The Regressed Sword Demon Is a Catastrophe-Class Inquisitor - Chapter 51

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

Chapter 51. You Won’t Let Go?

I picked up the fallen sword from the ground and regarded Litvel. He was slowly rising to his feet.

‘He condensed his mana at the point of impact to block it.’

I had struck with the intention of shattering his ribs. It seemed he hadn’t climbed to that position as a mere mercenary for nothing.
Litvel spat blood-tinged saliva onto the ground.

“I suspected as much from the kidnapping of the Holy Maiden, but you truly are a violent one. Charging at me on sight.”
“You threw the spear first. By comparison, I think I’ve shown considerable restraint.”
“That was merely to protect Sena from you.”

Protect whom from whom? Knowing the original future as I do, I couldn’t help but scoff internally.
It seemed he believed Sena was unaware of his plans. Had she known, he wouldn’t have dared speak such words.

“How amusing. If I had dodged, that spear would have been aimed at Sena.”
“That’s slander.”
“The moment it struck, you crafted it to shatter like a twig. Surely to kill Sena and leave no trace.”
“During combat, I couldn’t retrieve it, so I used it temporarily. Stop trying to drive a wedge between Sena and me.”

Litvel’s brow furrowed sharply as he turned to look at Sena.

“Come here, Sena. You need not listen to that one any longer.”
“….”
“If you fled because I asked you to see my future, I sincerely apologize. I shall make no such request again.”

Litvel extended his hand toward Sena.

“Come, let us return now. To your home, as it was meant to be.”

Sena stared intently at Litvel’s outstretched hand, then looked up at me. She still seemed unable to decide what to do.
I kept my gaze fixed on Litvel as I spoke softly.

“You may go if you wish. To someone who still speaks such things without understanding your heart.”
“….”
“Of course, if you do, I will ensure that one dies in the most agonizing way possible. He must pay for mocking so many others until now.”

Sena’s lips trembled as she fought back tears, unable to form words. Litvel, watching her struggle, cried out.

“Sena! Why are you listening to him? Come over here at once!”
“Silence. What makes you think I’d simply let her go?”

At my words, Litvel’s lips curled into a forced smile.

“You can’t kill Sena anyway. If that were your goal, you would have done it long ago.”
“Hah….”

I exhaled a long breath, letting my emotions settle like ash.

“Every last one of you speaks as though this wretch’s fate is beneath your concern.”
“Sena! Hurry!”

Sena’s gaze flickered between me and Litvel, her inner conflict evident. Unable to decide, she squeezed her eyes shut and invoked her stigmata.
Moments later, tears streamed down her jawline.
I couldn’t know which future she had glimpsed. Yet slowly, she opened her eyes and took a step toward me.

“Sena, why would you….”

Litvel’s pupils quivered. Sena gently grasped the hem of my robe.
She asked softly.

“If I do this… can the Bishop live?”
“Unlikely. He has committed grave sins—even if handed to the Papal See, execution is inevitable.”
“I see….”
“But something has changed. At least you won’t have to take your own life because of him.”

In her past life, Sena had ended herself to protect Litvel.
Even now, her actions were for his sake, yet at least Sena would not die.
I watched Litvel, his teeth grinding audibly.

“Do you still believe she fled because of your coercion?”
“If not that, then what? Was she crushed beneath the burden of being a Holy Maiden?”
“No. She is not so fragile as to flee for such reasons.”
“Ha, what would you know….”
“At least more than you.”

I placed my hand lightly on Sena’s head.

“This one knew everything you did. And that you tried to kill her.”
“…What?”
“More precisely, she saw that future.”

Litvel pondered for a moment, then his eyes widened.

“Could it be… back then…?”

I nodded.

“That’s why she fled. To avoid being killed by you.”
“…So running away with you was also to report me to the Papal See.”

I could only marvel at his stupidity.

“Wow… this bastard is thicker-skulled than I thought. Did your brain calcify from sitting at that desk all day….”
“What?”
“I fled to protect you. If you killed her, you’d be accused of murdering a Holy Maiden.”
“….”
“You should know the future she saw when she obtained the stigma of Yejis.”

His eyes narrowed.

“…You’re saying she took her own life as she saw in that future, to save me.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere.”
“Such….”

Litvel’s clenched fists trembled violently.
It seemed some human emotion still remained in him. Even if she was an adopted daughter he’d accepted only through his own delusion, they’d spent years together.
But I had gravely underestimated his demonic nature.

