Chapter 81: The Demon Within (Mistake) (Patreon)

"Well, well, if it isn't Deathwing? You've been so quiet for so long I thought you'd gone into a shell," Natsuki Subaru needled mentally. "What, no roaring about destroying the world together today? Don't tell me you've decided to go straight."

—Roaring is the release of the weak. We passed that stage long ago.

Having stirred awake once more, Deathwing had abandoned its earlier pattern of savage, unrestrained muttering. This dragon lord, corrupted by the Old God, now revealed a cunning side to its nature, its tone unusually calm.

If anything, it carried something close to the earnest, weighty tone of an elder.

The change put Subaru on guard at once.

A raging dragon was one thing, but a dragon sitting calmly to talk was far more worrying — who knew what scheme this one was cooking up now?

—I have been watching you, Natsuki Subaru.

—Watching you dole out your strength to a handful of insignificant females in this feeble world, playing pretend house with these incompetent mortals.

Deathwing's voice echoed through his consciousness, scalding like flowing lava.

—You are even learning this inferior magic, one that only functions by begging power from the outside world.

—Our power is enough to reshape an entire world, yet you scratch pictures in the dirt with a stick.

"That's called adapting to your surroundings. What would you know."

Subaru shot back without mercy.

"I think the magic here is pretty interesting, actually. Not like you — the second you get involved it's burn this, annihilate that. If we weren't stuck sharing one body, I'd have called my brothers to beat you black and blue by now."

—Hmph. Do you truly believe that world's darling could pose the slightest threat to us?

Deathwing let out a scornful chuckle.

—The power we now possess is beyond your imagining. If you willed it, nothing in this world could stand in our way. And yet you keep restraining yourself, refusing that power.

—One day, you will regret your ignorance.

"Talk like you actually know something, you old god's mouthpiece gone half-mad from all that whispering. Seems to me you're the one who traded away your brain for power — you're the one who should be regretting things."

Subaru made the jab pointedly. His soul-bond with Deathwing let him glimpse fragments of the dragon's past in his dreams — like the fact that this creature had once been the noble Earth-Warder, before the Old God of the Deep, N'Zoth, had nagged and needled it into becoming... this. Frankly, it was more than a little embarrassing.

But to his surprise, at that particular topic Deathwing fell uncharacteristically silent for a moment, then let out a heavy growl in rebuttal:

—You truly believe N'Zoth corrupted me?!

—Fool! That Old God and I merely used one another. Had you seen the end that awaits when all things are swallowed by the Void's Lords, you too would have chosen, as I did, to burn everything to ash beforehand — so there would be nothing left for them to corrupt.

—At the very least, it was I who sent them off, not another.

Whether it was the effect of the long soul-bond with Subaru or not, Deathwing seemed calmer now than in its initial pure rage and arrogance, capable of reflecting on its own purpose in destroying everything. Regardless, the dragon's way of thinking remained utterly beyond Subaru's comprehension.

"Don't you think you're being a little extreme?"

—Extreme?!

Deathwing gave a savage laugh, as if it had just heard the world's greatest joke.

—When you discover your creators are nothing but a pack of self-righteous hypocrites, when you watch everything you cherish reduced to nothing, then you will resent — resent that you never had enough power.

—I accepted N'Zoth's corruption in order to protect Dracthyr, my creation — those children who called me 'General.' I could not stand by and watch them slaughtered to the last by the storm's avatar dragon. I needed power, just as you rely on absolute power to make your way so smoothly through this world.

—Without power, you are nothing!

There was nothing wrong with that statement, actually. In a timeline where he had never received Zeratul's inheritance, nor Deathwing's power, Subaru would likely have died a dozen times over by this point — watching the people around him die before his eyes, again and again, his sanity pushed to the brink each time.

But Subaru, having never once triggered his Return by Death because he possessed the power to avoid it, knew nothing of this.

—Let us each take a step back, Natsuki Subaru.

Deathwing's voice suddenly softened.

—I will stop contesting you for control of the body, so that you may wield our power more freely. All I ask — is that you loosen your restraints just a little, let this world witness our noble dragon-king form, let these mortals tremble before our majesty!

—Did your Finality not say the same — that every universe is destined to fall into ruin? If that is so, why not let it be our own hands that bring it down?

—At least then it would be left with a few precious memories.

Inside the mindscape, silence reigned.

The lava slowly cooled. The black dragon waited in silence.

Deathwing believed this negotiation had gone perfectly. The hunger for power, and the fear of losing those close to oneself — these were realities no one could escape, without question.

Subaru only sneered.

"You wish."

"You say you accepted the Old God's power to protect your creation. And how did that turn out? After protecting them, you turned into the very final boss threatening them yourself. You think that's funny?"

"As for power — my own Dark Templar strength suits me just fine. Sure, learning magic here is like drawing pictures in the dirt with a stick. But ugly as they are, they're my pictures."

"If I let you out, dragon, there wouldn't be any pictures left at all. Just volcanic ash."

Deep in his consciousness, Subaru met the dragon's eyes — suddenly brimming with violent malice — without a shred of fear.

