101 - Intersecting Thoughts, Non-Intersecting Thoughts
Several shadows raced through a trackless forest overgrown with plants and trees, moving at a speed that belied the terrain. For an ordinary person, it would be difficult to discern who they were, but everyone present here was far from ordinary. Some could not track the movements of those shadows perfectly, but they followed them with their eyes.
"...I have to admit, when it comes to fighting in a place like this, the Demon Race has the advantage."
Geel spoke once the shadows had distanced themselves. He had just witnessed movements that were no different from those on flat ground. That was something the Human Race could not do. His statement was an admission of that fact.
"It is not a matter limited to the forest, but yes, I suppose that is so," King Dracul replied to Geel's words with a slightly dissatisfied expression. He held the belief that the Demon Race was never inferior to the Human Race, regardless of the location.
"If that is the case, why challenge a battle on flat ground?"
"I said it is not a matter limited to the forest."
"Are you seriously saying that?"
As a matter of fact, the Demon King's army was losing. To claim that the Demon Race would not lose to the Human Race in any kind of battle was nothing more than bravado.
"...I am serious regarding individual ability."
"I admit that, and so does every single person in the Human Race. But the victory or defeat of a war is not decided by the strength or weakness of individuals. It is group combat. And the Demon Race has not been winning at that."
"I know. I know, which is why we..."
King Dracul showed irritation at Geel's words. He knew without being told. That was why he sought Ray's tactical abilities.
"I see. You thought that Ray, who led the Undead Legion and held his own against the Laurel Kingdom Army, could make you win. However..."
"...What? If you have something to say, say it."
"Will the demons listen to Ray? If they could, we wouldn't be in this current situation."
The Demon King's army had moved to eliminate Ray, who had brought them victory. Not only that. By nature, demons lacked cohesion. That was why, even if they achieved temporary victories, they always lost to the Human Race in the end.
"...Making them obey is my role."
"Then you should lead the demons yourself. You only need Ray to think of the tactics."
"That is..."
Even King Dracul could not govern all demons. An absolute king to whom all demons pledged loyalty had never appeared until now.
"If you could do that. Well, that is true. But there is no basis for believing that Ray can do it. Don't you think you're forcing too much upon him?"
"...I do think so. But I cannot think of any other way... no, that is a lie. I have no basis, but I believe."
"In what?"
"Fate."
"...That again... that thing."
Even when told the word "fate," Geel could say nothing. If he were to say something, it would be "how foolish," but he did not voice it. King Dracul's tense expression prevented him from doing so.
"You think I am foolish, don't you? But it is so. I believe it was fate that he appeared before my wife."
"That... might be so, but..."
Geel wondered if the King wanted to give meaning to his wife's death by believing it was fate, but he kept this thought to himself as well.
"I know it is difficult. That is why we of the Vampio race intend to take the lead in supporting him."
"It would be good if it turned out that way."
Even if King Dracul, the king, was intent on it, things rarely went as planned with demons. Geel had just seen proof of that a moment ago.
"It will happen. At the very least, by the end of today, they will recognize Ray-dono's true ability. It is going far more smoothly than I expected."
"...I still can't see it."
"I expect you can't. That's how he moves. Here he comes."
Slightly after King Dracul's voice announced "Here he comes," Ray leaped down from the tree in front of them. There were no shadows following him.
"You don't seem very accustomed to hunting, do you?"
The appearing Ray questioned King Dracul.
"...Am I a failure?"
"There is no passing or failing. I cannot do this alone, so you'll just have to get used to it."
"Get used to it, huh. Which parts were lacking?"
"Which parts... being too off-guard was the biggest issue. Next, perhaps because you don't know the movements of magic beasts, your reactions are slow. It's fine because it's me, but against a magic beast, you'd be hit by a counterattack."
They had been treating Ray as a magic beast and chasing him. To put it simply, it was a game of tag where the one fleeing was alone. That was what they had been doing.
"Ray-dono, how did you acquire such skills?"
"Me? It was when I was living in the Forest of Bewilderment. Not the first time, but when I was living alone."
"...I see. That was it."
King Dracul spoke words of conviction, but inwardly, he doubted Ray's story. He could not believe that one could acquire abilities far surpassing those of the Vampio race through training alone.
"I can't exactly turn you into undead. I'll have to be patient... no, it's a matter of habit. Habit."
