It held true for any mage of the Crosion Empire. Even Philamones, the chief court mage of Crosion’s royal palace, was merely an Expert of the 8th Circle.
If an old mage already well past one hundred years was such, what could Sarina possibly do? She was currently witnessing a legend of the magical world.
"G-good heavens……."
Even Elkain, who was normally quite composed, had his eyes wide open. In the history of Arcadia, not a single mage had ever ascended to become a Master of the 9th Circle. Even in ancient Truvenia, only two 9th Circle Masters had appeared over the span of a thousand years. With such an incredible mage appearing before them, it was only natural that they were astonished. Only after a long while did Elkain open his mouth and stammer out words.
"W-what in the world is your true identity? Could you perhaps be……."
"……."
"A Dragon?"
Elkain could think of no other possibility. The 9th Circle was an insurmountable wall for humans, with their short lifespans. Even Philamones, a court mage with innate talent for magic, had only managed to break through the wall of the 8th Circle after reaching over one hundred years of age. Ascending to the 9th Circle was that difficult.
Thus, it was not unreasonable for Elkain to regard Daemon as a dragon. However, Elkain had never dreamed that his words would provoke Daemon’s anger.
"Gasp."
At the sudden killing intent pouring from his opponent, Elkain felt a chill run down his spine. Fierce killing intent blazed outward from Daemon’s eyes as if they were aflame. Daemon, who could at least unleash killing intent upon dragons without hesitation. He spat out each word in a deeply subdued tone, one syllable at a time.
"I warn you. Never again mention that accursed being in my presence."
Because his voice was so heavily agitated, Elkain had no choice but to close his mouth. Given the situation, it seemed certain that his opponent was not a dragon. Toward such an Elkain, Daemon began to press him in a low voice.
"Of course, it matters not whether you believe my words or not. Because every word I speak is the truth……. And even if the Crosion Knights swarm to this place, I will not so much as bat an eyelash. Because I possess more than enough ability to stop them……."
At words that seemed to disparage the knight order to which he belonged, Elkain flared up.
"Impossible. No matter that you are a Master of the 9th Circle, there is no doubt that it would be too much. Of course, I acknowledge that even the greatest Sword Master cannot withstand Hell Fire. No one could block such high-tier magic……. However, Hell Fire is not a spell that can be cast multiple times under any circumstances. Even someone like you would be limited to merely five or six shots of Hell Fire at most. That would not be enough to handle our knight order."
In some ways, it was an analysis that could be called quite accurate. However, Daemon leisurely shook his head.
"I apologize for disappointing your expectations. I can cast at least over twenty shots of Hell Fire in a single day. But that is not what I am relying on. I have powerful allies, you see."
A sneer settled on Elkain’s face.
"Are you speaking of the Death Knight? I assure you, five Crosion knights would be more than enough to handle your Death Knight. Do not boast so loudly with a single accursed Death Knight."
"I am sorry. The Death Knights I possess are not just one."
Having finished speaking, Daemon turned his head and shouted.
"Hey! Everyone come in."
The moment his words ended, the door opened. Dark silhouettes entered the room without a sound. At the sight of them, Elkain’s eyes bulged as if they would tear. The being at the very front was the Death Knight who had utterly defeated him. But that was not the only problem. The fact that there were three more Death Knights who looked identical to the brute.
"Heavens……."
Seeing the Death Knights that followed in, Elkain was so dumbfounded that he could not speak. At the fact that there were three more of these terrifyingly strong beings when even one was excessive, he fell into a state of panic entirely. Watching Elkain as if savoring the sight, Daemon spoke leisurely. Already, he had gathered even the remaining Death Knights that were in Incresia for the sake of a perfect demonstration.
"Then allow me to introduce them. From this side, the names are Helvertron, Lindelph, Primburg, and Salamis. Ah! You should know Helvertron well. He is the one who subdued you."
The moment his words ended, Helvertron’s gaze, blazing with frenzy, pierced toward Elkain’s face. A voice that seemed to erupt from the abyss dug into his ears.
"Brat. Your skills were somewhat passable, but you are still far from enough. It seems you must train a great deal more."
Even looking at the opponent who was ridiculing him, Elkain could not utter a single word of retort. After all, it was an undeniable fact that his opponent was stronger than him—far stronger, at that. At seeing Elkain, their commander and also their idol, treated like a brat, fury welled up in the eyes of the trainee knights, including Wilter. However, the atmosphere swirling around them would not permit them to intervene. Daemon looked around at them and continued leisurely.
"As far as I know, a knight order of an empire that large would have no shortage of tasks. In that case, they would probably send merely around twenty or thirty, would they not? That much should be handled easily enough if these ones step forward, do you not think?"
"……."
"And if I join in as well, I believe I could manage up to forty. One shot of Hell Fire for each……. Do you not think so?"
Elkain, who had remained silent for a while, finally managed to open his mouth.
"Of course, those words are not without reason. However, if this fact becomes known, His Majesty the Emperor will surely dispatch the entire knight order. In order to deal with you decisively……."
Daemon wore a sly smile.
"How foolish. How could an emperor lying on a sickbed issue such an order? As far as I know, the Crosion Empire is a complete mess due to power struggles among the nobles. Because of that, I understand that the main force of the knight order cannot under any circumstances leave the capital vacant. If that were to happen, the nobles desperate to seize power would surely rush in and occupy the imperial palace. Is that not so?"