"So just sit tight and behave. Maybe if I'm in a good mood someday, I'll even let you watch a couple episodes of a cartoon."

This time, though, Deathwing didn't roar in fury. It only gave a cryptic laugh, and then fell still.

—One day, you will find yourself needing more power than you have.

When that day comes, you will naturally accept the power you now refuse.

"Whew..."

Back in reality, Subaru let out a long breath, wiping the cold sweat from his brow.

"Young Natsuki Subaru, are you all right?"

Coming back to himself, Subaru realized Wilhelm had already walked up to stand before him without his noticing. He rubbed his temples and forced out a smile.

"It's nothing, Old Man Wilhelm. Probably just a side effect of spellcasting — might have something to do with my mana condition."

Wilhelm studied him, brow furrowing slightly, instinct telling him this was no simple matter. He had no idea what sort of being resided within Subaru, but in that instant when the young man had gone blank, he had keenly sensed an extremely dangerous presence.

It had lasted only an instant, but that was enough for Wilhelm to feel the crushing pressure within it — an overwhelming might far beyond any mortal rank, one that made even him, a human, shiver.

"Young Subaru." Wilhelm switched to a more familiar form of address, his tone grave. "Just now, you looked as if you were struggling against something dangerous — like the inner demons that plague us swordsmen when our obsessions run too deep. If you need help, please, tell me."

"Inner demons?"

Subaru found the description almost funny in its wrongness — this wasn't a demon in his heart, so much as a demon dragon.

"Understood that way, it's not wrong, exactly, but what's trapped in my head is an evil dragon. No need to worry, though — thanks to my brothers' help before, the thing's chained down tight. It can't cause much trouble."

As he spoke, he thumped his chest with full confidence, signaling that he was perfectly fine.

Wilhelm still had his doubts, but he could hear the ease in the young man's tone, so he nodded in understanding and offered one more piece of advice:

"Staying clear-headed is a good thing, but never let your guard down. The moment you ignore an inner demon's presence is exactly when it finds its opening."

As the two of them spoke, Reinhard strode into the courtyard, coming to stand before them with a slight bow.

"Subaru, Lord Wilhelm — I'm back."

His gaze lingered on Wilhelm for a moment, a barely noticeable trace of tension flickering in his eyes.

"Been waiting forever, big brother!"

Subaru, ever the familiar one, walked right up and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Just now I sparred a bit with your grandfather, got some pointers from the legendary Sword Devil himself. Learned a ton."

At Subaru's obvious exaggeration, Wilhelm felt a touch awkward — he didn't think he'd given any advice of real value. But Reinhard clearly took it at face value, and his eyes turned to Wilhelm brimming with gratitude.

"Lord Wilhelm, thank you for guiding my friend. I'm truly grateful for your visit today!"

"Hey, shouldn't that be 'brother'?" Subaru cut in.

Wilhelm looked at Reinhard, whose manners toward him were flawless as ever, and his expression turned complicated.

In the past, faced with this kind of politeness from Reinhard — courteous enough to be irritating — he would likely have just snorted coldly and steered the conversation elsewhere, as if the two of them were strangers.

But today, after hearing Subaru's whole analysis, he found himself increasingly certain that he had gone too far these past fifteen years. Looking at this grandson of his, so close to perfect, the block of ice in his chest finally showed a crack.

"...Mm."

Wilhelm gave a small nod. His voice remained low, but it carried a touch more warmth than before.

"Grimm tells me you've been busy lately. How are things with the Council of Wise Men?"

Reinhard froze.

His blue eyes widened slightly, an extremely rare, faintly dazed expression crossing his face.

As far as he could remember, his grandfather hadn't spoken to him in this almost casual, family-chat tone for years. Every meeting before had been thick with a suffocating silence and tension.

And now, his grandfather was actually asking about his work?

Was... was this really happening?

Reinhard glanced instinctively at Subaru beside him.

Subaru gave a faint smile, the very picture of a hero who does the deed and vanishes without a trace, seeking no credit — the perfect air of a wandering swordsman.

Knowing his friend as he did, Reinhard understood at once what had happened. He took a deep breath, pressing down the excitement in his chest, and answered respectfully:

"The rescued lords are all in stable condition, they simply need time to recuperate. The Royal Guard has already assigned our most trustworthy men to protect them, and under Duke Karsten's direction, order in the royal capital is gradually being restored."

"Good." Wilhelm nodded. "These are extraordinary times. Do not grow careless."

"Understood, Lord Wilhelm."

Grandfather and grandson stood there in the courtyard, trading question and answer. The content of the exchange was still rather businesslike, but the atmosphere was surprisingly warm — at the very least, gone was that tension of two men who might draw swords on each other at any moment.

Watching from the side, Subaru let out a silent sigh.

Well, fine — the two of them were each about as bad at expressing themselves as the other, but at least they'd taken a first step.

Watching them, though, a question suddenly occurred to him.

He glanced left and right, then looked at Reinhard again.

"Hey, big brother."

"What is it, Subaru?"

