CHAPTER 97
Cain the Transferee.
To find him, Aranseol, the rest of the party, and I began to search the city.
The fact that he had followed Arshel meant he had to be nearby.
Believing he couldn’t be far, we started combing through every corner of the city.
But there was no sign of Cain.
“Arshel, are you sure you were followed?”
“I’m telling you, I was! Right before I came to this inn, he was following me, muttering something from behind!”
Judging by Arshel’s vehement reaction, it seemed to be true, yet he was nowhere to be seen.
Where on earth did that bastard go?
I lamented Horizon’s absence.
As a scout, she would have found him in no time.
Our party had no one suited for tracking.
“Hmm, this isn't working-ssumda. Let’s use a little muscle!”
Just then, Lululio, who had been leaping across rooftops, landed and announced her plan.
Since he was proving harder to find than expected, it seemed she was going to try something.
Lululio lightly tapped her foot on the ground.
In that instant, her body began to break down into particles of light.
What appeared next were dozens of Lululios, each the size of a fairy.
Did she just split herself apart with light?
I knew about her ability, but this was an absurd application of it.
“More people means an easier search, right-ssumda!”
“Let’s go, let’s go!” the tiny Lululios chanted in unison before leaping off in all directions.
“I’ll send one to the Regular Army-ssumda!”
Lululio spread throughout the entire city.
With this, it seemed impossible not to find him.
Still, we couldn't just stand around and do nothing.
“Arshel, I need you to be the bait.”
“Ugh, I really don’t want to.”
Under the pressure of our glares, Arshel reluctantly took on the role of bait.
She walked down the street, glancing around nervously.
The fact that Cain was likely involved with Black Dawn seemed to be making her even more tense.
While Arshel acted as bait, we followed her quietly from a distance.
We had been following her for some time when someone began to trudge toward her from the opposite direction.
A gut feeling made me narrow my eyes and look ahead.
Instinctively, my body shot forward.
“Kyaa!”
At the same time I yanked Arshel out of the way, something pierced my abdomen.
It was the claw of a monster that had appeared by tearing through space.
Cain’s Dimension Eater.
“C-Cain.”
Arshel belatedly realized who had attacked her.
The man walking towards her from the other side, wearing a hood.
It was Cain.
Sparks flew.
Lightning flashed.
Babiyen's fire magic assaulted Cain, and Aranseol’s sword cleaved the Dimension Eater’s claw.
As the claw was cleanly severed, blood that had pooled inside my body gushed out.
“Arshel, take care of Harua!”
As Aranseol shouted, she clashed with the Dimension Eater that had emerged from the spatial tear.
Supported by Arshel, I retreated into an alley.
People began to scream and scatter in every direction.
It was a natural reaction to a battle suddenly breaking out in the middle of the city.
“Ugh, dammit.”
“A-Are you okay? You’re bleeding so much.”
“Don’t… ask a Holy Mage that.”
Catching my breath, I leaned against the wall and activated my holy magic.
The claw had pierced my abdomen near my heart, but since I didn't have one, it wasn't a problem.
With the space for my major organs being empty, recovery wasn't difficult.
I hadn’t spent all this time learning holy magic just to die from something like this.
Thanks to that, I recovered quickly and got back on my feet.
“Harua! He suddenly disappeared again!”
Just then, I heard a shout from Babiyen, who had been firing off flame spells.
Disappeared again?
I looked towards Aranseol and saw she was still fighting the Dimension Eater.
That meant he hadn't escaped completely.
“This guy, he’s crossing through space! It’s not space magic, so it must be his Ability!”
Now I understood why we couldn't find him no matter how hard we searched.
Has his skill with his Ability improved?
Just as the efficiency of my Resurrection magic improved, an Ability grows with the user’s proficiency.
It seemed Cain’s Ability had also grown stronger over time.
“Babiyen, help Aranseol and take that thing down first!”
If we defeat the Dimension Eater, Cain’s combat power will be halved.
If he’s been turned into a Modified Body, Cain himself is already a significant threat.
It was better to reduce his strength as much as possible before he transformed.

