“My family will not allow it.”
Lucy flatly rejected Epherene’s offer, and then she took off her blindfold.
“…!”
Epherene trembled as Lucy continued calmly.
“…When the eyeballs are removed, the bones and flesh of the face flow out, and the shape of the face becomes strange. So I put a globe of glass in and sewed it myself.”
Red threads sewed the eyelids tight and Epherene looked back at Deculein with sorrow in her eyes. The person who made her like this had nothing to say.
“If anything is gained by losing an eye, the first is ‘waves’. I can feel the vibrations and sounds emitted by things, and I can see the world with them.”
Lucy’s voice was barely above a whisper. However, Epherene could feel the anger frozen inside.
“The second thing I received is responsibility. I planned to hide in Padahal. I abandoned my family and only thought about the comfort of the clan. I shouldn’t have done that.”
She warmed up her mana.
“I came to kill Deculein, and I will do so.”
Her voice cut through the air like a blade. When she said she could handle waves, she wasn’t lying. The air suddenly became sharp. If they moved even a little, they would be sliced apart.
“I can’t help it, Professor. I can’t convince them because of you.”
Epherene wrapped herself in mana armor.
Clank-! Clank, clank, clank–!
The sharpened atmosphere cut against it.
“…Wizard Epherene. Don’t you want to kill Deculein too?”
“Nope. I want to live. We need Deculein to kill the demon.”
“This is a golden opportunity to avenge your father.”
Epherene bit her lip.
“…You don’t know about someone else’s family history. And if you don’t know, don’t talk about it.”
Lucy gave Epherene a curt nod.
“…What a shame.”
With just that, the conversation was over, and their battle began.
As everyone’s heart rate soared and the concentration of mana around them swelled-
“It’s still too early to kill him.”
A newcomer broke the tension. Epherene and Lucy looked back.
“It’s a pretty interesting situation, isn’t it?”
General Bell stepped into the hallway with a torch at his side.
* * *
They moved from the office above Deculein’s prison. During the descent, their group of twelve was reduced to five, but Bell gained important information thanks to this forced sacrifice of those seven.
“You just have to avoid the dark. Whatever it is, even if it eats humans, in reality, it’s a demon that’s not that scary.”
The demon could only be active in darkness. Bell and the lieutenant wielded torches to ward off the darkness.
“…So. Are you the Demon Bloods?”
He asked Lucy, but she didn’t answer. Next, Bell pointed to Epherene.
“You, Epherene, are Count Deculein’s discipline. Now, aren’t you enemies who cut ties with each other?”
“So?”
“…Ha. Haha, hahaha.”
Bell tried to cover his mouth with his hands, but the laughter kept leaking out. How many people regarded Deculein as their enemy? Oh, my, this felt so good.
“Hahahaha-“
He laughed out loud until he leaned over, then calmed down and took a deep breath.
“Whew. Good. Good. Everyone, you seem to have a grudge against Count Deculein, so do whatever you want.”
Bell paused for a moment and glanced at Deculein with no intention of stopping talking. Was it his imagination? But he looked more like a demon than the actual demon.
Bell cleared his throat.
“Ahem. Ahem. It’s true. As I said, the demon is not a threat. He’s a simple bastard that can be defeated with a torch. Are you going to miss the chance to kill Deculein, one of the Empire’s greatest powers, just because of him?”
Then Bell pointed to Deculein’s handcuffs.
“Those handcuffs are Deculein’s collar. It stalls mana cycling.”
“…Bell. As much as you hate Deculein, you are also subject to slaughter.”
Lucy glanced him over before responding. Bell raised an eyebrow.
“I know. However, there is a saying that the enemy of your enemy is an ally. Above all else, isn’t this the perfect time to kill Deculein?”
“…”
Lucy soon nodded. With a smile, Bell dismantled Deculein’s prison.
“Count Deculein. Congratulations. You’re free.”
At that moment, Lucy grabbed Deculein with a wave. She wrapped him up tightly as if to transport him along.
“Hmm? Aren’t you going to kill him right away?”
Bell asked. Lucy replied.
“After we get out of here.”
“Oh~, indeed. You wouldn’t want to give him a nice death.”
“Excuse me.”
This time Epherene reached out to him. Bell tilted his head.
“What?”
“The handcuff key.”
“…What do you want with the key?”
“The proof of the conclusion of the contract. And, if you have that key, you’ll be in trouble too. You should pretend you lost it to us.”
“Hmm?”
Indeed, it was a smart thing to consider. Bell chuckled.
“As expected. You are the disciple who suffered that much from Deculein. Who would think you would be this meticulous? Here, take it.”
Bell produced the key out of his pocket and moved to hand it to Epherene, but…
Gulp-
Epherene swallowed. Bell handed the key to Lucy, not Epherene.
“You’d be better off getting it – this one probably still has some affection for him.”
“…”
Epherene clenched her teeth as Lucy accepted the key.
