CH 159

The Swordswoman With A Curse Chapter 159 – Travis Translations

11-13 minutes 24.05.2023

Translated by KaiesV

Edited by KaiesV

「Ah…」

There, the scene from earlier recurred in Eliza’s mind and she stopped the hand reaching for her sword. Seeing this, Cerberus once again continued the slaughter.

After all the killing, only a few non-combatants remained. Seeing this, Anomaly gave more orders to Pochi.

「Pochi, well done.」

「Wauu!!」

Pochi replies happily.

「Yes, you could bring three people. It was interesting to see the mating of『failures-to-be』and humans. And the result is you. And I’d like to try different patterns again. Let’s make these girls useful for a long time.」

「Wahn!」

「Dagra and Dogra too. Alright?」

「Y–Yes.」

Dagra, who until then had been shrugging his shoulders, wondering if he would be punished in any way by Anomaly, responds. In addition, Dogra also asks a fearful question.

「Uhh～ Anomaly-sama?」

「What is it?」

「No punishment for us?」

「No? I mean, how did you two survive? I really could have left you two here, but I didn’t expect you to assimilate and survive with Pochi. It’s interesting, and I’d like to keep you two alive for a little while longer to observe. Until then, I don’t want you to die.」

「Hoh. We’re neck and neck for the time being, Dagra.」

「That’s exactly what you said, Dogra.」

The two heads look at each other and let out a sigh of relief or nothing, and then they begin to carry the surviving women away. Most of the survivors had fainted from fear, but one feisty Sister was still conscious. Sensing what was about to be done to her, she screamed in fear and help.

「Nooooooo!! Elsa-sama, Elsa-sama! Help me!」

「Uggh…」

But Elsa was also kept alive at the whim of Anomaly. She couldn’t make a bad move. And priority should be given to the information obtained rather than to the Sisters in front of her or to her own life. What she regret is that the reinforcements she called here were unaware of the situation and weren’t prepared for it. If Elsa hadn’t revealed her pilgrim status, she wouldn’t have been able to call in the reinforcements.

But it’s also true that without the reinforcements, Elsa and the others would’ve been killed in the earlier Pochi attack and would no longer have had the strength to escape. Elsa was distressed because there was no right answer, but it was Eliza who unexpectedly reached out her hand to the dragging sister. Eliza grabbed the hand of the Sister that was extended to her for help, but was forced to slowly let go of it as Anomaly and Pochi glared at her at the same time.

Looking satisfied with the situation, Anomaly looked on and gracefully left the place with Pochi.

＊＊＊

「Are you done?」

「Yeah, that’s enough. I’ve got some new material. Well, I have a personal interest.」

At Titania’s words, she glance sideways at the sisters that Anomaly captured.

「Why did you let those two live? They no longer seemed necessary?」

「It’s a legitimate question for Silence, but there are all kinds of advantages to that.」

Anomaly answers, twirling his fingers.

「Like what?」

「The most troublesome thing is the network of『Mouthless』or other information that Miliazar has hidden in various parts of several countries. It’s not easy to eliminate them. It seems that they don’t even reveal their identities to their own spouses. So if we can’t find them…」

「They’ll move, and,」

「That’s what I mean. If they knew there were more than 10 workshops, they would mobilize their entire information network to try to find them. Also, they’ll soon realize that the war in the Central Plains is a set-up by our handlers. That’s why I let Musuta have his way. If they do it this spectacularly, the liaison staff should be able to make some kind of move. That’s the point…」

「When I hit them with my handiwork.」

Silence interrupts the conversation and looks satisfied.

「That’s that. Your army is like a bunch of Mouthless, so it’s a good place to hide them. In fact, you’ve already got a few of them, haven’t you?」

「Yes, but I deal with dolls, so I can’t completely imitate a human being.」

「A doll that can have sex is already like a human being, don’t you think, Silence-san,『The Puppet Master』?」

「I’ll take that as a compliment, Anomaly.」

Silence responded in a ceremonious tone, despite his words. Furthermore, Anomaly was speaking more often than usual, perhaps somewhat excitedly.

「And with a woman of that caliber, there’s no way we could have lost, no matter how many times we fought. Well, we did better than I thought we would, but it wasn’t out of my hands. There’s still a chance she’ll grow up, so that might happen eventually, but it still won’t be enough to kill me. After all, I feel so good when I’m ripped to pieces that I don’t die at all.」

「Are you one of those kind of creatures, like Doom?」

「You’re a bigot when you say『one of those』but I’m sure Silence was just as much a part of the equation anyway, right? Doom and Lifeless are apparently almost immortal, and each of us is as close to immortality as possible. Half a man can’t kill us. But there is an exception here, Titania.」

Anomaly looks up at the female swordsman walking next to him.

