Chapter 42: A monster is speaking?  

“A monster is speaking…?”  

As if mocking Valery’s disbelief, Satan opened its mouth again.  

“My name is Satan. I was born to crush you all.”  

Its clearer, more articulate speech made Rita’s nose wrinkle. 

She had felt it in her past life too, but its fluent command of language was unsettlingly impressive.  

Unlike the unfazed Rita, the rest of the group wore grave expressions.  

“A name? Did it just introduce itself?”  

“It feels like we’re facing a real human, not a monster.”  

Sensing the group’s growing unease, Satan grinned with delight, reveling in its own presence. 

It continued to flaunt its linguistic prowess.  

“My brothers you killed had names too. Mamon and Baal.”  

“Mamon and Baal, huh? So you’re here for revenge?”  

“Something like that.”  

Satan smirked and shrugged, its demeanor lighter than its imposing first impression. 

Perhaps because of this, Sercia, feeling a bit less pressured, boldly stepped forward.  

“Then I have a question before we proceed.”  

Satan, deeming it a simple request, agreed without hesitation.  

“Where do you come from?”  

“From our all-powerful mother, Iskis…”  

Satan’s sly grin prompted the group to exchange puzzled glances.  

“Iskis? Is that a place?”  

“It might be referring to a dimension. Scholars studying the origin of these monsters said they defy explanation from our biological perspective.”  

Given the limited information on monsters, this was a reasonable assumption. 

The dimensional theory had been consistently proposed before Iskis’s true nature was revealed in Rita’s past life. 

Even after Iskis’s existence became known, many scholars considered it a being from another dimension, earning it the moniker “Dimensional Invader” toward the end of the conflict.  

In the end, we never uncovered Iskis’s true origin…  

Rita cast her vote for the dimensional theory. 

The idea that such horrific creatures could arise naturally was absurd and unacceptable.  

“Then why do you eat humans?”  

Sercia, never imagining Iskis could be the name of a being, asked the next question. 

Satan, looking bored, gave a lackluster response.  

“It’s only natural. Just as you hunt and eat beasts, it’s our instinct to eat you.”  

Its long purple tongue licked its ashen lips hungrily.  

Even Sercia, who had stepped forward boldly, couldn’t help but tremble in that moment, feeling like a small animal before a predator.  

“Let me make this clear: today, you’ll be torn to shreds and become food for my children.”  

Its leisurely tone and playful words carried overwhelming dread. 

A warning from a being with otherworldly power and form was truly chilling. 

Beyond it, ferocious monsters with red eyes swarmed menacingly.  

Even the strongest wills would struggle to stay sane in this maddening scene.  

“Ugh… ughhh…”  

The first to crumble was Alois. 

Unable to stand, he collapsed onto the ground.  

Seth, standing nearby, helped him up, scolding his disgraceful state, but Seth’s own hands were trembling just as much.  

“Ahem…”  

Even Valery, the stoic knight, was visibly sweating and tense.  

Surveying the group’s state, Rita let out a heavy sigh.  

There are at least dozens of them, not to mention Satan, a fragment. 

This is bad. They’re all too overwhelmed to fight properly.  

In this situation, Rita, the most composed, had no choice but to step forward and fight, despite the risks.  

“Man, I should’ve written a will or something.”  

Fortunately, someone was still burning with fighting spirit: the mercenary Eugène.  

Strictly speaking, it was the courage of someone prepared for death, but for Rita, that was enough. 

His hearty laugh had a positive effect.  

“Get it together, everyone! We’ve gained critical information. We can’t just die here like dogs, can we?”  

Princess Sercia gripped her sword tightly, rallying the group.  

Her courage, befitting her role as a leader, rekindled the shaken spirits of the group. 

As the hesitant members began raising their weapons, a mocking laugh came from Satan.  

“Even if you survive, will there be a home left for you to return to?”  

“…What’s that supposed to mean?”  

Sensing something ominous, Rita’s question was met with Satan’s manic laughter as it swept its long hair back.  

“You’re the strongest among the humans, aren’t you? So what are humans without you?”  

Caressing its jawline with a long finger, Satan answered its own question.  

“Powerless meat sacks.”  

Its crazed laughter and twitching movements made Rita’s eyes narrow.  

The meaning was clear.  

“No way…”  

“They’re planning to attack our base.”  

Mikael’s voice grew distant as Valery gritted his teeth in response.  

“Right now, my children are probably trampling your territory.”  

Amid its maniacal laughter, Loen hurriedly pulled out a communication orb.  

He infused it with mana to contact the Mage Tower, but the orb remained unresponsive.  

This meant the base wasn’t in a state to communicate.  

The group’s fleeting resolve began to crumble at this despairing realization.  

“Since you killed Mamon and Baal, I’ll give you special treatment.”  

Satan, brimming with confidence, raised its hand to signal.  

An adult monster leaped down from a tree—a lizard-like creature with bulging eyes and spiky scales resembling a mane.  

It rose slowly on two legs at Satan’s gesture, its front limbs, previously bent to touch the ground, now dangling with deadly claws.  

It rolled its eyes and flicked its tongue, searching for prey.  

“Eat.”  

At Satan’s command, it charged with its mouth wide open, and the group raised their weapons in defense.  

In that instant, a red beam materialized in the air, piercing the charging monster from all directions.  

