Okay, here’s the translation:
Episode 174: Telling My Story
You might be able to skim the first half of this episode.
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My name is Leese. I was born as the daughter of a woodcutter in Tim Village, in the Iva Territory.
Tim Village was in a remote area that even traveling merchants rarely visited, but it had one unique characteristic.
That was 〖Taming〗.
Its effect was the ability to make other creatures obey.
Most of the villagers of Tim Village acquire this 〖Skill〗 as children.
While the domestication of docile Demon Beasts is practiced in many towns and villages, the true essence of 〖Taming〗 is the ability to communicate with wild Demon Beasts.
Wild Demon Beasts possess a variety of 〖Skills〗.
Normally, it would be difficult to make them use these skills for human convenience, but with 〖Taming〗, a certain level of Telepathic Communication is possible, allowing us to utilize the unique 〖Skills〗 of Demon Beasts for our benefit.
Of course, we could also rely on them for village defense and hunting.
Thanks to 〖Taming〗, the villagers of Tim were able to somehow continue living even in the harsh environment of the frontier.
Agriculture, forestry, fishing, construction, etc… We supported each other with the Demon Beasts and desperately survived.
There were many painful and difficult times, but even so, we felt small moments of happiness every day.
However, when I was ten years old, a turning point came in our peaceful daily life.
“This must be the suspicious village that manipulates Demon Beasts with evil magic! I, the next lord, will deliver the hammer of justice!”
The son of a noble, who appeared with several knights, suddenly declared.
With a smile that was too wicked to be speaking of justice, he tried to kill us for such a selfish reason, even though we had never bothered anyone or defaulted on taxes.
The village chief, who tried to approach him to negotiate, became the first victim.
The village chief, who was always gentle and smiling, was engulfed in flames before he could even say a second word.
I couldn’t understand what had happened, and the next moment, half of my vision was gone. A fireball, released indiscriminately, burned my eye.
What brought me back to my senses from the pain was my mother’s healing magic.
The pain subsided with the magic she cast while desperately running away with me in her arms, and I had the presence of mind to listen to the sounds around me.
I heard the screams of villagers and Demon Beasts, who were scattered and fleeing, being burned to death one by one.
My mother, despite being frightened by the screams and clinging to her arm, did not abandon me and kept running. However, what awaited us on the outskirts of the village was despair.
A wall of thorns, taller than the fence, surrounded the village.
As I turned to my mother, wondering what to do, my body slowly floated up.
A tamed owl Demon Beast, which my mother had 〖Tamed〗, had grabbed my shoulder and lifted me up.
A rare flying familiar in the village. He flapped his wings repeatedly and got me out, and when I looked towards the village, thinking it was my mother’s turn, a large pillar of fire rose right next to the wall, reflected in my one eye.
It was then that I finally understood the meaning of my mother’s last words, “Don’t look back, run far away.”
I couldn’t think of anything, but still relying on those last words, I hid in the forest with the owl familiar.
I tried not to think about the village, and I survived by using the power of the water magic I was born with, and when things had calmed down, I returned to the village.
What I saw there was the remains of the village, reduced to charcoal.
There was nothing left that resembled the former village.
No one survived except me, not the people, not the Demon Beasts, not those who escaped from the noble’s son, not those who fought back.
On that day, I swore. I would take revenge on this world where only nobles have power and act tyrannically.
From then on, I spent every day accumulating power.
I hid myself in the Demon Realm where Demon Beasts roamed, trained my magic, raised my 〖Level〗, 〖Tamed〗 strong Demon Beasts, and became desperate to gain power that surpassed the nobles.
In the midst of all that, when my 〖Water Attribute〗 became a 〖Cleansing Attribute〗, I learned a Wash Brain magic called 〖Wash Brain〗.
This is a magic derived from 〖Taming〗, and it allows me to subjugate Demon Beasts, ignoring the limit on the number of creatures that existed in 〖Taming〗.
With this, I greatly increased my power, and I went down to human settlements. It was for information gathering.
And in the village I visited, I encountered something called religion.
