[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

Side Story Chapter 23: Field Trip (3)

My uncle beat the turtle demon with brilliant skill.

Just when you thought he was hitting its shin, he was already striking its shoulder.

Just when you thought he hit its shoulder, he was landing a blow on its abdomen.

-Kraaak! This crazy corpse bastard! Stop, I said stop hitting me!

The sight of the mountain-ridge-sized demon getting beaten by my uncle and screaming was truly shocking.

-To play with me like this! I will kill you for sure!

Of course, the wolf-turtle demon did not just take it and fought back in its own way.

But it was a futile effort.

The wolf-turtle demon’s attacks could not even touch the hem of my uncle’s clothes.

-Kraaak! Kaaak!

Rather, every time it attempted an attack, it was beaten even more severely.

To the point where the air exploded with a boom.

“…”

My friends, who at first found it cathartic, gradually began to be filled with terror.

Anyone would be scared seeing my uncle fight for the first time.

The people of the world think of my uncle as a noble hero.

But my uncle’s actual self is completely different from what people think.

My uncle is, how should I put it… a bit wild, I suppose. Though it is true that he is a hero.

“Th-Theodore.”

Just then, Geisel spoke to me.

I was a little dumbfounded.

Are we really on terms to be having a casual conversation like this?

“I-Is Lord Damien always like that?”

“Yeah, my uncle is always like that.”

I answered vaguely. I did not particularly want to have a long conversation with Geisel.

“Lord Damien is truly… truly…”

Geisel stammered several times with a trembling voice.

Well, it is obvious what he is going to say.

That my uncle is different from the rumors, that his methods are too harsh.

He is obviously going to say my uncle is scary…

“A magnificent person!”

Huh? What did he say?

“To beat down a demon so easily! The rumors about Lord Damien were not exaggerated! He was as great as the rumors, no, far greater than the rumors said!”

Oh my, he must be completely blinded by admiration. To revere my uncle even after seeing a sight like this.

That said, I had no intention of correcting Geisel’s misconception.

Because it is not a misconception, but the truth.

My uncle is far, far, incredibly more amazing and magnificent than the rumors.

-I-I was wrong!

Just then, a desperate cry was heard.

When I turned my gaze, I saw the demon prostrated flat before my uncle, begging profusely.

-I-I was wrong! I must have been crazy for a moment! I lost my mind and dared to defy you, Lord Death Knight!

“Good. It seems you’re now in a state to have a conversation.”

My uncle nodded his head with a satisfied face.

The demon trembled, its eyes fixed only on the club my uncle was holding.

“State your name and rank.”

-My name is Garak! I hold the rank of Baron!

I heard from my uncle a long time ago that the demons of Inferno also have a five-tier peerage system.

Just having a title means that it is an extremely powerful demon.

“Did you hear that? He said he’s a Baron-rank demon.”

“I-I’ve read the records. A long time ago, a clone of a Baron-rank demon was summoned, and it annihilated two Master Class warriors and a whole order of knights before disappearing!”

“He beat down a monster like that with a wooden club?”

The students looked at my uncle with faces full of awe.

“Let me ask you one thing.”

-A-Ask me anything, sir!

“Do you know who I am?”

Garak could not answer and only looked around furtively.

It seemed he had no idea who my uncle was.

“Hmm, the demon I met last time recognized me right away.”

-I-I’m sorry! P-Please tell me, and I will engrave it upon my soul!

“No need to go that far… My name is Damien Haksen.”

At my uncle’s words, Garak’s eyes widened.

-D-Damien Haksen? The Great Demon Slayer? The Doom of Inferno?

“Hoh, it seems that is what I am called in Inferno. I quite like it.”

My uncle wore a satisfied expression. In contrast, the demon trembled like an aspen leaf.

My uncle left the demon alone for a moment and asked us.

“What did I say earlier about how to deal with a demon?”

“The demon race never submits easily. Therefore, you said we must thoroughly secure their loyalty!”

Geisel shouted loudly as if he had been waiting.

Ah, I was going to say it first. I glared at Geisel resentfully.

“You remember well. In that spirit, this one’s words cannot be trusted. Though he appears to be obedient on the outside, he may be harboring other intentions.”

-N-No, sir! I am prepared to die if it is Lord Damien’s command…

My uncle gestured in the air.

Dark mana gathered like a swarm of locusts, and massive chains were created in the sky.

