15 – Demon King Army Chief of Staff, Make a Promise to Go Out Part 1
The Recording Stone is an item that possesses various functions.
It requires magical energy, but it can transport people and objects to Other Recording Stones once they have been registered.
It is also used to store Dungeon Clear data. Adventurers can then choose to Continue from their Last Session after confirmation from the dungeon's side.
The rooms that have Recording Stones are called Safe Rooms, monsters will not attack you while you are in it, and you can even use the Save Points to return to the dungeon entrance.
You need an item that proves your identity called a Registration Card in order to use it.
Dungeon Staff also makes use of these Recording Stones a lot.
「Lem, please use this today.」
Milla handed me a temporary registration card. They couldn't issue an official one in time.
It was a thin board that was as long as my thumb and made of metal. It had a hole with a chain running through it.
I think it might take a few days for them to issue Cashew's one, so she has to share mine.
I was about to hang it around my neck so that I wouldn't lose it, but then I stopped.
「Cashew here's your first assignment. Can I entrust this with you and you make sure not to lose it?」
After saying that, Cashew stood at attention.
「Y, yes! I definitely will not lose it, Chief of staff, sir!」
Chief of staff, huh? No.
「…It's OK to call me the usual way.」
「No, sir! We're at work, sir!」
「I see. That's right. Alright, I understand.」
It made me feel a little lonely, but it's good to have enthusiasm in your work.
I let out a sigh while thinking about how heartwarming Cashew's determination-inspiring demeanor is, as we walked through the interiors of the Demon Castle.
「In the Demon Castle's basement, generally there exists a great number of rooms other than the facilities we call Dungeons.」
「What? Really?」
Milla had already let go of my arm at this point. At the moment of separation, she said 「I don't think my heart could handle any more of this.」with cheeks flushed with red. In my head, I wholeheartedly agreed.
「Indeed. You can carry out training, people from the same stratum and workers of the same species can take a break, etc. There's also a large public bath, a home theatre center, a blacksmith, etc. We have all one would need in order to care for their mind, body, and equipment.」
「…Dungeons are incredible.」
The only thing the average person knows about dungeons is that they were special rooms made by ancient monsters.
All you needed to run a dungeon was permission from the country.
To tell the truth, I was just like them. So hearing all this for the first time was quite a surprise.
「As the passages aren't actually connected, they provide advantages in defending.」
「That's certainly true.」
In the distant past, dungeon clearers and the like were only hindrances. They'd prefer them not to enter at all, so it's clever how they made it so that the strata are not connected by default without having to use a special procedure to cut them off.
Although I don't think the monsters of old ever dreamed that in the distant future, their dungeons would have a hot spring and a small cinema built into it. No, wait…hot springs might have been possible, right? I wonder.
「Today we shall be meeting the Werewolf group.」
Incidentally, adventurers are usually referred by their Job + their name, but monsters are referred by their race + dungeon name instead of their Job.
However, exceptions like Demon King do exist.
「Werewolves are half-people, half-wolf in appearance and can be used for different purposes, right?」
「Why, yes. Among them is the Floor Boss Marchosias, who is exceedingly nice and I concluded that his human side will have little to no resistance towards accepting you, Lem」[1. TL Note: Marchosias is a demon described in the Lemegeton that has griffon wings, a serpent's tail, breathes fire and can change into the form of a man]
Since they are followers of the Demon King Luci, there's no way that they are hopelessly evil, right?
Even if that were the case, it's wrong to say that all of them would happily welcome a human Black Sorcerer with open arms.
Since they are followers of the Demon King Luci, there's no way that they are hopelessly evil, right?
Even if that were the case, it's wrong to say that all of them would happily welcome a human Black Sorcerer with open arms.

And a former adventurer, no less. If I were to put in sports terms, it's like if a player was kicked out of the rival team and then one day he was suddenly selected to become the captain. Or their ace, even. Anyway, I think it'll definitely be difficult for them to accept me.
「But please, do be careful. They are the nicest of nice people but they are also…irritating.」
「Thank you very much. But it'll be fine. If they are Milla's companions, I have nothing to worry about.」
Milla really is good to me.
I dread to think what would have happened had I never greeted her.
With no one who appreciates me, how would I have continued living as the unfortunate Black Sorcerer?
She understands my magic to an almost mortifying degree and personally says she's a fan.
However, I've always had this uncomfortable feeling that I just can't wipe away.
Of course I'm happy, but the goodwill I've felt from her has always felt, how should I say this…a little excessive.
If it was like with Cashew where I was her first customer, and I went to her shop almost every day and became emotionally attached, I would understand. She was happy with me and accepted me, simple. I know the whole picture.
But in Milla's case, it feels like a piece of the puzzle is missing.
For example, if I knew how she came to be a fan of mine, my feeling of unease might disappear.
In other words, the source of her goodwill towards me. The origin. It would be weird if the reason she was so clingy after meeting me was simply that I'm a Black Sorcerer. I've seen her attitude towards other people, I know that side of her all too well.
It's because of that serious attitude of hers that I cannot take her feelings lightly.
Putting that aside, I have complete faith in her.
「… Please be careful when saying such pleasing words like that, it just makes me want to suck your blood.」
Bloodsucking is the act of absorbing the magical energy contained within the blood. Vampires are commonly said to target young women. The theory behind it is that the young have an abundance of magical power, and women tend to have a high aptitude towards magic
Be that as it may, does she really want to suck some of my magical power?
「If it's just a little, I don't see the harm. I don't mind, so go ahead if you want to, Milla」
「Lem, please refrain from saying something like that again. …If you did, I…a-anyway, please stop. We're working.」
Milla's face is a little red. She seems like she's suppressing something. Is she being assailed by her bloodsucking impulses?
「…I'll be careful.」
「However Lem, if you were to say that to me again when the following day is a day off, I think I just might suck you. By the way, my day off happens to be 3 days from now.」
Having your magical power absorbed is followed by an unbelievable feeling of tiredness. Even at the best of times, losing blood as well as a drastic decrease in your magical power is not good for your health. I guess you shouldn't do it when there is work awaiting you the next day.
Hold on, could it be an expression that's used by modern-day vampires?
In these modern times, Demi-humans no longer seek to cause harm to humans like their ancestors. While that may be true, there are laws in place to crack down on other similar types of crimes.
Bloodsucking for instance. Sucking blood without consent from the other party is treated as assault.
「My day off happens to be 3 days from now.」
Milla says that once more.
With some embarrassment, I finally catch on to what she's trying to say.
That it's, uh, it's OK for us to meet up on her day off. In other words, she's trying to tell me that she would say yes if I were to invite her on a date.
So that's it! The purpose of her mentions of bloodsucking was just a front, a facade.
However, considering I was hopelessly unpopular for the last 10 years, I am extremely inexperienced with this kinda thing.
People thought it was bad luck to date a Black Sorcerer, even worse were people telling stories like「They'll cast Confusion and Speed Down on you so you can't resist…ew…」.
If a regular Black Sorcerer could do something like that, they wouldn't be such an unfortunate job to be!
With their output, magical power management, and durability issues, it's normally impossible to put the opponent in a state of complete non-resistance.
What's more, if they get aroused, they're black magic gets so unstable that the average woman can easily resist their effects. The black magic of an aroused Black Sorcerer is nothing to worry about.
…It's definitely possible for me, but I would never, ever do something like that.
Due to those stereotypes, I have lived a life without ever making a connection with a woman, but I understand that Milla does not possess those prejudices.
C'mon, you can do this! Be brave, Lem!
「There are many things that I want to thank you for. I-if it's alright with you, would you like to go out with me on your day off…?」
I said it.