Youngest on Top - Chapter 253

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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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Chapter 253

“…!”

I stared at Reks in shock.

‘…Does he know me? How?’

No matter how hard I thought about it, I had never met Reks before.
At least not in this lifetime.

“To come this far is truly impressive, I’ll give you that.”

Reks slowly brushed his hand through my hair.

“Why would you use such remarkable power wagging your tail at filthy demons?”

What?

“Or did you gain such power by wagging your tail at demons?”
“…?!”

Crack!
The hand brushing through my hair suddenly clenched, seizing my scalp.

“Ugh….”

My head was forced upward instinctively.
Eyes bearing the distinctive gaze of a beast methodically swept across my face.
Eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks.
Just as our eyes were about to meet again, he released me with a push.

“Lock him up.”

As I lifted my head after being shoved away.
All I could see was his receding figure.
Above his loosened garment, a crimson seal carved into his solid back seemed to burn with intensity.

* * *

The man who had carried Saelika on his shoulder—Rashka—quickly followed after Reks.
Reks was already half-reclined, drinking heavily.
His bearing was naturally that of a ruler—carefree and composed—but Rashka had no leisure to admire such a sight.

“What on earth is happening? Saelika? Don’t tell me it’s actually that Saelika?”

Of course, Reks did not answer.
Instead, Paffenpa, a beastman who had been attending to him, answered in his stead.

“If you are asking whether she is the Sacred Maiden of the Artemia Temple, then yes, she is.”
“No, that’s not the important part.”

Rashka watched Reks, who merely sipped his drink while wiping his face dry.

“There was a little one in the Dantalian Desert who sealed the core of corruption in a single stroke.”

About five years ago from now.
They had witnessed Saelika leading priests to subjugate the monsters of the Dantalian Desert.

“To purify such corruption in a single moment… she might indeed be ‘that one.'”
“Do not judge hastily. The omens of calamity have already appeared. The time draws near when the Demon King shall descend.”
“….”
“We must find the bloodline of the god who will save the world before then.”

At that time, they had no choice but to withdraw immediately.
An ominous and sinister aura had guarded the boundary as if drawing a curtain.

Rashka, recalling those old days, asked with a serious expression.

“Is it really that little one from back then?”
“Can’t you tell by looking?”
“I can’t. It’s been so long, and I only saw her briefly from a distance—.”
“….”
“What amazes me is how you recognized her.”

At that question, Reks brought the cup to his lips once more.

“…There’s a scent I’ve somehow known since long ago.”

The words muttered low were muffled by alcohol and barely audible.
Paffenpa asked.

“Is that important, Rashka?”
“Important… it’s not important.”

Rashka shook his head and slumped down.
As he removed the bone mask, the distinctive eyes of a wolf beastman were revealed.

“After all, our savior has appeared.”

I had strived so hard to prevent the Demon King’s descent, but it was all in vain.
The calamity had already begun.

Hundreds of lives were snuffed out in an instant, like candles before the wind.
Among them were infants who had not yet been weaned.
It seemed as though we would perish right then and there.

‘That person appeared.’

Even now, when I close my eyes, that sight comes to mind.
That magnificent being who appeared with radiant light.
‘Amelia…!’
But separately, there was something I couldn’t understand.
“But what was that you said earlier? What does Saelika have to do with demons?”
Reks remained silent for a moment before speaking.
“The revelation foretold a calamity. And it said that the bloodline of the divine would prevent that calamity and save us.”
“….”
“Rashka, what do you think this calamity is?”
“It’s written in the revelation. The Demon God’s proxy seeks to swallow this land in darkness.”
“Yes. What does that mean?”
“What else? It means the descent of the Demon King, doesn’t it?”

At Rashka’s words, Reks tilted his cup.
He too had thought the same way before.
But as time passed, he began to think differently.

Is the Demon King truly descending?
Does the Demon God’s proxy refer only to the Demon King?

And that suspicion solidified when I met Amelia.

“Do you remember what Amelia said right after she saved the beastmen?”

“Oh no. I’m sorry. I was too late. I should have come faster. I should have stopped it…!”

Even after saving countless remaining lives, Amelia wept with regret.
For those she couldn’t save, for those she couldn’t rescue in greater numbers.

“If only that girl hadn’t…”

Amelia whispered, consumed by sorrow.

“If that girl hadn’t stolen my power and interfered with me, I could have saved everyone. Ah…!”

