Chapter 26
“Urgh!”
Bord dropped his shield and collapsed to the ground. The form of the giant mana construct fizzled out like bubbles.
Thanks to that, I avoided a direct hit, but I had to flail my body as the shockwave pushed me back.
‘…Incredible.’
The swarm of test subjects that had been pouring in like a tide also vanished.
“….”
“….”
“….”
We couldn’t say a word. We instinctively knew something on an entirely different level was coming.
Wild Instinct (Lv 1) has detected an overwhelming predator!
‘…Ha, is that how it is.’
There was a time when I felt frustrated watching Gilbert.
In contrast, the villain, Dr. Keren, was meticulous.
Dr. Keren had toyed with the protagonist’s party, who infiltrated his lab, using pre-prepared traps, and ultimately completed a self-destruct sequence.
Due to a nuclear overload, Dr. Keren himself and the underground lab vanished without a trace, and while the protagonist’s party managed to escape at the cost of Lina’s one eye, they only obtained a few fragmented pieces of information.
‘Who would’ve thought that was sheer luck.’
A black humanoid figure emerged, breaking through the lab’s wall. A person, a person? Could it even be called a person? With two horns, black skin, and eyes where both the pupils and whites were a dark red.
Know-It-All (Lv 2) has analyzed that it is a demon summoned by the Demon Lord Cult. It is a demon of the Count rank from Hell. Analyzing the opponent’s capabilities…. Danger. Comparison is impossible. Running survival simulation…. Danger. 1,000 virtual battles resulted in 0 wins and 1,000 losses.
To think the protagonist’s party was lucky enough not to encounter something like that early on.
There was a reason Dr. Keren was so confident.
That thing… it was a mid-story villain in the original work.
‘Why is a monster like that showing up in an early-game villain takedown arc?’
“….”
The Demon Count and we stared at each other.
We had no chance of winning.
Even the protagonist’s party had grim expressions.
Knowing this, neither side moved.
“Ugh!”
Mary, unable to withstand the intense pressure, collapsed next to Bord, who had fainted from mana exhaustion. The enemy before us was that formidable.
‘System.’
System on standby.
‘Is… this possible?’
Request confirmed. It is possible. It can be done anytime as long as points are paid.
I was about to act but stopped myself. If I had it ready beforehand, it might be discovered.
The Demon Count opened its mouth.
[…Is Dr. Keren dead? What a pity. Even as a lowly species, he was a participant in the grand plan to summon the Lord.]
I loaded a piercing round into my shotgun and immediately took a firing stance.
Bang!
The piercing round, fired without warning, shot out like a beam of light.
However.
The Demon Count raised its hand and caught the bullet with its fingers.
‘…Ha, really.’
If it could react and block it with its hand, it could’ve dodged it too.
There’s an adage about seizing opportunities, but this opponent wasn’t one to give any. To land an effective hit, I had to create the opportunity.
Steeling myself, I charged forward.
“Cadet Martin!”
“Martin!”
I heard voices calling out to stop me from behind.
I fired a scattershot at point-blank range at the Demon Count. However, the shot ricocheted, only slightly reducing the defensive strength of my uniform.
I took a backstep to retreat, but the Demon Count had already closed the distance to right in front of me.
[Is this all, human…?]
A light flick struck my abdomen.
“Guh!”
Know-It-All (Lv 2) has confirmed the complete destruction of the uniform’s defensive magic and the fracture of three ribs.
Thanks to the magically protected uniform, it was only three ribs; otherwise, a hole would’ve been punched through my stomach. My vision flickered white from the dizzying pain.
When I came to, I was barely balancing against the lab wall after crashing into it.
I forced myself to hold onto the shotgun.
[Worthless thing. Die.]
The Demon Count was now raising its fist to strike.
Wild Instinct (Lv 1) is certain that this is the one and only, final opportunity.
This was what I’d been waiting for. An opportunity staked on my life.
‘Consume 500 points!’
Point purchase confirmed. Granting the exclusive perk for Extra Villain Martin von Targon Ulvhadin, ‘Cosmos Empire’s Finest Holy Diamond Bullet.’
I loaded the immense holy power felt in my right hand into the shotgun. There was no time to listen to the full system message.
Firearm Comprehension (Lv 8) grants ultra-fast reloading.
I fired immediately.
[You?]
A point-blank shot was executed at an unavoidable distance. There was no gunshot sound. Only a white flash filled my vision, and I felt intense heat enveloping my body.
As the flash faded, my vision returned.
The first thing I saw was the shotgun’s barrel, glowing red-hot and melting into molten metal.
The Demon Count was embedded in the lab wall, motionless.
Due to the shotgun’s poor durability, the power of the Cosmos Empire’s Finest Holy Diamond Bullet was reduced to 30%.
“Huff, huff…!”
I finally noticed my own ragged breathing.
‘Did I… succeed?’
My legs gave out. I slid down the wall and collapsed.
I heard the voices of the protagonist’s party in my ears.
“Unbelievable….”
“What just happened? What did Cadet Martin do?”
“Did he defeat the Demon Count?”
It was done. There should be no danger for a while. Now, until reinforcements arrive…
[Impressive, human….]
“…!”
I reflexively gripped the shotgun, but with the barrel melted into molten metal, it was meaningless.
[How did you hide such an artifact?]
