Chapter 145: Distrust Part 3

The great demon Hela’s power is decay and corruption.

It was a power that inevitably suited Loki, who possessed the ability of mood poison.

If the fine particles dispersed in the air were mixed with a colorless and odorless posion,

Loki would be no different from a walking weapon of mass destruction.

Rumble!!

The world blinked out with a flash of red lightning, and a pungent, stinging smell reached the tip of my nose.

Fzzzzzzzzzzzt!

Lobelia who had charged at Loki roughly retreated and returned.

“Hoo… You really must’ve pushed Brother into a corner. I didn’t think he’d go this far without looking back.”

“No, I don’t think that’s it.”

Loki had said he would just kill everyone first and think later.

At a glance, it could seem like the reckless outburst of a man who had given up—

But it’s not.

“Loki is calm.”

“You can still say that after seeing him like that?”

Lobelia who was staring straight ahead was drenched in cold sweat.

Loki was laughing like a madman.

He looked completely intoxicated with power.

To any observer, it would seem like he’d lost control.

But that’s not the case.

“Your Highness… Don’t tell me you’re thinking we should retreat for now?”

“To be honest, it does seem like the better option. Facing something like that… feels like a losing game no matter what…”

“That’s exactly what Loki wants.”

I’ll say it again. Loki is completely calm right now.

I drove him into a corner, forced his hand, and led him straight into a trap.

As a result, like a cornered rat biting the cat, Loki appeared to lose control.

It may look that way, but…

“Before showing the power of the demon, Loki destroyed the recording device.”

“He wanted to hide the fact that he made a contract with a demon?”

“Yes. And that means…”

“He believes he can take care of everything else afterward.”

“Exactly.”

If he had truly lost control, there’d have been no reason to destroy the recording device.

For someone who’s gone off the deep end, what meaning could that possibly have?

Loki still believed he had a chance to turn things around.

I didn’t know what kind of means he might have up his sleeve, but one thing was clear. Loki couldn’t be allowed to escape here.

“It may be hard, but you have to keep pressing Loki right now.”

“I’ll say this in advance; there’s little chance I can win. Do you have a plan?”

“There is one. That’s why you’ll need to either drain his stamina or buy us some time.”

“You really are rough when it comes to handling people, Johan.”

“How can I go easy when lives are on the line?”

“Hah, I’m starting to regret ever trying to recruit you as an ally. You’re so damn rough with people.”

Crackle!

Even as she grumbled, Lobelia conjured red lightning in both hands.

The mood poison Loki wielded, along with the corruption and decay unleashed by Hela, were already spreading through the air. Just getting close was dangerous.

But with the power of destruction that ran through the blood of the imperial family, she should be fine.

The external poison and powers would be burned away by the inner ability.

“Stay a bit farther back. That filthy air is about to reach this spot too.”

“I’ll do that.”

I immediately stepped back.

I was someone who followed instructions well.

“…Still, I didn’t expect you to flee without a moment’s hesitation.”

“I’m just someone with a very clear sense of self-awareness. Rather than dragging Your Highness down, I’d rather run away with tears in my eyes.”

“If only you didn’t talk so much, you’d be less annoying.”

“I’m only doing this because I believe in you, Your Highness. Wasn’t it you who caused all this in the first place, getting drunk and making a mess? And now, look…I’ve gone this far to set the stage for you.”

“……”

“Your Highness, aren’t you going to say something?”

“R-Right. I do appreciate it.”

“Then what are you still doing here? Are you planning to just stand there and watch until Loki’s power spreads to a crowded area?”

“I’m going, I’m going!”

Rumble!!

Lobelia looked annoyed for a brief moment, then immediately turned into a bolt of lightning and charged at Loki.

Boom!

Where the lightning struck, electricity spread like blooming red roses.

Part of Fenrir, who had blocked Lobelia’s blow, melted away.

“As expected, you really do take after our big brother, Lobelia.”

“I can’t say that sounds like a compliment, brother.”

But Loki, maintaining his distance by using Fenrir’s rapidly regenerating huge body, unleashed a barrage of spells toward Lobelia.

A thoroughly mid-to-long-range zone of attack.

The fact that he could cast other spells simultaneously while maintaining the supreme magic Fenrir gave him an undeniable advantage.

Of course, compared to Ariel, who could launch dozens of spells at once, Loki’s abilities looked unimpressive.

Still, that one spell Fenrir was valuable enough to make up for it.

A versatile magic like this existed only within the imperial family.

“Of course I take after him. He’s the one I hate the most.”

“Is that so? Then that’s a relief. Because you’re the one I hate the most. It’s comforting to know I’m not your number one!”

Lobelia swung her fist at Fenrir, who stood in her way.

