I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 9

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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 9

 

Guard Captain Mike’s house was quite comfortable.

 

Though it wasn’t spacious, wind didn’t leak through the windows, and there was plenty of space to rest comfortably.

 

“Oh my, look how thin he is. Are you hungry? Eat plenty.”

 

Most of all, the food was quite delicious.

 

Since Master left, I hadn’t been able to eat proper food while trying to save what little money I had, so this was quite a satisfying moment.

 

“What’s your name?”

“Jude… it is.”

“I see, Jude. What about your parents?”

“Honey.”

 

The Guard Captain gave his wife Amy a warning look.

 

“How old did you say you were?”

“I’m probably fifteen now.”

“If we had a child, they would be around that age. My husband just lacks the strength.”

“…Honey.”

“Oh, haha…”

 

The problem was the atmosphere that made it hard to enjoy that delicious food comfortably. I somehow finished my meal while watching Mike suffer in agony.

 

“Thank you for the meal.”

“Wash up before you sleep. You can use that room over there.”

“Thank you.”

“Please understand if it’s a bit messy. I never dreamed we’d have a guest.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Hm? No, what do you have to be sorry for? This man should be the one apologizing.”

“…”

 

When I came out after washing, a set of clean clothes was laid out instead of my old ones. They were a bit big, but perfectly wearable.

 

Honestly, it was an even better environment than Master’s Dungeon. So much so that I would want to spend my entire life here if possible.

 

Of course, that was impossible.

 

The moment I picked up the Demon Lord in the Demon Realm, I lost any connection to such a comfortable life.

 

“Still, it’s comfortable…”

 

As I lay down on the bed, all the fatigue I had accumulated came rushing over me.

 

In my sleep, I thought I faintly heard the sound of Mike and his wife arguing.

 

* * *

 

Early morning.

 

Carrying the bread Amy had prepared for me, I left the house with Mike.

 

The place we arrived at was the Guard Barracks. As soon as the door opened, a musty smell hit my nose.

 

Among the half-awake Guard Members, there was one person greeting us unusually brightly.

 

“Captain! Good morning.”

“Yeah, Johnny. Good morning to all of you!”

 

Of course, only his voice was like that. His appearance was just as disheveled as the others.

 

“Who’s the kid next to you? Did you find a lost child or something?”

“Seeing you talk nonsense, it seems the alcohol from yesterday hasn’t worn off yet.”

 

Mike let out a sigh.

 

“Since you guys never clean up, I brought someone to help. Say hello. This is Jude, who’ll be with us for a while.”

“Is he the newbie?”

“No. As I just said, he’s just a guy who’ll handle odd jobs.”

 

A firm voice. I was reminded once again of my current situation.

 

“So don’t treat him carelessly. Jude!”

“Yes?”

“You just need to clean up inside here. When it’s lunchtime… Hmm. I’ll tell the Kitchen, but today go to our house to eat. Amy will have prepared something.”

 

Mike said that and then gathered his equipment.

 

“Then should we take our Personal Belongings with us?”

“Just leave them. There’s nothing valuable anyway. What are you all doing? It’s time for the shift change. The Night Shift guys need to sleep too.”

“Yes! Heading out!”

 

While everyone was quickly changing clothes and gathering to follow Mike, the Guard Member called Johnny tapped my shoulder and spoke to me.

 

“Hey, newbie. You don’t have to clean too intensively. It’ll just get messy again anyway.”

 

The smell of alcohol wafted over along with his voice.

 

“Johnny. Didn’t I say he’s not a newbie?”

“Eh… He’ll join later anyway, so I’m calling him newbie in advance.”

“That’s for him to decide. Stop chattering and come out.”

“Yes!”

 

The Guard Members left like that.

 

Standing there blankly in the suddenly quiet Barracks, the smell wafted over again.

 

First, when I opened the window, clear air gradually filled the room along with the light.

 

“Haah…”

 

I swept the floor with a half-broken broom.

 

“Well, I’m doing this because I don’t have money to eat and live, but…”

 

The Demon Lord said I must not leave this castle until I face the first trial.

 

“When exactly is this trial supposed to come?”

-I can’t tell you that.

“…What?”

-More precisely, I don’t know either. Depending on what you do, the trial could come quickly or slowly.

 

It was quite an irresponsible statement.

 

But what the Demon Lord added next was enough to blow away the disappointment I had felt earlier.

 

-Don’t worry. You just need to diligently train your magic. While you’re at it, it would be good to train that rotten body of yours too.

 

The first magic I learned was Soul Magic. It was forbidden Dark Magic that absorbed the souls of the dead to strengthen the caster’s soul.

 

What I learned next was Deception Magic, which depending on how it’s used, could hide everything about the caster from the world at will – a common sense-defying magic. …Though I can’t use it properly right now due to insufficient mana.

 

What I would learn next in order would surely be Attack Magic with the power to destroy the world!

 

-I could teach you if you want, but your mana capacity wouldn’t be able to handle it.

 

The Demon Lord crushed my expectations.

 

“…Then, tell me a way to quickly increase my mana.”

 

Mana.

 

Ever since facing the Demon Lord, it had always been a stumbling block. My pathetic mana capacity that nearly hit rock bottom with just one use of the lowest-grade Air Manipulation Magic would surely rank at the very bottom even among Apprentice Dark Mages.