“She should have died long ago if she knew that!”

Litvel roared loudly. Sena flinched at his ferocious expression, as if seeing it for the first time.

“B-Bishop…?”
“Why did you flee so pointlessly? How far could you possibly run with that frail body!!”

Litvel’s eyes burned with malice.

“You should have repaid the debt of my kindness by dying! You orphaned wretch would have starved without me!”
“….”
“Yet you dragged things out and created this mess? You became the Saint of Foresight solely to fulfill that first vision you witnessed!”

For a moment, I felt as though I had stepped into Hell itself. Before my eyes stood garbage that transcended human limits.
Sena’s shoulders trembled violently. Her expression suggested she might burst into tears at any moment.
Just as I was about to speak.

“Y-you’re the one who did wrong!”

Sena snarled like a kitten.

“…What?”
“I did my best to protect you in my own way! But you, in the end….”

Sena’s eyes glistened with tears as she scowled.

“So that’s why you told the Heretic Inquisitor everything? You chose that bastard you’ve only known for a few days over me, whom you’ve spent years with, just for that?”
“At least the Interrogator doesn’t try to kill me like you do. He even tried to protect me even when he was in danger.”
“Shut your mouth! Without being a Holy Maiden, you’re utterly worthless!”

Litvel’s face flushed crimson as he seethed. Sena bit her lip hard, then looked up at me.

“Interrogator….”
“What is it.”

Sena grasped the hem of my robe and pointed at Litvel.

“Punish him for me. Make sure he can’t say such horrible things anymore.”

It was truly remarkable.
Sena was someone who would have taken her own life to protect Litvel. Yet with merely a few exchanges of words, she could change her heart so completely….
If that could be called a talent, it would certainly be an extraordinary one.

‘A talent ripe for a beating.’

I stepped back, pushing Sena behind me, and let out a cold laugh.

“That’s what I do best.”

I planted my sword into the ground. Then, lowering my stance, I wrapped flames around both my fists.

“Come at me. You could use a beating.”

Litvel sneered at the sight, finding it ridiculous.

“You’ll face me without a sword? Aren’t you getting a bit arrogant after landing one attack?”
“That’s none of your concern.”
“Fine then. Killing you both works just fine for me.”

Litvel wrapped blue mana around his spear. He tilted his upper body forward slightly, then pushed off the ground and launched himself forward with explosive speed.
Litvel cut through the air as he approached. His spear thrust toward my throat as if to pierce right through it.
It was a ferocious attack I couldn’t block with my hands alone. So I pulled the sword I’d planted in the ground.

“…!”

Litvel panicked and abandoned his attacking stance. My blade was sliding past the trajectory of his spear, heading straight for him.
But Litvel, who had focused entirely on the offense, had no way to properly defend against my sword.

Shing!

One of Litvel’s arms flew skyward. I’d intended to sever both, but he managed to twist his body just enough.
Litvel hastily created distance, his eyes narrowing.

“You… resorting to such cowardly tricks again….”

I tilted my head. I had never once said I wouldn’t use a sword.
I simply planted it in the ground and clenched my fists—he’d simply assumed on his own that I wouldn’t use it.

“Is he an idiot….”

There was no other way to explain this.
But I was a considerate man, even toward fools, so I planted my sword in the ground again and gripped both my flame-wrapped fists.
Litvel ground his teeth.

“You think I’ll fall for it again?”
“This time I truly won’t use my sword. Against a one-armed fool, my fists are more than enough.”

I deliberately adopted an even more ridiculous stance before asking seriously.

“Are you ready to get hit?”
“Shut….”

The moment he opened his mouth, I was already charging at him. His opinion was irrelevant anyway.
Litvel thrust his spear to block me. I twisted my body slightly and deflected it with the back of my hand, letting it slip past.

Whoosh!

The spear cut through the air past my face, and I drove deeper forward.
His exposed abdomen came into view. I drove my fist straight into it.

Thud!

The solid sensation against my knuckles—he’d condensed his mana to defend himself, just like before.
If I’d been wielding a blade, I could have cut through even that, but bare-handed, it was impossible.
Still, fists had their own advantages. In close-quarters combat where sword movements became restricted, I could attack freely.
In other words, I could pummel him however I pleased.

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat-boom!

