Chapter 36.1: Responsibilities of a shrine maiden
[Furcas's Pov]
The witch's child has changed so completely that I hardly recognize the same weeping child I saw at the witch's farewell. Of course, I resent that witch's desire to pollute our Ars Goetia's bloodline with that strange aura. Heck, I'd prefer he court an angel rather than that witch.
Seeing the once-potential knight transform into that strange vortex of power, I would have claimed him as my kin, but he now appears to belong to someone else. I've always had a strange fear of the angel...the Saudade's sovereign.
The tiny vial of antidote, huh... Akin appears to be strong enough to have produced such effective anti-potions from the white snake's skin. I recall how that child would cling to my feet whenever a large beast appeared in front of us.
The flavor is quite minty; perhaps he used a different diet when making it; I'm tired of the basil flavor for the time being.
"Mahtsa Buer, the position of apprentice knight. And finally, the tournament winner..." It looks at me with those golden eyes, as if the predator is about to kill its prey.
"Furcas in the role of apprentice general. I will personally deliver you to your assigned quarter. As the court's military commander, everyone except the common guards must remain in the palace in response to the crisis." How is the small sovereign faring against me and the child of Buer?
Essentially, it wants us to be deeply involved in Saudade's military so that family termination is possible if a coup is planned against it. I'm curious about how dangerous it is. I'm not bothered because most of my kin perished during the sealing, and I have no chain to wear.
Without Andromalius' rehabilitation me of from my banishment and suggestion of coming here, I would have never known about this place after my banishment. What has changed about that stern lizard? Perhaps it was the small sovereign who influenced him. I need to integrate more.
Walking around the palace doesn't change much only that those shared memories are no longer there. It sent each of the participants, one by one, to the known quarter with the common imp soldier. Even though they have suffered a humiliating defeat, I see no reason for further humiliation as that poor treatment.
The "apprentice" knights have a better quarter, more like a servant's quarter, with a table to condone their thoughts, which appears to be quite little as one does not share with others.
Finally, come to my room, which appears to be the most upgraded, with tactical maps and weapon racks alike... The norm of memory has returned to bite me; this used to be a mortal demon who was a knight.
I don't remember much about that weakling except that it was constantly thirsting for power; I couldn't blame it for training so much while being surrounded by higher demons. Ha...even until its demise, it can't even break through the rank of earl.
"Meal will be served by the servant in your room at 7 p.m., before which you may do as you wish." The small sovereign says before shutting my door, gladly I am grateful to escape its wrath for another time.
I am ready for bed by the time the clock struck seven. When comparing traveling to the vast wasteland of the west, this is a better way to exist. I expected something more than bread and soup to be served to the likes of general, but they are all the same to be served.
As I finish the meal, I notice that my stomach is filled with nausea. I need to burn some nutrients by exercising. So I return to the former training ground. Because there is no one to stop me on my way, the place must be empty...
How awkward would it be for the small sovereign to still be here, those golden eyes have been scanning around for quite some time, must it know I'm here?
"I knew you were watching; was my cleaning entertaining you?" When the small sovereign turns its gaze on me, the intensity of intimidation is unrivaled in my previous experience. I'm not sure if I've ever seen it before.
"I'm not here to pry, but to burn off some energy from the previous meal." As I walked out of the dark corner, those golden eyes followed me.
Many lights shine brightly in the night by the indication of "cleaning," particularly the place is rebuilding itself with the sovereign aid of mana. Is that a rune? I've heard and owned many that improved weapon conductors or increased battle power, but not to this extent.
"Then I'll leave this place in your hands, Furcas." Is it simply leave? I don't think such a light punishment should be left undone after I ruined his toys.
"Your Majesty, I have a completely different idea."
The blaze rushes forward as the sword rushes forward to my aid. I'm not afraid of death, but this insane grudge is a very inconvenient aspect of living. I'll oblige if it wants to fight.
"You must want something like death to raise your sword against me." As the small sovereign speaks, the whirlwind of mana surrounding it raises to a fearsome extent.
"I was curious who taught that child such strange things. Apart from that witch, I can only think of you." I put its grudge to the test by fabricating a lie.
"How ridiculous is it that you intend to serve under me?" The whirlwind blows once more as the night begins to cloud with cold winds.
I hear the whimpering of the weaklings; I suppose that is what makes us demons; enjoying the suffering of others.
"Well besides Andromalius's pardon me, I am just longing for a place to stay. I never intended to do anything else." Let me try to calm it down then, Andromalius might come at any day and scold me for tempering with his "belonging".
He is a prideful demon who is more concerned with his people than with himself. A foolish old Strength of authority.
"Then proceed with your intention," it says softly, sighing. It appears to have only the naive nature that Andromalius enjoys.
"Proceed? Will you not question me?" I'm not convinced.
"Continous provocation for death; injured poorly Shin despite your authority of hell flame. Either you've lost your flame, or you truly want to put those young ones to the test." The small sovereign examines me thoroughly, scrutinizing every detail of my movements, but the only word that comes to my ear is that I have softened.
"Why you, you little-" I lunge forward with the sword in a fit of rage.
Before the impact can finally land, it is frozen by the previous whirlwind. In a fit of rage, it unleashed a devastating blizzard that froze even hell itself. Come on and strike me with those hatred dwelling in your golden eyes.
