Whispers of a Scheming Demon - Chapter 105

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Whispers of a Scheming Demon ◈

Chapter 105: Private Cleaning Department

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“Ilea, did you know? Sir Johan plans to take several wives besides you.”

No sooner had the Count finished speaking than Ilea’s expression turned icy.

With a face as stiff as wax, she spoke.

“...Is that true, Johan?”

Ilea’s gaze was far too cold.

A chill ran down Johan’s spine.

Since possessing this body in this world, it was almost the first time he had felt fear.

This was far more terrifying than encountering countless demons in Narak.

Johan stammered without realizing it.

“I-If necessary, I can marry as many people as I need to.”

“So that’s how it is.”

Ilea said nothing more. She seemed lost in thought.

A long silence followed.

Johan felt as though he were sitting on a bed of thorns.

Unable to bear it any longer, he cleared his throat.

“Whoever I marry, Ilea, you will be my first priority. As you know, we share the same fate.”

Johan had no intention of neglecting Ilea.

She had helped him far too much.

No matter whom he married, Johan intended to support Ilea before anyone else.

Ilea stared directly at him.

“And in exactly what area will I be your first priority?”

Johan answered without hesitation.

“In every respect.”

Ilea’s eyes narrowed.

“You must keep that promise.”

Johan nodded.

“Of course. No matter how many wives I take, I will always put you first.”

The cold air gradually eased.

Ilea’s expression softened slightly as well.

A faint smile crossed her face.

“Good. I’ll let it go this time. Please continue your conversation with the Count.”

Johan looked puzzled.

“You’re finished?”

He had assumed Ilea had come to the reception room because she had something else to say.

Ilea smiled brightly again.

“Yes, I’m finished. I just wanted to show Johan how I looked as soon as possible.”

She pointed to the hem of her splendid dress.

‘She does have a girlish side.’

Johan snickered.

“It suits you very well. Clothes really do make the person.”

Ilea pouted a little.

“It’s because I have a good figure.”

Johan shrugged.

“Well, let’s say that’s true.”

Ilea abruptly turned around, pretending to be offended.

“I’ll be going now. I’ve only interrupted you.”

She immediately left the reception room.

Bang! The door slammed shut.

Only the Count and Johan remained.

Crossing his arms, the Count spoke.

“Sir Johan, do you realize what sort of promise you just made to that Mage?”

Johan did not understand the point of the question.

“What promise are you talking about?”

The Count sighed.

“This is frustrating. You just swore to love one woman faithfully.”

Johan paused.

After standing frozen for a moment, he suddenly burst into laughter.

“Love? Love, you say? Hahaha! Count, your head is truly a field of flowers.”

To Johan, the Count was clearly someone consumed by the emotion called love.

He was a man willing to sacrifice hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lives to revive his dead wife. Johan’s judgment was not entirely wrong.

The Count answered calmly.

“Then your mind must be a barren desert. It is so full of grains of sand that not even a handful of love can take root.”

Johan frowned.

“You keep going on about love. Do you think Ilea loves me?”

“Now we’re finally having a conversation. I can see her feelings for you.”

Johan let out a disbelieving laugh.

“You only say that because you do not know Ilea’s true nature.”

Ilea was a Witch. Witches did not possess emotions such as love or loyalty.

Love naturally came with sacrifice and understanding for another person, but Witches were profoundly selfish beings.

They moved only for themselves.

They were born unable to feel love.

If Ilea felt fondness for something, that feeling could never be love.

It was closer to possessiveness born of extreme selfishness.

An obsession to possess something no matter what. That could not be dressed up as love.

The Count spoke.

“Her true nature? If you mean the traits of Mages, I know them better than anyone. They are selfish. But ordinary humans are no different. Even what we call love is ultimately an expression of selfishness.”

Johan clicked his tongue.

“Then that means you want to revive your wife only to satisfy your own feelings.”

“That is exactly right. I originally intended to turn Yeriel into a demon. Because of my selfish desire to see her face again, Yeriel would have been resurrected and lived in hell.”

The Count’s love was ultimately selfish.

The Count himself acknowledged that fact.

Johan was utterly dumbfounded.

‘Was he this twisted of a man?’

The Count was no romantic.

He was merely a warped obsessive.

Johan looked at the Count as though he had nothing left to say.

“You’ve gone completely senile. I have nothing more to discuss with you on this subject.”

Their values were far too different.

Unbothered by Johan’s insult, the Count continued.

“In the end, humans and love are both selfish. Someday, you will understand what I mean.”

Johan felt as though he had stepped in shit.

He could not understand why the Count was saying any of this.

“Count, enough pointless talk. Let us return to the main subject.”

He wanted to change the topic as soon as possible.

“We were discussing the young lady of House Marcano, were we not?”

Serena von Marcano. She was a woman with the Mind-Piercing Eye and the one Johan was to become engaged to.

