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Dungeon Defense (Korean Novel) - Volume 5 Chapter 1 - Darkness (Part 2)
Volume 5 Chapter 1 – Darkness (Part 2)
— Burn all of the witches!
— Those bitches have brought upon us a year of famine! Those, those scoundrels······!
Sheesh, hey. Sheesh. I thought I was going to kick the bucket.
When I looked around, the other girls were also sullenly lowering their heads.
This is why silence isn’t good.
We are allegedly similar to already broken spring watches. If our surroundings are noisy, then we’ll bury ourselves inside that clamor and rewind the remainder of our lives with our hour hands, but if they’re silent, the meaning of our lives will become nothing more than a ticking racket.
Ah.
I want to do drugs······.
Yeah. I’ll probably feel better if I smoke······.
However, since my mind will become sticky like a swamp again if I do drugs, I’ll probably end up needlessly spitting out all sorts of words. It’s obvious. It was an obvious life. If I do that, then I’ll end up interrupting Master Dantalian’s train of thought. I don’t want that. It was a life I didn’t like.
It’s night.
The torchlight is bright.
Tic, tic, the sound of sparks being spat out was distinct.
Even the sound of someone killing someone somewhere could be heard rather distinctly. Although there was no particular need to listen carefully to that sound, I naturally ended up listening carefully to it since no one else was making a sound.
Fire. Noise.
Stake.
— Kill them······.
— Burn them!
— Those guys······.
Ah.
Mm.
Hey, hey you there.
There’s something I’ve been curious about. It’s something I’ve been really, immensely curious about.
Have we sinned to such a deep exteeent?
I know. Yup. I am well aware. You’ll get hungry if there’s a year of famine. Everything in front of you goes in circles if you get hungry. While everything is going in circles, if there are scoundrels you can throw rocks at and no one will condemn you for it, then, of course, you’d want to throw some rocks. It’s human nature.
Whenever a drought or a plague sweeps through the world, the kind known as witches have always been beings that allowed themselves to be stoned a bit and lacerated a bit in the stead of sovereigns at the price of offering their souls to a Demon Lord. If anything, allowing ourselves to be hit by the people who want to throw some stones is the task we have been given and vocation we have been bestowed.
The problem iiisss, it damn huuurts.
— Kill the traitors!
— All of······.
— ······.
Yes.
I wanted to live long.
I admit it.
As it so happens, I was talented with magic?
I was also a girl who was at a good age to be used as a sacrifice?
Aha.
If eternal life is assured as long as His Majesty Demon Lord doesn’t die, then I obviously had zero reasons to not form a contract, right? I had dashed to His Highness Marbas who, in the past, had once ruled my homeland and formed a contract with all I had. Well, he’s probably forgotten about someone like me by now.
Have we sinned to such a deep extent?
If we had sinned, then it was probably the sin of trying to live a bit longer, but if that’s a sin, are all of the people who’re living their lives while panting innocent? All right. Let’s say that I’m a crazy bitch. What’s the relation between a year of famine and me being a crazy bitch? How is me being a crazy bitch related to you guys suffering from a contagious disease and dying in some corner? Fuck.
Sh*t.
“······.”
That fire.
That tic, tic sound from the fire is the problem.
Why do people always try to burn people who they don’t want to see? That’s really a problem.
Do I, does she, do we have to actually say that it hurts when we are burned in order for us to prove that we are also the same living and breathing beings as you? Do we have to confirm our lives with our pain?
— You are a bunch who should not have been born into this world.
— Is there truly no feeling of sorriness for the lives of others in your minds?
Paimon.
Aah, what benevolent words.
Her Highness. Indeeed. We also think that we are a race that should have not been born into this world. Sheesh, hey. Sheesh. Even if we scream out that we are in pain, it must be quite comfy for you, since to you, we are a completely different kind. Those words are correct. What does it matter?
Truly, who will sang-gwan(相關) with us?
(TL note: sang-gwan(相關) – Associate/Relate)
Drugs are good.
Drugs, are physical things that block mental things.
I smoked when I wanted to smoke and made money. I killed when I wanted to kill people and earned money. Let’s pass this life smoking and killing, let us girls, who no one will associate with, gather together and play. If no one will associate with us, that means that we don’t have a world to associate with either. If that is the case, then we just have to go wherever our bodies lead us and die with a bang······there was a witch who had said this while giggling.
It was me.
I’m still alive after having said that.
— I will give you the remaining half once the task is completely over.
Ah.
Really. Ehem. That’s really.
