Chapter 11
The Demon and the Witch (2)
The study remained dimly lit. Even the flames that had sprung up in the darkness failed to illuminate it completely. The underground chamber was simply too vast, and the light merely cast new shadows.
Each time the flames flickered, the shadows swayed with them. Beneath the fluttering darkness, crimson lights gleamed.
They were probably the demon’s eyes. Buried in the shadows of the bookshelves, they glared ominously at the visitor.
Most people would have been terrified, but the visitor remained calm. If anything, she murmured with interest.
“…A single horn.”
She was looking above his red eyes.
There was a gleaming white horn—the menacing symbol of a demon. It was far too magnificent for an imp.
The old woman cackled inside her mind.
“This is quite the windfall. Isn’t that a Mangnyang? How did a horned demon come to be born in a place like this…?”
“I know. It’s rather puzzling.”
“Please leave him to me. Devouring him would be far more efficient than trying to bring him under your command.”
She was right. The more formidable a demon’s bloodline, the slower it grew.
Even annihilating an entire city would not provide enough souls and emotions to raise a Mangnyang imp to adulthood.
Its potential was immense, but it required just as immense an investment.
The Old Hag Spirit was different.
The moment she consumed the imp, she would experience immediate growth.
If they sought short-term gains, abandoning the imp was the correct choice.
“…Hmm.”
Ilea stared silently at Johan.
Displeased by her scrutiny, the demon frowned.
“What are you trying to assess? I told you to come and sit down.”
At that moment, pitch-black smoke surged from Ilea’s skin. Demonic energy stretched into the air, undulating ominously as it gathered at a single point.
Johan leaned back and watched the demonic energy as though appreciating a spectacle.
He was comparing it with the descriptions in the original story.
The current that had separated from the witch’s body would soon take the form of a demon.
It was probably the Old Hag Spirit. Just how hideous would she be? Johan was extremely curious.
It was because of how she had been depicted in the original story. Several humans had gone into cardiac arrest the moment they saw her. As someone who had enjoyed horror stories, Johan could not help but look forward to seeing such an appearance.
Let’s have a look.
The condensed demonic energy gradually assumed a distinct form.
It was a grotesque being draped in a pitch-black hood. She was too far away for him to make out her face.
The moment Johan narrowed his eyes, a piercing shriek echoed through the study, threatening to rupture his eardrums.
The creature launched herself forward. In the blink of an eye, she was directly in front of Johan, staring him in the face.
Thick pus oozed from her empty eye sockets. Threadworms crawled across her dark gray skin in place of wrinkles, and clumps of sebum embedded in her cheeks glistened.
The tongue protruding from her open mouth was coated in grime. A horrific stench numbed his sense of smell.
With the Old Hag Spirit pressed so close to him, Johan felt disgust rather than fear.
“You are hideous beyond belief.”
Raguel, on the other hand, was trembling violently. The stench and sounds alone seemed enough to terrify him. How would he have reacted if he could see that face? He might have died of cardiac arrest.
Johan chuckled.
“You’re better off remaining blind.”
The imp was distracted. He would need to be taught a lesson. The Old Hag Spirit murmured sinisterly.
“Master, please give me the order. A single word will suffice.”
With that, she dragged her filthy tongue over Johan’s horn.
Johan’s expression twisted.
“You will die the most miserable death imaginable.”
The old woman cackled.
“Will I, now? My master has no time to raise you.”
Johan brought his thumb and index finger together like pincers. He caught the edge of her hood between them and pulled her aside. Touching her was disgusting, but it could not be helped.
Only then did the hideous hag disappear from his sight, with Ilea taking her place.
Johan spoke.
“A slave is presuming to know her master’s intentions. Did you fail to train her properly?”
The girl walked over slowly and stopped before the round table.
Johan inwardly exclaimed in admiration. Her doll-like face looked exactly as it had been described in the original story. It was somewhat awkward to call a girl who appeared barely ten years old a beauty, but her features were certainly flawless.
She smiled calmly.
“I wanted us to have a liberated relationship, but this is my first time, so I’m still rather inexperienced. I’m sure I’ll do better next time.”
Johan chuckled.
“Any demon fortunate enough to serve you would truly be blessed.”
“Would you like to join me?”
The Old Hag Spirit stared blankly at Ilea.
“W-What?!”
“Be quiet.”
“But…”
“If you open your mouth again from this moment onward, you’ll be punished.”
Her voice was gentle, yet the Old Hag Spirit flinched in fear.
Ilea let out a quiet sigh and took a handkerchief from inside her clothes.
“If you don’t mind, may I wipe away the saliva?”
Sticky mucus clung to Johan’s white horn. It was undoubtedly the Old Hag Spirit’s drool.
“If you’re trying to recruit me, forget it. I will not place myself under your command.”
Ilea shook her head.
“I have no ulterior motive. As her master, I’m merely cleaning up my dog’s filth.”
She brought the handkerchief to Johan’s horn and gently began wiping it clean.
Johan carefully observed Ilea. There was no discernible emotion in the witch’s placid eyes.
Any ordinary mage or witch would have gone mad with desire at the sight of a demon’s horn, yet she did not appear greedy in the slightest.
Just as she had been portrayed in the original story, she was remarkably sly.
“All done. It’s clean now.”
The girl smiled in satisfaction, but Johan did not find her entirely endearing.
What a sly fox.
Johan spoke.
“I appreciate the effort, but it was wasted.”
“As I told you, I had no ulterior motive.”
She paused briefly before adding,
“But I don’t quite understand. If you have no desire to be brought under my command, why did you summon me?”
“I want to establish a working relationship.”
“Just as you bewitched my father and the young master?”
“It was a contract made between equals.”
Ilea smiled faintly.
“Deals with demons inevitably lead to ruin.”
