"Curse, curse..."
Darkness's cheeks flushed as she squirmed, musing, "If I'm cursed too, I'll have to obey the Headless Horseman's demands and be subjected to this and that. What should I do then, Kazuma?"
"Yes, I'm Kazuma."
"Let me go too. I want to be cursed too!"
"Hey, stop messing around!"
He grabbed her collar to stop her. Even Kazuma, a self-proclaimed pervert, thought Darkness was going too far.
On the battlefield.
"You… you're right. After all, you're a Crimson Demon too," said the Headless Horseman with a sigh of relief.
As a high-ranking officer of the Demon King's Army, he had often watched his fellow generals suffer at the hands of the Crimson Demons. He had laughed before—but now it was his turn.
"So, you want to fight me?"
The Headless Horseman stared at Zunzun. A dangerous aura pulsed from his body.
"If I were serious, I'd be powerful enough to kill every adventurer in this town, and then the entire population. Don't think I'll let you off forever. My immortal body knows no fatigue. You rookie adventurers can't hurt me!"
Zunzun frowned. "No, no, no. Before I was cursed, there was still room for negotiation. Now that I'm cursed, I've got no choice but to fight, right?"
He realized the Dullahan was surprisingly fond of moral blackmail.
He didn't think the townspeople would ever actually submit. Using curses to reduce the adventurers' morale? That was way too convoluted.
"That's not necessarily the case," the Dullahan said.
He extended his free hand toward Zunzun. "Let's put it this way… I'm attracted to you. Come with me. If you do, I'll spare the townspeople…"
"Holy Exorcism!"
"AHHHHH!"
Before he could finish, a white light slammed into him.
"Hey! I'm so sick of listening to you talk! You undead never shut up! Just fight already!"
"Hey! Aqua, why did you attack without warning!?"
"Huh? Kazuma, what are you saying? How could a goddess just sit and watch the undead act all high and mighty? No undead gets to act tough in front of me!"
Aqua and Kazuma were arguing furiously.
The Headless Knight, atop his headless black horse, let out a shriek after Aqua's attack. Black smoke billowed from his armor. He trembled all over, barely managing to stay upright.
"Huh? That's weird! Kazuma!"
"Yes, I'm Kazuma."
"My skills aren't working on him! What should I do?!"
Aqua shouted in panic.
No, no, no. Even without his horse, he was still pretty useful.
"A sneak attack… You should let people finish what they're saying!"
The Dullahan gritted his teeth. "I'm Beldia, a general of the Demon King's Army! This armor is blessed by the Demon King himself! Combined with my power, no ordinary priest magic can harm me! That's how it should be! Let me ask you—what's your current level? Are you even a real beginner?"
He tilted his head—well, Aqua's head—to the side in confusion.
Aqua took a few steps back, visibly shaken.
"Well," Beldia muttered, sounding tired, "I'm starting to get bored. I might as well raze this town to the ground… Come, my brothers!"
Suddenly,
Beldia summoned a horde of undead knights.
They were a level higher than zombies. Their armor was ragged, but they were a genuine threat to novice adventurers.
However—
"Waaaah! Zunzun! Zunzun, help me! Please!"
"Zunzun, I'll treat you to dinner tonight! My purification magic doesn't work!"
Kazuma and Aqua screamed in panic as they fled.
Yunyun watched them and said, "Zunzun, shouldn't we help them?"
"Never mind."
"But—"
"Never mind."
Zunzun and his group were preparing to face a general of the Demon King's Army. How could they waste precious magic power on such trivial matters? It definitely wasn't revenge for the drowning earlier. Definitely not.
"A battle of the strong?" said the Dullahan, delighted. He raised his sword, holding his head in his other hand. "Fine then. Since I don't attack the weak, I'll start by finishing off you lot and making the rest of the town tremble."
"Advanced Water Creation!"
At that exact moment, Zunzun raised a hand, shooting a stream of water straight at the Dullahan.
He was instantly drenched.
"What…!"
Watching from a distance, Darkness blushed. "He's using that same water trick… Zunzun can be surprisingly intense… Wonderful! I want him to do that to me later!"
"Zunzun?"
"That's… a bit much."
Even Megumin and Yunyun found it hard to accept.
But Zunzun knew the truth—just like in a certain monster-collecting video game, the undead were weak to water!
