Chapter 1038

Eternal Loyalty, a skill that might be a clue to keep me from going crazy. I’d rather not use it as is, since it has the effect of making me a slave to my master.

But maybe Announcer-san can rework it into something better? I don’t know if that’s actually possible, and it sucks that I have to keep depending on her. In this case, I don’t really have much choice though.

Either way, it could be an important clue to help me stay as Fran’s partner.

「A divine sword…… Maybe from the Kingdom of Phyllius?」

When I think of a divine sword capable of controlling demons, that’s the only one that comes to mind……

「No, they were not. I am aware of Diabolos from Phyllius, but the blade’s appearance was different.」

Does this mean there’s another demon-controlling divine sword besides the Diabolos?

「The wielder was a human male. As I stated before, I do not know his name. However, I did recognize the sword in his hands. The Nethergate Blade, Hell. A divine sword capable of manipulating a variety of poisons. In addition, it also seems to be capable of calling down demons into the user’s body and harnessing their powers.」

Poison and demons? There might be some similarities, but I don’t quite understand the relationship. Judging from the name “Nethergate Blade”, it’s probably doing something like opening the gates of hell.

I don’t know if “hell” is actually a thing in this world, but demons were supposed to live there from the myths back on Earth. In that case, it would make sense for the Nethergate Blade to access demonic powers.

「The wielder of Hell was a well-proportioned, slender man with heterochromatic eyes, blond hair, and dark skin.」

「What…!」

Seliadot reacted heavily to Trismegistus’ words. Her eyes immediately sharpened, and she jumped onto the conversation.

「Where is that man now?!」

「I do not know.」

Trismegistus’ attitude was not very friendly, probably because he didn’t care about Seliadot. However, Seliadot did not back down.

「I am sure of it! He is the poison master who destroyed our country!」

As expected, she had found her target for revenge. A master of poisons with an army of illegal slaves. I have to admit my surprise that he wielded a divine sword though. No wonder the lorelei lost so easily.

「Do you have any clues? What was he after?」

「His only desire seemed to be power. First he asked me about El Dorado, the Golden Dragonblade. He must have heard that it was originally forged for me.」

「El Dorado was a sword made for Trismegistus?」

「Indeed.」

Whoa, it seems the divine sword El Dorado was intended for Trismegistus to use against the Abyss Eater. The golden dragonkin and the Golden Dragonblade. They certainly seem to go well together.

And the blade’s cost of life expectancy would prove no issue for Trismegistus, who was immortal due to his divine punishment. That explains why El Dorado’s cost was so different from Ulmer’s other creations.

「Then why didn’t you use it?」

「I could not equip it, though Ulmer claimed that I was rejecting El Dorado. When we parted ways, he told me to take good care of Fannabelta…… Hmm, I had forgotten all about the incident.」

Does that mean the past Trismegistus rejected the divine sword, saying that he didn’t need El Dorado because he had Fannabelta?

That’s exactly like Fran. She also said she didn’t want a divine sword because she had me.

And look at the guy now. Living forever must be more terrifying than I imagined. Fran viewed Trismegistus with sadness.

「Also, he brought a little girl when he came here. She appeared to be a slave, but she was of the same race as that girl there.」

So a poison master accompanied by a lorelei. There’s no more room for doubt.

「……Very well. I can be satisfied with the knowledge that he came to the continent. I see the possibility of a connection between the slave traffickers. I can start retracing their steps from there.」

Seliadot mumbled to herself while trying to suppress her rage. Combined with the emptiness of Trismegistus next to her, the two radiated an unapproachable aura.

Only the ever reliable Izario managed to break in.

「I don’t know what the Ward Dealer’s up too, but can we move onto our business now?」

「My apologies. I’ve gotten a little impatient.」

「That’s quite all right. Everyone has their own problems.」

Izario shrugged his shoulders and smiled bitterly. As his words suggested, he also had a lot on his mind. Perhaps that’s why the words sounded so profound coming from him.

「Well, Trismegistus-san. Regarding the Abyss Eater’s exhaustion, do you know what effect this will have in the future?」

「First, the antidemons spawn rate will be sparse to nonexistent for a few days. I am also certain their numbers will be weakened in the short term. My estimations show about 30 years.」

「30 years in the short term……? No, I guess it is short to you.」

「And during this period, there is a high chance we will not see another antidemon season.」

「Well damn, that’s just great.」

I had been expecting him to say something like being able to defeat the Abyss Eater a tiny bit faster, but this windfall exceeded my expectations.

