WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Whispers of a Scheming Demon ◈
Chapter 55: Mapeltan (2)
──────
In the dark underground library, Zalkarin’s reading voice echoed softly.
The Imp had been reading books to Raguel all day.
Zalkarin was more devoted to its duty than expected. It could not neglect the role entrusted to it.
After all, the task had come from an Apostle.
“Lower your voice. You’re loud.”
Mapheltan leaned against a bookshelf, staring into a full-length mirror.
He was locked in a staring contest with the image of “Johan” reflected within it.
“M-My apologies! I shall read more quietly.”
Zalkarin’s voice immediately dropped.
Johan returned to his thoughts.
‘An Ominous Book in the form of a mirror.’
The Ominous Book Kaiaje had given him took the form of a full-length mirror.
Several questions lingered in his mind.
Why was the Ominous Book shaped like a mirror?
And why did its surface reflect “Johan” when “Mapheltan” was currently in his demon form?
After thinking for a moment, Kaiaje’s advice suddenly came to mind.
“The Ominous Book represents its owner’s identity.”
Mapheltan gazed silently at Johan in the mirror.
‘Does this mean my essence is still human?’
There was a gap between human and demon.
Perhaps when that boundary became unclear, Mapheltan would appear in the mirror instead of Johan.
‘It’s a fairly intuitive function.’
From now on, he could use the mirror to reflect upon himself.
He was reasonably satisfied with that.
Of course, there was something he disliked as well.
Mapheltan’s gaze moved to the top of the Ominous Book.
‘...Hmm.’
Words were written on the mirror.
『 O all evils, let us sing. The first incantation of the End is Mapheltan. Hypocrites, stand silent before that name. Break your tongues and swallow blood in place of words. Your god will not hear you anyway. 』
The passage had been written however the scribe demon pleased, and the same words had likely been engraved in every Ominous Book in the world.
Whatever was written in the original Ominous Book was transmitted exactly to all its copies.
Mapheltan found the situation rather unpleasant.
The name “Mapheltan” had been revealed to the world without his permission.
Important secrets might also leak through the same method someday.
It was a problem he needed to address immediately.
Mapheltan spoke in a low voice.
“Do not activate the Ominous Book without my permission. This is your first and last warning.”
A black fairy slowly slipped from the transparent mirror.
It drooped its wings and bowed deeply to Mapheltan.
It seemed to understand his words. Mapheltan waved a hand as though annoyed.
The fairy vanished back into the mirror.
‘That should do it.’
Now it was time to examine his newly acquired Authorities.
When he closed his eyes, red words filled his vision.
Contract with a Demon, Dream Demon, Soul Erasure, Soul-Shaving Restoration, Word of Authority.
Soul-Shaving Restoration and Word of Authority had been newly added.
He had gained the former when he absorbed the Ominous Book into his body, and the latter as backlash from corrupting Holy Spear Espada.
First was Soul-Shaving Restoration.
Its method of use had been engraved into his instincts.
‘Shave away the soul and restore the form.’
Simply put, it was a power related to the body’s regenerative ability.
Soul-Shaving Restoration was likely why Mapheltan had been able to survive even after being pierced by Holy Spear Espada.
That seemed to be the general idea.
But one point bothered him.
‘Shaving away the soul...’
Like the law of equivalent exchange, it meant he consumed his soul each time he regenerated his body.
If he relied too much on his recovery and acted recklessly, he might become nothing more than an empty shell without a soul.
Mapheltan looked down at his chest.
As a side effect of the Authority Soul Erasure, he could see a target’s soul. Naturally, he could sense his own soul as well.
A hazy mist stirred within his pitch-black body.
‘...It has definitely grown smaller.’
It must have been the backlash from recovering the wound inflicted by the Holy Spear.
‘I should use it as sparingly as possible.’
With that resolve, Mapheltan turned his attention to Word of Authority.
It was an Authority that seemed intuitive, yet was bound by abstract conditions.
It was a power that used words to impose compulsion upon another.
Of course, the target had to be inferior to the owner of the Word of Authority.
For example, Mapheltan could not engrave a Word of Authority upon Garnish. The one he had used in anger before had likely failed.
There were several other conditions as well. He would probably need to experiment directly before becoming familiar with its uses.
An opportunity would come soon enough.
Lastly, Mapheltan took out Dread Spear Turabak.
More than anything, Turabak was the greatest reward for all the hell he had been through.
The sacred weapon that once burned evil had now been corrupted into a cursed spear that left humans with eternal wounds.
Any human pierced by this spear even once would have little chance of surviving.
It was highly useful.
The corners of Mapheltan’s lips rose.
What expression would Gawain make when he saw Turabak?
The mischievous thought came to him for no reason, and Mapheltan shook his head.
‘This really makes me seem like a demon.’
He immediately pushed the thought away.
He had roughly sorted everything out. Now it was time to move.
“Ilea, are you there?”
Ilea slowly emerged from behind the bookshelf. She held a book in her hand, likely a forbidden book related to Garnish.
“Did you call for me?”
“There’s something I need to discuss.”
“You’re making me nervous by saying that so suddenly.”
At times like this, Mapheltan would make suggestions beyond anything she could imagine. Things like, “Let’s steal a piece of the Great Saint’s body.”
He opened his mouth.
“I need to make a trip to Narak.”
Ilea tilted her head.
“Johan... no, Mapheltan, personally?”
