Editing Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha:Volume 12 Chapter 2 (section)

==17==

In the end—Basara and Takigawa didn’t order anymore meat for their all you can eat session.
It’s because there were so many unresolved items to discuss regarding the situation from here on.
Despite that, the two of them found themselves more than satisfied.
And then after they left the restaurant, they went off in their separate ways. Unlike Basara, Takigawa had no need to go use the train.
Watching Takigawa’s back disappear into the night time crowd,
“…”
Basara thought about Takigawa once more.
—Takigawa, a demon, could certainly disappear from a human’s eyes easily.
As such, if he felt like it then he could do any malicious act he wanted.
However—even after living in the human world for a long time, Takigawa hasn’t done anything like that.
There were two possible reasons for that.
The first being that he’s afraid of the possibility that he would draw the attention of the hero clan. His primary mission is to watch over Mio. If possible, he would definitely like to avoid the notice of the hero clan.
In addition to that,
It’s likely that the current demon lord Leohart forbade any sort of foul play.
Even if it’s towards humans.
Leohart’s plan was to get accepted as a demon lord through all sorts of political dealings, and reward those who had backed him on this as much as possible.
But during the time of Belphegor and the other cardinals, they had unreasonably raised taxes for the sake of their allies and themselves, so Basara had heard that Leohart avoided such an unfair system of taxation.
…Nevertheless.
Takigawa’s affiliation put him at Leohart’s side, quite close to Leohart himself, in fact.
Starting as Mio’s observer, he’s now dispatched as a joint operative by both the moderate and the current demon lord factions.
So he should be able to reap rewards that allow him to be quite free.
…Despite that.
He doesn’t seem like he reaps these benefits liberally.
This is just Basara’s theory—but it’s likely he takes just enough money for himself, then he gives the rest of the money to the orphanage which raised him as well as circulating it around other war orphans.
This theory is likely correct.
It’s because they know Takigawa’s true nature, no matter how casually he acts normally, both the trust placed in him by the moderate faction and the current demon lord faction both never waver.
Moreover—it’s the same for Basara.
—That being said, it’s not like his trust is a blind devotion sort of trust.
He finally started walking towards the station.
“What did you think?”
Basara asked, as if talking to himself, then someone appeared behind him.
—But it’s something that only Basara could see, completely invisible to the others around them.
It’s not magic—it all has to do with “ki”.
“Let’s see… I think the conditions the demon realm’s side placed are perfectly respectable”
The one who answered with a smile in his voice was a young man Basara once had a life or death battle with.
Someone, who Basara had formed a secret master-servant contract with after that battle—Shiba Kyoichi.
Currently—for Basara to accomplish his goals, he leaves some of the behind the scenes stuff to Shiba.
Recognizing Shiba’s talent with his mind, he’s serving as Basara’s right hand man.
Therefore, with the meeting with Takigawa regarding the current state of the alliance, Basara had snuck Shiba into the neighboring room.
As they walked up the hilly road up to the station at the same pace as those around them,
“There are two problems to consider regarding Celis-chan… The first is as had been stated, that to the demon’s side she’s affiliated with the Vatican and that can get bad”
Moreover.
“I think you already know this Basara, but the other is the state of Celis-chan’s own feelings”
“…”
Basara replied to Shiba’s words with silence.
“Wanting to consider Celis-chan’s feelings as much as possible, and wanting to respect her, I understand those feelings of yours Basara. But on the other hand, you also want to make the alliance with the demon’s side, you also want to achieve an alliance with the hero clan… Well, it’s pretty greedy of you”
Shiba continued,
“After all, your one route to forming an alliance with the hero clan right now is Celis-chan. That being said, I do believe even if Celis-chan leaves the hero clan, you’d still be able to form the alliances you want. And if she’s no longer a part of the hero clan then your problem with the demon’s side would be solved as well. In addition, if you manage to form an alliance with them, then you’d be more fearsome by bounds Basara, and the hero clan would think twice before picking a fight with you.”
However.
