Fremd Torturchen - Volume 1 - Chapter 1

1

The Fourteen Demons

The castle stood atop a desolate hill, surrounded on all sides by dense forest. It was constructed wholly from frigid stone and, as such, resembled a fortress more than it did a castle.

It gave off an oppressive air, and most anyone who spent more than three days inside it would be plagued by nightmares of being crushed by stones. Its corridors were labyrinthine, and if one got lost in them, there was a greater chance of starving to death before finding a way out. It wasn’t built with the comfort of its inhabitants in mind; in fact, it seemed to reject the idea of being inhabited altogether.

Its kitchen was no different. The layout was abysmal, and its atmosphere evoked the claustrophobic sense of being locked in a dungeon.

Not to mention the nature of the ingredients that had been forced upon him.

Kaito Sena wore a cotton shirt with rolled-up sleeves and a butcher’s apron. His arms were crossed and he bore a sullen expression. Before him lay a towering mound of organs. The varied bits of flesh were all soft and glistening and gave off a strong, peculiar odor.

He sighed and, with a sharp knife, began cutting the intestines lengthwise. He then removed the white bits from the heart. As he was dressing the vast quantity of meat with sage-like stoicism, the kitchen shook violently. Kaito ignored this, acting as though nothing had happened.

Even if the castle was to collapse and his life was to end, it was of little concern to him.

He took the expensive-looking bottle he’d randomly grabbed from the wine cellar, opened it, and poured its contents into a silver fruit bowl. At once, he began dumping the organ meat into the bowl along with some herbs he couldn’t identify.

His face stern, he continued cooking even as the entire castle shook again. Once more, he ignored it. Even if half the castle was blown away, Kaito would still be fine, so he paid no attention to the tremors. His world was at peace. However, a wicked voice rang out and shattered that tranquility.

“Butler! Buuutler!”

His name was in fact Kaito and not Butler. Thus, he decided the voice couldn’t possibly be calling for him. Under that justification, he continued ignoring it, but then the manner in which he was being called changed.

“Kaaaiiito!”

“All right, all right! I’m coming right now, so pipe down!”

His life was at risk if he continued playing deaf. He slammed the liver he was flouring onto the counter, then took off down the corridor. Thanks to the poor excuses for stained-glass clerestory windows, the corridor was less claustrophobic than the kitchen. At the same time, the patterns of light they cast on the floor were ominous enough to be annoying. He ran atop the patterns, climbed a spiral staircase, and finally threw open a massive pair of double doors.

A violent gust of wind blew in Kaito’s face. The throne room, as the name would suggest, was adorned with a magnificent throne atop a pedestal, and the array of antique tapestries served to accentuate the room’s grandeur. However, a quarter of the room had been destroyed, and the pale-blue sky peeked through a huge hole in the wall.

It seemed there was a serious chance that half the castle had been blown away.

Standing above the wreckage, an arrogant girl awaited Kaito, her arms folded and her perfectly sculpted legs perched atop the rubble. Her heels clicked as she turned to face him.

Her dark hair fluttered around her as she pierced him with her crimson gaze.

Her face, a well of inhuman beauty, was punctuated by a smile dripping with unfettered delight. It was truly unpleasant. Her nails were painted black, and they glimmered as she pointed outside. She spoke in a whisper, her voice as sweet as birdsong with the tone of a cat that had just eaten its fill.

“Behold, Kaito.”

Kaito obeyed and peered through the hole. The bright-blue sky and vivid-green forest would have been picturesque were it not for the sticky red that stained the landscape, accompanied by the stench of rust. The once-beautiful setting was now a sickening sight to behold.

A nightmarish hellscape stretched as far as the eye could see.

Dozens of iron stakes jutted out of the ground, impaling a strange creature.

Kaito scrunched up his face as much as he could, but he could still make out the grizzly, bloodied corpses.

“Well, Kaito? Have you any impressions?”

“Impressions…? It’s revolting.”

“A fitting appraisal, truly. What’s more, it lacks the requisite vocabulary and wit to entertain its master. What a boring creature.”

The girl shrugged. The dying beast was a horrifying patchwork of human corpses. It was a bizarre creature, its skin a collage of human faces with their cheeks and scalps melted together and stretched to the absolute limit. Each face joined its voice in a chorus of agony. A row of human arms along its back served as a mane, and a large number of breasts hung from its fat belly.

The girl laughed at the blasphemous abomination, her voice full of scorn.

“The time has come, Kaito. The Knight has issued a declaration of war. Or would it be more fitting to consider this mere harassment?”

She seemed quite pleased. Watching her lick her garnet lips, Kaito thought she looked less like a panther or a wolf and more like a ferocious, hungry lion. Suppressing his urge to vomit, he looked away from the beast’s corpse and gave his announcement through a sigh.

“Not that I really care, but food’ll be ready in an hour. Save your fighting or torturing or whatever for later.”

This was the absurd arrangement Kaito Sena had been forced into after he was killed.

“As you have yet to reply, I shall say it another way. Devote yourself to me.”

“Hard pass.”

When he registered the blunt demand of the girl who called herself Elisabeth, Kaito immediately refused. Naturally, he was confused at being ordered to do some strange girl’s bidding immediately after he’d been killed. But he was sure of his answer after seeing that disturbing pile of corpses. Then there were the bloodthirsty chants that had been directed at her, plus Elisabeth’s sadistic smile, but most of all, it was that she addressed herself as the “Torture Princess.”

He was afraid he’d made her angry, but for some reason, she nodded as if impressed.

“A prompt decision, I see. Did you perchance stumble across a stray memory or two of mine when you were summoned? Even so, I did not expect such a swift reply.”