“That’s right. A reason to go has come up.”
Doubt crossed Ilea’s face.
“I oppose it for now, but I would like to hear the reason.”
Narak was still too dangerous for both Johan and Mapheltan.
“As you know, the entire kingdom is watching the south.”
It was honestly an extremely burdensome situation. If they did not resolve it quickly, they would suffer greatly one way or another.
“Are you planning to use Narak to divert their attention?”
Mapheltan nodded.
“You understand without needing much explanation. Exactly.”
“I understand the general context, but my opinion has not changed. Narak is too dangerous. It may be different for Mapheltan, but Johan’s body would not even be able to breathe comfortably there.”
Narak was steeped in highly toxic Demonic Energy.
Even the least dangerous First Zone was thick with Yin Energy.
An ordinary human could not survive in Narak.
Mapheltan spoke indifferently.
“What if I do not need to turn into Johan for a while?”
To balance the Scales of Equivalence, Mapheltan needed to live as a demon for the time being.
“What do you mean?”
“Garnish said something about the Scales of Equivalence.”
Johan briefly told her what Garnish had said.
After hearing everything, Ilea spoke.
“If that is true, then this is certainly the right time to visit Narak.”
The gates of Narak opened only during a full moon.
A full moon cycle in this world lasted roughly two weeks, meaning that once someone entered Narak, nobody could leave for two weeks.
Under normal circumstances, Mapheltan would have needed to endure half of those two weeks in a human body.
This time was different.
He could spend all his time in Narak as a demon.
Mapheltan spoke.
“So you agree.”
“I agree if it is only as far as the First Zone. No further.”
“I’m not an idiot. I only intended to go as far as the First Zone from the start.”
Certain death waited in the zones beyond it.
“Fine. When are we leaving?”
“Tomorrow evening. I will take the Key to Narak first.”
Ilea possessed the Key to Narak. After descending into the First Zone and obtaining World Tree Sap, she had not yet returned the key to Mapheltan.
Confusion crossed Ilea’s face.
“Wait, am I not going?”
If she were coming with him, there would be no reason for him to ask for the key.
“There is something else I need you to do. You must immediately move the explosion that erupts in Narak to the kingdom.”
If they succeeded, every eye currently focused on the south would be diverted.
Ilea’s role was very important.
“You truly are unreasonable.”
“I’m asking for your help. We’ll discuss the details again in the morning.”
Mapheltan had things to finish before leaving for Narak.
He needed to deal with the matter of the two knights, Maira and Kembell.
As Mapheltan moved to leave the library, Ilea muttered quietly.
“I have not even said I would help yet.”
Mapheltan did not hear her. As though he had just remembered, he casually added:
“Oh, right. Raguel and Zalkarin will be coming too, so Ilea, I will leave their preparations to you.”
Raguel hiccuped in shock.
“M-Me? To Narak?”
He had heard the entire conversation.
“It seems it is time to fulfill my contract with you.”
He could not postpone his promise to restore Raguel’s sight forever.
Raguel seemed conflicted, but gave no response.
Zalkarin shouted excitedly instead.
“Great End! This vile creature shall live up to your expectations!”
Narak was heaven for demons.
A Lesser Evil Spirit would grow simply by breathing there.
Mapheltan started walking again.
“In any case, make your preparations. We leave tomorrow evening.”
He soon left the library.
Ilea watched the stairs and let out a brief sigh.
* * *
A sharp blade split the curtain of night.
A transparent sword trail traced a perfectly straight horizontal line. Moonlight gathered on the sweat droplets flung upward before scattering away.
In the empty training ground, Gaf swung his sword alone, trying to drive away his thoughts.
‘Damn it.’
No matter how much he moved, his distracting thoughts would not disappear.
The tip of his sword only continued to shake.
He threw his sword onto the ground and lay down.
“Damn Half-Demon. What the hell are you?”
Stars filled the night sky.
A moon not yet quite full shone among them.
“Great Saint, please answer me. What exactly is that bastard?”
No answer returned.
Only a mocking laugh came from afar.
“What’s with the self-pity in the middle of the night?”
Gaf immediately sat up.
A silhouette darker than the night was approaching him.
Scarlet eyes flashed in the darkness.
Gaf spoke.
“...You are openly walking around the castle without even being careful.”
“Then excuse my intrusion.”
Mapheltan stopped in front of Gaf.
He placed his black hands on Gaf’s shoulders.
At the same time, enormous wings spread to either side.
Before Gaf could resist, Mapheltan shot into the sky in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, Gaf and Mapheltan were suspended in the night sky.
Gaf’s face twisted with anger and confusion.
“What are you doing all of a sudden?”
Mapheltan let Gaf dangle beneath him as he spoke.
“We are going to deal with the count’s knights. Guide me.”
He handled Gaf as though he were an object.
Gaf’s anger surged.
He thrashed wildly in the air.
“You damned demon! Put me down right now!”
Mapheltan paid him no attention.
“You will die if you fall. Even if you are the Lion of the East.”
Lions did not have wings.
“I will tear you apart with these hands, you bastard of mixed blood! You really are a demon!”
Mapheltan gave a short laugh.
“Then what? Did you think I was human?”
Gaf’s anger became a delicacy to Mapheltan.
Mapheltan could not pass up even such trivial experience points.
“One day, I will tear you apart with these hands!”
“I look forward to that day.”
The pitch-black figure crossed the night sky.
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
