After acquiring the <Thief> skill and carving a path through the swarm of Bugbears, I raced through the dungeon to where Hero Eligion was waiting.
"Ah, Kiska-kun! Good to see you."
Hero Eligion greeted me with his usual cheerful expression.
"Lord Hero, I'm here to guide you to the Demon King."
"You know where he is?"
"Yes, I have a good idea of his location."
"Really?! Then lead the way at once."
I guided Hero Eligion straight to the chamber where Demon King Zoga waited.
"Demon King Zoga! I’ve come to settle this once and for all!"
"Hmph! Shut your mouth, brat! I don't need you to tell me that—I'm already prepared to kill you!"
Once I confirmed the two of them had engaged in combat, I doubled back the way I came, heading toward Holy Knight Kanaria. I had to ensure Eligion was occupied with the Demon King; otherwise, if he stumbled upon my fight with Kanaria, he would likely intervene and kill me.
Now, finally, I could concentrate entirely on her.
"Of all the people to run into first, it had to be you."
Holy Knight Kanaria looked at me with a dissatisfied scowl when she spotted me.
I wondered how many times I had died since I first started fighting her. I didn’t know the exact number, but it was likely somewhere around the 130th attempt.
My condition, however, was peak; I’d never felt better. The new <Thief> skill had integrated into my body perfectly. When I closed my eyes, the memories of every past struggle against her flickered through my mind. I knew her combat habits with a sickening familiarity.
In this timeline, I was certain I would win.
"I’m just glad to see you’re safe, Kanaria-san."
Deceive her.
I couldn't let her sense even a hint of hostility. I looked at her with the most convincing smile I could muster.
"Actually, I’ve already reunited with the Hero."
"I-Is that true?!"
At the mention of the Hero, Kanaria’s expression flared with a brief moment of excitement. It was beyond my comprehension why a person plotting to murder the Hero would look so genuinely relieved at the news of his safety.
"Yes. Come, I’ll take you to him."
"Right. Lead on."
She began to walk toward me. One step, two steps. Three steps, four, five... This distance was perfect.
"Hey, what’s wrong?"
She stopped, looking at me suspiciously because I hadn’t started moving yet.
"Nothing. I was actually just waiting."
Yes, I had been waiting. Waiting for her to step into the exact range where I could guarantee a lethal strike.
A fraction of a second later, my hand clamped onto the hilt of the <Sword of Raging Flames>, and I ripped it from its scabbard.
"—!"
She gasped, her hand flying to her own sword in response to my sudden eruption of killing intent. But my blade was already mid-swing, aimed directly for her throat.
Blood sprayed with a sharp splurt.
I didn't know the specifics of Kanaria's skill set, but as a Holy Knight, her endurance was undoubtedly magically enhanced. Such people were notoriously difficult to kill with a single blow, even when struck in a vital area. Despite my blade opening her throat—a fatal wound for any normal human—she was still breathing.
"YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!"
Enraged, she brought her sword down with crushing force. I caught the blow with my blade, but I couldn't parry the sheer weight of it. The impact sent me flying backward.
"Hey... what is the meaning of this...?"
She sounded furious, but her eyes remained cold and calculating. Even as she spoke, she was secretly pressing a hand to her neck, channeling Healing Magic into the wound. Blowing me away and then trying to talk were both just tactics to buy time for her recovery.
Naturally, there was only one thing for me to do: press the advantage.
"Say, Kanaria," I said, wearing a relaxed, mocking smile.
"W-What...?"
She knit her brows, watching me. Perhaps she was starting to find me unsettling.
"Why does the master of this 'Chaosism' group you belong to bother cooperating with the Demon King? You’re acting like his common subordinates."
"Y-You... how dare you insult my Lord...!"
Success. The <Provocation> had landed.
While <Provocation> had been merged into the <Thief> class during synthesis, it was still fully functional. I’d bet that insulting her "Lord" would strike a nerve, and it seemed I was right on the money.
She abandoned her half-finished Healing Magic and threw her sword aside.
"<Black Blade>."
The command left her lips like a curse. The <Black Blade>—one of the forms of the Parasitic Sword: Puppeteer. She was clearly going all-out from the beginning this time.
"I’ll kill you!!"
With a scream of rage, she charged, swinging the <Black Blade>. But thanks to my <Provocation>, her movements were sloppy and reckless. Evading her was child's play.
"Agh...!"
She let out a pained groan. As I dodged, I had buried my sword deep into her side. I didn't let up. I settled into a relentless rhythm of dodging her clumsy strikes and landing my own. I had memorized her patterns to the point of exhaustion; there wasn't a one-in-ten-thousand chance of her hitting me.
"Checkmate."
I drove my sword through her leg, pinning her to the floor. In that moment, victory was mine.
Kanaria glared up at me, grinding her teeth in a silent fury, but she could no longer stand. I reached down and yanked the pendant from her neck. Hanging from the chain was the ring required to resurrect the Demon King.
"You... give that...!"
She reached out with a panicked expression, but I brushed her hand aside with ease.
"Sorry, but I’m taking this."
With this, the Demon King’s resurrection was halted. The world was saved.
"Hey. What exactly is going on here?"
The voice came from a third party.
I spun around to find the Dwarf Warrior Golgano standing there, his heavy axe resting on his shoulder. A flash of a previous loop crossed my mind—a scene where Hero Eligion had intervened and killed me because I hadn't led him away in time.
This was bad. I was a newcomer to the group, a stranger they’d only just met. My "reliability" was nothing compared to a veteran like Kanaria. Finding us like this, common sense dictated he would take her side.
I had the ring. I just needed a way to get out of here.
"He stole the <Ring of Chaos>!" Kanaria shrieked.
The <Ring of Chaos>...? So that was the name of this thing.
"I see. I think I understand the situation."
Golgano spoke with a voice like cold stone, his gaze fixed on me.
Wait. Something was wrong. How did Golgano know what the ring was called?
"Fuhahaha! Too bad for you, brat! Golgano is one of us! You thought you’d won just by beating me? Think again!"
"Shut up, Kanaria."
Golgano’s gruff voice cut through her manic laughter. Kanaria immediately choked back her breath and went silent.
I couldn't believe it. There was a second traitor in the party.
"Are you part of Chaosism too?"
Golgano didn't bother to confirm or deny my question. He simply spoke a single phrase.
"Parasitic Scythe: Kyogenmawashi."
In an instant, a massive black scythe manifested in his grip. It was a grotesque thing, covered in blinking eyeballs and salivating jaws—a form that defied the very definition of a weapon.
"Yay! A fight!"
"Hooray! It's battle time!"
"Hey, hey, can I eat this guy? Can I?"
The many jaws growing along the scythe's edge began to chatter, each speaking with its own high-pitched, child-like voice.
No matter how you looked at it, it was the same breed of monster as the Puppeteer.