🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 26
I shouldn’t be one to say this, but the black mages of this world really were a breed unto themselves.
Their lust for magic power was endless.
In the end, to maximize their strength, they even went so far as to make deals with demons. In exchange for borrowing the authority of a demon, they agreed to select and offer up sacrifices from the territory once every ten years.
The last time the black mages offered a sacrifice was two years before they lost the land—so today marked exactly ten years.
“Heh, looks like there’s still at least one guy left who recognizes me.”
The demon snorted arrogantly.
“Yeah, yeah.”
I knew this one well.
He was a young demon who hadn’t even undergone his coming-of-age ceremony yet, but at the same time he possessed authority powerful enough to rank among the strongest even in the demon realm.
I had no idea how hard the black mages had worked to summon him. Young demons overflowing with power were valuable, after all.
And wow—showing up exactly when I needed him. His mouth was a bit foul, but he was a really cute and useful kid.
“Why are you grinning like that? It’s creepy.”
“Was I? I was just happy to see you.”
“Happy my ass—wait, now that I think about it… are you a black mage too?”
“Hmm… not completely. About half?”
“What kind of bullshit is that? Whatever, this works out. Untie this thing. I can’t get it off no matter what—it’s some insane restraint.”
The demon thrust his arm out toward me.
“Those ungrateful bastards. If they were going to give sacrifices, they should’ve done it properly. Wasn’t wrecking the altar enough? They even had the nerve to attack me when I came to collect! And with some damn knight in tow, no less? How does a bunch of black mages even hire a holy knight?”
Oh dear.
Looks like he still doesn’t know his owner changed.
Feeling oddly sorry for this young demon, I placed a hand on my chest and spoke regretfully.
“You’re still not grasping the situation. You’re broke.”
“…What?”
“The lord of this territory changed sometime in the last ten years. There are no black mages here anymore.”
The demon frowned, clearly unable to understand a word I was saying.
“What are you talking about? You’re right here.”
“I told you, I’m only half a black mage. A hybrid.”
I kindly explained that eight years ago, Archduke Lucifenia had seized this territory from the black mages, thoroughly dismantled the altar and all traces of black magic, and that it had since become an entirely new territory.
The longer my explanation went on, the wider the demon’s mouth fell open.
Sitting there blankly, as if he’d been smacked on the back of the head with an iron pot lid, the demon asked,
“So you’re saying the black mage bastards who worshiped me scattered and hid who-knows-where?”
“Yep.”
“And there are no sacrifices for me?”
“Yep.”
“Th-then what am I supposed to do?”
“I told you. You’re broke.”
I explained it kindly, once again.
Thud—the demon’s hand fell limp.
Blinking his red eyes in a daze, he suddenly started thrashing about.
“Uraaaagh! Those XXing XXXX bastards! They got kicked out, yet they sucked on my authority like parasites for eight years?! I won’t let this slide! Untie me, right now!”
“I told you I can’t.”
“I’ll catch those assholes and XX them and XX them and XXX them! Untie me! Untie me, damn it!”
The demon struggled wildly, twisting his limbs, but before long he wore himself out and started panting.
That’s what happens when you try to use power while wearing restraints. It all gets absorbed. There’s a reason I behaved myself while wearing one.
Sheesh. Idiot.
“…Hey. I’m not joking. I need sacrifices. My authority’s been drained dry for ten years, and I used a ridiculous amount of power earlier too. If this keeps up, I’ll be forcibly reverse-summoned back to the demon realm!”
“Oh, that sounds like news the new lord would love.”
“Hey!!!”
Ow, my ears.
Maybe because he’s still young—he’s loud as hell, like he swallowed a locomotive boiler.
Still, that’s good. Means he’s brimming with energy.
“Well, who told you to drag a whole horde of monsters like griffins here and threaten the people of the territory?”
“That—that was…! To show my greatness…!”
Oh. He’s tearing up.
That’s kind of cute.
I squatted down and met the demon at eye level through the bars.
“Do you really hate being reverse-summoned that much?”
“Is that even a question? Do you know how much trouble it was for me to crawl my way into the human world?! The demon realm is boring as hell!”
The demon shuddered, saying that just thinking about being cooped up in the demon realm for decades made his teeth chatter.
Well, yeah. For a hot-blooded young demon who hadn’t even had his coming-of-age ceremony yet, the restrictions of the demon realm were basically a living nightmare.
That was also why he’d fallen for the black mages and handed over the right to use his authority—he figured that was better than being locked up in the demon realm.
What a mess, seriously.
“So just undo this already! I’ll track those guys down and make living sacrifices myself if I have to—then I’ll feel better!”
“Yeah, no.”
I refused glumly.
“You damn XX, XXXX!”
After hurling a barrage of profanity at no one in particular, the demon slumped again, panting.
