Ch.75The Correlation Between the Demon Lord and the Hero – 2

“You’re the Demon Lord, right?”

“Indeed I am.”

“And you’re also a possessor like us.”

“That is also true.”

“But why are you talking like that? You’re with us now. Can’t you speak more casually? Or is this some kind of role-playing? Can’t let go of your Demon Lord persona even now?”

Her tone was deliberately confrontational. Elisiere frowned, noticing her intention. There was nothing to gain from fellow possessors fighting as soon as they met, so she tried to intervene, suggesting she follow Priscilla’s example.

“…”

But when I saw Priscilla clinging to my side, clearly wary of Elisiere, I quietly backed off. She might not be openly hostile, but she didn’t seem to have positive feelings either.

Well, in a way, Priscilla had more reason to be hostile than Rosaria.

At least Rosaria had been killed by the Demon Lord fewer times. Priscilla’s death count was in the triple digits at minimum. The intensity of pain she must have felt while dying wouldn’t be any less than Rosaria’s.

Moreover, the fact that she died because of a curse cast by the Demon Lord made it impossible for her to maintain a pleasant expression.

“Stop it. I didn’t bring you here to fight. How are we supposed to work together when you’re growling at each other like this?”

I snapped sharply. Rosaria seemed completely intimidated by my intensity and stepped back with a surprised look.

“I’m sorry. I got too emotional remembering how you killed me before. But thinking about it, we were both just acting according to the original novel. I won’t do it again.”

She eventually offered a quiet apology. Judging by her expression, it wasn’t forced. Her heated temper seemed to have cooled somewhat.

“Very well. I was roasted alive by the hero, so I suppose we’re even.”

“But seriously, why do you talk like that? This isn’t me mocking you—I’m genuinely curious. You can speak casually with us, can’t you?”

“…”

The awkward atmosphere only dissipated after I mentioned the plan Elisiere and I had established. Though it seemed less like the tension was resolved and more like it was temporarily set aside.

Still, I was satisfied that they weren’t fighting at the moment. That would have to do for now.

You can’t expect to achieve everything at once. There would be other opportunities in the future, and we could gradually improve things later.

“…So that’s what happened.”

I laid out the entire plan I had executed with Elisiere to Rosaria and Priscilla. I wanted to be as honest as possible with these three.

“Mira. Did you fight the Demon Lord?”

Priscilla, who had been deep in thought, suddenly asked. I nodded.

“I did. That was the plan.”

“Were you hurt?”

“…”

I was about to reflexively say I wasn’t hurt badly, but in the brief moment I hesitated, Priscilla burst into tears, which made me stop in confusion.

“You were hurt, weren’t you?”

“No, no. I wasn’t hurt that ba—”

“Not hurt that badly? Look me in the eye and tell me properly. How badly were you hurt?”

As Priscilla started shedding thick tears, Rosaria shot me a sharp look. I glanced at Elisiere.

Elisiere’s eyes were gleaming.

“She was injured so severely that I vehemently opposed the plan until the very moment of execution.”

“I knew it! I just can’t live like this!”

While I was bewildered by this unexpected betrayal, Rosaria exclaimed “I knew it!” and jumped to her feet.

“Hey! What did I tell you? I said I’d trust and follow whatever plan you made, but please don’t get hurt! I asked you to prioritize your own safety! You agreed so many times, but then you made a plan that even the Demon Lord opposed because it would hurt you so badly?!”

“No, really, I wasn’t hurt that ba—”

“Since when does having your right arm severed and half your upper body torn off count as not being badly injured?”

“Hey, Elisiere, you—”

Elisiere, who had apparently been genuinely uncomfortable with having to injure me so severely despite it being part of the plan, seized this opportunity for revenge and freely divulged all the information.

Naturally, Rosaria’s face grew increasingly grim in proportion, and Priscilla’s tears flowed even thicker.

“I knew it! Why do you keep making plans where only you get hurt? You’re skilled! You’re good at fighting! Can’t you just overpower everyone and stay safe?!”

“Don’t die, Mira… Please… If you die, I’ll die too…”

On one side, Rosaria was pressing me as if she couldn’t stand it anymore, and on the other, Priscilla was clinging to me while sobbing loudly.

Elisiere was watching the scene with a look that said “you brought this on yourself.”

I personally thought that as long as I didn’t die, it didn’t matter how badly I was hurt, but I wasn’t tactless enough to say that out loud, so I just kept quiet and listened.

The heated atmosphere only subsided after quite some time. I was only able to escape after promising Rosaria dozens of times that I would consult with her first before making such plans in the future.

Priscilla curled up on my lap, burrowing into my embrace while continuing to sniffle. I stroked her head and began speaking.

“…Anyway, the reason I gathered us all here is because I think we need to discuss what happens next. It’s been a long time since the original novel’s plot became irrelevant.”

We’ve come too far to use the original story as a reference. Individual events might still be recognizable, but eventually even those will become completely distorted.

“The most important thing is that the Demon Lord is no longer the final boss.”

“Then who is the final boss?”

“I don’t know. We have no clues. I’m not even sure if there is a final boss role, but if I had to guess, it probably has something to do with that strange black energy. This is just my speculation, so don’t put too much faith in it.”

“You mean the one that felt more like demonic energy than the power the Demon Lord uses?”

“Exactly. Do you know anything about it? Elisiere and I don’t.”

Rosaria and Priscilla seemed to be pondering, but almost simultaneously shook their heads. I expected as much.

“Speaking of that, there’s something I want to tell you about the black energy. It’s also related to why I forced the hero to awaken.”

