77 2 魔王の指輪




 The ring that appeared was floating in midair.

"It's called the ring of substitution.

 The Demon Lord explained.

As the name implies, if the wearer suffers a fatal wound, the ring will take his place for a single time and take the damage off his shoulders.
"The Ring of Substitution: ......

 So it can nullify death only once.

But it's not effective against natural death. Be careful.

 The depths of the Demon Lord's eye sockets flashed again.

"And I have something else for you.
"What?
"That was a gift, pure and simple. What I'm about to give you is also a favor I ask of you.

 A black glow flashed before my eyes.

 What emerged was a blood-red key.

In the ruins of Lemcelia, there is a camouflage spell to prevent intruders. With this key, you can break through the camouflage and enter the interior.
"...... in the ruins?

 I raised my eyebrows at the Demon Lord's explanation.

"You were going to go to the ruins of Lemcelia to find a way to hone your powers, weren't you?

 Indeed, I did.

 The reason I came to Riju Principality in the first place was to learn how to counter the mixture of [light] and [dark] that I saw in the battle of Myka, the [chaos].
 If Mayka can use that technique, then maybe Juno can too.

 You can't let your guard down, no matter how overwhelming the victory in the last battle.
 He's a chosen hero, after all... and a hero who conquered the Demon Lord.

 It's possible that he will awaken to great power for some reason.

 It'd be to my advantage if I could find a way to get into those ruins, but...

What do you want? You said "a favor. I don't think you're going to give me the key out of the goodness of your heart.
"Favors. No, I like you. I've always thought humans were equally repulsive and abhorrent, but you have a very interesting mental structure.

 The Demon Lord laughed.
 ...... I'm not happy that he likes me.

I'm not saying you have to believe me every step of the way. But I do need you. My men couldn't even get the first activation of the altar. In order to bring the altar to final activation... and for me to be resurrected by its power... It's the most reasonable thing to do to join forces with you, the one with the powerful [darkness].
"I'm not going to trap you, am I?

 I looked at the black skull.

"At least not until you get what you want.
"Yes. I'll use you. So use me. That's what a deal is.

 And the Mad King.

So it's a win-win.
"So what is it you're asking me to do?
"I need you to get me something from the ruins.

 The Demon Lord said.

The Demon King said, "It would have been great if you could have activated the altar to the final stage with your darkness. But in reality, it has only activated the first stage. There is something in the ruins that we need to get to the next level. I want thee to bring it to me.
There's a ...... in the ruins?
It's impossible for me to do that without an entity. There are many traps and powerful monsters lurking in the ruins, but with your power it should be possible.

 The Demon Lord continues his explanation.

And if you go to the ruins, you'll get the power you seek. And the power you seek can be found in the ruins. There have been battles between the sorcerers of Light and Darkness in Remseria as well. There are records of those tactics in the ruins I want you to visit now.

 Tactics against the [Light]...
 I want to learn it in preparation for the battle with Yuno.

 Just how much do you believe the Demon Lord's words?
 Where does he think he's going with this? .......

"All right. I'll go.

 I replied after a moment's pondering.

"Master Chrom?

 I said quietly to the surprised Shea and Yurin.

It's necessary to get revenge on Juno. It may seem like a roundabout way to go, but it's for the purpose of ensuring that we defeat him and get our revenge.

 But we can't let that result in the Demon Lord being resurrected.
 We'll have to be smart about it...



I'll take the key.

 I reach for the red key floating in midair.

 Bajie!

 As soon as I touched the key, a numbness ran through me.



 Suddenly, my vision switches.

 A series of fragmented images came into my mind.

 The floating continent of Lemcelia.
 A large number of people praying in what looks like a temple.
 Several men and women gathered in a dark room.

 They were shrouded in darkness, their forms transformed...
 One of them transformed into the likeness of the demon king, Virgalodomus.

"This is ......?

 I was startled, but my vision returned to its original state.

 Was this a dream or an illusion?
 Or was it .......?

What's wrong, Crom Walker?

 The demon king asked quizzically.

 Apparently, that was not a scene he intended to show.

 The image that came through the key...
 I don't know what it was, but I grabbed the key to the ruins anyway.

 Let's go.