Chapter 12: The Demon’s Temptation (3)

“You asked me something earlier, didn’t you? Then I’ll ask just one thing too, Sophia.”

As I felt Benedict’s sword absorb my mana completely, I asked Sophia in a relaxed tone.

“What were you planning to do after putting Benedict to sleep?”

“There’s no need for you to know, you pathetic human!”

“Oh, is that so? It seems you still don’t understand the situation.”

The joy of holding a good weapon resonated through my body, filling me with excitement.

“First, let’s make sure you can’t move.”

I charged at Sophia with movements akin to dancing. Dodging her swinging arm, I lightly swung my sword twice. Her legs were cleanly severed, and Sophia collapsed helplessly to the ground.

“Ahhhh…!”

“Ugh, keep it down. How could someone with such a hideous voice produce such a sweet one in human form? Demons really are…”

Even though I had the upper hand and appeared confident, the situation wasn’t entirely pleasant.

It wasn’t unreasonable to assume that more demons like Sophia and Razen, who disguised themselves as humans, could be hiding among us.

“Ugh… ugh…”

Sophia’s severed legs began to sizzle and melt into a yellow, bubbling goo. New legs started to regenerate from the wounds, but the mana-infused weapon slowed the process significantly.

The fact that the wounds could regenerate infinitely also meant that unless I killed Sophia completely, I could inflict endless pain on her.

As her legs slowly began to regenerate, I slashed them off again.

“Gyaaah…!!”

“I said, keep it down. Sure, your screams are satisfying, but that’s not what I want to hear.”

“Ugh… ugh…”

“Speak!”

As she desperately tried to crawl away on her arms, I drove my sword into her back.

“Kyaaaa!!”

“Where do you think you’re going? Now that you’ve felt pain, it seems you’ve understood your position. I’m not letting you go. So, it’s best you start talking.”

“I told you… I have nothing to say, you pathetic… Aghh!”

Annoyed by Sophia’s refusal to answer and her defiance, I cut off one of her arms and made sure to sever her partially regenerated legs again.

“I’ll make you a promise. If you tell me what you were planning, I’ll give you a clean death. But if you keep your mouth shut, we’ll see who lasts longer.”

“You think you’ll get away with this? The gods are watching over everything!”

“The gods, huh… What, the Crow of Death and the Plague Toad? You call those gods?”

“How dare you mock them? You should be begging for forgiveness—guh!”

Though my goal was to make her talk, I cut off her mouth to stop the needless chatter. It would regenerate shortly, so it wasn’t a concern.

As expected, yellow spores wriggled, forming a grotesque new mouth, and Sophia let out a wail.

“Just kill me! Just end it, Kayron!”

“Would you do the same? Taking away hope with endless torment is the basis of interrogation. Surely, a demon like you understands this better than a human like me.”

I deliberately brought my face close to Sophia, mocking her.

“Of course, this might seem inhuman, but you’re not human. So I don’t feel even a shred of guilt. I could keep this up all day… or even longer.”

“…I was going to plant a seed.”

At last, Sophia confessed in a defeated voice.

“You were going to plant a seed?”

“Yes. Benedict has abundant mana and exceptional skills. We intended to plant the Seed of Pestilence, so even his mere breathing would spread a deadly plague.”

Turning Benedict into a host of pestilence… It was far more horrifying than I had anticipated.

“Why would you do such a thing?”

“Isn’t it obvious? For his pleasure, of course. Watching your kind suffer and struggle brings him joy! Keeheehee… Ack!”

As Sophia let out a grotesque laugh, I drove my sword into her head. Though her body went limp, her wounds began to heal once again.

“…Monstrous beings.”

I severed her head completely, and only then did Sophia’s body stop regenerating. Her dismembered parts dissolved into yellow liquid, forming a puddle before evaporating into thin air.

With the demon vanquished, it was time to clean up.

Benedict, who had fallen into a deep sleep due to the potent drug, remained unconscious despite the commotion.

