Chapter 202
Chapter 202
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Star Birth Festival
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Leon Hordel.
He knew full well how tricky and dangerous it was for a devil worshiper to carve out his own power base within ordinary society.
That was why he intended to exercise utmost caution at every step in carrying out his plans.
The reason he had delayed revealing his true identity to those he had seduced with the devil's voice fell under the same logic.
Wouldn't it carry far less risk to gather all the targets in one place on the appointed day and reveal himself all at once?
If anyone there showed aversion to the act of devil worship, he could eliminate the source of unease right on the spot.
And so.
Leon had considered every possible variable and prepared countermeasures for them all.
So that no matter what problem arose, he could resolve it and achieve his goal.
But.
Even Leon had never imagined a situation like this.
"Everyone, get a grip! Who the hell is that guy anyway!?"
"Wh-what are you saying? Were you sleeping through it all!? You saw Lord Rishir dominate a spirit! Something no one in our Coffee Exchange, not even Landeia, could ever do!"
"That's not the point! When was the first time we heard that voice!? No, forget the timing! We were hearing that voice even before coming to Bondalles! Use your heads! Is the owner of that voice some Bondalles local we just met today, or is it Leon, who's been by our side all along!?"
It was absurd to even consider such a scenario in the first place.
Someone impersonating the owner of the voice?
Anticipating something like that would go beyond mere caution into outright paranoia.
Besides, there was no need to prepare for it in advance.
Not with this power.
Stealing his followers away was simply impossible.
Even if someone impersonated him, a mere whisper would awaken them to the truth.
"B-but...! Think about it! The owner of the voice said he would reveal himself through unquestionable, extraordinary power!!! The power Lord Rishir just showed! Isn't that exactly what we've been hoping for from the voice's owner!? Isn't he the one we truly ought to follow!?"
"Nonsense! Lord Leon can do that too!!!"
"Right, Lord Leon!?"
"..."
And so.
Leon transmitted a whisper to them.
It was absolutely not because he had failed to live up to their expectations and chosen another path.
Everyone present shuddered and turned to stare at Leon.
"This voice..."
"It's the one that drew us in-...!"
Kuh.
Leon curled his lips into a sinister smile as he watched them.
Given the circumstances, he had worried about the worst-case scenario where that Rishir bastard might interfere with his whispers, but it seemed his fears were unfounded.
To be unprepared for such a crucial moment.
'He just went ahead and impersonated me without a second thought? Pathetic fool.'
Leon sneered at Rishir.
Intending to watch the man flail about pointlessly amid his newly enlightened followers.
Then.
Someone shouted for the first time.
Leon assumed it was, naturally, someone demanding answers from Rishir.
"...No!"
It wasn't.
A timid-looking woman with long bangs hanging over her forehead.
Mona Sodin, who held an especially low position within the Coffee Exchange, shook her head at Leon.
"Th-that's not the important part!!! Ev-everyone! Why did we follow the owner of the voice in the first place...!?"
They had come here bewitched by the whisper, yet now she claimed it didn't matter who the owner was.
Could there be greater nonsense?
Yet no one could refute Mona's words.
Overwhelmed by the sight of the usually timid Mona, who could barely make eye contact, passionately asserting her point.
"W-we needed someone with special power to lead us. Some-someone to make our lives extraordinary. R-right!?"
Leon immediately moved to scold Mona.
"Exactly!"
But someone else stepped forward first to agree with her.
"Mona's right!"
Others joined in agreement with Mona.
They were among those most captivated by Rishir, for the same reason as her.
Particularly interested in the trendy 'spirit taming' within the Coffee Exchange—
They understood more deeply the significance of Rishir subjugating 'Whispering Wind Weslen' in a single blow.
"No one else can do that but Lord Rishir!!!"
"You all saw it!? That power even Landeia couldn't dream of!"
"The one we truly ought to follow is Lord Rishir!"
"But- Lord Leon tamed Delphord...!"
"Think about it! No matter how impressive Delphord is, can he surpass Miss Landeia!? Lord Rishir accomplished what even she couldn't!!!"
"Accomplished!? No! It's beyond that! For a spirit to submit so obediently... Even if Miss Landeia masters spirit arts to the utmost, she couldn't do that!?"
"You just don't know spirit arts well enough! Gain a deeper understanding, and you'll see how absurd Lord Rishir's power is!"
"..."
In the face of the fierce arguments from Mona and the other Rishir followers, Leon's own began to waver.
Unable to stand it any longer, Leon rebuked them with a whisper laden with more power than usual.
It firmly reminded the followers exactly who owned the voice.
However—
It failed to win their hearts back.
The whisper was merely a means to an end.
They had come here drawn by the special power it promised.
"..."
The followers stared blankly at Leon.
He understood what their gazes meant.
They were demanding an explanation from him now.
A reason to serve Leon over Rishir.
Proof.