"There are many things I can tolerate, but physical assault is not one of them. Keep those weapons to yourself or I'll snap them all in half." it comes to a halt. The runes that protect the training ground return the surroundings to normal temperature.
"Tch. You are as powerful as they say, as monstrous as they describe." When I inspect the sword, I notice that the tip is frozen to the point of breaking, and it somehow stops at that precise moment.
This sword's metal is the metal of a fallen star. The sovereign is one of the monstrous beings who can shatter it with just raw mana that bursts from itself.
The silence engulfs another; if it does not wish to torment me any longer, I will stop my arrogance.
"Well, you still have to pay for your insulation," it says precipitously.
"Are you going to compensate me for my salary for a month?" I make a half-hearted joke.
"No, I simply need to know what Shin has said to you. What exactly is a "shrine maiden"? And what of her death made you the failed protector?" It bombards me with questions that I'm not sure how to answer for those failing memories I shared with that witch...what is that bell sound?
"First and foremost, the witch's identity. You've guessed she's a foreigner based on that child, haven't you?" While I couldn't see what was behind the barrier, I felt a strong gaze on that child. A creeping sense of greed surrounds that child the entire time as if it was looking over its precious possession.
"Certainly," it replied simply, confirming my suspicions about this punishment.
"She was a human, and the "shrine maiden" part was her responsibility. The thing about shrine maidens was that they worshiped a variety of gods." The witch said a lot about the shrine maiden, but Andromalius couldn't understand a quarter of what she said. If he only understood one-fourth of it, he would never consider courting that witch.
"Are you sure that's not us?" it asks, which is a good question, but...
"No, she describes us, yo... I'm not sure what she called them, but they were definitely lesser beings than God." The first thing she called us was an oni, which she later explained because she hasn't sensed any divinity, so she called us yo... That didn't matter because Andromalius was there to teach her about demons.
"A certain divinity is lacking in order for one to be considered a god in that land, so she said that she was able to become one but was unable due to circumstances." That circumstance was belief or merit, as one called it, but I don't believe its question mentioned that aspect, so I won't discuss it.
"I understand perfectly. On the next one," it says, meticulously writing down my responses. Its eyes no longer bear the sense of hostility that they once did, which is good news for me.
"You're heartless to expect people to answer honestly to their grief." I recoil, hoping it'll leave me alone at this point.
"I won't back down even if you say something so pitiful." Its eyes sharpen once more; this night will be long.
"I would have guessed..." I sigh at its total lack of empathy. "That one was because that witch used her strange power too much. She has made too many sacrifices for that fragile human soul to bear." I explain briefly her demise.
Her soul disappeared completely from this land and returned to the god she served as the price for becoming a shrine maiden.
"I have witnessed the corruption of the soul. Is it necessary to use such dangerous abilities?" it asks, so that child's soul observation was the focus of that gaze. A good one to notice such an element.
"That witch said something about changing one's fate at a high cost or something like that. The ability to reverse karma." Something had condemned us to death that day, but thanks to her intervention, we are still alive. She could have lived forever as an immortal human, but she gave them up for our survival.
"...I'll look into it. If what you said is true, I will never allow Shin to use such powers again." It appears to be deeply thinking about that child, as it bites its nails. I could be misinterpreting its intention to use that child as a toy in order to break him.
"Trust me, that child has not been taught enough to even form the basics as the witch forbade him to even use something larger than that," I reassure it, that child has never been taught from an education that used that strange power, so I doubt he can use it as something other than converse the mana to use magic.
"When I said the child to have tainted himself by vengeance, I didn't do it with malice but rather a concern. For the people of that foreign land to be so sensitive to karma that it can change them for the better or for the worse."
I've heard her mention before of someone being wrapped in something that turned them into mindless monsters who wandered the land for eternity until someone release them from their misery by purification or simply granting them death.
"That's enough for this evening; your crime has been absolved since the first response." It grasps as it has been quite a day, I usually don't sleep at night when wandering that wasteland, and these eyes may close sometime in the brief of noon.
"Aren't you a sly one, making me spill my guts like that?" I position myself in front of the floor so that either I or it can leave; by the look of the sovereign, it must still have duties to fulfill.
"All right, then. To be a trade end, a reward must be one." The contents of a flask of golden liquid are air-tightened and sealed so that not even the scene is leaked out.
"What exactly is this? Is that a poison flask?" While inspecting the gift, I inquire.
"My blood, I've heard this is a demon delicacy because it helps one strengthen their control over mana." The blood of an angel? Is this true?
I feel myself being empowered by the raw mana contained in the blood as I drink it up. For a long time, I never imagined my skull being warmed by blue flame, let alone the current purple flame of hell. I can feel the soul-scorching flame I used to wield again.
"Don't consume it all at once. You're supposed to drink it after I've gone." It hides its face, agitated. That is one adorable side of a monstrous sovereign.
"To confirm your gift that everything. Your majesty, you have kept your word." I wink at my joke.
It turns around and walks away, huffing. When the empty moon left the sky behind those whirlwinds of mana, it returned to the first quarter before it left. I still have leftover strength from that meal, which I am supplementing with the new source of raw mana. Should I put my flame to the test against the endurance of those puppets?
The end
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Come and listen to this tale
A tale full of secrecy and scars
A village that gave birth to a mixed child
Whose knowledge comes only of the destroyed foreign land