“Okay, forget the whole ‘serving you’ thing for a sec. When you say ‘summoned’… Hey wait, where are we? What am I doing here? Didn’t I…die?”

“Yes, without a doubt! You are well and truly dead. Your murder was as meaningless as a worm getting stepped on—a death most pitiful, unseemly, cruel, and gruesome! Yet, I summoned your soul here into a puppet body and granted you new life. A rare blessing, is it not? Go on, then: Rejoice to your heart’s content.”

“…A puppet?”

As he listened to Elisabeth’s bizarre explanation, Kaito patted himself all over. For a puppet, his skin felt surprisingly human. He didn’t have a mirror, so he couldn’t inspect his face, but noting the lack of discrepancies in his field of view, he suspected that his height was more or less the same as it had always been. He plucked out one of his hairs, which he normally kept tied behind his head, but it was the same old pale brown.

As Kaito inspected his body with a dubious expression, Elisabeth spoke again, exasperated.

“Now listen here, you. The body housing your soul is a golem of my own creation. It isn’t one of those lumps of dirt that will die simply from having part of the word on its forehead erased. It is a superlative piece of work, for I am both a master sorcerer and a skilled artisan. It’s thanks to my handiwork that you’re hearing me in the language of your land, too. And the frame is unquestionably robust. It has organs and blood, true, but so long as it remains at least fifty percent intact, you can consider it immortal. Ah well, the blood coursing through your veins has been mixed with my own, so I suppose that if the body bleeds out, your soul will dissipate.”

“But my build, my hair color, all of it’s the same.”

“It seems your idiocy is beyond help. I already spoke of my skill, did I not? Do not lump my masterpiece in with bargain-shop refuse. If you put a soul in a container that differs too greatly from the form of its previous life, the dissonance can cause madness. The body is designed to transform according to the inhabiting soul. It automatically eliminates wounds and disease, but the appearance and build are the same as yours, from the face that reflects your impoverished nature to your gaunt, brittle frame. Feel free to weep at my compassion.”

It was then that Kaito noticed the major change in his body. Looking at his arm, he realized that the scarring and lacerations that had once been etched into it were now gone without a trace. The pain, previously his lifelong companion, had completely vanished.

Huh… That’s a surprise. This really isn’t my body after all.

Kaito finally accepted it. There was no way this agony-free body could be his. Not being in pain for the first time in a while was certainly pleasant, but at the same time, it made him feel uneasy, like he was a plastic doll or something.

As Kaito cradled his arm in amazement, Elisabeth carried on.

“I summoned a Sinless Soul to use as a servant. The Church would punish me if they found out I invoked anything evil, even if only to use it as a maid, you see. You fit the criteria, as your death was far crueler than your sins in life would warrant, but… Heh, there was some odd resistance during the summoning, but to think that you would hail from another world… I wonder whether pulling you in from a parallel dimension is the height of fortune or misfortune? Ah, I suppose it matters little who you once were. From here on, you need only serve me with wholehearted devotion.”

“Hard pass.”

“Oh-ho.”

Elisabeth narrowed her crimson eyes, apparently pleased by his response. Her long, slender finger resembled a blade as she raised Kaito’s chin. Licking her lips, she whispered in a voice that was sweet nectar.

“You were killed. Your murder was as meaningless as a worm getting stepped on—a death most pitiful, unseemly, cruel, and gruesome. Even your hollow little brain understands that much, yes? Your death was far crueler than your sins in life would warrant, fulfilling the requirement to become a Sinless Soul, yet you wear the face of a man about to descend into Hell. Even so, you would give up this second life? You would choose to die, crushed like a worm?”

“Oh yeah, for sure. I’ve had enough abuse for one lifetime. I endured and persisted, sure, but surviving isn’t really the same as living. I’m done.”

Kaito gave his response. Without even needing to think about it, he could say that it had been a terrible life.

He’d attended school for a couple of years. Afterward, he’d been forced to move from place to place and help his father with his illegal work. When that had taken a turn south and his manpower was no longer needed, his father began beating him to let off steam. All in all, it was a sickening way to live. Kaito didn’t even remember what his mother looked like. But he suspected that her brain had been addled by pain and malnutrition, robbing her of the willpower to flee, and eventually she’d been killed much like himself.

He was thankful for his new pain-free body, but he’d be damned if he let himself be used by anyone else again. If his shitty life was prolonged, all that meant was that he would have to endure even more shit.

“I’ve had enough. I’m throwing in the towel. Go find someone else to be your servant.”

“I see. Well, like it or not, I’ll make a butler out of you yet.”

Once again, Kaito’s reply was completely ignored. His frown deepened as Elisabeth shrugged.

“Summoning more servants would result in the Church casting their bothersome gaze my way. And crafting another puppet would take time. What sense is there in creating more chores for the sake of a servant, whose role it is to do my chores for me? I cannot think of a greater waste of time. At any rate, of—”

Suddenly, there was a roar as the door behind Elisabeth burst off its hinges.

The way in which the thick, heavy door spun through the air before finally crashing beside her was almost comical. A splinter grazed her cheek, yet she didn’t even turn to look. Kaito’s eyes widened in fear as he gawked at the entrance.

There in the doorway—minus one door—stood a colossal horse and its rider.

For reins, the rider held a sinister thorned chain, and the saddle it was mounted on was made of bone. But strangest of all were the bodies. Neither the horse nor the rider had any skin. They looked like anatomical models, their muscles bare and their bodies lined with blood vessels. With their flesh pink and glistening, they were hideous enough that the mind refused to parse them out of self-preservation.

Finally turning toward the entrance, Elisabeth began speaking with an air of leisure.