Weakened antidemons would make everything easier, but now there’s no antidemon season for a while? This was very good news for all cities in Gordicia.

However, things weren’t going to be that simple. Izario and Jayne didn’t look too happy for some reason.

「This is going to cause a stir when the other countries find out, isn’t it?」

「……30 years of peace will mean an influx of people to this continent, right? The population might explode.」

The people currently here will be safer, but that’s not all. The continent will definitely see more visitors, as well as a big reduction to the death rates.

In that case, the population might grow substantially. There’s a chance that the boost to our forces would allow us to temporarily drive out the antidemons.

Then what happens 30 years from now, when the Abyss Eater recovers and the situation returns to normal? It’ll come back to a huge feast just waiting to be eaten.

That might even undo all the positives in the long run.

「You plotted the deaths of so many people this incident, so what will you do if the population rises again?」

「Of course, I will reduce their numbers in the same way. Creating powerful antidemons in the absence of divine sword wielders comes with risks. However, the herd must be thinned. Unnecessary population expansion only benefits the Abyss Eater.」

「And you’re saying you can do that without leaving the confines of your castle?」

「I have already designed a magical tool for creating powerful antidemons after my observations on the failed divine sword. I can now perform the same feat on my own.」

Oh, now that you mention it, this guy’s a genius alchemist. No clue about the theory behind it, but it seems he made a tool for creating giant antidemons.

「Izario, Jayne. Send out a warning to all nations. Tell them to stop interfering with my mission with their feeble excuses of duty. And that their actions are endangering the entire world.」

「……Convincing all the nations will be an impossible task.」

「Can you truly say the gods will provide salvation if the Abyss Eater is unleashed again? Man is only worth so much to the higher existences.」

I wanted to call Trismegistus hypocritical, but his words made complete sense to me. From the legends, the gods tended to lack much in terms of emotion and mercy.

Trismegistus was most likely correct, aside for a few exceptions like the Chaos Goddess. That’s why divine punishments and such sometimes made no sense. The gods just didn’t care much about us, especially evident with the nature gods.

「Doing your dirty work makes me feel sick, but I guess I have no choice…… Taking advantage of Gordicia could be seen as abusing the Abyss Eater, and by extension, the Evil God Fragment. I’ll try to keep them in check with that kind of argument.」

「It’s been a while since I’ve used all my connections at full throttle…… Sigh. A pain in the ass, but it’ll have to do.」

If we can’t do anything about Trismegistus, there’s only one other option. The status quo of countries taking advantage of this continent had to change.

As Jayne and Izario discussed their strategy with gloomy faces, a magic circle suddenly appeared right next to the throne. Rising out of it came a chair with a similar design to the throne, along with a single woman sitting on top.

「This is……?」

「The gods have just notified me. I welcome you, new sinner Meltritte.」

「Trismegistus! So this is your castle! When did I……!?」

The gods said she would destroy antidemons for her divine punishment, but did they really intend for her to cooperate with Trismegistus? Meltritte despised dragonkin, so there’s no way they could fight side by side.

Rather, she’d just get in his way. Isn’t that a pretty big danger to the world……?

However, I soon found that my fears were unfounded. Meltritte burst into pain right before our eyes.

「Gyah! Agraaaaah!」

「The moment you think of interfering with my mission, you will be inflicted with immense pain.」

「Guh! Grrh……!」

「The same will happen if you attempt to leave your mission unfulfilled by remaining idle.」

「Grah……! Damn…you……」

「I was the same at first, but I soon realized the futility. Resistance skills have zero effect on this pain.」

After hearing Trismegistus, Meltritte gave up on interference. The pained expression faded from her face. It seems she’s okay as long as she doesn’t think the wrong thought.

「……Shit! Shit, shit, shit! I will not give in! I will eliminate you and the other dragonkin one day!」

「We will be freed when our mission is complete. If your feelings still remain at that time, then you may do whatever you please.」

「No matter how many years pass, I will never forget! Never!」

Meltritte exclaimed with a look of rage as she glared at Trismegistus. On the other hand, Trismegistus merely took on her hatred with the same expressionless face.