CH 34

I lightly patted Sagna’s droopy back.

“…Don’t be so disappointed. As you go through life, the seals may come loose.”

After going to the underground warehouse, Sagna said, ‘our devil can’t have that much power’ and ‘how can the devil’s seal come off so easily… he just kept saying these two sentences.

“But don’t you think you’ll know for sure after you’ve gone there? The strength of the warrior must have been from that mahone stone, which was released from the seal.”

From now on, I will have to thoroughly manage the stored mahone stones.

Sagna, who was looking down sullenly at my added words, raised its head and looked at me.

[…Lucia.]

“Yeah, that’s the first time you’ve called my name right.”

[…No matter how many times I think about it, that’s my conclusion. I don’t recognize you as the devil.]

After Sagna confessed, he paused.

Rather than being surprised, I was curious about why he suddenly brought up such words.

Sagna, who was sitting quietly on my shoulder, flew up and sat on a branch of a tree that was about the same height as my eye level.

He then stared right in my eyes.

[You are a woman far from the Devil in the first place.]

“Is that so?”

[It’s not that you’re bad or pathetic. However, the seat of the devil is different from that of humans.]

Sanya spoke in a more friendly way than before, but he was also more determined.

[Don’t think of demons as the opponents you need to take care of. They’re here worthy for your use. Not too long ago, you infiltrated the lord’s castle for barrier use.]

“Right.”

[You’re already disqualified there. You left your own people alone, and what if you got caught there? In the middle of the enemy place, the warrior was there.]

“But the mahone stones…”

[If you were truly the devil, you would’ve killed hundreds of wounded and weak creatures to get the mahone stones. No, if you were the devil in the first place, you wouldn’t even have cared about the barrier.]

[The most important thing is the safety of the devil.]

The more I listened to Sagna’s words, the more I kept my mouth shut.

Sagna was right about everything. All of my actions have been extremely thoughtful.

The existence of the devil was important to humans as well, especially to demons.

The fact that the soul had changed was recognized in an instant, and the demons had turned their backs against the devil.

They may be hiding out of sight to test me, or they might try to somehow find the soul of the former devil.

Or, maybe they’ve already found the spirit of the real devil, and they’re now just looking for a body suitable for it to be absorbed.

I quietly reached out to Sanya, and he climbed out of the branch and climbed onto my hand.

“Thanks for the advice.”

[It was nothing.]

“I think I can see why the former devil regarded you as an aide.”

[You’re acknowledging it now?]

I looked at Sagna with a slight smile on my lips.

Obviously, I’m not cut out for the devil position because I was born as a human being in the first place, and suddenly, I was made the devil in another world.

“Yes.”

However, I’m not the type to give up so easily. If I were, I wouldn’t have played this beggar game for years in the first place.

“Among the people I know, there are those who kept going even though life as a hero was difficult.”

Whether the driving force was a sense of duty, intimidation, or whatever, he did not give up until the end.

In the end, he even succeeded in stabbing the devil. He didn’t kill it though.

“I’ll try my best just like him. After all, won’t you help me to do better, Sagna?”

[…]

“Wouldn’t it be really good if we do it for another 10 years? But I can’t help it if I get kicked out before then.”

It was silent for a moment, and he soon breathed out a deep sigh.

[There’s so much to teach you from one to ten. First of all, the devil does not ask for help. It gives orders. Deran, Derakal, these guys must have been playing with the new devil.]

Sagna lightly stuck his tongue out.

Still, I noticed that it was the first time he had called me the devil, not fake.

~*~

[First off, you’re too kind for a devil, that’s a problem.]

From that day on, Sagna taught me from one to ten about the qualities of a devil.

Most of it was not a matter of ability but of attitude.

[If you are the devil, no matter what anyone says, you should not hesitate to do evil things for yourself. But, you are neither good nor bad, and you have a moderately dim personality.]

“..…I can’t tell whether this is a compliment or an insult”

[Don’t you understand? If you’re the devil, your desires and ambitions should come first. For that first step, let’s install a harem in the devil’s Castle right now! Once you get a taste of the handsome guys, you too will be brimming with desires and ambitions.]

