Chapter 4

INTERLUDE THEATRE : ACT I The Inscrutable Puzzle and the Dark God’s Seal I went to play where I always did, but there was something there today. Crouching in front of the tomb… “It’s a big ol’ goblin!” “…Hey, squirt. Don’t confuse the great and magnificent yours truly with a measly goblin.” “I’m not a squirt; I’m Komekko.” “That right? …Yo, Komekko. What are you doing here anyway? Half of the great Dark God Wolbach is sealed in this tomb. Didn’t your folks or anybody tell you to steer clear of this place?” “Sure they did. But my big sis says members of the Crimson Magic Clan are duty bound to fight back against dumb rules.” “…O-oh. Well, that puts me in a bit of a tight spot, see. I really don’t wanna have to silence a little squirt like you…” The big, black not-goblin with the bat-like wings slumped his shoulders. “I’m not a squirt; I’m Komekko,” I reminded him. “And what are you doing here, Mr. Not-Goblin?” “‘Mr. Not-Goblin’… Here, squirt, take a good look! Check the monstrous horns! Scope the giant wings! I’m beefier than any goblin you’ll ever see! I’m the right-hand man of the Dark God Wolbach, the high-level demon Lord Host! And don’t you forget it!” “Cooool!” I threw up my hands and cheered when Host spread his wings way open. “Er, uh, well, look… I think you’ll go far, kid. Usually I’d shut any witnesses right up, but I don’t mind lettin’ you off the hook. But you gotta do me a favor and not tell anyone about me. And everything we do here is a secret, okay? I’m treating you special, and you’d better appreciate it.” “Thank you very much,” I said, not really understanding why. Then I sat down in front of Host and started poking at his big, tough foot. “You’re a weird one, squirt… Er, anyway, I’m busy with important stuff right now. Just keep out of my way, all right?” Then he turned around and started doing something in front of the tomb… Hey! “My puzzle!” “Huh? It ain’t yours; it’s the key to breaking Lady Wolbach’s seal… H-hey, hey, what’re you—?!” Host seemed upset about the way I was working on the puzzle. “You’re something else, kid! The great and magnificent yours truly’s been sneaking into this village for months trying to solve that thing… All right, even I can finish it now! Here, gimme that!” “Oh! No fair, Host!” “Heh! All’s fair for demons, kid. And show a little respect. It’s Lord Host. Now we’re gonna get Lady Wolbach back to full power. Then we can go on a nice rampage, just like we used to… Huh. This… This is weird…” Host tried again and again to fit the pieces into the puzzle he’d taken from me, but he couldn’t do it. Finally, his shoulders slumped again, and he glanced in my direction. “…Yo, Komekko. I’ll let you play with this puzzle. You wanna do the rest?” “Nah, I’m too hungry now and I don’t wanna. I’ll let you do it, Lord Host.” “……Y’know, on second thought, how about we nix the ‘Lord Host’ business? I’ll get you a little something to eat, so you wrap up this puzzle, Komekko.” “………” “……Please, Lady Komekko?” “Well, okay.” At that, Host spread his wings and started flapping away, although he didn’t look very happy about it. I watched him go, then turned to the puzzle…