ebonymovies Chapter 167 : Meeting - 2
Chapter 167 : Meeting - 2
It certainly was far more efficient than using the Hand of Erasure.Now I understood why Magireta had said Drod and Odline were evenly matched.
‘Would Brother's defensive magic be able to block that Breath?’
I shook my head.
I could instinctively tell.
If we took that attack head-on, even the defensive barrier would be useless.
“Karin. Approach carefully.”
“Got it. This is making me nervous.”
Swoosh.
We quietly approached Drod.
After melting away the swarm of flies over a radius of several hundred meters, he seemed to have finally caught his breath.
However, he soon noticed our approach and immediately opened his mouth wide once more.
Startled, I shouted,
“Please wait a moment! Drod Kuhalim!”
“...What is it?”
Surprisingly, a smooth, refined voice emerged from the mouth of that winged lizard.
I hurriedly spoke.
“My name is Mason Giad.”
“Mason.”
“So you're the one who fed Odline's maggots to my daughter?”
“Ah...”
“I shouldn't have introduced myself by name.”
“That was a mistake.”
“I never expected you to come here seeking your own death.”
“If you kill me now, Magireta will be quite angry.”
“We are legitimate participants in the Game.”
“And the Game hasn't ended yet.”
Drod fell silent.
Meanwhile, another swarm of flies was already approaching.
He snorted through his nostrils.
That simple exhale alone caused our bodies to stagger.
“His breath is ridiculously hot.”
“Let's move higher.”
“We'll approach from above.”
“Phew... Right.”
To make the conversation easier, we changed positions.
In the meantime, Drod unleashed another blast of his Breath toward the flies.
Once again, every fly within hundreds of meters melted away.
When he finally stopped breathing fire, we had reached the level of his face.
“You've been having quite a hard time.”
“It's strange.”
“This is our first meeting.”
“What is?”
“I already dislike you.”
“And that's completely unrelated to what you did to my daughter.”
“That's unfortunate.”
“But even if you dislike me...”
“I think you'll like the news I've brought.”
Drod snorted once again.
I quickly continued.
“As compensation for what I did to your daughter...”
“I'd like to help you with two things.”
“What?”
“First...”
“I'll kill Odline.”
“Those endless swarms of flies are quite troublesome, aren't they?”
“Hah.”
“And how exactly would you do that?”
“That maggot is still one of the MVPs.”
“I won't.”
“Magireta will.”
At that, Drod's eyes became serious.
“That makes even less sense.”
“Lady Magireta cannot harm an MVP.”
“Let's set that matter aside for now.”
“In any case...”
“We'll kill Odline.”
“So please forget what happened to your daughter.”
“I refuse.”
“I can kill Odline on my own.”
“And more importantly...”
“Didn't you just say you wouldn't be the one killing him?”
“......”
“You intend to borrow Lady Magireta's hand.”
“And yet you seek forgiveness using that as payment?”
“It's not even worth listening to.”
As expected.
That wouldn't work.
I hadn't been counting on it anyway.
I shrugged.
“Then let me offer you my second gift.”
“Let's hear it.”
“We'll cure your wife's Madness.”
At that instant—
Drod suddenly whipped his head toward us.
As a result, we found ourselves staring directly into his eyes.
Each of his pupils was as large as a human body.
“You...”
“How do you know about Lenia?”
“Don't tell me Lady Magireta...”
“No.”
“Magireta isn't the type to gossip about other people's private affairs.”
“Especially when it concerns an MVP.”
“Then?”
“I have my own unique ability.”
“But that's not important right now.”
I explained quickly.
“According to what I learned from Magireta...”
“The reason your wife suffers from Madness is because she's a Berserker.”
“A Berserker?”
“Mrs. Lenia was originally a Dragon in her previous life.”
“But after dying, she fell into Hell and became a Monster.”
“She didn't receive the same special treatment that you did.”
“......”
“She became a Berserker.”
“A Monster whose defining characteristic is that it gradually goes insane.”
“In exchange...”
“The more insane it becomes, the stronger and more ferocious it grows.”
Drod appeared genuinely shocked.
Although his reptilian face revealed no expression...
His enormous pupils trembled ever so slightly.
“I asked Lady Magireta countless times to examine my wife.”
“She always examined her.”
“......”
“But every single time...”
“She told me there was no cure.”
“That she didn't know the cause.”
“And now you're telling me Lady Magireta said something completely different?”
“She lied.”
“You bastard!”
“Are you saying Lady Magireta deceived me?”
“Are you trying to drive a wedge between us?!”
I shook my head vigorously.
“Magireta had her reasons for hiding the truth.”
“Because the Berserker is a creation she poured a great deal of effort into.”
“......”
“There is only one Berserker in all of Hell.”
“Mrs. Lenia.”
“Apparently its rarity far surpasses even Nightmares and Doppelgangers.”
That was why she never cured her.
She didn't want to give up Madness...
The defining characteristic of her masterpiece, the Berserker.
—Grrrr...
A low rumbling came from deep inside Drod's throat.
“Don't lie.”
“I only have one life.”
“Do you really think I'd gamble it on a lie like this?”
“......”
“Fortunately...”
“I managed to persuade Magireta.”
“She agreed to cure Mrs. Lenia's Madness.”
“......”
“Convincing Magireta was entirely my accomplishment.”
“So please accept this gift...”
“And forget what I did to your daughter.”
He remained silent for a moment.
Meanwhile, another swarm of flies drew near.
As he gathered Breath inside his mouth, Drod spoke.
“Very well.”
“If you truly cure my wife...”
“I shall overlook what happened to my daughter.”
Perfect.
That was the answer I wanted.
I bowed my head.
“Thank you.”
“We'll head to Magireta now.”
“......”
