“Freak out some more, assholes.”
I chuckled, waving the bracelet I held in my hand as if to show it off.
Earlier, after accepting the subquest, I had made a plan after reading the <Level Up as a Hero> guidebook.
A plan with a significant impact that could captivate the attention of all demons, even the Demon King, and include my story. To achieve this, I needed an item, and fortunately, it was in the twins’ room.
That’s right, this bracelet.
– Huh? (What is this?)
– Oh, this! Lyat gave it to me to touch once!
A bracelet densely studded with diamonds around a large ruby. It was made to fit an adult’s wrist, but that didn’t matter.
“Do you know what it is, and that’s why you brought it out?”
Lyat said, flashing his gray eyes.
“Yeah yeah! (Of course, who do you think I am?)”
To those who don’t know, it might seem like an ordinary bracelet, but it’s not.
This is an artifact.
An artifact is an item that contains a very, very, very faint trace of the Demon King’s sealed power. When you possess it, you can use a tiny bit of the Demon King’s power, and you can also use it to find the location of the Demon King’s sealed power.
So, artifacts appear as the main quest in <Level Up as a Hero> and are very valuable items that raise a hero’s magical power stats.
Now, what are the demons doing?
Unfortunately, demons can’t use this artifact. They know it contains the Demon King’s power but can’t use it.
The reason is simple.
Artifacts could only be possessed by humans.
In the future, demons who learn this will forcibly take humans to bind the artifacts and obtain information, but by then, the heroes will have already gathered many artifacts and won’t be of much help.
But now!
I am the only one!
Only me, the great me!
Will bind the artifact.
To help the Demon King, to get closer.
‘Heroes are still in the early stages, so I can just sweep up the artifacts right now.’
What if I get caught being a human while binding the artifacts?
“We need to make sure they don’t know that only humans can do it.”
I have already made plans for that.
I grinned and slipped the large bracelet onto my wrist.
At that moment…
Kaboom!
A bright light surged and enveloped my body. The system window immediately popped up.
[SYSTEM]
You have equipped an artifact that increases your defense. User compatibility check in progress…
[SYSTEM]
Check completed! Compatibility 100% confirmed.
[SYSTEM]
Warning! Deviating from the main scenario will result in penalties. Penalty: 50% limitation on artifact performance.
It seems like a penalty was imposed because the person wearing it is not a hero. Even so, taking away half is quite severe.
I muttered under my breath, but in truth, that wasn’t important. The moment I put on the artifact, a tremendous cheer began to resound.
“I, I can feel the Demon King’s power right now!”
“Did that kid really use the artifact properly?”
“Did she bind it? Really?”
“Mister Lyat couldn’t do it! Even after decades!”
Among the buzzing demons, only Lyat remained silent. He watched me through his round glasses and then raised his hand, opening his mouth.
“That kid couldn’t do it.”
“……”
“Get a grip.”
“Yes.”
After reprimanding one demon, he turned his gaze back to me.
“So, you know what that bracelet is, what power it holds, and can bind it at the same time, huh.”
“Yeah! (That’s right, I’m awesome!)”
“Hahaha.”
Lyat chuckled and licked his lips.
“Right…”
He slowly stood up.
“It appears that a path to find the sealed location has opened.”
“…”
Upon hearing that, the once-quiet demons started throwing things and shouting.
“Wow!”
“Finally! Finally!”
“We can go back to the Demon Realm-!”
Seems like they really didn’t like the human realm…
I chuckled in satisfaction, quite pleased with the more intense reaction from the demons than I had expected. Lyat’s eyebrows twitched slightly, but it was momentary.
“Noisy. Going back to the Demon Realm doesn’t mean much. This is just showing a single grain of sand on the vast beach. It’s still far from reaching the Demon King’s power.”
“Woohoo!”
“Captain! Mister Lyat is so excited he’s about to burst!”
“Punish him!”
Lyat called out the shouting demons, thumped their heads, and then looked at me again.
“Nevertheless…”
He lightly flicked his finger.
“This will be useful.”
Ring!
Sub-mission <Pass the Test>
Congratulations!
You not only found the exit but also conquered the sky! You will receive special treatment from most of the demons from now on.
Rewards:
1. Survival (Success)
2. Favor of the demons (Success)
“Finally finished!”
I passed the test and even gained the favor of the demons. If things continued like this, my existence would become known to the Demon King.
Let’s meet the Demon King!
I opened my eyes wide and called out with excitement.
“Hmm, it seems you haven’t attracted any subordinates yet.”
At Lyat’s words, I quickly regained my composure. Ah that’s right.
According to the twins, passing this test would grant me subordinates.
