Demon Lord Excluded, 99th Rank, Demon Lord Gremory. Star Zodiac Calendar: Year of the Lion 9/17/537. Demon Lord Gremory's castle.
"The treasure is in Krontigling."
They immediately bowed their eyebrows.
"Krontig ... Where?"
"Krontigling. It's in Krontigling. The treasure is in Krontigling "
I told them the location of the treasure again.
Honestly, I just said the name of any place that came to mind.
How could I know where the castle's treasure was kept?
And if I answered honestly, 'I don't know where it is', I would probably be stabbed. For now, I had to say something to win their interest.
I had to pay attention to their reactions.
"Croon, Croongthiglhi ... damn, it's hard to say that!"
"You do not know? Here, let me write. "
Offering to write, I crouched and wrote on the cave floor.
I didn't have any suitable instruments to do this, but I was bleeding a lot. I dipped my finger in my blood, and wrote quietly on the floor.
% = & _ # $
?! / - $ @
The first sentence in imaginary characters, the second also in imaginary characters.
I lifted my gaze slightly to see their reaction.
"Hey, bring the torch closer."
"I have no idea ... Are the lyrics really like that?"
They looked at each other and started talking.
"None of us can read"
"Yes, but the format is completely different."
Okay.
I understood the basics of the language principle.
I was understanding everything they said about Templar. However, when I wrote the words they couldn't understand.
In other words, just because I understood everything in Templar does not mean that they heard in Templar too.
There were two possibilities.
Um, the pronunciation was the same, but the letters were different. Or two, the pronunciation and the lyrics were both different, but for some reason only I was understanding in Templar.
What possibility was right?
I decided to test it right away.
"It is normal for you not to recognize this, gentlemen. It is the Ancient Demonic Language. To completely protect the treasure room, I specifically used this language to magically seal the treasure. "
"Magic?"
"Yes, the safe will not open for those who do not understand that language."
The men started to stir.
The answer was revealed by that dialogue.
We are using languages completely different from the Templar, both in pronunciation and in letters.
How do I know this? Because I was speaking in different foreign languages now.
The first sentence was in Uriano, the second in Sacrossanto, the third in Templar, and the fourth in Saturn. And yet, they understood me completely.
I don't know how it works, but the conversation was being translated automatically.
"Lord Demon Lord Gremory. Do we need, uh, to understand that ancient demonic language to open the safe? "
"Yes. Of course."
"Hmmm."
Bruno frowned.
He's trying to kill me.
He promised to save me if I told him where the safe was, but that's a big lie. You can identify if a person is blatantly lying by the face.
Soon, I had to give a reason to keep me alive.
"Okay, honorable Demon Lord. I like this fair deal. "
He fell for my lie perfectly.
"I think we're going to get along. So, where exactly is this Croooonthinglhing? "
"There is a secret passage where I was before."
"In your rooms? There was nothing there when we checked. "
"Not quite. In my rooms there is a secret passage that only opens ... When I recognize my hand on it. "
"A magical device. Okay."
The adventurer grabbed my arm and forced me to get up.
A horrible pain has spread from my right ankle. I couldn't help my scream this time.
"Aaack!"
"Oh ... Your leg is broken."
He clicked his tongue.
"Noob! You will carry Your Excellency, Gremory. "
"Understood captain."
A young man, who I assumed was the novice, came over and stood me up. He had a dagger attached to his belt. Then the captain of the group of adventurers shouted.
"Let's go, boys!"
The group of ten adventurers proceeded through the cave.
They seemed to know where my rooms were, which is lucky, since I had no idea where it was.
If they had sent me to guide them to the place, I would probably be killed.
A bell rang with a 'Ding-dong ~' in my head.
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[1. Accept Captain Adventurer Bruno's offer.]
[2. Refuse Captain Adventurer Bruno's offer.]
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The first choice shone brightly, then new words emerged. The option was not chosen because I thought about selecting it, but because of my actions.
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[He overcame the crisis with eloquence and cunning.]
[Warning. Actions taken during the tutorial will influence your status.]
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I overcame this crisis.
In other words, if I hadn't lied to them, I would have died. The unnecessary comment made me shiver.
This was not a joke.
Live or die, that was the question.
I barely passed the first hurdle.
Anyway, I needed to survive.
The adventurer group continued walking through the cave.
"How about killing him now ...?"
"That's right. We are not a group of thieves. Instead of wasting time looking for a secret safe, we could stop here ... "
"I don't know about you, but I agree with the captain. Earning a little more money is not bad ... "
I could hear the adventurers talking ahead.
I don't care about you talking about whether I'm going to die or not, but at least you could do it at a time that I don't hear, it's not that difficult.
They were not educated.
"Hey. Even if his leg is injured, isn't he too slow? "
"Like I said, he's rolling."
They even made sarcastic comments.
The level of the adventurers who captured me was not very high.
They radiated poverty. The blades on his weapons were jagged. This proved that they did not take care of their equipment properly. By game standards, they would be ranked F. The weakest level, and were approximately at that level.
They would be killed by about 20 goblins.
... However, unable to even command these same goblins that were scattered around, that was the level of Demon Lord Gremory.
"Your Excellency, Demon Lord. My companions are a little impatient. "
The man named Bruno informed me with a laugh.
I put my head down.
"I apologize. I will try to walk faster. "
"A good and quick answer. Good. Really good. "
He was talking to me like I was someone less.
At that moment I decided. I would destroy that proud face of him. I would drag his face in the mud.
I won't go easy on him even if he asks for mercy later. You can wait Bruno.
