Chapter 78. Why are you opening your eyes so wide?
I looked down at the golden horse demon writhing on the floor.
No, there was something I needed to confirm first.
"Are you the golden horse demon?"
"......"
"Seems like it."
Even though he couldn't speak, his eyes were enough to infer the answer.
His trembling pupils.
They seemed to flicker as if asking, "How did you know?"
"Good, seems like it. Then, are those scattered over there your minions?"
"Ugh, ugh... cough!"
"Why are you opening your eyes so wide?"
The golden horse demon, kicked in the jaw, tumbled backward.
In the process, the blood in his mouth splattered and dotted my robe.
"......Tsk."
I shook the blood off my hands and then, seeing the stain that wouldn't come off, simply tore it off.
It was already worn out from the battle just now, so I wasn't too upset.
It was just that the dirty blood made me feel uncomfortable.
Anyway.
"You have three things to keep in mind during this conversation."
I grabbed the golden horse demon's forehead and met his eyes.
"First, you will open your eyes respectfully. It would be better to fix your gaze on my feet. I can make it so you can't open your eyes."
Was he the leader among the rats?
Despite the warning, his eyes didn't become respectful. Instead, they pierced me with even more malice than before.
But, who am I?
A man driven mad by too much fear.
I can't bear to see something scary.
Crack, crunch.
Ignoring the first warning, the golden horse demon clutched his eyes and screamed in agony.
"Ugh, ughh—!"
"Feeling a bit more respectful now?"
No answer.
In any case, when a superior asks a question, one should answer clearly with 'yes' or 'no,' not just a gesture.
Of course, I'm a generous person, so I let this slide.
Now, the next one.
"Second, don't try any tricks. Golden horse demons, with their shedding and whatnot, are said to have special abilities, right?"
Professor Pelina knew quite a bit about Salvatium and golden horse demons.
Shedding (脫却) is one of them.
'Can perform magic that defies the natural order, right?'
Most forbidden magics don't align with the natural order, but this goes beyond that.
Yes, exactly like that.
"......"
I focused on the Death Knight standing still at the golden horse demon's command.
It looked different from the typical Death Knight.
A Death Knight, after all, should be a gaunt skeleton, indistinguishable from a skeleton except for the fancy armor.
But inside the armor, it wasn't a skull but a murky black mist.
'Impressive...'
It was dangerous.
If the golden horse demon hadn't ordered it to stop, the outcome would have been unpredictable.
That's why I pulled out its tongue first.
Next, the third.
"Answer my questions honestly and as they are. I'm not in a good mood because of you guys."
Of course, there was no answer.
Or rather, it was natural that there wasn't.
I looked at him, just in case.
"Can't you speak, so you can't answer? If that's the case, nod your head."
I asked the question and marveled at myself.
'Ah!'
What a merciful gesture.
To consider even someone who had cursed me with 'no need for questions and answers.'
I have such a broad heart.
Not as vast as the sea, but at least like a mountain spring.
But.
"You're quite a stubborn one, aren't you?"
The golden horse demon, groaning in pain and writhing, seemed to be in no state to accept my mercy.
"Ugh, ugh. Ugh..."
Groaning in pain, the golden horse demon.
It seemed my words didn't even reach his ears, but then I thought:
"If you don't need ears... you don't need to have them, right?"
But, this was a matter of necessity.
To continue the conversation, at least minimally, we needed a means of communication.
So, I decided to give a little help.
"It will sting and hurt a bit."
I covered my hand with the flames of the Holy Fire and brought it to the golden horse demon's wound.
"Think of it as a one-time pain, okay?"
Soon, a wailing cry spread throughout the forest.
I think like this:
People have a 'line.'
I set that line at 'malice,' and the golden horse demon had crossed it, far beyond.
That's how it was.
...After some time had passed.
"Feeling better now?"
"Ugh, ugh."
The golden horse demon nodded vigorously.
Compared to his malice, his resistance to pain wasn't very high, and he seemed to have become more docile.
"From now on, you need to answer my questions well. Understand?"
