109 – Master (3)
Did you mistake me for a demon?
Following the guidance of Mine, who introduced himself as Burgle, I thought as I entered the warm cave.
As long as you don’t have such an illusion, will you show kindness to humans like this?
I sat down halfway inside the cave and thought.
Mine’s characteristics are black eyes, black hair, and the magic that she possesses.
and little horns.
Horns are always small enough to be covered by hair, so even if I don’t see them on the outside, I don’t seem to care much.
Besides, Magiya, since I’ve been dealing with black magic, you’ll feel it enough.
There were certainly plenty of elements that could be mistaken for a demon.
When I sat down, Bero naturally clung to me and sat next to me.
If there was no one next to me, I would have sat down like that because I was anxious.
While thinking about how to overcome this ordeal in the future, Bourgle spoke to me.
“Are you okay boy?”
“…Okay.”
He brought warm water.
This should be enough to warm you up, but a look around the cave gave you an idea of what the situation was like.
Darkness lay underneath.
I see people who have not been able to eat for a long time and are hungry, and there is no hope for them.
Are you a demon who is oppressed within the demon king’s army?
There must be a reason for not benefiting from the demon king’s preferential policy.
In such a serious situation, you could leave anywhere and go to the human realm or settle down in the demon castle.
But it didn’t pay much attention.
The important thing is to get to the border.
Of course, he did not ignore the favor given by the demon named Burgle.
In the current situation, I can’t give you anything special, but I can help you if you try to cross the realm of humanity.
In addition, there was nothing the demons could not overcome even after signing a peace treaty with the Demon King’s army.
If you go with me, you don’t have to worry about that.
Then I thought about how to get to the border.
I went to the border from here, but it wasn’t that far, so it was enough if I just managed Vero’s condition.
The problem is how to manage that condition.
In the meantime, Burgle looked around a little and tried to take something out of his arms.
It looks like very little dried beef jerky.
“If you’re hungry, eat this…”
“Burgle!”
There was a demon who stopped him from recommending food like that.
He questioned Burgle with a very angry look.
“I’ll tolerate you bringing the demons, but I can’t let you feed them! Do you have food for strangers when we’re all starving?”
“But, it’s the same demon.”
“Same demon? Where is there such a thing! The demons clinging to the Demon King’s feet live a guaranteed life in a cozy house, eating warm food, what does that mean!”
I don’t want this kind of conflict to arise.
I’m leaving soon anyway, so what are you fighting for?
Still, I looked at Vero for a moment.
I won’t die even if I don’t eat, but there are other people who could be fatal.
“Vero, are you hungry?”
“I-I’m not hungry.”
However, it was difficult to ascertain whether she was hungry or not from her reaction.
It’s because she could say she’s not hungry on purpose to prevent conflict in the current situation.
For now, let’s try to find a better way.
I have a way to detect demonic energy, and most animals in the northern part, which is closest to the Demon Realm, have some demonic energy.
So, I was able to get food that I couldn’t find normally.
I needed a decent amount of food to go to the border anyway.
To do so, it wasn’t bad to catch a wild animal here, process it, and take it back.
“Tomorrow, when the heavy snow stops a little, I will go out to find food.”
“What does that mean boy? Are there any hidden provisions?”
Then, all of a sudden, a reaction appeared.
The appearance of those starving because they had not eaten for a long time was almost the same as when they were beggars.
“Do you have anything to eat?”
“Give it to me! I’ve been starving for a week!”
He sighed.
It was said that he would come after hunting, but no one understood it that way.
“For now, wait until the snowfall is over.”
With that said, they crouched down again, full of anticipation.
I don’t know if I’m impatient because I can’t eat anything, but I expected that from someone who just came here.
Worried about that, said Burgle.
“There’s no need to bring food to us…”
“…I didn’t mean it that way.”
He sighed.
The fastest way would be to just go and show it.
**
[Is this right here?]
Demons with large horns on their heads moved while overcoming the pouring snow.
