Chapter 105: The Sage Converses with the Mastermind

“…Baruch Wen Danian.”

I called the other person’s name.

I didn’t recognize the devil in front of me.

He was just being manipulated.

That man — Baruch, was making use of this devil’s body to talk to me.

It was his usual practice.

Baruch shrugged and laughed.

The body’s neck made a strange noise as it tilted at an unnatural angle.

“What’s wrong? You are reacting as if meeting someone who is supposed to be dead. I thought you’d be pleased by this reunion.”

Baruch said happily.

This friendly tone was only superficial.

It concealed a gloomy hatred within.

It was natural since I was the one who killed him.

It seemed that he still held onto that grudge.

Although he was speaking through someone else’s body, that feeling did come across.

“I thought I killed you. Why are you still alive?”

“Shouldn't a spell caster of your level understand that there are exceptions in everything? I mean, look at yourself?”

“…”

I fell silent as Baruch pointed out that fact.

He led the conversation topic away.

It seemed he had no intention to answer my question about that here.

Since it was him, he was probably just showing off.

There was no deep meaning or intention there.

He would enjoy my troubled appearance.

I was familiar with the Baruch's character.

“By the way, I’ve heard you call yourself the Demon Lord these days. Well, well, what an ironic story you have there.”

Baruch clapped his hands as he snorted.

He put on a smiling expression, but he must be furious deep down.

Baruch was that kind of man.

He didn’t show his true feelings through his words.

He always did that, acting like a clown.

Even this defenseless appearance of his was actually a trap to invite and devour his victim.

The fact he didn’t approach too close was proof.

He was truly cautious of me, and didn’t approach closer than a certain range.

Baruch was always this cunning.

His sense of purpose was thorough, yet he appeared to be elusive.

That was how he managed to carry out this kind of turmoil.

Ten years ago, his skill, which brought people into a whirlpool of mayhem, was well known for a reason.

Regarding his ability to scheme, there was nobody who could match him.

“Fumu.”

Baruch stared at me as he stroked his chin.

The body’s muddled white eyes gazed around.

He then exaggeratingly growled.

“So you fell into darkness due to hatred against humanity… no, that’s not it. It’s something else, isn’t it? What is your end goal?”

“It is none of your business.”

I dismissed Baruch’s question and pointed my sword at him.

At this distance, I could decapitate him before he attacked me.

He wouldn't even have the time to blink.

I declared to Baruch.

“I will stop your ambition.”

“Hohou, you sure talk big. And that sword! Looks like you have a deep seated regret…?”

“…”

I ignored Baruch’s screaming voice.

I suppressed my killing intent with my reason and fixed my blade in front of him.

Baruch’s goal was to provoke me.

I wouldn’t move as he wanted me to.

I had learned a painful lesson about that in the past.

“…”

“…”

For a moment both of us stayed in silence.

Baruch, who'd put on his nasty smile, suddenly erased any trace of expression on his face.

He sighed and shook his head.

“Well, well, so this level of provocation wasn’t enough to rattle your bones. It seems your mentality has grown over the last decade. Or is it an effect of turning into an immortal?”

“I wonder about that?”

I didn’t respond properly to Baruch's provocation and kept an eye on his behavior.

Even if I did, it would just get lost in smoke.

There was no need to respond seriously to him.

Baruch shrugged, perhaps due to understanding my thoughts.

Then he put on a fearless expression.

“Well, that’s okay. Let’s put an end to our chat. Dwight, you are merely an obstacle. I will get rid of you here.”

“I’ll return with the same words. You’re also merely an obstacle to me.”

“Hahaha, what a coincidence. To think we could agree with each other… but is it really okay for you to have a leisurely chat?”

Baruch smiled meaningfully.

I could feel the malicious intent in his smile.

He clearly had some basis for this confidence; it wasn't merely a bluff or provocation.

“What is it?”

“Oh, so you didn’t notice it. You should broaden your purview. You’ll find yourself in a pleasant situation.”

Baruch spread his arms open and began to spin on spot.

He danced lightly while stepping on the floor.

A high pitched laughter was mixed in there, all of which got on my nerves.

I used the perception magic as I ignored Baruch eccentricity.

As I expanded my sensing range, I immediately detected something unusual.

“…gh.”

There was a powerful magic reaction at a far distance.

It suddenly appeared without any notice.

If it'd just invaded, I would have noticed it earlier.

It was as if it was just birthed there.

This amount of magic power… it surpasses Grom’s.

There was nobody amongst my subordinates which had this amount of magic power.

However, the reaction came from the direction of the Demon Lord Territory.

I could clearly sense it, even at this distance.

However, that wasn’t the only problem.

I was familiar with this magic reaction.

—No way.

I couldn’t help but feel a little upset.

It was something that was impossible to happen.

Even if I wanted to deny it, it was certainly not a mistake.

“While you’re stuck in this city, I managed to do all I needed to do. Well, well, thank you for honestly playing with me.”

Baruch happily gave a graceful bow.

He looked like he was already guaranteed of his victory.

He'd already considered my actions as he acted.

He must have left those demon beasts in the capital in anticipation of my arrival.

He was buying time with his actions, and this included the conversation we just had.

I really fell for his trick this time.

“…”

I silently used short range transfer and moved in front of Baruch.

Then I used the sword to pierce his heart.

Baruch blinked his eyes and laughed.

“Ooh —.”

I ignored his reaction and poured magic power into the sword.

This devil was merely a puppet, not Baruch himself.

However, there was a magical connection that linked him.

By following it, it was possible to locate Baruch and attack him.

I’ll destroy your soul once again —

The moment I began my interference, the devil’s head exploded.

Fresh blood and cerebral sac splattered vigorously.

The devil which lost its head fell to the ground.

I could no longer feel the sign of Baruch.

It seemed he escaped just before I could track him.

…I guess it was unavoidable.

I lowered the sword and shook off the blood.

It was not the time to regret.

There was something I should prioritize more than Baruch’s whereabouts.

While he surely guided me there on purpose, it wasn’t something I could ignore.

As I switched my thoughts, the owner of said magic reaction activated the spell.

I could guess what kind of magic it was from the flow of magic power.

—This is bad.

It truly turned into something I couldn’t overlook.

Even as various questions came up, I didn’t even have time to find the answer.

Any investigations about finding the cause was to be postponed.

What I needed to do at this time was to deal with the situation to the best of my abilities.

I hurriedly transferred back to the capital of the Demon Lord’s territory.

I flew up and took a position above the castle.

I sheathed the sword and shifted my line of sight.

“He really went and did it.”

I couldn’t help but grumble as I saw the scene before my eyes.

I saw a myriad of meteorites fall from the skies.