Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

by Hiro Ainana

Looking in the direction she pointed in, there was indeed a section of the wall that seemed out of place.

  Checking my map, I saw that it was a hidden door. This seemed to be the top of the shaft where I’d thrown the undead beast near the spider’s lair.

  “Good eye, Tama.”

  I petted her head and scratched her cat ears. Of course, Pochi looked left out, so I patted her with my other hand. And tousled her dog ears, of course.

  While I was preoccupied with this task, a new enemy signal appeared on my radar. But what I heard from the soldiers and merchants investigating near it were cheers of joy, not screams.

  What’s going on? Puzzled, I looked in that direction while checking the monster’s real form on my map at the same time.

  “Hey, there’s a treasure chest here!”

  “Ooh! I’ve heard of them appearing in dungeons sometimes!”

  “It’s mine! I found it first!”

  Just then, the man’s obnoxious claim turned into a scream.

  “Oh-ho-ho-ho…to think that so many of you made it here! I, impressed!”

  Before us was the eyeball demon who had pulled us into the labyrinth. I thought he wasn’t here, but he’s just been disguising himself?!

  “Everyone, get into position! We’re going to form a three-pronged attack, not a circle! This thing can use magic—Viscount, Zena, we’ll need you on defense!”

  The captain sprang into action, ordering the troops into formation. Zena cast Wind Protection and Air Cushion in rapid succession. The Oracle and her priestesses must have used up their magic, because they quickly took shelter in a corner.

  “I knew you’d show up, demon! Unfortunately for you, there’s no defense against my Blaze Magic. I’m going to use Blast Pole. Buy me some time!”

  Oh-ho, I thought this guy was just stingy with his magic, but I guess he was saving it for a demon encounter. I apologized to the viscount in my mind, reconsidering my opinion of him a little.

  The demon howled, and black spheres appeared all around him. They circled him, repelling any knights who tried to get near him.

  “Human magic is too slow. I, bored!”

  His giant eye blinked for a moment.

  Hmm? What was that? Something felt strange for a moment there.

  > Skill Acquired: “Evil-Eye Resistance”

  I glanced at my log and noticed I’d gotten a new skill. Looking around, I saw that the people who had been directly in front of the eye now had the status Charmed.

  Even the beastfolk girls had apparently been unable to resist.

  “Master! This is incredible, sir! So much meat, sir!”

  “I’m gonna eat the meat!”

  “Pochi, Tama! We have to hunt as much as we can for the master’s sake!”

  They must have been hallucinating that the soldiers around them were roast chicken and beef or something.

  I felt bad when they looked so happy, but I had to quickly knock them out with the side of my hand and carry them to a corner of the room. This spot was in the shadow of a large rock, so they should be safe even if the demon cast a big area-effect spell.

  The Charmed soldiers were attacking their comrades, but they were outnumbered enough for it not to turn into a massive bloodbath.

  At present, the captain and the battle-crazed heavy soldier from before were locked in direct combat with the eyeball monster. The black spheres caught the strikes from their broadsword and battle-ax, though, so they weren’t able to reach the monster himself.

  Zena was a little ways away using support magic, but she didn’t seem to have much MP left.

  “Stupid humans, kill each other! I, happy!” The demon sneered, apparently enjoying the mayhem. His words ended with another howl, and his body glowed a dark red.

  At last, Viscount Belton finished his chant, and a pillar of flame erupted from below the demon’s feet.

  “Foul demon! We humans won’t allow your kind to trample on us forever!”

  But as if to mock the viscount’s cheesy line as he brandished his staff, the eyeball fluttered about coolly in the middle of the fire. An AR pop-up read, Fire damage cut by 75 percent; he must have used a defense spell right before the attack.

  Like the demon himself had said, the chant was so lengthy that it was probably easy to defend against it in time. How sneaky.

  “Hot! HOT! It’s nice and hot! I, cozy!”

  “What the?! Intermediate magic doesn’t work on him?!”

  “Doesn’t work? Of course it worked. I, kind.”

