Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 303
TL: Elphie / PR: Marm
Irene recalled something Chomp-chomp had said.
[If we’re talking about monster rank alone, I’m just as strong as you!]
When Chomp-chomp emerged from her bag, it had shouted those very words.
Monster rank.
Irene had heard Chomp-chomp explain the concept before.
Back then, it had been immensely proud of the fact that she had named it and called its name three times. It had spent the entire day gloating about it, claiming that its magic rank had risen because of her acknowledgment. Curious, she had asked what exactly that meant.
[It’s basically the rank of a monster being! Like a grade, I suppose? Most creatures are born with a fixed rank, and increasing it is nearly impossible, but just like how I became Your Majesty’s first servant, if a higher existence acknowledges your solidity as a being, your rank can rise! Now, I rank just below Your Majesty and His Majesty! I’m at the top of all monsters! Well, there are others with the same rank, but still, this is amazing! Yay!]
Chomp-chomp had wriggled with excitement, adding that the second and third servants wouldn’t be able to rise as high as it had.
Chomp-chomp had continued to boast about its increasing monster rank whenever it was in a good mood.
[Our strength isn’t exactly the same, but I can’t completely overpower it either. I might be able to block it, though?]
If that were the case.
Irene tightened her grip around the Impossibility.
Was it startled? The laughter that had once filled the space had vanished entirely.
Instead, the two floating metal shards in her grasp hummed and trembled violently.
“My monster rank must be higher than yours. After all, I’m Michael’s wife.”
Regaining her memories, seeing Michael’s past… It had all made things clear.
She finally understood why Chomp-chomp had always called her ‘Her Majesty’.
She had once formed a pair with Michael, and that bond had never been severed, which meant she had always remained his wife.
Through the countless ages he had endured, that fact had never changed.
Irene turned her head toward Chomp-chomp, whose form stretched long from her bag.
The more of her memories she recovered, the more Chomp-chomp’s appearance seemed to shift.
At first, it had looked like a dying giant worm. But now, it had regained its vitality. Its body had grown plump again.
It was still keeping itself small, probably to stay inside the bag.
“Chomp-chomp.”
[Yep!]
Unlike before, Irene’s voice was now cold and steady. Chomp-chomp responded with unwavering resolve.
“Can you hold onto this?”
As she spoke, she tightened her grip on the Impossibility.
It trembled even more violently than before, as if realizing that something was going terribly wrong.
[Leave it to me!]
At her command, Chomp-chomp instantly stretched its body.
With an explosion of movement, countless tendrils burst forth from the bag—not just one or two, but dozens, hundreds.
They poured out of the small opening and rapidly expanded in the void of darkness.
Then, rising high into the air, the ends of the tendrils sharpened into lethal points.
Sharp, jagged teeth sprouted at the ends of Chomp-chomp’s tendrils, lining them in rows like the maw of a beast.
The transformed Chomp-chomp lunged at the Impossibility without hesitation.
[……!]
Only then did the Impossibility begin to thrash wildly, tearing itself free from Irene’s grasp.
Its form was about to disappear in an instant.
CRUNCH!
A barbed tendril snapped forward and sank its teeth into the Impossibility.
[……!!!]
There was no sound. And yet, Irene could almost hear the silent scream echoing in her mind.
Like a frenzied creature, the Impossibility twisted and convulsed, desperately trying to break free. But the more it struggled, the tighter Chomp-chomp’s tendrils coiled around it.
An unseen force lashed out, severing one of Chomp-chomp’s tendrils where it had sunk into the Impossibility’s form.
[Oh? You wanna play?]
But Chomp-chomp only sneered, as if taunting its opponent, before spawning a fresh new tendril to take the place of the severed one.
The Hand of Appraisal clung to the edge of the bag, enthusiastically flinging indecipherable gestures toward the Impossibility—gestures that Irene didn’t understand but were, in fact, the foulest curses one could utter in the monster realm.
The battle between Chomp-chomp and the Impossibility raged on, stretching into what felt like eternity.
But eventually, the Impossibility ceased its resistance.
It had realized that this was nothing but a war of attrition.
[You really thought you could beat me? The biggest and longest in all of the monster realm?]
Chomp-chomp, though clearly exhausted, panted out its words with a victorious sneer.
The Impossibility let out a low hum, trembling once more.
Irene knew it was looking at her again.
And she knew exactly what it wanted to ask.
“So, you’re wondering what I plan to do next.”
She didn’t answer directly. Instead, she reached into her bag and pulled out the dagger she had stored there.
In the past, within the warped dungeon, Michael had explained its properties to her.
A blade with a very low chance of instantaneously killing its target.
