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Chapter 311: Monstrosity (3)
“…What exactly does that mean?”
Ketal explained what Hephaestus had done.
But even with the explanation, Grombir looked bewildered.
“How is that even…”
A weapon had taken on human form.
Not just an imitation like a simple doll, but a real human.
Grombir himself was also a blacksmith, and not just any blacksmith, but one of the hero class.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was the greatest blacksmith in the world.
But even he couldn’t comprehend how this could have happened.
“…May I touch your arm?”
“Ah, yes.”
The Holy Sword obediently offered her arm.
Grombir took hold of it and let out a small sigh.
The arm was incredibly soft.
It was hard to believe that this was the body of a holy sword.
Grombir focused his mind and invoked his mystical powers, examining the Holy Sword’s physical form.
As a result, he understood.
The Holy Sword’s body was not ordinary.
The minerals that made up the Holy Sword had been transformed by divine power into a form resembling organic matter.
It appeared like ordinary skin, but the tissues were made up of metal refined to its utmost limit.
The girl before him was indeed a Holy Sword that had taken human form.
Grombir was astonished.
This was an ability far beyond his comprehension.
“…I see. Hephaestus, you’ve truly done something remarkable.”
Releasing her arm, Grombir looked at the Holy Sword with a renewed gaze.
The girl was a Holy Sword in human form.
And because of that, she was powerful.
Even if Grombir attacked this defenseless girl, he’d have difficulty leaving a scratch on her skin.
Her skin was made up of metals that had taken the form of human flesh, so it was only natural.
She was a hero class.
And one at a level Grombir would have difficulty defeating.
He explained this part to Ketal.
“As expected.”
Since he had anticipated it, he wasn’t surprised.
Those who wield the Holy Sword possess the power of a hero.
Naturally, a Holy Sword that had become human would also possess the strength of a hero.
“As expected of Hephaestus.”
Grombir murmured with reverence.
Embedding a consciousness into a weapon he’d crafted and enabling it to move with its own will—this was every blacksmith’s dream.
Hephaestus had gone even further to achieve complete humanization.
Until Grombir had checked it himself, he too had assumed she was just an ordinary girl.
Calming his initial shock, Grombir spoke up.
“For now… it seems like you’re as surprised as we are. It looks like Hephaestus didn’t explain things thoroughly.”
“Uh, yes, yes.”
The Holy Sword was still reeling from all that had happened to her.
Grombir said,
“Go back, get a sense of the situation, and we’ll talk again later. I need to calm my own heart as well.”
“Ah, understood.”
Ketal led the Holy Sword outside.
As they walked back to their quarters, dwarves they passed stared wide-eyed at the girl they had never seen before.
Back at the quarters, the Holy Sword murmured blankly.
“I can… feel the wind.”
“Couldn’t you feel it before?”
“No. The ground feels hard. I can feel the texture of the fabric. I feel the movement of the air… It’s truly amazing.”
“Well, congratulations. You’ve gained your freedom.”
Ketal spoke calmly.
The Holy Sword, lost in the sensations, snapped out of her reverie.
“Oh, th-thank you.”
“So, what do you plan to do now?”
“…I’m not sure.”
Hephaestus had granted freedom to the Holy Sword.
After a moment of silence, Ketal spoke again.
“If you want, you’re free to roam the world.”
“R-Really? Is that okay?”
The Holy Sword’s eyes widened in surprise.
After all, she was technically Ketal’s possession.
She never imagined he would release her so easily.
“I don’t mind.”
Losing the information she provided was a pity, but it wasn’t a significant loss.
He had no interest in holding onto a being that had gained its freedom.
“Oh, uh…”
It was complete freedom.
Yet, because of that, the Holy Sword was bewildered.
“To live as a human… what does one need to do?”
The information she had was only about confronting evil.
She had no knowledge of earning money, getting along with people, being part of a community, or doing the things necessary for a normal life.
Ketal replied,
“Start with what feels right to you. You’ll figure it out naturally along the way.”
