Chapter 154: The Battle Against the Fear War Demon
Jima ran a little to catch up with George, her gaze sweeping over the crowd on the bridge. She was resentful, so with just one glance, she noticed that among the forty or so people who had returned, most were the ones who had just left the White Sand Safe Zone with the soldiers of the Great Benefactor.
They must have arrived at the military camp’s safe zone not long ago and then encountered a slaughter. They were near the exit, so they ran out, of course aiming for the safest place.
Jima had guessed nearly everything.
The crowd was terrified and uneasy. Before George could give the order to let them in, they began to climb over the bar and push their way inside. The members of the temporary security team blocked them, but a few were knocked to the ground as the crowd pushed and shouted:
“Let us in! It’s coming, it’s coming!”
Jima looked behind them. The hundreds-of-meters-long street was empty; there were no people except for some corpses. In the distance, flames were spreading, and a stone house burned like a torch, casting a glow on the river.
George shouted, “Stop! Don’t let them in!”
The temporary security officers raised their clubs and drove the frightened crowd back behind the checkpoint.
A square-faced man anxiously said, “We had already promised before, why is it still needed this time? The monster is going to catch up!”
Jima rubbed her eyes again, confirming that there were no people behind them.
“It must be done according to rules,” George said, emphasizing each word, “First, clarify what happened to you so I can let you in.”
The crowd settled down, and everyone started to talk at once. From three or four voices, Jima and George learned some information about the monster that had emerged from the military encampment.
“A giant blade glowing red, as high as a small hill, causing widespread fear. It has two live heads stuck in its shoulder armor, can shoot flames, and even destroyed Chamberlain’s armor, appearing from the fire now and then,” George summarized the key points from various exaggerated descriptions, “Fear War Demon.”
The Fear War Demon was the code name the Holy Hall used for this type of demonic extraordinary being.
A trembling person said, “That… that monster as tall as a small hill is an executioner. Just the slightest sound, and everyone’s heads flew off!”
“It might have golden strength.”
“No! That must be the Blood God incarnate,” the square-faced man turned pale and said, “You are a holy warrior; you will definitely kill that monster, right?”
“Don’t interrupt if you don’t understand, Square Face. George, his strength is definitely platinum,” Jima said, pointing to her head when George turned to look at her, “At least I have a great memory and can remember a lot of things.”
She successfully misled George into thinking that her inheritance memory held relevant information. In fact, it was only because of her shared profession.
“Continue.”
“Crouch down, this is top-secret knowledge, which cannot be shared with others.”
George crouched down, holding the bucket helmet, and the people around gave him some space. Jima leaned closer to his ear and softly breathed, whispering:
“The class name is Fear Executioner. It can execute those who are helpless due to fear, behead from a distance, typically used for cleaning up weaklings. Anyone who faces it directly can die of fear. Moreover, for every enemy it executes, it instills fear in those nearby. With every strike, it injects fear into its opponent’s mind. The more afraid the opponent is, the stronger its attacks become, and it can even detonate the fears within its target. It also feeds on fear, not needing to eat or drink.”
Jima continued, “It can also create fearsome heads, constantly injecting the dying fantasies into the opponent’s mind. Its most iconic extraordinary ability is its disintegration technique. Using weapons, limbs, and flames as mediums, it can cause ordinary objects to collapse.”
George muttered, “That sounds pretty simple; the ability is just fear, fear, and more fear. As long as I stay brave, its power is significantly reduced.”
Jima said, “I like your optimistic spirit.”
Jima hoped that George could kill off his fellow townsfolk, preferably with a single sword strike. This way, there wouldn’t just be her being swiftly killed by an overpowered demon. Moreover, after killing his fellow townsfolk, George could also help her eliminate the Great Benefactor and his trafficking ring.
“I’m confident; back in the day, I even managed to stab the Demon King Jima while outclassed. Although I had Jenna to bless me, I also used forbidden techniques.”
Jima’s eyes twitched slightly, and she said, “Then I can rest assured. The Demon King Jima is an unparalleled genius among the demon race, and the Fear War Demon happens to share the same profession. If you could outclass and kill the Demon King back then, it should be easy to take down another low-tier demon now.”
“Didn’t feel that way.” George frankly replied, “I think he’ll die faster than I imagined.”
Jima was so angry that her tail tightened around the “Blood Horn Cup.”
“Jima, does it have any mobility abilities?”
Jima turned away, “Yes, it can jump out of the fire like a jester, leaping among the flames.”
George scratched his itchy ear, “Alright, I need to investigate his crime scene.”
“Investigate?”
“I have an extraordinary item that allows me to briefly possess the abilities of the next class,” George lowered his voice, leaning closer to Jima’s ear, “It’s called Condemnation. The more evidence I gather about the real evil deeds they’ve committed, the greater the damage I can inflict on them. At that time, it was one of the crucial aids that allowed me to kill the Demon King.”
“How long did you all prepare to kill him?”
“We investigated for more than a year and got his profile, pondering every night on how to punish him.”
I didn’t receive any wind of this; damn! It really was those other Demon Kings plotting.
Jima suppressed the hatred inside her and showed an incredibly curious expression as she asked, “If I’m not mistaken, did you have the assistance of the Demon Kings?”
“We only knew that the other side was backed by demonic forces, not sure if it was a Demon King, but we were very suspicious. Because the information they provided was too detailed, even including the misdeeds of Demon King Jima using his alias on the continent.”
