[Part 4/4]
She managed to roll him completely out of the river's edge, and Aoi leaned in, almost collapsing. She slapped his cheeks, shook his shoulders, trying to rouse his consciousness.
...Unfortunately, there was no sign of him waking up.
"..."
Adjusting her soaking clothes, Aoi looked around. Fortunately, there was no sign of any youkai. Well, maybe this was...
"If that's the case... someone's really lucky."
She didn't know whose luck it was, but at least in this situation, it was the next best thing, maybe even the best. She couldn't afford to be picky.
"It's cold..."
She touched the unconscious servant's body. It was incredibly cold. It was probably because of the series of injuries and the lack of blood circulation. If she left him like this...
"...I can't afford to be picky now, can I?"
She whispered the words she had thought to herself earlier, this time speaking them aloud. She muttered and looked down at the servant. After a moment of contemplation and silence...
"You owe me... so pay me back with interest, okay?"
She huffed in annoyance, placing her own jacket, her only piece of clothing, over the servant, hoping to provide some warmth. And then...
"...Alright. Just stay like this!"
The hesitant girl leaned closer to the young man...
'Gyaaaahhh!!'
The servant's horrendous and pitiful scream echoed. The Queen of the Venus flytrap was dumbfounded by the sight.
'No way, right...?'
It was overwhelming, absolute, one-sided, and the youkai couldn't believe what was happening right before her eyes.
After all, wasn't that the case? That cunning flesh, even then, was much smaller and fragile than herself. If she had been careful with their tools and tricks, she would never have suffered such an injury. She had learned from her mistakes, so she was conscious of taking precautions. She had no intention of making the same mistake again.
It had nothing to do with her. All of them were nothing more than small fry compared to that flesh.
Then, an existence appeared out of nowhere. The five great youkai who were her dependents were annihilated in an instant, just like her vines, roots, and leaves that she had sent. The ambushers she had hidden behind her were just cut in half moments ago, without even turning around.
'A... a monster...'
Calamity youkai collapsed right there. Faced with the threat that had jeopardized her life, the monster's thoughts had come to a complete halt.
It was a kind of irony. Calamity youkai realized that if this had happened before she met the servant, she might have taken more effective actions. Specifically, she might have either attacked more aggressively or tried to escape. But now, with her newfound wisdom and heightened emotions, her rationality was undermined, and she found herself unable to believe the scene before her.
"Well, this is quite ridiculous. A calamity youkai, deep in the mountains, imitating humans? And surprising, a maiden... I wonder where you took that reference."
'F-f-forgive me...'
Mocking herself and looking down on the creature, the Venus flytrap immediately prostrated herself. She showed utter submission, being utterly submissive, and humbled herself before the monster. Then, underground, her roots slowly crept closer.
"Oh? Begging for your life? How unusual. You even speak words. Promising future prospects, aren't you?"
'Oh, I'm honored by your compliment... What should I call you?'
She groveled, completely groveling, as Calamity youkai recreated the conversation she had had with the servant sometime ago. The roles of humans and youkai were reversed now, but...
"Why should I tell the monster my name? Well, if I must, let's call me the Head of the Servant Group."
'Y-yes... I understand. Head of the Servant Group. I will, uh, faithfully serve the Head of the Servant Group here. So, please, spare my life...'
"There was someone earlier, right? Where did they go?"
'Huh? Meat? Ugh!!?'
Confused by the question, her right arm suddenly burst forth with green fluid as she flailed it around. Calamity youkai screamed in response, and the man asked again in the same tone as before
"Where are they?"
'I-it's, the guest, that meat! They, they jumped into that river and were carried away! It's true!! I'm not lying!!'
"Annoying. Be quiet."
Immediately, she was silenced by a Kotodama-jutsu (word technique) and found herself unable to speak. She could only clench her mouth shut and break out in a cold sweat.
"When did this happen? Today? Within the day?"
'Hhmmm...!!'
"You should be able to answer with your head, you fool."
'Nnnnn!!'
Now, the other arm flew into the air with body fluid, and calamity youkai fell to the ground. She frantically nodded, trying to convey a positive response.
"I see. How many? One? Or two?"
When she was asked there were two, the flycatcher responded by shaking her head vigorously.
"I see. Within a day, two people ended up going down the river over there... Well, that sounds about right. Okay, you can talk now."
As the Kotodama-jutsu was lifted, a cry of despair rang out. At first glance, the sight of the girl who had lost both arms crying and screaming was a pitiful one, but... the one who did it felt no guilt in the slightest. In fact, they even sneered inwardly.
'Haah... haah...'
"Oh.... do you feel better now? Your face has become quite cute and curly. After all, a female must look like this. It's no good to be curt or snobbish. Isn't that right?"
With a mocking tone full of scorn, the man spoke sadistically, and the youkai continued to grovel. She offered a groveling smile and thoroughly spread her roots around the man. It was the monster's trump card, a power imbued in her soul overtime. With all preparations complete, if necessary, she could instantly...
"Hey. Are you having fun playing in the dirt?"
'!!?'
The impact of the question, the attack, and the counterattack were almost simultaneous.
The surface of the earth was ripped apart. Roots were dug up and burned, reduced to ashes. The intense pain from her own limbs affected the calamity youkai herself, and she screamed again and begged for mercy.
'P-please, forgive me!! Th-this wasn't revenge, I swear...!!?'
Desperate pleading. She pushed her beauty and helplessness to the fore, preparing to sow hundreds of seeds, each a replica of her soul. This technique, her doppelganger transformation, was her last resort for self-preservation...
"Well, it looks like you've calmed down, then die."
'Ugh...!!?'
The sprawling light that filled her field of vision was the last sight the calamity youkai saw. The countless seeds she had prepared, and of course, the third of the forest that was an extension of her body, were mowed down, dissipating her consciousness. The remaining two-thirds of the forest would not last much longer either. After all, the Venus flytrap was an extremely delicate plant. Being trampled like this would only lead to the remaining branches and leaves rotting away.
And so, the calamity youkai of the Venus flytrap met her end here. It was a truly pitiful end for a calamity youkai.
"Trying such a petty trick with a doppelganger... I can read your thoughts like an open book. Scum."
Glancing at the raging sea of Venus flytraps, the Head of the Servant Group sneered and taunted endlessly with his words. Each word dripped with his wicked personality.
"Well then... This is surprising. Even youkai sometimes tell the truth."
The man looked down at the compass with multiple needles in his hand, his voice filled with amusement. In a youkai-infested land, a normal compass couldn't be relied upon. What he had in his hand was a curse tool.
A simple search curse tool imbued with the curse of finding things... Each of the two needles had a catalyst embedded in it. Both of them were pointing in the same direction.
The prey was proving that they were in the same location.
"Head."
"Let's go. Don't rush."
In response to the servant's call, the man ordered with a mocking laugh. It was a command from above. Their temporary respite had been the catalyst for even deeper despair. The man truly believed that those above had wicked personalities.
With a cruel smirk on his lips, the man seemed to be thinking something...
Hello, we have a new project about someone who has returned from an isekai. The main character is a hero who has defeated the Demon Lord. However, for some reason, the human-demon war has resumed and will take place in the MC's original world. The MC, unaware of this, meets a Saint from that world and asks them to join the war. But what does the MC say? They refuse. Is it because their love was rejected by the princess when they adventured together in the past or are they simply fed up? And are the MC will join later? You can find out by clicking on the following => [Link]
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