Johan spoke.

“That’s right. Write me a letter of recommendation for House Marcano at once.”

With the Count’s recommendation, Johan could meet the head of House Marcano privately without waiting.

He would probably meet Serena then as well.

Johan intended to bring her to his side.

The Count pointed to the stack of documents on the table.

“I have written letters of recommendation for every family affiliated with the Council. Have a look.”

The Count had prepared everything in advance.

Setting aside his twisted values, Johan liked that about him.

Johan immediately gathered the documents.

“What about the house and money?”

“I have arranged all of it.”

Johan would be living in the Royal Capital for a while.

Naturally, he needed a mansion and living expenses.

He was still poor, so he had no choice but to rely on the Count.

Johan smiled with satisfaction.

“I will repay you someday.”

The Count’s expression turned stiff.

“Of course you will. I have prepared a loan agreement as well.”

He handed Johan a sheet of parchment.

The loan amount, date, repayment period, interest terms, and more were written in dense detail.

‘...He intends to get every bit of it back.’

It seemed Johan would not be getting anything for free.

The Count was tightfisted in many ways.

Suppressing a groan, Johan tucked the agreement into his clothes.

“One last thing. Take good care of Ilea. Do not provoke her unless you absolutely must.”

In truth, Ilea and the Count seemed likely to get along.

That was simply how Johan felt.

A Witch and a lunatic. Somehow, they made a fitting pair.

The Count answered evenly.

“I am not foolish enough to provoke an Archmage. More importantly, how should I help her?”

There was nothing specific Johan needed to tell him.

“Just do whatever Ilea asks. If she wants letters of recommendation, write them. If she tells you what she needs, provide all of it.”

The Count nodded.

“Very well. What do you intend to do about the Shadow Realm?”

The Shadow Realm, the underground city beneath Beldana, was now the Count’s greatest headache.

The Count no longer had any use for the Cult of the Evil God that inhabited the Shadow Realm.

He had joined hands with the Cult of the Evil God to corrupt the Celestial Womb into an Abomination, but things had changed somewhat.

The Celestial Womb would operate as a Holy Relic.

Not a demon, but the angel Yeriel would be resurrected.

That was what Johan had promised.

The Count no longer needed the Shadow Realm or the Cult of the Evil God.

Johan said,

“As I told you before, the Shadow Realm will disappear. Ilea should be moving already.”

Ilea’s first task was to eliminate the Shadow Realm.

She would uproot it in an instant.

The Count spoke.

“Not even the faintest trace can remain. I hope she handles it thoroughly.”

Johan snickered.

“Do not worry. Your flaw will disappear from this world.”

The Count rose from his seat.

“Good. Will you be leaving now? I have my next appointment waiting.”

The Count had received two unexpected visitors today.

Johan and Wolfgang. Because of them, his entire schedule had been pushed back.

Now it was time to deal with the work he had postponed.

Johan stood as well.

“Next time, I’ll at least send word before I come.”

The Count’s face remained expressionless.

“Something you will not keep.”

Johan snickered and left the reception room.

He headed straight for House Marcano in the Royal Capital.

* * *

At the entrance to an alley leading into the Shadow Realm, Ilea walked with her hood pulled over her head.

Her eyes were clouded with complicated emotions.

“...Why did I react like that?”

Ilea had nearly become furious with Johan earlier.

It had been difficult to control her emotions.

His words about taking several wives had come as something of a shock.

“It’s nothing, when I think about it.”

As long as it helped Johan’s path forward, the number of wives he had did not matter.

That was the logical conclusion.

Yet she felt strangely upset.

The reason was clear.

Ilea’s possessiveness toward Johan was growing stronger.

Someday, controlling her emotions would become difficult.

It was a trait of Witches.

Once they took an interest in something, they researched it obsessively.

At some point, they could fall into a mad fixation.

Johan was steadily taking up more space in Ilea’s heart.

It was a kind of instinct, one she found difficult to resist.

“...Will he come to hate me?”

That was the one thing she had to prevent.

Being hated by Johan was worse than death.

As Ilea let out a long sigh, a booming voice rang out.

“Well, well. One little rat remains. I thought I had butchered them all.”

She looked ahead.

A huge man stood at the far end of the alley.

His short white hair, muscular body, predatory eyes, and heavy scent of blood were unmistakable. There was nothing ordinary about the aura he gave off.

He was not an ordinary human.

Ilea instinctively knew it.

She slowly opened her mouth.

“Do you have business with me?”

The huge man pulled both corners of his mouth high.

The wrinkles in his skin deepened further.

“More than enough, if you are a Mage.”

“I am a Mage. Then let us talk.”

The huge man’s eyes sharpened.

He tensed one fist.

The space around his tightly clenched fist warped and shattered.

Ilea watched him with wary eyes.