Episode 82.
I don't trust Baphomet, and I don't trust Dantalian either.
They are Transcendents.
Arrogant beings who think of humanity as nothing more than insects.
Since our interests happen to align with the demons, we can form a "temporary alliance," but it can never be eternal.
You can see that clearly just by looking at the current situation.
Acting like a nice guy, pretending he'd give me everything down to his liver and gallbladder, but in the end, he revealed his black-hearted scheme.
What is his scheme?
Canceling Baphomet's spell—that is the primary objective.
"A creature whose spell is canceled has completed its duty and is unsummoned."
But a very short time is given to him before he is unsummoned.
A time that lasts but an instant.
But that time was enough to deal with a trivial group of humans.
What, you think he might not kill me?
"You scum!"
As if!
Even now, Baphomet's will, spewing all sorts of curses, echoes in my ears.
From the moment I accepted the deal with the demon, I became someone he absolutely had to kill.
What would happen if he killed me?
Since the contractor would disappear, the contract with Dantalian would naturally be rendered void, and he wouldn't have to hand over the treasure he promised me.
That's why he agreed to the deal.
But then why?
Why did I accept the deal even knowing that?
Because the only path out of this trap was right in front of me.
"M-me?"
A middle schooler staring blankly at me.
This mess happened because he came to the Catacombs without fear, but I can't blame him.
'If only this goes well...'
I can obtain an unexpected reward.
The combat power I'd gain from it would be at an absurd level.
That's why I took the gamble.
"Yeah. I saved your life, so you've got to pull your weight, right?"
"...I'm not really that strong, though?"
"I know."
"But then why...?"
He's terrified.
Well, it's natural since he must have seen all sorts of things he shouldn't have from the moment he came to the Catacombs.
'But for that...'
'This brat sure isn't cowardly.'
It was clear he was no ordinary kid from the moment he came to the Catacombs alone.
Of course.
'That's also why his life was short.'
The reason he died so early in the previous timeline despite having bloomed the Large-scale Portal trait.
This fearless personality of his probably played a part.
But no matter how fearless one is in the tempestuous storm of adolescence, seeing the tragedy of people dying right before your eyes would inevitably inspire fear.
Even if he's an Awakened, he's just a fourteen-year-old brat.
But now, this brat has to do something huge for us.
"What we need right now isn't strength. You see that?"
Baphomet, still chanting his spell, clutching the golden parchment that was nearly exhausted.
"Yes."
"That guy..."
I whispered into his ear so those around us couldn't hear.
He opened his eyes wide in surprise at first, but soon nodded.
"Is that all?"
"Yeah. That's more than enough."
"...Then I think I can do it."
Truthfully, this wasn't all that difficult for Jinwoo.
That's why he mustered his courage and approached Baphomet, who was chanting his spell.
"You intend to interfere with the spell? You truly choose that path?"
Until just moments ago, Baphomet's will had been flying into a rage, but now it subsided.
How should I put it?
It was cold.
I could tell through that will.
That he had recognized me as an enemy.
"Hmph."
Dantalian couldn't hold back a chuckle.
Good for him.
Because everything was going according to his plan.
But soon, he'd realize.
That the one who had fallen into an inescapable trap was himself.
"...I'll begin."
"Yeah. Do it confidently."
I encouraged the still-anxious kid.
Did that work?
Jinwoo, finally steeling his resolve.
Clap!
He clapped his hands together, making a crisp sound.
And.
"The coordinates are..."
He carefully looked over the note I had given him moments ago and finished the calculations in his head.
And the next moment.
Zzzt—
The space beside Baphomet split open.
How should I describe it?
The split space, like a zipper being pulled down, contained pitch-black darkness.
Fzzzt!
Soon, it took on a single form.
What was finally completed was a massive gate.
It looked like the main gate of a grand palace, a portal that allowed one to move through space.
And not the kind for personal use, but a large-scale portal.
'This is the first time I've seen one.'
Even I, the last survivor of the Apocalypse, was seeing a portal of this size for the first time.
It couldn't be helped, since Jinwoo had died early in the preliminary stages while on an adventure like this.
Because of that, this unique trait of his had disappeared.
Naturally, there was no one who knew of this fact.
But Yulius.
The one who had awakened as a Sage had approached the truth of the world and came to understand the history of the past, present, and even the future.
Among that information was the trait known as Large-scale Portal.
Of course, he hadn't obtained exact information on who had bloomed that trait, but he had learned of it roughly and told me about it.
He said that if I were to regress, I must absolutely find the one with this trait.
And just as Yulius had wished, I found the one with this trait—Jinwoo.
I couldn't help but be slightly moved by the large-scale portal unfolding before me for the first time.
But I quickly cleared my thoughts.
Step.
I took a step forward.
There stood Baphomet, holding the golden parchment with the spell almost complete.
"I specially picked a place I think you'll like. I hope you're satisfied."
The bastard was defenseless, busy chanting his spell.
Push.
I pushed him.