"I've got a question."

Subaru stroked his chin, looking curious.

"This family drama of yours — isn't the cast list missing someone?"

Reinhard blinked in confusion.

"Missing someone?"

"Yeah."

Subaru pointed at Wilhelm, then at Reinhard.

"This one's the grandpa, this one's the grandson. So where's the uncle sandwiched in between? Uncle Heinkel, I mean. Why isn't he here today?"

"As the key figure linking the generations, isn't it a little inappropriate for him to be missing?"

At the name "Heinkel," Wilhelm's face darkened at once.

The atmosphere, which had just begun to thaw, gained a fresh chill.

Reinhard gave an awkward laugh and explained:

"Father... isn't really fond of staying at home. Besides, he's on assignment right now."

"Assignment?"

Subaru raised an eyebrow, rather puzzled.

"He's the vice-captain of the Royal Guard. At a time like this, instead of staying in the royal capital helping root out traitors, where'd he run off to?"

"Father's been putting down bandits across the kingdom. Judging from his last report to the Royal Guard, he should currently be in Agante, in the Barielle Domain. There are rumors of an especially brazen band of bandits over there."

Reinhard's voice dropped low.

"Barielle Domain... Agante?"

Subaru mulled over the place name, pulling the communication mirror from his coat pocket. The moment he opened it, Ciel's face appeared in the glass.

By rights, this kind of magic tool required both parties to open it at the same time to connect. Given how fast the call went through, he couldn't help wondering if she'd been staring at the thing the whole time, just waiting for him to call.

"Hello there, Lord Subaru. Need something?"

"Her Highness the Princess got quite angry with you today, you know. First time I've ever seen her face flush like that."

"The way you say that — are you enjoying her embarrassment too? Is that really something a lady-in-waiting should do?"

"Hehe, but I'm not the princess's lady-in-waiting anymore, you know? These days I'm just a knight she conscripted on short notice. If little Schult weren't so young, she'd probably have swapped me out ages ago."

Ciel's words were dripping with teasing, and it made Subaru wonder if hanging around him had rubbed off on her in the worst way. He distinctly remembered Ciel as quite a docile girl once — how was she now capable of saying things that dunked on her own princess like that?

If that was really the case, it would be quite the sin on his part.

Guess he'd have to marry himself off to Priscilla to make up for the damages~

"All right, back to business. Do you know Agante?"

Subaru cleared his throat lightly, pulling the conversation back on track.

"Of course. It's a small village within Baron Barielle's territory. Bandits have been active around there for a while, causing no small trouble for the locals."

Hearing Ciel's answer, Reinhard added:

"That's true. Because of the recent turmoil in the royal capital, security in the various noble territories has taken a hit too, and bandit activity has grown bolder. Father's always had the habit of traveling around, and I suppose at a time like this he wanted to do something useful for the kingdom."

"Heinkel Astrea."

Beside them, Wilhelm spoke up coldly, out of nowhere.

"He doesn't have the sword-name 'van.' Because he's not worthy of it."

His tone still carried that particular anger of a father disappointed his iron never became steel.

"At a critical moment like this, when someone needs to hold the Order of Knights together, he abandons his post to go fight a few bandits? What is that supposed to prove? It's nothing but him running from his responsibilities, yet again!"

"Lord Wilhelm..." Reinhard's expression turned somewhat troubled.

Watching the two of them, Subaru realized that unless the Heinkel problem got solved, there was no way these three generations would ever truly open up to one another.

"Ciel, tell me where Agante is. I'm heading over there right now to see what kind of bandits dare run wild on our home turf."

With that, Subaru gave Reinhard and Wilhelm a quick goodbye and turned toward the gate.

"I'll leave the royal capital in your hands. With you two around, I doubt any troublemakers can stir up much trouble. See ya!"

Wilhelm actually wanted to talk Subaru out of going. The thought of this young friend of his witnessing just how far his useless son had fallen made his scalp prickle — he couldn't bear the embarrassment of it!

Still, he knew he had no real grounds to stop him. In theory, given how close Subaru was with Priscilla's 'knight,' that made him something of an honorary member of the Barielle household himself — going back to one's own domain to put down bandits was hardly something to object to.

Besides, even Reinhard, who was closer to Subaru than he was, hadn't said a word to stop him. Wouldn't it seem a bit presumptuous for him to speak up now?

This might have been the single highest moment of emotional intelligence this low-EQ old man had ever managed.

Watching Subaru's figure vanish into the shadow of the courtyard gate, Wilhelm stayed silent for a long while before turning to Reinhard beside him and speaking slowly:

"He really is a strange young man."

"Yes, Lord Wilhelm. Young Subaru can be quite baffling at times."

Reinhard looked at the old man beside him, a genuine smile spreading across his face.

"Even so, he's my best friend."

"Whatever he sets out to do, things always seem to turn out for the better somehow. Why not try trusting him, just this once, Grandfather..."

Hearing this, Wilhelm nodded silently and said nothing more.

He only hoped that unworthy son of his would embarrass him and Theresia a little less.