WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Ceaseless
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Northern Grand Duke’s Mad Son-in-Law ◈
Chapter 72: Puff
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“There are over a hundred at minimum. It’s dangerous.”
Galahad raised his head slightly.
Gilbert’s face was as expressionless as it had been when they first met.
Galahad quietly flicked ash from his cigarette.
They were in a small room inside the bar. Since Demonkin did not sleep, there were no beds.
Rather than sleeping, Demonkin sipped human blood.
To Demonkin, humans were precious naps, food, and water to quench their thirst. Demonkin were humanity’s predators.
Taking a deep drag from his cigarette, Galahad studied Gilbert.
“We should retreat. We need to request reinforcements and enter again.”
Amusingly, Gilbert’s voice remained calm. He sounded like a knight hardened by the front lines.
The veins in Gilbert’s neck stood out. He was furious, yet he still argued for retreat.
“That doesn’t sound like you, Sir Gilbert.”
“We need to retreat. Your safety comes first.”
“No, perhaps it does sound like you.”
“This isn’t the time for jokes...”
“Sir Gilbert.”
Galahad flicked away the spent Mana Cigarette. It crumbled into powder and scattered through the air. Only a flat piece of paper remained.
“Yes.”
Gilbert answered, staring at Galahad with tense eyes.
“I have no intention of giving up on Damian.”
“But...”
“I’m not done speaking yet. Will you listen first?”
Gilbert nodded at Galahad’s words.
“Thank you. As I said, Damian is important. Gwen and Tom are the same. They are not people I can abandon.”
Gilbert nodded again, then suddenly had a question.
‘Did he just include my name in that?’
“Now, there are exactly one hundred ninety-seven Demonkin. Thirty-one of them belong to House Proxel, the house that took Damian, while their rival, House Vans, has twenty-five.”
Gilbert’s mouth fell slightly open.
“Don’t ask how I found out. It’s a trade secret.”
Gilbert looked behind Galahad. Three Demonkin with holes in their necks lay there. Their corpses were shriveled thin, as though the Demonkin employee had done the same to them earlier.
‘Did that employee come upstairs?’
“The two houses don’t get along, either. Not even slightly. Isn’t it funny? Demonkin fighting for supremacy.”
Galahad chuckled quietly. Gilbert could not laugh along.
“The important thing is that Demonkin are brood-bound. They have no interest in any Demonkin outside their own brood. For example, you could openly rip the heads off lowest-ranking Demonkin that do not belong to a brood, and no one would care. I called this place a city, but there are no laws or rules here.”
Galahad coughed softly. The scent of lemon tickled Gilbert’s nose. The sweet and sour scent made his mouth water.
“Now, the calculation is much simpler. The ones we need to deal with are...”
Galahad slowly circled his long index finger. Gilbert swallowed.
“Only thirty-one.”
“Isn’t that too many to call ‘only’?”
“That sounds like you, Sir Gilbert. Who would be foolish enough to take on all thirty-one directly?”
“What? Then how will we do it?”
“Didn’t I say they have a rival house?”
Gilbert furrowed his brow. What did having a rival house have to do with...
“We’ll join House Vans. Loyalty... Vans!”
Galahad placed a hand over his forehead. Even Gilbert could find no fault in the flawless salute.
The problem was who he was saluting.
So he meant...
‘You’re saying we’ll join a Demonkin house?’ Gilbert desperately swallowed the question.
Because Galahad looked like he would nod.
“Ah, I’m joking.”
Gilbert let out the breath he had been holding.
Right. Even Galahad would never join a Demonkin house.
‘Right?’
“There’s one thing we need to watch out for.”
Gilbert missed his chance to speak at Galahad’s next words.
“As long as we don’t provoke the city’s Ruler, we’ll be fine.”
“There’s a Ruler?”
“I hear it’s a terrifying creature. Every brood leader in the city follows its orders, so if we provoke it, we’ll have to fight the whole city. Unfortunately...”
‘Unfortunately?’
Gilbert tilted his head, wondering if he had heard correctly.
