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Chapter : 5
The voice of Quadrangle that distinguishes lies.
For now, that seemed like a reasonable assumption.
But that would mean Renel’s words about it being “my sister’s keepsake” were a lie.
She had told the Saintess in my memories that it was her sister’s keepsake too, so that would mean she had lied back then as well.
‘Well, this is something.’
After a moment of thought, I decided to probe her a little.
“Either way, it doesn’t suit you. Take it off and throw it away right now.”
“…….”
If it really were her sister’s keepsake, she should get angry here.
But if what I heard was truly Quadrangle’s voice…
Blink. Blink.
Renel blinked several times, then spoke slowly.
“Doesn’t suit me?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re telling me to take it off?”
“Yeah.”
“Ha…….”
Renel brushed up her bangs.
“You’re really rude, you know that?”
“…….”
“But I’ll let it slide just this once.”
Surprisingly, Renel smiled.
I know, at least as knowledge, that there are many kinds of smiles.
But for someone like me, who hadn’t seen other people’s expressions for so long, I couldn’t tell exactly what her smile meant.
Still, that was something I could learn little by little.
Right now, only one thing mattered.
“I think so too.”
That Quadrangle’s voice can tell lies apart.
Together with our so-called temporary party members, we received the reward for subjugating the Illusory Demon King.
“Sir Dyle Magnus. It has been acknowledged that you made the greatest contribution to completing this quest. Please accept your reward.”
I nodded indifferently at the receptionist’s words.
Heavy.
The pouch she handed me had quite a bit of weight to it.
‘For taking down a rank-128 sub–Demon King as a group, this is pretty generous.’
All Demon Kings are generally called Demon Kings, but according to their rankings, they’re divided into sub–Demon Kings, lesser Demon Kings, mid Demon Kings, great Demon Kings, and Demon Gods.
Those outside the top 100 are sub–Demon Kings; ranks 99 to 55 are lesser; 54 to 21 are mid; and those within the top 20 are called great Demon Kings.
The title of Demon God is granted only to the Demon King of Erosion.
Likewise, adventurers are divided into D-rank, C-rank, B-rank, A-rank, and S-rank.
Before my regression, both I and my party members were all S-rank, but now, when I looked at my registration card after reversing time, it said B-rank.
Naturally, it meant nothing to me.
But Renel beside me seemed impressed as she peeked over my shoulder at my card.
“You’re more impressive than I thought. B-rank at your age is pretty rare.”
“Is a mere B-rank that impressive?”
‘Mere’? You should apologize to all the adventurers below B-rank. Like me, for instance.”
“Weren’t you only C-rank around this time?”
“‘Around this time’?”
I shook my head and changed the subject.
“Adventurer ranks don’t really mean anything. They just give you slightly better reward rates and gear support.”
“Isn’t that the whole point? Honestly, how does your brain even work?”
Renel kept muttering after that, but I tuned it out and organized my thoughts.
‘What I have to do now is clear.’
I need to gather those party members from before my regression again.
Why?
Because among them was the Demon King of Absence.
If I follow a similar path to before, they’ll gather one by one.
The Demon King of Absence must have been wearing a fake face.
My Quadrangle, which can “distinguish the fake,” will tell me.
If there’s someone in the party whose face is covered by a white square, then that bastard is the Demon King of Absence.
If I can squeeze him for information about the whereabouts of the Demon King of Erosion…
‘…But will he really talk?’
Before my regression, even when his life was on the line, the Demon King of Absence didn’t spill any information about the Demon King of Erosion.
But at the same time, he had said this:
—There was a time when I placed my hopes on you, Dyle Magnus.
While pretending to be my party member, he must have weighed his options between me and the Demon King of Erosion.
Back then, the scale tipped toward the Demon King of Erosion… but what if this time I win his heart?
‘Then he might side with me and fight the Demon King of Erosion together.’
And not just him.
I need to win over the hearts of the others too, including Renel.
Considering that even against the 11th-ranked Demon King of Absence, all we managed was mutual destruction, the power of the top-ranked Demon King of Erosion must be overwhelming.
Even if I find his lair, there’s no way I can defeat him alone.
I have to unite the strength of the Demon King of Absence and my former party members to bring him down.
Back then, all party members were S-rank.
In truth, they far surpassed even S-rank.
It was just that there was nothing above S-rank in the adventurer system.
Once again, I realize just how incredible a position I had been in before.
I’ll win their hearts, borrow their strength, and kill the Demon King of Erosion.
That is my goal now.
‘To do that, first…’
I should start with the person right in front of me.
I cleared my throat and spoke.
“So, what will you do now?”
“Huh?”
“The quest’s over and we’ve gotten the reward. The temporary party is naturally disbanded.”
“…….”
“I’m asking what your next move is.”
Renel scratched her head and replied,
“Find the next job, of course. For C-rank adventurers, that’s always the most important thing. Though I guess some B-rank guy who gets steady quests anywhere wouldn’t know.”
“Come with me.”
“……What?”
“If you come with me, you can rise not just to B-rank, but to A and even S-rank.”
That’s what happened before, after all.
When strong people fall, they become Demon Kings.
But if they overcome adversity, their strength grows—almost without exception. That’s the law of our world.
What could be a greater adversity than hunting Demon Kings for a living?
Because of my bizarre goals as leader, my party members suffered a lot, but I remember how their strength and ranks soared day by day.
Of course, the current Renel burst into laughter as if she’d heard a joke.
“Pfft. Don’t you know that seventy percent of adventurers die stuck at C-rank?”
“You’re not like those run-of-the-mill adventurers.”