“What feels right… Hmm.”
After a long moment of contemplation, the Holy Sword made a decision.
She looked at Ketal.
“Would it be alright if I followed you?”
“Hm?”
Ketal tilted his head.
“I don’t mind, but are you sure?”
“I don’t know what to do. For now, I’d like to follow you to learn how to live in this world.”
Her silver, gem-like eyes fixed on him.
“Besides, I like you as a person. Hephaestus didn’t give me any specific instructions about my life, so I think it’s fine. Is that okay with you?”
“Do as you like.”
Ketal replied calmly.
He figured he’d be taking her along for a while, but it wasn’t particularly troublesome for him.
The Holy Sword’s eyes sparkled with joy.
“Oh, thank you! Honestly, I was nervous you’d refuse because it’d be a bother. I now understand what it means to feel your heart race!”
“It doesn’t bother me, I’m used to it.”
In the snowy white plains, Ketal was the chief.
Protecting and leading others was part of his duty.
The Holy Sword appeared as a young girl, but that didn’t pose any problem.
In the white plains, there was no one he could have a normal conversation with.
With a "make do with what’s available" mindset, he had once taken promising children and personally trained them one-on-one many times, though all had failed due to inherent mental limitations.
But since he’d tried countless times, he was used to having someone in his care.
Once permission was granted, the Holy Sword grinned happily.
Afterward, they went to explain the situation to Grombir.
“So, you’ll be traveling together for a while. I was going to suggest staying in the sanctuary if you had nowhere else to go, but I suppose that won’t be necessary.”
Grombir looked at them both curiously.
A girl who looked around her early teens.
And a barbarian three times her size.
“A peculiar combination.”
But somehow, they suited each other.
One was a barbarian from the snowy white plains.
The other, a Holy Sword who was never human to begin with.
Both were far from ordinary beings.
Moreover, the Holy Sword had silver hair.
Some called its pale hue ashen.
At a glance, they could be mistaken for father and daughter.
Though upon closer inspection, one would quickly realize it was a mistake.
They returned to their quarters.
The Holy Sword made a deep bow.
“I look forward to our time together! May I ask one thing?”
“What is it?”
“Could you give me a name? Nothing comes to mind.”
“A name, huh.”
Now that she had a human form, it was fitting for her to have a name.
After a brief moment of thought, Ketal spoke.
“How about Serena?”
“Serena… I like it. No, I love it! Thank you!”
The Holy Sword, now named Serena, cheered happily.
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* * *
Serena rushed out, saying she wanted to explore the world.
The delighted expression on her face was like that of a child.
And indeed, she probably was.
Hephaestus wouldn’t have created her in the form of a young child without reason.
It was likely set to match her mental age.
“I guess I won’t be bored for a while.”
Ketal remained alone in the quarters.
Or rather, he wasn’t truly alone.
There was a monster inside him.
“Hey.”
[What is it?]
A weary voice echoed.
Ketal picked up his axe and gave it a shake.
“Your power… It’s something close to death, isn’t it?”
[You already heard from the kid, so why bother asking?]
The monstrosity spoke indifferently.
His answer confirmed it.
‘I see.’
The mystery he possessed was fused with the monstrosity.
As he summoned it forth, Raphael had shown fear.
When Ketal extracted it, Raphael was seized by terror—a fear of death.
Ketal could tell which direction the power of the Monstrosity leaned.
So he asked,
"Do you know about the quest?"
[I don’t. You're probably talking about that thing you occasionally stare at blankly. It’s neither visible nor perceivable to me.]
The Monstrosity couldn’t sense the quest.
Without Ketal’s reaction, it would have remained clueless.
[If anything, I want to ask you. What on earth is that? Even though I’m inside you, I can’t grasp it at all.]
“Hmm.”
The Monstrosity knew nothing about the quest, indicating it had no connection to it.
Ketal narrowed his eyes.
‘What could this possibly be?’
Why was it by his side?
What did it want?
Time had passed, yet he still couldn’t understand.
