LS – Chapter 329: Thus, yearning

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There have been times when I would peek at the mind of the enemies with the power given to me by Nariya.

There might be a justified reason as to why we were all killed. There might have been a bit of regret from the people that betrayed us.

I searched for reasons to stop.

But the result was that I won’t ever use that power on humans. It ended with my anger being proved correct.

Humans are greedy. Greed is the seed of conflict. That seed grows, buds, and the forest in their hearts dyed by greed is wretched.

“This is…”

There’s the scent of greed wafting around this place.

In other words, this is inside the heart -the scenery of someone’s mind.

But this is clearly different from the sights I have seen until now.

This is way too plain to be called the heart of someone. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all made out of simple stone.

There’s ivies here and there that are the representation of greed. But that greed is like weed that’s growing in the shadows. They are hiding themselves as if to not grow any further.

“I see. So this is your heart.”

The center of the room has a chair for guests and, in front of it, there’s a body mirror that’s filled with cracks.

I sat on that chair and faced the inside of that mirror.

There was someone inside that mirror that’s not me. That person spoke to me.

“I see. I did think this was a comfortable room. So this is the scenery of my self, huh. I thought all of my sense of self would be taken away, but it ends up like this, huh. Also, nice to meet you, Black Demon Lord.”

Black hair and black eyes like Nariya in the past.

It looks like he is older than Nariya, but his appearance looks younger than his age.

The person I called from a parallel world.

The otherworlder seems to feel novelty in this situation, but he is looking at me with a calm and composed expression.

I should grasp the current situation first.

I am heading to the Serende Nether together with Tedoral.

However, when we tried to teleport from the dimension where Tedoral was into the original world, he explained that there would be a proportional burden on this body that has no mana.

In other words, I lost consciousness when in the process of moving.

My consciousness was most likely taken away in order to make it easier for the body to take on the burden.

“…My dream, huh.” (Black)

“So it seems. I have never seen a sight like this before. It is probably how you perceive my heart. It feels weird that my mind is this clear despite being inside a dream though.”

It is most likely the doing of Nariya.

Nariya gave me the control of this body, but secluded the consciousness of this man so that mine wouldn’t paint it away.

“I have only interfered with you by pure instinct, but I do remember being in your care. To think you would be able to fight back to that degree despite being one-sidedly utilized.” (Black)

“It wasn’t on purpose, so I am not accepting complaints, okay? In the first place, that was what I would consider magic.”

This man is a mirror that can reflect the heart of others.

He melts his own self into the nether, and forms someone else inside his own body. That way he can deepen the comprehension of the other party by changing to a first person perspective.

But that thins out his own existence, so it is also a double-edged sword that could lead to losing his own sense of self.

The reality is that my corrosion was delayed because of that action of his.

I was trying to expand my mind by using the sadness and anger of this man as nutrition, but he dismantled it.

This process of pushing a double-edged sword on him ended up having that sword pointed at me too.

“Looks like you are also an insane being just like Nariya.” (Black)

“It is not like I am beyond the bounds of reason. It is a technique you will see naturally spread out in this world too as time progresses.”

“…Right.” (Black)

It is not because he had talent that he ended up learning a technique teetering into madness. It is because it was necessary to learn this technique in order to survive.

It was a world where he needed this.

The world of this man is a world that’s far more advanced than ours. You could even say it is the future of this world.

Aah, in that case, I can destroy this world without hesitation.

A world where people like this man exist as if natural is only disgusting.

“A person like you who could only love the world by hating people shouldn’t direct eyes of pity towards me as if above me.”

“…What do you even know…is something I can’t say, huh.” (Black)

This man has suffered interventions by me countless times.

My self was basically forming inside of him just like the Comprehension that he uses normally.

He is someone I have spoken to for the first time here, but this man is most likely the person who knows my feelings the best in this world.

“Well, I gave you my body. Do as you please.”

“Why aren’t you stopping me? I understand you just like you understand me. My actions should be something that you would want to stop.” (Black)

This man loves this world.

He wishes to save the people of this world from the bottom of his heart.

That’s why that wish of his and his actions are contradictory.

“I would have tried to if it was someone I could stop. If it is someone whose words could get through, I would use words; if it was someone who I have methods I could use, I would have. But Yugura Nariya would have stopped you a long time ago if that was enough to stop you.”

“…Makes sense.” (Black)

It is because he comprehends me that he understands that there’s no words that would persuade me.

No matter how he lined up his words, he wouldn’t be able to scoop out all the mud inside of me.

Why am I asking this question to this man? He is in the end a human that must perish as well.

Is it because the worlds we were born in were different? Because the worlds we lived in were different?

That’s most likely the case.

