Chapter 5: Chapter 5
I woke up a little late this morning. I am not really one to sleep in, but I could not help it after everything that happened. Unfortunately, I missed breakfast, but the inn staff were kind enough to give me some of the leftovers. It was not as tasty cold, but I still enjoyed the meal. After I ate, I ended up going out again. I hope that I do not have to go into that slave market, but I still have a few more things to buy.
Once on the street, the sun is shining, and a light breeze blows through the streets, but I still frown when I see a wagon pass by carrying a cage full of slaves. I try not to look, but an idol like girl grabs my attention. She has long black hair and a pretty face, but she looks away when our eyes meet. Next to her was a more petite girl with violet-coloured hair staring intently at me. "I'm sorry," I lower my head. There is nothing I can do for her.
I reach my first store. It is a small shop Martha recommended to me that sells weapons and armour. I am not looking to buy a complete knight armour set, but if I ever reencounter monsters, I would like something to wear for protection. When I step inside, I feel relieved that the female armour is not like video games and anime. There is no bikini armour or skimpy outfits. Instead, there are rows of several types of armour sets that look like they will actually protect me.
"Wel… welcome to my store,"
I do not like how the shop owner pauses when he sees me, but I ignore that for now. He is a chubby old man with balding grey hair and dark green eyes. He smiles, but he seems more interested in my chest than me as a customer. I clear my throat, snapping him out of his daze and getting him to look me in the eyes.
"What can I do for you, young lady?" He smiles, walking up to me. "I sell sets of armour here, not dresses, so if you got the wrong shop, please leave at once."
"Actually, I am here about replacing my old armour," I tell him with a small lie. "If you have something light and easy to move in, I would be happy to take it off your hand."
"Then you are after leather," The man says before pointing at the back of the store. "Go to the back of the store, and you will find my leather stuff there and pay at the counter."
Leather armour. It reminds me of the beginning of RPG's I played in the past. I wonder if there is stuff like mithril as well in this world. I have a magical sword already, so there must be mithril here as well. I cannot see anything here that looks like it is made of mithril, but maybe stuff like that is only sold in high-end stores.
I found what I was looking for exactly where the shopkeeper said I would. There are countless sets of leather armour at the back of the store, varying in design and quality. Some remind me of biker jackets and others that would fit into a post-apocalyptic movie with the way they have spikes sticking out of their shoulders. In the end, I settle on the higher end pieces of armour and look for one that fits me.
I end up with a simple set consisting of a soft and flexible leather jacket with hard leather sections covering my chest, shoulders, and wrists. It is heavier than I expected, but it does not impede my movement. After trying it on, I decided to buy it before finding a matching pair of trousers with hard leaver plates over my shins. I head to the front desk and manage to buy the armour set for five silver coins. I had him send my purchase to the inn before leaving, feeling glad to be out of that place. I swear that man looked lower than he should have as I left.
Now I only have to buy potions. Potions is a must in a fantasy world. It feels strange saying that because I hoard all my potions whenever I play games and never use them. I once got into a tough fight with a boss and blew through my healing items early one only to discover there was a second part to the boss fight. I died, and since then, I rarely used a potion while playing games. I should be able to buy as much as I like. Or so I thought.
"There expensive…" I mutter when I ask an alchemist about his prices.
It turns out in this world, potions cost an arm and a leg. I am told it is because they are in high demand, but that price still seems too high. For example, I could buy two of everything I have bought in Seiryuu city so far. That will still be cheaper than the cost of one lesser potion of healing. In the end, I bought a beginners alchemy set and guild book for one gold and three silver coins. I cannot die in the world, so gathering the ingredients will not be a problem, even if they are only found in a dangerous area. I have them sent to the inn as well before I head to my next stop.
My final stop is the local book store. I wanted to come here to see if there is anything useful like an atlas or history book to learn more about this world. Still, none of that was available in the store. I am told that history books are only found in libraries while maps do not exist here. The best I could get would be a hand-drawn map, but I am not sure how dependable that would be, so I did not buy it. However, I did buy a book about plants that I thought would help me gather ingredients for a single gold coin. Once again, I have it sent to the inn before I head out.
It is around lunchtime when I leave the book store, so I head over to the food stalls Martha told me about. It smells lovely here, and it feels so lively, but that feeling does not last long. The kids I thought were playing were, in reality, slaves rushing to complete their orders. I can start to hear people arguing, and then I have to duck out of the way as someone being chased by armoured soldiers nearly runs into me. It is not the worst place I have visited, but it certainly is not the best first impression I have ever had.
