[The truth is, purity of heart is an incredibly ambiguous concept. Realistically speaking, someone who has never harbored feelings for the opposite sex cannot exist. Usually, such humans are either asexual or have antisocial disorders.]
Amdusias turned to Eunha and spoke. The various instruments embedded in his upper body harmonized with a celestial song, playing a melody that was bizarre yet beautiful.
[Of course, from a personal standpoint, I tend to prefer them over ordinary beings. After all, they are an interesting sort of human. It's only natural that I, as a demon, would be drawn to them.]
“…….”
[But…… in this day and age, such humans are rare. Most are ordinary, having harbored feelings for one or two people while growing up. If I were to dismiss them all as impure, there wouldn't be a single human left to contract with. It would be a self-defeating move.]
So, Amdusias added, stroking his single horn with an arm shaped like a human hand as he continued.
[I'm being generous enough to overlook up to about one person.]
“……A demon compromising with the modern world?”
[Outcasts who fail to keep up with the times have always been culled since ancient days. We are no exception.]
Amdusias shrugged and looked down at Eunha with crimson pupils. The strings of the gayageum stuck in his back twanged, and tangible musical notes burst forth like powder. They soon became a musical score.
[Take it. If you read that, you will gain knowledge and talent related to music. My music includes the ability to manipulate plants as well, so if you play the correct melody, you should be able to control the length of trees or flowers, or even make them grow rapidly.]
“According to what's written in the Lemegeton, if the contractor wishes, you'll play an orchestra for them anytime, anywhere. Why did you leave that part out?”
[Ah…… Damn that Solomon. He wrote down every little thing.]
Amdusias clicked his tongue and opened his mouth wide. A long hand crawled out from within, forcibly tearing out a small flute that had been integrated with his internal organs after piercing straight through his upper body. Amdusias handed it to Eunha.
[If you blow that, an orchestra will be heard. Mark my words. The moment you wonder exactly where the orchestra is coming from, you will become one of its members. Just leave it be if you hear it. I'm telling you not to think about it.]
“……Got it. I'll keep that in mind.”
[Drop that wretched Solomon way of speaking too. It's irritating to listen to. Tsk, that debauched king was far from pure. He had a whopping seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines. He tricked me into thinking he was celibate, but once the contract was sealed, he really started swinging his dick around. Solomon is a worse bastard than a demon.]
His voice was laced with genuine displeasure and contempt.
Since Eunha wasn't using that tone because she wanted to either, she sighed and carefully folded the score, tucking it into her pocket.
“When contracting with a demon, I have no choice but to use this tone.”
[Tsk, a bastard like Solomon should have fallen into hell. I don't know why God cherished him so.]
“Do not mock Him.”
[A demon is allowed to do so. More importantly, young mage. How many demons have you contracted with so far? Surely you haven't contracted with all seventy-two great demons. If you had, there's no way you would be the master of your own body right now.]
Amdusias brushed off Eunha's words and leaned in, staring at her. Eunha's expressionless face was reflected perfectly in his blood-red eyes.
[Even if you are Solomon's successor, you are not Solomon himself. You merely borrow his glory through the grimoire. Excessive greed and desire beyond measure will taint you.]
“You sure do meddle a lot. I only make contracts befitting my vessel, so there will be no occasion for you to take control of my body.”
[Is that so. What a pity.]
Amdusias licked his lips with his tongue and withdrew.
The summoning's duration was gradually reaching its end. The luminosity of the constellations engraved in the sky had also dimmed considerably. Eunha's pupils were returning to their mint color.
She glanced at her hair, which had begun to turn black again at some point, then stored away the Lemegeton and closed her eyes.
“The business is concluded. Now return whence you came, Amdusias.”
[I shall gladly do so, O one who bears the radiance of God upon her back. But do not think that I will grovel at your feet forever. A demon must not be believed, must not be trusted, and must not be ignored.]
Amdusias replied in a sly tone. The violin embedded in his abdomen played a beautiful concerto.
[I sincerely hope that one day you will indulge in greed beyond your station. And so, tearing apart your flesh hidden beneath Solomon's light, craving your blood and organs, and scattering your bone dust in hell. May I hear your screams even from hell. In God's name, I earnestly wish for this.]
