Necromancer Of The Black Bible (109)

While Astarene and Erisia hesitated, Belphages’s gaze swept over them.

Then he continued in a slick voice.

“Oh…. You’ve got quite a decent heir? Very enticing.”

“Shut up, Belphages.”

A wrinkle formed between Astarene’s brows.

Belphages had been this kind of creature for a very long time.

Beyond having keen senses, he was one who indulged in every sensation.

What was peculiar was that he didn’t only like joy or pleasure; he also took pleasure in pain.

In that regard, Belphages was regarded as an oddity by the other siblings.

At the memories of that time, Astarene’s expression twisted strangely.

Blatant words and actions in which there was no trace of nobility.

Lewd jokes he tossed out every time they met.

And his unpleasant gaze.

A revulsion rose from deep within her.

Belphages looked at Astarene like that and smiled darkly.

“That expression. I’ve missed it, Elder Sister.”

“Cut the pleasantries and get to the point.”

“Oh. How rude of me. My noble sister took the time to call this lowly brother after so long…. And with such an enticing offering on the table.”

Belphages glanced at Erisia’s spirit standing inside the magic circle, then turned back to Astarene and spoke.

“What do you want me to do with this offering?”

Astarene bit her lip once and spoke in a low voice.

“First, hide us. I’ll make the formal request from there.”

Both of Belphages’s eyebrows rose slightly.

He looked again at Erisia’s spirit carefully and began to speak.

“The spirit of a dragon heir certainly has value. Chosen from youth and trained specially, it’s ranked among the top of souls. I could trade this for a pretty decent service. But… I don’t know why you’d want it hidden. May I ask the reason?”

Belphages’s question was reasonable.

Astarene’s request was to relocate them before the actual transaction.

This was a separate request, so special circumstances were required.

Either accept a different offering or provide another reason to grant it.

Belphages waited leisurely for an answer, and Astarene opened her mouth with a grim expression.

“There is a pursuer.”

“A pursuer?”

“Eckhart herself and our brothers were taken by it.”

“What?”

Belphages’s brows twitched, and Astarene looked at him and said firmly.

“Only you and I remain.”

Belphages’s gaze changed.

When the smile vanished from his lips, a cold, oppressive atmosphere settled.

He gauged the surroundings for a moment.

To check whether there truly was a pursuer, and if so, what kind of being it was.

A short while later.

Belphages spoke.

“You’re right, sister. Something is approaching this way.”

“We have to run. If they catch up, we’re finished!”

Astarene shouted desperately, and Belphages looked at her with a curious expression.

Then he spoke toward Erisia’s spirit.

“Considering all the circumstances, it’s right to grant your special request. I’m also curious who is chasing you.”

Belphages grinned and snapped his fingers.

Snap-

With the crisp sound, they vanished from sight.

It was immediately after that that Damian arrived here.

“Hmm….”

Having dismounted from Gio, I sensed a sense of incongruity.

Perhaps a familiar presence?

‘This scent belongs to a demon.’

The dense scent of darkness.

Not a Demon King like Dikrea or Illinas, but presumed to be a fairly high-ranking demon.

One of the demon kin who had been granted an immortal body by a Demon King.

Because the traces were erased, the scent soon vanished.

‘Why would a demon kin have been here?’

I closed my eyes to detect any lingering aftertastes.

In an instant my senses expanded and new things began to appear.

The scent of a human body and traces of dense mana.

These were traces left by Emma’s body.

Standing before those traces, I discovered something new.

‘A magic circle?’

A magic circle drawn solely with mana.

Ordinary black mages cannot normally draw something like this.

Mana of average concentration disperses quickly, making it impossible to create the precision required for such a magic circle.

I examined the dissipating magic circle closely.

Its shape had nearly vanished, but I could quickly determine its type.

It was a magic circle I had practiced countless times in a past life.

‘It’s a summoning circle. Judging by various traces, Emma’s spirit was used as a sacrifice to summon a demon kin—specifying a particular demon.’

Usually, the outermost ring of a magic circle contains the name of the demon being summoned.

I examined that section, but identifying the name was beyond reach.

Too much mana had dispersed.

‘If I knew this one’s name, I might be able to track it further….’

Knowing a demon’s true name allows you to do many things.

You could attempt a re-summoning or cast a ‘tracking’ spell.

Demons usually reside in the Demon Realm, and in my past life I never thought to chase them all the way into that realm.

I had heard that a living human entering there would most often be devoured.

But now….

‘I want to go and see it once.’

Whether it’s the upper Demon Realm or the hellish domains, I want to go and see for myself.

How demons live, exactly.

I wanted to carefully observe how they spend their long, monotonous time.