“At any rate, of the fourteen ranked demons—the Knight, the Governor, the Grand Governor, the Earl, the Grand Earl, the Duke, the Grand Duke, the Marquis, the Grand Marquis, the Monarch, the Grand Monarch, the King, the Grand King, and the Kaiser—leaving out the Kaiser, who’s already been captured, I have thirteen demons and their contractors I need to slaughter.”

The horse let out a whinny, and the rider roared again. Their mouths were simply hollow gaps in their flesh, and from them came the grating noise of a storm passing through a broken wind instrument. As the shriek of hatred rang in his eardrums, Kaito suddenly understood something and was certain of it.

Demon was the only fitting word to describe this horrifying creature.

“Hey, what’s up with that guy? Is he the ‘Knight’ you just mentioned?”

“For an imbecile who died a worm’s death, you seem surprisingly calm.”

“As long as my brain isn’t atrophied, I can at least make sound decisions.”

“Well, you were close. That there is a servant of the Knight. He didn’t form a contract with a demon himself but became the underling of one who did. By choice. A weakling, in other words. Both he and the Knight used to be human, though.”

Listening to Elisabeth’s explanation, Kaito felt his gaze wander over to the horse and rider again. He couldn’t believe that the rider used to be human, nor did he want to. Only a lunatic would willingly become something like that. Guessing Kaito’s thought process from the look on his face, Elisabeth snickered.

“Your reaction is understandable. Quite unsavory, no? Selling one’s soul to a demon and abandoning one’s form, all in the pursuit of inhuman power, is rather pitiful, is it not? You may laugh. I shall allow it. ’Tis his wish, no doubt—after all, buffoonery is buffoonery precisely because it inspires laughter, wouldn’t you agree?”

Even as provocation, her words were raw. The rider let out another, more piercing roar. The rage in his voice was so high-pitched that Kaito had to cover his ears for fear of his eardrums rupturing.

The rider yanked the reins and kicked the horse’s flank. The horse accelerated to its top speed in an instant, cracking the stone floor as it charged toward Elisabeth in an attempt to trample her.

“Lowborn dirt. My blade is too good for the likes of you—Iron Maiden.”

Elisabeth mouthed something and extended her hand. Darkness and bloodred flower petals flowed from her fingertips and swirled through the air. There was a loud gong and then a life-size puppet sprang up from the ground and cut through the darkness.

The puppet, which Elisabeth had called Iron Maiden, looked far kinder than the name would suggest.

Golden thread that served as hair hung down its back, and the jewels that adorned its face in place of eyes glittered blue. Its lips curled into a warm, loving smile. As it opened its arms in welcome, the rider bore down upon it, consumed by fury.

It was right when Kaito thought the horse would trample over the Maiden’s kind embrace that it happened.

In concert with the clicking sound of shifting gears, the puppet opened its eyes wide. The blue jewels flipped over, now burning scarlet. Its affection forgotten, its expression turned to hatred, and its stomach opened with a click.

A pair of iron arms shot out from the inside, each equipped with long, vicious claws. Scrabbling forth, they swooped down on the horse and its rider, smashing arms and legs with a cold malevolence and mechanical efficiency. The desperate cries of the horse and rider fell on deaf ears as the arms mashed their victims’ extremities into caterpillar-like lumps of flesh.

The horse and rider were unable to put up any sort of resistance, and after being sculpted into a grotesque form resembling a meatball with a head, they were carried into the Maiden’s stomach. As if to symbolize its chastity, its womb was lined with countless needles.

“GYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!”

Ignoring the screams of pain, the Maiden’s chest clicked closed.

As its expression became affectionate once more, the Maiden lovingly embraced her belly. The crazed screams coming from inside it begged for release. Just listening to them made Kaito feel like he was going mad, too.

“Once one enters Iron Maiden, death does not come quickly.”

Elisabeth spoke over the horrifying screams, clearly unbothered. Turning toward Kaito, she offered a suggestive smile.

“If you insist on dying again, then there’s no helping it. I am nothing if not generous, after all, so I will grant your wish. But I will not simply return you to a state of death. If you desire death so badly, you will have it by way of my methods. So. What path will you choose? Will you become my butler, or will you become meat?”

“Butler, please.”

“Well, that was fast.”

That was how Kaito came to serve the Torture Princess.

Which brings us to the present.

“This! Is! Vile!”

In tandem with this spirited protest, the heart roast with potherb garnish and fruit vinegar sauce Kaito had made went flying through the air, accompanied by plate and fork. A dangerous rain of food and cutlery pelted the antique tablecloth.

Continuing her tirade, Elisabeth planted a foot on the table with a stomp.

“Wh-what is this? It’s absolutely repulsive. It looks palatable, yet the meat is undercooked, and it has the texture of rubber. The sauce somehow takes on the organ’s peculiar odor, and the odd sweet and sour flavors create a horrific harmony that lingers on the tongue. It’s almost impressive, in a way.”

“Your description is what’s impressive.”

With dead eyes, Kaito yanked the fork out of the wall it had impaled. He wondered where she found the nerve to give such harsh criticism.

A few days had passed since he’d been strong-armed into becoming her butler. Such outbursts had scared him at first, but given that he’d lived his whole life a hairbreadth from death anyway, he quickly got used to it.

Still clad in his unflattering butler uniform, Kaito heaved a sigh.

“Like I keep saying, you don’t need to throw it at me. What are you, some abusive husband from the sixties?”

“I know not of any sixty abusive husbands, but food that vile deserves to be thrown! What do you call this?! It is so unpalatable even pig fodder would be preferable! How is it that all your dishes are this vile?!”

“You kept complaining about the odor, so I thought I’d try using wine this time to offset it.”

“…Hold on. Do you mean to tell me that you used my prized wine to create this filth?”

Kaito decided that silence was golden. Not needing an answer, Elisabeth waved her hand.

