Chapter 159

CHAPTER 97 The Ex–Demon Lord and a Devil’s Guidance (Part 2) Why do demons worship the Evil Gods and do their bidding? Because the Evil Gods were, as their name implied, gods to the demons. Like how the Old Gods created humanity and had us serve them in the distant past, my interpretation was that the Evil Gods had made the demons to act as their tools in this world. Alvarto Egzex was one of the demons created by the Evil Gods. In which case, the man who brought him into being would know the secret to Alvarto’s immortality. The question was…would he simply give us the answer we needed? While I was plagued by doubt, we had no other choice. So we used teleportation magic to go to him. The Mountains of Madness—that was the moniker for these lands. It was an enormous natural landscape that was formed by a large formation of mountains. The primal beauty of the lands drew people in—and consumed them once they stepped foot inside. Were it simply a beautiful natural landscape, no one would have called them the Mountains of Madness. A malevolent insanity permeated this place. For most people, stepping into these lands was the last conscious decision they would make. Almost all of them would lose their minds and end up slaves to hysteria. After that, the only fate that awaited them was a tragic one. It was by drinking the blood of those unfortunate souls that these mountains maintained their beauty. “…I’d hoped to never set foot in here again.” “Didn’t expect to come back here for something like this.” As we stood in the midst of the peaks, Olivia quietly voiced her displeasure, and Verda responded, chuckling. Neither was influenced in the slightest by the insanity that permeated the Mountains of Madness. They weren’t the only ones who remained unaffected. Lizer, Sylphy, and I were similarly fine. Our hearts weren’t that fragile. The psychological miasma emanating from the peaks was little more than a light breeze to us. However, Ginny was struggling to cope. “Urgh… Mmrrph…” She let out a groan as she pinched the bridge of her nose with her right hand. I leaned in and said to her in a worried tone, “Miss Ginny, it would probably be best if you waited elsewhere.” “No, I refuse…to be the only one…doing nothing…” Perhaps the Mountains of Madness were taking their toll on her. Ginny was in a highly emotional state. “I have my pride…! I don’t want to be left behind…! I can’t be left behind…!” Ordinarily, she’d never make a scene like this in public. But this tenacity was a thing Ginny had acquired through her emotional growth, a precious accomplishment that, to her, was priceless. It shimmered from within her, and I decided to trust that it would be enough to shield her from the wrongness that emanated from these peaks. “…Then shall we be on our way? To the source of this insanity?” With that, I glanced to the east. The giant ruins that lay at the heart of the mountains. That was where he was waiting. “…Please steel yourself for what’s to come.” Anything less, and they’d be swallowed by his power. We were all tense as we stepped into the ruins. It was dark. Without a single light source, the interior was cloaked in heavy shadow. “This place is depressing. Although that’s likely due to more than the absence of light.” With a sigh, I created a small luminous sphere with my magic. The ball lit our surroundings, and we began to venture farther in. As we proceeded, Ginny muttered an observation aloud. “It’s extraordinarily complicated…” “Right? Without a proper grasp of the layout, I’m pretty sure one hundred people out of one hundred who come in here would end up lost. But it’s a necessary part of the design, so there’s nothing to do about it.” “What do you mean?” “This place was built to strengthen the seal on the inhabitant. The corridors are actually built in the shape of a giant magic circle. This structure is a giant containment device.” Yes, I’d constructed these ruins from scratch solely for that purpose. The array the halls formed was designed to remain for perpetuity, creating an inescapable jail. Unfortunately, even this wasn’t enough to provide peace of mind. Lizer appeared to be in agreement with me on that. As we walked through the complex series of corridors, he furrowed his brow and spoke. “A containment system designed with the full might of the Demon Lord Varvatos. That alone should be enough to damn the target to eternal suffering. Yet…the individual kept here is capable enough for me to doubt this place’s security.” Lizer’s statement was true. The creature imprisoned here would never allow us to rest easy. The fact of the matter was that the devil who lived in these mountains had crafted a situation outside of my expected outcomes. The very fact that this region was known as the Mountains of Madness was unmistakable proof of that fact. “…The containment magic Var created was supposed to completely contain the target’s power and reduce him to a creature that was as powerless as a baby… And yet…” “He continues to influence the outside world anyway… If that was intentional, it would simply mean he was extremely powerful, but…” Verda looked unusually tense, and sweat had formed on her forehead. Yes. If the state of these mountains was deliberate, then all that meant was that he was monstrously powerful. The reality was worse, however. That devil wasn’t consciously doing anything. It wasn’t an attempt to expand his malicious power or engage in villainy by punching a hole in the seal. No, his very existence was enough to corrupt the world. That was what had twisted these mountains into what they were now. “…People have constantly described me as being overwhelming or supernatural. But compared to him, I’m the very epitome of normal.” Yes, that devil was probably the only one worthy of being called supernatural. He fit no definition of natural. And the moment I pictured that monster in my mind… “Oh, hello there. Welcome to my home.” …a voice rang out in my head. It was a beautiful sound, and yet at the same time, it was so discordant that it made me feel sick to my stomach. There was