"Ugh, ugh."
The conversation went extremely smoothly.
* * *
The conversation with the golden horse demon ended when the moon had set and the sky was just beginning to lighten.
Whoosh...
I burned the remains of the golden horse demon and finally slumped to the ground.
Crack, crack.
Before me was the peaceful landscape of the Hameln Great Forest.
Thirteen corpses of black mages, which would serve as food for the monsters, the burning remains, and on one side, a can that faithfully followed its commands, regardless of whether its summoner was dead or not.
'...Yeah, this is peace.'
Anyway, I had a long conversation with the golden horse demon.
First, his goal was indeed Destrue.
'He said he came with one companion.'
I thought the black mage might be a companion, but it seemed they didn't consider each other within the human realm.
But there was a question about what connection Destrue had with me...
I glanced down at the densely written characters on the ground.
The golden horse demon's answers.
Written with distant eyes, they were mostly illegible, but roughly translated, they said:
'The original goal was Obern. The ultimate goal was his master, right?'
There were various circumstances involved.
I also exchanged several questions and answers.
- What about the nearby monsters? How did you deal with them?
The method of driving the monsters of the Hameln Great Forest beyond a certain area.
- Golden horse demons each have special abilities, right? What's yours?
From the abilities he originally possessed.
There were many other questions.
Of course, he tried not to answer some sensitive questions.
But, what is conversation? Communication. And I have a knack for this kind of conversation.
With a little communication, he started to spill the beans.
However, there was one thing he didn't answer.
- What is Salvatium's goal? How big is it? Tell me everything you know.
At that moment.
- Gurgling, choking.
The golden horse demon spat out blood and died.
'It seems there was some kind of restriction...'
Fortunately, I had asked everything I needed to ask, or I would have been in trouble.
Of course, it was a common pattern to ask this last.
Anyway.
"...Phew."
I finally took off my mask and sat in the middle of the Hameln Great Forest.
"Really... cough!"
A mouthful of dark blood trickled out.
As the dark blood soaked the ground, I finally managed to calm myself down.
"Really... what a bunch of bastards."
I pretended to be calm in front of the golden horse demon.
But my condition after the battle wasn't normal either.
I managed to withstand the black mages' magic, but...
The biggest problem was this.
"Whew."
Under my slightly lifted clothes.
Sss... swish...
Two energies were vying for territory on my exposed skin.
One is...
'The Thirteen Sins, right?'
An ancient curse activated by the lives of thirteen people.
The curse's energy gathered ominously in my lower abdomen, surrounded by dense characters.
Characters... in other words.
'Runes.'
On my left chest.
The unknown characters that extended from the Fire Seal.
So, the reactivated Fire Seal's function was fighting against the terrifying curse of 'The Thirteen Sins.'
Fortunately, the Fire Seal was winning.
Right now, it was gradually suppressing the curse's energy.
Along with the lingering effects of the black mages' curses in my body.
'I almost died trying to catch a rat.'
I thought it would be at the level of a Prelate, but I almost died.
Anyway.
"...Hmm."
After assessing my condition, I raised my head.
The lingering effects of the various curses would resolve on their own over time.
'The Thirteen Sins' would also be taken care of by our kind-hearted grimoire.
'Hang in there, man.'
There's no need to worry too much.
But...
"What to do with this."
I looked at the can standing calmly.
Bathed in the morning sunlight, the can... how should I put it? It was indeed solemn.
'Was it made using a Master Knight as material?'
No wonder its movements were unusual...
"Hmm."
To be honest, I'm not uninterested.
'Really... it was impressive.'
After all, a Master Knight.
While it can't fully utilize its power from life, it can use its unique swordsmanship, having inherited the soul.
It would likely be a great help to have around.
'And... I have the controller in my hands.'
The black bracelet the golden horse demon was wearing.
If I wear it and give the command 'raise,' it will follow the order thoroughly...
"Deal with it. Deal with it. What to do with this..."
After some thought.
I made a decision.
"Hey, man. Come here."
