NOVEL WEB Chapter 47
### Chapter 47
Seere and Cecili had left, and Geoffrey, sensing the stiffness in his body was dissipating, let out a deep breath. He then asked Eri.
“What on earth were those people?”
“…I don’t think that’s what’s important, Sir Geoffrey. What will you do about them?”
“Ah… right. Exactly.”
Instead of drawing his sword, Geoffrey pulled out something else from his cloak. Eri tilted her head as she recognized the object resembling a diamond-shaped gem.
“What is this? I can feel magic emanating from it.”
“This is a tool to detect demons. If you bring it close to a demon, it will react.”
“…What?”
This was the first time Eri had heard of such a convenient tool. She stared at it for a while, finding it slightly odd.
“How does it work?”
“I’m not entirely sure either. We just received it from the Grand Cathedral. I heard it was given by His Majesty…”
“His Majesty?”
It was the story of the Pope having such an object. Eri thought it strange and watched Geoffrey’s actions for a moment. Geoffrey approached the villagers gathered at the town hall while holding the object and shouted.
“I am Geoffrey, the chief knight of the Lilium Holy Knights! We will commence the operation to detect demons from this moment, so do not resist and cooperate! If you do not cooperate…”
From its sheath, his sword was smoothly drawn. Geoffrey aimed his blade at the farmers who dared to defend themselves with mere farming tools.
“I cannot guarantee your lives.”
“What the hell… when you’re the one destroying the village!”
“We will clearly identify the demons with this tool, and those without issues will be protected by us. So cooperate.”
“What kind of protection are you talking about when you’re tearing down our homes?! You fool!”
“Is talking not enough?”
In an instant, it happened. Geoffrey’s sword swung. With the concise and quick motion fitting a chief knight, he slaughtered a resident who had raised his voice in defiance.
‘…Is he out of his mind?’
Eri watched the scene unfold from behind, her brows furrowed in disbelief. No matter how important it was to find the demon infiltrators, allowing the killing of citizens in such a reckless manner was unacceptable. Geoffrey wasn’t mad either; it was clear that such behavior was sanctioned from above.
Moreover, the so-called detection tool Geoffrey possessed was strange. After seeing an example made, the villagers trembled in fear and complied with the investigation. One by one, Geoffrey held the tool up to the villagers, executing those who showed a reaction on the spot.
“Ugh!!”
“W-what did this child do to deserve this…!”
“Mommy!!”
All of those Geoffrey determined to be demons…
‘…Have no magic at all.’
There was no magic. If they truly were infiltrators sent from the underworld, they should have exhibited magic. Even if they were brainwashed humans used as spies, they would surely bear traces of magic after returning from the demon realm. There was just too much magic dispersed in the underworld.
Before crossing into the human realm, Eri and Dein had worked to erase all traces. Yet those people… were just human. In the end, the tool was a complete fraud.
There was a saying that the greatest enemy of humans is humans themselves, and that humans kill each other the most. At that moment, Eri was keenly feeling that truth.
Indeed, it was a futile endeavor. But why was the Pope repeating such a pointless act? Just then, Geoffrey let out a slightly flustered sound.
“Hmm? Why is it acting up like this?”
“…What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it seems the tool has malfunctioned. I’ll need to call for another knight.”
“…Um, may I try to repair it? Since I can feel magic from it, it might be a magical tool, and I might be able to fix it.”
“Ah, would you do that?”
Without suspicion, Geoffrey handed the magical tool over to Eri. She inspected the tool briefly before speaking to him.
“I might find it difficult, but… I think my colleague can fix it.”
“Really?”
“I’ll take it to him for repairs, and if it seems impossible, I’ll bring another holy knight with me. After all, you need to keep the villagers from escaping here, right?”
“True.”
Geoffrey nodded and said,
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Yes.”
Eri took the magical tool from Geoffrey and followed the trace left by Seere and Cecili toward them.
—
Seere and Cecili were not far off, having gone to a corner of the village to soothe their sour moods. Eri looked around to confirm that no one was nearby before approaching them.
“Your Majesty.”
“What is it, why are you here?”
“I have something to ask. This… is the demon detection tool that knight had earlier.”
“There’s such a thing?”
Still wearing an expression that suggested her anger was not yet subsided, Seere approached Eri with interest. Eri handed the tool to Seere and said,
“But it seems like a fraud. It was said to be broken, so I brought it as an excuse to repair.”
“Is that so? Good job.”
Seere examined the tool Eri handed over. After a moment’s inspection, she wore a mysterious expression and handed it to Cecili.
“Cecili, check this out.”
“Yes.”
Cecili turned the detection tool over and narrowed her eyes.
“Your Majesty, this…”
“Is it right?”
“…Yes.”
Seere took back the detection tool from Cecili. As she looked at it again, perhaps having decided something, she nodded slightly.
“Human.”
“Pardon?”
“I need to take this and show it to Teacher.”
“What’s so strange about it?”
“No matter how I look at it, this is not an item from the demon realm… yet the magic contained within is from the demon realm. It isn’t tainted human magic at all.”
An item that is not from the underworld holding demon magic. What could that imply? Eri asked, looking puzzled.
“So what happened…?”
“It comes from somewhere deeper.”
Though Seere wasn’t completely certain, Cecili, who had worked under the former second-ranked great Demon King, Seir von Debata, could tell. She had felt it many times from the second floor, where Seir’s base was.
“It’s from below.”
This was an item from “Hell,” a place reachable only through the first layer, deeper than the demon realm itself. Seere tossed the jewel lightly into the air and caught it as she said,
“I think I should show this to Teacher.”
“Yes, that sounds like a good idea.”
