Chapter 35
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Interrogation (2)
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After spilling a ton of blood, a horrific headache came flooding in.
I knew it right away. Something was wrong with my head.
"Sitla, what happened?!"
Harlan called out urgently, but I couldn't respond.
Just taking in the situation was overwhelming right now.
So, I failed to cast Enchantment?
Me, Sitla, the most outstanding succubus of them all?
···No way that could happen.
"Jeez, the first thing you do when you see my face is try mind control··· Why are all demons like this?"
The human spoke.
His tone made it sound like an obvious outcome. It grated on my nerves.
His gaze was the same.
I couldn't see clearly in the darkness, but it was clearly a look of contempt.
The fact that a mere human was looking down on me dealt a massive blow to Sitla's pride.
"Ha···! I must have made a mistake!"
Yes, a mistake.
It didn't make sense that I, of all people, failed to enchant him.
I must have just lost my touch from being locked up so long.
This time, it'd work fine.
Sitla's eyes glowed crimson.
A succubus's mental attack manipulated the target's desires.
No creature could ever be free from desire.
Especially humans—they could never escape this power.
"I'll drag out every last one of your desires from the depths."
It was an Enchantment stronger than ever before.
I was certain it could even dominate the Demon King's personal guard.
Sitla smiled.
"···?"
But when I opened my eyes, I was in some strange space.
It was entirely white and vast.
The endless expanse made my mind go hazy.
"What is this···."
Magic?
Or a blessing?
What the hell had been done to me···?
Unprecedented situations had a way of halting thought.
That's exactly what happened to Sitla.
She just stood there blankly, staring into the endless void.
Thud.
It wasn't long before an unfamiliar hand rested on her shoulder.
"Who are you?"
Goosebumps erupted across her entire body.
Sitla prided herself on her vast experiences over countless years, but sensing death from a mere touch like this was a first.
Instinct told her.
The one standing behind her was the master of this place.
"···Please spare me."
The plea slipped out without thought.
Pride? Demon dignity?
Didn't matter. It was pure reflex.
"Jeez."
A suffocating pressure closed in.
The presence behind her slowly moved around to face Sitla.
Then I saw his face.
"···Ah."
The culprit who ruined every plan during the Academy raid.
There he was.
"H-How···?"
This didn't make sense either.
I knew he was strong, but not to this terrifying degree.
This presence wouldn't even pale in comparison to the Demon King···.
"Hey."
His voice snapped her mind back to attention.
She swallowed dryly.
She needed to calm down, but the tension wouldn't let up.
"So, what's your answer?"
The man asked again.
No thought of deception even crossed her mind.
Even a slight lie would get her killed by this man.
"I-I don't know either. I just came to when I was here."
"Not intentional, huh."
"Y-Yes! I'm sorry. I have no desire to bother you—"
"I get it, so shut up."
The man seemed lost in thought for a moment, then suddenly drew his sword.
···Where'd that come from?
No, more importantly, what was he planning to do with it?
"Since this happened, let's run an experiment."
"Huh? Wh-What experiment?"
"You might not know, but this is the inner world. Means you and I are both mental projections."
He swung the sword around loosely, like warming up.
Sitla backed away in terror.
She wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go.
"I've been wondering what happens to the real body if you die here."
We're screwed.
That wasn't just a threat.
Pure intent. He really meant to kill Sitla.
"R-Right! You came to the prison for a reason, didn't you?!"
Sitla wasn't stupid.
She'd tried enchanting the woman, and ended up here right after. They had to be connected.
Time to use that.
Whatever this man wanted, she'd give it.
She'd do anything as long as she didn't die.
"You're not the only one in the prison."
"Harlan's an idiot! I'll be way more useful. Right? Please···!"
Sitla dropped to her knees.
She pleaded desperately.
Spare her. Don't kill her.
"I'll do anything! I swear on my soul! Just let me live!!"
At that, the man lowered his sword.
[External intrusion detected.]
[Expel the target.]
The sudden messages honestly threw me for a loop.
I'd thought no one but the Saintess could enter, but that assumption got smashed to bits.
She must have slipped in while repeatedly trying mental attacks, and now I had more than a few headaches because of it.
