Chapter 119: The Longest 15 Minutes (4)

ΟΟΟ

At that moment, a notification window appeared.

「Frank Empire Soldier Micelle’s affection has risen by 13.」

That was the starting point.

「Batavia Republic Soldier Nikola’s affection has risen by 30.」「Habsburg Empire Noble Alexander von Bavaria’s affection has risen by 2.」「Sardinia Kingdom Soldier Pavia’s affection has risen by 11.」

…….

A blue tsunami filled my vision.

The tsunami was overflowing with notifications about how some people’s affection had gone up while some other people’s affection had gone down. It wasn’t only one or two notifications either. Hundreds of thousands of notifications washed over me like waves.

Di-ring, di-ring, the sound effect kept playing over and over again. The notification windows filled my vision of the plains and the sky in an instant. This overwhelming sight put me at a loss for words for a moment. I was certain. At this moment, the giant known as history has taken a single step forward.

A sense of pleasure went down my spine. My entire body was filled with excitement. A sense of height that I had never felt before sent shocks throughout my head. The fact that I could influence no less than 100,000 humans got my heart beating. It was a sensation that could only be felt when you had complete control over everything.

「The scenario has destroyed a predestined fragment of fate!」

This wasn’t all.

「B Rank scenario <One who Bears the Hope of the People> has been ‘severely’ destroyed!」「A Rank scenario <Alliance between Royalists and Republicans> has been ‘completely’ destroyed!」

Quest breaker. It was an event I was seeing for the second time ever since I erased Laura’s slave seal.

The One who Bears the Hope of the People was undoubtedly referring to Imperial Princess Elizabeth. She was a ruler who stood up while shouldering the hopes of nobles, commoners, and slaves, after all. Her path to becoming that kind of ruler has now been obstructed……. Excellent!

I was a little uncertain about what the Alliance Between Royalists and Republicans was referring to. Was it referring to the event that happens in the Frank Empire or the event that happens in the Habsburg Empire? Regardless, it doesn’t change the fact that both of them would be obstructing the humans from uniting. In the end, it wasn’t bad news…….

‘I can do this.’

I felt nervous.

Rank 71 Demon Lord. The total of his stats was below 100. He was trash among trash. A character that couldn’t even beat a lumberjack from some mountain village in terms of strength. I managed to drag everything this far with this kind of body……. I managed to break Imperial Princess Elizabeth who was going to become the supreme ruler of the continent in the future! It was none other than Dantalian who had done this!

‘Try sending anyone at me.’

I know the ins and outs of every single major character from <Dungeon Attack>. There’s no such thing as a person without any scars. If you only look inside their psyche, then they’re all cripples that have been broken at least once. Be it the greatest swordmaster of the continent, the queen who will later unite the Kingdom of Brittany and the Frankish Empire, or the lord of assassins, they all have weaknesses.

Thus, when an unfamiliar voice came from across the plains, I remained relaxed.

“……Demon Lord Dantalian, you are quite eloquent.”

Did the human side send another representative to speak? It isn’t surprising since it’s clear that they’d be at a disadvantage if they chose to engage us after that. It’s highly likely that the human army desperately wishes to level the playing field. I wonder who they could’ve possibly sent as the next batter.

I closed all of the notification windows at once. Once I did, the blue wall vanished and I could see the other party.

It was a woman wearing a pure white dress. Her hair was gray. I immediately recognized her to be Saintess Gracia. She was the NPC who would give the main protagonist and his party quests day in and day out, but she’d work the protagonist to the bone with little pay saying that it was the Goddess’ will, so she was resented by the players.

For example, after making the protagonist subjugate a massive army of ogres, she rewards him with only a single item. She would use her position as a saintess to practically make the hero work for free.

In <Dungeon Attack>, the hero was an orphan and a mercenary. Different from the protagonists from other RPGs, he was knowledgeable about worldly affairs. The protagonist tried to complain about this unfair treatment, but Saintess Gracia would respond to him without even the tiniest shift in her expression.

‘You are able to personally have the honor of witnessing my noble face. Is there any reward greater than this?’

……This is why players would refer to her as a witch and not a saintess. Well, she did receive the Goddess’ blessing and lived for over a hundred years with the appearance of a girl in her twenties. Certainly, in a normal person’s position, it might be an honor to be able to even meet her.

In any case, they sent the saintess as the next batter. A good choice. She’s a priest to the people and the title of saintess is a natural object of awe. Since the dignity of nobles has fallen apart, there is no one better than the saintess who could comfort the human army.

