#107
The half-demon chieftain, Ail, was a quiet person unlike the elders who ran rampant here and there.
A youthful appearance that didn’t match his mid-40s age, gentle speech and expression, and even an affable attitude of willingly providing curse-lifting within the bounds of half-demon laws when seeing cursed people.
His external impression was dominated by the assessment that though quiet, he was a virtuous leader of a clan.
But being quiet didn’t mean being good-natured.
In reality, there was nothing happening within the half-demon clan that proceeded without his knowledge.
He knew everything and held the flow in his grasp.
From the smallest curse incidents to major events, such as matters concerning the worst curse left by Eris.
At least he firmly believed he knew everything.
“Didn’t you say the ritual was successful!”
Clang!
Unlike his benevolent appearance, Ail’s face was twisted spitefully.
Like his sister had done in life, he too had the habit of breaking things when angry.
A high-ranking half-demon who skillfully cleaned up the broken pottery shards with magic clicked his tongue.
“Chieftain. Haven’t I told you repeatedly? The symptoms of acceleration don’t appear immediately.”
Considering the position of a high-ranking half-demon who wasn’t even an elder, it was rather rude speech, but since their relationship had once been that of teacher and student, it wasn’t entirely awkward.
Chieftain Ail didn’t particularly take issue with that part either.
Instead, he picked at another point.
“I wasn’t expecting immediate abnormalities either. At minimum, there should have been some cowering reaction. Moreover, didn’t you say that the Archduke alone would definitely have physical problems within a day?”
When had he thrown and broken things – he instantly became cold as Ail snapped.
Right now, the half-demons’ hideouts outside their exclusive territory were being exposed at a rapid pace. Weeding out the Archduke’s minions was too difficult. Though they hadn’t been trained as shadows, they possessed diverse and useful extraordinary abilities that could even deceive half-demons. Like fairies.
‘No, they’re actually closer to other species than fairies. But that can’t be.’
……In ancient times, not only the true demons who had shared blood with them but various pure-blood species had lived together, but the diverse species of that time no longer remained.
‘There can’t be any species other than us with abilities surpassing humans.’
The half-demons had dealt with such different species long ago, so he knew better than anyone.
Only the fairy clan had been skilled at hiding, so they hadn’t been able to exterminate them.
‘……My thoughts have wandered too far.’
Different species – no matter how secretive the Archduke’s house was and how remarkable the Archduke was, this would be too excessive a thought…….
Then, cutting through his continuing thoughts, his counterpart answered.
“The Archduke keeps interfering annoyingly, but that’s only temporary. Even if orders were given long ago, he might be faithfully carrying out his work.”
“……You’re saying the Archduke currently has problems for certain?”
“That’s right.”
The high-ranking half-demon chuckled.
It was true that strange movements had been detected from the Archduke’s side. The Archduke had begun staying holed up in his own mansion without budging. Though it had only been a day, considering the past, there were definitely problems.
‘Something like needing special care at the mansion.’
Except for his childhood when he couldn’t yet fully suppress his curse, Skyle Rodias had never spent a full 24 hours stuck to the Rodias mansion.
He worked constantly, interfering with their activities…….
Such a person had holed up in his mansion for the first time in ages.
The high-ranking half-demon considered this the very sign that the Archduke was beginning to crumble.
“It seems the other two have also safely developed problems. Congratulations, Chieftain. One of them will return to his father, so the half-demon clan will now become a force not to be taken lightly even in terms of military power.”
“If we can control the Sword Master, nothing could be better.”
“One of them seems too lacking to be the target of such precious curse, but well, the curse’s target was apparently his mother anyway. Nothing strange about it.”
“Lindea was certainly a noble who had to be dealt with someday……”
“Indeed. A perfectly befitting disposal for one who handles curses. I miss Lady Eris.”
At his former teacher’s carefree demeanor, the chieftain also gradually regained stability.
Yes, the situation wasn’t bad.
Except for one thing.
“But the Crown Prince.”
“That side……”
The high-ranking half-demon who had been answering well frowned.
“Reports that he’s perfectly fine came to me again today. What are we going to do about it?”
“This is strange indeed.”
The state of the Crown Prince who had now departed for the border regions was being confirmed and reported by half-demons near every lord’s castle along his route. But not once had there been a report of him thirsting for blood and committing slaughter.
