When I Tried Strengthening 【Rusted Sword】, It Evolved Into An Overpowered Magic Sword

Chapter 71 I found it

What kind of gentle artifact is this?

What kind of artifact that doesn’t hurt anyone is this?

Because of this artifact, I lost someone precious to me.

If only I hadn’t had this ring, my brother wouldn’t have died.

That’s why I hate my artifact.

And I hate the demon in front of me even more.

“You don’t have to glare at me like that. I didn’t intend to kill your brother. But he resisted more than I expected, so I got angry and ended up killing him.”

Seeing Onyx’s casual complaint, her disgust only grew.

Why did she have to lose her brother to someone like him?

Hatred, frustration, and helplessness swirled within her.

“And even then, I valued him. He managed to injure me with an unenhanced artifact without killing a single human. If he had developed his artifact normally, he would have become quite a formidable opponent. That’s why I tried to recruit him into my legion, but of course, he wasn’t interested.”

It was no surprise that Light refused Onyx’s offer.

At the same time, it made perfect sense that Onyx tried to recruit him.

Light had indeed been strong.

He had overwhelmed ferocious monsters without killing anyone and without enhancing his artifact.

His strength stemmed not only from the potential of his artifact but also from his sharp combat instincts.

Although Citrine had only seen Light fight a few times, she had always believed that he was the strongest demon in the world.

So when she heard that Light had been killed by Onyx, she couldn’t believe it.

“So, if you don’t want to die, hurry up and kill those adventurers to enhance your artifact. Or should I threaten you with, ‘If you don’t kill them, I’ll do it instead’? You also love humans, don’t you, just like him?”

“……”

Citrine glanced at the fallen adventurers around her.

She clenched her teeth tightly.

If she didn’t kill these people, she would be killed instead.

She didn’t care about her own life anymore; it was of no value to her now.

But if she didn’t act, Onyx would kill the adventurers himself.

That was something she absolutely could not allow. She couldn’t bear to see unrelated people being killed anymore.

Perhaps Light had been concerned about this very thing and had made her escape.

Onyx was determined to force her to kill humans by any means necessary.

As Citrine stood there, unable to move, Onyx grabbed her by the collar and threw her in front of the wounded adventurers.

Next, he picked up a large stone nearby and handed it to Citrine.

“Here you go. With this, even your weak hands can kill.”

Citrine looked at the stone she was forced to hold and swallowed nervously.

It was a cold, heavy, and angular stone.

She could barely lift it with both hands.

Indeed, with such a weapon, she could certainly kill a critically injured adventurer.

Since artifacts grow even if you kill humans without using them, this method might efficiently enhance Citrine’s artifact.

But, that was something she absolutely couldn’t do.

“Finishing off a dying adventurer is ridiculously easy. Just smash that stone into their head. If one blow isn’t enough, keep hitting them.”

It wasn’t a question of whether she could do it or not. It was a matter of not wanting to do it at all.

If she smashed the stone down, these people would really die.

And the unpleasant sensation, the horrifying sound, would surely stick in her mind, making it impossible to forget for the rest of her life.

That was what terrified Citrine the most.

“You know, the Demon God seems to like cruelty. The more brutally you kill humans, the more blessings you get for your artifact. So, you’d better smash their heads with that stone. That way, you’ll rapidly enhance your artifact.”

Unaware of Citrine’s inner turmoil, Onyx continued to pressure her.

Terror-stricken, Citrine focused on the fallen male adventurer in front of her.

His body was covered in painful wounds.

He breathed weakly, his shallow breaths indicating that he might die soon even if left alone.

To do this to him now…

Dazed and paralyzed, Citrine was whispered to by Onyx.

“Go on, kill him.”

“……”

If she didn’t kill him, Onyx would.

In either case, the man would die.

If that was the case, then maybe she should do it herself…

Just thinking about it made her breath quicken, and her hand holding the stone began to tremble.

She wanted to escape this despair as soon as possible. To do that, she didn’t mind killing this man.

Even such fragile thoughts crossed Citrine’s mind as she raised the stone high, as Onyx had instructed.

And then, she aimed the angular stone at the fallen adventurer’s head—

“……[Recovery Heal]”

—But she didn’t bring the stone down.

Instead, she threw the stone away and held her right hand over the male adventurer.

A warm, gentle light illuminated her right hand, bathing the male adventurer.

The light began to heal the numerous wounds on his body, and soon he sat up, looking astonished.

Onyx, watching from the side, murmured in a low voice.

“…What are you doing?”

Ignoring Onyx, Citrine shouted at the male adventurer.

She then quickly moved to the next adventurer and held her right hand over them.

“[Recovery Heal]!”

