The Mysterious Child: An Adventure Tale Beginning with Numerology

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"Damn it! It won't stop!"

A bird raining flames from high in the sky, a giant wielding a sword larger than houses, an iron centipede over 100 meters long.

Each was a disaster-level monster, and had already caused countless damages.

Among them, the one causing the most severe damage was undoubtedly the iron centipede—Gyges.

Gyges was wriggling its body forward, heading somewhere. Its speed wasn't particularly fast as it was just a crawling insect, but it was enormously huge. Even though it wasn't specifically attacking anything and merely advancing, all buildings in its path were being crushed.

Running around on Gyges' back and continuously attacking its joints was the Guild Master, Camlock.

The exoskeleton was as hard as iron and weapons couldn't penetrate it, so he kept targeting the joints, but the regeneration speed was abnormally fast, and they healed instantly. Even if he managed to crush one or two, it had no effect on the overall progress.

"Tch, what should I do?"

Though troubled, he couldn't stop his hands. Even now, Gyges continued to crush houses and people as it advanced.

He almost thought that coming here might have been a misjudgment—but he shook his head.

In any case, Camlock's fighting style was inherently less effective against huge monsters. Even in his party, he had always been the scout, never taking on the main attacker role.

Still, at least he could ride on this one's back, unlike the phoenix which he couldn't even reach.

He had seen that phoenix shatter into pieces in the distance earlier. It was a magical strike he'd never seen before, probably done by that girl Elenora.

She truly had extraordinary strength, it wouldn't be strange if she became a Demon Lord. Or rather, it would be believable if she was already one.

"I wish she could come here right away... but I guess it's too far."

Gyges had already passed through two districts and was approaching the southern part of the dragon capital. Although its movement was slow for its size, it was still faster than a horse, so even if they caught up, it would be much later.

Soldiers along its path were desperately trying to stop Gyges with continuous attacks, but they seemed just as ineffective as Camlock's attacks.

To begin with, it was doubtful whether Gyges even recognized humans.

Normally, monsters eat animals as food. Humans are prey too. Yet Gyges paid no attention to Camlock and the others. It was just moving southward.

"Tch, it really won't stop. Is there something ahead?"

Camlock continued his relentless attacks. He had no time to be leisurely, but he was at his wit's end. He felt disgusted by his own incompetence as a Guild Master. If only he had brought a big hammer or something.

The one fortunate thing was that as Gyges advanced, there were fewer human casualties.

Even though it was night, people were still awake. Soldiers on fast horses had begun evacuation guidance, and people who noticed the giant centipede approaching from afar were fleeing for their lives.

To reduce the damage even a little, Camlock continued his attacks tirelessly.

Surely that Dragon King could defeat a centipede like this in no time.

He had such a faint imagination, but Camlock knew it wasn't realistic.

That tyrant had no interest in human cities. No matter how many people died in the city, it wouldn't affect his territory, so he probably wouldn't bother coming to help. Given his personality, it was unlikely he would do something as virtuous as helping unrelated humans.

It might seem cold-hearted, but the humans were the ones who arbitrarily worshipped the Dragon King, built a city, and called it a country. Living in his territory without permission, they had no right to complain.

"We have to take care of our own problems... Huh, what's this?"

It was around the time when he could no longer see the wall surrounding the central district behind him.

Gyges suddenly stopped.

"Was this the destination? It's just a regular part of the city."

The southern side of the dragon capital—probably around the 6th Southern District. Even Camlock hadn't come to this area very often. The dragon capital was simply too vast.

Even so, there were no important facilities in the southern district, just an endless stretch of ordinary cityscape. There was nothing that a centipede would prefer, nor any magic essence deposits.

So why did it stop?

"No, that's not it... Is it afraid?"

Camlock felt a slight vibration and looked down at the centipede beneath his feet.

Then he realized.

Gyges had stopped due to a defensive instinct to hide from a predator.

It was simply trying to survive by holding its breath to avoid an unreasonable death.

An S-rank monster doing this?

Was there something nearby?

Camlock was near the tail end of the centipede. He couldn't see the head from here.

He immediately started running along Gyges' body. There was something making Gyges tremble—he hoped it would be good news.

In the next moment, Camlock would come to understand its meaning.

That Gyges was not just afraid, but had also realized and half-resigned itself to an unavoidable future of death.

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Knock, knock, I tapped on the door and waited for a response.

During my student days, I was the epitome of inconspicuousness—quiet, unobtrusive, and plain. I had never been called to the staff room myself. The same went for the student guidance office.

