The Virgin Hero Who Fought in the Dungeon for 20 Years Returned to the Surface Only to Find the Population of the World Has Dropped Drastically, with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:1000 - 95-96

Chapter 95: Trampled Over

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“Hey, hey, what’s this, huh? What’s with this weak little human? You’re already in my hands. Whether you live or die is all up to my whim, you get that?”

“Ha.”

Loria let out a low laugh, then raised her still-moving left hand slightly, pointing her index finger upward. In that instant, a spear of water formed and shot forward at the speed of light.

It pierced straight into Chiriat’s unguarded right eye and burst with a popping sound. Chiriat let out a small groan and pressed his face with his left hand. Then his eye burned with a glare filled with hatred.

“You bitch! Do you even understand the situation you’re in!?”

Loria laughed mockingly, but in the next instant, she let out a scream that echoed through the entire dungeon. Chiriat had tightened his grip on her waist with crushing force.

“Gaah!”

My insides are being crushed!

Tears spilled from her eyes from the sheer pain. Blood surged up from her throat and flooded into her mouth in a rush. Her eyes opened wide beyond their limit as a voiceless cry escaped her lips. And suddenly, the pressure squeezing her waist and torso weakened.

“Whoops, whoops. That won’t do. Humans like you are so fragile. If I’m not careful with the torment, you’ll break too fast. Now then. Go on, beg for your life. Strip yourself naked right here, throw yourself on the ground, lick the soles of my boots, then turn around and spread your ass wide open. If you swear an oath of submission pathetic enough to satisfy me, maybe I’ll let you die quickly and without pain, huh?”

“You rock scum. Die already.”

“Hmm.”

Chiriat showed no particular reaction to Loria’s words and grabbed her left wrist. Her hip bone was probably broken. No matter how she tried to resist, there was nothing she could do on her own. If only a few more A-rank supporters were here, maybe we could’ve fought back properly, she thought.

The next moment, Chiriat seized the base of Loria’s left fingers, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth with a leering grin.

“Then let’s start off light, shall we?”

That was the signal. One by one—thumb, index, middle, ring, little finger—he snapped them with crisp cracks. Loria bit down on her scream with the last shred of her will. If she reacted, people like him would only be pleased. 

She didn’t know what exactly a True Demon Lord was, but she would never give the enemy the satisfaction of her cries. That was the pride that still remained to her. To endure the pain, she bit her lip hard. A strange sound rasped in her throat—like the cry of a dying beast. Warm, metallic-tasting blood trickled down, soaking her chin, then fell in droplets.

“Hey, are you ready yet to lick my asshole?”

“…You should be the one licking mine.”

And within Chiriat’s eyes, she could see madness burning in them. He was no longer holding back. The crushing pressure from his hand around her waist grew stronger all at once.

Ah… so this is it. This is the end, with my upper and lower body torn apart by him.

Her consciousness began to fade.

“Hah?”

Chiriat let out a strange sound. The pressure vanished, and Loria was suddenly freed, cradled in the strong arms of someone else. The pain was gone. She was bathed in a gentle, warm light, like sunlight in spring. She lifted her face.

There, before her eyes, was the man she had longed for deep within her heart. With an expression that was both tears and a smile, Loria whispered his name.

Ah… With this, everything is going to be okay…

She thought to herself.

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Chapter 96: Ryuuto Appears

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The right arm that had been gripping Loria was suddenly sliced clean off, and in the same instant, a gust of wind swept by as a man dashed past Chiriat. The distance was fifty meters. In less than a second, the man had succeeded in snatching Loria away from Chiriat.

The man gently laid down the Loria he had taken from Chiriat, then clicked his tongue sharply with a bitter expression.

“What the hell, barging in all of a sudden like that! And on top of that, my right arm—damn it! Just what the hell do you think you’re doing, huh!?”

“Hang on. I’ll heal you right now.”

The man held out his right hand toward Loria and cast a healing spell. A soft orange light enveloped her wounded body. Before long, her damaged organs and broken fingers all recovered, good as new.

The jester, who had been watching, broke into a delighted expression. His whole body trembled violently, and then he began a bizarre pantomime.

