episode_0033

“No, you mean that was a confession letter?”

“Then how did you see that it wasn’t a confession letter?”

Wow, seriously, this is ridiculous!

Leah grabbed a handful of her flowing yellow hair in frustration.

Until now, I thought it was frustrating to see Abel like that so much but not express it, but compared to this guy, Abel was on the fast track.

Even if we keep talking, it’s not like he doesn’t like me either. How can he not know that?

“No, I didn’t even know that damn succubus- Hira sent it.”

“Be quiet before I put the grill down. Yeah, somehow you said the screws weren’t loose…”

Galvein, who was doing dogeza, tried to come up with an excuse of his own, but Leah couldn’t hear it.

Even if you listen to what Mino said before, Hira still has feelings for you, but you act like you’re enemies even though you both have feelings for her?

“If you had revealed this not in this ruin but in the front yard of the Demon King’s Castle, where there were no dangerous elements, I would have definitely hung you…”

Leah muttered as she placed ice on her forehead, which had turned bright red. It was because she had been hitting her forehead too many times while listening to the story.

“…Khuh-hem. No, that’s not true-”

“Wow, you’re such a total idiot? Richie needs to be smart too, but you really… How did you get Richie?”

“Right? What I’m saying is- …Huh?”

My head, which was about to nod absentmindedly, stopped in its tracks due to the awkwardness. It was definitely just me and Galvein, but what was this man’s voice?

As we turned our heads, we could see a horned man sitting cross-legged next to us, nodding calmly.

With his black hair and horns, if you only look at him up to that point, you could say he looks like a demon who can’t even gamble, but he looks human in essence. If that’s true, then he must be the Demon King, but since the Demon King is Abel, the person in front of you can’t be the Demon King.

Coming here, it was easy to deduce that he was the owner of these ruins.

“Owner of the ruins?”

“Oh, that’s right. Noah, this is my ruins. You are intruders. ”

At first he seemed hostile, but somehow I was convinced that he was joking.

“Wow… I was expecting a more interesting reaction.”

“Owner of the ruins.”

“So, you’re the one who used this summoning magic circle?”

“Let me get straight to the point, we-”

The man opened his mouth first to block Galvein’s jaw from cracking as he tried to communicate his intentions.

“Exploring the ruins? Or- To get the ark? I know everything. So, I’ll explain everything, so just follow me. It doesn’t look like you guys have much time.”

“Ark?”

“Doesn’t the person who created it remember?”

When I questioned him, he asked me back with a question instead. It didn’t end with a question, but his eyes clearly asked me that question.

“Well, it’ll take a long time to explain.”

“…What do I believe in about you that makes me follow you?”

“Then you two can discuss it, I’ll wait while eating the snack you brought.”

In an instant, the snacks in my backpack disappeared. Oh, and that guy too.

“…hmm…”

“What do you think, Galvein?”

“At first glance, it doesn’t seem hostile… but I don’t know. There must be some kind of behavioral principle, but is there a reason to be unconditionally friendly? Just follow your instincts. This relic is important, but if your life is at stake, I have to hold off.”

“…”

Yes, Abel will be waiting outside.

Now I’m not a warrior, so I don’t need to gamble. But…

“I think it’ll be okay. Let’s follow. Anyway, if they don’t open the door, we won’t be able to get out, so it’s better to do as we’re told. And what did you come to the ruins for?”

“Hmm… Well, if that’s what you want.”

The opinion was quickly decided. Actually, when I think about it, it seems like there was no other choice. Well, I guess it’s good for our mental health to think that we made our choice.

“I’ve decided, please guide me.”

“Oh, it’s over soon?”

Wow, I ate all those snacks in that short time… Let’s think of this as a guide fee. Otherwise, I want to keep calculating the cost of each snack in my head, which is at least several tens of silver. It’s a waste of money, though.

Oh. If you think about it that way, there’s no need to worry about it. In the first place, all that money was probably embezzled from the Demon King’s Castle.

“Hmm, this isn’t a good place to talk. Should we move a bit?”

On the pure white wall, there was a blue scratch engraved, as if it had been there for some time. When the man with the black impression placed his hand on it, the scenery changed to a windowless place, presumably a wooden cabin.

“…Teleport? No, this is something more advanced…”

“Leave that rich friend who ruined my relationship alone. He’ll listen to me anyway. Rather than that, don’t you have something to ask me?”

“Do you have any questions?”