For someone like a Demon Lord to cheaply mess around with money······ Ehei, ei. You shouldn’t do that. How can someone called the Demon Lord of Benevolence be such a cheapskate? If someone behaves that cheaply, then even the likes of us won’t stay still.
— Dantalian had personally wiped the dirt off of you all earlier today, and yet, you all had betrayed that Dantalian. Do I have even the slightest reason to place my trust in you?
Mm.
Weeell.
Hm.
Ahahah?
That’s right.
There’s no doubt.
Her Highness is right.
It’s okay, it’s okay. There’s absolutely! No problem at all. If a person has betrayed another, then it’s only natural that they should be betrayed in return. That’s the moral principles of the world······! The moral principles of all creation······! As expected of a Demon Lord who rules over everything in the world, their words are mysterious and marvelous······. Ahah! Even if the likes of us are peasants who live huddled up in the shade of some alleyway······ since we go around calling ourselves witches, since we are eternal subjects to Their Majesties Demon Lords who are the lords of all of demonkind······ how could we possibly disobey the voice of a king, how······?
Why?
Why don’t they save us?
“······.”
“······.”
No.
Wait.
I mean······ mm, no. I don’t like this feeling. When I looked around, the other girls were also bunching up their shoulders. This is why silence isn’t good. Furthermore, the environment wasn’t good.
Darkness. Fire.
The sound of fire.
The sound of slaughter and death.
This isn’t good.
Objectively.
It’s already been several hundred years, so I don’t remember that well, but despite my looks, you know, I was once a talented individual who was living a promising life as an up-and-coming mage. It’s necessary for mages to have the refinement to look at themselves objectively. I have a damn good memory as well.
From an objective point of view.
Witch Humbaba, as a witch who has lived for over 300 years, if a normal person could live for 300 years, then they would have increased their knowledge by reading books and would most likely be a prominent scholar or something even more by now, but, ah, surprisingly, this bitch had put all of the time she was given into sexual relations and drugs.
All right.
It worked well.
This, it’s uncertain whether it’s because of this bitch’s innate indecisiveness or because of her acquired drug addiction, but if there’s one thing that’s certain, then⎯⎯⎯my dear fellow witches⎯⎯⎯this woman called Humbaba has proved how far a person can fall into being trash and, at the same time, has also proved the fact that a brain doesn’t particularly exist that much in her own skull. Isn’t that impressive?! Ladies, please consider the fact that it’s quite difficult for a person to prove even a single truth in their lifetime. Humbaba has really made a tremendous achievement!
Objectively.
Even if you look at it objectively, my life is.
“······.”
Honestly.
Ladies, I honestly think that mankind should someday applaud this insane witch. Ah, this girl’s life is like getting two birds with one stone where she achieves a gwan bak in a pi bak. You ladies are also well aware, right? Because you ladies as well, although it may not be to the same extent as this witch, are also bitches who have beautifully accepted your lives in the trash like this witch has, right? The reason why the old saying ‘birds of a feather flock together’ isn’t wrong⎯⎯⎯.
(Note: ‘gwan bak’ and ‘pi bak’ are terms used in a Korean card game called ‘Go-Stop’. The move referenced here is a move that x4 your points)
Even if you look at it objectively, my life is fucked up.
······.
It’s hot.
Fuck.
······.
It’s probably this way because it hasn’t been long since the spring rain had ended. The moisture is really at the level of being steam, sheesh, hey. Sheesh.
Sh*t.
······.
Swamp.
The world is sticky like a damn swamp.
What my senior had said was right. There’s only mud no matter where you place your foot and there’s only muddy water no matter where you shove your mouth. I had thrown my life away there. Yup. So what?
······.
Who.
Who will save us here?
Those people, they aren’t torturing us because they’re especially bad scum······ I know. I am well aware. But they still set us ablaze. They burned us well. That’s quite the problem. The fact that the people who burned us aren’t especially bad scum······.
The fact that there is no end······.
The fact that there is no bounds······.
Ah, truly, the fact that there is no end or bounds······.
······.
Sh*t.
······.
············.
························.
sinceyouarelikeabitchwhowasbirthedbyavavenomousrubbishsnakepeoplelikeyoushouldhaveneverbeenborninthefirstplaceitisaproblembecauseeyouwerebornitwasaproblemsincethemomentyouwereborntheproblemisthatyouarealivethatyouhavelivedandthatyouaregoingtocontinuetolivealthoughyouaretrashandyouwillmostllikelylivehappilystickingyyourmouthinplacesevenwiththattrashylive
(...)
