The World Didn't End
“That was way too close for comfort.”
Three days later, I arrived in front of the count’s estate right on schedule and let out a long sigh of relief.
“If I’d gone back the way I came, I definitely would’ve been late.”
Even though I’d taken the shortcut as originally planned, I’d only managed to arrive with thirty minutes to spare. If I had chosen the longer route instead, there was a hundred percent chance I wouldn’t have made it in time.
“I wasn’t spotted, right?”
Still catching my breath after sprinting nonstop for three days, I glanced back at the path I’d come from. Thanks to the appearance of a tenth-class contaminant, the streets near the count’s estate were already packed with chaos. Even though the count’s soldiers were out maintaining order, they couldn’t suppress the anxiety radiating from the citizens.
The news that the contaminant had been subjugated would reach this place soon enough, but until then, everything would remain in this state. Still, what I was truly worried about were the knights who had taken the contaminant’s energy head-on.
‘It was easy to kill thanks to the fragment it revealed, but….’
The fragment of an Outer God that a contaminant possessed was both its greatest strength and its fatal weakness. If you severed its connection to the Outer God, the contaminant would lose all its power and crumble away. All I had done was drive a single strike straight into that fragment.
I had done my best to leave no trace of myself behind, and I was confident I had succeeded, so…
“They won’t know. They can’t know.”
In my current situation—hiding like this—if the Imperial Knight Commander caught even the slightest clue about me, it wouldn’t just mean facing that insane woman. It would mean my location and identity would reach the emperor’s ears as well.
Scarlet Frausia. That woman had sworn loyalty to the emperor in order to conceal her own madness. No matter what she did, she would report it to him first. For someone like me, who had practically committed treason by fleeing the empire, the idea of anything reaching the emperor’s ears was especially unpleasant.
Therefore, the best course of action was to avoid doing anything that might generate a report.
“I need to get out of here quickly too.”
The Count of Arlaxis. While he wasn’t particularly loyal to the current emperor, he was still an imperial noble. No matter how you looked at it, lingering here too long would likely lead to a report reaching the emperor, which would be exhausting. So I needed to finish the request as fast as possible and leave before that happened.
With that thought in mind, I slowly walked toward the count’s estate.
“Excuse me.”
“Are you perhaps the special delivery courier?”
“…Yes.”
“We’ve been expecting you. Please, follow me inside.”
The moment I approached, the head butler bowed deeply. He guided me into the mansion without any inspection, as if he had known I would come. I said nothing and simply followed behind him.
“You’ve arrived thirty minutes earlier than scheduled.”
“I happen to be a bit quick on my feet.”
“We heard a tenth-class contaminant appeared on the way here, so I assumed you wouldn’t make it on time…”
“Then why were you waiting outside?”
At my question, the butler paused for a moment before answering briefly.
“My master said you would definitely arrive on time and instructed me to wait.”
“……I see.”
“Yes. Since you’ve arrived early, all’s well that ends well, isn’t it?”
With a short chuckle, the butler resumed guiding me. As I followed him, I looked around the mansion. The building, constructed from bright timber, seemed to have been built on a well-aligned foundation, allowing sunlight to pour straight through the windows. The potted plants and paintings placed along the corridors also helped brighten the atmosphere.
Moreover, I had heard that the Arlaxis family was known for their spotless reputation and gentle disposition, so I had expected the interior atmosphere to be quite pleasant. But the reality completely shattered that expectation.
Servants wearing masks, refusing to make eye contact with one another as they passed through the halls. Flowers in the pots that, despite facing the sunlight, drooped downward and emitted a gloomy aura. Even the interior of the mansion, which should have felt bright due to the light wood, instead radiated a murky, oppressive energy.
It was as if the entire estate had transformed into a sticky swamp. The state was so abnormal it was hard to call it normal. I couldn’t help but wonder what on earth had happened to the count’s household.
“Ever since they heard that a tenth-class contaminant appeared in the area, everyone has been this depressed.”
The butler must have noticed my puzzled glances around the mansion, because he offered that explanation. Because of the contaminant. It was an absurd excuse. Even if the atmosphere among the people could be explained that way, the sticky, viscous energy emanating from the mansion itself could never have been created overnight.
“…I see.”
Still, I couldn’t very well contradict the butler in this situation, so I simply nodded. We continued walking in silence for a while.
“We’ve arrived.”
The butler stopped in front of a door. The room was leaking such a dense aura that it felt as if the mansion’s entire oppressive atmosphere had condensed in one place.
“The master is waiting for you inside.”
At the butler’s guidance, I nodded and slowly reached for the door. But the butler blocked my movement.
“It would be proper etiquette to disarm before entering.”
