WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B
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◈ Whispers of a Scheming Demon ◈
Chapter 17: Johan Myatro (2)
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Darkness deeper than night filled the room.
Acrid Demonic Energy and surging malice had taken over the interior.
Within darkness that not even moonlight could penetrate, only red eyes made their presence known.
They were the eyes of a demon. A baleful glow that drove humans into terror. That ominous glint paralyzed the Baron's reason.
“D-Demon. A demon. Why is there a demon...? A dream. This is a dream!”
Johan raised the corners of his mouth in a long smile.
“No. This is reality.”
A black hand shot out in an instant and gripped the collapsed Baron's face.
“Look closely. Feel it.”
Johan bent down until he was right in front of the Baron. Their eyes met at point-blank range.
“Well? Are you still confused?”
More strength gathered in the hand gripping the Baron's cheek.
The Baron's plump face was crushed until it looked ready to burst. Flesh bulged through the gaps between Johan's fingers.
The ever-tightening grip inflicted unbearable pain on the Baron.
“Mmph! Mmmph!”
Like his groaning body, his soul began to convulse as well.
It was a sight visible only to the wielder of Soul Erasure.
A soul weakened by unbearable stress and gnawed away by the Dream Demon was something Johan could extract and tear apart at any moment.
The instant he did, the Baron would become a puppet.
The first step toward swallowing the territory would be complete.
Johan immediately activated his power. His will spread through the Demonic Energy like blood coursing through veins.
The Demonic Energy swirling in the air suddenly stiffened. Clumps of hardened smoke gleamed like sharp scythes.
They were searching for a soul to reap.
Gaf and the Baron shuddered at the grotesque sight. Raguel, being blind, did not know what was happening, while Ilea let out an impressed sound, as though she found it quite remarkable.
Johan looked at the Baron's tattered soul and flicked his index finger.
“You've ripened nicely for harvesting.”
At the same time, condensed Demonic Energy extended in four strands. It easily bound the Baron as he tried to flee and lifted him into the air.
Demonic Energy bound the sacrifice's limbs. It resembled an execution frame used for drawing and quartering.
The Baron could not even scream. Black smoke sealed his mouth shut.
With a mere flick of Johan's hand, the Baron's personality would be annihilated.
“Raguel.”
With only the final step remaining, Johan looked at Raguel.
“J-Johan...?”
Several emotions tangled across the boy's face. The anguish of his bond with his father, his joy at seeing Johan again, and confusion over the current situation all showed at once.
“I intend to extract your father's soul and turn him into a puppet. It would be no different from death for him.”
“What do you mean? Why would you do that to my father...?”
“To swallow House Myatro.”
Startled, Raguel gave an awkward laugh.
“D-Don't joke around.”
“I mean it. But I want to hear your opinion. If your father died before your eyes, how would you feel? Could you continue living as you have until now?”
It was so sudden that Raguel could not grasp reality.
“Answer me.”
Johan reached toward the Baron with a demonic hand.
The Baron thrashed and wailed like a pig.
At a loss for what to do, Raguel finally faced reality when he heard his father's screams. He remained silent for a long time before speaking with unexpected calm.
“...People call me a monster. As if being born after devouring my mother was not enough, I only have one eye and I limp too. If someone like me causes Father to die as well, I won't be able to live as a human anymore.”
It was Raguel who had brought Johan into the castle. Tempted by the promise that Johan would restore his eye, he had brought in a demon.
The moment the Baron died, Raguel could not escape responsibility. He would be an unfilial son who had killed both parents. He could never live an ordinary life again.
The boy clutched his head as though in pain.
“If you're going to kill Father, then please kill me too. I don't want to live.”
Johan shrugged.
“I can't do that. I haven't even restored your eye yet.”
The instant he finished speaking, the frame binding the Baron vanished.
The large man fell from the air to the floor. He let out a pained groan.
Ilea tilted her head.
“Johan?”
“I wanted to test my new power, but that's unfortunate.”
“You don't intend to finish this? There will be consequences.”
“It can't be helped. I'll have to leave things somewhat unfinished.”
“...May I ask why?”
“I failed to keep my promise to him. It would be troublesome if he died.”
“Not that obvious excuse.”