I am leaving be Nariya, who betrayed me, and am trying to destroy this world.

“Worrying about that right now would be a waste of time. I am currently targeting Yugura Nariya -not you.”

“It certainly is pointless. It seems like you are hiding something from me, but it looks like you have no intention of revealing that to me.” (Black)

If I can be aware of this even inside a dream, it means it wouldn’t be that hard to wake up.

I should be able to move my consciousness to the real world just as if I am watching a lucid dream.

The world shakes by being strongly conscious of it. The me in the real world must be trying to wake up.

“Well then, good morning, Black Demon Lord. Have a nice reality.”

“Yeah, I shall trample on the world that you love.” (Black)

The man laughed sadly.

I was purely uncomfortable by the emotions that were put into that expression of his.

◇◇

It would be one thing if it were in her real body, but moving from my dimension with a weak body would be way too taxing, so I had Black Sis sleep for a bit.

I would like to play it off a bit, but it did mitigate the burden, so I should be safe.

“I am home. How many centuries has it been since I have said that?”

For now, I have finished what I have been told to do, so I returned to the nostalgic castle where I have put Black Sis to sleep in.

It is a castle that we built from the ground up at the location where the castle of the humans that betrayed us was in.

It is the base of Black Sis in the Serende Nether.

It was pretty tattered and dirty when we arrived, but Yugura brought it back to its former self in less than a night.

A castle where the mana of Black Sis mana resonates in it and she can have a grasp of all the information inside of it.

It is normally something that only Black Sis should be able to fix, but I am impressed he managed to fix it so perfectly to this degree.

“Welcome back, Tedoral. It seems like she is going to be waking up soon.”

As for Yugura, he is watching Black Sis who is sitting on the throne and sleeping.

Was this guy watching the sleeping face of Black Sis the whole time I was running errands?

Well, her sleeping face is the same as before, so I can understand not getting bored of it.

“Won’t you get punched again if you are in front of her when she opens up her eyes?” (Colorless)

“I welcome that.” (Yugura)

“I want to be taken aback, but I am a bit hurt that I can understand you a bit.” (Colorless)

Because the punches of Black Sis are below love bites no matter how serious she gets.

The force of her punch that could blow up my sides just from brushing me has left a permanent mark on a mountain after all!

Black Sis slowly opens her eyes while I was thinking this.

She confirms that we are in her vision and sighed in a bad mood.

It wasn’t because of me, right? It is because Yugura is here, right?

“Good morning, Black. Did you have fun talking to him inside your dreams?” (Yugura)

“So that really was your doing, Nariya. Why are you protecting the consciousness of that man?” (Black)

“I have countless reasons. He is a compatriot, someone you dragged into your own issues, and also one of your few helpers. Or are you saying the heart of a totally normal person that can’t use magic can become an obstruction to you?” (Yugura)

Judging from what he said, he has made it so that Black Sis can communicate with that man when she is sleeping?

For Yugura, there’s no need to erase the consciousness of that man. I feel like there’s some sort of hidden meaning in allowing him to communicate with her.

What Yugura has to be wary of is Black Sis learning about the fact that he is trying to use space-time magic to redo the world.

There’s no doubt Black Sis would try to hinder him from doing that.

I doubt Black Sis would be able to get in the way of Yugura in her current state, but Yugura would dislike the very fact of Black Sis getting in the way.

“…Tedoral, have you gathered everyone?” (Black)

“Y-Yeah. I have had all the demons in the Serende Nether convene. Also, these are your current forces.” (Colorless)

I give the documents I made to Black Sis.

She currently can’t use any of her powers as a Demon Lord. In other words, she can’t make a Nether, and can’t call her subordinates that are the demons and monsters by her own will.

That’s why I ran around and spoke to all the demons that were around the Serende Nether, and tallied the numbers and types of monsters.

I said I called them, but I simply sent a clone of mine to the place where the demons were and one-sidedly told them: ‘Yo, it has been a while. Black Sis has resurrected, so show your face in the castle’.

There’s also other things in the documents.

I have written down the current situation of the continent and the approximate forces of the major countries.

You can’t tell whether your own forces are too much or too little if you don’t know the numbers of the enemy after all.

“It seems like we have enough numbers, but…Tedoral, what are you uneasy about?” (Black)

“…You noticed? About that—” (Colorless)

“Ah, Demon Lord-sama! You have finally resurrected!”

I could feel the air of the surroundings get muddy from the mana of a third party.

You can tell the true nature of a powerhouse in some way when facing them.

It would be stuff like a tremor in your stomach, or a suffocating sensation as if your throat felt parched.

What I am feeling right now must be something around that, but my blunt opinion about it is that it feels disgusting.

