Chapter 60
A Deal with the Devil
“It seems the humans and dragons are beginning to catch on.”
A dimly lit conference room.
A secret meeting was underway in a place where the attendees could not even discern one another’s true identities.
“Catch on to what?”
“Is this because someone proposed that the proliferation of monsters across the continent was connected to the return of the demonkin?”
“Who raised such a suspicion?”
“It came from Escholeia.”
“Escholeia? Is that not the gathering place of the continent’s greatest intellects—the Beacon of Knowledge?”
Some voices expressed concern, while others dismissed the matter as insignificant.
“With so many intellectuals gathered there, the city is naturally filled with eccentrics as well. The continent’s rulers will not believe them so easily.”
“In truth, there was little sign of anyone agreeing with the claim. Even if the two phenomena are connected, that alone will not persuade the noble lords.”
“Even so, the fact that they connected the two is concerning.”
“What was the final decision?”
“The White Dragon Blancaros personally postponed the matter.”
“Then we have gained some time.”
“Humans may hesitate, but the dragons will already have begun investigating. If we are discovered, we will be wiped out before the war even begins.”
Everyone lowered their heads and groaned.
The more effort one had invested, the greater the despair when it threatened to fail.
“What do you propose? I believe we should create a diversion while we still can...”
“That is unacceptable.”
A man who had remained silent for a long time finally spoke.
His voice seized control of the heated atmosphere at once.
He was the leader of those gathered here.
“Why?”
“The White Dragon is hoping we will do exactly that.”
“Hoping for it?”
“If we react to that statement, he will realize that enemies still remain within the Grand Council.”
“Then what do you intend to do?”
“We proceed as planned. That would be better. We need only make it appear as though something that had been building for years finally erupted on its own.”
“C-Can we truly make it look that way?”
“The only variable I cannot control is your mouths.”
It was an insulting remark, yet the others merely exchanged uneasy glances.
Not one of them voiced a complaint.
“If that is your judgment...”
“Are there any other unusual developments?”
“If there is one other matter, it would be...”
There was no need to strain himself to remember.
One human had left an especially powerful impression on him.
“There is a man named Ferda Valdrova.”
The others reacted with surprise at the name.
“You mean Valdrova’s young fiancé?”
“What is there to discuss about the fool who willingly walked into a dragon’s jaws?”
“I thought the same when I first heard the rumors. But after seeing him in person, I found him quite different.”
Before becoming a follower of the demonkin, the middle-aged man had been a noble and a territorial lord.
“I believe we may need to be wary of him.”
“What threat level do you recommend?”
“I believe he should be classified at roughly the same level as Alberdo, the Walking Fortress.”
“That judgment seems far too hasty.”
“It took five years for Alberdo, that damned butcher, to become a true threat. Yet this young man has barely begun his tenure—”
“That is precisely how dangerous he is.”
“To think you were frightened so badly by a mere brat. You have wasted all those years of age.”
They looked at him with contempt, and he looked back at them as though they were equally pathetic.
Since neither side understood the other’s thoughts, conflict was inevitable.
At that moment, a masked man entered the conference room and whispered into the ear of one of the seated nobles.
The noble’s face became complicated.
“A messenger has just delivered unfortunate news.”
A sense of bewilderment born from failure spread through the room.
“It appears the Escholeia Overwrite operation has failed.”
“Overwrite” was the operation’s codename.
It involved using Dopplers among the demonkin to replace high-ranking nobles.
Some of those present had already infiltrated their positions through Overwrite.
“And the one who prevented it was none other than Ferda Valdrova.”
Those who had mocked him moments earlier fell silent with their mouths hanging open.
As though they had rehearsed it, everyone turned toward their leader at once.
The man’s complicated expression briefly became a smile before twisting bitterly.
Even their leader was irritated by this unexpected development.
“Do you believe the existence of the Dopplers has been exposed?”
There was not a trace of composure in his question.
The discovery that demonkin capable of impersonating humans existed was on an entirely different level from merely uncovering a conspiracy.
