Episode 564. The Being in the Well (2)
“I swear on my life, I have never killed a human being with these hands, not on the Arcana continent, not in this world, but I do apologize for glimpsing your world through Evil Eye.”
It wasn’t a lie.
There was no reaction in Topaz Hall.
“I also recognize that even I am not free from error. I am but an innocent, cowardly bystander, and I ask that you give me a chance, a chance to right my wrongs.”
This time, Topaz Hall was unmoved.
Under the desk.
Vangrit’s lost fingers twitched.
‘What the hell are you trying to say?’
Confused, Vangrit thought he understood why Bellier had handed Barbatos over to him. I grit my teeth and look at Barbatos.
“Demons are a people who change their words like the flip of a palm.”
“If you don’t believe me, I’m willing to give it to you.”
“……?”
seug.
Barbatos raised both hands.
As if he wanted me to take both of his hands.
Normally, I’d have thought it was a trick, but somehow I didn’t.
‘……Damn it.’
Barbatos sounded sincere.
“I know. How much I resent my lack of ability.
This may be presumptuous from my perspective as the person being asked the question. Senior Bangrit, don’t you know this?”
Lack of ability.
The words brought Vangrit back to the past.
The time he’d fallen under the influence of the demon worshipper.
No, it wasn’t just the past. His lack of ability still prevented him from being of any use to Chief Lee. Just as it had on Jeju Island, where Paimon had appeared.
“But.”
Barbatos interrupted.
“Even if I lacked ability, I had ‘pride’.”
“……!”
“I would have opposed the decision of the Ten Thrones, but I was born a demon and Ten Thrones. It was wrong to start with pride.”
Barbatos speaks of ‘pride’ in demonic tongue.
Vangrit’s mind became even more confused.
Barbatos’s lips curled.
“So, I would like you to escort me to Chief Lee.”
The demon wants me to face Chief Lee.
‘……It can’t happen.’
Chief Lee was the demon’s nemesis.
No Demon, no Great Evil, no Ten Thrones, no other demon.
None of them could stand before him.
‘So don’t be fooled, Vangrit.’
I shook, but clenched my fist. This was the Ten Thrones. It was natural to react differently to a normal demon. Even if it doesn’t feel like a demon, it’s still a demon.
It was a moment of self-pity.
The word came out again.
“But I also want to realize ‘pride’.”
“!”
Pride.
Before he realized pride, he had been under the pressure of being the Senior of the Magic Tower, choosing to do things that were no different from the demons. It was crazy now, but…….
‘I even thought about bribing Chief Lee.’
Maybe that’s why, Vangrit asked himself.
‘Do I have what it takes to verify Barbatos?’
In addition, didn’t Chief Lee’s pride change even himself?
Pride.
It was a Ray of Light in Vangrit’s confused mind.
‘……Yes, if it’s Chief Lee and no one else.’
Even if it is the demon.
Even if it is the Ten Thrones.
I wonder if you could inspire pride in Barbatos.
And even if not, who am I to judge Barbatos?
Finally, Vangrit spoke up.
“You may proceed to the next verification.”
Barbatos bowed respectfully.
“Thank you for the opportunity. Senior Vangrit.”
Vangrit glanced at the ceiling one last time.
As usual, the Topaz did not shine.
Which meant that Barbatos had spoken the truth.
‘A demon who knows how to appreciate a human.’
With his back to me, Barbatos passed me by.
Even in passing, Barbatos exuded no threat.
Vangrit bit his chiseled lip.
‘Break something down.’
That meant Barbatos had passed the preliminary verification without using any demonic powers. It was only then that Vangrit came out of his agony when he heard the sound of the back door opening.
‘No, maybe it’s better to pass.’
Complex thoughts.
He hadn’t gotten to ask, but Barbatos seemed open to rehabilitation. With such an attitude, he might be able to turn his back on the Demon World, and cooperate with the Arcana Continent and the Adventurer’s World.
Of course, one might say.
That’s unreasonable to expect from a demon.
Vangrit only laughed bitterly.
“……Who knows, maybe he’ll realize pride?”
Pride.
Yes, pride.
