Chapter 2: A Disappointing Meal

“What in the world is this…?”

It was only natural to be afraid—
The woman they thought was half-dead, being dragged along with them, had suddenly done something bizarre.
The other women scrambled backward, as much as the narrow iron cage allowed, their eyes fixed on Evil in fear.

“Wh-what are you?”

She asked what, not who.
They were afraid.

Humans had a tendency to vaguely fear that which defied comprehension—
Perhaps even more than the slavers who had captured them.

[Do not be afraid. I will not take you.]

“…!”
“S-sister… what is she saying?”
“I-I-I don’t know!”

But it had the opposite effect.
The moment Evil spoke, the women flinched and cowered even more.

Her voice carried the sharp irritation of a being whose rest had been disturbed—
Without receiving a sacrifice.

Fundamentally, Evil was a creature that reigned at the pinnacle of all creation—regardless of era or name.
When humans encountered such a being, they inevitably trembled, like herbivores before a predator.

To even begin to bridge that gap, Evil needed information—
Language, culture, knowledge—
The essence of the current human world.

Normally, Evil would have obtained such knowledge through sacrifices.
High-quality offerings, ones that suited her taste.

But this time, the summoner who had called her had vanished—without a trace, without a sacrifice.
And now, Evil’s mood was beginning to sour.

She wanted to go back to sleep before that happened.
Because if she remained awake in this state—hungry, confused, unfulfilled—
She would inevitably become a calamity.
And to the humans, that calamity would look like a mindless slaughter.

Of course, her rampage would be nothing more than a method to obtain what she needed—
Sacrifices.
But to mortals, it would be a disaster.

Still, there was one thing Evil wanted more than rest:
To hear the voice again.
The voice that had called her across the ages.

There was only one problem:
The women cowering in front of her weren’t the kind of prey she preferred.

That left only one option.

A pity, but I suppose I’ll have to eat them.

Having made up her mind, Evil twisted open the cage door and lightly leapt onto the cargo bed.

Thud.

A weighty sound echoed through the cage, disproportionate to her slender frame.
Even on the moving carriage, she landed with perfect balance.

“Wow…”
“C-could she be a Shadow Knight…?”

Inside the cage, awe slowly replaced terror.
The women whispered excitedly.

To Evil, it all sounded like the buzzing of insects.
She wanted to tell them to shut up, but they wouldn’t have understood the ancient tongue she currently spoke.

Shadow Knight… seems to be a known order of warriors.

If she had received a sacrifice, she would’ve absorbed all this information instantly.
As it stood, she had to rely on memory from a distant era.

Still, the word knight existed then too.
It seemed protecting and serving something was still held in high regard.

Knights.
Among her favorite sacrifices.
When knights offered themselves willingly, they were always the most delicious.

Evil licked her lips and raised one arm.

Her clenched fist struck the joint connecting the carriage to the cargo bed.

CRACK!

With a splintering snap, the sturdy wood-and-iron joint shattered.
The carriage and cargo bed separated instantly.

“Kyaaak!”
“Help us!”

The cargo bed rocked violently.
The women screamed, clutching anything they could.

Evil, irritated by the noise, had no desire to hear them die.

She hoisted the cargo bed onto one shoulder—
And leapt.

Neigh!

Freed from part of its burden, one horse bolted forward.
The other veered off and collapsed.

The second carriage, which had been riding alongside, came to a halt.

“Whoa! What the hell just happened?”
“Wh-what is that?!”

They stared blankly—
At the wrecked carriage, the fallen horse, the flying cargo bed…
And the woman holding it.

Moments later, Evil gently set the four-wheeled cargo bed down, as if it were nothing more than a fruit basket.

The slavers rubbed their eyes.
They wanted to believe they were hallucinating.

But when they looked from Evil to the destroyed carriage and back again,
There was no denying reality.

Their reaction came too late.

“Th-this crazy woman!”

Still stunned, the slavers drew their swords in unison.

Evil regarded them coolly.