"We adventurers have some bones of the trade, it seems that they suspect that Your Excellency is trying to deceive us. That you are fooling around to do something with us. "
"This is impossible."
I responded immediately.
I had nothing to gain if I told them the truth.
Now, it was time to start the performance.
"I used to have subordinates too. Goblins, Wolves, Orcs ... nothing special, but they were still my precious subordinates. However, before you gentlemen, groups of adventurers have invaded this place three times in a row. "
The corners of my eyes got wet.
The ability to control tears at will. This required a little trick. It is a special skill that I learned from my little sisters.
"You gentlemen, you are the fourth group to arrive at my castle. My subordinates are all dead. Even the little ones who have been with me for over 30 years. All of them…"
"H-Huh?"
Bruno panicked.
"Surely, Your Excellency is not crying?"
"N-no. Crying? Never."
I spoke like a child trying to hold back tears.
"It's just that among them, I had a nurse who took care of me as a child since I was a child. Yes, she looked like an Orc. It is because she was an Orc. But she took care of me with affection. I even called her 'mommy'. A week ago she had her breast pierced by an adventurer's spear and passed away… "
A pitying cry came through the cave.
"Well, what should I say. That's a shame. My condolences."
"She held me until the last moment. Even after being pierced, even after bleeding so much, she continued to hold me tight to protect me from the arrows. Everyone, I can't forget what I felt that time no matter how hard I try… "
"...…."
"She wrapped her arms around me. I couldn't see anything, but with a * thud *, her body shook. * Thud * * thud *, her body continued to shake. Right away I didn't understand what was going on, however, I soon found out it was because of the arrows. Each time an arrow fell, her body trembled. Even so…"
I dropped a tear.
My performance was reaching a climax.
"Even with all this, she still looked at me with affection and smiled! Yes, she smiled until the end. I was insane, I thought I should go crazy. The most precious person in the world dying in front of me… Dying to protect me, and she was still smiling… What should I do !? "
I covered my face with my hands.
Faint crying sounds passed through my fingers.
"I asked if it hurt. If she was in pain, but do you know what she answered? "
"..."
"' I am very young Master. '"
The silence reigned.
At some point, adventurers were captivated by my story, and now they were quiet.
My father trained me to be an actor since I was born, I remember my early years very well, especially when I wanted the breasts of the palace employees.
I once had to pass a test. Go to a cafe and talk to someone on the phone.
There was actually no sound coming from my phone, but I pretended to argue with my girlfriend.
'Sorry… I'm sorry for everything.'
'I'll be better going forward.'
Improvised performance.
At first, customers' reaction was irritation.
They were relaxing in the cafe when out of nowhere a high school student came up and started talking loudly on the phone. But as time passed, their expressions slowly changed. Your emotions have changed.
It was sympathy.
They have already experienced the same thing. They have already begged for a loved one at some point in their life. Feeling empathic, they finally started to treat me with compassion.
This was the reaction of modern people who had seen all kinds of stimulating films and novels.
The people of this world, who at most heard a traveling poet boasting, I'm sorry to speak, but they were no match for me.
The finest facial expressions, raised to the most detailed nuance.
Using this at will, I acted passionately.
"It's okay, she said ... It's passed away."
"...…"
"Now I have nothing left. I still had half a dozen goblins, but I sent them away. I don't need them anymore ... That's why they don't need to suspect me. There's nothing else here. "
I covered my face again and sobbed.
My performance, which would even make a professional actor cry, ended there.
In this depressing atmosphere, adventurers began to whisper among themselves.
"Hey hey. Who made the honorable Demon Lord cry? "
"I also didn't know that he was in that kind of situation."
"I was wondering why I have no guard. The other groups have already cleaned up this place. "
"So he lost everything at once. Tsk tsk… "
As predicted, I was covered with sympathy.
But there was something I didn't foresee either. A blank notice appeared in the air.
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[People were captivated by his diabolical eloquence.]
[Adventurer Bruno's affection increased by 2 points.]
[Adventurer Danilo's affection increased by 1 point.]
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So there was an affection system too, huh.
That would make things easier.
"But, I'm really grateful to have met you."
I gave a small smile.
It was important to give the impression that I already knew the best and the worst in life.
"You did not kill a Demon Lord immediately. They showed me consideration when I was seriously injured, and they're still carrying me around like that. It is the first time in my life that I have met kind adventurers like you… I really thought that all adventurers were horrible villains like the ones who killed my nurse! "
That was a lie.
A big, blatant lie.
I knew you were going to kill me as soon as you saw me. You probably only kept your weapons because you wanted the treasure money. As I said, villains.
However, everyone likes to be flattered. The adventurers scratched their heads uncomfortably.
"No, we didn't do all of that ..."
"It is because you are cooperating so well."
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[The adventurer Bruno's affection increased by 4 points.]
[Adventurer Danilo's affection increased by 3 points.]
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The affections of the other eight also rose.
Where did their care go? Compared to before, the points have increased a lot. My performance won them perfectly.
With a face full of tears, I gave a big smile.
"I apologize for delaying you. Now, let's continue towards the safe. "
"...…"
It was not a happy smile, it was a forced smile to match the situation. For the purpose of planting the seed of guilt within them.
One of the adventurers coughed into his hand.
"Ehem. Yeah, uh, there's no need to hurry so much. "
"That's right. The safe will not create legs and run. "
"Since Your Excellency's foot is hurting so much, let's go more slowly. He already said that all the other demons are gone. "
The atmosphere became lighter.