Love Over Honor
"Haa... so what's it this time?"
"What's it this time? Dropping the formalities all of a sudden? Looking to shorten your lifespan too?"
"...Uh... what brings you here, sir?"
Valac gulped and tucked the spoon he'd been holding into his robes.
"Spit out Mammon's location."
"...Excuse me?"
What the hell is this lunatic saying?
He'd summoned a demon mid-meal without so much as a greeting, and now he was demanding Mammon's whereabouts.
"The Demon King you serve is Mammon, isn't it?"
"I-I left Mammon's service quite a while ago... I'm not lying. I really did leave."
"You still remember where he is, though. So talk."
"Are you asking me to betray him?!"
"Not betray. Just tip off a friend. Quietly."
"Who said we're frie—"
Do-ha casually raised a fist in Valac's direction.
"We're friends, right?"
"Ha... haha. Friends. Yes, of course we're friends."
At the sight of Do-ha's fist, Valac forced an awkward smile.
Damn it.
I knew my luck had been too good since yesterday.
"Just tell your friend where Mammon is. I'll make sure nothing comes back to bite you."
"...You said the same thing last time, and then the recycling center—"
"And you got in and out without a single problem, just like I promised, didn't you?"
"Well... yes?"
"Didn't even get spotted by the angels."
"That's true?"
"See? So telling me where Mammon is won't cause any trouble either."
"I... is that so?"
"Don't fall for it."
Baal, who had been watching in silence, finally spoke up. He wasn't particularly close to Valac, but he could see another naive(?) demon about to get played by that cunning Baek Do-ha.
"Eugh... aaagh?! B-Baal!"
Only then did Valac register Baal's presence and nearly jump out of his skin. The area had been so saturated with Baek Do-ha's energy that he hadn't even noticed Baal was there.
"What are those chains—"
Whoosh!
"?"
Valac whipped his head around mid-sentence, and Do-ha tilted his own in confusion.
What? Why's he glaring at me?
"Lord Do-ha! Please release Lord Baal! That man has never caused any harm to the Intermediate Realm! Keeping him bound like that is—"
Smack!
Do-ha finally smacked Valac upside the head.
Bound? Who's bound?!
If anything, he was the one who'd been trying to free him.
"I didn't do that, so quit spouting nonsense."
"You could have said so earlier..."
"Anyway. Mammon's location. Now."
"If I tell you that, I'll truly be betraying the Demon Realm... You don't even know what happens to traitor demons..."
Clutching his head, Valac made a pitiful face. Telling the Absolute Being Baek Do-ha where Mammon was would be an unforgivable act of betrayal. Hadn't Baek Do-ha torn demons apart and even fought the Demon God himself? And now he was supposed to hand over a Demon King's location to someone like that?
"It would be a dishonorable ac—"
Soft footsteps approached.
"Are you all right? That must have hurt."
Eilas came up beside Valac, who was still holding his head. She had never seen a demon ask for her father to be freed before. Most envied him and wanted him gone—but Valac was genuinely worried. He had even raised his voice at the Absolute Being. She was grateful.
"Uh..."
The moment Valac saw Eilas, his expression froze solid.
This can't be...
In all the world—a demon this beautiful?
Even if you brought every succubus in existence, none of them would hold a candle to the one standing before him.
"Oh-ho."
Watching Valac's jaw hang open, Do-ha smiled. He sidled up, slung an arm around Valac's shoulders, and murmured quietly.
"Hey, Valac. Want me to introduce you to Eilas?"
"What?! Y-you mean it?!"
"You just tell me where Mammon is, and I'll set up a dinner for you two. How about it?"
"..."
At that honeyed whisper, Valac's pupils began to tremble violently. If he let this chance slip, the Absolute Being's personality being what it was, there wouldn't be a second one. But still—to betray...
"Well, if you don't want to, no helping it. You said it was dishonorable, and I can't exactly force the information out of you... Oh, right—there is one demon who talks to her every single day..."
It wasn't a lie. The demon who spoke to her every day was Baal, after all.
Grab.
As Do-ha turned away muttering, Valac seized his wrist—something he would never have dared under normal circumstances.
"I'll tell you. Mammon's location... I'll tell you."
Twitch.
Seeing Valac's deadly serious expression, Do-ha fought as hard as he could to keep the corners of his mouth from rising.
"Heh. See? Love always beats honor."
"You promise?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll definitely set up that dinner. After that, it's on you to win her over yourself, got it?"
Of course, whether Valac would still feel the same once he learned she was Baal's daughter was another matter entirely.
"Of course!"
"Bwahahahaha!"
"Hahahahaha!"
"?"
"Why are they laughing like that? It's creepy."
Baal and Eilas, who had no idea what the two were talking about, tilted their heads in confusion.
Clank!
"You damn bastard!"
Baal, still bound in chains, roared.
So that's why Valac looked so happy—he's selling off my daughter?!
"Who gave you the right to introduce anyone to her?!"
"This guy's doing some creative interpreting. Introduction? What introduction? It's just a casual meal."
