I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 6

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 6

 

-Magic is so vast it’s beyond description. That’s true even when limited to dark magic.

“Why are you stating the obvious….”

-I’m saying there are limits to what can be learned in a short time. If my body were intact, I could engrave knowledge into your mind, but I can’t do that now.

 

Was he talking about the stories of mages who elevated their realm through contracts with demons?

 

The fate of mages who reached heights in an instant that couldn’t be achieved through hundreds of years of solitary research is famous. They either go mad from knowledge they can’t handle, or their heads explode.

 

Even so, the knowledge of demons is invaluable enough that such people continue to emerge.

 

“I’ll pass on that too.”

 

No matter how valuable the knowledge, it’s meaningless if you lose your mind. But if I learned gradually over time, I could minimize the side effects.

 

-Elemental Magic that rains fire from the sky, Necromancy that can form legions alone. Life Magic that creates powerful chimeras and shakes the natural order….

 

The Demon Lord spoke with a meaningful tone. As if his voice contained mana, I felt a strange sensation.

 

-Considering your innate Mana Manipulation ability, you’d be useful no matter what I taught you.

 

I realized intuitively. This was the opportunity that all mages on the Continent dreamed of.

 

-What suits you best is Soul Magic.

“Necromancy?”

 

In other words, Spirit Summoning.

 

A school of magic that once developed to revive the dead, but now it’s dark magic notorious for controlling the dead.

 

-Completely different. It’s magic that gains power by collecting and exploiting souls. There’s no need to fumble around with corpses in graves.

 

It didn’t resonate much with me. Wouldn’t it be better to learn how to create undead instead? The Demon Realm was littered with monster corpses.

 

Seeing and handling souls is basically fundamental knowledge for dark mages. Collecting souls with Soul Vials is part of that.

 

-Don’t treat it the same as such crude techniques. At best, those only consume souls as sacrifices to temporarily boost power, or stuff them into cheap corpses, right?

 

“….”

-Soul Magic is different. While the influence soul entities can have on reality is minimal, their potential is infinite. It would be faster to experience it directly rather than explain with words.

 

I couldn’t understand it precisely yet, but according to the Demon Lord, Soul Magic seemed to have tremendous value. However.

 

“Is there no danger?”

 

A demon’s malice is always wrapped in good intentions. Even if he couldn’t lie, I’d already experienced that he could deceive me.

 

-Well. The caster’s soul could be damaged if they try to collect souls they can’t handle….

 

As expected.

 

I would have been in big trouble if I hadn’t asked. The risk of soul damage is one of the things that must be extremely guarded against.

 

-But there doesn’t seem to be any need to worry.

“…Really?”

 

Was it true? It must be true. If it were a lie, the Demon Lord’s voice couldn’t sound so relaxed.

 

-The materials for initiation happen to be ready. Let’s start quickly.

 

Right. I had the Demon Lord’s soul in my hands, no one else’s.

 

If Soul Magic was a real magical system, this soul with the highest rank would undoubtedly be the finest material.

 

If I practiced magic with the Demon Lord’s soul, I could certainly elevate my realm quickly.

 

-You seem to be thinking something strange.

“Huh?”

-I’m talking about the souls collected in the Soul Vials. Using those will be fine for initiation, so don’t think about touching my soul. Of course, I wouldn’t have allowed it even if those weren’t available.

 

“…Can’t I?”

-…Are you insane?

 

Apparently not.

 

-Since it’s your first time, I’ll teach you how to draw the magic circle. Focus. If you draw it even slightly wrong, the spell might not activate or produce unexpected effects.

“I know that, so be quiet.”

-Hmm? How do you plan to draw it if I keep my mouth shut?

“….”

 

Drawing a magic circle I’d never seen before, based only on verbal instructions, wasn’t easy.

 

Only after sweating for hours under the hot sun of the Demon Realm could I complete the magic circle.

 

-Be careful not to erase it. Let me check one last time.

 

The massive magic circle drawn in blood came into view.

 

A diameter similar to the height of two adult men. Geometric and intricate patterns.

 

I used the blood of dead farmers, but near the end it wasn’t enough so I had to add my own blood. The thought of having to redraw everything from the beginning if something went wrong made me feel dizzy.

 

-Good. You drew it properly. Take out the soul.

 

Light contained in a small glass bottle. The soul escaped through the opening.

 

Souls naturally have the property of dispersing over time. Soul Vials are tools made to hold such souls so they don’t scatter.

 

The soul that escaped from the glass bottle began to gradually fade away. Perhaps because it wasn’t a high-grade soul to begin with. At this rate, it would disappear without a trace in just a few minutes. However.

 

-Now. Infuse it with mana.

 

As I infused mana into the magic circle, a dim light burst forth. At the same time, chains of the same color caught the fading soul.

 

Immediately after, the soul was dragged by the chains, gradually approaching in front of my mouth.

 

-Swallow it.

 

When I opened my mouth, I felt a sensation like inhaling smoke—as if something entered yet didn’t enter.

 

I closed my eyes and swallowed the soul.

 

I didn’t feel any change. Perhaps the Demon Lord had taught me a useless magic. I might have wasted a precious soul for nothing.

 

-Don’t you feel the change that occurred in your soul?

“Even if you say that…”

 

I didn’t feel the same kind of change as when I connected with the Demon Lord through Familiar Magic or when making a Soul Contract.

 

-It’s the souls of two humans. Not those of noble heroes, but merely those of farmers at best. What were you expecting?

“….”

-Just wait and see. It will surely be helpful.

 

I swallowed a sigh and picked up the scythe that had fallen on the ground. The movement was so natural that I didn’t even realize how strange it was.

