The Author's POV

'I'm sorry, but it looks like you'll have to be sacrificed.'

If possible, I would have shed a few tears at this time. However, I was a man, and men don't cry.

"Okay. You can take him."

I felt a potent glare at the back of my head, but I disregarded it. Certain sacrifices were required for the greater good, and Jin was that one sacrifice.

Priscilla's expression changed to one of surprise the moment I gave in and agreed. She looked at Jin first, then at me, with an open mouth as she alternated her gaze back and forth between us.

"You're agreeing?"

"Why not?"

"Eh?"

"What's with you?"

She displayed a surprisingly wide range of expressions today, especially for a demon of her stature. The poise that she displayed in the very beginning had long since vanished, and what I saw in front of me was nothing more than a misguided child.

'Come to think of it, if you push her buttons correctly, Angelica isn't that much different.'

Were all demons like this? 

"I'm fine with giving him to you. Of course, I won't be fine with it if you're planning on doing something bad to him."

Her objective was not hard to discern at all. She most likely was dissatisfied with the mana contract, and as a result, she wanted to keep Jin close to her in order to maintain some degree of leverage for herself.

When viewed from her perspective, her choice was one that was entirely rational. Although the mana contract was a good way to establish a certain level of "trust," it was never a bad idea to have additional leverage.

Plus, I actually wanted Jin to stay behind as well. Just like she wanted to monitor us, I also wanted to monitor her. It went both ways.

"…You are one strange human."

A smile blossomed on my face. It was rather twisted, but it still counted as one.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

*

"For now, just as agreed. I will give you a small portion of what is promised to you."

The Duchess handed me a miniature sized wooden box. The container wasn't particularly large—it was roughly the size of a notebook—and it had a very light feel to it when handled.

After opening a small wooden case, a sweet, honey-like odor permeated the entire space, and I caught a glimpse of a small bottle containing a thick black liquid inside it.

Within a few short moments after catching a whiff of the honey-like scent, the blood in my body began to circulate rapidly, and my hands instinctively reached for the bottle.

'Finally...'

"Hmmm."

Opening the lid, I gave it a good whiff.

It was good. 

"How is it?"

"It'll do."

I closed the lid and nodded in satisfaction. This was exactly what I needed.

"As per our agreement, I will now help you with your problem."

"Tell me if there is anything you would like from me."

After rising from my seat, I turned to look at the others. They were all staring at me. After a brief pause for thought, I turned my attention once more to the Duchess.

"Now that you mention it, that Duke guy…what was his name?"

"Ukhan."

"Ukhan, huh..."

I recalled his words and asked.

"Yeah, him. Didn't he say something about the gall bladder being a potent poison for you demons?"

"It is…"

Priscilla's eyes became constricted as she listened to my words, indicating that she had an implicit understanding of the question that I was about to ask.

I gave her a friendly smile before walking over to her. The moment I took a step forward, her expression changed, and the two guards who were standing behind her tensed up.

"Don't worry, I mean no harm. Let me just…"

I reached out with my hand.

"…touch your head."

***

Within the confines of an elegantly decorated room, a soothing melody lingered in the air. Duke Ukhan maintained his poise as he sipped from a murky black drink while seated in the center on a chair covered in gold plating.

"Reporting."

Two silhouettes materialized at his back. The Duke continued to enjoy the drink without so much as casting a glance in their direction.

It seemed to be to his taste.

"As requested, we've eliminated most of the requested targets. The only ones we were unable to deal with were the ones that saved the Duchess. With regards to their backgrounds, aside from the fact that they've been in the city for a little over a day now, not much is known about them."

One guard paused, and the other guard continued.

"One of the four appears to be a long-range fighter, while the other appears to be a close-range fighter who specializes in speed and the arts of the dagger. Regarding the other two, we weren't able to gather much."

"They are currently residing within the Duchess's estate and are currently under her protection. It is possible to get rid of them, but it would take a few sacrifices."

"We've currently stationed a couple of spies to monitor their movements. If you give the command, we can go ahead and eliminate them."

While he was listening to the report that was given to him by one of his servants, the Duke's expression did not shift in the least bit. Quietly listening, he nodded his head subtly and lowered his cup.

He looked down into it at the murky liquid that was contained there and then raised his head.

"There's no need."

