Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

This is Satou. It turns out I’m actually a bit of a coward.

Real demons are terrifying.

Especially that roar!

Try standing next to a lion’s cage at the zoo and having it roar at you. No matter how safe you know you are, if you’re not mentally prepared, it’s frightening.

◇

I returned to the rooftop of a tall building overlooking the square.

From there, I could see the demon surrounded tenfold by soldiers. At the gate, heavily armored troops had formed another defensive line, protecting the mages behind them.

The knights were probably waiting for the chance to charge. They formed squads of a few horses each, adjusting their positions behind the soldiers.

Arrows rained down from behind, and spear soldiers would rush forward, only to become prey for the demon.

It seemed the demon was toying with them.

Instead of attacking aggressively, it captured soldiers who attacked and tore them apart or broke their bones, seemingly enjoying itself.

If it was like the ancient demons, it might be savoring the soldiers’ fear and their anger at comrades being killed.

“Alright, it’s good I’m back, but there’s no opening to break into close combat.”

My appearance had changed from earlier—I was now wearing a shabby hood and cloak. I knew I’d definitely get dirty and didn’t want to stay in expensive clothes.

I pulled out my magic gun. Not the small pistol, but a larger, rifle-like one with a big scope.

Since the demon was about 300 meters away and moving, it was hard to get the aim right.

At the moment the soldiers pulled back, the mages cast spells, burying the demon’s lower body in earth.

Seizing the opportunity while the demon was still, I pulled the trigger.

Missed.

I must have tensed up and pulled the trigger slightly downward.

Fortunately, because of the angle, I avoided accidentally shooting the soldiers, which was a relief.

The demon was being pelted with continuous flames and lightning magic, but it seemed protected by a barrier since it wasn’t taking damage.

Taking advantage of its stationary feet, I fired the magic gun repeatedly at minimum power.

On the third shot, finally a hit! A health bar appeared next to the demon, and it decreased slightly.

“Is this a game or what?”

] “Shooting skill acquired”

] “Aiming skill acquired”

] “Sniping skill acquired”

A small log window appeared at the corner of my vision with messages about new skills.

I’d made the mistake of looking away. Without time to dodge, a lightning strike from the demon hit me. The lightning struck me, then destroyed the roof I was standing on.

] “Lightning magic: demon skill acquired”

] “Lightning resistance skill acquired”

] “Paralysis resistance skill acquired”

] “Pain resistance skill acquired”

“Ouch—my hands and feet are tingling.”

If I had to describe it, it felt like the numbness after sitting on my legs, mixed with a static shock. Checking my health bar, I’d taken about five points of damage.

Come to think of it, I forgot to check the demon’s level…

I sighed a bit.

“How stressed out am I, really?”

For now, I quickly checked the main stats. Demon tribe, level 62, “Lightning magic: demon,” “Wind magic: demon,” “Dark magic: demon,” “Martial arts,” and “Flight” skills.

Pushing aside debris, I moved away from the building. There was no telling if it would pursue.

] “Self-healing skill acquired”

Looking at my HP bar, I noticed I had healed naturally without realizing it.

I moved through alleys, heading toward another building.

While moving, I allocated skill points to “Pain resistance,” “Lightning resistance,” “Paralysis resistance,” “Shooting,” “Aiming,” “Sniping,” and “Self-healing,” activating them.

I found a three-story mansion about 100 meters from the previous building. I climbed to the rooftop using the internal wall.

The soldiers surrounding the demon had been cut down to less than half, probably due to some kind of area attack.

I took a bow out of storage and nocked an arrow, aiming at the demon. Though I’d never used a bow before, thanks to aiming and sniping skills, I somehow knew how to aim.