Sagna, who was excited about the nonsense, flew around the room. I sighed while picking up the black feathers that fell on the carpet.

This is the devil, a janitor.

He said he’d teach me how to be a true devil. All I’ve done all day was follow Sagna and pick up his feathers.

I laid the feathers on the table and spoke very solemnly to Sagna.

“Okay. My first desire is to cut the amount of your snacks in half, starting from today.”

[Wait, what?! You vicious…!]

“You’re flapping around and uttering nonsense, plus. Your feathers are falling everywhere. I’ve completed my first vicious task, so what’s next?”

Sagna stared at me for a moment, then flew up and landed on my head.

I was going to pull out all the wing feathers right away if he ruined my hair with his claws, but fortunately, he didn’t do that.

[Second is belief. Why do you think all the demons left as soon as the former devil’s soul changed? Although the devil’s imprint is now engraved on your body.]

“Well, maybe… because I’m not trustworthy?”

[You’re wrong. They don’t care whether you’re trustworthy or not.]

“Then why did you leave?”

At my question, Sanya had a depressed look on his face. The feathers all over his body hung down.

[Because the former devil forgot to rule us as a king and disappeared suddenly. It wasn’t because of you, but because it felt like I was betrayed by the devil.]

So that was how everyone left. Sagna mumbled to herself. Indeed, the reason that Deran and Derakal remained by my side was solely because of their new belief in ‘I’, and I did not expect the devil to return.

Even though the former devil abandoned his faith and disappeared, only Sagna was patiently waiting for him.

[Anyways. You need to be strong first.]

“Huh, that’s a very simple and direct statement.”

[You know? You’re very weak to be a devil.]

I leaned back and lightly crossed my legs.

“I’m getting stronger…”

Of course, I was well aware that Sagna’s meaning of strength did not necessarily mean pure force.

The devil had charisma, political position, and influence. Listening to Sagna, who’s jiggling in excitement, made my head dizzy.

[Listen! It is necessary to form relationships with other demon races as well as the lost servants! Besides, you have to be prepared for the most important people.]

“…Oh, I got really lazy all of a sudden. Should I just give it up?”

[It’s too late. If you’re going to quit, just take it out of the safe and pay back the money you spent.]

“Hey!”

If he says that, I’ll never be able to quit.

After that, Sagna’s nagging continued until sunset.

The next day, and the day after.

One day after another passed.

Two years passed just like that.

~*~

Quite far from the Devil’s Castle, deep in the dark and damp Belishat Forest.

It was one of the realms of the Devil, where humans were forbidden to enter.

It was also a forest that didn’t need a barrier to protect it from humans because it was vast and inhabited by many intermediate and higher level monsters.

In such a place, two men were hurriedly moving past the thick trees.

Although the ground was muddy with many twigs and stones, and it was difficult to move, they constantly moved their feet.

“Run faster, you idiot! From here on, it’s the domain of the devil! Do you want to get away from all the monsters?”

“Oh… I know! But my legs are shaking and I can’t move. Damn it!”

He stumbled several times because his feet got caught in jagged roots and their clothes got dirtied because they stepped in mud.

But there was no time to care about such things.

“If only this… If only I had this…!”

Both of them clasped their small pockets, one in each hand. They treated it as if it were their life.

They never dropped the pockets even when they fell and rolled.

Panting and running forward, they stopped because of a bizarre cry.

“Crrrrrr….”

“What is that?!”

It was something huge and odd looking, resembling a wild boar. However, its appearance was too ugly and large to be called a wild boar. It was literally the size of a house.

The protruding fangs were longer than half of its body, and an unknown liquid dripped from the giant fangs to the ground.

The pair fell on their backs in fear, even losing the will to run away as the monster approached them.

“Mon-monster!”

“Watch your language, it’s not a monster, it’s a beast.”

A soft voice was heard, completely out of tune with this urgent situation.

The voice was so gentle that the two people who had been completely absorbed in the monster in front of them turned around without realizing it.

Through the shadows of the dark trees, with a rumbling sound, someone slowly approached them.

“Haven’t you heard when I announced that no humans should set foot in this realm?”