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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 55
Long, dark blue hair. Emerald eyes.
An exceptionally beautiful appearance.
Her impression gave off an intellectual aura, but her upturned eyes made her seem prideful. A cold, haughty charm emanated from her.
‘Who is she? She’s not one of the Demonic House members.’
Chris looked puzzled.
She didn’t seem like an ordinary girl.
‘She’s at 3-star level.’
She looked to be in her mid-to-late teens, but her level was incredibly deep.
Not just any 3-star, but the upper tier of 3-star.
Considering her age, it was an overwhelmingly high level.
It didn’t seem like she held a low status, either.
Behind the girl stood several demons. All of them had considerable presence.
They were on par with the elite demons of the Dark Demonic House.
But strangely, the girl seemed to recognize Christian.
“You know me?”
“…Know you? Ha.”
The girl’s eyes sharply narrowed.
An angry reaction.
Not just from the girl.
Even the demons standing behind her exuded hostility toward Christian.
“You dare insult me like that….”
“…??”
So, it seemed she had known ‘Christian’ from before.
But for Chris, it was all bewildering.
“No, wait a second.”
Chris tried to speak, but one of the demons cut him off.
And cast him a contemptuous glance in passing.
“Lady, let’s just go. No need to bother with trash like him.”
“…Fine.”
The girl exhaled deeply and calmed herself.
Then, looking at the bottles in Chris’s hand, she sneered.
As if looking at something disgusting.
“Drinking in broad daylight. You haven’t changed a bit.”
“…No, I mean, this is. Hold on.”
Chris tried to explain something, but she didn’t listen.
She disappeared with a cold expression, as if unwilling to exchange another word.
“……”
Chris stood dumbfounded.
What kind of absurdity was this?
He hadn’t even taken a sip and had already dispelled the alcohol, yet the unfairness was overwhelming.
‘…Who the hell is she?’
But once Chris heard who the girl was, he understood why she reacted that way.
There was plenty of reason for such a reaction.
“She is Lady Marisa of the Venomous Demonic House.”
The halfling butler, having witnessed the commotion, explained the girl’s identity.
Marisa.
A name both unfamiliar and familiar.
Chris’s eyes widened as he recalled it after repeating the name a few times.
“…My fiancée?”
“More precisely, your former fiancée.”
The halfling butler corrected him firmly.
“Despite your disappointing behavior, Lady Marisa continued to postpone the annulment and waited for you. But in the end, didn’t you humiliate her severely, leading to the engagement being broken off?”
* * *
Lady Marisa of the Venomous Demonic House clenched her teeth.
‘That bastard.’
The image of Christian from earlier wouldn’t leave her mind.
“Are you all right, my lady?”
“…I’m fine.”
No—truthfully, she wasn’t.
In the past, when Christian was a child—before he became a delinquent.
And when Marisa herself was just a little girl.
Christian had been Marisa’s clumsy first love.
She fell for him at first sight during a gathering between their two houses.
When they were arranged into a political engagement to strengthen ties between families, she had run to her room and pounded her mandragora doll with joy.
But Christian changed.
Bad rumors about him never stopped, and the elders of her house began suggesting they annul the engagement. But Marisa refused.
She believed it was just a phase of youthful rebellion and chose to wait.
But when she saw him again, he subjected her to unbearable humiliation.
That long wait ended in bitter heartbreak.
And now.
[You know me?]
A voice that acted like he didn’t even remember her.
How could a person be like that?
“…My lady.”
“…I really am fine.”
Marisa took a deep breath.
She wasn’t at the Dark Demonic House on personal business.
She had come as an envoy, representing the stance of the Venomous Demonic House.
“This way, my lady.”
A high-ranking demon of the Dark Demonic House guided her, and soon, she came face to face with a certain figure.
The acting head of the house, Marquis Langham.
* * *
“I’ve come to discuss the matter of ownership regarding the relic discovered in the Neutral Zone.”
“I see. And what is the Venomous Demonic House’s position? Last time, your house claimed the relic. So are you willing to concede this one?”
“That would be unacceptable.”
The Magus Empire is divided into five regions.
The central territory is the direct dominion of the Demon Emperor.
And then, there are the four Magus Kingdoms in the east, west, south, and north.
The Dark Demonic House and the Venomous Demonic House both belong to the Southern Magus Kingdom, under the rule of the Blood-Drenched Demon King.
You’d think they’d be close, being in the same kingdom?
Half right, half wrong.
The Southern Magus Kingdom cooperates when facing external enemies.
But when it doesn’t?
They fight each other.
The two are the most frequent contenders in localized conflicts.
There are many reasons.
For competing interests.
For pride.
Just because they feel like fighting.
The two houses constantly clashed at the drop of a hat.
Then, not long ago, a troublesome incident occurred.
A “relic” appeared in the neutral zone between the two houses.
The Venomous Demonic House, who found it first, took it.
The Dark Demonic House protested, but of course, the Venomous Demonic House wouldn’t listen.
It was an incident that left the Dark Demonic House bitter.
It should’ve ended there, but recently, another complication arose.
Another relic was discovered in the neutral zone.
“Morally speaking, shouldn't this relic belong to our Dark Demonic House this time?”
“Morality between our two houses? That’s an odd thing to say. If the roles were reversed, would the Dark Demonic House have yielded?”