 

-Increasing mana isn’t difficult. Even without using special methods, I can improve your mana by more than double in about a month.

 

I knew that.

 

The mana I currently had was what I’d gathered in less than a month since becoming my Master’s disciple.

 

After stopping my training due to Master’s words that rapid mana improvement could bring side effects. A state where I could do neither this nor that after Master left.

 

-Kuhuh… I see. That Master of yours must have been quite something too.

“What’s that supposed to mean, how dare you insult my Master?”

-No. It’s nothing. Let’s continue the story we were having.

 

Just as I was about to teach the Demon Lord’s soul a lesson for his tone that seemed to mock my Master, the Demon Lord quickly changed the subject.

 

-Increasing your mana capacity right now can’t be seen as a very good choice.

 

His intention was obvious, but I decided to let it slide just this once.

 

“Why?”

-Because the priests in this castle couldn’t fail to notice.

 

It was true.

 

Even now, whenever I went outside somewhere, I had headaches from maintaining Magic Blocking to avoid detection. If my mana capacity increased, it would probably be hard to move around properly.

 

“Then are you telling me to waste time like this?”

 

Killing the Goddess and reviving the Demon Lord was just a contract hastily made to save my life. I didn’t have any great passion for it.

 

But wasting time like this, maintaining a situation where I could be discovered at any moment, only amplified my anxiety.

 

-Why do you think it’s a waste of time?

“Well, because I can’t do anything.”

-You’re already doing well enough.

 

The Demon Lord explained as if puzzled.

 

-You can’t increase your mana capacity right away, but there’s something equally important. The speed of mana recovery.

 

No matter how powerful magic you can use, if you can’t move for months as the price, it’s meaningless.

 

If mana recovery speed is high, you could prevent such situations.

 

But that was entirely the realm of innate talent. It was known that there was no way to artificially improve it.

 

-Mana exists everywhere in nature. The Mana Core is an organ that gathers it and refines it into your own.

“So?”

-Have you heard of mana exhaustion?

 

Mana exhaustion. Or mana depletion. It was a term I couldn’t not know as a mage.

 

Most mages who experienced it became crippled. That was why I hesitated to put it into practice when the Demon Lord told me about Magic Blocking.

 

-Didn’t I tell you before? That happens because you exerted magic beyond your limits. What I’m talking about now is when you use exactly the amount of mana you have.

“That’s…”

 

I’d only heard warnings about the dangers of mana exhaustion, never about using it in this distinguished way.

 

-By repeatedly emptying and filling, the Mana Core’s attraction gradually strengthens, and as a result, mana recovery speed increases.

“…!”

 

A method I never thought of.

 

These were words comparable to the incredibly valuable secret arts monopolized only by the Minority School.

 

-And what’s even more effective than that is preventing mana from recovering. It’s a method that becomes harder to use as your mana capacity increases due to the higher risk. Didn’t you notice?

 

Now that I thought about it, it had been a bit strange. Considering the speed I was adapting at first, I expected I’d be able to maintain it for half a day by now, but for some reason it just wouldn’t improve no matter what I did.

 

-Increasing your mana capacity can wait until after you’ve seen sufficient results. If you miss this opportunity, you’ll never be able to do it again.

 

So it was unavoidable because the force trying to restore my mana had grown stronger.

 

-You’re as insensitive as a rock. Your mana recovery speed changed dramatically, yet you didn’t even notice.

“…I can’t help it. By the time it ends, my condition is a mess. Where would I find time to pay attention to that? Anyway, so I just need to do this for now?”

-How could that be? I told you just a moment ago. Practice magic. What was the first magic you learned from me?

 

That would be Soul Magic.

 

While it was certainly incredible magic of immeasurable value, there was no immediate way to obtain souls.

 

Even though dozens of souls were created at each execution, I wouldn’t be able to avoid the priests’ eyes.

 

“Ugh… Ah, this damn thing won’t come off.”

 

As I was cleaning while dealing with this frustrating situation that wouldn’t resolve easily, my frustration made me apply more force.

 

But no matter how much I scrubbed, the black stain wouldn’t come off. Just as I was about to scrub even harder with a frown.

 

“Huh?”

 

I felt like the stain was rippling slightly.

 

It wasn’t my imagination.

 

The black stain was showing subtle movement even now, like a small bug wriggling. That thing that instinctively evoked disgust and fear was…

 

-A soul.

“A soul?”

-Remnants left behind when a soul filled with strong resentment is destroyed. In other words, soul dregs. Normally you wouldn’t be able to notice them even with Spirit Sight open, but you can see them now because you’ve learned Soul Magic.

“Strong resentment…”

 

The Guard Captain who had provided me with a place to stay and work, as well as his Guard Members, didn’t seem like the type to earn anyone’s resentment.

 

But the Demon Lord spoke as if it was nothing.

 

-It’s nothing to worry about right now. Soldiers are naturally in a profession that easily earns resentment, aren’t they?

 

Had he foreseen all of this?

 

-The extent to which they can affect the mortal world is just creating stains like this. Even that will disappear with time, but…

 

Picture frames hanging on the wall, bedding, lockers, the guards’ personal belongings and supplies…

 

Soul fragments remaining on all sorts of items existing in this barracks.

 

-If you gathered all of those together, you’d get about half a human’s worth.

 

It was the perfect place to practice Soul Magic.

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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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