  Sure enough, the demon’s health bar had decreased, but by only a small fraction.

  “Ah, your despair feels so good! I, thrilled!”

  At this rate, it was only a matter of time before someone got killed.

  Zena said low-grade demons are as strong as a wyvern, but this guy is definitely tougher than that.

  I’m going to have to fight, even if it means I’ll stand out.

  Showing off my superhuman powers might end in all of Seiryuu City chasing after me, but I can’t just stand by and let Zena die.

  Just as I had made that decision, however, screams came from the other room, as if to dampen my resolve.

  Turning toward the passageway, I saw Nidoren and the others running toward us with a bloodied undead beast at their heels.

  Crap! I had been so occupied with what was in front of me that I’d forgotten to keep an eye on my radar. Kicking myself, I picked up a rock from the ground in front of me and threw it at the monster’s face.

  The only reason I didn’t finish it off in one blow was so that I could use it.

  The undead beast turned its empty eye sockets toward me and ignored the middle-aged man it had been about to crush in favor of coming toward me.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Zena’s shocked expression. “Satou?!”

  I caught the undead beast’s charge with both hands, and its momentum sent both of us flying into the wall with the hidden passage behind it. The fragile wall crumbled, and the beast and I were both swallowed up in the darkness.

  “Zena! Stay in position!”

  “No, let me go! Satou, Satooou!”

  The sound of Zena shrieking my name faded as I dropped into the abyss.

  Sorry, Zena. You can scold me for this later.

  I had fallen into the pit behind the secret door. It would have been a huge pain to get back to the battlefield from a thousand feet down, so I had grabbed a ledge about fifteen feet down and pulled myself into a small room.

  Normally, this kind of acrobatic movement would have resulted in nothing but some broken fingers, but my leveled-up body could do some ridiculous things.

  The undead monster had ended up in the room with me, so I finally had a chance to bring out one of my Holy Swords again.

  It didn’t glow blue, but it was still insanely sharp, enough to cut the monster in half without the slightest resistance. The sword caused me a minute amount of damage as long as I had it out, so I put it back in its scabbard.

  All right. I can disguise myself while I’m in this room.

  I changed out of my robe into some shabbier clothes, with a richly colored overcoat on top. The hood could probably cover my face, but it still made me a little nervous.

  Looking through my Storage, I found something pretty convenient: the dragon mask I’d bought with Martha. She’d said this silver mask was quite popular last year, which meant they wouldn’t be able to track it down to one owner. I put on the blond wig I’d bought then, too.

  Great. I’m all set.

  I ran like the wind down the passageway, heading back to the battlefield.

  In the room before the Skeleton Room, there was a bunch of weak monsters—maybe summoned by the demon—pressing down on the hunters and guards who desperately fought to protect the entrance to the smaller room where the others were hidden.

  I made sure there was no one in the passageway, then took a boulder out of Storage and rolled it along. The overwhelming mass crushed the monsters.


  > Title Acquired: Merciless One

  I made sure the attack had taken out all the enemies, then bounded past the stunned hunters and guards and headed toward the Skeleton Room.

  The battle against the demon continued unabated.

  In the few minutes I’d been gone, several soldiers had taken serious injuries, but Zena appeared to be unharmed. The beastfolk girls were still passed out in the corner, but they were fine as well.

  Thanks to what was probably the viscount’s magic, a circle of flames around the eyeball made close combat impossible. I tossed another rock from Storage at the center of the demon’s huge eye.

  “Guh? What was that? I, surprised!”

  “Quit screwing around! We don’t need help from a masked weirdo like you!”

  Oh dear, I’ve been rejected?

  Wearing the silver festival mask to hide my identity had apparently backfired.

  The demon howled, and a transparent black screen appeared in front of him.

  I lightly tossed a rock at it, but right in front of the screen, it suddenly lost all momentum and dropped harmlessly to the floor. It must have been a magic defense against projectiles.

  “Who are you? Thinking you could harm a demon with a mere rock? I, so perplexed!”