Ah
It seems, I dozed off a bit.
When I looked around, the other witches were also twisting their bodies. Seeing how the night was still dark, it seems that time hadn’t flowed by that much. But why was I······ is the thought that went through my head before I turned my head to see Master Dantalian still deep in thought without moving even an inch.
Ah, that’s right.
I can’t interfere with our master’s contemplating.
Wow.
Even I have to admit that there’s no loyal subject as impressive as us. My word. That’s why, even though it feels like not that much time had passed, it means that I managed to resist my urge to do drugs for that long. I admit it. Since I’ve managed to hold myself back this much, wouldn’t Master tolerantly forgive me even if I started smoking right now? Yup······ I’m certain. Because.
— I heard that you girls betrayed me. Why did you do it?
Because Master is a loose individual.
Because, the reason why, is because we were starving for gold. Master. Because we got greedy.
The more gold you have, the better. They say that the people who don’t have to worry about the safety of tomorrow will not be avaricious, but since us humble witches are not in a position where we can rest easy over tomorrow, we are always greedy. That is the livelihood of the people who live in an alleyway while poorly lowering themselves. How could hoping for tomorrow be excessive avarice? Are the likes of us, in truth, living undeserved lives, or is life itself something that the likes of us don’t deserve in the first place? Is it excessive greed for the likes of us to want to live?
— Oh, these imbeciles.
— Since you all have gone against the military order, you must pay the penalty. Bring a cutting board. I will cut a single finger from all of you.
Master.
Our master.
— Since your lifespans are long, you will one day meet your life-long partner. Even if that life-long partner were to confess their love and propose to you, you now no longer have the finger to put a ring on. You are forever crippled. Repent in dust and ashes for the foolishness of not having cherished a bond and having hastily betrayed it. You will understand this feeling when you meet the one you love.
Ah.
Mm.
·········.
If no one will associate with us anyway, then we too will have no world to associate with, so we can throw the world away with ease, but now my fellow witches are tilting their heads at the world they had already half-abandoned.
There, is nothing but Hell if you go there······I could not tell them this.
If we’re lowly beings no matter where we go and where we head, then we should just become the lowest of beasts. However, because there is someone who has made us a part of their family, my comrades are letting go of their gold pouches one by one.
Girls, are you okay with letting go of even those? Really? Do you have the confidence to cross the world, without even those······I could not worry about them like this.
Because I was already in this state and shape.
I couldn’t possibly tell them. Worry about them.
⎯⎯⎯Swamp.
The world is sticky like a damn swamp,
and my ankles are still sticky because of the swamp.
I want to get out of this, but it’s not that easy. Even if I freed myself, what the world would be like after my freedom, what it could become, and who it could become, I didn’t know these things. I don’t know.
This was what I simply didn’t know.
“Humbaba.”
“······.”
“Humbaba.”
“······.”
“Hey. Captain of the Royal Guard. Oh, what is this? Look here. I am calling out to you, but why are you not answering? Hey. You damned girl. Humbaba.”
Plop.
“······Acho?”
My head felt something weird. It seems that something which wasn’t particularly solid or particularly squishy had hit the back of my head. When I looked to confirm what it was, it turned out to be a person’s eyeball.
“Hoi?”
Well, that’s if you can call the single eyeball that had come out of a head all on its own and had strongly exerted its presence a person’s eyeball.
What is this supposed to be?
I couldn’t possibly imagine how uglier it could be if this disgustingly dirty-looking thing was inside the mug of a living person. I’m deducing that this is probably the eye of an exceedingly noisy bastard. I don’t know why he died, but I’m definitely certain that he kicked the bucket because he deserved to die.
“Oi, look here.”
“Ah. Yes, Master?”
Before I knew it, I had answered instinctively.
Once I turned my gaze, I saw that our master was rolling a clot of blood in his left hand. If I lowered my gaze a sliiight bit, I could see some guy’s decapitated corpse lying dead on the ground and if you examined him a bit more carefully, then, if you excluded his lack of a neck, he was mostly normal-looking except for a single thing. The only notable thing about him was the fact that he was missing a single eye on his face.
Dear God.
“······Master. Dooon’t tell me, did you pluck an eyeball from a corpse and throw it at me just so you could wake me up a second ago?”
“I did not pluck it. It came out of the corpse on its own, girl. Are you trying to draw me out into being some mental patient?”