A chair sprang up beneath Kaito’s feet with a gong. He looked almost like a character in a cartoon as it scooped up his rear, then fastened him in place with belts. When he looked, it was clear that the seat and armrests were lined with holes made for needles, pins, and spikes. Abandoning his cool demeanor, he kicked his legs in a panic.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait! Let’s talk this over. Think about it. I’ve never cooked anything before, and you’re asking me to cook organs?”

“Save your excuses. As an aside, is that any way to talk to me, the Torture Princess? You have some nerve. Perhaps you’ll have time to reflect on your arrogance as you’re being riddled with holes, hmm?”

“I’m sorry! Look, ever since I got killed, it’s been kind of hard to register feelings like fear or danger! I’m sorry, okay? Can we just skip the torture?”

“Very well. I shall grant you mercy…or so I would like to say, but do you mean to tell me that you only respect me out of fear?”

“Well, uh, that’s not…not true…”

“What, no excuse, then, Kaaaito?”

As he shouted that he wanted to take it back, Kaito’s fate dawned on him. He was going to become a human pincushion. However, Elisabeth seemed to reconsider, and as she snorted, the Iron Chair vanished.

“Very well. In my infinite generosity, I shall grant you one last chance—I demand pudding.”

“…Pudding?”

Her comical order was placed with a straight face, and Kaito cocked his head in puzzlement. Elisabeth nodded, then crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair, her face full of conviction.

“I have my doubts as to whether a fool who can’t even cook will be able to handle confectionery, you see. But perhaps you’ll have a knack for sweets. It won’t hurt to try. And if even that is beyond you, then, like anything that does naught but produce trash, you will simply be disposed of.”

“Please don’t talk about disposing of people. It hits a little too close to home. Pudding, right? I think I know what you’re talking about… Though where I’m from, it sounds more like purin.”

“Purin? I know not of this dish, but from the sound of the name, there should at least be a vague similarity, no?”

Kaito nodded at her half-hearted answer. As a matter of fact, he had strong memories associated with that dish.

Long ago, the woman living with his father at the time had served it for young Kaito. He’d been overjoyed, and she met his glee with a forced smile. The next day, she was gone. Thinking back on it, he realized that it had probably been meant as atonement for leaving him behind and escaping on her own. Even now, the memory of that rare moment of happiness was vivid. And he more or less remembered how she’d made it.

He could re-create it with the ingredients available in the kitchen, but the cookware was lacking. He returned to Elisabeth.

“Hey, Elisabeth. You can make golems out of mud, so do you think you could make an earthenware pot?”

“Is that something you would ask of the person considering disposing of you? What a frightening fellow you are. Very well. What is this ursine-wear pot you speak of?”

With his limited linguistic talents, Kaito tried explaining what an earthenware pot was. Elisabeth snapped her fingers, a perplexed expression on her face. A moment later, soft footsteps echoed through the corridor.

The door to the dining room creaked open. Behind it was a small golem, composed of rectangular lumps of earth. It waved good-bye, then suddenly collapsed, leaving behind a pile of mud.

“Wh—? Hey wait, Elisabeth; what did you just do? Don’t you feel bad for it?”

“Do not pity it. Contrary to what you may think, it possessed no will. Now, a pot, was it?”

The mud squirmed, eventually settling into the shape of a pot. Kaito followed up on his explanation, saying how it needed to be shorter and rounder and how it needed a hole to let out steam. The mud shifted again, and after a period of trial and error, it finally reached a shape Kaito recognized.

“That mud is quite heat tolerant. While I’m still unsure of what you intend to do with it, use it as you please.”

“Thanks. That’s a big help.”

Taking great care not to drop it, Kaito returned to the kitchen with the pot. He filled it with water, then added the wheat and put it on the fire. By doing so, he could plug up the fine holes that had formed in the pot. Next, he heated some milk in a saucepan and melted sugar into it. Once it cooled, he added one whisked egg, then he stirred gently to avoid making bubbles. He greased the earthenware pot with butter, then scraped the egg mixture in with a clean towel. But this was where it got tricky. He had to put the lid on, then let it simmer for ten to fifteen minutes. He placed a net over the stove and laid the pot on top of it, but he had no faith in his ability to regulate the fire.

“So how am I going to…? Huh? Wait, this works?”

It appeared that the earthenware pot Elisabeth had made was incredibly heat tolerant. Even though the stove was blazing hot, the amount of heat the pot was receiving was the exact right temperature to simmer the mixture. The rest was up to luck.

Soon, a sweet aroma began wafting through the kitchen. To cool the pot down, Kaito carried it to the ice-spirit fridge. He let it cool for ten minutes, then brought it to the dining room.

To his surprise, Elisabeth was waiting for him patiently. She must not have had anything better to do.

“Hmm? Well, this is a surprise. I thought you’d make a run for it.”

“Well, thanks to you, it turned out all right. See for yourself.”

Kaito placed the earthenware pot before her. Elisabeth craned her neck inquisitively. She seemed to be waiting for him to remove the lid. Kaito grabbed the handle and did so, causing a sweet aroma to waft through the air. Upon seeing the pale-yellow substance contained within, Elisabeth cocked her head to the side.

“What is this? This is not pudding.”

“Huh, they really were different, then. This here is purin. It’s the version of ‘pudding’ I’m familiar with.”

“Purin, you say. Hmm.”

Parroting his word back at him, Elisabeth took a spoon and scooped out a mouthful. She frowned dubiously at it as it jiggled back and forth, then she put the spoon in her mouth. After a moment of silence, she took another spoonful.

“This is quite strange…or rather… Yes…it’s so very…wobbly…and syrupy.”

Elisabeth brought spoonful after spoonful to her mouth, eating with relentless vigor. In no time at all, the earthenware pot was empty. Her spoon clattered on the table.

