The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody - Volume 4 - Chapter SS

SPECIAL SHORT STORY

FROM DRAGON MAGAZINE

Presented by Myojin Katou and Sao Mizuno

I want to experience defeat.

I didn’t even know when this thought first materialized in my mind, but I’d been going through life desperately clinging to this wish.

I’d wasted most of my earlier days freeing humanity from divine beings and their devout followers. It seemed conflict trailed after my every move: Raise the army. Seize the country. Slaughter the heroes. Spread my influence. Exterminate the gods.

And by the time I’d reached the end of that journey, I was known as the Demon Lord—treated as though I was a monster straight out of a fairy tale. The general population and most of my underlings didn’t see me as human but as an understudy for a god meant to be revered.

After all those years, I had only loneliness to show for my efforts, which was why I’d started to wish for my own defeat. If I pathetically fell to my knees, I figured someone would see me as human, too. At least, that’d been my line of thinking.

But my greatest wish was never to be fulfilled… There were no enemies left to defeat me.

It was inevitable that my life would reach a checkmate. But I couldn’t give it up.

In the end, I knew that the Demon Lord Varvatos would die a lonesome beast. He’d been born to carry out this fate. But I could make up for it in my next life. I could chuckle in good company and live out my days in silly merriment as I’d done in the past. It was still possible. When I couldn’t bear the idea of spending another solitary moment, I’d scrambled to create a reincarnation spell and left a will behind for my underlings.

Then I’d let myself be whisked away.

…Yep. And now we’re here. I was a brand-spankin’-new baby with tears rolling down my face.

With my brilliant technique, I’d reincarnated far off in the future as a normal human. I was no longer the Demon Lord Varvatos, but Ard Meteor—just your average villager.

How time flies! I was three years old in the blink of an eye.

I’d retained my personality and intelligence from my previous life, which made acquiring language easy.

And I’d been blessed with a great constitution. In fact, it didn’t take long after my birth for me to stand and walk around, and by three years old, I was already helping my mother with farm work.

“Mommy needs to go out for a bit. Will you be okay on your own?”

“Yes, I will watch the house for you, Mother.”

My mother in this new life was stunning.

She smiled and nodded. “All right. Be right back! Don’t worry too much about the fields! Be careful not to push yourself too hard.”

With these considerate words, she waved and walked off somewhere.

After I watched her depart, I continued tending to the farm, turning the soil with my hoe. This made me feel like a real nobody out in the boonies. I couldn’t hold in my chuckle.

“Nice. I’m just a typical villager. You could find someone like me anywhere. Even if I slip up in the worst way, I won’t be able to blow away an entire continent anymore. Nothing about me will charm or frighten others.”

With this body, I was sure I could make a hundred friends, which was a plan I’d come up with just before I died.

…But before that, I was going to focus on developing the essential skills to live.

First, I needed prowess for battle. At present, my abilities were unreliable.

Though this village hadn’t been ravaged by war, that didn’t guarantee there wouldn’t be an attack in the coming days. What would be the point of making friends if I couldn’t even protect them?

Which meant I also needed knowledge. I had no interest in becoming great in life, but I figured I would attract more people if I was a stand-up citizen. In fact, I knew children were naturally drawn toward brains and brawn.

From then on, I elected to hide away in the house to read every book available to me or train in the mountains. I would begin making friends as soon as I was satisfied with myself.

…There was no need to rush. It was better that I took my time. Easy now.

My mother had returned as I swung the hoe, absorbed in my own little world.

“Oh, welcome back, Mother. That was fast.”

“Well, I just needed to run a…little…errand…?”

…? Why was my mother looking at me like she couldn’t believe her eyes?

“H-hey, Ardy. Did you take care of this field?”

“I did…”

Oh, gosh. I must have plowed it wrong.

“I’m sorry, Mother. I’m not used to this work.”

“That’s not what I meant…How did you cover such a large area so quickly…?”

My mother spoke so quietly that I couldn’t really hear her, but she didn’t appear to be angry.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

…Heh-heh. Oh, to be thankful that your parents weren’t angry with you! That seemed to fit the bill for a nobody. I couldn’t wait to be raised like an average person.

Fast-forward some seasons. I turned ten.

