Chapter 254: Lighthouse*
New chapter of The Demon King is out! (1/2 chapters)
“Miss Lily, listen carefully. When it gets bright around us, lie face down.” (??)
The woman, who turned back while spreading charm, said this while staring directly at Lily in a playful manner. Her face bore a natural smile, but only her mouth uttered stiff words like a clerk’s. From this, Lily realized that this person was no ordinary individual.
“When you do that, you will be saved.” (??)
After saying that, suddenly it became as bright as daytime, as if light had shone through the clouds. The woman fell flat on the ground, lying face down. Wanting to be saved, Lily immediately followed suit.
The next moment, a series of gunshots, “Ba-ba-ba-ba-boom,” could be heard. Lily did not understand what was happening, but she pressed her head down with her bound hands and continued to lie down. Incomprehensible words were flying over her head.
“Lily-san!” (Yuri)
The desperate voice was one Lily had wanted to hear once more before she died. It was Yuri’s voice.
“—!” (Lily)
When she looked up, something passed right in front of Lily’s eyes. What had rushed past at an incredible speed intersected with Lily’s body and flew away.“Guh—!” (Basilio)
It seemed that the leader, who was holding a double-edged dagger, had been kicked away by Yuri-kun’s fierce kick. The area was brightly lit, making their movements clearly visible.
The sound of metal clashing twice, *clank* *clank* could be heard, and Yuri’s dagger was knocked away. At the moment she thought it was over, Yuri-kun grabbed the leader’s dagger-wielding arm with both hands. Simultaneously sweeping his legs and moving his arm to fold it, he aimed the tip at the man’s chest. As they fell, the tip of the blade lightly stabbed into the man’s chest.
Upon closer inspection, the man seemed to have been shot in the left shoulder and arm, rendering one arm completely immobile.
“××, ××” (Yuri)
Yuri-kun uttered a short phrase as he deeply plunged the blade. The man’s face twisted in agony. He tried to do something with the one hand still gripping the hilt, but against Yuri-kun, who had both hands free and his weight bearing down in a straddling position, he was powerless. When the blade pierced through to the cobblestones, the man released his grip on the hilt and reached for Yuri-kun ‘s face. With a swift motion, Yuri-kun disengaged from the man’s body and kicked the man, who was now standing up with the blade still embedded in his chest.
When the man fell to the ground again, it seemed he had lost his vigor and did not rise again. He glared at Yuri-kun with resentment, twitching, and then stopped moving.
—
“Lily-san, are you alright?” (Yuri)
Yuri quickly removed the gag and then untied Lily’s hands.
“Ah—thank you. I seem to be okay.” (Lily)
As Lily responded, Yuri-kun, still worried, checked her body for any injuries. Lily thought he was probably concerned about whether she had been hit by any bullets, as he had used a gun to rescue her. Finally, he took her hand and confirming there were no wounds anywhere.
“Thank goodness…” (Yuri)
He spoke with deep relief, then hugged Lily tightly. His grip was strong, and his body was trembling slightly. Lily felt the intensity of his feelings reflected in the strength of his embrace, and the fear of losing her made him tremble. She was enveloped by an indescribable sense of relief and felt profoundly happy.
“Yuri-kun, is this okay? People are watching…” (Lily)
Even though they were in the darkness outside the range of the light, there were still quite a few onlookers. It was only then that Lily realized the light was coming from the reflective mirrors of a lighthouse.
“It’s fine.” (Yuri)
“Were you that worried about me?” (Lily)
Lily asked something she already knew. She wanted to hear the answer spoken out loud.
“Yes… I was afraid of losing you again…” (Yuri)
It wasn’t the exact words she had sought, but Lily was still satisfied. The woman was no longer in this world. Yet, what made Lily happy was that Yuri-kun had the same kind of feelings for her as he did for that woman.
“Thank you for saving me.” (Lily)
“I’m sorry. For putting you through this…” (Yuri)
“It’s okay. They didn’t treat me roughly or anything…” (Lily)
They continued to embrace for a while longer before Yuri-kun pulled away.
“I’m sorry… Please wait a little longer. I’ll get you home soon…” (Yuri)
“Uh, okay.” (Lily)
Yuri-kun walked toward the area illuminated by the lighthouse. Lily, feeling reluctant to be apart, followed him. There were several bodies lying around. The leader Yuri had defeated and another Shanti man, who appeared to be an accomplice, were also down, taken out by gunfire.