"That's the same thing!"
"Then you should've known where Mammon was."
"You... you..."
Do-ha's shameless reverse logic left Baal's face twisted beyond recognition. If not for these chains, he would have lunged at Do-ha that very second—contract or no contract.
"Hey, look over there. Look how happy Valac is."
Do-ha pointed into the distance, where Valac was humming to himself as he prepared to open a portal. It wasn't even a marriage proposal—just a single dinner arrangement—and the guy was that thrilled.
"Don't even start with that—!"
"Come on, Valac's not half bad. He's a noble-class demon."
"You... you're doing this on purpose to piss me off."
"Figured that out just now? Ahh. Feels good. Payback for the time you got in my way."
"Aaaaargh! Baek Do-ha!"
"..."
While Do-ha and Baal went at it, Eilas had fallen into deep thought.
She stepped closer.
"Um... Absolute Being?"
"I told you to stop calling me that."
He had already asked her to just use his name. So why did she keep calling him the Absolute Being?
"Then... Lord Baek Do-ha...?"
"Yeah, that's much better. What is it?"
"Um... I'll go to that dinner."
"Eilas!"
Baal nearly leapt out of his skin at her words. Baek Do-ha had made that promise on his own—why was she agreeing to attend?!
"You... don't tell me...?"
"?"
"You threatened my daughter with telepathy or mind-speech, didn't you?!"
"Hey, do I look like that kind of guy?!"
"Yes. You do!"
"..."
Baal's answer was so absolute that Do-ha was momentarily speechless. He had pulled plenty of schemes over the years, but hearing that from a demon was a bit much.
"Father. Lord Do-ha didn't threaten me with anything."
"Then why would you attend a dinner that Baek Do-ha arranged however he pleased?"
"Lord Do-ha healed me. A debt of gratitude should be repaid."
"Heh. Smart girl."
"..."
Do-ha's open admiration made Baal grind his teeth. He hated every second of this, but with his daughter speaking that way, he couldn't bring himself to argue further.
"If that Valac tries anything—"
"Don't worry."
Eilas gave Baal a gentle smile.
Footsteps approached.
"Lord Do-ha! Everything's ready. Just the incantation and the portal will open."
"Good work."
"Um... hello, Lord Valac."
"Ah... ah... hello!"
When she greeted him, Valac stammered in complete panic. He had never expected her to speak to him first.
"Valac, you bastard! If you try anything funny with my daughter, I will tear you apart!"
"Daughter...??"
"Oh, did I not mention that? Eilas is Baal's daughter."
"..."
"Huh? What's with that look? Don't like it? Then the dinner's off—"
"Father-in-law!"
"Who the hell is your father-in-law, you damn bastard!"
Baal exploded at Valac's words.
This absolute garbage...
Thanks to Baek Do-ha, he was hearing things he never wanted to hear.
Grab.
"Portal first."
Do-ha seized Valac by the back of the neck and marched him over to the magic circle. Small talk could wait until after he crossed into the Demon Realm.
"Lord Do-ha. About this portal—if anyone finds out—"
"I know. I won't say you opened it."
"Thank you."
Valac offered a genuinely grateful bow. Truth be told, he had been half-afraid Do-ha would drag him along the way he had at the recycling center.
"The portal only holds for about two seconds. Any longer and they'll reverse-trace it."
"That's plenty."
"Yes. Opening it now."
Whoosh.
Shwaaaaaa—
Valac swept his hands through the air and began the incantation. The magic circle gradually flared with light.
Crack.
Crackle-snap.
Do-ha, for his part, drew up his energy to unleash the Lightning Spirit Step.
Lightning Spirit Step
Zwaaaang!
Rumble-rumble-rumble.
"Lord Do-ha."
"I'll be back."
Crack-snap!
The portal tore open, the surrounding air sucked inward—and Do-ha stepped onto the Lightning Spirit Step and vanished inside.
Rumble-rumble-rumble!
Whoosh!
The instant the portal opened, Do-ha came through with sparks leaping off his body.
Shwak!
"Really is exactly two seconds."
The portal at his back vanished at once, and Do-ha let out a short laugh. Between the recycling center and now, Valac was a demon built to live a long life. Since Canteas, Do-ha had never met anyone so careful with his own hide—especially not a noble-class demon.
"Whoa. This is... basically a giant tower."
Standing before Mammon's castle, Do-ha whistled. He had fought Demon Kings before, but this was the first time he had ever set foot in one of their homes.
"Still, you can't walk into a Demon King's castle empty-handed."
Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble.
As Do-ha strode forward and drew up his power, the ground around him began to quake.
Zwaaang!
Meteor
8th-Circle Fire/Earth Magic
Kuoohhhhh—
The moment he unleashed the 8th-circle spell Meteor, a colossal mass of stone began plummeting from the sky toward the castle.
"Coming empty-handed would be rude, so take this instead."
Shwaaaaaa—!
KWAANG!
The enormous meteor slammed into the center of the tower. A massive explosion bloomed outward, and thick smoke billowed into the air.