episode_0152

“…What the hell.”

“……”

“Now I understand why you wouldn’t say anything, so you don’t have to hold your tongue anymore. I don’t plan on blabbing about it either.”

I spoke while staring at the corpse of the demonic beast that had just exploded in front of me. It had burst right before my eyes, drenching both the girl and me in its blood. So much for returning safely now.

“……”

I whispered quietly to the girl, who still kept her mouth shut. Hmm, so this was how I’d phrased it back then, wasn’t it?

“”

“…!”

Her reaction was immediate. The girl, who had been sizing me up in silence, instantly climbed on top of me. The only problem was that she did it while wrapping her hands around my neck.

“? !”

As she spat out agitated words, I slowly began to speak. Just like before, in the language used by the demons.

“Slowly. I can’t… speak demon tongue… well.”

Most people believe that demons are mere invaders of the continent, beings who revel in destruction and slaughter. But of course, that isn’t true. They have their own civilization and a language they share among themselves. If demons were truly nothing more than savage beasts, humanity—armed with heroes—wouldn’t have been pushed back so easily.

That’s why, in my previous life, I became obsessed with the idea that learning the demon language might be useful. So I studied their tongue, “Maren,” from demons—both those I captured and those on the verge of death.

Of course, their linguistic structure was completely different from that of humans. And since their vocal organs were entirely dissimilar as well, mastering it perfectly was impossible.

At best, I could only stammer out words like a child. It earned me mocking remarks about whether all my effort had been for nothing.

Still, my comprehension was decent enough that I could clearly make out what the girl had just said to the demonic beast.

“「Burst.」”

Just three words.

That was all it took for a massive demonic beast to explode into pieces. Whether or not she was the Demon King, it meant she wielded power on par with one. So if I recklessly provoked her or even hinted at trying to use her, I’d be the next one to burst.

“ANSWER ME. HOW CAN YOU OUR SPEECH?”

“You’re asking how I speak Maren.”

“RIGHT. YOU’RE HUMAN. A HUMAN CAPABLE OF … I’VE NEVER HEARD OF THAT.”

“Of course you haven’t. I taught myself.”

“UNBELIEVABLE. YOU—”

“But I’m talking to you. A first for you, isn’t it?”

Even if I could speak Maren, I couldn’t articulate it as fluently as the demons who’d used it since birth. If I hadn’t managed to maintain the conversation without breaking it off, I would’ve been dead in an instant.

“I wish. To be allies. With you. Scared. Don’t want death.”

“…Tell me YOUR NAME.”

“My name?”

“I CAN’T JUST TRUST YOU. I NEED YOUR NAME TO . NEED IT FOR .”

I didn’t fully grasp her words, but her intent was clear. She meant there could be no conversation without knowing each other’s names.

Introductions are the most basic prerequisite for any mutual exchange. Since I was the one at a disadvantage here, I complied without resistance.

“Eric Grave.”

“ER ?”

“No, that pronunciation is… wrong. Here…”

After a few attempts, I managed to accurately teach her how to say my name.

“Eric. Eric Grave… That’s your name?”

“Yeah! You got it.”

“My name is El.”

“El?”

The name, reminiscent of a certain famous detective, made me double-check. But the answer remained the same.

“El. No other names.”

“Alright… So are we good now?”

The girl—El—nodded.

“THIS COMPLETES THE PREPARATION. NOW, ALL THAT’S LEFT IS FOR YOU TO HELP ME.”

“Cooperation?”

El spoke, her face flushed as red as her hair. Unlike before, her tone was eerily quiet.

“I KNOW THIS IS BURDENSOME. I’LL REPAY THIS DEBT . BUT STILL, I’LL ASK YOU. SO THAT WE CAN LEAVE THIS FOREST ALIVE.”

“Leave? Can’t we just kill any demonic beasts we come across, like you just did?”

“NO. MY MANA IS DEPLETED FROM THAT FIGHT.”

“What? Why?”

“I DON’T HAVE TO EXPLAIN THAT TO SOMEONE WHO ISN’T . IF YOU WANT TO KNOW—”

“Fine, fine! Whatever. Just move it along.”