Leaving those words behind, Amdusias melted away like dark red liquid. He had returned to hell. Only the summoning circle left abandoned on the floor indicated that he had appeared here.
Eunha stood still for a moment, gazing at the spot where he had been, then let out a deep sigh and opened her eyes.
Her irises, returned to mint, settled calmly.
“…….”
The words Amdusias had spoken just before disappearing lingered in her mind.
The resentment and hostility of the demons that she inevitably had to bear as long as she possessed the Lemegeton. Lesser demons didn't matter much, but the explicit murderous intent of a great demon was difficult for a human body to endure. Should she call it a feeling like her head was ringing? In any case, it wasn't easy.
‘Except for Seire, all the great demons must be like this. Acting friendly, but ultimately only thinking of stabbing me in the back.’
Seire, the only one who treated humans kindly.
According to the records Solomon left behind, he cherished humans to the point of being similar to an angel, so the other demons besides him were ones who could betray her at any moment without it being strange. It was right to hold the reins firmly.
“Hoo…….”
Eunha exhaled deeply and dispelled all her magic. The constellations shattered and scattered, and the golden powder filling the air evaporated and vanished. The flames covering Ian and Yuna's bodies also subsided.
“It's all finished. You can come out now.”
She spoke, turning to the two of them. Ian swept aside the Reptilian scales rolling at his feet and walked toward her. Yuna also got up.
“Was the contract completed successfully?”
“Yes. It was safely concluded. You can gain the ability just by reading the score.”
“The score…… If I read it, will I gain abilities too?”
When Ian asked the sudden question that had come to mind, Eunha smiled bitterly and shook her head.
“A demon's power basically only takes effect for the contractor. Nothing special will happen just because you read it, Mr. Ian. It's just a score, that's all.”
“I see. Then may I take a look……?”
“Ah, yes. Of course.”
Eunha fished the score out of her pocket and handed it to him. Ian checked it together with Yuna, who had approached from the side.
“……Ugh. What kind of m-music is this……? The notes are all jumbled up…… Th-there aren't even any staves…….”
“…….”
It was exactly as she said. The white paper was packed with hundreds of notes, but nothing else that could really be called a “score” existed.
If one didn't know it was a score, it looked so crude that they would have thought it was a child's doodle.
Staring at it intently didn't make one feel anything unusual. It just hurt the eyes.
“How is it?”
Eunha approached with quick steps and tilted her head. Ian glanced at her, then returned the score with a bitter smile.
“Looking at it hurts my eyes. That is exactly the entirety of what I feel.”
“It's because demons can only give power to the summoner and the contractor. To anyone else, it only causes harm.”
Eunha took the score and slowly skimmed its contents. Her pupils turned golden before quickly returning to normal.
“Hoo…… It's done. The talent for music. I've obtained it.”
“……It ends faster than I thought. Aren't there any other procedures? Like playing the song written on the score. Or preparing an offering…….”
“There's nothing like that. A demon's power can usually be obtained through such a simple method. Solomon said that it's precisely because making a contract with a demon itself is difficult.”
“Ah…….”
It was a reason that made perfect sense.
Honestly, summoning a lesser demon wasn't that dangerous. If asked whether it was perfectly safe, that would be another matter, but life-threatening crisis situations didn't occur. Demons were beings whose greatness was usually determined by how dangerous their summoning was, so this also served as proof that lesser demons weren't such great beings.
On the other hand, what about the great demons, including Solomon's Seventy-two Demons?
If we set the standard to a time without the Lemegeton, summoning a great demon was practically no different from an act of suicide.
A mage might have had a somewhat different situation, but for ordinary people, it was no different from shouting “Please kill me!”
Because a demon summoning basically came with the accompaniment of the legion they commanded, along with brainwashing, hellfire, malicious thoughts, and magical power all at once.
The power of the Lemegeton could place all of those under control, allowing only the demon's main body to be summoned, but those who did not possess the grimoire could not. They had to endure all of those things as they were to make a contract.
And if they didn't like the contract terms or the summoner, they would just kill them outright…… so one could know how difficult contracting with a great demon was without needing further explanation.
‘It's not for nothing that the Clock Tower classified it as a top-tier grimoire…….’
Ian stared at the grimoire hanging at Eunha's waist and nodded, then looked around at the Reptilian scales scattered about.