As his opponent pinpointed the situation of the imperial palace with such accuracy, Elkain could only be dumbfounded.
"T-that is……."
"If they swarm in numbers too great to handle, I can simply vacate the place. No. If I slaughter every last one of you right here, would this fact even reach the capital?"
Because every word was irrefutably sound, Elkain had no choice but to hang his head deeply. His opponent saw through the situation with far too much clarity. Given the current state of the Crosion Empire, it was clear they could not handle the Necromancer before their eyes. With despair surging up like a spring, Elkain trembled faintly.
*O, God. How could such a…….*
Daemon, watching that figure, intuitively felt that the time had ripened.
"That aside, it is time to deal with you all……."
Daemon, who had been resting his chin on his hand and pretending to be deep in thought, clapped his hands as if that were the answer.
"Yes indeed! This should do. I have decided to give you all a single chance."
"A chance?"
A light of incomprehension appeared on Elkain’s face. Daemon looked into his opponent’s eyes and continued.
"In truth, I do not much enjoy killing people. Of course, excluding unavoidable circumstances. Whether you believe me or not, during the one year I have spent here, I have not taken a single person’s life. Thus, killing you all is not something I find very agreeable."
Perhaps because he had heard words from the village chief, something like a doubtful expression appeared on Elkain’s face. Together with the thought that one who had ascended to a 9th Circle Master had little reason to lie rashly…….
"Is it true that you came to this place one year ago?"
Daemon slowly nodded.
"Of course. Originally, a fellow called Winterdale had taken up residence here. He had strewn about so many corpses that I had quite a difficult time cleaning them up, you see."
Elkain’s eyes abruptly grew wide.
"T-that man, where is he?"
"He is in the dungeon. When I completely wiped out his familiars, he went completely mad. Anyway, I did not want to kill him either, so I simply locked him up in the dungeon."
Daemon answered nonchalantly. Now Elkain was somewhat inclined to believe his opponent’s words. When inferred together with what the villagers had said, it was a story with sufficient credibility. He tried to rise urgently.
"S-show him to me. Then I shall believe your words completely."
Although Elkain’s attitude, being relatively faithful to his duty, was somewhat likable, Daemon deliberately hardened his expression.
"Are you making demands of me now? Though I have offered you a chance, keep in mind that the power of life and death over you remains firmly in my grasp."
Elkain drooped limply in a dejected manner. Only then did he seem to realize the situation he was in.
"What is this chance you speak of? Let us hear it."
"The condition is simple. Share a meal with me."
It was such an exceedingly simple condition that Elkain was bewildered. It was a condition that required no thought. He nodded without hesitation.
"I shall."
No matter how firm one’s will, one could not lack attachment to life. Four Death Knights and the Dullahan watched Elkain’s appearance with great amusement. A broad smile rose to Daemon’s face.
"Is that so? Then let us have the food prepared."
However, seeing the prepared meal, Elkain could only be horrified. The food served in three large bowls was nothing a human could possibly eat.
The large bowls were filled with all manner of hideous things. Disgusting insects of every sort—maggots, centipedes, spiders, cockroaches—had been thoroughly boiled, revealing their pale yellowish entrails, and beneath them lay the hacked carcasses of snakes. On top of them were the heads of bats, frogs, and lizards, still dripping bright red blood. It was food that could not help but make one’s skin crawl just to imagine.
The faces of the knights staring at the bowls were clearly overcome with disgust. In particular, Sarina, who had woken up, was deathly pale, as if she were on the verge of fainting. Elkain glared at the bowls with wide eyes.
"A-are you telling us to eat this?"
"Of course. It is delicious……."
Without hesitation, Daemon picked up one of the bat heads and brought it to his mouth.
*Crunch, crunch.*
At the sound of bones crunching, Elkain felt nauseous. Anyone who could eat that with eyes wide open was surely not human. Having cleanly finished one bat head, Daemon reached into the bowl again. After stuffing a fistful of what appeared to be bugs into his mouth, Daemon picked up a long piece of meat whose identity Elkain still could not figure out.
"This is a stallion’s thing(?). The taste is truly incredible."
Watching the thing(?) disappear into his mouth, Elkain shuddered. Despite foods that were terrible even to touch, the opponent was eating them very, very deliciously.
"Uugh."
In the end, Sarina, who had been watching, finally began retching. In the eyes of several weak-stomached trainee knights, veins were bulging red. They were struggling with all their might to hold back their nausea. Before their very eyes, Daemon emptied the bowl cleanly.
"*Burp*. That was a fine meal. Won’t you have some too?"
Seeing Daemon recommend the food so nonchalantly, Elkain finally lost his reason.
"I would rather choose death than eat such things. Though I have become your prisoner, I am a proud member of the Crosion Knights. Do not even dream of staining my honor."
"Is that so? Even though your subordinates’ lives hang in the balance?"
Elkain glared at Daemon with wide eyes. His opponent was now touching his most sensitive spot. Unable to endure it, Wilter shouted out.
"Do not fall for his ploys. From the moment we became prisoners, we were prepared to die. Please do not concern yourself with us and preserve your honor."
Even the trainee knights nodded to signify their agreement.