Surviving as a Barbarian in a Fantasy World

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 259: The Demon of Flowers (5)

“Well.”

Ketal answered with an ambiguous expression.

“I came out by my own will.”

He broke through everything that blocked him, cleared the quest, and escaped from that hellish place.

“I came out alone. I didn’t bring anything else with me. I don’t know why other things are rushing out.”

No.

He had a suspicion.

The fact that the beings from the Forbidden Lands were rushing out coincided with the time he came out.

And the words spoken by the last thing he defeated.

Thinking along those lines, it wasn’t impossible to deduce.

But he wasn’t certain.

More than that, he didn’t want to answer any further.

The other party was a demon.

His enemy.

Materia made a disappointed expression.

“Hmm. So, you don’t know that much. I want to know.”

“You’ve satisfied my curiosity, so it’s only fair that I do the same for you. If you have any other questions, ask them. If I can answer, I will.”

“Ah, then I’ll ask.”

Materia asked with calm eyes.

“The broken things inside. Are they still there?”

“What do you mean by broken things? I wouldn’t know even if you say it like that.”

“You know? The things that aren’t from this world.”

Horrible things.

Twisted things.

Grotesque things.

“Are they still trapped inside?”

With those words, Ketal realized what Materia was talking about.

He nodded his head.

“They’re there. Disgusting things.”

“They’re still there. I was hoping they’d beat each other to death, but it’s not that simple.”

“They do fight each other.”

Ketal had clashed with them many times.

Too many to count.

“Hmm. I’ll have to think about how to deal with them…”

Materia sighed as if it was a headache.

She looked as though the things she asked about were becoming a major problem.

Ketal spoke.

“Did that answer your question?”

“Plenty.”

“Well, that’s good. I’d feel guilty if I was the only one receiving.”

“Hmmm.”

Materia stared quietly at Ketal.

They could communicate.

He was coherent, quick-witted, and could control his emotions.

He could distinguish right from wrong, and his words were composed.

And he was strong.

Materia reached a conclusion.

“You. You’re incredibly attractive.”

She smiled brightly.

“Would you be willing to give me your seed?”

“Seed?”

Ketal tilted his head at the unexpected words.

Materia nodded.

“If I receive your seed, I think I could give birth to something very special. With that, I could trample the world more easily.”

“Is invading the world your goal?”

“It would be an incredibly, incredibly enjoyable time for you.”

Materia laughed seductively.

Her sticky voice drilled into Ketal’s brain.

“I’ll give you pleasures you can’t experience anywhere in this world. I’ll give you ecstasy that’ll make your brain melt. I’ll give you emotions that will make you never interested in the affairs of this world again. And even so, I’ll give you a time that you won’t regret.”

It was a whisper.

Even an old priest dedicated to God through extreme training would roll his eyes and beg to be granted pleasure.

Materia smiled faintly.

“After all, you’re not a being of the outside world, are you? Does it really matter who takes over the surface?”

“In the past, maybe it would have.”

A world ruled by demons.

Watching that could have been one form of enjoyment.

But Ketal shook his head.

“I have people I’m connected to.”

Right after he came out, it may have been different, but now he had people he was connected to.

There was no need to weigh the options.

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A demon was his enemy.

It couldn’t change now.

Materia clicked her tongue.

“That’s a shame.”

“Sorry about that.”

“It’s okay. I’m not giving up.”

Materia lightly waved her hand.

Black demonic energy began to wrap around it, like a gauntlet.

“Actually, I don’t need you. I just need your lower half.”

Whoosh.

A chilling killing intent swept in.

If there had been others here, they would have died from just the killing intent.

In fact, those who had kept a safe distance from the area suddenly found it hard to breathe.

Ketal laughed heartily.

“As expected, I’m more comfortable with demons like this.”

There should be at least one group that he could fight with all his might.

Materia licked her lips with her tongue.

“I’ll cut off your lower half and take it.”

“If you can, that would be fun.”

Taak!

Materia charged with her arms covered in demonic energy.

Ketal laughed and raised his axe.