Her face turned cold as she added,
“Could it be because of affection?”
“Would that be a problem if it were?”
Johan's expression grew cold as well.
Their gazes collided in the air. An uncomfortable tension filled the room.
Ilea eased the atmosphere with a strange smile.
“You are unusual in many ways.”
“Perhaps I am.”
“What will you do now?”
“I've thought of an interesting method.”
Johan approached the Baron.
“Gryan von Myatro.”
Drenched in fear, the Baron could only tremble. He could not answer.
“Serve me.”
He was demanding demon worship, the greatest taboo.
“If you accept, I'll spare your miserable life. What will you do?”
The Baron's eyes darted wildly.
A demon worshipper could never betray their master. The moment they entered the contract, they became the demon's slave.
“I'll give you five seconds to make up your mind. If I receive no answer, I'll reap your soul immediately.”
Johan began to count.
As time passed, the Baron's breathing grew more ragged.
His attachment to life completely consumed what little pride and duty he had left.
The Watcher of Narak was nowhere to be found. Only a beggar pleading for life remained.
“I-I will serve you! No, sir! I will serve you!”
Doubt passed across Ilea's face.
“Johan, this decision will become a heavy shackle.”
A worship contract left evidence behind. It carved a direct mark onto the person who had begun worshipping a demon.
For the Baron, it would be his heart. Having chosen to serve a demon to survive, he would live with Johan's mark carved into his chest.
The moment someone discovered the mark, the Baron would not survive. After brutal torture, he would be sent to the execution block.
Johan, his master, would not be safe either. Under the contract, the Baron could not reveal information about his master, but traces would still remain.
The Inquisition might scour the entire southern region to uncover the truth behind those traces.
Johan was taking on a great risk.
“Is it worth it?”
“Well, that depends on how you look at it. If I'm lucky, I may gain something practical as well.”
Ilea could only think of negative outcomes from leaving behind a future disaster, and she let out a quiet sigh.
“Please act carefully. Your life does not belong to you alone.”
“Don't worry. This won't harm you.”
Johan aimed Demonic Energy at the Baron.
“Gryan. From now on, you will serve me. I demand unconditional obedience and blind faith. Do you accept?”
The Baron swallowed dryly. He had no right to refuse. He lowered his head.
Johan raised the corners of his mouth in a long smile.
Then all the Demonic Energy wrapped around the Baron.
The intense backlash tore all his clothes to shreds. White flesh showed through his tattered tunic.
A mark was carved into his left chest. A terrifying fiend wielding a scythe screamed from within it.
It was Johan's mark.
The Baron stared blankly at his chest. He had truly become a demon worshipper. He would have to live in fear of the Great Saint Church for the rest of his life.
It was a pitiful state for the Watcher of Narak.
Johan spoke indifferently.
“Tomorrow morning, a ten-year-old boy will come to the castle. His name is Johan Myatro. He is your master and the heir of House Myatro, so welcome him grandly.”
The Baron seemed unable to understand what he meant.
“Get the rest of the details from Ilea.”
With that, Johan turned his gaze.
“Raguel.”
The boy flinched.
“From now on, call me your older brother.”
* * *
The lord's castle, always gloomy, was unusually bustling today.
“I was so surprised. Who would've thought the Baron had another son?”
“Tell me about it. I screamed when I heard the news at dawn.”
Today, the Baron's illegitimate son would visit the castle.
Everyone in the castle was preparing to welcome him.
A maid setting the table said,
“Isn't he illegitimate?”
“So they say. Young Master Raguel is the only one who suffers for it.”
“No. Even without a half-brother, the young master couldn't have become the heir.”
Raguel's disabilities were too severe for him to inherit the title.
“The Baron's younger brother would have taken the territory instead. Though that's impossible now.”
“His name was Kryll, right? In any case, his plans came to nothing.”
“That is his problem. We just need to make a good impression on the new young master.”
“I don't know. Lord Kryll has an army. If he decides to invade, the Baron won't be able to stop him.”
“Surely there won't be a war.”
“Who knows? Nobles are the sort who wouldn't bat an eye if hundreds of lives vanished over a single plot of land.”
Myatro territory was quite large, after all.
Bloodshed might truly come.