The food does not look that appetising either as I see what look like bat wings on wings and people not looking happy with their food at other stores. In the end, I end up walking all the way down to the other end of the food stalls until finally, something stops me. The smell of… soy sauce? Is it soy sauce I smell? I follow my nose and confirm it for myself. It really is soy sauce. Somehow something from my old world has made it over here. Does that mean that I am not the first Japanese person to be sent to this world? I'm too hungry to think about it. I quickly walk up to the stall with soy sauce deciding to buy whatever they sell.
"I'll take one, please," I say once I reach the front of the small line.
"Certainly, miss," The man smells. "That will be one small copper." I quickly pay and take a croquette from the man. "Thank you for your patronage."
I smell as I leave, but I could not find anywhere to sit down, so I end up leaning against a small tree. The croquette is not as good as I have had before in Japan, but it still tastes delicious. It is a bit heavy, but that may be due to the differences in available ingredients between here and Japan. I slowly nibble my lunch as I watch a crowd gather nearby around a chubby priest. I hope it will not be like this one priest I saw preach once that told everyone who ignored him would be sent to hell.
"Let us punish these children of demons! Cast these sacred stones at them and pave the way to purity!"
It was worse than I thought. The priest quickly starts shouting, accusing a group of girls of being the daughters of demons in a scene that reminds me of a witch hunt. And to my surprise, people are listening to him. A crowd starts to gather around the priest, and they are under his influence in a matter of seconds. The crowd cheer on the priest, repeating his words, and look like they will do whatever he says, but something does not seem right here. There is no way this many people would get carried away like this.
"Good people of virtue! Do you remember the Starfall of a few days past, surely a sign of divine wrath?"
"YES!"
"We remember!"
"YEAH!"
That's it. When I look more closely at the crowd, I can see people are ready and waiting for the priest's words. They rile up the crowd and are the loudest voices amongst the sea of people. They must be on the priest payroll or gain something from it.
"And there is more! Just yesterday, a servant of the demon lord attacked the count's castle!"
"OH, LORD!"
"Please send a hero to save us!"
"No!"
I doubt the priest is telling the truth about the attack. If it really did happen, this city would be on lockdown. I have experienced the actions police would take whenever they think there is a threat to life. I would have thought a medieval would have tightened security tighter if the castle really was attacked.
"Someone rushed into the guardroom of the count's castle yesterday and said there was a black shadow flying around, but none of the watchmen or the other people on the grounds saw it."
"Maybe they just made it up?"
"I don't see why anyone would do that. I mean, that person was imprisoned in the castle dungeon for disturbing the peace."
That last comment only increases my doubt about the attack on the castle really happening. If there really was an attack, they would not have arrested that person.
"This is proof that the protection of the gods is waning! Good citizens, we must prove our virtue! If we perform enough righteous acts, we will be shielded from the coming storm!"
"Help us, Father!!"
"YEAH!"
"Virtue!!"
Those people again. those people I believe the priest is paying off, keep getting the crowd worked up. If something does not stop them soon, the crowd will riot.
"We must accrue proof of our virtue! Do you understand, good citizens? Virtue!"
"VIRTUUUE!"
"YEEEAH!"
"TELL US HOW!!"
I bet I could make a fortune as a con artist here.
"Look at these creatures!" The fat priest pointed accusingly at the girls in the plaza's centre. "These demi-humans are failed hell demons… No, the spawn of the demon lord himself! Prove your integrity through the good deed of enacting divine justice!"
"YEEEAH!"
"LET'S KILL 'EM!!!"
KILL THEM! Why would they go that far? Those girls are chained up helplessly in the plaza's centre with no way to defend themselves. Now that I get a better look at them, two of those girls have animal ears. One of them has dog ears and the other the ears of a cat. An older girl that looks close to my own age with a tail and what looks like scales quickly moves to shield the younger girls with her own body.
"Wait! Pious citizens!! To kill them would be against the laws of this kingdom. We must hold back!"
"Then what do we do, Father?!"
"KILL 'EM!!!"
It is those guys again. I am sure the priest is paying them now as they keep supporting whatever the fat priest says.
"We cannot kill them—but we can cast these holy stones at the demon spawn!"
"FATHER!!"
"GIVE US THE STONES!!"
"YES!"
I see that lizard girl brace herself as some of the people yelling start to bring out bags of stones. They are definitely working for the priest. There is no question in my mind about that now.
"But it won't be free! Buying the stones with your own money is righteous indeed!"
"YEEEAH!"
"VIRTUUUE!!"
The people paid to shout must be too busy dragging out the stones because the crowd's response was a lot quieter this time.
"The stones are one copper each! And to show my generosity, I'll give you five stones for one large copper!"