It had transformed the worst of demon himself.
‘Let’s see, what remains until Chief Lee’s verification.’
Master Marcelo did not take part in the preliminary verification.
Approximately…….
Vangrit froze as he calculated the numbers in his head.
“Wait a minute.”
Suddenly.
He realized who was waiting in his back room.
It was an afterthought.
The reason for Vangrit’s puzzlement soon came through the crack in the door.
“Failed, Barbatos!”
…… Oh no, Senior Bensch!!
*
Arcana Continent.
Capital of the Empire.
Antonium.
“Huaaamh, Sir Nash~”
It was time for the young prince’s concentration to run out.
If the Empress had seen this.
She would have scolded him.
‘Because you’ve worked hard so far.’
Nash smiled and replied.
“What is it you wish to ask me, my lord?”
“Actually, it’s not a question for you, Sir Nash.”
“What?”
Nash was dumbfounded.
Who was he?
The best mage in the imperial court.
In the past, he would have claimed to be the best in the Empire, but not now.
The pure-blooded Mage clan, the Descendants of the Twilight, had settled in Antonium.
Is that why?
Nash turned to the prince, puzzled.
“My lord, do you really not trust this Nash? Sure, I may not have the magic affinity of the Twilight Descendants, but my theoretical knowledge of magic is far superior to theirs……!”
Even if that was unintentional.
The young prince had taken the initiative with just a few words.
He seemed to have enough qualities to be the next emperor.
“Twilight Descendant? Theory? Affinity? It’s hard to tell, Sir Nash.”
“My mistake.”
Because Nash realizes his concerns.
Because the prince was too young.
The prince whined.
“What I want to know is what happened that day, Sir Nash.”
“And what was that day……?”
“The day my father closed his eyes.”
“……!”
The day his majesty closed his eyes.
‘I see.’
He was old enough to be curious about the whole story of that day. Nash restrained himself from rambling, and gripped the weight. Ehem, he cleared his throat.
“Didn’t the Empress tell you the whole story?”
“As a matter of fact, yes, but…….”
“But, what else do you want to know?”
The prince tapped his quill, then replied.
“What I’m curious about is the ‘Flame’ of the day, Sir Nash.”
“……Flame?”
“The flame that was said to have saved the Empire from danger!”
The spark.
How could Nash not know what it was?
Nash flashed a wry smile.
“I guess you were curious about my older brother?”
“Yes, Sir Nash!”
“Certainly.”
Indeed, Your Highness.
You are old enough to admire my brother Bensch.
Nash nodded, more fiercely than ever.
“Brother Bensch, unlike me, is a great man!”
And with that, the little brother’s big brother bragging began!
Nash rattled off a long list of Bensch’s family sagas.
“……As if that weren’t enough, he’s being considered to be the next Chief Mage to succeed the savior of our empire, Chief Lee Hoyeol.”
“Wow. He’s even more amazing than I thought.”
“Yes, he is, hehehe.”
Nash shrugged unnecessarily.
The prince spoke up, this time with a smirk.
“By the way, Sir Nash…….”
“What else do you want to know, my lord?”
“None other than to ask if I might meet Sir Nash’s brother, not now, of course, but someday, so that I might be able to thank him!”
A thank you.
Nash smiled at the words.
Indeed, the prince sighed.
‘You’re already trying to take charge of the empire.’
I was tempted to pat him on the head.
It would be impolite.
And with all due respect to the Emperor.
“I don’t think that would be possible, my lord.”
“What?”
“That…….”
It wasn’t often that Nash trailed off. The unusual response piqued the prince’s curiosity even more. When the prince persisted, Nash was finally forced to admit.
“As his younger brother, I shouldn’t say this.”
Nash continued.
“Brother Bensch has been a little……. He’s been a little clueless for a while now.”
“A little clueless?”
“Yes, my Lord. He is the one who does not bend his will no matter who the opponent is. That means others might be hurt by his words, even if he doesn’t mean them.”
Is that so?
The prince pondered the words.
The prince thought about the words of his mother, the empress.
-“An emperor must be able to shoulder great responsibility.”