She stomped her foot and twisted her waist.

A powerful blow using the full weight of her body pierced through Fenrir.

Because Fenrir was a magic that combined offense and defense, its balance was solid. But that also meant it was mediocre in every aspect.

In other words, with overwhelming force, it could be crushed.

Lobelia’s lightning broke through Fenrir’s crumbling form and shot toward Loki.

Fzzzzzzzzt!

But the powerful thunderbolt struck something in midair, burned through it, and vanished.

“Tch.”

It had probably been neutralized by Loki’s ability or Hela’s power.

And as if sensing something unseen beyond that, Lobelia quickly retreated and widened the distance.

For a close-range fighter to put distance between herself and a mage wasn’t exactly an advantageous move.

“What terrifying power, brother.”

“Is that so? Personally, I think it suits me perfectly.”

While Lobelia pulled back, Fenrir regenerated once more.

And behind Loki, Hela clung to him with her rotted, decaying limbs.

What’s more, that wasn’t the extent of Loki’s hand.

“Jörmungandr. Restrain Lobelia and kill her.”

Jörmungandr, Loki’s personal guard, was another of his extensions.

Under the influence of the mood poison, their sense of self had faded. They rushed in without caring what happened to their bodies.

“Oh, and make sure to capture that rat watching us from a distance, too.”

“You son of a….”

Even while fighting Lobelia, he hadn’t forgotten about me.

All I’d done was hide and watch, yet now I was a target.

Of course. Stepping onto the stage directly like this was always dangerous.

“As if I’d let myself be captured that easily…”

I adjusted my stance and pointed my sword at the two Jörmungandr charging toward me.

And then, belatedly, I remembered. The sword had been snapped in half.

I didn’t fight often, so I’d made a critical mistake.

“Gyaaaah!”

I rolled away in a panic to dodge.

Forget fighting. I was just going to run like a dog.

It’s not like I’d ever taken down enemies by clashing head-on anyway.

Yeah… I’d gotten a bit arrogant.

The problem was that, after winning recent duels and having everything go smoothly, I started to think I was something special.

“Yuna! Help me, Yuna!!”

Slash!

At my scream-filled cry for help, the heads of the two Jörmungandr charging at me hit the ground.

Between their collapsing bodies, Yuna appeared, wearing a look that said she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

“Johan. If you call out to me like that, all the effort I put into hiding goes to waste.”

“I don’t care! I need to survive first!”

“…Well, I guess that makes sense. Priorities are important, after all. You’re my top priority, so I helped you. That’s fair, right?”

“Thanks…”

By calling out to Yuna, who had been playing the role of a fragile girl in front of Loki, I’d just revealed that she wasn’t an ordinary weak civilian.

Considering Yuna specializes more in assassination and surprise attacks than stealth, I’d basically thrown away a major card in our hand.

Man, nothing’s going my way.

“Yuna, what do you think about helping Her Highness fight?”

“I don’t think I could even get close to him.”

“I see…”

Loki was spreading deadly poison and that demon’s power around himself.

Even a fairly strong person would probably pass out just by approaching him.

Lobelia was holding her ground because her ability was infused with destructive power, but for Yuna, it would be nearly impossible.

“Hmm… it’s not like there’s no way, but if I do it, there’s a high chance I’ll end up as a wanted criminal by the imperial family.”

“Aren’t you already a wanted criminal?”

Do you even know how many zeroes are on your bounty?

“That’s for the Safe Clown side. Yuna’s still squeaky clean, remember?”

“Wow. That’s some flawless criminal logic. Fine, I get it. But what exactly is this method that would get you wanted?”

“Copying His Highness’s ability?”

“Don’t.”

“Mhmm.”

Is it really worth burning down the whole house to catch a flea? This is on a completely different level from when she was just an assassin targeting nobles.

If it’s revealed that Yuna’s ability can copy even the powers of the imperial family, the imperial family will step in.

And when that happens, it won’t just be Yuna who dies; it’ll be everyone connected to her.

And the one most closely connected to Yuna… is me.

I have no intention of vanishing into thin air at the execution grounds like that.

“But Yohan, why did His Highness come alone in the first place?”

“Because the opponent is an imperial member.”

No matter what the reason was, attacking an imperial member was dangerous.

Even if he was a heinous criminal, unless the imperial family formally brands him as such, an imperial member is still an imperial member.

So unless you have nothing to lose or absolute confidence you can kill them, fighting an Imperial member is never a wise choice.

Even I only focused on defense.

Partly to gather evidence, sure, but unless I kill Loki here and successfully cover up the incident, I’m definitely dead.

And more than anything, I’m not bold enough to do something like that with my face completely exposed.

“Loki probably counted on that, too.”