“Is this not Saintess Gracia, the one loved by the Goddess? Why has such a precious person step foot on this rugged battlefield?”

“……God knows that Hell exists in the human world, so clerics will always be present near the bottom. War is quite literally the Hell of the human world. There is no other place more appropriate than this for a person like myself.”

Gracia narrowed her eyes when I expressed that I knew her, but she continued unfazed.

“Demon Lord Dantalian, I have witnessed your ability. To think that you would infuse your words with magic and bewitch the other speaker. Who would have expected you to use magic powerful enough to harm Her Majesty the Imperial Princess’ mind……. You are impressive.”

“Oh?”

So that’s how they’re going to spin it?

“The words I said were untrue, is this what you are trying to say?”

“That is correct.”

She didn’t even bat an eye as she confirmed my words. This was being declared by a saintess, a high authority figure. This wouldn’t be enough to completely free the imperial princess from the suspicion of killing her family members, but it should at least lower the amount of public criticism she receives. Unless you intend to make the church your enemy.

Brazenfaced and impassive. She also digs into your weaknesses. She’s just like the Saintess Gracia I remember from the game. 

“How magnificent. However, O Saintess, it would be wise to make the right choice. Genuine faith from a person who fools themself would be outrageous.”

“Infusing magic into your words again, I see. No matter what you try to whisper to me, my Goddess will protect me. Your insidious ploys will no longer work.”

“Kuhu.”

This wasn’t a jeer that I was expecting. A laugh came out on its own.

“You are already a tier 1 priest. Do you look after the backs of nobles during your spare time? Dear me, even I, as a Demon Lord, might end up devastated by this world. That was only a single layer of deceit. How much more tragedies and bloodshed must humankind go through to peel that single layer?”

“……Your fun stops here, Demon Lord.”

She took something out of her pocket. It was a small button.

“Do you know what this is?”

“……?”

I furrowed my brows. Why did she take something like that out? I couldn’t tell where she was trying to take this. Did she intend to use that object as a comparison to spit out some fancy saying? Personally, I don’t favor speeches that do that. Should I poke around a bit……?

“I do not know. It is an unfamiliar object to me.”

“It is also unfamiliar to me as well. This is because this is an incredibly expensive artifact. It is something only the richest people on the continent can get their hands on.”

The saintess placed the button on top of her palm and opened it.

“The magic known as Memoria has been enchanted onto this. This is an artifact that records the sound and scenery around it. Not only is the spell itself incredibly difficult to cast, but it was also placed upon an object of this size. This is almost impossible to make without the assistance of an archmage.”

I tilted my head. I understood what sort of item it was, but I didn’t understand why she had taken it out.

“Saintess, I have not come here to be lectured on magic.”

“Please do not be in such a hurry, Demon Lord. This is not a new item. It has already been used. Can you guess who this belonged to?”

“I apologize, but I am poor despite being a Demon Lord.”

I shrugged.

“My life is quite distant from such expensive items.”

“There was a certain father.”

“Hm?”

Saintess Gracia spoke in a calm tone.

“That father had a single son. His son was talented but inexperienced. The father somewhat forcefully made his son become independent in order to make him experience the world. Nevertheless, how could a father not worry about his child? He gifted his son with a Memoria artifact. Just in case something were to happen to him.”

“…….”

“Do unfortunate premonitions always turn out to be correct? A tragedy occurred. His son had died in another province. The cause of death was unknown. There was a chance he could have been assaulted by bandits as his son’s dead body was discovered on a forest path…….”

She narrowed her eyes.

“However, his son was wise. He did not forget about the gift his father had given him as he had activated the magic on his Memoria artifact during his final day. He may have died, but he left behind proof of why he had died. Thanks to this, the father was able to know who had killed his son.”

A sense of unease filled me.

Saintess Gracia spoke in a flat tone.

“The son’s name was Jack Aland.”

―For a moment.

My head stopped.

The sense of unease became more defined as it crawled up my spine. This blackish-red entity latched itself around my skull and filled my brain.

Jack Aland.

The slave merchant, Jack―.

Why was that foolish and naïve name being brought up here?

The saintess looked at me with a cold gaze.

“This happened a little more than half a year ago. A small rebellion occurred in the city of Vernia on the northern end of Sardinia. It was an incident that happened due to the incitement of the mercenary guild. A large fire erupted and many citizens lost their lives and livelihoods to that fire. “

Don’t tell me.

No. It can’t be possible.