The ends of all the chains were aimed at Garak.

Garak looked at the chains with trembling eyes.

“Here is the third lesson. When making a deal with a demon, always bind them with a restriction seal. Just in case of the unexpected.”

Aha, it seems these chains are all materialized restriction seals. It looks like they work by embedding them in the demon’s body.

-Y-You’re going to place this many restrictions on me?

“You don’t seem to like it?”

-O-Of course I don’t! Ah, no, of course! There’s no way I could live normally after accepting this many…

My uncle put the club back into his subspace. Instead, he took out a sword.

The moment he held the sword, the look in my uncle’s eyes changed.

He spoke to the demon with a face devoid of any smile.

“Choose. Will you accept the restrictions, or will you die here and now.”

-I will accept them!

Garak answered immediately.

It seems that even demons do not want to die.

***

We all climbed onto Garak’s shell.

It was originally lumpy and hard to sit on, but my uncle took care of it.

“I’m going to shave it down a bit.”

-Yes? But for our race, the shell is the standard of beauty…

“Is that so? Then I’ll have to shave your head.”

-Haha, my shell grows back, so you don’t have to worry! Shave off as much as you like!

“Your commendable heart moves me.”

So now it has become smooth enough for all of us to ride on.

-We will depart now!

Garak ran across the wasteland as if gliding on ice. The ride quality was surprisingly not bad.

“Woooah!”

“Waaaah!”

My friends were all delighted, feeling the wind.

When else would they get to experience racing through Inferno on the back of a demon?

I left the others and approached my uncle.

My uncle was standing with his arms crossed, silently looking ahead.

“Uncle.”

“Hm? Is something bothering you?”

“No, it’s not that, I have something to ask.”

“What is it?”

“Why are we going to the demon capital?”

I knew my uncle had come to Inferno to punish the demons, but I had not heard specifically how he planned to punish them.

“That is, you see, to bestow shock and awe upon the demons.”

“Shock and awe?”

My uncle patted my head and explained.

“Theo, the demon that tried to attack you last time not only continued to aim for the surface world despite my presence, but even incited others by calling me a fraud.”

“Yes, he did. They are very bad guys.”

“There’s no guarantee that other demons wouldn’t act the same way. Isn’t that right?”

My uncle is right. The situation on the surface is such that they cannot gather followers without resorting to such lies.

“What do you think is the reason those bastards are running rampant like that? It’s because I look like a pushover.”

My uncle’s eyes blazed.

It seems he is very, very angry.

“They committed such incitement and fabrication because they weren’t afraid of the consequences. So, to prevent this from happening again, what must be done?”

“Um, that would be…”

I recalled the things my uncle had taught me before I enrolled in the Academy.

“We have to instill fear in them so they can never do such a thing again, right?”

“As expected of my nephew. That’s right. But just beating up a few demons isn’t enough to instill that kind of fear. I have to do something truly terrible and fearsome. To the point where fear is engraved on the demons’ souls and bones.”

“So that’s why you’re going to the capital?”

Just as my uncle was about to nod his head.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew from the sky. My uncle and I stopped talking and looked up.

Then we saw two demons with black wings flying in from the sky.

-Garak! You must be tired of living! How dare you invade the territory of our Black Magpie clan!

-If you don’t get lost immediately, I will turn your body inside out and peck out your entrails!

At the threats of the bird-winged demons, Garak immediately called for my uncle.

-L-Lord Damien Haksen!

“Ignore them and run.”

-Y-Yes, sir!

Garak raced across the wasteland even faster.

-This bastard has finally lost it!

-I will take you to my father at once!

The bird-winged demons descended towards us. At their fearsome momentum, my friends all squeezed their eyes shut.

You ask if I was not scared?

What do you take me for? I am not a coward like them.

More than anything, I trusted my uncle.

“Things like annoying flies.”

Just before the bird-winged demons reached us, my uncle raised his index finger and swiped it horizontally.

At that moment, a black line was drawn in the sky and passed through the bodies of the bird-winged demons.

Blood burst out as the bird-winged demons were severed into upper and lower halves.

The two demons fell to the ground without even letting out a death cry.

“Wh-What was that just now?”

“D-Demons were cut in half in mid-air?”

I was not surprised since I had seen it often, but it seemed my friends were not the same.

They could not close their mouths.

-N-No way. Those two brothers, so easily…

“They seemed pretty strong?”

