An outing in hell.
When demons in hell went on an outing, it usually meant one of three things: searching for materials to research forbidden dark magic, fighting like fiends to build up their strength, or interfering with the middle world through temporary summons.
The Primordial Demons were no different. In particular, [yellow] and [violet] were notorious for that sort of thing.
Compared to those two, [white] was relatively restrained.
But in exchange, people said that whenever Blanc made a move, something huge almost always happened.
Just like [Noir].
"......"
...The reason I was suddenly talking about something this pointless was because I hadn't known that until now.
Not until the moment I followed Blanc out here.
The place Blanc brought me to was an unknown domain that could only be described as mystery itself.
A gigantic volcano that kept erupting without end as though time itself were rewinding, a brilliant flower field overflowing with vast life force, countless stone pillars that looked like they belonged in ancient ruins...
It was as if several different spaces had been shattered and stitched together. Things that should never have been able to coexist were clumped together in unstable harmony, divided only by the magic power flowing through the land and sky.
"Lady Blanc, where in the world is this...?"
"Hehe, surprised? This is the battlefield in hell with the densest lingering magic power. It's also a neutral ground where Jonne, Viole, and I occasionally meet. The only place in all of hell where no fighting breaks out."
I was left speechless by a sight so fantastical it would not have been an exaggeration to call it the embodiment of fantasy itself.
Blanc watched me with a smile, then slowly stretched out her hand.
"This place was first created tens of thousands of years ago. The land that now stands as a symbol of truce was originally born from a battle between two demons."
Where her fingertip pointed was a patch of void-black land, the densest and darkest of all the magic surrounding this place, so black that nothing at all could be seen within it.
Even after at least tens of thousands of years, it still looked like that. That could only mean the two demons who had created this place were monsters beyond comprehension.
[Report. There is a high probability that this battlefield was formed from the magic power of demons equivalent to the King class.]
'......Yeah. If there were two kings with enough power to create a battlefield like this, then it has to be them.'
As that thought reached its conclusion, two faces rose in my mind. The faces of the two demons I had first seen in a novel.
"Hehe, yes. You're probably right. The two demons who fought here were Primordial Demons, and among us, they were the two especially outrageous ones."
As she said that, Blanc smiled in a chilling way.
Even among fellow Primordial Demons, she really seemed to dislike them.
"......"
She deliberately avoided saying who they were, but I already knew. No, there was no way I couldn't know.
One had become the absolute ruler of this world after God died, and the other was the strongest demon in hell right now.
'[Rouge] and [Noir]...'
The Red King and the Black King.
The master of the red lineage and the master of the black lineage.
Monsters among monsters, the kind that would rank in the top ten beings in this world you should absolutely never make an enemy of.
Back when they were just characters in a novel, I had liked them because they were both incredibly cool. But now that they existed in reality, they were demons I was terrified of ever meeting.
"......This doesn't seem like a place full of good memories... but may I ask why you specifically chose this place for an outing?"
Even as I asked, I immediately regretted it, but I had such a bad feeling that I couldn't help myself.
"Hehe, I told you earlier, didn't I? This is the neutral ground where 'we' meet."
Letting that chilling smile fade, Blanc answered my question not with words, but by starting to create a barrier around both herself and me.
...A barrier...?
"...No way."
...Right? It's not like those two are suddenly going to pop out or anything... right?
No matter how often my bad feelings turned out to be right, surely not to that extent...
Wooooooooong...!!!
It wasn't......
KWA-AAAAAAANG――――――――――――!!!!!!
No... it was........
...drip... patter... drip... patter patter...
A massive explosion, greater even than a nuclear blast.
As [Nuclear Magic], specialized in mass slaughter and destruction, detonated, space itself twisted even further.
Thankfully, the side where I stood was safe thanks to Blanc's barrier, but the other side was in a state that couldn't be called fine even as a lie.
"That [Nuclear Magic]... [Gravity Collapse]..."
The guess that had already become half certain because of the [Nuclear Magic] was completely confirmed by the voices that followed a moment later.
"Hey!! Blanc! Wasn't it enough that you suddenly ambushed our side a few months ago? Now you're summoning us whenever you feel like it? Are you picking a fight?!"
"For once, [yellow] is right. Why exactly did you interfere with the fight between our subordinates back then? I hope you have an answer that will satisfy us."
As the thick smoke from the explosion began to clear, two human figures came into view.
One was a beautiful woman with looks that rivaled Blanc's, radiant golden hair, and blue eyes that resembled mine.
The other was a cute girl no less beautiful than the first two, with slightly gloomy violet hair and sharp golden eyes.
"......"
If something like this had happened on Earth—if I had somehow met three absurdly beautiful women all at once—I might have been thrilled just to feast my eyes on them.
But I knew who they were.
"......I'm screwed..."
The only thought in my head was that I was completely screwed.
The first reason was the [Abyss Core] floating in each of the two women's hands, already prepared for [Nuclear Magic].
The second was that the killing intent pouring from those two demons, thick enough to feel almost ghostly, was aimed directly at Blanc and me.
And the final reason was that those two were none other than the Primordial Demons, [yellow] and [violet].
...Am I really going to die today?
"Oh my, both of you should calm down. I came today to share some very valuable information."
But my master was astonishingly confident, as if she had some way to persuade them.
If she could stand that confidently in front of two beings on her level, then surely she had some kind of plan.
No, she had to.
Otherwise, an ordinary demon like me would get stripped clean down to my soul in the most literal sense.
"...Heh~? So you do have a reason?"
"Hmm. Then let's hear it. This information of yours."
Blanc's provocative words had stirred a bit of interest in the two demons.
"......"
And so, the lion's den interview in hell began.
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