There’s no factor relating to emotions in that, and yet, I felt a sense of displeasure from the depths of my chest as if I was being exposed to thick killing intent.

It is as if I have jumped onto a spider web that has stretched out endlessly.

This is most likely the embodiment of that demon woman’s madness, Zahava.

“Zahava, huh. That appearance… It seems like you managed to awaken safely.” (Black)

“Yes, I have been working hard the whole whole whole whole time for the sake of being of help to you! I have been thinking about you endlessly!” (Zahava)

Zahava has a mysterious top with long sleeves that show her shoulders, neck, and stomach in plain view. I would say her fashion sense is more similar to that of Earth.

There’s strings sewed onto several spots in her visible skin that looked painful.

But what’s more abnormal is that her skin color is the same light beige as the time when she was a human despite being a demon.

Demons have stage changes just like how the Demon Lords have changes in their bodies depending on their way of being.

There’s color in the mana of the Demon Lords, so their skin color can change to a darkish one while their hair color will become a mix. That’s the initial stage. It is called the incomplete awakening stage.

The awakened state that lies beyond that is when they have completely adapted to the mana of the Demon lord, and you fulfill the certain conditions on top of that.

Your appearance will get closer to the appearance of when you were human, but the inside would be completely different.

Zahava had black hair and darkish skin that showed her incomplete awakened stage.

Her changing in this manner means that she is now a complete demon -she has reached the real nature of demons.

“You really did resurrect, Black-sama.”

“Ofaro and Lazarikata.” (Black)

The number one man I hate the most, Ofaro, appeared in the room while mumbling contrary to Zahava who appeared with an elated voice, and then there’s the number two woman I hate the most, Lazarikata.

Ofaro has an attire that shows his shoulders and arms as if to emphasize his thin body that lacks muscles. There’s a scar etched on his chest and shoulders like a burnt brand.

Lazarikata is wearing pretty baggy clothes with a whole ton of noisy accessories, so I can’t tell well what’s inside. Her fashion sense is pretty futuristic. Can’t say much about others though.

The two of them must be purposely subduing their mana, I don’t feel the displeasure on my skin like Zahava.

But they annoy me to no end just by looking at them. I simply don’t get along with them.

The skin color of Ofaro and Lazarikata is white as if showing that they have awakened.

“Haha, the troublemakers have been gathered nicely.” (Yugura)

“Demon Lord-sama, why is the traitor here?!” (Zahava)

Zahava glared at Yugura as if getting on guard.

Well, that reaction of hers is the correct one.

Black Sis was sealed because of Yugura, and close to half of the demons that tried to stop this were killed.

She at the very least doesn’t look at Black Sis as if appraising her like Ofaro and Lazarikata.

“Petty business. He won’t be getting in my way anymore.” (Black)

“Right, right. I won’t get in the way of Black, so don’t worry.” (Yugura)

“I can’t trust that! Because of your betrayal, Demon Lord-sama—” (Zahava)

“Zahava.” (Black)

Zahava faltered at the sharp tone of Black Sis.

It isn’t hard to steer her when Black Sis around. Zahava has been attached to Black Sis since before she became a demon.

She is the type of person that would happily head to her death if it is for the sake of Black Sis just like Niruryates with the Green Lord.

“I can barely feel any mana. It is as if you are a corpse.” (Ofaro)

“That’s an awfully pathetic appearance, Black.” (Lazari)

“Hey, Ofaro, Lazarikata! What’s with that way of talking towards the Demon Lord-sama?!” (Zahava)

The issue is Ofaro and Lazarikata.

These two are also survivors of the village.

They took the opportunity to join in on our comrades that pledged vengeance on humans. They did obtain power as demons, but it is not like they have pledged loyalty to Black Sis from the bottom of their hearts.

“This body was created by Nariya… A temporary one made to escape from the Mana Eater.” (Black)

“Oh my, what’s with that? Doesn’t that mean you have not resurrected completely?” (Lazari)

“That’s right… Zahava, what happened to Idolak and Ukawaki? Those two being late is—” (Black)

“Those two died.” (Zahava)

“…What?” (Black)

Zahava tilted her head in wonder.

Aah, it is going to be headache time from here on.

Do your best, Black Sis, and me.

“Or more like, the only ones who survived were us 3. Everyone else died! Ah, didn’t word that right. There’s at least 2 more alive, I guess?” (Zahava)

“…Explain.” (Black)

“Uuh, everyone was trying to reorganize things in their own way after you were sealed by that traitor there, but…everyone broke in the middle of their awakening by the time I noticed!” (Zahava)

This is the current state of the Serende Nether.

Black Sis had 36 allies at first, but 16 died because of the betrayal of Yugura, and 15 of the remaining 20 lost their minds. They either committed suicide or were dealt with by their comrades.