As I’d planned, I had spent that entire time either holed up in my house or training in the mountains. I was sufficiently pleased with my strength and intelligence.

But naturally, I hadn’t made a single companion.

I sat up in bed one morning, thinking that over.

“Huh. It might be time to set my plan into motion to make a hundred friends.”

However, I ran into a major problem.

“…But where do I start?”

That was my first question.

I hadn’t been born the Demon Lord in my past life. My past childhood had been turbulent, but I hadn’t done anything to turn the world on its head. I’d been a perfectly ordinary guy who spent my time playing with friends.

Unfortunately, that was in the distant past. Memories tended to grow hazy after a thousand years…

“How did I make friends back then?”

I had no idea.

Hrm… This wasn’t exactly the same thing…but I remembered something Alba the Silver Tongue used to say to me.

“Your Majesty, if you wanna pick up girls, all it takes is a good opener! Then you’ve already completed the first step! After that, you can just feel out the vibe.”

He had been a huge player. I kept him around because of his skills, but…he was as irritating as they came.

I imagined my insufferable subordinate’s advice could be applicable to making friends.

Now that I think about it, nearly all human connections begin with basic communication.

“In that case, I’ll approach all the children in the village and t…talk…”

That presented another problem.

“…How do I talk to them?”

I-I really didn’t know! I had absolutely no idea what normal people talked about…! After all, I had lived so many years as a king, playing the role to act high and mighty. Because of that, any normal interaction was beyond me…

“M-maybe I should research and practice carrying on a regular conversation first? …It’ll take too much time to skirt around the issue. I have no choice but to dive in headfirst.”

I’d probably fail initially, but I would devote myself to the task without shirking away to achieve victory! That was how I rose to power in my past life. If I repeated it again here, there was no doubt I’d manage to do the same…!

The time is now! I need go out and make some friends! I thought.

…As soon as I finished eating breakfast with my parents, I left the house and roamed through the village, where I found my first target. She was a lovely girl around my own age. Her chestnut hair was plaited, and her features were simple. I went to speak to her.

Say something, I willed myself. Anything… Just speak!

“Wh-why am I so nervous…?!”

I was experiencing a level of discomfort I hadn’t felt in a very long time.

“M-my stomach hurts…! I-I can’t stop sweating…! Th-this is absurd. I didn’t even raise a brow when warring against gods…! Why would this little girl make me freeze me in my tracks…?!”

I didn’t want to admit this was the situation.

I’m…scared. She’s…terrifying. Well, I guess I’m more petrified about her response…!

How would I live with myself if she brushed me off? I couldn’t help but be filled with dread.

Tch…! Well played, girl…! This is the first time I’ve been driven into a corner…!

What should I do? Retreat?

…No! That would be pathetic! Retreating wasn’t in the Ard dictionary! Even if the situation wasn’t not ideal, I was a former sovereign! And kings did not flee!

Sweating like a pig, I forced myself to take a step forward, calling out to the girl from behind.

“Y-you over there! Look at me!”

Oh… My voice was so tinny… Either that, or I called out to her wrong.

She’d turned around but looked put off.

Come on, Ard! There’s no time for worrying!

I needed to push ahead!

“Y-you’ve answered my summons. I-I offer you praise.”

“…Sure.”

“Y-y-y-you, umm…”

“…Uh-huh.”

“Well, uh…”

Why are you getting flustered?! Just ask her already!

Say it! Go on! Out with it! Muster up some courage! Be a hero!

I was going to be a hero! I had this in the bag!

“B-be my friend. And I’ll give you half the world…!”

…I could already tell I’d failed.

“……Ew,” she said, looking at me with disgust and running off in what had to be an attempt to escape.

…It had only been ten years since I’d reincarnated…

…and I already wanted to die.

After that, I dashed home, locking myself in my room to play back the events in my mind.

“Give you half the world”? What did that even mean? I’d never heard anyone say that before.

But failure was the mother of invention. It had been a huge step for me.

I knew things could only go up from here. I would proceed with optimism.

I continued approaching people in the hopes of making a hundred friends, day in and day out.

Every day brought in a new deluge of experiments…and failures.

“BWEASE! BWEASE BE MY FRIEND! THAT’S ALL I WANT!”

