Chapter 17
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: The Bluff
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Samael, a high-ranking Mazoku and Maltiel’s direct subordinate.
There was no particularly grand reason for his visit to the Enker Plateau.
His master, Overlord Maltiel, had lost most of his Mutant forces in a previous battle with the Sword Saint.
Because of this, Samael had been searching for suitable materials to replenish his master’s Mutant army when he heard a rumor that a young dragon had settled on the Enker Plateau. He had come here with the simple intention of confirming the rumor and collecting the beast.
And there, in the dragon’s nest, was the very same young mage his master had risked his life trying to kill.
‘If you see the white-haired mage, run. He is not an opponent you can defeat. His talent is truly horrifying.’
The words his master, Maltiel, had spoken the moment he returned to their cavern echoed in Samael’s ears.
‘This is… bad.’
Worse, the monstrous white-haired mage wasn't alone.
Not far away stood an old mage with an extraordinary amount of mana, and there was also an elite infantry unit to support them.
In contrast, Samael hadn't brought a single Mutant to assist him.
Worried that moving a large force would attract the attention of the Allied Forces, he had left all his Mutants back at his lair.
“What… are you.”
Samael felt as if he’d been struck by lightning out of a clear blue sky.
He had to escape.
That was the only thought filling his mind.
But even that would not be easy.
If he carelessly turned his back on the boy who had silenced a dragon with a single blow, he would surely be reduced to a pile of ash.
“...A Ma-Mazoku! Mazoku spotted, 700 meters ahead! An unconfirmed entity! Judging by the size of its wings, it’s presumed to be a high-ranking Mazoku!”
“Wh-Wait…! Move! Protect General Bin! All units, Formation Two!”
The infantry unit began to move not far away.
This sudden stroke of misfortune began to slowly tighten its grip around Samael’s neck.
***
‘What is this now?’
I quietly glared up at the high-ranking Mazoku, Samael, who was looking around with a stunned expression from above my head.
He was trying his best to hide the panic on his face, but I was just as flustered.
If I remembered correctly, the Mazoku named Samael was Overlord Maltiel’s direct subordinate. That meant he was a ridiculously powerful monster, at least level 70.
Though not on the level of an Overlord, the Mazoku named Samael still possessed immense power.
Even if I was decked out in high-level equipment, grimoires, and accessories, this was not a monster I should dare to challenge.
My skin tingled with the premonition. If I foolishly picked a fight with this thing, my head would be sent flying before I could even do anything.
In this entire battlefield, the only one who could fight this monster was Alter Haindel, the former Master of the Magic Tower and an 8th-circle high mage.
Letting out a deep sigh, I lowered my head slightly, wondering why such misfortune had suddenly befallen me.
At that moment, a single line flashed through my mind.
[Luck: 1]
…Right. This was my choice, in a way.
Fucking hell.
“Dammit, this situation has gone completely sideways.”
Samael clenched his jaw, nervously opening and closing his fist.
Why are you saying my line?
I lifted my head and began to analyze Samael’s expression as he glanced back and forth between Alter and me.
His face was a mixture of bewilderment and fear.
Fear?
Did he say fear?
What could a monster over level 70 possibly be afraid of?
‘Judging by his expression and attitude, it doesn't seem like he knew we would be here…’
I started racking my brain to find the cause of this bizarre phenomenon. The answer to escaping this uncomfortable encounter had to be in there somewhere.
‘He’s taking a very defensive stance. Among the Mazoku, my life should be considered quite valuable, so this defensiveness is highly unusual. Last time, Maltiel, despite being an Overlord, came at me prepared to die.’
I began to unravel this tangled mess of confusion, one thread at a time.
Thanks to the [Composure] trait I was born with, my brain didn't shut down and continued to function at peak performance even in this insane situation.
‘…Could it be that he thinks he can’t win? Against me? This monster?’
Unable to understand why he would think that, I began to review the assessments others had of me.
A mage the Overlord was determined to kill, even at the cost of his own life.
A mage who had traded blows with the Overlord and not only emerged with all his limbs intact but had even exploited an opening and nearly killed him.
A mage so talented that the Sword Saint had taken notice and immediately added him to his party.
A mage with such immense potential that he had the former Master of the Magic Tower as his personal tutor.
…Looking back on it, it was starting to feel like it would be stranger if he *wasn't* afraid of me.
Moreover, Samael must have witnessed with his own two eyes, from right in front of me, how I precisely targeted the young dragon’s vital point and killed it in a single strike.
He had just witnessed proof that all the grand titles attached to my name were not mere illusions.
‘…This isn’t just about thinking he can’t win. He probably assumes that even if he came at me with everything he has, he wouldn’t be able to leave a single scratch. Otherwise, that attitude makes no sense.’