no mistaking the source… “Mephisto Yuu Phegor…!” I shouted out the identity of the speaker, my voice filled with disgust. Evidently, the tone gave the recipient some pleasure. The next statement that rang in my head was extremely cheerful. “Well, well. To have more guests after Lizer’s visit the other day. Given how much I love company, you have no idea how pleased I am.” There was no deceit in the lively tone. To Mephisto, we were like old friends, and he was overjoyed at seeing us again. He was completely unbothered by our hostility and sent us cheerful, friendly thoughts. He was the very definition of selfishness. That fact made him as frustrating and irritating as he had always been. “So, I would ordinarily like to welcome you all in, but…I think I’d like to have a tête-à-tête this time.” No sooner had the statement sounded in our minds than a glittering bouquet of roses appeared in front of me. “You are the only one permitted to go any farther. If you object, then I’m afraid you’ll all have to leave.” I glanced at the others for confirmation. “…Very well. I’ll head your way. By myself, of course.” I ignored the bouquet floating in the air and stepped forward. “Ard…be careful…,” Ginny entreated in a frail voice from behind me. “It’ll be all right. There’s nothing to worry about. Focus on caring for yourself for now.” I thanked her for her concern and continued down the passage alone. I walked through the familiar halls of the ruins. With each step, I felt the weight of his presence grow. It was proof I was getting closer to that devil. “…You know, after the recent incident with Lizer, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to see his face for at least another hundred years, but…I guess things never go the way we want.” I moved forward with a sigh and stood in front of a giant gate. Once it opened, he would be waiting beyond it. That hated black aura was leaking out from beyond. “We’ve known each other for so long. There’s no need to knock. Come on in.” He spoke as though he was the master of this home. His attitude made it clear that he didn’t consider himself to be a prisoner in the slightest. “Sigh. You really are an irritating man,” I spat, making my ire plain. Then I reached out to touch the gate. The moment my fingers made contact…it creaked and began to move, opening like the maw of a giant monster. “Hello there, darling. It’s been a long time. Quite a long time.” He welcomed me with a devilish smile on his angelically beautiful features. My greatest enemy welcomed me in. When I clocked his demeanor and the state of the room, I let out the deepest, longest sigh of the day. Back when I had first sealed Mephisto here, multiple black swords had been embedded in his body, and then he had been bound in dark restraints, completely robbing him of movement. That wasn’t all. I had blocked his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears to keep him from speaking, breathing, or anything else. That done, I’d set the black swords to inflict such agony that he would regret ever being born. Of course, he should’ve been incapable of employing any magic, supernatural power, or divine abilities. The intent was to leave him struggling here in pain for eternity. “…I’d expected as much, but this is still irritating to see for myself.” The black swords that were supposed to inflict unending anguish and the restraints that were supposed to keep him in place were nowhere to be found. He looked wholly comfortable, draped in a strange outfit made of white and black fabric. The interior of this room had also changed dramatically. Originally, it was a plain, unadorned stone chamber. Yet now, there was an alabaster carpet on the floor, and elegant furniture stood atop it. A sparkling chandelier was hanging from the ceiling, illuminating the surroundings. Beautiful wallpaper adorned the sides of the room, and there were even several pieces of art hanging on the walls. I gritted my teeth as I looked. The decor suggested Mephisto had spent decades, maybe centuries, coordinating the furnishings. “Don’t look so angry, my darling. At first, I intended to keep things as you wanted. I swear. I figured you had earned that reward by outmaneuvering me, so I was planning to suffer in agony here for eternity as you wished. But, well…you know how easily I get bored. After around three hundred years, I started to get tired of my surroundings.” He shrugged his shoulders and stuck out his tongue like I’d caught him in the middle of a prank. “I felt guilty for it, but I wanted to stay true to myself. So I removed your restraints, although it pained me deeply. And while I was at it, I figured I might as well pull out the swords, too. They were really getting in the way of my daily chores, after all.” He shouldn’t have had any regular activities to begin with… “After another two centuries or so, I was struck by the desire to see your face again. So I tried to break out, but… Well, you’re an impressive one, worthy of being my darling. Try as I did, I couldn’t get free. I ended up just sitting here for a long time… To say that I’ve been bored would be an understatement.” He shook his head with an expression of faint exasperation. Still, his golden irises remained bright and sparkling. Irritatingly so. “I didn’t complain, however. It was more productive to find a way to enjoy my current circumstances than to continue lamenting how dull things were. Don’t you agree? It’s when things are hardest that you need to think positive. That’s one of my core philosophies.” Mephisto chuckled rather proudly. “That’s why I decided to enjoy this environment. I thought about the things only I could do and acted on all of them. The results are here before your eyes. I made furniture, I tried painting, writing books… It really was a fulfilling, enjoyable time.” He said it all so gratefully, thanking me for the opportunity. There was no sarcasm in his voice. He was perfectly sincere. “The thing is, while living here was very amusing…I can’t live alone. You were always on my mind. You, who share such a powerful bond with me.”