Chapter 318: If Only I Could (4)
“You stubborn fool. Did you use your power until you collapsed again?”
While one person laid down an exhausted body and another was simply grateful someone remained alive—
Deathbringer, who had gone to find the Inquisitor and relay news of the Demon Knight, encountered a situation that made him click his tongue.
“I didn’t… collapse….”
“Did the fever cook your head too, goody-two-shoes? If this isn’t half-conscious, what is it?”
That damned stubborn idiot had collapsed again from using too much Divine Power.
“You’ve really outdone yourself.”
Deathbringer placed a wet cloth on the Inquisitor’s burning forehead. Because the fever had been caused by overusing Divine Power, it could not be treated with that same Divine Power, leaving him to take measures like this.
At the sudden chill against her forehead, the Inquisitor made a strange “Hnyak” sound.
“…But the more people I save now, the more likely they will be to listen later when I defend the Demon Knight, will they not?”
“Persuading the people above the residents would probably be more effective.”
“Is that so…?”
The Inquisitor’s fever-flushed cheeks drooped. Deathbringer’s eyes rolled several times, and then he tossed out a remark.
“Well. Judging by the bishop and Young Lord here, saving many people does seem like a means of persuading them.”
While Bemurchen’s atmosphere emphasized destroying demons, this side unequivocally placed human lives first. Considering that, the Inquisitor’s recklessness might have been foolish, but it was not the wrong choice.
At his statement, the Inquisitor’s eyes widened slightly.
“……! That is fortunate….”
“Your body is dying as the price, and you’re happy about that? Good grief… Seriously.”
Deathbringer grumbled that the Demon Knight and Inquisitor alike were geniuses at grinding down their own bodies. Even in that moment, his hands sought a fresh cloth and wiped the Inquisitor’s neck and arms.
“…Slick bastard, have you seen Inquisitor Daniel?”
Then, wait. Just as Deathbringer rinsed a fresh cloth and wrung it out, the Inquisitor cautiously asked a question. It was not difficult to discuss, but neither was it a subject he could spread around carelessly.
“…That man? Yes, I saw him.”
“Then did he perhaps…?”
“If you’re asking whether he had it out with Sir, that happened quite a while ago.”
“Huh.”
“Still, don’t worry. It seems to have ended reasonably well.”
“I-is that so?”
Of course, his anxiety had not vanished completely. It was merely that the two had not fought to the death. When they parted, neither wore an expression of relief.
“…You know.”
In that respect, Deathbringer described the truth the Inquisitor had not yet heard and the unease he had felt.
The Inquisitor was even less skilled with human emotions than he was, so an answer probably would not emerge. Even so, he thought it better than pondering alone.
“…So he suffered such circumstances. And as for why he reacted that way… I do not know either.”
“You don’t, right?”
“But I do not think the very fact that he said he was tired is strange.”
Yet answers in life often came from unexpected places.
“The circumstances the Demon Knight was already in were hardly good… but recovering his memories does not transform everything positively.”
“……?”
“He still harbors a demon within him, and there is still no suitable way to remove it. In the middle of that, I even pointed a weapon at him and drove him to the brink of death.”
“That….”
“I remember the devastation I felt when the Demon Knight pointed a sword at me. Though it was not the Demon Knight himself, but the demon inside him, it unquestionably wounded me. Yet I chose to oppose him through my own decision, not through a demon’s scheme. What feelings must that have caused him?”
Inexperience did not mean stupidity. Sometimes straightforward righteousness reflected the answer like a mirror.
“…I think I finally understand why, even after realizing his memories were missing, the Demon Knight could not trust us—could not trust me—and left without a word. He had ultimately expected me to react this way. He knew with wisdom that I would place God’s word first rather than try to understand his true intent or circumstances, that I would inevitably conclude his confusion was solely the demon’s work… He knew how foolish and stupid I was… how utterly unworthy of trust.”
This was such a moment. The instant Deathbringer heard the Inquisitor’s words, he understood what he had missed.
