Chapter 246: Neck Check and Gambling Den Search

Footsteps, laced with subtle irritation and anger, echoed aimlessly through the city. Trober wandered the city streets, a frown etched on his face, the fallout from his major argument with Oel still lingering.

‘If I go back like this, I’ll probably take it out on someone,’ he thought. The Commander of the 9th Corps might be simple-minded, but he wasn’t completely stupid. He knew himself well enough to realize that continuing this aimless walk until his mood improved was the better option.

And so, he continued to wander without a destination, occasionally kicking at the ground to vent his displeasure. How long had it been when a familiar demon caught his eye, causing him to stop in his tracks?

‘…Derniban?’

He’d sensed something was off ever since he ran into Oel earlier, but now he understood why.

Normally, Derniban would be the first to step in and stop a fight before Dan even got involved. Why was this guy, who was usually glued to her side, out here in this remote place?

That alone was suspicious enough, but an inexplicable instinct warned Trober that something was seriously wrong. He quickly ducked out of sight before Derniban could notice him, his brow furrowed in concern.

‘This isn’t a battlefield. Why am I being so wary, so unlike myself…? Is he hiding something?’

Derniban’s expression and stride seemed normal, but Trober, who had sparred with him countless times, could tell. His ears were perked, and his eyes darted around with a subtle sharpness. He was definitely on guard.

As if sensing a gaze, Derniban suddenly turned his head. Trober flinched and concealed his presence even more carefully.

“…”

“…”

A suffocating tension filled the air.

Derniban’s sharp eyes scanned the area where Trober was hidden.

‘You can tell he’s from wolf demon stock,’ Trober mused, ‘his senses are practically animalistic.’ This was more nerve-wracking than being on the battlefield. He quietly swallowed hard.

Time seemed to stretch on forever, though in reality, it was probably brief. Finally, Derniban lowered his gaze and muttered under his breath.

“…Just my imagination.”

“…”

As if he had finished his business and was heading back, Derniban turned and left without a second glance.

Afraid of being caught by those beast-like senses again, Trober waited a long time after Derniban disappeared before cautiously emerging from his hiding spot.

‘Is it here?’

He stood in front of a derelict warehouse, presumably the one Derniban had come from, and tilted his head.

“Why this warehouse of all places…?”

Did Oel move the junk warehouse here?

…No, even though he didn’t know the details, he had heard that the relocated warehouse was near the 5th Corps’ training grounds. They even stationed guards from the 5th Corps there. So, it couldn’t be a junk warehouse.

‘Or… is it a warehouse Derniban personally secured?’

…Pfft.

A snort of disbelief escaped him.

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

It was his own thought, but it was utterly unconvincing.

That dry stick of a demon, hiding something so precious that he’d secretly secure a warehouse for it? It was more likely that the moons were made of cheese.

Derniban was practically a corpse who only followed orders from his superiors. It was more plausible that Oel had given him secret orders.

Anyway… He shrugged lightly.

“I guess I’ll find out if I go inside.”

It seemed like the lock was broken on this abandoned warehouse.

He grabbed the handle and twisted. The door opened, revealing an interior landscape completely different from what he expected.

An interior that was fluffy and decorated in a way that didn’t fit a warehouse, or even a demon, let alone the Demon King’s castle. That alone was shocking, but Trober froze, dumbfounded, when he spotted a creature in the middle of it all, playing with a doll before tilting its head at him.

“…Huh?”

***

“Sir Deon, are you really sure you should go alone…?”

Ed asked cautiously, handing over the reins of a Demon Realm horse, looking quite anxious.

“Perhaps you should at least take a demon to assist you…”

“I told you, I’ll be back soon, okay? It’s fine. I’m enough on my own.”

‘If I let someone come along, what kind of nonsense would I have to listen to?’

Demons he’d seen so far seemed to disregard the concept of personal space, sticking to you like glue. They’d fuss and meddle in everything, especially if you were doing something that violated the Demon King’s decree.

Deon was heading to the First City precisely to violate that decree, so going alone was much more convenient.

He snatched the reins from Ed’s hesitant hand.

“I’ll be back then.”

“…Please be careful.”

A reluctant farewell returned.

Deon, now accustomed to the movements, mounted the jet-black horse without hesitation. He glanced at Ed before turning his head forward and kicking the horse’s flanks.

A lone horse galloped out of the Demon King’s castle.

***

Though their numbers had dwindled compared to before, magical beasts were still plentiful, while prey remained scarce.

They didn’t eat to survive, but rather, their only pleasure, their life’s goal, was gluttony. Their very existence was born ‘lacking,’ and the instinct to crave what they lacked manifested as ‘hunger.’

Therefore, despite having learned from Ed and a few other demons how strong a lone individual could be, the magical beasts seemed to have forgotten everything and targeted Deon.

“So many just to eat me?”