My urgency had a reason. Obviously, the demonic beast we’d just killed wasn’t the only one in this forest. As if on cue, the previously silent woods began echoing with howls again. The demonic beast El had exploded must’ve been the strongest here—which was why it had hunted first—and now its underlings were moving in for the kill.

“You said ‘so we can survive’? Then what’s there to hesitate about? Hurry up!”

“THANK YOU FOR AGREEING. IT WON’T TAKE LONG.”

Crimson mana flickered ominously from El’s hand, rising like flames. Then, she reached it out toward me.

“TAKE MY HAND.”

“Take it? Like this?”

“DON’T WORRY. IT WON’T BURN YOU. THIS IS JUST PROOF OF THE OATH BETWEEN ME AND YOU. IT WON’T HURT…”

“……”

Still suspicious, I clasped her hand firmly. The moment I did, the flames writhing on her palm transformed, winding around our arms like serpents.

“WH—?! THE HELL IS THIS—”

“SHH, STAY STILL! IF YOU MOVE, IT’LL FAIL.”

Her tone, as if soothing a child, made me freeze. I let the mana crawl up my arm without resisting. Luckily, just as she’d promised, I felt nothing as it seeped into my body.

The mana reached my heart in an instant before vanishing as abruptly as it appeared.

“…What was that?”

“THE CONTRACT IS COMPLETE. NOW, YOU AND I ARE BOUND.”

“Hold on—‘bound’? What does that—”

“SHOULD I EXPLAIN? IT’LL TAKE A WHILE, BUT YOU SHOULD KNOW. FIRST—”

“No, forget it.”

As much as I wanted to know what she’d just done to me, escaping this forest took priority. I wanted nothing more than to collapse onto my soft, safe bed as soon as possible. But before that, there was something I absolutely had to clarify.

“Do you intend to kill me? Or harm me in any way?”

“HOW COULD I KILL MY ?”

Though I still didn’t understand the mysterious word she kept using, her answer was enough. Whatever mana-bound contract I’d just entered with El, at least it wouldn’t immediately hurt me.

I decided to focus on escaping the forest as originally planned. Having barely escaped becoming a demonic beast’s meal, I had no desire to face another crisis so soon.

“Is there a way out of this forest?”

El nodded.

“GIVE ME YOUR MANA.”

“My mana?!”

“WITH , THIS SHOULD BE ENOUGH.”

“Are you seriously powerless right now?”

“YES. I CAN’T EVEN STAND.”

Contrary to the terrifying mana she’d wielded moments ago, El crumpled weakly the instant she gripped my hand to rise. Her claim of having ‘no strength’ wasn’t an exaggeration—it was literal.

“Ugh… How do I do this?”

“YOUR HAND.”

The second I held her hand, I understood what she meant.

“Ohhh…? Ooooh…!”

I felt my mana being drained at a horrifying rate. Just as it began to feel dangerously thin, El released my hand.

“YES. THIS IS ENOUGH.”

“That’s it?”

“I HAVE YOUR MANA NOW. THIS WILL SUFFICE. THANK YOU.”

“‘Thank me’ later. Let’s just get out of here already.”

“LEAVE THE FOREST?”

Hearing that, I glanced down at myself. The explosion had coated us head-to-toe in the beast’s gore. My uniform was drenched in blood and chunks of flesh—El was no better. In the heat of the moment, I hadn’t noticed, but walking out of the woods looking like this would draw more than stares—everyone would find it suspicious.

And given that I needed to stay unnoticed until the academy festival, attracting attention now was the last thing I wanted.

Even if classes were over by now, plenty of students remained on campus. Taking too long would also make Chris realize I hadn’t returned home—and then he’d raise hell. Worse, Chris and the other three already knew the Demon King’s face.

If I showed up with El—someone even I couldn’t explain—after making some kind of ‘contract,’ all hell would break loose.

Just in case, I cautiously touched my clothes.

“「Clean.」”

Despite the spell, my uniform stayed horribly stained. Apparently, magic of my level couldn’t cleanse demonic beast blood.

So the blood from a dead beast had higher mana purity than mine?

How fucking insulting.