95: S*x And Violence
Hearing how ludicrously powerful her first real enemies are, Beatrice brought up one of her two quests that King Selirius gave her, to confirm it.
Royal Quest: Proof of Heroism
Objective:
1. Find and kill twenty Demonlings.
2. Bring twenty heads of the Demonlings to King Selirius.
Rewards: Princess Mary
Somehow, I doubt that Princess Mary will simply consent to become a trophy for some 'proof of strength' test, Beatrice thought when she remembered what her reward for the completion of the quest was supposed to be. So, this was supposed to be that challenging? Or has the old man simply lost his mind? Or he doesn’t care? Judging by the state of his castle, probably the latter.
“I’m guessing no one here has a trophy Demonling head hanging on a wall of their home?” Beatrice asked jokingly.
“As if,” Ember half-smiled at the sad joke.
“And if we were to go looking for these Demonlings, we’d be able to find them?” Beatrice asked.
“S-sure,” Ember confirmed this with hesitation while wondering if Beatrice seriously intended to go looking for the monsters.
“Alright, then I just need to get strong enough to wipe out the Demon Legion foot soldiers,” Beatrice said as if all it would take for her to get that strong would be some push-ups and squats.
“H-how do you plan to achieve something that no single person has been able to do for over a decade?” Samuel asked.
“I’m not like any of the others,” Beatrice stated confidently.
“Oh, everyone’s here already?” Tabitha’s voice came from the corridor as she walked into the room where everyone was talking, past Jenny who stayed at the door, leaning against the wall.
“Perfect, we’re ready to go then?” Beatrice asked everyone.
“Go where?” Olivia asked.
“To get stronger, obviously!” Beatrice answered. “Ember, there have to be other forms of entertainment in this city besides sex, right?”
“… Sure, though it depends on what you mean by entertainment.”
“Fights! Blood and violence!” Beatrice said as she spread her arms.
After all, worked for Ancient Rome, Beatrice thought. Whenever people needed to be appeased, Sex and Violence came to the forefront. Surely, they’ve tried something like that here too. If the people require distraction, then besides sex, offering them live shows of desperate souls fighting each other for a loaf of bread seems like a no-brainer. In a starving city where extra mouths are a liability, there is no better alternative!
“Oh, you’ve got a taste for blood after your yesterday’s performance,” Ember asked with a curious, anticipating smile.
“‘Excited’ you say?” Beatrice repeated quietly and looked at her hands that she stained with the blood of four men yesterday. “I did erase four souls, didn’t I? And even if you say it was self-defense, there were ways that avoided murder.”
“Y-you? Yesterdays…” Samuel’s eyes widened when he realized who was responsible for his yesterday’s ‘work’.
“Even if it was self-defense, I killed them without hesitation,” Beatrice continued, ignoring Samuel. “They would have done the same to us, so fair is fair, but that’s not even the reason.”
This is my wish-fulfillment world, after all, Beatrice said to herself, but not to others. Sex, drugs, and rock n roll, was it? The opposite of my previous life… I could blame the succubus or demon nature of my new person, but that would be just an excuse.
“It was exciting!” Beatrice confirmed. “To be able to get rid of scum with my own hands. Make the world a little better in a couple of swift motions. And every time I fight, I become stronger. Every time I kill, I become even stronger!”
“Ah~ Wonderful!” Tabitha exclaimed and clapped her hands, love-struck by Beatrice’s confession.
A concerned look developed on Olivia’s pale face.
“And every time I become stronger, we are that much closer to rescuing your sister,” Beatrice said to Olivia, reminding the ninja girl of how they even ended up together. “I must first rescue this one city before I can proclaim to having the strength to rescue an entire world!”
“Something changed about you,” Ember said with a sly smile.
“My resolve grew,” Beatrice said. “I will not hold back. Never again! Now, lead the way!”
“Heh, Yes, My Lady!” Ember stood up and bowed.