Rashka’s face hardened rigidly at the memory of that same scene.

“Surely not…”
“The bloodline of the Savior God was human—Amelia. So why couldn’t the Demon God’s proxy be human as well?”
“…!”

It was a reasonable argument.
If the Demon God’s proxy is the Demon King, a demon, then the bloodline of the God should be of the celestial race.
Where there is light, shadow follows.
Yin and yang always correspond.

“Even so, suspecting Saelika makes no sense!”
“She’s the one who interfered with Amelia and stole her power.”
“But the power Saelika used to purify the core of corruption back then was genuine!”
“A cuckoo bird that killed its true offspring will do its utmost to pretend to be its true offspring.”
“…!”

Rashka fell silent.

“More than anything, something feels off whenever our eyes meet with that young woman.”

Reks raised his right hand to his chest.

“It feels like something is tearing around here.”

Reks’s gaze drifted toward a distant point, as if probing his senses.
As though Saelika stood before him.
His brow furrowed deeply.

“Most unpleasant.”
“…If your instinct says so, then it must be true.”

Rashka nodded in agreement.
Reks’s instinct was absolute.
It was less intuition than prescience.

That was when it happened.

“Your Majesty!”

A feline beastman entered and dropped to one knee.

“The intruder has escaped!!”
“…!”

* * *

Thud!
With a dull sound, sacred power bounced back.
I clicked my tongue and bit my hand in frustration.

‘There’s some strange sorcery woven into the barrier.’

I’d come willingly, thinking I could escape easily.

‘What do I do now.’

Anakin: I told you so!
Anakin: I said not to come alone!

I tapped the barrier thoughtfully, deliberating.

‘Should I just break through?’

Leaving would actually be simple.
I could borrow Serha’s power just as I had when I arrived.

‘The prison is bound with curses, and the beastmen’s territory itself is covered in formation arrays, but that doesn’t matter.’

This was the power of an Archangel, after all.
There was no way Serha’s strength could be stopped by such curses or formation arrays.

I attempted to draw upon my holy power and connect with Serha.
I had no real intention of leaving—I was simply running a test.
But then.

‘Huh? Serha?’

Serha: …The connection is weak.
Serha: Our conversation works fine, but I don’t think I can channel my power through.

‘….’

Enrik: Whoever designed this is quite clever.
Enrik: Since blocking an Archangel’s power directly is difficult, they’ve weakened the connection itself.
Kailros: Disrupting the connection is far easier anyway.

‘It’s probably Reks’s handiwork.’

Less a matter of intellect and more following instinct.
Either way, who created it wasn’t the pressing concern right now.

‘I can’t stay trapped here indefinitely. I need to investigate everything I can quickly and get out.’

Enrik: What will you do?

‘I have no choice. I’ll have to resort to classical methods.’

I cracked my joints with a series of pops.
Then I cried out.

“Ow~ My belly~~! Ow~~!”

Enrik: ….
Serha: ….
Anakin: …He really can’t act.
Kailros: But my little brother trying so hard is adorable.

* * *

Crack!
The beastman struck on the back of his neck collapsed.

Enrik: Usually in this situation, wouldn’t you put them to sleep with sacred magic?

I confidently raised my fist.

‘This is also excellent sacred magic.’

As I heightened my senses, I felt traces of a peculiar aura.
I threw myself toward that location, suppressing my presence.

Enrik: Be careful!
Enrik: Beastmen have developed senses, so you’ll be discovered quickly….

Enrik trailed off mid-sentence.

Anakin: What?
Anakin: Why are you hiding so well?

‘Hmph! Who did I evade for a thousand years!’

Serha: …Should I praise this or not.
Kailros: The “catch me if you can” game was a cherished memory between me and my little brother.
Serha: This one seems to be sick.

Before long, the acrid air grew so thick it was suffocating.

‘This is it.’

I descended quietly.
The modest hillock appeared unremarkable at first glance.
Just one thing.
A massive gravestone alone bore the weight of sorrow.

Yet I could see it.
The scars of countless souls who had perished here still lingered.

Enrik: …How dreadful.

I placed my hand upon the earth and channeled my sacred power into it.

‘Enrik.’

Enrik: You know how it is.
Enrik: The connection is too weak for me to lend you my power.

‘But there is still a way.’

Serha: You’re not seriously—!
Anakin: You reckless fool!