Disarm. It was a ridiculous suggestion, but once inside the estate, the owner’s word was law. I obediently unbuckled the sword at my waist. Only after the butler gave permission did I step into the room.
The first thing I saw was the terribly haggard faces of the count and his wife. They looked like they had been through hell.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Your Excellency the Count. And Madam.”
“…Skip the unnecessary greetings. Let’s check the item first.”
It was the countess who answered. She must not have slept in a long time; even with makeup, dark circles were clearly visible under her eyes. She tapped the table in front of her, demanding to inspect the goods. Her tone was strangely irritable, but since I had expected as much, I silently pulled the item from my coat.
“Here it is.”
A small box from Beatrice’s merchant guild. Inside was a carefully wrapped, tear-shaped vial whose contents were clearly visible through the transparent glass. An ancient elixir known as the Goddess’s Tear, said to contain such an immense amount of mana relative to its size—and with such efficiency—that it was as if it held a goddess’s blessing. A relic from the ancient era when gods truly existed, and so rarely found that its value was whatever the buyer was willing to pay. And now it was in my hands.
“Please verify it.”
The moment I placed the box on the table, the countess snatched it up and thrust it toward the count. His eyes briefly fixed on the Goddess’s Tear before returning to normal. He gave a slight nod.
“He says it’s the genuine Goddess’s Tear.”
The countess, who had been watching him intently, spoke on his behalf. It was as if she were voicing the count’s will. At the same time, she took the Goddess’s Tear back from him and tucked it into her own bosom.
“Then, regarding the down payment…”
“I can’t stand listening to this any longer.”
“…What?”
The countess’s eyes widened in open shock. She looked as if she thought she must have misheard me, but I continued without concern.
“The disgusting stench that’s been coming from this mansion ever since I entered is now vibrating right in front of me. There’s no way I can keep pretending not to notice.”
“Just what are you—”
“How long do you plan to keep pretending? You must have realized you’ve already been found out.”
“……”
At my question, the countess—no, whatever was wearing the countess’s skin—slowly lowered her head. From her body flowed a constant stream of pitch-black, viscous energy. Despite her attempts to hide it, she couldn’t conceal the same demonic malice I had purged from the black mage I killed before coming here.
Among them, if I had to name a demon with this sticky, swamp-like nature…
“Lust, huh.”
“…How did you know?”
The moment I identified her true nature, the contractor of Lust immediately changed her attitude. She gently stroked the count’s skin beside her and tilted her head.
“I definitely hid my aura completely. It shouldn’t be at a level a human’s sense of smell could detect.”
At the same time, her eyes glowed red. Dozens of arrows materialized around her, all aimed to pierce me at any moment.
“Who the hell are you? I’ve never heard of anyone like you among the empire’s superhumans.”
To the contractor’s question, I closed my eyes for a moment, then opened them and answered.
“The very fact that you think I’m one of the empire’s superhumans is already a mistaken assumption.”
“What?”
“You stupid bitch. You said it wasn’t at a level a human’s sense of smell could detect. Do you not even understand what your own words mean?”
“Don’t tell me…”
The contractor’s eyes widened. At the same time, I pulled out an item from the black mage I had previously subjugated and held it out. The crow feather that symbolized Malphas, the so-called “Swindler’s Overlord” the mage had screamed about. A demonic token that radiated such dense demonic energy that only a demon contractor could possess it.
The moment she saw it, the aura of Lust shifted. She let out a coquettish laugh and spoke as if she were perfectly relaxed.
“So the rumor that you crossed a forest inhabited by a tenth-class contaminant wasn’t a lie after all.”
A lie? Ignoring her words, I asked a question of my own.
“You used a puppet count to obtain the Goddess’s Tear?”
“Not a puppet—he’s the real thing—but yes, that’s right. Once I took his daughter and wife hostage, he couldn’t resist.”
“And you plan to dispose of the daughter and wife now?”
“The count is still resisting, so I’ve locked them in a nearby cave. The butler who took your weapon earlier is currently managing those two bitches.”
“I see.”
The contractor of Lust, who had answered all my questions, stood up as if growing interested in me and approached. At the same time, she radiated the aura of Lust across her entire body in an attempt to seduce me. Her eyes were already half-glazed over.
“Then can I ask a question now?”
“No.”
“With that feather, you could at least—huh?”
The moment I rejected her question, I lightly drew a finger across the contractor’s throat. A thin red line appeared, and her head fell to the floor with a soft thud. Even with her head severed, some life still remained; her eyes wide with shock, she asked me one final question.
“You impersonated a contractor? How…?”
Instead of answering, I left her with a single word.
“Goodbye.”