Chapter 123: An Uncomfortable Daily Life (4)
Chapter 123: An Uncomfortable Daily Life (4)
The sound of my shoe tip catching on something. A sign that I was about to fall.
I reflexively flailed my arms to catch my balance. Realizing a moment too late that this might have looked unsightly, I consciously restrained myself and extended an arm to grab anything, floor or wall.
"......Ed?"
"Yes... Lord Demon. I apologize."
Ed grabbed one of my arms and pulled it up. Thanks to that monstrous strength, my body was hoisted up helplessly, so I didn't fall, but.......
I heard Ed click his tongue, 'Tsk.'
"That's why I told you, if you don't want to die, hand it over......."
He seemed to mutter something under his breath, but I couldn't make it out. Was he displeased with me for almost falling? No, seeing as he apologized to me, that probably wasn't the case.
Feeling uneasy, I quietly rolled my eyes, then my gaze met that of the demon who had been listening to Ed's threats just moments ago. His face was deathly pale. Following the gaze of that panic-stricken, terrified fellow, I slowly lifted my eyes. The arm that Ed had grabbed came into view.
More precisely, the sharply whittled wooden skewer clutched in that hand.
'......Ah.'
I almost stabbed him as I was falling. That could have been bad. No wonder the demon went pale.
'More importantly, did I just nearly kill someone?'
When someone's mistake puts your life in danger, the emotional progression usually goes surprise, fear, anger. It seemed the demon in front of me had reached the fear stage.
'Would he even accept an apology meekly?'
As I was agonizing over this life-or-death dilemma, Ed, who had been reading my mood, carefully opened his mouth.
"I apologize for daring to block Lord Demon's path. However, now is not a good time to kill a demon of the Demon Castle."
"......."
"His Majesty... the Demon King would also not be pleased."
His last words carried a hint of hesitation, as if he was unsure whether he should say this.
'I never intended to kill the demon in the first place. And no matter how sharp it was, what I held was ultimately nothing more than a thin wooden skewer. There's no way a demon would die from something like that.'
'......What should I say here?'
Ed moved faster than I could come up with an adequate response.
He had been staring at me blankly, then he apologized and let go of my arm, stepping back. Under the pretext of disposing of the trash for me, he took the wooden skewer from my hand, and only after scanning me once more with anxious eyes did he turn his head to look at the demon... no, he grabbed him by the collar.
'......?!'
* * *
As expected, an innocent demon nearly died.
I had relaxed a little, seeing that your hand held no weapon, but to think you would use a wooden skewer.
Though it's nothing more than a thin wooden stick that would snap with a little force in your grip, the sharpness of its tip could be quite dangerous depending on where and how it's used.
Lord Demon had been about to drive it right into this demon's eye.
'The reason was probably... because you kept him waiting too long.'
His mood was already foul, and having to waste precious time on this pointless scuffle would be enough to irritate anyone.
Ed himself, thinking that he must not keep Lord Demon waiting too long, had uncharacteristically added a kind explanation that if you didn't want to die, you'd better hand it over quickly. Not out of concern for the demon before him, but to stop Lord Demon from killing this fellow and transforming into the battle-mode Demon Arut.
'Though not as bad as when he drinks, it would still be a sufficiently dangerous state....'
However, before the kind explanation could fully sink in, Lord Demon moved.
As if his patience had completely worn thin, he grabbed the leftover wooden skewer—the kind you use up and discard—and strode toward this wretch, then without a moment's hesitation swung his arm toward the demon's eye. The weight behind the swing was quite menacing.
'Should I stop him?'
I don't know how much I agonized in that brief moment.
Should I do something to go against the already foul-tempered Lord Demon's mood, or should I just watch?
Blocking Lord Demon might put my own life at risk, but if he kills that fellow and awakens, Lord Demon would endanger countless lives.
Even though the latter option had the advantage that I'd be more likely to survive compared to the former, the loyal Ed of the Demon Castle chose the former.
The guy's face went pale as he belatedly realized what almost happened. Looking at that pathetic sight, a click of the tongue escaped me involuntarily.
"That's why I said, if you don't want to die, hand it over......."
......I warned him.
I quietly shifted my gaze to read Lord Demon's mood. Had he been greatly offended? Surely he wasn't angry.
Anyway, now it was time to persuade him. Ed swallowed dryly and forced his mouth open.
Would my words even work? There was no reply to my carefully sincere words.
At least he didn't seem to have any further plans, so Ed, reading the atmosphere, hurriedly took the wooden skewer from his hand first. Fortunately, Lord Demon handed it over obediently, which eased his worries.
......He wouldn't suddenly move again, right?
Rather than letting Lord Demon's hand get bloodied in his foul mood, it was better to act first. After eyeing him anxiously, I turned and grabbed the scuffling demon by the collar.
* * *
"You saw, right? Lord Demon is displeased. So I hope you've clearly engraved in your mind that this is your last chance."
"J-just a moment, please."
'Yeah, sure... I'm already used to being used as an excuse.......'
I quietly watched the situation unfold.
The demon acted quickly. Before long, Ed received two sticks from him.
......Sticks?
'They look so simple. He threw that whole fit just to get those?'
They really were sticks. A form so simple that no other word came to mind.
While I was speechless from bafflement, Ed approached and handed me one of the sticks, starting to say something, then abruptly closed his mouth.
"Lord Demon, I beg your pardon for a moment. It's the kind of thing that requires His Majesty the Demon King's permission......."
"......?"
'Wait. Something that needs the Demon King's permission? You didn't have to go that far.......'
I stretched out my hand meaninglessly, but it was already too late. The swift adjutant took out a communication stone before I could stop him and immediately connected to the Demon King.