The only ones who managed to maintain their self after awakening completely were these 3.

The remaining 2 became like the last moments of Nektohal. They became monsters with no sense of self and are wandering the Serende Nether.

“Puhahahahaha! That’s why I told you, Black. Even if your will is absolute, there’s a limit to the hearts of the people that you lead. People who follow others as humans can’t survive as demons.” (Yugura)

Yugura is laughing out loudly with tears in his eyes.

Leaving aside his complete inability to read the atmosphere, the situation is terrible.

The decent people with a sound personality like Idolak and Ukawaki that decided to walk together the path of Black Sis couldn’t endure the wear of time.

They are the same as the subordinate of Green Lord.

It is the fate of the people whose minds couldn’t adapt to the body of a demon.

The more decent of a human being you are, the less of a chance you have of avoiding that fate.

The reality is that the only ones who survived were the most insane ones even within the demons.

“…I see. Everyone else went ahead, huh. Zahava, do they have graves?” (Black)

“They don’t. They all turned to dust after dying after all. We couldn’t even bury them.” (Zahava)

“…Tedoral, can I ask this of you?” (Black)

“Y-Yeah, I will prepare them…” (Colorless)

Black Sis didn’t move a single brow at the laughing Yugura as she looked at the remaining 3 demons.

She must be overlapping it with the scenery of the past, or maybe she is already thinking about what lies ahead.

These 3 have issues with their personalities, but they are at the peak when it comes to the category of demons.

They would match even Scarlet Beast when it comes to plain combat power alone.

If all the ones that survived had gotten to their awakened stage, this would have ended in a one-sided game.

The chance of losing is possible now.

“Demon Lord-sama, Demon Lord-sama, we will be killing humans again, right?! It is okay to kill every.single.one, right?!” (Zahava)

“Yeah, Nariya won’t get in the way anymore. This time for sure, everything will be—” (Black)

“I don’t like that. Why do I have to obey you in that pathetic state?” (Lazari)

Lazari is directing a belittling gaze at us.

Zahava’s face froze, and Ofaro was looking at the whole place as if he didn’t care.

So this really happened.

Of course it would.

Lazarikata has hated Black Sis since the time she was a human.

She reluctantly participated after the people around soothed her well.

It is because the power of Black Sis was absolute that she obeyed while hiding her displeasure, but in this situation…

“Lazarikata, how dare you say that towards the Demon Lord-sama!” (Zahava)

“Shut up, Zahava. You think a mere spider nesting under Black has the right to chide me?” (Lazari)

“—I see, you want to be eaten, huh? You deceiver!” (Zahava)

Serious killing intent filled up the room.

Zahava is trying to release her power with the serious intention to kill Lazarikata.

Lazarikata took on that killing intent and was going to get in a combat stance.

Aah, these people really have way too low boiling points.

They have killed hundreds of thousands of people, so I understand that they don’t have any resistance when it comes to taking away lives, but…can’t you have something like a sense of comradery? No? I knew it.

“Alright, that’s enough.”

All the demons were smashed onto the ground as if crushed by an invisible wall.

What was used was gravity magic that’s popular in the Yugura Church, but the activation speed of the magic circle and the power of it is unreal.

Most of all, I couldn’t feel the mana of Yugura at all.

This is the principle of the Eyes of Blindness of Ekdoik…no, of Beglagud.

He deployed a magic circle in a dimension that only he can perceive, and teleported the magic circle when it was activated.

You obviously can’t avoid that.

“Yugura…!”

“I gave the opportunity for Black to get revenge. It would be pitiful if you guys, who are the means to that, were to self-destruct on your own before it even begins, right? I will at least help out in arranging the forces of Black. That’s fine with you, right, Black?” (Yugura)

“…Do as you please.” (Black)

Yugura walked towards Lazarikata who was caught in the gravity magic.

He is in the range of the gravity magic, and yet, it is as if the person himself isn’t affected at all.

He then grabbed her hair, lifted her head by force, and locked eyes with her.

“Gih…!”

“I will at least give you a choice. You either cooperate in silence, or I make you cooperate in silence. Which one would you prefer?” (Yugura)

That’s weird.

I was thinking about doing my best under Black Sis, but I am already missing my old job.

There’s seriously no decent person on this side.

—-

Author: A formation that only has insane people and fashion disasters.

I will be touching on it in the future for a bit, but I will add some details here.

The Colorless Demon Lord (Tedoral) has been adjusted by Yugura so that he won’t reach the awakened stage.

He can’t get his power as a demon, but it is hard for the mind corrosion to happen, and he basically only gets the benefit of immortality.

His strength is purely through his own hard work.

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