Chapter 218 ·Maiden of Blood (7)
Maiden of Blood (7)
The girl who had been abandoned by the entire East Continent was banished just like that to the neighboring continent.
There were hardly any who raised their voices against this, and if there were, their opinions were buried and they were simply silenced.
Currently, the girl was slandered and called a witch, but not everyone showed such a reaction.
During the age of wars, she had, after all, united the continent and was called a Hero.
There were quite a few organizations that followed her, as well as people who had received help from her during the chaos, so there were those who tried to defend her in their own ways.
However, what they received in return was not recognition for their resistance, but nothing but ruthless violence.
Of course, they had heard every bit of news that claimed the girl had brought disaster to the continent.
But was that really the truth?
Though they voiced such opinions, people dismissed them as a group spouting nonsense and treated them like lunatics.
Some people went so far as to directly kill those who defended the girl, and no one opposed those acts.
When no one was left to protect them, bounty notices were even posted for reporting those who defended her, and eventually, all of the girl's supporters completely disappeared from the East Continent.
She had been abandoned by her homeland, and the people she trusted no longer existed.
Should she call it a blessing that she could not feel emotions about this?
What's more, she couldn't even die; the place she was sent to was the neighboring continent.
At least in that place, it looked as if she might live a stable life, but in reality, that side was also in the midst of war.
"Are you the Maiden of Blood who was called a legend of the East Continent?"
"Yes."
"What is your real name?"
"I do not have one."
The King of Woodrock questioned the girl as soon as he saw her.
They were all basic answers any person could give, but the girl could not reply properly.
"How old are you?"
"I do not know."
"Did you leave any family behind in your homeland?"
"Family?"
The answer should have been simple.
Surely, these were qualities that any person must possess.
Even if one was an orphan, wasn't there someone or some background that had helped raise them until now?
"I do not have any."
But for the girl, even such a thing did not exist.
Naturally, there was no one who could possibly exist to protect her from behind.
"No name, no parents, no hometown..."
The king showed a flabbergasted expression.
It was the first time he had seen someone with even less than the poor who lacked strength and power.
But that was precisely why he felt reassured.
"In other words... can I use you as I wish?"
"Yes."
The girl simply answered "Yes," as she always did, obeying only her master's orders.
At this, the King of Woodrock looked over the girl's body with an unusual gaze.
It was an extremely unpleasant gaze for the person involved, but the girl felt no such discomfort.
Thus, the king could toy with the girl as much as he pleased.
In the end, regardless of her own will, the girl ended up bearing children.
"Thanks to you coming to our side, we now have many children who carry on the bloodline of the one called the legend of the East Continent. I thank you sincerely."
"Yes. Thank you for your compliment."
Even when the girl looked at her own children, her expression remained as usual.
She had heard that marrying powerful and influential men was the ultimate romance for girls.
The girl had achieved it alone, but her reaction did not change.
Moreover, her children neither cried nor laughed when they saw the mother who had given birth to them.
If they had inherited their mother's emotionless nature, perhaps it was only natural.
"It is about time for you to do what you must."
The king handed the girl a sword as he spoke.
With Woodrock at war with the Imperial Court, it was clear what the girl was expected to do with that sword.
"I'm counting on you."
"Yes. Leave it to me."
Immediately understanding his intent, the girl once more stood at the center of the battlefield.
Just before the battle began, the girl thought:
I have returned once again to this blood-soaked place.
Naturally, she felt no longing or weariness toward it.
Only the order to prepare to cut down the enemies that would soon appear filled her body.
*Kuuuuung!*—
And then, the enemy appeared before her.
But the girl could hardly believe her eyes at the sight.
The same went for Woodrock's soldiers on her side.
*Krrrrrr*—
The enemy landed from the sky with a deafening sound.
Then, it let out a howl and glared with crimson eyes.
Something was wrong.
Wasn't she supposed to be facing the Imperial Army?
