Episode 400
Is this guy bluffing right now?
Anyway, the leader is currently in a position where he can just spit it out.
Judging from the way he speaks, he seems to have a rough idea of the situation in Jingpu-dong, so it is highly likely that he is also aware that this building is currently cut off from the outside world.
That is, this guy may be just bragging because he knows he can’t communicate with the outside world anyway.
“If you don’t believe me, go to the communications room.”
“… … .”
“The communication function is still working, even though it’s limited. You should be able to find out what’s going on outside.”
This can’t be a bluff, can it?
I wouldn’t be bragging about something I can check right away if I put my mind to it.
I looked at the leader with a crumpled expression and left the detention room without responding.
And immediately head to the communications room.
In the communications room, several guards, including Jisa, were waiting… … .
For some reason his expression was not good.
Especially in the case of Jisal, he was spitting and shouting at the communication modifier.
“Headquarters! Respond! Is something wrong? Headquarters! Respond!”
Since I didn’t feel like talking to Jisal, who was shouting with bloodshot eyes, I grabbed the guard who was standing a little way away and asked him.
“What is going on?”
“Ah. That, that’s it. While I was in the middle of contacting headquarters, the call suddenly got cut off. And it seemed like he was confused about something… … .”
Why is this guy speaking to me formally?
At that moment of puzzlement, a voice was heard from the communication line.
[… This is the headquarters of the workhouse. Speak.]
Jisal’s voice suddenly grew louder at the sound of a voice.
“Headquarters! What the hell happened during the transmission? What the hell is that screaming?”
[We too… are aware of the current situation. However, the communications officer who was just communicating with you has died.]
“what?”
[In addition, it is believed that many people have died simultaneously in various places in the current work camp. The situation here is also chaotic. I will contact you again after assessing the situation. That is all, communication is terminated.]
“What the hell is this kid? Headquarters? Headquarters! Respond!”
Jishal shouted harshly, but there was no reply.
He slammed his fist down on the table as if he was going to break it, his teeth clenched.
“You f*cking dogs! What happened to the reinforcements?”
Several guards were attached to the grumbling Jisal. If things continued as they were, it looked like all the crystals in the communication room would be destroyed.
I left the room, leaving the communications room behind.
And then I recalled it as if I was recalling a faint memory.
‘7th floor… was it room number 3?’
I recalled the prison cell in my memory and quickly climbed the stairs to reach my destination.
And then I opened the door to the unusually quiet prison cell and went inside.
“… … .”
In room 3 on the 7th floor, there was a dead man’s body with a bright smile on his face.
As it turned out, the prisoner was a member of the church.
Naturally, there is no means to end one’s life in these cells.
Not only sharp objects, but even towels and strings should be made of loose and soft material so that they cannot be used to hang someone.
Let’s take a look at how a guy like that died in a closed room like this…
The cause of death was asphyxiation.
‘crazy…….’
I have seen cases like this.
Snowville village, which we stopped by in the north… … .
This is the method used when two of the believers I had secured there took their lives.
Suffocation by strangulation without hanging or any tools, just by one’s own will.
This is a method of suicide that only believers can commit.
‘… … .’
Even if he is a priest, he cannot order his followers to die.
Even if I could command, I wouldn’t die smiling so brightly.
A being with absolute power, authority, and charisma in the religious order. Only the Black Leader can exert such influence.
“Are you done checking?”
The leader greeted me with a smile.
I spoke with my hand on the hilt of the sword, ready to pull out Myungryong-ah at any time.
“I’m warning you. From now on, don’t say anything other than what I ask. If you break this rule three times, I won’t continue the conversation.”
“That’s too harsh… … . Isn’t that too rude to someone who’s trying to help you?”
“once.”
The leader laughed heartily and shook his shoulders.
“Okay, okay. This is my first time receiving such a threat, so it’s refreshing.”
“First, tell me the name of the Demon King who is currently imprisoned on this top floor.”
“Green Tongue Demon King Tangtata.”
“What is the Demon King’s current status?”
“It is parasitizing the human body through the Kangma ritual. It is in an imperfect state in many ways. That is where the key to the strategy lies.”
