Chapter 14

《It seems you have finally noticed.》

“You’d be an idiot not to notice!!”

I screamed and struggled, but my weak body couldn’t even win against a lizard small enough to fit in my palm.

All sorts of harsh curses rolled around in my mouth.

《Stop, I did not come here to kill you.》

“Then did you come to kill Lucian, you goddamn demon bastard!!”

Even if it means I die, I won’t betray Lucian!

I wouldn’t shout it like that, but still, I have no intention of standing by and watching Lucian fall prey to this demon.

《I came because I grew interested in your power. Because your power is special.》

“Was your purpose an experiment?!”

Even for a demon… he was trash beyond imagination, wasn’t he?

As I looked down with contemptuous eyes, Baal hurriedly shouted.

《I will help you control your power!》

…He’ll help me?

For a moment, I was tempted and looked at Baal, but the thought that it was definitely not a good idea came first. A demon who tried to kill me will help me? You’ve got to be kidding me!

“Get lost!!”

I confidently raised my middle finger at the demon.

However, as if he had expected such a reaction, Baal still did not let go of me and flapped his glib mouth.

《You intend to receive help from humans? Humans are wary of and ostracize powers outside the norm, especially if it’s a power they can’t explain with their own knowledge. And your power… I can assure you, it will be in the realm of ostracism.》

The demon’s words hit the nail on the head painfully.

In this world, many miracles were permitted under the name of mana.

However, there was a history of spirit summoners being persecuted as witches who made contracts with demons to defile nature, and heretic inquisitors still existed.

《Do you believe that humans will accept a unique and heterogeneous power that even I, an ancient demon and the king of demons, have seen for the first time.》

“…They can keep it a secret.”

At least Lucian and senior Laurel did.

I clenched my fist and looked at the demon in the form of a lizard.

In the first place, this game had a setting where the moment you contracted with a demon, your mana was tainted. The mana would turn black, making it impossible to hide even if you wanted to.

《If you contract with me, your mana will not be tainted by darkness.》

“…Is something like that possible?”

《Unlike other demons, ancient demons are not fallen beings.》

…That was a setting I had never heard of before.

He’s not lying, is he?

The lizard did have a guilty look on its face, but it didn’t seem to be lying.

Did he tell me a secret he wasn’t supposed to reveal? If so, why on earth is he so obsessed with making a contract with me? Is he really doing this just out of interest?

My heart wavered for a moment, but I quickly regained my composure.

“Still, getting help from the Demon King is a bit much.”

I have no choice but to find a way to use my skills without vomiting blood on my own. Anyway, if I keep using the skills, won’t I figure out a way to solve it?

《I promise I will not cause you any harm whatsoever.》

“It can’t be limited to just me. Include other people, especially Lucian.”

《As long as I am in the position of the Demon King, the hero is my nemesis, and confronting him is fate.》

“Yep, then I’m out too.”

Even if I don’t get caught by the heretic inquisitors, there’s another problem.

An NPC who contracted with the demon that almost killed the protagonist? Wow, anyone can see that’s mid-boss material.

My life is already in danger of ending at any moment, and you want me to make a contract with the Demon King on top of that?

Yep, I absolutely hate it. I won’t do it even if I die. No, I won’t do it because I’m afraid I’ll die. I don’t want to become a newbie-crusher mid-boss!!

《If I ever clash with the hero, I will terminate the contract with you.》

“That’s the problem!”

The fact that you are the ‘destiny’ of the Demon King and the hero, who will eventually have to fight Lucian!

《Are you not concerned about being caught in the conflict between the hero and myself. I will do well to ensure that does not happen.》

“Don’t talk nonsense for a lizard.”

You’re talking about dodging flags while tap-dancing!

《…You really hate it that much?》

“Of course!”

Right now, I was the protagonist’s friend.

Now, think about it. The protagonist who will be active as the future hero. The friend who looks at the protagonist with envious eyes due to his weak body.

In the end, he reaches for the forbidden power—a contract with a demon—and the protagonist sheds tears as he vanquishes his friend!

This is a total cliché that writers go crazy for! I’d bet my wrist that a few writers are already drooling over it!!

《The battle between the Demon King and the hero is a great, irreversible flow of destiny. Even I cannot escape that destiny.》

“Then it won’t work. Now, leave quietly. Return to the embrace of nature, lizard!”

《…Then I suppose I just have to quit being the Demon King.》

“Huh??”

You’d go that far to make a contract with me? Flustered, I stared blankly down at the lizard.