“……Ew.”

My heart had been shattered into a million pieces.

A year passed, and I turned eleven. My heart had healed enough for me to consider giving my plan another go. The former Demon Lord would not be discouraged!

My previous strategy proved to be no good. I learned I wouldn’t get anywhere on my own.

Which was why I decided to get the opinions of the successful people nearest to me.

My parents.

Finding each other to have a child was a natural process but a difficult one. There was no question they would have some insight on making friends.

I sought out their opinion.

First, I asked my father.

“Making friends? Ha-ha, that’s easy! First, whoop them in the ass, then say, ‘We’re friends starting today!’ and—”

“Isn’t that how you make underlings?”

Cut to my mother’s answer: “Hmm. Making friends… I can tell you how to make sex slaves, but friends…”

“I’m sorry, what kind of life do you live, exactly?”

It seemed they weren’t doing so hot on the social-acceptability scale.

When I finally realized I was looking in all the wrong places, I turned to Weiss—a handsome elven father and family friend of ours. He’d stayed at our house from time to time.

“I can’t say I have a lot of friends…but I think it would be good to show them that you have manners and take care not to offend others? If you treat everyone with respect, I’m sure you’re bound to win someone over.”

Weiss could teach my folks a thing or two.

With his advice in mind, I hurried off to put my friend-making plan into motion.

I see. Be polite, act like a gentleman, and never cause anyone discomfort.

Who would have thought?

I adopted Weiss’s suggestions and multiplied my efforts.

“What? Be friends with you, Ard…?! Ew! No way…!”

Why? What did I ever do to you? There’s no reason for you to be disgusted by me.

I did all the right things. I kept my speech as polite as possible and my actions graceful.

To convey my highest regard for my potential friends, I investigated their addresses, ages, genders, hobbies, preferences, family members, etc. I wanted them to feel my passion. I wanted them to know I knew everything about them.

Did…I look like a creep to them?

That couldn’t possibly be the case.

Then why did they cringe when they saw me?

I could see no reason for their disgust.

But it always ended the same way.

I would try to be friends, and they would tell me I was gross.

“Maybe I should just annihilate this world.”

I could feel my heart turning to stone with each passing day. To release my stress, I’d started hiding away in the mountains, home to monsters and dungeons. I could vent my frustration there without any guilt.

Not that I could go all out. If I went too crazy, I could easily ruin the ecosystem.

I had to be especially careful in the dungeons. The ones in the forest were at the lowest level, which meant they couldn’t handle much magic.

If someone with powerful abilities got carried away, a dungeon would overload its core, causing it to go wild. That would create abnormalities in the monsters and become a huge headache for everyone. It was under these conditions that I merrily slaughtered, minding my manners like a gentleman.

It was just before noon, though the trees blocked the sun, casting it in shadow. Like my heart.

It was time for me to run from reality with more monsters. Another awful day.

“AAAAAAAAAGH!”

A scream echoed in the distance. It sounded like a little girl…

When I came to my senses, I was rushing to the scene. I detected magic nearby and cast the teleportation spell Dimension Walk. An instant later, I was transported to her location.

There was no change to the scenery. I was still in the dim forest…except there were a girl and a monster there.

As I’d suspected, the former was very young, an elf with white hair and stunning features.

The latter was a large monster in the shape of a boar. It was rather sizable compared to the girl’s small stature.

A young girl against a giant monster. It was evident that immediate aid would be necessary, but—

“Come, flames of fury! Embody my wrath! Scorch all to ash!”

The girl extended her left palm toward the monster, calling out a complex formation of magic circles…

An instant later, a raging hellfire started to blaze.

Its savage trajectory left the monster no room to scamper away. The boar was immediately swallowed up by the firestorm, letting out a final squeal of agony.

But she didn’t let up.

“Come, thunder! Gather on my hand! Lightning, rain down on the target before me!”

If she had let it be, the monster would have died on its own, but she chose to follow up with another attack. Purple flashes fired out from the circle above its head, piercing its body.

Charred inside and out, the monster perished without any death throes. The girl sighed in exhaustion.

…Her final attack must have been to put the suffering monster out of its misery.

But I didn’t see it that way.

