Chapter 240: Countdown
Chapter 240: Countdown
Countdown
A few minutes before Frey and Lulu went upstairs.
Damn it.
The Pope muttered through clenched teeth as he observed the distant, secret building with several bishops.
Its a failure
The bishops faces instantly darkened.
Fa, Failure? But our plan was perfect
Even the Hero Party wouldve needed a considerable amount of time to deal with all the duplicates. How did they do it so quickly?
They urgently asked the Pope.
All the puppets were simultaneously disabled.
What?
I dont know the details. The important thing is weve failed.
Breaking out into a cold sweat, the Pope added,.
That person had called this a crucial mission
Holding his head, the Pope sank into his seat.
Yes, it was crucial.
!!!
At that moment, something appeared in the air.
A-All hail the True Su!
Spare the greetings.
Upon seeing it materialize, the Pope paled as he fell to his knees.
After scanning in every direction, the huge eyes coldly spoke.
Incompetent fools.
The eyes focused on the building, extending tentacles from all directions.
Eeeeeeek!
Once dignified, the Pope now trembled in fear.
Had the god of this world not intervened, you would have met the same fate as them.
The eyes that had been watching from the Churchs basement plugged tentacles into the backs of the bishops heads, replenishing nutrients as they continued to stare at the building.
What do you mean?
Amidst his terror, the Pope expressed his curiosity.
It wasnt by chance, but destiny. The Star God, the Sun God, and even the Moon God. The gods of this dimension have done something that even Im unaware of.
What?
A new turning point has been engraved on the world line.
The eyes answered.
Inform the Demon God.
They gave the Pope another chilling look.
Warn her not to be arrogant, having borrowed my power to seize the sun. She wont get a second chance.
Y-Yes! Understood
The Star God, the creator of this dimension, is gradually regaining their influence.
What?
By using the Heros Affection as a detour its doing something rather amusing.
The Pope, whose head had been shaking, looked up as a chill ran down his spine from the anger in its voice.
Moreover, even the Moon God has been up to something recently, so Im running out of time. If nothing changes, even I, an external entity, might face defeat.
The eyes blazed with fury.
Thus hasten the prepared childs Advent Ceremony.
!!!
Make the Demon God incarnate in that child and finish everything as quickly as possible.
Y-Yes, understood
Let the Demon God know in advance. She will convey it to the Demon King directly.
With that, the eyes began to fade.
Before I go Ill leave you with a gift.
A g-gift you say?
Watching the Pope drenched in cold sweat, the eyes whispered.
Since they broke the rules and intervened Im thinking about stepping in from now on.
That was the moment the core of the Churchs prepared Collapse Magic started running amok.
.
.
.
.
.
Rumble! Rumble!!
As if on the verge of collapse, the surroundings shook as a loud bang echoed.
Thud, thud
I sprinted up the buildings stairs in a flash and dashed through the corridor, observing my cat-form body while quietly mumbling to myself.
Im going insane.
All because of that darn alcohol.
I had expected some of their reactions, but the moment I arrived at the ceremony, I was despised by everyone, ignored by my previous servants, and I even had to deal with Rubys unexpected actions.
It was inevitable that even my heart would be shattered.
Subsequently, I drank alcohol to execute the strategy of cutting ties with Isolet, which was the root of the problem.
I thought that revealing my allegiance to the Demon Kings army and my intention to destroy the empire would turn her against me, even after I was captured.
The strategy was several times more effective than I had anticipated.
I never thought Id hear Isolet, of all people, say that shed abandon her knighthood and choose a different path.
That, combined with my drunken state and the already confusing situation, led to a knights oath Moreover, I was also turned into a miniaturized form with a scroll
Of course, according to my plan, I had to escape from here without anyone noticing, so I didnt resist the scrolls effect.
However, being drunk when transforming had strengthened my animal instincts.
Combined with my several penalties, the result was that I found myself licking Isolets belly after recovering from my slowed consciousness.
