Volume 8, Chapter 26: It seems Like Ive Become a Legend Again, Part 2

This is

Kyoji advanced carefully with the remaining half of his forces, and a few hours later they found something that resembled an altar behind the steps that lead down into the basement.

Just looking at it, Kyoji could tell that this altar would only respond to the pure magic power of the [Hero]. He didnt know if he could get at it, and it was certainly not in the range of things that he sought out.

Still, I have no choice but to try. Everyone, back up.

But

It seems to only react to a Hero.

As Kyoji had everyone else step back and squeezed out [Pure Magic] from his soul into the altar, the altar began to glow brightly, and letters began to form on the walls.

Oohhhhhhhhhhhh!!

This is the [Heros Secret Arts]?

The [Heros Secret Arts], left by the first hero. Kyojis shoulders drooped a little, even though knowing secrets of all of the other heroes military power was cause for celebration.

Lord Kyoji, theres a small passageway through here.

Its true!

Hearing his subordinates call out, Kyoji rushed forth.

The passageway that his subordinate had found was a really cramped and dark passage, and even though it wasnt quite clear, it seemed like monolith-like objects continued down the corridor on its sides.

Were going in. Everyone, line formation. Jared, take point.

Understood.

The oldest of the senior knights stood in front with his shield out.

Only Jared had been with Kyoji from the very beginning when he came to this world, and he was the only one amongst them who had become [Hero-class] through tempering in battle, and not through artificial growth. Kyoji trusted Jared the most.

They walked down the dark passage in a line.

Nothing seemed to happen, but when Kyoji, who was in the rear, walked past it, the stone plates lit up.

Is this also a secret art?

It looks like it but its not meant for battle. And its from an older language than the writing in the last room, so I cant quite tell.

When Kyoji had been summoned to this world, he had acquired the [Common Language Skill], but the characters on this stone board were old, and it would take a long time to read even if he had the skills to.

Well decipher it later. Lets advance.

Yes.

Things were going well. What he sought was ahead. But,

guh

Whats wrong?

Im sorry. I dont think we can advance any further

It seems like theres a barrier for you all. I will go on alone here. The rest of you, return to the front hall and secure the perimeter.

I apologize.

Jared bowed his head again, but Kyoji waved him off and walked all the way to the back of the passage alone.

Ohhh This is the contract for skills?

At the very end of the passage was an enormous stone monolith.

It seemed that the castle itself was a magic circle to concentrate and absorb magic from the surroundings, and the small letters that had been carved deep into the enormous stone plate glowed with a pulse.

It was an ancient contract made by the great mages with the Great Spirits for their lives, to give people the use of skills.

Hehehe heheHEHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAHEHEUEHUEAHAHA!! I can use any skill as I like with this. I can give and take as I wish! With this power, I can become the prophesized god of the new world!

Kyoji, who usually kept his calm, was unable to suppress his excitement as he touched the stone stele.

While the fine print of the spirit language was unreadable to Kyoji, but Sefira had told him that he could control this contract by pouring his own magic into it and then overwriting the contractor.

Kuuuh

However, no matter how much magic he poured in, the overwriting didnt end.

It wasnt something that he could do in a day, and in fact it would take months at the least.

What, this is

Kyoji tried to break contact, but his hand could not be removed from the stone board. And in fact, even if Kyoji tried to stop the flow of magic power, it was being forcibly ripped from him.

Dont you dare take me lightly!!!

Kyoji rapidly calculated a counterplan and drew out [Pure Magic] from his soul. Although it was forced, he thought that the use of the pure magic power would rip out some of the control of this stone tablet.

HYAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Yes, thank you for your efforts~

When the voice of the young girl suddenly cut in, the stone stele suddenly stopped absorbing his power, and Kyoji, whose hand was freed, jerked backwards, falling onto his butt.

Princess Yurushia!?

Oh my, its been a while, Keiji.

She suddenly appeared there the golden Saint, Yurushia, who was supposed to have been taken over by evil and turned into the [Demon Lord].

Something was wrong. It felt different from before. Kyojis eyebrows knitted even while he was surprised at her casual neighborly attitude.

How are you here no, how did you get rid of the curse of the [Demon Lord]?

Kyojis senses as a [Hero] caused him to recognize the existence of the [Demon Lord] or some other equivalent evil.

It was insane to try to even save the vessel from that existence.

That was why Kyoji had started to work on his own purposes and abandoned humanity, who dreamed to rescuing Yurushia.

Was that really Yurushia before him? Her black hair had returned to its original beautiful golden blonde, but that didnt mean that it was real. As Kyoji doubted, Yurushia smiled beautifully and knowingly a smile that seemed a little pleased with herself.

Of course, I had everyones help. Aah, yes, there was some Traitor who had run away early from the [Demon Lord] earlier than anyone, but Mizukis squad has become the new [Heroes], and there were the two Dark Elven Princesses who helped them, and it seems that theyve both calmed down too. The Demon Lord is gone, and I think theyve signed a ceasefire agreement too?

It was like he was being rejected from a job interview. Yurushia giggled along, and then laughed, as Kyoji watched on bug-eyed.

In the outside world, Kyoji was being called a traitor who had fled from the Demon Lord, and in that new, peaceful world, where the warrior heroes were no longer needed, new heroes were born.

is that so?

But Kyoji had all the time in the world to be able to mock himself over his own failure.

In order to get rid of everything and attain everything in this world, he had asked for this [Skill Contract] without gathering sufficient information about it.