“W-What do we do? Isn’t this dangerous?”
“Just stay close. I don’t know why, but that bastard Cain is targeting you.”
“I hate this so much. Why is this happening to me?”
Arshel bit her lip, her frustration evident.
She probably never imagined she would become the target of Cain’s obsession.
“Harua-nim!”
Just then, one of Lululio’s clones appeared before us.
The clone glanced around and reported quickly.
“There are fights breaking out where the other clones are, so I can’t get back to them-ssumda! Will you be alright until the Regular Army arrives-ssumda!”
“Just as I thought.”
Cain’s appearance wasn't a solo act.
He was acting on orders from Black Dawn.
“Lululio, have other Modified Bodies appeared elsewhere?”
“That’s right-ssumda. We’re evacuating civilians, and the nearest Regular Army units are joining the fight-ssumda!”
“Then take care of the people first. This doesn’t seem to be a move targeted at us.”
“Understood-ssumda. I’ll be back soon-ssumda! I’ll leave one clone with you; it’ll fly right over if there’s an emergency.”
After relaying the message, Lululio’s clone stood proudly beside me.
“Clone #23, reporting for duty! Pleased to be of service-ssumda!”
“Right.”
As I replied, my Order shot out from my coat.
It suddenly started ramming its tiny body against the wall, trying to tell me something.
Just as I was wondering about Order’s strange behavior, I understood what it was trying to say and threw myself forward, taking Arshel with me.
CRACK!
In that instant, the space in the wall opened up, and a Dimension Eater revealed its fangs.
The creature flicked its tongue where we had been standing just moments before.
It was a reaction of disappointment at having failed to bite us.
My eyes shot toward Aranseol.
She and Babiyen were in the process of finishing off one Dimension Eater.
Which meant…
He can create another one now?
He didn't have to grow this strong this quickly.
I knew his Ability was powerful, but I hadn't realized it was this good.
If he grows even stronger, is he going to be walking around with hundreds of these things?
“This world full of broken Abilities is making me sick.”
Some of us struggle to get by with just Resurrection magic, while others can create monsters with a flick of their wrist.
What a damn unfair world.
It was a difference of birthright.
The Dimension Eater, having failed its ambush, tried to cross back through space.
If I let it go now, it would be difficult to deal with its next surprise attack.
A golden cord formed in my hand.
Sacred Weapon.
I threw the divine rope with all my might.
The flying rope wrapped itself around the Dimension Eater’s neck.
“A dog shouldn’t be running around outside without a leash!”
Even with the rope around its neck, the Dimension Eater paid it no mind and pulled its body back.
It was an action born from the belief that it had the upper hand in strength.
But that was a gross underestimation of me.
In an instant, holy magic flooded into my arms and legs.
My arm and leg muscles swelled grotesquely, and my core muscles added to their power.
KRRRRRRRACK!
I dug my feet into the ground with enough force to crack it and pulled on the rope-wrapped arm with everything I had.
The muscles, swollen to the point of shattering bone, granted me strength that surpassed human limits.
“Kiiik, iiiik!?”
The Dimension Eater let out a strange noise, its body trembling.
It seemed enraged that it couldn't move from its spot no matter how hard it struggled.
I wanted to rip its head off right then and there, but with my current strength, holding on was all I could do.
But I wasn't alone.
“Lululio!”
At my shout, Lululio #23 leaped into the air.
In her hand was a spear made of light.
As Lululio crisscrossed through the air and reached the Dimension Eater, her spear shot out fiercely towards it.
KWAAJIK!
Lululio’s spear pierced the Dimension Eater’s neck and emerged from the other side.
Its neck impaled in an instant, the Dimension Eater let out a shriek and thrashed wildly.
Perhaps due to the pain in its neck, the force of its pulling weakened.
As soon as I noticed this, I twisted my waist with all my might and swung my legs to the opposite side.
“URRAAAAAAGGGHHH!”
With a roar that burst from my lips, I unleashed all my power.

TH-TH-TH-TH-THUMP!
The Dimension Eater’s neck, already torn by Lululio’s spear, was ripped clean off.
Its head flew into the sky.

A moment later, it hit the ground with a sickening thud.
KUUUNG!
The headless Dimension Eater collapsed to the ground. There was no way a creature that had lost its head could remain standing.
“Huu, hu.”
Having expended so much strength at once, sweat dripped from my entire body as I gasped for breath.
My arms were trembling; I felt like I was going to die.
But a Holy Knight is a living zombie.
I immediately activated my holy magic to forcibly heal my body.
“Harua!”
Just then, Aranseol and Babiyen, having defeated their Dimension Eater, joined us. I breathed a sigh of relief as they rejoined me, leaving behind the blackened corpse of the creature.
Cain was still nowhere to be seen.
He was surely watching us from beyond space, hidden.
He was as shady as he looked.
“Order.”
At my call, Order came fluttering over.
A moment ago, Order had known where the Dimension Eater would appear.
Order was an Apostle.
It could probably see something beyond the dimensions.
“Can you find Cain?”
Hearing my request, Order flew up into the air.
“Babiyen, you’re a mage. Can’t you somehow pull that bastard Cain out?”
“Hah, do you think mages are all-powerful?”
Well, that’s what I thought.
“If you can’t, you can’t.”
“...I have been learning some space magic recently.”
Babiyen said, cutting off one of the Dimension Eater’s horns and pocketing it.
“Using this as a medium, it should be possible to open a portal to that space.”
So you are all-powerful.
“That’s my baby Babiyen.”
“How long are you going to keep calling me ‘baby’!?”
“Probably until you become an adult?”
That was still a long way off.
“There’s no need for that.”
Just then, a voice completely different from ours was heard.
A hoarse voice, like scraping metal.
The moment she heard it, Arshel flinched.
Soon after, a dimension split open before our eyes, and a person emerged.
Standing there was Cain, his eyes sunken and hollow.
“Cain.”

As Arshel flinched and hid behind me, Cain let out a short, dry laugh.
“The same bitch who used to spread her legs the moment she saw me has already spread them for another man.”
“What are you talking about? I never even spread them for you!”
“Do whatever you want. I have no interest in sluts anyway. More importantly.”
Cain glared at me, his expression filled with displeasure.
“You damn Korean. You were annoying before, and you’re still surrounded by a bunch of women now?”
What a load of crap.
He couldn't reflect on his own pathetic nature, so he blamed others.
“Ah, this is so annoying. Annoying. Annoying. Annoying. Annoying!”
Cain scratched his forehead so hard it started to bleed, his body trembling. Looking closely, I could see a stitched scar on his forehead.
Suddenly, Cain stopped talking.
He stopped scratching his forehead and looked at us with a blank expression.
“I don’t know anymore. Just die.”
With that, dimensions opened up all at once, and eight Dimension Eaters appeared simultaneously.
Ah, for fuck's sake.
This bastard didn't just have two Dimension Eaters.
He had ten.
In that moment, as we all braced for battle—
FLASH!
With a flash of light, the eight Dimension Eaters were simultaneously blown to smithereens.
Even Cain’s eyes widened at the unexpected turn of events. In that instant, a girl landed in front of us.
A girl wearing goggles on her face.
It was Lululio.

“Alright, it’s all over-ssumda!”
The strongest backup had arrived.