I could not help but feel she was like…me, beating monsters as a form of stress relief.

And her form and features…reminded me of a time past.

How could that be?

…Oh. This girl looks like her.

My best friend in my past life…known as the Champion.

It felt like I had reunited with my lost companion. That must have been why I could approach her without hesitation.

I rustled through the underbrush, triggering her to look my way.

“…What do you want?” she snapped, glaring at me suspiciously.

As I was instantly reminded of all my past rejections, I almost started to break down…but I wasn’t about to lose heart. I wanted her to be my friend, no matter what.

“I-it’s nice to meet you. I’m Ard Meteor. What’s your name?”

I offered a gentle smile and spoke as politely to her as I did with everyone else.

It did nothing to change her expression. She continued glaring and said nothing.

“Um… I-I witnessed your fight! It was something else! It isn’t every day you see someone so young accomplish something of that caliber!”

I could see flattery was getting me nowhere. She remained silent, continuing to glare daggers at me.

I had a feeling her expression had grown more hostile. Did praising her abilities do the opposite of what I’d hoped? Maybe she was the type who hated bringing attention to her powers?

If that was the case, I completely understood. I used to be the same way.

It was starting to bother me more and more. I really just wanted us to get along.

I knew I was being eager and a little pushy, but I had to just go for it.

“U-um…if it’s all right…W-will you be my friend?!”

“…Your friend?” Her expression changed slightly, cocking one eyebrow.

For the first time, I was happy with what I was seeing.

Could something happen if I kept pressing on?

My heart was about to burst from anticipation!

“Yes! Friends! I think we have some things in common! I imagine we can grow to understand each other and become friends! And—”

I was fervent.

But she immediately put out the fire in my heart.

“…You think you can understand me? Give me a break.”

She looked at me like I’d murdered her parents. Her eyes held sorrow, hatred, displeasure, and…resignation.

I instinctively backed off.

“What do you think you know about me…?!” she spat, like I had left a bad taste in her mouth.

Her silver hair bristled, and she dashed off.

It might have been a figment of my imagination…but I swore I’d seen tears in her eyes.

I stood there for some time before finally dragging myself home.

I was far from accomplishing my original goal and relieving any of my stress. I was left only with the memory of that beautiful elf…

Although I had been rejected, I had no plans of giving up. I’d make sure we became friends, even if it killed me.

…And I wouldn’t let myself fail. Not again.

My next journey was to befriend that elf.

“Hello, Ireena! You appear to be in an excellent mood!” I called out.

“…How the hell do you know my name?” she snapped when we’d accidentally met again in the mountains.

“Isn’t it normal to research a potential friend?” I asked. “Small world, huh? To think you were Weiss’s daughter—”

“Ew! Ew! Get lost, stalker!”

She looked at me like I was garbage.

“Happy Birthday, Ireena!” I chirped during another encounter. “I brought your favorite red roses from Celine!”

“…How did you know that?”

“Ha-ha-ha. I know everything about you, down to the number of moles on—”

“I hope you die, pervert!”

She burned my present to ash.

“Good evening, Ireena!” I greeted her when we met again. “The moon is lovely tonight!”

“…Hey, why do you know where I live?”

“Ha-ha-ha, simple! I followed you home from the mountains!”

“Ah, I see. And…why are you in my room? It’s locked, and no one was supposed to stop by today.”

“I wanted to surprise you! I entered through the window!”

“…You’re so beyond creepy, it’s starting to scare me.”

After that, Ireena boarded up her window with a piece of wood so I couldn’t get in.

I tried to stroll through the front door instead.

“Ard,” warned her father. “Don’t go to the extreme. Be more…mindful.”

For whatever reason, he was mad at me.

What did I do that was so wrong? All I did was spy on Ireena around the clock, trying to persuade her to accept my friend-posal!

…It had been a year since I’d first met Ireena, and our relationship had hardly progressed.

In fact, I was beginning to get the vibe that she was avoiding me. She was starting to bad-mouth me and give me the cold shoulder, which was tough, coming from a potential friend.

But I refused to back down.

I needed more true grit in difficult times. Only then could I find a solution.

I needed to believe in myself!

If I chased my dreams, I was certain they would one day become reality. I’d faithfully held onto this conviction since ancient times.

