Chapter 311

Episode 311: Tell Me (5)

“...I asked you to send it to me anonymously.”



Well... when I asked the information dealer to keep it confidential, I didn’t really believe that he would do so. Furthermore, his failure to keep the secret ultimately created the Deathbringer’s trust in me.

Still, the feeling became more subtle. It was similar to when a bank teller shared my account information with someone else.

A feeling of trembling was felt in my mouth when my natural trust was shattered, which was slightly different from the shattering of my expectations.

“That’s what I was forced to hear...”

However, as I kept that ambiguous expression, Deathbringer noticed me, even swallowing my tears. I wasn’t particularly keen on that, but I don’t know why. I gently rubbed the back of my neck.

“I didn’t mean to say anything.”

“...sorry.”

No, I really didn’t mean to say anything. It wasn’t that I desperately trusted the intelligence dealer to begin with, and I was fully prepared for it to become known.

Even my current nervousness is closer to ‘really?’ and definitely not ‘I’m annoyed’ or ‘I feel bad’. So it’s really okay. It’s really okay...

“Hmm.”

But even if I tell you this, Deathbringer won’t believe me, right? Well, if you look at it another way, it is equivalent to conducting a background investigation.

“Thank you for trusting me.”

“...!”

So I decided to talk back.

The Deathbringer’s tail exploded.

“Thank you so much.”

To make matters worse, he stuttered as if his speaking function was broken. It seemed like I was wondering what would happen if a cell phone in vibrate mode became a person.

Why should my gratitude be so embarrassing...? The Deathbringer was so shocked that even I forgot my fear and became embarrassed.

“Take this!”

Meanwhile, the Deathbringer suddenly stretched out his arm and held out the object he was holding. It seemed like a breakthrough to break up the strange atmosphere. It’s not bad.

“...It gets cold when the sun goes down, so of course I can go back to the city before then, but the sandstorm blows harshly anyway...” However, even

as he handed it over, Deathbringer swallowed his excuses. This doesn’t seem to be done to freshen up the air, but just to build up a justification for not rejecting it.

“...thanks.”

However, the reason for providing that justification is probably due to the history of rejection that my concept has accumulated. I responded with a lot of apology and gratitude for making me have to make excuses as the person giving it to me.

“...!”

The Deathbringer, who had approached to hand over the item, stood on end again. The diamond-shaped mouth and the unconsciously withdrawn feet show how great a shock he has just received.

“...I said thank you to you two or two times.”

Oh please. I felt like holding my forehead.

“...my sins are deep.”

“It’s not my fault, but...”

Hey... It’s still like this now, I almost wish I had changed my tone of voice.

I felt bitter about the overbearing tone of voice that was deliberately maintained to reduce the sense of discomfort. After looking at it, I thought about returning it to the original if it was okay, but it seems unlikely.

“Do you suspect it?”

“...I don’t doubt it. “I just never thought that Nari would say something like that...” I

just heard this after saying thank you twice, so what would happen if I even treated him with honor here?

Even putting aside the devil controversy, their cognitive apparatus may break down first. A demon knight can’t do that! do.

[But isn’t that a problem that can be solved as long as you don’t join them, my Gretchen?]

‘Shut up.’

I swallowed the bitterness again, using magic words to quell the anger that was being stabbed with shameless facts.

The Deathbringer, who was rolling his eyes and looking at others, hesitated and opened his mouth next.

“sorry.”

The words that had been said several times until now came out again with a different air.

“I really tried to stab you back then, and I couldn’t apologize to Nari quickly enough. And...”

“Wait a minute, why is that...”

“I was wrong.”

Why is he apologizing for that? It was just something that could have happened. What happened after that was just something that happened because I distanced myself from even being able to apologize.

I was a little taken aback, but Deathbringer didn’t listen to me. Wow. My cheeks, which had been dry for a while, became wet again.

“I was really wrong...”

Even his crying didn’t stop there. The young man’s face was crushed like a crumpled tissue. Although he may not be a handsome man, his once respectable face was ruined in an instant.

The tip of my nose turned red and my facial features lost their neatness. It made me wonder if guilt had a face, it would probably be like that.

“I don’t even ask for forgiveness, sire... Just...”

“No...”

I finally exhaled and said, “Huh.” It’s not something to laugh about, but the expression itself was so funny, and the foolishness of keeping it in my mind until now was so absurd that I couldn’t help it. I tried hard enough just to not raise the corners of my mouth.

[If you really need to look for it... I’m sure there’s a way to eat it without the name. If you think that the essence of the devil is contained in the name, it would be like eating gimbap without rice.]

‘What are you talking about?’

[...Name is essence, soul is existence, body is vessel. Humans are different, but devils are like that. The nature and form of power are determined by its essence, and existence cannot be established without a soul. Lastly, the bowl... it’s literally a bowl. A vessel that holds those two things.]

I frowned as soon as the conceptual story came out after the story that was too abstract for a human being to listen to, forgetting the name and eating. It’s not that I don’t understand, but it’s because I don’t have a vague feeling.

