“What the…”
The Demons’ entire bodies had been bound. It was still possible for them to speak, but they couldn’t even lift a finger.
Lukas turned his head, allowing them to see his face.
“Th-, this guy…”
The eyes of the Demon he’d followed widened in shock. He’d probably seen Lukas from a distance before.
He would never have imagined that this man would ignore the hundred or so Demon Beasts and chase after him instead.
“I’ll ask you a few questions, but I don’t really care if you answer.”
“Who are you?”
“What are you doing here?”
“…ha…”
They didn’t answer. But this was to be expected.
Lukas reached out to the topless Demon who was sitting on the couch.
“What the hell are you… urk!”
His fingers gripped the Demon’s head like a vice and slowly began to crush his skull.
The Demon cried out in pain as he felt his skull slowly break. And soon, he began making a bizarre sound as if he was struggling to breathe.
“Uk, uk, kuk, kuk…!”
“H-, Hyles! Dammit! What the hell are you doing?!”
Lukas was touching the Demon’s brain, refining the information stored there to make it easier to say.
It was so painful that he would feel like he was dying, and it was possible that he would even lose his mind, but he didn’t care about that.
It wouldn’t kill him.
He doubted Sedi would have been able to notice him killing these two mutts, but since he was currently in an agreement with the Demon God’s subordinate, he decided it was better to be safe.
Because he didn’t know much about Sedi, just like Sedi didn’t know much about him.
At some point, the eyes of the Demon, which had been shut tightly, slowly opened. And drool dripped out of his mouth.
Lukas asked again.
“What are you doing here?”
“We… we received… a mission.”
“Hyles!”
When he saw his teammate suddenly answer the question in a languid manner, shock appeared in the other Demon’s eyes. He didn’t understand how he had changed so quickly.
“What mission?”
“Capture or kill the humans who pass through this city.”
“Where would the captured humans be sent?”
“To our superiors’ territories in Somalia or Algeria…”
“What would happen to the humans who were sent there?”
“S-, s-, s-, s…”
Hyles struggled to say the word.
“Slaves…”
After saying those words, Hyles’ expression became twisted.
“Hi-, hik. Uh, uh, uk, kuk. Th-, this is weird. Hee, hahahaha!”
“Uh, uhh…”
“H-, help me. My, my brain. Hi, hihihi!”
Gurk!
Hyles coughed up a mouthful of sticky blood before falling unconscious. It seemed the mental pressure from the mind control had been too much for him. His eyes remained open, and he shook like a convulsing frog.
Lukas’ gaze then turned to the other Demon. If he could have moved his body, he would have flinched back harshly.
“His mind has broken. It will be difficult for him to return to the way he once was. Do you want to be the same?”
“I, I, I…”
“Tell me everything you know.”
“I-, if I tell you everything… will you spare my life?”
His attitude and tone had become polite.
He’d realised what was happening and accepted it. That he could do nothing about Lukas.
When they were made aware of this fact, any Demon would lower their head willingly. A Demon who was deprived of the right to choose their own life or death was more harmless than an earthworm who crawled through the dirt and more miserable than apex predators who had fallen down to the bottom of the food chain.
All of the Demons whom Lukas had met were the same. After all, the only thing that mattered to them was their own self-preservation.
Emotions like friendship, kinship, or love were not things Demons had.
“I will spare you.”
Those words caused the Demon’s face to brighten up considerably. He could tell that Lukas wasn’t lying.
Unfortunately, he would not get the end he expected.
* * *
Sedi opened her eyes.
She hadn’t actually been sleeping. After all, an Absolute like her did not possess such physiological needs.
If she really wanted to, she could go into a sleep-like state, but that wasn’t what she’d been doing. If it had to be put into words, it would be better to say that she’d been meditating.
That’s why she was a bit annoyed. Anyone would feel the same if their concentration was interrupted.
When she finally decided to head outside, Katherine bowed her head and greeted her with a smile.
“Hello!”
“…”
This was such a strange creature.
