Chapter 169 : Chapter 169

Chapter 169 - Reinforcement (1)

“3000 tons of S-rank Mana Stones, 10 super-grade mana cores, 4000 sets of A~S-rank armaments... This is crazy, really. Were you guys planning to go to war with the whole world or something?”

Seeing the ‘requisition’ list that was coming in one after another, those words naturally came out.

Of course, the Lancester guys were guys who had reigned as the world’s tyrants for so long and accumulated wealth and infamy, but the list that was coming out now couldn’t be explained by that alone.

No, of course, I looted these guys to arm the ‘allies’ who would soon arrive, but the quantity and quality of these supplies were at a level where several legions could be armed right away.

“...”

But, you know.

It was more than I thought.

Somehow, I had a feeling that this wasn’t all.

“Is this everything?”

“...”

“Hey. I’m asking.”

I said that and turned my gaze to a corner of the room.

A blonde girl wrapped in a blanket flinched at my words and looked back at me.

“...Wh-what?”

Well, it was Altair Lancester, with her body ‘reassembled’.

Because 200 million people’s worth of life had been sucked out of her, she couldn’t handle mana like before.

And her body also felt a little… smaller than before. If she had the feel of an adult woman before, now she looked to be at most in elementary to middle school.

‘It’s absurd.’

If you think about it, it was no different from ending up with a slightly smaller body and looking a little haggard after dying 200 million times.

The fact that she could walk around normally as soon as her body was reattached after being overworked to that extent was crazy.

They called her the Undying or whatever, and it seemed she really was.

“Is this all you’ve stashed away?”

Of course, since she couldn’t use the same force as before, it felt like it was okay for me to treat her roughly like this now.

As I tapped the list I was organizing on my laptop with my finger and spoke, Altair glared at me with slightly narrowed eyes.

“...Why should I tell you that?”

“What?”

I let out a dumbfounded laugh and retorted, and I could clearly see her Adam’s apple bob as she swallowed dry saliva.

“You know. You were trying to kill me and everyone around me. Now that I’ve let you live peacefully, what did you say?”

“...D-dying, I’m not, particularly afraid of it.”

“Die about 200 million more times, then.”

I added that indifferent voice to Altair, who was trembling but somehow trying to defy me.

As soon as I did, Altair’s mouth clamped shut.

The intensity of the convulsions all over her body became more severe. Her complexion turned pale and tears welled up in her eyes.

Being used as a sacrifice to a demon was probably a terribly and excruciatingly painful way to die. And this one had received that 200 million times in a short period.

So just threatening to send her back there would be quite effective…

“...Ugh, wooo... Wooo... N-no, it hurts, it hurts, I said...!”

“...”

“Please, I don’t want that, I’ll do, I’ll do anything...!”

Why are you suddenly crying and begging like that.

I had heard from Raven that her life force had been completely sucked out, so not only her body but also her mental age could regress to that of a child. Seeing her like this, it seemed he wasn't just saying that.

“Huh? What? What did you do to Altair again?!”

“...”

And one person who barged in after hearing Altair sobbing as she passed by.

Seo Ah-in rushed in and tucked Altair’s blanket in properly.

“There, there, yes, don’t cry. The bad man over there probably didn’t mean it.”

“...You know.”

Seeing Seo Ah-in skillfully comforting the sobbing Altair, I rubbed my throbbing temples and replied.

“Weren’t you really scared of her before? She’s the main culprit who shattered your family.”

“No, I was, originally.”

“You were, but what.”

“Come to think of it, there’s no reason for me to be like that now, is there? I feel sorry for her, actually.”

“...”

What?

“No, isn’t it true? My family has been mended, my mother has come back to life, and I’m getting along with my sister. There’s nothing else majorly wrong. But this one, you see.”

Seo Ah-in continued, handling Altair, who was sobbing in her arms, like an experienced nanny.

As if she felt Seo Ah-in, who had appeared before her, was a savior, she was hugging her tightly like a real child.

“She was completely shattered by you to the point of her pride being crushed, her people were all torn apart to the point of being unable to recover, she was tortured while dying 200 million times, her body changed like this, and the guild that was originally her base is being looted by you in real time right now, isn’t it?”

“...”

“Then isn’t it natural for me to feel sorry for her before I feel scared?”

“...”

Hmm.

Strange.

Why can’t I refute that?

***

“...This is another unusual combination.”

Evangeline spoke, putting a candy in the mouth of Altair, who had hidden behind her.

Whenever she saw me, she would run away as if she had seen a ghost, but when there was someone nearby to use as a shield like this, she would hide behind them with me in between.

“Is there a reason for this group to gather separately?”

It was indeed a lineup that had never been combined before.

Ms. Seo Hye-in, Evangeline, Altair, and me.

It was a composition that seemed to have little contact with each other, except for me.

So why did I specifically call for this combination?

“Do you all know?”

“Hmm?”

“Yes?”

I grinned and continued speaking to the two who tilted their heads.

“That you are the weakest in our party right now.”

“...”

“...”

Shocked expressions appeared on the faces of Ms. Seo Hye-in and Evangeline simultaneously.

No, but what can I do if it’s true?

