Volume 7 Chapter 18 (1/2)
The [Black] Demon Lord has died.
Because of that, my [War] with him was cancelled.
Needless to say, I was pretty upset upon hearing the news.
”This timing can't be just a coincidence.”
I wasn't optimistic enough to think that the cancellation was all a matter of luck.
He was a crafty and cautious individual. Even if he was heavily injured, it shouldn't be enough to kill him.
”He's definitely alive. Either that or he has become someone else.”
Either way, there was no way he would let me be for long, especially after the shame I put him through. After all, he was as tenacious as a snake.
”It's no use thinking about it. I'll just do what I gotta do.”
And what I had to do was to make Avalon and my monsters stronger in earnest. It was plain and unexciting, but it was important regardless.
That being said, the next day was a cause for celebration, so taking a break once in a while wouldn't hurt.
◇
After a long while, I returned home. Not to the carriage near the First Tree, but rather to my estate in the city. Although my stay in the carriage was fun, I had fully recovered so it was no longer necessary to stay there.
At any rate, I changed my clothes and then headed out. I had no one guarding me today. Apparently, Kuina, Rorono, and Aura each had their own things to do.
The place I was headed to was the clock tower recently built in Avalon. Many people had been using it as a meeting place, and today, I was too.
”Hey, you're quite early, Stolas.”
”Well, so are you.”
Today, I was going on a date with Stolas.
Her magic power and Demon Lord powers had returned to her just in time for my visit to the Axela Kingdom, but she was still in a pretty bad shape back then. As of the moment, however, she was well enough to go back home to her dungeon. In fact, she was going home later in the evening.
When I suggested that we celebrate her recovery, she suggested back that we do it with just the two of us. In other words, she wanted a date. Of course, I granted her request.
Enlil, who was always with her, was left to house-sit today.
It might not look it, but he's surprisingly good at reading the mood.
Or so I initially thought until I saw him, Kuina, and Rorono hiding somewhere behind me. Perhaps it was due to her excitement, but it didn't seem like Stolas had noticed him. By the way, he was adorably perched on top of Kuina's head.
It's best to pretend I haven't noticed.
If it had been just Kuina, I probably wouldn't have known, but with the addition of the two, it was almost impossible to not notice.
Well, at the very least, Enlil seems to be getting along well with the girls.
”Is there something wrong?”
”No, it's nothing. Shall we go? I want to enjoy touring around Avalon as a simple guest today. I guess we can say I'm more excited than you about today's date.”
Ever since I used [Divine Revelation], everyone in town recognized who I was. Because of that, I was currently wearing a disguise. Well, it was just a casual clothing and a pair of glasses though.
”I doubt it. I've been looking forward to this date more than you think. Fufu, so, properly escort me, okay?”
”Yeah, leave it to me.”
Like that, I grabbed her hand and officially began our date.
I have to do my best to entertain such an important friend.
◇
To start things off, we watched a play.
Because it was done by a famous and talented troupe, it was quite good. Originally, troupes like this would stay for only a couple of days in one city and then move on to another. Nowadays though, due to the high population of Avalon and thus the profits it gave, several popular troupes had decided to stay, becoming one of the city's main sources of entertainment.
Furthermore, Avalon also offered them stories and sometimes even screenplay from all over the world. This combined with their profits, made our city the best possible environment for them.
Anyway, the play we saw this time was about a sage that was reincarnated into a slime.
While concealing his true identity, he did his best to watch over and protect his daughters, sometimes to comical effect. The climax scene deeply moved me. I envied the strong bond the sage had with his daughters and wished I had the same with my girls.
Overall, it was a great play.
After watching it, Stolas and I exited.
”That was interesting, wasn't it, Procell? Fufu, how do humans come up with stories like this?”
”There are many of them, so meetings and farewells are a common occurrence. And these stories are drawn from those experiences. At least, I think so.”
I respected them for these kinds of things that us Demon Lords and monsters just couldn't come up with.
”Hmm, I guess you of all Demon Lords would know since you're so fascinated with humans. Wait, what's that line for?”
”Let's see. It might be interesting.”
It seemed like a line for a food cart.
All kinds of food from all over the world had made its way to Avalon. Stores that offered cheap yet delicious food were numerous too. Given all the options a consumer has, for a store in Avalon to have such a line, it had to be extraordinary in some way or another.
Giving in to our curiosity, Stolas and I fell in line. Thankfully, the transaction speed was good and before we knew it, we were the next ones.
From the sweet scent I could smell, it seemed as though it was a baked sweets store.
”Tasty, tasty frog-shaped cakes, hey ♪ get your tasty, fragrant frog-shaped cakes ♪”
When we approached, the man who seemed like the shopkeeper greeted us with a song.
His way of talking seem familiar. Nah, must be my imagination. There's no way that fellow would be here.
”Welcome. What would you like to order, dear customers? Ah! Aaaaaaaa!?”
When I looked closely, the shopkeeper had a surprised face.
More to the point, he had a bipedal frog's surprised face.
Moreover, his was a face I recognized. But then again, I knew just this one humanoid frog.
”What are you doing here in my city, [Viscosity] Demon Lord?”
”Wa-wa-wa-wait. Please don't call me by that name. Hey, can you take care of the rest? I'm going out for a bit.”
”Yes, sir.”
The frog man, [Viscosity] Demon Lord Ronove, said so to an employee, put some of the frog-shaped cakes his store was selling in a paper bag, and then pushed Stolas and I toward back of his store.
◇
After pushing us to the back of his store, Ronove then gave me the paper bag of frog-shaped cakes.
”Before anything else, I want you to try these, Procell.”
”How do I know there's no poison in it?”
”I won't dare do such a reckless thing. If I ever try to aim for you, one way or the other, I won't be able to live in Avalon anymore. Right now, there's no place I can go but here.”
While still doubting him, I reached inside the paper bag. The contents were really hot and also fragrant.
The frog-shaped caked he was selling resembled something in my [Memory of the Planet]: a taiyaki. Only these ones were shaped to resemble a frog instead of a fish.
I took a bite and discovered that the light-brown outer layer held within lots of red bean paste.
Finding it safe enough, I handed one to Stolas as well.
”Delicious, isn't it, Stolas?”
”Yeah. Really. The custard cream in mine is so delicious.”
”The nuts mixed in is irresistible, yeah?”
”I sorta see now how it can have such a line.”
After eating some of the frog-shaped cakes, I looked toward Ronove.