"Possession seems released too, and I hope Roel's okay? The floor was hard."
I didn't know if the '48-hour rule' applied to forced releases.
If it didn't, I could just try possessing again, but if not···.
Things would get messy.
"Where's this bastard?"
I'd planned to kill one anyway to start things off, so I cranked up my presence as much as possible and went to greet her.
"Please··· I don't want to die···"
Though I hadn't expected her to cower this much.
A succubus kowtowing, forehead to the ground, begging for mercy.
Her instant surrender was almost baffling.
"A vow, you say?"
"Yes! If I make the vow, you'll feel safe, right?!"
"What's that?"
As someone who didn't know the novel's full lore, every bit of info like this was gold.
If she was willing to talk, better hear her out.
She looked kinda pitiful, groveling without any pride.
"It's a contract written with souls. Breaking it makes your soul vanish, and you die. Even the Demon King can't break it. So please, have mercy···"
"Something like that exists?"
An unconditional contract.
I pondered it.
If a vow eliminated betrayal worries, using her could work.
"Doesn't seem like you'd lie in this situation. You really gonna make the vow?"
"Yes! Yes! I will!"
"Alright, do it."
The succubus immediately placed her hand on her chest.
She muttered an incantation, and light leaked from around her heart.
"State the conditions."
"Hmm."
Better make the constraints as ironclad as possible.
"You'll obey my every word unconditionally. Die if I say die, live if I say live."
"I agree."
"And only I can release this vow."
"···I vow it."
The light faded gradually.
A strange sensation washed over me.
Like our souls were linked. Even without her saying, I knew the vow had taken hold.
Time for a light test.
"What's your name?"
"Sitla."
"Sitla, kill yourself."
"···Pardon?"
Sitla sharpened her nails.
She aimed them at her own throat without hesitation.
"Stop."
Only then did Sitla halt.
"Works fine."
"···"
Sitla trembled face-down.
I crouched in front of her.
"Just one question today."
"Y-Yes."
"That paper you're after—what's it for?"
"I-I'm just a grunt, so I don't know much··· I heard it's part of a grimoire, and I just know it has to be delivered to the Demon King's castle."
"···That's it?"
Sitla let out a terrified squeak.
Then hurriedly added,
"B-But I can decipher it now!"
"Explain."
"It's writing humans can't read. But I can!"
"Good, you're useful."
"H-Ha. Thank you···"
I got the answer I wanted.
No more questions, so time to send her off.
"You need to figure out exactly who I am."
"What does that···"
Expelling an intruder was simple.
Subdue them first, then kick 'em out.
The Suggestion Box said so—no doubts there.
"Bye."
Thwack.
I kicked Sitla.
No issues—she was booted out cleanly.
"Anyway···"
I eyed the door behind me.
"Why doesn't anyone come in here?"
A lone door in the vast white space.
If it were me, I'd knock or something, but intruders acted like it wasn't there.
Visible only to me, maybe.
"Gotta ask about that later."
Anyway, back to the room.
Quick monitor check: '48-hour rule' hadn't triggered.
Probably 'cause the possession was too short.
I sighed in genuine relief and tried full possession again.
"···She won't wake even if someone carries her off."
Fortunately, I smoothly retook Roel's body.
Full possession brings extreme fatigue to the host.
Probably why she hadn't woken.
"Sitla, do you know who I am now?"
"···Yes, I do."
Coming to the prison in person was the right call.
Above all, scoring an excellent slave felt great.
"No one but the Saintess comes here anyway, right?"
"Th-That's right."
Perfect.
Sitla wasn't here physically, and even if she vanished, no one would notice.
Should be fine to let her out for a bit.
"Oh, right."
Come to think of it, didn't I only need Sitla anyway?
"Wait a sec."
I ripped out an iron bar with my bare hands.
One bar made a perfect weapon.
Hurled it at the wolf demon's head.
Clean finish.
"H-Harlan···"
"Hand out."
Next, I undid Sitla's restraints.
A few good whacks with the bar snapped the cuffs without harming her.
These restraints were always easy to break from outside.
As I helped Sitla up, I said,
"Can you do memory manipulation too?"
Her first real use had come to mind.