I Became a Veteran Who Has to Stir Up Trouble to Survive - Chapter 53

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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[053] The Descent of the Great Demon #5
The sky of Layer 2 was staining deeper and deeper with the color of blood.
The rifts in the torn dimension widened moment by moment, exhaling a dark crimson aura.
The intermittent lightning strikes that had been falling now descended without pause, shaking the earth itself.
“The Northern Mountain Range and Southern Valley have completely collapsed!”
“Stonebreach Gorge has been eroded by demonic energy. Mutant monsters are appearing in droves!”
“The stone bridge near the Plaza has collapsed! Forty-one Adventurers who couldn’t evacuate in time have perished!”
“There’s almost no safe zone left! Be careful not to be consumed by the demonic energy!!”
“The claim that we can escape to the Surface through the portal is a lie!! We must offer Knights and Mages as sacrifices now to appease its wrath!”
“Cooperate with the demon! Those who aid the demon may survive!”
Scattered cries of madness erupted from the Plaza, but they were soon swallowed by the dull sounds of impact and horrific screams that followed.
Minions whose minds had been dominated by Andras.
They whispered ominous conspiracy theories and occasionally engaged in violent clashes, spreading terror throughout.
A miniature version of a world standing on the brink of apocalypse.
I thought to myself, ‘It’s already spread this far.’
And this was before Andras had even launched a full-scale assault.
But they were merely bait. The truly dangerous ones were still holding their breath, waiting for their opportunity.
I had to eliminate them before the real battle began.
I entered a deserted Cave, bringing Radi with me.
In the silence-laden space, Radi gazed into my eyes and spoke.
“This is my first time equipping a rune… How do I do it?”
“Normally, you’d extract power from the Temple and absorb it slowly.”
“But we can’t reach the Temple right now.”
“…Right. That’s why we’ll have to use a more drastic method.”
I answered, unable to hide my bitterness.
It would be recovered with potions anyway, but the resistance was unavoidable.
Radi understood my meaning and calmly rolled up her right sleeve.
My chest ached at the reality that I would have to drive my grotesque claws into this frail forearm.
“…I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. There’s no other way if we want to survive.”
“Right. I understand.”
Self-recrimination could wait until later.
Now was the time to steel my resolve and focus on the goal before me.
Having prepared myself, I bound Radi firmly with rope in case I lost my sanity and went berserk.
The moment I drove my claws into her forearm, gritting my teeth─.
Squelch!
With the horrific sound of tearing flesh, a black aura seeped through the wound and into Radi’s veins.
“[The Night Stalker’s Rune] is consuming its new master!”
“Your companion Radi has suffered a critical wound! A powerful force of Darkness is ravaging her body!”
“Ah, it hurts…!”
A stifled scream tore from Radi’s lips.
As the claws dissolved, the unleashed darkness surged through her veins with the force of a tidal wave.
I hastily forced a high-grade potion down Radi’s throat, then soaked the remaining potion into gauze and pressed it against the wound.
Tsssshhh—! White vapor rose as if red-hot metal had been plunged into water.
“I… I can still endure this much…!”
Radi couldn’t finish her words and her head drooped limply.
Just as I was about to check her complexion, thinking she’d lost consciousness, I witnessed something horrifying.
Drip—drip—trickle—.
Dark crimson blood was pouring from Radi’s nose and mouth.
The sound of blood droplets striking the ground grew increasingly violent against my ears.
When Radi lifted her head, her eyes were filled with terror.
She had instinctively grasped what fate awaited her.
「The darkness of the rune begins devouring blood and flesh, raging ferociously!」
「The healing power of Goddess Agatha within the potion activates! The body collapses and regenerates repeatedly!」
「The darkness has consumed the kidneys! The bone marrow becomes corrupted! Severed blood vessels repair themselves, and the shoulder blade fractures!」
“Ah… ahhh…!”
Radi trembled like an aspen leaf.
The excruciating agony of bones crumbling and flesh melting away.
I could do nothing but clench my teeth and watch.
Inevitable resentment blooming from the pain, and a desperate yearning to survive.
The crimson marks on her cheeks were obscured by blood, and her ice-blue eyes wavered as if fractured glass.