But…I knew I wouldn’t see any progress by continuing with my current approach.

It was evening. I threw myself down on my bed, trying to rack my brain.

“Hmmm. What should I do? Based on my old life, maybe I could…”

I dug through my memories. Alba came to mind. A triple threat: he had been a sleaze, louse, and womanizer.

“Your Majesty! All women love a good surprise!”

I had approached my underling since I needed to attract women for…certain reasons…at the time.

“A surprise, huh. I’ve already given her a gift ‘just because,’ and nothing changed. I mean, I went out of my way to bring her the soul of an Evil God. Imagine my surprise when she said she wasn’t the least bit interested.”

He had smirked, tsk-ing me. “You have no clue. Girls love romantic situations more than just stuff. You’ve fought your fair share of battles, so I imagine you know of some places to go with sick views. If you take her there as a surprise and whisper some sweet nothings, she’ll totally be yours, dude!”

…Hmph. This situation was similar to the instance above.

Maybe I needed to change direction and find a picturesque place to bring her as a surprise.

Everyone needed a good subordinate in their life.

…Oh yeah, I’d forgotten Alba had been a virgin until the day he died, even though he talked big about knowing women inside and out.

I remember our companions used to laugh at him behind his back. Even after he died, he had been the butt of their jokes. Ha-ha, they would chuckle. I can’t believe he died a virgin.

…Was it safe to take advice from him?

My memories were hazy. Yet another reason this gave me pause. Had I gotten the girl after I followed his advice? There was a possibility it had been so traumatic, my mind had erased all trace of it…

But the truth was I didn’t have any more ideas. I kept telling myself that this would work out fine and it wouldn’t hurt to give it a go.

“For now, I should start by picking out a nice place to show her. Maybe a scene from the old world…? Hmm. But I’ll have to prepare for all the monsters for that. But the forests and mountains around the village don’t have that many beasts…”

I was starting to think I should compromise and choose someplace else.

“AAAAAAAAAGH!”

Someone was screaming.

Under the orange evening sky, evil spirits were rampaging in the village.

“E-eeeek?!”

“H-help me!”

Bloodcurdling shrieks and angry shouts started to emerge, fusing with monstrous war cries.

“What in the world…?!”

What was this? As I tilted my head, I saw a girl about my age scrambling to escape in my periphery—

A wolf monster was about to pounce on her from behind, ready to tear through her with its claws.

Of course, I couldn’t let that happen. Just as I was about to cast magic on the beast…

“RAAAH!” someone roared, splitting the monster in two.

It was my father, Jack.

Gripping his double-edged sword, he saved the girl, letting out a ferocious shout. After saying a few words to her, he turned toward me.

“Ard! Stay inside! Be a good boy and take this girl with you!”

His expression was tense, covered by sweat that poured down his forehead and cheeks.

From what I could tell, this wasn’t anything to stress about, but yeah, the average villager might consider it an emergency situation.

“By the way, Father. Why is this happening?”

“Ard…?! How can you be so calm?! Listen to me. Hurry and—”

“Before that, I would appreciate it if you answered my question.” I stared him down.

He must have figured I wouldn’t back down, or he’d been scared by my intensity. Either way, he quickly explained the situation.

“You know about the dungeons in the mountains, right? Well, apparently, the core just went crazy.”

Hmm? A wild dungeon core?

I knew all about them. They went berserk for whatever reason, causing the population of monsters in the dungeon to explode. As a result, the overflow of creatures would be pushed out of the dungeon, laying waste to the surrounding area. It was known as a “dungeon hazard,” but…it was strange. If that was the situation, there should have been ten times more monsters.

“The villagers predicted it wouldn’t go wild for another year…! Why now…?!” my father lamented.

I felt a little guilt at the sight of his anguished face.

Ireena and I…had been responsible for this disaster.

The dungeon core wouldn’t have been triggered if it had just been me, but the two of us had been hunting monsters as a way to let off steam. I had warned her not to go overboard, but it was clear she hadn’t listened.

…Whatever. This sort of thing was right up my alley.

“H-hey! Where do you think you’re going?!” My father yanked me back by my shoulders as I tried to pass him.