He didn't lose his balance and fall, but his body passed through the portal.
Zzzing!
The portal that had swallowed Baphomet, that massive gate, began to compress.
Smaller, smaller, and when it eventually became the size of an adult's fist.
"Human. I will find you, no matter what."
His will, sharp as a blade, was conveyed.
"And you shall realize. The weight of what you have done, the price of your hostility toward this great being."
The words of a divine being are not mere threats.
They are an oath of existence.
He will search to the ends of the earth to find and eliminate me.
Though it doesn't act as directly as a demon's curse, it is inevitably a shackle far stronger than any curse.
Of course, only if it comes to pass.
Fwoosh!
And thus, the massive gate of a portal completely vanished without a trace.
"..."
I stared for a moment at the spot where Baphomet had disappeared.
"Well. Will that go as you wish?"
He wouldn't know.
Where the portal that swallowed him led to in the end.
'Enjoy your time with the fanatics who punish heretics.'
A greeting sent to Baphomet, now invisible.
He'll probably enjoy a hell of a party there.
Because of that.
'He'll have a hard time for a while.'
I wish it would lead to annihilation rather than hardship, but the chances of that aren't high, to be honest.
Anyway, he won't be coming to find me anytime soon.
Setting aside my unease about Baphomet.
"...How's that?"
I turned around and fixed my gaze on Dantalian.
"..."
He had never once shown his true feelings, pretending to be at ease.
But far from answering my question, the smile had already vanished from his face.
People often call that expression "being out of it."
He—the Great Demon of the 71st Seat—was staring blankly at me, completely out of it.
"With this, I've fulfilled the condition you set. So now, it's your turn, isn't it?"
I hadn't interfered with the spell by landing a direct blow.
However, by sending Baphomet far away through a large-scale portal, I had achieved the goal of canceling the spell's completion.
I had fulfilled the condition Dantalian had set: "canceling the spell."
"To think there would be someone with such an ability..."
He had failed to detect Jinwoo inside the bag, in the subspace.
If this had been Dantalian in his true body, things would have been different, but as a spiritual body—and only a fragment at that—he couldn't perceive the subspace.
He had shown all his cards, while I had hidden mine until the very end.
At this point, my victory was inevitable.
I'm not such an easy opponent that I'd lose even after seeing his hand.
"So. You're not saying you can't concede, are you?"
A demon's deal is absolute.
That's why.
'Forced execution will occur.'
It's not something that can be refused.
An absolute law that cannot be refused, even if one wishes to.
"How could that be? I've been thoroughly beaten."
He regained his former smile before I knew it.
Such a sly bastard.
Anyone else would be flustered in this situation.
"Then, shall we choose?"
I looked him up and down without regard.
"Hahaha. By all means. Tell me whatever item you desire, anything at all. However, it is only one. And I will specify that once chosen, it cannot be undone."
That hadn't been in the contract originally, but he got the first word in by stating it in advance.
But it didn't matter.
Because what I would choose was already decided.
"That."
What I pointed at was the thick book Dantalian held in his hand.
"I'll be taking that."
In that instant.
"..."
His mask came off.
At once, wrinkles formed on his ever-composed face, which had never distorted no matter the situation.
His changed face was like that of an evil spirit.
Kwaah!
An enormous aura erupted from one who was merely a spiritual body.
"Hurk!"
The aura was enough to affect the comrades watching from behind.
However.
Srrr—
That energy soon disappeared as if it had been a lie.
"Damn!"
As if realizing his mistake.
"The situation was too unexpected, and I grew excited in the moment. Please forgive me..."
"It's fine. Everyone makes mistakes in life. I take no offense, so don't worry about it."
"...Haha! I pay my respects to your generous magnanimity."
"Well, no need to pay respects. We're just doing business, after all. More importantly, that thing. Won't you hand it over quickly?"
I reached out my hand to obtain it.
"Before that!"
But he didn't seem to have any intention of giving it up easily.
'Well.'
'It is like his life.'
The book that contains all the knowledge and secrets of the world.
It was thanks to that very book that Dantalian had risen to the 71st Seat.
Handing it over was no different from entrusting his entire power to me.
"Could you tell me exactly what you want?"
He took a gamble.
"Exactly?"
"Yes. This book I hold may look like one, but in fact, thousands, tens of thousands are bundled within."
No wonder he regained his composure.
Was this his aim?
"Our deal is for a single treasure. However, countless books, powers, and treasures dwell within this one, so you must state it exactly."
A smile hung on his lips as he said it.
That is the terrifying nature of a contract.
If the exact details are not recorded, it can create unexpected variables, allowing one to stab the other in the back at any time.
But does he know?
That this, too, falls within the bounds of what I had considered?
That he, Dantalian, who had grasped the knowledge of the world, was no more than Son Wukong on the palm of the Buddha.
"Necronomicon."
"..."
In that instant, silence fell.
"What I want is only one thing. The Necronomicon."
I spat out the greatest treasure I had thought of from the moment I laid eyes on Dantalian.