The crowd seems to stop, and I pray they come to their senses. Unfortunately, it appears that all they are doing is worrying about the cost of those stones.
"Devout men and women! Why do you hesitate? We have only so many stones, you know! This good deed is first come, first served!"
"I'LL TAKE ONE!"
"Sell them to me!"
"YEAH!"
"Form a line!"
I need to stop this. Those girls will end up dead with the way things are going, but what can I do. That priest looks too happy to stop things, and the people selling the stone look too greedy. If I try to stop them by force, I might be killed myself. I jumped when I heard the scaled girl cry out in pain. The crowd wasted no time and threw stones at the girl. If I was some isekai protagonist, I would have been overpowered enough to stop this.
"Kill the demi-humans!!"
"YEAH!"
"Punish the demons!"
I need to stop this somehow! I need to think of a… am I seeing things, or did the stone in one of the people's hands just shatter. It is probably nothing. I would not put it past guys sleazy enough to see stones used to keep three girls to also sell crumbling rocks. But then something similar happens, only this time what I think is a coin strikes someone's hand forcing them to drop their stone. Someone is helping those girls! But when I look around, I cannot see who.
"Stop this inhumane treatment at once!" A beautiful girl with light-golden hair quickly steps between the crowd and the girls.
"What was that, little girl? Are you an ally of the hell demons, too?!"
So now the girls are allies of the hell demons, not just their children.
"Those who align themselves with demons are demons themselves!"
"YEAH!"
But that girls heroics may have just got her killed. The crowd quickly turned on her.
"Don't try to deceive these people! Does Zaicuon Temple intend to break the law?!"
"What wrong is there in casting holy stones at these foul beastfolk?"
"GET 'EM!"
"Let's throw the stones at her, too!!"
"YEAH!"
Stones are thrown her way, but the girl speaks like she has been placed on fast forward. Then all of a sudden, a barrier of wind surrounds all four of the girls. The stones are knocked away, and I smile when I see the fat priest get hit in the shin by one of those stones. Someone like him deserves far worse for trying to murder those girls.
That boy. I can see that boy from the inn that everyone said looked like me. He Is making his way through the crowd knocking everyone on the priests payroll out and dragging them away. Three, four, five people are taken out by him. There were far more than I ever realised, but somehow, he knows who to target amongst the crowd.
"The only one claiming that demi-humans are kin to demons is the Zaicuon Temple—no, only you!"
Another priest arrives, but this one is dressed differently from the fat priest.
"Ah, the head of the ever-philanthropic Garleon Temple. If you're so fond of the beasts, you're welcome to use them however you'd like once we're through punishing them!"
The fat priest is the worse. Even suggesting someone uses girls as young as them however they want is seriously wrong.
"Kill them!!"
"Punish the demon spawn!"
"Yeah!"
"Do you realise what you're doing? Suppose you keep working up their anxiety and turn this crowd into a mob. In that case, the Zaicuon Temple will be held responsible for treason!"
"Hmph—you're nothing but a foolish lizard, playing at borrowing the power of dragons! You're telling me not to kill the demons? Doesn't that make you a traitor yourself?!"
"Kill the demons!"
"That girl must be one in disguise!!"
"Get them!"
When I look back at that boy, I see he is still hard at work, but someone else has noticed him too. He does not seem to realise, but a woman is closing in on him as he drags of another one of the fat priest's lackeys. I can see her pulling a small knife coasted in something green. I have to do something, or that boy will die. Sleeping into the crowd, I managed to sneak up on the woman without her noticing. Thanks to my surprise attack and stealth skill, I knocked her out without anyone noticing. I move over to a nearby tree and slip back to where I was initially standing. The boy did not seem to notice as he had his hand's full, targeting someone else.
"People of the west quarter! All of us feel the same unease. But we must not become cowards who punish the weak out of fear!"
"Do you hear that? The Garleon priest condemns you all as evil! He condemns you for seeking out virtue!"
This fat priest is only making things worse. The crowd is likely to rush the priest and the girls any moment now and tear them apart. I bite my bottom lip and look to the boy, hoping he has some idea how to put an end to things. But he is still hard at work taking out the priests hired shouters.
"Kill the demons!"
"That priest's a fraud!!"
"Yeah!"
"Please end this already. No matter how many stones you throw, I'll stop them all!"
"How dare you get in the way of our sacred deed?! You are a fool to defy our god!"
The fat priest looks ready to kill the girl casting magic himself. I am glad she showed up because if it was not for her, those three chained up girls would have been killed at least ten times by now. But that boy has done his job now as there are fewer cries from the crowd, and it looks like he is now confronting the shouter's ringleader. I winched when he kicked the ringleader, but I do not sympathise with him after everything that happened.
