Betrayed by His Party, a Failed Healing Mage Revived Past Demon Lords Out of Spite and They Were All Overpowered Beautiful Girls - 21

Chapter 21: The Healing Mage Defeats the Mastermind

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

I didn’t understand. Alicia, who was supposed to be sleeping inside the ice in Elizabeth’s room, was standing right before my eyes.

“……You, I was sure I killed you……”

“No, Alicia is alive because I brought her back with resurrection magic, so her being alive isn’t strange in itself. I was just wondering why she hadn’t woken up yet, but it turns out she was playing possum.”

“Calling me a possum is rather rude. Well, being frozen in ice afterward was completely unexpected, so I couldn’t move as I intended.”

“……Valsh, what is resurrection magic?”

“The minor details don’t matter right now.”

“They don’t!? That’s a minor detail to you!?”

Albert was being noisy, but I ignored him to question Alicia.

“Earlier, you said we came back to our senses. What did you mean by that?”

“It means exactly what it sounds like. I placed a little ‘spell’ on Albert-sama, Valsh-sama—or rather, on everyone in the Hero’s party.”

“Don’t you mean a ‘curse’?”

Lilith tilted her head. At that moment, Lilith was blown away by “something invisible” and slammed into the wall.

“Gah!”

“I don’t know what kind of nobody you are, but I haven’t permitted you to speak, you know?”

“Lilith!? Alicia, what are you doing!? Why are you doing this!!”

“I simply love you all so much I can’t stand it.”

“Huh?”

Love?

“Casting that spell was part of it. Taking a Hero who just wanted to go on adventures with his best friend and drowning him in power and women… Taking a good, innocent man who knew nothing of resentment and filling him with hatred…… Ah, it was so much fun to watch……”

“……I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Fufu, that’s fine. I simply wanted to see comrades who trusted each other kill one another in a hideous fashion.”

I see.

I had no idea what Alicia was rambling about, but I understood the core of it. This woman was evil. Even though we had only been companions for a few years since we met, I felt like I was going to hate myself for failing to notice such an ugly nature.

“Albert, can you stand?”

“Yeah. Let’s do this. I’ve got a bad feeling about that woman.”

“……That aside, I haven’t forgiven you yet, so let me punch you later.”

“……About how many more times will it take for you to forgive me?”

“About a thousand.”

Albert nodded, muttering, “Well, I guess I can’t help it since I’m the one who almost killed you……”

……Well, since it looks like Albert was being manipulated by Alicia too, I might consider forgiving him after punching him maybe ten more times.

“Haaah, do you two not understand?”

“……Understand what?”

“I am a Saint. Furthermore, I am an existence granted protection by the Goddess the likes of which has never been seen before. In other words, I am permitted to do anything I wish in this world.”

I hadn’t understood a single thing Alicia had been saying for a while now.

“Actually, my plan was to wait until after Valsh-sama killed Albert-sama to reveal everything and enjoy the look of despair on your face…… but well, I suppose the time is ripe.”

“Haa!!”

Albert was the first to move. In an instant, he closed the distance to Alicia, swinging his Holy Sword with his powerful arms. His godspeed lunge might have looked like teleportation to the naked eye. However, before the Holy Sword could reach Alicia, it was blocked and stopped by an invisible wall.

“!?”

“Barrier Magic: Saint Shield. It is a magical shield that blocks every kind of attack.”

“Tch.”

Seeing his serious attack blocked so easily, Albert clicked his tongue. It was true that the barrier magic Alicia used protected the caster by blocking all attacks, but it was supposed to shatter once it took a certain amount of damage.

“Albert, use this!!”

“Ah? Wh-what is this? This is one ominous-looking sword……”

“It’s a Magic Sword I made!!”

“You made a Magic Sword!? That’s amazing!!”

What I tossed to him was the Magic Sword of Wrath.

“If you unsheathe it, your physical abilities will increase dozens of times over, but your reason will vanish and you’ll go on a rampage!! Keep your sanity if it kills you!!”

“What!? Wh-what kind of effect is that!! It’s way too ‘peaky’!!”

“I’m leaving it to you, then!!”

I retreated and left the combat to Albert, “just like usual.” At the same time, Albert unsheathed the Magic Sword of Wrath.

“Guoh, th-this is…… pretty tough, huh……”

As expected of Albert. I had lost my reason the instant I drew it, but Albert remained composed, even while scowling. In the next moment, Albert vanished.

“!?”

“Whoa!? This is incredible!! With this, I feel like I could fight a whole bunch of Demon Lords at once!!”

Albert approached Alicia again, slamming dozens of slashes into the barrier at a speed the eye couldn’t follow. It was a speed that could barely be captured even with a vampire’s dynamic vision. Alicia’s barrier shattered into pieces.