This was a trap meant to corner Loki, but instead, he flipped it and made a decisive move.

Normally, he wouldn’t be able to beat Lobelia on his own, but now the situation has completely turned.

He’s staked everything, even his soul, on this gamble, so there’s nothing we can do about that.

“I did have a way to stop him… but it’s useless now.”

“Oh, that.”

I showed Yuna the dimly glowing sacred relic.

Originally, it was meant to interfere with his contract with the demon. But I used it to save myself.

It’s unfortunate, but what can I do?

“…So now what do we do?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got a Plan B just for situations like this.”

Things almost never go perfectly according to plan. Life rarely unfolds on schedule.

That’s why I prepared backup plans in case each of the main ones failed.

Of course, being backup plans, they’re bound to have some flaws…

“There’s only one thing we can do right now.”

“Mhmm!”

“Buy time.”

“And what happens if we do that?”

“Someone might see the commotion and come help or call the authorities.”

“Isn’t that just wishful thinking?”

“This is part of the plan too, Yuna. Now go. At least try to draw their attention.”

“……”

Lobelia’s power was flashy and loud.

No matter how deserted this place was, if she keeps going wild like that, it’s bound to catch someone’s eyes and ears.

If that happens, Loki’s demonic powers will be exposed, and the Imperial family will have no choice but to brand him a traitor.

Of course, if Loki predicted even this and already used someone to block off the area, then there’s really nothing we can do.

Well, what can you do?

“We’ll just have to trust in Plan C.”

Plans were meant to be revised along the way anyway.

The problem is, Plan C is a bit tricky.

Being the third contingency, there are too many variables.

And it’s not something I can control myself.

Still…

“They’ll do fine.”

Right now, that’s all I can believe in.

***

Loki clicked his tongue as he watched Lobelia relentlessly charge at him.

Despite having secured overwhelming superiority, she was still an absolute nuisance.

And to make matters worse, that pink cotton ball flitting around in front of him was just plain annoying.

The woman who had been Johan’s companion.

He hadn’t paid her any mind, assuming she was just some sickly patient. But seeing her now, she’s clearly a formidable fighter.

Even so, there were no openings in Loki’s current stance.

I knew Lobelia wouldn’t involve the duke’s daughter, given her personality.

Had Ariel joined the fight, Loki would’ve had no chance of winning.

He was only managing to overpower Lobelia now due to a favorable matchup, but if he were up against Ariel, even with Hela’s power, victory would be uncertain.

I have to kill her here.

The recording device Johan had prepared was unexpected.

But it can be dealt with.

While Lobelia was busy fighting terrorists, Loki had been going around blackmailing and bribing the power players of each faction.

His influence even reached into the Imperial Academy, so he should be able to take care of the recorded footage somehow.

I’ve sealed off the area, too.

Just in case someone tried to interfere at the last minute, he had released half of Jörmungandr to form a perimeter.

As long as he wins here, he can eliminate Lobelia who was the greatest obstacle to the throne.

After that, he’ll wipe away the charges against him with some well-placed manipulation.

He had sold even his soul to a demon.

Victory was no longer optional; it was a necessity.

“Let’s wrap this up, shall we, Lobelia?”

Loki had only recently made his pact with Hela, so he still couldn’t fully wield her power. All he could do was scatter her power of decay and corruption into the air around him.

But even that alone was enough to greatly weaken Lobelia’s strength.

With the surroundings sealed tight by his demon’s power and abilities, he was also prepared for any surprise attack from the woman who seemed to be Johan’s companion.

Now, after methodically wearing down Lobelia’s power and stamina, it was time to make his decisive move.

“Your mistake was this. Failing to use a disposable piece as what it was meant to be.”

Scattered across the ground lay about thirty Jörmungandrs.

It was a significant loss of assets, but if it meant capturing Lobelia, it wasn’t a bad trade.

Fsshh!

Black currents began to swirl in Loki’s outstretched palm.

He was gathering the power of decay and corruption granted by Hela.

A certain, lethal strike meant to kill his opponent.

A blow so overwhelming that even Lobelia’s thunderbolts couldn’t completely burn it away.

Loki made his move.

And making such a move meant only one thing—

Pew!

“—Kuh?!”

It meant accepting the risk that came with it.

Loki stared in shock at the beam of light piercing straight through the center of his chest.

A surprise attack.

He didn’t know what had hit him or where it had come from.

The area was completely locked down, and he had accounted for the positions of Lobelia, Johan’s companion, Johan himself, and Tillis.

There shouldn’t have been any gaps.

No… unless…

“A… sniper…?”

It had to be a sniper shot from so far away he hadn’t even been able to sense it.

In that instant, Stan Robinhood’s bullet pierced straight through Loki’s heart.