Chapter 185 (Cleaned) – The Sound toward the End
Editor: Wenderu
The man before her, Nicholas, nodded in satisfaction. The magic formation was perfectly drawn, and the only thing left was to draw the spirit of language. Only then, will the Demon G.o.d be resurrected. It would be inevitable for the mouth to loosen unintentionally.
“It’s all thanks to you… oh my? Did you die? It’s troubling if you die…” (Nicholas)
When he noticed, there was no response from the person at his feet. Although the amount of offerings was sufficient, she was the core of the ritual. When he kicked her a little bit harder, there was a slight groan.
“…Kill me, you, b.a.s.t.a.r.d…” (Steina)
“Oh my… are you still able to talk? You’re surprisingly stubborn… well, that may be a good thing, so that’s fine.” (Nicholas)
Then, he whispered as he nodded in satisfaction.
‘It’s done.’
“Thank you for waiting. The ritual is finally completed. I don’t think it will fail, but… no, is that a needless concern? Well, that’s why you were created for this.” (Nicholas)
“…Ugh” (Steina)
Nicholas unexpectedly distorted his mouth after showing that reaction. He thought of giving more interesting reaction, but… it couldn’t be helped.
At the end of the day, Nicholas’ skills barely reached the Low Rank. In that situation, the one who was supposed to be killed was her, but he had no choice but to endure now.
If the Demon G.o.d could be revived, he could do whatever he wanted. Then he continued talking while thinking about the future.
“My only concern is that you are a failure, but… well I don’t worry about that too. You are a failure as a vessel of the Demon King-sama, but if you are the maiden of the Demon G.o.d, it would be enough to deal with that Demon King-sama.” (Nicholas)
“Shut… up… That ritual… whatever… it is… stop it…” (Steina)
“Aah, by the way, did you know? In the case of maiden, you are the same as the Demon King-sama… that is as a vessel. …No, there’s no way you didn’t know about that? In the first place, Albert-sama and the others put you to be the core of this plan. So, there’s no way you didn’t know that.” (Nicholas)
“…!?” (Steina)
That was half a lie. It was true that the Demon King ordered the maiden of the Demon G.o.d to be used as a va.s.sal, but she didn’t know what Albert and the others were planning. Perhaps, it was simply to welcome her as the core.
However, Nicholas, who was at the bottom rank, couldn’t know Albert’s plan. So, the truth was irrelevant. There was despair that A appeared on that surprised face.
It was selfish of Nicholas to betray his own comrade, but while thinking that it was selfish, he lifted the edge of his mouth again.
The preparation was complete.
Hope brought resistance, but despair caused the resistance to lose its power. There should be no chance. It was natural since everything had been completed.
Yes, it was just that and there was no other intention. While tightening the loosened mouth, Nicholas opened his mouth to recite the spirit of language. Together with the sound of the Demon G.o.d summoning, he thought that he could be the next true Demon King.
—
“Aah, yes. There’s one last thing I want to ask.” (Soma)
Soma asked that question to Iori just after they decided to split up. He was thinking whether the timing was right.
However, he didn’t really remember to ask about it until now. He thought that he would do it when the opportunity came.
It had been a while since the time he wanted to ask.
“Hmm? I think I’ve told you most of the things, but… is there something else you want to know?” (Iori)
“Hmm, it’s about Steina…” (Soma)
The moment he said that, Iori squinted his eyes. Soma was convinced by that reaction. He didn’t dare to talk about her until now, but it seemed that the timing was right.
“How do you know that name…?” (Iori)
“Of course, that’s because I met her. So, are you going to tell me? Before I came here, I reunited with a strange girl in a certain town, and got involved in a little mess.” (Soma)
“Aah… I see. When I heard about that, the response is somehow familiar.” (Iori)
However, Iori was calmer than expected. Regardless of her ident.i.ty, Soma was wondering whether the mood would become worse, but it didn’t seem he had to worry about it.
“So, who is she anyway? She said that she was the Demon King’s daughter and Aina’s older sister.” (Soma)
“Aah, yes… Well, if you have met her, I don’t think you’re unrelated. So, listen. It’s not really a lie. She isn’t exactly Aina’s older sister, but it’s not wrong to say that she is Aina’s older sister.” (Iori)
“Hmm… speaking of that, Aina also said the same thing.” (Soma)
“Did you ask Aina too?” (Iori)
“No, I only asked Aina whether she had a sister or not. I asked that question as natural as possible, so I didn’t think she suspected it, but… it wasn’t possible to confirm it. Or was it better to ask you?” (Soma)
“No, there is no problem if you don’t ask that to her. Well, it’s a bit complicated.” (Iori)
“I see.” (Soma)
Since Soma felt that kind of mood, he didn’t say it to Aina, and he also couldn’t really ask Iori.