"Fine, if that's what you want—"
At this point.
There was no reason to hide his power any longer, nor the luxury to conceal his identity.
He had to turn them all into his followers here and now, by any means.
"I'll show you. Watch closely. This is the power you've all been longing for."
Veins began bulging grotesquely across Leon's face.
Followed by his eyes turning bloodshot red.
The people recoiled in horror at the unnatural sight, but only briefly.
"Th-that's...!"
With someone's exclamation, all eyes focused on Leon.
More precisely, on the mana gathering around him.
A magical power of such lofty rank that they couldn't even fathom it—a testament to a realm reached by only a scant few even among the Magic Tower's masters.
Leon.
At around twenty years old, he had already attained the 7th Circle.
Moreover, the unwavering stability of his mana indicated he had long passed the initial stages.
"Impossible..."
Common sense. Logic.
A power that denied it all left even Rishir's followers stunned.
Leon found their reaction repulsive.
Yet, repulsive and foolish as they were—
They remained useful tools for devil worship.
Leon twisted his grotesque face into a benevolent smile and spoke.
"Imagine it. If you gained this power, how would your families look at you? Could they still claim you're unfit to inherit the house? Could they block your rise as the true head?"
Gulp.
Someone swallowed dryly.
Seizing the momentum, Leon pressed on with even greater fervor.
"And this is not all!"
"Not all...?"
"Exactly! This is but a fraction of His authority!!! Become His true kin, and you'll wield even greater power!!! Our efforts, always betrayed... He will cherish them and grant power in kind!"
Even the timid Mona, once a fervent Rishir follower, wavered.
Confirming it, Leon no longer bothered hiding the dissonance of his grotesquely twisted face.
He extended his hand.
Redirecting all the attention focused on him toward Rishir.
"You said it earlier, right!? That he accomplished what even Landeia couldn't. What about this! Think that fool can manage it too!? Think he can give you power like this!?"
"No!!!"
Someone in the crowd shouted then.
"Lord Rishir would never grant you such power! Why? Because it's impure power that leads humans to ruin!"
Impure power?
Mona murmured.
"Yes! Impure power! You fools blinded by temptation, wake up! That power stems from the devil! And devils will never pity you humans! To them, you're nothing but convenient tools to use and discard! Toys to amuse themselves with briefly before smashing!"
'Damn it all!'
Leon ground his teeth.
First, let the followers experience the power and become enthralled.
Reveal the devil's existence afterward.
That way, they'd sink into an inescapable mire and board the same ship as him.
That had been Leon's original plan.
But the devil's existence had been brought up far too soon—
"D-devil...!?"
One by one, the followers swayed by Leon's words began snapping out of it.
"N-no!"
Leon cried out desperately.
"Devil!? What nonsense is that!? This power has nothing to do with any devil!!! Calm down, everyone! This power is completely unrelated to devils!!!"
"Even in crisis, you deny your master so casually!!! Truly befitting a lowly devil worshiper!!!"
"Shut your mouth!!! What do you even know!?"
Devil!
Who could presume to speak definitively of such an unknown entity?
Ordinary people's knowledge of devils was shallow at best.
Especially compared to a worshiper like him.
Leon was confident.
The voice's owner knew nothing of devils and was spouting nonsense.
He could outright deny the claims and quell the followers' confusion.
"I repeat, this power is no devil's power!!! How can you even assert it is!?"
"You may fool the rest, but not my eyes!"
"Ridiculous! What do you know of devils!?"
"Oh, plenty. More than you can imagine!"
"Enough talk—show yourself!"
As the debate heated up, the followers' gazes naturally turned toward the group from which the voice emanated.
They turned their heads one by one and slowly backed away.
Thus, the voice's owner revealed himself.
Whoosh!!!
A gray-white fireball. It writhed violently, spewing words. "I am Dangleon, the torch guiding the blind to the righteous path!!! Once a cursed devil, now reborn as a spirit of light by the blessing of a great being!!!"
⟨ FORMER DEVIL SPIRIT ⟩
"..."
What the fuck?
Leon cursed reflexively in his mind.
He'd wondered who was slandering all devils while swaying his followers—
To think it was a devil itself?
"A devil became a spirit...?"
"Is that even possible...?"
The gray-white fireball cried out in affirmation at the followers' murmurs.
Pure white?
Someone murmured, eyeing the gray-white hue.
The spirit(?) pressed on undeterred.
The former devil's warning was more than enough to awaken the greed-blinded followers' vigilance.
Those lured by the promise of power via whispers belatedly recalled that no such power came without a price.
Now, they followed no one.
"Th-then we've become devil worshipers...!?"
"N-no! We haven't done anything yet!!!"
"Right!?"
Just an immature noble hoping this awkward situation would fizzle out peacefully—
"U-aaaaagh!!!"
At the spirit(?)'s stake-driving words, Leon finally lost his reason.
Splurt!