“I approve!”

“I’ve been approved.”

Elisabeth smiled, her expression gleaming with satisfaction, as if to tell him that he was capable of anything he set his mind to. For a moment, Kaito envisioned a pair of cat ears flopping atop her luxurious black hair.

For someone who’s liable to torture others at the drop of a hat, she’s surprisingly straightforward.

Just as those words creeped into Kaito’s mind, Elisabeth snapped her fingers. Afraid that she’d seen through his thoughts, he braced himself for the Iron Chair to appear.

A chessboard made of red light glowed before him, no doubt magically conjured by Elisabeth. Seeing Kaito’s eyes widen in surprise, Elisabeth spoke.

“It seems you’re not entirely useless. In light of this, I shall impart unto you some information about your current situation.”

Elisabeth waved a pale hand. The chessboard began spinning toward Kaito. As he leaned back, the board stopped, and her voice adopted a singsong tone.

“Rejoice, for knowledge is power. ’Tis the fate of ants and the ignorant to have their lives played with. ’Tis by obtaining knowledge that men surpass insects and become beasts, then become humans, and at times surpass even God.”

Two large pieces appeared above the chessboard, one black, the other white. Both were adorned with wings. As they floated, Elisabeth pointed at them.

“In this world, God and Diablo are both very real. They exist in a higher realm, where human eyes cannot reach, but their existence has been proved by theologists, scholars, and mages. Of course, God and Diablo are no more than names we assigned them for the sake of convenience. We call the entity who created the world ‘God’ and that which destroys it ‘Diablo.’ Hence Diablo can only interfere with the world of man once God has abandoned it. But there is an exception. If Diablo has a contractor, all bets are off.”

“A contractor?”

“Those who use their bodies as intermediaries to summon Diablo into our dimension, where it cannot normally exist, and form a contract with it. Diablo then fuses with them and corrupts their form, but in return they obtain power they can use as they wish. But summoning Diablo, who possesses enough power to destroy the entire world, is no small feat, and there is no one vessel that can contain it, so it has yet to manifest. However, even its fragments possess great power, and those exist in our world today.”

The black piece shattered and began raining down upon the chessboard. It then changed into fourteen pieces, all lined up. Amid the crowd of pieces shaped like beasts and men, one wore a crown and was bound by chains.

“Fourteen people have formed contracts with fourteen demons. They are ranked—the Knight, the Governor, the Grand Governor, the Earl, the Grand Earl, the Duke, the Grand Duke, the Marquis, the Grand Marquis, the Monarch, the Grand Monarch, the King, the Grand King, and the Kaiser—and when people say ‘demon,’ they refer to these fourteen as well as their contractors. There are also their servants: those who pledge allegiance to them in exchange for a portion of their power.”

In front of the fourteen strange-looking pieces now stood a row of pawns. As the fourteen placed their hands on the pawns’ foreheads, the pawns, too, transformed into hideous monsters. Elisabeth grabbed one of them.

“The skinless knight you saw was a servant of the Knight. Calling them ‘demon’s contractor’s servants’ is a mouthful, so we call them ‘underlings.’”

Elisabeth placed the piece back on the board. The fourteen pieces and the grotesque pawns began marching.

“Demons derive their power from the lamentations of God’s creations—especially from the suffering of humans. As such, the demons and their followers are responsible for no small number of disasters.”

All at once, the chess pieces opened their mouths, which were filled with ugly, misshapen teeth. As a new row of pawns materialized, the pieces ran them down and consumed them. Elisabeth snapped her fingers. A piece shaped like a woman appeared on the board.

“The Church—a religious organization that worships an image of God that mankind once relied upon, a framework that guides people in accordance with God’s will, and an institution created to preserve our world’s long peace—has tasked me with hunting the thirteen demons excluding the Kaiser, who has already been captured. At the moment, my foe is the Knight.”

Kaito watched as a piece astride a horse advanced in front of the rest. The twisted suit of armor atop a red piece charged toward him. The female piece turned to face it, wielding a glowing red sword.

“The Knight is the weakest of the fourteen. Yet, to a normal person, he would seem like a nightmare made flesh.”

As she was speaking, the floor shook. Before the sword could reach the Knight, the board and pieces vanished.

Thud. Thud. The castle shook once more. Elisabeth rose to her feet, ever graceful. She ignored the baffled Kaito in her advance, her dress swaying with every step. Flustered, Kaito followed after her.

Elisabeth left the dining room and continued down the corridor. When she reached the door to the throne room, she cast it wide open.

The stench of blood and flesh hit them like a truck.

They could hear the barbaric sound of something gorging itself on meat.

After a brief hesitation, Kaito gazed through the hole in the wall. Atop the corpse of the skewered patchwork beast stood a new creature. It was gorging itself on the carrion, tearing away large chunks of flesh with its massive mouth. Embedded in its flank were human faces, each weeping as they ripped apart any meat they could reach. Kaito could hardly find his breath as he was absorbed in the horror of the spectacle.

Elisabeth turned and spoke with a wicked grin.

“This, too, is the work of a demon. I expected as much, but it seems a second has appeared.”

“I can’t believe you expected something like this…”

“The beast made it here without decomposing, so its materials likely came from the neighboring village. When a demon attacks a village, he leaves few survivors. But even if as many as a fifth of the villagers escaped, the first beast seemed much too small to be made of the remaining four-fifths. It’s only natural to assume that another was forthcoming.”

How can she make a prediction like that so calmly? Kaito’s head swam as he pondered that insanity.

As he was thinking, the beast let out a scream.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!”

Then it leaped, its rows of breasts swaying this way and that. It dug its claws into the side of the castle. The entire castle shuddered, and dust fell from the ceiling. The beast turned its murderous eyes toward Elisabeth.