It was equivalent to realizing that decisive detonators had already been planted throughout the continent.
The noble answered with a conclusion reached through pure reason, without the slightest hope.
“I believe they will be exposed.”
“Tch...”
The leader tapped his face with a finger.
“Who was responsible for the Escholeia Overwrite operation?”
“...”
“I asked who was responsible.”
A man cautiously raised his hand.
“I-I was in charge of this—”
Before he could finish, his head flew from his shoulders.
His body toppled forward and crashed onto the floor.
“Gasp...”
“Hngh...”
Silence and terror settled over the room, now thick with the smell of blood.
“Messenger.”
The masked messenger drove a syringe into his own neck.
In an instant, he transformed into a black mannequin-like creature and absorbed the blood spraying from the severed neck without hesitation.
Viscount Battlehorn died.
A new Viscount Battlehorn took his place.
Those seated around the table swallowed hard as the vacancy was filled in an instant.
It was a warning.
No matter who died, their position could always be replaced.
“Bring the Doppler research to an end. The days when we could leisurely continue our studies are over.”
“Understood.”
“Dispose of the remaining stock, the discarded records, and everyone connected to them.”
“Yes.”
The method of disposal was simple.
Their research facility lay beneath a mountain.
They only needed to collapse the mountain.
The man who had come to deliver the bad news stepped forward.
The leader tossed something to him.
It was a syringe filled with black liquid.
“From this day forward, you are Viscount Battlehorn.”
“I am grateful for the blessing.”
***
“The Grand Council has ended. Are you not returning?”
Luri asked.
“Something has come up.”
“Lady Valdrova will be waiting for you.”
“I know. It troubles me to keep her waiting.”
“And yet you still will not return?”
“This is important.”
It was important enough to make reports of monster appearances and similar incidents seem trivial.
The location contained a clue that might allow him to eliminate the things that had tormented Valdrova.
Luri knew that as well.
She spoke this way precisely because she knew where he was going.
“That place lies within Silverwind territory.”
Ferda nodded.
“I know.”
“Goz currently hates you.”
“I know that as well.”
“The demonkin are a common enemy. But the enemy of one’s enemy is not necessarily a friend. If you enter their territory... you may have to stain your hands with blood.”
Silverwind hated the demonkin.
Ferda also despised the demonkin who had tormented Valdrova.
Yet Silverwind would not welcome him.
“That is why this operation will be conducted in secret.”
“...”
“It is dangerous, but once it is finished, there should be no consequences.”
Luri’s lips continued to move.
You must not go.
Yet the words refused to leave her mouth.
“...Are you going?”
“I must.”
“Understood. Then I will wait for you.”
“No. You will return.”
“...”
“While I am gone, your duty is to protect my betrothed.”
Luri bit her lip tightly.
She disliked the order and had naturally intended to refuse it.
Yet she could not bring herself to say the words.
Luri had no right to defy his will.
“Please return safely.”
Luri left without another word.
Ferda began calculating various details as he prepared for the secret expedition.
We will prioritize mobility and minimize supplies. Even if we push ourselves by using a medium-scale teleportation circle, it will still take a full day.
One day.
That was fast when attacking an entire nation, but far too slow for a mere research facility.
Besides, the enemy would not simply sit still.
By now, word must have reached them that the attempt to abduct the chancellor of Escholeia had failed.
They would move quickly to prepare for every possibility.
It would be ideal if someone as fast as Luri could carry everyone there.
However, the facility lay within Silverwind territory.
Ferda had already witnessed what had happened when Luri confronted Silverwind.
He did not want to drag her into this.
Nor should he.
We must resolve this as much as possible with our own forces.
The next important factor was combat strength.
Was the director of the research facility a Fifth-Circle mage?
The researchers under him were supposedly nothing more than assistants of the First or Second Star, while the director himself was a powerful mage.
It would have been useful to learn what kind of magic he used and how he fought, but torture could not extract information the prisoner did not possess.
I will have to deal with that mage myself.