“……You’re good. However, if you think that’s enough to—”

“You’re focusing too much on me, Alicia. Look behind you.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t go out of your way to tell her when I’m trying to pull off a sneak attack!!”

I was right behind Alicia. This was a tactic we had stopped using entirely once Testarossa, Karia, Mana, and Alicia joined the Hero’s party. Albert would draw the enemy’s attention, and I would finish them off with a sneak attack. It was the sure-fire winning strategy we had devised back when we had just started our journey. I vigorously drove the dagger I had drawn from its sheath into Alicia’s back.

However, Alicia flashed a composed smile.

“Fufufu, I wondered what you were up to. Did you think you could kill me with that tiny little dagger? A wound like this, I can heal it instantly—”

“Ah, sorry. This dagger definitely kills whoever it stabs.”

“Gafu!?”

That was a dagger I had engraved with runes out of my singular obsession with wanting to kill Albert.

I’m glad I brought it just in case.

“Impossible…… I, am dying? I, who receive the Goddess’s affection? D-don’t…… Don’t screw with me!!”

Alicia’s composed smile crumbled. Her expression was no longer that of a Saint overflowing with mercy, but rather “something” very hideous. It was then….

Suddenly, someone clad in a dazzling light appeared above Alicia. Perhaps because it was too bright, I couldn’t see their face due to the backlight, but…… Albert and I both felt it instinctively.

“No way……”

“A-a Goddess?”

Alicia’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the Goddess emitting a divine aura.

“Ah, Goddess!! You’ve come to save me!!”

『—Confiscated. You went too far. My reputation is dropping because of you, moron.』

“Eh?”

After Alicia flashed a blank, stupid look, the Goddess vanished instantly. Immediately after, Alicia died. And she didn’t just die. Her remains turned into ash and vanished completely.

……What on earth just happened?

“It’s over, isn’t it?”

“……Probably.”

Then, right at that timing.

“Valsh, I’m back. I kidnapped the swordsman and the summoner from the Hero’s party as souvenirs, so feel free to do whatever you want with them. Oh? Why is the Hero here?”

“Eh? Ah, Elizabeth-san. Actually, long story short—”

I told Elizabeth exactly what had happened.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Chapter 22: The Healing Mage Takes Revenge

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

“I see… so that’s what happened…”

I told Elizabeth the full sequence of events. That the true mastermind behind everything had been the Saint, that the goddess had appeared and then quickly disappeared, and so on. Elizabeth listened to everything seriously.

“I understand the situation. So, what should we do with these Hero?”

“What should we do…”

“Um, sorry to interrupt while you’re talking, but isn’t this outfit kind of a form of torture?”

“…Seriously.”

At the moment, Albert, along with Testarossa and Karia, had been stripped naked and bound in a tortoise-shell rope pattern with red ropes. Honestly, it was hard to look at.

“If Valsh does not wish for their execution, shall I make them my familiars instead?”

“I think having me as your only familiar is enough, Elizabeth-san.”

“Oh my, how adorable, that possessiveness. There’s no need to worry, I am your master alone, Valsh.”

Saying that, Elizabeth gently patted my head.

“Valsh, I have a request.”

“What is it?”

“Release me. There’s something I still have to do… I’ve still left you falsely accused. First, I want to tell the truth in front of the people of the Kingdom of Halmesia.”

“…That’s not exactly a false accusation, is it?”

After all, I was the one who killed Alicia. And if the truth were to be revealed, Albert wouldn’t just face backlash. At worst, he might even be killed. However, Albert continued.

“That is the punishment I deserve.”

“…Don’t casually read my thoughts like that.”

“Haha, sorry. Also, I left Mana behind in the royal capital. She has high resistance to magic, so she probably regained her senses first. But not knowing who was controlling her, I think she shut herself in the forbidden archive. I want to tell her that everything is over.”

“…Alright. Elizabeth-san, let’s release them.”

“Isn’t that a bit too lenient?”

There was nothing lenient about it. We had known each other for a long time. I understood what Albert was thinking. Even as he would be cursed by many people, he would still fight to protect them. That would be his punishment. So I wouldn’t stop him, and instead, I should watch that scene and laugh at it.

“Albert. As the Great Demon Lord Valsh, subordinate of God Demon Lord Elizabeth, I will continue to attack humanity. In the end, I think we will win, but do your best as a Hero. When everything is over and humanity is extinct, I’ll forgive you then.”

“…I uess I’ll have to give it my all.”

And just like that, I released Albert and the others.

“Ah, then please make me a subordinate of my senior disciple.”

“Huh? Ah, Lilith…”

“Fufufu, if I become a vampire too, I can drink my senior disciple’s blood then under the pretense of meals… heh…”

“Oh my, it seems an unexpected rival has appeared.”

(Well, I’ll just sit back and watch Albert and the others struggle. That will be my revenge.)

By the way, after this, I ended up bedridden for about a month as the price for using the Magic Sword of Death.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー