Ch.118118. Hope

The place where I held Iclit’s small, pretty head in my hand was, coincidentally, a village on the outskirts of Count of Burko’s territory.

The House of Burko.

They were a clan rumored to have twenty magicians, including illegitimate children. Now they were being put to work in my territory.

Formally, they were merely incorporated into the personal rehabilitation system.

Unlike those working in labor camps, they received wages and could rest during their free time after working set hours. As if that wasn’t enough, they even enjoyed the privilege of sleeping in clean beds and eating at dining tables.

But in reality, they were just slaves.

To prevent disruptive behavior, several clan members skilled in offensive magic had been placed under restrictions, and although they were given wages, the amounts were pitiful. Even then, they could only spend it on necessities at the store.

After the Cordana incident, the Empire had become a strange country where anything was possible, but this measure was shocking even considering that.

If the imperial family or other high nobles had done something like this, they would have faced tremendous resistance. Regardless of John Burko’s misdeeds, the very collapse of a high noble in this manner would create a sense of crisis in noble society.

‘No, others wouldn’t even dare attempt it in the first place.’

It meant that only I could commit such acts with composure.

While I often feel depressed because of this privilege that isn’t really a privilege, it must be quite frightening from an observer’s perspective. For a normal human… no, even for a demon, directly targeting me would be foolish.

Yes, foolish indeed.

“But what were you thinking when you did this?”

It was something I muttered unconsciously while staring down at Iclit, who was whimpering with her shattered face in my grip.

No answer came. Just squirming.

Iclit was a much weaker being than I had imagined.

It was almost embarrassing to compare her to Olber, the Tetrad member from Akrich who had put up a decent fight against me even with depleted magical power before being cut down, or the Beast King Leoneo who had submitted to me of his own accord.

“Huu… huaa…”

She clutched her broken nose, dripping blood. Looking closely, it seemed several of her front teeth were broken too.

Seeing her like this might make it look like I had beaten her mercilessly, but I hadn’t even properly used violence yet. I’d just slammed her face into a wooden table a few times and then thrown her forcefully against the wall. That’s all.

Just a greeting, so to speak. That’s all it was.

Yet with just that greeting, Iclit was completely incapacitated, trembling all over. And she hadn’t even suffered any fatal injuries.

‘No, she’s still a demon after all.’

Perhaps she was waiting for me to lower my guard while chanting a spell. Being a species so proficient in magic, she might cast a spell without any incantation.

There were suspicious circumstances too.

Her black horns and tail, which had been hidden by disguise magic, had now materialized. Her once inconspicuous brown hair had turned silver. She must have recalled the magical power she had invested in disguise magic to attack me.

I decided to wait and see what Iclit would do.

Not out of any competitive desire to face a proper Tetrad member, but simply because I was dumbfounded.

“……”

Intermittent groans, fidgeting limbs, and a tail swishing beneath her skirt.

No matter how long I waited, no counterattack came. I thought she would at least use some magic to divert my attention and look for a chance to escape.

After an awkward silence continued for some time, I finally realized what Iclit was trying to do.

“Are you perhaps wondering what to say to appease my anger and get out of this situation?”

“……”

“You’re still scheming even in this situation? Really?”

Iclit didn’t respond, but her tail stopped moving. She curled up tightly and turned her back to me. It seemed I wasn’t wrong.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Do you know how many people abandoned their homes believing in that wretched certificate? I don’t know exactly, but probably thousands. And it’s not just a disaster for those thousands. Directly and indirectly, hundreds of thousands are affected.”

I said this while firmly stepping on the back of Iclit’s head.

“…That’s not true.”

“No, it is.”

“……”

“Let’s say a family returns to their hometown after learning the truth in my territory. If they spent all their cash to hire a merchant carriage on the way up, they’d have to walk back home on foot for weeks.”

Many would likely become homeless rather than risk their lives returning home, but even if they steeled themselves and went back, only despair would await them.

All their property would have already been transferred to their neighbors.

I’d heard countless people had given all their livestock to neighbors for just 300,000 or 400,000 Lyra. Some had even given up this year’s harvest.

Would the neighbors who took their assets willingly return them?

‘Of course not.’

At best, they might reclaim their empty houses and gardens. After that would follow endless discord and animosity.

In the end, because of this one Iclit, dozens of villages had become living hells.

“And you still think compromise is…” I started to say before firmly closing my mouth.

It wasn’t just that I realized lecturing the cowering Iclit was pointless. Rather, I had figured out how to deal with this creature who still believed “negotiation” with me was possible.

……

Yes.

For her, merely inflicting physical pain wouldn’t be enough.

After pondering briefly, I slightly removed my foot that had been pressing down on Iclit’s head. Then, in a somewhat softened tone, I said:

“Get up. If I have to tell you twice, I’ll just kill you.”