“To kill Odline.”
“And to cure your wife.”
“Please wait for the good news.”
“Until then...”
“You mustn't lose.”
To be precise...
He couldn't win, either.
The war couldn't end before everything else was finished.
“Hmph.”
—KWAAAAAAAAH!
He released another blast of Breath, melting the approaching endless swarm of flies once again.
Then, as though letting out a sigh, he said,
“Stop worrying about unnecessary things.”
“And go.”
“Yes.”
“Then we'll take our leave.”
I signaled to Karin.
We moved far away from Drod.
Just then, his muttering reached our ears.
“If what that fellow said is true...”
“Then I am rather disappointed in Lady Magireta.”
We withdrew from the center of the battlefield.
After landing on the ground, we straightened our clothes.
At that moment, Armelia spoke.
“Mason.”
“Yes?”
“Do you truly believe Drod will keep his promise?”
“Hm?”
“What if he still seeks revenge for his daughter even after his wife is cured?”
“Well...”
“I can't say that's impossible.”
Whether Drod kept his promise or not would become clear soon enough.
This Sudden Quest—Erasure.
If the Diary Book announced that the Sudden Quest had been completed...
That would mean Drod had kept his promise.
If, by some chance, it announced failure...
“Then we'll simply repeat the process.”
“We'll summon Magireta and request another revision of the Hidden Rules.”
“But that Devil said she would never kill Drod.”
“No matter what.”
“She says that now.”
“Because Drod has obediently followed her orders.”
“Now?”
“Yeah.”
“More accurately... until now.”
This time, Drod had learned the truth.
That Magireta herself had given his wife the Madness trait.
And that despite examining her over and over...
She had deliberately pretended not to know how to cure it.
“Drod said it himself earlier.”
“He was disappointed in Magireta.”
“......”
“Wouldn't that naturally plant the seeds of rebellion?”
“I intend to pour a little oil onto those flames.”
“Good grief.”
“Then that rebellion will only continue to grow.”
“And eventually...”
“He'll cross the line Magireta has set.”
When that happened...
Magireta would inevitably change her mind.
Just as she'd disposed of Helena and Odline...
She would decide Drod had to be eliminated as well.
Karin muttered,
“You're an absolute master at driving wedges between people.”
“I just happen to learn quickly.”
“You sure know how to talk.”
“Well...”
“That's only the worst-case scenario anyway.”
“To be honest, I don't think Drod will break his promise.”
After saying that, I shouted into the air.
“Big Sis Magireta!”
At once, Magireta appeared like a ghost.
“We're back.”
“I made sure Drod knew exactly who deserved the credit.”
“Feeling satisfied now?”
“Yes.”
“To some extent.”
“Phew...”
“If only Odline had been even 0.1% less of a disgusting piece of filth...”
“I wouldn't have ended up getting dragged around by you like this.”
She shook her head.
“Then let's begin the transaction.”
“Agreed.”
“I'll offer...”
'I agree to let Magireta revise the Hidden Rules however she wishes.'”
“And I'll offer...”
“I'll cure Drod's wife's Madness.”
The next moment—
Tap.
A small notice board suddenly appeared before us.
Written upon it were the following words:
—All Possibilities and Magireta have agreed to a partial revision of the Hidden Rules.
The revised content is as follows.
Original Rule
: Magireta cannot harm an MVP.
Revised Rule
: As a general rule, Magireta cannot harm an MVP. However, if MVPs fight one another, Magireta may make exceptions at her own discretion.
Below the text was the drawing of a palm.
Magireta spoke.
“Each of you, place your hand on the palm.”
We did as instructed.
‘Is that all?’
Thinking that, I glanced toward Magireta.
Then my eyes widened.
‘Huh?’
‘What's she doing?’
There was a small notice board floating in front of Magireta as well!
Looking completely unconcerned, she placed her own hand upon it.
My heart suddenly began pounding.
‘No way.’
[What's wrong?]
‘Magireta is giving her consent too.’
‘By placing her hand on the notice board!’
[What?]
[Didn't you already know that?]
[That both Magireta and the Possibilities had to agree.]
Of course I did.
However...
The fact that even the method of expressing consent was exactly the same...
That deserved some thought.
Both Magireta and us...
Equally placed our palms upon identical notice boards.
In other words...
—Exactly who was Magireta reporting to?
If Magireta was truly omnipotent...
Wouldn't snapping her fingers have been enough?
No...
Wouldn't simply thinking, 'I agree,' have sufficed?
Yet this time...
She used exactly the same procedure as ordinary participants like us.
‘Perhaps...’
‘Perhaps Magireta wasn't the one who created these Games by herself.’
I pondered it briefly.
Then shook my head.
This wasn't something I could figure out just by thinking.
At that moment, Magireta spoke.
“Good.”
“Both sides have finished giving their consent.”
“The Hidden Rule has now been revised.”
“Will you be going to kill Odline now?”
“Hehe...”
“Big Sis?”
“Ah, sorry.”
Her crimson eyes gleamed.
“Just thinking that I can finally stomp that bug to death has me excited.”
“My condolences to Odline.”
“Don't say things you don't mean.”
“Right.”
“I was joking.”
“More importantly...”
“Has Drod's wife's Madness been cured?”
“Ah.”
As though she'd completely forgotten, Magireta snapped her fingers.
Snap!
“I've just removed the Madness trait.”
“So?”
“What will you do now?”
“We're returning to Drod.”
“And you're going to Odline, right?”
“Of course.”
“Tell me the story afterward.”
“I'm curious to see how Odline meets his end.”
“Very well.”
“You worked hard this time too.”
“I can at least do that much.”
Magireta slowly floated into the sky.
“See you later.”
Then, in an instant...
She disappeared.
She really was in quite a hurry.