The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 155



Only Krnovel

Episode 155. Heaven for You (1)

Duncan hesitated for a moment, but eventually pointed in the same direction as before.

“Yeah, maybe over there…” … “I think it’s over there, I’m better.”

“… … .”

The words were right on the mark. As we pushed through the thick undergrowth, a lesser demon with eight legs, like a spider, appeared.

– Hehehe!!

Parararararack, tsk – tsk!

– Hehe, kehehee… … .

The devil failed to escape even with so many legs. He died instantly when his head exploded from the ax blade that flew at him like a thunderbolt.

Hoo – Hoo, Hoo – Hoo, Hoo, Chin – !

Kadim retrieved the lightning bolt and wiped away the blood. He glanced sideways at Duncan, who was hiccuping in confusion, and pointed at the fallen corpse of the demon.

“It’s the original paper. Stab the neck and collect the blood. Do not collect the blood flowing from the skull. That has a lot of impurities and will quickly rot.”

“… … Sigh, yes? Ah, ah, yes! “I understand, I’ll be better!”

Duncan couldn’t shake off his bewildered expression as he poked the devil’s neck. Kadim quietly crossed his arms.

As expected, Duncan was able to sense ‘magic’. He was able to track down a low-level demon from about a kilometer away, so his detection ability was not bad.

Of course, Kadim was no match for himself. He had now reached a point where he could sense a wide range of magic and mark its strength and location in his head, just like a minimap in a game, if he wanted to.

Still, it was a welcome development. If the party could sense the magic, the risk of being ambushed would be reduced, and they could even have the demon hunt done for them. I had no idea that giving them my blood to keep them from dying would grant them such useful abilities.

Anyway, after enough time had passed, Kadim decided to release Duncan like an automatic hunter and collect demon blood.

“Okay, here it is! For now, I only received one bottle of blood, but if you need more… … .”

“No, that’s enough. I’ll get another one soon. Let’s clean up the remaining debris and go.”

Duncan handed over the iron canteen, feeling somewhat uneasy.

There was still a long way to go to the main forest. The two men returned to their journey after completely burning the devil’s body. As usual, the guide laid out a map and started talking in a humorous way. If you go all the way west from here, you’ll reach Malden, where you met the evil Baron. I wonder if the Baroness and the people there will get along… … .

Then he witnessed something strange. Duncan’s eyes widened.

“Me, Your Majesty? What you just drank… wasn’t that the devil’s blood?”

Kadim swallowed the liquid he had been drinking and closed the water bottle. His eyes glowed a subtle crimson like a lamp.

“… … “Yes, that’s right.”

“Why did you eat that? Are there any other demons or monsters around here? … ?”

“no. “The guy I just killed is finished.”

“Then why on earth… … .”

The peddler’s doubts were valid. Up until now, Khadim had only drunk demon blood when he needed strength to fight his enemies.

Things were a little different now.

This time he drank blood not for strength, but to quench his urges and cravings.

In fact, it was not a recommended action. It might have killed the immediate impulse, but in the end, the madness would have become more severe. Ultimately, it was no different from urinating on one’s own feet. However, in order to prevent the accumulated impulse from exploding all at once, it was necessary to relieve it in advance like this.

Fortunately or unfortunately, my low-level fatigue wasn’t so exciting anymore. Kadim gives a blunt look, no different from usual. I saw Duncan’s frozen face, half worried and half afraid.

Until now, I didn’t tell him the situation because I thought he was going to leave soon. Now things have changed. Kadim took a breath and began to explain.

“As you know, I drink demon blood and temporarily gain great strength. However, in return, I gradually lose my sanity. What you know as a ‘chronic illness’ is actually the ‘madness’ caused by the demon’s blood.”

“……yes?”

He ignored the fierce question and continued his explanation. That the more you drink demon blood, the more madness and bloodlust you will experience. That it is possible to temporarily suppress the madness with ‘spiritual energy’, but that there is no way to completely cure it…

Duncan asked awkwardly, unable to shake off his embarrassment.