Of course, he could not fight him head-on.
Ferda considered the tools at his disposal.
The shadows I can control without an incantation.
They normally manifested in the form of Shadow Hands, but they could also take the shape of octopus-like tentacles or flatten themselves like sheets of parchment.
The less light there was, the stronger they became.
Under intense light, they weakened to the point that their forms could collapse.
They were never meant for direct combat in the first place.
This was Barbatos’s magic, centered on secrecy and schemes.
Rather than frontal confrontation, it was meant for battles of wit and catching the enemy off guard.
According to Shape of Shadow, they are part of my body.
The shadows were used and perceived as extensions of his body.
That means I should also be able to cast magic through a Shadow Hand.
It was possible, but it required an extremely high level of understanding of magic.
The task went beyond merely recreating something resembling a real arm.
He had to reproduce the mana pathways and circuits through which magic flowed.
Ferda concentrated mana into one of the Shadow Hands he had manifested.
The mana flowed beneath his feet, traveled through the connected black shadow, and gathered within the dark hand.
He then went through the sequence required to construct a magic circle.
Blue particles poured from the black hand, successfully drawing a white magic circle.
With this, he could launch a surprise attack on an opponent from anywhere and at any time.
However, Ferda frowned.
The time required to complete the magic circle is roughly four times the average.
It was slow enough that a skilled mage could react the instant they noticed it.
Unless Ferda entered the battlefield with a perfect understanding of his opponent’s type and the terrain, it would be a reckless gamble.
There is no need to overthink that part.
Ingenuity mattered more than prediction.
Rather than constructing countless hypotheses, immediate reactions were more important.
That was what Ferda did best.
Satisfied simply knowing that such a method was available, he lay down.
He tried to sleep.
Rather than burden himself with worries over circumstances beyond his control, it was better to leave them for tomorrow.
Then it happened.
The instant Ferda was about to close his eyes, his mind snapped fully awake.
His instincts had detected something unusual nearby.
Hm...
It was a sensation he had never once experienced in Valdrova’s castle.
That was only natural.
Valdrova’s castle was protected by layer upon layer of barrier magic superior even to that surrounding the imperial palace.
An intruder could never enter easily.
However, a count’s residence was a different matter.
Compared to Valdrova’s castle, its defenses were as full of holes as a fishing net rotting in seawater.
Who is coming?
Ferda heard and felt a ripple in the mana around him.
Soon, the sharp scent of sulfur brushed against his nose.
“Hello, darling?”
It was the seductive voice he had heard once before.
Sitri, the Demon of Lust.
“Get lost.”
“My, how cold. Were we always on such bad terms?”
Her serpentine tongue slid across her lips as she approached.
“I have no intention of making a contract with you, Sitri.”
“I don’t have the slightest intention of making one with you either. I absolutely despise your type. You’re difficult to control, and even when someone does manage it, you never behave properly.”
“Then why are you wasting my time? Get lost.”
“So impatient. I came to do business.”
Ferda’s expression darkened further.
“What kind of idiot does business with a demon?”
“One does. Right here.”
She gently pointed at Ferda with her index finger.
Ferda raised both hands to cover his ears.
“The research facility you intend to attack will be completely destroyed within six hours.”
His hands stopped.
It was information he could not help finding tempting.
“Don’t make that face asking how I know. Do you think a Great Demon wouldn’t know something like that?”
Sitri delighted in Ferda’s reaction.
“Then how do you know?”
“Oh, come now, darling. Most of the people I keep on leashes like dogs are high-ranking nobles. Overgrown babies who can no longer be satisfied by ordinary pleasures. Some of them have even joined hands with the demonkin.”
Ferda had already suspected as much.
The attempted abduction of Escholeia’s chancellor was proof.
“The attempt to abduct the chancellor failed, and the man who was supposed to become him was captured alive. If he happens to reveal the location under torture, the facility risks being exposed, doesn’t it?”
“So they intend to destroy it.”
“Even if you leave now, you’ll be too late. With all the means at your disposal combined, it would still take you one or two days.”