「You could even kill us if you wanted to, couldn’t you, Titania?」

「……I wonder. I’ll have to try.」

「You say that a lot. Your nickname,was it『Immortal Killer?』Or is it『Black Whirlwind?』『Footsteps Of Death?』The most famous one would be『Sword Emperor.』」

「You know them well. I have certainly been called to any of them. The most famous of them is the『Sword Emperor,』but that doesn’t exactly describe me either.」

「Really?」

「Yes, I can use any kind of weapon. I can use any weapon, not just swords.」

「Eh…!」

This surprised Anomaly and Silence. The destruction of the workshop this time, as well as the fact that Silence had seen Titania’s exceptional swordsmanship on several occasions during their recent missions together, made us wonder if she could handle other weapons as well as she could swordsmanship.

「Well, since I’m carrying this big sword, you all must think of me as a swordsman. Only swords and achievements are too prominent, because my own record is so vague that I am even a man or a woman. I’m actually not very good with big swords.」

Titania chuckles. Titania, the Sword Emperor—— predates Graham the Heroic King, Lifeless by more than 100 years. She’s a hero who is said to have played an active role in a world rife with Archfiends.

The legends says so. She was a being of too many human legends, such as that she destroyed several thousand of the Archfiend’s army in a single day and night, that she fought 100 Archfiends for 7 days and 7 nights without rest, and that she slayed a castle with her sword.

The figures described are also not consistent, with one bard claiming to have been a giant swordsman and another saying that she was a graceful male swordsman. Scholars theorize that the achievements of the nameless swordsmen of that era may have been aggregated into the figure of Titania, whose appearance, unlike Graham’s, has not been accurately reported. That’s why the children’s bedtime stories are about Graham and his men, which have been preserved as historical facts, and the story of Titania is only recognized to the extent that「there was such a person, too.」

But. It was unquestionably this Titania who slashed and destroyed the Archfiend’s workshop this time, showing a glimpse of her ability to confirm that the legends are all true. It was just that no one had ever seen her alive, and the only thing unrecognized was her form. Who could look at this dainty maiden, with her long black hair tied in a red ribbon in the middle and smiling kindly, and think that she was the strongest swordsman in history? Even Anomaly and Lifeless admitted that she could’ve gone by “Lady of the Deep Window” if she weren’t carrying a sword.

Even Anomaly, who normally has no interest in others, sometimes wonders. He was wondering why she is fighting with a sword on her back when she is such a dainty woman. Moreover, in Anomaly’s view, this Titania, who alarmed even Bloody Maria, was a purely human woman. The question came out of her mouth.

「If you’re not good with big swords, why do you use them, Titania?」

A rare true feeling from Anomaly, who usually plays the role of a clown. Titania answers his question out of genuine interest with a gentle smile.

「These swords belonged to my father and brother, respectively. I used to just follow them around, and I never used to have anything to do with fighting. When I carry this sword on my back, I remember when I was traveling with my father and brother and I don’t miss them. So, in fact, I don’t like fighting so much.」

「Heh. Then why fight all this time? The legend is true, isn’t it?」

Anomaly asked the unkind question, but Titania just smiled gently this time. Feeling a hard will behind that smile, Anomaly gave up any further pursuit.

「…Well, I’ll ask you another time. I’ve got other things to do.」

「Are you going after Lifeless?」

「Yeah, we have to stop him. Bloody Maria is ahead of us, so I think we’re getting the word out, but I’m not sure what’s going to happen. You guys have another mission, right?」

Silence nodded at Anomaly’s words.

「Yes, this one has a time limit. Me and Titania are going to go and get a certain item.」

「Is this the kind of thing that would make you travel to Titania?」

「Well, the thing itself is great, but the security is not half bad. I thought we would probably have to attack down a whole castle.」

「You don’t think that’s something you two can do together, do you?」

「No, I’ll do it myself.」

Titania responded immediately. Anomaly was indeed surprised, but he also admitted that the female swordsman in front of him would have easily done it.

「…It’s going to get loud. It’s going to be impossible to hide and sneak around anymore, and the plan is going to be even more advanced.」

「Yes, it seems that Master intends to do so. If things continue as they are, the time for a full-fledged resolution may be near.」

「Another busy, sleepless day, for this one. I was hoping to get my energy up while I could, but this is what I get for letting Lifeless run amok unnecessarily.」

「Well, he will be penalized in some way. And as for the circumstances, I heard a bit from Titania earlier, but I would like to see the female swordsman he is so obsessed with in person once. I’ve seen him defeat an Archfiend in an instant before, but I’m not sure if she’s really that great of a talent.」

Apparently, Silence was also interested in the Alfiris and her group. However, Anomaly is still not interested with them. But if Lifeless had mentioned Miranda earlier, the story might have been different.

In the meantime, the three of them and one of the animals reach the location of the magic circle for the transition that had been placed as a backup.

「Well, if she’s alive, we’ll see her sooner or later, won’t we? Besides, we have work to do.」

「Oh, that’s right. Well, let’s get going.」

「Right. Then, was it『For the liberation of the truth of the world』?」

「Yes, for the liberation of truth in the world.」

「I’ll see you later.」

So the three of them and one animal used the transition and left the place.