After finishing healing the second person, she immediately turned her attention to the next injured.

She would get these adventurers out of here.

She was determined to prevent both her killing them and Onyx killing them.

For that purpose, just as her brother had once helped her, she would save these adventurers.

Now it was her turn.

“[Recovery Heal]!”

Quickly completing the third treatment, she reached out to the next adventurer.

She might not be able to save everyone.

But if she healed this many adventurers, a few might manage to escape.

If necessary, she would act as a shield to protect them.

Onyx wanted Citrine’s healing ability. So, he likely wouldn’t harm her unnecessarily.

If Citrine acted as a shield, he might hesitate to attack.

With this thought, Citrine continued her healing while keeping a close eye on Onyx’s movements.

At that moment, Onyx let out a sigh of exasperation.

“Hah, what a hopeless little brat.”

Almost simultaneously, the adventurers who had been healed started to comprehend the situation and began to run.

Three adventurers scattered, heading towards the exit.

With their current actions, it was impossible to stop all of them at once.

With only Onyx and his female demon lieutenant present, they could only stop at most two.

Meanwhile, Citrine started healing the fourth adventurer.

Everything was going well. She would definitely get everyone out of here…

“Gah!”

“—!?”

Suddenly, a human scream echoed through the cave.

It wasn’t just one voice, but a chorus of several voices overlapping, making Citrine turn around in shock.

There, she saw…

“W-why…”

Onyx, wielding a large “sword,” and adventurers falling to the ground, once again covered in wounds.

Faced with this unbelievable scene, Citrine was left speechless and stunned.

It was too fast.

She couldn’t even find a moment to act as a shield, let alone turn around in time.

Moreover, Onyx wasn’t just killing the adventurers; he was showing a disturbing level of restraint.

She felt the overwhelming gap in strength and realized too late how foolish she had been.

She had been shallow. She had acted hastily. It was absurd to think she could strike back at such a monstrous demon who had killed her brother, Light.

“Ah, great. Now you’ve made it even worse. It’s not easy to be gentle, you know.”

Upon hearing Onyx’s words, Citrine felt a stomach-churning pain.

She gazed at the fallen adventurers and murmured in a hoarse voice.

“It’s my… fault…”

“That’s right, it’s your fault. If you hadn’t meddled, they wouldn’t have been hurt so badly. It’s really sad how much more they’ve been hurt.”

Again, because of this artifact, someone was hurt?

If she hadn’t tried to heal and escape, they wouldn’t have been hurt further.

Because of this artifact…

(…No)

It was all her fault.

The fact that these people were hurt more and that her brother had died was all her fault more than anyone else’s.

It wasn’t the artifact’s fault. Don’t blame the artifact. Face the reality.

It was all, all her fault.

“So, just put them out of their misery yourself. That way, they won’t suffer any more.”

Onyx said, handing her the stone once again.

The cold, heavy sensation took control of her hand.

Then Onyx whispered gently into Citrine’s trembling ear.

“Listen. Use this stone to hit their heads. Make good use of the edges.”

“…No.”

“To kill them as cruelly as possible, crush their faces instead of just their heads.”

“…No.”

“If one hit isn’t enough, you can hit them as many times as needed. I’m sure the Evil God will be pleased.”

“…No.”

“Scatter their eyeballs and brains everywhere. Crush their faces so much that you can’t tell them apart. Now kill them, immediately!”

“Noooooooo――――!!”

Citrine’s anguished scream echoed through the cave.

There was nothing more she could do.

There was nowhere left to run.

The beloved brother who had solved everything was no longer anywhere to be found.

There would be no more coming to her aid, showing that gentle smile, or calling her name. It would never happen again.

Yet, she couldn’t help but wish otherwise.

“Help me, big brother…”

Her tearful voice, which she knew could never reach, faded into the depths of the dim cave.

“Citrine!!!”

In an instant, a boy’s voice echoed through the cave.

Startled by the call of her name, Citrine turned to look.

And there, before her, she doubted her own eyes at the unbelievable sight.

Her heart pounded wildly. Overwhelming emotions spilled from her eyes.

For there stood “that boy,” his forehead glistening with beads of sweat, breathing heavily, and looking at Citrine with a deeply relieved expression, as if he had found a lost child.

(Why…?)

Why was he looking at her with that expression?

Why had he come to her?

It had nothing to do with him. There was no promise made. He wasn’t her big brother.

At that moment, Citrine suddenly remembered her own words from before.

She had said that “lost child” was not a term that suited her.

Because “lost child” refers to a child who has a place to return to.

She had no place to return to. So, it was wrong to call her a “lost child.”

She had thought that way, or so she believed…

“Sorry I’m late.”

“…”

Maybe, she had become a lost child after all.