The legend of the Crimson Demon clan started from Suqing.

Chapter 261: The Ship of Theseus

In order to deal with the Witch Cult, everyone needs to agree on a plan and strategy, and the leader is naturally Natsuki Subaru, who organizes this continuous war against the White Whale.

But for some reason, Natsuki Subaru, who was talking calmly just now, suddenly stopped talking and stared at the front with a look of horror, as if he had seen something incredible.

"How could...how could this happen...fail, fail again?"

He held his forehead with his hand, his body began to tremble, and his face showed the kind of aggrieved and broken expression that was about to cry, making people who didn't know the truth wonder if he had a mental breakdown.

“——Ah!”

"Wow ah ah!"

While Natsuki Subaru was distracted, Ferris bit his ear with a sweet smile, like a little devil teasing an innocent boy. If someone didn't know about it, they would probably be envious and jealous, but no one present had that thought.

“…Is it Phyllis?”

"It's little Phyllis."

He stared blankly at the cat man who was smiling seductively in front of him.

The sight of a living Ferris gave Natsuki Subaru a vision—Felice was split in two by a violent lightning bolt that was powerful enough to chop down a white whale, and died in unbelievable misery in front of him.

"Well!"

As if he could still smell that fishy odor, Natsuki Subaru covered his mouth, his eyes bulging as if he was vomiting.

Zun Zun also held his shoulder curiously and asked, "What's wrong, Subaru, you looked like you were dead just now, what happened..."

"——————!?"

The next words were simply impossible to utter.

Natsuki Subaru turned around, his face extremely distorted with fear, terror, and panic, and a cowardly look of resistance appeared in his eyes.

Zun Zun felt offended.

Because that look didn't seem like he was looking at a friend, but at an enemy whom he hated and feared.

"Who are you?"

Natsuki Subaru asked tremblingly.

Zun Zun's forehead was bulging with veins, and he punched him hard in the abdomen.

"Pooh!"

Natsuki Subaru spat out saliva after his soft abdomen was hit hard, and his body staggered and almost fell to the ground.

Zun Zun made a strange pose and shouted: "I am Zun Zun! I am the strongest magician of the Red Demon Clan! ... So, are you clear-headed?"

"Ah... I was distracted just now, sorry." Natsuki Subaru wiped the corner of his mouth and muttered, "The save point has been updated."

This is not the worst option.

He fought bravely, but was defeated in vain. Every time he returned from death, the situation was extremely bad. But the worst thing was that the rebirth point after death was always fixed, such as returning to the time before the crusade against the white whale.

But this time it seems I'm lucky.

He did not go back to before the White Whale, but came to after the White Whale crusade.

"Are you okay, Subaru? You don't look well."

"I am fine."

Subaru Natsuki signaled to Wilhelm that he was fine, and at the same time, he said to Zun Zun: "Honestly, your magic is already powerful enough, how come your punches and kicks are also so powerful? By the way... you are not a character who is three times stronger when you turn evil, and three times weaker when you turn white? It's not set up like that."

"…You seem to be saying that I am not strong now."

"No, it's just that you are stronger when you turn into a dark one."

He spoke as if he had seen it before.

There was no time to ask further questions.

Natsuki Subaru turned to everyone again and said, "I'm sorry for taking up everyone's time. Now that we have resolved our worries, let's sort out the situation."

First of all, their goal this time.

There is no doubt that they must defeat the witch cultists who invaded the border earldom and the archbishop of sin who led them, and during this period they must protect the innocent people and allow them to retreat safely. For this purpose, they have already asked Anastasia to gather traveling merchants to transport the people.

Abbreviation: The Great Operation to Hunt the Witch Cult, which even a monkey can understand.

This cannot be said to be a foolproof plan, but it is the most appropriate plan that everyone can think of at the moment. However, Natsuki Subaru still has a constipated expression after hearing it - this was clearly the plan he agreed upon at the beginning.

"What's wrong Subaru? You look like you're worried about something."

"Don't read other people's faces without permission."

"That's because you don't know how to make a poker face."

Zun Zun rolled his eyes at him unhappily, as if he was taking revenge on Natsuki Subaru for being a riddle man for no reason.

"If you have something to say, just say it quickly, Wen Wen, are you a toad?"

"You're so sharp-tongued right from the start? But now I am finally convinced that you are Zun Zun himself."

"Are you Duem? Also, there is still a possibility of change before the plan starts, but there will be no chance to repent later."

This sentence woke Natsuki Subaru up.

Yes.

His greatest golden finger is that he can reincarnate several times. Although his wisdom is not enough to support him to formulate an excellent and careful plan, he can tell other people about these strange points and ask them to solve them.

I have been told this so many times and have been corrected and reminded so many times.

