noveltune Chapter 279
Chapter 279
The demonic beasts are coming.
Swarming demonic beasts.
A hell filled with endless black demonic beasts covering the horizon.
I stained that hell even darker with the soot of the demonic beasts I burned.
But no matter how much I burned, the hell wouldn’t end.
How many more must I burn for this hell to finish?
How many more strokes do I need to end this hell?
Thinking this way, as I numbingly burned the demonic beasts,
I felt the gazes directed this way.
Every time I felt those gazes, I shouted inside.
It’s nothing, so just ignore it and don’t pay attention.
But if I absentmindedly turned my eyes toward where the gazes were coming from,
I would lock eyes with those staring at me, burning alongside the demonic beasts.
Then, I saw another something in human form burning and falling.
No matter how much they were the flesh lumps deprived of will, controlled by the witch of lust,
every time I looked at them in pain, I unconsciously ascribed meaning to their gazes.
It was my doing.
I burned them.
I killed them.
With every gaze I burned, my heart stained black like the soot that dyed this hell.
And still, the remaining demonic beasts were countless.
And among them, the gazes left were also numerous.
So I had to burn the demonic beasts and the gazes once again.@@@@
While my heart was gnawing away.
Until this hell ends.
Continuously.
...
I opened my eyes to a strange sense of buoyancy.
As I regained my consciousness, what I felt was the sunlight piercing through the window and the sensation of the blanket covering my body.
After sitting blankly for a moment and surveying my surroundings, I realized that I was in my room in Sylvia’s mansion, and I came to understand that I had been dreaming just moments ago.
Ah, right. Now that I think about it, the witch of lust had escaped.
Maybe it was because the battle that day had been rather tough; it seemed I had a nightmare.
To shake off this uncomfortable feeling, I rose from my bed to open the window and get some fresh air.
“Eek?!”
– Caw!
At that moment, a small bird flew in as if it had been waiting for the opened window and landed on my shoulder.
“What... what is this! Get away!”
– Caw! Squeak!
Startled by the sudden action of the mysterious bird occupying my shoulder, I attempted to shake it off, but it stubbornly clung to me as if it were its rightful place.
A bit dumbfounded, I stared at the creature on my shoulder and finally realized it wasn’t an ordinary bird.
After all, the body I thought was just a bird was made up of blazing flames.
With an appearance that anyone could recognize as a furious demonic beast.
Moreover, its form was like a reduced version of that giant fiery bird that had led the angry demonic beasts to come aid me.
I cautiously asked the bird, “Are you perhaps its baby?”
Her words made me smile wryly.
Ah, she noticed that I hadn’t eaten much.
Well, it would indeed be strange not to notice when sitting across from someone at a meal.
As I briefly thought about it, I slowly shook my head and opened my mouth.
“No, it’s not that... I just don’t have much of an appetite.”
“Not an appetite? Does that mean there’s something wrong with your body...?”
Did she interpret my lack of appetite as indicating that something might be wrong since I used to eat a lot?
Seeing Sylvia’s expression immediately change to concern, I hastily shook my head and spoke.
“Not at all. I’ve become a witch, you know? Maybe it’s because I don’t particularly need to consume food for energy anymore; ever since I became a witch, my appetite just hasn’t been the same.”
“I can’t say since I’m not a witch, but is it really okay not to eat that much?”
Because she isn’t a witch, Sylvia seemed worried watching me take almost no food.
As I contemplated how to alleviate her concerns, a good idea struck me, and I spoke to her.
“Well, if you’re really worried, I could substitute my meals with something else.”
“Something else?”
“What you know, the round thing we ate together when we returned to the city. Wasn’t it called combat rations?”
“Eek...”
When I mentioned combat rations, Sylvia made a horrified expression as if I were saying something dreadful.
“Are you saying you want to replace your meals with that?”
“Yes. They said one of those could substitute a whole day’s worth of meals.”
“Um, that is true... but the taste...”
“I thought it was edible? Anyway, if you have some left, bring a few. I’ll just have that for my meals for a while.”
At my words, Sylvia made a very reluctant expression and asked.
“Are you serious...?”
“I’m serious.”
“Ugh, fine. If Miss Scarlet is okay with that...”
Sylvia brought me the pouch containing the combat rations with incredulity.
When I took one ration out and swallowed it in one go, Sylvia gasped and murmured.
“How can you eat that like it’s nothing?”
“Why? I’m telling you it’s edible! Here, want to try one?”
I shrugged my shoulders nonchalantly and, after deciding it was nothing, took out another combat ration from the pouch and held it out to the bird sitting on my shoulder.
– Caw
The bird then lightly tapped my hand away with its wing as if to say it didn’t want it.
Seeing the bird seemingly angry with me, Sylvia chuckled.
“Look, see? It got mad because you offered it something so tasteless.”
“Hmm... is that so? Is it angry because I gave it something tasteless?”
I gazed back at the bird and asked.
In response, it quietly stared at me and let out a soft caw.
It was as if to show its annoyance wasn’t because of that.
And somehow, I could understand the reason why.
After glancing at Sylvia, who was smiling at our antics, I whispered.
“Shh, can you keep it a secret?”
I placed my index finger on my lips and asked softly.
Then the bird looked at me with a displeased expression.
After a moment, it slowly nodded as if reluctantly agreeing.