Wasn’t This a Night Game

I’ll Corrupt You

I barely made it back to my room.

Returning to the capital after so long, there should have been a crowd eager to see me.

His Imperial Majesty himself invited me to a banquet, where I spent time with the senators and the judges of the High Court. Then, the Pantheon summoned me for another feast.

After that, the Karma Company wanted my attention.

Then, the people from the Operarium invited me…

Only after a whole day of juggling appointments could I finally return to my room in the Magic Tower temple.

A place I vowed never to return to…

Collapsing onto the neatly made bed, I finally let out a hollow laugh.

How did things turn out like this?

Wasn’t I supposed to quietly seclude myself for the rest of my days?

Crying my eyes out during my farewell, only to return less than a year later—what becomes of my reputation?

My face drifted towards the statue of the goddess hanging on the wall.

The Goddess Lilia was still smiling serenely.

I stared at her and couldn’t help but let out another mirthless chuckle.

This isn’t how it was supposed to be.

I can’t even imagine how much faith the Demon King’s power has devoured through this whole mess.

It must be growing in real time even now, right?

And the moment that power fully blooms.

What kind of end awaits humanity?

I don’t even want to think about it.

Iomene. Almene. And Erpa.

My beloved women, not to mention the entire empire.

The very survival of humankind across the continent hung in the balance. Even if they endured, it would be a wretched existence under the Demon King’s reign.

“……..Wait a moment.”

So preoccupied with tending to the afflicted at Scrap Yard, I hadn’t had a moment for proper reflection. But thinking it over, something felt off.

Not just off, but profoundly wrong.

Didn’t Mammon crush my heart?

And then I woke up to find Mammon’s followers vanished, and the Pantheon and the Imperial Family had sent troops.

Moreover, according to what people were saying, a pillar of light erupted from my body… incinerating all of Mammon’s followers.

And the dream where I saw Lady Lilia…

Nothing adds up!

How can the Demon King’s power reside within me, and yet a pillar of light erupt from my very being?

And why did those demon worshippers, struck by that light, become utterly helpless, like debuffed trash mobs before dying?

I clutched my head.

What in the world dwells within my soul?

Why did Lady Lilia, after declaring she would punish me, appear in my dreams as if to help me?

This bewildering questioning was abruptly quelled as a single idea sparked in my mind.

“…….Couldn’t I just ask it directly?”

It had devoured so much faith.

And judging by this recent incident, it seemed to have grown beyond simply augmenting my abilities, to the point of being strong enough to deal with Mammon himself.

This thing.

It clearly possessed sentience.

“Um, hello perhaps…….”

If only I hadn’t heard that knock.

And if only those three women hadn’t barged in through the door.

“Saint.”

And if only those three women weren’t wearing such furious expressions.

“We thought you were dead!!”

“Do you know how worried we were!!”

“You’re not getting any sleep tonight. You know that, right?”

And if only they hadn’t skipped all formalities and leaped at me at once.

Perhaps I would have certainly tried to communicate with the Demon King’s power within me.

What can one do?

“Wait, just a moment! First, a wash!……”

My hurried plea was devoured whole by a barrage of kisses, a carpet-bombing of affection.

And then, well…

If it weren’t for my physical enhancements, I’m not joking when I say…

I could have very well died from overexertion.

It was a night that served as a stark reminder of how terrifying a woman’s desire can be.

*

There’s a term, pillow talk.

Lying together after intimacy, sharing confidences.

With our spirits half-spent, minds and bodies languidly intertwined beneath the covers, it became clear why such intimate exchanges happen.

The very atmosphere practically compels one to share their deepest thoughts.

“You have to leave again, don’t you?”

Erpa asked, toying with my ear.

I nodded in response.

“I must go.”

I must leave once more.

Without offering any explanation.

Without being able to share any reason, I must leave yet again.

“I’m sorry.”

The three women laughed at my words.

“This relationship began because we insisted upon it, didn’t it? Do you remember?”

“We won’t resent you or try to hold you back. Go and do what you feel is necessary, Saint.”

“And, in a way… it feels like, even though you always say you’re leaving, you’ll always return to our sides.”

At those words, my fist clenched almost unconsciously.

No.