Since it was impossible to let him rest in the wreckage of the house, I brought him to the knights’ camp.

“Well done.”

“Thank you, Sir Kayron. But, uh, is that person over your shoulder…?”

“Yes, your captain.”

“Ah, hand him over to us, please.”

I carefully handed Benedict over to his subordinates.

“Thank you for bringing our captain back safely. We’ll take care of him from here.”

“But this is strange. He was so excited to go on a date with Miss Sophia. Why is Sir Kayron the one returning with him…?”

It was a long story, and not one to share in this situation.

“...There were circumstances. For now, just let him rest without asking questions.”

“Understood, sir. Rest well, Sir Kayron!”

They must be confused. Even though they hadn’t known each other long, discovering that the woman you love is a demon would be devastating.

What will Benedict do when he wakes up…?

When I returned to the knights’ quarters, Plymouth was waiting for me.

“You’re back, Captain.”

“Plymouth? You’re still awake?”

“When the captain is away, I stay awake to prepare for any emergencies. Even though my title is merely honorary, I am still your vice-captain.”

Plymouth smiled softly, despite looking a bit tired. He didn’t ask any unnecessary questions.

“By the way, Captain, there’s a guest waiting for you.”

“A guest? At this hour? Who could it be? No one I know would visit at this time…”

“I’ve already escorted them inside. I don’t need to explain who it is. You’ll see for yourself.”

Opening the door, I was met with a completely unexpected sight: someone was lying asleep on my bed.

I closed the door immediately, stepped back out, and gave Plymouth an order.

“…Get rid of them. Right now. That’s an order.”

“Oh, but I’m just an ordinary knight by rank. I can’t be rough with someone of the captain’s status.”

“What does that have to do with anything? Do you even know what time it is? Captain or not, they’re sleeping in my bed without permission! That’s not a guest—it’s an intruder! Why did you even let them in?”

“I have no idea. I was already exhausted, and now that you’re back, I can finally rest. I’ll leave the rest to you, Captain.”

“Hey, Plymouth! Are you seriously ignoring a direct order…?”

Without paying me any attention, Plymouth headed to his room to sleep.

Left with no other choice, I went back to my room.

The brief commotion between Plymouth and me must have disturbed them because the intruder stirred and shifted their sleeping position, still sound asleep.

“Why on earth are you here at this hour?”

It was hard to believe, but it was real.

Avelin was sleeping on my bed.

This was a disaster.

After fighting demons, I had returned exhausted, ready to collapse onto my bed, only to find it occupied by an intruder.

Grinding my teeth, I gently shook Avelin’s shoulder.

“Hey, Avelin. Wake up.”

“Mm…”

“Come on, wake up. If you’re going to sleep, do it in your own quarters. Why are you here…?”

“Mmm…!”

“Whoa!”

My mind went blank.

Half-asleep, Avelin reached out, grabbed me, and pulled me into her embrace.

It wasn’t just my mind that was in shock.

The place I touched was strangely soft…

“Aaagh!”

Before any stranger thoughts could surface, I quickly escaped her arms.

As I fled, Avelin unconsciously swung her arms around before curling into herself with a sulky expression, still fast asleep.

“Damn it. It’s my bed, and I can’t even use it…”

The awkward situation left me feeling even more drained.

Avelin aside, I needed sleep.

That’s when I spotted the sofa, a piece of furniture I’d casually brought in for talking with visitors.

Dragging my feet, I lay down on the sofa.

Just as hunger makes food taste better, exhaustion is the best sleep aid.

‘By the way, there’s been this nice smell in the room for a while now.’

Surrounded by a faint, sweet fragrance lingering in the air, I drifted off to sleep almost immediately.

--- The End OF The Chapter --

 

[TL: Join Patreon to support the translation and to read up to 5 chapters ahead of the release: https://www.patreon.com/taylor007 

 

Join Our Discord for regular updates and have fun with other community members: https://discord.com/invite/SqWtJpPtm9 ]