Chapter 46 - Three People, a Fairy, and the Demon Lord
Among monsters, those who possess wisdom, appearance, and power particularly similar to humans are called 'Demons.' They tame intellect and instinct within themselves, assess them, and select the leaders of their own races.
Bis—his true name, Bismarckrose Nilgiri Chambert—is a cat Demon (Cat Clan), the Chief of the Cat Clan, and until about three years ago, he had been calling himself the Demon Lord.
Now, he is Louis's trusted right-hand man.
"I would like you to go out and catch a fairy for me."
"Huh?"
It was, as expected, Bis who was told this with the same lightness as "run a quick errand for me" by the Demon Lord while he was ladling soup for dinner.
In the first place, the only ones seated at the table in this formal dining hall were the Demon Lord and Bis.
The two sat at opposite ends of a heavy, long table that had twenty seats.
There were three servers and three miscellaneous workers present in the room, but they stood by the walls, averting their eyes from their masters and simply waiting for work. All six were subordinates of the Demon Lord, classified as Demons.
However, unless specifically called by name, all commands were directed at Bis.
"Any specific requests?"
"None in particular. A higher rank is preferable."
"Eh, eh... well, understood."
The seat of honor, which Louis now occupied as if he owned the place, had once been occupied by Bis.
Louis had the qualification to call himself the Demon Lord simply because he had defeated the previous Demon Lord. In fact, about half of the leaders of the major Demon races had visited the Demon Lord's Castle, bowed their heads, and pledged their unconditional obedience to Louis.
If it was a matter of submitting to the strong, Bis was in the same position as other Demons. However, he had more composure than the others. He had the guts to bounce around without being captured by fear, even when facing Louis. Just by being able to stay by the Demon Lord's side, he was regarded with more respect than any other Demon leader.
Bis asked Louis, who had begun to elegantly tear apart his bread, with a suspicious upward glance.
"But hey, what are you going to do with the fairies?"
It was a small rebellion against the earlier "run a quick errand for me."
At Bis's question, Louis blinked his eyes, saying, "Huh?"
Usually, he made his attendants kneel with his insolent tone and attitude, but occasionally, that attitude would crumble.
"...You don't understand?"
"I haven't heard anything, so I don't think I can understand."
"Haa, I apologize for that. I assumed you could deduce it."
"I think that super-logic of 'I understand it, so you must understand it too' is questionable, you know?"
"That is true. At the Research Institute, regarding research, everyone was somewhat like a community... Perhaps it is not something one would normally understand."
"What, are all people of the sorcerer race like you, Louis?"
"They were excellent. With some exceptions."
"Hmm."
—Well, whatever.
Bis dismissed it. For the current Demon Lord, a bit of frivolous talk was not subject to punishment.
However, the servers standing around had faces as pale as if they had made a blunder themselves.
"Rank SS. There is an individual called the Fairy Chief."
"...Fairies have something like that?"
Louis remembered the information Elenoa had let slip when she was still 'alive.'
If it was about fairies, he should just ask another fairy. But inside a fairy's mind, aside from their hatred for humans, it was basically a flower field. They understood nothing about the structure of their own bodies.
But if there was an individual with knowledge, there was no reason not to ask.
However, there was no information on where the other party lived. So, he decided to catch fairies one by one, like picking lice.
Hoping that eventually, the other party would come to him.
"—In short, it's just a lure. I will ask the captured fairies, but I don't expect much."
"Weren't you working hard on your research until now? Doesn't it feel frustrating to ask now?"
"If research does not yield results, that time is the same as having none. The purpose is not the satisfaction of intellectual curiosity, but her healing."
"Is it for Elenoa-san?"
"Everything is to revive her."
"Yes, yes, thank you for the meal. ...Ah, don't forget about the snake, monkey, and bird tomorrow."
Bis, who warned him not to slack off because the leaders of the Snake Clan, Monkey Clan, and Bird Clan were coming for an audience, was surprisingly reliable despite his appearance.
"Hey! Who put onions in the soup! I told you not to put them in my bowl! Meow!"
"It only sounds like you are joking."
"It's a matter of life and death! Understand! Onions, chocolate, and coffee are strictly forbidden for cats! Hiss!"
"Calm down, your fur is flying."
Louis admonished Bis with an exasperated look, took a single sip of black tea, and left his seat.
Bis, who had been shaking his tail in irritation, suddenly came to his senses.
"Are you going underground again?"
"Is there a problem?"
"No, but make sure you soundproof it properly this time. Otherwise, it puts a strain on my ears. Meow."
"Haha, I will be careful."
Thinking that he was a person who laughed well as always, Bis held his mug firmly with both hands. He drank down the hot milk, cooled to a good temperature, in small sips, and with innocent cat eyes, he watched the Demon Lord's back depart.
After a calm dinner, there was a place that Louis had been visiting frequently lately.
Perhaps because it was built in a high place, it was a room with particularly low temperatures even within the Demon Lord's Castle, which was prone to cold year-round. Black, ominous stains clung to the damp stone walls and stone floor.
