The Placebo of Terror

Even if a fake pill made of sugar somehow eases a headache, or a simple saline injection produces a genuine pain-relieving effect, belief can sometimes become medicine. The drug known as placebo. But for this special medicine to show any meaningful result, one prerequisite is required: the pharmacist prescribing it must have earned the patient's trust.

That's right. The ridiculous act I had just performed was all to build that trust—more precisely, that fear—in a very short time. To firmly imprint the belief that I was the Demon of Terror.

So, if you asked whether the result was a resounding success... well, not quite. But I could say it wasn't bad at all.

"Nyang...."

Anyone who saw Sion's wide, sparkling cat eyes filled with that trust(?) would probably think the same. Probably.

Anyway, only one step remained. Handing the medicine to the patient. And packaging it in a very convincing way.

"Sion. As an apology for my past mistakes, I shall give you a gift."

"...A gift? Ah. Wait, did you just call me by my name, nyang?"

What mattered wasn't that I'd used her name. What mattered was that the end of the Demon of Terror's trauma-cleansing program—carefully mixing shock therapy and psychological treatment—was finally approaching. Though the audience had grown far larger than I'd anticipated, making me want to retch, I continued the performance, telling myself this was the last part.

—Swoosh!

"Nyang?"

I stretched my arm dramatically toward Sion in what I hoped looked like a profound pose. The key was tilting my head about forty-five degrees and slightly extending the beak of my mask. After all, acting is all about making every movement big enough for the audience to enjoy.

"Stay still, thief. From now on, I will devour the fear that has taken root within you...."

"...D-devour the fear?"

That's just how I phrased it. The atmosphere seemed sufficiently set, so now it was time to recite a 'cool-sounding demonic incantation' and create the illusion that I'd actually done something. Think of it like carving hardtack into the shape of pills.

"In the name of the unknown that blooms from the abyss, in the name of the nightmare that savors eternity, I command thee."

The beak of the Plague Doctor Mask vibrated as the demonic incantation I'd thrown together in ten seconds spread out into the world.

—Whoooosh.

Right on cue, a timely breeze gently tousled Sion's messy hair. Even though her disheveled bangs covered both eyes, the two suns floating within that gray thicket remained fixed like nails, staring solely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at the tip of my fingers.

At the sight of her deadly serious expression, I almost burst out laughing, but I clenched my teeth and somehow held it in. If I laughed now, the false belief I'd worked so hard to build might come crashing down.

But here's the thing. Every word I spoke might be drenched in lies, yet there wasn't a single falsehood in the sincerity I wanted to convey. I genuinely hoped she could overcome her fear and stand tall. That she could take one more step forward, just as she had been the first to approach us.

That was all I could do—cheer for her from the bottom of my heart.

"Fear no more."

With those final words of the incantation, I clenched the hand I'd held outstretched toward Sion. As if ripping the fear from deep inside her! I thought it was a truly perfect visual performance.

But at that very moment, something completely unexpected happened.

—Flash!

"Nyanyanyang!"

The instant I clenched my fist, a sacred light suddenly burst from Sion's forehead. Since it's a universal law that demons are weak to holy light, I flinched a little. But since I wasn't a real demon, the only effect was a slight glare in my eyes. Nothing more.

"Ah, no! That's! The blessing of light that appears when someone manifests a new skill or their skill rank rises! Ooooh. O Great Demon of Terror...."

So said one kind adventurer who had been groveling on the ground in terror. What on earth is going on?

As the warm light faded, Sion froze in place like a nekomimi mannequin, staring into empty space. It lasted only a moment before a cry of pure shock rang out.

"Th-this can't be! No way, nyang! Crow! Did you just strengthen my skill with the power of a demon!?"

"Umm...."

I was nothing more than an aspiring actor with a talent for over-immersion (and causing chaos). I was not a con artist. Therefore, I could only give a vague answer to Sion's question.

Whether I answered or not, Sion continued speaking, as excited as a cat that had chewed on catnip.

"The 'Seed of Courage' I barely obtained after escaping that crazy weirdo has been upgraded to 'Courage,' nyang! Aah! I feel bravery surging from the center of my chest, nyang! Uwaaak! It's so hot, nyang! I feel like I could beat the crap out of any weirdo or crow or anything, nyang! Come at me, all of you, nyang!"

Why are you beating me up? You crazy cat.

Sion, whose medicine had worked far too well, had gone from a cowering kitten to a full-blown delinquent cat. Thanks to her loudly announcing that I'd strengthened her skill, the expressions and momentum of the adventurers—who had been rolling on the ground like caterpillars, sobbing and sniffling—began to shift in a rather unsettling way.

"...That crazy demon strengthened her skill?"

"Maybe I could also...."

"Aah. O Great and Terrible Lord of Terror... Please grant me the trials of darkness as well!!!"

"...."

Into the eyes of the adventurers—who had only held disgust, fear, and hatred—something of a different nature began to rise like a full moon. I wasn't exactly sure what it was. But it was uncomfortable, so I wished they'd stop staring.

"...."

Even as an unknown heat boiled through the surroundings and the area grew noisy, the contractor remained silent. She simply watched me with a calm, steady gaze.

"Contractor. Are you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠alright?"

"Yes."

I spoke to her, worried she might have been shocked by the pile of corpses or the self-illuminating cat. But the contractor only gave a curt reply and continued observing me quietly with those strange eyes that rippled with violet waves. As expected of my contractor. Her physical stamina might be terrible, but her mental strength deserved recognition.

"There's dust on you."

"...."

—Pat, pat.