“Hmm… I don’t know if this is true, but she isn’t a child from your adulterous partner, right? Steina seems to be older than Aina, so that’s certainly complicated… Perhaps, she is a child of the ex-wife? In that case, it would be difficult to stay together with Steina, so… it might be that.” (Soma)
“That’s not it. To begin with, I’m not blood related with Steina.” (Iori)
“So, is she the child from your wife’s previous marriage?” (Soma)
“Hey, I’m going to beat you up if you say it like that, you know?” (Iori)
Since Iori didn’t say it seriously, Soma returned it with a shrug.
However, since he wasn’t serious, it was also true that Soma was thinking about that possibility. Steina was definitely living with Iori and Aina, at least she temporarily acted as an older sister. There must have been a good reason for that, but… that wasn’t the case now. Hence, it was easy to think that there was a good reason for it, and there was a concern that Steina might be involved in something that wasn’t good. When Soma thought about it, the possibilities weren’t many…
“Well, anyhow, that’s a wrong guess, but even if it’s not much, it will produce a misleading statement. At least, there is blood relation between Aina and Steina.” (Iori)
“Hmm? Aina and Steina? Hmm, you must be a sheltered guy in this world, so… it’s not a lie that she is the Demon King’s daughter? Could it be that you and the previous Demon King were…” (Soma)
“I told you, she had no blood connection with me. Anyhow, you are right on the prediction. As expected of you.” (Iori)
“Right on prediction? That is–…?” (Soma)
That question stopped suddenly. It was because a roaring sound arrived at Soma’s ears that immediately stopped his question.
The sound that seemed to be something exploded, and the two looked at each other reflexively.
“…It’s not like there is a construction going on at this time of the day, right?” (Soma)
“I haven’t heard of it, but… if that’s the case, I’m sure it’s too annoying for the neighborhood. I guess I should go to object.” (Iori)
“Hmm… then, I’m going to go with you too.” (Soma)
“…Are you sure?” (Iori)
“No matter how you look at it, this is too much trouble for anything. Although I have no time to show off, I still have confidence in my skills, so don’t you think it will be useful if things get a bit rough?” (Soma)
“It seems so…” (IroI)
Iori replied in that way, it wasn’t for the sake of making proper conversation. It was because he knew to some extent how much this could be done.
That was in the case of Soma.
At least, Soma knew that it wasn’t a joke and it was a fact when it came to the matter of Hero and Demon King. So, the reason why he shrugged his shoulders was because he realized that he had come a long way here.
“Goodness, we have never had arguments about fighting.” (Soma)
“I… Well, I’m used to it a little bit. I didn’t do anything aggressively because it was troublesome.” (Iori)
“Ooh? Is that so? This is the first time I heard about this…” (Soma)
“This is not something I dare to say, right?” (Iori)
“That’s true, but… I’d like to hear about those days next time.” (Soma)
“Don’t set up a strange flag. Well, if there is another opportunity…” (Iori)
It was probably because both of them realized something like a premonition. It wasn’t what Iori used to say, but Soma was aware that something extremely troublesome was closing in.
It would be much more troublesome if he left the matter alone just because it was troublesome.
“Well… it’s a ha.s.sle, but there’s a job to do.” (Iori)
“I feel the same way. I really want to sleep, but… it can’t be helped.” (Soma)
The sound continued intermittently since earlier, and it wasn’t an imagination that the noise was coming closer. What would happen if that was left unattended… it was surely something he would expect.
Unfortunately, they had no time to wake up Aina and others. Perhaps, it was already too late to wake them up, but… it wasn’t necessary to do it anyway.
The girls had gained considerable experience as well. They must be able to take the actions that they thought were optimal. The only person he worried was Felicia, but… there was Sheila.
When Soma looked at the state of Iori in a glance, he knew that it was fine from what he heard, but in fact, Iori was worried that he couldn’t hide it. However, since Soma was aware of it, he didn’t say anything and just shrugged.
“Alright then, shall we go?” (Soma)
“…Yeah.” (Iori)
Then, Iori snapped his fingers, and they went to the place that seemed to be the cause of the sound.