NOVEL NEXT Chapter 27 - Volume 2
Volume 2, Chapter 14: Demon’s Feast, Part 1
“Oh, by the way…”
I asked, recalling something while I walked through the hallway.
“Do you all know how [He] is doing?”
At my question, the demons walking behind me all winced together.
… Eh? Hold on. What’s with that reaction?
“……”
Nobody said anything. As the [Girls] all had delicate expressions on their faces, the only [Boy] representative, Noa, spoke on their behalf. It’s hard to be the boy.
“… After Lor-…Yurushia-sama went to this side, He flew into a rage and it all turned into a disaster, everything remotely nearby got destroyed, and we were only barely able to escape with our lives…”
“… Di-, did that really happen.”
After losing your pet, you freely rampaged about… I-, I’m definitely not at fault…
“Such a thing doesn’t matter, Yurushia-sama.”
Saying such a tragic incident in the demon world was “Such a thing”, it seems my carefree tone was transferred to you all.
Looking in her eyes closely, I knew that she and I would get along; she really seemed like a fused [Ninette].
“What’s wrong?”
“Umm, take a look at this.”
[Ninette] showed me her magic sword… what’s this, instead of its previous luster and shine, the sword has become corroded and worn out.
“Why did it become like this…”
“I just used it normally~.”
I pick up the corroded sword grip and bring it to eye level, examining it closely with my fingers.
… *Pokin*
“ “…Ah ” ”
It snapped. I didn’t think I pushed too hard.
“It’s alright. This isn’t a problem.”
“…Eh?”
Noa broke into the conversation with words that felt vaguely familiar as he picked up the pieces of the broken blade. I thought that I was sure that most of the children’s selves were lost in the fusion, but it seems like something strange was left… But.
“Nia, bring out the [Soul] you absorbed a while ago.”
“Yes~, brother.”
That reminds me, Noa and Nia originally had the [Setting] of brother and sister. After a brief nod, Nia sends something like white mist towards Noa. It seems to be what Nia [Absorbed] a little while ago from the formation.
Noa, who received it, slid his finger across the broken sword…
“I repaired it.”
“……”
Fast. Rather, I don’t know what the heck you just did there.
Not just that, the [Magic Sword] that previously glittered silver had become pitch black and is sending out resentful moans like “…OOooh… Oooh…,” transforming into a vicious [Cursed Sword].
Unlike that [Noah], this one isn’t a waste.
With my configuration of them being brother and sister, Nia’s [Release] and Noa’s [Absorption] had no issues.
“As expected of Brother.”
Nia received the sword, whirled around her new [Magic Sword (Possessed)] with a flourish, and the walls that she slashed at rotted away and turned into ruins instantly.
Please stop, that’s dangerous.
“Noa, being dressed in those clothes in front of Yurushia-sama is highly inappropriate.”
After seeing Noa’s appearance, Tina directed a cold glare at him. The Countess had torn his clothes to rags.
“Would you kindly mend it, Tina?”
“Yes, naturally.”
Tina quickly nodded her head full of brilliant blonde hair, Noa’s butler clothing was restored in the blink of an eye.
“Ahaha~, look look, Yurushia-sama, it’s all black~.”
Laughing happily, Fannie hugged me from behind and pointed at the pitch black butler suit that sewed itself as it rose up his body, good as new.
My impression of this child’s fusion with [Fontaine] is that she doesn’t appear to be much different.
But that’s wrong.
They were different from the former four, even if they looked similar. Besides, the spoiled-child attitude that they had towards [Me] had been eliminated when they were absorbed.
As they were now, it was a relaxed, but respectful master-servant relationship, even though I asked for a relationship of mutual trust, I wanted to make an effort at building a [relationship] with them. Where did I go wrong…?
“Hey, Yurushia-sama. Isn’t there a strange [Smell] all over?”
The celebrating Fannie’s nose suddenly twitched.
“That’s right, Fannie. Where do you think it’s coming from?”
“U-uhmm… It’s all over here and there in the mansion, it’s also strong underground.”
Checking my senses, that seems correct.
That group of three vampires ran off, and didn’t Millaine run towards the cave?
“Yurushia-sama, please leave the ones [Outside] to me.”
As if reading my thoughts, Tina asked while kneeling in front of me.
This child is calm just like the original [Christina], how capable. But there’s a little difference.
“… Will you be alright alone?”
“… I’m fine on my own.”
“Of course, Yurushia-sama. For this kind of lowly trash, you need not trouble yourself with them; I alone will be more than sufficient.”