“In any case, that still means you did actually throw that eyeball. Dear God. Dear Lord. Even if you list every item that could be used to wake someone up and spread them out before you, I don’t think a person’s eyeball would be a part of that list, and yet, of all things, that was what Master had thrown. In short, it means that Master is an individual who has diverged greatly from the realm of common sense.”
Ah.
I’m talking to someone.
I feel happy.
“Furthermore, this one refers to people who have diverged greatly from the realm of common sense as perverts. In that regard, tadaah, it has become proven that Master is a pervert. Ahahah. Didn’t this one end the demonstration quite spectacularly?”
“”Huwaa······ what?”
“What do you mean what?”
“It seems our master has finally finished thinking, yeah?”
“It seems our master has finally been proven to be a pervert, yeah?”
“Instead of saying that it was finally proven, I feel like you should say that it was proven once more. One plus one equals two, but people don’t say that they’ve finally proved it when they do that equation. In short, it means that within the world of truth, one plus one equals two is an equation that has been worn out so much that it’s like a whore. Similarly, in our physical world, our master’s perverseness is nearly on the level of a whore, and could possibly be a proposition that is even more worn out than that. Wow. I was perfectly logical just now.”
“What? Master’s whoreness has finally been proven?”
“The fact that it’s difficult to discuss the truth with these fellows isn’t even remotely surprising. They’re crazy bitches after all.”
The other witches started to chatter away as well. Ah, it can’t be helped, these girls have a terminal illness where they’ll die if they don’t rattle on after all.
Our master let out a big sigh.
“Humbaba. It seems I will have to live a bit more busily from now on. I shall alleviate my busyness somewhat by utilizing you girls, so heed my command.”
Master’s order.
I had to smile as prettily as I could.
“Yes, Master. Please command uuss.”
“At the least, you have lived for several decades, and at the most, you have wasted your time for 300 years. You should have made quite the name for yourselves even among your fellow witches and you should also have rather heavy personal connections.”
“Yes, that is the case?”
“Send a familiar to every witch that you know.”
Our master spoke.
“I shall make a home for you all.”
“······.”
“I do not have the time to handle every little thing that either Elizabeth or Sitri does. I intend to deal with everything all at once. I plan to drop all of that into a pot as we withdraw into the mountains. At that time, I intend to use you girls with care, and in return, I shall promise you all a home.”
“······.”
“So busy. Things will become quite hectic.”
Master started to mutter to himself as if he had fallen into thought once more.
“For starters, I will have to go and secure the mind of that daughter of mine over there who is pounding away at those keys. It is my damned fate. I will persuade Barbatos and Paimon while I am on the way······ I see this will be a battle of speed. We will have to earnestly push ahead. Although there is the issue of how we are going to pack up the supplies. Ehem, that will work out somehow······.”
Plop.
Master threw the last remaining eye of the beheaded corpse and it landed in a puddle of mud. The mud that had scattered into the night air was illuminated by the burning torches for a moment. If seeing things is the duty of an eye, then that is probably something raw that has not fulfilled its duties. The eyeball let out an audible sound as it rolled through the pool of mud before coming to a halt.
Forever.
“Humbaba.”
“Yes, Master?”
“I heard that in order to become a witch, one must form a contract with a Demon Lord. Which Demon Lord did you form a contract with?”
“Uh······. It was Demon Lord Marbas. A noble personage. Albeit this one had formed the contract around 300 years ago and was already liberated 200 years ago.”
“Liberated?”
“Yes. That, uhm······. The Black Death has been going around since last year, right? That wasn’t the only time something like that had happened. Massive plagues and years of famine occasionally happen, and every time they do, regardless of their race, all of demonkind get really damn upset. Despite that, things like this are natural disasters. Since nothing could be done.”
They made it so that something could be done.
By creating a sacrificial sheep, they turn them into the very first person to have brought the plague from the outside and spread it. They are also turned into the heretics who had committed an impious crime towards the Gods and brought a drought to the land.
That is the origin of witches.
Originally, it was the Greater Beings, in other words, the Demon Lords who would have to take the role as ‘the ones responsible’.
But that is impossible.
Demon Lords are sacred and inviolable representatives that symbolize absolute dignity. In other words, lords that command all of demonkind. The various plagues and years of famine that happen down on the earth are unrelated to the lords. If there’s someone in the wrong, then it’s most likely someone else, and if there is no one else, then, well, just make one.
Condemned, slandered, tortured, and a double helping of torture.
In order to pacify the people who had died during an epidemic and the people who had fallen during a year of famine. Peasants that were contracted for the sole purpose of being tortured. That’s what we witches are. We also think that we’re quite the amazing political tools.
