The howl of miasmic beasts resembling blind dogs being devoured echoed.
Their desperate and agonizing final cries.
The cries of the subjects being robbed of their lives and power by the tyrant.
The closer they got, the read louder and more incessant the wails.
“Your Majesty, take our lives.”
“Gain strength with our lives.”
A hymn resembling the screams forced from the demonic beasts echoed.
The demonic beasts sang like that for the Witch and sacrifice themselves.
And from the sacrifices of the demonic beasts emerged an endless cycle of life and death, perpetually strengthening the approaching Witch of Gluttony.
As they watched that scene and listened to those sounds, a thought suddenly crossed their minds.
“Getting stronger? Even stronger than this?”
It was hard to breathe under such overwhelming pressure even now.
What if I, like those demonic beasts, end up screaming in anguish as I perish?
As those rising negative thoughts tried to overwhelm them,
An ever-increasing sound resembling a desperate scream echoed endlessly in their ears.
The noise of the living dying miserably gnawed away at the reason of the living.
A heavy sound reverberated within.
Thud, thud.
The huge sound like that of a giant drum resonated every time the Witch stepped forward with her hands and knees,
Making the already intense feelings of pressure and fear even more prominent.
Enduring it,
Enduring it,
Eventually.
“Ugh, Aaaah!!!”
“Gahhh!!!”
A few of them succumbed to fear and collapsed.
Even though they were heroes trained through various trainings and experiences, even they couldn’t withstand this.
The fear of the Witch growing stronger and the terror of her approaching them.
Fear bleached and distilled their sanity.
“What are you doing! Stop…!!”
“Catch them! Stop them!!!”
By the time the people became aware of their situation, it was already too late.
“Aah, aaah!!!”
Those plunging into panic screamed as they threw themselves beyond the barrier without a moment’s delay.
In a frenzy, they charged toward the approaching Witch, losing their rationality like moths to a flame.
Was it because of the memories of their lives as heroes that they didn’t choose to flee?
Or perhaps they were too frantic to even consider fleeing?
If only they had run, but they had chosen the worst of all choices.
“Stop it, you fools…!”
The hero with the fastest legs, Leon, hurriedly jumped down to the back of the crowd, managing to halt a few of them, but with only one body, he couldn’t save them all.
Before long, a small group had approached the vicinity of the miasma’s influence.
“Don’t…”
Thinking about their fate, I almost threw myself beyond the barrier to save them without realizing it, but
“Evande, I’m afraid it’s already too late to go to their rescue… No matter how much of a witch she is, she wouldn’t be safe if she set foot there.”
Ms. Eve, standing beside me, held me back.
With a heavy heart, I nodded and looked on at these individuals who would soon step into hell.
“Aah…?”
Positioning themselves in front of the panicking individuals were the army of demonic beasts, born from the miasma exhaled by the Witch, who were repeating cycles of death and rebirth.
The demonic beasts, initially guided by instinct to attack the people, paused momentarily, before suddenly beginning to shriek horrifyingly.
The people looked on in astonishment as the suddenly subdued demonic beasts began to scream, then eventually began to realize something as they looked down at their own bodies.
“Ah…”
Black.
Their bodies were rapidly turning dark at a dizzying pace.
Just like the demonic beasts screaming before their eyes.
Realizing that their own forms had turned pitch black like the demonic beasts before them, they looked up blankly.
They could see them mumbling.
“Sa… save─”
Then, with a splash,
The heroes melted away into a handful of black liquid, failing to even leave their final words.
The momentary emptiness of their demise sent the morale of the watching heroes crashing down in real-time.
And with that drop in morale, perhaps realizing there was no chance of winning, Ms. Eve, who was acting as the commander in this battle, finally opened her mouth.
“Cough, everyone─!!”
Could they overcome the calamity as they did in the past?
Or would it simply be a futile struggle?
At last, the time had come to measure that.
“Commence battle─!!!”
A battle against the Witch of Gluttony.
The battle begins.
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