Notification sounds continued ringing in my ears—ding, ding, relentlessly.
Radi’s agony and terror were giving me strength.
What a horrifying irony this was.
Just as I watched Radi, unable even to scream, only gasping hoarsely, the log window suddenly updated.
「Your ally Radi has partially digested the power contained in [Night Stalker’s Rune]!」
「Warning!! The darkness is encroaching on the brain, causing temporary mental collapse!」
Snap—as the rope severed, our eyes met.
Pupils slit vertically. Those jaguar eyes that had sent chills down my spine.
“Darkness Leap—.”
Her form was instantly sucked into the shadows.
“Damn it!!”
I immediately transformed into Night Stalker and gave chase.
Where did she go?
A faint scent of blood grazed my nostrils, and I sensed the wavering pulse of shadows.
I instinctively used Darkness Leap to follow Radi’s presence.
Exiting the cave, leaping across the gorge, ascending the rocky mountain, and looking up at the cliff face—there she was.
Radi stood precariously at the cliff’s edge, the battlefield sprawling beneath her feet.
In her bloodstained hands was a sharp steel bolt.
Slowly raising her arm, the blade’s point aimed at her own throat.
“I cannot die!!”
“I cannot die!!”
“I cannot die!! My wounds are healing at an accelerated rate!!”
A sight too horrifying to bear witness to with open eyes.
The moment she whimpered and hurled herself toward the Cliff Bottom where demonic energy pooled—
—No!!
I launched myself forward with all my strength and caught Radi by the waist mid-air.
With a heavy thud, we crashed to the ground, and I pinned down Radi as she thrashed about like a wild beast, her reason shattered.
“Ugh…!”
Her strength was extraordinary.
A monstrous power beyond anything I’d ever imagined from her in her normal state.
If I applied too much force, her body would crumble beneath me.
A human body that disregarded the rupture of muscles and tendons proved far more resilient and delicate than I’d anticipated.
Even as her nails tore her own flesh into a bloody mess, her ragged breathing gradually began to slow.
“Nngh… ah….”
Radi’s resistance waned, and her sharply raised nails slowly relaxed.
Soon, her small frame—caked in blood, sweat, and dust—trembled faintly in my embrace as she gasped for breath.
“…Have you calmed down?”
“I don’t know… My head feels like it’s splitting apart… My body feels like it’s being torn into a thousand pieces… What should I do…?”
“Don’t push yourself. You can rest for a moment.”
“No. I have to do this now.”
Radi staggered to her feet.
I tried to support her as she swayed from dizziness, but she roughly brushed my hand away.
Then she drew the dagger from my waist and without hesitation pierced her own hand.
Squelch!
“Radi!”
But the wound sealed itself in an instant.
As black blood dripped from the blade onto the ground, the stone hissed and melted away.
“…Are you alright?”
“Because of the pain… all my senses are heightened.”
Radi sniffed the air.
“Sulfur.”
Her eyes no longer trembled.
She had found her singular purpose—the only task she could accomplish.
As her pupils, gleaming with darkness and obsession, swept across the Battlefield, the confused Adventurers beneath the crimson sky came into view at a glance.
And among them, the anomalous presences that did not belong.
Radi pointed at a man with her finger.
“There. That man reeks of demon.”
“That person was… likely the leader of a mid-tier Adventurer Party. Are you certain?”
“Yes.”
Before I could even stop her, she vanished from sight.
Radi burst from the man’s shadow and without hesitation drew a dagger across his throat.
The Adventurer collapsed without even a scream.
“A lethal toxin has instantly eliminated the enemy!”
“You’ve accurately identified Andras’s minion! Reducing the number of enemies lurking within before the full-scale battle will be tremendously helpful!”
Radi returned through Shadow Leap and hurled the severed head to the ground.
From the cut surface of the neck, a bundle of tentacles erupted violently before subsiding.
Clear evidence of demonic corruption.
Radi pointed with a finger at the people scattered sparsely throughout Layer 2.
“They’re all traitors.”
“…Damn it.”
Looking at their faces, they were all formidable opponents.