Someone has to take responsibility anyway.
Someone does.
Imagine the town square being serene like any other day even though your old mother had passed away due to the plague. You’d be angry. That’s why, when the state of affairs is chaotic, there has to always be at least one witch tied up in a town square for a territory to be somewhat managed properly.
The demon society is superior thanks to this. This fact is clear if you look at how the debased humans have had to change their society constantly, while us demons had no need to flip our society over for the past millennia. We may be peasants, you know, in spite of our appearances, you know, we’re peasants who serve the lords of demonkind. Even if we’re similarly peasants, it’ll hurt our pride a bit if you compare us to half-breeds.
Ahaha.
I do admit it’s a bit fucked up.
“Yes. Liberated. When we form a contract with a Demon Lord, we normally do so after setting a contract period. This one had acted as a sacrifice for 150 years before I was liberated and allowed to live however I pleased afterward. Aha, since the rest of this one’s life was assured after having been tortured for barely more than 100 years, this one······believes, it······was a profit.”
I closed my mouth.
Since Master’s eyes weren’t really smiling.
I slowly opened my mouth while thinking about what I should say.
“······It’s the same for everyone else, you know?”
Master’s eyes still weren’t smiling.
Was that the wrong answer?
“It’s the low and humble task that we had carried out because we had chosen to do so, you know?”
Wrong answer.
“150 years is actually appropriate. Because there are Demon Lords who hit witches and witches who hit Demon Lords, 150 years is appropriate and it seems everyone has also accepted this. You see Euryale over there? She’s the worst of the worst. She had formed a contract that lasted for 220 years.”
Wrong answer.
“Doesn’t the way of the world all roughly go by like that?”
Wrong answer.
Wrong answer.
Wrong answer.
“······.”
A stillness fell over us.
Our master looked around carefully. Witches who were inherently part of the Berbere Witch Sisters. New witches who had joined us last winter. Adding them all up, a total of forty-one witches were gazing blankly at our master.
Forty-one.
Forty-one vestiges of plagues and years of famine.
Forty-one curses.
“······.”
Master Dantalian looked at me.
With his eyes that remained black even when illuminated by the light.
“I shall gift to you, my witches, a domain.”
“······.”
“Will you follow me?”
I believed that I overheard eternity from that sound.
▯King’s Beloved Sword, Human, Laura De Farnese
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 10
Polles, Bruno Plains, Army of the Crescent Alliance
— ······.
This young lady had no way of knowing when her performance had begun.
However, there was one thing that was certain. Sweat. Sweat was flowing down the nape of this young lady’s neck. The sweat was prominently distinct.
When sweat trickled down the nape of this young lady’s neck, it was like the flickering of a snake’s tongue. It left its mark as it lengthily flowed down, and as it lengthened, it extended time. It was a time that extended from the nape of this young lady’s neck and down to her back. Instead of flowing in time, the drops of sweat felt as if they were gathering up time on this young lady’s body as they attempted to crawl through the world and pierce through it.
This young lady was performing. After the drops of sweat had flowed down, it was then and only then that time seeped into the long line mark which they had left behind. This young lady’s time branched into many different paths and gathered at the small of this young lady’s back.
This young lady pressed down on the piano keys.
— ······!
An electric shock occurred. This young lady was soaked. Electricity easily surged through the small of this young lady’s back as it was drenched in sweat. As the drops of sweat pooled and everything spread as electricity flowed through the place where time was staggering along, it felt as if this young lady was living a life solely through electricity.
This young lady pressed down on the piano keys once more.
— ······!
This young lady’s heart pounded. Thump, the sound of heartbeats resonated more dully than this young lady’s dull ears. What is this? What could this be? How cute it is······. This young lady pressed down on the keys again. Thump······. A pulse spread throughout this young lady’s time. As this young lady felt as if she were living her life while the pulse was spreading, this young lady felt as if her life was simply a life that lived through the sound of heartbeats.
Solely like electricity.
Simply the sound of heartbeats.
— ······, ······!
— ······! ···, ······!
Screams kept erupting around me.
However, were those really screams? Could they not have been shouts of excitement? As this young lady was infected by excitement as those people continued to scream, those were undoubtedly shouts of excitement and not merely screams. So shout more. Scream louder. Although this young lady had no way of knowing when her performance had begun, this young lady will perform while always swallowing your screams with a snake’s maw.
Always.
Give this young lady time. This young lady will willingly be shocked.
Give this young lady life. This young lady will gladly shed blood.
And············.
And······.
And.
Step.