“Their lives had already fallen into the abyss. It would be difficult to imagine a worse hell.”
A parent who had lost his child and a boy who had been trapped in darkness—their lives had already been ruined.
Ilea let out an exaggerated gasp of admiration.
“Then you rescued them from their misery. How wonderful. You saved my father.”
Johan shrugged.
“Indeed, I did. You ought to bow before me in gratitude.”
“You took his soul as collateral, didn’t you? If you release it, I wouldn’t mind bowing.”
“Gaf’s soul?”
Ilea nodded.
“I don’t know the exact terms of your agreement, but the collateral must surely have been his soul.”
Johan asked in apparent puzzlement.
“Why do you care about that?”
Ilea’s expression darkened slightly.
“What do you mean?”
It was only natural for a child to worry about her parent. But Ilea was different. In the original story, she had allowed Gaf to die even after he came to rescue her.
Johan spoke.
“Gaf’s life means little to you, doesn’t it? You probably aren’t even related by blood.”
Ilea silently stared at Johan. She was still smiling, but her expression had grown subtly colder. Even the air around them began to chill.
Raguel lightly tugged on Johan’s elbow.
“J-Johan, how could you say something so rude?”
Ilea spoke.
“I’d like to hear what grounds you have for saying that.”
Because I read it in the original story.
“None.”
“…Is that so?”
“If it offended you, I apologize.”
An uncomfortable silence descended.
Ilea smiled gently once more.
“You said you wanted to make a deal.”
“That is why I summoned you.”
“Release my father’s soul.”
“Is that your condition?”
Ilea shook her head.
“No. Releasing him is the sincerity you must show me.”
Johan let out an incredulous laugh. Ilea smiled as well.
“If you want to make a deal with me, accept my demand.”
Johan had never imagined that Ilea would care so much about Gaf’s life. If anything, it benefited him. He had gained another means of controlling her.
Johan spoke.
“That is impossible.”
Gaf was also Johan’s bare minimum lifeline. As an imp, Johan was an exceedingly fragile being.
“What a shame.”
Ilea sighed as though genuinely disappointed. A shadow crossed her face, but it quickly vanished.
She took a step closer and smiled again.
“Is there even one reason why I should let you live?”
The atmosphere turned frigid.
Raguel hiccupped. The Old Hag Spirit began to cackle.
Johan answered with an expressionless face.
“There are too many to list individually.”
“Give me one.”
“The moment you kill me, Gaf will fall into Hell.”
He had never expected to use Gaf as leverage in his negotiations with Ilea.
“So the price of his contract was protection.”
“Precisely.”
“What a meticulous demon. Unlike someone on my side, you are remarkably competent.”
The Old Hag Spirit swallowed a groan.
Johan spoke.
“So, what will you do? You cannot kill me, nor can you bring me under your command.”
“Unfortunately, you’re right. It’s rather frustrating.”
This was probably an unfamiliar experience for Ilea.
“At least pursue your own interests. If you make a deal with me, you can obtain what you desire most.”
“And what would that be?”
The corners of Johan’s lips rose.
“The Key to the Abyss.”
Ilea’s expression did not change in the slightest.
But she must have been startled.
The Old Hag Spirit’s face made that obvious. The lesser spirit visibly convulsed at the word key.
Johan continued.
“That must also be why you willingly walked into the lord’s castle. The Gorge of Death—you want to visit it as soon as possible, don’t you?”
No sooner had he finished speaking than blue light flashed from Ilea’s body. It was mana. She tilted her head.
“It isn’t mind magic… What could it be?”
She could not allow a demon to read her memories or thoughts.
Had he discovered it through deduction alone? Perhaps he had.
Johan spoke.
“I cannot answer that. Let’s not waste our strength fighting each other. We should simply exchange what we each desire.”
Ilea contemplated his words for a moment before speaking.
“If you possess it, show me some proof.”
Johan pointed toward a dark corner of the study in the distance.
One of the flames floating in the air flew in that direction.
There was an unholy formation drawn in black blood. A holy relic rested atop the sinister spell formation.
It was Kazan’s ring.
“I took it from the forbidden archive. That should answer your question.”
Ilea let out a murmur of admiration.
“…You truly are competent.”
“Are you willing to make a deal now?”
“Before that, I have one final question.”
Her smile disappeared as she spoke with considerable seriousness.
“Won’t you join me?”
Johan frowned.
“You’re persistent.”
Ilea nodded as though finally giving up.
“It can’t be helped.”
She then sat down in a chair.
“So, what must I give you?”
“Mana and a sacrifice. Those two things will suffice.”
Ilea looked at the unholy formation, then nodded in understanding.
“The mana has already been taken care of. As for the sacrifice…”
Her voice tRaeled off as she looked at Raguel.
“Do you mean the young master?”
Raguel flinched in alarm.
“J-Johan…!”
“So the demon’s name is Johan.”
It was not a particularly fitting name for a demon.
Johan spoke.
“I would like to use this fellow who is always hovering around me, but that is impossible. I need another human.”
“Do you already have someone in mind?”
“Your mother.”
Ilea frowned slightly.
“…Betra?”
“Yes.”
“That could be somewhat dangerous.”
Although Betra was a tiger without teeth, she was still one of the administrators of the lord’s castle. Her disappearance could cause complications.
“Wouldn’t one of the duke’s daughters be a better choice?”
No one would even notice if one of them disappeared.
Johan shook his head.
“I want Betra.”
Did he have some particular reason? Ilea had no way of knowing.
“…Very well, for now.”
“So you’ll make the deal?”
Ilea gave an incredulous laugh.
“You’ve left me no choice.”
Johan’s lips stretched into a broad smile.
“Bring Betra here alive and place her on the unholy formation.”
“On one condition.”