Tsuyokute New Saga (LN)

Volume 5 Chapter 14

The following noon, Kyle and his friends stood in front of their boat, waiting at the island’s harbor. Their plan for today was to return to humanfolk territory. Next to them were Irumera and Ghrud, already returned to their dragon appearances.

“That was a mess…But most surprising is that the Demon Lord of all people turned out to be a regular woman.”

“Yep…I never would have guessed that I’d hear about the Demon Lord’s love story…”

Lieze and Urza were busy discussing their impressions and thoughts about the demon territory and everything that transpired. What left the biggest impression was the fact that the Demon Lord could act like an adolescent girl in love. A day has passed since that teary confession, with Luiza acting the same sluggish and listless way she had when she welcomed the group, almost like the events of the previous day hadn’t happened. However, when it was time for the group to depart, she actually came to the harbor, walking straight to Seran.

“…Since I’ve got no other choice, I’ll let you have that sword for a while.”

“Again, this is mine to begin with.”

“Make sure not to die while you’re keeping it on you…It’d be troublesome for…the sword if it just vanished without a trace.”

“I’m not gonna die that easily, geez.”

“…”

“Hey, say something?!”

Luiza gave Seran a gloomy gaze, one that packed a different meaning from before. Meanwhile, Yuriga watched this unfold with a brain-fried expression.

“Hey, what do you think about that?”

Lieze grinned to herself as she talked to Kyle.

“No, no, no. There’s no way…” He grasped what Lieze was trying to say and waved his hand.

“Really? I think there’s a good chance.”

“She’s the Demon Lord, remember? The one who stands at the top of all demons. No way that would happen with a human.”

“I won’t say that this doesn’t matter…but I guess it just depends on the people involved?” Urza seemed oddly itchy to support them.

“Out of curiosity, did the Demon Lord ever come to see you off, Klaus?”

“Naturally, never.”

Klaus had been given the quick rundown of events, watching the two lovebirds with a wry smile.

“Oh, Angela’s joined them,” Shildonia commented as she pointed at Angela clinging to Seran’s back.

“We’ve been in your care, Demon Lord-sama. I doubt we’ll ever meet again, but I won’t ever forget you.” After giving a farewell to Luiza, Angela immediately clung to Seran’s arm. “Now that our business here has finished, let us leave in haste. Humans belong to the human territory, and demons ought to live in the demon territory.” Angela smiled, as Luiza’s expression changed, realizing that she was picking a fight with her.

“…Lass.” Luiza’s voice was cold as ice, but Angela had the guts to respond in a calm voice.

“My, is something wrong?”

Sparks flew between the two.

“This doesn’t make sense…What did I do to be put in this situation?”

Nobody dared to answer Seran’s plea. Realizing that she was just in the way, Yuriga opted to join Kyle’s group.

“A-Anyway, you best be careful on your travels. Though…I doubt this will be the last time we’ll see each other.” Yuriga showed a bitter smile.

“Yeah…Make sure to report back if you find anything about Targ.”

“Indeed. And we’ll get in contact once the process of the Dragon King’s hide has finished.”

Kyle and Yuriga discussed their future course of operation. The request for them to serve under Luiza was changed to them looking into their common enemy Targ and the demon he called his master.

“Keep your eyes open…That man…those two are no ordinary foes.”

To think a demon would urge me to be careful, Kyle thought to himself.

‘And we will return to the World Tree. It’s a shame we couldn’t find Juvars-sama, but we have to report back to Zeurus-sama.’ Irumera spoke to Kyle’s group from high above them.

“We demons are looking for his current hideout, so we will let you know if we find anything,” Yuriga said.

‘You have my gratitude,’ Irumera nodded.

‘Hey, human! I’m gonna go home for today since that old man will chew off my ear otherwise, but we’re gonna have a rematch next time!’ Ghrud still held a grudge against Kyle after losing some of his teeth.

“Yeah, I know…But, I’m gonna need a lot of time to prepare. So give me at least…100…No, 150 years.” Kyle said with a serious face and voice.

He knew that dragons could live thousands of years, so to Ghrud it might seem like a short time, but Kyle would not even be alive by then.

‘Tsk…Fine, then. But don’t you dare break that promise!’

Ghrud evidently wasn’t familiar with a human’s lifespan, so he agreed to this.

“Of course, of course! I’ll do my best so we can have another five in 700 years!” Kyle grinned to himself as he discussed this with the dragon.

‘That sounds great! But don’t you forget!’ Ghrud said and flew away.

‘…Let us meet again.’ Irumera left behind a brief farewell and joined Ghrud.

“All right, time to leave,” Kyle said after confirming all the dragons had disappeared.

“You have no intention of fighting him again, do you?” Minagi sighed, but Kyle himself thought it would be best that way.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot.”

They all boarded the ship when Kyle remembered something and made his way to Luiza.

“Is there still something else?”

“Two days ago, you said something that caught my attention. You asked me ‘Why are you with them?’, remember?”

He couldn’t ask about that because of Flame-Eye’s interruption, but Kyle was curious about that all the time.

“Ah, that? Well…” Luiza closely inspected Kyle and showed a dubious expression. “You…aren’t a demon, are you?”

“…Huh? What are you saying?”

