“Hugh-san…?”
Reacting to my call, Lecty, who was crouching with her knees hugged to her chest, raised her face. Her amethyst eyes were filled with tears.
“Hugh-san…, Hugh-san, Hugh-san!”
Lecty called my name repeatedly and rushed to the bars of the cell.
“Wait there, I’ll save you right away!”
The door of the iron bars was locked, but I kicked it open with all my strength using Physical Enhancement.
“Hugh-san!!”
Lecty rushed to hug me without looking aside as I entered the cell. She pressed her face against my chest and sobbed uncontrollably.
“I, I, when I noticed, I was here! Hugh-san and Lily-chan were nowhere to be found!”
“It’s okay now, Lecty.”
I put my hands around her trembling back and hugged her gently.
“I’m sorry for being late to come and save you.”
Lecty seemed to have been locked up in this prison without knowing anything. Even though it was only for a short time, the fear she felt was immeasurable. What on earth was Cardinal Malicious’s purpose in kidnapping Lecty…!?
While hugging Lecty, I looked inside the cell where she had been imprisoned. Then, I noticed the bloodstains scattered on the floor. I felt a sense of discomfort with them, having seen them many times in this prison.
My observation skills, sharpened by my Skill, sensed the freshness of the bloodstains.
“Lecty, are you injured?”
“Eh, um, well…”
I held Lecty’s shoulder and took a little distance. Then, the right arm of her uniform was stained red. Upon closer inspection, there was a cut that looked like it had been made with a knife or something.
Malicious…!!
“I, I’m okay! The wound is already closed with my Skill, and I don’t feel any pain!”
“That’s not the point—…no, anyway, I’m glad you’re safe.”
I suppressed the anger that was welling up and hugged Lecty again.
“…Thank you, Hugh-san.”
In my arms, Lecty relaxed and let out a sigh of relief. I will never forgive Malicious for hurting her. No matter what it takes, I will make him regret it…!
“Hugh, is Lady Lecty safe!?”
Idiot and Cicely-san, who must have finished their battle, appeared on the other side of the iron bars. Idiot’s expression twisted slightly when he saw us hugging, but he quickly shook his head and looked relieved.
When Lecty and I went outside the cell, Idiot bowed his head to Lecty.
“I’m sorry, Lady Lecty! Because of my carelessness, I put you in danger!”
“N, no! It’s not Idiot-san’s fault! Thank you for coming to save me.”
“Lady Lecty…”
Idiot lowered his eyebrows as if he was intimidated by Lecty’s bow. It would have been easier for Idiot if he had been blamed…
“Um, Lady Lecty, have you seen Rosalie-sama!?”
“Rosalie-san…? No, I haven’t seen her…”
Lecty shook her head at Cicely-san’s question. There was no sign of Rosalie around, and it seemed certain that she was being held in a separate location.
“Ah, but just now…”
“Do you know something!?”
“Y, yes. Just now, the old priest who was with Rosalie-san came to the cell and said that he needed my blood…”
“Lady Lecty’s blood…!?”
Idiot’s eyes widened and he clenched his fist tightly, probably noticing that Lecty’s right arm was stained with blood.
“Is it Cardinal Malicious…? Why on earth does he need Lady Lecty’s blood…?”
“I don’t know… But he said, ‘This will awaken the power of the true Holy Maiden,’ and mixed my blood into a pink liquid.”
“What!?”
Pink liquid. Could it be that…?
“Lecty, were you forced to drink that!?”
“N, no. But, from the way he was talking, if he was going to make someone drink it…”
“—Rosalie!”
I ran off at full speed. If the liquid that Malicious had was the same as what I knew, then if Rosalie was made to drink it, it would be irreversible…!
“Where is she, Rosalie!”
I no longer had the luxury of moving cautiously, worrying about being discovered by the enemy. I kept running while shouting Rosalie’s name.
Finally, I reached the deepest part of the prison. Beyond a cell that was about twice as large as the other cells, I found Rosalie, her body fixed to a chair with restraints. Malicious was also there next to her.
“Rosalie!”
Rosalie didn’t react, perhaps because she had lost consciousness. A red liquid dripped from her half-open mouth as her body convulsed slightly, and Malicious held an empty test tube in his hand.
Hey, no way…
“Did you make her drink it…?”
“Oh my, I thought it was noisy, and it’s the student from before. This is a sacred ritual. If you interfere, you will be punished by God.”
“Answer me, Malicious!! Did you make Rosalie drink the Monsterization Drug!?”
“Monsterization Drug? No, that’s not it. This is a sacred elixir bestowed by God. It is the helping hand that God has extended to us, the foolish ones who cannot fully utilize the Skills granted by God!”
“What are you, saying…”
A sacred elixir? A helping hand extended by God? If you really think so, then explain it to me.
Why is Rosalie losing her human form and turning into a monster!!
“What is this…? A person turning into a monster…?”
“No way, Rosalie…san?”
Idiot and Lecty, who had followed me, were speechless as they witnessed Rosalie’s changing form.
“…Huh? W, what is this!? This is different from what I heard! Why is Rosalie’s body turning into a monster…! Wasn’t it an elixir to awaken Skills!?”
Malicious looked flustered when he realized that Rosalie was turning into a monster. Immediately after, the restraints that had been binding Rosalie to the chair could not withstand her growing size and burst open.
“I, impossible! A person falling into demonhood! What have I done…!? Oh, God…! Rosalie, forgive me—”
An arm covered in pink fur swung around and slammed Malicious’s body against the wall. He collapsed and Malicious stopped moving.
“GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!!!!”
A beast’s roar echoed through the prison. Rosalie, who had transformed into a large ape-like monster, the same as Lechely, grabbed the iron bars with her abnormally developed arms and twisted them out of shape, trying to get out.
“Damn it…! Take up your sword, Hugh! If you don’t fight, you’ll be killed!”
“Idiot…”
Idiot shouted, unable to bear seeing me in a daze.
Fight…? Rosalie…?
Her voice would no longer reach us, having turned into a grotesque monster. There was no doubt that she would attack us if she got out of the cell.
But…
“…It’s okay, Idiot.”
“What…?”
“You saw what happened to the monster we fought at Lechely’s mansion, right? …It’s the same as that.”
“…! You mean it will self-destruct over time…”
When I nodded, Idiot released his sword stance with a grimace.
There was no reason to fight and cause Rosalie any more pain. We just had to run away. Then Rosalie would be able to pass away without being hurt any further.
“Is there nothing we can do?”
“…………”
Even with the power of the Brainwashing Skill, which could freely change Skills, I couldn’t return Lechely to her original form. If there was a Skill that could rewind the time of the target, maybe I could return Rosalie to her original form…
The problem was that I didn’t know the name of the Skill. How much time was left to try…? I didn’t know, but I had no choice but to try…
“Lady Lecty, what are you doing!?”
I was about to reach for the mirror in my chest pocket when I raised my face at Idiot’s voice. Then, Lecty was trying to approach the pink great ape that was struggling to get out through the gap in the iron bars.
“Lecty…?”
“Hugh-san, Idiot-san. Can you stop Rosalie-san’s movements…? I have a feeling that I can heal Rosalie-san.”