Seo Ah-in already had more than enough combat performance with just her Mind’s Eye, Meirin-ssi was about to unravel her backstory and awaken her ‘true talent’, and Lee Si-yeong was probably being granted various special ‘functions’ from the spirit world.

But, these two?

What on earth could they do in the upcoming battle against the King of Flies?

Eat popcorn?

“I-I am! A Knight of the Round Table! An expert in combat against demons that no one can follow...!”

“When you have the backup of the tower, that is.”

As I retorted indifferently, Evangeline’s mouth clamped shut like a clam.

Well, even in a state of being kicked out of the Round Table, it was right to see that this one could still produce the output of a first-class mage.

But honestly, at that level, it was right to see her as just a fire-starter in the King of Flies battle.

What on earth could she do with the ability to burn a few dozen, a few hundred demons?

Eat popcorn?

“...”

“...”

I left the silent Evangeline alone and turned my head to Ms. Seo Hye-in this time.

This one, well.

“I-I, still...”

“...”

She started stuttering in a fluster from the beginning.

“I-I trained hard in swordsmanship, I can just erase other people’s mana, and, and...”

“...”

Perhaps because she had just realized a little sensitively that even a first-class mage level was only about a fire-starter in front of her, her voice quickly died down.

Then she started looking at me with a tearful expression.

No.

Excuse me.

“...Hoo.”

I sighed and picked up a candy from the pocket on Evangeline’s waist.

It was the same one I had given to Altair earlier.

I put it in Ms. Seo Hye-in’s mouth too.

If she complained about being treated like a child, I would retort that the way she was acting was at the same level.

“...Oh. It’s sweet.”

“...”

Of course, seeing her murmuring and sucking on it, it didn’t seem like that would happen.

“Well, it’s true that you can’t refute that you’re weak right now, even if you think about it yourselves. But if I was going to leave you like that, I wouldn’t have called you here separately, would I?”

I said that and picked out a few more candies from Evangeline’s pocket.

“Hey. Leave some for me to eat.”

“...”

Well. Maybe I was the only one in this place with an intelligence level above that of an infant.

Even while feeling such a sense of crisis, I dangled a candy at Altair behind Evangeline and tempted her.

“I’ll give you this if you listen to me.”

“...This is absurd. Do you really think I’m a child who can be swayed by just a candy? This Undying? And to the words of my enemy, you?”

For someone who said that, her gaze was slowly following this way.

The performance was certain.

Well, even though her mental age was hitting rock bottom along with her body, the combat experience and skills that had allowed her to function as a ‘final boss candidate’ were undoubtedly the same.

In other words, if I could coax her well, I could secure a means to simultaneously explode the combat power of Ms. Seo Hye-in and Evangeline.

Of course, since it was me, the one who had shattered her, who was saying this, she wouldn’t just listen to me.

There was one way.

Of course, I could threaten her with dying 200 million more times like before, but then it was uncertain whether she would voluntarily provide effective guidance. It would feel like forcing her to work.

So, there was a need to give orders while keeping her in a good mood.

I got some inspiration from Seo Ah-in, who had quickly become close to her while comforting her.

“With my humble abilities, I can’t possibly guide these two. I need the help of a climber who was in the realm of the strongest, even if her body has become small!”

“...Wh-what are you talking about? D-do you think this body will fall for such simple compliments and candy? I am the Undying!”

“But, these two here also desperately need your help! My goodness, aren’t these two asking for your guidance just from the dignity that flows from you even when you’re standing still!”

“...W-what a joke, th-that kind of compliment, th-this body, ugh, ughhh...”

The sunshine strategy.

Infinite compliments. Compliments. Compliments.

If that wasn’t enough, even more compliments.

I could see Altair, who was trying hard to deny it and play hard to get, gradually letting down her guard and lowering her head.

She was probably trying to hide her reddening face and twitching lips.

This one had her mental age greatly lowered while maintaining the humiliation and misery of being so miserably broken.

In other words, the threshold for ‘satisfaction’ and ‘happiness’ had also been greatly lowered. Just like a child, she easily became happy and easily became unhappy.

So, if I kept pouring in words like ‘you’re this amazing!’.

“E-eeeeeeek! Shut up! One day! Just one day! After that, I won’t listen to anything you say!”

I could get this kind of answer back.

Well, if she said she would help, I was relieved.

Of course, one day would be far from enough, but well.

If I just turned the method around a little and satisfied her, I could probably extend the deadline indefinitely.

As I was thinking that and grinning, Altair pouted and held out her hand to me.

“...Huh?”

“...C-candy. Didn’t you say you’d give it to me?”

“...”

Ah, right.

As I placed several sticks in her hand, her face lit up.

A hum that she couldn't suppress also flowed out smoothly.

“...But, why are you all...?”

As I turned my head to Evangeline and Ms. Seo Hye-in, who were exuding displeasure despite the peaceful scene, the two spoke at the same time.

“”Trash.””

“...No, I mean, why?”

“A person she shattered became a child due to the aftereffects, and she’s coaxing her again?”

“Atrocious. Truly atrocious. How can such a human exist...”

“...”

No, I mean.

Please stop saying things that could be misunderstood.

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