Volume 6 - Epilogue
EPILOGUE
IN THE HOLY LAND
Dang, Laplace thought as he ran as fast as his legs could take him, I thought I was gonna die!
Just as they had discussed, he had attempted to break into the holy domain once more, the moment the Walpurgis Council began. He was on his way to the cathedral inside the Holy Temple, headed for the Inner Cloister where he ran into a demon lord last timeonly to run into the worst person possible.
She was none other than the epitome of strength and beautyHinata Sakaguchi, captain of the Chief Knights of the Holy Imperial Guard and leader of the Churchs paladin forces.
Whoaaa! What the hell? This aint how the promise went!
Laplace cursed his absent client. The promise was that said client would lure Hinata out of there for him. He could already hear the guy laughing and saying Oops! Sorry, sorry to him. The mere thought of it irritated him gravely.
But now was no time for grousing.
I do so detest insects like you. Burrowing into a holy place such as this
The sound of Hinatas cold voice made him feel like the life was ebbing out of him. Without another moments hesitation, Laplace decided to runand he made it out, alive and well.
His mission was a failure. The Inner Cloister might as well have been on another planet. But none of it was Laplaces fault.
Whether the demon lord Valentines absent or not, if shes around, it doesnt bloody matter
You expect me to beat that monster? he whispered to himself as he gave up the job. Still, he thought, Ive been doin nothin but run lately, huh?
He wanted to give himself a well-deserved pat on the back for getting away from Hinata at all, but that didnt mean he liked it much. Given the terrible hand fate had been dealing him lately, it didnt seem smart to assume hed make it all the way
Then he felt a rift appear, on the outskirts of the holy city, erupting into a massive wave of magical energy.
Whoa For real?
Laplace could barely stand this any longer. That wasnt just a high-level magic-bornit was something even stronger than that. Plus, Laplace was familiar with its magical wavelength.
You little worm! Show yourself before me, now!!
The voice of the demon lord Valentine thundered angrily, like a maelstrom of purging fire.
Dammit! Now its a demon lord?!
Laplace wanted to wail out loud at the completeness of his sheer bad luck. But now wasnt the time for that. He attempted to run off once more
Hmph! Youre just as lowly as him, I see. Do you just enjoy inching around?
then he stopped, sensing something in Valentines choice of words.
What do you mean?
Pfft! It does not involve you. Valentine scornfully laughed. But very well. Just a moment ago, the demon lord Clayman lost his life. That foolish, sniveling little maggot fled for his life, too, just like you, mewling pathetically the whole time.
What?
Ha-ha-ha! What, are you angry? What does it matter to you?
Shut up! Are you fer real? Claymans dead?
Haaaaah-ha-ha-ha! So the maggots let the cat out of the bag, has he? I thought you two might be connected. By the will of the goddess Luminus!!
Laplace stood there, dazed, before Valentines loud laughter. Claymans death was too much for him to believe. Not that he couldnt believe it, he just didnt want to. To him, Clayman was a good friend and companion, if restless and nervous.
Whatre you laughin about, ya pile of garbage?!
Who do you think youre talking to, yougnnngh?!
Dumbass! I told you not to laugh at my friend!
Laplaces fists never stopped swinging. They were literally killer, both of them.
Gnhh, dontdont you start on me, maggot!!
His face reddened with anger and humiliation, Valentine glared at Laplace. No matter how much this insect hit him, Ultraspeed Regeneration made it all pointless. Death was the only way to give fools like these a lesson, as he thought it. He didnt even stop to wipe the blood sprayssprays that even now turned into a fine, crimson mist that descended around them both:
Die! Bloodray!! Valentine cried.
Amid this absolute barrier of gore, a torrent of visceral blood particles hurtled at the speed of a bullet towardnowhere.
Uh-uh. Youre a dead man.
Wha?! Valentine had no idea what happened. He bore overwhelming power, and this little maggot was toying with him. He had tried to kill him with his most powerful of skills, but for some reason, it never went off. Tonight was a new moon, the period when his powers were at their lowest point, but to a demon lord, the difference was trivial.
There could be only one explanation: Laplace was strong. And this turned out to be correct. In Laplaces hand, there was something throbbing.
!!
Yep. Thats yer core, there, your heart. Cant move, cant speak, am I right? Thats what I do.
As Laplace gave him the cruel news, Valentines body began to unconsciously shiver, little by little. It almost felt like
Fear? Am I feeling fear?!
You were juuuust a little late on the uptake there. But you got it now, yeah? Im a strong one.
Valentines face turned pale, wincing in desperation. He realized that Laplace really did have his core in his hand. All was lost.
The expression made Laplace whoop in crazed laughter as he crushed it with his fingers. The battle was decided in a single moment.
Laplace didnt stop smiling for a while after.
Oooh, Footmans not gonna like this
He had massacred all the guards who spotted him.
Ooh, and Teares probably gonna cry, too
He had attempted to flee straight out of there.
And thats exactly why Im laughing. Laughing at you, Clayman. For being such a perfect idiot.
The Crazed Clown, in his estimation, had experienced exactly the death he deserved. Laplace wasnt angry; he wasnt crying; he was just laughing, in commemoration of a friend who would no longer laugh with him.