Volume 12 Chapter 8 The Crisis Of The Holy City
"――With the Reign Helia Crown, I command the dead."
The proof of the King of the Dead――Reign Helia Crown.
I'm wearing that crown, standing on Kraken's corpse.
"――Fight."
With just one word, Kraken seemed to regain its vitality, writhing and squirming. Its massive, tree-like tentacles flailed about, attacking the Inquisitors.
"Gu, oh... "
Mr. Sein quickly thrust his lightning spear at Kraken, but that didn't stop its tentacles.
Even though it's moving, it's still a corpse. It doesn't feel pain, and it won't slow down even if you hit its vital spots.
'Hey, be careful with the food.'
"Are you still planning to eat this?"
Juju is still a big eater.
"Still, as expected, its power drops since it's a corpse."
I tested the Reign Helia Crown by controlling Kraken, but it's not as strong as when it attacked the ship.
I thought it was a good idea to control a monster's corpse, but it seems it's not that easy. If it worked well, I could summon the strongest monster army anytime, anywhere.
However, as expected, since it's a former S-Rank monster, it could still overwhelm the Inquisitors.
Already, most of the Inquisitors had been blown away by its tentacles and were unconscious.
"I guess Inquisitors aren't specialized in fighting monsters, huh."
"You're awfully calm...you coward!"
"This is how a 'curse bearer' fights."
"Damn...!"
'Popcorn is delicious! Munch munch munch!'
"Damn...damn...!"
Mr. Sein cursed while swinging his lightning spear.
However, the spear wasn't imbued with lightning. It had just become a high-attack, cute (but annoying) thing.
"Damn... So the reason you filled the training grounds with water was to seal the lightning spear...!"
"Ah, yeah, that's right!"
The training grounds, shaped like a circular arena, were filled with water to the point where it reached my knees.
If he were to use lightning magic here, he'd end up getting caught in it too. But even if he were to use it with the resolve to self-destruct, it wouldn't be enough to stop Kraken.
That's why I prioritized sealing away the most troublesome equipment first.
"There's another reason, you see."
"...Another reason, you say?"
"Yes."
I gave a mischievous grin.
"――It's to hide the Slimes."
The moment I said that—
"Wha...?"
Mr. Sein and the others' bodies suddenly tilted to one side.
Their faces, unsure of what was happening, went pale, and they fell into the water.
Behind the fallen Inquisitors were――each of them had a Slime's tentacle.
It was a shape-shifting Slime Sword.
While the Inquisitors were distracted by Kraken, I secretly set up the Slime Swords in the water. Since the Slime blended in with the water, it was impossible to notice unless you looked closely. That's why I was able to set up the trap without Mr. Sein and the others noticing.
By the way, I said it was difficult to hold back, but that was only at the beginning.
If the number of enemies decreased and they became more cautious, it wouldn't be a problem.
Anyway, I managed to knock out all the Inquisitors....
"Is this my win, then?"
I asked Miss Miimo for confirmation, and she seemed taken aback for a moment.
"Ah, yes. That's right."
She nodded, still looking surprised.
"I thought you'd win, but...I never thought you'd be able to do it without getting a single scratch while holding back."
"By the way, since this was a training session for dealing with 'Cursed Users,' I tried out various cursed equipment. Was it helpful?"
"Yes, it was. Thank you for your consideration. But please, let's just say you fought with all your might. It's probably because everyone's spirits were broken."
"Haa."
In any case, it was good that it ended without a hitch.
I probably deepened my bond with the Inquisitors.
Yeah...I might have just earned more hatred, though.
"Good job, Sui, Ram."
"Nu fu fu" "...Fumu"
I stroked the twins' heads, who had returned to their human forms.
'Don't you think it's unfair that I don't get head pats too?'
"No, you... were just eating popcorn halfway through, that's all."
She was still chattering away, and it was really annoying.
'I'm glad we won without any problems...'
After a while, Cirrul also returned.
While flapping her wings, she landed beside me... or so I thought.
'Whoa?'
She slipped on the water on the ground, and with a "splat," she fell over.
It was probably the first time I'd seen a clumsy dragon like this.
'Hmm, a dragon with a Kraken... you guys seem to have some connection to monsters, don't you?'
Miss Miimo suddenly gave a sharp look.
"Maybe you have some cursed equipment that can control monsters?"
'Yeah!'
"No need to lie and pretend you're not doing it, you know?"
When I released the command of Reign Helia Crown, the Kraken's corpse stopped moving and slumped over. Cirrul's side also returned to her human form with a kiss.
"I can only control dead bodies. Living monsters are way out of my league."
"I'm just a normal human who can only turn into a dragon a little..."
"That's already pretty abnormal, if you ask me... but I guess it's okay."
"?"
"By the way, where did you catch that Kraken?"
'We caught it around here just now. We're going to have it for dinner tonight.'
"No, I didn't catch it... we were on a ship and it attacked us, so we just got it somehow."
"I see, so even S-Rank monsters are showing up now... the situation is more critical than I thought."
"The situation? You mean...?"
"Yes, that Kraken is probably also part of the curse that's happening right now."
Miss Miimo's expression turned serious.
"Right now, monsters are appearing in large numbers in the holy city. And they're not just any monsters ―― they're ones that shouldn't be living around here."
"Monsters..."
I see, so that's why they asked if I had cursed equipment that could control monsters.
There's a phenomenon that can't be explained by normal equipment ―― a curse.
I was also one of the suspects of that curse, it seems.
"The holy city's barrier doesn't work on monsters. Right now, we're somehow managing to deal with them using the Inquisitors, but... as you've seen, they specialize in fighting humans. No matter how high-ranking the equipment is, if even one S-rank monster appears, we'll be just as helpless as we were earlier. If things keep going like this, it's not impossible that the holy city will sink..."
"Huh..."
This beautiful city that has prospered for centuries is... going to sink.
...That's right, a curse is something like that.
Just one piece of cursed equipment can easily destroy the city.
I've seen that kind of situation many times.
"So, I'm asking you too..."
Miss Miimo bows her head solemnly.
"――We need your power. Please, help us save the holy city."
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