Taming the Evil Saintess

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“Th-the Hell Duke is a filthy boss! Both the mechanics and the minions are just nasty, so I signed up to deal with this mess…”

“Boss? Minions?”

“I mean, it’s a way to say it’s annoying.”

Possessor Luna began to speak. A flurry of terms that Albrecht couldn’t comprehend filled the air, but he was able to grasp the gist of it. He adjusted his sword and urged her to continue, and Luna, with a deep breath, hurriedly added.

“When the Hell Duke’s health drops below half… he enters Phase 2… and it’s extremely vicious…”

“Phase 2?”

“So… um…”

“Right now, that means Hell Duke Derabilice has resorted to using his ultimate move?”

“Ah! Yes! That’s it!”

“What’s the effect of that ultimate move?”

“It creates a territory, makes the target unselectable, and deprives control of one character inside it.”

“…What?”

Albrecht frowned. Shouldn’t he seriously cut something off of this woman?

How can she keep picking words I can’t understand?

“Uh, um… explaining this is tough…”

Luna stumbled in panic but quickly found a good word.

“Ah! It’s possession!”

“Possession? Is that the same word as in ‘possessor’?”

“Yes! The Hell Duke targets a person within his territory and enters their body.”

“…”

Albrecht frowned again. At the same time, he checked the situation around him. Emily Barried was casting immense magic against the aide of the Hell Duke, overwhelming him. Meanwhile, Erwin was back at a distance, firing arrows to block the entry of the Knights of the Saint.

The rest were out of sight.

Which meant they were trapped within the territory that had risen over there.

“If the Hell Duke possesses someone, what’s the solution?”

“Either kill that character… hick!”

Albrecht pressed his sword against her throat. A trickle of bright red blood began to flow from the point of contact.

“B-blood…!”

“I asked for a solution, not a way to alleviate it. Speak properly.”

“…T-then.”

Luna thought hard.

“There is one method…”

“A method?”

“However… I feel like I don’t have to say it…”

“Are you messing with me right now?”

“No! Everything I know, that Possessor probably knows too!”

This time, Luna shouted as if feeling unfair.

“Are you talking about Elliot?”

“Y-yes!”

Albrecht frowned. He had heard information and stories about the aides of the Hell Duke, yet had never heard of the so-called Phase 2, where the Hell Duke possesses a host.

Could it really be that he didn’t know?

Or…

“I haven’t heard of that from Elliot.”

“That’s… because the method is a bit extreme, so everyone might oppose it?”

His temper was starting to flare up.

Albrecht pressed down on Luna’s chin firmly.

“If you don’t speak soon…!”

“Self-harm! It’s self-harm!”

“…What?”

Tears welled up in Luna’s eyes as she shouted.

“The way to damage the Hell Duke while he’s possessed is through self-harm!”

“…What?”

Albrecht frowned again.

And then recalled Elliot as usual.

A personality that was not just aggressive, but also reminded one of a wild beast. Could it be…?

“…”

As he turned his eyes, he saw Elliot already entering the Hell Duke’s territory with Ophelia in tow.

“…You’re definitely insane.”

Albrecht muttered honestly.

*

The Hell Duke spread a new territory. A territory within a territory.

That was undoubtedly Phase 2.

If they lingered here, irreversible results would follow. Above all, the Hero’s Divine Mark was also a concern.

“Ophelia, are you ready?”

“I know. But… it’s a bit hard to break through this…”

Ophelia fumbled with her sanctuary, yet the dark veil did not easily part. Well, it was the first time expanding this realm. There was no comparison to the Hell Duke’s territory.

However, Ophelia was a talent bestowed by God. As she exerted herself, she eventually transformed the entire sanctuary into a wedge shape and broke through the veil. Soon, a hole big enough for one person to enter appeared.

“Good.”

He grabbed Ophelia’s hand and pulled her along. Then, suddenly, he turned his head to look at her.

As their gazes met, Ophelia tilted her head.

“What?”

“I want to tell you one thing.”

“What is it, making me uneasy?”

Ophelia’s eyes became crescent moons.

“Do you trust me?”

After hearing my question, her eyes morphed into a crescent shape.

“What are you saying?”

“Anyway, just answer first. Do you trust me?”

What they were about to do required trust.

And Ophelia was a person I could trust enough. It seemed she felt the same way, as she pouted her lips and quietly said.

“I have to be honest?”

“Of course.”

“I trust you.”

Ophelia declared.

Just after, as if her face had turned hot, she mumbled a bit.

“You’re the first… jerk I ever trusted. Yeah. It’s weird if I didn’t trust you. Um, so… even if you betray me, I’ll always trust you.”

“…”

“If you had just left out the last part, that would’ve been really touching.”

I ruffled Ophelia’s cheek with a wry smile. When my hand touched her, Ophelia flinched.

“Alright. I need to tell you something now.”

“What is it?”

“Whatever I do, don’t step in.”

“…Huh?”

“Promise me first.”

“No, I can’t promise without knowing what it is!”

“Anyway, promise me first.”

As I said that, Ophelia’s eyes dimmed.

“You’re not trying to die, are you?”

“Absolutely not.”

“…Are you sure?”

“You said you trusted me.”

“…”

All their previous conversation was a build-up for this.

Ophelia nodded reluctantly, perhaps feeling unable to go back on it.

“Yeah. Alright. I won’t do anything.”

“Good. Let’s go in.”

