Chapter 75
〈Demon Dragon: Budget Cuts Starting This Year.〉
“It’s almost time for me to return to the Demon King’s Castle.”
Belcia was leaving the Demon Dragon’s lair and heading toward Sullerisu. She checked the documents in her hands and murmured to herself.
She also made sure to jot down the important points in the notebook the Demon King had given her.
Even while searching for the Demon King, Belcia couldn’t neglect her duties as commander-in-chief of the Demon King’s army, so she had brought as much work as she could and was taking care of it. Since she could store the documents in the ‘Mirror World’ created by her divine power, they weren’t a burden to carry.
“Haa, if it weren’t for that leech of a woman, I’d be admiring His Majesty the Demon King’s beautiful face by now.”
Looking at the notebook that should have been filled with His Majesty’s daily schedule, Belcia ground her teeth.
Normally, she would have returned the moment she received word that they’d found His Majesty, but the sudden rebellion of Mortia, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, had made her miss her chance to return.
If it had been some ordinary nuisance, she would’ve had the Demon King’s army drag them out at once. But who was Mortia? In terms of sheer strength, she was a monster who ranked among the top three in this world, where powerful beings abounded.
With Mortia declaring that she would become the Demon King, morale in the existing Demon King’s army naturally fell, and some demons even joined Mortia’s side, stirring up discord.
“Grit…”
That was why Belcia had stepped in.
To find out whether Mortia was willing to retract her declaration.
The usual protocol for an emergency like this was to bring one of the Four Heavenly Kings along, but Belcia hadn’t done so. She was confident she could escape whenever she wanted. She was one of His Majesty’s retainers, after all, and possessed power to match.
“If possible, I should take this chance to weed out one of the Four Heavenly Kings, too— Huh!?”
Just then.
She felt the ‘pull’ that manifested in her as a retainer of the Demon King.
It was the warm, comforting aura she could sense whenever her master was nearby. An aura that shouldn’t have been present here.
“W-What is going on…?”
〈Demon King's aura detected near Sullerisu.〉
As she habitually jotted the unusual occurrence into her notebook, Belcia seriously wondered whether something was wrong with her.
Naturally, nothing was wrong.
And yet, the faint aura she suspected belonged to His Majesty—or rather, was certain belonged to the Demon King—still reached her.
“Damn it, Cardin! Can you hear me!? …Haa, why haven’t you answered me since that day? Seriously!”
His Majesty should have been in the Demon King’s Castle, yet only his aura could be felt here—a strange contradiction. Belcia had tried contacting Cardin to resolve it, but unfortunately, there was no answer.
In the end, there was only one option.
“I’ll have to check for myself…”
With her decision made, Belcia immediately dashed off.
With the aura this faint, she’d reach it around sunset. She wanted to run faster, but there were too many obstacles, like vines, in the area, so she had no choice.
“If His Majesty really is there…”
She couldn’t believe it, but what if His Majesty really was at the end of this trail? The best course of action would be to escort him back safely. If possible, she’d also ask why he was there.
But what if it wasn’t His Majesty? What if it was an impostor using magic to impersonate him? Then, of course, she’d have to capture the impostor and interrogate them thoroughly. About their motives. About how they’d done it.
And…
“…Huh?”
The world stopped.
No. To put it in Belcia’s terms, she had entered the ‘Mirror World.’ It was exactly like reality, but also another, reversed world.
“I didn’t use my divine power, so why…?”
〈Another anomaly: Mirror World forcibly activated.〉
Belcia sensed that something serious was afoot.
Soon, the five-minute time stop ended, and Belcia picked up her pace as she ran toward the aura.
~
By now, an oppressive darkness had swallowed everything around her.
Even Belcia, who had become a half-demon as a retainer of the Demon King, found it difficult to make out her surroundings in the forest at night.
Fortunately, glowing insects scattered throughout the forest cast light, so at least she could keep moving without stopping.