Once I reached that conclusion, I immediately formulated a plan in my head and put it into action.
“...Do you really think you can escape?”
I flashed the same arrogant smile I had shown Maltiel, putting on a bold front for Samael.
Goddammit, I never thought I’d have to pull this act again.
“I just came to deal with a troublesome dragon, but to think such a big catch would fall right into my hands. Samael, isn't it?”
“How do you know my name…”
Samael was so taken aback that he faltered in mid-air, his wings armed with sharp feathers flapping erratically.
“How do I know? Well… that’s not really what’s important right now, is it?”
I kept my expression as indifferent and cold as possible, gently prodding his nerves.
Samael couldn’t offer any retort to my words and simply kept his mouth shut.
Just as I thought.
This guy is thoroughly intimidated.
A level 70 monster, scared of a level 1-ish mage with a garbage build.
…I think I’ve found a way out of this sudden misfortune.
I turned my head and waved a hand at the soldiers and Alter Haindel who were running toward me.
“I’ll take care of this shortly, so please wait there.”
The soldiers and Alter Haindel shouted back with puzzled expressions, asking if I was sure.
“Ah, well. I can handle something of this level on my own.”
I waved them off with a casual attitude, like someone taking out the trash.
If they knew the truth, it would have been a pathetic, not to mention laughable, bluff, but right now, it was my only path to survival.
The soldiers who had been rushing toward me abruptly halted and began to silently watch my exchange with Samael from where they stood.
They wore looks of awe, seeing me so composed despite the sudden appearance of a Mazoku.
“Are you planning to keep flying around and make my neck hurt? If not, why don't you come down? I have no intention of harming you.”
“How can I believe that?”
“If I tried to kill you, you would certainly resist with all your might. If that happens, I’ll have to completely scorch this entire area with lightning magic… This is a major breadbasket that accounts for seventy percent of the continent’s wheat production. That would be a tremendous loss for the continent… and for humanity.”
My heart was pounding like crazy, and my mind kept threatening to go blank, but I somehow managed to come up with a plausible reason why I wouldn't attack Samael.
“Well, the choice is yours. Fight me here and die, or live to fight another day. If you choose the former… it would be a great loss for your race. You'd suddenly lose a high-ranking Mazoku, after all.”
What mattered now was momentum and intimidation.
He was currently on a ship sailing a sea of misunderstanding, unable to properly judge what was right and what was wrong.
I had to take advantage of this situation.
I had no idea why this was happening either, but…
In any case, the helm of this confusion-laden ship was in my hands.
A crucial helm that I absolutely could not let go of.
‘The location isn't great, so should I just offer to let him go… No, that's a poor move.’
If I were to let him go with a kind smile, I might plant a seed of doubt in Samael’s mind: ‘Huh? Why is he letting me go so easily? Maybe he’s not as strong as I thought? Should I test the waters?’
If Samael started testing me, he would instantly realize I wasn't as powerful a mage as he thought…
And if that happened, I would undoubtedly be killed by his hand.
“Fight if you want to fight. Killing you would be a significant gain in its own right.”
I suppressed the urge to run away from this monster and maintained an arrogant smile.
So, how could I make this high-ranking Mazoku flee from this place without harboring any doubts about my strength?
…The answer I found was a ‘shakedown.’
Like a neighborhood thug, I had to extort something from the high-ranking Mazoku, Samael.
I had to threaten him, demand something in exchange for his life.
I wasn't sure if this was something a novice mage who had just started learning the basics of magic should be doing to a high-ranking Mazoku, but…
‘If I don’t, my head’s going to roll… I have no choice.’
“Why don’t you come down and have a little chat with me? Or should I just lop off your head right now?”
I said this while cracking my neck from side to side, as if my patience was wearing thin.
Thankfully, thanks to my [Composure] trait, the turmoil in my heart didn’t seem to show on my face.
“...Things have gotten really fucked up.”
Samael’s face contorted in humiliation as he slowly descended onto the dragon’s corpse.
The Mazoku are designed to always act for the benefit of their race.
Of course, they possessed emotions like shame, frustration, and pleasure, but they considered such feelings trivial and prioritized the interests of the Mazoku as a whole.
Therefore, for a high-ranking Mazoku like Samael to bow down to humans was certainly humiliating, but it was something he had to do for the sake of the entire Mazoku race.
If Samael died here, the 300 Mazoku and tens of thousands of Mutants under his command would become like toy robots with their batteries removed.
“Given the location… I don’t particularly want to fight here. But I can't just pretend I didn't see a high-ranking Mazoku and let you go.”
“...State your business.”
“First, why don't you take out the contract? Surely you weren't planning on proceeding with just a verbal agreement, were you?”