And, this young lady heard the sound of footsteps. Perhaps this young lady had felt it instead of having heard it. This young lady was uncertain as to which it was. Similar to how even if you close your eyes you can still distinctly feel when a finger is approaching your eye due to an electrical current-like sensation, this young lady felt as if the footsteps were heartbeats. Because the sound of footsteps was headed towards this young lady.
The footsteps approached. Step······. As it quietly approached, the sound of footsteps left ripples on the surface of the melody that this young lady had spread out. The sound of footsteps was directed straight at this young lady. Who was it? Someone is coming to this young lady. Who could they be to be approaching this young lady? Do they know where this is? Are they coming here while aware of who this young lady is?
This young lady, this young lady had dug into books to such an extent because she wanted to accept all of the sounds that approached her. This young lady hoped that among the things she had accepted there would be someone’s voice. However, as the sound of footsteps was not the language of Sardinia, the language of Habsburg, the language of Francia, the language of Anatolia, the language of Castile, the language of Brittany, the language of Batavia, the language of Tueton, the language of Bernicia, the language of Moscow, or the language of Kalmar, it felt as if this young lady, who was well-versed in every language, could not master the sound of footsteps.
The sound of footsteps did not have their own nationality and it felt as if there were no borders which they could not cross. How could one possibly put a border on the sound of someone approaching another? How······?
Step.
They are approaching again. They are approaching one step at a time. Each time the footsteps approached, this young lady intuitively felt that her song was ending. The sound of footsteps pulled the melody like a net to this young lady’s ankles and drew near. The world shrunk each time that approached. Ah. Another step.
Behind this young lady’s back.
Directly behind her.
After stroking the back of this young lady’s neck.
“Farnese.”
A breath touched this young lady’s ear.
“It is time for you to wake up from your performance.”
And this young lady opened her eyes.
It was then that this young lady realized that she had been closing her eyes.
“······.”
Once this young lady raised her head and looked around, the very first thing to pierce this young lady’s eyes was the light. It was only after that did the shade of the night sweep over. That is so. It was late in the night. Was this not strange? This young lady had started her performance only a short while ago and the sky at that time was definitely a mixture of both red and blue and not a dark gray.
“It seems you have been enjoying yourself quite a lot.”
The sound of laughter came from behind. This young lady turned around. His Lordship was standing there.
“Milord.”
“What is it?”
“······What time is it?”
“It is just past midnight.”
The noise that was occurring around this young lady gradually became clear. Demons were being decapitated here and there. It was the scene of a purge. Barbatos and Paimon were seated on judgment seats like a pair of judges, and each time a verdict fell, the neck of a criminal would fall as well. This young lady’s surroundings were unfamiliar to her, making it feel as if she were a foreigner who had suddenly been placed in an unfamiliar place of exile.
“Milord.”
This young lady felt relaxed each time she uttered this word. It was a comfortable enunciation. Although this young lady did not know what the current time was and where she was at, regardless of the time and where this was, the eyes that were gazing at this young lady were His Lordship’s eyes and the hand that was stroking this young lady’s head was His Lordship’s hand.
The world was originally Hell and as there was no path to disimprisonment from there, this young lady realized that within this world that was Hell, the only place where you could reach disimprisonment for a moment was between people. Ah. Hell was a sea of fire and there was an island between people.
“Milord.”
If this young lady called out to the island like this.
“Yes?”
An echo came back to her.
Aah.
His Lordship was originally a person who had been banished from the world and exiled to an uninhabited island. This young lady had thought that. Once that thought came to mind, that thought felt much too right. If that island was still called 無人 even if His Lordship was by himself on that isle, it feels as if the island could still be called a 無人島 even if His Lordship and this young lady were both on the island together.
This young lady had obtained a home.
It was this young lady’s first home since she was born.
“······Milord.”
“Are you broken somewhere? Why are you helplessly saying ‘milord, milord’ over and over again? Yes. I am your lord, and you lad, are my acting general. As it is your broken life, it is all my lack of virtue.”
“It would be more right to refer to this young lady as a lass and not a lad.”
“So those are going to be your first words? What a spiteful fellow. It is not even remotely surprising that the first words out of your mouth are not proper words at all.”
This young lady opened her mouth.
“This young lady has completely basked in all of the beauty which she can enjoy in the world just now. Milord. Please take this young lady’s life right now.”
“······.”
“This young lady wishes to be strangled to death by Your Lordship’s hands.”