Regardless of what my brothers said, I drew upon my sacred power all the more forcefully.

‘I don’t know what Misa will do. If I get hurt then—.’

The faces of the crowd filling the stands came to mind.
Those bright smiles as they looked upon me.

‘They’re ordinary people.’

Sacred power spiraled along the Divine Circuit.
Rushing forward as though it would incinerate me.
My heart felt as though it would burst from my chest.

‘Enrik!’

Enrik: I don’t know either!

Through the forcibly strengthened connection, I could hear Enrik’s voice directly.
At the same time, his power cascaded down upon me.

A tyrannical force pressing down overwhelmingly.
I struggled to control that power while attempting to read the memories embedded in this land.
My vision swam dizzily.
Fragmented memories wavered and undulated before me.
And then.

‘This is…!’

The memory buried in the earth unfolded before my eyes.
In that instant.

“Indeed, a lackey of the Demon God.”

Kwaaaaaaang!
A low voice spoke, and simultaneously a tremendous explosion erupted.

“Cough!”

A violent impact shook through my body, and blood surged up my throat.

Enrik: Youngest!

‘Damn it.’

I had forcibly drawn power to maintain the connection, leaving me unable to mount a proper defense.
I lifted my head, gasping for breath.
The King of the Beastmen stared down at me, his eyes gleaming fiercely.

“Was killing them not enough for you?”

Kwack!
He seized my throat in his grip.
Sharp claws dug into my skin.

“Tch….”
“What do you want here now?”
“Oh, it’s a misunderstanding. Hah, I was merely trying to understand what happened—.”
“That’s a pathetically thin excuse.”
“…!”

I hastily rolled my body away.

Boom!
The ground caved in with a tremendous crash.
If I hadn’t dodged, I would have ended up like that.

I desperately tried to operate my tattered Divine Circuit while creating distance between us.
At the same time, I shouted toward Reks.

“Do you know what happened here?”
“Do you think I wouldn’t know?”

Reks’s eyes were stained with regret and fury.
He was remembering the lives that had perished in this place.
But that wasn’t what I was asking about.

“No, you don’t understand! In this place—.”

Kwaaaang!
Before I could finish speaking, an attack came crashing down.
I managed to defend myself, but the more I did, the more my insides twisted.

With a sharp sound, my skin tore open again.
The real problem was the blood that kept rising up.
I forced myself to calm my breathing and shouted.

“I can sense Parmanase’s sacred power here!”
“Of course you can.”
“…?!”

Contrary to my expectations, Reks spoke calmly.

“Amelia, the Sacred Maiden of Parmanase, has saved those dying lives.”
“What…?”

‘What kind of insane nonsense is this.’

Six hundred and sixty-six lives and souls had already been offered as sacrifices.
Yet Amelia saved them?

That’s impossible.
Above all, what I saw was—.

Whoooosh!
A massive greatsword rushed toward me with the sound of air being torn asunder.
It was too late to raise a defensive formation.
I threw out my fist.

Crash!
The blade and my fist collided head-on, and the air rang out sharply.
As a tempestuous wave of energy burst forth, silence descended instead.

“Hagh, hah…!”

I couldn’t help but realize it.
Facing this man right now was beyond my capacity.

By forcibly opening the connection, my Divine Circuit was already tattered.
Continuing to operate the circuit in that state made it feel as though every blood vessel in my body would rupture.

‘But—.’

My lungs felt like they would burst.
Unable to draw forth my strength properly, all my fingers had fractured.
I had already lost all sensation in them.

‘—I am the Sacred Maiden of Artemia!’

I did not release the fist blocking the blade.
Instead, I gripped it even more firmly and pushed forward with all my might.

Shhk.
For reasons I couldn’t fathom, Reks lowered his sword.
His eyes trembled with an odd uncertainty.

“…You.”

That was when it happened.

“You said you wouldn’t meet the Beastmen?”

A playful voice echoed through the air.
Yet beneath it lay a vicious, seething rage.

“Well, if you said you wouldn’t meet them, you absolutely must. My brother and I are quite alike, after all.”

With those words, the sky itself tore open.
A Grand Mage’s spell had been cast.
And then.

“How dare you lay a hand on my daughter…”

A murmured voice sent chills down my spine.
A solid, broad back suddenly stood between me and danger.
I knew this back.

“Your Grace…?”

Perardin Noishurael Duke.
My father’s back.

—————
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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