From mid-sized Mercenary Company commanders to seasoned Adventurers, even Mages among them.
‘I had no idea they’d infiltrated this deeply….’
If we’d engaged in battle as things stood, it would have been catastrophic.
Even with just a few culled out, the damage was considerable. Adding all the minor traitors would be beyond imagination.
“Can you handle this? We need to reduce their numbers as much as possible from here on.”
“….”
Instead of answering, Radi pierced her palm with the dagger, stained it with blood, and vanished before my eyes.
Radi hunted the traitors, moving freely between shadows.
From concealment, from behind trees, sometimes boldly appearing from the front—she severed the breath from each traitor.
A man who sensed the ambush thrust his sword forward, but Radi didn’t dodge. Instead, she glared at him with wild eyes and advanced.
“Radi has been pierced by a sword and suffered a fatal wound! Her lungs are torn and she cannot breathe!”
“Radi has severed the traitor’s neck! Consecutive elimination of Andras’s minions! A remarkable Achievement!”
“A Superior Potion restores the damaged organs! Shadow Leap can be used again!”
Radi pulled the longsword embedded in her body and let it fall.
At that ghastly, harrowing sight, I clenched my fists until they trembled and made a vow.
‘…I will repay you without fail.’
I will escape this place with her.
And when this hellish night ends, I will repay her someday, without exception.
The price of all this suffering.
* * *
Returning to the Stone Plaza with solemn resolve, the preparations for battle were still in full swing.
Around the Gate shrouded by a massive barrier, Knights reinforcing the fortifications and Mages inspecting the wards filled the bustling crowd.
From within that chaos, Malton, directing the Adventurers with golden hair flowing, spotted Doran and strode toward him.
“You’ve come, Doran. Radi is… I needn’t ask, I suppose.”
As Malton gazed at the distant mountain with a bitter expression, Doran gave a short nod.
“…Did you get what I asked for?”
“Of course. It’s here.”
Malton held out a heavy bundle.
Doran checked the contents inside and cautioned once more.
“I’m saying this again… if it seems dangerous, you can stop even now. I’ll figure out something.”
“Aren’t you underestimating me a bit too much? I’ve got a trick or two up my sleeve, so don’t worry. Besides, even young Radi is suffering through this, so I can’t very well complain, can I?”
Malton answered with an easy laugh.
If Radi had taken on the most agonizing task, then Malton had his own role to play.
A high-risk mission that would be impossible without considerable nerve.
A role where one misstep could mean losing your head in an instant.
“Understood then… are you ready?”
“Of course, Doran.”
Malton grasped his hand firmly, his eyes gleaming with unwavering trust and resolve.
“…I look forward to your efforts as well. Combat will begin soon, so why don’t you take a look around? Understanding the fortification layout beforehand will be helpful.”
“Right.”
After accepting the suggestion, Doran passed through the outer perimeter of the Defense Line with Malton and witnessed several laborers grunting as they erected a massive wooden palisade.
Doran passed by them indifferently and pushed a palisade post into place with a single hand.
Thud!
“W-what…? With just one hand…?”
“….”
The surrounding Adventurers murmured among themselves, but Doran, preoccupied with reviewing the upcoming plan, walked on in silence.
Next came a section where the collapsed Trench was undergoing repairs.
He approached the laborers struggling to remove the support beams and kicked at a protruding stake.
The timber that hadn’t budged despite multiple grown men straining against it suddenly came free.
While the laborers stood speechless, Doran lightly leaped onto the Rocky Hill above.
The location where the Warrior and Carpenter Guild’s catapults were positioned.
Soldiers were breaking into a sweat loading heavy stones.
Doran casually pulled the catapult’s cord taut and fixed it, then lifted a boulder the size of a house and placed it on the loading platform.
His movements were light, as if handling a feather.
Unable to bear watching any longer, Malton sighed and asked.
“Just how much stronger have you become?”
“I’m not sure….”
Doran glanced sideways at the status window he’d turned off because the notifications were bothersome.
Malton witnessed the corners of Doran’s mouth trembling faintly as he stared at the edge of his vision.
Doran looked up at the Sky Rift and answered.
“Strong enough to twist the necks of demons.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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