NOVEL WEB Volume 1 1.03
Chapter 1 – Part 3
Takuma thought back on Cross Reverie’s setting in regards to summoned beasts.
Summoned beasts are setup to be apart from the hostile monsters like the Demonic Beings and apparitions. They are creatures that are called out by Summoners and get enslaved by them.
They can’t say any words but, their intelligence is high, and are able to fire off powerful attacks. There are also some that have special effects such as healing.
However, because making them submit is difficult, a 《Slavery Choker》 is put on them through a《Slavery Ceremony》.
The summoned beast that has this choker attached to them with this ceremony becomes obedient to the one that summoned them.
——I’m, going to be made to be absolutely obedient!?
Remembering the setting, Takuma turned pale.
If this world really was the same as Cross Reverie’s settings in anything and everything, he himself, who was called upon as a summoned beast, would, from here on out, have to be obedient to either one of the girls.
Either the blonde, slender and long limbed, beautiful, and big breasted Elf——
Or the short, delicate, expressionless, cat-eared maiden——
He felt like it might be alright even if he was made to be obedient.
——No, no, of course that’s not good!
Having lost to temptation for a moment, Takuma shook his head left and right.
The two maidens turned their gazes towards him.
Because they seemed to only have a bit of time to compromise——The cat-eared one went to talk to him.
「......Can you understand our words?」
「Ah, yeah.」
He made a light reply.
The Elf maiden and the cat-eared maiden opened their eyes, surprised.
「It spoke!?」
「......I’m surprised. Far from understanding words, for it to be able to let them out is...」
「As expected of me! Even though it’s my first summoning, it looks like I called out something amazing!」
Cat-ears glared at the Elf.
「...I’ve said this several times already but, the one that summoned Diablo was me, and not you.」
「But I’ve said that countless times as well! Also, Diablo responded to my call, you know!?」
The two glared at each other.
It seems that they were bickering the whole time about which one was the Summon Master.
That reminded him, two Summoners cooperating to call a single strong summoned beast, that kind of feature wasn’t in the game.
「......I understand......If you’re going to go that far in saying it, then let us check to see which one of us Diablo will be 《enslaved》 to.」
The Elf accepted while look down on cat-ears.
「Fine by me! Let’s go and do this then! Well, since it is my summoned beast, it’s obvious that it will obey me!」
It turned into a strange development.
The cat-eared maiden approached him.
「......By the name of Rem Galeu, I command thee. Raise your right hand.」
It would seem that her name is rem Galeu. Could Rem be her given name?
Takuma obediently raised his right hand.
The Elf objected.
「If it’s an order of that degree, of course it would listen to you! If you’re going to do this, you need to demand something more unreasonable!」
「......Being unable to accept defeat is pretty unsightly but, very well......I command you, Diablo. Go and pinch that Elf’s cheeks a bit.」
「Would one normally make that kind of demand!?」
The Elf was dumbfounded.
Takuma tilted his head to one side.
「Eh? But I don’t want to do that......」
Rem became shocked from this answer. It’s because the command was refused. In other words, she was not a Summoner——is that how it turned out to be?
The Elf stuck out her huge chest. There was a whole faced smile.
「See! See, see, see, see, see! I knew that the Summoner was actually me! So with that being the case, my summoned beast Diablo! By the name of Shera, I command thee! Go and slightly strongly spank the bottom of that Pantherian!」
「......To command for violence to be done onto another person, I’m starting to doubt your character.」
Rem protested.
Didn’t you just say something similar just a little while ago, is what Takuma thought.
「I also don’t want that.」
「Why!?」
The Elf’s eyes went completely round.
Even Takuma tilted his head.
——It’s unusual, isn’t it? For me not to feel any kind of compelling force at work, it’s strange seeing as how I’m enslaved. Is it because I’m a player?
Rem glared at Shera.
「......It appears that, because you had forcibly hijacked my summoning, a malfunction seems to have arisen.」
「Isn’t that wrong!? I had my eye on this place before you, you know!? I thought that if it was this place, I’d be able to call even an other world Demon King with high magical power!」
「......I should have driven you out from the start......It isn’t too late for me to do it now. I’ll just coercively expel the nuisance, and redo the Slavery Ceremony......It’s because the other world’s Demon King is mine......」
Rem took out a transparent crystal from a pocket of the grass belt.
Shera readied the bow that was carried on her back.
At this rate, a fight was about to start.
Quarreling isn’t good.