The smile on His Lordship’s face subsided. His eyes that resembled the night sky were staring intently at this young lady. Due to there being a surface on His Lordship’s pupils, which is something that cannot be found in the night sky, this young lady was being reflected on that black surface. Tears were flowing down this young lady’s face.
Press.
His Lordship pressed his finger between this young lady’s eyes. The area where his finger touched was a bit hot. The heat flowed in an arch as it followed the outline of his finger.
“Farnese.”
“Yes?”
“Are you a corpse or a doll?”
“······.”
That was the curse which the Imperial Princess of the Habsburg Empire had spat at this young lady a few days ago. As this young lady could not answer this question by herself, she had asked His Lordship, however, he too did not answer and gave this young lady a question in return.
His Lordship spoke.
“Are you not a person?”
“······.”
“Do you wish to die?”
This young lady buried her face into His Lordship’s chest.
Heated substances continued to flow.
This young lady was drenched.
“This young lady wants to live······ to live on, Your Lordship. This young lady, wishes to live······. It keeps hurting······ it is this painful, and yet······ why, does this young lady want to continue living······ why······.”
“Yes. I knew that you were dreadful the day I laid my eyes on you for the first time.”
His Lordship stroked this young lady’s head.
This body which the Imperial Princess had cursed.
“Live.”
The Demon Lord baptized this young lady.
“I shall make you live.”
This young lady slowly blacked out as she was buried in His Lordship’s embrace.
And as she blacked out,
this young lady believed that she should continue to live.
My lord
My father
▯Demon Lord of Honor, Rank 5th, Marbas
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 10
Polles, Narew River Valley
It was late in the night.
The Demon Lords were silent. Even when they spoke, the Demon Lords did so while not looking at one another, but by simply staring absent-mindedly at the candlelight placed on the table.
My subordinates wordlessly watched the sight of yellow candle drippings flowing down the side of the candle and landing on the table. Although candle drippings flowing down was a trivial occurrence, as it was an incredibly obvious happening, it felt like no one here could hinder or stop it.
“Your Highness. It appears that the confidential letter was true······.”
A commander spoke up in a low voice. His countenance appeared as if he were ashamed.
It was not just him alone. All of the Demon Lords who were gathered under the flag of the Neutral Faction were pitifully muttering something. As they could not speak their minds to someone else, their mutterings were closer to being monologues.
“I cannot believe it. Did they truly purge 7 Demon Lords?”
“Ehem, Barbatos may be that sort of personage, but for even Paimon to······.”
“What do they intend to do with the troops that were led by the people who were purged?”
A countless number of soldiers were being executed at Bruno Plains.
That was what was written in the confidential letter. Hundreds of our fellow demons were either being hung to death at the gallows or were already dead.
The scenery of execution was especially cruel as the lives of the humble and the lives of the nobles were not distinguished and were instead tied together, this was also mentioned in the confidential letter. It was a letter that was sent by a person whom I had known for a long time, so it was undoubtedly true.
“······.”
Normally, as the leader of a single army, it was my duty to recover the morales of my subordinates. However, it was difficult for even me to escape this silence.
Gusts of wind shook throughout the night sky and let out a bleak sound. As the wind shook, it felt as if the distant foul scent of corpses had been harbored and was being carried over. I simply trembled in anger. All of that foul scent had burst out during my absence.
“What should be done, Your Highness?”
The Demon Lord who had a rough beard and was also the one who had worked together with me in the battlefield spoke in a hoarse voice.
“Barbatos is a violent, closed-minded person. However, when the Crescent Alliance raises its flag with the natural bones of our soldiers, Barbatos is always much more respectable. It was reported that Barbatos and Paimon had joined hands yesterday and punished our fellow Crescent Alliance comrades, but I am certain that they were most likely not comrades, but traitors. If they were traitors, then the reason to rebuke Barbatos would be unmerited. Would it not be wrong to clash arms against our own kind?”
I questioned him.
“What if they were not traitors?”
“······.”
“What if they were traitors? Would that also not be a problem? Would that not mean that starting from Baal, the other Demon Lords in the backline are all traitors of the demon continent?”
“······.”
“If the already dead 7 Demon Lords were not traitors, then we will have to punish Barbatos and Paimon, and if they were traitors, then we will now have to turn our war horses around and punish the Demon Lords in the rear. It would all be the flesh of demonkind even if we cut down what is in front of us and even if we cut down what is behind us. You stated that we should not clash arms against our own kind, but who are the ones who are forcing us to do this? Is it not Barbatos and Paimon?”
“······.”
Bang!
I could not hold back my rage any longer and slammed the table as I stood up.
