26
Chapter 26
"You—you—piece—of—sh—t!!!"
The cliff's echo combined with Leonard's volume created a thunderous roar that reverberated through the air. I was bummed that I couldn't get proper stage sound, but Leonard is a wonderful audience member. Such active participation in the performance.
It's even more vivid because it's infused with emotion and spirit. Ah, is it naturally this vivid because Leonard is actually sincere in his screaming? Even better! After all, 4D is the trend for performances these days! Of course, that's a story from five hundred years in the future!
Alright, from today on, I'm a film director. A 4D specialist director whose career began five hundred years before the world's first movie ever premiered. For now, I'm the actor, the director, the lighting technician, and the extra, but things will change once I start recruiting actors one by one.
For now, I'll have to settle for this humble little theater and these dim-witted spectators. But one day, the entire continent will be my stage, and the moment will come when I can place the Demon King, the Emperor, and the Hero in the audience. I'll make it happen.
"Wow, what a clean fall. Eldest Brother, don't you think Second Brother's backside looks quite seductive? If he'd grown up properly, I bet he could have charmed every female in sight."
"O-Oscar...! Y-you... what did you just do...!"
"What do you mean, what did I do? Eldest Brother, you heard Second Brother say he saw something down there. I was just being considerate by giving him a better look."
"You... you crazy bastard! Did you forget that even if Leonard can't use flight magic, he possesses the ability of liquefaction! Once he climbs back up, you're dead! At the very least, something of yours is going to break!"
"Whoa! Liquefaction! Whoa! Impact immunity!"
My goodness! I can't believe Leonard had a superpower like that!
Actually, I'm not surprised at all.
Thud-.
A hollow sound echoed from below the cliff. The sound of a life's margin being torn apart. The sound of a demon, once brimming with ambition, vanishing into nothingness. The appetizer stage has concluded.
"...Huh?"
"Well, this is pretty obvious. Unless it's an extremely rare ability that doesn't draw on magic, no matter the skill, you can't use any ability without mana. You know that, right?"
"W-what are you talking about? Not being able to use mana..."
"Ahaha, did tonight's dinner taste exceptionally better than usual? I'm the type of person who gives my all in everything I do, so I truly poured my culinary passion into preparing my brothers' last supper."
No matter how flustered Retavis was, he isn't so stupid that he wouldn't understand such a direct statement. It's not as if he suffered a head injury as a child like Adela did.
"...You're saying you were the one who prepared dinner, not Aunt?"
"Kyahahaha! Aunt was the one who cooked; I just helped out. Isn't 'helping' a subjective term? For example, even if I handled everything from start to finish, some people might still call that 'helping'!"
Hearing my utter delight, Retavis frantically began feeling his own body, oblivious to the fact that it was already too late.
A fish on the cutting board doesn't realize its fate until it's turned into a stew. The demon before me is much the same.
Like a fish being washed in freezing water, he bathed in the excessively brilliant blue moonlight, frantic as he searched for the mana that should have been there.
As if it would actually be there.
"W-why? You... what on earth did you do to me!?"
"I poisoned you. With the mana inhibitor Aunt always gave me. Thanks to that, both my brothers' mana is completely sealed. Oh, right! There's only one of you left now!"
"A mana inhibitor? Then that sound from below the cliff...!"
"That means our dear brother Leonard hit the rocks and shattered with a crash! After all, one usually falls into their own trap!"
I jumped up and down with my arms wide open, explaining why I'd dressed as Aunt to prepare the dinner.
I put hallucinogens in Adela's meal, sleeping pills in the others', and mana inhibitors for my lovely brothers. It was easy to get them. I don't know what sinister plot Aunt had in mind, but she kept all these poisonous herbs in the kitchen.
Retavis, blame Aunt, not me. If you hand a bomb to a naive prankster like me, of course I'm going to set it off.
"...Then the letter? Did you write that too?"
"You should have controlled your lust. Did you like succubuses that much? Well, I suppose a seductive succubus is every male's dream."
"Luring us here... was that a plan to kill Leonard from the start?"
"What? No way. If I only wanted to play with Second Brother, I wouldn't have needed to make such a fuss."
Retavis looked at me with an expression of utter disbelief. A giant question mark was practically hovering over his face.
"To 'play'...?"
"Yes? Of course, brother! Don't be so serious! We're just playing a game together!"
"Using such a ridiculous excuse... you actually dared to kill your own brother...?"
"You were going to kill me once I became an adult demon, too. I just moved up the schedule!"
"You...! You crazy bastard...! Do you not know what happens when you kill a demon who hasn't reached adulthood! The Demon Realm Police will arrest you! The fallout will spread to our entire family!"