However, I couldn't deny that I had become a regular in the staff room, forced to clean up after my idiot childhood friend numerous times. At first, I was nervous, but eventually, I got used to it and stopped feeling anything. The teachers too, when they saw me coming, would just say "Ah, it's about that matter again" and understand without even asking what I was there for.

As I visited the 30th floor—the final boss room—again, I found myself feeling nostalgic about those times and ended up knocking out of habit.

The response came in a low voice.

"Enter."

"Excuse me..."

I had considered various options like surprise attacks, ambushes, and traps, but decided against them, figuring they wouldn't work on an opponent of this caliber.

As I entered the boss room boldly and straightforwardly, I made eye contact with Saturn, who was sitting arrogantly in his chair.

Saturn's face showed a slight hint of surprise.

"You... How did you get here? My familiars should have been waiting."

"I used a little trick to get through without fighting."

The 'trick' = Nagi's annihilation, so I wasn't lying.

The fact that he didn't know what had happened on the 24th floor meant that Nagi had probably wiped out everyone, including the communication staff. It seems that even a Dungeon Master can't accurately grasp everything happening inside.

Saturn clicked his tongue and gave instructions to that hysterical woman next to him.

"Tetis, go check the 24th floor."

"Understood. But before that, may I?"

Tetis glared at me.

"You're really stupid, aren't you? If you can't use your mystic arts anymore, you should have just run away. Why did you come back? Since you're safe, I assume that escaped lizard is with you too?"

"I'm devoted to my mystic arts, so if they were taken, I intend to get them back. Unlike you, who can't decide which side you're on."

"How cheeky. But how long do you think that composure will last? I'll give you credit for making it back here, but it's the height of arrogance to think you can fight Saturn-sama."

"...You're a noisy old lady. You were given an order, so hurry up and go to the 24th floor."

"Old lady!? You've said it now, you little brat!"

Tetis's forehead bulged with veins.

My goal was Saturn alone, so if Saturn himself would get rid of this nuisance, that would be ideal. I just want her to leave quickly.

Tetis, once again hysterically screaming,

"Saturn-sama doesn't need to dirty his hands with the likes of you! I'll kill you myself!"

"Are you okay with disobeying orders? Aren't you a familiar?"

"I'll just go after I kill you! In the first place, it's presumptuous for a mere human to lay eyes on Saturn-sama! I'll crush you into a pulp. First, I'll crush your limbs, then I'll stir your insides until you beg for mercy. I'll heal you and half-kill you over and over until you go mad with pain, making you regret ever standing against Saturn-sama. And even though I don't know where she's hiding, I'll catch that female lizard too and do the same to her in front of you. I'll definitely find the 'Ruin Factor' as well, and use it up until you beg for death! I'll persistently inflict pain and suffering until you regret being born—"

"Silence."

Bang, a gunshot echoed.

"...Huh?"

Tetis looked down at the hole in her chest, her face showing incomprehension of what had just happened.

In my hand was a slime gun.

Punisuke, who had been hiding under my clothes, slowly began to envelop me, turning into armor.

"What... is..."

Tetis crumbled and sank into a pool of blood.

Next to her, Saturn frowned and glared at me.

"Hmm... A slime weaponized?"

"Sorry, but I've decided not to hold back when it comes to protecting my companions."

Originally, I had no intention of laying a hand on Tetis.

But if she was going to target Seori or Saaya, that's a different story. I had initially planned to use the gun mode surprise attack against Saturn, but I had fired before "Cool-headed" could activate. I have no regrets or remorse.

"It's praiseworthy that you took down Tetis in one shot, even if it was a surprise attack."

"You seem pretty calm for having your subordinate taken out. Weren't you comrades?"

"Comrades? Ah, yes. But so what?"

Saturn slowly stood up.

I thought he might be a little shaken, but he didn't seem to care at all.

"I made her a comrade because she was necessary for my goal, but if she's so fragile that she can't even withstand that level of attack, she's easily replaceable. Though mystic art users among demons were valuable."

"You don't seem flustered even when such a valuable subordinate dies."

"Unfortunately, I have all the time in the world. Eventually, I'll find a more capable mystic art user."

"All the time, huh?"

"Yes, that's right."

"I see. Is it because you can steal lifespan from others?"

When I first met him, I had properly appraised Saturn.

At that time, I saw a status that said [Age: 1387].

Even considering that high-ranking demons live for 500 years, this was clearly an abnormal number. But it makes sense if he's been stealing lifespans from others with "Usurpation".

Not immortal, but an ageless existence. That's Saturn.

"Oh. You knew?"

"Well, sort of."

If that's the case, indeed, if there's no time limit on his goal, he can retry as many times as he wants. A high-ranking demon who not only has super powerful skills but also doesn't leave his own field. I can understand this composed attitude.