Only to heighten Isolets suspicion of me to the limit.
Sigh.
By then, I was already surrounded by the Hero Party, making it very difficult for me to change back.
So for a while, I had no choice but to stay in this form
I cant stay like this forever.
With that thought in mind, I continued to sprint through the corridor, gathering my strength.
Shaaa
Then, stellar mana appeared in the surroundings. It seemed that I could use Stellar Magic even as a cat.
Thud!
But, I didnt intend to stay in that form. Somehow, it felt like I was losing my human dignity.
Tssss
With that feeling of aversion, I quickly deactivated the transformation, shaking the dust off my body as I stood up.
Ma, Master!!
At that moment, a familiar voice rang from behind.
Let me come with you! Please
The voice belonged to Lulu, who was desperately calling out.
I told you not to follow. Dont tell me you didnt realize
I didnt want her to get hurt, so I coldly responded.
..
What is it?
Lulu stopped running towards me, covered her eyes with one hand, and tilted her head.
That your clothes
She peeked through her fingers and whispered.
Oh.
It was then that I realized I was naked.
He, here.
Hmm.
So, I received the clothes from Lulu, who was still blushing while covering her eyes with a hand.
We dont have time Ill scold you later.
I quickly dressed and talked with her as we ran through the corridor.
Tell me about the groups of survivors in the building now.
Um well
Quickly.
Urged by my anxious voice, she gradually regained her composure and answered.
First of all the Hero is in the main hall, and Serena and Clana are upstairs leading a group of survivors, but at that speed
Next.
From the beginning, the plan was for Serena and Clana to be buried in this buildings collapse to sway public opinion.
Of course, the activation time of the Churchs bomb was faster than expected, so I had to intervene.
Serena would definitely have calculated the time accurately, so why was there an error?
In the entire building a few members of the Demon Army are spread out.
Those guys
They seem like weak, low-ranking demons, so it shouldnt be a problem, right?
..?
There was no need to worry about the Demon Army, either. They were inherently evil, but they werent the type to just die from an explosion.
But did Lulu just refer to them as weak, low-ranking demons? Even the powerful combat officers?
And Theres a group of survivors in the basement. Quite a lot of them.
Tsk.
The people in the basement were the very reason I intervened in this situation. They were originally supposed to be rescued by the Demon Army, but at this rate, they would be left stranded.
And around the building a very small number of survivors are scattered. Isolet is looking for them.
They couldnt escape?
They might be trapped under debris or are young children, something like that.
After listening to Lulus last report, I went up to the second floor with her and ordered.
Gather the scattered people with Isolet and get out of here within 3 minutes. Your puppets should be able to handle it.
Are we doing a good deed?
With a puzzled look, she asked a question.
Im going to do something to the Hero You get what I mean, right?
Ah.
Dont send people towards the lobby. I need to show them an example.
As I said that, I unsheathed the sword on my waist and showed a sinister smile, which she returned with a quiet one.
Hopefully, Lulu doesnt get corrupted by evil. I might need to give her some moral education later.
Then, Ill go now Huh?
As I was heading to the lobby.
Why is the Saintess inside the building?
I looked at Lulu with an expression of confusion as she looked somewhere.
Just leave her be.
Huh?
I shook my head and continued walking.
She must have a reason to be in this dark building.
After speaking, I looked behind at Lulu, who hesitated for a moment before sending her puppets in all directions.
That girl.
Although I avoided a suspicious situation by ordering the Demon Army to rescue me, Im still concerned about her.
Tap tap!
However, I couldnt waste any more time, so I kept up my strenuous running.
Boom!!
After kicking away the debris blocking the main halls entrance, I entered.
Frey?
Then, Ruby came into view, lying on the ground spitting out blood while surrounded by Ariannes various defensive spells and the Youngest Paladins barrier.
By the looks of it, the radio message I received from Clana while I was a cat seemed to be true.
What is it? Did you evacuate here?