At that moment, the door opened, and thick armor entered.
It was Noad, the youngest member, whose armor looked suffocating just to behold.
“Now, let’s move. Ah, everyone stay quiet. If you really want to say something, raise your hand.”
Everyone tightly shut their mouths.
Galahad smiled in satisfaction.
* * *
The Demonkin City was filled with the smell of burning and choking ash.
It was an environment that made coughing unavoidable, but Galahad felt refreshed.
Demonkin wandered everywhere. The strange thing was that even lower-ranking Demonkin had mental barriers raised.
As though they were wary of mental magic.
‘Do they consider mental-type Demonkin their enemies?’
It was possible. Still, it was not important at the moment, so he set the thought aside.
There were no rules or laws in the Demonkin City. There was not even a concept of guards.
If a human city were like this, it would have turned into a complete mess long ago, but the Demonkin City was quiet.
As Galahad looked around, he realized several things.
First...
“Ugh!”
A passing Demonkin shuddered and recoiled. It looked as though it had seen a pile of shit.
Adrianna stood before it.
‘The Demonkin are going out of their way to avoid Adrianna. Is it instinct?’
Whenever Adrianna came close, Demonkin recoiled in disgust.
Having apparently never received such a reaction before, Adrianna looked deeply flustered. Her stupid helmet stared at Galahad.
“You should have washed up.”
The blue eyes visible through the helmet looked wronged.
Clatter!
Galahad chuckled and turned away.
Demonkin instinctively disliked Adrianna.
In contrast...
“Hmm, are you selling that female? I’ll pay a proper price.”
“I’ll pay more. Sell her to me.”
Gwen was incredibly popular. Everywhere they went, Demonkin followed her while drooling. They looked as though they had found an unbelievably delicious meal.
Tom raised his shield and stood before Gwen, but the Demonkin’s gazes would not leave her. They kept offering Galahad prices.
So Galahad...
“How much are you planning to pay?”
“...?!”
Gwen’s eyes widened as though they would split apart. Her lips moved urgently.
“She’s well-trained too! I’ll give you five young boys as a special offer!”
“I’ll give seven.”
“Hmm, not enough.”
After checking the market price, Galahad found that Gwen was worth roughly ten to twelve young boys.
Demonkin used humans instead of currency. Young boys were like gold coins, while one adult man was worth roughly one silver coin.
Gwen’s mouth opened and closed urgently.
She raised her right hand. Tom and Gilbert followed suit.
“I was only checking.”
Galahad clicked his tongue and waved his hand.
Once they walked with Adrianna in front, fewer Demonkin approached them.
After walking a little farther, they reached their destination.
A mansion similar to House Proxel’s stood there. It was smaller and more run-down, though.
It belonged to House Vans, the rival house.
‘Vans...’
House Proxel had more members. Numbers did not matter to Galahad, but the fact that they were Demonkin did.
Demonkin were sensitive to mana. Even lower-ranking Demonkin were sensitive enough to react to Galahad’s magic.
He could not sneak into a place full of Demonkin like that and bring Damian out. It would be easier for Galahad to infiltrate a mansion guarded by a hundred knights.
Even if it were possible, he had no intention of bringing Damian out quietly.
Matters like this needed to be handled cleanly from the start.
Still, fighting head-on was somewhat dangerous.
House Proxel’s authority gathered the strength of its other Demonkin into one member.
Entering the mansion of creatures like that first was quite dangerous.
At that moment, Gilbert raised his right hand. Galahad clicked his tongue and snapped his fingers.
“You may speak.”
“What are you going to do?”
Gilbert, who had been calling for retreat earlier, now overflowed with enthusiasm. It was very like him.
“I intend to create conflict.”
“Create conflict...?”
“We’ll attack House Proxel and leave behind traces of House Vans.”
Since the two houses were on bad terms, the fire would quickly grow.
“Can we make it look like House Vans attacked them?”
It was a natural question. Demonkin fought using their individual authorities. Leaving ordinary sword wounds would not be enough to leave traces.
To cause a misunderstanding, they needed to imitate an authority.