  His next cry created a black javelin. Is howling like that the demon equivalent of a chant?

  The missile flew toward me, but I dodged it easily. It was moving at a pretty high speed, but maybe my “Evasion” skill helped me with the timing.

  While I had the demon distracted, the viscount’s Flame Spear and the priestess’s Sacred Javelin spells hit the demon squarely in the temple, reducing his HP by a large margin. At the same time, the captain’s broadsword and the heavy soldier’s battle-ax crashed into him from the other side.

  The ax didn’t do any damage, but the sword must have been a magic weapon of some kind, because it took out another chunk of the demon’s HP.

  “Aargh, am I going to be defeated by humans? HUMANS? I, embarrassed!”

  A magic circle appeared at the demon’s feet.

  “He’s going to cast something! Everyone, defensive positions!”

  At the captain’s warning, the soldiers took cover behind nearby rocks.

  In a game, this would be the time to attack the demon head-on with all my might to try to finish it, but in reality, I guess damage control was more important. Charging the demon here would probably be akin to trying to put out a dynamite fuse before it exploded.

  Still, I felt like I should take this chance to finish him off, so I pulled out the Holy Sword at my waist and charged. Unfortunately, something fell from the ceiling and landed on me, preventing my advance.

  > Skill Acquired: “Dark Magic: Demon”

  > Skill Acquired: “Dark Resistance”

  Damn, is it one of those black spheres that stopped the soldiers’ attacks before?

  Getting new skills was great and all, but that magic circle was highly concerning. I had dropped my sword when I hit the ground, so I had to shove the sphere off with my bare hands.

  The magic square rose up toward the ceiling, with the hell demon in the center.

  “Ah, master! I, yearning.”

  A jet-black giant emerged from the magic circle.

  I could only describe this thing as a real demon.

  He had the horns of a ram, glowing dark-red eyes, and gleaming black skin. There were shining metal claws at the ends of each of his four arms. Black bat wings sprouted from his back with veins of red, plus a forked tail with sharp points on the end. The twenty-foot-tall giant was floating in midair.

  This was a level 62 greater hell demon, with skills in three kinds of magic—Wind, Lightning, and Dark—as well as hand-to-hand combat. On top of that, he had five extra skills inherent to his species—“Flight,” “Petrifying Breath,” “Poison,” “Regeneration,” and “Spawn Creation.”

  “How can this be?! It summoned an intermediate hell demon?”

  “Wrong, Human. The Great I, Displeased.”

  “My master is the demon lord’s right-hand man! A god among demons! I, correcting!”

  “I don’t believe it. A greater hell demon?!”

  Stunned by the new enemy, the viscount and captain fell to their knees in despair—realizing it was a superior hell demon. The only ones who seemed able to bear the news were the battle-crazy warrior and the Oracle.

  “You Did Good Work Creating The Labyrinth And Summoning Me. The Great I, Gratified.”

  The giant beast grabbed the eyeball demon.

  “Ah, I can be a part of master again! I, delighted!”

  With that, the greater demon bit into his subordinate and devoured him.

  When this gruesome ritual was completed, another head sprouted from the monster’s, his face nothing but an eyeball.

  They fused somehow? Well, at least he didn’t evolve or level up or anything.

  “Soldiers, Stand Up And Fight. The Great I, Choosing You.”

  A howl overlapped the creature’s voice, apparently from the new head.

  Winds that would put a hurricane to shame whipped up in the room, throwing the soldiers against the wall. I raced against the gale, catching Zena and the Oracle priestess before they hit the wall, too.

  The men are going to have to bear it themselves. I can’t catch everyone.

  > Skill Acquired: “Wind Magic: Demon”

  > Skill Acquired: “Wind Resistance”

  I gained two new skills as I fought the magic, so I put some points into “Wind Resistance.”

  Grabbing my Holy Sword from the rock it was lodged in, I stood facing the demon. He looked down at me scornfully, but his frown deepened into a scowl of hatred when he saw my sword.

