Chapter 91: Messy (2)
Satan’s arrangement as mentioned by Frontier.
When he appeared in the empire and summoned demons, there was a possibility that high-ranking demons might still remain in this land.
This is just a hypothesis that has not yet been tested.
‘But it will work for Paul.’
It cannot be said that the devil of Satan necessarily appears. Paul also knows that this is nothing more than an illusion.
However, even demons who have been hiding in the empire for a long time are dangerous.
‘Throughout the empire’s long history, the devil has kept itself completely hidden. He imitated a human to the extent possible, and even if his crime was caught and he was caught, he would have been punished as a ‘human’.’
Most of these people would be in a similar situation to Lili. There are probably many people like Lili who don’t even remember why they are in the Empire and not the Demon World.
‘There’s only one reason I was able to go undetected for that long.’
That is fear.
They cannot return to the demon world, nor can they live as devils in the empire.
As a thoroughly human being, I control my desires and sometimes resolve them in places that cannot be seen. Even if they do not understand morality, they have it firmly ingrained in their minds and hide in society.
If there was even the slightest suspicion, they would immediately withdraw, move from location to location, and exchange such information with other demons.
‘So this possibility doesn’t have to be confirmation.’
Just as Frontier thought, Paul’s eyes were shaking violently right now.
Devils like Paul will definitely feel this situation more deeply than Frontier.
A considerable amount of time has passed since the incident in which the devil appeared in the imperial palace. And in the middle of it all, there was a war with Mangot.
The time difference between the Demon Incident and the Battle of Mangot is not that much. In other words, if there had been no war, Satan’s demons might have been active.
Assuming that Frondier’s guess was correct, they had already been hiding in the empire for quite some time, and their patience would have slowly reached its limit.
After winning the war, the Empire will no doubt be on guard, and now that Belphegor is gone, the demons of the West are gnashing their teeth to find the demons hidden in the Empire.
This is a clear threat.
Frondier said as if accelerating the pace.
“Even if there are no Satan demons, the demons of the West still remain.”
“… … !”
“Their first attack was stopped by me and Elodie. But of course that’s not all. Then, the next attack will come like a cloud of dust from the west. I don’t know when that is. “It could be coming at this very moment.”
The first attack can only be described as luck.
If it were about subduing the majority in the empire, Elodie and Frondier, who would easily fit within the five fingers, were there.
“If that raid is repeated, the empire will be exhausted. “What do you think will happen to you and the other demons if we begin negotiations with the demons of the western part of the Empire?”
“Negotiation, negotiation?”
“okay. Instead of handing over the demons hidden in the empire like you, the demons of the west retreat. “If I were emperor, I would make this choice without hesitation.”
The devil fights the devil. However, since the battlefield is where humans live, the homes of humans who have nothing to do with each other become a mess.
Emperor Bartello is a wise emperor. As wise as he is, there is no hesitation or forgiveness in his decisions.
“I didn’t even know there were demons hiding in the empire, but the empire is in shambles because of those demons? But if the demons of the west are not interested in humans, then why should the emperor protect you?”
“Ugh… … !”
Frontier’s words are correct. The only person in the Empire who is free from the preconceived notion of being a demon is Frondier. Even Frontier himself had a misunderstanding that demons and humans were similar.
If Frontier, who only learned about demons through mere knowledge, is like that, then what about the prejudices of the humans living in this land?
To be honest, Frontier has no confidence in eliminating other people’s prejudices. I don’t know how to do that, and above all, it’s true to some extent.
The desires of the devil often cross the boundaries of human society. This is the fact that Riri testified.
“I understand that you don’t want to take the risk of being discovered by the Empire by providing information to humans when the devils in the west are already on edge.”
But still.
Frontier has no intention of executing the entire group just because they are ‘devils’.
“I’m the only one who can help you now.”
“… … “How can I trust you and hold your hand?”
“There is no reason to trust me. Humans hate devils. “It’s a story that everyone in the empire knows as if it were a given.”
“Yeah, same goes for you.”
“Even if I said no, it wouldn’t be persuasive. “But why am I talking about such a long story?”
Frontier looked into Paul’s eyes. It seemed like he was still in doubt.
“In case you didn’t know, I defeated Belphegor.”
“… … !”
“Are you stronger than Belphegor?”
“… … .”
“Otherwise, think about why I don’t take the ‘easy choice.’ A choice that will make everyone in the empire happy, the ‘applause-worthy things’ you mentioned earlier. “After enduring all of that, I am now sitting in front of you.”
Paul was so excited about the situation at hand that he didn’t even think about it.
Looking at it objectively, if the Empire had seen what Frontier looks like now, it would have been very suspicious.
If you find a demon, and if you have the ability, it would be right to kill it right away. Why do you choose to go back after such a long story?
Also, the opponent who was trying to kill through mana loss.
“Whether you are human or demon, I have every reason to kill you. The reason I didn’t do that was because you were most likely to have the information I needed. enemy? prejudice? “Are you still hearing things like that in front of me?”
Prejudice against demons, the achievement and reward of demon slaying, sufficient force to do so, and self-defense to kill first.
Frontier sits patiently through it all.
“I’m not trying to gain your trust, Paul. You’re Hitchcock’s researcher. “He must be much wiser than me.”
“… … .”
“Use your judgment.”
At those words, Paul’s eyes slowly closed. Take a deep breath and then exhale.
As much as I exhaled, I must have taken in some determination, and when I opened my eyes again, they were clearer than before.
he said
“… … “You know about the devil’s desires, right?”
“Roughly.”