So, I didn’t need to stay in the twins’ room making noise, and I didn’t have to worry about my food either. Subordinates were genuinely needed.
“Gimme, gimme, subordinates!”
I vigorously nodded in agreement.
“So, the subordinates under you will be…”
Lyat looked around with narrowed eyes.
Several demons stepped forward, as if they were being chosen, raising their heads.
But!
I didn’t want to keep those unknown creatures by my side.
While preventing Lyat from using them as research materials and ensuring my safety, there was someone else who could create a connection to the Demon King. Why keep those guys by my side?
“Get lost, get lost!”
I pushed away the approaching demons and used the Shadow Step technique to approach the door.
Then, I shouted towards the one dozing off by the door.
“Myaaaa! (You, be my subordinate!)”
It was none other than the commander of the Demon King’s forces, Martin Jonasay.
***
Awoken by the noise, Martin yawned loudly and looked around.
The test seemed to be over, and almost all the demons were already on their feet, with Lyat coming closer.
“Why? What’s going on?”
Martin asked with confusion. In response, Lyat extended his finger and pointed at Martin’s thigh. Only then did Martin look down at his own leg.
“…What’s this?”
Martin was bewildered as he looked at the newborn baby, which appeared to be less than half the size of his thigh. He didn’t know who it was, but it was probably a homunculus created by Lyat, an artificial human baby.
The babies didn’t seem to like Martin very much.
Even the larger ones were afraid of him, so why wouldn’t the babies be?
No matter how much information was programmed into the homunculus, they tended to cry when they saw him.
However, this newborn baby in my arms was different.
It sat there with open eyes, not crying!
What’s going on?
Martin was even more confused.
“She was the homunculus who defeated Cerberus that I tell you earlier.”
“Earlier? What?”
Martin had quickly forgotten what Lyat had said earlier.
“Darn idiot… Sigh.”
Lyat was about to utter profanity but then took a deep breath.
“An exceptional homunculus. It was supposed to be her first test, and she wanted to assign you a subordinate, so she chose you.”
“Chose?”
Homunculus who passed their first test were assigned a demon as their subordinate.
The subordinate role involved caring for the Homunculus, who had not yet grown physically, until they reached an appropriate size. It was essentially a bodyguard’s role.
Usually, intermediate-level demons became subordinates.
But…
Martin alternated his gaze between Lyat, the baby, and eventually, he grasped the situation.
“Am I to be this baby’s subordinate?”
A top-level demon, Martin. Not only Martin, but all the other demons also stared at Shekina and Lyat with widened eyes.
“Yay! That’s right, subordinate!”
Lyat smiled broadly and glared at Shekina, who was screaming.
This was the first time this child had designated a top-level demon since Julian had done so. That Julian had grown remarkably afterward.
‘Will it be the same this time?’
Lyat pondered for a moment, then smirked and stared at Martin.
“Of course, you can refuse. This child chose you on their own.”
As soon as Lyat spoke, Shrkina’s face became contemplative.
“No! No, it has to be you!”
Shekina struggled and clung tighter to Martin. Martin’s eyes widened even further.
“Baby, stop crying.”
Martin cautiously lifted Shekina.
A baby smaller than his own head.
But for some reason, it was laughing happily. As Martin looked at it, he felt a strange emotion welling up.
“…I’ll give it a try.”
With a determined expression, Martin held the baby in his arms. As soon as he did, the other demons started cheering.
“Oh, oh! The Commander-in-Chief himself!”
“Kya, I wonder if this will be a big deal? More than Julian?”
“Hey, no matter what, Julian is the best! Even the lower demons can’t compare to Julian’s feet!”
“But still, it’s not as small as that baby, right? I’ll place my bet over there!”
“Wanna bet? Want to bet? Bet with money?”
“Bet it all!”
They sounded noisy and crude.
Lyat clicked his tongue, nodded as if there was no other choice, and placed a palm-sized artificial crow on Martin’s shoulder.
“Carry this crow with you. It can show me everything.”
Martin nodded casually and then stood up slowly.
“Baby.”
The little baby continued to look at Martin, not crying and its eyes sparkling.
“It’s fascinating.”
It had hair that wasn’t full yet, but it was adorned with a lovely violet hue. Clear and bright sky-blue eyes, like those of humans, fair skin, and chubby arms and legs.
It wasn’t so much fascinating as it was cute, but Martin didn’t quite understand that part.
“Let’s go. Together.”
He held the baby carefully in his arms and began walking down the corridor.
Caw!
The artificial crow coiled its neck around him and died.
Naturally, he had forgotten Lyat’s warning.