Unconcerned by King Dracul's inner thoughts, Ray muttered to himself.
"...Are we continuing?"
"No, let's take a break. We'll need time to discuss what went wrong."
"True. Then Ray-dono may go on break without worrying about us."
"Eh, but..."
"Do not worry. There is also the reason that I do not wish to be lectured. It would be a disgrace to the Vampio race to fail twice in a row."
"...I see. In that case, I will not hesitate."
Accepting King Dracul's proposal, Ray headed back to the encampment. Only Geel watched his back. King Dracul's gaze was directed toward the forest. It was a stern gaze, different from when he was speaking with Ray. A shadow appeared at the end of that gaze. It could no longer be called a shadow. Their forms were clearly visible. They were men of the Vampio race.
"...Where is he?"
Noticing Ray's absence, one of the men asked.
"I have let Ray-dono take a break. I cannot keep him waiting forever and waste his precious time."
"...W-we are terribly sorry!"
The men finally noticed King Dracul's anger. They knelt on the ground all at once and bowed their heads.
"I heard from Ray-dono that there was a lack of vigilance. Is that a fact?"
"...It is a fact that we thought we could capture him immediately."
"And?"
"His movements were beyond our imagination, and we intend to have corrected that thought immediately."
That seemed to be the case, but even if it weren't, that was all they could say. Knowing King Dracul's anger, they could not possibly say they had been off-guard the entire time.
"But you were unable to capture him. Ray-dono also said this. It is fine because it is him, but against a magic beast, he would be counterattacked."
"That is..."
"I understood that there were openings that allowed for a counterattack."
"No way... ah, no, but..."
King Dracul's words were hard to deny. However, admitting it meant admitting they lost to Ray in a fight. Moreover, there were five of them on the Vampio side.
"No need to be so depressed. Even I could defeat you all if the fight were limited to the area of this clearing."
" " "What did you say!?" " ""
The Vampio men directed their anger at Geel, who had interjected from the side.
"See this. They can't even gauge the opponent's true strength. You're not telling me these are the Vampio elites, are you?"
Lightly brushing off the men's anger, Geel directed a question to King Dracul.
"Of course they are. But..."
King Dracul had already been feeling anger at the fact that the true elites had not appeared here. It was proof that the members of the Vampio race were underestimating Ray.
"He said those things, but I think that bastard Ray has gauged their strength as well."
"I know. And I know that will only widen the distance between Ray-dono and we of the Vampio race."
"...Being a king is tough, isn't it?"
Even a king cannot make everything go as he wishes. This was not something he had just learned. The same happened in the Laurel Kingdom.
"You should know the hardships of standing at the top as well."
"Nah. I don't stand above anyone."
"...Are your subordinates unbearable under the Mad Sword?"
"That's not it either. If there are idiots below me, I'm the one who can't stand it."
Even though he was called one of the Three Pillar Knights, Geel had no one who could be called a subordinate. It wasn't that he didn't understand the hardships of those at the top, but rather that he understood them so well he chose not to have subordinates.
"I see. So you are Ray-dono's teacher. I admit you have a good eye. But to achieve something, power is necessary. Not individual power, but the power of an organization."
"...There is no need for such a thing."
"Is that so? If you had power, perhaps Ray-dono would have stayed in the Laurel Kingdom. Don't you think?"
"...No. Even with power, it would have been impossible within the knights' order."
It was impossible to keep Ray in the Laurel Kingdom from the start. Ray came to the Laurel Kingdom because of Kamiira's death. Because Rui had been captured.
"I see... even so, it is certainly better to have the power of an organization to achieve something. I wish Ray-dono would understand that as well..."
"Sorry, but I can't agree with that. Despite everything, I have a certain attachment to the country where I was born and raised."
"We feel the same."
"...True. That's why what Ray is trying to do is correct. It's better if there is no fighting. It would be best if that lasted forever..."
It was useless to expect eternity. Even if Ray could somehow stop the war between the Human Race and the Demon Race, what would happen after Ray died? Geel believed that in several decades or centuries, things would surely return to the way they were.
"Still... even if it is only for a period of our lives, for us who have longer lifespans than humans, it is better to have times when we can live in peace."
"...Yeah, that's true. Though if the time and place were different, I'd be killing you, I completely agree on that point."
"Coexistence is possible. It should be possible. But if a fight is challenged, we have no choice but to accept it. We have continued doing that for hundreds, thousands of years."
