The Freak Show Foreman

The reaper's body fell backward.

The black gate of the Abyss, fluttering behind him, gently enveloped his body.

Noua Zakanuba slowly sank towards the abyss like a corpse thrown into a swamp.

At the same time, the curse that the reaper had cast was lifted.

The members, who had been writhing on the ground in nightmares, gradually opened their eyes.

The doves and mice, frozen in their master's embrace, also regained consciousness, coughing as they thawed.

The grass, which had been covered in frost, began to regain its original green color.

Ella, confirming that everyone was unharmed, looked back at Wonderstein.

He was still standing there, watching the disappearing reaper beyond the gate.

She made a complicated expression as she looked at his back.

Normally, she would have thought, 'He must have saved us because we needed him!' She would have dismissed his kindness and kindness as something he had carefully crafted.

But this time, she couldn't do that.

She remembered a conversation they had when he confronted the reaper.

His words about not wanting to be robbed of the memories they had built over the past few months.

That was undoubtedly his sincerity.

Of course, he was still a person who hid more than he revealed.

His purpose in ascending to the main stage of the Grand Prix Circus, the reason for gathering the monster members, the relationship between the curse plague and him, why he massacred so many people – everything was shrouded in mystery.

Still, he seemed a little different from yesterday.

She smiled at him and said, "Thank you. You've worked hard too…"

It was a word she awkwardly uttered, trying to hide her embarrassment.

But Wonderstein stood still as if he hadn't heard her words.

She pursed her lips, as if annoyed.

"Ignoring me?"

She murmured until he responded, but she couldn't continue speaking as he suddenly bent forward.

The time of blessing brought by Yurakne's Sincerity had ended.

Pain and fatigue overwhelmed his entire body.

He momentarily felt dizzy, almost on the verge of fainting, before barely regaining consciousness.

"Cough."

With a cough, blood gushed out.

It was a dark red clot.

Although he had used Yurakne's Sincerity over a thousand times before, this was the first time such a thing had happened.

It was due to the difference in how he had used his abilities.

Until now, even when drinking tea, he hadn't done anything significant with his enhanced strength.

He had quietly waited for an hour before drinking the next cup.

But this time, he had pushed the enhanced strength to its limit. Your journey continues at empire

He had believed in his toughness and accepted the shock as it was and had also used up his regenerative power like flowing water.

Thus, all the accumulated stress on his body rushed to him at once when it was released.

Yurakne's Sincerity was a buff that allowed him to exert the strength of 12.0 with a body of 6.0, not a temporary modification to turn his body into a 12.0.

"Cough, ugh… cough cough."

If there were any debuffs left, he would have done a temporary modification.

But there was none left.

As the debuffs reached zero, the chat connected to Ella was also turned off.

"Hey, you?"

She called him cautiously, but her voice didn't reach him.

It was then that she realized that the connection between him and her had been severed.

Ella looked around.

The other members were still struggling to recover, the Nun was busy checking on her colleague, and the knight had left to fetch medical supplies from the church.

There was no one else to take care of him now except her.

She ran towards him.

As she got closer to him, she could clearly see him lying on the ground, bleeding profusely.

"El… Ella?"

He looked at her barely, panting.

Ella's complexion turned pale.

It was the first time she had seen him in such a weak state.

"Huhu… m-my body… is going haywire…"

His muscles, pushed beyond their limit by the excessive strength, were tearing apart like a bunch of threads twisted with scissors.

The rate at which his body was breaking was faster than his regenerative power could catch up with.

"Is… is this because you used that power?"

"Yes, huhu. I… overdid it… But then…"

He laughed as he looked at the object in her hand.

It was a dagger.

She was surprised and put it in her arms.

She didn't realize she was still holding onto it, which she had taken out while confronting the reaper.

it was given to Ella by me.

"I, I can't believe this!"

"Grr, hehe, I thought you were going to kill me…. hehe, as you can see, it's a perfect opportunity, isn't it…?"

At his words, Ella shot him a glare.

How this demon viewed people.

She cried out in frustration.

"Shut up! I told you I have a lot to ask you! I can't kill you before that!"

"Hoho, is that so…? cough heh…."

She noticed that he struggled to speak or even breathe because of the blood stuck in his mouth.

So, she supported his body and helped him spit out what was in his mouth.

After vomiting blood and bits of organs several times, he seemed relieved.

"I'm feeling a bit better now…"

"Sorry, but I don't know what else to do."

His body was thrashing about uncontrollably.

His skin tore apart on its own, blood gushing out, muscles twisting and breaking bones in between.

Even a skilled doctor would not know what to do in such cases.

"The convulsions will subside soon. The problem is the bleeding…"

That's when it happened.

From the entrance of the village, Ivanenko rushed in carrying something in his arms.

"Is everyone alright? I've brought bandages, ointments, emergency potions, healing herbs, and more! Anyone in urgent need…"

"Just wait a moment. I'll get what's needed."

She carefully laid him down on the ground and stood up.

A brief smile passed between them, reassuring each other.

Their images reflected in the crimson eyes of the demon.

A black gate of the abyss wavering in the darkness.

Most had merged with the darkness, but one gate still fluttered.

The demon glanced outside through that remaining gap.

Most of his body was destroyed, but he remained conscious.