“Don’t screw with me, human brat!”

Chiriat instantly regrew his severed right arm and roared high into the air. A gale of murderous intent tore through the dungeon, blowing far into the distance.

But the man continued his treatment of Loria as if nothing had happened, not sparing Chiriat a single glance. Enraged, Chiriat pulled both arms back behind himself and began chanting. It was an earth-element spell known as Rock Bullet.

“Bah!”

The moment Chiriat thrust both arms forward, a massive boulder—ten meters across—rose from the ground and was launched like a cannonball. The stone projectile ripped through the air at tremendous speed. One direct hit would have been enough to obliterate even a tank, leaving no trace of a human body behind.

But the man raised one hand and swiftly recited an incantation. Chiriat’s expression shifted. In an instant, the temperature inside the cavern plummeted. The air where the man had extended his right hand was filled with midwinter cold.

The boulders hurtling toward him at lethal speed froze solid one after another before they reached him, turning snow-white, dropping to the ground as if each had a will of its own, and shattering into powder.

It was an exceptionally advanced freezing spell. Within moments, dozens of massive rock bullets had been reduced to shards of shaved ice. Snowy mist began to gather thickly in the air, sparkling faintly.

“Hey, monster. Didn’t you go a little overboard? The end of the fight was already decided, wasn’t it?”

“Huh!? What the hell are you!?”

“What am I? Well… I’m probably the Ryuuto Sakazaki you guys have been looking for.”

With that, Ryuuto spread his feet slightly and let his body go slack. At a glance, he seemed simply relaxed, but in truth this was Ryuuto’s unique battle stance, allowing him to transition immediately into his next move at any moment.

Whether Chiriat knew this or not, he trembled his massive frame, exhaled a breath hot as flame, and widened his black-red glowing eyes.

“Well, looks like I won’t have to waste time searching. If I capture the Ryuuto Sakazaki that the True Demon Lord wanted, the prestige of me, one of the Five Divine Kings, will rise even higher. Gyahaha! The former Demon Lord, senile as he had grown, was still fairly strong. I wondered what kind of guy could’ve defeated him, but to think it’s just a brat like you! Guess I didn’t even need to bother bringing along my precious Destruction Troops!”

“Destruction Troops?”

Ryuuto muttered. Chiriat scratched under his chin with a thick, rugged finger.

“Yeah. They’re the trump card of our True Demon Lord’s army, said to be equal to thousands of magical beasts. Our True Demon Lord lent them to me personally. But it looks like I won’t be needing them now.”

“That’s rich coming from you. You’re the coward who got half-killed by a frail lady, then had to resort to cheap tricks just to face her head-on.”

At Ryuuto’s words—perhaps because he had struck a nerve—Chiriat’s expression went blank. He clenched both fists tightly, rage and humiliation brimming in the grinding grip. Ryuuto yawned lightly and spoke with prominent boredom.

“Whatever. If you’re gonna do something, hurry it up. I’d like to get the wounded out of here and treated in peace.”

“You’ll regret those words.”

Chiriat thrust out his right hand horizontally. Immediately, the ground shook so violently it was hard to stand. Cracks split open in the earth, and without pause, countless shadows began emerging one after another.

Ryuuto drank from the 300ml tea bottle in his hand, waiting with the leisure of someone watching an event, patient as their preparations unfolded.

And then—they came. The Destruction Troops’ form was simple, almost classical. Warriors clad in silver armor reminiscent of medieval knights, each mounted on a jet-black horse and wielding a long lance. Their number amounted to fifty. Highly disciplined, each soldier’s golden eyes gleamed as they quietly awaited Chiriat’s command.

“Ryuuto Sakazaki, these guys are strong. One-on-one, maybe not so much—but as a unit, their charge power might rival even mine. If you take back your words right now and get on your knees begging, I might just take you alive to the True Demon Lord.”

“Enough talk. Just get on with it.”

Ryuuto spoke languidly, fiddling with his plastic bottle. At the same time, Chiriat gave the order to charge, his face twisted with fury. The Destruction Troops thundered forward in unison. The earth roared. The dungeon shook with a deafening crash, as though it might collapse at any moment.

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