Black Iron Magician

「――Well, those are our demands. Since our discussion has gone on for so long, let’s take a short break and resume in this room in half an hour, shall we?」

「I don’t mind~. As long as you allow me to perform in Crocus, I’ll accept most of your demands~」

「I-I see. I will be in the courtyard for a while. If you need anything, you can find me there. I’m going now….」

「See you~ ♪」

Clarius left the room while looking extremely tired, while Maria sent her off with a big smile on her face. Waving her hands cheerfully, it seems that she’s completely acting as an innocent girl today. Looking at the two, the two guards have indescribable expressions on their faces.

「Clarius-sama seems to be having a hard time, huh? I can understand the reason, though….」

「The other party is that thing after all. You will get a headache if you talk to her for a whole day. She even proposed a public performance, an incomprehensible event. Good grief, her existence itself is already incomprehensible, now she’s going to do something incomprehensible.」

「I-I think that’s going too far…. Ah, by the way, Nell-shishō.」

「What?」

「I suddenly felt that Haruna was deceived by someone. I have no reason or basis, but I felt that way for some reason. Moreover, it’s pretty close to conviction.」

「Oh, what a coincidence. I also suddenly felt that Deris was deceiving someone. It was instinctive, I guess. Maybe it’s because I’m his wife.」

「「………」」

The wife and best friend of a certain master and disciple sensed something suspicious at the same time. Was it just a coincidence, or was it inevitable because it was them? The expressions of the two became even more indescribable.

「Both of you, why are you having such a difficult expression~? Come on, smile, smile~. Tooth is the life of the Great Eight Demons~ ♪」

A silver-haired vampire approached them, perhaps because she thought that they were acting strange. She hooked her fingers on the edges of her mouth and showed off her white teeth. There are vampire-like sharply pointed teeth, but Maria’s teeth are clean and the row of teeth is neat.

「Um… do vampires brush their teeth?」

「We do, of course~! Just like skincare, it’s important! Old man Vakala has only bones, but not a single tooth is missing, right? The Great Eight Demons are putting a lot of effort in that area as well~」

「I-I see…?」

Chinatsu thought that there was a certain seventh rank who sometimes skipped brushing her teeth, but she didn’t say it.

「Your teeth can grow many times, right? In the first place, your teeth aren’t so weak to get cavities. I’m sure they wouldn’t even budge even if you try to have them with Zex’s weapon.」

「How rude! Even if that’s the case, as a maiden, I don’t want to have bad breath! I brush my teeth exactly three times a day, morning, noon, and night! I ask Veronica to look at my teeth to see if there is anything left to brush! If there is, I ask her to brush it for me!」

「「………」」

「Fufu, it seems that you are being lost for words!」

Nell and Chinatsu were lost for words when they heard that. ‘She’s going that far to create her character!?’, they were thinking so.

「… Chinatsu, what’s the best move to make in a situation like this? I’m sorry to say this, but I’m having quite a headache right now.」

「Let’s just change the topic. I don’t have the confidence to talk about this any longer, and we can’t leave here until the meeting is over.」

「I see, it makes sense. Let’s go with that. Then, Chinatsu, bring up a safe topic.」

「M-Me!?」

「Hey~, what are you whispering about~? Let me join~」

Maria is flapping her small wings, flying around the two. Chinatsu is working her head at full throttle since it’s unknown what Maria will do if they leave her unattended any longer. Then, Chinatsu’s skill leveled up.

「T-That’s right. Maria-san, how much do you know about Vakala-san?」

「Huh? About old man Vakala?」

「Yes. I think that the next trial will be from Vakala-san, so I wonder if you could tell me as much as you can to the extent that won’t cause a problem. I would like Maria-san to tell me…」

Chinatsu, fearfully looking into Maria’s face, asked a question in a weak tone of voice. ‘How is it? Is it okay? Problem, trouble, please don’t happen!’, she prayed in her mind. And then, her skill leveled up again.

「I see~, you want to be taught by me that badly, huh? It can’t be helped~ ♪. Sure, I will tell you until the break time is over!」

「Y-Yes, please!」

「It’s easier than expected, huh….」

Relief, relief, relief―― she patted her chest. Chinatsu’s heart was immediately lightened, knowing that she had made the right choice. Moreover, she may be able to extract useful information depending on the situation, so it was a very effective move.

「I wonder where should I start~? I guess I should start with old man Vakala himself.」

「He’s the second rank of the Great Eight Demons, and is also known as the 『Old Skull』, right? I heard that he’s the oldest member of the Great Eight Demons.」

「The Great Eight Demons itself was founded by me and old man Vakala, so I’m also the oldest member.」

「Y-You were the founders of the Great Eight Demons, huh…. I feel like that’s amazing information….」

「Yes, I’ve been a pioneer in this industry for a long time as a top idol~. Ah, but, old man Vakala has been reigning as a Demon King longer than me, you know? As you can see, I’m still young and old man Vakala is an old man!」

Chinatsu, suppressing her emotions, nodded with a smile on her face, and Nell retorted in her mind while making a grim face.

「Old man Vakala has been living for a long time, ah, in his case, he has been dying…? Well, whatever! Anyway, just like me, he is so strong~. Deris and the others defeated me in this battle, but I don’t think it would work on old man Vakala. In terms of immortality, he’s incomparable to me. He can use light magic, so not only poison and abnormal states, but taking advantage of the weaknesses of the undead would be meaningless~. In the first place, his Unique Skill is a problem~」

「His Unique Skill?」

「Yes, his Unique Skill. I don’t know the details, but for some reason, old man Vakala won’t die even if his HP is reduced to zero. It’s true since I had done it many times in our battle for many years. Well, old man Vakala also couldn’t erase me completely, so it was a stalemate!」

「T-That’s impressive…」

A battle between a vampire who can revive from a single hair and an undead that won’t die even if killed. It’s no wonder that it continued for many years. However, it was bad for the surrounding environment.

「Well, that’s why, unlike my trial, I don’t think you will be fighting old man Vakala directly. 『Try to kill me!』, or something like that is impossible to begin with.」

「T-That’s a good thing, I guess?」

「Hmm~, I wonder about that. In the case of old man Vakala, I think he will give an unreasonable trial in a different direction than mine~. He won’t easily let interesting toys return to another world, right? Ehehe, even I thought so too!」

「………」

Chinatsu’s skill leveled up.