The King of Flies Appears on the Surface
Herman returned to the castle and introduced him to everyone with a perfectly straight face.
“So… here he is. This is Beelzebub, the King of Flies.”
Clink.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…”
Greg dropped the wine glass he was holding and muttered in utter shock.
Beelzebub? If that was true, then this was one of the Great Demons—the same rank as Amon, the first high-ranking demon to ever die at human hands. Beelzebub and Satan. The two rulers who divided Hell between them. According to certain legends, they weren’t ordinary demons born from corrupted humans, but fallen gods who had plummeted from divinity into devilhood. In other words, they were fallen deities.
Yet the boy Herman had brought looked like nothing more than an adorable child. There was no overwhelming aura of dread. That was why, even while startled, Greg managed to regain his composure.
“He says his name is Beelzebub.”
Whether he knew what Greg was thinking or not, the boy who had declared himself Beelzebub smiled lazily as he spoke.
“Beelzebub here said he had something to tell us, so I brought him along. Thought we might as well listen.”
Herman’s casual tone made Limia stare at him in disbelief, but Greg sensed something odd.
Why is he suddenly acting like that?
It was strange to see Herman speaking politely like a proper priest instead of his usual blunt manner, but Greg let it slide for now. There was something far more pressing to worry about.
“…Good grief. This is absurd.”
Namely, the self-proclaimed Great Demon standing right in front of them. Whether he truly was that being remained to be seen, but if he was…
Chew. Chew.
If that’s just an act, I’d like to give him a round of applause.
The boy’s eyes sparkled as he munched on the candy that had been placed before him. He looked exactly like any other little kid. Was this really Beelzebub? Greg simply couldn’t believe it.
“My subjects would be delighted.”
After chewing the candy for a long while, he murmured with a satisfied expression and slipped several more pieces into his pocket.
“It’s been a while, so ask me whatever you like. I have plenty of questions myself.”
Beelzebub sat down without waiting for permission and spoke lightly.
The first to open his mouth was, naturally, Herman.
“What is your purpose in coming here?”
Beelzebub, who had been looking around curiously as if everything here fascinated him, answered casually.
“Lilith said something interesting for once. Her words are usually so boring.”
Talk of drowning the continent in chaos or returning to the primordial era held little appeal, but…
“She told me there was a human capable of harming my kin. That caught my interest. The child I gave her as a gift to keep her from bothering me was actually quite useful, after all.”
This story had piqued Beelzebub’s curiosity. By his standards the child had been no better than an insect, yet even so, the boy clearly hadn’t been at a level humans could easily kill. And yet he had died. At the hands of a single man.
“What do you plan to do once you find him?”
Herman asked in a calm tone. This time Beelzebub, who had been poking at the bottle of wine with mild interest, answered.
“I simply came out to observe. I haven’t decided on doing anything in particular.”
“…?”
Everyone tilted their heads at those words. Could such a thing really come from the mouth of a terrifying Great Demon? It was hard to believe even after hearing it.
“Of course Lilith would want me to kill him. That wouldn’t be difficult.”
Beelzebub stood up, grunted as he pulled a bottle of wine from the shelf, and continued in a monotone.
A chill ran down their spines.
Only then did Greg become certain that this wasn’t one of Herman’s jokes. Just the faint presence the boy emitted made him feel as though he might be crushed. The slightest trace of demonic energy leaking out was enough to make his legs go weak.
Limia’s face was already tight with tension, but Beelzebub simply fiddled with the cork, turning it this way and that as he tried to figure out how to open it.
“But I won’t kill him. I have little interest in the life and death of humans. And carelessly harming one of Yuno’s servants… well, Yuno would dislike that.”
Lilith would undoubtedly pester him if she learned of this, but he had no desire to upset Yuno either. In truth, he didn’t particularly want to fight Satan. What Beelzebub ultimately wanted was for his own subjects to be happy; his own happiness was secondary.
In that sense, there was a clear difference. If Satan gathered subjects in order to rule over them, Beelzebub ruled because subjects gathered around him of their own accord.
“The surface has become quite bountiful. A remarkable change.”
After much struggling, Beelzebub finally pulled out the cork and took a sip of the wine. He let out a sigh of admiration. Even the taste of alcohol had improved so much. It seemed humans had clearly advanced their brewing techniques.
“I’d like to look around a bit more. Any other questions?”
Beelzebub tilted his head as he asked. He wondered why modern humans seemed to have so few questions for transcendent beings… or rather, they weren’t quite that anymore.
Herman thought for a moment before speaking.
“Do you know Lilith’s current location?”
“She’s in Hell. She probably won’t come out for some time.”
He answered surprisingly readily. Herman was startled that he had actually replied, but he felt relieved that his own assumptions had been correct.
