The sight had sent them scrambling back into the undergrowth, their hearts pounding. That had to be magic. Was she... a demon? The thought made them tremble.
Then ca the smoke, thick and unnatural, plunging the forest into darkness. They were sure they had been discovered, that the demon-child was coming to silence them. They huddled together, shaking like leaves.
But then, the smoke cleared. And I was gone.
"Where'd she go?" one of them whispered after a long, tense silence.
"Probably left," another guessed.
The leader of the group jabbed a finger at one of his n. "You. Go check."
"?" the man squeaked, pointing a trembling finger at himself.
"Yes, you."
"But boss, that thing was terrifying! I'll die!"
"What are you scared of? What if she's gone for good? Now go, before I make you go," the leader growled, flashing the blade of his large knife.
With no other choice, the unfortunate bandit crept cautiously out of the bushes while his companions retreated deeper into the woods. He swallowed hard.
He peered at the labyrinth entrance. The girl was gone. He scanned the surrounding area. No sign of her.
She had really left.
With a sigh of relief, he turned to report back to his brothers.
"Boss, I think she's go "
He turned. And his blood ran cold.
His companions, including his boss, were all bound tightly in a strange, golden chain, unconscious on the forest floor.
And standing among them was the girl with the violet-blue hair.
The thing on her head he had dismissed as an ornant was now projecting a halo, like an angel's. And from her, he could feel no warmth, no life. She was like a doll.
She just stood there, her inorganic eyes, devoid of any emotion, staring directly at him.
….
The truth was, the mont I escaped the Great War, my existential crisis was over. The system's dinsional travel was my ultimate safety net. I never had to go back. I could spend eternity hopping between peaceful worlds.
I knew this. I understood this completely.
So why was I in such a hurry to collect more power?
Because with the threat of imdiate annihilation gone, a new desire had taken root. A desire to see other worlds. To experience different cultures, different ways of life. The mont I stepped into that first dinsional corridor, my goal shifted from a "Path to Survival" to a "Sightseeing Tour."
Collecting abilities was just a hobby I picked up along the way. A side quest. It was just in my nature.
Thinking back on it, I felt a slight pang of guilt for the Spirits of the last world. My entire ti there could be sumd up as: "Spirit! Fight! Spirit! Fight!"
Looking back, the only person I had anything resembling a real conversation with was Nia Honjou.
But what's past is past. I have no ability, nor desire, to change it. I am who I am. Becoming an Ex-Machina didn't erase my mories or my personality; every action I took was a product of my own will.
These were the thoughts that occupied my mind as I sat outside the labyrinth, waiting for my clone to return.
….
"I... I've told you everything I know," the last bandit stamred, his body trembling. "Can... can you let go now?"
His boss and the others were already dead. When the leader had woken up, his first reaction upon seeing was to unleash a stream of curses. In response, I had summoned Sandalphon and decapitated him.
"Non-essential individual. Elimination complete," I had stated aloud.
At the sight of it, the bandit was fairly certain he had wet himself. What is this thing? It had the halo of an angel but acted with the cold, rciless brutality of a demon. It killed without blinking.
After their leader's swift execution, the remaining four had spilled everything they knew.
I scanned the group, kneeling on the ground, still bound by my golden chain. The information they provided was... adequate. Finally, I asked the question that made them all flinch.
"Query: Have any of you killed soone?"
My calm, synthesized voice was like a thunderclap in the quiet forest. A cold sweat broke out on their foreheads. They kept their heads bowed, refusing to et my gaze.
"I... I was forced to!" one of them blurted out.
I turned my golden eyes on him. The man's sudden courage evaporated, and he imdiately looked at the ground.
Hmph.
I turned and walked away, leaving them there. As a wave of relief washed over them, a flicker of hope that they might survive, the chains binding them burst into crimson flas. In seconds, all that remained was a pile of smoldering ash.
I hadn't needed to use Gavelet on them. The threat of death was a more effective truth serum. My own systems could detect a lie with 99.9% accuracy by analyzing facial micro-expressions and physiological responses. The man who claid he was "forced" to kill? He was lying.
But I am not a hero of justice. I didn't kill them for their past cris. I killed them because they had targeted .
My scanners had picked them up the mont they entered the area. I had heard their entire plan to capture and sell . I had initially planned to ignore them, but upon learning of their intentions, and the fact that they had now seen my true form, elimination beca the most efficient course of action to avoid future complications.
Their fate was sealed the mont they decided I was their prey.
Still, their interrogation had not been a complete waste. They had provided one piece of useful information. To the south, there was a small demon encampnt.
Bold of them to set up their operation so close to a demon outpost, I mused.
But for , a hunter of magic, this was a gift. A target of opportunity, delivered right to my doorstep.
[Converting all mana to dinsional energy... Conversion complete.]
I purged my system of the magical energy I had created. To a demon's senses, I was now a complete blank, a ghost in their world.
And I began to walk south.
….
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