Tina approached me with every word she said, and her feverish eyes drew closer and closer to my face.
“I-Is that so…?”
I’m sorry, but I’d rather not touch lips with the original or this child, that’s not [The Kind of Relationship] I wanted to develop.
“Okay, let’s go then, Tina.”
At the very last minute, Tina’s neck stopped moving forward; Nia had stopped her, pointing a sword at her with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“…… Tch.”
Tina clicked her tongue.
“F-for the time being Tina and… Fannie will go together?”
“Yeees.”
With a childlike smile, Fannie nestled her cheeks against mine from behind and nodded obediently.
In the shadows, Tina was mumbling “…why only me…” I pretended that I didn’t hear that.
Why did these children become like this…?
＊
“What were those things…?”
The Countess was running away, rushing through the corridors full force, discarding her ladylike elegance. With not even a shadow of her [Servants] in sight, to think that they had all been destroyed by that [Saint].
{… Impossible}
Yurushia, who was at best a mere contemptible [Human Being]… She, who was extolled by everyone as a [Saint], it was unthinkable that she would summon [Demons].
And at that, not just mere Demons, but Demons that were clearly out of the realm of the normal.
With such an ominous presence while maintaining the form of a human. Because the Countess had [Knowledge] of those existences, she instantly fled the moment those things’ eyes became filled.
As a precaution, she casted a mental curse on the Maid Vampires. Though the [Confusion] allowed her to escape, as she heard the soul scraping [Laughter] immediately after, the Countess was well and truly convinced about the identity of those [Demons].
Those cataclysmic higher-ranking Demons that rivalled a [Greater Spirit], the [Arch-Demons]……
{And four of them…!? This wouldn’t even be funny as a joke.}
If she had paid the cost and they [Manifested], the only move left to make would be to try to escape.
Whenever an Arch-Demon had appeared in the past, it would either be defeated with an entire nation’s army or be brought down by heroes who exceeded common sense, without which nothing could be done to the Demon other than waiting for death..
To summon forth an Arch-Demon, just who was that [Saint]…?
{Well… It’s already too late to be thinking about it.}
A single person shouldn’t have been able to summon and meet the [Sacrifice] requirements to contract with four Arch-Demons. .
The Arch-Demons that were summoned this time, should have already consumed her as a sacrifice.
They should withdraw as soon as possible.
The Count and Millaine had sent their subordinates on their [Prey Hunt], and were at the altar in the cave.
Although if they were to join forces, they might have been able to oppose an Arch-Demon, the Countess didn’t turn to fight, as there would be no way to convey to the others the danger, and her [Allies] would be easily mown down.
Having abandoned her name so often that she had forgotten her own real name, there was not a single ounce of hesitation in her fixation to survive.
{Still, I need to recover a little bit.}
Even if she wanted to leave the country, she who couldn’t walk under the light of the sun would need some [Servants] who could move through sunlight.
In the chapel, dozens of her protégés, the maid vampires, were waiting.
After she picked them up, she would leave the country right away.
Count Oberu and Millaine would certainly be able to earn her some time to escape.
(*POV Change*)
Tina went to the chapel alone.
She wondered to herself. Golden Beast… err, Yurushia, had given her, a fragile lesser demon, [Life] and the [Power (Knowledge)] to let her [Transform].
While she wasn’t dissatisfied with it, and she held strong faith and worship for her master, she could not help but think of her as an oddball. What Yurushia had given had made Tina stronger, but brought changes of its own. The frayed [Soul] of the weak human being she had fused with had, after she had eaten the blasphemous [Hatred] towards Master, allowed strange [Feelings] for Yurushia to sprout.
{… The adorable Yurushia-sama. I love her so much I just want to eat her…}
If you catch her meaning. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
(TL note: The above sentence was the author not us, no comment on the face. We do believe it improves accuracy of the translation.)
As Tina arrived alone at the chapel, while worrying endlessly, a new feeling appeared in the corner of her mind.
Tina faintly grimaced as the fused soul sent out the memories of her treatment at the hands of the Countess, the [Hatred] gushing forth.
It wasn’t uncomfortable, though. Since those too were definitely her real feelings.
Tina opened the door of the chapel slowly. She wanted to smash it in, but her great lord may have use of it.
(*POV Change*)
Pulling together her maids, the Countess, who was hastening to escape from this land, was surprised to see a small shadow emerge from the slowly opening door.
With golden hair set in curls and blue eyes, it was a small girl in a tiny maid uniform.