What on earth was going on?
“Surely the Crown Prince’s curse hasn’t been lifted?”
“That’s impossible. Lady Eris’s curse was completed by pouring in her death, the souls of her bloodline, and countless curse materials. Moreover, the medium is a living person. At least until that medium dies, it won’t be lifted.”
Prince Ersen was both the medium and the key.
The curses cast on the four people could only be lifted by the medium’s death.
Temporary weakening was possible even without the Prince’s death, but lifting required only death.
But the Prince was alive.
Even if it had been lifted, only the Crown Prince couldn’t be this fine.
The four people’s curses were like a community of shared fate bound together around the Prince.
“Possibility that he went berserk but concealed it?”
“He’s not on a secret mission, so there’s no way he could perfectly conceal such an incident.”
“Then how is the Crown Prince so fine? Shouldn’t we consider that there was a problem with the ritual?”
“……”
Yes. That was the only possibility.
The high-ranking half-demon maintained silence for a moment before answering.
“All those who participated in the ritual were only those I was controlling during the ritual. Except for just one.”
“Who?”
“My disciple.”
The chieftain began showing discomfort.
A mistake had occurred where one person was missed in a ritual that shouldn’t have had any errors. Fortunately, acceleration was confirmed to be happening safely to the other three, but this was a problematic result.
“Is he trustworthy?”
To free one from acceleration, the Crown Prince’s item among those used in the ritual would have to be deliberately removed.
It was an act that could be called collusion without excuse.
In the current situation, either the high-ranking half-demon had done it, or his disciple had – one of the two.
“He was untrustworthy. I’ll deal with him immediately.”
“Kill him only when he says he wants to die.”
“Of course.”
Even at the instruction to torture him until he begged for death before killing him, the high-ranking half-demon nodded lightly.
In fact, that disciple was already being tortured by him.
The high-ranking half-demon said to the chieftain.
“First, it would be good to order surveillance of our kinsmen in Lindea territory. For the Crown Prince’s side, it might be better to perform the ritual again later for acceleration.”
“Hmm.”
Ail’s face darkened since much effort had gone into performing that one ritual. But he soon nodded.
“It must be certain then.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Even at Ail’s warning, the high-ranking half-demon didn’t seem particularly fearful. That irritated him, causing Ail’s face to minutely contort.
The high-ranking half-demon, who dismissed that frown as ridiculous as always, thought as he left the chieftain’s quarters.
‘If Lady Eris were alive, she never would have entrusted the clan to such a half-wit.’
Since she had passed away, he had to be faithful to continuing Lady Eris’s will. This was a point where he and the elder shared the same intention.
But he didn’t know.
That because his disciple would die from this matter, he would never get to hear that there had been something unsettling about the letter from the Marsien young lady.
It was a situation that would make Eris curse.
* * *
Discovering the chain near his heart happened while he was gathering the crystal orb to go to Skyle.
Marcus felt a foreign sensation in his chest and lightly checked inside, then ended up tumbling down from the tree.
“Damn it.”
It was a moment when the Sword Master’s pride was shattered, but that wasn’t very important.
“What is this!”
A chain?
Why was the end of an iron chain growing from his body like weeds?
He knew as soon as he saw it.
That this was a curse.
However, it was the first time the curse afflicting him had shown such visible symptoms.
The moment he raised his hand to touch the chain once, reason disappeared from Marcus’s eyes.
Like a room that had become dark after instantly extinguishing a light, his vacant and dark silver eyes glowed gloomily in the darkness.
He suddenly thought.
‘These are those who interfere with Lady Eris’s work.’
How dare they reveal what she had done to others – unforgivable…….
“Gasp.”
At his instinct’s screaming, Marcus shook his head with a whoosh. At the same time, his hand naturally fell away from the iron chain.
His silver eyes momentarily shone with chilling murderous intent.
He seemed to understand the chain’s identity.
This was the crystallization of the binding curse that had been restraining him.
In other words, the string attached between a puppet and a stick.
“……”
He fell silent, then shuddered with deep hatred, then soon remembered something and slowly closed his eyes.
And he realized.
He could no longer view Ersen in connection with Eris as one bundle.
Eventually, he headed again toward where Skyle would be.
More precisely, toward the person Skyle would be keeping with him.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