Looking up at the beast, whose head was protruding through the hole, Elisabeth sighed.

“Heavens. Even considering you all were dragged into this, it is a pitiable sight indeed.”

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!”

“I shall grant you reprieve. Be at peace.”

Elisabeth snapped her fingers. The ground shattered. Countless iron stakes ripped through the earth and stretched forward. One after another, they pierced the beast’s chest. Even with its body torn to shreds, the beast still lunged forward, trying to catch Elisabeth in its maw. But its charge was impeded by over one thousand cold iron stakes.

In concert with the sound of stakes piercing their target again and again, a cloud of dust mixed with crimson flower petals billowed forth like a tempest. Once it cleared, the corpses of the two beasts lay side by side. Dark blood began pooling on the ground.

Elisabeth turned to face Kaito. A drop of blood painted her cheek, but she barely seemed to notice as she spoke.

“There may yet be traces of the Knight in that village. We’re leaving. Attend to me.”

Her dress fluttering, Elisabeth took off.

Reining in his trembling legs, Kaito followed after her.

Elisabeth descended the stairs to the underground. Mysterious groans echoed throughout the corridor, evoking the sense of a labyrinth containing a monster. In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising if there really was a monster down here.

She continued at an even pace, finally reaching a door at the end of a hall and kicking it open. Kaito stood beside Elisabeth as he glanced inside.

The room had no furniture or windows, and a massive magic circle was painted on the floor.

As he looked closely, he realized how intricate the design was. The air was thick with the rusting-iron scent of shed uterine lining. He then realized that the magic circle was painted in blood.

“A teleportation circle, etched in my own blood. It takes me wherever I please, as long as I can remember being there.”

“Not a huge fan of the medium, but that does seem pretty convenient. We didn’t have these back where I come from.”

“Ah yes, you come from a world of machines. You would do well not to make light of magic. As my servant, even you could use your blood to summon something to your side.”

“What, you want me to shed this much blood?”

“You should try it sometime.”

“I humbly decline.”

Kaito nervously stood next to Elisabeth atop the magic circle. She clicked her heels.

With a sound like a flare, crimson flower petals began dancing along the outer circumference of the circle. As they spun, so did their surroundings. The motes of red then melted together, eventually forming thick cylindrical walls. The smell of iron assailed Kaito’s nostrils once more. In an instant, the flower petals had transformed into blood.

Elisabeth clicked her heels a second time and the walls of blood collapsed to the ground like stage curtains. The scenery the walls had been concealing came into view.

They stood over the remains of a battlefield.

That was the only way Kaito could describe the scene before him.

There was fire stretching as far as the eye could see, and countless corpses dotted the ground among the burning buildings. The only thing Kaito could think to compare it to was a photograph of a battlefield in a far-off country he’d seen long ago. Two hours had passed between the creation of the first beast and Kaito and Elisabeth’s arrival, but the flames showed no signs of abating.

As he glanced over the burning corpses, Kaito could feel sweat trickling down his forehead while the stench of charred flesh filled his nostrils and the heat radiated across his skin.

There was a man whose top half was fully carbonized. An old woman with not only her head but her entire spine ripped out. A woman with her breasts cut off. A young boy whose face had been torn clean off. A half-dead child with their arms severed who had likely been trying to crawl away.

None of them retained so much as a shred of human dignity. All their deaths were gruesome. Unlike the beast, their corpses were comprehendible. That was precisely why the spectacle was so horrific, why the cruelty of it sank into one’s brain. The urge to retch welled up in Kaito’s throat before he finally managed to swallow it down.

There was no mistaking it. This was Hell.

This was a place filled with the worst things one could imagine.

“I mentioned it before, but this is a demon’s doing.”

Beside Kaito, who had lost the will to speak, Elisabeth whispered.

She stepped forward, then turned to face him, the fire at her back and her black hair dancing against the blazing breeze.

“Demons draw their power from the suffering of men, from the discord in their souls that suffering brings. This is the result. The methods used here are…cute, I suppose. Even now, much darker horrors are being produced elsewhere.”

Kaito was taken aback by her words. He was used to pain and suffering. He was all too familiar with fear and with the unbelievable tragedies that occasionally befell people. But there was no way he could be okay with a spectacle as ghastly as this, with people being killed in a manner that lacked mercy or meaning.

“You call this cute? Quit screwing with me! No matter how you look at it, this is Hell!”

“Even Hell has its layers. And this is a shallow one. As far as I’m concerned, this might as well be a field of flowers. Demons give birth to much crueler tragedies than this… ’Tis why the Church left dealing with pigs like them to a sow such as myself.”

“ELISABEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETH!”

She was cut off by a furious scream. At that signal, a group of villagers emerged from behind a half-caved-in animal pen. The nervous men, clothes stained with soot, brandished farming implements as they surrounded Kaito and Elisabeth.

An armored knight atop a horse strode up beside them.

Kaito froze when he saw him.

However, the knight appeared to be a legitimate member of this world’s armed forces. He wore a plumed helmet, and his horse and silver armor were adorned with a coat of arms in the shape of a lily.

There was a metallic schwing as the knight unsheathed his sword. Elisabeth sighed.

“Well, if it isn’t a Royal Knight. I strung up those useless colossi, so what business have you with me?”

“Don’t play dumb with me! I was dispatched to this village from the Capital, and I’ve been keeping an eye on you up in your castle. But now you finally show your true nature! I’ve known what you were all along. This horrible affair, all of it is your doing!”

“Are you dull? You gaze upon the Knight’s work. Then again, I suppose those who’ve not witnessed it firsthand may have difficulty understanding it as such. Regardless, take care not to foist your incompetence on my shoulders. The Church has tasked me with hunting demons. I am not in a position to kill humans…for now.”