He had given this a lot of thought, but he ultimately decided that it would not be worthwhile to give up several capable spies in order to get rid of a couple of annoyances.

Furthermore, he already had a general understanding of those 'annoyances' when he interacted with them in the cave and wasn't necessarily worried. They were nothing but flies in his eyes.

'If it comes down to it, I'll just get rid of them. They aren't anything to worry about.'

If the circumstances had been different and the Duchess's reinforcements had arrived just a tad bit later, he could already picture their skulls exploding right in front of his very eyes.

He carefully set the teacup he was holding down on the table before rising to his feet. He then moved toward the glass window that was located on the right side of the room.

Interlocking his hands behind his back, he admired the scenery in front of him.

"Keep an eye on them and report back to me whenever there is a new development regarding their situation. There are more important issues at hand right now, and it would be unproductive to focus our attention on a couple of bugs at this moment."

He licked his lips.

"We'll have plenty of time for that lat—"

"I beg to disagree."

A gentle whisper echoed in the room, startling the Duke.

"Who!"

The duke was taken aback when, as soon as he turned around, the first thing he noticed was the sight of his two guards lying face down on the ground. Passed out.

More importantly, sitting on the seat opposite him was a familiar, cloaked figure.

"Do you mind?"

He made a fleeting gesture toward the teapot. Then, as if he were in his own home, he poured himself some liquid from a cup and brought it closer to his mouth before drinking from it.

"Ukh."

He spat out the drink immediately after tasting it.

"What is this crap?"

There may have been a hood covering his features, but he seemed genuinely offended by the taste of the drink. 

"Ukh… this is no worse than dirt. What is up with you demons and drinks? Do you only know how to drink dirt?"

Duke Ukhan sat calmly opposite him on the sofa. His appearance may have initially startled him, but he soon recovered his composure.

Picking up his old teacup, he placed it in his mouth.

"Not bad."

He murmured, feeling genuinely impressed.

"The tea?"

"...Not only did you manage to sneak in here without me noticing, but you also managed to knock out two of my guards at the same time. You must have some exceptional stealth ability."

Duke Ukhan regained his composure after attributing the figure's sudden entrance and action to his extraordinary stealth-like abilities.

'He seems to be in the middle stages of Marquis.'

This was what the Duke perceived on the surface. However, given the manner in which he had dispatched his guards, he was not so naive as to believe that this was an accurate representation of his true strength.

'Most likely, he's about the same level as me. I'll have to approach this ca—'

"Puu… I know what you're thinking. Don't bother."

After spitting out one of the cookies, the hooded man wiped his mouth and smacked his lips.

"Uagh… This is worse than the tea."

It wasn't until after he swished some water around in his mouth that he finally turned his attention back to the Duke. When he did so, the Duke, who was still uncertain, had the sensation that he was smiling, and he felt a hand rapidly approach his direction.

"How dare you!?"

Bang—!

The chair collapsed, and the Duke lunged forward. His sharp claws were pointed squarely in the direction of the man's face.

"Calm down, will you."

"Uh?"

The Duke suddenly felt weak all over his body, and just as his claws were about to reach out, he stumbled forward.

'This…'

In an instant, he recognized where this power belonged, and his heart dropped.

'Sloth.'

This lethargy... 

This was definitely power that belonged to the Sloth clan. 

But it was too late.

Unable to retaliate, the Duke felt a hand grasp his neck tightly.

"Ukh."

The Duke tried to resist, but in that fleeting moment, he felt a tremendous power radiate from the hooded figure. His eyes opened wide in surprise the moment he felt the power. It made him feel insignificant.

He had only ever felt this much power from his father...

Just who was the one hidden behind the hood?

"H-ho..w?"

"What's the point in asking?" 

The hooded man looked down on him, seemingly finding the situation amusing. 

"...Doesn't this situation remind you of something?"

The man laughed

"You held him like this back in the cave. Isn't it ironic that you're now in the same position?"

When he raised his other hand, a dark substance came into the Duke's view. Observing the substance in his hand, the Duke suddenly had a horrifying intuition, and his eyes widened in astonishment.

However, under 'his' grasp, all he could do was stare as the substance was slowly brought to his mouth and forcefully shoved.

"Drink. You won't die."

Everything turned black shortly after.

"...At least not yet."

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