“Now. Let’s go.”
Bell said, bowing like a gentleman.
“I will help you escape. Escorting two ladies is a gentleman’s duty, isn’t it?”
* * *
…Lucy, Epherene, and Bell’s party escaped the main building together and were on their way through the desert.
Eleven camels climbed the dunes. It was dark in every direction as if the world were wrapped in a black veil.
“Hey! Whoa!”
Bell’s lieutenants drove the darkness away with torches, and General Bell watched on from the back with a grin. Their prisoner, Deculein, was tied to a camel’s back ahead.
“Look. Can’t get out because of the demon? It was all Deculein’s lies, a desperate move to live. Something like that.”
“It seems so.”
Lucy agreed. On the other hand, Epherene remained silent.
“Count Deculein. Are you okay?”
He didn’t respond. Deculein kept still with his eyes closed.
“You just have to be careful not to extinguish the torch. Hey! Is there enough oil?!”
“Yes, General!”
The faces of the lieutenants also became lively as they continued unharmed.
“By the way, where is your hiding place? It’s taking quite a while.”
Bell asked Lucy in a whisper. Lucy snorted.
“Do you think I’m going to show you? I think you can leave at this point.”
“Haha, I’m not here for that purpose. We should share secrets, and I’ll be careful not to raid your hideout after I’ve handed Deculein over to you.”
“…”
“If you get caught, or if even one of you survives and tell about this to Her Majesty, wouldn’t I be sentenced to death?”
Lucy turned to Bell. He was surprisingly clever and a reasonable general. Was it because he was greedy for success and wealth that he had no prejudice against races such as the Demon Blood?
Well, it didn’t matter because she would kill him later anyway.
“We’ve moved this far north, so we’ll be out soon.”
“Oh~. Then, I’ll take over from there.”
“Wrong.”
Deculein finally spoke. Everyone’s eyes turned to him.
Whoooosh…
The wind ruffled his collar, and Bell burst into laughter.
“Wrong? The way?”
“No.”
Deculein shook his head.
“Your guesses about the demon.”
“…?”
Bell frowned.
“I guess you’re afraid of death too, huh? That’s pathetic.”
“Do you think you are advancing?”
Suddenly, Deculein said something strange.
Their reactions were all different. Epherene listened, Lucy still glared at Deculain with a sullen look, and Bell inquired.
“…Advance?”
Whoooosh-
The wind blew past them again. Belatedly, Bell looked around.
“…”
The dunes with nothing around them. It was a lonely place with no landmarks, so it was impossible to distinguish if they were walking or wandering around the same place.
Deculein said.
“You are going around in circles over and over again. Still, you can’t notice. As is often said, you were possessed by the demon.”
His voice was very relaxed. In the most unfavorable state, in the most humiliating captivity, speaking as if laughing at everyone else there.
“Still, the reason I’m telling you this so late… three.”
Number three. The countdown started suddenly.
“Two.”
Lucy instantly warmed up her mana, and Bell put defensive magic around his body as well.
“One.”
Craaaaack—!
An eerie sound echoed across the sand. Bell opened his eyes wide and turned to his side.
“…Huh!”
The lieutenant who was stood there holding a torch was nowhere to be seen. Only remains, blood, and bone lay scattered across the dune.
Deculein sneered.
“…The demon didn’t stop eating you because of the torches. He was marking you. Without you knowing.”
The characteristic is called Killing Field. The desert demon was engraving a mark on the humans as it watched. Bell quickly glanced around.
“…”
And then, he went silent. It was there, a strange demonic mark near his right clavicle.
Deculein continued sarcastically.
“So. It must be similar to the ghost story that was popular in our childhood.”
The others also scanned their bodies belatedly and showed a reaction similar to Bell’s.
“The triggering of the mark is, of course, different for each individual. The conditions are mental strength, mana, physical strength, and that’s it. However, as time goes by, you will be completely devoured by him.”
Craaaaack-!
The second death. Bell’s lieutenant was devoured, and Lucy’s grip tightened around the camel’s reins without realizing it.
“He’s waiting with his mouth open, but you can’t kill him. No, you can’t even observe him.”
The clock kept on ticking. Sweat poured from their bodies. But even more than the demon, Deculein’s words tightened around their hearts.
“He grows stronger the more he eats, so if you don’t get him right here.”
“…”
Lucy looked back at Deculein. Deculein met her eyes and sneered.
“He will spread throughout the desert and kill to his heart’s desire. All tribes in the desert will be swept away. Her Majesty wishes for it. Little bastards like you will disappear on your own.”
Lucy ground her teeth.
“Lucy. Poor blind woman, let me give you a choice.”
Craaaaaack—!
Meanwhile, the fourth lieutenant dropped.
“Will you be blinded by anger and abandon your family and the comfort of the desert?”
…The demon was already widening his jaws.
“Or.”