“Silence your lying tongue! Who would believe such a tale?!”

The knight’s voice grew harsh, and Kaito cringed. The knight pointed his sword at Elisabeth and spoke, his voice quivering with rage.

“Don’t think that I’ve forgotten what you’ve done.”

Elisabeth simply stood there, her face the picture of apathy, and made no attempt to refute the accusation. Her demeanor caused the knight to lose what little patience he had left. He fired off a frenzied account of her past deeds.

“You tortured the entire population of your fiefdom! You dismembered their bodies, ripped out their still-beating hearts, stitched every orifice in their bodies shut, carved into their bones, melted their flesh, gouged out their eyes, severed their tongues, and when you ran out of ideas, you killed parents and children, the elderly, and men and women alike! In the end, your sins reached even the nobles! Torture Princess! Elisabeth Le Fanu! Who would believe anything that came out of your filthy mouth?!”

Hearing those words, Kaito was reminded of the reality that had been thrust before his eyes a few days prior.

He recalled the scene he had witnessed as he died. He recalled the mountain of corpses, each without so much as a shred of human dignity. He recalled the bloodlust of the angry horde and the smile of the restrained girl.

Elisabeth was smiling even now, listening to the knight’s tirade as one might listen to a small bird chirping.

“And I certainly haven’t forgotten what I saw you do to my fellow knights at the Plain of Skewers! Do you have any idea how many sleepless nights I endured in the Kingdom after surviving that?”

The knight’s sword hand trembled. However, he suddenly stopped talking and looked at Kaito. His armor clanged as he spoke to Kaito in a voice filled with confusion and sympathy.

“Why do you stand with such a demoness? I’d heard that Elisabeth was looking for a servant, but if she’s holding you against your will, you can come to me. I’ll protect you.”

Kaito turned to look at Elisabeth. She crossed her arms and remained silent.

It was true that Kaito had been brought back to life against his will and made to serve her. And he’d personally witnessed her cruel deeds. In truth, he would like nothing more than to live a simple life of peace in this strange new world. Now was his chance to get away. But just as he was about to step forward, Kaito stopped.

“Come on, then. Hurry.”

“Your offer sounds like a dream come true, but can I ask you a question first?”

“What is it?”

“Why do you look at me with the eyes of someone who’s just found their next meal?”

After this question, an uncomfortable silence descended among them. The men, still clutching their farming implements, turned toward the knight. Some of them looked worried now. But the knight said nothing. Looking straight at the knight, Kaito continued.

“Back when I was alive, I met plenty of guys who would actually pass up a warm meal if it meant getting to beat up a kid. And you’ve got the same look in your eyes that they all did.”

He received no answer. But beside Kaito, Elisabeth’s shoulders began trembling. She broke out into laughter. She looked truly bizarre, her body twisting as she clutched her sides in amusement.

“Of course, of course. It makes perfect sense. Ah, but I didn’t expect you to be a member of the Knight Corps. How laughable—say, would you allow me one question, proud sir?”

Her laugh was sweet. Some might even say it was innocent.

Her crimson eyes glittering with glee, she spoke in a soft, gentle voice.

“I slaughtered those five hundred men upon the Plain of Skewers. I slew them, annihilated them, exterminated them. And I certainly don’t recall allowing a single one to escape.”

Her smile vanished. Her eyes were full of contempt, and her question came in a voice as cold as ice.

“So why are you still alive?”

At that moment, the heads of the men wielding farm implements were blown off. The heads fell to the ground, their lips half-open in surprise. Swarms of flies poured out of their gaping neck holes. The flies then set to work dragging the bodies together with their tiny legs. They gnawed through flesh with their tiny mouths, binding the bodies’ skin together with mucus and crafting a miniature version of the creature Kaito had seen from the castle.

Kaito stepped back, the bizarre spectacle once again robbing him of his breath. At the same time, the knight’s entire body was wreathed in sapphire flames. His horse’s skin paled under the light of the brilliant-blue blaze, and the rider himself swelled in size. In order to accommodate its wearer’s unnatural growth, the rider’s armor inflated like a water balloon. Long gray hair and a beard spilled out from the openings in the enlarged armor. The knight had grown old and hideous.

In the face of the imposing, demonic Knight, Elisabeth clicked her tongue, ever fearless.

“I know not if you were trying to lower my guard or simply consume my servant before my eyes, but in either case, you are a fool. If you had intended to transform all along, you could have done so from the beginning and spared us the childish farce. Your experience contracting with a demon and surviving the Plain of Skewers has taught you nothing, it seems.”

Elisabeth heaved a sigh, then nodded in satisfaction.

“But perhaps that is why you failed to merge with any but the lowest rank, the Knight.”

The Knight let out a furious roar. His pale horse broke into a sprint at a speed much faster than even that of his skinless underling. Fire and lightning billowed forth from around the Knight. He grabbed the blue lightning in his hand and transformed it into a massive lance, then he charged at Elisabeth.

She didn’t dodge the blow, and the lance ran her through.

Kaito stifled a scream. The massive weapon gave off a thrumming noise as it speared through Elisabeth’s chest. Red blood began dripping from the wound it made. The Knight then jerked the lance free and sent Elisabeth tumbling to the ground.

A memory flashed through Kaito’s mind.

It was a recollection of himself, battered and thrown against the wall, then collapsing to the floor like garbage.

“Elisabe—”

Kaito ran toward her, then stopped. She was laughing. She twisted her stomach as she sat in a pool of her own blood and laughed, as if it was all so funny that she just couldn’t help herself.

“Heh-heh, ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha, ahhh—ha-ha-ha-ha-ha…ha.”