"Everyone, please break this up! If this continues, the count's army really will come to stop you. If you're worried, come to the temple instead! We'll listen to your fears."
"Are you trying to defy god's will?! You godless fool!"
The fat priest does not seem to notice his hired help has been taken out. He is still arguing with the other priest and does not even notice the boy approaching. I would laugh when I saw the priests reaction when the boy dropped the hired helps leader right in front of him, but I did not want to attract attention.
"Lord Urs?! Why, you! What have you done to this faithful follower who offered up his slaves?! You apostate!"
Despite the priest yelling, the boy ignores him and instead walks over to that magic-user. She must be the next girl he is after now that he is done with that drunk woman from last night.
"Sorry I took so long, Zena. And thank you for your work, too, Sir Priest. This is the man behind this scheme."
So, they really do know each other. But as much as I am worried that girl is with this womaniser, I still feel relieved that things are finally coming to an end.
"Amazing, Satou! Your agility really is the best thing about you!"
I am not sure if that is really a compliment, but Zena and Satou seem happy.
"This man is the culprit?" The young priest asks, and Satou confirms it with a nod of his head.
"Zena, do you have enough power left to make my voice reach the whole plaza?"
"Yes…" I cannot understand the following words Zena says. It sounds like she has been set to fast forward again, but she ends it by saying: "Whisper Wind!"
If this is how people use magic in this world, then I better give up now because there is no way I can speak that fast.
"Can you see him, everyone? This is the man behind the curtain! He loaned his slaves to the Zaicuon Temple to prey on your fears and fool you all into buying a bunch of ordinary pebbles with your hard-earned money!"
Satou shouts, sounding like he is an announcer at some event as he raises the hired helps ringleader high into the air. He really is a lot stronger than he looks.
"Give us our money back!" The loudest voice yet sets off a chorus of cries demanding their money back.
"Give it back!"
"Give it back!"
"Give it back!"
The crowd shouts, causing that fat priest to start to sweat. It looks like the tables have turned, and the priest himself might end up being stoned to death in place of those girls.
"And he had an even deeper motive! On top of making a quick buck with this priest, his real goal was to provoke all of you into rebelling against the count. This man is the real demon worshipper!"
This guy is too dangerous. He makes up a false tale like that, and people seem to believe him. I feel he might have paid some people to work up the crowd.
"Was this man controlling the hell demons from the shadows?!"
It is that loud man again. Satou must have paid him to back up his claims. But when I see Satou's reaction to those words, I can tell he did not mean for things to go that far.
"Heh-heh-heh…"
My blood freezes as I hear that laughter. It is not human. No human could possibly make a sound like that. I shive as it feels like the temperature suddenly drops. It's the ring leader. He's laughing, but his lips are not moving. Then it happens. Without warning, two long black hands explode from within his chest. In an instant, that fat priest has been torn to shreds in a gory scene of violence that nearly makes me throw up.
This is worse than the movies. That priest blood is everywhere while his organs have been shredded beyond recognition. The ring leader screams as he stares wide-eyed in fear at the hands coming from his chest. I want to look away, but I cannot take my eyes away from the scene. I want to run, but my legs refuse to move. This cannot be happening. Is that thing a Hell Demon? Was there one in this city all along?
"What the hell…are these…?"
I can hear the ringleader ask, but no one replies or even moves as he coughs up blood. This cannot be real. This must be some kind of nightmare.
"A hell demon! Everyone, leave the plaza at once!"
Even though the priest orders everyone to leave, not everyone obeys. Some people run, but many others are frozen in place like me. A few brave people or maybe foolish would be a better word to call them try to fight the demon. They throw stones at the ring leader. But all they accomplish is the death of the ring leader and spilling more blood on the ground.
"Satou, grab those girls and get them out of here! I'm going to find help!"
"R-right!"
Zena and Satou seem to be the only ones thinking rationally right now. They quickly move to save the chained girls and get us some backup. But embarrassingly, I am still too scared to even move. Satou really is stronger than he looks. He tears the pole the girls are chained to right out of the ground.
"It's not safe here—you have to run away! I can't get your chains off, so you'll have to move together and try to hide in the shadows of a sturdy building."
But despite freeing them and telling the girls to run, they stay where they are. They must be just as scared as I am. They refuse to move, acting as if they are still chained to that pole.
"He gave us an order…so we can't…,"
"He told us not to move."
"I'm terribly sorry. Our master, Urs, told us not to move from this spot… If we disobey, our enslavement collars will tighten completely. Please, forget about us and go."