“Then since the business is done, shall we head back soon? After collecting the spoils first, that is.”
“Ah, yes. I'll help.”
“I-I'll help too. Ehehe…….”
“Ah, thank you. Yuna, you too, thanks.”
Ian didn't bother refusing the two's help, and together they scraped up the scales that had fallen to the floor. Thanks to that, they were able to obtain quite a large amount of scales.
It was a bit of a shame that only scales remained, but since they could be sold for a high price all the same, it didn't matter much.
In the first place, Reptilians had greater commercial value than value as materials. Honestly, not being able to make them into materials was fine either way.
“Here, take some too, Yuna. Eunha, you take some as well. Consider them gifts.”
Ian specifically handed a certain amount of scales to the two of them as well.
It wasn't a lot, just a handful. Giving too much would have been a bit much.
After all, he hadn't caught them alone.
He had absolutely no intention of sharing a Mystery he had hunted in solo play while taking losses.
Fortunately, the two showed reactions that seemed quite pleased upon receiving the gifts. Ian smiled in satisfaction, stuffed the bag containing the scales into his backpack, and stretched widely.
Now was the real moment to return.
Fortunately, the exit route from this place was extremely simple, so they could escape whenever they wanted. Just like when they entered, they only needed to pass through the mirror. There was no need to rack their brains.
The escape mirror had also been brought by Eunha.
A small round mirror fixed to Gamigin's side. Eunha unfastened it and commanded Gamigin in a cold voice.
“You've worked hard coming all the way here, Gamigin. You may return now.”
[What.]
The face of Gamigin, who had been waiting obediently for her, contorted. It resembled the face that would come up if you searched ‘ugly horse face’ on the internet.
[I watched quietly as you contracted with another demon, and I've been here playing word-chain with that dismembered onahole, and now you're telling me to get lost because you don't need me anymore?!]
“Yes.”
[At least learn necromancy and spirit summoning first! Why did you contract with me if you're not going to take my powers!]
Gamigin screamed as if in agony. Eunha answered by smashing the perfectly intact mirror down onto the floor.
“If I accept that, my soul will be mortgaged to you as well. Do I look ridiculous enough not to know something like that, Gamigin? I won’t be fooled just because you say it in such a ludicrous form.”
At her cold voice, Gamigin’s face returned to its original shape.
Clang!
With a heavy metallic sound, the armored black horse let out a low laugh.
[Heh. Solomon, honestly. He wrote down even the most unnecessary details.]
“Get lost, Gamigin. If I ever need to summon you as a means of transportation again, I’ll call you.”
[I shall look forward to that day, heir of Solomon. May you need my power then.]
“That won’t happen.”
[I hope so.]
With those words, Gamigin kicked off the ground and soared into the sky. In an instant, he became a black speck, then vanished as if evaporating. Eunha held out the broken mirror to everyone and explained.
“If you pass through this mirror, you’ll return safely to the place where you entered.”
“Isn’t the mirror too small……? It looks hard to get through…….”
“Don’t worry. As long as you put your hand in, it’ll send you back on its own. Mr. Ian had a bit of trouble when entering, but returning should be possible without any problem. I asked Baal, so I’m sure. My vision’s gotten a little blurry because of it, but that’s fine since I can just wear glasses.”
She tapped the area around her eyes with her finger as she answered. Ian nodded and looked back at Mariang.
“If it returns us to the place we entered…… then Mariang will appear somewhere else.”
“Most likely. So if you intend to retrieve her, it would be best to find out where she was.”
“That makes sense. Please wait a moment.”
“Yes.”
Leaving the two behind, Ian approached Mariang. She had been sitting quietly, and she smiled when she saw him.
“Master.”
Her voice was filled with affection and trust. Ian, however, gave no particular response and simply asked what he wanted to know.
“Where were you last before you came in here?”
“Um…… Incheon. An alley in Incheon.”
“Do you know the exact address?”
“Ah, yes. I checked it on my phone before coming in. It was probably…….”
She told Ian the address she remembered. Ian thought it over, then recalled the face of someone who lived nearby and let out a sigh.
“If it’s there…… it’s near the church.”
A Catholic church that also served as an orphanage. The address Mariang had given was located less than ten minutes from it. It was indeed the church where Cecilia was staying.
Fortunately, it seemed there would be no need to go and find Mariang himself.