-Y-Yes, sir. They were both Count-rank demons, so they ruled this area!

“This level is Count-rank?”

My uncle said as if it were pathetic. Garak just kept swallowing dryly.

“Just watch where you’re going.”

-Y-Yes, sir!

Garak raced across the wasteland even faster.

Anyone could see that he was thoroughly disciplined.

***

After that, countless more demons came rushing at us.

-Human! It’s a human! This sweet smell! Leave your soul behind and go!

-How dare a mere Baron run rampant in my territory! I will tear off your limbs and stuff you alive!

There is no need to explain what happened to all of them, right?

-S-Save me! I-If you just let me go, I’ll give you anything! Please!

-I-I didn’t r-recognize a person of your stature. I-I’m begging you like this…

All of them lost their lives at my uncle's hands, and subsequently came to contribute to the lives that would be born after them.

What does that mean, you ask? In a word, it means they became fertilizer.

Anyway, thanks to my uncle stepping in personally, we were able to arrive at the demon capital quickly.

-This is Olobon, the capital of Inferno!

The capital of Inferno was a place more similar to the surface world than I had thought.

The only difference would be that the height of the castle walls was about ten times higher.

Why did they build the castle walls so high?

My question was answered as soon as we arrived at the gate. The demons waiting to enter were all massive.

-What is that? There are humans riding on a demon’s back.

-How did humans get into Inferno?

The demons nearby whispered amongst themselves as they saw us.

My uncle stood with his arms crossed, staring intently at the gate, then spoke to Garak.

“The line is long.”

-Yes? Ah, it is the capital, so many demons gather here.

“Do I really need to wait in this line?”

At my uncle’s question, Garak made a blank expression.

It was an expression as if he had heard something that was simply incomprehensible by common sense.

-L-Lord Damien. If you cause a disturbance here, it will be a huge problem!

“Why is that?”

-The demons guarding the capital are all high-ranking demons! And the Lord is here as well! If all of them come out…

“You, have you forgotten my name?”

-How could I! You are Damien Hak…

Garak wore an expression as if he had just realized his mistake.

-L-Lord Damien, surely you don’t mean…?

My uncle lightly jumped off Garak’s back.

He then walked past the waiting demons and approached the gatekeeper.

-What is that? It’s a Death Knight.

-Did someone lose it?

-It’s been a while since I’ve seen such a high-level Death Knight.

The waiting demons each muttered a comment as they saw my uncle.

Just then, someone jumped out and blocked my uncle’s path.

-Uhehe, what a windfall. I could sell this for a high price if I take it.

A demon made of a slimy liquid reached its hand toward my uncle.

My uncle flicked his finger at the demon as if annoyed.

At that moment, a pale blue flame enveloped the demon’s body.

-K-Kraaak! Kaaak!

The flame instantly incinerated the demon.

The demon did not even leave behind a speck of ash.

-Wh-What was that just now?

-A-A Death Knight burned a demon to death!

At the shocking sight, the demons were at a loss for words.

Even amidst this, my uncle did not stop walking and stood before the gatekeeper.

-You there! You are no ordinary Death Knight! Reveal your identity!

The gatekeeper, who resembled a bipedal elephant, aimed its spear at my uncle.

My uncle spoke to the gatekeeper as if he had no interest.

“I have no intention of wasting time on small fry. Go and bring your lord.”

The moment he mentioned the lord, the look in the gatekeeper’s eyes changed.

The gatekeeper’s eyes shone, and a blue lightning enveloped its body.

-How dare you speak of the Lord’s name so carelessly with that mouth! Your impudence pierces the heavens.

“Words don’t seem to be getting through.”

My uncle took out a sword from his subspace and gripped it.

Soon after, mana began to gather on the blade.

Flinch.

The demons, including the gatekeeper, felt my uncle’s energy and turned pale.

-H-How can a mere Death Knight possess such power…!

“Move.”

-W-What did you say?

“If you don’t move, you die too.”

As my uncle brought down his longsword, the gatekeeper turned into lightning and fled.

A massive slashing attack erupted, and the city gate was shattered.

Thanks to that, the scenery of the capital was clearly revealed.

-U-Uwaaah! What is happening!

-A m-monster! A monster has appeared!

The demons screamed and scattered in all directions.

“I will say this one last time.”

My uncle spoke to the elephant gatekeeper who was sitting collapsed on the ground.

“Go and bring your lord.”

[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]