“……You do know we haven’t even known each other for a week, right?”
“I won’t lie and say it’ll be an easy journey. I plan to hunt Demon Kings.”
At my words, Renel leaned in close with a serious expression.
“I’ve heard of you. Dyle Magnus, the Demon King hunter. The weirdo who travels the entire continent taking only Demon King subjugation quests.”
“…….”
“Do you have some kind of grudge against them?”
“Just answer this. How about hunting Demon Kings with me? Your skills and rank will skyrocket, and naturally you’ll live being admired and waited on by everyone.”
I repeated Renel’s wish aloud.
Like many adventurers, she had become one for the sake of success.
Even though, as a mage, she could easily get a stable job at places like the Tower of Eternity.
Sure enough, Renel nodded and replied,
“I kiiinda haaave a strooong desiiire to suuucceed.”
In Quadrangle’s voice.
For a moment, I could only gape in shock.
‘She probably meant, “I do have a pretty strong desire to succeed”… But if that sounded like Quadrangle’s voice…’
Does that mean it isn’t true?
It was as shocking as hearing that the Demon King of Erosion had lost his belly fat.
Before and after regression, I had always believed that Renel’s ultimate goal was success.
I opened my mouth cautiously.
“That’s a lie.”
“What?”
“Your desire to succeed doesn’t seem that strong.”
“Ha. Why do you keep jumping to conclusions like that? You don’t like it because it’s too worldly? Adventurers are all like this.”
Before replying, I took a moment to gather my thoughts.
‘How did Renel join back then?’
Simple.
She was the one who suggested forming a party.
Back then, she even stopped me when I tried to leave first.
‘Let’s remember. What did I say at that time?’
I searched my memory.
Soon, a clear scene surfaced.
—Well then, I’ll be going.
—Yeah, take care. Don’t get stabbed to death by some Demon King somewhere.
—I can’t die until I kill the Demon King of Erosion.
—The Demon King of Erosion? Was killing a Demon God your goal?
—Yes.
—You’re crazy.
And then she had clearly said, with a curse:
—If you’re aiming to kill the Demon King of Erosion, then great Demon Kings should be easy for you, right?
—…….
—Let’s go together. I suddenly feel like watching from the front row.
She had clearly mentioned great Demon Kings.
Could it be…?
“If you come with me, you’ll be able to take down even great Demon Kings.”
At that, Renel’s expression changed instantly.
With a stiff face, she asked,
“Do you… know something?”
Her voice was normal.
Which meant she was genuinely curious.
“What do you mean?”
“How… Ah, never mind. It’s nothing.”
“…….”
“That can’t be. I must be losing it.”
She fell silent for a moment.
I waited patiently.
Then slowly, her lips parted.
“So the Demon King hunter really intends to go as far as hunting great Demon Kings, huh?”
“Further than that.”
“Which means?”
“The Demon King of Erosion. That one will die by my hand too.”
Snort.
Renel let out a small laugh.
Then she spoke words that matched my memory perfectly.
“Let’s go together. I suddenly feel like watching from the front row.”
I nodded briskly.
Then I immediately turned toward the counter.
“Sir Dyle? What can I help you with? You’ve already received your reward—”
“I’d like to take a quest.”
“Right away? Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?”
“That one.”
I pointed to a notice posted on the board.
The receptionist—and even Renel, who had come right up beside me—widened their eyes.
What I pointed at read:
<The Radiant Knight Order is recruiting members for the subjugation of the Demon King of Deception.
You there, shaking your head!
You who know that several past subjugation attempts have all ended in failure!
You who ask how anyone can subjugate the Demon King of Deception when no one even knows what he looks like!
We have good news for you.
This time, the rising star of the Radiant Knight Order, Chris Christine, will be participating in the subjugation force.
Moreover, the Radiant Knight Order has partnered with the Holy See, and the Holy See is lending the treasure known as the Mirror of God.
With the Mirror of God, won’t the true identity of the Demon King of Deception be revealed at once?
Since the long-rival Radiant Knight Order and the Holy See have joined hands, won’t this quest be a piece of cake?
And honestly, isn’t it worth accepting this quest just to see Sir Chris up close?
Applications close on March 27.
Make your choice before it’s too late.
※ You can apply at your nearest Adventurers’ Guild. Don’t forget to bring your registration card!>**
The Demon King of Deception is a Demon King situated on the boundary between lesser and mid Demon Kings, and it’s said he first appeared in history 78 years ago.
All Demon Kings act in accordance with their titles.
For example, the Demon King of Sloth constantly makes people lazy and lethargic, while the Demon King of Destruction endlessly commits meaningless acts of destruction.
The Demon King of Deception was no different.
Ever since appearing in history, he has continuously shaken the continent with lies and agitation.
Cleverly, he mixed some truths into his lies, subtly adjusting them so that people couldn’t help but listen to him.
Because of that, there were lords who rose in rebellion, times when human heroes were framed and executed, and even instances where he manipulated events to spark small wars.
Over time, humans learned to be more cautious, so they no longer went into a frenzy over every rumor as before.
But that didn’t mean his danger had lessened.
Naturally, humans formed subjugation forces whenever they could.
‘But up to the fifth attempt, they all failed.’
The current force would be the sixth.
Before my regression, I didn’t participate in this sixth attempt.
Around this time, I remember roaming around with Renel, hunting Demon Kings outside the top 100.
Then, after we had dealt with quite a few of them, I heard a rumor.
—The sixth subjugation force against the Demon King of Deception has failed.
And now, I intend to join that very sixth force that was said to have failed.