For humans who hunt other humans, they’re decently strong…

She licked her lips again.
Out of obligation, not desire.

Tch. As expected, poor quality.

Still, she had to eat something.
Only then could she begin the search for the summoner.

“Th-that crazy—!”

Seeing her standing calmly, the slavers snapped.

“Get her!”
“Kill her!”

The fastest man rushed forward, sword raised.

Evil raised her hand—
And blocked the blade.

Clang!

Not the sound of flesh tearing—
But metal striking something harder.

The man hesitated, confused.
Then, teeth gritted, he pushed harder.

Evil clicked her tongue.

No sense of reason. Even after seeing the difference in power?

Perhaps they thought it a fluke.
Or maybe they saw only a woman—slender, alone, easy prey.

Of course.
They were slavers. That was their mistake.

Evil lightly squeezed the blade.

Screech. Clang!

The sword bent.
Cracked.
And shattered.

The man barely had time to blink.

In the next moment—
Her hand pierced through his chest.

“Guhk—! Gack…!”

It slid in like cutting through pudding.
Her fingers closed around his heart.

“Ugh… hhh…”

His mouth moved soundlessly.
But his lungs were already crushed.

A pitiful sight.
But Evil felt no sympathy for such things.

She flicked her hand.

Splat.

Blood splattered across the ground.
The body dropped like a wooden doll.

Now revealed, Evil held something in her hand—
A fist-sized lump of flesh.

The others couldn’t register what it was.
Not until she raised it to her lips.

Soon, the blood-soaked woman’s lips slowly parted.

“Ptui. It ruined my appetite.”

Having consumed a small amount of its prey, Evil finally spoke in a language the modern humans could understand.
Not that they saw her as human anymore.

She tossed the still-beating heart aside.

Silence.

Utter, suffocating silence.

Clang. Clatter.

Swords hit the ground all around her.

The slavers—frozen in disbelief—finally grasped the truth.

“U-uaaagh!”
“It’s a monster!”
“C-cannibal! Run!”

Well.
That wasn’t wrong.
She had been called that before.

If no sacrifices came, perhaps she’d be called worse in this era.

Evil gave chase—
Her arms swinging like weapons.

“Aaaargh!”
“Save me!”

The gruesome sounds of human flesh tearing, bones breaking, and blood splattering filled the air.
Eventually, some collapsed, their legs giving out, crawling on the ground, while others cried and wet themselves, begging for their lives.
But Evil showed no mercy.
She caught and killed them all, not just the ones who fought back in madness, but also those who tried to flee and those who attempted to get back on the carriage.
The first reason was that even after killing them all, the amount was far too little, and the second was that not a single one of them suited her palate.
Tearing out the heart of who-knows-which man and putting it to her lips, then spitting it out again, Evil said indifferently.
“Hmph. Isn’t there even one that suits my taste?”
Even the vulgar way of speaking she had acquired from eating the slavers was not to her liking.

“Tch. Not a single one worth eating.”

Even the vulgar speech she’d acquired from devouring the slavers didn’t sit right with her.

***

Even after the slaughter, Evil’s mood remained foul.
It was because there was truly not a single one that suited her palate.
Even the memories and knowledge she absorbed were worthless.

When priests and scholars had summoned her in the past—
She had spoken with elegance. Precision.

This…
This was more like garbage.

After that pitiful excuse for a meal, she trudged back to the cage where the women still sat.

“Hic!”
“Sob, sob…”

As Evil approached, the women cowered in terror.
They had witnessed the slavers being mercilessly slaughtered and had given up on escaping, trembling in fear.

Some knelt, hands clasped in prayer.

Evil paused.
She knew that posture.

In ages past, when humans had called her Supreme God, she had received countless prayers like that.

Interesting, that some things hadn’t changed.

Her mood lightened—just a little.

She spoke gently.

“Do you have more of that cloth you gave me earlier?”

“Hiiik!”

They didn’t understand her at first— and screamed.