She had previously sipped her blood to torment her, although that fearful appearance didn’t fit this demon, it was that little girl for sure. Something was off about her appearance, though.
Even an ordinary person could see…
Although her appearance was much more beautiful than before, the Countess felt a chill while looking at the expression on the face of this cool-headed doll.
“[Gugaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!]”
Without noticing it, all of the [Runts] that couldn’t feel the danger, ran towards their young prey.
“………”
The [Girl] placed her hands together in front of her waist and walked forward gently without the slightest inelegance, a cold beauty… Quietly, [Crimson Pupils] appeared in her eyes.
*Kishi…*
With a creaking sound, the hundreds of runts who were attacking the [Girl] froze in their movements like statues.
Their color lost, dozens of the runs who were about to attack from the ceiling fell to the floor and shattered on the floor as though they were made of stone.
“……”
The Countess was left speechless at the sight.
Even though the overwhelmingly intimidating aura of the Arch-Demon was completely gone, she felt trapped by the difference in power.
“… Why, what sort of nonsensical things… that brat summoned…”
As the Countess leaked her thoughts, a silent [Rage] engulfed the chapel, golden whips lashed out at the seemingly alive [Sculptures], wanting to tear everything to pieces, spreading their dark red blood along the walls and floor of the chapel.
“The likes of a lowly mosquito… dares to disparage my creator and mother, the sunshine of the Demon world… know your place.”
The voice sounded like a curse from the underworld, the [Girl], as if becoming aware of the Countess for the first time, had a twisted smile upon her face.
“How do you do……. Countess. I’m pleased to see you.”
As she said that, she bowed her waist gracefully like a noble.
“My master who created me named me [Tina], the [Gorgon]. Well then, goodbye.”
Saying such without a hint of strong emotion, Tina’s golden curled hair swelled and tightened as if it had a will, and turned into countless golden snakes.
It wasn’t even a fight.
There were several hundred runts and vampires in the room, but not a single one was allowed to resist or escape. Tina quietly stood, and with the eyes of the golden serpents, turned them all to stone, scattering their souls.
“……”
The countess, who was petrified from the waist down, watched the [Demon] with an expression of despair… the Demon began work on the enemy chosen by her master with a joyful expression.
＊
A catastrophe had happened in the dark forest.
It started all of a sudden… a lone white haired girl appeared in front of the thousand or so [Runts].
“You know, Yurushia-sama gave me a name.”
That [Girl] was laughing joyfully. Looking at the innocent and defenseless girl, the runts wore bashful smiles.
The runts reached out to try to catch the [Girl], but their hands passed through the image, only grasping a [Girl] shaped haze. The runts became confused.
Nobody could catch her. They couldn’t even touch her.
To the runts who were absorbed in their orders, it did not seem strange that the [Girl] was floating in the air among the trees.
The [Girl]’s white face… hardened, transforming into a smiling porcelain mask like that of a [Harlequin], the mask formed into a laughing smile, as if it had no cares in the world.
“Shall we begin?”
The Harlequin girl dismantled the thousand live runts’ bodies in a moment.
She stripped the flesh from the bone, and then dragged out the internal organs, taking out the nerves one by one. While their brains were in hideous pain, their mouths screaming in fear, but their bodies couldn’t even twitch.
“Shall we begin?”
Their bodies quickly returned to their original form with the voice of the Harlequin girl, and a wave of pain and fear assaulted their minds again, driving them mad.
All of this [Work] is happening simultaneously, every one receiving it at the same time, further increasing their mad terror.
“Shall we begin?”
Over… and over, the nightmare repeated, the runts going [Mad], unable to [Die].
“I am [Fannie]… You may call me [Nightmare Fannie]… that is, if anyone can still understand me.”
After the [Nightmare] repeated several tens of thousands of times, all of the runts were alive, their [Hearts] broken, to the point that they were just lumps of meat standing still in the forest clearing.
“Well then… on to the next thing…”
Fannie said, then started to harvest the loosened [Souls] which were about to disappear.
Even though she didn’t like work, it was different if it was for Yurushia.
In that lonely, scary, dark, cold Demon World, Master Yurushia served as the lone presence of warmth, the Sun.
To her weak self, who only knew of feeding, the excitement she felt the first time she felt that warmth could not be forgotten.
After fusing with that person’s [Soul], Fannie was thinking differently about her feelings about the world.
It was only natural…
“After all, my [World] is for the sake of Yurushia-sama.”