Why is this happening? "Is it time to indulge in sentimentality?"

Julius pretended to be frivolous and gave him the stairs. Natsuki Subaru looked at him gratefully, which made the elegant knight who had just acted like he couldn't get along well with others look surprised.

"I'm sorry for my strange words and actions just now. Actually, I have something to add to the explanation of the Witch Cult... No, there are a few things I just observed. I would like to discuss this with you again."

Natsuki Subaru slowly raised his right hand.

Under the puzzled gazes of the crowd, he looked at Zun Zun deeply and asked a strange question.

"Does anyone know about that... the ability to have someone else's consciousness override your own, like possessing a mind? Or is there some kind of magic that can do this?"

"Other people's spirit overshadows your own? What kind of unbelievable idiotic idea is that, meow."

"…Give me back my strongest weapon."

"What are you talking about, meow?"

Not only Phyllis felt strange, but everyone else was also puzzled, not knowing what this meant.

Subaru Natsuki's death and return is, to some extent, the same as the ability of the Archbishop of Sloth, but one covers others in the present, and the other covers one's past self.

Julius pondered for a moment before saying, "You ask this question. Do you think it's very likely that the Archbishop of Sin will use this ability?"

"Yes, that's right. I call it possession. That guy relies on this ability to steal other people's bodies to survive. His name is everywhere, right?"

This is not a delusion.

It is an ironclad fact.

Natsuki Subaru, who had seen it with his own eyes, could conclude so.

"——Soul copying technology."

Julius said with a serious expression: "It is a very simple technique in terms of phenomena. It gathers the memories, experiences, qualities and destiny of the practitioner, gathers them into a soul, and then directly imprints it on the souls of others."

"In that case, a human being with his memory and consciousness copied can be created... In that case, can he still be considered the real person?" Natsuki Subaru frowned.

“Classic Ship of Theseus theory.”

"… Your Excellency?"

Facing his surprised eyes, Zun Zun slowly said: "After all the parts of a ship are replaced, is it still the same ship? This theory can also be applied to humans. After all, according to medical evidence, humans replace all the cells in their body every 7 years. Are you still yourself? In fact, the you when you were a child and the you when you grew up, whether it is height, weight, appearance, etc., you have completely changed."

"Hmm, interesting theory."

Julius fell into deep thought.

Phyllis was even more surprised and asked, "Humans replace their cells every 7 years!? ...How did you come up with this proof?"

"It's not important." Zun Zun held down the cat man's face and explained, "What's important is what it means - the only things that haven't changed in humans are memory and consciousness. If these are also covered..."

"It means becoming a completely different person."

"exactly."

He confirmed Wilhelm's guess.

"But that's unrealistic," Julius said. "The magic has been lost. Theoretically, the technique is so complex that it is unprecedented. To reproduce it, one must have magical talent and perseverance beyond the realm of ordinary people. I don't think the Church of Sin has such knowledge and technology."

The Elegant Knight thought it was too much of a worry.

Others also said that this kind of thing was too difficult, and even if it could be done, it would require extremely harsh conditions. And it just so happened that Natsuki Subaru knew such conditions.

"--finger."

What he said made Ferris and Julius' eyes light up, as if they saw the truth of the matter like a certain elementary school student of the Shinigami.

"I see. It can be inferred that even among the Witch Cultists, not everyone can perform such a move."

"Maybe it's the finger?"

"Preparing your own reserve body in advance is a disgusting plan."

"Should I say this is really like something the Archbishop of Sin would do?"

The two of them unraveled the trick of their opponent's possession and figured out the answer. In terms of intelligence, they are among the best among the knights.

So the plan was revised again.

Before eliminating the Archbishop of Sin, the finger must be destroyed first, so that the soul loses the body it can possess. At that time, it can be said that the Archbishop of Sin is dead.

After reaching this conclusion, everyone showed determination and resolution. With the will to fight not to lose to the White Whale War, the expedition team gathered together again and stood up together.

Just when everyone was high on morale, another guy jumped out at an inopportune time to pour cold water on them.

"Everyone, there is one more thing I have to say."

Everyone focused their eyes on him.

Being stared at so seriously, Natsuki Subaru couldn't help but shudder, and the expression on his face turned into embarrassment and apology.

"Sorry, it's not just the finger. I'm probably also the target of the Sin Archbishop's transfer."

"Ah?"xN
"And Zun Zun, he is actually the Archbishop of Sin's first target. In order to occupy his body, he is willing to give up all his fingers... I have no idea why this guy is so attractive to the Archbishop of Sin."

"Ah!!!?"
There were even louder cries of surprise than before.

Everyone looked at Zun Zun, and he pointed at himself dumbfoundedly with a dazed expression.

"Ah, me?"

(End of this chapter)