Let’s try to talk to them and get them to calm down——is what Takuma thought. Calmly putting his head to work, and trying to spin out words that would somehow persuade the two, he solidified with a *Hata*.
——Huh? In talking with g-girls, what am I supposed to do again?
Takuma searched his memories.
Talking to a real girl, when was the last time he did that?
More than a year ago!? No, because the employee of the convenience store that he went to just a little while ago was a female, it was at that time......Did he have a conversation with her!?
The real world is hopeless.
Even in the game, because he only did the Demon King play solo, he didn’t even do a chat with a Nekama.
——No! There is one! I’ve had a conversation with one!
Very, very recently, he had experience in talking to a girl!
Takuma faced Rem and Shera who were still quarrelling and, based on his little experience, called out to them.
「It would be best if you stop your foolish strife. Right now, you are in the presence of 《Diablo》, you know.」
The two suddenly stopped their movements.
And then, they looked his way.
——Alright, this is it!
It was the Demon King-like tone that he used for the players that challenged him. If it was this, he would have no problems in conversing with even the female players.
Having thought of a method to talk to the girls, Takuma felt like he wanted to do a fist pump.
However, he endured doing so.
After all, a Demon King wouldn’t do a fist pump.
「I detest useless strife. It’s because something like the mutual crushing between two bugs is nothing but an annoyance......Therefore, I command thee. You had better do a conciliatory handshake......With a smile!」
Rem narrowed her eyes.
「Just who......would do that with such a foolish, no good Elf like h——!?」
Shera knitted her eyebrows.
「Haa!? Since the one in the wrong is the one over there, until that small Pantherian apologizes, I won’t forgi——!?」
The two’s facial expressions, began to curiously distort.
Their eyelids were awkwardly closing and the corners of their mouths were twitching and convulsing as they were raised up.
The changes, weren’t happening only on their faces.
Rem held the crystal in her left hand, and presented her opened right hand.
Shera lowered her bow, and held out her right hand in a similar manner.
The two took a step closer to one another.
「......How could such a......such a......such a foolish thing happen!?」
The expressionless Rem had, only just now made a face that could only be called a smile.
Shera had become afraid.
「No......Stop......Why, my body, why is it moving all on its own!?」
Their eyes seemed to be crying, however, the girls had carried the ends of their lips up.
The handshake was exchanged.
Though it was with a strange facial expression of what could be called an extremely reluctant smile......
Just as Takuma commanded, the girls did a conciliatory handshake with a smile.
A black light coiled about the two’s heads.
*Vwoon*......A low tone remained in the ears.
After that, as if something were being locked, a *Gachi!* sound was made.
Tough chokers appeared at Rem’s and Shera’s slender napes. Those chokers were thick objects that had a dull luster like that of iron.
Rem touched the base of her neck with her hand, then opened her eyes.
「This is......a 《Slavery Choker》!?」
Shera also checked her neck, and raised a voice that was like a scream.
「Why!? Why!? Isn’t the summoned beast one that this is supposed to be attached to!?」
「......I’m certain that we should have performed the 《Slavery Ceremony》 that was meant to place the 《Slavery Choker》 but......」
Takuma tilted his head.
「Hn? The 《Slavery Ceremony》 you say? On me?」
Rem nodded with a perplexed face.
「Y, yes......That, ceremony magic, should have been, casted on you but......」
Takuma overlooked his own body.
He was wearing the pitch black clothes 《The Hollow of Jet Black》 and the luxurious mantle《The Curtain of Dark Clouds》.
If he patted it, he would have known that, on his head, an item called 《The Distorted Crown》, which was something like a goat’s horns, was equipped.
And then, his left hand’s middle finger——
What was there was an ostentatious ring that looked like flames were forcibly frozen into a ring shape and had a pitch black gem attached to it.
Takuma remembered that that graphic.
《The Demon King’s Ring》
In the game called Cross Reverie, it was a super-class rare item that displayed an effect that was unmatched by magician opponents called 《Magic Reflection》.
Though, the way of using it was difficult since even recovery and support magic would be reflected.
Takuma made a conjecture.
——In short, because of this ring, the Slavery Magic was rebounded onto the two of them, or something like that.
The one to be enslaved wasn’t Takuma, but was the Summon Master maidens that had their magic returned to them.
Translator’s Notes:
Nekama is a combination of Net and Okama. A Nekama is someone that plays an online game as a character of the opposite sex.