novelraw Chapter 51 : Chapter 51
Chapter 51 : Chapter 51
Chapter 51. Mammon (5)
Mammon hid towards the treasure vault without even looking back.
‘Does he really think he’s hidden?’
He had crouched down low, but he was so huge that I could see where he was at a glance.
“Hey, Mammon.”
“……I’m not here.”
“Then whose voice is that answering?”
“I said it’s not me.”
To think this guy was such a comedic character.
In the game, there was only a scene where he handed over an item if you gave him gold coins, so I never imagined he’d be like this.
‘If I can make Mammon an ally, I might be able to gain an upper hand in the confrontation with Primus.’
Let’s think.
Primus would be at least twice as strong as Nox, who was the final boss of the original version.
That’s just how DLCs tend to be.
What choice Nox would make was something I couldn't know.
So, assuming he was excluded, there was me, with half my power returned.
And Anonymous, who became a slave, as a second.
‘If Mammon joins in, we might be able to put up a fight even if there were three Noxes.’
And to that, Saintess Isabel and Sage Rude.
Plus, I had three daughters, and they had grown much stronger than in the original version, so couldn't we somehow defeat Primus?
Of course, that was just talking in terms of arithmetic calculations.
‘The variable would be which side Nox joins.’
Also, if Primus could still use 10th-tier magic at will, even this force would be insufficient.
In any case, it would be best to win over Mammon for sure.
He might look like that, but he was a being with power comparable to the Demon King.
I slowly approached his side and brought up a story.
“Didn’t you say you wanted to talk? I’ll listen to everything, so just say what’s on your mind.”
It would have been perfect with some alcohol, but it was a shame that there was none.
Fortunately, this alone was enough.
The guy asked, subtly glancing at me.
“You’ll really listen to everything?”
“Of course.”
“My ill-fated relationship with that guy is deeper and longer than you can imagine.”
Mammon said with a straight face and began his story from when he first met Primus.
“It was a time when there were still few humans and demons on the surface. We demons were spending our joyous days tempting humans and the Demon Tribe.”
Mammon began, his face nostalgic.
But soon, his face crumpled fiercely.
“But that was truly a fleeting moment. Realizing that we were tempting his creations, Primus came to meet us alone.”
“So what happened?”
“Hoo. Don’t even ask. Lucifer of Pride was on the verge of having his very soul annihilated. Leviathan and Satan were beaten to a pulp, and Asmodeus and Beelzebub, as well as Belphegor, have long since been out of contact due to the shock from back then.”
“And you?”
Mammon made a lonely expression.
“Why do you think I’m hiding here? I fled to escape his eyes. I had to give up all the wealth I had collected over the years. Because I couldn’t die.”
I gently patted his back.
The size difference was so great that I was only patting his side, though.
“Now you see why I hate that guy, right? But I heard he sealed himself, don’t tell me he has been resurrected or something? Why are you bringing up his name?”
“It’s true. I haven’t seen it with my own eyes, but it seems he has been resurrected for some reason.”
“Damn it. Then I really shouldn't leave this place. He’s a guy I don’t even want to think about.”
Mammon’s body trembled as he gripped his knees even harder.
My, oh my.
‘This feels like taking care of a child, not an archdemon.’
I soothed him with a pitiful look on my face.
“I didn’t know you had such a past. You’ve been through a lot.”
“If you get it, then get lost.”
“Sorry, but I can’t do that.”
“What?”
Mammon narrows his eyes and glares at me.
I raised both hands above my head and told him to listen to my story.
“Don’t you want to get revenge on him?”
“Ha? Revenge? Don’t make me laugh. That guy is the son of the Goddess. Even if a bunch of us like me attack him, we wouldn’t even be a handful for him.”
“That’s when the weak should stick together. Haven’t you heard the saying, united we stand, divided we die?”
“Enough with the jokes, just go.”
He waved his hands dismissively with an annoyed look on his face.
For some reason, that made me want to bother him even more.
“If you join hands with us, I will give you five thousand gold coins.”
“Cough. F-Five thousand gold coins, you say?”
“Yes. On top of that, another two thousand gold coins as a down payment. If we succeed in subjugating Primus, I will give you an additional three thousand gold coins. Doesn’t this seem like a profitable business for you too?”
Were you asking if the amount was too large?
It wasn’t a small sum, but considering the total deposits of the gold mine I owned, it wasn’t an impossible story either.
‘No matter how much I dug, gold was endlessly mined like from an inexhaustible treasure pot. This much is doable.’
Did this work?
Mammon licked his lips, looking at me with a face steeped in greed.
“You’re not joking, are you?”
“Of course not. Besides, I’m not asking you to stand on the front lines.”
“Then?”
“Just give us the right items when we need them, and tell us all the information you know about him. Then, I promise I will never bother you. Of course, I will keep the fact that you are here a complete secret. I swear on my everything.”
He seemed to think for a moment, then stealthily extended his right hand.
“Deal. But the retainer is upfront.”
“Unfortunately, I don’t have the money right now.”
“Then it’s off.”
“Instead, I will send this friend soon to pay you.”
I pointed at Anonymous and continued.
“This friend’s name is Anonymous. She is my slave and the queen of the dragons.”
“Anonymous? I’ve never heard that name before.”
“That’s probably because it’s been thousands of years since you hid in this place.”
“That’s not the issue. Why is the queen of dragons your slave?”
“Because she drank the Magic Potion. Right now, she can’t even lay a single finger on me. Isn’t that right, Anonymous?”
Anonymous nodded as if my words were correct.
“How could I possibly harm you, Master? You’re going too far, Master.”