"And you're going to make Ray shoulder that?"
Stopping a conflict that had lasted for thousands of years could not be done easily. Geel thought it was too selfish to demand that of Ray.
"...We will never agree on that. It is a waste to argue."
"I guess so. Then it can't be helped."
The interests of Geel and King Dracul would never completely align. Neither could abandon their respective sides, the Laurel Kingdom and the Vampio race. And it was almost impossible for those two interests to coincide. Thus, while they spoke normally, setting aside the substance, they would one day be divided as enemy and ally and kill each other again. Even while knowing it was absurd.
◇◇◇
Ray returned to his room in the encampment. Just as Geel and King Dracul suspected, his distrust of the Vampio race had increased. Since the distrust he originally held hadn't disappeared, nothing particularly changed within Ray. However, he might have to change his future plans. To a form that didn't rely on the power of the Vampio race. Ray lay on his back on the bed, discussing what that should look like.
(If only I could use Undead Magic Beasts. It would be good if I could control them a bit more.)
(Doing that would actually make their movements worse. You know it's easier to just release their slaughter instinct, right?)
The one denying Ray's thought was one of the subordinate personalities. The personality in charge of managing the Information Crows. In other words, it was almost the same as talking to himself.
(...In that case, how many magic beasts could I capture on my own?)
(You... you know it's useless to think about that, right? How many heads do you think it takes to fill the plains of Nordende with magic beasts?)
The next one to deny Ray's thought was Kamui. Kamui, who had become a completely separate personality, denied even the act of thinking about it. Ray's plan was to release magic beasts into the plains of Nordende, making it a dangerous place just to move through for the Laurel Kingdom Army. Normally, it was a plan that would make one's head spin. Kamui's thought was that it was impossible to do alone.
(There's no need to release them across the entire land. First, I'll concentrate them around the entrance to Nordende. From there, I can gradually expand.)
(Even just the entrance is a pain. And in the end, aren't you just expanding them to the whole area?)
(We don't need to do all the expanding ourselves. If they have offspring and their numbers increase, they should naturally expand their territories to other places.)
Magic beasts also have territories. Ray intended to release magic beasts that were threats to humans—specifically the strong ones—into the plains.
(Even that is a dizzying prospect.)
(Then what do you suggest?)
(Why not just wipe out the garrison army?)
(You know the answer. If I do that, new reinforcements will just come.)
They had discussed this long ago. Based on that, they had decided on the policy of stopping the fighting.
(If they come, just wipe them all out again.)
(...I see. That's your way of thinking. But when will the Hero appear because of that? Can you keep winning until then?)
Luring the Hero back by striking the garrison army. He understood that, but how many battles would be fought, and how many hundreds or thousands of knights and soldiers would need to be slain before then? Ray did not have the optimistic belief that he could win every single battle.
(...I can't say it's absolute. But what's the point of wasting time on the magic beast matter? That might not end until you die, right?)
(Well, that's...)
Releasing magic beasts into the plains was also to ensure the safety of the demons who had fled. It was not Ray's original goal. Kamui simply didn't like that precious time was being taken up by it.
(If you hate it, have them do it themselves.)
(The girls, huh... I guess that's the only way. But...)
(Just limit it to the single ones. You're not planning to be kind to all women like the teacher, are you?)
The reason Ray hadn't tried to get the demons living in the encampment to help was that he hated the idea of something happening and children being saddened. If that were the case, Kamui suggested letting only women without children help.
(I feel like I'm discriminating, which I hate...)
(You're overthinking it.)
(But... ah, wait a second.)
(Huh?)
(So just wait. This will be over soon.)
Ray cut off the conversation with Kamui.
"Cecil-san, I'm sorry. I'm thinking about something right now, so please stop that."
Ray told Cecil to stop her actions. However, the sensation he felt on his lower body did not change.
"Um, I understand. But at least until tonight... eh!?"
When Ray pushed himself up, what he saw was not Cecil, but Hinata, reaching for his lower body, which had been stripped even of its underwear and left exposed.
"U-um, it'll be over soon. Just stay still."
Hinata spoke, her entire body dyed bright red.
"...No, whether it'll be over soon depends on me. I mean, what are you thinking?"
There was no way Hinata would do this of her own volition. He vaguely understood the circumstances, but he decided to ask her just in case. The possibility floating in his mind was hard to believe.