"Who do you think I am, Mr. Retavis? I've already prepared for the aftermath. I may be a demon who doesn't make 'plans,' but I'm perfectly capable of thinking ahead."
As I spoke, I tapped my temples. Retavis ground his teeth, his fists clenching tight with a sharp creak. He was about to lunge at me. Just imagining it made my blood boil with excitement.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom—.
The sound of drums, audible only to me, echoed in my head. A rhythm that heightened my senses and drove me wild. Like Pavlov's dog, I felt a chilling surge of pleasure whenever I heard this inner voice.
"So, you're actually intending to fight me?"
"Fight? Please, put away such crude and terrible words! This is simply a game!"
"Fine, this 'game.' I'll play along. It means I'll kill you and bury this whole incident."
"Active audience participation—now that I like! A show is always best when it takes an unpredictable turn!"
I had expected to face him, of course.
But I couldn't break his spirit too completely.
Terrified prey never lets their guard down.
Step—.
Retavis took a menacing step toward me as I stood on the edge of the cliff.
His crimson eyes were a swirl of emotions. The instinctive fear of meeting the same fate as the brother he had just watched die. A boiling bloodlust to ensure his own survival. A forced sense of hostility and wrath.
He was the textbook definition of prey. The mindset of the weak, puffing themselves up to avoid being eaten. Like a pufferfish swelling its body or a hedgehog sharpening its quills when facing a predator.
Yet ironically, even a man like Retavis was stronger than I was. Overwhelmingly so.
Regardless of his inability to use mana, I am still a juvenile and he is an adult demon. The difference in frame, weight, height, and sheer strength was undeniable.
And.
"Oh, right. I almost forgot."
"What?"
"It's only a game if I participate on stage too. I almost committed the one thing I hate most."
I pulled out a small vial, popped the cap, and downed the contents.
"Gulp—."
Whoa, drinking the raw concentrate wasn't so bad. As expected, my Aunt's cooking is top-notch. I never skipped a meal in my childhood because it tasted bad, though I did avoid some due to the poison inside.
"...Oscar, what did you just drink?"
"Oh, this? It's the same stuff my brother took. The virtue of Chaos is equality; I can't exactly look down on you from a position of superiority, can I?"
"Are you truly insane? What do you plan to do without magic...!"
Even if I had mana, there wasn't much I could do with it. My mana pool is tiny, and my current magic level is the absolute lowest. It's practically useless.
"Fine, if you're going to be that arrogant, I'll personally teach you the price of pride."
A glimmer of hot hope flickers in Retavis's eyes. Yes, that's better. Boosting his baseless confidence to increase the chance of an opening is the best strategy. Much better than clinging to useless mana. I traded mana for a vulnerability.
Above all, I despise those who look down on others from high places. When you strip them bare, they're no different from the scum living in sewers, yet they indulge in a hollow sense of superiority.
In the distant future, there is a Chancellor in the Dark Nation, one of the Seven Nations that divide the continent. He was a man who gathered the lowest slaves, stripped them naked regardless of gender, mixed them with beasts, and threw them into a massive circular cage, claiming it was a game to observe human instinct.
After seeing that, I swapped the Chancellor with one of the slaves, exchanged their clothes, and tossed the Chancellor into the cage. Surprisingly, no one noticed the difference. Even as the Chancellor screamed and struggled, insisting he didn't belong there, the soldiers only beat him with clubs, asking if a slave dared to defy them.
I enjoy that kind of barbaric game, but I hate it when some pathetic wretch tries to reign as an indifferent observer, acting like a god. That's the same reason I opposed the Demon King, who sought to rule the continent.
Having lived like that, how could I possibly be so shameless?
Shring—.
"Now, let's begin tonight's main event."
I pull out the pocket knife I took from the Southern Duke's Mansion, formerly the King's residence. The sharp edge glints elegantly across the back of my hand. I spin the knife effortlessly around my finger.
I hope he doesn't call me a coward just for pulling out a dagger. The skin of an adult demon like Retavis is harder and tougher than this blade. Unlike fickle magic, a body trained consistently does not betray its owner. I'm simply maintaining the balance of power.
"The show's title is: 'Dissecting an Adult Demon with a Single Pocket Knife'! Starting now!"
Now, the height difference between Retavis and me is almost laughable, and even with my knife, Retavis's reach is about two palms longer. Moreover, this is just a common dagger, incapable of even scratching Retavis's flesh. It's a show where the result is as predictable as a fight between a goblin and a troll.
But a Joker is a Joker precisely because he overturns all common sense and expectations. The Joker, whose frivolous drop of blood will plunge half the continent into darkness 500 years from now, is right here.
Retavis charges at me like a bull, fists clenched. I grin and spin the pocket knife swiftly with my gloved hand.