So sad, why at this point is the Holy Hall not so rigid, colluding with the evil demons.
Jima felt unhappy and whispered, “I guess they also wanted the extraordinary materials condensed from the death of Demon King Jima.”
Few people knew that after an extraordinary being died, it would condense extraordinary materials, which were living substances. After processing, they could be used to create extraordinary items and valuable enhancement potions.
“They took half,” George suddenly realized, “You mean that this Fear War Demon benefited from the remains of Demon King Jima.”
“So we should slip away.”
Jima sighed, standing up and ending the secret conversation, looking out at the distant noble island. She could only see the balcony of the Great Benefactor’s residence, partially obscured by the building’s height. The snowy-white balcony was illuminated by orange alchemical orbs, and she could vaguely make out someone enjoying a midnight snack on it.
A gentleman takes his revenge, even after ten years. Tonight, I’ll let you off the hook. Thirty years in the east, thirty years in the west—then, I’ll kill your granddaughter and daughter and scatter your family’s ashes into the sea.
As Jima thought, she opened her personal information panel, dragging the task of “kill the whole family of the trafficker” into the “ten years of revenge” category, placing it under the “revenge against the deceased virgin” task.
George asked, “Why?”
“Because tonight, he is going to use the people of Shalin City to carry out a fear-raising ritual.” Jima didn’t bother to keep it a secret, saying, “As long as he gathers enough fear in a short time, he can hold the ritual to turn into a Diamond. Killing rampantly in the city is a common practice. Historically in the demon race, out of eighteen who leveled up, thirteen succeeded by means of city slaughter.”
“How bloody.”
Jima said, “So let’s withdraw. Most of the time of the fear-raising ritual is spent on terrifying preparations. Now, in half an hour at most, Shalin City will have another Diamond Demon. He is an old Platinum, hard to defeat in a short time.”
I can only shrink those ten years, Jima thought gloomily.
Just as George was about to speak.
The square-faced man beside them became excited. Jima’s words were incomprehensible to him; he only knew that Jima and George wanted to slip away. He clapped his hands on the bar, his square face reddening with excitement:
“Didn’t you, Holy Warrior, make a sacred vow to protect the weak in the past? How can you stand by and see us innocent and helpless civilians here, being slaughtered by these demonic monsters?! Pretty lady, the more beautiful you are and the longer your hair, the shorter your understanding is. Don’t listen to her. I’ve seen that monster with my own eyes; you fight bravely and will definitely slay him.”
Jima was already in a bad mood; her golden eyes glared, saying:
“Hah, you group of gratitude-less ingrates, why don’t you go seek help from the Great Benefactor? How can you have the face to come here asking for help, morally blackmailing us into going to our deaths? You should all be thrown to the Fear War Demon to have your heads mounted on spikes.”
The square-faced man’s face turned red with anger, but being in a position of asking for help, he couldn’t lash out at Jima. Not wanting to enrage the Holy Warrior, he said:
“It’s just that so much has happened today, and we innocent civilians are terrified and emotionally stirred, our minds are a bit muddled.”
“Muddled enough to be cool-headed enough to notice the Holy Hall’s flag, which would enrage the Great Benefactor. Your mind is truly muddled, and you’re still calculating benefits.”
“Please, beautiful lady, Shalin City needs goodwill. Many people lost their loved ones today, including me,” the square-faced man wiped his eyes, “My wife… died at the hands of the monster while trying to save me.”
George said flatly, “Liar.”
His honesty had extraordinary credibility.
The square-faced man desperately tried to deny it, and he was close to successfully tricking himself. His face went red and pale, while the people nearby looked at him with strange expressions. Finally, unable to contain himself, the square-faced man pressed his hands against the bar and growled:
“You heartless two! How can a Holy Warrior just watch us die? Are you even human?”
“Even if my lord himself were here, asking me to put my life on the line for you selfish, deceitful ingrates, I would decline without hesitation,” George said. “Kindness is not foolish; let’s go, you are not welcome here.”
Before the square-faced man could react, the people around eagerly distanced themselves from him, saying:
“Holy Warrior, we are very grateful for your help. We are not this ingrate. Please take us with you.”
“We are willing to pledge our allegiance to the God of Dawn.”
“Please, please save us.”
“You can’t generalize!”
George looked at them with mixed feelings. Surrounded by lies, every lie in his ears was as grating as claws on a blackboard.
Jima raised her hand and shouted:
“Stop! I just want to ask, this guy just argued with George. You had four hundred people earlier—who among those four hundred helped George? You even accused George of colluding with the slaves! And you deliberately shouted loudly, as if I wouldn’t know. You all are ungrateful, and now you panic and shout lies. I want to see how you all don’t just die?”
After saying that, she took George’s hand and said, “George, don’t mind them. I’m a demon, a born villain, best at seeing the true colors of my kind. They are not good people. You and I together—ouch!”
A sudden burning sensation surged at the back of her neck, and she fell to the ground. George hurried to support her, his iron gauntlet glowing faintly as he touched Jima’s neck.
Jima felt a warm stream but couldn’t alleviate the burning sensation. The burning feeling eventually stopped over time. She took a deep breath, recovered, and whispered to George, “Damn, I’ve been cursed marked.”
———
Owed a chapter, so I’m posting this. Originally wanted to write three thousand characters and not write anymore, but accidentally wrote more.