Each girl gave their answers with voices devoid of hope. Enslavement collars. Who would invent such a thing? Creating a collar that strangles people for disobeying is just pure evil.
"Charge! Defeat the hell demon!"
More people join in throwing stones at the demon, but that only makes it last more. I have a terrible feeling in my stomach that something bad is about to happen. The ringleader's body has become a bloody mess, but still, the demon laughs and even uses those black hands to stand up.
"Ah! The demon's getting up! Everybody hide!"
This is not real. I can only stare at the ringleader's broken, bloody body as black mist starts to appear from the hole where his chest used to be.
"You worms… You're doing me a favour by smashing up my host's head. I, grateful!"
The demon is coming. Its voice terrified me with every word it muttered.
Circle of Anti-Evil Fuuma no Enjin!"
"How clever. I, amused!"
The priest manages to cast a spell, but it is useless. A circle of light seals the demon away, but it only laughs. The priest starts that wired fast forward sounding spell chanting again, but the demon does not seem scared.
"Grrr… Cannot use magic with a human's voice! I, frustrated."
I can see people staring from windows and around the corners of buildings. They need to get away from here. I need to run away! But my legs continue to refuse to move as if my feet have become nailed to the ground. I have never been this scared before. Not even when I was fighting in that cave was I this scared.
The hell demon finally appears. Tearing the ringleader's body in half as it erupts from his chest. It is not some horned monster like I was expecting with red skin and wielding a pickaxe, but I am still terrified by it. The hell demon is a giant eyeball with arms sprouting from its sides and wings on its back. The hell demon hovers as people scream and stare at it. The priest is still chanting, and I do not think he will make it in time.
"Hur-hur-hur-hur. There, can speak more easily now. I, delighted!"
"Sacred Javelin Seinaru Yari!"
The priest finally managed to cast a spell after what felt like a lifetime of chanting. A javelin of light flew from the priest aimed straight at the centre of the hell demons eyeball.
"I, amused!"
I feel my heart drop as the javelin of light is blocked when the hell demon forms a barrier around itself. It is similar to the magical girl Zen's wind barrier early, only inky black colour. Within seconds the javelin of light has been blocked, and the sealing circle below the hell demon is destroyed. How are we meant to beat this thing?
"All that panic…the anxiety and fear…the prejudice and conceit… It suits my needs perfectly! I, content!" This is bad. If this hell demon attacks, there is no way anyone here will survive. "And thus, will now create a nesting hole in this ground for my lord. He will be most pleased! I, hardworking!"
His lord? Do not tell me there are more hell demons around here. Or could it be… please do not say there is something more powerful than this monster in this world. That bad feeling, I have only got worse as I see a dark circle spread out beneath the hell demon. I need to get out of here! I need to run, but my legs still refuse to move.
"Satou! I brought reinforcements!"
Zena returns, and when I turn to see her, I spot multiple armed soldiers following her lead. Zena rushes to Satou's side while the soldiers surround the demon blocking it on all sides with massive metal shields. It is too late. If that priest's magic failed, then I do not think steel spears and swords would affect this thing.
"Zena, wait! He's casting some kind of spell! Stay back!"
But despite the warning, Zena still runs towards Satou. But even if she did run, I do not think Zena would have made it to safety. The ground beneath my feet warps without warning, looking like the effect you would expect from an old movie. The ground is still solid, but it warps and glows before suddenly I am sucked beneath the surface.
<0>
I'm alone. When I wake up, I can see no one around me. This is looking like when I first woke up in this world. Once again, I find myself alone, in a cave with only one way in and out. Water drips into a small puddle to my left, and wired blue crystals faintly glow, but apart from that, there is nothing else in this room.
"Welcome to my lord's labyrinth. It has no name yet, but it will soon produce demons to play with you. You should be grateful! I, diligent!"
That hell demon again. I cannot see him, but it sounds like he is in the room with me. It must be addressing everyone at once.
"Now amuse me with all your fear! Kill each other! Steal from each other! I, pleased!" The demon paused for a moment before speaking again. "…Resignation will hollow out your souls. I, disgusted! Thus, have made it, so all the rooms are connected to the exit. I, fair! Looking forward to the moment your hope gives way to despair. Fight to survive, you worms! I, excited!"
At least I will be able to get out of here. I take a deep breath a try to calm myself down. I can do this. I have done it before already, and even if I die, I will just respawn. I can do this. Taking my magical sword out of storage. I take another deep breath. I can do this. I feel safer already, just holding my sword. I will get out of here. I start to walk towards the exit from the cave I am in. I will make it back to the surface.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone