The Arena (1)
In the Demon King's army, there are demons tasked with infiltration. Among them, the most outstanding race is none other than the succubi. Succubi have a real talent for bewitching men, after all. So if they just conceal their appearance a little, slipping in undetected would be as easy as pie.
— Have you infiltrated without being noticed by anyone?
“Yes. That is correct.”
Windy answered without hesitation to the question from the Succubus Queen, one of the Demon King's army executives. Soon after, the Succubus Queen spoke again.
— Hmm. That's good to hear. Anyway, His Majesty the Demon King said there are items needed from this auction house. You've heard the details, right?
“Yes. I understand it's the Subjugation Necklace and the Elixir of Limits.”
— That's right. Looks like you didn't forget. Of course you wouldn't. How could anyone forget something told directly by His Majesty, the pinnacle of demonkind?
While Windy was thinking that to herself, the Succubus Queen continued in a seductive voice.
— You know about the death of one of Zan's subordinates this time, right?
“Yes, I heard about it.”
Side, who had caused a terror attack at the Imperial Academy where the Hero was said to be. She had told Windy that she would definitely earn merit this time and rise to become a Demon Army executive. However, the result was a failure, far from her expectations.
'Sigh. I told her so many times not to overdo it.'
While Windy was thinking that, the Succubus Queen gave a warning.
— So you be careful too, dear. Unlike her, we've dispatched quite a few demons, but you never know what might happen in this world. Understood?
“Yes! Understood!”
— Good. Then I'll hang up now since I'm busy—haah!
With a faint, shallow moan at the end, the Succubus Queen cut off the communication. It seemed she had been seducing a man and absorbing his vitality while talking.
“I'm jealous… ahem.”
For a moment her true feelings slipped out, but anyway, she needed to carry out her mission. After all, it was a direct order from His Majesty the Demon King himself. Windy took her subordinates and headed toward the underground auction house.
At the same time.
I headed out after preparing for the long-awaited auction that was finally being held. A short while later.
Master, over here?
'Yeah.'
We had finally arrived at the destination. Normally, when people think of an “underground” venue, they imagine a suspicious back alley that anyone would find shady. But this place was boldly out in the open in the imperial capital, completely different from what I’d expected.
Master. This is way different from what I imagined.
'They say the darkest place is right under the lamp. If they operate this openly, no one would think it’s underground.'
Still… is it really possible not to get caught at all? Won’t customers notice when they come?
'They probably won’t do it completely out in the open.'
On the surface it looked like an ordinary shop, but inside the building there was a real stage prepared for the true “customers.” Since only verified guests were allowed in, the chances of being discovered were almost zero.
'Well, the imperial family probably knows and is just pretending not to.'
Thinking that, I entered the building. Then—
“Welcome, sir.”
An employee greeted me with the brightest smile in the world. Naturally, this employee was an ordinary person who knew nothing. Unless you were the owner, you’d never dream there was an underground operation here.
“Can I meet the owner for a moment?”
“Um… the owner is quite busy right now…”
“Even with this?”
What I prepared for situations like this was none other than my family’s crest. The moment the employee saw the gleaming medal I took out—
“Uh…?”
Realizing it wasn’t fake, his face turned deathly pale. At the same time—
“I-I’ll bring him right away!”
He ran off in a frantic hurry. While I waited leisurely, a narrow-eyed man appeared.
“Lord Elric, it’s been a while.”
It was Walker, who bowed his head upon seeing me. As far as I remembered, he was the master of the underground guild.
“Yeah. Can we talk for a bit?”
“Of course. Then let’s speak over there.”
Saying that, he led me to the owner’s office. Once we were alone, I got straight to the point.
“I’m thinking of participating in this ‘auction’ too. Is that okay?”
“Yes, of course. Lord Elric is an important guest to our underground organization, after all.”
Yeah, I figured as much. There was no way the scoundrel noble Elric wouldn’t have used the underground. It was only natural, especially since he’d used his connections to become a head professor.
Master. Just how much have you used them that this guy is looking at you with sparkling eyes?
'You’re telling me.'
I tried to ignore his burdensome gaze when he handed me a mask enchanted with recognition-obstructing magic.
“Lord Elric. Please wear this before entering the auction house.”
“Understood.”
I nodded and put on the mask. It fused with my face so naturally it felt like it had become one with me. With the mask fully on, I asked,
“When does the auction start?”
“It’s scheduled for the afternoon. There’s a separate event in the morning.”
“A separate event?”
This was news to me. After all, the original story never went into much detail about the underground.
While I looked at him curiously, he pondered for a moment before speaking.
“Hmm. Well, since it’s you, Lord Elric, it should be fine to tell you. In the morning, we’ll be holding an arena match.”
When I tilted my head, he continued with an explanation. After hearing everything, I was inwardly dumbfounded.
'Human desire really is…'
That’s not something you should be saying, Master, but compared to those rotten nobles, it’s practically wholesome.
