A/N: I was traveling yesterday and couldn't upload.
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The minister raised his voice once more.
"Dear adventurers. The request given to you is to defeat the resurrected demon. This account was found in a century-old text."
One of the two guards standing behind him stepped forward, holding a thick book. He opened it to a marked page and turned it outward so the illustration could be seen.
Couger muttered quietly beside Shizue,
"The Champion Orthos, huh…"
At the front of the hall, Haru calmly examined the illustration. It depicted a heroic knight locked in battle with a demon.
The Champion Orthos, Haru thought. What a joke.
A demon who had managed to name himself through the belief of humans. Haru let out a quiet chuckle.
Ever since becoming a demon, he had begun to realize just how pitiful and foolish humans truly were. Through their fear and faith, they had created an Archdemon with their own hands.
Well at this point, given enough souls, Haru could theoretically name himself as well, even without resorting to tricking people into believing he was a hero. All he needed was the right moment to fully materialize in the Cardinal World.
The minister continued.
"However, this record only tells us that the demon was successfully sealed by the knight Orthos. It does not explain how the seal was performed. That is why we wish to rely on the combined strength of all of you."
One adventurer suddenly shouted from the crowd.
"There isn't enough information on the enemy! Are you telling us to go and die!?"
Another voice followed.
"The Silver Wings were heroes famous enough to earn titles. If they failed, then there aren't enough lives between all of us to survive this!"
Shizue silently agreed with them.
An adventurer with a scar running down his right eye, dressed entirely in blue stepped forward.
"Sorry, but this is too dangerous. I'm out."
He turned and began walking toward the doors but was abruptly stopped.
The guards at the entrance swiftly crossed their spears in front of him. The man froze in shock and staggered back.
Haru smiled faintly to himself.
He had already identified the man as a Lesser Demon. An insect, of no interest to him. But the minister and the guards were demons as well.
This country truly is a den of demons.
The minister raised a hand.
"Wait. We need the help of all of you to defeat this demon."
"Shut up!" the man shouted.
The guards tightened their grip on their spears, their tips aimed directly at him. The man retreated, panic flashing across his face.
The entire hall fell into stunned silence.
Couger rubbed his head.
"Oh man…"
The minister spoke again, his tone soothing.
"Please, calm down. In truth… there is one thing we do know. Which is the demons objective."
Every adventurer turned toward him.
One of them asked, "What do you mean?"
The minister paused before continuing.
"There are remains laid to rest beneath the castle in the underground reception hall."
He let the words settle before finishing.
"Those remains are the demon's original body. His objective is to reclaim it and complete his resurrection."
One man whispered,
"The demon's… remains?"
An awkward silence followed.
Then Shizue raised her hand.
Couger glanced at her in surprise.
The minister smiled warmly.
"Ah! That must be the renowned Shizue Izawa. I will gladly answer any question you ask."
Shizue spoke calmly.
"If this demon drove the kingdom to the brink of ruin, and defeated the Silver Wings… then it must be a superior demon. An Archdemon."
Haru smiled faintly.
As expected of Shizue. Right on the mark.
It wasn't difficult to deduce the threat level, but she had arrived at the conclusion far quicker than most would.
The minister nodded.
"Yes."
Shizue continued.
"That brings me to my question. Does this demon… have a name?"
Haru thought to himself.
Monsters gain far greater power when they are granted names. This should be common knowledge for any competent adventurer in this building.
The minister answered calmly.
"No. There are no records indicating that the demon possessed a name."
Haru chuckled quietly once more.
The demon minister plays his role well. There wasn't even the slightest shift in emotion when Shizue had hit the bullseye. Truly impressive.
Shizue fell into thought.
If he has no name, then he shouldn't be an Archdemon…
But it was difficult to imagine the Silver Wings falling to anything less.
She questioned the minister again.
"So your intent was to gather us here and wait for the demon to arrive?"
"Indeed," the minister replied. "Now that the Silver Wings have fallen, this is our only strategy."
Shizue frowned internally.
He says that… yet he seems to view us as enemies.
Her gaze shifted toward the adventurer at the doors, still being threatened by spears.
The frightened man shouted,
"Screw that! I have no obligation to serve this nation! I'm leaving!"
Before he could take another step, a knight approached him and slashed him with his sword.
Blood spilled as the man collapsed to the ground.
Shocked gasps filled the hall.
Couger spoke in a low, stunned voice.
"He… killed him?"
An adventurer shouted,
"What's the meaning of this?!"
Another yelled,
"Hey! What are you thinking?!"
The knight turned and shouted back,
"Quiet! Before you curse me, take a good look at him."
He kicked the body, flipping it onto its back.
From the man's stomach, a Minotaur-like demon emerged.
"What's going on?!" someone shouted.
Shizue stared at it and thought,
A Lesser Demon.
Haru smiled.
"Now things are about to get a whole lot more interesting."
The guards quickly cast a spell, enveloping the Lesser Demon, and exorcised it.
The knight drove his sword into the ground and spoke.
"You see that? We isolated all of you here because some of you may have been possessed by demons, just like him. It would be best if you cooperate. Try anything funny, and you'll be seen as a demon and cut down."
The room was frozen in shock.
This has turned ugly, Shizue thought.
Couger turned to her.
"This looks bad. These guys are panicking. Which makes sense, if possession is possible… that includes you and me too, Shizue."
"True," Shizue replied.
She thought further.
He wants us to find the demons among ourselves.
Suddenly, a loud chuckle echoed throughout the hall.
Three people near Haru recoiled.
"Who's this guy?" one muttered.
"No idea. Never seen him before," another said as they backed away cautiously.
Haru was completely covered by a brown cloak. His face couldn't be seen.
Everyone turned toward him, Shizue and Couger included.
Couger swallowed, sweat forming.
"Shizue-san…"
Shizue nodded.
"Yes. He's very powerful. He seems to be a mage… but he shows no weakness."
She thought in disbelief.
Unbelievable… I didn't even sense his presence.
Haru continued chuckling.
"Pretty smart operation you have going here. You hoped to force cooperation by making us believe a demon was among us, correct?"
The minister stiffened.
"You… what are you implying?"
Haru chuckled again.
"Oh, nothing much. It just seemed this request would be completed far more easily than expected. I couldn't help but laugh."
He continued. Turning to the knights at the door.
"Captain of the Knights."
The knight flinched slightly.
"You said that if we tried anything funny, we'd be seen as demons and cut down… right?"
Haru smiled beneath his cloak.
"Well then. What will it be?"
His voice hardened.
"Because I have no intention of obeying you people."
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