While I carefully brushed the dead tissue from the contractor's head, Sion approached with a confident smile, straightening her back and puffing out her chest. There was no longer any fear in her golden eyes.

"Thank you, Crow, nyang! Thanks to you, I'm not scared of weirdos anymore, nyang! It's all because of you, nyang!"

"There's no need to thank me. I merely created a small crack in the seed that was about to sprout. The one who made it bloom was entirely your own strength."

"Nya-nyang.... R-really, nyang?"

I'd only told her the truth, yet Sion's face flushed red with embarrassment. She should be prouder of herself. Though I'd guided her, in the end, overcoming her fear had been entirely her own will.

"...Still, thanks is thanks, nyang. I will never forget this kindness, nyang!"

Oh? The second Kkachi? I didn't particularly need it, but it had just become useful.

"You said you wouldn't forget this kindness?"

"Uhh? That's right, nyang."

"Then repay that kindness right now, thief."

"Nya? What are you talking about, nyang?"

I silently pointed my index finger past the confused Sion. Her head slowly turned, following the direction of my finger.

"Nyanyang!? The guards!?"

"Ah. Yes, thank you for your hard work."

The guards stood in orderly rows, each wearing light pauldrons and holding spears over two meters long. The one at the very front, with a serious expression, carefully looked away from me and spoke to Sion.

He'd been looking at me like I was some kind of beast. It hurt my feelings a little.

"We received a report that a rampaging demon was here. It seems the Sherpa accompanying you is present. We're sorry, but we'd like to ask for your cooperation."

Apparently deciding that asking a beast for cooperation would be a waste of time, the guard instead asked the relatively socialized beast (a house cat) to provide a statement on my behalf. My image had finally hit rock bottom. Well, I'd expected as much.

"...Nyaah. Understood, nyang."

"Sorry about this, thief. I'll leave the rest to you."

I'm busy worrying about my future career path right now.

It seems I don't really have any choice in the matter.

After offering the delinquent cat Sion to the guards as a sacrifice, I plopped down on the spot, using the nonexistent aftereffects of using my power as an excuse. My wise contractor seemed to sense that her familiar wanted to be alone. She joined Sion and began passionately defending me, saying things like, "He's a demon who was only summoned less than a day ago, so his desire control is—" and so on.

Good luck, contractor and thief. Convince them that I'm just a pure, innocent demon who doesn't know much about the world. Unless you want to see me dragged off to an underground prison.

Still, isn't calling me an 'ignorant demon' or a 'frustrated demon' going a bit too far? The sharp wording was so intense it almost sounded like sophisticated backhanded criticism rather than defense. Shockingly, the intensity only seemed to increase over time.

If I kept listening, my delicate heart wouldn't survive. I shifted my focus to the comforting system UI I hadn't seen in a very long time.

No matter how far I scrolled, it kept going. Out of sheer stubbornness, I went all the way to the end and learned the utterly useless information that the 999th option was the last one. Every single class choice was locked to Plague Doctor. If that's the case, why even give me options? Do you not know what a choice is?

'By the way, why did I level up?'

According to Sion, even if a familiar like me accomplished a great feat, the one who should level up was the contractor. 'Could it be because I'm not actually a demon, but a human?'

But then again, hadn't I been summoned as a demon? How exactly does the system determine that?

The fierce clash between two contradictory propositions that could not coexist. As the conflict between the spear and shield of paradox intensified, my few remaining precious brain cells began dying off like shrimp caught in a whale fight.

'...Whatever. It's fine.'

To save my brain cells, which were overheating and turning into something stupid, I stopped thinking altogether. I'd leveled up anyway, right? Cheers~

'But is this really the right way to level up?'

When I thought about it, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the reason for my level-up was ridiculous.

Interpretation: A level 0 newbie managed to scare high-level users! You're pretty impressive!

'So causing chaos gives you levels?'

If this insane system had been in Terraforming, I might have become the fastest max-level user ever. What a shame. Of course, that godawful game didn't even have a leveling system.

'Then couldn't I just wander around the entire city causing chaos to level up safely?'

I briefly considered it, but then realized that actually doing something that crazy might get me sent back to my previous world. So I decided against it. After all, I was a sensible de—demon.

'Well then. Shall we?'

Why not become a real Plague Doctor instead of just cosplaying as one? The name suggested a support class, but that was actually perfect! It meant I could heal the contractor if she got hurt. Besides, I'd heard somewhere that healers were rare in most RPGs like this. So I didn't hesitate.

'Select.'

'Hmm?'

For a moment I felt a strange sense of déjà vu, but it was quickly buried under the dopamine rush pouring down like a heavy rain and forgotten.

'Wow. Is this why people play RPGs?'

Seeing the rewards of growth displayed so intuitively through text gave an incredible sense of accomplishment and satisfaction—unlike those trash games where you couldn't tell if you'd actually grown until you smashed your head against a wall.

But then—

'The quality of mana has increased?'

I don't even have any mana?

Almost as if it had read my thoughts, the translucent window kindly provided an answer. Unfortunately, it was in a rather unwelcome direction.

"...?"

It was cold. Anxiety crawled up my spine, turning into cold sweat that trickled down icily.

I could clearly feel that something was going very, very wrong. And these ominous predictions always, always turned out to be disgustingly accurate.

"Ah."

It hadn't even been a full minute since I'd chosen my class. In that short time, a truly disgusting number of things had happened. There was so much information that my head was spinning and I still didn't fully understand what was going on. But one thing was certain.

Because of this emergency update or whatever it was, I wouldn't be able to enter the dungeon today.

"Damn it."