Contracts Are Important, But the Law Is Far and Fists Are Near(2)

“You two, won’t you join our side?”

“…Huh?”

“…What?”

Morgan and Isolde uttered sounds of confusion at my words.

Seeing the two of them making uncharacteristically stupid expressions, I scratched my head.

Certainly, from their perspective, it must be confusing for the person who knocked them down, kidnapped them, and imprisoned them to now ask them to join as allies.

I too was utterly confused when the Demon King said I’d make a good companion on the Sky Island.

But my request now was sincerely genuine. Although it’s a bit disappointing that it’s not all four demon executives, if we can definitely bring Morgan and Isolde to our side, things will become easier going forward, just like when we created Mu.

And the method I prepared for this was simple.

“Hmm… Let me speak more precisely.”

To be honest, it’s still not a method I’m entirely comfortable with, but since it can definitively solve the aftermath issues, this is probably the best approach.

Using force to subdue them, torture, or brainwashing are all options only if this method doesn’t work first.

Therefore, I hesitated for a moment, clearing my throat as if to overcome the reluctance blocking my throat, and finally steeled my resolve and spoke the words I had prepared.

“Won’t you join the side of me, who knows the future?”

Silence fell.

Without footsteps, rustling sounds, or even the sound of breathing, only silence flowed through the laboratory.

The air was so heavy with the awkwardness emanating from the silence that it wouldn’t be strange to die from it. I had expected this kind of atmosphere, but it’s still quite taxing on the heart.

Morgan and Isolde were silent because they couldn’t properly understand my words just now, and Mu and I maintained silence while waiting for their response.

“……”

“……”

My words were undoubtedly intuitive, but it seemed the two of them needed considerable time to understand.

Mu, standing beside me, pouted sullenly, seemingly dissatisfied that the two didn’t immediately believe my words, but I gave her a light flick on the forehead to straighten out that expression.

Forcing a choice here would negate the meaning of stating this fact. It only has meaning if they believe of their own will.

Therefore, I kept my mouth tightly shut, allowing them enough time to think, and the heavy silence continued to flow through the room for as long as they needed to think.

And after who knows how long, roughly when the minute hand might have moved three times, Isolde opened her inorganic eyes and looked at us.

“Then…”

“Hmm?”

“Show me proof that you know the future.”

Oh, as expected, she needs proof.

Certainly, in the current situation, my claim of knowing the future would be nothing more than baseless nonsense to them.

It was a natural flow to ask us to show proof, wanting to see something credible.

But even taking that into account, I was slightly impressed by Isolde’s boldness.

If we had taken their lives lightly, such a question would be tantamount to suicide, given that they knew they were in an inferior position.

However, Isolde asked calmly. Judging that this much wouldn’t cross the line that would get them killed.

And since this judgment was actually correct, how could I not be impressed? As expected of Isolde. She had the personality and coolness as per her setting.

Well, it could also be that she threw out the question not caring what happened to their lives, but I wanted to believe it was the former. That way, we could use them more diversely.

Anyway, what Isolde demanded was proof of my words.

There’s plenty of evidence to prove that I know the future, but not much that can be explained in words.

And if we limit that evidence to what demons would know about, it narrows down to very few, but even so, this one thing should be enough for them to be convinced.

“The Human-Demon War.”

“……”

“You’re planning to start the Human-Demon War in 5 years. You’ll gather demon armies at the border of the southern Kingdom of Frigia, swallow the southeastern Sama Empire led by the Demon King, create a confrontational structure, and declare war. The Human-Demon War breaks out, and your hidden trump card is the massive annihilation magic circle formed by demonic energy, which you’ve started working on recently, 5 years prior.”

How about that? Am I wrong?

In the game’s story, the demons start a preemptive attack to occupy the continent. No matter how much the future has changed due to my intervention, this part surely wouldn’t have changed.

As it was a strategy devised by the executives 5, no, 10 years ago, this was absolutely unchangeable future content.

Especially the part about just starting to plant demonic energy across the continent to create magic circles would surely not have changed.

This was truly like the demons’ hidden trump card, so even if I kidnapped Isolde, Idea would surely be going around alone to set them up across the continent.

And since this operation was planned only among themselves, they couldn’t even suspect it had been exposed, and in the end, they had no choice but to believe my words, which could otherwise be dismissed as delusions.

As expected, at my words filled with confidence without even a hint of hesitation, Isolde and Morgan nodded simultaneously, without either going first.

“Yes… It’s hard to believe, but you clearly seem to know the future.”

“Now, do you feel like joining my side?”

“To be honest, I do. If you already know all of our plans, it’s clearly a losing battle, and more than that, it seems there’s no way out of here, so it’s better than refusing the offer and dying.”

Isolde nodded with a short sigh to my question asked once again. Morgan, who was watching her from the side, grinned and said to her.

“What’s this, Isolde? You’re talking a lot. Are you that eager to live?”

“Of course. I don’t want to end my life here. If I can live somehow, I will.”

Isolde answered in an unchanged tone to Morgan’s teasing words.

At that response, Morgan exhaled through her nose as if uninterested and leaned back against the wall, while Isolde still looked at me as if she had a few more things to ask.

“I’ll join your side. But before that, may I ask a few things?”

