Chapter 12 - Do the Demon Lords believe in fate?

「Things that look like a ghost have been appearing in the edge of my view since a little while ago, it must be my imagination.」

「You’re annoying. Isn’t it obvious that it’s the real thing. Think of where we are. It’s not a commonplace, it’s the L-i-n-d-h-o-l-m S-a-c-r-e-d M-o-u-n-t-a-i-n.– The sacred mountain, isn’t it obvious.」

「Well, I’m troubled to say『There are ghosts in the Sacred Mountain in surplus』. Since the only thing I believe in the world is money.」

「It’s not like a Demon Lord to be like that.」

「But aren’t you a Demon Lord? [Flame Emperor] was it? — How terrible. It’s not even an Emperor Series. I fear my coins and money will likely be burned.」

「And I think you’re [Alchemy King]. It feels really suspicious.」

「I’m suspicious? Say that to my ancestors, They with imperfect alchemy did unscrupulous business. This is so Beautiful! Such Innocence! Stuck with the infamy of a Demon Lord who handles unscrupulous business of the ancestors! And in the end they said for me to give them all my fortune!」

「And so you had to escape from that nation to somewhere else.」

A girl who had a flashy long red hair and a well dressed young man, had climbed the Lindholm Sacred Mountain.

The man who had a pretty face was carrying a bag on his back.

The girl who had a long red hair was carrying an elegant looking handbag, she, with a strong grip, was holding arms with the man.(紅の長髪を宿した少女は手持ち無沙汰で、気の強そうなつり目を男に向けていた。That was the best I could do with this line.)

「What about you?」

「Me? I — had been told to give the [Scarlet Flame of Life] which for generations was of our clan.」

「Did you run away without doing it?」

「Yeah, because it’s like this, if I gave them that, the war would spread again, so if the sacrifice increases because of that, what will become of the [Flame Emperor] clan? 『Creating such things』. It’s a great responsibility to be passed, a nation is chasing me.」

「That seems to be some hard work.」

「Well. My name has disappeared from the spotlight, Although I was living heart-warmingly thanks to your kindness, I want to turn back. Hah… I finally entered Aiose’s School for a brief moment.」

「Huh, The academic city is pretty good.」

「Right? I have worked so hard, I don’t have parents, our assets and so on have been nominated by the state as of a devil’s and we even have to desperately earn money by ourselves?」

「It’s great, I’m doing business using that money.」

「The gold of the deceased, so refreshing.」

「I prefer that than to be called [Alchemy King]」

A red-haired girl and a young man climbed the Lindholm Sacred Mountain steadily while talking.

Although there were several beasts on the way, the girl repels them unprecedentedly using crimson flames.

The girl was a great technique user.

The girl’s flame fluttered like a living bird, burning and killing the beasts.

And then, after a few minutes.

Finally they arrive at the summit of the Lindholm Sacred Mountain.

There, stood a man and two women.

◆ ◆ ◆

「Eh? Why are there people here?」

「I don’t know, please ask them.」

The man shrugged his shoulders and the woman rolled her eyes.

「I wonder what’s happening. For some reason there are a lot of visitors today, even though there has never been a person here.」

Unexpectedly a man with snow-white hair and bright red eyes gave a look and talked about them.

「Finally, I was treated like a decent person.」

「Are you saying I treated you wrong?」

「No, No matter how fancy your red hair is, or how much your face is like a bad demon– What are you doing! Please Stop! I’m fragile! Please don’t crush it!」

「W-h-o is like a demon.」

「A woman who is well-seen like a woman is outrageous, isn’t she? there are some of my ancestors who have been forgotten because of a beautiful woman who was a diplomat of a certain country.『First suspect a beauty as a Devil or a Demon.』Was said by them.」

「Don’t compare me with that.」

「Okay, I understand, but please understand that you shouldn’t squeeze the sides. Meat can break.」

While doing such an exchange, the two observed the three people working on something over there.

Then the voice of the man with the white hair reached them again.

「Are you guys free?」

「Yes, I’m free」

「I’m free but I’m not free」

「What are you talking about? Are you not that good at talking with people? Did you go well in the school of Aiose?」

「Think a little about it, it has a deeper meaning, I’m not free from being chased, but since I haven’t decided yet on what to do, I’m free.」

「That’s incovenient… I can imagine things such as mind reading.」(「やっぱり不自由でしょう……。そんなの察せられるの読心術師くらいですよ……」 Again, no luck with this line.)

From the other side「This time it’s noisy… it got somewhat brighter.」there was such a voice.

「What will you do if we have time?」

「I’m making some tombs, if you guys are free can you please help me?」

「Hmm, well- ok.」

「Oh, you guys are accepting?」

「Since I have nothing to do.」

「That’s it?」

「It seems I can forget something disgusting.」

「Well, it seems like there is a point to it. Let me help too.」

Then they started to help a small girl to build stones around the tombs.