As she said that, she tried to hug me again, which was quite an ordeal.
Mammon stared quietly at me and Anonymous, then slowly nodded.
“I don’t know what’s what, but you don’t seem to be lying. I understand. I will join hands with you. But you must come back within a month. If you are even one second late, I will consider this contract void.”
“No problem. Well then, I look forward to working with you.”
With this, I was able to join hands with the legendary archdemon, Mammon.
To think a Hero and an archdemon would be on the same side.
If the creators of PP found out about this, they would probably throw a fit with expressions of disbelief.
That’s what I’m saying, why did they have to ridiculously jack up the difficulty?
Primus or whatever, if they mess with me, what happens?
They’re all going to be so screwed. Got it?
***
Meanwhile, at that moment.
After Frank and I left the mansion, Adel and Noemi were training against each other as if to kill.
And they did so every day.
“That’s not nearly enough.”
“You’re mistaken if you think it’ll be the same as before!”
Adel dodged Noemi’s area-of-effect attack and instantly closed the distance.
But Noemi was a step faster.
She instantly widened the distance from Adel and once again poured out area-of-effect magic.
“Flames, rain down from the sky!”
Noemi cast Fire Rain, Rude’s signature magic.
Unable to deflect all the flames, Adel eventually conceded defeat.
“Keuk. Am I defeated again this time.”
As she muttered self-deprecatingly, Rude, who had been refereeing, approached with a smile.
“Haha, you’re getting sharper and sharper. A few more times and you might just win.”
But Rude’s consolation didn’t reach Adel’s ears.
It was already her 19th defeat.
She hadn’t been able to achieve a single victory against her younger sister, Noemi.
‘I learned swordsmanship from Master Anonymous and even obtained Anceps, but I couldn’t even touch a single hair on Noemi.’
She thought that perhaps Master Anonymous had gone easy on her.
Because she had been able to score at least one victory against her.
But Noemi had no such thing as holding back.
From the very first attack, she came aiming for her life, and by the time she dodged it, she found herself surrendering.
What was most tricky was the magic that made her disappear without fail the moment she thought she had gotten close.
‘She conceals her form and disappears in an instant, enough to make me think it’s teleportation.
Could it be a type of Spatial Transition Magic?’
The number one principle when a swordsman faces a wizard is to close the distance no matter what.
Otherwise, they would soon become a sacrifice to area-of-effect magic.
As Adel sighed with a crestfallen face, An and Ceps offered words of comfort.
In a sense, that was the most difficult thing to deal with.
This was, after all, just practice.
They were competing under the grand principle that they should at least not inflict injuries, but Noemi was different.
‘Just as Ceps said, there’s no killing intent, but it’s no exaggeration to say that all the magic she wields is aimed at my life. Noemi, just what kind of life have you lived until now?’
Noemi just wiped her staff with an emotionless face.
Until now, she thought her father was the scariest, but it seemed she had to change her mind.
Anyway, she couldn’t collapse like this.
She was the eldest daughter of this household.Her father and Master Anonymous were probably struggling at the royal palace,so she couldn’t just sit down helplessly.
“Noemi, I’d like to go another round.”
“Will you be okay? I’m not responsible if you get hurt.”
“……It wouldn’t be so bad if you said that while going a bit easy on me.”
The moment the defiant Adel stood up from her seat.
A powerful magical energy was felt from afar.
A strange light appeared on Noemi’s face, which had been consistently expressionless.
“It’s Dad!”
Noemi turned her back and ran towards the direction where the magical energy was felt.
When you see her like that, she’s nothing but ordinary, so why does she change so much when they compete?
Adel gave a bitter smile and also looked in the direction where the magic was felt.
There was nothing visible to the eye, but this magical energy was definitely Master Anonymous'.
***
While Adel and Noemi were staring into the empty air.
Rude watched the two from behind and thought to himself.
‘Both Adel and Noemi have achieved great things at a young age.’
If the two of them were to attack him at the same time, even he would have to declare his surrender.
‘Adel’s swordsmanship is similar to Frank’s in his prime.’
Of course, to be precise, there would be a big difference,but even Frank wouldn’t have had this level of skill at her age.
Despite that.
Noemi was a cut above Adel.
‘To think she can use Spatial Transition Magic, which even I can’t do, so frequently. It must mean Noemi’s magical power is that immense, but with this, it would be impossible to predict who would win even if the Demon King were revived.’
No matter how strong the opponent’s attack was, it was useless if it didn’t hit.
In that respect, Noemi’s Spatial Transition Magic was an excellent spell that compensated for a wizard’s weakness, their frail physique.
It was a double-edged sword of a magic, as the magical power consumed each time it was used was enormous,but Noemi overcame this by using mid-tier magic when attacking.
‘It’s a frightening strategy where she thoroughly calculates her remaining magical power and subdues her opponent with just mid-tier magic. Where did she learn such a thing?’
To the question of where she learned the magic, Noemi only repeated that she had learned it in ancient ruins, and he couldn’t even begin to guess just how much magic she had learned.
As he was thinking that, the giant mass of magical energy that had been moving at high speed stopped.
He couldn’t see her, but Anticus was surely above his head.
Rude made a displeased expression and shot magic towards the empty space where nothing could be seen.
“O distorter of truth, reveal yourself!”
A streak of light shot out like an arrow and exploded in the empty air like fireworks, and soon a giant dragon revealed itself.
At the same time, the gallant figure of Frank came into view. He himself had been on the verge of death when he rode Pegasus, but to be so dignified while riding a dragon that was much faster than that.
As expected of the Hero Frank.
A man worthy of being called the one who defeated the Demon King.