Galahad looked at Gwen. She had shrunk into herself.
“We have our popular girl, Gwen.”
“...Me?”
“Yes, you.”
Gwen’s face trembled slightly. There was not a trace of confidence in her.
When Galahad had given Gwen something the Egg of Pain called food, she had once imitated its authority. It had been terribly crude, but that would be enough.
All Galahad wanted from Gwen was that imitation.
“I believe in you.”
“...Me? Why?”
“You need to earn that tenfold salary.”
Gwen’s eyes wavered. Galahad chuckled and turned away.
House Vans was more run-down than House Proxel, but they could not recklessly provoke it.
With matters like this, being as quiet and discreet as possible was important.
He planned to capture a few House Vans Demonkin wandering outside and show them to Gwen.
If Gwen could imitate their authority even a little, he would leave traces of House Vans’ authority on House Proxel’s Demonkin and create conflict.
There was a problem, though.
‘House Vans’ security is tighter than I expected.’
House Vans’ Demonkin did not wander outside.
They only guarded the main gate without moving.
Provoking them within House Vans’ domain would be quite dangerous.
They needed to lure them outside.
And the method was, of course...
“Now, Gwen. Use your beauty.”
“...What?! Me?!”
“Yes, show off that beauty that has Demonkin drooling all over themselves.”
“I’m cute, though!”
“No, to Demonkin, you’re clearly beautiful.”
“Is... is that a compliment?”
“Of course. You’re popular with Demonkin. I’m truly jealous. This is necessary to save Damian.”
“I’ll try!”
Gwen nodded with determination.
“I’m counting on you.”
When Galahad gently pushed her from behind, Gwen softly exclaimed, “Let’s do this!” and headed toward the Demonkin. Her steps trembled wildly. She looked like a newborn foal.
Galahad smiled at the sight, but the back of his head prickled.
When he turned around, the stupid helmet was staring at him.
Clatter.
At that moment, the Demonkin’s heads sharply turned.
The two sniffed at the air at the same time. Drool streamed down from their mouths. It was a remarkably undignified sight for creatures pretending to be nobles.
Gwen stood a short distance away. The Demonkin kept twitching. They seemed to be desperately holding themselves back from rushing at her. They were reasonably well-trained.
It did not last long.
“H-Hello?”
The moment Gwen greeted them tearfully, the Demonkin took a step forward. For the first time, they moved away from the gate.
‘Sit.’
Galahad pressed down on his heart. The Egg of Pain bounced as though sulking.
Ever since it had eaten the other egg, it had become picky about its food. It practically spat at lowest-ranking Demonkin blood.
It only grumbled quietly and did not resist. Adrianna was right beside him.
Before long, the Egg of Pain’s pounding grew sluggish. Galahad reined in his mana. The Egg of Pain moved slowly in response.
Demonkin instinctively viewed Galahad as a higher-ranking Demonkin. From what he had learned, they seemed to consider him somewhere between mid-ranking and upper-ranking.
Galahad pushed mana back into the Egg of Pain.
After forcibly containing his mana, Galahad glanced behind him.
The stupid helmet, Gilbert gripping his sword hilt, and Tom holding out his shield were watching Galahad.
Seeing how tense they were, Galahad gave them a warning.
“Do not step in until I call you. That is an order.”
After speaking firmly, Galahad headed toward Gwen.
The Demonkin were already close to her. They reached out their hands toward Gwen. Their hands trembled slightly with delight.
“This one is mine.”
Galahad grabbed the hand reaching toward Gwen.
The Demonkin turned their eyes toward Galahad. Their unfocused pupils sharpened.
Galahad let a little mana flow out. Calculating the force of the reaction, he adjusted his mana concentration. In an instant, he settled it at an appropriate level.
‘My control over mana has improved again.’
Galahad sincerely admired his own talent. Then he met the Demonkin’s eyes and clicked his tongue.
“Would you wipe your drool? It’s filthy.”
The Demonkin’s faces crumpled. Their eyes were fixed on Gwen as they smacked their lips.