“Well, wouldn’t that mean I shouldn’t drink devil’s blood, would I be better?”

“… … What did you hear me say? Now, the impulse has built up, so I can’t do that. And if I hadn’t drunk the demon’s blood, just think about how many times you and I would have died on our journey.”

“Then, how did you obtain such powers, my lord? By any chance… … is it also a power granted to the great warriors chosen by Atala?”

“… … .”

No, that’s because it’s originally Khadim’s unique characteristic.

I put off giving such an honest answer. However, looking back, I had some doubts.

‘Blood Berserker’ was too much of an odd ability to be considered Atala’s blessing. Atala had nicknames like ‘The Master of All Diseases Who Never Knows Defeat’, but not ‘The One Who Drinks Blood and Goes Mad’. Furthermore, if it was an ability related to that, Cyril, the priestess of the wilderness, would not have noticed it…

‘… … Then why does this body have such characteristics in the first place?’

If it’s just an innate trait like Gail or Melissa, there’s nothing to say… … Somehow, that didn’t seem to be the case. There is no cost more malicious and fatal than ‘mania’ for any unique characteristic. There may be a specific cause… … .

One possible cause came to mind.

‘… … !’

An unidentified, red entity buried in one’s own body.

Now that I think about it, the first time I saw ‘that being’ was right after I overdosed on devil’s blood in Soltana. That was the reason why the bishop of the Raven Church and the shaman seen in Agon called themselves the source of disaster. Even the high-ranking devil sealed in the magic tower saw it in the flesh in the first episode.

If drinking the devil’s blood had somehow stimulated ‘that being’…

As I was thinking seriously, I suddenly heard a voice full of awkward confidence.

“My lord, don’t worry! As I said, if you lose control, I will sacrifice myself to stop you somehow! And aren’t we on our way to meet the great wizard who founded the Magic Tower? He might know a solution to the madness, so don’t worry too much… … .”

“… … .”

A completely different attitude from the one he had been worried about the wizard not being of sound mind. Kadim let out a laugh inwardly.

In the first episode, Melissa could not find a solution to her mania. Even after she disappeared, she concentrated on other studies, so it seemed unlikely that her current self would hold the key to solving her madness.

But he didn’t bother to mention it and disparage Duncan, who was trying hard to comfort himself.

“… … Yes, that would really be nice.”

The warrior’s mouth twisted bitterly as he looked far south.

*

The journey to the great forest went relatively smoothly.

That means, I often encountered demons and monsters, but I slaughtered them all without any problems.

It was somewhat predictable. The Great Forest was nominally the territory of the alliance, but in reality it was like abandoned land. The only people passing by on the street are wanderers with wild fantasies about elves or travelers who are tempted by rumors.

Of course, the disaster management society did not deploy disaster management troops to manage such places. As a result, the area became extremely unsafe, and it reached a point where it could almost be called a small-scale demonic realm.

Phew – ugh!

– Kew!

He helped Kadim slay the demon, engaged in a fierce battle with an orc possessed by it, and ambushed and annihilated a group of wandering shadow lizards. Duncan gasped, wiping the blood staining his transparent sword body.

“Hehe, hehe… … I killed them all, I’ll be better… … . Now there are no monsters left in this area… … .”

“Good work. “Then let’s start again.”

“Yeah!? “Are we leaving right away?”

These were agonizing days for Duncan.

It was difficult enough to deal with the demons and monsters that appeared from time to time, but on top of that, there was the murderous march without rest. Not even a decent village, not even a slash-and-burn village, was in sight, so I couldn’t rest easy for a moment. I regretted following them for no reason dozens of times a day.

On the other hand, for Kadim, the days were not so bad.

The infested demons and monsters posed no threat, and it was perfect for giving the party combat experience. It was also nice that there were few people so I didn’t have to waste my time on useless people. If there was just one regret, it would be that there were no powerful demons in the area, so I couldn’t get any useful blood.

One more piece of good news has arrived to ease that regret.