“Is there really a need to go that far?”

What, is he a dopamine addict or something? I felt a little creeped out.

《The position of Demon King was bothersome in the first place, so it wouldn’t matter if I stepped down. If I am no longer the Demon King, would you be willing to contract with me.》

“…First, step down from being the Demon King, then we’ll talk. I’ll consider it then.”

He could just be saying he’ll step down.

“Show me with your actions.”

《Fine, I understand.》

For some reason, it felt like his eyes were also saying, ‘Even if you refuse, I can just follow you around’.

The lizard that had been biting my pant leg rustled away, quickly crawling out through the window.

“Ah, I’m tired.”

What on earth have I gotten myself into.

I finally got to be a count’s son, I was reborn with a golden spoon… why do I keep getting involved in these kinds of problems?

* * *

I think I slept for over twelve hours, but my fatigue wasn’t relieved at all.

“I’m tired….”

As of yesterday, the Academy’s campus-wide lecture cancellation was over, and it had returned to a normal academic schedule. Which means, I, a student, have to quietly attend my classes.

“I came in too late, didn’t I? I’m sorry.”

I had been sitting on the bed, dozing off, when Lucian’s voice snapped me awake.

“Ah, you came in late.”

Rather than that, I slept soundly without waking up once. And yet, I kept yawning.

“You’re not sick anywhere, are you?”

“It’s not that, I just… had a rough night’s sleep.”

Baal’s words that he had become interested seemed sincere, but it was still hard to fully believe him.

As I vaguely trailed off, Lucian suggested with a rather serious face.

“I heard that some students struggle psychologically after being injured in a dungeon, how about getting counseling from Professor Artemia?”

Is he talking about post-traumatic stress disorder? Well… honestly, if something like that happened in a dungeon twice, I think I’d never want to enter a dungeon again. Counseling, counseling….

“I think I’ll be fine.”

It might be an extension of what happened in the dungeon, but it’s because I’m disturbed by Baal, who suddenly appeared asking for a contract. As if he’s some kind of weirdly suspicious rabbit, what’s with him saying such things.

…Surely he’s not going to actually throw away his position as Demon King and come find me, right?

Was the system that interesting? A crazy system that would destroy the world just because it doesn’t move according to its will?

Well, he’s a crazy guy too, so maybe there’s something that clicks between crazy things? I should just give up on understanding.

With a quick decision, I stretched out to loosen my body. A groan escaped me on its own.

“There isn’t anywhere that’s uncomfortable, is there?”

“Nope. Why are you so worried? I’m really fine.”

Right, I can’t exactly say that my wounds have long since healed thanks to Self-Heal.

“You’re not just pretending to be okay because you’re worried I’ll feel sorry, right?”

I’m seriously worried about how he’s going to get through the rough main story of Lapidemy being this soft.

Come to think of it, how did I set Lucian’s magic defense stat? I think it was a bit low, what if he gets hit by some mental magic attack somewhere and ends up suffering?

“Ah, it’s not okay that you keep asking if I’m okay! Everything else is fine except for that!”

At my words, Lucian smiled brightly as if nothing had happened. His moist, green eyes, as if moved, were burdensome.

“Thanks, Theo.”

I have to keep my distance. There was no change in that thought.

There shouldn’t be any change… damn it, in the first place, would there be any user who plays Lapidemy who genuinely hates Lucian?

A hero who is clumsy but upright, who suffers but ultimately does not sit down and give up, but moves forward.

We clenched our fists at Lucian’s pain, laughed together at his happiness, and shed tears together at his sorrow.

The reason we couldn’t quit the game despite the shitty game company’s management was because of our affection for the protagonist and his companions.

“Between friends, what’s there to─”

As long as I don’t get too deeply involved with the protagonist, it should be fine, right?

Besides, if I get more used to handling the system, it seems like there won’t be any major problems with survival.

This was definitely a self-caused disaster. I just shouldn’t have shared a room with Lucian from the beginning.

“Can I call you Cian for short?”

The day might come when I regret today’s choice.

‘Why do you do things you know you’ll regret?’

Someone once asked me that.

I couldn’t remember who that person was, or what I had answered to that question.

Well, people don’t change that easily.

“Anytime!!”

“Let’s meet in the dining hall for lunch later.”

“Sounds good!”

For now, Lucian likes it, so it doesn’t matter.

Well, I should probably sing a song in advance.

I shouldn’t have done that, why didn’t I know~

No, this is something I’m doing even though I know full well. I should just quietly press X to pay respects to my future self.

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