Chapter 84: Turbulent (4)
Chapter 84: Turbulent (4)
The Empire's third Hero, Deon Hart.
Stigma, openly revealing his fondness for him, posed a question.
"Will my junior be coming to this war as well?"
"If it's Honorary Count Deon Hart, I suspect he'll join the fray, even if a bit late."
Of course. There was no way the Emperor would leave such a good card unused.
"I do hope I can see him soon."
Stigma liked him.
When awarding prizes to commend the war heroes, the order was determined by when they had distinguished themselves.
Thus, when the Emperor asked what he desired, Stigma, like Nemeseus who had answered before him, replied that there was nothing in particular. He received the title of marquis, vast territories in the south, and a considerable sum of money and jewels.
At the time, he was satisfied.
That is, until right after, when he learned what Deon Hart, who had requested a private audience with the Emperor, had asked for.
'He asked for permission to exterminate his own family with his own hands.'
It felt as if he'd been struck by lightning. How could anyone even conceive of such a thing?
It was enough to make him feel not just shock, but even exhilaration.
At the same time, he developed a fondness for Deon Hart, whom he had never even spoken to.
Of course, it was a little regrettable. If only he had known that method existed before he stated his reward for his achievements.
"But isn't Honorary Count Deon Hart not actually your junior, Marquis? I heard that from a young age until the war, he never left his estate."
"We're both Heroes. I'm the second, and that child is the third."
Chuckling to himself, Stigma used the sword planted in the ground as a support to rise from his seat.
As he stood on the uneven ground, a faint movement transmitted from beneath his feet. Stigma's gaze flicked downward.
"Ah, dear."
So you were still alive.
Just in case, he glanced around and saw some still breathing here and there.
No wonder the chair was so uncomfortable.
He pulled out the sword he had stabbed into the floor—no, into someone's stomach.
Stabbing the writhing man in the neck with it, Stigma gave a cold order.
"There are still some with breath in them, so find them and finish them off. No, with the epidemic issue anyway... it'd be better to just set it all on fire."
"Yes, sir."
Well then, since it's a rare war, shall I go prepare? Though, since battle is my daily life anyway, there's probably not much to prepare.
With his blood-dripping sword dangling, Stigma walked out.
Behind him lay a mountain of corpses.
The chair he had been sitting on... flames shot up from the pile of bodies. Soon after, flames began to rise here and there.
Stigma Primiro.
The one granted the title of marquis as the Empire's second Hero.
The territory he received was the Empire's southernmost tip, where he waged war daily against the barbarian tribe called the Barbar.
It wasn't that the Emperor had granted it because he disliked him. Stigma, who hailed from the Empire's south and harbored deep grudges against the barbarians, had wanted it himself.
Under the Emperor's tacit approval of slaughter, fighting epidemics and barbarians in the humid, harsh south, how formidable must the forces he'd tenaciously built up be?
Already having formed a warlord faction in the south, Stigma gleefully ordered war preparations, as if he'd been waiting for just this moment.
* * *
Uh....
I looked at Dvelania, who was leaning out of the carriage, crooking her finger for me to hurry up and get in, with a sour expression, and then turned back to the Demon King, who had come to see me off.
His face was smiling as always, but for some reason, it was definitely the Demon King's... ah, right, he is the Demon King.
"May I take back...."
"Of course not."
"My resignation...."
"Don't even joke."
Damn it.
With the heart of a cow being led to the slaughterhouse, I forced my feet, which had been rooted to the ground, to move.
As if to warn me of the rough future ahead, the magic stone necklace around my neck swayed clink-clank, flaunting its presence.
.......
The first time I felt an ominous premonition was about 30 minutes before departure to the second city.
It was when Ed, faithfully fulfilling his adjutant duties, was conducting a final inspection before departure.
"The 2nd Legion Commander says she will bring the 2nd Legion. Do you still not intend to bring the 0th Legion, Demon-nim?"
For some reason, Ed, who was arming me to the teeth, spoke up while tightly fastening the knot on the dagger sheath near my thigh.
"Yes, since the 2nd Legion is coming along, that's more than enough."
No, it's actually overkill. We're just going shopping for clothes, and an entire legion is being mobilized as an escort....
What's more, since Dvelania has no reason to try and kill me, there's no need to bring the 0th Legion, just looking at them drains my mental strength.
If this were the human world, I absolutely wouldn't be so sure, but this is the Demon Realm... no, the Demon Castle.
Unlike humans, who even under the same sovereign constantly divide themselves with power struggles between those who follow the ruler and those who don't, demons, especially the Legion Commanders of the Demon Castle, follow only the Demon King without any of that.
That means they exercise self-restraint and avoid the stupid act of killing a fellow Legion Commander and diminishing the Demon King's forces.
Of course, if they get angry, they might not kill you but they'll bring you right to the brink, which is why I can't exactly live in peace....
'I once happened to witness a fight between Legion Commanders, and it was terrifyingly brutal.'
If they attacked me like that, I'd definitely die.
As such, I've always been careful in every action, so I wouldn't have offended Dvelania, and I won't create any such incident now. So there's nothing special to worry about....
But why.
"Is that so... As expected, the 0th Legion only seems to be a hindrance to you, Demon-nim."
"......Excuse me?"
"To think you'd be more comfortable going alone...."
"......?"
"I'll have to increase the training intensity."
Why is Ed reacting like this...?
"Of course, they'll never catch up to you with that, Demon-nim, but still, so they won't hold you back...."
"......."
This was the first ominous omen I felt.
The second was Lirinel.
Clutching a necklace of a familiar design in one hand, her eyes sparkling brilliantly, she came to my room and immediately opened her mouth with an excited face.
"Demon-nim, I hear you're leaving the Demon Castle again?"