But, I don't like it.

"Stealing lifespan means shortening someone else's life, right?"

"Of course. But you have no reason to be angry. I'm a demon, so I can only use what I've usurped from other demons. It has nothing to do with you humans."

"...I see."

I'm not enough of a good person to get angry for the sake of demons I don't know.

So I don't feel anything in particular. I'm just a bit annoyed.

"But well, if you've stolen that much lifespan, don't complain if you get some payback, okay?"

"In any battle, the result is everything. You didn't come back just to lecture me, did you? Though if you intend to defeat me with that mere slime, I can only laugh."

"Don't underestimate our slime."

First, I fired two shots from the guns in both hands.

The bullets, leaving trails of light and flying faster than the sound of gunfire, were stopped by sand that instantly gathered in front of Saturn.

It must be an automatic defense skill. It's one of the skills Saturn possesses. With this speed and power, it seems they can be dealt with.

Just in case, I changed my aim and fired again, but it was blocked in the same way.

He looked bored, as if to say he didn't even need to react.

"So, the one I defeated was just the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings, huh?"

"'Sand Needles'"

This time Saturn activated a skill.

He summoned desert sand through the holes in the wall and shot it like a rain of needles. It was an area attack that spread throughout the entire room. Even with high stats, it's not something you can completely dodge.

"Punisuke!"

"Yes, nano!"

The slime armor expanded and transformed into a shield in front of my body.

The needles made of sand were all deflected by Punisuke's body.

"Then how about this. 'Sand Beast'"

The fallen sand gathered and took the form of a wolf-like creature. Its fangs and claws looked quite hard.

The sand wolf immediately lunged at me. Indeed, if it bites, it would be difficult to pry it off even with Punisuke.

Bang! I shot its head—but the crumbled head regenerated immediately.

Well, it is sand after all.

I quickly jumped back to create distance.

Of course, the sand wolf chased after me, but my agility was superior. While backstepping to maintain distance, I fired several shots at Saturn himself.

"It's useless. My skills are not so weak as to be broken by your attacks."

Indeed, all bullets were stopped.

But this was as expected. The gun mode wasn't originally suited for opponents with quick reactions. The attacks are too monotonous.

"Whip mode."

"Yes, nano!"

Switching from gun to whip, this time I leaped closer to Saturn. Despite being at the level cap, Saturn's stats weren't actually that high. He couldn't keep up with my speed.

Before he could react, I swiftly wielded the whip.

"'Ice Blade'!"

"'Sand Shell'!"

The heavier and faster whip tip than the slime bullets assaulted Saturn, breaking through the automatic barrier of sand and creating an opening. Saturn activated his skill a moment late, constructing a manual barrier underneath.

The second strike aimed at his head was barely blocked by the defensive wall that covered Saturn.

An omnidirectional defense, huh. That's troublesome.

"Cooping up like an egg."

"'Sand Explosion'"

"Whoa!?"

The egg shell exploded.

Fragments flew towards me as I hastily retreated, but Punisuke created a shield to block them.

"Damn, I told you not to microwave eggs."

"Hmm. You fight creatively even without mystic arts."

"I'm honored by your praise."

"It's quite an enjoyable battle, but... for me, it's child's play."

"Oh? You say that after desperately defending?"

"Even if it's an injury that heals quickly, it still hurts to be kicked."

That's true, but.

"You still don't understand. The meaning of my ability to steal from others."

"Oh? Are you going to enlighten me about that meaning?"

"You'll learn through experience."

Saturn pointed his hand towards me.

"'Binding Threads'"

My body froze.

In an instant, thread-like substances extended from the ground and walls, wrapping around my body. While my "Incapacitation Immunity" skill can prevent status effects, it can't prevent physical obstruction unless I avoid or break it.

Saturn didn't give me a chance to exploit such an opening.

"'Flash Step'"

Saturn appeared right in front of me.

It was a movement close to teleportation. Probably a high-speed movement skill.

Saturn thrust out his arm, and Punisuke quickly formed a shield.

But—

"'Penetration'"

Saturn's arm passed through Punisuke's body.

It passed through my body as well—and stopped midway.

It's probably a defense-piercing skill that ignores durability and directly attacks the body's interior.

A barrage of overwhelmingly powerful skills.

Saturn was smiling faintly.

"I have lived for over 1000 years. During that time, I have taken everything I desired. Be it skills or lifespans, I have taken anything and everything I needed or liked. If I so choose, I could instantly kill the likes of you with skills alone. ...Can you feel it? I'm holding your heart."

Saturn, who had literally taken control of my immobilized body, held the power of life and death over me.