Unlike before, they did not ask for a price. Instead, they looked even more sinister.
They probably saw Galahad as a Demonkin they could handle.
‘It worked.’
Galahad pulled Gwen along and turned around.
He headed for an alley he had noticed beforehand, quickening his pace. The alley added a perfect atmosphere to an already gloomy city.
Gulp.
The sound of swallowing behind him told Galahad that he had succeeded.
A chilling sensation swept over him from behind.
“Watch carefully. If you make a mistake, Damian will become Sorry-Damian.”
“Sorry-Damian?! What?!”
Galahad snapped his fingers. A compressed barrier rose in front of him.
Something struck the barrier.
‘Damn.’
It was a barrier formed from fairly compressed mana.
Yet it tore apart in an instant.
Galahad judged the point where it had torn and the traces it left behind.
It was mana honed to a razor-sharp edge.
‘It takes the form of an arrow.’
Galahad narrowed his eyes at the burning pain in his shoulder.
It was an authority he had never seen before. Its cutting power was exceptional for its concentration.
‘Is it an authority made solely for attacking?’
Galahad glanced back.
Gwen’s eyes were wide enough to split. Her face was stained red with Galahad’s blood.
Gwen cast magic based on her emotions. To draw out her ability, provoking those emotions was efficient.
For example, watching her captain helplessly suffer an attack in front of her...
“Are you okay?!”
Galahad nodded at Gwen’s desperate voice.
“Gwen, get behind me.”
Galahad placed Gwen behind him, where she could clearly see the Demonkin’s authority.
“Ah...”
“Watch carefully.”
The Demonkin took another step. Galahad snapped his fingers.
The barrier tore apart again.
Gwen’s face turned even redder. A small scream escaped her, but Galahad’s attention was focused ahead.
‘Interesting. Is this the origin of Mana Arrow?’
Galahad examined the hole in his shoulder. The wound was deep.
Mana Arrow was an extremely basic spell. Its power was weaker than an arrow’s, so it was not even classified as an offensive spell.
Yet when the Demonkin used it, its power was different.
‘It feels less like compression and more like honing mana.’
Mana was not iron, yet it was being honed instead of compressed.
It was a new concept. Galahad’s mind spun rapidly.
‘Interesting.’
The corners of Galahad’s mouth rose high.
He held his eyes wide open. He did not want to miss this pleasure by blinking.
The arrow struck the barrier again. The more heavily compressed barrier was easily torn apart once more.
‘The firing rate is impressive. It really is like Mana Arrow.’
The burning pain returned to his shoulder, but Galahad’s smile only widened.
Honing mana...
Unable to hold it in, Galahad laughed out loud.
* * *
A small hole opened in the huge back.
Hot blood splashed across Gwen’s face.
Galahad did not waver in the slightest.
Gwen believed Galahad would somehow solve it.
Because he was Galahad.
Yet Galahad was bleeding.
He was bleeding to protect Gwen.
‘Sir Gilbert... Tom...’
Gwen looked around, but she could not see anyone.
There was only thick ash, as dense as hell.
She could not expect help from anyone.
Then...
“Hnh...”
A low groan came from ahead. The huge back shook roughly.
Captain Galahad was letting out a groan...
Gwen’s heart sank heavily.
‘How am I supposed to deal with that?’
Gwen desperately strained her eyes and glared at the Demonkin.
She concentrated until tears flowed from her eyes, but she could see nothing.
All Gwen could see was something flying at Galahad and punching holes in him.
Magic itself was difficult for Gwen.
How was she supposed to imitate a Demonkin’s power?
[Take my hand. I will give you infinite power.]
Thump.
A sweet voice rang out. It was soft, like an angel’s voice.
It came from Galahad’s back. More precisely, from the hole carved into his back...
[Take my hand. I will give you power. Worship me.]
The voice was clearer than before.
[Your desperation has reached me.]
It felt somewhat dangerous, but she was in no position to be selective.
Biting her lip, Gwen moved her hand.
Puff.
Gwen’s fingers drove into Galahad’s back.
Footnotes:
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