“To see Ireena, of cou—”

Just then, we saw a figure sprinting toward us from the road, and I stopped mid-sentence.

My father called out. “Weiss! Where are you going?! You’re supposed to be intercepting the monsters with us!”

Us. Excluding Ard Meteor.

He was referring to him and his wife. Weiss was also a part of this team, but…he was clearly heading outside the village.

I didn’t imagine he was so frightened that he was trying to run away. From the fear on his face, there was a possibility that it had to do with—

“Ireena! My daughter is in the mountains!”

That turned me to stone.

…This was bad.

The number of monsters in the village couldn’t compare to those running wild in the mountains. Taking them on would be a heavy burden for someone at Ireena’s level. We were looking at a worst-case scenario…but I could safely declare it wouldn’t come to that.

After all, they had me on their side.

“Let me go, Jack! I’m going to save Ireena!” Weiss shouted.

“Calm down! She’ll be fine! She can get away on her own!”

I watched them push and shove out of the corner of my eye before casting a spell to whisk me to Ireena. A flight spell. Sky Walker.

My body started to float in the air.

“Please stop fighting. I’ll bring Ireena home,” I declared.

“What?! What are you sa…”

“…Huh?”

All the energy they’d had a moment ago seemed to seep out of them. They gaped at me.

I didn’t have time to entertain them any further, though.

“Well then, I need to go.”

I vaulted into the orange sky, heading toward the nearby mountains.

“…Hey, Weiss. That was a flight spell, right?”

“Uh-huh. Sky Walker, a Lost Skill.”

I could only pick up bits and pieces of this conversation. I had to be mistaken.

There was no way a random flight spell would be a Lost Skill.

“Hold on, Ireena. When I finally save you…”

…I’ll have a fun surprise waiting, I thought to myself, aiming for the mountains and cutting a beeline across the sky.

She had to be cursed.

Ireena swore at the scene before her, gnashing her teeth. Deep in the mountain, it could have been any time of day.

The monsters were interlaced between the trees and weeds, camping around her. Their numbers had to add up to a ridiculous sum…

Her predicament was more than enough to make the girl accept her imminent death.

“Heh-heh. Look what we have here. A pretty little lady…,” cooed a goblin, taking a step toward her.

Ireena was shocked. It was rare for monsters to be born with a modicum of intelligence…except for the super overpowered. That meant this goblin could easily destroy a village or two, even though goblins were the bottom-feeders on the monster food chain.

If this rare breed had any form of compassion, she would be saved…!

“Ah! I’m so lucky… I didn’t think I’d find fresh meat so soon after being born…” Its green face twisted with sadism and ecstasy.

…This is it for me.

Maybe this was her punishment. She’d come into the mountains every day, slaughtering to relieve her stress. She must have angered the gods here.

If that was the case…it made her despise them all the more.

It wasn’t as if anyone would form a habit of killing just for fun. Ireena was certain others would find themselves in her position if they had been cursed from birth like her.

She had suffered from the hand the gods dealt her, which she imagined would continue to give her grief until the day she died.

Compared to that, getting eaten alive didn’t seem so bad.

“Okay… Hm? What? Do you guys want a piece of this meat, too? Fair enough. But leave some for me.”

The monster army hooted, causing the earth to rumble. Ireena accepted her death.

“Okay, girl. Resist and let me have some fun.”

A vulgar smile spread across the goblin’s green face, but she wasn’t going to oblige. She’d already accepted she was going to die.

She braced herself for the pain, knowing it would only be a few minutes at most.

It was a better end than spending decades in hell on earth.

The goblin looked at her with disappointment. “I was hoping you would yell for help from friends and family.”

Friends, huh. Ireena’s heart stung.

“I don’t have anyone. They’ve all…left me.”

She hadn’t always been alone. When she was younger, she’d had her own friends during a time in her life when she could be carefree.

Things changed, though, the moment her secrets came to light…

“What…? No way…”

“Ireena…”

She had trusted her friends with her secret, but disgust was written on their faces…which felt like the ultimate betrayal.

“D-didn’t you say we’d always be friends?!” she had asked.

“…Are you joking? Why would we be friends with a monster?”

From that moment forward, Ireena knew she would never be friends with anyone again.