The prince nodded his little head and said
“Whatever you have to say to me, I am ready to accept it, Sir Nash. You, Sir Bensch along with Sir Lee Hoyeol, are the spark that saved the Empire, aren’t you?”
“My Lord…….”
Nash’s heart sank, but he was not comfortable.
It was inevitable.
If nothing else, my brother was a steady man.
He was.
No matter who they were.
No matter what attitude or demeanor.
If he wasn’t convinced.
He would rage and burn like a red-hot flame.
*
Barbatos asks.
“Would you like to hear a specific reason?”
Bensch raises the corner of his mouth.
“Hmm.”
His face exudes the elegance of the Mage Family, the House of William. In a word, it’s unfortunate, which means he’s looking down on someone from on high.
“I see you have not yet mastered the discipline of Topaz Hall, Barbatos. In order to challenge a preliminary verification, you must find and declare a problem of your own.”
Barbatos lowered his head for a moment..
“It’s a problem. Someone had a problem with my answer?”
Bensch paraphrased the ‘someone’.
“I do not speak to you. I am the questioner. Only I, Bensch William, can ask questions in this Topaz Hall. It is not you, Barbatos, who must prove your innocence.”
Barbatos replied.
“You don’t take kindly to that, but there was no falsehood in my answer, and at this moment, Senior Bensch William’s demeanor strikes me as nothing more than unnecessary accusation.”
Bensch snorted.
“You’ve got a brash attitude.”
“Is that a compliment?”
“You think that’s a compliment? I’m being sarcastic.”
“…….”
For the first time, Barbatos was speechless.
Bensch, of course, was unfazed by the reaction.
As his brother, Nash, had said, Bensch was oblivious.
“I see you’ve gotten the hang of demon jokes.”
“I expect you to behave according to the rules of Topaz Hall.”
“How could you mention discipline to me, a senior member of the Magic Tower? Anyone who sees this will think that this place is not the Magic Tower but the Demon Tower, right? It’s really disgusting to see the guests being turned upside down. After all, it is right for you to fail.”
“…….”
Silence.
Barbatos thought.
Bensch William, this man.
Childish beyond measure.
‘But, by the rules of Topaz Hall.’
There was a high probability that the preliminary verification with Bensch would be returned as invalid. and if that happened, he would be one step closer to Lee Hoyeol the Tenth Throne without much effort.
Barbatos fell silent, his eyes scanning Topaz Hall.
Topaz.
The mineral of wisdom.
When a trial goes awry, Topaz shines its unique light as a warning. No one can pass the Topaz Hall trial without heeding its rules.
In that sense, Barbatos was relaxed.
“You are responsible for this preliminary verification.”
……Sparkle.
The Topaz in the hall sparkles.
It began to emit a brilliant yellow light.
Bensch nodded.
“I see.”
To Barbatos, who answered only the truth.
Bensch cut him off at the pass.
That Topaz Hall had done something that could not be overlooked.
But that was what Bensch had hoped for.
“So I’m going to make a formal objection.”
“Objection, you mean?”
“Yes.”
Bensch still smiled.
“An objection to every decision you pass.”
He couldn’t deny it.
He didn’t want to admit that his colleagues, the senior mages, had let Barbatos through. That stubborn, unyielding mind had seen through him.
“You have answered, Barbatos.”
Barbatos’ shallow deception.
“Please give me a chance to right my wrongs.”
“Yes.”
“And what is the wrong of which you speak?”
Depends on what you mean by ‘wrong’.
Barbatos’s declaration changes entirely.
It was something Bensch had not overlooked.
“You said you would no longer be a cowardly bystander?”
“…….”
“Then your actions could not be more correct, for at this very moment you are single-handedly advancing into enemy territory and closing in on the enemy leader, a heroic act for a demon.”
Bensch added to Barbatos.
“Answer me, Barbatos.”
They said that due to an injury on Jeju Island, They would not be able to use their magic for the time being.
Why?
A spark seemed to flicker behind Bensch.
“For your information, I am very angry at your deception.”
“…….”
A pause.
Soon the answer came back.
Not from Barbatos.
Beyond telepathy.
“What? Just let it pass……?!”
From Chief Lee.