Now, let’s get to the main point.
I took a deep breath and asked the leader.
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“How do you conquer Tangtata?”
“… … .”
A thin curve appeared at the corner of the leader’s mouth.
“Green Tongue Demon King Conquest Method… Part 1. Basically, you should conduct the conversation alone.”
“alone?”
“Yes. Don’t rush in and say you’ll talk a lot. You have to talk first. If you rush in too much, it’ll just stimulate Tangtata’s ‘appetite’.”
The word appetite sounded pretty plausible though.
He’s the guy who started eating the guards as soon as he arrived at the punishment cell.
It’s hard to believe the leader’s words based on just those words.
“Second strategy. Declaration of play.”
“what?”
“I’ll tell you after I meet Mr. Tangtata. I came to ‘play’ with you. If we’re lucky here, you can even choose the type of game you want to play, and even if not, it’s still better than fighting for your life. Even if he’s in an imperfect state, he’s still the Demon King. I wouldn’t stand a chance in a head-on confrontation.”
I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face by the endless barrage of words.
I was swept away by the torrent of words the leader was spewing out and asked hastily.
“Play… … . You mean the game I know?”
“It’s okay if it’s a game. If you persuade them well, you can play something like chess. However, I don’t recommend games that require too much thinking. If Tangtata gets angry, he might flip the chessboard. Then the game is over, and the fate of the punishment unit is over.”
“… … .”
“Why? Does what I say sound like nonsense?”
If it sounds like nonsense, that’s a good thing.
If the opponent hadn’t been the cult leader, I think I would have let out a deep sigh here.
therefore…….
The nonsense this guy spouts out sounds so plausible.
‘Am I crazy?’
They say that if you deal with crazy kids, you end up becoming a crazy person.
Since I’ve only dealt with the cult guys since my return, I don’t know what’s wrong with my head.
but…….
The appearance of the Demon King Tangtatara that I encountered in person, and what I felt.
He was clearly an incomprehensible monster, but he had a strangely innocent and stupid side.
Other demon lords might think of humans as insects, or worse… … .
There was also the thought that Tangtata might truly love humans and want to know more about them.
That way of loving really did taste good, though.
To sum it up.
The idea of the leader adopting ‘play’ as a means of countering tangta-ta sounded like quite a clever idea.
“Of course, since the location is the location, there will be restrictions on the types of events. The chess, poker, marbles, tug-of-war I mentioned earlier… these are going to be a bit difficult. If possible, it would be better to do something that can be done with bare hands.”
I asked like I was half crazy.
“Do you have any recommendations for games?”
“there is.”
“what.”
“Cockfight.”
“… … .”
What the heck is cockfighting?
As I looked at him with a bewildered look, the leader smiled and said:
“So you lift one leg up, hold it with both hands, and jump with the other leg, bumping into your opponent. Like a human top.”
“Are you talking about the rascal’s feet?”
“That’s right! That’s correct. If you can knock your opponent down like that, you win. Of course, if you touch the ground with the raised leg, or if one of the arms holding the leg comes loose, you lose.”
“… … .”
I enjoy talking nonsense, but I just couldn’t follow the flow of this conversation.
“…Why do you recommend cockfighting?”
“Are you seriously asking? You have a tail! It would be much more advantageous for you to balance. Your toes are shaped like hooks. And think about Mr. Tangtata’s physique. Can you stand on one foot with that size? It would be hard to even bend your leg! Phew!”
After saying that, he laughed for a long time like a clown who burst out laughing at his own words.
For a moment, I thought of Tangtata standing on her haunches and thought it was a little funny, but since she was Luzard, I swallowed and held it in.
“… Then what is the game that should be avoided the most?”
“Hmm. Well… … . Considering this place, the time you have left, and Mr. Tangtata’s disposition… … .”
The leader chuckled.
“It’s probably hide-and-seek. If we get caught, it’ll be a bit dangerous. First of all, all the survivors in this punishment cell will be forced to participate, and anyone caught will be killed on the spot.”
“You too?”
“Maybe? Well, if we play hide-and-seek, I’ll probably struggle to survive somehow. I don’t plan on being killed by the Demon King.”