“I just wonder if there’s a meaning to an alliance forming in this way. Fear is but a temporary measure. And in excess it could turn into hatred, eventually birthing sentiments to get rid of it. That’s the beginning and end of the current demon lord Leohart and his sister towards the cardinals, and the same goes for me and Albareos.”
Shiba Said.
“A little hatred is hard to see, but a large threat. It’s necessary to plan for it and prepare against it but—idealistically speaking, it would be something which you should want to avoid as much as possible”
“In short… It’s a question of what I have to give up on”
Basara understood what Shiba was saying. It’s without a doubt that if he’s willing to give up on one of his goals, surely things would progress more smoothly.
But giving up is easy.
Up to this day, Basara and his group had faced many obstacles, and struggled to keep going on.
There were times it felt like they could drown in despairing tragedy.
Times where it felt like they could only submit to a greater power.
Nevertheless, Basara never gave up and continued onwards no matter what—that’s how they could stand here today as they are.
This time as well he doesn’t want to give up.
It’s a feeling he strongly holds.
“I’m not saying you have to give up or anything… Just that you have to consider your priorities”
Shiba said with a shrug.
“Basara, I think the list of stuff you won’t ever give up on is getting a little too long. That itself might be the downside of your love and your kindness. Well, it’s no doubt you’re currently in a place others would want to be in right now, and you hold tremendous power. I also can’t say that this time there’s absolutely no way that you can find a way for everything to go well.”
But.
“Even so, you’re not an omnipotent god. Those who desire too much usually end up on the same path—and that is one of destruction. Of course, working hard isn’t a bad thing. However, you have to think that with the greed of wanting every desire of yours come true is the possibility that you could lose everything as well”
Understanding what Shiba meant to say, Basara muttered quietly,
“…You make a good point there.”
—It’s painful to admit, but what Shiba said holds true.
What Basara can’t give up on—his family—had increased.
And with the pregnancy of Mio and the other girls, it’ll only keep increasing from here.
Basara’s willing to give his all for the sake of the girls.
However—he knows that it’s impossible to expect everything to go as he wishes.
Even the wedding ceremony that’s so important to them had to be held hidden within a barrier.
That much had been something from Basara sparing no efforts for it.
Therefore, he could understand what Shiba meant to say.
However, feelings aren’t as easy to control as that. With the way Basara is, once he decides something is important to him, he doesn’t want to give up on it—he can’t give up on it.
But that strong feeling of his has a dangerous side.
Therefore,
“…Shiba-san, what do you think is the best course of action?”
Basara asked for help from the boy who follows him in the shadows. In the past, he often depended on Hasegawa for things like this, but since reaching the master-servant vow with her, there is no helping the strong feelings that Hasegawa holds for him, and him for her.
Therefore currently, Shiba’s the only one who could make a decision in the most cool-headed manner.
For him to rely on the person who he once fought to the death, Basara could see the irony in that.
“Let’s see… Well, I think it’s best not to overthink whether or not Celis-chan remains officially affiliated with Vatican”
After all, said Shiba.
“For the Vatican to approve of having her move in with you, isn’t it basically like a human sacrifice on their side? To have her turn into a sex slave the same way as Mio and the other girls, in order to make some sort of connection with you”
“…”
Basara could only reply to Shiba’s words with silence.
It’s because those words spoke the truth.
Having lost their top leader the holy king Albareos, and having dangerous research revealed starting with Shiba, The Vatican itself isn’t in a great place and could stand to have a bit of improvement with better relations with Basara.
Moreover—he’s sure that’s something Celis herself understood.
…Even so.
Although something like this happened, Celis still feels indebted to the Vatican—to the hero clan who raised her. Within the Vatican as well, she has some friends who she had gone through many hardships with, and the top brass of Vatican who don’t have good intentions are aware of Celis’ feelings and are making use of them.
Therefore Basara had put Celis’ feelings first.
Nevertheless,
“You should’ve already understood Basara… What’s best for Celis-chan, and what her real feelings are as well. And also, what’s best for you and the other girls.”
“That’s…”
Basara made a frustrated expression.