 

The old, rusted scythe had certainly been a weapon that threatened my life. Yet somehow it felt familiar. As if I had been handling it for years…

 

“Huh?”

 

Immediately after, my vision became blurred.

 

* * *

 

Golden fields, taxes raised due to war, insects and sparrows ruining crops, a wife and children growing thinner, the war intensifying, soldiers flooding into the village, trampled land, a suddenly appeared Gate of Demon Realm, demons and blood bursting out, screams, a brilliantly shining sword, polluted and devastated land, family, death, tears…

 

-Wake up.

“…!”

 

I came to my senses at the Demon Lord’s voice. The blade of the scythe that had fallen on the ground threatened to pierce my eyes. Only belatedly did I realize I had been collapsed, feeling pain on one side of my face.

 

“This is…”

 

Something brief like a dream, yet so vivid. It felt as if I had briefly become someone else.

 

-It’s a minor side effect. The memories of the absorbed soul. A kind of lingering thought.

“Minor?”

 

The faces of the family members were still vivid. Even the memory of burying the youngest child who couldn’t endure hunger, and the dry emotions I felt while watching my grieving wife.

 

Moreover, there wasn’t just one of them.

 

“What exactly did you teach me!”

 

There were two souls absorbed through magic. Similar yet different memories were mixed together, making them hard to distinguish. I felt like I was going insane… No, I wondered if I had already gone mad.

 

-What else, Dark Magic. Didn’t you ask me to teach you?

 

However, the Demon Lord only chuckled in response.

 

-The side effects are as significant as the powerful effects. That’s natural. Dark Magic is originally like that.

 

My head cooled down. I recalled Master’s face, who would always look troubled whenever I asked him to teach me magic. And his warning words forbidding me from practicing magic alone because it was dangerous.

 

-Collecting souls, absorbing them, and exploiting everything that soul has accumulated. That is the essence of Soul Magic.

“What…?”

-If you absorb the soul of an Archmage, learning magic would become easier, and if you absorb the soul of an excellent knight, even your pathetic body movements would improve. It’s more than worth the small price of your mind becoming a bit strange.

“That’s…”

 

It was certainly an incredible ability. It meant I could acquire talents I didn’t possess through acquired means. But I hadn’t expected this level of aftereffects.

 

-An ordinary person would have been broken immediately. I expected it, but you’re truly peculiar. My being bound to you wasn’t a coincidence, I suppose.

 

Looking at the Demon Lord’s reaction, it seemed I had quite an aptitude for it, but I couldn’t just feel relieved.

 

Surely the symptoms would become stronger the more souls I absorbed. This wasn’t magic that could be used indefinitely.

 

-That’s a bit different.

“No. There’s no way I could endure repeating something like this multiple times.”

 

-Though it’s at a weak level, your soul has certainly grown.

“My soul… has grown?”

 

There was no known method to train one’s soul. That had been the established theory passed down through time. But if my soul had grown as a result of using Soul Magic…

 

-The first time is difficult, but you’ll adapt with repetition. That is, if you can endure until then.

“Then this is…”

 

Only then did I realize the true value of Soul Magic. Simply acquiring talent through acquired means wasn’t what was important.

 

Being able to raise the grade of one’s soul had immeasurable value in itself. The moment this became known, it was obvious that all the mages and power holders on the continent would rush to obtain this method.

 

-Yes. By stealing strong souls, build up your grade.

“…Right.”

 

The Demon Lord had certainly taught me the ultimate Dark Magic. Then I should continue learning it. Of course, I had no intention of being satisfied with just this alone.

 

Regardless of its tremendous value, I couldn’t defeat enemies with this alone.

 

-By the way….

 

The Demon Lord drew out his words and burst into laughter. He had laughed before, but this time his laughter was particularly loud.

 

Roaring laughter. There was no other way to describe it. Only after a long while did the Demon Lord finally calm down and speak again.

 

-Taking the lives and souls of others for your own sake… You have become a proper demon.

 

The laughter had not disappeared from his voice.

 

* * *

 

A few days later, at the Gate of Demon Realm.

 

Several villagers from a nearby village had come out and were staring endlessly at the gate.

 

It had already been several days. They were waiting for family members who had fearlessly jumped into the Demon Realm, claiming they would make big money.

 

However, those who had crossed through the Gate of Demon Realm had not yet returned.

 

When sunset came, even the few who remained were reduced to less than half. Most returned home to sleep.

 

How many of them would return to this place the next day? As each day passed, hope died in the hearts of those who remained.

 

The woman was no different.

 

But she did not return home and kept her place with her children. If her husband who had left for the Demon Realm did not return, enduring the cold would only let them live a few more days at most.

 

It was for this reason that the woman, who had fallen asleep while enduring with just a thin blanket, was able to see him.

 

Before dawn, in the early morning.

 

The Gate of Demon Realm glowed faintly, and someone emerged.

 

A pulled-down robe. A frame a bit small to be called an adult man. The thick smell of blood. A scythe held in hand. He slowly looked around and then approached the woman.

 

The woman who opened her eyes in her sleep was paralyzed with fear. It was certain that a Death God who had emerged from the Demon Realm was looking for someone to take away. She tried to struggle, but her frozen body would not move. Her mouth would not open, and no scream came out.

 

The woman finally squeezed her eyes shut. To escape from the terror of death that had approached right before her nose. However.

 

Step, step.

 

The thing that had been looking down at the woman’s face for a while departed.

 

Dawn broke, and her body frozen by the cold began to move.

 

The woman once again waited endlessly for her husband. Trying to forget the nightmare of the previous night.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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