Deon chuckled leisurely.

“If you weren’t blocking my path, I would have just ignored you.”

At this point, he should probably display some intimidation to make these instinct-driven creatures back off. Just like before, making fear overwhelm their hunger should be enough.

However, the difference this time was his fighting style.

He briefly stopped, dismounting the horse. The horse flinched, trying to flee, but he held onto the reins tightly and met its gaze.

“Stay here.”

“…”

Murderous intent flared in his crimson eyes.

‘If you run, you die.’ Sensing the primal threat, the horse froze in place, rooted to the spot.

Deon patted its neck in satisfaction, then walked a few steps forward and bounced lightly on the balls of his feet.

“…Just as I thought.”

His body felt light.

Magical beasts surged like waves once more, but unlike before, he felt no sense of crisis. He looked down at his feet, then raised his head and grinned.

This… no matter how he looked at it….

“Doesn’t feel like I’m going to die.”

Come to think of it, the last time he truly fought was against former Emperor Eudoardo Deserte and General Nemesius. The battle in the Empire’s old capital seemed to be his first and last real fight as the Hero.

So, this was a good opportunity to warm up and see how far he could push himself.

“Kieeeeee!”

A cry grew closer.

The first to reach him was a humanoid magical beast, closer in form to a demon. Though, it was quite large for a humanoid.

The creature reached out a hand as if to snatch Deon. Unlike the past, when he would have dodged immediately, Deon simply observed it, gazing up at it. Their eyes met.

In the beast’s eyes, certainty of capture and joy were evident, along with a clear sneer of contempt for the motionless, foolish prey, in that instant-

“Kieee?!”

Deon vanished. The bewildered magical beast tried to turn its head to find its evaporated prey, but….

Its head… wouldn’t move.

It was only then that it realized its upper body was being forced backward.

Deon, clinging to its back, gripping its jaw and the top of its head, grinned and twisted the head he held. With a sickening ‘crack,’ the beast’s head twisted 90 degrees.

In a blink, he’d leaped onto its thigh, sprang into the air, used its shoulder as a foothold, twisted his body, moved behind the beast, and hung onto its head.

“…Amazing.”

‘So, this is what it means to be a Hero.’ A low exclamation of awe escaped him.

“My body feels more flexible too.”

And my elasticity is better.

Finally, he was about to fall backward, but he arched his back in a tumble, planted his hand on the ground, and pushed off, dodging away. Another magical beast’s foot slammed down where he had just been.

He threw the dagger he’d brought from his waist, piercing the beast’s forehead. Then, he paused, clenching and unclenching his fist.

‘Pushing off the ground with my arm to get away… I couldn’t even have dreamed of that before.’

Before becoming a Hero, his arms would have been strained. Cracked, dislocated, or broken, he would have sustained an injury hindering his next move. He had only ever fought desperate, tightrope battles on the edge of a cliff for survival. Now, fighting so freely felt incredibly refreshing.

He lifted his head. The corners of his lips, which he thought he had lowered, had risen again without him noticing. He didn’t care. He toyed with the dagger at his waist, then let go.

“I’d like to play around a bit more, but unfortunately, my vacation is only for a day.”

The eyes revealed were filled with madness and exhilaration, glowing blood-red.

“Still, I’ll take you on bare-handed, so come at me, babies. Let’s finish this quickly.”

***

‘I’m pretty sure there aren’t any scheduled visitors today.’

Then what was that knocking sound?

Someone was knocking on the city gate from outside. The gatekeeper in charge of the First City’s gates, gripped by a familiar sense of déjà vu, picked up the communication stone, sweating profusely.

“Someone’s knocking outside right now….”

– ….

“Hey.”

– Uh, uh….

This conversation was familiar too.

When the next line was the same—that no reinforcements were needed—a sense of unease began to rise. Surely, the person beyond the gate wasn’t the same as last time, right?

In any case, permission had been granted. To stop the increasingly loud knocking, he quickly activated the mechanism.

As before, the city gate opened a crack, and someone entered. Fortunately, the newcomer didn’t have pale yellow hair and blue eyes, but red hair, red eyes, and mottled red skin.

‘…?’

Wait a minute. There was a stench of blood.

And it was a very strong stench….

‘Could all that be blood…?’

Where did the original color end, and where did the blood begin? Narrowing his eyes to discern the boundary, the gatekeeper soon discovered another unsettling detail and flinched.

‘Magic power…….’

There was none. He rubbed his eyes and looked again, but still nothing.

To break through a horde of magical beasts and reach this place, one must possess considerable martial prowess. Yet, unlike the adjutant from before, he couldn’t sense even a trace of magic power. Not even the magic power that should constitute a demon’s physical body, regardless of magic consumption.

Which meant….

‘Human…?’

The gatekeeper blinked blankly, struggling to grasp the unbelievable reality.