"You—you—you—you! Didn't we agree to let people finish their sentences!?"
"I did wait. You finished talking, and then I attacked."
"…Huh?"
Zunzun said it as if it were obvious. The Dullahan was stunned by the bizarre logic, but soon resumed cursing.
"Are you trying to humiliate me!?"
"Hehehe… Mr. Dullahan, you can't fool me. Even if your armor resists purification, you're afraid of water, aren't you? That's a basic undead weakness!"
"You… you… I don't understand what you're talking about."
He awkwardly pulled his hand back, clearly shaken.
Everyone now realized Zunzun wasn't just mocking him—he had a real strategy.
"Yunyun!"
"I know!"
Zunzun didn't even need to finish before Yunyun began casting.
She might not have inherited the Crimson Demon's strength in life, but her combat instincts were flawless. No—she was the perfect Crimson Demon.
"Advanced Water Creation! Advanced Water Creation!"
She cast repeatedly while Zunzun engaged the Dullahan in direct combat.
Soon, both were soaked. Zunzun's unconventional tactics had turned a life-or-death battle into something like a chaotic water festival.
The Dullahan shouted, "You despicable knave! If you were a knight, you'd fight me fairly!"
"What are you talking about?!"
Zunzun locked his arms around the Dullahan from behind in a "Seven Days Lock of Strong Love."
"You threaten the environment, terrorize citizens, toss your head around to peek under skirts, and curse people. What part of that is knightly!?"
"Nonsense! I used to be a knight! Now I'm a headless knight! You don't know what that's like!"
"Too bad. I'm a wizard, not a knight, so I don't understand your struggles!"
"Let go! Let go! LET GO!"
The Dullahan flailed, unable to break free due to his unwieldy armor and enormous sword.
"Magicians, support Zunzun!"
"We're on it!"
"Water Creation! Water Creation! Water Creation!"
Axel's mages unleashed a torrent of water magic, flooding the battlefield. What was once a grim encounter had become an all-out aquatic onslaught.
Darkness tried to join the fray, but the other adventurers held her back.
"Damn it!"
The Dullahan cursed furiously.
Under normal circumstances, he would've dodged easily. But now he was immobilized, and Zunzun's love-lock prevented him from even throwing his head properly.
"But it doesn't matter!" the Dullahan roared. "This is just a beginner town! No one here can kill me!"
"Oh really? Mr. Dullahan, did you forget something?"
"…What?"
That quiet murmur by his ear chilled him to the core.
That's right. There was one maniac who visited his castle every day to bombard it with Explosion Magic.
As if on cue, the Dullahan spun around and looked toward the hill.
Standing atop it was the Crimson Demon Archmage.
Her eyes gleamed with madness.
"I'll leave it to you, Megumin!"
"I'm ready!"
Megumin swung her staff.
"——Explosion!"
Zunzun released the Dullahan and leapt away at the last moment.
A massive explosion tore through the field, throwing everyone back and carving out a crater in the plains.
This time, no one scolded Megumin. Everyone cheered.
"We did it!"
"We won!"
"I take it back! You're not crazy!"
Elsewhere, Aqua crawled out of a pile of rubble, muttering, "With that explosion, he must be dead… What a pity I didn't get to purify him."
"Wait, stop! Don't say that! You're raising a flag!" Kazuma yelled.
As expected—
When the dust cleared, the Dullahan stood again.
He laughed triumphantly.
"Almost! That almost killed me! But what a shame—your level's too low, and Explosion isn't strong enough! Hahaha! And now, you're all out of mana!"
"Impossible! That was an Explosion that reshaped the land!"
"Damn it, we still failed? Is this guy really one of the Demon King's officers?"
"Someone go get the Demon Sword Hero!"
"Hahaha—Ah!?"
Just as he began gloating again, someone hugged him from behind.
"Are you done yet? You're out of magic, aren't you? You can't beat me!"
But Zunzun grinned, covered in soot. "No, Mr. Dullahan. This is your end. If you survive this… I'll surrender."
"…What?"
"I'm going to explode!"
An even bigger explosion rocked the field.
When the dust settled—
Aqua tried to raise another flag, but Kazuma clamped a hand over her mouth.
A single figure stood in the center of the crater, raising one hand high.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
—
Is the Dullahan dead?
Totally dead!
-End Chapter-
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