“Are Barbatos and Paimon sane?! Are they not beheading our comrades because they are sane?!”
The Demon Lords warily glanced at one another. However, there was no one who would answer that question. By avoiding my gaze and not answering my question, they wanted for my wrath to flow by naturally.
They were foolish.
By erasing their gazes and their answers, would that also erase the scenery which had unfolded due to the executions on the other side of the plains? Even if the sun rises today as it had yesterday, would the blood that had already been shed on the earth all evaporate?
“Fine. It is fine now. Order our troops to advance. I shall personally go and reprimand Barbatos and Paimon.”
“Advance······? Your Highness, what do you mean······?”
My subordinates could not hide their anxiety and had started to panic.
“Not even a day has passed······.”
“Your Highness. The Mountain Faction and the Plains Faction are the main forces of our allies. How could we possibly point our spears forward and approach them? Your Highness’ words are distressful. Please consider matters once more.”
“I do not consider the bandits who have beheaded our comrades as allies.”
“Your Highness!”
My men were startled.
Once I stated that I was going to drive into the military headquarters of the Crescent Alliance while accompanied by my troops, the ones who could not answer my questions earlier started to hastily blurt out lines. Although the area was silent as the forest exuded a thick scent of pine, solely the Demon Lords were in a rush.
“The humans are encamped across the Bruno Plains, so we will ultimately face utter defeat if our forces were to fight among themselves now. We have committed a grave crime by losing once during the winter. How will we endure the sin this time? Your Highness, please.”
“As we cannot know why Paimon had punished those seven Demon Lords since we have not carefully listened to her reason, if there were a cause, then should we not hear it first? She is not a lady who would act without reason. Since she has apparently beheaded those people under the pretext that they were traitors, then there must definitely be an incentive. Your Highness, please show some discretion.”
······No, these fellows. Are these fellows afraid?
I turned my head and glanced at the commanders. From what I could tell, it seems they were cowering at the news that the Plains Faction and the Mountain Faction had joined hands.
“Do you intend to disobey?”
I glared at my subordinates. Once they met my gaze, they automatically shut their mouths. Although my subordinates had several mouths, the silence they all emitted had fused together and made the air around us heavier and heavier.
“If need be, we are capable of furthering our connections with the rear, but they cannot. Even if the supply lines are cut, it would be theirs that would be cut first. Even if they intend to withdraw, they will have to do so while shaking off the pursuit of the humans, but do you think we will simply watch over that? This is a military order from the leader of the army. Do as I tell you without question.”
The commanders lowered themselves to the ground. A commander who did not state his official rank remonstrated in a sorrowful voice as he stuck his nose close to the ground.
“Your Highness. At the very least, please allow them to have a single day for a leave of absence. Bestow them a day and allow them to beg for forgiveness and apologize. Even if we must fight when one occurs, we must maintain a mature appearance if we are to be honorable in the future.”
“······.”
A single day of absence.
Truly, even if we grant them a day or two, are they fellows who would wear white mourning gowns and ask for expiation? This was something which I did not ask my men. I was aware that they were not that sort of monarch, and my subordinates were aware of that as well. However, my subordinates were pleading to me with hoarse voices that I should play my part with honor.
Honor towards those who have beheaded one’s comrades, is it······?
I, suddenly felt exhausted and sat back down. Once I covered my eyes with my hand, I felt my thick skin pressing against the palm of my hand. It was my skin that had been swept and had swelled over the ages.
“······I understand. At the least, a single day is most likely what the value of being on the same battleground as them for the past several centuries is. I shall write a separate letter and send it to them. You all may leave and get some rest.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“One day.”
I cut my words short and spat them out.
The commanders froze.
“Once midnight passes tomorrow, we shall immediately round up our war horses and strike them. Bear in mind that although you may rest in your quarters today, it is solely a rest in preparation for the night attack. Inform the soldiers of this as well.”
“As you command.”
The commanders left the tent one by one with their backs lowered. Before long, the only ones to remain in the tent were myself and a couple of servants who assisted this body.
“······.”
Through the cracks between my fingers, I gazed at the entrance of the tent which was shaking due to the wind. A sentry was setting up a torch. The torches sharply surged upwards like a sharpened blade and split the darkness. However, as there was still darkness no matter how much it was severed and cut, in the end, instead of saying that the torch was slicing something, it looked more as if it were endlessly screaming at something.
Aah.
Once I wrote the letter, I spread open the piece of parchment and lamented.
Barbatos. Paimon.
For what actual cause have you done this?