There wasn’t anything special. In the first place, I came to this ruin because Galvein insisted on it, not because I was curious about anything. I just followed along because I was bored.

“Yeah, Noah. You’ve been talking nonsense since earlier, right?”

“…You’ve been calling me Noah from the beginning.”

“You’re just now noticing? I gave you hints several times.”

“How do you know that name?”

“Let me ask you the opposite, how do you think you know?”

“…”

“What do you think my identity is?”

“Uh uh…”

I don’t know. I can’t really think of anyone.

“Well, it’s normal not to know. That dumbfounded expression is kind of funny, isn’t it?”

“Oh, shit. You’re kidding me? So what’s the answer?”

“If I say the sixth demon lord… will you know?”

I don’t know.

…No, I know, I thought about it carefully. Abel mentioned it in passing last time.

A Demon King whose records were erased, and… a Demon King who caused an ‘accident’ so big that it was forbidden to mention it within the Demon Clan.

“Somehow he seemed like the Demon King. …I guess I shouldn’t trust my intuition. He retreated when I hit the hero. Galvein? …Galvein? You’re not here to watch the magic, are you? No, …he’s not here?”

-bang!!

“…hic.”

The sixth demon lord slammed the table hard instead of speaking. With a bang, her hair rose in all directions and then sagged again. At the same time, a chill ran up her spine, and she flinched and crouched like a normal girl. Only when the threat gradually diminished was she able to open her eyes. And then, she realized that she and that person were the only two people left in this space. Did she touch the space again in the meantime?

“There’s nothing more threatening than calming down.”

“…What are you trying to say?”

“The distrust is deep… I just think it’s a whim.”

He shrugged his shoulders slightly, but my alertness was already at its peak. The situation just now contained that much pressure.

“…But you know. Do you really not recognize me?”

“I don’t know enough to say something like this is fake.”

“Then I guess I should call you by your name in this life. …Should I guess? Noel? No…Belphia?”

Didn’t something come out that shouldn’t have come out first or second?

“Call me Leah.”

“Oh, right. Leah. You don’t know anything about the ark?”

“No, I made it? By pouring money into it. Maybe… to fight against the goddess’s tyranny?”

“That would be easier said than done.”

As I recalled the faint events of the past that were beyond my memory, the sixth demon king scratched his cheek with an awkward smile.

“It may be a bit new, but… This isn’t our first time meeting. Not the second, nor the third… It’s the thirteenth time to be exact. Isn’t that a pretty meaningful number?”

“…13th?”

“Leah, if you think about it for a bit, the answer will come to you. There’s no way a human could tear through a dimension and escape from a goddess by building a tower with money. If you were royalty or a duke, it might be possible, but you were a young lord of a guild that hadn’t even been established for a century, right? ”

“That’s right… ”

I can say this with certainty because I was a warrior in this life. What I did in my previous life was close to impossible.

“But the plan was close to success. So how did Noah complete the ark?”

“…”

“I see. That’s right. It’s me. I helped build ‘Noah’s Ark’. As your assistant.”

“Ha…”

“What, why is your expression like that? You must have felt it clearly from the moment you first set foot on the ruins. ‘This is safe.’ It wouldn’t be easy to think that way in a place where the magic of the 9th circle can be easily cut off, right?”

“Then is it because I feel safe here that I feel familiar with it?”

“That’s right. Intuition is also an extension of experience, right? That’s exactly what it is.”

“…”

To be honest, I still don’t trust him very much. Maybe it’s because his attitude is so playful.

Still, I could tell that what would come out of his mouth was something I definitely needed in the future. So,

“The reason you’re holding me back like this is because there’s something you absolutely have to hear.”

It’s creepy. I’m sick of being in the lead in something now. It’s even more so when it comes from someone I know but don’t remember and who is clearly dangerous.

But my intuition tells me to listen to this story.

If this story helps my future…

No, if it’s a story that needs to be heard in order to go with the people who are with me, then you have to hear it.

At least this time, instead of having my whole body torn apart and being mentally abused, I just got to hear the story of Abel’s boss, who I knew without knowing it. Right?

“Tell me.”

“Ha, haha! Hahahahahaha! Yeah, that’s you. Standing up for others. For the people you love.”

The sixth demon lord laughed loudly. His face was buried in his arms so I couldn’t see it, so for a moment I thought I had said something wrong.

“Yeah, now that it feels a bit like the old days, I like it. Remember that, Leah. My name is El, the sixth Demon Lord, and… from now on, I will tell you ‘everything’ you need to know. ”