The Demon Count grabbed the warped lab wall and stood up.
[Long ago, it was a weapon wielded only by the highest Saints, Popes, and Holy Assassins among the divine dogs of the empire that ruled half the continent….]
The area around its chest, hit by the bullet, was deeply dented, and it looked in great pain, but astonishingly, it was still intact.
[…No matter. I’ll eliminate you before you create any more variables.]
【Grow! Surging Waves of Ancient Trees!】
Hailey’s magic was urgently cast. However, the torrent of trees rushing like waves was blocked at the Demon Count.
“Hah!”
Elisha’s full-powered arrow pierced through the wave of trees and hit the Demon Count, but it failed to penetrate its skin and bounced off.
“No way.”
“It didn’t work at all….”
I glanced at the protagonist’s party. Faces filled with despair. But two were different.
‘Gilbert, Lina.’
They were hesitating.
The Crown Prince of the Cosmos Empire and his guard knight were the real deal.
They surely possessed treasures passed down by the Cosmos Imperial Family and the knight family.
‘But.’
They hesitated to use their hidden power.
How laughable. Hesitating at a time like this? Would they hesitate even when another comrade died?
‘Are you only going to use your power after I die, protagonist!’
While he hesitated, the Demon Count slowly walked toward me. It raised its hand. A powerful dark red beam of light gathered above it.
The same beam that annihilated the swarm of test subjects and chimeras in one strike.
That destructive beam was now aimed solely at me. I flipped over, propping myself up with both hands on the ground, crawling desperately.
I don’t want to die. I can’t die. I can’t die here!
Lilac came to mind. Sebastian came to mind. Earth came to mind. My pitiful talent came to mind.
There’s still too much I haven’t done to leave this world already!
‘Damn it! Damn it!’
I had no points left. The protagonist wasn’t moving.
‘Guess a villain like me is fine to die, huh!’
Am I that?! A tool to awaken the protagonist?! An extra?! A mere expendable?! Shut up! As if I’d be satisfied with such treatment!
As I gritted my teeth and rolled on the ground to escape, a voice rang out.
“Don’t touch the cadets of our academy.”
Sensing a powerful force, the Demon Count recoiled in alarm. Instantly, a man in a fluttering red cape stood before me.
He touched the communicator in his ear and spoke.
“Hostile force confirmed. Hectia von Villemon Hartman, engaging in combat. I’ll handle it swiftly and return.”
[Confirmed. We’ll secure the return route.]
Hectia drew a red greatsword, exuding red, flame-like mana freely from her entire body.
[You…! You’ve reached that realm! A mere human!]
“A Count-rank demon, huh. It’s been a while since I faced one.”
Hectia’s gaze fixed on the dented wound in its chest. The diamond bullet, still crackling with holy power, was embedded there.
Thanks to that single bullet, the Demon Count’s output had dropped from 100% to 40%.
‘Who did this?’
Naturally, the only firearm user was Cadet Martin.
How did he obtain such an anti-demon bullet and manage to embed it in the Demon Count’s heart?
‘No, wait.’
Hectia belatedly realized what the bullet was. It was thanks to the person she served having an excessive interest in the Cosmos Empire.
‘How did he get a treasure of the fallen Cosmos Empire….’
[Daring to be distracted in front of a Count of Hell!]
Toward the Demon Count, who had closed the distance.
“Well….”
The red greatsword slashed diagonally.
“I wonder if I need to focus.”
A storm of flames erupted along the sword’s path. The Demon Count’s body was cleaved in two and soon engulfed in flames, vanishing without a trace.
Teacher Hectia touched her communicator.
“Situation resolved. Returning with one assistant teacher and six cadets. One requires medical attention.”
[Confirmed. Engineers have arrived to delay the nuclear overload. We’ll send in the rescue team.]
I don’t remember much after that. I’d tried to handle things impressively, but in the end, I was left battered.
In my fading consciousness, I only recalled being carried away on a stretcher.
***
When I came to, I was in the general hospital within Imperium Academy. Opening my eyes on the hospital bed, I found Lilac dozing off beside me.
“…Lilac?”
“Oh… Master…? M-Master!”
Lilac threw herself at me. She hugged me tightly and sobbed.
What was so sad? What was so heartbreaking?
I realized it too. It had been far more dangerous, terrifying, and intense than I’d thought. Yet, I survived.
Even after facing chaos head-on, my heart was still beating.
I gently hugged Lilac back.
After undergoing some tedious tests from the medical staff who rushed in upon hearing Lilac’s sobs, I finally learned the full story.
“Sebastian’s awakened ability is homing instinct?”
Lilac answered with slightly swollen eyes.
“Yes! They say it’s the ability to find the way to Master, even if separated by the ends of the continent! Apparently, if Sebastian hadn’t discovered another passage leading underground, they wouldn’t have been able to send the rescue team in time.”
[Woof!]
Sebastian barked as if boasting, and Lilac smiled, feeding him some jerky.
‘Of all things to awaken….’
As the novelist who’d written Martin as an animal abuser, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt.
“They said you received initial treatment in the Petrak Kingdom, then were transferred to the academy’s hospital via high-speed transport for admission. I rushed here as soon as I got the urgent message that you were injured.”
All this fuss for one cadet. Looking out the window, it was late at night. It had been an unusually long day.