Home/I Saved the Villain and Fell Asleep/ch 88

Chapter 88

The barrier shattered under the bombs' force. Flash bombs then blinded them. I timed it perfectly, closing my eyes and spreading thick fog.

Now, my obedient fog! Be good!

"Tricky tricks!!"

As the fog settled, Venom's venomous snakes surged from the cave. The soldiers bitten by the snakes collapsed, foaming at the mouth.

"Venom, you bastard! How dare you betray us!"

"Pathetic resistance! Where is the princess?!"

Ignoring the fallen soldiers, the dark mages formed magic circles. Instead of dark magic, they attacked us with their own unique magic.

...What is he doing?

One dark mage covered a dead soldier's body with black smoke. When the smoke cleared, the man—clearly dead—staggered to his feet.

They've got everything!! Even zombies?!

I crept closer and struck the zombie's head. With a crack, it fell and didn't get back up—I'd shattered the magic circle too.

As I quickly retreated, the mage who'd made the zombie looked around in confusion.

"What?! There's one more!"

"A club? It's the princess! Find her!"

But they couldn't find me. Because a massive enemy was casting a shadow over them.

"Don't let them cast! Attack!"

Kali's head tilted slowly. He raised both palms to the sky—a giant red magic circle formed above them. It was so massive and ominous that I gasped.

"Wh-what...! This can't be...?!"

"Ghh! What's happening?! We were told this force would be enough to capture them!!"

In an instant, the area turned into a sea of fire. Acrid smoke and black ash spread everywhere. A few bursts of water shot out to block Kali's flames, but only briefly.

Kali stood there, handling endless flames with a few gestures.

"Raise a barrier!!"

One dark mage shouted, veins bulging in his neck.

"Ghh! Damn it!!"

That was the one who'd raised the barrier earlier. He looked weak—probably from spitting blood when the barrier broke.

"The princess is hiding nearby—we must capture her too!"

"Capture that one by any means! Do not kill him!!"

"Why can't we kill him?"

"He must be offered to His Majesty—who's there?!"

"His Majesty" again. They plan to use Kali as a shell for His Majesty.

"Thanks for the answer?"

I swung my club at the face of the one who'd turned around.

"Hck!!"

With the barrier failing, they were quickly swept away. Few were left standing.

"Czerban Caelius. Truly... impressive."

A dark mage flanked by two guards laughed leisurely.

"If His Majesty didn't want you, you'd have been mine."

What's this perverted bastard saying?

"Who is 'His Majesty'? Are you talking about Isaac?"

"Isaac is merely His Majesty's servant. Hehe, it would have been better for you—and the princess—to be captured here."

Despite most dark mages falling, an old one stood firm, gripping his staff.

"Indeed, you are strong—incomparable to Isaac."

Kali attacked without words, but the flames didn't reach him—one of the two behind him had raised a barrier.

"But you're still just a child."

A massive, ominous magic circle spread in all directions.

"We were told to bring you alive, but a little mental damage won't matter."

The old man smiled maliciously. Standing beside Kali, I watched closely and gripped my club beneath the hat.

"Despair in the darkness...!"

But nothing happened. The second golden eye on the Goblin Club was wide open.

Father's silver magic circle appeared clearly over the dark mage's spell, causing his dark magic to lose power and scatter.

"This is! The Duke's...?!"

The man looked around frantically. Let him think Father's here—and die like that!

"Kali, now!"

Kali picked up a fallen sword and walked slowly toward the dark mage.

"Attack!"

The two mages naturally drew swords. Magic wasn't everything, huh? But now what?

"Pathetic. You call that swordsmanship?"

Frowning from the nausea of Father's magic, Kali cut down the two dark mages as if they were no match.

As Kali approached the last old mage, I released the magic circle. In sync, Kali grabbed the old mage's neck.

"What were you planning with this rabble?"

"Exactly. Was this your full force?"

I answered Kali while taking off the hat. The dark mage, startled by my sudden appearance, staggered in shock.

"Hngh! Th-the princess!"

I walked over, grabbed the old man's wrist, and twisted it. His wrist snapped easily—I looked at him in surprise.

"Gaaaah!!"

"Wait, this is like a twig—why is it so weak?"

It wasn't just him. The others were the same.

The sword-wielders were better, but the attack mages went down with one hit—it felt like a whack-a-mole game.

No, moles keep popping up even after getting hit.

"You'll regret this...!"

If the others are this weak, just beating them down is fastest. This is the problem with mages who worship magic—they're physically pathetic.

"Who is this 'His Majesty' you speak of?"

The old mage laughed hysterically.

"H-hngh... You have no idea... gwaaah!!!"

I tightened my grip on the wrist I'd accidentally broken—he was trembling, his eyes rolling back, clearly in agony.

"I won't let this slide... ghh...!"

"Oh dear, this old man's already hard of hearing. That's a problem. And this wrist—bones don't heal well at this age, you should be careful. I'll fix it, so tell me about 'His Majesty'... that person you call 'His Majesty'..."

Pulling back his robe, I whispered in the old mage's ear with an innocent face. His beard trembled.

"Was it the former Emperor?"

I said it as casually as I could. The old man's eyes widened, bloodshot and glaring at me as if he'd devour me.

"I, I can read minds. Your head is full of the former Emperor."

Of course, it was a lie.

"H-hngh... hehehe!! You will become His Majesty's obstacle."

"So it really was the former Emperor? He was supposed to be dead."

I didn't need to dig further—this little nudge was enough to confirm it. They react to every hint, so why bother?

Though I spoke casually, a chill settled in my chest. The former Emperor, really? How is he alive?

"Y-you wretch!!!"

"Oh, the old man's got a loud voice."

The old mage tried to channel mana to cast magic, but it never activated. High-purity black mana rippled in Kali's hand. He erased the old man's traces and looked at me quietly.

"Huff!!"

Venom, crawling out of the cave, collapsed as he looked around.

"How did you manage to work under Isaac with this weak constitution?"

"I-it's not that I'm weak..."

Snakes scattered everywhere began gathering around Venom.

"Sn-snakes! Snakes!!!"

Colton, hiding behind bushes, screamed at the sight. Another weakling added...

"Kali, I realized something today."

"Really? Me too."

"Aren't they a bit pathetic?"

Kali looked around with indifferent eyes and waved his hand lazily—red flames wrapped in black mana rose into the air and descended to the ground. One by one, they vanished without leaving even ash. There was nothing left to extract. We'd already learned the important parts.

"Hnngh, hck..."

Venom covered his mouth and retreated. I spoke as gently as possible to Venom, who was dry-heaving.

"Come with me, Venom. I'll spare you."

He seemed terrified—even a friendly smile made him flinch. He knew too much; I couldn't just let him go.

"You said you wanted to live quietly in the forest with snakes, right? I'll make that happen. A place with a good view and even a lake. How's that sound?"

So Venom, with a death-row expression, headed to the ducal estate with us.

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