—
“…Enrique, what are you talking about?” (Yuri)
Yuri-kun spoke to the woman who had saved Lily. The person called Enrique was conversing with the man who had punched Lily in the stomach. Lily didn’t understand, but it seemed Enrique could speak the man’s language.
The man, having been shot in the thigh and side, was sitting on the ground, glaring at them and holding the same kind of dagger as the leader. Despite the severe bleeding, the gunshot wound in his side seemed to have only gouged the muscles and hadn’t reached any vital organs. Lily knew this well from her experience in human anatomy. However, without treatment, he would likely die from blood loss.
Enrique was enjoying the conversation, a thin smile on her face.
“Yuri-chan, this kid is so interesting! Enrique wants this one as a reward!” (Enrique)
Enrique, who had been looking at Yuri, suddenly stood up and spoke in the carefree tone of a young girl. The stiff, clerk-like manner she had used when guiding Lily had vanished, and her expression and tone now matched.
Is this her true nature?
Lily wasn’t sure what kind of person this benefactor Enrique was.
“Why not that one instead?” (Yuri)
Yuri-kun pointed at another man. This was the one who had been eyeing Lily lecherously. Now, he was surrounded by a crowd, raising his hands in surrender.
He had a blackened hole in his chest, but it seemed he had been saved by tucking Lily’s thick lab coat into his chest. Even so, he was hunched over in pain, likely with a cracked rib.
“I don’t want that one! He’s probably just a regular guy and boring! This one is definitely a religious type. He’s been giving Enrique the most intense looks!” (Enrique)
Indeed, the man was glaring at Enrique with fierce hatred.
What kind of conversation had they had?
“Tillet.” (Yuri)
When Yuri called the name, the one who responded was the woman who had been aiming her spear at the man with vigilant eyes since earlier.
“He certainly played a significant role, and if the Regent approves, I have no objections. Just make sure to extract useful information, not indulge in your hobbies. He seems to know more than the lecherous man over there.” (Tillet)
“Got it!” (Enrique)
The man, likely faint from blood loss, seemed to struggle just to keep his upper body upright.
Enrique approached the man, holding a black dagger reversed, and struck the hand holding the dagger with the blunt edge. The man dropped his weapon immediately, and Enrique moved closer.
“××” (Enrique)
She spoke to the man, then swiftly wrapped a cord around his neck, tightening it with a gentle yet firm motion.
“××××, ××××××××××, ××××―――――” (Orbert)
As Enrique spoke, the man’s expression momentarily turned to one of horror before he went limp, unconscious from the cord’s pressure. Enrique supported his body as he slumped sideways, gently laying him on the cobblestones and quickly began to treat his wounds. Lily wanted to thank her but realized she was too busy.
When Lily looked at Yuri-kun, his face showed a mix of distaste and sympathy.
“Yuri-kun.” (Lily)
“Yes. Oh, it will be over soon.” (Yuri)
“That’s not it.” (Lily)
Lily was still upset about being punched in the stomach by the man.
It had hurt so much that Lily thought she was going to drown in her own vomit and die.
“He punched me really hard in the stomach. What did Enrique say?” (Lily)
“Are you alright?” (Yuri)
Yuri-kun, looking worried, tried to lift Lily’s clothes to check her stomach, but she held her clothes down, not wanting him to see the bruises.
“My stomach’s fine.” (Lily)
“If you had any internal injuries, it would be serious.” (Yuri)
“If that were the case, I wouldn’t be standing here like this. But—” (Lily)
Lily found it strange that Yuri didn’t seem particularly angry at the man who had punched her.
“Oh… But it’s not worth knowing.” (Yuri)
“Tell me. I’m curious.” (Lily)
“Well, if you insist…” (Yuri)
Reluctantly, Yuri began to speak.
“She said, ‘I’m going to take my time breaking the precious faith in your heart. I can’t wait to see the look on your face when that happens. I promise I won’t let you die’.” (Yuri)
Lily didn’t fully grasp the meaning of these words. She had knowledge about religion and its believers but didn’t understand the true nature of such matters.
“That’s what she said. It’s not something you need to understand, Lily. But if you’re angry at him, I can assure you there’s no need for that. Whatever hell he is about to endure will be far worse than if I had killed him here. I can’t even imagine the horrors he’s going to face, but they will be much worse than dying here at my hands.” (Yuri)
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