“I do not know how to apologize. No, in the first place, I do not even know whether this can be resolved with an apology. I—I have received so much grace from him, yet rather than repay it, all I have done is inflict terrible wounds….”
“…I shouldn’t have said that.”
“……?”
Had the shallow trick he used to hold the man here truly been right? No—in the first place, had he possessed any right to hold him back?
The young man who finally realized his mistake trembled, face pale.
“No matter how I consider it, we cannot leave matters as they are.”
Meanwhile, in a place that was neither the Temple, the Magic Tower, nor the castle—
several members of the Temple and Magic Tower held a secret meeting. Every one of them was dissatisfied with the treatment of the Demon Knight.
“He is far too dangerous! We need a proper respo—”
BOOM!
“……!”
“Wh-what?”
But before they could proceed with a proper discussion, the door flew open violently. Or perhaps it broke. Instead of opening normally, the door toppled forward with a crash and became a platform.
“If tolerating him makes you that anxious, why don’t we compromise by placing permanent tracking magic on him? Something that allows constant surveillance and that he can never remove alone.”
“You are…!”
Someone confidently set foot atop that platform. It was the Meister, with the Archmage trailing behind like a tail.
“That seems like a fairly reasonable compromise, does it not?”
The person who had broken down a locked door with a single kick sauntered inside with both hands in their pockets. The Meister was so confident that some mistook them for an invited guest.
Though anyone truly invited would not have broken the door down to enter.
“T-tracking magic?!”
In any case, the person who was always shameless about their actions brazenly tilted their head. What’s the problem? Every part of the pose conveyed those words.
“Why? Isn’t that enough for you? Will you only be satisfied once he’s dead?”
“Wh-what are you…?”
“If not, end this with that solution. It’s sufficient.”
“…If you barge in and speak that way, we have no means of following your reasoning.”
One mage barely managed a calm response. Is that so? Only then did the Meister look convinced. But why can’t they follow this? The acceptance was not complete.
“What you fear is the possibility of the Demon Knight going berserk or escaping, isn’t it? But the Demon Knight declared he will never go berserk again, and tracking magic resolves the possibility of him escaping. Then isn’t the matter finished?”
“…Tracking magic does not resolve the possibility of him going berserk—”
“But it would let you pursue him even to the end of the continent and kill him. If you intend to make that combat power your ally, isn’t it only natural to accept that much risk?”
“No, that—”
“Why? Are you that worried about him going berserk? Are you truly worried?”
The following exchange was similar.
The Meister cut others off as though knowing exactly what they would say and as though refusing to listen to stupid questions. The words came so quickly that no one else could return the same treatment.
Interrupting others was also a skill.
“This works out well. I wanted to ask throughout the journey here anyway. Are you truly concerned about him going berserk?”
“Of course we are concer—”
“Really? Then if you’re worried, why do you drive him into a corner? Don’t you know even a rat bites a cat when cornered? Or are you so confident in those bloated bodies of yours that you’re certain even a rat’s bite won’t hurt?”
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But from the Meister’s perspective, there was a reason for this behavior. Naturally. This was how they had always wanted to speak.
“Looking at the state of the city right now makes the situation obvious, doesn’t it? Who really holds the advantage in this negotiation, and whether the thing before you is truly a rat.”
The Meister had nevertheless restrained themself until now solely because of the Demon Knight. Because the defendant had neither sought an advocate nor defended himself. And because the defendant’s sole problem—going berserk—had made it difficult to speak recklessly.
“The advantage…?”
“Someone cooperating with you isn’t necessarily the weaker party.”
But now the greatest obstacle—the problem of him going berserk—had disappeared, and the defendant’s willingness had improved.
In other words, all the Meister had to do now was bring enlightenment to these idiots. They only needed to do what they liked and loved most!
“Why don’t we begin with the Demon Knight’s past record? That bastard killed… two Great Demons. No, is it three now?”
“Four if we include the Ancient Beast.”
“That’s what they say. Wow. The Temple has failed to eliminate even one, yet this man devoured them all by himself over the past year?”
