Broken Possessors of Infinite Regression Academy

Nika and I calmly straightened our clothes, and the Sword Saint, as if to dispel the excited atmosphere and the lingering scent in the room, cleared her throat and changed the subject.

“I won’t stop you since I know your relationship, but I’d appreciate it if you could refrain from doing that in the Imperial Palace. Or perhaps you could find a more secluded place?”

I thought it was fortunate that she didn’t outright tell us not to do it. I was about to give a casual reply of acknowledgement when Nika suddenly interjected with a playful expression.

“But we do have to eat in the Imperial Palace, and for succubi, absorption is like eating for humans. Are you saying we shouldn’t eat in the palace? That seems a bit harsh.”

She was clearly arguing in bad faith. Her attitude seemed to suggest that she was just as unyielding here as she was on Earth. Here, she was the Succubus Queen and the Demon Lord, and on Earth, she was Kang Rahe’s superior.

“Absorption for succubi is not the same as eating for humans. I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t confuse the two.”

“But isn’t the concept of taking in something to gain life energy the same? In that sense, couldn’t you say that the Sword Saint is also having intercourse every time she eats?”

“Anyway, the Emperor’s response has arrived.”

The Sword Saint bluntly cut her off. Her cheeks flushed slightly, but she didn’t try to stop her further. She seemed to have given up.

“So, he won’t be meeting me in person? Well, I suppose he did spend quite some time personally celebrating my master’s birthday. He must be busy with various matters, including preparing for the S-class Gate that appeared in the Demon Realm.”

“Mmm, he is busy. So, what was his answer?”

Nika asked, though she didn’t seem particularly concerned.

“You can tell from this.”

The Sword Saint pulled something out of his sleeve. It was the Emperor’s crown, split in half and adorned with dazzling jewels and pure gold, emitting a brilliant light.

“…”

Even Nika was taken aback by this, her mouth hanging open in surprise.

I felt the same way. Who could have imagined that the symbol of the Empire’s Emperor would arrive split in half? It showed how seriously the Emperor was taking this matter.

“The answer is positive. He said that as long as the demons do not attack humans, humans will not attack the demons. This crown is a symbol of that promise.”

“So, I’ll keep one half, and the other half will remain here. This is quite a serious gesture.”

Nika frowned, deep in thought.

“Since we’ve received something so grand, we should give something in return, but I don’t want to part with anything on my person…”

“Ah.”

After some contemplation, Nika seemed to have come up with an idea. She drew out the Demon Sword. The Sword Saint flinched involuntarily at the sight of the sword, which glowed with an ominous red light.

Nika, wearing the Long Gloves, divided the sword into two parts: the blade and the crossguard with the hilt. She offered the crossguard and hilt to the Sword Saint.

“Tell the Emperor that as long as the hilt remains in human hands, the blade will never be wielded.”

“I will convey your message.”

The Sword Saint accepted the stone-like crossguard and the crude hilt, gazing at them intently. Complex emotions flitted across her single sky-blue eye.

In contrast, Nika casually tossed the blade half of the Demon Sword into a corner of the dimensional door.

“You… you split my sword! You wretch!”

“The sword itself is still intact, isn’t it, sister? Calm down!”

The voices in my head protested and argued with each other.

The Demon Lord was upset that her sword had been split, while the Goddess was trying to calm her down, pointing out that the sword was still functional.

“If you wanted to give something, you should have split the Holy Sword instead.”

The Sword Saint glanced at Nika, and Nika shrugged, unconcerned.

“When do you plan to make the declaration?”

“I imagine it will be after I receive confirmation that all the demons have withdrawn.”

The Sword Saint answered my question while glancing at Nika. Nika raised her chin confidently, reassuring him.

“I already gave the order to withdraw before coming here. I didn’t expect my request to be denied.”

“I heard from the Royal Guard that the demons on the front lines are gradually withdrawing. Whether the remaining soldiers and others will accept it is another matter.”

Most soldiers would rejoice at the end of the war, and most people would feel the same. However, there would undoubtedly be some who objected.

There were countless people in the Empire who had lost loved ones, family, friends, children, parents, and colleagues to the demons.

But we couldn’t give up now. With Nika taking the initiative to make peace, this was our only chance to end the war. It was inevitable that this moment would come sooner or later.

The war couldn’t go on forever.

“Sword Saint, do you have a moment?”

Just as the severed piece of the Demon Sword disappeared into the sleeve, Valeria’s voice sounded, sounding somewhat urgent. The Sword Saint pulled out a communication crystal from his other pocket.

“Yes, what is it?”

“There seems to be signs of that thing that appeared on the demon battlefield showing up here as well. I’d like to ask for your assistance.”