"...I was going to wipe away the sweat."
"When you wipe away sweat, do you usually start from there?"
There was no way. In the first place, Ray hadn't asked for his sweat to be wiped, nor had he even thought it.
"I thought I'd get the first part over with..."
"Does that mean the unpleasant part?"
"...Yes."
This was not something Hinata was doing because she wanted to. Ray had understood that from her first reaction.
"Then you don't have to do anything."
"But, if I don't make you happy... um..."
"I won't be happy no matter what you do. So there's no point. Tell Cecil-san that."
Hinata didn't say it explicitly, but it was clear she was acting on Cecil's orders. Ray thought that even though he had said it clearly before, it hadn't reached Cecil.
"...N-no, that's not it. This is my..."
"I don't need those kinds of lies. If you can't say it yourself, that's fine. I'll speak to her directly."
"N-no! Please stop that much!"
"...I have no intention of helping you, but I'll tell Cecil-san not to do anything. That's enough, right?"
Hinata desperately tried to stop Ray. Rather than sympathy, Ray spoke this way because he thought dealing with her any further would be a hassle.
"Please. That's not allowed. If you do that, I..."
Hinata's reaction was different from what he expected.
"I don't understand. What do you mean?"
"...It would be, um, troubling if nothing was done to me."
"...I still don't get it. What did Cecil-san tell you? I'll keep it a secret from her, so tell me. If you don't answer this, I'll ask Cecil-san directly."
"............"
Hinata looked at him with teary eyes, yet remained silent.
"Fine, then, to Cecil-san—"
"I-I said I'll do nothing!"
"Huh?"
"...If I, c-can't make you happy, then I'm... no longer useful."
"You don't want to be killed?"
Ray thought he understood if Hinata had done this because she didn't want to die.
"That's true, but..."
Hinata's attitude was indecisive.
"...Speak clearly. Otherwise, I'll kill you. This is not a threat."
Ray glared at Hinata with eyes full of killing intent. It truly was not a threat. To Ray, Hinata was a being with no use other than to be killed. The only reason he hadn't done so was that he had left her handling to Cecil.
"...If I don't make you happy, my relationship with her will end."
"Relationship... you mean the nighttime kind?"
He couldn't imagine Cecil having affection for Hinata, including friendship. When told about a relationship between the two, the only thing Ray could think of was a one-sided physical relationship.
"...Yes."
"In other words, is this it? You want to continue being tormented by Cecil-san, so you're trying to do this to me."
"...Yes."
"You love it? Being tormented like that by a woman like Cecil-san. It makes you happy?"
"............"
"That's it, isn't it?"
"...Yes."
"'Yes' this, 'yes' that. Try explaining it properly with your own mouth. 'I love being tied up and tormented every night, and I'll do anything for that.' If I can hear that from your own lips, I might be a little happy."
This was an exchange that would have been absolutely impossible with the Hinata from his original world. That was slightly amusing, and it made Ray get carried away.
"...I, I, to Cecil-san..."
Hinata tried to put it into words, responding to Ray's demand. This surprised Ray. Although he had ordered it, he hadn't expected Hinata to actually comply. She wasn't the type of personality who could do such a thing.
"I love being treated like trash! I'll do anything for that!"
"Are you serious?"
"Ah..."
The words had slipped out. Hinata's entire body turned bright red, and she writhed. That reaction was also unexpected for Ray.
"Don't tell me you're feeling it just from your own words?"
"............"
"Well?"
"...I am."
Hinata gave an honest answer to Ray's question. She was ashamed of having said such words to Ray, and she felt pleasure in that fact.
"...She's been well-trained. No, was this the kind of training Cecil-san was aiming for?"
Hinata, who once showed a dignified presence and was an unattainable flower for many male students, had grown completely into a masochist. Ray felt Cecil's terror for the first time in a while.
"Please. Let me do as I wish. I'm begging you."
"...Just for today."
Hinata's devotion to him was because she wanted to be toyed with by Cecil. Her feelings toward Ray had not changed. She was trying to make Ray happy while hating it. Thinking of it that way, Ray thought it would be fine to accept it just for today. She had shown such a pathetic side to the Ray who knew her past. This time was surely a time of humiliation for Hinata. He thought that if he could prolong that time just by lying there and letting her wipe his body, that would be fine too.