Yeah, yeah, yeah –

The stone tablet that had been tied to his waist for a long time began to emit a faint ray of light. This meant that there were ‘relics’ left behind by Cyril nearby.

Kadim scanned the terrain in the direction where the beam of light was headed. Since it was a hill with an open view, it didn’t seem difficult to get to. He said softly to the peddler who was barely following him as if he was crawling on all fours.

“Duncan, rest here. “I’m going to look around there for a while.”

“Whoop, whoop, yeah…” … Okay, I’ll be fine… … . Please be careful… … .”

Duncan was stretched out on the ground as it was. He could sense magic and had a night shadow cloak, so he wouldn’t be in trouble even if he was left alone. Kadim went off to find the ruins without much worry.

There was no need to worry about which blood to get tattooed on. I had already decided on the blood that would be tattooed on me this time.

‘Blood of Aculanos’, a high-ranking demon sealed in the Magic Tower.

Although not as powerful as the ‘Blood of Pebillatus’, the power of this blood was also very powerful. The power to summon a gigantic monster, the ‘Invincible Predator’, and devour mysteries and miracles. Although it was a one-time thing, it was a powerful ability that could widely annihilate the devil’s sorcery, the magic of the magician, and even the holy knight’s divine power.

I opened the cork of the iron water bottle and sniffed the scent of blood. The stench penetrated my nasal passages and went straight to my skull. It was in good condition since I had just gotten it. I had the urge to take a sip, so I quickly plugged the cork.

The beam of light was pointing to the top of a hill. Following India, I found a stone tablet with ancient writing written on it without difficulty.

I was about to immediately put my hand on it without thinking, but was shocked and stopped. Because I suddenly remembered the wilderness shaman I met just before.

‘… … I’m sure there will never be another person as crazy as that shaman.’

Still, there was no harm in being careful. Even if there is a shaman who is fine, she will have to go through an ‘ordeal’.

Kadim took out Atala’s Judgment. Ugh, I tightly grasped the sack that was making an inexplicable sound with one hand, and gently placed my other hand on the stone plate.

Blah blah blah… … .

The world’s skin has been peeled off.

The landscape filled with yellow-green vegetation crumbled into tatters, and a passageway covered in darkness like ebony appeared. The stuffy, sealed air seeped into my lungs, and my abyss-holding eyes quickly adapted to the dark.

After a moment of scouting the surroundings like that,

Kadim tightened his grip on the sack.

At first glance, there wasn’t much difference from the ruins I’d seen in the past. The smooth floor, the rock walls, the passage converging into the pitch black, all matched my past memories. But there was just one clear difference.

No matter how long I waited, the torch hanging on the wall did not turn on.

“… … .”

Actually, it wasn’t a big inconvenience.

No matter how dark it was, it couldn’t cover his eyes, and if he needed a light source, he could just take out his Hellfire Dagger. However, the inconvenience wasn’t the problem, but the fact that something unusual had appeared was unsettling. He took a step forward, his nerves tense more than usual.

I think it went on like that for about 5 minutes.

Strange patterns and ancient writings and areas painted on the walls and ceilings appeared. The second priestess I met, Keturah, told me that these were clues to the ordeal.

Unfortunately, Khadim was blind to ancient writing. Even the letters that were familiar to the eye were scattered in fragments, making their meaning unclear. I passed through the area, briefly lamenting that I should have told Cyril clearly that I didn’t know the ancient script.

The torch was not lit until we reached the end of the passage, an entrance blocked by a stone gate. I couldn’t even hear the voice that echoed inside me. Instead, I felt only an unpleasant feeling that was not very unfamiliar. To be precise… … It’s not unfamiliar, but it’s an energy that shouldn’t be here.

At this point, it was impossible not to know.

What was behind that stone gate was no ordinary ‘ordeal’.

Kadim narrowed his eyes sharply and struck the stone gate with the back of his axe.

―――― Kwa – Ang! Kururur… … .

Beyond the finely crumbling debris and rising dust.

A group of people were seen sitting closely together, looking at each other with gloomy gazes.