Holding Ophelia’s hand, he stepped into the Hell Duke’s territory. A more intense discomfort surged compared to Daniel’s or Petinus’s. It felt like the stuff inside my head and guts was being shaken, and after that sensation leveled off, they entered the chaos.

“Azar! Please snap out of it!”

Bang!

Cecilia’s sword bounced off. Azar’s handaxe, dimly visible in the black veil, continued to strike at Cecilia.

If he was determined, he could fight. But he was up against Azar, and besides, this place was within the Hell Duke’s territory, filled with magic. It was an unreasonable situation for Cecilia.

“Cough!”

It seemed Cecilia had already sustained multiple attacks, and her body was drenched in blood. In contrast, Azar, who kept attacking, had a vacant look in his eyes.

Possession. Or perhaps control. That was the reason the Hell Duke was such a nuisance. If you killed a character that had turned into an enemy, they couldn’t revive, so in tight situations, I usually took characters I didn’t use and repeated save routes.

This time it seemed the Hell Duke had chosen the Golden Lion Azar. In fact, if asked to name a warrior adept in both attack and defense in our party, it would certainly be Azar.

Except for me, of course.

“Hell Duke, can you hear me? The Hero has arrived.”

I had no intention of killing Azar.

Moreover, I had no intention of dying myself.

Having escaped Ophelia’s sanctuary and entered the territory, the swirling magic tried to seize control over my entire body, but I was bound to Blackie and shared blood.

I walked forward confidently with my arms outstretched.

“Hey, hey! What are you doing?”

“Don’t ignore me!”

I shouted, but it fell on deaf ears.

From now on, I needed to draw aggro.

Azar—or rather, Derabilice, using Azar’s body, ceased attacking Cecilia and began to glare at me.

His face twisted grotesquely. He was probably smiling.

[To stroll right in here, you are quite arrogant, Hero.]

“It’s you who is arrogant, thinking you can contend with us using this pathetic force!”

At first glance, it was apparent he was in a disadvantaged position, forced to deploy his territory.

Erwin and Emily, along with other mercenaries, were blocking reinforcements, and the most substantial force, Black Knight Negilus, was dead at my hands. Even Azar had steadfastly rejected the offers.

He was effectively isolated.

Which meant the Hell Duke must have been feeling quite urgent too.

I intended to exploit that psychology.

“Though you keep mentioning deals, ultimately, you fail and then possess a body? There’s a limit to how ugly you can be. You’re not the Hell Duke, but the Heaven Duke instead. And what’s your name, Ophelia?”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Someone shouted, but I decided to ignore it.

The Hell Duke—specifically Derabilice, borrowing Azar’s body, had effectively bitten the bait.

With a host better than Azar in front of him, there was no reason to refuse.

Cecilia shouted.

“Knight Elliot! Run away! That ability is…!”

“I know.”

The trickiest ability to commandeer someone else’s body and manipulate them at will. It was probably the dirtiest among the Demon King’s army officers.

Moreover, within his territory, the resistance against crowd control plunged, rendering healing potions or Holy Magic ineffective.

I knew well. I had played enough to understand.

[Foolish one!]

The Hell Duke exited Azar’s body. Azar stumbled and fell, while he engulfed mine.

The sensation of being overtaken by a man was far from pleasant. It felt like someone was rummaging through my naked form.

It was filthy.

“…Cough.”

I had braced myself, but an unexpectedly greater pain surged through me. Blood trickled from my mouth. Was I internally injured?

Throughout this, Ophelia simply glared at me, unyielding in action.

I was glad she kept her promise.

[From now on, you are my possession…!]

“Hey.”

[….]

I spoke inwardly. Surely, he could hear me.

The Hell Duke fell silent. I wondered why his consciousness remained.

Of course, it was thanks to the Hero’s Divine Mark and blood contract. Though only for a fleeting moment, I could escape Derabilice’s control and act.

“You’re not my possession. You’re mine.”

I raised the Holy Sword high.

The sword’s target was neither Cecilia nor Ophelia, but myself.

Placing the Holy Sword on my shoulder, I aimed at my neck.

No huge deliberation was necessary. I was confident enough to swiftly slash my own throat.

Puhak! The Holy Sword pierced my neck, and blood spurted forth. It was no exaggeration to say that the blood flowing was, without a doubt, black in color, shimmering just as Nuar described.

The inner Derabilice was taken aback, letting out a scream.

[What are you doing!?]

“Mutual demise. Operation name: Nongae. Not bad, right? Didn’t your possessor never mention this strategy to you? Then again, it’s not a common tactic.”

[Stop! If this continues, you will die too!]

“Except you’re going to die as well.”

With a grin, I tightened my grip on the sword.

Just as the Holy Sword was about to nearly sever my neck…

The Hell Duke could hold on no longer. It seemed the fear of death was equally distributed to all.

[Uuuuuuurk!]

Derabilice escaped from my body on his own accord.

The possessed body incurred the damage just the same. The head of the Hell Duke was now wobbling, and having suffered a severe shock, the territory he had summoned vanished.

Paaaaaah. As my consciousness began to blur, I raised my hand to stem the flow of blood, and a warm sensation enveloped me.

It was the Sanctuary. Now that the territory had dissipated, what dominated this space was Ophelia’s sanctuary. In an instant, the wound on my neck began to heal.

I raised my thumb.

Everything had gone according to plan.

“Ophelia, phew, how was that? Effective, wasn’t it?”

“…You jerk…”

“…”

Even if Ophelia had not been on the verge of tears, it would still have gone according to my plans.