Marquis Langham let out a dry chuckle.
Absolutely not.
They would never have given it up.
They would’ve tried to monopolize both relics.
“So then, are you proposing that whoever finds the relic first gets ownership?”
The relic’s exact location had yet to be confirmed.
“Yes. However, with a condition: the expedition team must be twenty members or fewer, all below the third star rank.”
“To avoid direct conflict between our two houses?”
If the main forces of either house were to shed blood, it would inevitably lead to large-scale war.
That’s why such a proposal was made.
“Yes, if we end up spilling serious blood, it will only benefit our other enemies. And recently, the situation in the ‘Four Kings Fortress’ hasn’t been looking good either.”
Both houses had many enemies.
Nearby, there was the “Destruction Demonic House” within the same Southern Magus Kingdom.
Beyond that, there was the “Gold Cross” of the Crusade Alliance.
And to the side, the “Four Kings Fortress”—an alliance of the Necromancer, Blood Sword, and Curse Demonic Houses of the Eastern Magus Kingdom.
That’s why, despite their constant bickering, the two houses never crossed the line.
For reference, the ruler of the Magus Empire—the Demon Emperor—never intervenes in conflicts between the Magus Kingdoms under his rule. In fact, he rarely involves himself in anything at all.
As if he’s merely a bystander. Or perhaps, even encouraging the infighting.
"Fine, I accept the condition."
"Really?"
Marisa looked surprised.
Since the Venomous Demonic House had taken the relic last time, she had expected the Dark Demonic House to make an unreasonable demand in their favor this time.
"However, I have one additional condition. If the Venomous Demonic House breaks the agreement, then not only will this relic, but the ownership of the previous relic as well, go to our Dark Demonic House."
"What do you mean by breaking the agreement?"
"I mean interfering with our expedition through underhanded means. Traps and hidden weapons are specialties of the Venomous Demonic House, after all."
Marisa's face hardened.
"That won't happen."
"Then there should be no issue. If you don't accept the additional condition, there will be no negotiation."
Marisa frowned.
Something felt off.
But this was a situation where some compromise had to be made.
Above all, what Marquis Langham mentioned was unlikely to happen.
"Understood. I accept the additional condition."
"Will you be personally leading the Venomous Demonic House’s expedition?"
"Yes, that’s the plan."
Marisa replied firmly.
Since she would be personally leading the expedition, what Marquis Langham mentioned had no chance of happening.
"I see. Then I’ll be able to witness the prowess of the famed Young Mistress of Ten Thousand Poisons. I’m looking forward to it."
"Then, I’ll take my leave."
After bowing, Marisa disappeared.
Marquis Langham gently touched the cold, metallic frame of his glasses.
He looked at the chessboard in front of him.
He toppled the white knight and spoke.
"Marisa."
Next, a black knight.
"Jupien."
The Second Princess of the Dark Demonic House.
Finally, he toppled another black knight.
"Christian."
These three were the ones to be sacrificed in his plan.
* * *
"Here is the Black Sword."
When Marquis Langham saw Chris’s Black Sword, he said nothing.
Chris grinned.
"That’s a pass on the first test, right?"
"...Yes. I’ll tell you about the second test."
Marquis Langham spoke of the relic in the neutral zone.
"You want me to find the relic in the neutral zone?"
"Yes. If you contribute enough in retrieving the relic, I’ll grant you the title of Young Lord."
Chris looked puzzled.
An unexpectedly easy task.
He had expected to be given a life-threatening mission.
Of course, the neutral zone was a dangerous place.
A place where all sorts of magical beasts appeared.
With Chris’s current level of achievement, a single misstep could cost him his life.
Still, it was a far milder task than expected.
‘No… this is definitely a dangerous mission.’
An instinctive sense of crisis rang out like an alarm.
There was something beneath the surface of this mission that couldn’t be seen.
But Christian didn’t show it and bowed his head.
"Yes, understood. Am I to go alone?"
"No, it would be impossible on your own. You’ll be placed under the unit led by the Second Princess, Jupien."
In other words, he was to follow the Second Princess’s orders.
It wasn’t a pleasing arrangement, but there was no helping it.
Only after becoming a Young Lord would he be able to have subordinates of his own.
"This mission was originally assigned to Loin. But I’m entrusting it to you instead, so make sure you produce results."
"I will do as you say."
"You’ll be departing soon, so prepare yourself."
After stepping outside, Chris frowned.
"A relic from the neutral zone… What kind of incident is this?"
Thanks to the Chatterbox of Darkness, Chris had a rough idea of the major incidents that occurred within the Magus Empire.
But nothing came to mind for this one.
‘Was it not the kind of incident the Chatterbox of Darkness would talk about?’
At that moment—
A sudden question flashed through his mind.
—This mission was originally assigned to Loin.
‘Now that I think about it, what happened to Loin in the original history?’
Originally, the one who was supposed to become a Young Lord this time wasn’t Chris—it was Loin.
If not for Chris, Loin would have become the Young Lord without issue.
‘But I’ve never heard anything about Loin. Why?’
Despite being a Young Lord of a noble family, Chris had never heard a thing about Loin.
There was only one reason.
He died.
And quickly, without ever making a name for himself.
Why did he die?
Chris’s mind worked rapidly to deduce the truth.
‘…Could it be that he died because of this mission?’
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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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