Published at 31st of May 2019 6:03 pm

Chapter 8: The secret of the demon race and Cecyl’s resolution.

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

Translator(s): D0dz Editor(s): Matty, Boomer

We reached the next village a little bit before sunset.

There was a highway leading to it, and the village is smack dab between the royal capital and Meketal.

According to Cecyl, there’s supposed to be a big lake on the outskirts of the village, known to be a popular spot for fishing; fish is the village’s main staple.

Since I followed Iturna Cult’s carriage at the back, we didn’t grab the attention of waylaying demons.

The carriage advanced towards the side of the village as we neared it. That’s strange. We were going towards the lake, completely astray from my expected destination, the inn.

It seems Iturna Cult wasn’t planning on staying at the inn.

Well, it’s a large group consisting of about 10 people, not an ideal target for the demons; we should be fine.

We have decided to stay and rest at the inn for the time being. But from yesterday’s experience, I decided to sleep in the room corner.

“I heard Iturna Cult are a group of low-class nobles who exploit others,” Cecyl said while I was unloading the luggage.

“Normally, a noble-born has higher authority than a priest. ”

Other than people who have awakened their Divine power, they were either sent to the battlefield or dispatched into an adventurers party.

“… By Divine Power, do you mean something similar to magic? The ability to use auxiliary magic?” (Nagi)

“Something like that. That’s why, for the role of a priest, priority is given to those with innate ability. There are general believers, top brass aristocrats, and children picked up by the cult who end up either working in the field of battle or within a party.” (Cecyl)

“They say Rita was picked up as high cardinal for the sake of collecting believers.”(Nagi)

“Even so, I think it’s much better to work at the headquarters rather than out in the battlefield or in a dungeon. Besides, she’s a good person.” (Cecyl)

Cecyl gazed at the Healing Magic LV1 skill orb that Rita gave her…

She picked it up, holding it with her small hands.

“I want Nagi-sama to have this.” (Cecyl)

Her arms extended it to me.

“I still think you should keep it, Cecyl.” (Nagi)

I just couldn’t accept it, not from a slave.

Because I come from a civilized society.

“This skill is more suitable for Nagi-sama than it is for me. If Nagi-sama were to die, I would too,” she declared it without hesitation.

“What?!” (Nagi)

…. That was a joke, right?

But she didn’t look to be joking. Her eyes met mine, full of determination.

I can’t just make decisions for someone who’s as old as I am (her appearance makes her look younger though). Please, take that back!

Just what was so good about devoting your entire life to a master you’ve known for only 2 days?

“… I-Is that so… Cecyl, didn’t you say the contract was worth 12,000,000 Arusha?” (Nagi)

I should change the subject.

“How about this, if you work hard enough to pay off the 12,000,000 Arusha, I’ll give you freedom. That’s how the contract works, right?”(Nagi)

“If I take into account all the things Nagi-sama did for me, then that would be the amount.”(Cecyl)

“… What did I do for you? (Nagi)

“Nagi-sama doesn’t discriminate against my demon heritage and treats me as an equal.”(Cecyl)

“That’s because I’m from another world. I have nothing to do with the demon race.” (Nagi)

“You turned me into a cheat character.” (Cecyl)

“I did it for the sake of experimenting with each other’s skills.” (Nagi)

“… The matter about me… being your bride…” (Cecyl)

“… That was just a bluff in order to travel with the cult.” (Nagi)

“It doesn’t matter what Nagi-sama’s intentions were!”(Cecyl)

“Isn’t that a bad reason?!” (Nagi)

“Please listen to me, Nagi-sama,” Cecyl continues as she gently holds onto my hand.

“The demon race is… a race able to resonate with other beings…” (Cecyl)

The demon race was born of nature: water, wind, earth, and fire. One is able to tether themselves to those forces, and thus be granted great power. There is no ‘self’ within the laws of nature. A tree is but one of many that make up a forest; rivers and streams all flow back to a single body of water; and individuals merge to become one with the group.

This is likened to the demon race, whose powers stem from this. They grow lonely without other consciousnesses to commune with.

Due to this, they seek out something that resonated with their souls and strived to spend their time with that something.

Often, they are trees, birds, and flowers.

As a result of this, the demon race couldn’t adapt to life in civilization, living like humans and other demi-humans could.

Cut off from civilization, their lands were deprived, and they were destroyed.

But, it is said that sometimes, a member of the demon race can resonate with a human being.

“That would be my situation.” (Cecyl)

With that, Cecyl’s explanation ended.

“I believe that I have resonated with Nagi-sama. I believe that because, I felt very blissful when I was together with Nagi-sama, and since… we are connected with the [Contract], I can say with confidence that I am a part of Nagi-sama. For the first time, I felt like I was reborn.” (Cecyl)

What should I do?

She’s serious.

I bought Cecyl, only because it was Ashtarte’s request, and since I wanted an informant.

Of course, I want you to be on my side, but!

I don’t intend to forcefully bind you.

I have to cover that [Contract] up… I think I’m going to become a black employer at this rate.