“Is the entrance to Hell located in Quientang?”
The second question drew genuine admiration from Beelzebub.
“You even know that much? Impressive.”
That was enough. Herman had no more questions. He had learned everything he wanted to know. Others might have had countless more things to ask, but for now, Herman’s curiosity was satisfied.
“Then is it my turn to ask questions?”
Beelzebub seemed to have noticed and set down the bottle of wine. Herman’s intuition kicked in. Surely he was about to ask where Jenkinson was…
“Is there any alcohol here that tastes better than this?”
“…Pardon?”
Herman was momentarily rendered speechless. Only then did everyone present realize it.
The demon before their eyes was a being utterly beyond human comprehension.
Beelzebub has appeared on the surface.
His attitude is unexpectedly mild. No hostile movements detected yet.
“Beelzebub…”
Henry’s eyes widened in shock as he listened to the woman before him.
So it was true—Beelzebub had really appeared on the surface? It was almost impossible to believe, yet…
“Still, he seems surprisingly moderate. There hasn’t been any significant movement so far.”
Her report made the reality of his appearance sink in. Silvestina watched the scene through her birds and found Herman’s attitude genuinely surprising. To remain so composed in front of a Great Demon…
“Keep watching,” Henry told her.
This was something they needed to confirm without fail. They had to determine whether he was truly an enemy of humanity—or an enemy of the Goddess. It was a matter of vital importance for all mankind.
“But… he seems so casual. Even the Goddess is talking to him like he’s some neighborhood friend.”
As Silvestina continued observing and muttering, Henry pondered for a moment before replying.
“…Well, that’s because Beelzebub was originally a fallen god.”
High-ranking clergy eventually learned the truth while deciphering ancient texts. Among demons, there existed beings who had not been born from corrupted humans, but from gods who had fallen and become devils. And Beelzebub was one of them. In other words, this was by no means a trivial matter.
“That’s actually a terrifying thought, Your Holiness.”
Silvestina gave a bitter smile and murmured. A being of that caliber had probably already noticed this magic, hadn’t he? Her legs felt weak. Why did he feel even more frightening than Amon or Lilith, despite being relatively friendly toward humans?
She realized anew why those who could maintain their reason in his presence were considered among the strongest on the continent. Even watching from afar like this was terrifying… yet they were actually conversing with him at such close range. No matter how she thought about it, Silvestina knew she could never do the same.
“There’s one thing I’ve noticed. You seem a little insane, Priest.”
Inside the carriage, I smiled at Asa as she suddenly spoke such rude words.
“That could be taken as a compliment depending on the situation.”
“No, you were pretty brutal back there. Why did you do that? This whole thing felt off.”
Did it? Honestly, I couldn’t quite understand what she meant. Brutal? It may have been brutal, but I had only done what was necessary.
“Where were we again?”
“Um… the royal palace?”
“Cruelty can sometimes serve as a deterrent. If I had held back there, we might have ended up spilling even more blood.”
“…Ah.”
In other words, one must know when to wield cruelty according to the circumstances. Slaughtering indiscriminately was not the way of a priest. A priest must always strive to minimize sacrifice. To reduce sacrifice, one must reduce conflict. To reduce conflict, one must prepare multiple strategies.
What I had chosen this time was precisely cruelty. That cruelty had broken the knights’ morale, and their broken morale had led the king to abandon his queen. Had they resisted, far more blood would have been shed.
“Still… wouldn’t that damage your reputation, Priest?”
Asa’s face seemed to ask that very question. I appreciated her concern, but…
“It doesn’t matter.”
My reputation was of little concern. What mattered more was…
“Rather than that, I’d like our Alkai to finish reading the scriptures soon.”
I smiled as I spoke, and Alkai looked embarrassed.
“I-I’m reading them right now.”
Alkai hurriedly focused on the scripture again. Watching him, I smiled. I wondered if one day Alkai would come to understand the will of Goddess Yuno. I still wasn’t sure, but…
“Sir Asa. There’s something else I wanted to say.”
“What is it?”
I spoke to the holy knight who wore an innocent expression.
“For this mission—if you show your proper capabilities, I will approve your qualification.”
“!”
I smiled at Asa, who looked shocked by my words.
“R-Really? You’re not lying, right?”
I nodded at her question. Her skills were solid, and she had gained considerable experience by now. There were still areas where she was immature, but at this point, I wanted to give her a passing grade.
Therefore…
“Please don’t make me think my eyes were wrong.”
It was essentially a declaration of acceptance. Of course, if she performed below expectations on this mission, it would be revoked. But I hoped that wouldn’t happen.
It was about time I reduced the number of people I had to look after to just one.