Then was there any reason to hesitate? Delighted, the Meister played the card called truth. The priest directly beneath the bishop in rank wore a troubled expression, but the Meister did not care.
If that bastard stood directly below the bishop, the Meister was one of the world’s few Master Artisans, and the person behind them was the Archmage herself.
“In any event, considering that record, does the Demon Knight avoid the Temple because he lacks strength? Or does something special make him cower?”
Furthermore, the Temple’s people had never been the target of persuasion in the first place.
After all, they were bastards who accepted doctrine as logic. How could anyone persuade them?
If they pulled out scripture, shut their ears and eyes, and went, ‘I’m not listening, I’m not listening,’ the only person who would be frustrated was the Meister. Rather than witness that, the Meister preferred to give up from the beginning.
They abandoned every priest and looked one by one only at the mages present.
“Did someone stitch your mouths shut? Or did you use all your intelligence on research? If neither, then speak. I asked you a question.”
Well… The Meister had said they would persuade them, not that they would behave kindly, so in any case, they looked at them.
Behind the Meister, the Archmage had nodded each time a sound argument emerged. Now she looked at the Meister in surprise.
“You are mages, so answer logically like mages. Explain why that man avoided the Temple. He has more than enough power to kill them, and they are trying to kill him, so why does he willingly endure inconvenience to avoid the fight itself?”
Had they not clearly agreed to use the good inquisitor, bad inquisitor strategy? No, was the Meister deliberately acting this way because of that strategy? But no matter how she looked at it, it seemed the Meister was simply showing their true temper.
The Archmage, who had intended to interject at the appropriate time, fell into confusion.
“…Whatever answer we give from our perspective, I do not think it will possess logical validity.”
In the meantime, the mage who had first responded calmly to the Meister spoke. The person’s expression was much more relaxed than before. Neither the displeasure at the sudden intrusion nor the hostility toward the Demon Knight appeared to have softened.
“So I ask you, Master Artisan: do you know the reason that makes these contradictory conditions reasonable?”
The Meister changed attitude slightly.
The eyes overflowing with the will to fetch a hammer and knock their jaws off if they uttered anything stupider turned into, Well, look at you. I’ll be patient.
“Why go far to find it? That bastard is simply a fucking pushover.”
“…That is….”
“Only speculation without evidence? I don’t know. Isn’t this entire situation itself evidence?”
Around then, the Archmage recognized the moment for her to step forward. Eyes a hundred times gentler than the Meister’s moved to the fore.
“…A man who need only remain hidden for nine years has no need to ask for this bargain and voluntarily submit to surveillance. It does not take lengthy rhetoric to explain why he asks for it nevertheless.”
Goodwill as generous as the sea. A character so dazzlingly upright. Morality so unwavering that the beholder felt still more sorry.
At praise that could not carelessly be used even for a priest, the priest furrowed their brow.
“Great Sage, can you be certain?”
“Then allow me to ask differently, Priest. Can the Temple capture the Demon Knight if he disappears? To my knowledge, you failed to seize so much as the tip of his tail over the past several weeks. Are you truly capable of it?”
Moreover, the Meister’s frown grew deeper than the priest’s. Whether it was the Archmage’s turn or not, testing the ground until the very last moment was so frustrating the Meister could hardly bear it.
“Why don’t you simply say yes while the other side is still being reasonable?”
The Meister swallowed the curse that had risen to their throat and folded their arms, their eyes equipped with scorn and contempt. It was out of concern that the foolishness might disgust them enough to drive a fist into someone’s chin.
“There is already a high probability that something has happened at the Grand Temple. Why make that insane combat power your enemy on top of it?”
But binding their arms did not bind the menace spilling from their gaze.
“…Unless the Demon Knight deliberately causes harm, our branch will take his side.”
After a long while, a white flag finally rose.
Whether they had been persuaded by words, yielded to reality, or simply wanted to avoid a fist was unclear. In any case, they had crossed one hurdle.
“Do they carry stones instead of brains inside their heads? That took fucking forever.”