Eventually, even if I say that the [Contract] is why I did it, will it turn out to be useless anyway, or should I just accept what’s in front of me, and love Cecyl entirely?

Or rather, at this point, asking me to decide the fate of a slave, one’s property for life, that’s too heavy!

But, Cecyl is really cute! She’s straightforward and so defenseless.

I wonder what I should do if I accidentally blow off my reasoning!

I suddenly came to another world, I don’t have a job yet, and my address is still undetermined, what should I do if I inadvertently have children?!

“… Nagi-sama?” (Cecyl)

Cecyl became uneasy and glanced at me.

She cherished her relationship with me because of the [Contract].

That is… If I say that I will free her, she wouldn’t listen to me, right?

“Of course, if Nagi-sama says something like ‘I don’t want Cecyl’… then that can’t be helped… I don’t want to be… a hindrance to Nagi-sama…” (Cecyl)

“I didn’t mean it that way because you are a very important person.” (Nagi)

So, please don’t make a puppy face, like you’re going to be abandoned.

The light disappears from her eyes, and my words are too late, tears are falling down in large drops.

If I said, ‘I don’t want you’, Cecyl would probably lose all her spirit, right?

“It’s obvious, don’t you think so? I’ll be troubled if Cecyl isn’t around. I only have Cecyl as my companion, you are like family to me. (Nagi)

“Yes~.” (Cecyl)

Well, you see. I’ll think about the details later on. I never thought that I would teleport to another world, from the day before yesterday.

While I was brushing Cecyl’s hair gently while she was clinging onto one of my arms, I… I was thinking if I could keep my reasoning in check.

***

Since the day was dimming, both of us headed to the dining room.

Cecyl is wearing unassuming clothes with a hood because I don’t want to expose her figure to the public as much as possible.

And then, when we reached the dining room.

“What is with this unappetizing, foul, meat?!”

A plate is flying in midair, coupled with angry voices.

In the dining room, there are soldiers and mages, the ones that were protecting the merchant’s carriage before.

Since they have now taken off their armor and robes, should I say that they are actually a group of dwarves and elves?

The elves are poking the meat with disgusted faces, but the dwarves who look like they are unable to contain their anger, are flaring up at the waitresses.

… Let’s just avoid them.

We take the table which is closest to the entrance, the least popular seat.

I raise my hand, and a waitress who gives off the impression that she’s very timid comes over to our table.

“… Err.” (Nagi)

“I’m sorry! We don’t have any more fish! Truly!” (Waitress)

“… Yes?” (Nagi)

“I’m sorry! These days, we can’t get near the lake, so we only have chicken meat, and Denga Radon Boar ham. If you are dissatisfied with that, please enjoy your own food!” (Waitress)

“… What should we do, Cecyl?” (Nagi)

“For now, the ham, and some bread. Followed by soup, please.” (Cecyl)

“I’m sorry, I’m terribly sorry, I’m indescribably sorry!” (Waitress)

The waitress ran away, without looking directly at Cecyl.

While I was thinking, she came and put the soup, ham, bread, and some green beans in front of us.

That was fast. Or wait, they’re already cold.

“… Your total is just 27 Arusha. Excuse me.” (Waitress)

When I took out the silver coins, the waitress quickly snatched them and disappeared again.

“Cecyl, you said that the fish is the specialty here.” (Nagi)

“Yes, I did. Freshwater fish captured from the nearby lake is the village’s special product, which is the only reason that people come here.” (Cecyl)

“This is bread, and the soup is made from green beans, right?” (Nagi)

“To me, it’s delicious, but for Nagi-sama…” (Cecyl)

“For organic food, I think that this is delicious, but… I do wonder why they can’t go near the lake.” (Nagi)

“It makes sense. They can’t go near the lake, and that’s why the can’t catch any fresh fish.” (Cecyl)

Somehow, it seems something has happened.

After that, we kept eating our meals in silence.

The surroundings are noisy, filled with drunkard’s voices. There are even unpleasant voices, still coming from the merchant’s escorts.

It’s probably the perfect time to gather information, but…

“Nevertheless, I felt really irritated! Those ‘Iturna Cult’ bastards!”

“ ‘How about I show you the way to the inn?’ And what do you think they said to me in return? ‘I don’t speak to corrupted dwarves.’”

“Well, don’t mind all that. It’s a common thing for those who follow the human supremacy doctrine to act that way.”

“You just have to accept it. Now, about the lord of the lake.”

“Tomorrow, the members of the guild will arrive for the extermination of the lord of the lake. That’s what we should be focusing on.”

The sake here is really bad.

*gulp* *gulp* -But they started drinking anyway.

“I already heard what I wanted to hear.” (Nagi)

I called over the waitress.

“Fish is this place’s specialty, right? Yet, why can’t you bring in any fish from the lake?” (Nagi)

“… I’m sorry.” (Waitress)

“I only want some information.” (Nagi)

I’m still socially fumbling in this other world.