A gloomy look passed over every maid in the dining hall.
“You're all chattering instead of doing your work again.”
The voice came suddenly.
“The guest will arrive soon.”
It was one of the Baron's knights. A blond man in his thirties, his sharp eyes swept over the maids.
“This is why women shouldn't gather in one place. Nothing gets done when they spend all their time talking.”
He shook his head and looked at Gaf.
“Isn't that right?”
Gaf did not answer. His mind was troubled for many reasons, and the knight's words barely registered.
“Answer when you're spoken to.”
“I'm a boring man, so don't speak to me.”
“There isn't even a hint of friendliness in you. There isn't a single fellow in this castle I can socialize with, honestly.”
“Spend time with the bastard entering the castle today. He'll likely indulge your little jokes.”
“Well, he's lowborn, so he probably won't keep much distance. Having lived as a beggar, he should be used to crude jokes.”
The knight snickered and added,
“I hear his mother was a serf. I'll have some fun provoking him. There is an illegitimate child in my family as well, so I know the pleasure of it.”
Gaf spoke seriously.
“Don't cross the line. You may end up badly hurt.”
An uncomfortable look passed over the knight's face.
“I think you're the one crossing the line.”
Gaf was a commoner, while the knight was a noble.
There was an unbreakable wall between them.
Things would be somewhat different if the knight learned Gaf's mercenary alias, but for now, it was not even certain that Gaf had belonged to the Kandea Mercenary Company.
All he had was a Kandea Mercenary Company badge. A wooden piece of unknown origin could not bridge the gap in their social standing.
Gaf answered calmly.
“I only offered advice. If it offended you, I apologize.”
“I'll let it pass this time. More importantly, have you met the illegitimate son? You spoke as if you knew him well.”
A meticulous and cunning demon. That was all Gaf knew about Johan.
At least, it had been until now.
Ever since hearing Johan and Raguel's conversation last night, Gaf had felt an inexplicable sense of unease.
The two seemed close. They did not appear to share a master-servant relationship.
At the very least, Raguel was speaking honestly to Johan.
Johan's actions were strange as well.
Why had he spared the Baron? He could have turned him into a puppet and swallowed the territory.
Perhaps he had another scheme, but on the surface, it looked like consideration for Raguel.
Gaf bit his lip.
‘Am I falling for his scheme?’
Perhaps Johan intended to lower Gaf's guard through performative good deeds.
He would not be swayed.
The knight looked puzzled.
“I asked whether you knew him. Was that so unpleasant?”
Returning to reality, Gaf softened his expression.
“No. I was distracted for a moment. We don't know each other well, exactly... We've met a few times.”
“What a disappointing thing to hear. It seems the Baron trusts you more than he trusts me, even after six years together.”
The knight had never imagined that the Baron had an illegitimate son.
“I only learned of it by chance recently.”
“Even so, that is cruel. He's given me a reason to feel betrayed. Ha ha!”
Gaf furrowed his brow.
“What do you mean by...?”
Before he could finish, a maid rushed over and shouted,
“He has arrived! Everyone, gather in the corridor!”
The maids stopped their work and left the dining hall.
The knight and Gaf immediately headed for the corridor as well.
Most of the castle's residents had gathered in two straight lines facing one another along the hallway connected to the main gate.
At the center of the far end stood the Baron. He looked paler than usual.
He prayed that the gate would not open, but his wish was ignored as though to mock him.
The main gate swung open.
A black-haired boy entered with around ten soldiers. With his neatly trimmed hair and clean clothing, Johan looked like an entirely different person to Gaf.
The filthy beggar was nowhere to be seen. In his place stood a young master with an air of nobility.
The castle servants lowered their heads toward the new heir.
Johan passed between them with an expressionless face.
The closer he came, the more the Baron twisted uneasily.
“Kh... Ahem.”
At last, when father and son stood face to face, Johan raised one corner of his mouth in a grin.
“It is good to see you, Father.”
The Baron could not meet Johan's gaze. Having heard every detail from Ilea, he knew well that Johan was his master.
“W-Welcome...”
“Speak informally.”
Cold sweat streamed down the Baron's face as he watched Johan's reaction.
“Y-Yeah. Welcome.”
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