“…Boooring. Do your worst, guys,” the goblin said.

The monsters whooped before attacking.

Staring at the death horde, Ireena pursed her lips.

She was better off this way. She would be released from her cursed fate.

But…she wasn’t happy. On the contrary, she was sad…and afraid.

I can end it all, but…

…But the prospect of death was too terrifying. That was why she had to let her lips voice the phrase she’d been whispering her entire life.

“Someone, help me…!”

In that instant…a translucent golden wall appeared before the pack of monsters diving toward her. The mad deluge crashed into it, squealing like crushed pigs as they came to a sudden halt.

“Huh. There aren’t as many as I’d hoped,” a familiar voice remarked, devoid of any fear.

When she conjured his face in her mind, he alighted in front of her.

“A-Ard…?!”

“It’s the first time you’ve called me by name.” He flashed her a smile.

“W-why are you…?!” Ireena murmured belligerently.

The turn of events was so unbelievable, she couldn’t get her thoughts together. Her sentences were fragmented. Even Ireena didn’t know what she wanted to say.

That was when the intelligent goblin rubbed its chin with interest.

“Humans are like moths to a flame. I never thought they would voluntarily come to be eaten—”

Right. They were still in dire straits. At this rate, they would die.

She couldn’t allow that.

Even though Ard was out of his mind, she didn’t hate him. In fact…she liked that he stuck around, even when she was mean to him. Ireena didn’t want him to die.

She was about to yell at Ard to run…but before she could… something felt off.

The goblin had been standing there, straight as a rod, doing nothing for some time now. Its words were cut off mid-sentence, and it didn’t even attempt to make the slightest movement.

What happened? She wondered.

“Huh. Intelligent specimen or not, a goblin is still a goblin. It can’t even fend off this level of magic.”

Magic? What was he talking about?

A moment later, beams of light pierced the goblin’s body…nerfing it into blood and sinew, which plopped on the ground.

She had no idea what was going on. Her mind was filled with questions, but no one could have comprehended these events.

Ard had just unleashed a sleight of hand that was impossible in this era.

Through the use of instant magic processing, a circle had formed at supersonic speed without a chant. It was a maneuver that was lightning-fast…and far beyond the realm of normal.

And Ard Meteor had accomplished it as if it were child’s play.

He offered her an easy smile. “There’s something special I’d like to show you.”

She had no idea what he was talking about. In fact, she didn’t know anything about anything, like she’d been caught in a trance.

Ard glanced at her before turning back to the monsters.

In that instant, their survival instincts kicked in. The entire group made a break for it, spinning around to be the first to get away, but—

“Demon Lord knows, you can never escape me.”

The monsters didn’t seem to be able to move another inch. It wasn’t clear what he had done.

While fleeing for their lives, they had been frozen by some cruel trick, like the goblin… It was too difficult to understand, so Ireena stopped trying.

Ard gave her another side glance. “Hmm, the trees seem to be in the way. This isn’t a very good view,” he muttered to himself.

With those words, the dense vegetation disappeared in an instant. From this open space, they could survey the area around them. The expanse of sky above was unobstructed.

Of course, Ireena made no attempt to process this, either. It was useless to try.

“Well then, Ireena.”

Ireena jumped when he pulled her back to her senses.

Ard held out his right palm toward the monster army—then lifted it upward. The beasts synchronized with his movement, whizzing high into the sky.

“I thought this might put a smile to your face,” Ard murmured, grinning. He clenched his open palm.

In that next moment, a brilliant glimmer flashed across the dark heavens.

The monsters exploded in time with Ard’s gesture. It was spectacular. The world had been falling into evening, but now, it was bright as day.

It was otherworldly.

“What do you think, Ireena?! Look! Fireworks! Ha-ha-ha! They never get old!”

Ard Meteor had a smile that could have made flowers bloom.

He was just like…a great hero from myth. A monster in a fairy tale.

He was just like…the Demon Lord Varvatos.

I’d managed to save and surprise Ireena.

Far from being delighted, though, she seemed to have been pushed farther away.

Where did I go wrong? I wondered.

Ireena balled her hand into a fist and glared at me. “Why…why did you save me…?! I wanted to die…!” she snapped.

I stared into her teary eyes.