“His young son, Jack Aland’s corpse was discovered in a forest near Vernia. His dead body was found leaning against a boulder. The boulder was covered in Jack Aland’s blood. Furthermore, on the portion of the boulder that was being covered by his corpse, the words…… ‘Revenge (di vendetta)’ were found written in blood.”

A shiver went down my spine.

There were words written on the boulder?

Jack died after smashing his own head against the boulder. He had committed suicide. As he could not fight against me or maintain his beliefs, he chose to kill himself instead of let his beliefs be in vain. This is what I believed, so I decided to leave his corpse alone. As a token of respect. I thought his actions were beautiful. ―So you’re telling me it wasn’t just that?

He left behind a dying message!?

Jack Aland―that absolutely idiotic idealist did!?

“For what purpose was he asking revenge for? This obviously came under question. Fortunately, his corpse remained intact. The Memoria artifact that was disguised as a button on his clothes was unharmed. The father hired a mage after he discovered the corpse and deciphered the artifact. ……Demon Lord Dantalian. No, Herbalist Lolita.”

“……!”

“This was his final moment.”

A screen appeared above the artifact that was placed on the saintess’ palm.

The screen was large enough for both the Demon Lord army and the human army to see clearly.

– Guha, guaaaaaaack! Guuaaaaaaack⎯⎯⎯!

The first thing to come out from the video was an ear-piercing scream. 

The surrounding scenery slowly became clear.

– Kuh! Guuuuuk! Guhaaack! G-Ghuaaack!

– Haa, Jack……this is truly regrettable.

– Kubuuuh! Guuk! Lolita!? Lolitaauuc!?

– I asked you three times. Three times is a truly, truly generous amount. It was also a request which must not be denied.

And my figure……appeared.

The me in the video stepped on Jack.

– I understand that it hurts, but you’re being too loud. Jack! Jack! You can hear me, right? I’d appreciate it if you could be a little quieter. Nothing good would come from being loud here. Jack! Shut up! If you ignore my request now, then I’ll slice off your left arm as well. Understood? I’ll sever your left shoulder.

– Guh, huuuk……guhuuk……!

– Very good. Excellent, Jack. You’re doing good. If you keep this up, then there’ll be no more bloodshed. I promise you that.

The scene flowed by.

I watched it as if I were possessed. I could do nothing but watch.

– Think about it. Jack, it’s very simple. Why would the other party refuse to perform a formal trade in a Merchants Guild? Why would they choose to do something so extreme? If you ask yourself these questions, then an answer should naturally form.

– A position……where you can’t trade legally……?

– You got it. In truth, it’s actually difficult for me to enter a town properly.

– You were never a merchant……Lolita!

– Cut off his left pinky.

– Understood.

Another horrifying scream burst out. The torture continued. Searing, screaming, and threats. A scene that most normal people would be incapable of watching continued. I maintained an incredibly relaxed attitude on the screen. Jack rolled around the ground in pain with an arm missing.

– The fact that you had a herb that could cure the plague, khhk! It was all a lie!

– Yeah! That’s right! You’re the bastard who summoned the monsters in the auction house!

– You’re right about that. I admit it.

– The fire as well!

– Now your head is working properly.

“…….”

I was dumbstruck.

A corner of my mind was screaming at me. I shouldn’t stand idly by and let this unfold. I have to do whatever I can to cover this up. However, this screaming was much too distant.

– If we summarize everything you had said in the past minute, then I’m a devil, a scam artist, the biggest bastard in the world, a lunatic, and a mother fucker who’s going to Hell. I admit all of these things.

“……This is as far as the Memoria magic had recorded.”

The video turned off. Saintess Gracia spoke in a cold tone.

“You set a city on fire for your own gain. You are a habitual liar. You do not refrain from carrying out cruel and brutal torture. You are quite literally a Demon Lord. A monster among monsters that does whatever it takes to accomplish your goals. A beast among beasts.”

“…….”

“That is your identity, Demon Lord Dantalian!”

I couldn’t say anything. Only a single name kept swirling around my throat. A single naïve slave merchant’s smile came to mind.

Jack…….

Jack.

Jack, Aland!

So you were my enemy?

Not Elizabeth, the supreme ruler of the continent―or Baal, the Great Demon Lord. It was you whose name isn’t even mentioned in the game, a mere romanticist like you―.

You were my, Dantalian’s enemy!?

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. Would you look at that, Dant is facing repercussions for his actions! The slave market incident was swept under the rug in the LN, but it’s actually being used here. 

Hm, been uploading at a relatively fast pace so I don’t have much else to say. This has been becoming a very frequent occurrence. Head empty, no other thoughts.

See you guys in the next chapter.