  “So There’s A Hero Among Us, Is There? Did You Get A Divine Revelation? The Great I, Enraged.”

  Even as he spoke, the creature was casting magic in the background. This thing is seriously sneaky.

  A jet-black aura appeared around his body. Probably some kind of support magic.

  But I can be sneaky, too. I checked the effect of the demon’s magic on my AR screen. Sure enough, it was a fortifying spell. Physical damage cut by 90 percent, the ridiculous effect read.

  “Your Carelessness Will Be Your Downfall! The Great I, Full Power.”

  The greater hell demon howled again; his claws, horns, and tail glowed black. A new AR pop-up appeared: Physical attack power 300 percent UP.

  Whoa, whoa, whoa. How much buffing up do you need to do?

  If I just stood by and watched, this situation was only going to get worse; it was time for action.

  I wouldn’t be able to take out his legs with my sword, so I aimed and fired with the Magic Gun at maximum power.

  The demon twisted out of the way of what should have been a nearly invisible bullet, and he came at me with a speed I wouldn’t have expected from such a huge brute.

  Leaving a trail of red light in his wake, the demon slashed his poisonous claws down at me. I leaned back and dodged the strike, using my absurd strength to swing my sword upward. But the attack barely scratched the hell demon’s skin. I had thought I’d be used to combat by now with all the monster extermination we’d done, but I apparently still had a ways to go.

  “What’s Wrong, Hero? Aren’t You Any Good With Your Holy Sword? The Great I, Disappointed.”

  The tiny scratch I’d made on him healed in the blink of an eye.

  I guess the Oracle was right—without the Hero title, I can’t use the Holy Sword to its full strength.

  I continued evading his attacks and launching counterattacks of my own, but the demon dodged my magic bullets, and my sword would barely scratch him, so I wasn’t dealing much damage.

  And then, apparently tired of my efforts, he launched a thunderbolt attack at me. I didn’t have a chance to dodge it, so the lightning struck me dead-on.

  > Skill Acquired: “Lightning Magic: Demon”

  > Skill Acquired: “Lightning Resistance”

  > Skill
Acquired: “Paralysis Resistance”

  “Ow, my hands and feet are tingling.”

  If I had to compare it to anything, I’d say it was like a more extreme form of the pins and needles in your limbs after you kneel for a long time. Checking my HP gauge, I saw I’d taken about five points of damage.

  I tried to dodge the demon’s claws as they swiped toward me, but my limbs were still a little numb, so I was a second too late. I blocked with my sword, but it still managed to graze my shoulder.

  > Skill Acquired: “Poison Resistance”

  > Skill Acquired: “Disease Resistance”

  > Skill Acquired: “Decay Resistance”

  How many status conditions can you inflict with one attack?! Luckily, I seemed to have resisted them all, because nothing strange happened to my body.

  Putting some distance between the demon and myself, I funneled points into my new skills.

  “You’re Sturdy For A Human! The Great I, Impressed.”

  But apparently, surviving all those attacks and conditions had left me a little overconfident.

  The demon breathed a puff of gray air that crept up my left side.

  The surface of my body started to crust over. I yanked a cloak out of Storage to ward off the rest of the petrification breath.

  > Skill Acquired: “Petrification Resistance”

  I freaked out a bit, but it looked like all that had hardened were my clothes and the surface of my body; when I flexed my fingers a few times, the plaster-like material flaked away, revealing perfectly smooth skin underneath.

  Man, I’m lucky my level is so much higher than that thing’s.

  The demon seemed startled that his Petrifying Breath hadn’t worked on me, but he diverted my attention with dark missiles and wind blades, then came at me with his claws while I was dodging in midair.

  Crap, I forgot—it’s a bad move in fighting games to evade in the air, isn’t it?

  The petrified part of my robe was brittle, and it tore off, exposing my shoulder.

  I took damage from the attack, but my “Self-Healing” skill closed up the wound as soon as it was inflicted, so while my robe got a little bloodied up, my HP gauge was just fine.