But with the clues gone, there will be no sightseeing trip to the Demon Realm.

‘What a pity.’

I opened my eyes.

I stared at the air where the mana had almost entirely dissipated.

Before I knew it, the sun had set and darkness fell.

A cold, biting wind brushed across the bridge of my nose.

Then a thought occurred to me.

‘I can read people’s memories. Could I read the memories of this space the same way?’

Now, when I look at someone, their past unfolds before me.

Being so accustomed to that, I thought it might be possible here too.

‘Read the memory of the space.’

I focused my mind with that thought.

Then, with the same gaze I used to read people’s past lives, I looked at the place where the magic circle had vanished.

A space where a hazy aura of mana lingered.

I stared at it for a long time, but saw nothing.

To be precise, no particular scene came to mind.

At that moment, Equinox spoke after a long silence.

[Of course. What you can see in that manner are past-life images—only for targets that possess a soul.]

[Then, is it completely impossible to view past events of this current time period?]

[It is possible, Honored Master.]

That’s strange.

Equinox merely answered, and yet I had a sense of what to do.

‘Just by focusing my mind and watching, I could see a target’s past life.’

If I paid a bit more attention, I could adjust the speed and search for the specific past I wanted to see.

It wasn’t any special technique.

I could see everything simply by watching and concentrating.

And Equinox said this was the action of the soul.

‘Searching for the traces the soul left in a time period. Then what if I searched for the traces left by mana?’

The moment I thought that, the surrounding mana sharpened and time began to slow.

Mages call this method “intention”.

To concretize an objective and picture it in the mind.

At first you only picture simple objects, but with repeated training you can depict more complex things.

At a certain level you can even intend abstract concepts—just as I did now.

‘Success.’

As time slowed, the rate at which the mana before me dispersed became noticeably slower.

I could see each individual particle of mana.

I concentrated further and intended to see their recent past forms.

Then the dispersing mana moved backward and began to slowly converge.

The sight was mystical, like a bright cluster of light forming shapes with intent.

And then.

Before long, the mana formed the complete shape of a magic circle.

As expected, it was a demon summoning circle.

The demon’s name inscribed on the outermost ring of the summoning circle was ‘Belphages.’

‘That’s a name I’ve never heard before.’

In my past life I was a rather learned black mage.

Thanks to my master, I memorized every book related to black magic I could get my hands on.

Thus, I remember most demons’ names.

[Try using the technique you just learned on that name as well.]

At Equinox’s hint I focused immediately.

Indeed.

It had an effect.

When I focused on the name Belphages, its history began to paint itself in my mind.

The name of a certain demon.

A high-ranking demon kin who had been granted an immortal body by some Demon King of the subterranean Demon Realm.

Before receiving that body….

As far as that, a vivid form appeared.

It was a dragon.

The Crimson Dragon Eckhart.

Amazingly, Belphages had been one of Eckhart’s fangs.

He was one who fell and became a demon after leading a victory in battle against the Great Demon King Belzemon 1,200 years ago.

Seeing that process made me laugh.

It seemed the sacrifice of one of the brothers had been an enormous shock.

The fear that they themselves could be annihilated.

Unable to shake that fear, the creature sought out a demon in the subterranean Demon Realm and received an eternal body in exchange for lending power to that demon.

‘What a truly weak creature.’

I had thought dragons’ fangs would be different.

Many history books generally record dragons as beings with noble souls.

But among the dragons I’ve met so far, none were noble.

They never fought to protect anything of important value in the world.

What mattered to them was only holding the highest position within their own territory.

For thousands of years they merely strove to keep that position.

That appearance was not much different from humans who hold power.

Perhaps that’s why my curiosity was gradually fading.

After concentrating a bit longer, I was able to locate Belphages’s abode.

And I also learned the name of the one who had granted him the immortal body.

The Demon King Perak.

‘I’ve heard that name before.’

This being, who hides deep within the subterranean Demon Realm, is known as a formless Demon King.

Appearing like a shadow and vanishing like the wind, a formless existence.

An immortal being that can kill anyone, yet cannot be slain by anyone.

This one accepts offerings and assassinates designated targets.

A mark is inscribed on the target of its assassination, usually appearing on the back of the hand.

I glanced down at the back of my hand unconsciously.

There, a strange symbol was inscribed.

‘What’s this?’

Could it really be Perak’s doing?

The instant that question crossed my mind, someone appeared before me.

The shadow warlock Shador.

He knelt before me and spoke.

“I pay my respects to my Master.”

“What is the matter?”

“Well….”

Shador, who wore a momentary troubled expression, continued.

“Illinas has sent an assassin. His name is Murak. He is Perak’s twin brother.”