“That might be a bit difficult.”
“huh?”
The next moment, I pulled out a dagger that I had been keeping in my bosom and rushed at the cult leader like lightning.
And at the moment when the leader flinched slightly, he stabbed the dagger into the bastard’s heart.
“… … !”
I felt like it had touched my heart, but strangely enough, I felt nothing more than that.
So, normally, a heart pierced by a blade would be torn or burst immediately, and this guy would suffer an irreversible blow… … .
It seemed as if the knife was stuck in the leader’s heart, just like a nail.
Of course, there was no sensation of blood gushing from the stabbed area.
“Ah… Honwonbisu.”
The leader chuckled.
“You were… hiding it. Then… was Leone also hiding in the workhouse? That must be it… … ? The shield of the soul I felt from you… wasn’t a protection… It must have been that guy who was using tricks… … .”
“You know a lot.”
“Then… … . Are you the colorless priest?”
I didn’t ask this question because it wasn’t worth answering.
I saw the dagger stuck in the leader’s heart.
A mixed sword.
A sacred relic of the church received from Leone.
If you put that in the heart, the cult leader said that you can’t take the consciousness out of that doll.
I don’t know if that ability applies to the main body as well.
So this attack was quite a gamble for me, but seeing the leader’s attitude, I thought it wasn’t a wrong choice.
‘I’ll have to check out the other main bodies of the cult next door.’
I looked at the leader and said.
“Since you said you wanted to die anyway, stay like that for the time being.”
“Haha… … This kind of death is a bit… boring… … .”
The leader burst into a dry laugh and looked at me.
“Well… this is why life is… fun… … . It’s an unexpected turn of events… but that makes it more fun… … . Now all that’s left is… to pray to God… … .”
“… … .”
But then this guy started talking about God again.
It was the same last time.
I suddenly became curious.
The god that the religious order believes in… What on earth is the god that this guy who plans to kill the Demon King believes in?
‘Behemoth? Or something else?’
I was curious, but I didn’t think the guy who just stabbed me in the heart would answer, so I kept my mouth shut.
Anyway, I was trying to leave the detention cell while organizing the information I heard from the leader, when the leader said.
“Ah… … . One last thing… … .”
“… … ?”
“When you meet Mr. Tangtata… the first thing you should say is… you should choose wisely… … . There’s a saying that first impressions are half the battle… ?”
“… … .”
“If you choose your words wrong… you could end up getting torn to pieces on your first date, let alone having fun… … . Well, I would have advised you on this too, but… … .”
The leader said with a big laugh.
“To the one who stabbed me in the heart… I wouldn’t be able to extend that kindness… … .”
“… … .”
And the leader’s head was bowed down.
I don’t know if he fainted or was just pretending to faint…
It was clear that he had no intention of talking to me any further, so I clicked my tongue and left the cell.
* * *
As I’ve said many times, I don’t have much time left right now.
Not only is there a massacre at the workhouse a bit of a surprise, but even the punishment cell cannot be considered safe.
Anyway, if we leave it alone, the people here will also crawl into Tangtata’s mouth hole on their own feet.
In other words, it was a natural progression for me, after finishing my conversation with the leader, to have a brief conversation with Verita, relay the general situation to the guards including Jisal, then go to my room to finish my final checks, and then stand in front of Gustav’s room.
“Hmm… … .”
The first words that suddenly came to my mind were… … .
So I was thinking about how to sing Tangtata.
To be exact, I am skeptical about whether this is the right way to do it.
Because I think it wasn’t a very good first word.
But what Verita said… should we call it the intuition of a ‘priest’? That kind of intuition was also asserted.
This is the correct answer… … .
From now on, I will summon the Demon King here.
In a way, it is like summoning the Demon King directly in front of your eyes, so this could also be called a ritual of the descent of the spirit god.
Then what I’m going to do from now on is summoning demons.
It is the first and last time that one does priestly work.
I took a deep breath with a solemn face, then recited a spell that was not even written in the scriptures of evil.
“Ta─ang─ta─ta─.”
… … .
“Come play with me─.”
Kwaang!
The iron door shattered into pieces.