…Come to think of it, the Commander of the 0th Legion who visited before was also human. After killing the former Emperor of the Empire and driving the Human Realm into a corner, his prestige had soared, and his physical characteristics were widely known. He knew to some extent.

He was definitely said to have white hair and red eyes, so the human before him was….

“…”

Crimson eyes met his gaze.

“Red eyes…….”

“?”

…Nah, no way.

No matter how much blood he was covered in, his hair couldn’t possibly be dyed this red….

“…Are you perhaps… Commander of the 0th Legion…?”

“That’s right.”

“Ah…….”

“?”

Deon tilted his head, finding it strange that the gatekeeper was just standing there blankly after asking the question. Only then did the gatekeeper, finally regaining his senses, calmly speak.

“…My apologies. Your unexpected visit has caught us unprepared. Would you mind waiting for a moment? We’ll handle this as quickly as possible.”

“There’s no need to—”

He hastily turned around and quietly picked up the communication stone.

“Hey, it’s an emergency, tell the administrator quickly, the Commander of the 0th Legion is here.”

– ……What?

“The Commander of the 0th Legion is here, I feel like I’m going to die, hurry up and tell them, please…!”

A hand landed on his shoulder. Instinctively recognizing the hand’s owner, the gatekeeper froze.

He creaked his neck around with great effort. The stench of blood hit him full force, and he saw a blood-soaked hand.

Seeing him frozen in fear, the hand dropped. A red handprint remained on his shoulder, but that was the least of his worries right now.

“W-w-what brings you here……?”

“Aren’t you going to close that?”

“Ah…!”

He had been so shocked that he had left the city gate wide open.

He hurriedly operated the device to close the gate. He thought he saw some red lumps of flesh rolling around outside through the door crack, but he pretended not to notice. It must be his imagination. Please.

“And….”

“Yes! Anything, sir!”

“…There’s no need to be so tense.”

“It’s not possible!”

Deon Hart paused for a moment.

“…I’m just passing through briefly, so tell them not to fuss over me. It’s a personal vacation, not an official mission.”

“Pardon? But….”

“If they keep bothering me with offers to attend to me, I might get annoyed….”

“Understood! I will inform them immediately! Please, enjoy your stay!”

“Yeah, take care of the horse.”

“Yes, sir! We will give it special care!”

Deon Hart waved a dismissive hand and stepped inside. The gatekeeper stood rigidly until he disappeared from sight, then his legs seemed to give way, and he slumped against the wall.

“I thought I was going to die…….”

My neck is still attached, right…? With a trembling hand, I reached up and felt my neck. Relief washed over me as my fingertips confirmed it was still there, smooth and unharmed.

Once I was sure my neck was still in one piece, indignation began to bubble up.

“Isn’t vacation supposed to be in the fourth city?”

It’s like that adjutant from before. I don’t get why people who seem so serious and not into entertainment would come to a place like this.

I’m too scared to be a gatekeeper. I’m writing my resignation as soon as my shift ends, the gatekeeper thought, still nervously touching his neck.

***

Deon couldn’t exactly wander around covered in blood, so he bought some plain clothes from a nearby shop and went to the first inn he saw to ask to use their bathroom.

He’d expected some trouble walking around dripping blood, but instead of friction, both the clothing store owner and the innkeeper trembled and offered him the best service. A little confused at first, Deon figured they must have recognized him and didn’t press the issue.

It had been a while since he’d been this soaked in blood, and as he washed up, he felt a strange mix of awkwardness and nostalgia. Stepping back outside, he took a few paces before stopping abruptly, head snapping back.

His red eyes flicked over a certain spot, a brief, sweeping glance.

“I can feel someone watching me, but there’s no hostility…”

More like… cautious.

Hmm, a low, displeased hum rumbled in his throat.

“I have a feeling I know who it is.”

They’re probably keeping their distance because of my warning, just trying to check if I need anything from afar. I get the sentiment, but being watched like this still rubs me the wrong way.

He gestured sharply, indicating their exact positions and ordering them away. Hesitantly, as if torn between his command and their own orders, they began to disappear one by one until only one remained. Deon turned his attention to the source of that last lingering gaze.

The nervous presence, caught off guard, started to back away even before Deon Hart could gesture.

“I left one on purpose. If they disappear now, it’d be a pain.”

He quickly closed the distance and grabbed them.

The demon, clearly surprised he’d been caught, glanced around nervously before asking cautiously.

“Is there something you need… sir?”

“I’m trying to find that gambling den I went to last time.”

“Ah…! My apologies, but could you describe the gambling den? There are quite a few around here…”

Characteristics, huh…

“I remember seeing the moon and a road out the window.”

……

“Oh, and there were a lot of demons there too.”

“Uhh…”

The demon swallowed hard.

“That’s not really enough to go on, sir.”