*Krooooooo!!*—
She had not been ordered to face a giant dragon.
"E-everyone, retreat!!"
A knight who appeared to be a commander on their side shouted with a horrified expression.
Apparently, even those of Woodrock had not expected such a monster to appear.
It was the Chaos Dragon, which had only appeared in legend.
"How can such a monster— Kaaagh!!"
Because of the Chaos Dragon, which appeared as the enemy instead of the Imperial Army, Woodrock's soldiers were annihilated all at once.
With a single sweep of its arm, it obliterated a mountain range—and the soldiers disappeared without a trace.
"Ah..."
Left standing alone on the spot, the girl thought.
Just the rampage of that dragon had erased half of Woodrock's territory.
Now, the only proper military force left for Woodrock was herself.
'Is it the Imperial Army's plan?'
It was possible they released the monster on purpose to attack here, but the Imperial side had not expected such a monster to appear either.
It's just that the first target of this rampaging dragon happened to be Woodrock.
Next would be the Imperial Court, and then the entire West Continent.
Of course, the girl did not know these facts, but the moment she saw the monster, she instinctively understood.
If she didn't defeat this creature, everything would end.
*Krrng?*—
Entrusting her body to primal instinct, the girl attacked the Chaos Dragon with full force.
She had wielded countless Blood Sword Techniques until now, but she had never swung her blade so powerfully as this.
Thanks to that, a feeling she had forgotten throughout her life resurfaced.
Kill or be killed.
She fought to survive.
How long had it been since she felt such emotions?
Yet even as she put everything into her sword, the Chaos Dragon remained unscathed.
Even amid a flurry of slashes that tore the heavens and upended rivers and mountains, not even a scratch appeared on the monster's scales.
'How can this be?'
She was shocked to see a being impervious to a sword strike that had cut down everything until now.
For the first time, the perpetually expressionless girl was visibly grimacing—a rare sight.
*Krrrrrrk!*—
"...!!"
The moment she met the gaze of the still-unharmed Chaos Dragon, the girl could feel her heart pound.
Her unmoved heart, unstirred by any situation until now, thudded violently for the first time in ages, causing her body to freeze for a moment.
In that instant, the Chaos Dragon swung its arm.
*Puh-uhk!*—
The girl was slammed hard into the ground.
*Puh-uhk!!*—
The Chaos Dragon continued to pound her with its hand repeatedly, overwhelming her again and again with a ferocity that split the earth.
But since she had a body that could not die, she lived on.
Yet, being dead would have been preferable.
As she continuously took the Chaos Dragon's blows to her bare body, her body became mangled beyond repair.
Though it regenerated, it grew slower and slower.
She could do nothing.
She had faced danger in her life before, but never had she been so completely overpowered.
Eventually, the girl involuntarily opened her mouth.
"It hurts..."
When had she last forgotten pain?
"Please... spare me..."
When had she last forgotten fear?
"Stop..."
When had she last shed tears?
*Krrrrrk—*
But the Chaos Dragon mercilessly grabbed the girl's leg and smashed her into the ground.
As lost fear returned... so too did pain.
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
A scream resounded across the battlefield, soaked in blood.
It rose as if reaching the heavens, as if all the pain she had endured was finally unleashed.
'This isn't right.'
Only then could the girl recall what kind of being she was.
'This isn't right...!'
She wasn't just a homunculus that obeyed orders.
She wasn't merely a hero called the Maiden of Blood.
She wasn't even Number 666, a nameless soldier.
She was just a girl born to an ordinary family.
"No!!"
Struck by an indescribable terror, the girl recovered all she had forgotten.
But now, it was too late to have it returned.
How many people had she killed under orders until now?
Her hands were stained beyond counting, filled with so much filth that she now loathed herself and felt unworthy of living anew.
*Krrrrrk!*—
No, could she even survive in the first place?
The Chaos Dragon raised its arm to deliver the final blow.