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.

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Upon arriving at the location where Valeria had contacted us, we were greeted by a surging violet energy.

It was neither the blue representing mana, nor the golden and white representing divine power, nor the red or dark red representing demonic energy. Instead, it was an ominous violet energy, contained by a towering magical barrier.

The barrier, which seemed to stretch endlessly towards the sky, was at least over a hundred meters tall.

“You’re here. Good, good. Now I can rest easy.”

Valeria, who had been pouring mana into the barrier, greeted us with a strained smile.

It wasn’t just her; all the top mages in the Empire were gathered, channelling their power into the barrier. Despite their efforts, their expressions were grim, indicating the seriousness of the situation.

“Can you give us a brief explanation of what’s going on?”

The Sword Saint, glancing at the violet energy, drew her sword. Valeria took a moment to catch her breath before speaking.

“There’s not much to explain. We sent people to investigate the new Gate, and they reported encountering a peculiar creature. When I arrived, it turned out to be the same one as the one the Succubus Queen had mentioned.”

The timing was fortunate. If it hadn’t been for Nika’s information, the dungeon break would have occurred while we were still trying to assess the danger of this creature. I whispered to Nika, who stood beside me:

“That’s the same one we saw in the Demon Realm, right?”

“Yes. It’s not just similar, it’s practically identical. We saw it surging with violet energy there as well.”

Soon after, another dimensional door opened, and Leo and Rosalia appeared.

Their faces were pale from the sight of the violet energy filling their field of vision, but upon seeing me, they rushed over with relieved expressions, as if they had just been saved.

“Mira! What is that? Is it a Gate?”

“It’s similar to what Nika described…”

“It’s the same one. Be prepared to draw your Spear if necessary, Rosalia. Keep an eye on it.”

“Uh, okay.”

“Latina, you should also draw your Sword. It might come to that.”

“Alright.”

Rosalia nodded hurriedly. Leo drew her Holy Sword. Suddenly, a loud voice resounded:

“Dungeon Break!”

With these words, which had become established in this world thanks to Saint Rosalia, the violet energy surged, and the Gate exploded, spewing forth something from within.

It was a being that could only be described as a monster. Its face resembled a haphazard patchwork of various deep-sea creatures, and its body was covered in scales. On its back were tentacle-like appendages.

The creature rotated its eight eyes to survey its surroundings, then let out a low growl. Waves of force rippled outward in a circle. The violet energy surged and penetrated through the magical barrier, spreading in all directions.

“Aaahhhh!”

“My head! Aaahhhh!”

The mages cried out in pain as they clutched their heads. Their bodies seemed to be breaking down, and something transparent could be seen trying to escape from their heads.

I looked around. The Sword Saint’s face was set in a grim expression, as if She was resisting something. Rosalia and Leo also had furrowed brows, and the Goddess and the Demon Lord were shouting inside the Holy Spear.

My judgment was swift. The mint-colored light of soul purification enveloped the area, and the mages, who had been writhing in pain, regained their composure.

It seemed that a great mage was indeed a great mage; Valeria immediately strengthened the barrier upon recovering. The other mages also channeled their power into it, their eyes filled with admiration as they looked at me.

However, it didn’t seem like it would hold for long…

“Ugh… Ugh…”

“Do you know what it is, Mira?”

“No. I’ve never seen it before, but I do remember encountering something similar.”

“The first world?”

“Yes.”

It was a mad creature that extracted human souls and imprisoned them within their bodies, torturing them and drawing power from their agonized screams. The soulless bodies became wraiths that ran amok.

“I don’t know why we’re encountering it here, though.”

“I have an idea,” the Goddess’s voice sounded in my head.

“Please share.”

“I believe it’s due to the influence of your existence, causing a mixing of concepts in this world and ours. It was an eventuality, so you shouldn’t blame yourself.”

A brief reassurance was added, stating that it was inevitable that this would happen sooner or later.

I signalled to Rosalia, and she closed her eyes. Golden light enveloped me, and I felt the power of the Saint flowing into me. It wasn’t a necessary process, but it was important to fulfil the role of the Saint.

The monster’s head rotated, and all eight of its eyes fixed on me. It seemed to have instinctively realized that attempting to breach the weakest point would result in its neck being severed.

I drew Eternity, and its blue blade was imbued with golden divine power, creating a surreal silhouette. Leo stood beside me, pointing her Holy Sword at the creature.

“This reminds me of the old days.”

I never thought I’d encounter something like this again.

“It’s a good thing if it reminds you of the old days.”

“Why is that?”

“Because they all ended up dying by your hand.”

“…”

Was that how it was going to be?