Various things were in motion, and as long as this suspicious girl died, it could all go well.

Up until this point, Kyoji was unable to do so thanks to the bindings of his own social position, and all of those annoyingly powerful Hero-class attendants of hers were supporting her.

It was unexpected that Yurushia could come to this place where only Heroes were supposed to be able to, but here, it would be possible for him to dispose of her without being obstructed by anyone.

Even if she had the ability of a [Hero-class], she was still the [Saint]. In a straight-up battle, there was no way she could stand against him, a [Hero].

Oh, my, Keiji. You sure got up suddenly. Arent you tired from releasing all that magic?

No, its not much of a problem if its just this much.

As expected of a Hero. But Are you really sure you have that much leeway?

What?

And in that instant, an outcry reached Kyojis ears as if it had come from a long distance away.

Well, Im not sure. Well see soon.

What? Oi!

As Yurushia suddenly spoke in a monotone, she skipped away, back through the long corridor.

Kyoji chased after her, but it seemed that no matter how hard he tried, he just couldnt reach her.

There was a strange sense of incongruity as he ran down the passage, but he couldnt quite tell what it was.

As he emerged out of the passage and squinted at the sudden light of the room, something terrifying entered his view.

Demon

There were his subordinates being overrun by dozens of [Greater Demons].

Jared, who was the only one left, was clutching his sword with both hands while he looked worn under the strain of fighting, but the sight of Kyojis return brought light back to his eyes.

Kyoji?Theland

What what are you saying, Jared?

He could understand a little, but most of what Jared was saying was incomprehensible to him.

It seemed true for Jared too, and as he heard Kyoji, his face stiffened, and his giant body was blown away handily by a small stuffed rabbit.

Jared!

My, my, Keiji. Would you like some pudding? Toukas handiwork is surprisingly delicious, you know?

Dont fuck with me!

As Kyoji tried to assist Jared, Yurushia cut in, disturbing his concentration about some unknown new factor.

Despite being a pretty little girl who he should have immediately been able to blow away, Kyojis instinct instantly drew his attention to that unknown hindrance.

Well, because the people of earth who came here were all excessive and absurd, theres a lot of food. Dried cuttlefish?

You

The feeling of incongruity grew stronger still. While he tried to uncover what it was, Jared let out a death cry of agony.

Jared!

Jared fell bloodily, while the little stuffed rabbit proudly lifted its chin and crossed its arms across its chest.

And as he watched, the giant figure of one of the [Greater Demons] bent low, offering the little stuffed rabbit something that looked like a cheap bottle of sake and kelp boiled in soy sauce.

Well done, Onzada-kun! But you cant drink too much, okay~

As he heard Yurushia speak, Kyoji suddenly remembered the soft toy as the [Independent Magic Tool] that she was carrying when theyd met.

But was it really a magic tool at all? Why were the Demons with her? Had Yurushia really been released from the curse of the [Demon Lord]?

The number of questions he had were overflowing. And the sense of incongruity only grew.

Thanks for all your hard work, Keiji. Because you worked so hard, Onzada-kun here doesnt need to be needlessly injured.

What are you even talking about!

Hey havent you noticed? Were currently speaking Japanese, you know?

what?

Kyoji had indeed been speaking in Japanese. Even if he tried to use the vocabulary that hed gained in Tess in his mind, the words were merely familiar to him, and he couldnt gel them together into a sentence.

The language skills

Thats right. Those things dont exist anymore.

Yurushias smile sent Kyojis already-fragile mental state into even greater shock.

Didnt you notice at all? I rewrote the lettering on the stone stele. I couldnt quite adjust it right with my magic power, but thanks to yours, I managed to get it activated.

An inability to use skills huh.

Oh, thats not quite right. I have rewritten the stone stele, so actually, all [Skills] have been removed from this land.

That initial discomfort. That none of the writing of the stone stele could be read.

It was possible for him to replicate the effects of the skills he used frequently, but he couldnt do anything at all that had previously relied on skills to achieve.

You who are you, Yurushia!

Oh my, my, and here I was, giving you various hints, Keiji.

That name

He had finally noticed the difference in intonation in what Yurushia had been calling him. It was not Kyoji like the rest of this world had pronounced it, but rather the native Japanese pronunciation of Keiji.

Are you going to swim back to Earth this time? Theres no air at all, but you seem pretty confident in your lung capacity, yeah?

Keiji began to sweat profusely as she spoke, the words bringing up the memory of the name of a little girl that had traumatized him.

Yuzu

Its been a while, hasnt it. Keiji.

Her hair and pupil colors were different. But, ever-so-slowly Yurushias irises began to quietly fill with crimson red, and her sclera turned black, and as the presence of a supreme Demon began to emanate out, Keijis face paled and his teeth rattled.

Ah, that stone steles a replica, so you cant quite control the [Skills], you know? Oh, and by the way, the previous hero of wind sends his regards.

UAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Knowing fully now that he had been dancing on the palm of someone elses hand this whole time, Keiji was overcome with both fear and the memory of his trauma. He tried to draw his blade, but without the skills to wield it, he dropped it, trying to strike at Yurushia with his bare hands.

*SMACK*!!!

He could hear the sound of his bones shattering under his flesh, and Keiji, who had taken Onzadas right straight directly, was punted across the hall, bouncing several times as he did so, finally slamming into the wall before collapsing in a pile.

Thank you, Onzada-kun.

[(sip)]

Well, its time to end it.

Authors Notes:

Next time, the end to the worlds troubles.