Chapter 24: The Puppet’s Awakening and a Fated Encounter

“No, puppets cannot feel emotions!”

Pisces whipped the young Akuma, his eyes burning with unadulterated fury.

To him, Akuma’s very existence was nothing more than a tool, a means to secure his own power and status.

The whip, like a venomous snake, tore through her skin, and blood slowly began to trickle down.

From her earliest days, the relentless, high-intensity training had ingrained in her the unwavering truth: she was a puppet. As the kingdom’s guardian, emotions would only serve to weaken her.

For Akuma, her mission was everything.

Yet, a profound confusion began to stir within her. As the kingdom’s protector, her hands were stained not only with the blood of the Corroded, but also with the blood of countless individuals who had defied the kingdom’s decrees.

Every single day, with every passing moment, someone died before her eyes, slain by her own hand.

Among them were nobles, commoners, and even comrades with whom she had once fought side by side.

A flicker of confusion appeared in Akuma’s young eyes as she began to ponder. What exactly was she doing? Most of these people had done nothing wrong; they had simply held beliefs incompatible with the kingdom’s ideology.

Akuma voiced her concerns to Pisces, but this was the result.

She lay sprawled on the ground, powerless, as Pisces retracted his whip.

“Since you have become a puppet, you can never escape your destiny of fighting the Corroded,” he declared, his voice devoid of all warmth. He turned and walked away, clearly disappointed in Akuma.

“Your next mission…”

Akuma accepted the task: a Corroded riot in the southern forest.

Then, for the first time, she experienced the bitter sting of defeat and the chilling dread of death.

And… the words of that man, deeply etched into her heart.

“Consider me your destiny… I will be waiting, waiting for the moment you can truly stand before me.”

Was he still waiting for her now?

It was a forest much like the one from her youth, though this time she did not experience the same bitter taste of defeat.

The Corroded surged towards her, but Akuma merely flicked her hair, deftly dodging their assaults with practiced movements.

“You’re still not strong enough, are you? In that case, please become my food.”

A blue light blade materialized in her hand. By reducing the magic needed to maintain her disguise, the blade’s magical aggregation was significantly amplified compared to her training sessions.

Her graceful and agile figure weaved through the horde of Corroded. Each time she passed one, the light blade emitted a tearing sound of flesh being rent, followed by the thud of a Corroded body collapsing.

As they were not aggregated impurities, the Corroded energy dissipating from their bodies seemed somewhat sparse compared to the previous turmoil at the academy.

However, Akuma was not concerned, for the quantity of ‘food’ was many times greater now.

She reaped through the Corroded horde with abandon, absorbing all the Corroded energy that escaped from the corpses, transforming it into the magic needed to sustain her light blade.

Akuma had never told anyone about the true nature of her ability.

It was certainly far more complex than simple magic materialization; after all, this was magic developed to its absolute peak by the Puppet organization.

“Thank you for the meal!”

Like a glutton who could never be sated, she relentlessly slaughtered and devoured the power of the Corroded.

For a moment, even the Corroded horde sensed the danger, scattering in all directions in a frantic scramble. To them, this creature was undoubtedly a demon, a demon utterly devoid of humanity.

But Akuma had no intention of letting them escape. She had made a promise: she would eradicate all the Corroded in this world.

This included the highly intelligent, humanoid Corroded with whom she had made that promise.

Speaking of which, what was his name again?

Akuma tried to recall her memories of him, but all she could remember were his words, his eyes, and the white mask he wore on his face.

‘Never mind. One day, I will stand before him again. For that…’

“I need power.”

‘I need the power to stand before him!’

“Allow me to show you this astonishing performance, [Void Judgment]!”

The light blade hummed, vibrating with an eerie, high-frequency tremor.

Absorbing the Corroded energy, the blade twisted, losing its sharp edge, and transformed into a multitude of small blue orbs that floated around the young woman. Akuma’s hair gently swayed.

The blue orbs slowly activated, precisely tracking each fleeing Corroded. Akuma raised her arm, much like a conductor directing an orchestra on a stage, and flawlessly controlled the blue orbs.

“Descend!”

Her arm swiftly swung down. The blue orbs, receiving their command, twisted once more, transforming into long spears that, carrying an unstoppable force, plunged directly into the bodies of the Corroded horde.

In an instant, blood erupted from all directions in the forest. Akuma stood quietly in the center. No matter how much time passed, the thrill of hunting the Corroded never diminished in the slightest. Corroded energy particles slowly drifted through the forest, merging into her body.

She would convert this into stored magic, all for the sake of becoming stronger.

To break her ‘destiny,’ that arrogant, idiotic Corroded.

“Speaking of which… I remember now!” She smoothed her hair, which had become slightly disheveled from the battle, and a look of sudden realization crossed her face.

“That guy, his name was Wutie, I think.”

Blood continued to flow, absorbed by the surrounding trees.

Before long, the bodies of these Corroded would decompose completely, leaving no trace. For they were not substances of this world to begin with.

Akuma had enjoyed herself immensely today, and her magic had increased significantly.

She prepared to revert to her male form, disguise herself, and then go find Mo Ya.

However, despite being in a ‘male form,’ she still didn’t know what a man’s anatomy truly looked like.

Akuma found herself thinking this, a faint blush creeping onto her face.

‘Should I ask Mo Ya…? No! What am I thinking? Why would I even consider that stoic man?’

Indeed, despite calling it a ‘male mode,’ Akuma had no understanding of male anatomy. She had merely altered her outward appearance. If she were to bare herself to Mo Ya, he would surely be surprised to discover the structural differences between their bodies.

Angered by the thought of Mo Ya, she stomped her foot, and the ground seemed to feel its HP rapidly diminishing.

“That stoic man!”

Akuma remained unappeased. Though she didn’t know why she was so angry, this time… the ground offered its sympathy to the trees that Akuma was furiously kicking.

A few more kicks, and that tree-brother might just kick the bucket.

Fortunately, Akuma stopped.

The reason was simple: she heard footsteps behind her.

‘Was it Mo Ya?’ That thought immediately crossed her mind.

But… it was not Mo Ya who arrived.

The newcomer’s gray eyes were somewhat vacant, suggesting a lack of emotion. His chin was covered by a thick beard, giving him a weathered look.

Akuma, however, frowned. This was a face she never wished to see again, and she instinctively prepared for battle.

“Long time no see, Number Nine.”

The newcomer spoke, his voice as emotionless as ever. Akuma forced a smile, for his appearance brought back many memories she had tried to forget—memories of being a member of the Puppet organization.

“Long time no see, Number Three.”

***

“Do you understand the command?”

Mo Ya evaded Blood Princess, who sought to embrace him, and quietly observed her.

Blood Princess, distraught and pained by her failure to hold Mo Ya, immediately killed a nearby Corroded creature that had been watching the scene, licking the blood from its corpse with a hint of excitement.

“How could Blood Princess not understand the King’s command? I am the King’s most loyal subordinate.”

Mo Ya frowned. “Why did you return? I believe I told you that you were free.”

“Whether I am free or not is for Blood Princess to decide, you know.”

Blood Princess tossed the corpse aside, speaking with a touch of playfulness that genuinely surprised Mo Ya.

Her figure vanished into the forest once more, leaving only Mo Ya behind.

Mo Ya sighed helplessly, raising his head. Above him, green leaves formed a canopy, allowing only scattered rays of sunlight to penetrate.

“In that case, why did I send her back to the Corroded Realm?”