“Hup.”

At this announcement, Iclit immediately raised her head.

Silver hair and blue eyes. Her skin was smooth, befitting a succubus.

Though I had made her kiss the table, her facial contours had returned to a relatively normal shape. She must have healed herself to reduce the pain. I had been worried since I couldn’t heal her with holy power, but that was fortunate.

Regardless of her injuries, Iclit’s face was stained with fear.

Her forcibly upturned lips were trembling, and tears welled up in her eyes. Perhaps wanting to look a bit better to me, she wiped away the blood smeared around her mouth, but it didn’t evoke any sympathy.

“You probably won’t survive anyway.”

“…Ah.”

“But I don’t have time to play with you now. I’m going to transport you to the imperial capital, and if you want to run your mouth on the way, I won’t stop you. …Even a demon deserves a chance to talk freely before dying.”

Iclit’s expression brightened ever so slightly. She seemed to think she might find a way to survive. It was exactly the reaction I had expected.

***

Tears kept coming to her eyes.

On the road, being transported after being captured by the Hero.

Iclit was desperately racking her brain to find a way to survive.

Though she had lived a long life as a demon, she had never so desperately wrung out her wisdom. She had no choice. If she couldn’t change the Hero’s mind, she would truly die.

Of course, it wasn’t a good environment for scheming.

She was currently being transported in a cargo wagon while bound. What’s more, the wagon was being driven by the succubi who had accompanied her. There could be no greater humiliation.

Still, she tried to talk somehow.

“Um, Hero. What if I guide you to the Demon Lord’s castle?”

“Not needed. Did you think I would be tempted by that?”

“No, that’s… wait, just wait…!”

Thwack!

Whenever the Hero felt she was saying something worthless, he would immediately resort to violence. Either stabbing her thigh with his holy sword or grabbing her ankle and slamming her to the ground.

It hurt. It really hurt.

Though she could somehow heal her wounds with magic, the pain of being slammed like laundry was indescribably intense.

And she was as frightened as she was hurt. Because she knew the Hero was carefully calibrating his violence to keep her just short of death.

‘This crazy bastard. Why is he going this far?’

Growing desperate, Iclit spilled everything she knew to prove her value.

“Bynessa of the Tetrad? She’s just a fool with strong magic power who happens to be the chief of staff. She’s always by the Demon Lord’s side unless there’s a special situation, so you should prepare for that. …Ah, she has become a bit incompetent since I influenced her.”

“Succubi…! They’re very docile as long as their desires are satisfied. They’re not without greed for money, but it’s not their top priority. If you set up high-class brothels in good locations, they’ll gladly follow any orders.”

“I know there’s a theory that getting involved with succubi turns you into a wreck, but that doesn’t mean we want humans to die completely. With proper supervision, we can exercise self-restraint.”

“And, and… Ah, right. I also know the whereabouts of vampires.”

Iclit had given away all her resources without reservation. She was betraying the Demon Lord’s army, but now wasn’t the time to worry about that.

She had given more than just knowledge. She had long since handed over the jewels she had taken when escaping from the allied nations. They were precious, but not more valuable than her life.

If she could just survive, if she could just live safely, she was willing to give anything.

After several days like this, fortunately, Hero Erick’s sharp attitude seemed to be softening. At some point, even the level of violence had decreased. Just hitting the back of her head? Of course, even that felt like her eyeballs would pop out.

‘Still, there’s hope.’

Thinking about it, the Hero didn’t really have a reason to kill her.

The certificate fraud had already happened. Those directly affected were all commoners.

Though the Hero’s honor had been damaged, killing Iclit herself wouldn’t change anything. It would be much better to use her as a subordinate and make good use of her.

As she was reassuring herself, the imperial capital came into view.

The metropolis where all the continent’s resources and talents gathered, humanity’s core stronghold.

It was also the city that had provided her with an opportunity for advancement. If she hadn’t witnessed the madness of humans at the Cordana exchange that day, she would still be living as a low-ranking succubus.

‘If only I hadn’t volunteered then… no, what’s the point of thinking about that now?’

As she was sinking into regret, the Hero instructed a middle-aged knight to untie her bonds.

Finally being released from the tight bindings that had been constricting her. It almost felt like a reward for her struggles to survive over the past few days.

I survived.

Iclit let out a sigh of relief. The Hero not only untied her but even lightly placed his hand on her shoulder.

He wouldn’t offer words of comfort, of course; he was probably just confirming her willingness to submit. That would be the natural progression.

Iclit turned to face the Hero with a pitiful expression.

But the next moment.

The words the Hero spoke were far from what she had expected.

“Do you know how Gwon Heejin died?”

At these words, Iclit froze with a smile on her lips. The Hero looked at her and quietly smiled back.