“…Please don’t say that. Why would you want to die? If you’d like, we can talk it over toge—”

“No thanks! You’ll never understand! I bet you don’t even know what it feels like to be lonely!”

Tears rolled down her cheeks.

I responded in all seriousness. “…I don’t know your circumstances. When it comes to loneliness, though, I understand it better than anyone else. That’s why…”

“…I want to be friends with you.”

We’ll grow to understand one another, I thought. I wasn’t sure if that came through.

Because Ireena…rejected my request.

“No…! I bet you’ll betray me someday, too…! Just like everyone else! That’s why I—”

“I’ll never give up on you. I’ll never betray a dear friend again,” I declared, casting a certain spell.

A magic circle appeared before us, transforming into a spear.

“I, Ard Meteor, swear to never make Ireena Litz de Olhyde cry. If I break this promise, I will pay for it with my life.”

Upon this vow, I pierced my breast with the magic spear, causing it to vanish within me.

“Was that…?”

“A contract spell? Yes. It was originally meant for slaves and prisoners of war. I’ll suffer if I go back on my vow. If I betray you, I’ll die. That’s all.”

Ireena grew flustered. “A-are you stupid?! W-why would you go that far…for me…?!”

I could feel my chest tighten…

I hung my head. “I can’t go into detail, but I once betrayed a friend. Because of that, she…”

I didn’t want to go any further. I shook my head, gazing straight into Ireena’s wide eyes.

“You remind me of her. She was the only person who understood me. You’re practically identical in looks and personality. That’s why I want to be friends with you… I know you might find me annoying, but I think we can relate to one another on a personal level. I’ll never betray you. And I don’t think you’ll ever do that to me. Won’t you please be my friend?” I implored.

Her cheeks were wet with tears.

“But I-I’ve got a rotten personality.”

“I don’t mind.”

“I’m selfish…and stupid…and boring.”

“Lies. You’re wonderful, Ireena.”

“Y-you’ll definitely…end up hating me someday…”

“Impossible. I won’t ever hate you—not even for an instant. I can take a vow if you want.”

“B-but I-I…!”

She must have been dealing with her own set of circumstances, but I elected not to probe into them. All I cared about was her answer.

After some time, Ireena seemed to resolve the discord in her heart.

“A-are you sure you want to be…friends with me?” She nervously held out her hand.

I never dreamed I’d see this day. My eyes snapped open, and I broke into a goofy grin. Overcome with my emotions, I took Ireena’s hand and nodded enthusiastically.

“Of course. I can’t wait for what the future holds for us, Ireena.”

“Y-yeah… M-me, too, Ard!” She offered me an awkward smile.

I thought it was adorable.

And I knew I was just starting life in this world.

It had been years since I made my first friend. I was fifteen years old.

Ireena was still my only friend, but I didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything. In fact, she was so cute, she was all I really needed.

I couldn’t afford to write out my fond memories of her. I’d need millions of words to do it justice, and our families were getting together that night.

At fifteen, all citizens became productive members of society and began planning out their life goals. That was why Ireena and Weiss were joining us for a family meeting.

It was seven in the evening. There was a knock at the door. I answered for my mother, greeting our two guests.

“Hello there, Ard. I’m looking forward to our chat today.” Weiss flashed me a radiant smile.

“Evening, Ard!” chirped Ireena from next to him, beaming at me.

It had been a rarity when we’d first become friends, but now, she smiled freely.

Ireena was so adorable…more than anyone else in the whole wide world. Good luck convincing me otherwise.

I ushered them inside to get everyone seated at the dining table.

“I made your favorite today, Ireena. Curry.”

“Yay! Love you, Ard!”

“That makes me so happy.”

Digging into my curry, Ireena was basically an angel on earth.

After we all finished enjoying our meal together…

“Why don’t we get started?” my father suggested.

“So about your futures…,” my mother started.

The two glanced at Weiss. He shrugged his shoulders. Good grief, I imagined he was thinking.

“I’d hate to force you to take a path against your will. Think of this as my personal suggestion,” Weiss prefaced.

He looked at me.

“Ard… How do you feel about attending the Academy of Magic?”

To which I replied…

First published in Dragon Magazine: July 2018