Believers who were obsessed with end-of-the-world ideology and showed destructive devotion, and a cult leader who spread the ideology throughout the village and enriched himself.
It was an unbearable group, but it was good material.
I threatened the cult leader, made him my pawn, learned his methods, tampered with the doctrines, and infiltrated the village with the Demon Beasts I controlled… and that’s how the Demon Beast Cult was formed.
My agents, who mingled in the city and carried out proselytizing and maneuvering.
When I was fully prepared, I carried out my revenge on the nobles.
That noble’s son, who had committed his atrocious act for a ridiculous reason like wanting to gain prestige for entering the magic academy, was fed to the Demon Beasts little by little, starting from his fingertips.
I killed all those who lived in the mansion with him.
But my anger has not yet subsided.
I couldn’t stop until I killed the “Demon Lord,” the root of the hierarchical society, the source of why only nobles had so much power.
Therefore, I had been working to expand my forces, but… recently, a bishop who could confine Demon Beasts in books was killed by someone.
With the surveillance of the knight orders in various places becoming stronger, it was difficult to expand my power any further without his power.
After agonizing for three days and three nights, I decided to risk everything and launch a solo attack… cough, haah, haah, haah… What am I even talking about…?”
“Hmph, how foolish.”
It was probably the “Demon Lord’s” magic.
The woman named Leese, the leader of the Demon Beast Cult, had finished speaking in one breath about the events that had led her here.
But the “Demon Lord’s” reaction to hearing it was indifferent.
He answered in a voice that showed not a shred of interest.
“Your Majesty, are you safe!?”
“Slow. What kind of knight are you to allow an intruder and trouble me? Weaklings are not needed in my empire.”
“I-I am deeply ashamed!”
The soldiers who had been in front of the castle walls earlier rushed in.
The fact that their faces were covered in sweat wasn’t just because they had come in a hurry.
“The Demon Beasts have been slaughtered, and the ringleader has been captured. I will personally pass judgment at a later date. Take her to the anti-magic prison.”
“““Yes!”””
“Guh, I can’t even use my 〖Skills〗!? L-let go of me!”
The soldiers replied energetically, and half of them carried away the cult leader, Leese. Her movements were sealed by magic, and it didn’t seem like any other accomplices were coming, so it should be fine to leave it to them.
Since I had nothing to do, I absentmindedly watched them leave, when,
“—And you, the one with the bandages. Who are you?”
The “Demon Lord” asked in a suspicious voice.
This is bad. I was already in trouble when the soldier called out to me earlier.
The unexpected help for my confusion came from an unexpected place.
“That person is an adventurer. He defeated the 〖Feral Beasts〗 that appeared outside the castle walls with a single blow and came after that woman.”
The soldier who had spoken to me in front of the castle walls earlier was covering for me.
I thanked him in my heart and nodded silently.
“Hmm… It seems to be true. I see, you are hiding your 〖Mana〗.”
The “Demon Lord’s” eyes stared at me.
His hazel eyes, contrary to his presence, looked very listless.
“You said you defeated the 〖Feral Beasts〗. Then, I shall grant you a reward. I allow you to follow me.”
There was no emotion of praise in the words he spoke, it just felt like he was speaking formally.
Even so, I bowed my head.
The “Demon Lord” and his group didn’t even look at my attitude and resumed their march towards the Imperial Castle. I didn’t know the etiquette, so I followed along at the end of the line.
It was lucky that I wasn’t reprimanded for being rude, but it was kind of creepy.
I wondered if it was okay to let a suspicious person into the castle so easily, and as I was walking, a voice echoed in my head.
『Answer me. Where are you now?』
『Ah』
It was the Sage’s communication.
I had been distracted by the commotion and had completely forgotten that I had come to the Imperial Capital with the two of them.
『Ah, well, long story short—』
Using 〖Telepathic Communication〗, I briefly explained what had happened so far.
After listening, the Sage was silent for a while, then squeezed out a voice.
『…It’s different from the plan, but if you were able to meet the “Demon Lord,” then it is a stroke of luck.』
After receiving instructions on the procedures for joining up from her, who looked rather displeased, I began walking towards the Imperial Castle.