“Of course. I’ll answer everything as long as you don’t cross the line.”

As long as you don’t cross the line. At those words, Isolde swallowed hard with a tense look, though she didn’t show it outwardly.

In truth, even if she crossed the line, I had no intention of killing them since they had already agreed to join our side, but it seemed to be quite a burdensome statement from Isolde’s perspective.

For Isolde, this statement probably meant that her life could be forfeit with just one question.

Perhaps because of this, she had compromised with herself? Isolde asked me in a slightly reduced voice compared to just now.

“Then I’ll ask just one thing. Even if I join your side, will there be anything for me to do? I’m a demon after all.”

“Things to do? Of course, there’s a mountain of tasks overflowing. And since you’re a demon, your basic physical abilities should be overwhelmingly superior to humans, so I’ll make you do that much more. Don’t worry.”

“……”

At my words, Isolde looked at me as if wanting a more detailed answer rather than such a vague one, but I lightly ignored her and turned my gaze to Morgan.

If I had told her specifically what kind of work I would make her do, she might have withdrawn her statement about joining my side.

So, turning my gaze to Morgan, I asked her.

“Then what will you do?”

“Haah… I guess I have no choice. Although I love the demons, it’s not more than my own life. Besides, if Isolde’s in, how could I not join?”

“Good, then I’ll take it that you both accept. Mu.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Although she spoke at length, it meant she would join my side anyway. Only after getting acceptance from both Morgan and Isolde did I call Mu, who was standing behind me.

Then Mu walked towards me, holding her staff.

However, before Mu could properly move, Isolde opened her eyes wide at the previous conversation and voiced her question while looking at Mu.

“Mu? Wasn’t that one’s name Meiyel? No, to begin with, calling you mother is…”

Isolde seemed to be confused by the information she knew, hearing me call Mu by her real name, whom she thought was Meiyel, and Mu’s appearance calling me mother, but soon she seemed to find the answer herself, and I firmly confirmed it to her.

“It’s as you think. This one is a homunculus I created.”

“I see… Then perhaps the other sisters are homunculi too?”

“I’ll tell you about that after you sign this contract first.”

Now that genuine interest had arisen, it seemed she had forgotten about worrying for her life.

Feeling that if I indulged everything like this, it would never end, I avoided answering and gestured to Mu, and at that gesture, Mu swung her staff to float two contracts made of magic power between me and Morgan and Isolde.

“This is…”

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen this…”

The two opened their eyes as if familiar with the contract written only in sky-blue magic power.

“As you both know, it’s a magic power contract. Since I need an absolute agreement, stamp your plasma here.”

“Indeed, with this there shouldn’t be any problems.”

“Hmm.”

Magic power contract.

This contract with a simple name was literally a contract between magic and magic, a contract of souls, made only of magic power.

It’s a kind of absolute agreement contract that must be kept until death because the contract is maintained wherever there is even a slight magic power, and all living beings in this world cannot live where there is no magic power.

And the content I had elegantly written out on the magic power contract I handed to the two had just four points:

First. Maintaining secrecy.

Second. Obedience to orders.

Third. Prohibition of intentional self-harm or suicide.

Fourth. Obtaining permission from me when wielding force.

In other words, to put it concisely, it meant I would use them while keeping them from revealing secrets about me until death, preventing suicide or intentional homicide, and even putting a leash on them just in case.

Of course, if left like this, it would be no different from a slave contract, so there was a chance they wouldn’t accept it, so I wrote on the side that I wouldn’t make unreasonable requests or tasks beyond their abilities, or oppress them like livestock.

And perhaps thinking that these conditions were quite good for being in the weaker position, Morgan and Isolde nodded and bit their fingers to draw blood.

As they rubbed their fingers on the fingerprint section of the floating contract, the contract divided into two.

The contract, divided into a total of four pages, seeped in with two pages for me and one page each for Morgan and Isolde, and I lightly clenched my fist at the slight sense of compulsion beginning to be felt in my body.

There’s nothing particularly special, but it feels like the magic power in the air is saying that the contents of the contract must be kept.

The two seemed to feel the same sensation as me, showing similar expressions, and I drew my sword to cut their sealing devices in half.

Now that they had even signed the contract, there was no reason to restrain them anymore.

Rustle── Clank!

The two rose from their seats, rubbing the parts where the handcuffs and shackles that had bound them were, as if they were sore.

I smiled slightly at them and welcomed them.

“I’ll make sure you don’t regret joining my side.”

I say this because I have that much confidence. And at these words of mine, the two looked at each other and then nodded to me.

“I hope so. Otherwise, there’d be no point in begging for our lives.”

“I’ll look forward to it.”

I have confidence. At my words filled with certainty once again, Morgan and Isolde slightly raised the corners of their mouths while accepting my welcome greeting in their own ways.

Mu beside me frowned as if disliking this scene that could be described as harmonious, but well, it was just a sulk that would be resolved later with a single pat on the head.

So, turning my attention away from Mu, I drew the sword at my waist with a bright smile.

“But before that, I’ll first remove the other species extermination DNA ingrained in your demon genes.”

After all, it would be difficult to use you if the demon nature remains intact.

It’s going to hurt quite a bit, but bear with it even if it hurts.

On this day, the screams of two demons pleasantly echoed through the laboratory.