* * *

CRAAAASH!

The axe and Materia’s arm collided.

A deafening roar spread as the air shattered.

The clash of power cracked the ground and shook the sky.

Such clashes of power didn’t happen just once.

Ketal swung his axe repeatedly.

Materia didn’t back down and clenched her fists.

BOOOOM!

The axe’s blade and Materia’s fist collided.

Power exploded.

Materia stepped back three paces.

Ketal also stepped back three paces.

“You’re strong!”

Ketal exclaimed in admiration.

Even though he was attacking with all his might, Materia wasn’t being pushed back at all.

It wasn’t a matter of strength.

It was the power of the black demonic energy wrapped around her arms.

He didn’t know what it was, but it seemed to be some sort of authority, incredibly hard and heavy.

Ketal charged again.

He swung his axe down.

Materia moved her feet and dodged.

The axe struck the ground.

KABOOM!

The ground shattered and collapsed.

Materia clenched her fist and swung at Ketal’s side.

Ketal twisted his body to avoid it and moved his leg.

He stomped the ground with his left foot and aimed his right knee at Materia’s temple.

If that knee connected, it could shatter even the defense of an ancient dragon in one strike.

But that didn’t happen.

Materia blocked the knee with her arm.

Despite the immense power, she didn’t back down.

She immediately brought her elbow down on Ketal’s body.

Ketal opened his hand to block the elbow.

BOOOOM!

Power exploded.

Ketal moved his feet to kick Materia.

Materia blocked it and immediately threw a punch.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

“Hahahahaha!”

As the exchange continued, Ketal grinned.

‘She’s strong!’

She was far stronger than the God of Hunger, Federica.

Though the strength of their incarnations differed, the gap was clear.

‘And that’s not even her true form!’

He was extremely delighted.

Ketal attacked more fiercely in response to his emotions.

And Materia responded to all his attacks.

Ketal was amazed by Materia’s strength.

And so was Materia.

‘Why is he so strong?’

Even as he faced her directly, Ketal wasn’t being pushed back.

Who was she?

One of the four lords of Hell.

The mother of ten thousand demons.

The number of gods slain by her hand was not small.

And Ketal was holding his ground against her.

Even though she was in an avatar form and couldn’t use her true power, the very fact that she was fighting him was a miracle in itself.

And...

'Skilled.'

Fists and axes moved.

She stomped the ground and swung her fist fiercely.

Ketal didn’t retreat or block.

He simply pressed forward, smoothly moving his arms to redirect her power, then struck her chest with his shoulder.

"Mm."

Thud!

Her body was pushed back.

Materia narrowed her eyes.

'...He’s used to fighting.'

She, too, was no stranger to battle.

She had lived for a long, long time, and had fought against gods.

But Ketal was more accustomed to combat than she was.

It was as if he had fought in more battles than she, who had lived for aeons.

And not just ordinary battles, but life-or-death struggles.

'What on earth did he do in there?'

How long had he been in there, and what had he done?

Materia found herself wondering.

But that didn’t mean she was defenseless.

Ketal's power was simple physical force.

It was so straightforward.

There were countless ways to counter it.

She swung her arm, and Ketal raised his axe to block.

Their forces collided.

Splat.

In that moment, demonic energy oozed from Materia's body, climbing up the axe and clinging to Ketal’s body.

His expression changed.

"Hm."

He violently shook his body to rid himself of the demonic energy.

But the energy stuck to him like slime, refusing to let go.

Materia continued to spread the demonic energy over Ketal's body.

Before long, half of his body was covered in it.

It was incredibly heavy and dense.

Ketal's movements began to slow.

"Oh."

Ketal let out a sound of surprise.

No matter how he struggled, the sticky demonic energy clung to him.

It was an attack that couldn’t be dealt with by sheer force alone.

Soon, Ketal’s body was entirely enveloped by the slime-like substance, rendering him unable to respond to Materia's attacks.

"Well then, I'll be taking this."

Materia sharpened her hand like a blade, demonic energy rising from it like a sword.