After I finished speaking, I maintained a blank expression and tilted my head toward Samael.
‘You have it, right? You have one, don't you? It’ll be a disaster if you don’t. Without it, this negotiation is impossible. Then this table gets flipped, and I die by your hand. Please tell me you have one.’
Soon, Samael bit his lip hard and split his own skin, pulling out a yellowish-green piece of paper that had been hidden underneath.
“A Devil’s Contract. Just what I’d expect from a high-ranking Mazoku.”
Suppressing the voice inside me that was screaming with joy, I reacted as if I had expected it all along.
The Devil’s Contract.
It was a special magical tool that would forcibly take the user's life if they failed to abide by the terms stated in the contract.
High-ranking Mazoku typically used these contracts to enslave intelligent beings who were too valuable to be turned into Mutants.
It was a tool used to employ high mages as magic researchers or brilliant commanders as their strategic advisors, but…
This time, it was going to be used for a shakedown.
And by a human, to extort a Mazoku.
‘Thank god he was carrying this. Otherwise, this would've turned into a bloodbath instead of a negotiation.’
Seeing this one stroke of luck amidst the overlapping waves of misfortune, I swallowed a smile.
“I'll let you leave alive. In return, you will leave behind something of value equivalent to your life. How about it?”
Samael didn't respond to my taunt. He lightly bit the tip of his finger with a sharp fang. A stream of toxic, dark blue blood flowed out.
Samael began to evenly drip the blood flowing from his fingertip all over the yellowish-green contract.
The dark blue blood danced on the paper, as if ready to transform into text at any moment.
“...Enough with the chatter. State what you want.”
Samael glared at me, grinding his teeth.
“Hmm, what would be appropriate…”
On the outside, I feigned nonchalance, pressing my temple with my static-charged fingertips.
…But contrary to my actions, my insides were burning to a crisp.
The duration of Blooming had just about two minutes left. Within that time, I had to quickly find something suitable, make a deal with this monster, and send him far, far away.
It couldn't be something too trivial. He might sense something was off.
Conversely, a demand that was too heavy was also out of the question.
If I said something like, ‘Tell me the Overlord’s location,’ there was a chance he would throw a tantrum, choosing to fight and die rather than comply with such a demand.
If I didn't get the weight of the demand just right, the fact that my life was on the line wouldn't change, one way or another.
‘…It has to be something slightly less valuable than the life of a high-ranking lord. That's the only way he'll accept my demand without a fuss.’
A prolonged negotiation was the worst-case scenario.
If time dragged on while we haggled over conditions, the duration of Blooming would run out, and I would lose consciousness.
“I demand the withdrawal of all Mazoku and Mutants occupying the Akilliptus Forest Zone.”
This was the conclusion I reached after a brief period of thought.
The Akilliptus Forest Zone, where the Spirit of Lightning slumbered. Not only was it a militarily strategic location, but it was also a place that could be key to my power-up, as the Spirit of Lightning had made its home there.
It was a two-birds-with-one-stone choice: seizing a strategic military point without bloodshed and gaining an opportunity to obtain the Lightning Spirit's protection.
“...To have to give up that region so easily. This is infuriating. Do you know how many Mutants I had to create and lose to take that place?”
“If you don't like it, you can just die by my hand right here and lose all the Mazoku and Mutants under your command as well. It might not be as much as an Overlord, but it would still deal a pretty big blow to the Mazoku army.”
“...”
Samael clenched his fists and stared at my face with murderous eyes.
Huh? What's with him? Did I push him too far? Hey, I’m sorry. I’ll apologize, so let’s just sign this on good terms…
“I accept.”
Samael, with an expression like he was swallowing a stone, smeared his blood on the Devil’s Contract once more.
“My demand is that you let me leave this place. And that for a minimum of three days, you will not engage in any act of pursuit against me.”
“I accept.”
I took out the quill I had been carrying to study in the carriage, pricked my finger with its tip, and smeared my blood on the offered contract.
The contract, having absorbed both my blood and Samael’s, tore into two pieces and wrapped around each of our wrists like a bracelet.
This bracelet would remain on my wrist, monitoring me until the contract’s effect expired. For the next 72 hours, if I so much as made a move to track that monster, it would immediately release its magic and crush my brain and heart.
Of course, there was absolutely no chance I would ever track that monstrous bastard.
Tailing a Mazoku I couldn't even beat was no different from a suicide attempt.
*Fwoosh!*
The moment he saw the Devil's Contract attach to our respective wrists, Samael immediately spread his sharp wings wide and soared high into the sky.
The monster disappeared among the stars in the now-night sky, and I could only watch his departure and let out a deep sigh of relief.
“Fuck… I should’ve put one more point into Luck…”
I never wanted to go through a crazy event like this ever again.