“So what, what are you staring at me with those filthy eyes for? What do you want to say?”
“Filthy eyes? I’m pitying you.”
“Pity my ass, XX. Say what you’ve got to say and get lost.”
Sharp, aren’t you.
I grinned.
“There is one way to stay in the human world and use your authority freely—even without sacrifices.”
“…What, don’t tell me.”
His face twisted sharply.
“No! I hate being tied down to one person! Absolutely not!”
There were two ways for demons to escape the demon realm and use their authority freely in the human world.
One was to periodically consume the souls of unspecified humans and use them as fuel for their authority.
The other was to form a contract with a single human.
Nine out of ten demons preferred the former.
As long as they secured a long-term business partner like a group of black mages, they could freely roam around, siphoning off souls whenever their power waned.
The latter method meant no need to consume souls—but in exchange, they were completely bound to their contractor until that person died.
Which meant what?
If I just made a contract with this guy, I’d gain a perfectly legal underling.
Assistant mage? Extra manpower?
Unnecessary.
One demon was game over.
That’s how ridiculously powerful their authority was.
Just look at him—he controlled dozens of griffins yesterday and was still full of energy. That’s not normal. I needed a pawn like this.
The black mages really did have a good eye.
“No, absolutely not! And you give me a bad feeling! I’ve got a gut feeling that if I contract with you, my demon life will be ruined!”
Pretty sharp.
Demonic intuition, maybe?
“Really? You won’t contract with me?”
“Yeah!”
“Oh well. That’s a shame. Can’t be helped.”
I stood up.
“Then I’ll be going.”
“…What? Where are you going?”
“Hm? You said you wouldn’t contract with me. I’m just a hired worker, so I don’t have the authority to release a demon who isn’t a contract partner. And for your information, our lord absolutely loathes black mages and demons—so he’ll be coming to execute you soon.”
“E-execute?”
“Don’t worry too much. You’re a demon, after all. It’s not like getting your head chopped off will kill you. You’ll just get reverse-summoned to the demon realm and spend about a hundred years holed up there, focusing on recovery. What a shame…”
So sad.
I drooped my eyebrows exaggeratedly in sympathy.
The demon’s face went deathly pale.
“No—hey. E-execute? Me?”
“Hang in there. Fighting.”
I clenched my fist and cheered him on before turning away.
“Hey, hey, wait. You’re really just leaving like this? Hey! Stop!”
“Sorry, I’m busy.”
“Hey!”
Step, step.
“XX, I said don’t go! Hey!”
Step, step.
“…Ah, damn it! Fine, I’ll contract! Let’s do it! Isn’t that enough?!”
“Oh my, good choice!”
The demon made a face like spoiled food.
“Your Highness, please say hello. This is my assistant, ‘Eden.’”
“What kind of bizarre situation is this now?”
Caius stared at me, returning from the underground prison with a prisoner in tow, as if he couldn’t believe his eyes.
“As I mentioned before, Eden isn’t a black mage—he’s a demon. A young demon, about two hundred years old. We just formed a contract, and he’ll be working in the territory as my magical assistant.”
“Last time it was a magical beast, now it’s a demon?”
Put that way, it does sound strange.
It wasn’t intentional, but somehow I was steadily living up to the derogatory title of ‘witch.’
“…There are records of past mages forming contracts with demons and dramatically amplifying their magic power. But at some point, those records disappeared.”
Because the smarter demons realized that contracting with a single human was a terrible deal.
Giving Vassel a thumbs-up, I seized the moment to add,
“Honestly, handling such a vast territory by myself is overwhelming. Just look at the stack of documents on my desk.”
Don’t you feel sorry for me? I still see Ilaune, who died so senselessly, haunting my thoughts.
“So you’re saying I should allow the demon who attacked my territory to stay here?”
“Although Eden caused trouble because he thought this place was still under black mage influence, he’s reflected on his actions a lot. Right, Eden?”
Say something.
I poked Eden in the side.
Standing next to me with one leg cocked, Eden muttered,
“Mmnngh. Mrrgh.”
“Ahem, speak properly.”
“Mmn… ah, damn it, XX. I’m sorry, okay? Huh? It was a mistake. Satisfied? Huh?!”
That’s one hell of an apology—bold, at least.
Caius said nothing as he looked back and forth between the screaming Eden and me, smiling contentedly. He seemed deep in thought.
But I knew it. The fact that he didn’t immediately refuse meant acceptance.
“He’s actually quite sweet and earnest, you know.”
I made a show of patting Eden on the head. He shuddered and moved away from me.
“Don’t pat my head!”
“You’re cute.”
“You crazy human!”
Suddenly, Caius’s eyes narrowed.
“…I don’t like this. Kick him out.”
“What?”
Why all of a sudden?!