Ketal’s instincts warned him.

That hand could pierce his body.

She lunged forward, aiming to impale his heart.

In that moment...

Screeeech.

Something strange happened to Ketal’s body.

Materia’s face changed.

Boom!

Mystery erupted from Ketal, shattering the demonic energy clinging to his body.

What had previously been unbreakable was suddenly destroyed.

Ketal, now free, burst into a fit of laughter.

"Hahaha!"

He charged at Materia, mystery beginning to surge through his hands.

Materia braced herself.

Until now, Ketal hadn’t been able to break through her defenses.

But...

Crack.

The demonic energy shattered, breaking apart and striking her body.

"Ugh."

With a groan, Materia was sent flying back.

"You are strong!"

Ketal sincerely admired her.

She could still push him to the brink even when he fought with all his might.

It felt like facing a god who had opened the gates of heaven.

She was an opponent he had to go all out against.

But he was different now.

He could now use mystery to strengthen his body.

Ketal laughed joyfully.

'It’s useful even against an opponent of this level.'

He could respond to her using mystery without unleashing his full strength.

It was very valuable information.

Materia, who had been knocked back, slowly got up.

'...He can control mystery.'

And there was one other strange thing.

She looked at the arm she had used to block.

She had collided with a powerful force, but her body wasn’t damaged.

'It didn’t break.'

She had clashed with the oldest being, yet her body hadn’t been destroyed.

It was very strange.

'Why?'

Was it because he could suppress the damage by controlling the mystery?

Or was it that he could control the mystery because he wasn’t damaged?

Curiosity filled Materia’s face.

The oldest being that could control mystery.

It was still shallow.

His movements were not smooth, and it took him a few seconds to act.

He was not in a perfected state.

There were plenty of gaps.

But if he were to reach completion...

'...How far could he go?'

What if she faced him with her true self?

The thought sparked her curiosity, but she suppressed it.

After all, she was a demon invading the earth.

'I’ll have to kill him before he completes it.'

Materia surrounded herself with demonic energy.

The warm-up was over.

Now, it was serious—kill or be killed.

Ketal could feel the shift in the atmosphere, grinning as he raised his axe.

Power gathered and built, ready to explode at any moment.

"Hm?"

Materia's body staggered.

It began to collapse.

Materia clicked her tongue.

"Oh dear. It seems I’ve reached my limit."

She hadn’t descended in the normal way.

She had forcibly twisted her way down through the crack made by Federica.

She couldn’t stay for long.

"Normally, I would’ve been able to stay longer, but I used too much power."

"Sorry about that."

"No, it was fun, so it's fine. But... I won’t leave quietly."

Demonic energy oozed and sloshed from Materia’s body.

"Since I came down on my own, I’ll get scolded if I go back empty-handed. I’ll have to cause some trouble before I go."

Shhh!

Demonic energy gathered in her hand.

Ketal’s expression changed.

It was a demonic energy bomb.

If it detonated, the entire area would be drenched in darkness.

Unless a god personally descended, it wouldn’t be restored.

Ketal gripped his axe.

Materia smiled as if daring him to try.

"Stop it if you can. Not that you’ll be able to."

Ketal's primary power was physical strength.

Even if he could now use mystery, it only amounted to body reinforcement.

Materia was now condensing darkness itself into a sphere.

It was like a balloon filled with air.

If he attacked with force, the balloon would burst, and the air would spread everywhere.

Ketal’s strength couldn’t stop it.

All he could do was pop the balloon before it was fully inflated.

But Ketal laughed.

"Ha, hahaha. Hahaha."

He laughed genuinely, as if truly enjoying himself.

Materia’s expression twitched.

"...Why are you laughing?"

"You are strong."

Ketal was sincerely impressed.

Materia was strong.

She was not an easy opponent even when he fought with all his might.

"Which is why I must express my gratitude."

The conditions had been met.

Ketal grabbed his axe, gathering mystery.

The beast of mystery that had been crying out inside him to be released began to roar with joy as it rushed out.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]