Deculein held out his wrists. He was so annoyed that she wanted to slap him but wearing an aristocratic smile poised with dignity and grace…
“Will you give up your hatred?”
He asked so.
“…”
Lucy recalled what she had gone through. The terrifying and cruel visage he wore as he dug out her eyes with his mind.
“The fate of the desert depends on your choice.”
Demon Hunter, Yukline. The Demon Blood were terrified of that family, and this was because a very small amount of dark energy was mixed with their blood.
“…Let me ask you one thing. Is the Demon Blood considered the same as demons by the Yukline? Is that why you hate us?”
“…”
Deculein looked into Lucy’s eyes. Rather, the part of the face where her eyes used to be.
And he spoke…
“The blood of Yukline does not respond to the Demon Blood’s.”
“Then…”
“The Demon Blood clan is not descended from demons.”
Lucy let out a small sigh. She couldn’t even imagine that she’d heard from none other than Deculein that Demon Bloods weren’t demons.
“…I think I understand why Carixel sent me here.”
Deculein nodded.
“But I still hate you.”
“…”
“I thought you took my eyes out because of your blood.”
Lucy took out the key.
“W-Wait-“
Bell tried to stop her.
“Now, there seems to be another reason.”
Click-!
The moment the key was pushed into the handcuffs-
Crash-!
Deculein broke the handcuffs off. At the same time, the dark energy of the desert permeated his body.
Swoooosh-!
It was as if a typhoon was forming.
“…”
No special preparations were required for the process of a Yukline accepting dark energy. No equipment was required. All one would need was the body of Yukline.
His body absorbed the demon’s dark energy, and the Snowflake Obsidian refined it. However, the man-eating demon’s energy was simply too great to be refined, overflowing to the outside and turning Deculein’s appearance demonic. His eyes turned red, and his mana flowed black across the sands.
“…It’s a demon. I-It’s a demon!”
Bell shouted while pointing at Deculein. Still maintaining a correct posture and noble dignity despite his demonic visage, Deculein stared into the darkness.
He could see a demonic form through the sands. He was able to observe the Cannibal in a fluid state.
No demon could escape from his Vision.
“Oh! It looks like it has already started!”
An innocent voice called out. Epherene and Lucy looked around and soon found Lia and Delric.
“…Lia?”
Epherene called out. She looked up and nodded.
“Epherene. You’re here too.”
“…Yes. Everything is working out.”
“Yes. It seems so.”
The demon’s nemesis, Yukline. When dealing with demons, his power was amplified by at least ten times.
─!
The earth shook, but Deculein was already engulfed in dark energy. They couldn’t see him through the darkness.
“Where are you running?”
Meanwhile, Lia pointed off to the distance and shouted. She pointed right at Bell, trying to sneak away.
“Stay still! You are to be judged by military law.”
Epherene smiled and lowered her head. For some reason, this kid seemed to be replacing her former self. It felt good but a little bitter and a little confusing.
“…Lia. I think I already dreamed of this.”
Epherene caught Lia’s eye.
“A dream?”
“Yes. Of course, it’s probably not a dream now. But, seeing the Professor dealing with the demon…”
Dream. Epherene, her senses gradually being eroded by the talent of time, was suffering from déjà vu.
“Help.”
“Me?”
“Yes. He might be struggling a lot. But you… if you go and help…”
“Because I look like his ex-fiancée?”
“Yes. He will calm down.”
“Yes… I’ll do that. What about you?”
Epherene smiled bitterly.
“I have another place to go. And if I stayed, he would hate me very much, wouldn’t he? You know that. I was completely ungrateful…”
* * *
…At the same time.
Sophien had arrived at Time.
“Is it here?”
-Yes. It seems so.
Centering on a single tree, the Sanctuary was lined with research devices that looked as precious as artifacts.
“…These are Deculein’s devices.”
These were the things Epherene had stolen. As Sophien walked between them with a grin, she found something interesting as she fiddled with a reagent bottle and a microscope.
“…”
Off to one side was a large cylinder where one person could lie down.
“…So you’ve been in this kind of place.”
And in it, slumbering, was Julie. The knight who stole Deculein’s heart.
She was receiving an indiluted Lunar Grass solution injection directly into her veins, and she was sleeping, unaware of Sophien’s presence. No, she was turning back her own time.
—Are you going to kill her?
Keiron asked. Without a word, Sophien grabbed the sword at her waist.
She drew it.
“There is no need to kill her. If I break this cylinder…”
However, before she could smash the capsule, her eyes fell on a diary.
“…”
It was placed on a table next to the cylinder. It was a straight-laced and neatly made diary, just like Julie’s personality.
“What a useless…”
Sophien reached out for it and flipped it open. From the very first page, the letters were crammed across the lines. Starting with the very first…
-To myself, who will wake up again.
“…Hmph.”
Reading it with a snort, Sophien sat down beside the capsule.
