Black Iron Magician

「Fuhahaha! Just like the other day, Alezel-dono sure is taking good care of Hund-dono! Are you thinking something bad!?」

The steel knight armor, Zex of 『Armor Emperor』 raised loud laughter. From the way he talks, he seems to be in high spirits, but his voice is mechanical that it gives a mismatched impression.

「What, Zex-han, are you jealous? A man’s jealousy is ugly~」

「I sure have an alliance with Alezel-dono, but I don’t want to have that kind of relationship. For a woman, I want someone who’s more metallic.」

「What kind of woman is that…? Also, it’s annoying that it feels like I’m the one who’s being rejected. I dunno why the men in the world would leave such a beautiful girl like me alone. I’m an elf, y’know?」

「Alezel only loves money after all~. If you’re cute like me, you’ll find your partner right away♪」

「Maria-han, you are only popular with people with peculiar fetish, y’know?」

「Hey!?」

「If you say it like that, it makes my papa sound like a pervert. The reality may be so, but it will put a disgrace on my name, so stop spreading it around.」

「Lily-chan!?」

「*Slurps*

. Uh, it’s empty already. I’m going to pour some orange juice. I’ll leave my seat for a while.」

「Ah, please pour some for me too.」

「As for me, I want rice crackers.」

「It’s under the cupboard, right? Wait a minute.」

While the fourth rank of the Great Eight Demons, the 『Dragon King』 Rimudo, is leaving his seat, the idle talk of the Great Eight Demons continued.

「Still, even that Deris and Nell are bonded, y’know? As for me, the chieftain said that he wanna see his grandchild recently, so I have a complex feeling~」

「Wait, Alezel!」

「What?」

Therefore, it is possible to get relaxed and slip things out. Lilyvia and Alezel were repeatedly warned by Deris and Nell to keep the marriage secret.

「Eh!? Black and Red are what!? Tell me!」

「I sit next to her so I heard it clearly! Black-dono and Red-dono are bonded, which means that they are engaged! Fuhahaha, this is a joyous occasion!」

「Wow, they finally did it! I have to dress up for the ceremony~」

「Is that true? Umu, as the second rank of the Great Eight Demons, I have to give them a gift to celebrate. So, when will the ceremony be held?」

「Alezel, you were supposed to keep it secret….」

「Oh no! Sorry, that was unintentional!」

By the time she realized, it was already too late. It spread to all of the Great Eight Demons in an instant. Just then, Rimudo came back with two cups of orange juice and rice crackers on a tray.

「I’ve kept you waiting. Hm? What’s all the fuss about?」

「Rimudo, listen this~ Black and Red are――」

「Mama, stop! Stoooooooop!」

It was the first time in a long time that Lily lost her composure when she’s in Demon King mode.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

―――― The 38th day of training.

Drops of water dripping from the ceiling. Each time, it makes a splashing sound that echoed in the closed room. Gustus heard the sound of water and finally regained his consciousness.

「Where am I…?」

He woke up and found himself in a dark room.

(The room is damp and gloomy. Is this a basement prison cell?)

――――Clatter.

When Gustus tried to move his body, he noticed the feel of iron is clinging to his whole body.

(It’s natural that I’m restrained, huh…)

The iron restraint is not enough to hold down Gustus’s strong body. However, that’s only if Gustus is in his normal state. For some reason, he’s unable to exert his power and it took a lot of effort to move even a single fingertip. As he was checking the current situation, the iron door in front of him opened. What appeared were the girls saw from a distance on the west coast, and the small hero whom he fought and lost to. As the girls stepped into the cell, the room became brighter.

(I never thought I’m going to see them again…. Still, they are really young, huh. If it’s our race, they are about level 3 merman or level 4 merman elite.)

This is the first time he carefully looked at their faces, but he could tell that all of them are young even though they are from a different race. For him as a monster, this is a very surprising and threatening fact. He can’t imagine what kind of training it would take to become like them.

「You are awake, huh. How’s your body?」

「Better than when I was in battle. I feel a bit listless, but there’s no pain.」

「That’s good.」

As far as he can confirm, the wounds he received in the battle have been healed completely. The severe pain caused by the poison is gone as if it was a lie. Instead, he guessed that some kind of nerve poison was used to restrain him so that he won’t go wild. In fact, his guess is correct and the amount of the poison is so much that he couldn’t even stand up unless he’s recovered by a high-level light magic.

「So, what are you going to do with me now? Are you going to interrogate me? I will tell you in advance, it’ll be futile. I won’t give in to any torture. I will never sell my comrades!」

「I don’t want to do something violent…. But, information is important….」

「If you tell us the whereabouts of the prisoners you have captured, your hideout, and your stronghold, we won’t do any harm to you. And of course, your surviving subordinates won’t be harmed as well.」

「You are persistent! I will never talk about it!」

Gustus’s determination is genuine. His subordinates are also determined not to give in with their unwavering belief. His preparedness would be transmitted to the heroes who see his eyes. However, they can’t just give up here.

「It’s a shame. Haruna, please.」

「Okay. Gustus-san, I respect you as a worthy opponent, but this is a war. I won’t ask you to forgive me, but please prepare yourself.」

「Hah, you are the one who will interrogate me, huh? It’s an honor.」

In the previous battle, Gustus acknowledged Haruna’s ability. No matter how strong his body is, it’s obvious that his flesh will be torn and his bones will be broken if the opponent is Haruna. Even so, Gustus doesn’t look away from Haruna. Rather, he even feels proud if it’s Haruna, the one who had defeated him.

「Then, here I go. Gobuo-kun, please do!」

「Gobu!」

「…… Ha?」

The red goblin, who responded to Haruna’s voice, has feathers in his hands.