Cecili agreed, and Eri, feeling a bit flustered, spoke up.
“But… you took it under the pretense of repairing it for the holy knight. If you take it without permission, you’ll definitely get caught.”
Not knowing how long Nahun would take, it was best to avoid any suspicion before he finished his work. Seere simply replied,
“Then we just make a situation where we won’t get caught.”
“How do we do that…?”
“It’s simple.”
Seere briefly drew her magic power. Around her, the magic sparkled like a galaxy spread across the sky.
“Summon.”
『Summonitiones』
A magic circle spread wide beneath Seere’s feet, and a sword rose from the ground. It was a peculiar sword, completely black with a bright red gem embedded at its center.
It was Seere’s magic sword, the Sword of Blood Tears. Eri felt a chill run down her spine upon seeing it. The gem embedded in the hilt looked like an eye.
“Y-your Majesty? Why the sword…?”
Seeing Eri’s surprise, Seere simply issued a command to Cecili.
“Cecili, ensure no one escapes.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Cecili was a loyal servant of Seere. Even though she knew this wasn’t part of Nahun’s plan, she followed Seere’s orders. She drew a few strands of hair from her tail hidden by magic and dispersed the strands into the air.
“Cover the sky and hide this place.”
【Shroud of secrecy】
With that, the hair scattered in the air stiffened and then struck the ground. It was the specific magical method of the kitsune race—using the hair she dispersed as a medium to spread her magical power wide.
Thanks to Cecili’s magic, the village and even its surroundings were enveloped by a massive shroud. Others may not have felt it properly, but as a magician, Eri could feel it clearly.
‘This person is… wasn’t she just a mere maid?’
Yet, looking at the barrier now covering the area, the magic emanating from it was incredibly strong. The density of magic was so rich that it almost felt unpleasant.
On the other hand, Seere smiled slightly, satisfied, and said,
“Good job, Cecili.”
“Thank you.”
“Your Majesty, this might mean…”
It wasn’t hard to deduce the reason why they were being trapped. When Eri recognized the thought in Seere’s mind, fear washed over her, and Seere smiled as she spoke.
“Don’t be afraid, human. I will not kill you.”
And she added a line.
“At least not until Teacher finds you useful.”
Seere took hold of the sword. Then, she began to move to find the source of the unpleasant feeling she had sensed earlier.
As Seere vanished in an instant, Eri exhaled deeply. She didn’t seem to intend to leave any evidence, so for the moment she wouldn’t know; however, it wouldn’t be long before the guild or the cathedral discovered that they had vanished.
“…Well, Nahun will probably finish his work before that.”
A few days would be sufficient. Nahun was certainly capable of that. This wasn’t just a vague expectation, but a judgment made by Eri based on witnessing his power firsthand.
“Cecili.”
“What is it?”
“I’m not sure since I’m human, but are Demon Kings, including Your Majesty, usually a bit cruel?”
“…Yes, that is correct.”
“Really?”
“Your Majesty is a bit young and fragile, at least compared to others. But Demon Kings inherently belong to a race that rules over and subjugates others. Inevitably, they can be somewhat cruel. They have no qualms about eliminating others for their own or their faction’s benefit… in any case, that’s the kind of race they are.”
Cecili kindly explained, surprising Eri. And just as Eri was about to express her gratitude, she added one more thing.
“Remember, you could be eliminated anytime. Regardless of being Nahun’s subordinate, Your Majesty can unilaterally dispose of you.”
“…Yes.”
Realizing that her kind explanation had been a warning, Eri sank into gloom. Cecili gave her an expression that seemed slightly apologetic.
“This is just a reminder that Nahun wouldn’t want a valuable subordinate to disappear for no reason. So don’t take it too negatively.”
“…What? Care?”
“I’ve seen how you’ve lived for the past five years. No matter how human you are, some affection must have formed after all….”
Especially since Cecili, a maid in the Demon King’s castle, often brought meals to Eri and Dein when they needed them. Given that Eri and Dein were still young then, from Cecili’s perspective, they looked like diligent children who were studying hard and trying their best.
Of course, there had been moments when she thought to herself that regardless of being human, they were trying too hard. However, as they began to show results, Cecili had to adjust her perception.
“Anyway, it means don’t die easily. You shouldn’t make Your Majesty upset, so be careful with your words and actions too.”
“Did… did I say something wrong?”
“…Don’t let Your Majesty misunderstand regarding Nahun. Just that is fine.”
Eri tilted her head, yet Cecili was recalling a situation where, had she not explained earlier, Eri would have been misunderstood by Seere.
Just then, a loud explosion occurred from afar. Eri jumped in surprise, but Cecili merely gazed calmly towards the source.
“It has begun.”
“Is it Your Majesty doing this?”
“Must be.”
“Surely, Your Majesty doesn’t intend to leave any humans alive here?”
“…Why? Do you have some feeling for them?”
“No?”
Eri, for some reason, had a slight smile on her lips. She had felt flustered when Seere was about to kill all humans, but that concern had simply stemmed from worrying that Nahun’s plans might get complicated.
Thus, Eri had thought from the start that the lives of humans…
“It doesn’t concern me whether everyone dies or not. You’re not killing me, after all.”
After living in the demon realm for the last five years, Eri had already become twisted.
Since the moment she learned the truth behind the death of her most beloved friend.
“How can I help, I wondered.”
“…I don’t think you’ll need to help. It doesn’t seem like you’d enjoy getting involved.”
“Then I guess I should just remain still.”
On that day, Seere, who had drawn her sword, took less than an hour to eliminate all the holy knights, other adventurers, and all the villagers present.