Chapter 12 – We Won't Win or Lose "Weakness..." "Should I prepare some garlic?" "What? Are you planning on making a garlic ring necklace to ward him off?" "Aren't vampires supposed to dislike garlic?" "That's true but..." Against a vampire who's also a Demon Lord maybe that was too tall of an order for garlic-sama alone...
"Then...let's add in a silver cross." "Inaba give it up..." "Uuu..." In the end it really just depends on what kind of game will be played. Just knowing about the details of the game will really help.
"Games against a Demon Lord are usual extremely disadvantageous for the players. But could also be the same for them." In other words a Demon Lord's game can serve as a double edged sword depending on how the player plays. So it had to be a game where they can be put at a difficult position themselves.
"Hmm...mos-" "Theia!" She corrects Akatsuki before he could finish. She was getting faster and catching onto his drift.
"What kind of games did he host in the past?" "Oh you want to know do you~? I bet yo-" *Chop* a mighty guillotine drops from the heavens and onto Theia's dark head as if she had incurred the wrath of god and this is her divine retribution!
"You bitch!" Cursing at Akatsuki with words unfitting of a noble lady Theia held her smoking head from the agonizing pain.
"You want a knuckle sandwich instead hurry up and start talking." "Tch..." Still rubbing her head with teary eyes Theia recounts her brother's abilities.
"His Divine Armament is called the Shield of Achilles. No matter what you do you won't be able to shatter that defensive barrier." The shield is invincible and won't allow its user to be harmed.
"Achilles huh?" From what Akatsuki could remember Achilles was a Greek hero from the Trojan wars and also the protagonist of the Iliad by the Greek poet Homer. The epic tells about the son of Peleus, the mortal king of the Myrmidons and Thetis, a Nereid. The son is of course Achilles who was brought to the River Styx by his mother Thetis who bathed him in the river from which Achilles acquired the powers of invulnerability. "Invincible...no wait." The warrior still died in the end. But the way he died was not from a battle but an ambush. An arrow was shot and it hit him right at his heel from which he died immediately. That was his only weakness because his mother held him from the heel as he was bathed in the River Styx.
"Regardless this shield is still a pain in the ass to deal with..." "Oi...is...this guy actually smart?" Theia who had no prior knowledge about Akatsuki's intelligence is taken aback. But Shirayukihime and Inaba who had known beforehand are not surprised.
"But the hero who used it had a weakness right so...uh?" "I haven't finished." The Shield of Achilles represented his invincible status so it surrounds the user from all sides and angles making them a fortress.
"Impossible..." "Tch." "What else does that bastard have?" "A vampire's natural abilities." Theia refers to the invisible blade of wind that had cut up her restraining ropes. "The range of those winds is as far as the user can see." So basically everything within sight is a target to be cut to pieces. "This combo with a shield like that..." "Exactly as you said..." A pain in the ass are the perfect words to describe that shield.
"*Sigh*" "We're getting nowhere." Akatsuki doubts that even if he gave the shield a maximum strike reinforced with his physical strength he'd shatter it.
"Other than that I really have nothing else. For games he'd host I'm at nothing." "Right then take five." The four scattered and each went their own ways around the manor. "Tch." He punches the dry ground and scatters dust. From just that one exchange Akatsuki knew that this Circle stood no chance against that Demon Lord. No it wasn't that they didn't have a chance it was just that the odds were far too against them.
"..." Still with his fist dug into the broken soil Akatsuki opens it and grips once more snatching up a pile of dirt. Has it finally happened? So soon that he has found a person that could beat him?
"Hahahaha!" To be honest with himself Akatsuki couldn't wait for this game to start. Was this world ever going to stop entertaining him? He scatters the dirt he has collected into the wind and turns back to return to the manor. Speaking of which he's never been to the back of the manor but the children said that there used to be a garden back there. "A garden...yeah right." He took out his cellphone and took a picture of the dried up garden. Patches of dry grass shattered from the gale as it brushed by. This is quite depressing seeing nothing grow here and probably never will again. The day where the children could again see a flower or even a tail of green grass bloom here are ages away. No maybe that's an exaggeration as this was Eden after all. There has to have been something out there that could bring even a desolated land back to life once more. Not that searching for it is a priority but it would really help with the mood of the manor.
"*Sigh* this is depressing..." A voice agrees with him as he turns to his side and there stood Theia in her fancy black Victorian dress with a black umbrella. "You don't say..." ""*Sigh*"" "I'd prefer a rose garden by the way." "Am I supposed to be the type of guy who'd grant a girl any wish she want?" "Booooo..." She pouts and puffs her cheeks. Clearly Akatsuki was not that sort of person nor did he want to be. A guy who just goes around saying line like "I'll help any girl I see" is just an idiot and a pushover!