Thanks to immediately channeling his body through the abyssal gateway upon being hit, he miraculously avoided death.

The black energies enveloping his body aided in his recovery.

He looked at Wonderstein writhing on the ground.

As predicted, his power had a time limit.

It was a pity.

If he had held on a little longer, he might have won.

The remaining strength of the demon was barely enough to move one arm.

It was the arm holding the scythe.

He gazed at the closing gap, his last chance.

If he could strike through that gap…

Ella noticed the people focusing their attention behind her.

"Huh?"

Turning around, Ella spotted what was emerging through the gate.

A blade of pitch-black color that seemed to absorb light.

It was the demon's scythe.

"Watch out!"

Before Ella could shout, Wonderstein also noticed it and tried to move his body.

If he rolled just once to the side…

Then, the demon flashed his last remaining eye.

Wherever his breath or gaze reached, it imposed a freezing curse.

"Ugh!"

Wonderstein's body stiffened against the ground.

The demon's scythe struck down upon him.

***

The old priest of the Dvallchep Church opened his eyes the next day at dawn.

He sighed, remembering the incident of losing consciousness.

It was embarrassing.

To faint after treating just 20 people.

Even though he used to be the assistant bishop of the diocese.

Today, he resolved to treat at least 30, no, 40 people.

Thinking of the residents who were waiting for him anxiously, he steeled himself and opened the door to go out.

However, as he entered the church, he could only stop in his tracks.

There was no one waiting for him there.

Only one person.

The old janitor was sweeping the floor with a broom.

"Wh-what's this?"

"Father!"

The janitor looked at him with a delighted expression, almost excessively so.

Tears welled up in the priest's eyes as he knelt before him, bowing his head.

"Oh, Father!"

"Why, why are you like this? Huh? What happened? Where are all the patients?"

"W-well, you see…"

At that moment, the door to the kitchen of the church opened with a creak.

A nun with pink hair poked her head out and shouted.

"Mr. Janitor! Please go wake up the priest now… huh? Father, are you awake? That's good! Let's have a meal together!"

"A m-meal? Wait, who are you? What's going on here?"

"We'll explain everything during the meal! Come quickly!"

Perplexed, the old priest had no choice but to follow her into the dining hall.

Their companions in the kitchen brought out food.

There was a timid-looking man with a hesitant gaze.

As they ate, they briefly recounted what had happened the day before.

The patients infected by the cursed plague turning into monsters, the attack of the demonic horde, even the appearance of Reaper.

The priest's complexion grew paler as he listened, almost as if he would faint.

"So, then, most of the villagers…"

"Not most, but all… of them."

"All? Weren't there any villagers left in the church?"

"Uh… one of the attacks by Zakanuba hit the church roof…"

At that moment, the janitor beside them burst into tears.

"Everyone except me was underneath it and got crushed to death!"

"Ah…"

The priest sighed, leaning back in his chair.

He closed his eyes for a moment and said a prayer for the souls of the deceased.

"I suppose it's difficult to stay sane. Listen, could you go to the church basement and fetch some cheese and wine."

After dismissing the janitor from the dining hall, the priest glanced at the two remaining people before speaking.

"Are you the Black Magician Search Party?"

"How did you know?"

"A team of exorcists capable of confronting high-ranking demons like Zakanuba, with both a mage and a nun, there's only one I know of. Despite appearances, I used to be the assistant bishop of the diocese. I keep tabs on that kind of news. Yes, you must be here because of the information I recently disseminated."

The information he disseminated was about a doctor in the village.

He had arrived in the village about ten years ago.

Although skilled, he didn't disclose much about his background.

Then, not long ago, news came of the Grand Circus being held.

He rushed to the church and confessed his sins.

"He was part of the medical team at the Grand Circus two times, 17 years ago."

"Such a prestigious medical team… Why would someone like that hide away as a country doctor?"

"He claimed to have seen the Black Magician himself."

At the priest's words, both individuals showed signs of tension.

They had met many people who claimed to have seen the Black Magician so far.

But it was the first time they had heard the story of someone who wasn't in a mental hospital.

"After seeing him, he seemed to have abandoned his medical duty and fled the city. He ran away without even paying attention to the groaning victims of the terror… "

"What about him…?"

Bayern asked with a hesitant attitude.

The priest gave them the answer they had already expected.

"He died at the beginning of the plague."

"Ah… I see. Then, can we see the painting he supposedly drew?"

That was the reason they came here in the first place.

The news that the priest had obtained a painting of the Black Magician had been relayed to the higher authorities.

The priest got up from his seat for a moment and took out a small scroll.

Bayern and Valentina unfolded the scroll he handed them.

"What's this?"

It had a strange shape, resembling a human but not quite human.

Having undergone exorcism training, Valentina had seen even more horrific depictions of demons.

Her surprise was not because of the odd appearance of the creature.

It was because several distinctive features of its body caught her attention.

Legs extending like tentacles with blades at the end.

A spear-like bone protruding from arm-like appendages.

It was clearly in a similar form to the monstrosity that attacked the church last night, having transformed its body.

Valentina provided a detailed description of the creature.

Upon hearing it, Bayern and the priest locked eyes.

The three of them reached the same conclusion.

The Black Magician.

He is related to the Curse Plague.