To summarize the arena simply: it was a tournament where criminals fought each other, staking their lives. It’s true that watching fights is the most entertaining thing in the world, but I’m not the type who enjoys seeing people risk their lives.
'If it were just sparring, that’d be different.'
Maybe the other nobles are into it because they’re criminals?
'No. From what I’ve seen, those bastards would enjoy it even if they weren’t criminals.'
There were just that many rotten nobles in the empire.
“Anyway, so the arena is in the morning and the auction in the afternoon?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“Hmm…”
“Would you like to watch, by any chance?”
“That wouldn’t be bad. But let me ask one thing.”
There was actually one thing that bothered me. And that was—
“Doesn’t that place have a winner’s prize? Usually tournaments like that have one, don’t they?”
It was about the reward. No matter how much it was between criminals, they needed motivation to fight properly. So not giving anything to the winner made no sense.
“You’re sharp.”
“Skip the flattery. So what’s the winner’s prize?”
“Naturally, it’s freedom. In a way, that’s the best prize they could get.”
“I see…”
It was a rather underwhelming prize when I had been expecting something more. While I was feeling a bit let down—
“But if other guests participate, the story changes.”
He smiled slyly and added those words. When I looked at him as if to say “go on,” he continued.
“In the arena, it’s usually criminals who participate, but sometimes guests join in to warm up.”
“Hmm. So if someone who isn’t a criminal wins, what do they get?”
“It varies each time, but this time the winner’s prize is the Invisibility Hat.”
“?!”
The moment I heard that, my eyes widened involuntarily. After all, the Invisibility Hat wasn’t exactly an easy item to obtain.
Ugh. Master. I’m getting jealous for some reason.
'What? Why are you getting jealous over some random item?'
As expected of a regressed heroine—she gets jealous over the smallest things. Anyway.
“I’ll participate too.”
“Pardon?”
Walker’s eyes widened in shock. He clearly hadn’t expected me to participate myself.
“Is it that surprising that I’m joining?”
“Ah, yes. Honestly, most guests usually send proxies. And they bet money on the matches too.”
Well, that made sense. Even though the nobles were rotten inside, they liked to pretend they had some dignity on the outside. Especially the truly corrupt ones.
“So is that not allowed?”
“No, not at all. I was just a little startled. It’s fine. However, I cannot guarantee your life. Is that acceptable?”
“Yeah. No problem.”
“Understood. Please follow me this way.”
With those words, I followed Walker. Without knowing who else would be participating in this arena.
At the same time.
Just like Elric, there was a guest participating in the arena. No—to be precise, there was a yandere.
And that was none other than—
'Ah. I want to see him. Sir Elric.'
It was Eve von Ross, the one called the future Sword Saint. The woman known as the genius of the Ross family. Normally she wouldn’t get involved with the underground, but this time she had no choice.
Because the items from this auction and arena were far too sweet a reward for her.
'I can’t miss the Subjugation Necklace and the Invisibility Hat.'
In the previous timeline, she had secretly participated after receiving information that demons had infiltrated. And that was how she learned about these items. Back then she hadn’t thought they were particularly necessary, but this time was different.
After all, with those two items, she could stay by Elric’s side anytime she wanted.
'Sir Elric, please grow quickly so we can dance together every day.'
Following Walker, I soon arrived at the destination. There, I saw criminals wearing shackles as well as people who had volunteered to participate like me.
'Hmm. With this lineup, winning should be doable?'
I think so too, Master.
I didn’t know their exact skills, but judging from the criminals alone, there didn’t seem to be anyone particularly outstanding. So as long as luck was on my side, winning wouldn’t be strange at all.
“The matches will begin soon, so please prepare yourselves.”
At that moment, Walker told the participants in the waiting room to get ready. Everyone started warming up.
'Hmm. Should I warm up too?'
While I was pondering that—
—Thud!
A sudden dull impact hit my shoulder. When I turned my head, I saw a hulking man who looked like he could bench at least 500 pounds. His face was twisted, so it seemed he had bumped into me.
The moment I tried to apologize—
“What’s this? Some weakling punk?”
He suddenly sneered and started picking a fight. At the same time—
Hey? Isn’t that Kalden?
—Looks like he got caught.
—Guess winning’s out of the question now.
The criminals’ whispers reached my ears. From their reactions, it seemed he was one of the favorites to win.
Then—
“If you bump into someone’s shoulder, isn’t it polite to apologize?”
He was the one who bumped into me, yet he ordered me to apologize.
'Hmm. What’s this? Does he want to get educated by the bamboo spear?'
Seems like it, Master.
Seeing even Jukchang-i agree, it looked like I was right. The moment I tried to transform Jukchang into a wooden staff—
“The first match will be between Guest Number 3 and Sir Kalden!”
The arena organizer, Walker, called us. It seemed the author wanted me to give this guy a proper lesson in the arena.
[I never asked for anything like that, though?]
The author was hiding his true feelings out of embarrassment and lying. 'As expected of the author, he’s good at using irony.'
Having realized the author’s true intentions, I walked toward the arena.