Chapitre 85: Chapter 84
Chapter 84: Golden land Macht: Villainous Gangster Version of Aura
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It might have been because she hadn't spoken to Ash for a whole year after their quarrel, bottling up too much frustration. Now, on the way to the battlefield, Aura was unusually lively, and as they passed the fortress city of weise, a thought suddenly struck her.
"Speaking of which, Ash…"
"What?"
"I remember Macht is in weise now?"
"Macht… ah, Golden land Macht? That guy's hiding among humans?"
He wasn't someone who usually remembered others, but he did have a strong impression of Macht, the strongest among the Seven Sages of Destruction. Seeing his surprised look, Aura covered her mouth with a mischievous grin. "You handle government affairs every day, and you didn't even realize Macht is now serving mankind?"
"Is that true? What exactly is going on?" Although he thought Macht deserved a beating as usual, Ash didn't act on his impulse and instead urged Aura to explain more.
"I heard before that he seemed to be looking for something? It seemed to be related to guilt?" Aura's tone carried a hint of boredom as she casually recounted what she'd heard during her last encounter with Macht. She then added, "Also, Lightning Hulek and his men were all killed by Macht a while ago when they attacked that city. If it's not necessary, we should stay away from him. He's a troublesome guy."
"The general of the Demon King's army?... This guy really has no fraternity with his own kind."
"Who cares about that kind of thing? Do you care?"
"That's true…"
Though feeling slightly conflicted, Ash changed direction, taking Aura with him to find a nearby carriage. Ignoring Aura's confused look, he promptly led them both into the city.
Despite what Aura had said, he couldn't shake his curiosity. It wasn't every day you saw demons actively engaging with humans, which only piqued his interest in Macht's motives.
"Lord Ash is just like Lady Aura. Both are willful people," Linie sighed, resting her chin on her hand as she sat in the carriage.
Aura, however, frowned and glared at her, clearly annoyed. "So, have you really picked up bad habits? Now you think I'm willful too?"
"But Master Ash said I could say whatever I wanted?"
"And who adopted you first, Linie?"
"Um… I'm sorry, Lady Aura." Linie seemed to ponder for a moment before bowing her head, a dejected look on her face as she admitted her mistake.
Ash, who overheard the conversation, lifted the cloth covering the carriage and looked back. "Aura, don't bully Linie—she's still a child."
"Tsk, lolita, you only ever protect Linie."
"...What is lolita? Where did you even pick that up from?" He shook his head in exasperation but decided against lecturing Aura further. Ever since she was a child, Aura had been rebellious. Any attempt to educate her only seemed to backfire, and now he'd resigned himself to leaving things as they were.
...
...
Weise, a large city-fortress on the empire's border, was a place where nobles who had lost in the empire's power struggles would often flee. Like most aristocrats of that era, they plundered wealth from the common people, mercilessly exploiting them.
Their greed was almost insatiable, comparable to draining a pond to catch all the fish, and every year countless citizens fell into poverty and starved. Ash had gathered this information from various sources over time, though scenes like these were all too common in this world.
In a world where his moderate moral standards already made him seem virtuous, he expected the worst as they passed through the city gates. Yet, what greeted him was a surprise—a thriving and unexpectedly prosperous city lay before him.
On the main streets of the city, buildings of various shapes and sizes lined both sides, a mix of houses and shops bustling with activity. Most of the residents seemed ordinary, free of the signs of overwork, oppression, or the weary numbness Ash had expected.
Intrigued, Ash wandered quietly through the streets, bringing Aura and Linie along until they reached the lord's mansion. As they stepped into the open green space before it, a tall male demon suddenly appeared in front of them. He had a large horn on his forehead, wore a cloak draped over his left shoulder, and though not excessively built, he was quite imposing.
Ash realized with a jolt that the demon had been within his magic detection range all along, yet none of them had sensed him until he made himself visible. The precision with which this demon controlled his magic far surpassed even Flamme's, whom Ash had known to be highly skilled.
In fact, the demon's magical control was so refined that Ash felt he might be more dangerous than the Corrupted Sage. Given that even a full-strength assault by the Brave Team couldn't defeat the Corrupted Sage, Ash knew that if this formidable demon followed the Demon King's orders to destroy them, there would be no outcome but annihilation. Avoiding direct confrontation seemed the only viable option.
Ash had also heard from Frieren about how, around six hundred years ago, Macht had defeated her effortlessly. However, he hadn't killed her; he'd treated her as a minor inconvenience and let her go. Without that mercy, Ash might never have met Frieren.
Even after all this time, Frieren couldn't conceive of a way to defeat Macht, not even theoretically. Six centuries had passed, and while Frieren had progressed, she recognized that her growth was far slower compared to the young Macht of that time. Macht was a monster beyond human reach, with magical prowess refined to a level most could never attain, and with a goddess as his aspirational goal. This was the Golden Town Macht.
Ash glanced at Macht, then shifted his gaze to Aura, who was also one of the Seven Sages, before looking away with a sigh.
Though he said nothing, that one look was enough to irritate Aura. "—Ash! What's that look? Are you looking down on me?"
Macht, who had been watching Ash, seemed to pick up on their interaction and glanced briefly at Aura before focusing back on Ash. His gaze narrowed.
"You're so young… What are you doing here?"
"I came here because of the matter with Lightning Hulek," Ash replied, ignoring Aura, who was simmering nearby. Macht only spared her a glance before redirecting his attention fully to Ash.
"Hulek? Was he your friend?"
"No."
"Then what are you here for? Don't tell me you're seeking revenge for one of your own. Even though you're a demon, I doubt you share that kind of camaraderie."