KIEEEK!  

Skewered in an instant, the monster collapsed, writhing before going silent.  

All eyes turned to Rita.  

She walked calmly to the dead creature and kicked its sprawled corpse.  

“‘Eat,’ huh?”  

With the strength of a supreme-rank mage, the corpse flew far and landed at Satan’s feet.  

Satan’s expression slowly contorted as it faced its child’s body.  

Yet Rita remained unfazed.  

“I didn’t come here to fight a talkative reptile. Stop hiding your tail and babbling alone.”  

Though Rita typically spoke respectfully to all, this was an exception.  

No matter how superior it seemed, there was no need to show courtesy to a vicious, instinct-driven creature. 

More importantly, she needed to provoke Satan as much as possible.  

“Snowstorm of Judgment.”  

Without further words, Rita thrust her staff forward, launching a preemptive attack.  

A fierce blizzard swept through without warning, scattering the juvenile monsters around Satan.  

Some couldn’t withstand the sharp storm and froze, shattering into pieces.  

“Its attribute is fire, and its weak point is the tail. Keep that in mind if you engage it,” 

Rita said softly, ensuring Satan couldn’t hear.  

Confirming they understood, she stepped forward without hesitation.  

“Sir Valery! Sir Bailey!”  

Inspired by Rita’s example, Sercia raised her sword and charged.  

At her signal, Valery and Bailey took the left and right flanks, with Eugène naturally following.  

Eilin and Floria each took a direction, firing arrows.  

“I’ll hold off the monsters!”  

With the group surrounded, Felix, the holy knight commander, stayed back to protect the others.  

The three mages in the rear—Blena, Seth, and Alois—exchanged glances and nodded.  

Blena and Seth unleashed water-based magic first, and Alois, after hesitating, joined in.  

The reassuring scene brought a smile to Mikael’s lips.  

“I’ll handle the approaching ones.”  

Blessed with divine protection, he joined the front line.  

Brandishing his own sword, Mikael’s unexpected combat stance widened the eyes of those unaware of his capabilities.  

Eugène, in particular, chuckled, unable to imagine a saint fighting with a sword.  

Of course, Rita found it even more surprising.  

“Wait, is it okay for the Grand Mage to charge in like that? People might mistake her for a warrior.”  

Eugène’s question was directed at Bailey, who was nearby, but Bailey didn’t respond.  

At that moment, a sub-adult monster lunged between them, cutting off their exchange.  

“No one to answer, and I’m all alone,” 

Eugène muttered, clicking his tongue as he narrowly dodged the creature’s jaws, glancing at the mage trio.  

Perhaps because they were Rita’s mages, they seemed quite competent in Eugène’s eyes.  

Well, at least two of them did.  

“But why did they bring that noble boy? Is he some cast-off from his family?”  

As Eugène’s harsh critique suggested, Rita also noticed Alois’s clumsy performance.  

Even without turning her head, she could distinguish whose mana was whose. 

Alois’s ice magic kept missing its mark, hitting random spots.  

Thankfully, Blena and Seth’s accuracy made up for it. 

Satisfied with their support, Rita went into full action.  

“Breath of the Glacier.”  

White frost rose around her feet, spreading like mist and freezing the legs of approaching monsters.  

This magic, which didn’t distinguish friend from foe, was typically used when fighting alone, but now there was no need to hold back.  

Rita was already deep in enemy territory, far from her allies, surrounded by waves of monsters pouring from the forest. 

Even supreme-rank mages couldn’t approach recklessly.  

Rita moved freely, like a fish in water.  

“Waves of Sin.”  

Tall waves, higher than a person, surged from both sides, engulfing the lizards.  

As the creatures floundered in the slippery water, Rita dashed forward and froze the ground.  

The trapped lizards wailed, and Rita aimed her staff with cold eyes.  

“Frozen Valor.”  

With her golden eyes clearly seeing each target’s weak point, killing them was effortless.  

She could have advanced calmly, but with Satan in sight, Rita grew impatient.  

Her mind was consumed with the need to take it down first.  

She used ice spears to keep the surroundings at bay, firing high-level spells toward Satan whenever she had a chance, but the distance rendered them ineffective.  

If only that thing would join the fight, I could at least make an impact.  

Frowning, Rita paused to think. 

Then, she came up with a provocation tactic.  

“Surging Frost.”  

Instead of killing approaching monsters outright, she deliberately pinned their feet with reverse icicles.  

Selecting lighter ones, she killed them, grabbed their bodies, and threw them with all her might.  

The sticky texture of their skin was repulsive, but Rita gritted her teeth and hurled the corpse.  

It landed precariously near Satan, rolling on the frozen ground.  

Another of its children’s bodies sprawled before it.  

Satan’s expression, which had been smugly composed, began to distort.  

It’s working.  

The seven fragments showed attachment to their offspring, varying by their nature. 

No matter how ruthless, they wouldn’t stand idly by as their children’s bodies were desecrated.  

Rita continued creating corpses and throwing them at Satan’s feet.  

Can you keep enduring this?  

As the mangled juvenile bodies piled up, Satan’s red eyes grew bloodshot, trembling with rage.  

A searing heat began to emanate from it.  

Its muscular arms, previously crossed, bulged visibly. 

Its body grew even larger, radiating fury that anyone could see.  

Rita smirked inwardly.