"So what are you doing here?" "The children here are quite" Without needing to say anymore Akatsuki gave her a pitying look.
"I see." A moment of silence follows.
"...Why did you help me?" She is probably referring to last night when the Demon Lord came here. At that moment if Akatsuki wanted to he could have ditched Theia to her doom as she is taken to the Upper Garden.
But he chose not to. Wouldn't a normal person choose the route with less trouble?
"It's in human nature to want to help others." Cheesy lines for the win and long live them.
"Now you're contradicting yourself..." "Heh you still owe me that favor from the Contract. I won't let you skip out on me till then." "Hmm I see." "Regardless of why I helped you I guess I just felt like it. Plus I wanted to fight a Demon Lord." "Are you an idiot?" She knew perfectly well now just how smart Akatsuki is but his personality is that of a reckless idiot who would charge right into the middle of a war zone with guns blazing while laughing about it like a lunatic. Why would he do that one may ask for those who didn't know him well enough? It is because he is bored and would find that idea fun.
"Hey." "What? If you're going to request something like a rose garden again I'm not listening." She shakes her head but that idea would indeed bring joy to her. What she wanted was something much more simple.
"Promise me that you'll win. I do not wish to go back to my obsessive older brother." This whole time ever since she has escaped from the house Theia was hiding from the reaches of her older brother.
"That's a tall order." "I know." "..." They won't win. The chances are far too small and the strength of this Circle is not all that great.
"*Sigh* you'll owe me more if we win you know?" "I don't care about that. I just don't want to return back to that place." "It's not just because of your older brother is it?" "He's...50%...no maybe 70%?" That's quite high but what was the other 30%?
"The Upper Garden is a giant mess at this moment." "I won't ask for the details but do tell me about it later." "You're the last person I want to ask a favor from and I know that." After all this monster in human skin next to her is her nemesis and enemy.
"So what is your price? Money? Power?" "I know damn well you're penniless as for power I doubt it." Power is probably something that Akatsuki found to be unnecessary. If not for his power he wouldn't be having any issues back in his old world. He'd fit right in.
"Price huh? Hmm...alright then be my personal maid." "....................................................." "And attend to my needs every day and night. Of course you won't be getting paid for this." Akatsuki goes on and list out many other demands along with it. "Y-You...!" He can't be serious can he? Theia has never so much as touched a kitchen knife in her life much less done any sort of housework!
"Yup this'll be our Contract." It's more like a slave contract than a proper game contract!
"You can't be serious!?" "I'm absolutely serious." The devil before the vampire folds his arms and stood with a mocking air of authority.
"B-But my skills as a maid is nothing!" "You're devaluing yourself when it's convenient." "It's the truth though." "Heh even if your skills as a maid are low you can still serve as a toy in bed." "..." Theia explodes red as this conversation heads into the lewd direction as many R-18 rated scenes flowed through her head. This man is a beast and should I serve him I'll be eaten! Those were her exact thoughts as she took a step back.
"Well still going to take it?" "Nng..." Was it worth it? Maybe this was just as bad as having to deal with her older brother or even worse!
"Y-You're not going to do anything that would label you as a criminal r-right...?" "Who knows?" He approaches the Theia who had turned meek like a cornered animal.
"Akatsuki-san." A paper fan came down on his head.
"Tch." Inaba had shown up at just the right moment before this situation escalated further beyond control.
"What do you think you're doing?" "It's my responsible as the one who summoned you into this world to discipline you when you go out of control." "Oh you finally starting to act like a leader." "Ufufu." She puffs her chest in pride obviously pleased with her current standings.
"*Sigh* what are you idiots doing now?" Shirayukihime was the next to come to the desolated garden. "Heh get this. We're going to start our plans to revive this desolated garden after our next game." That was not something that Akatsuki and Theia had talked about. It was just something that he had decided on the spot on a whim. But Inaba and Shirayukihime were both surprised by this announcement.
"How?" "It's Eden there has to be something out there that can revitalize a wasteland if we search hard enough." "No but why...?" "The children would be happy about it." "Eh...?" "A-Akatsuki-san did I perhaps hit you too hard? If so I'm sorry." They didn't get why Akatsuki was doing this for. What purpose did it serve him? He didn't seem like the type of person who would appreciate nature. So why?
"If we're going to get back our former glory we need to make this place more clean. What are people going to think of us when they see us standing at the top spending our lives here in a wasteland huh?" """Ah...""" "This next game we won't win or lose."