"Yes, I plan to go to the second city."
But why is that...?
"Why do you only say that? I heard you're going by way of the outskirts."
"Yes...."
So again, why is that...?
"As the one who is the leader of the Demon Cult, I couldn't possibly stay still after hearing such news! So I prepared this!"
A familiar necklace was thrust before my eyes.
No, wait, I think I heard something strange before that...? What, what cult?
I absolutely have to address this. If I let this slide, I'll definitely regret it.
......obeying the warning of my instinct shouting this, I opened my mouth to speak, but Lirinel was a step faster.
Without waiting for those few seconds of blankness in my head to process that utterly absurd word, she pressed the necklace into my hand and said proudly.
"Just like last time, it's a necklace engraved with protective magic! It will react to attacks that threaten your life, and on top of that, I added a feature where once worn, it automatically recognizes its owner, so even if you take it off or lose it, it'll come back on its own!"
"Thank you. But just now...."
"Ah, and I also added a feature to automatically summon me if the necklace breaks...."
Wow....
I absolutely must not wear this.
"...was what I tried to do, but His Majesty the Demon King scolded me, calling it a waste of magic and manpower, so I couldn't. I'm sorry...."
"That's a relief... no, this alone is more than enough. Thank you."
"Not at all. Now, hurry and put it on!"
I hesitated for a moment, but only briefly.
Fortunately, it seemed she hadn't included any dubious features, and since Lirinel had no reason to harm me... I immediately put the necklace around my neck.
The necklace, recognizing its owner, flashed briefly and then went still. Only then did I get a chance to speak. Before she could preempt me again, I hurriedly opened my mouth.
Lirinel's remark that had been circling in my head for a while.
I'd missed the timing to address it in the subsequent conversation and it had flowed past, but it was so intense I couldn't possibly forget it even if I tried.
"More importantly, that, um, I think you said something about being a cult leader... what is that...."
"Ah, the Demon Cult?"
"Cough."
Oh my god. I hadn't misheard! The Demon Cult, even just the name clearly screams that it's related to me!
First, to calm myself, I accepted the glass of water Lirinel hastily offered. Taking a sip, I felt my mind settle a little.
"A-are you alright?! I'll call for your personal physician—!"
"No. I'm fine. More importantly, this Demon Cult...."
"It's an organization created to worship Demon-nim!"
"Pfft—"
It was only a brief moment of peace, though.
The water I had held in my mouth, thinking I might drink a bit more, sprayed right back out.
Oh, damn it. It went down my windpipe.
"Cough, hack, hack!"
"O-oh no! I really must call the physician—!"
"Ah, cough, no, it's... hack, hack!"
Damn it, the coughing wouldn't stop easily. I need to calm down quickly....
I urgently reached out and grabbed the horrified Lirinel, who was getting up to hurry and fetch the physician, holding her back. After coughing several more times, I finally managed to calm down and lifted my head to look at her.
For some reason, she was staring at my hand gripping her collar with deeply moved eyes.
......It must be my imagination, right?
"Lirinel?"
"Huh? Ah, yes! Are you feeling a bit better now?"
"Yes... anyway,"
The Demon Cult, huh... though I doubt there are many idiots who'd believe in a religion with such an outlandish name and purpose.
Unlike my head, which was certain it would disappear soon, I couldn't ignore my ominous instinct and curiosity, so I ended up casually asking.
"Um... how many believers does this D-Demon Cult have?"
"First, you can consider nearly all of the servants in the Inner Castle as believers, and about one-third of the Outer Castle probably believes as well."
That's way more than I thought?! An unfounded religion is encroaching on the Demon Castle, what the hell is the Demon King doing?
"Actually, His Majesty the Demon King also showed interest."
Well, of course he would.
What ruler would just sit back and watch a cult gain power?
As expected of the Demon King. He wasn't just sitting idle....
"He asked if there was a position for a vice-cult leader."
"Oh, for fuck's sake."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing."
He certainly wasn't sitting idle. He was doing something insane.
So, surely that doesn't mean the Demon King is the vice-cult leader now, right...?
To brace for the shock to come, I subtly put the water glass I was holding down on the table. There was no need to accidentally drop it or something and cause another pointless commotion.
"However, if His Majesty joined, the Demon Cult would become an official organization with political significance, so he had no choice but to give up in the end. He seemed extremely disappointed."
Hmm, well....
There was no shock beyond what I had braced for, but....
'.......'
I gave up thinking.
That was a mistake.
I should have thought again about why Lirinel had given me the necklace, specifically mentioning that I was going by way of the outskirts.
And I felt the third ominous omen when I found out that Ben was accompanying us.
To be precise, it was in the scene where Ben, joining us by the Demon King's orders, was arguing with the 2nd Legion Commander Dvelania.
When it was time and I arrived on the first floor, I could see Dvelania standing with her arms crossed, blocking the carriage entrance, and Ben looking up at her with a surly attitude.
"I thought I'd be going alone with Demon-nim~"
"It is His Majesty the Demon King's order. And it's not just the two of you going anyway. What about the 2nd Legion?"
"Anyway, the plan was for just the two of us to be inside the carriage~"
"Is that so. What a shame. But as long as we don't know what might happen to Demon-nim's health, my accompaniment is only natural. Especially since you're not going straight to the second city but detouring through the 'outskirts,' aren't you."
Again, 'outskirts' again.
Just what is the problem that everyone keeps mentioning detouring a bit to the outskirts? Isn't it just that it takes a little more time?
I glanced down to check the armament beneath my roughly draped robe.
Six daggers securely strapped on, thanks to Ed arming me thoroughly as if sending me off to a battlefield.
'Something seems a bit... off, doesn't it?'
This definitely doesn't feel like we're just going shopping for clothes. Should I back out now and say I won't go?