"I just believe that excessive killing of one's own kind isn't beneficial… Well, maybe I'm just being polite," Ash admitted. The fact that Macht recognized him as a demon with a single look had caught him off guard. Deciding to probe a bit, Ash smiled. "I am curious, though, about what you're doing here."
"Before I answer that," Mahat replied, "shouldn't you tell me who you are?"
"Ash. I'm Aura's brother," Ash replied, glancing at Aura as he spoke.
This line—one that only a human would typically use—made Macht's expression harden. "Brother?"
"You didn't know?"
"I understand it in theory, but…"
"It's a feeling, I suppose, since I raised her with all my heart."
Claiming all the credit for himself made Aura, who had already been annoyed, grow furious.
"—You raised me? It was me who raised you, wasn't it?!"
"Alright, alright, stop interrupting while the adults are talking," Ash said, clearly annoyed. He reached out and grabbed Aura's horn out of habit, shaking her until she was dizzy, causing her to slump against Linie. Then, he turned his attention back to Macht and resumed their conversation:
"And? What exactly brings you here?"
"It's just about time…" Macht glanced back, noticing an elderly nobleman in the distance who seemed to have noticed their uninvited presence. Smiling, he continued, "I suppose I can tell you—I like humans."
"Uh… That's a bit of a shock," Ash admitted, momentarily dumbfounded before he found himself glancing at the old man nearby.
Though it seemed unlikely, Macht's comment had Ash wondering… should he be respecting other people's preferences, however odd they might be?
"So, I wanted to understand humans better and try to comprehend what guilt is."
"Huh? Guilt? I thought…"
"You thought I meant Gluck? Of course, I like Gluck too."
"…Just to clarify a bit." Macht's strange wording left Ash rubbing his temples, trying to organize his scattered thoughts. "When you say you like it… there isn't anything… unusual, right?"
"Unusual? What do you mean by unusual?" Macht asked, puzzled by Ash's question.
"...Forget it. I think I've spent too much time around nobles, and my thoughts have become a bit… murky."
Ash shook his head vigorously, as though trying to banish the disturbing images he'd encountered recently in a noble's home. To illustrate just how unsettling those scenes had been, he'd recently stumbled upon a nobleman who—despite being a man himself—kept a group of young boys in captivity. When Ash discovered this, they were all in various states of undress, seemingly unaware of anything out of the ordinary.
…These types of incidents were disturbingly common among the nobles. It was baffling to Ash that so many of them seemed uninterested in beautiful women, instead preferring the company of men and boys. He himself couldn't imagine ever tiring of the presence of attractive women.
Ash's reaction drew Macht's scrutiny, and he studied him for a while before speaking slowly:
"…It might be unlikely, but you do understand what guilt is, right?"
"For the moment, yes."
"Truly?"
"Why would I lie?"
"I'd like to question it… but you're quite peculiar. Something about the look in your eyes gives me the sense that you're neither fully human nor fully demon."
Macht continued to examine him closely, then a slow, toothy grin spread across his face. "So, if I killed someone as strange as you, do you think that would help me finally understand guilt?"
"...You actually arrived at that conclusion? You certainly sound like a classic demon." Ash blinked in surprise, then smiled.
But Macht didn't reply. Instead, he remained silent.
A coldness filled the air, a heavy, stifling quiet that crept into every corner of the space around them, intensifying by the second.
…
The two stared at each other in silence, locked in place, neither showing the slightest inclination to back down. Yet within this calm facade, tension brewed thickly, as if the air itself was laden with the promise of thunder and lightning, making each breath feel weighted and laborious.
Even without any outward movement, currents of magical energy began to ripple through the space between them, colliding and crashing against one another in quiet intensity.
Leaves on the ground scattered upwards, caught in the brewing storm, while the glass windows of the mansion in the distance trembled and creaked under the invisible pressure.
As a demon herself, Aura was naturally familiar with the volatile personalities of her kind.
For instance, the Macht standing before him was entirely unrestrained, killing the demon general without hesitation… and Aura was much the same.
Even now, both she and Linie had instinctively begun to shift forms—Aura into scales and Linie into twin swords—ready to support Ash in confronting this opponent, with barely a moment's hesitation.
But just as the tension reached its peak, with both sides seemingly prepared to strike, and as Aura contemplated whether she should make the first move…
An elderly nobleman approached from not far away, leaning on a cane and calmly bearing the powerful waves of clashing magic around him.
"Hold on a moment, Macht," the nobleman said. "Are you and your friends planning to tear everything apart?"
"Not at all, Lord Gluck," Macht replied, retracting his surging magic and giving Ash a slight bow. "I was merely greeting this unique and promising junior."
Turning his gaze to Ash, he added, "Let's leave it at that for now. If we were to start anything here, it wouldn't just be Lord Gluck who suffers, but also your two… subordinates."
"—Who are you calling subordinates?!" Aura's face twisted with anger. It was bad enough to be looked down upon, but to be referred to as a subordinate made her rage burn even hotter. She was ready to charge forward.
But Ash swiftly grabbed her by the horn, pulling her back firmly. "Let it go, Aura. We've got more important things to handle, don't we?"
"…I suppose," Aura conceded, arms crossed and scowling defiantly. Then, in her pride, she added a final retort.
"Today, I'm letting this slide out of respect for Ash! And besides, I have urgent matters to attend to. But don't think you'll be so lucky next time! If we cross paths again… you'd better be ready to pay with your life as penance!"
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As promised the extra Chapter
If you've forgotten , an extra chapter is released for every 400 power stones accumulated.
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