It’s a simple job for them, but it’s a very heavy duty.
He is the one responsible for destroying the Devil’s Castle, and a prisoner who is imprisoned forever after committing the crime of killing one of the officers.
I was entrusted with monitoring the seal of the guilty.
[If it’s sealed by the King of Death, there won’t be any big problems. It’s just a problem to stay still in the empty field.]
[I must be very bored.]
As they approached, muttering, a large pillar of ice stood.
Of course, there must be a human who has been sealed inside the ice pillar… .
There was nothing there.
The higher-ranking demons who saw it thought so.
There was also a lack of knowledge about sealing.
[Is it a way to not see the inside of the seal?]
[It may be so, I will just check it out and report it.]
However, the reports they posted were enough to turn the castle of demons upside down.
The advanced demons who heard the urgently returned radio realized the urgent situation.
[The prisoner escaped the seal! We have to find it!]
[Finally, there is a trace! You can follow it there.]
**
It was morning again and the pouring snow stopped.
And I left the cave with Burgle and started looking for food.
He was following me and stopping me.
“There is no need to share the hidden food with us.”
“When did you say hidden food?”
“What if not?”
I turned and pointed to one side.
Coincidentally, there were wild animals nearby.
“There is a prey over there.”
“There will be no wild animals coming out after the heavy snowfall, boy, you must’ve missed it…”
Burgle’s eyes widened as he looked away.
As I said, there were wild animals there.
Burgle kept his composure without making a sound and moved slowly.
If you catch that thing, you can extend the life of the entire group of demons, but you can’t help but be desperate.
And if you watch from the side, he was really a master of hunting.
Without showing any signs of presence, he moved toward the hairy deer.
And when approaching a certain distance, the burgle leaped straight ahead and split the deer’s head in half.
This process took only a few minutes.
Some of his body is that of a demon that surpasses that of a normal human, but even taking that into account, his hunting skills are amazing.
“Awesome.”
“Uh, how did you find your prey? Do you have good eyes?”
Looking at the wild animal he found in a long time, he looked at the excited Burgle and said.
“There is a way. There are more. Are you going to grab it?”
“Of course!”
The appearance of Burgle, which had been weak until just now, was completely transformed.
Becoming a blood-soaked berserker, he caught the prey that was moving in the direction I pointed.
After he had finished hunting until he couldn’t handle the weight, Burgle was so satisfied that he moved on.
“If you have such ability, then our group will accept you unconditionally, and your brother will be able to live comfortably.”
“Your brother… I was mistaken about that. But I don’t intend to stay here for long.”
“what?”
It didn’t take long for Burgle’s joy, which had risen vertically, to sink to the ground again.
“Oh, no. Without you, our group would starve to death!”
“It’s fate anyway, there’s a limit to hunting like this, and to maintain the entire group, you have to hunt more than the wild animals that grow naturally here. Then, naturally, the seeds of the wild animals will dry up, and the demon group will naturally disappear. I guess.”
“If the seeds are still dry, shouldn’t we go hunting around the North? As long as we can eat enough, we can abandon our residence at any time!”
“There’s a better way, so you don’t have to.”
So, I’d rather suggest another way.
I also liked him, and it’s not a bad thing to teach people who are about to die a way to live.
“A peace treaty between the Demon King’s army and mankind has been made. Even if you cross the borders of mankind, we will accept you.”
“Is that really so?”
Burgle is thrilled, saying it was something he could never have imagined.
“Really, humanity accepts us? You mean we don’t have to live this horrible life?”
“…I can’t guarantee that, but if I were there, it would be possible.”
But there is a problem.
Burgle wanted to save the entire group of demons he belonged to.
It was difficult for all of them to pass through the snowy mountains and reach the border.
The direction I’m talking about is that only Burgle alone will join us and go to the border.
In the process, if the strong warrior Burgle carries Vero on his back or takes good care of him, he should be able to arrive without any problems.