In an instant, I unleashed ten punches across his face and upper body.
By then, Litvel’s best option was to withdraw the spear he’d thrust forward.
A spear was a weapon meant to be wielded with both hands to show its true advantage, but he’d apparently sold off one of his arms somewhere.

“Damn it…!”

He tried to retreat backward to create distance between us.
But he couldn’t escape my effective range.

Crack!

I seized the spear with one hand with crushing force. He twisted his face and tried to wrench it free, but I had no intention of letting go.
With my other hand, I slashed across his face. Without his other arm, the best he could do was writhe his neck side to side.

“Let go. Let go. You bastard.”

Smack! Smack! Smack!

“You won’t let go? This is mine.”

Under the relentless barrage of blows, Litvel had no choice but to release his spear and retreat.
His face swollen, Litvel gasped for breath as he pleaded.

“…Give it back.”

I gripped my newly acquired weapon and answered with gravity.

“I never said I wouldn’t use the spear.”
“….”

I swung the spear with both hands in a flourish before settling into my stance. Litvel ground his teeth and offered his advice.

“…You’re holding it backwards, you bastard.”

The spearpoint faced my body, while the blunt end aimed toward him.

“That’s intentional.”

I had decided not to kill him by my own hand. All Sena had asked of me was to teach Litvel a lesson—to silence that foul mouth of his once and for all.
To ensure he could never speak such vile words again.

Whoosh!

I lunged forward and swung the spear at him.
That’s right—not a thrust, but a swing, wielding it like a club.

Crack! Crack!

Without his weapon, he reinforced his bare body with mana to block the blows.
But he couldn’t completely nullify the impact—it was more accurate to say he was taking the hits as painlessly as possible.

“Wait, just a moment….”

It clearly hurt, though.
But this was nothing compared to the agony of watching your own abdomen split open, waiting for death by exsanguination.
Nothing compared to the pain of betrayal by someone I had followed like my own father.

Thud! Thud!

Litvel could no longer endure it. He abandoned any attempt at defense and turned to flee.
But I pursued him relentlessly, raining blows upon his crown and shoulders without restraint.
Unable to shake me off, Litvel finally collapsed to the ground in agony, curling into himself, and I drove my spear down upon the creature he had become—Kong Vermin.

“Ugh… ugh…!”

How much must I beat him for him to even glimpse the pain of death? Where should I strike to make him wish to abandon life itself?
Would this alone be enough for him?
No. It was nowhere near sufficient.

Whoosh!

Flames erupted from the spear, unimbued with holy power. I brought it crashing down upon Litvel, who remained curled upon the ground.

Crash—

In that moment, a small figure seized me with sudden force. The spear, wreathed in fury, froze suspended in the air.

“I-Interrogator, sir…”

Sena buried her face in my clothes, her voice trembling with sobs.

“Please… stop.”

By then, Litvel lay unconscious, his form a bloodied mass.
Sena had decided to release him upon seeing his true self, yet the memory of Litvel—the one who had extended his hand to an orphan girl—still lingered in her heart.

Whoosh—

I extinguished the flames and cast the spear aside.
If the person involved was satisfied, that was enough. I had achieved my objective; there was no reason to intervene further.

“Litbel Bishop will be handed over to the Papal See. This will likely be the last time you see him.”
“…”
“If you have anything left to say, go and say it. He may be unconscious, but still.”

Sena wiped away her tears and nodded. She then stood at the head of Litvel’s bed, gazing silently at her unconscious adoptive father for a moment.
I could not know what thoughts occupied her mind.
Perhaps she was recalling the peaceful past, or wrestling with the chaos of the present, or imagining a future without Litvel.
But whatever it was, now she alone had to decide. I had merely granted her the right to choose her own future.
Soon she parted her lips with difficulty.

“Farewell.”

Thwack!

Sena drove her foot into Litvel’s face. His head snapped to the side, blood spraying from his mouth.
That was the greatest courage she could muster in this moment.

Patter-patter!

Sena immediately turned and rushed toward me, clinging to me like a cicada just as before.

“Interrogator.”

Sena buried her face and gently grasped my garment. Her words came out strained, as if wrung from her very core.

“Thank you.”

The sound of water flowing at the stream bank reached my ears.
I gazed at her, unable to lift her head, and exhaled the emotions that had settled to the depths of my being. Warm breath scattered on the wind.
Then one corner of my mouth softened.

“Very well.”

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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