“I couldn’t believe I, the Demon Lord, would be wrong…but you undoubtedly are a human, right now. It’s just…back then, you looked like a demon.”

Kyle burst out laughing at Luiza’s statement, but she was as serious as can be.

“You and your soul…you’re no regular human.”

“Ah, that’s what you meant…But, I’m a demon?” Kyle knew that his own soul was different from the normal one, so he could understand what Luiza was referring to, but the fact that this made him look like a demon left him bewildered.

“However, you’re no absolute demon, either. This is the first time I’ve wavered with my judgment this much.” Luiza seemed confused.

The only ones who caught onto the irregularity with Kyle’s soul were Shildonia, Zeurus, and the empire’s court mage Beadola. And even in their judgment, Kyle still was a human. However, Luiza had mistaken him for a demon. What exactly caused her to feel that way?

“Well, it’s because I’ve got a deeper attachment to humans. Same goes for Zeurus. However, since the Demon Lord is used to demons, she probably saw you that way first.” Shildonia joined them and their conversation. “This one’s soul is a bit special. Definitely different from the average soul.”

“So a sudden change occurred…? But when did that happen?” Luiza asked.

“It’s not even been a year yet…What about it?”

“That means there’s no change, yet…But, listen well. A soul is what builds a person. If the shape of the soul changes, so could your body.”

“So the shape of my body could change? …Are you telling me I could become a demon?!”

“The chance stands.”

Kyle started to panic when Luiza delivered a calm response as always. Since Shildonia stayed silent, too, there was no denying it either.

“What…is gonna happen to me?” Kyle looked down at his own hands as anxiety and worries filled him.

“And with that being the case…let me give you a warning. If you want to continue existing as a human, you cannot allow your soul to waver. Your feelings, thoughts, and will to fight all influence your soul.”

“You’re telling me to retire and live an easy life…and there won’t be a problem?”

“As I said, this is just a possibility, and there’s no way of telling without a previous example. I’m only giving you my own personal opinion, and there’s a good chance I might be wrong.”

“…”

“Hey, what’s taking you so long? We can’t depart without you!” Seran called out to him.

“…Thanks for looking after us.” Kyle lowered his head and boarded the ship.

“Farewell, O strong humans. Though I doubt we will meet again…” Luiza watched the ship sway off into the distance, as she sighed with slight regret in her mind, and turned her back towards the ship.

Yuriga had never seen her master this saddened but didn’t say a word as she just tagged along.

In the evening, Kyle gazed at the river’s surface all by himself, remembering what had happened. Then again, they spent only about three days there, and they didn’t leave the vicinity of the Demon Lord’s residence. Even so, a lot happened, and they gained a lot. Kyle even got to meet the Winged Demon again. Their goal isn’t even the seat of the Demon Lord—that was simply a means. Instead, their plot was to gather human sacrifices in order to gather mana, which then could allow them to travel back to the past.

One day I’ll be able to find out, but just what is that guy trying to fix…?

Kyle grasped the [Heart of the Divine Dragon] he had in his chest pocket.

Still…what is going on?

When he was thinking about the Winged Demon, there was something else that caught his attention. Something was different, something gave Kyle the shivers. And that is—

He’s…stronger than before?

Kyle compared himself to the time he fought the Winged Demon Lord and now. He couldn’t clearly tell which variation of himself was stronger, but it was clear that he currently had no chance of winning against the Winged Demon as he was now. The Winged Demon had become strong through undefined means, widening the gap between them.

“…It won’t be enough at this rate. I…I have to become stronger.”

Kyle wished to become stronger. No matter the sacrifice, he had to reach that level. And while watching the setting sun, Kyle swore with these words.

It took them roughly seven days upstream, but the way back only lasted five days. Hence, after about half a month of traveling, they returned to the city of Bayone in human territory. Once they got off the boat, the relief from returning home safely set in.

“Good work everyone,” Klaus called out to all the passengers.

“Half a month, huh…It felt a lot longer but also shorter than that.”

“We might as well have stayed a bit longer.”

“The food was a lot better than I thought, too.”

Their tension from their departure had long vanished, as they once again reminisced about their trip. Needless to say, their lives were in grave danger throughout, but it wouldn’t hurt to visit again.

“Now, what to do next…”

Kyle thought about his plans from now on, looking at the biggest problem, which was Angela. Since she had been missing for half a month at this point, the Empire must be in absolute disarray.

“At this rate, we might be treated as the people who abducted her…”

“Rest assured, I will guarantee your safety,” Angela said with a smile. “If anything, we should head straight for the capital. Come join me, Seran-sama.” Angela took Seran’s hand as she always would.

Seran had gotten used to this and simply gave up with a bitter smile, but everyone around them was smiling. However, the atmosphere was interrupted when one of the servants from Klaus’ company arrived to whisper in his ear.

“Wh-What did you say?!” Hearing the report, Klaus screamed in shock, gathering everyone’s attention.

“What happened?”

“Well, um…”

Klaus hesitated if he should tell Angela. However, he knew he couldn’t just stay silent forever and reluctantly opened his mouth.

“…I just received information that…in the Imperial Capital Luos of the Galgan Empire…First Prince Eldorand has been assassinated.”

This was the beginning of an uproar that would soon engulf all of humankind.