Thanks to Cecyl’s information, I could somehow pretend to be an ordinary human, but it’s not sufficient to make a living out of my scant knowledge.

That’s why I need more information, so I don’t run into problems later on.

*plink* I put one silver coin on top of the table.

“The reason is the lord of the lake, it comes back every 50 years.” (Waitress)

At last, the waitress speaks up.

“It’s a huge fish whose head is covered with tentacles, the villagers call it a ‘Leviathan’. It had appeared once while my grandfather was alive, and people said that the adventurers managed to drive it away. That’s why we can’t go out to fish because it is on the lake again.” (Waitress)

“… Doesn’t it attack the village?”(Nagi)

“It’s an aquatic creature.” (Waitress)

Besides, the ‘Leviathan’ is a more docile demonic being.”

Then, the waitress nonchalantly took the silver coin and put it into her apron pocket.

“It won’t attack you unless you enter its territory, or you attack it first.” (Waitress)

“It will attack if you enter its territory?” (Nagi)

“For example, if you were to camp near the lake, cook something using an open fire, or even make loud voices; then it will come and attack you. Well, no one in this village would do something so stupid.” (Waitress)

Since there is already an extermination request given to Metekal’s guild, the problem will be solved sometime tomorrow night.

There is no need to be afraid, therefore, it’s not necessary to flee the village right now.

But it is also dangerous to spend the night outside- with that, the waitress turned around, and went back into the kitchen.

This bread is really hard…

The soup is cold…

*munch*

But, I think they are completely organic, without any manufactured agricultural chemicals, and that’s what’s really important.

*slurp* *munch*

… haah.

“Cecyl.” “Nagi-sama.”

Our voices overlapped.

“Please, after you, Nagi-sama.” (Cecyl)

Cecyl put her hands on her thigh and waited for my words.

“Iturna Cult’s carriage was heading towards the lake, right?” (Nagi)

“They weren’t staying at the inn, as well.”(Cecyl)

“I hope they don’t camp near the lake.”(Nagi)

“If they are camping, a bonfire is indispensable, isn’t it?”(Cecyl)

“Iturna Cult seemed to be singing towards the sunset.”(Nagi)

“Someone said that they were really loud, didn’t they?”(Cecyl)

“The ‘Leviathan’ will attack if it gets stimulated.”(Nagi)

Haah.

Both of us sighed deeply.

“Nagi-sama. Do you think Rita-san knows about the ‘Leviathan’?”(Cecyl)

“Who knows? She’s gentle towards demi-humans, but there are other priests with her too. I saw this village’s headman just now, but he’s only one dwarf.”(Nagi)

“… Right.”(Cecyl)

*Munch* *slurp*

I finished my meal.

There’s nothing more we can do here since after we finished our meals, the waitress removed our dishes.

I just want to return to the inn, and have a nice long slumber…

… Ahh, it’s that again. It can’t be helped.

Cecyl is looking at me like she expects something to happen.

I owed Rita a lot for accompanying our journey, and I even got the [Healing LV1] and the [Meditation LV1] magic. The “Ordinary Peaceful Life” theory says that one does not lend, or borrow anything. I would feel uneasy if I owed someone, and I can’t calm down if I have unpaid debts.

I don’t care about the other priests, but…

“Cecyl. Don’t you want to practice magic?”(Nagi)

“Magic?”(Cecyl)

“We still don’t know how long it would take to cast an offensive magic spell, using Ancient Language Chanting.”(Nagi)

“Yes, that’s true, but…”(Cecyl)

“Don’t you think it’s good to practice outside the village?”(Nagi)

“Y-yes.”(Cecyl)

“If you happen to stumble on an acquaintance on your way to an out of the way place, do you greet them?”(Nagi)

“Yes. I think I might also do something like exchanging information on why we are there.”(Cecyl)

“Well, I can make sure the surroundings are safe.”(Nagi)

“Nagi-sama.”(Cecyl)

“What is it?”(Nagi)

“That part of you… it’s cute.”(Cecyl)

“… Crap.”(Nagi)

I instinctively look away, because Cecyl was directing her gaze straight at me.

She might have misunderstood me, but to be honest, I had already weighed the merits and demerits of helping them.

It will take one more day until we reach Metekal.

It would be good if we could travel together again with Iturna Cult’s carriage tomorrow.

It’s for my own sake, I’ll be troubled if the other party is in danger.

Besides, if they’re indebted to me, they might become my ally in an emergency.

The royal family, the slave merchant, and the clerk of the Skill Shop in the Royal Capital, they all have their eyes on me.

That’s why I said it’s a misunderstanding, despite Cecyl gazing up at me with a dazzling look.

If it turns out well, I might get something more, instead of just some information.

No, let’s explicitly request for that.

With that, we exited the dining room and headed towards the lake.

***

We were too late.

“Wait a minute! What is this!”

*Thud* *Thud*

“No! AAAHH!”

Iturna Cult’s caravan was already destroyed.

Rita, the chief priest, is fighting against a massive swarm of tentacles sprouting from the lake by herself.

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