‘Someday, the answer will come.’
Even the Monstrosity within him had come to understand over time.
The quest would likely be no different; one day, he would find out.
After sorting out his thoughts, Ketal asked something else he was curious about.
“I’ve heard that some still worship you in this world.”
[You think I remember every single one of those weaklings?]
The Monstrosity replied dismissively, its tone uninterested.
[But sure, some may still remain. There were many who worshiped me in the distant past. A nostalgic time, indeed.]
It didn’t seem to know much.
The door burst open as their conversation wound down, and Serena returned with a cheerful expression.
“I’m back!”
“You’ve returned. Looks like you had a good time.”
“The dwarves offered me so much to eat! I didn’t know this world had such delicious food! It was wonderful!”
“That’s good to hear.”
Ketal smiled warmly, listening to her chattering and responding appropriately.
“By the way.”
He spoke, as if recalling something.
“They said the demons’ latest invasion was a failure.”
A demon with the rank of a count—Raphael.
He was the most powerful being from Hell to descend to the earthly realm, and a significant investment had been made to summon him from the depths.
However, due to Ketal’s presence, he was sent back to Hell in vain.
Although valuable minerals were sent to Hell, they likely didn’t cover the cost of the sacrifices needed to bring him down.
“So, how do you think the demons will react now?”
“Hmm... Hell must have suffered quite a loss as well. Summoning a demon of that level probably required a substantial portion of the tributes they’d plundered from the surface until now.”
“And?”
“At this rate, it’s likely impossible for them to conquer the earth by continuing with these gradual advances. While they may gain locally, they’d lose globally. So... the demons will have to make a choice.”
Serena spoke quietly.
A choice that could shift the course of the war.
Ketal stroked his chin.
“Something big is coming.”
“Most likely, yes.”
* * *
Meanwhile, in Hell, a council of the four demon lords was taking place.
The Mother of Ten Thousand Demons, Materia, leaned back in her chair and asked,
“So, what are we going to do?”
“It’s truly annoying.”
The Sword Demon, Calliste, narrowed his eyes.
“Really annoying. I want to handle it somehow.”
[It’s not easy. Judging from the battle with Raphael, he was even stronger than when facing Materia. His power is enough to definitely kill us.]
“Oh, come on. What exactly is that thing? It injured my true form beyond my avatar, and it can kill a demon summoned to earth? What even is it?”
Materia muttered in disbelief.
They hadn’t witnessed the battle with Raphael firsthand, so they hadn’t realized there was the Monstrosity within him.
But they were certain the situation wasn’t in their favor.
“So, what’s the plan? At this rate, conquering the earth seems impossible.”
Their resources were not limitless.
Each time a demon was summoned, Hell’s resources were significantly depleted.
They had made substantial sacrifices to send Raphael to replenish those resources, hoping he could secure resources by occupying Mantamia’s mines long-term.
However, Ketal’s interference had ruined that plan completely.
They had to make a choice.
Would they continue this slow attrition, or would they risk everything in a bold attempt?
Yet, it was a difficult decision, as even that bold attempt could fail, leaving them vulnerable.
A heavy silence filled the air.
A writhing figure, Necronovix, finally broke the silence.
[…I’ve made my decision. I will go down myself.]
“You’ll send an avatar? It’s not a bad idea, but the cost is substantial.”
[No, not an avatar. I’ll go personally.]
“…What?”
Materia’s eyes widened.
Necronovix spoke calmly.
[If we gather the minerals Raphael brought and the artifacts collected from the world, there should just barely be enough for me to descend.]
“Oh, uh, yes, it’s technically possible.”
[With that barbarian from the White Wasteland around, there’s no point in sending weaklings.]
At the very least, an entity capable of confronting him and killing him needed to be sent.
[However, since Raphael lost to him so easily, it’s impossible for other demons.]
Someone who could confront and kill Ketal—a demon lord of Hell.
The founder of all dark magic, Necronovix.
[I will descend to earth myself and kill him.]
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