She grimaced in pain and rose to her feet. Kaito could see clear through the cavity in her chest. Some of her entrails sagged from the hole, but she simply wrapped the loose ends around her arm and wrenched them all the way out. Bleeding profusely now, she cast her guts aside.

“I see… So damage of this magnitude is about as mild as an itch. A far cry from having one’s soul set ablaze. Now then, pay close attention. This is what true agony feels like.”

Elisabeth lifted a hand in the air. A great cloud of darkness and scarlet flower petals spiraled around it. They then mantled her body, masking the hole with fresh black cloth. She grabbed something from within the huge spiral of crimson and shadow.

“Rejoice, half-wit. I draw this blade for thee.”

She drew out a long sword. Its blade was bloodred, and it flickered with a sinister glint.

“Executioner’s Sword of Frankenthal!”

She spoke its name, and the runes etched onto the sword sparked to life. As the light reached Kaito’s eyes, he could feel the meanings of the runes forcing their way into his brain until the complete phrase made perfect sense.

You are free to act as you will. But pray that God shall be your salvation. For the beginning, the middle, and the end all lie in the palm of His hand.

“Come, let us enjoy ourselves to the fullest!”

Elisabeth swung the sword through empty space, as if she was tracing both her foes’ arms. Silver chains flew through the air in tune with her slashes, wrapping around the Knight’s forearms and wrenching him from his mount. He hung in the air, helpless to resist. A moment later, he snapped his fingers, and the beast drew up from behind Elisabeth. Without turning, she swung her blade again.

Chains wrapped around the beast, binding it firmly. There was a loud ripping noise as flesh was torn asunder. The shackles twined around its collapsing form and reinforced it as it took on the shape of a horse. They wrapped around the pale horse as well, acting as a pair of reins.

Elisabeth raised her blade to the heavens, and the tips of the infinite chains rattled as they spiraled toward the Knight. Once they were finished, the Knight’s arms and legs were bound, and at the opposite ends of those tethers stood four horses, his own included. He called his steed, but the horse paid him no mind.

“Now, then…let’s see how you like being Drawn and Quartered.”

She swung her sword, and the horses set off in unison.

The Knight’s limbs screeched, and his joints made popping noises as they were pulled out of place. His flesh, stretched to its limit, began to tear. Blood poured from the gaps in his armor. But the horses did not stop. The Knight cried out in pain and rage.

“ELISABEEEEEEETH! ELISABEEEEEEETH!”

His voice was brimming with agony and hatred.

The Knight drew near Elisabeth. Kaito, too, approached her from behind, then he gasped. The eyes beneath the helmet were human once more. They were different from when they’d been focused on Kaito and were now the purest blue. They glared at Elisabeth.

The Knight’s contractor was quite young.

Looking down at the man’s noble eyes, Elisabeth murmured tenderly.

“A survivor of the Plain of Skewers, hmm? It must have been painful. No doubt you detest me.”

“ELISA… ELISABEEETH…”

“…My apologies, good sir. But the cries of a demon are as unpleasant as the squeals of a swine.”

There was venom in her smile. The Knight roared, a sound rich with malice and bloodlust.

“ELISABEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETH!”

The next moment, with the sound of meat being shredded, the Knight’s limbs were ripped from his torso. The appendages bounced along the ground as they traveled, still tied to the horses. The fissure ran all the way up his abdomen, and his organs came spilling out in a gentle cascade. Beneath the helmet, the Knight vomited mouthful after mouthful of blood before breathing his last. Then his body erupted into silent blue flames.

“Let us return home. That purin of yours was delectable but made for poor sustenance. I’m famished.”

Her sword transformed into a cloud of crimson petals, and Elisabeth walked off. Kaito couldn’t help but stare. He thought back to the scene he’d witnessed when he was first summoned. That and the Knight’s accusation. If he pried too deeply, he would invite nothing but pain. Still, he had to know.

“Hey, is everything he said true? Did you torture and kill all your subjects, then turn on the nobles?”

“Yes indeed. He spoke no falsehoods nor held any misunderstandings. Understand who it is you serve. I am the Torture Princess, Elisabeth Le Fanu. I have caused more pain and death than any before me. I was apprehended by the Church. And I am now tasked with slaughtering thirteen demons.”

She answered without an ounce of hesitation. She was as ruthless and tactless as a demon, perhaps even more so. Recalling her feline smile from when she’d eaten the purin, Kaito almost felt betrayed. She was someone who hurt people, someone who took from others, and he made no effort to conceal the displeasure on his face. But Elisabeth followed her confession of guilt with something wholly unexpected.

“And once I’ve executed them all, I, too, shall be put to the stake.”

Her statement was resolute. Kaito’s eyes widened. Elisabeth stared straight back at him, her crimson eyes as clear as rubies. Her calm countenance gave no sign that she was lying.

A line from earlier echoed in Kaito’s mind.

Until the day of your death, try to do some good at least.

So that’s it. Kaito remained silent, perplexed, unsure of how to react to this revelation. Elisabeth paid Kaito a “humph” as she stepped onto the center of the teleportation circle.

“Once we return, do something about dinner. If you can prepare sweets of that caliber, surely you can craft a proper meal. And if you fail to make something decent, it’s the Ducking Stool for you.”

Kaito followed her but stopped for a moment and looked back.

The scene painted before him was an unmistakable hellscape. A scream rang out from far off, and the animal pen collapsed. The flames grew stronger yet. Thinking back on the Knight’s bizarre form, he muttered to himself.

“…Twelve more of those, huh?”

Kaito lined up next to Elisabeth. She clicked her heels.

As the two of them vanished, the Knight’s lance burst into blue flame, crumbled to ash, and scattered on the wind.