◆ ◆ ◆

On that day there was an unusual number of people on the mountaintop of the Lindholm Sacred Mountain.

After a comfortable young man and a red-haired woman came, one person, two people, three people.

A total of twenty-one people if noticed. Twenty-two people including Merea.

– What is this?

As expected, I can’t help to be the one to say it.

Merea finally spins such words in his heart.

Until the second little girl I thought it was something of a coincidence.

However, with so much gathering, it’s impossible to feel some form of hardship.

And when everyone came to the top of the mountain, they began to help him make a grave Some of them started to help without saying words.

It’s strange.

Really strange, but still–

It’s true that it wasn’t a bad atmosphere.

– There is no need to ask about anything.

Rather, as I forget something, I will keep making tombs.

The work efficiency increased in proportion to the number of people, and Merea’s work was only to mark the name on the stone at the moment.

When he finishes writing a name, another tombstone slips from his side.

It’s the beautiful woman with the [Maid Dress] that performed the role of sliding the tombstones.

– This is crazy

To climb the sacred mountain dressed in a maid costume, but looking closely to the back of the maid there is a sheath of two daggers.

– What a dangerous maid.

There was something glittering at the heel of her leather shoes.

Enough. It’s enough.

The impression wasn’t just a thing that got burned to the back of Merea’s brain to say he dislikes.

Still, being a beauty complemented even more the strangeness.

The woman with a sword who came to the summit for the first time was also a beautiful woman, but this maid fills the word beauty completely

It’s an inorganic beauty, like a doll.

it was as if a sculpture that was not likely to collapse.

「This next.」

「Ah, yes.」

With a tombstone again, Merea scoured his body like he was frightened and carved a name on it.

Also, it’s sent to the person standing next by the maid, and it is carried further and farther by the bucked brigade system.

The maid delivers the next tombstone in front of Merea.

A tombstone with quite a weight in a minute, and the maid’s strength which I take is also a powefullness that does not suit those fine arms.

Finally, the hundredth tomb is finished, it’s sent to the next person by the hand of the maid, and it’s sent to a person with two meters wearing a full metal whole body armor and a bastard sword, and sent to a mysterious beauty youth with a mysterious smile.

The end of the relay was the sword-bearing black-haired Elma, who visited the sacred mountain at the beginning of the event, with her hand grinding the last tombstone into the ground.

「Fuu…」

Finished.

Merea gets a big breath and wipes the forehead’s sweat.

「Fuu…」

He exhales as much as to say that the people around me also finished the task. Then there is a silence of just a few seconds —

「– Who the hell are you guys!!」

Merea Shouted.

The sound resonated well at the summit of the Lindholm Sacred Mountain.

◆◆◆

The surrounding people listened to the voice of Merea and send a line of sight to those who were nearby.

「Who are you?」

「No, no, who are you?」

Such voiced risen from here and there, finally the line of sight is heading towards Merea,

「Well, who are you?」

They were appealing.

In the meantime, as all the voices have been put together, [Elma] Says the words clearly.

「I did not think that there was a person at the top of the mountain of Lindholm Sacred Mountain, but who is Merea?」

「Me? I am–」

Merea was at a loss to how he would explain.

Would they believe if he told them he was brought up by spirits of the dead that left him in this sacred mountain.

Then when he was saying it, another voice came up from a little far away.

A red-haired girl found a [Future Stone Fiunace] that was scattered near the side of Merea’s hut,  with a strange flame bird on her shoulder, looking at the letters written there.

「This future stone fiunace is unusual, which makes it quite difficult to trust because it changes the content virtually, but one of the possibilities is presented and it’s quite funny– that is, 『Demon King』 It’s written, is this yours?」

That said, the girl with the red hair gave the future stone to Merea.

– Oh, have I not broke you yet?

「Ah…」

While losing the voice he had extended, Merea was at a loss for words as to how to reply. Everything flew back and again. When he thought that a good story had flowed, he felt that the beast was waiting this time next to it.

Will it not be strange if he told them he was a Demon King?

In the lower bound, He heard a story that the conquest of kingdoms were aiming at the power of the Demon Kings.

If Merea is troubled like that,

「What, are you also a Demon King?」

Such voices came flying from people.

「Eh?」

「I’m also a Demon King, precisely the descendant of a Demon King — Perhaps, is it the same for everyone gathered here?」

Everyone starts to exchange words with each other noisily.

「I am also a descendant. I have been driven by a nearby city-state army」

「Me too」

「That’s what we are saying, I think it’s a work of this age」

「It’s convenient, right?」

「This is always the case as the war will start in the near future」

With Merea in hand, the realities of those gathered quickly became apparent And Finally, He fidgeted to say that he could not put up with it, while Merea spun his words loudly as if gathering all eyes.

「Really, is everyone the descendant of a Demon King?」

「–Apparently」

On that day, everyone believed in the existence of the phenomenon called Fate.