She had a body that could not die, so she wouldn't perish, but at the very least, she would lose consciousness.
If she lost consciousness like this, the Chaos Dragon would move on to its next target, and should that continue, not only this continent but the whole world would be in danger.
*Kuwaaaaaang!!*—
The Chaos Dragon slammed its raised arm down, but the girl was no longer there.
She quickly climbed onto the Chaos Dragon's arm, wearing a determined expression she had never shown before.
Stepping on its head, she stabbed with her sword.
Simply stabbing would not harm the Chaos Dragon.
As the Blood Sword Technique did not work at all on this enemy, she would have to do something else.
'Like during that ritual...'
The ritual that had brought great disaster to the East Continent.
The original purpose of that ritual was to break the seal on the black horde, but for that, one had to draw a magic array as a preparatory step.
But what would happen if one proceeded without such preparations?
Fortunately, it would not be considered a ritual, so no disasters would occur.
Instead, it would trigger a forbidden art that could eternally annihilate the opponent.
The girl assumed the same posture as she did during the ritual.
Though the scales were too hard to pierce, it was enough if she could just fix the blade in place.
Channeling power into the sword as she did during that ritual, a crimson pillar shot to the heavens.
*Kwooooooooo!!*—
The Chaos Dragon screamed in agony under the intense shockwave.
But the girl was not unharmed either.
"Guh...!"
Just as the ritual was performed at the cost of the performer's life, so too did this forbidden art.
Sacrificing oneself to eternally erase the opponent.
Just like during the ritual, blood began to gush out from her whole body.
Though her body could not die, when deploying this forbidden art or the ritual, it seemed to be an exception.
No matter how much she bled, she usually recovered instantly, but now, none of her healing powers worked.
When the forbidden art ended, she was left completely pale, almost like a corpse.
"Damn..."
Half a corpse, the girl could only feel absurd.
After having endured the forbidden art, the Chaos Dragon was still alive.
Fortunately, though, it had taken a fatal wound.
Thus, it seemed it would take time for it to rampage again.
In the end, the girl exchanged her life to delay the advance of the disaster, if only a little.
From here, it would be up to the people of the West Continent.
Hopefully, in the meantime, they would create a weapon to oppose that monster.
'... Ah, this is no time to be worrying about others.'
Though she had a chance to run, the girl chose to sacrifice herself.
Truly a useless life.
She felt a deep sense of disgust for herself, who had lived as an emotionless puppet all her life.
She no longer wanted to live... yet she still felt heavy regret.
She wanted to live a normal life, just like others.
She wanted to live by her own will, not as a puppet.
She wanted to make friends. She wanted to marry. She wanted to be a filial daughter to her parents.
"Mom... Dad...."
Only then did the girl recall the faces of the parents she had forgotten.
She thought of the faces she missed most, but due to the side effects of the forbidden art, her body was turning to dust and disappearing.
In the midst of it, she remembered the name she missed the most.
That was her own name.
"Ri... o...."
Though she managed to remember, she could not speak it out loud.
Even her lips had turned to dust and vanished.
****
"Rio. Rio!"
The moment Rio grabbed the manual, her expression suddenly changed.
She just stood there, expressionless, as if she was a corpse.
"Should I just flick her on the forehead?"
"Are you crazy? What if you hit her in that body, Young Master?"
At Louis's joke, Pram scolded him loudly.
Even if it was a joke, since Louis had the body of the Chaos Dragon, it was a very sensitive issue.
"Um..."
Just then, Rio, who had been silent, opened her mouth.
"Rio. Are you all right?"
"Mom..."
"Huh?"
"Dad..."
Suddenly, Rio's expression changed dramatically, and she fell to her knees on the spot.
"Uwaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
And as she began to cry wildly, pouring out insane tears, both Louis and Pram were utterly flustered.
The sorrow of that girl who had created the manual, the loneliness of her previous life—they both felt it directly.
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