“If we move quickly, we can leave immediately.”
“By using that little spawn? Certainly, it would be possible. But do you think Silverwind would sit quietly and allow it?”
Of course they would not.
From the moment Ferda had trespassed into Silverwind territory at the White House, they had already regarded him as an enemy.
Given an excuse, they would not hesitate.
This was troublesome.
Sitri understood the situation perfectly.
That must have been why she had come to propose a business deal.
“Judging by your face, I have a feeling our conversation is finally going somewhere. Is my intuition correct?”
Sitri pressed him for an answer.
Ferda’s blue eyes remained calm, revealing nothing of his intentions.
“What can you do for me?”
As though she had been waiting for those words, Sitri slipped a hand into the front of her dress.
She pulled out a thick scroll.
“It contains the Bending Bridge spell. Do you know what it is?”
“A teleportation-type spell that connects two locations within the same dimension.”
“My, what an intelligent man. Correct. You know how renowned the spell is, don’t you?”
It allowed its users to move so discreetly that even most detection spells seemed cheap and ineffective by comparison.
Since it linked one space to another, the passage could also be maintained for a period of time.
It was perfectly suited to Ferda’s need for a covert approach.
“Is that all?”
“If you need more, my servants can keep Silverwind’s rabble occupied. I’ll give you enough time to tear the place apart and steal all its research secrets.”
Sitri was offering to transport them across a great distance in an instant and buy them time.
The terms were excellent.
Far too excellent.
Instead of accepting immediately, Ferda considered the proposal carefully.
His counterpart was a demon.
A demon might make a deal that benefited itself, but never one that placed it at a disadvantage.
An offer this extraordinary had to involve a corresponding difficulty or price.
“What do you want?”
“There is one foolish demon inside that facility.”
“A foolish demon?”
“Yes. I sent her to seduce a man, but the foolish child ended up falling hopelessly in love with him.”
“Is that even possible?”
“That is why I called her foolish.”
Sitri sighed.
“If she dies in there, she won’t even return to hell. She’ll be completely extinguished and fall into the void. So could you bring her outside and kill her there? That way, she’ll be forcibly recalled to hell.”
“What a remarkably compassionate proposal.”
“What else can I do? Demons ought to look after one another. We have warmth too, you know.”
“Even a passing dog would laugh at that.”
Sitri was the Demon of Lust.
She was among those furthest removed from compassion.
“Oh, fine. I’ll tell you the truth. She is one of my daughters.”
“I see.”
“She’s old enough to be independent, but... sigh. What choice do I have? Her mother has to save her. I should shelter her beneath my skirt, but my skirt is simply too thin... and too short.”
Sitri teasingly fluttered the hem of her skirt.
“So your offer means that, while rescuing her, you will also help us.”
“Everyone wins. What do you think? Isn’t it a wonderful offer?”
Ferda thought it over once more.
Only one sentence came to mind.
Never make a deal with a demon.
“Can you swear on your name that you are not luring us into a trap?”
“I swear upon the name of Sitri, Great Demon of Hell. I have no intention of trapping you. Once you rescue that child, your task will be complete.”
Sitri gave him a firm answer.
Ferda nodded.
“Very well. I accept this business deal.”
“You’re more decisive than I expected. Good.”
Sitri placed the floating scroll beside the bed.
“You have two hours from now. Eight people may enter at once, and only eight may come back out. Make certain you remember that.”
Leaving those words behind, Sitri quietly melted into the darkness.
The moment her form completely vanished, Ferda’s door burst open.
Count Consilus and a group of armed knights rushed inside.
“Regent! Are you unharmed?”
“I am fine.”
“We detected a demonic intrusion inside. We must search the room for a moment—”
“No. There is no need. The demon has already left.”
“Did the demon say anything to you—?”
“And the expedition is canceled.”
“Pardon? What do you mean...?”
Ferda did not have enough time to explain.
All he could do was issue orders.
“We begin the operation within one hour. Gather the elite soldiers.”