Judging from her continuous vomiting of blood, she doesnt look well.
You didnt think I would let you in here, did you?
As she staggered to her feet and smiled, I approached her.
Well if you join me, maybe
Shut up.
Eventually, I interrupted her nonsense.
Ugh
I took a deep breath.
Claaang!!
I wielded my sword forcefully.
Boooom!!
.!!!
Then, Ariannes defensive magic and the Paladins barrier shattered all at once.
You
Only then did the Demon King, after spitting out a bit of blood, glare at me as if to kill.
Its a small revenge, so stay put.
Even though my attack didnt hit her, the falling debris would still deal considerable damage.
Of course, it wouldnt be enough to kill her, but shell definitely feel the pain as shes in a human form.
Frey youll regret cough
I sneaked a glance at the Demon King, who had fallen and started crawling for some reason.
We dont have enough time.
I quickly started running to the basement.
Now, the time had come to put an end to this tedious Inauguration Ceremony.
.
.
.
.
.
Rumble!
Ugh
Meanwhile, at that moment.
What, what should I do
Glare, who had led a group of survivors into the basement, was sweating as she stared at the rotating core of an Explosion Magic in the center of the room.
This isnt good
She had successfully led a significant number of people down to the first floor with her abilities.
However, the entire floor was engulfed in a potent hallucinogenic fog, and she was at a loss.
As a result of this, she had decided to move everyone to the underground space, but the problem was that the core of the Explosion Magic set by the Church was in the basement.
If nothing was done, they would be swept away and killed by the core of the spell instead of the collapsing building.
Uh
With little time left before the explosion, both going to the first floor and staying in the basement meant certain death.
She looked nervous in such a desperate situation.
Gulp.
She swallowed hard and approached the core.
Im sorry Hero
She had a near-suicidal plan in mind, to go inside the core and neutralize it by releasing her vast magical power.
I wanted to repay you
Feeling the warmth of the kind-eyed Hero who once stroked her head, she moved slowly.
Everyone, step back
She waved at the group of survivors approaching her and closed her eyes.
Ughhhhhh!
She was frightened as she tried to rush to the core.
Ting!
Ugh.
Soon after, something blocked her way, causing her to hold her forehead and fall on her bottom for the third time that day.
Not again
She worried that she might not have a bottom left at this rate. Then, she looked up to see what had blocked her path.
Fzzzz
..!
A barrier filled with divine power surrounded the core of the Explosion Magic.
Its dangerous.
Ferloche, who had entered the basement at some point, looked at her intently.
Navigation Complete
> You have arrived at the location of the Hero!
At the same time, a notification window popped up in front of her.
[F ]
..Could it be?
Met with the unexpected situation, she cautiously approached Ferloche.
Shaaaa
.!
Her eyes widened in surprise as the entire basement was engulfed in shimmering mana.
This, this is!
A power she had felt before, different from her divine power.
This twinkling power that had once filled the underground prison beneath the market alley was unmistakably the Heros.
Hero
Then, Glare finally noticed someone standing behind Ferloche.
HeroOOOO!!!
She shouted desperately and reached out her hand.
Shaaaa
I have a debt
She was soon overwhelmed by that shimmering force, and drowsiness began to take over.
To repay..
Struggling to finish her sentence, she slowly closed her eyes.
Shaaaa
The last thing Glare saw was the sparkling mana covering Ferloches barrier.
I..
The warm touch she once felt, caressing her head.
I have to.repay
With those murmured thoughts, Glares consciousness faded completely.
.
.
.
.
.
Meanwhile, at that moment.
..Oh.
She saw the video of Ruby attacking Frey, and she ran through the building in shock before Glare rescued her.
And after that, having joined Glares party and followed them here, Roswyn stood behind watching everything.
..
When Ferloche appeared and protected everyone, and the system notification indicated they had reached the Hero, she had no choice but to dismiss her previous expectations.
[F ]
Staring blankly at the window before her, Roswyns consciousness quickly faded.
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