“…”
Sounds carried far at night.
So Belcia held her breath and cautiously stepped toward the aura, which had crept close enough to be right in front of her.
Rustle, rustle…
As she made her way through the underbrush, filled with the sound of leaves crunching and tiny insects chirping—
-Ugh, save me…! Anybody… Please…
She heard a person’s voice.
It was a desperate cry, hardly the sound of someone having an ordinary conversation. No, there was only one person. And those ragged breaths, too strained to form words, were coming from the direction of the aura.
“…”
Familiar.
Why did that voice cling so tightly to her ears? It sounded exactly like the voice she’d heard when His Majesty the Demon King was well. Could it be an impostor who was even mimicking his voice?
She couldn’t tell.
The voice itself was remarkably similar to His Majesty’s, but she couldn’t believe it was him. The words coming from it were things His Majesty would never say.
Begging to be saved.
Was His Majesty really saying those words, sounding so terrified? Impossible. She couldn’t even imagine it. If anything, His Majesty would take his own life before ever saying such a thing.
“How dare you…”
Then it was a fake. It had to be some damned impostor.
Belcia was already thinking about how to deal with the Demon King’s impersonator. To disguise even the aura and voice—they were an extremely dangerous individual who had to be dealt with at once.
It would be a relief if they were willing to talk, but would someone brazen enough to impersonate His Majesty even listen to reason?
Belcia quietly gripped the knife tucked against her.
-Hic… I can’t breathe…! P-Please, save me…
“…”
It had to be an act.
An act meant to lure me out. They must already know I’m nearby, too. They’ve been spewing out His Majesty’s aura, which only I can sense. So… this has to be an act.
“Why are you crying so sorrowfully?”
“Hic… W-Who are you…?”
“Hehe, as for who I am…”
“…Ah.”
Why was her heart stirring so deeply?
What was this feeling rising to the very back of her throat?
Could it be that she wanted to hear those words one more time? From the lips of that person who might be the Demon King?
“I’m only checking to make sure…”
Step, step…
She didn’t conceal her footsteps.
By now, all she had in her hand was her notebook. The knife she’d been gripping so tightly that her palm had grown sweaty was nowhere to be seen.
I’m doing something incredibly stupid right now.
-Hic, cough, keh…!
The sounds were drawing closer.
A groan that seemed to be vomiting up pain.
The closer she got, the more that warm, comforting aura enveloped her. It was as if nothing were lacking.
She would probably meet him any moment now.
She knew she should be on guard, but she couldn’t stop herself.
Somehow, this felt like the right thing to do.
She had a hunch.
Soon, she stopped and narrowed her eyes to make out what she was seeing. At her unspoken will, the glowing insects began to gather.
One, then two.
The clusters of light settled coldly around her, shining as if to judge whether this was the right answer or the wrong one.
“That’s…”
And it was—
〈Forest near Sullerisu, His Majesty the Demon King—〉
Thud.
“His Majesty…?”
“Hic, sob…”
It was the right answer.
***
“Wow! Then how old are you, Mr. Holy Sword?”
“Kahahaha! Is that any way to speak to your elder, you little brat? Let me see, this year I’m… Eek, I’ve been sleeping all this time, so I’ve lost track.”
Riella seemed fascinated by the talking sword and kept the conversation going without a break. Personally, I was more fascinated by Riella, who regularly talked to trees.
“Come to think of it, I heard you went on an adventure with the previous Hero…”
“Hmm? Haa, don’t even bring that fellow up. You have no idea how much trouble that tight-ass put me through.”
“Was that Hero’s name ‘Yoo Jin-han’?”
“Huh? How do you know that, you brat? Did you meet him or something? That ridiculous bastard never even told his own companions his name.”
“Yeah… I met him.”
I remembered what the masked cat had said about asking the Holy Sword his name. I’d asked, and it turned out to be true.
“…Hmm.”