“What is it?”

I took a deep breath. Then I squeezed Priscilla’s hand tightly. She seemed surprised for a moment, but then covered my hand with both of hers and squeezed back.

Feeling that warm comfort, I summoned a light spear in my left hand.

“Huh…?”

When light similar to the Holy Sword’s suddenly emanated from my hand, Rosaria and Elisiere looked shocked. Priscilla, who was holding my hand, was no exception.

“…Um, Mira. What is that?”

“Just a spear. It has a name, but I don’t really like to call it that. If I had to give it a name… I guess it would be the Holy Spear.”

“…Holy Spear?”

Rosaria repeated, as if recalling something. I nodded.

“Yes. Elisiere, this is the source of the power you said was similar to the Holy Sword.”

“Similar to the Holy Sword’s power?!”

Rosaria exclaimed with her mouth wide open instead of Elisiere. Elisiere looked so shocked she seemed to have forgotten how to speak.

“I don’t know how it works, but Elisiere said she felt power similar to the Holy Sword from the crater I made. Of course, she wouldn’t have known about this spear’s existence at the time.”

“Wh… what…?”

“The reason I awakened the hero now is because of this. The black energy disappeared without a trace as soon as it touched this. If the two weapons’ powers are that similar, wouldn’t the Holy Sword be able to purify it too?”

I paused slightly after saying that. I had been mentally preparing to reveal this secret since before coming here.

Though I wasn’t completely ready.

“And… I didn’t want to bring this out if I could avoid it. This weapon symbolizes my failure.”

At the mention of failure, Priscilla and Rosaria’s expressions hardened. They seemed to realize it was time for a story about my past. Elisiere looked confused, probably because she didn’t know about my past.

With a bitter smile, I began my explanation.

That this was given to me by the only person I had opened up to in the first world I possessed, who was half-dead and asked me to become their savior in their place.

That despite that, I couldn’t properly awaken it until I had slaughtered hundreds of thousands of humans who rushed at me begging, “Please die and save us.”

That it awakened from the desperate wishes, the desire to live, and the resentment toward me for not dying as their savior, all mixed together from the dying screams of hundreds of thousands of humans.

That the light of this Holy Spear was forged from human blood and flesh.

That such a weapon doesn’t deserve to be called a Holy Spear.

“…”

Elisiere, who was hearing about my past for the first time, looked dumbfounded, and Rosaria, for whom this was the second time, couldn’t hide her discomfort.

Priscilla, with a tearful face, squirmed in my embrace, trying hard to comfort me.

“When I was given something to become humanity’s savior, but awakened it by killing all those humans—what else could it be but a symbol of failure?”

After finishing my explanation, I dismissed the light spear with a bitter smile. The atmosphere had become much more depressing than after our earlier fight.

This is why I didn’t want to talk about the past. It brings everyone down, both the speaker and the listeners. But I couldn’t just gloss over it either, so the best thing was to change the subject quickly.

I deliberately clapped my hands loudly.

“Well, that’s enough gloomy talk. We still have plenty of time, so let’s leave it at that for today. Let’s use the rest of the time to rest. How does that sound?”

I had deliberately skipped Friday’s liberal arts class again, so we still had Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday until Monday. That was enough time to just relax for a day.

That was partly why I came here in the first place.

“Especially you, Elisiere. You should rest well. It’s been a while since you’ve been able to enjoy human comforts while in the demon realm, right?”

“…Indeed.”

“So what would you like to do first? Anything you want to try?”

At my question, Elisiere seemed to consider something briefly before carefully speaking.

“Um… Head Maid. Is this really all right?”

“Have I ever lied about matters concerning the young master?”

“No! Never!”

Nika Yustera, once a succubus but now living a completely different life, reflexively responded to Beatrice’s words before hastily correcting herself.

The memory of receiving “education” and having the posture and mindset of a maid mercilessly drilled into her was still vivid.

“B-but the master said he doesn’t need any attendants…”

“The young master has always been like that. From childhood until now, he hasn’t changed at all.”

From the time he could properly express himself, the youngest master always tried to handle everything himself, from simple tasks to major issues. Even though his body was so frail.

He had even tried to prepare food in the kitchen himself once, saying that since he had a healthy body with two hands and two feet, he could manage his own meals.

That night, Beatrice had gathered all the maids of the mansion. If Mira hadn’t stopped her, the garden floor would surely have been covered in stomach acid.

After that, Beatrice became convinced that if she took his “I’m fine” at face value, he would take on everything alone. She needed to stay by his side and understand his intentions without him having to say them.

He was a very demanding type of master, but Beatrice was confident. After all, she had served by his side for 18 years. If she couldn’t do that much, she would be failing as a maid.

“Listen carefully, Yustera. The young master is someone who doesn’t show when he’s struggling. Therefore, as maids, we must always act with an understanding of the young master’s intentions.”

There was a reason they had come all this way. The young master was staying with friends from school for three whole days, yet claimed he didn’t need any attendants?

That couldn’t be right. He was clearly trying to handle everything by himself again.

As soon as she finished cleaning the mansion, Beatrice quickly made a proposal, and both the head of the household and his wife praised her greatly and gave permission for her to leave her post.

Having secured both justification and practical benefit, Beatrice was invincible.

“Yes, yes! I understand!”

“If you understand, let’s go.”

“Yes! Hup!”

Yustera let out a spirited shout as she lifted the luggage.

A button from under the bust of her maid uniform popped off with a ping.

“…”

Looking at the button rolling on the floor and the enormous mass asserting its presence through the gap, Beatrice quietly sighed.