This time, I truly won’t return.

I’ve made up my mind with a grim resolve to retreat to some uninhabited wilderness, far from any people, and live as a recluse.

“You must be well, even without me. Every time, I act so irresponsibly… I am sorry.”

“At least, while you are here, let us live well together.”

“Don’t say such things.”

My heart yearns to propose.

I do so favor these women.

I wish we could define the parameters of our relationship and live within them, but my situation makes that utterly impossible.

I fear a destabilizing of my mental state, so I decided, in the end, to abandon the thought.

Instead, I chose to speak of other matters.

“How fares the Scrap Yard?”

“Karma Company is underway with a massive expansion.”

“They have declared their intent to demolish the ruined blast furnaces, investing properly in far superior models.”

“Aside from the furnaces, the other facilities are largely intact, so the reconstruction shouldn’t take an extended period.”

The Scrap Yard, they say, is set to be reborn on an even grander scale than before.

Along with rebuilding the existing furnaces, they plan to construct three new ones. And the arcane furnaces for refining magical metals will integrate Erpa’s trichromatic research, allowing for a vastly increased output of purer metals.

Thanks to feeding the workers well, ensuring they rest, and paying high wages, their work hours have decreased, yet the construction’s pace is swifter than ever before.

“And the Department Operarium?”

“The Labor Authority is overwhelmed with work.”

The Operarium.

Investigators from the Labor Authority have been dispatched throughout the Empire, posthaste.

Moving in concert with the Pantheon, they maintain that improving workers’ living standards is paramount to preventing the rise of demon cults.

Armed with an unimpeachable mandate, they are meticulously investigating corporations accused of infringing on workers’ rights.

It is anticipated that the living standards of workers throughout the Empire will soon see a significant improvement.

A most welcome development.

“A considerable number of the Scrap Yard’s workers now profess faith in Lilia.”

“The followers of the White Order have also increased. It seems the Ketratu’s actions have been truly inspiring.”

“The Pantheon’s influence has not been so powerful in three hundred years. All thanks to the Saint.”

But why is it, then?

That these good tidings fill me with increasing dread.

Where, ultimately, will all of this devotion lead?

The thought inspires no small amount of terror.

“Amael…”

“Do not restrain yourself. Iomene. You as well, Erpa.”

The conversation didn’t last long.

Was it the sheer exhaustion from the day’s frantic exertions?

Or perhaps, my presence offered a comforting lull?

Before long, the women nestled into my embrace, succumbing to sleep.

Once I was certain they were asleep, I cautiously invoked time-stop.

An eerie, yet familiar space where all the world remained frozen.

I released time-stop only in the area where I intended to sit, quietly assuming a cross-legged posture and closing my eyes.

The Demon Lord’s power that resided within my soul.

I meant to have a direct conversation with that b*stard.

“You listening?”

No answer.

A touch awkward, but with conviction, I continued to address him.

“Asmodeus, within my soul. You listening?”

Still, silence reigned.

“Answer if you hear me.”

The quiet persisted.

I turned my gaze upon my sleeping women for a fleeting moment.

My fist clenched.

“Answer me!! You’re listening!! You’re a part of me!! Why the hell did you have to come into *my* body and cause this chaos!!”

I don’t want to be separated from these women.

Truly.

I just want to play the role of a Saint, peacefully.

Quietly, that’s all I wanted.

How did things turn out this way?

Thinking about it, it’s all because of this guy who carelessly entered my soul.

“I know you’re conscious. If not, who else saved me from Mammon? It was you, wasn’t it? What’s your purpose? Why are you doing this to me? What are you planning to do with me?!”

Still, no reply.

“Why are you doing this to me. Why me of all people…”

Even muttering despondently, there was no reaction – not even the hint of a jeer.

I released time-stop.

I lifted my gaze, finding the statue of the Goddess Lilia smiling beneficently down upon me.

Said to be the face of the Goddess herself, directly witnessed and described by the first High Priest, who had once met her.

A vision of boundless benevolence, yet to me, she was more deserving of resentment than any other.

“Truth be told, I don’t want to be martyred.”

Predictable.

The Goddess, as always, remained silent.