- Ed? What is it?
'Haha... you sure are quick to act.......'
......Damn it.
"Because Lord Demon's mood is not good, I wish to try using the Snowflake Stick, and I would like to inquire if it's permissible."
'Snowflake Stick? What the hell kind of kids' toy name is that.'
- His mood is bad? To what degree?
"Well......."
Ed, about to say something, glanced at me sideways as if reading the room.
Perhaps reading something in that hesitation, the Demon King's voice came through again.
- No, never mind. You probably already found a suitable solution on your own. It seems serious enough, so go ahead and use it all you want. I'll take care of the aftermath.
'Don't do that. You don't have to give permission.'
'Why does my bad mood become the reason for anything? Am I a child? And why is the Demon King covering for something this trivial?'
There were so many things I wanted to take issue with that I ended up shutting my mouth instead. With a beatific, soul-drained look in my eyes, I looked at Ed; he flinched, then held up one of the sticks in his hand and hastily began to explain.
"You cut this end with scissors and point it toward the sky."
"......Then what happens...."
My words couldn't even finish.
- Announcement to the entire Demon Castle. The 0th Legion Commander Demon Arut will be testing the previously developed Snowflake Stick. The personnel of the Demon Castle are to continue their duties without being alarmed by the sudden climate change.
'Sudden climate change?'
The doubt lasted only a moment. Demons not only know how to use magic but also craft magical items for everyday use. Though magic was currently prohibited... since it was said to be a previously developed item, it must be something magical.
'The name is Snowflake Stick, so what, does it make it snow or something?'
Naturally, the announcement delivered directly by the Demon King drew strong attention from the demons.
"Testing? Didn't he already finish all that?"
"Shh, can't you see it's an excuse? Lord Demon's mood is foul, so they're trying to cheer him up with a peaceful method."
"Will this work on Lord Demon...."
"He's from the human world, so it's not entirely impossible. Let's pray it works."
"Cleaning up afterwards is going to be a pain again."
I couldn't hear clearly, but I could tell my name was being mentioned.
It seemed they were systematically tearing apart the Demon King's carefully wrapped words, and it was so embarrassing I couldn't lift my head.
'I said you didn't have to... I want to go home.......'
If I go to the Count's residence, I'll just want to come back here. Is there truly no place where I can be at ease?
I rubbed my burning face once and focused on taking deep breaths to calm my mind.
Meanwhile, Ed, who had fetched scissors from another demon, cut the end of the stick and pointed it at the sky. Something shot up from the cut section and burst in the air with a pop.
'It was a bomb? Well... that's not exactly surprising.'
A bomb was within the range of expectations. Ed wouldn't do anything to harm my body, so there was nothing to fear. The problem was the other demons' reactions.......
'It's obvious. They even broadcast it openly, so if they suffer any damage, they'll naturally blame me, won't they? My lifespan's been shortened again. Haha.'
Having long since attained a state of transcendence in this regard, I looked at the sky where the bomb had exploded with half-dead eyes. Then I couldn't help but open them wide.
White, cold, downy crystals falling like flower petals.
"......Snow?"
"Yes. Do you like it? Unlike the Demon Realm, which has no climate changes, the human world sometimes has snow, so I thought it might help lift Lord Demon's spirits...."
"It's certainly not bad......."
'To think it's such a peaceful method. So demons do know how to use methods like this. Then why all that other stuff all this time?'
I held out my hand and caught a snowflake. It was cold. Real snow. It was fascinating, but why broadcast something this trivial?
The answer to my question came soon.
"From the sky... waste is falling......."
"So we have to clean this up......."
"What can we do... it's Lord Demon's doing....... It's better than dying by his hand....... Shut up and clean......."
"Haha, hahaha. As long as he doesn't use it too much, that's all I ask......."
"I hope he doesn't use the red one either... but that's not gonna happen, right?"
'Aha.......'
'I understood.'
'They looked half out of their minds—what should I do? I felt sorry and was gauging the mood, but Ed tactlessly pressed scissors into my hand and urged Lord Demon to cut one too. No, was this not tactless but simply not caring?'
'What a cold-hearted bastard.'
But I was glad to see snow after so long, and I wanted to try it myself, so I pretended not to notice and took the scissors.
Ed, noticing my bandaged wrist, flinched in surprise and said.
"Ah, Lord Demon's hand... I'll cut it for you."
"It's fine."
'I've been feeling like I'm being treated like a child for a while now, which is unpleasant.'
Of course, that probably wasn't his intention, but I had no desire to be treated that way any further, so I held the stick in one hand, gripped the scissors with my fractured hand, and aimed at the marked line.
'......My hand is shaking.'
My injured hand kept trembling, so I couldn't aim properly.
'This won't do.' I moved the hand holding the end of the stick closer to the marked line and re-applied the scissors.
Snip.
"......Ah."
"Lord Demon, your hand......!"
I had cut it. I immediately shifted my grip so the cut end pointed to the sky.
Boom! The same loud noise as before rang out, and red snowflakes began to fall, mixed among the white snow. Somewhere, I thought I heard the mournful wail of a demon, but that must have been my imagination.
I stared quietly at the red liquid melting away on my palm, then looked at Ed as if demanding an explanation.
"Ed?"
"Yes, Lord Demon."
"Why......."
The red liquid gave off a familiar smell.
The moment I realized where I'd smelled it before, the snowflakes that had looked rather pretty suddenly appeared chilling.
Struggling not to shudder at the stuff piling on my head, I forced my mouth open with difficulty.
"Why does the snow smell like blood? This, don't tell me."
Is it really blood?