“There are many kinds of demonic desires, but they are not infinite. Most desires are similar. If it is a desire such as the desire for possession or a desire for knowledge, it will not be a big problem in human society, but if it is a desire such as kleptomania or arson, it is problematic. In any case, the devil’s desire is not that new and fresh. And he has the characteristic of always looking out for himself. “There is no such thing as a desire to help or save someone.”
Frondier nodded.
Lili also lured criminals into her knighthood and helped them get out of the world, but she only saved men whose looks she liked.
As a result, they live a better life, but they have already fallen victim to Lili’s charm. And it wouldn’t be fair.
Paul continued speaking.
“And demons are more sensitive to things related to their desires. To put it simply, I can smell well. “If you have a desire for material things, you have a unique eye for seeing the value of things, and if you have a desire for knowledge, you are good at finding a path to obtain the knowledge you need.”
“… … Hey, no way.”
Frontier began to infer little by little what would follow next. Naturally, the corners of my eyes become wrinkled.
“In other words, to find humans, all you need is a devil with a desire to be related to humans. The deeper you get, the better you will find it. “What do you think is your closest desire?”
“… … “Is it murder?”
Frondier gave a plausible answer in his own way, but Paul chuckled and shook his head.
“Unfortunately, you were wrong. “It’s cannibalism.”
“… … !”
“Demons with cannibalistic desires can accurately locate humans. Then the rest is simple. “Those who look just like humans but feel no desire, they are devils.”
“… … Then, the demons from the west who came at that time,
“okay. Someone among them must have had cannibalistic desires. Or most of them.”
“Is the desire to eat cannibalism that common?”
“The higher you go, the more difficult it is to see, but it is common among low-level demons. People with a simple mindset even have simple desires. “Things that are close to appetite, s*xual desire, and the desire to sleep end up becoming one’s desires.”
Certainly, in Lili’s case, her desire for knowledge about humans remained. Especially men among them. I felt like owning a man was an extension of that desire for knowledge. Maybe Paul isn’t that different. You may be craving knowledge about magical engineering.
‘So you had an intuition that Lili might be able to recognize demons? Because it was not a desire that had nothing to do with humans. But it was difficult to find because it wasn’t that close.’
However, Lili was completely unaware of the information that cannibalistic desire can detect people.
But Paul knows.
This difference.
Frondier asked.
“Then, among the demons you know, is there anyone who has man-eating desires?”
“… … there is.”
Paul hesitated before answering. Naturally, Frontier’s expression hardened.
“… … Did you eat someone?”
“You know about the drug incident, right? “The incident where you and the pro found the culprit who created the mana injection.”
“… … No way, then.”
“okay. People who died from the mana injection experiment. “It was the devil who dealt with it.”
“I know it was a monster that ate the corpses at the time.”
“There is no way I can eat with a monster. Fresh, high-quality corpses were sent separately and eaten as a formal meal. Thanks to that, I didn’t get caught when I was attacking all the monsters. “I’ve never been to a place like that in the first place.”
The corpses were sorted separately and eaten as a formal ‘meal’?
Frondier’s eyes sank.
“… … He’s in Hitchcock.”
There aren’t many places where that’s possible. A place where you can transport the body without anyone noticing, have a leisurely meal, and clean up after yourself.
“Who are you? “I need to meet you.”
“… … I’m not doing that anymore. “I just ate someone who was already dead, I didn’t commit murder.”
“That’s the devil’s idea.”
Frontier interrupted Paul.
“Humans have friends and family. There are still people desperately waiting to find those who disappeared with unknown names. Without even knowing if he was alive or dead. Could you say the same thing to them? Even if you don’t know morals, you probably learned it, right?”
“… … .”
“Who are you? “I need to meet you, at least for a hint to distinguish humans from demons.”
From Noble mtl dot com
Paul bit his lip at Frontier’s words. As if it was too difficult to talk about.
Of course, Frontier had no reason to wait for each of those moves.
“If you won’t tell me, I’ll retract everything I’ve said so far, and I’ll burn this company down from the basement to the rooftop. “The office workers who are about to die are a bonus.”
“what… … ! It’s not just the devil here! “You humans are also researching and making products together!”
“That damn illusion from earlier hasn’t gone away, Paul.”
Frontier’s head tilts.
“What does it matter that there are humans here? “Just because I’m a devil doesn’t mean I don’t kill people, just because I’m a human doesn’t mean I forgive everyone.”
“… … !”
“I am the person in charge of deploying personnel during the Mangot War. Because I judged that to be the ‘best position to kill’ the Mangot guys. “I killed all those people.”
Just as we do not blindly exclude demons, we do not defend them as human beings.
For Frontier, an individual is just an individual. Regardless of race, it is a matter of much later.
“Why should I look after a company that is cannibalizing somewhere?”
“… … no. “You’re lying, Frontier.”
There Paul lifted the corner of his mouth. It was a half-forced laugh, but it wasn’t without any basis.
“You don’t touch innocent people.”
“… … .”
“Even if it is true that you don’t distinguish between humans and demons, you only condemn. Innocent people would rather be saved. “I’ve been watching you.”
Frontier looks at Paul for a moment. Paul never seemed to have any intention of speaking.
I think Paul is now playing psychological warfare with Frontier.
Frontier does not harm people who are not at fault. People who don’t know anything and just go to work. There are plenty of them in Hitchcock. I won’t let them get swept away either. never.
… … But Frontier.
I was thinking something completely different.
“──You had to hide it like that.”
“… … what?”
“The possibility of me destroying this company would not have been zero. Even with that level of bravado, he is someone I want to protect. Or someone who must be protected.”
At that time, Paul’s mouth opens slightly and the corners of his mouth lower. My eyes got bigger and the area from my eyes to my ears tightened.
After seeing the change in his expression, Frondier asked.
“Where is the president’s office of this company?”