She didn’t know why she was greeting her with such a bright smile.
Sedi had never shown a good attitude to Katherine. Instead, she used her as she pleased or simply ignored her.
Nevertheless, Katherine didn’t show any displeasure, and she instead did everything she could for Sedi. At first, she seemed a bit scared of her, but now, that fear was nowhere to be seen.
Ignoring her, Sedi walked outside with an annoyed expression on her face.
A man was standing there.
Sedi knew who this middle-aged man in a biker jacket was. Although it was their first time meeting in person, she’d definitely felt his presence when she entered this world
It was Letip.
“Why are you here?”
“You have an alliance with Lukas.”
“So what if I do? You’re not here to bitch about it, are you?”
Letip simply smiled at Sedi’s rude response.
“No way. But where is he?”
Those words made her frown.
How would she know where he was?
Her expression remained the same but she waved her hands impatiently.
“I don’t have time for your bullshit. What do you want?”
“Do you want to die?”
“Huh?”
The sudden remark caused her to freeze slightly, speechless. Then, her expression became cold. The shadows at her feet began to bubble before a black scythe slowly rose up.
“You didn’t have to say all of that nonsense. If you wanted to fight, you should’ve said so from the start.”
She would never back down from a fight. A sadistic smile slowly spread across Sedi’s face.
But Letip shook his head and raised his hands.
“You might have misunderstood. I’m not saying I want to kill you.”
Was this bastard messing with her?
Sedi looked at Letip’s face.
‘…he doesn’t look like he’s joking.’
Then was he telling the truth?
Sedi put away her scythe before speaking with an amused expression.
“Then who? Nodiesop? Or Lukas?”
“No.”
Letip’s next word made Sedi’s expression become strange.
“You’re going to die from someone other than myself, Nodiesop, or Lukas.”
“…”
If it wasn’t a fellow Absolute telling her those words, she would have already cut his head off.
But it was strange.
Letip was smiling, but Sedi could hear the sincerity in his tone.
This Absolute was certain.
Certain that something Sedi didn’t expect would kill her.
“I’m sure you don’t want to be destroyed just yet, Sedi Glaston. If you want to live, call Lukas and borrow his strength. That’s all I can tell you.”
Letip disappeared immediately after saying those words.
Looking at the spot he’d been standing in, Sedi couldn’t help but swear.
“Asshole.”
* * *
“I was originally told that this was a stopping point for hunters, a resting point. To find Demons and Demon Beasts in this place… not to mention such a sophisticated hideout.”
When Lukas looked at him, the Demon seemed to want to shrink in on himself.
“It’s not possible in a short period of time. When did you first occupy this place?”
“It’s been a few years. I don’t know the exact details.”
“Did you know we were going to be here?”
“That…”
The hesitation on the Demon’s face said it all.
Lukas didn’t shout or act intimidating. Instead, he simply glanced at the other Demon.
The Demon was more scared by this than anything else.
“…we bought the information.”
“From whom? There is no one who could’ve known we’d be passing through this a—.”
No one…
Lukas suddenly stopped talking.
It had been less than a day since they left the Congo Branch. They passed through the wilderness, where it was hard for Demons to live, let alone humans.
And they only reached this city after the sun went down.
In other words, Lukas and Joanna’s route had not been exposed and there was no one who could know where they would be going.
Except for one person.
Lukas recalled the map in his pocket. It pointed out the fastest and safest route to Egypt as well as the location of the rest stops along the way. On the ‘original map’, there was no route to Egypt and no locations of rest stops.
Those were all added by one man.
It was clear now. They hadn’t been exposed during their travel. They had been exposed from the very beginning.
These Demons knew that they would come to this city before they even set out.
“Whom did you buy the information from?”
The Demon closed his eyes. If he revealed this information, then his safety wouldn’t be guaranteed. Punishment that he could not bear would certainly befall him.
Nevertheless, it was better than having his mind broken right now.
And from that Demon’s mouth, came the name Lukas expected.
“It was Destin, the President of the Congo Branch.”