Asmodeus, that fiend lurking within my soul, was also silent. Lilia, after only screaming that she would send me to hell, had offered no further reply.

The benevolent gods of the Pantheon.

The demons of hell.

Even that wicked god.

On this night, I simply hated all divine beings.

*

Asmodeus quietly watched as Amael wept alone, stifling her sobs.

A flicker of pity crossed her face.

She yearned to speak to Amael, to give her the words she craved.

But she could not.

Amael turned her head back, looking for the cause.

[Why are you interfering?]

Chains were wound tightly around her twisted, black left wing.

And those chains were held in someone’s hand.

A massive pair of horns.

Skin that blazed like fire.

The eyes of a goat.

A tongue split in two.

And a being with twisted, black wings, grown just like Asmodeus’s own left wings.

[Lucifer.]

At Asmodeus’s question, Lucifer chuckled, a mirthless sound.

A smiling face, but not one of joy.

Rage.

A terrible rage was etched upon Lucifer’s features.

[If you spill the truth, that wretch will turn back to the Pantheon’s side immediately, won’t he? We can’t allow that.]

Lucifer chuckled, gazing down at a whimpering Amael.

His smile deepened.

[It’s better that that idiotically good-hearted fool continues to delude himself into believing the Pantheon will throw him into Hell. His resentment toward the Pantheon is quite useful to us, you see. So, you’ll continue to keep your mouth shut from here on out, Asmodeus.]

[For all his greatness, the esteemed Lucifer can only manage to silence me now? You’ve weakened considerably, haven’t you?]

Asmodeus spoke softly, a smile playing on his lips, and suddenly Lucifer’s form began to grow.

Hellfire streamed from his body.

[Surely you know that even if you gathered the remaining six of Pandemonium, you still wouldn’t be able to defeat me alone? Asmodeus. I am not Mammon. Don’t get cocky just because you swallowed a bit of faith.]

[Seeing you bristle, it seems you are indeed the Lucifer of Pride I knew. But, you see…]

The chains binding Asmodeus’s left wing rattled roughly.

[It’s only a matter of time, Lucifer. You won’t be able to hold me back forever, either.]

At Asmodeus’s words, Lucifer extinguished the hellfire rising from him and returned to his original form.

[I admit it. Thanks to the mess that saintly fool stirred up, you’ve recovered your original power with unprecedented speed. I acknowledge that time is on your side. That one day, you will grow strong enough to defeat me. I acknowledge it all.]

Lucifer’s gaze shifted from Asmodeus to Amael.

[But what if he were to fall before then? What if he decided to stand on Pandemonium’s side? What do you think would happen?]

[Then I’d become the Demon King again. But do you really think it will be so easy?]

Lucifer laughed.

[I know humans very well. No matter how exceptional that one is, he won’t pass my test. I’ll corrupt him and allow that woman to sit on one of the Seven Thrones once more.]

Lucifer gripped the chains tightly in his hand and left Asmodeus’s domain.

The moment he stepped out, he had to frown at the torrent of divine power pouring down from the heavens.

[Damned Pantheon b*stards.]

Thanks to Asmodeus having drastically strengthened the connection between the Celestial Realm and the Human Realm, a connection Lucifer had painstakingly gnawed away at for three hundred years, the Pantheon had been relentlessly trying to send down all manner of divine pronouncements, revelations, and chosen ones.

As a result, Lucifer had to abandon all other tasks and dedicate himself solely to preventing the Pantheon from interfering in the Human Realm.

His three hundred years of labor had vanished into thin air, but Lucifer wasn’t entirely displeased.

[I will certainly corrupt Amael, the one you cherish so dearly.]

Corrupting just one human would bring such immense benefits that it would more than compensate for all the losses he had suffered.

After sending a sneer toward the Pantheon, Lucifer returned to Hell.

In response to his taunt, the gods of the Pantheon began sending down divine pronouncements even more desperately.

[Amael!……..Asmodeus………No!!……..]

[Life’s………Lilia!!……….]

[Within you… Lilia!!…]

Urgent pronouncements, tumbling forth in haste, yet every single one of those divine words, stemmed by Lucifer’s meticulous obstruction, failed to truly pierce through. They only echoed, forlorn, across the celestial spheres before dissolving into nothing.