Chapter 133 The Demon Queen
Chapter 133 The Demon Queen
“Fuuh…” Iryoku exhaled, turning toward the Dominion group thrashing in the lake below. For a moment, he watched them struggle—then the water rippled violently.
A splash—one of Bereket’s priests was suddenly pulled under. The water swallowed him whole.
Holy golden light shot out in multiple directions. The lake churned, waves crashing, a deep growl echoing from below.
Iryoku turned away. No time to watch. He sprinted toward the far side of the island, where the group of demihumans had gathered. They tensed as he approached—he was human, after all—but recognition flickered in their eyes. He was the one who had freed them, the one who had fought the Dominion head-on.
He reached the center just as Katherine finished opening the first cocoon.
The Queentinium Dagger, still pulsing with froze enchantment, sliced cleanly through the hardened flesh. Katherine trembled with exhaustion, her breath ragged, sweat freezing on her skin.
A huge man stepped out of the cocoon, steam rising off his body. Moto cracked his neck, the metal of his gauntlets gleaming in the faint light. The bald bandit-boss fighter blinked against the cold and scanned the scene—the falling snow, the shivering freed people, the distant chaos. Then his eyes settled on Katherine.
“Boss…” he began, then corrected himself with a small, crooked grin. “Big sister.”
He knelt beside her.
Iryoku landed beside them, his boots crunching against the frost.
Seeing the towering man awake, he barked, “Good—you’re up. Baldy, we need every hand we can get. Move! The demon’s coming for the flesh-orbs. Hurry—open the others!”
Moto and Katherine exchanged a quick look, then nodded and rushed to the next cocoons.
Iryoku pulled his harpoon close, wrapping its white rope around his other Queentinium dagger. He tightened his grip as the rope began to glow faintly, letting him channel his leben into the weapon—cold energy flooding the metal, reigniting its freezing enchantment. Without hesitation, he knelt and began slicing open Christina’s cocoon.
He glanced at her body trapped inside, his face tight with worry.
Beside him, Moto gently took the other dagger from the trembling Katherine, who could no longer sustain her magic.
“Rest. I got it,” Moto said—his deep voice steady, almost reassuring. He infused his gauntlet with energy, feeding it into the dagger to keep the force enchantment alive, then turned to the next cocoon—the one holding Goka—and began cutting it open.
Just as they both neared the end—
Crash!
A heavy thud shook the ground behind them. The group froze and turned, fear spreading through the freed demihumans.
“A demon!”
“We need to escape!” the slaves cried.
Iryoku clicked his tongue. A few meters away, the demon woman had landed. Her body was almost fully restored now—only part of her face still looked skeletal. Her crimson eyes burned like coals, and dark energy rippled from her, cracking the air itself. The pressure made every living thing around her tremble.
“Keep going,” Iryoku ordered, not looking away.
He finished cutting open Christina’s cocoon and pulled her free. Her eyes were open—alive, but empty. She stared into nothingness, her long white bunny ears drooping weakly over her shoulders. Without hesitation, he kicked the leftover cocoon flesh toward the demon—the massive, sticky mass splattering near her feet.
Moto finished moments later, tearing open Goka’s cocoon and tossing the remains in the same direction. The towering gorilla woman stumbled forward, her shield and sword still clutched in her hands. She coughed, disoriented—but her eyes locked instantly on the dark figure ahead.
Katherine stepped in front of the frightened crowd, sword raised shakily. Goka and Moto moved beside her, forming a defensive line. Behind them, the freed demihumans huddled together—shivering from the cold and from the crushing aura radiating from the demon.
Iryoku shifted Christina in his arms, meeting her vacant eyes. A sharp pain struck his heart—knowing what horrors she must have endured. Gently, he handed her to a bulky elephant-man.
“Take care of her, please…” he said softly.
Then he stepped forward, passing beside Katherine, Goka, and Moto. Moto immediately offered Iryoku’s dagger back to him, and Iryoku took it, continuing ahead until he stood a few meters in front of everyone—alone between the group and the demon.
“Oh, Great Demon Queen,” he began, forcing a respectful tone, summoning the same trickery and sharp wits he’d relied on all his life. “We found more of your flesh. It belongs to you.”
He gestured toward the torn-open cocoons.
“May it bring you satisfaction. We all respect your might.”
He bowed halfway—never breaking eye contact.
The demon glared down at him, silent and seething. Then, with a sharp flick of her hand, a black spectral claw materialized in the air, sweeping the discarded flesh toward her.
Suddenly, the discarded mass began to glow. It quivered—then withered to ash before their eyes. The demon’s chest pulsed violently; black light raced across her body as she absorbed the energy. Her form shifted—her face fully restored now, almost human again, though her presence was anything but.
Then, with a wet, tearing sound, another pair of arms unfolded from her back.
Her black, obsidian-like flesh armor gleamed under the fractured moonlight—an image of raw demonic majesty and destruction.
Before the mortals.
She looked like a monster of annihilation.
“Be cool, be cool…” Iryoku muttered under his breath.
The demon flexed her new arms, inspecting them with a faint, cruel smile. Her crimson gaze fixed on Iryoku.
“Human,” she said, voice deep and resonant, “give me the disrespectful vermin who wore my flesh. Now.”
Katherine, Moto, and Goka all flinched slightly.
Iryoku exhaled, mind fraying under exhaustion. The chill of the night bit into him; snow fell thicker now, blanketing the ruins in pale silence.
Why do I have to deal with this crap… can’t I just ditch everybody?
He looked up at the demon woman—snow gathering on her body too—and fatigue mixed with defiance in his eyes.
Above, Orn hovered in the dark sky, wings beating slowly, waiting for a signal.
Iryoku walked forward, shaking his head.
“Dear Demon Queen… forgive me—I don’t know your name, your majesty.”
He stopped two meters before her, tilting his head up to meet her towering figure. He compared her form to Deborah’s—taller, heavier, her scaled flesh armor rougher, more primal.
The demon studied him with faint curiosity.
“…Raksha’latrex,” she said at last, her tone both amused and dangerous. “Lowly creature… do you not feel fear anymore?”
Iryoku smiled faintly.
“Well, mighty Raksha’latrex… to tell you the truth, I’m under the orders of Great Joka’latrex. I’m assuming you wouldn’t harm someone serving another demon king without asking him first, yes?”
He gestured casually toward the people gathered behind him.
“And all of them—they’re under me. They have nothing against you. In fact…”
He pointed toward the distant lake, where the holy light still flickered faintly.
“Over there is a group calling themselves the Dominion of the Light. They serve some ‘Light One,’ or god, or whatever he is. They’re the ones who came here to exterminate you, your highness. They are your real enemies.”
His voice hardened.
“They worked together with the Death Tree cult on this island. They enslaved these people. They’re the ones who used your flesh for experiments—and trapped everyone here inside your flesh against their will...”