General Naberus. He was a demon full of confidence. He stood at the forefront after Belled on the battlefield and cut down his enemies, and he had a strong enough strength to be proud of.
That’s how confident he was in his decisions. His choices in many battles saved countless demons, so it was even more so.
‘Let’s make a bet.’
That’s why he accepted the human woman’s bold bet proposal.
Visionary? He had no intention of serving an incompetent visionary. Having such a superior would only tighten the leashes of demons.
So he intended to use this opportunity to clearly organize the hierarchy.
By winning this bet, the battle he participated in!
What would a human who couldn’t even see an inch ahead know, let alone the future?
The content of the bet was whether he could find something that radiated magic in the river basin, south of the land of Yubar, as Beryl had mentioned.
‘If there was such a thing, I would have found it a long time ago!’
He had already sensed victory from the moment he set out. That was why he had already finished thinking about how to treat the human woman who dared to stir up trouble among the demons. He had to enjoy the spoils!
However. It had only been a few days since he had arrived at the place she had told him.
“Found it, found it!”
Naberus heard a voice that was like a bolt from the blue.
“It’s the demonic spirit!”
What the hell is that? He opened his mouth.
***
Ever since Naberus and his party had arrived, there had been something strange about the river valley south of Yubar.
“Drought?”
“Yes, they say it’s the worst drought in history.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
It was natural for Naberus, who had no business being thirsty, to first think, “Then how can we squeeze the despair of thirsty humans more effectively?”
“They say the riverbed is exposed.”
“Riverbed?”
That was another unexpected thought. Well, the riverbed could be exposed.
“And there were many who told us not to come because ominous things happen around here.”
Naberus tilted his head at those words.
“Did the ‘workers’ come here too?”
In Vine, ‘workers’ meant those who helped to sow discord or instill fear among humans to obtain energy.
However, the demon reporting to him shook his head.
“Isn’t Yubar too far from us?”
“Yes.”
Furthermore, the workers were clearly troops. There was no way they would move without General Naberus knowing.
“Then let’s take a look there first.”
It was his duty to look around if there was a place where he could work.
Especially if it was a place where humans were naturally afraid? It would be nice to work without having to worry about it! That’s what he thought.
“Found it, found it!”
He asked stupidly. What he felt in the place where the demon had followed him was a clear flow of magical power sweeping around his body. It might have been different in the old Vine, but it was a powerful flow of magical power that could never be felt now that the gates of Hell were almost closed.
He asked stupidly. What he felt in the place where the demon had followed him was a clear flow of magical power sweeping around his body. It might have been different in the old Vine, but it was a powerful flow of magical power that could never be felt now that the gates of Hell were almost closed.
That was...
“...Dig from the ground.”
It was buried under the riverbed, ridiculously. He had to completely change his thinking that 'if there was something like this, we would have found it a long time ago'. How could she find something that could only be found when the riverbed was exposed due to a severe drought that had not come for decades?
"Really?"
After thinking that, his thoughts wandered to a strange place.
"How did humans know about this?"
However, when he dug the ground and really came face to face with the drinking wine, that was not what he was worried about...
I lost the bet?
What he was worried about was the cold reality of having to serve humans.
"This is ridiculous!"
He grabbed his head.
***
Naberus's stage of denying reality was short and thick. First, is denial.
"This is ridiculous! Is it real? Huh?"
But the magic he felt in his body was real. Then, anger.
"This is a fraud! How could humans know about this?"
By the time he rode his horse back to Vine, he had compromised.
"She knew somehow, so they must have told me to find it."
By the time he passed the border of Vine, he was depressed.
"...I, have to serve humans? Me?"
And by the time he got there, he had to come clean.
As a demon, and as a proud general Naberus.
“That woman, no, is an extraordinary visionary. She deserves His Highness!”
He eventually succeeded in accepting a series of circumstances.
In that sense, wasn’t she someone the demon Grand Duke had personally chosen? As expected, His Highness the Grand Duke had excellent insight.
If Ronove had heard, he would have been amazed at how quickly he could change his stance, but fortunately, Ronove didn’t have the unique ability to read minds.
When Naberus and his party arrived at the Vine mansion, it was the middle of the night, a dark time when all the lights were turned off except for the bare minimum.
However, he naturally headed to Belled’s office. Humans report day and night, so how could he wait until the next morning when he was so frustrated?
He had already forgotten that he had ever been human, and he knocked on the door of Belled’s office.
“Your Highness, it’s Naberus.”
Meanwhile, demons were gathering around him due to the magical power flowing out.
“What is that?”
“There seems to be magic flowing near Naberus.”
Some of them were quick-witted.
“Did Her Highness win the bet?”
“Ahem.”
Naberus coughed at those words. The demons became quiet for a moment.
However, even Naberus’s power could not completely stop their commotion. Of course.
“If there really is another way to obtain magic...”
The demons could not take their eyes off the box containing the magic elixir. It was only recently that Kilratia died from a lack of magic elixir.
Naturally, all eyes were focused on it.
Click.
At that moment, the office door opened without a word. Since Belled often used magic to open doors instead of answering, Naberus entered the office without a second thought.
With a confident stride worthy of a general...
“...?”
Naberus almost dropped the magic elixir he was holding.
It wasn’t just because Belled’s desk, which seemed to have been stuck on the floor for decades and hadn’t been moved, had been moved closer to Beryl’s desk.
Wooooow!
It was because the box containing the magic drink was resonating.
A look of surprise crossed his face for a moment, and then delight rose.
As expected, the magic drink recognized its owner!
“It’s a magic drink, Your Highness.”
He opened the box with a joyful expression, forgetting about his bet for a moment.
Pah!
Then, the magic drink inside the box jumped up as if it was suffocating.
As expected, it’s going to find its owner!
It couldn’t be anything other than a smart object with flowing magic...?
“?”
Beryl tilted her head as she looked at the magic drink that had suddenly landed on her desk.
Is this how demons offer up the things they brought?
While she was thinking about her unbiased thoughts, Belled and Naberus’ expressions gradually changed.
Wow!
As the magic drink approached her, a splendid purple magic flowed out noticeably.
It wasn’t a bad flow. Rather, it was.
“...The magic drink is resonating with Beryl.”
Belled recognized the object that the demons had lost long ago at a glance.
When it emits strong magical power, it has a brilliant purple color, and although it looks fragile like a glass bead, it boasts a unique luster and incredible hardness.
It was because he had heard enough about its appearance. In addition, the magic bead he knew.
“It’s an object that responds to strong desires...”
So even among the demons, there were not many who could properly use this magic bead.
But who would have thought that the magic bead would shine so strongly in the hands of a human?
“Beryl’s desire must be very great.”
Beryl’s face reddened as their eyes met his words.
“...That is,”
Was I that greedy? Her face turned red with embarrassment.
Belled said with an expression that said it was natural.
“There is no better condition to become the concubine of the Demon Grand Duke.”
He seemed rather satisfied with her greed.
“Isn’t it a match made in heaven?”
Those words seemed to sink deep into Beryl’s heart. She wondered what kind of emotion those words contained.
However, they didn’t sound that desperate. Just a light word, like a passing joke.
Was he also observing my reaction?
Or was he just thinking about nothing? Beryl's mind seemed to be getting complicated.
"...It's an incredible amount of magic power."
And Naberus, who could never know her thoughts, was simply amazed.
The magic drink wasn’t the problem.
Of course, the magic drink radiated strong magic, but the magic that filled the entire mansion the moment the magic drink and Beryl resonated was so strong that it was thrilling.
When he felt that, he instinctively bowed his head to Beryl.
After seeing this sight, the bet wasn’t the problem.
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