Blood erupted from every orifice on Leon's face.
His power had overloaded, his young body discarding restraint and rampaging.
"Ugh...!"
"Wh-"
It happened simultaneously.
As if snatching fire from their backs with bare hands—
The light in the followers' eyes extinguished in an instant.
The seeds the devil worshiper had implanted via whispers had sprouted.
"I am..."
In that moment.
They came to see themselves as the devil worshiper's reincarnations.
Just like the man once known as Leon Hordel—
Devoted to the devil, the Fractured Self.
But the seeds were unstable, lacking full egos—
"You repulsive thing, die!!!"
Leon spat blood, radiating malice.
The other seeds, dominated by that malice—
Became puppets hostile to everything but themselves.
The Coffee Exchange members.
Counted among the Star Birth Festival's powerhouses, they all charged at one man.
He too was a festival participant.
Rishir.
He let out a sigh, a characteristically nonchalant smile on his lips.
"Preliminaries already starting?"
Immediately after Leon's uprising.
Landeia, unexpectedly left alone among the Coffee Exchange members—
Unexpectedly found herself spending time with Heynya, who had also been separated from Rishir.
Landeia led Heynya to her room and served tea.
"What was that guy?"
She broke the silence—not awkward, but uncomfortable.
"What else? I told you earlier, didn't I?"
Heynya's curt reply vanished into the air.
In that first exchange, both quickly realized.
Ah.
I don't really have anything to talk about with this girl.
Realizing it, Landeia flashed her signature haughty smile and probed gently.
"Want to make a promise? Later, no blaming that guy."
"...What's this all of a sudden?"
"Remember our bet? Winner of the tournament gives an order."
"So?"
"How about a prophecy? Once this tournament ends, Rishir will come under me. He'll spend far more valuable time with me than with you. So—don't resent him even if he abandons you."
"Jeez."
"Or there's this path."
Landeia stared straight into Heynya's eyes.
"Not too late yet. Beg now, and I'll let you and that guy join our Coffee Exchange together."
"..."
"You know it too, right? The Star Birth Festival's outcome is already set."
And so.
Just as their gazes were about to clash in earnest.
Bang!
The door to their room burst open violently.
"Delphord?"
The long-haired noble was drenched in cold sweat, fidgeting anxiously.
Had losing to Leon, whom he considered his subordinate, shocked him that much?
No.
"Y-you repulsive thing, die..."
"Wha-...ugh!?"
He suddenly unleashed magic and lunged at Landeia.
Landeia panicked briefly.
"Delphord. Have you lost your mind?"
The young lady of Relroza soon brimmed with pure fury at a fellow Coffee Exchange member attacking her.
She swiftly drew mana for a counterattack.
Heynya had no chance to intervene.
The Coffee Exchange's top two.
Unleashing their full power without restraint, the fight ended in seconds.
"Gah...!"
Delphord, caught in Landeia's wind magic, slammed into the wall and lost consciousness.
"Hoo... hoo..."
In the wrecked room, Landeia wore a triumphant smile.
Thrilled at the chance to show off her power before Heynya, now with a perfect excuse.
"See? Heynya? Still not changed your mind?"
Landeia boasted.
"Rishir... no way, again...!?"
Heynya muttered something incomprehensible and bolted from the room.
"What?"
Landeia snorted in disbelief before chasing after her.
Delphord's odd state.
Something was happening here.
If even Delphord couldn't handle it in a place full of Star Birth Festival participants—
She alone could resolve it.
Arriving at the banquet hall—
"Ugh...!"
Landeia, at the entrance, covered her face with an arm and staggered back.
Whoooosh!!!
A massive sandstorm engulfed the entire hall.
"Wh-what is this...!"
The overwhelming mana that had dominated Landeia in an instant quickly subsided.
The revealed interior of the hall.
At its center stood one man.
Rishir.
Spotting Landeia, he charged straight at her.
"...!"
Explosive acceleration.
Landeia couldn't mount any real resistance and allowed him to close the distance.
Just as Rishir lightly aimed a chin strike to knock her out—
"Huh? Miss Landeia, are you in your right mind right now?"
"...Eh?"
Landeia's gaze locked onto the fist inches from her face.
Thud.
She slowly tried to back away, only to collapse to the floor.
"Sorry, are you okay?"
Rishir politely offered a hand, but Landeia couldn't take it.
She looked around from her seated position, trying to grasp the situation.
"Wh...?"
Then she realized.
The Star Birth Festival participants' friendly gathering.
Every single participant lay collapsed on the floor.
Including herself.
Heynya muttered beside her with a deflating sound.
"Star Birth Festival already over?"
"Wh-what...?"
Landeia stared at Heynya, dumbfounded.
Heynya returned the gaze with a mischievous smile.
"The Star Birth Festival's outcome is already set... So that's what you meant?"
"...!"
The haughty young lady's face flushed red.