The Meister grumbled while stepping once again across the shattered door.
“…The people behind us can hear you.”
It was the Archmage who developed a headache at that shamelessness. She glanced at how the people behind them reacted—they were all avoiding her gaze—and let out a deep sigh.
“Still, you made things easier for us. Thank you.”
“I only helped because that bastard escaping would create trouble for me too. So don’t thank me.”
The Archmage did not know why the Demon Knight escaping would be directly connected to trouble for the Meister, but she let it pass. They must be embarrassed to simply help and were speaking harshly again. The misdeeds of certain young people allowed her to accept it that way.
“Daniel, thank you as well.”
Instead, she conveyed her gratitude to another person.
“…It was nothing.”
“Without you, we would not have known this meeting existed, and it might have become a problem later. Excessive humility can also be poison.”
What she had just said was entirely true. Had it not been for Inquisitor Daniel, they would have passed by without ever knowing whether the meeting occurred.
“…I learned only because they told me in an attempt to draw me into it. I did nothing special.”
“But was refusing them and telling us not still an achievement?”
Of course, what she was truly grateful for was that none other than Daniel had told them.
The Archmage knew the tangled relationship between Daniel and the Demon Knight. How could she dismiss this as nothing? She knew how much resolve it must have taken for him to go out of his way to report something he could easily have ignored. How could she consider that insignificant?
“…Have you forgiven him?”
Separately, she was also a little curious. What in the world had Daniel and the Demon Knight discussed? What conversation had changed Daniel’s attitude so greatly?
“You need not answer if that was rude. I apologize for asking carelessly.”
She asked cautiously, then withdrew the question at once when she saw his stiff expression. I made another mistake. The thought followed in her mind as though predetermined.
“…It was not rude. The matter is simply a little complicated.”
“Is that so…?”
The Archmage had heard the general outline as well. That the Demon Knight had lost and then recovered his memories, that he had remained to apologize to them, and that he and Daniel had already clashed. Roughly that much.
“…For now, I have not forgiven him. But I no longer blame him either. There is someone else who must apologize, and I cannot be angry at an unrelated man.”
But hearing Daniel say even this made certain things unmistakably clear.
They truly knew nothing about the Demon Knight. The burden he carried was far greater than they had imagined. Their relationships had become tangled beyond all measure….
“Naturally. What would anger at an innocent man accomplish?”
“…Yes. I know. That is why I acted accordingly.”
Watching the conversation between Daniel and the Master Artisan, the Archmage felt something complicated deep inside. It resembled the feeling she had experienced when deciding to come here instead of meeting the Demon Knight.
“Archmage.”
“…What is it?”
“I am hardly one to say this, but….”
There was nothing she could do by meeting the Demon Knight now. Moreover, he had said he would not leave immediately, so there was no harm in delaying the meeting slightly. Remaining here and increasing her achievements would instead help her defend him later.
So—so she would meet him later. She would allow the Demon Knight to rest now. After all, there were only a few things she could say when she faced him.
“…That man appears to need help right now.”
But all those rationalizations could ultimately be tied into a single sentence.
She was afraid to face the Demon Knight again.
“The Hero and… that rash young friend will not be enough.”
Because she felt she might make another mistake.
The young people seemed to be doing well. If she interfered now, it felt as though she would only make things wrong again.
“Those two are too young, and they have a strong tendency to regard him as invincible. They recognize that he can be wounded, but do not understand that those wounds might make him collapse.”
But as though recognizing her fear, the young Inquisitor continued.
“Yet you know, do you not, Archmage? There is no person in the world who cannot collapse.”
“…Are you saying he may collapse?”
“It is only speculation. But I do not believe the possibility is absent.”
It was an exhortation directed at her.
“Even for me, promising to face my enemy another day was this difficult. How must he feel while coexisting with the one who drove him to ruin? At least I have blood relatives upon whom I can depend. He, who was dragged into that body by force, must have no one at all.”
An exhortation to rise even beyond that fear.
The Archmage’s fist curled tight.