[...If you compare it to a game, the name is like a job. Why do skills, stats, and training methods differ depending on the job? And the soul... is roughly the concept of a user. If there are no users, the job and character in the game are meaningless.]

Fortunately, I was able to understand the concept better thanks to the explanation attached at the end... but something feels strange when I compare the huge concepts of name and soul to game jobs and users.

Should I say that it seems like a long-winded work of art that has been condensed into one word? I feel sorry for both concepts.

[You still don’t understand?]

‘...No. So, is it very dangerous to eat your name?’

[Because names usually work together with souls, right? However, eating also means putting something in a bowl until it is digested. In other words, the name and the soul and body come together.]

‘...There is a possibility of resurrection.’

[I like it because I understand it quickly.]

Anyway, Biryuho became what it was because of that kind of background. I shook my head to myself, wondering how the devil even made dead bodies into traps. Anyway, they were a vicious race from beginning to end.

‘But name and soul are not concepts that exist materially. ‘How do you eat that?’

[Because the name and soul are not material, but the body is material. And those two do not disappear immediately when the body dies. It just slowly evaporates while contained in a dead body. Therefore, if you eat the body that contains the name and soul, they will also be absorbed.]

‘...Then wouldn’t it be better to avoid it and eat it?’

[Oh, that’s not it. Usually, the part that contains the name and soul is the head. It doesn’t matter if you eat it except for that. Well, if you are a person who throws away those two things and eats, you either don’t eat at all or only eat the heart.]

First of all, he joked with anger, saying that he was like that when dealing with the first glutton. I wasn’t really curious, but at the same time, I was curious.

‘Invitational glutton?’

[The Behemoth you killed was a pig that inherited the title after eating the corpse of the glutton I killed.]

‘Why the fuck did you leave the corpse behind to create such a lump of shit?’

[First of all, since I had just fought him, I didn’t have the power to burn him down, and I didn’t want to take the gamble of swallowing a being who was the same as me. Because, as I just said, it’s dangerous.]

However, the anger that continued speaking let out a light lament. Maybe it was a sigh. The voice of anger subsided weakly but sharply, like someone who had seen something disgusting.

[If you, too, had seen the body of the Great Glutton, you would never have said that you have to eat.]

‘...It’s because of what it looks like. ‘The only way to absorb this is by mouth?’

[For your convenience, tell me as briefly as possible. The first glutton had a colony-type body. What are the ingredients... I don’t need to say anything, right? And if there had been any other means other than Gretchen feeding, would I have just eaten the heart?]

I gave up right away when the devil smiled kindly and concluded. Strengthening abilities had to be done in a somewhat normal way before I tried it, and I didn’t want to even touch that stinky thing.

[But my heart is fine. Why don’t you give it a try?]

‘Get out...’

The same applies to a slightly weakened suggestion. Eating a raw heart is something I just can’t do. Considering how big that guy is, his heart must be huge... Yeah, that’s absolutely impossible. Absolutely unreasonable.

“...Feed it to Ratel.”

But Faust, who had been quiet up to now, said one word as I was so disgusted.

[...Wait.]

「Ratel is connected to external space, so it is also a medium that functions as an inventory. So, just feed it to the ratel.”

[Do you know that the external space connected to the ratel is infinite?! It can’t be that big!]

「You swallowed that turtle in Bemurchen too. “Don’t lie.”

[That was only possible because I sacrificed Mamon and my power temporarily became stronger!]

Anyway, this devil bastard pretends to cooperate, but leaves the important things behind. I held onto the leash of the contract, seeing the price of my character’s inability to let down my guard.

[...You really have to give something.]

The anger immediately fell flat.

‘I could sacrifice half my body and put in half the money.’

[Old magic is not meant to be used like this... Rather, aren’t you using it too recklessly, considering that you are not acting as a party to the contract? If there is anything wrong with the contract, the whole price will be on that brat—]

「Don’t worry about me. “That guy is exaggerating, but there’s almost no pressure on me.”

However, he complained a little. When you look at Faust saying that there is ‘almost’ nothing, it seems like he is complaining with some reason.

‘...Doesn’t the fact that there is almost nothing mean that there is something?’

“It’s about the amount of mental energy it takes to renew a contract. “Don’t worry, I won’t take any damage unless you use my soul as a sacrifice.”

I felt a little anxious about the boy who spoke so bluntly, but after confirming that Anger didn’t say anything, I relaxed.

This is because I thought that if the boy had really been harmed by Anger, who was reluctant to use old magic or something, he would have told me at least to stop me. If it was faith, it was a kind of faith.

‘okay. ‘I’ll believe it.’

[Damn it....]

Anyway, I think I can stop protecting this dead pig with this. I tapped the arm of the Deathbringer, not knowing if he was deep in thought or just dazed.

“Why why why?”

“Can you go to the city and spread the word?”

“yes?”

“We are planning to remove the devil’s body, but this may cause the demonic energy to fluctuate, so please do not be cautious... I think that’s roughly the story.”

“yes??”