So he really was from the same world as me. Then was it true that he’d been trapped here for two hundred years? I had a lot to think about.
“That bastard. Even when I told him not to, he insisted on killing that monster and going home—”
“When I asked you earlier, you said you weren’t going to tell me about him…”
“Hey, don’t argue with me, kid. I’m telling you because I feel like talking, you hear?”
“…”
“Anyway, when I tried to stop him, he just left me lying on the ground and—”
On and on.
The Holy Sword had finally gotten started and wouldn’t stop talking. But I couldn’t focus on it. Why hadn’t Yubel come back yet?
“Aww, when’s Yubel coming back? It’s time for head pats…”
It seemed Riella felt the same way.
She was taking quite a while to return for someone who’d only gone out to get some fresh air. Could she have gotten lost in the dark?
“…I’ll go look for her. You guys stay here and watch our things.”
“Ehh, no… Are you really going to leave the scout behind and go looking for her?”
“Yeah, that’s what you’ve got companions for, you numbskull. I’ll be quiet, too, so take me with you. Honestly, you’re so unprepared. Tsk, this is all because I’m worried about you—”
“…Right. Then, Riella, come with me. Prea, stay here and watch the luggage.”
“Okay, I understand. But you have to come back quickly, all right? I-I’m scared to be alone, too…”
I gave a small nod, picked up the Holy Sword, and went into the forest with Riella. It was darker than I’d expected.
A sinister premonition came over me.
~
“Riella, are you sure Yubel is in that direction?”
“Yeah! The tree uncles said someone came through here, trembling as they ran away! Maybe she went into the forest alone and got lost?”
I let Riella lead the way and quietly followed behind her. The aura was too faint for me to use it to find Yubel.
Besides, if not for Riella’s spirits, I probably wouldn’t have been able to make out the path ahead at all.
It was a good thing I’d brought Riella this time.
Anyway, if Yubel really was lost, I had to hurry…
-Huh? Hero, wha…? I… can’t hear you…
“…?”
I heard someone speaking.
It was the voice of a mature woman, different from Yubel’s. In other words, it wasn’t Yubel. Had someone been living here?
“It sounds like someone’s over there! Let’s ask if they know where Yubel went!”
“W-Wait, Riella!”
Riella dashed off in an instant.
We didn’t even know who that person was, and she’d rushed off without thinking. It was my fault for not stopping her beforehand.
I hurried after Riella, running toward where the sound had come from.
Pat, pat!
The quick footsteps rang through the forest, and then—
When I arrived, Riella had already stopped in her tracks.
“That’s…”
A person… No, a demon.
The demon was holding Yubel in her arms.
Yubel, who had collapsed unconscious.
We stared blankly at the scene before us.
Then the demon spoke.
Her face twisted into a deep frown.
“…So it was you. You’re the ones His Majesty called the Hero’s party.”
“Hey, put her down right now. Or else—”
“Shut up!! How dare you open that shameless mouth of yours…!”
The agitated demon drew a knife from her clothes.
Damn it, was she going to use Yubel as a hostage?
“I, Belcia, commander-in-chief of the Demon King’s army and His Majesty’s secretary, will deal with you right here—”
“Hyaah!”
Fwish—!
Riella’s arrow flew toward the knife.
She’d taken less than a second to draw her bowstring. Even I hadn’t noticed. Good judgment. If the demon left an opening, I’d use a skill and charge in…
[Target ‘Belcia’ is moving to the ‘Mirror World’!]
Huh?
[Eligibility confirmed. You may enter the Mirror World. Enter now?]
“What is this…?”
[Confirmation complete. Entering the Mirror World.]
No, wait, let me—
.
.
.
.
.
Clang—!
“How did you…!”
“…I wonder.”
Riella’s arrow, the glowing insects, even Yubel, suspended in midair…
In this frozen stretch of time and space,
only the demon before me and I could move.
[Objective: Disable ‘Belcia’! (1 time)]
[Time Remaining: ∞]