A familiar sense of déjà vu.
Just like when Jonne had appeared in [Eldorado], I sensed Viole appearing near [Ruberios]. After telling Sylvia that we should put her proposal on hold, I left [Ruberios] at once.
I had thought it was possible she might show up, since there was territory near [Holy Void] touched by Viole's influence, but...
...I never expected her to call us this directly.
The remnants of a demon.
Those traces left behind just before a demon dies and vanishes are extremely easy for demons with a [Rank] to detect.
Even a mere [Lesser Demon] leaves such traces when it dies, but because it is still the death of a being close to immortal, other immortals—especially demons of the same race—are particularly well suited to finding those remnants.
"Ria. You felt it too, right?"
"Yeah, this is Viole trying to call us. There's even the aura of the deadly poison she usually uses mixed into it, so there's no doubt."
Ria added that Viole had probably summoned the remnants of the countless [Lesser Demon]s overflowing in hell into the material world, then spread poison through them to announce her location.
And Chronoa...
"...Wait a second. What do you mean, Viole all of a sudden? She's the one behind this ominous presence?"
...She wasn't a demon, but maybe because she was a [Half-God] so close to immortality, she seemed able to sense demonic remnants too.
And judging by the unease in her voice, she seemed to know Viole's real personality, at least to some extent.
I had no intention of hiding Viole's appearance from Chronoa anyway... so I'd have to take her with us too.
"That's more or less it. We're in a hurry, so I'll explain the details on the way."
After saying that to Chronoa, I spread my wings and took off.
**
After flying at top speed for about ten minutes from [Ruberios], I began to see a lakeshore—and at its center, a violet-haired girl scattering remnants into the air.
...Viole.
That girl was, needless to say, Viole, one of the [Primordial Demons].
Her inhuman beauty, magicules tinged close to violet, purple hair, and eyes shining gold.
She looked exactly the same as when I had seen her in hell a few years ago.
"Hahaha, hello, Hairo~ And Blanc, and a human I've never seen before."
...Even that demonic laugh was exactly the same.
"I was sure you'd bring Luminous, but instead you brought some human I've never met~?"
Viole turned her playful smile toward Chronoa, then shifted her gaze to Ria.
She seemed briefly surprised to notice that Ria had gained a body and evolved into a [Demon Lord], but soon enough she returned to her usual smiling expression.
"Heeey... Blanc, you got a body too? I was wondering why I hadn't seen you in hell lately... so you went under Guy, huh~?"
Viole must have thought Guy was the only one capable of giving Ria a body, because she immediately brought up his name as a provocation.
But unlike before, when Luminous had asked the same thing back at the mansion, Ria didn't release [Demon Lord's Haki]. She handled it with easy composure.
"Hehe, if you're jealous that I got a body, why not just say so? Trying to provoke me like that is a waste of effort."
Unlike Luminous, Viole was clearly asking for the sole purpose of provoking her, so Ria didn't take the bait.
...This feels like it's about to turn into a fight, just like with Jonne...
That same sense of déjà vu from earlier washed over me again, and I sighed inwardly as I landed on the lake.
If I didn't stop Viole here, this would just turn into another pointless headache, so what choice did I have but to step in?
"Lady Viole."
"Ah, Hairo. Do you have something you want to ask~?"
"Yes. Why did you call Ria and me here?"
At my question, Viole looked at me as if I were asking the obvious.
Whatever her personality was like, her face was undeniably that of a beautiful young girl, so it shouldn't have been all that frightening. And yet, the moment I looked straight at her, unease began to creep up on me.
Meanwhile, Viole spoke in an innocent voice, as if she had no ill intent whatsoever.
"Why else? I called you because I wanted to say hello after so long~"
"..."
...You expect me to believe that?
Comments (0)
Please log in to leave a comment. Login or Register