[Order. Received.]
Indeed, wearing the bracelet and giving the command, the Death Knight walked forward.
But.
Bang!
"Whew."
In one leap, it landed on the ground.
How could it not follow even a simple command?
Anyway, I looked up at the Death Knight, who was looking down at me solemnly, and gave an order.
Or rather, I gave a different order first.
"Match eye level."
Click.
Even if it's a summoned creature, it's not pleasant to be looked down upon.
'Sigh. If I grow up, I'll be at least that tall...'
But, thinking about it, I won't be that tall.
Maybe it's because it's a Death Knight. Or maybe it was that tall in life.
Considering its height, it was a towering figure, at least 2 meters tall.
Anyway.
The first order I gave to the Death Knight.
"You are free. Go and rest in peace."
It was a release.
No matter how powerful a force, as a person, there are things that should and shouldn't be done.
Feeling impressed by my magnanimous heart.
[Free...]
A low voice echoed in my ear.
[Freedom... is this?]
Like someone waking from a long sleep, the Death Knight muttered the word as if in a trance.
At that moment, an unknown aura burst from the Death Knight.
Crack!
The ominous characters shattered into pieces.
[...Indeed. The suppression has been lifted.]
Something that had been restraining the Death Knight had been removed.
The Death Knight looked up at the sky with a sense of relief.
Like someone who had been imprisoned for a long time and was seeing the sunlight for the first time.
The Death Knight, who had been staring at the sky endlessly, finally lowered its gaze.
[But, young one.]
Young one?
[Did you kill the damn thing that bound this body? Hmm... You look scrawny, like you can't even boil a piece of meat.]
Can't even boil a piece of meat?
'What are you looking at?'
I'm not fully grown yet, but thanks to the mana reservoir upgraded by the grimoire's function, my foundation is excellent.
I don't have the bulky muscles of the second son of the Dolenfega family, but I'm still...
"Shut up."
This isn't right.
When someone is so frustrated, their thoughts go astray, and this was exactly that situation.
"Hey."
[Hey?]
I stood crookedly and looked up at the Death Knight.
By now, it had straightened its bent knees.
Anyway.
"Free, remember?"
[So what?]
"I heard that being undead is... very, extremely painful."
[Hmm, it is painful. I'm still a bit in pain.]
"Then, get into the coffin quickly. I'm busy and might die from it."
Usually, when undead with a sense of self receive the command to be free, they return to rest.
—So the golden horse demon said.
So, I wanted to quickly dispose of it and return to the main group, but...
[Didn't you say I'm free?]
"That's right."
[Then, staying in this world is also my freedom.]
"......"
It's a valid point.
'And a damn good one.'
But, considering my current condition, I didn't hit the Death Knight.
It wasn't because I thought I would definitely lose.
It wasn't because I was afraid of the Master Knight's swordsmanship, which had regained its senses.
Anyway.
"Alright then. Enjoy your freedom. We'll each go our own way."
A parting without any hard feelings.
If it were someone like Obern, he might have hesitated to release a revived Death Knight into the world...
'But that's not my problem.'
Whatever happens in this world, whether it stays or causes chaos on the continent, it's all up to the vicious Death Knight.
As I was about to leave.
[Well, then, show me the way.]
"......Shit."
A familiar pattern flashed through my mind.
"By any chance, the Blando family?"
[Ho? Is Blando learning swordsmanship these days?]
I asked just in case, but it wasn't the case.
So, with each step.
Click.
Another step...
Click... stop.
"Damn... I've seen all sorts of things in my life."
[You're young, yet you have a foul mouth.]
"I've had my fill."
[Am I the only one? I lived several times longer than you when I died.]
Damn...
"Didn't you hear that there's no order in death?"
Ah, maybe I shouldn't have said that?
Feeling like I was trying to stop him, I clenched my jaw, but the Death Knight's response was unexpected.
[I've already been there and back.]
"......Hmm."
[This is called a career change, right?]
Really.
It was a day that couldn't be called anything but crazy.