It was dim here. And very suffocating.
For the Hero's Party who would eventually come to defeat the Demon Lord, it was the perfect 'exploration spot' where death and evil intertwined—the Underground Dungeon.
Louis simply smiled there.
He looked down at the thing beneath him and let out a low rumble in his throat.
And when he moved his leg, the prey jumped with a start and screamed from the back of his throat.
"Ugh... Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
The man's ugly scream echoed underground.
But Louis did not cover his ears to the scream. On his cheek, blood splattered when he had punched the prey just a few minutes ago remained attached.
He deepened his smile as if to say 'scream more,' and continued the 'bullying.'
The heel of his leather shoe gouged into the thing below. It was a human arm. The arm was sandwiched between the hard sole of the shoe and the hard stone floor.
Louis looked down at the man groaning while lying face down and drooling, with inorganic eyes.
The man's arm had been broken long ago. His legs were the same. His other hand had been cut off long ago and left without any treatment.
Crunch, crush.
Because Louis applied more force, the bone, which was about to break and splinter, seemed ready to protrude from the arm. It had been crushed so much that it was impossible to tell if it was swollen from inflammation.
Every time Louis applied force, the man made a pig-like sound, "Gah, ah."
Two of the man's companions watched the man being abused through the iron bars of the cell.
The two were a stout man and a man with glasses.
The man with glasses watched his companion being subdued by one-sided violence with a painful expression. He called the man's name many times, but realized that it was meaningless. He glared at Louis and shouted.
"You, you... this... that guy, he's going to die!"
"Well, that's the right arm and both legs. Next is... one eye. And a few internal organs."
But Louis did not accept it.
No matter what was said from the cell, he remained indifferent.
"Hey! You bastard, have you lost your mind, you monster!"
"Rather than that, it's the noise. I am getting tired of being noisy like the guy with glasses."
He could hear them. He just didn't look at them.
The two companions were forced to watch in the cell, helpless, as the short man was treated worse than a rag.
The trio did not even know whose underground this was.
No one told them how much time had passed since the Royal Capital Grenole was attacked by monsters.
It had been only a week since they were released from petrification and put in the cell. They barely understood that the young man before them was the grown-up Louis Stylus, but everything else was completely incomprehensible.
Without any explanation, they were being subjected to this gradual, unreasonable assault.
The short man groaned at Louis's feet.
The man with glasses simply appealed to Louis.
"Is there some rule that says you can't kill fairies...? It's just a fairy, right? They didn't lay a hand on humans, did they? Your sister wasn't killed by us! So, ...this is... it's wrong, isn't it... breaking the rules! Isn't it you who's breaking them!"
The men had guessed. This was retaliation for what had been done to the fairy. And that it was misplaced anger over Louis's sister being killed by monsters.
Louis did not deny it, and the stout man spat out, "Ridiculous."
He didn't remember what they had done to the fairy, but the one eye and internal organs Louis was trying to crush, and the already bloodied arm and leg, seemed to overlap with the appearance of that fairy they had played with a little.
Nevertheless, there were few places on him that were not injured.
Louis finally looked at the man with glasses.
"Breaking rules, is it...? I did not intend to pledge such loyalty to that King. The people I should have supported with my salary are in that state thanks to someone, aren't they?"
When he rolled the arm under his feet with his shoe, the short man screamed, "—!"
"No matter what I do with you, it is the bloodline of House of Stylus. The thirst for knowledge has been strong since long ago."
—Come to think of it!
Louis's voice bounced, and he clapped his hands.
"I have always been curious about what would happen if I used humans. I have finally decided on a policy for what to do with you."
"Huh...?"
"Then I will announce the future research goals."
"What...!"
"From now on, please hate me. Hate me more strongly than ever before. I want to see various things, such as what kind of powerful weapons and medicines can be made using you as materials, what effects they will have, or if nothing will happen at all."
The stout man lost control of his bladder, and the man with glasses collapsed on the spot.
Louis's eyes, looking at them, were calm like those observing experimental animals.
Louis crossed his arms, saying, "Hmm."
"As expected, my interest does not wane. Does this dark emotion called human 'hatred' remain even after losing the body and possess ferocity? If so, how strong is it, and how long can it last? Such research is best conducted within the same species with similar intelligence."
"Wait, is it okay if you are removed from the position of Chief? We won't say anything now. If you let us go, we won't... we won't tell our parents either."
"Ah, I see you do not know. I am no longer in the court. You are considered dead. Furthermore, remarks like 'removed from the position of Chief' are, to say the least, grounds for deduction."
Because she surely could only say 'Help me.'
She could not even hold negotiation tools. She knew that she, who was not human, would not be protected.
Even if a fairy was cruelly killed, and even if it became public knowledge, the humans would not be blamed. Even if they were, it would be light.
Despairing at such unreasonableness, she had become a miserable figure as a fairy.
That is why he crushed the Royal Capital. Next was them.
This was not justice.
It was self-satisfaction, called revenge.
The fairy has started updating.