“At the moment, for certain, it isn’t odd to have a master-servant contract go straight to master-servant vow if you tie it using Maria-chan’s magic. In that way, while you would be bound to Celis-chan forever, there’s also no helping her falling to a state of being a sex slave. In that, that’s no longer a normal relationship.”
However, Shiba said.
“For starters, the whole thing with a master-servant contract would make a relationship abnormal to begin with. Even if you use Celis-chan’s magic and the curse manifest’s as petrification, that’s out of the ordinary as it is. There’s also no easy inbetween magic for a curse between the aphrodisiac and petrification. I think then, the first thing you have to do is to think of a way to free Celis-chan from the cursed bounds of the hero clan.”
Overall.
“If we’re to continue making an alliance with both the demon side and the heroes side, the matter of Celis-chan must be sorted, after all, currently she’s officially dispatched here from the Vatican as an emissary.”
And then, Shiba said.
“Basara, as well as Yuki-chan and Kurumi-chan, all of you are no longer part of the hero clan. Therefore, the remaining tie Vatican has with you is through Celis-chan, they would want to maintain that while giving Celis-chan to you, then when you make an alliance with them, they’d use that to optimize their position, I’m sure of that”
“You’re right…”
That’s why Celis said she doesn’t want to tie the master-servant contract using Maria’s magic but her own instead.
With a master-servant contract, if something happens with the Vatican she could somehow be free from it, but there’s no going back from a master-servant vow. While Celis’ own contribution would be invaluable, if something happens with the Vatican, they may not be able to completely deny it.
Moreover,
“If perhaps—something doesn’t go well in our alliance”
“The Vatican would instantly abandon Celis-chan, making her shoulder the blame while saving their own skin. Well, there’d be some others involved who would have it bad as well.”
That being said,
“For starters, you guys are looking at the Vatican or Village as the entry point to an alliance with the hero clan currently. But, the Vatican has the issue regarding me, and the Village is far too close to you, Basara. I think if you’re looking to make an alliance with the hero clan as a whole, you may want to avoid these two avenues. You could possibly look to the other regions to form your alliance.”
Most likely, said Shiba.
“If we speak in terms of ideals, they might be more receptive avenues to us. On top of that, they wouldn’t be forming that alliance based on fear alone, it’ll give it meaning and reduce the chance of it collapsing”
“In short, I have to look to either China or America huh…”
“Maybe, you can have discussions with the two of them? There’s some hostility on that side to begin with, and currently, with their political power being below both the Vatican and Village, they may see some sort of plan to direct the balance of power in the hero clan more towards their side.”
“At worst, having discussions with both, if they bite then that’s good… And also, the side that doesn’t choose to go with you if it happens, then you would at least have reduced ill will and hostility from them”
in acknowledgment, Basara muttered “ I see”.
“There are more benefits than the end of conflicts by forming an alliance with the village. Right now, Yuki-chan and Kurumi-chan have left the village, and as such they’ve had to put a distance between them and their father Shuuya who’s a candidate for leadership in the village, as well as with his wife and their mother Kaoru. That’s one of the reasons you’re holding the wedding ceremony in a high level barrier made by Afureia right?”
“Yes…”
If it’s within a barrier made by Hasegawa, then they don’t have to worry about the hero clan noticing.
This is also something they could say for Ramsus Wilbert .
Moreover,
“Basara, if you can do the alliance with the hero clan well, while Yuki-chan and Kurumi-chan may never return to how things were with their parents, it would be better than what they have now. At the very least, they can visit them whenever they wish. That’s the same for Mio-chan and the moderate faction right?”
That’s why, shiba said.
“You have to think well about Celis-chan. Most likely, what she does determines what’s going to happen next.”
A pause.
“Whether or not you can make a meaningful alliance—and whether or not you guys can grasp the future you want.”
After that, Basara went past the ticket gate and went to the platform, it was at that time,
“…Ahh, that’s right”
Shiba said, as if he had just remembered something.
“You might have noticed it already but… The strange guy who’s loitering around your house, well, about that, I took care of it this afternoon”
It’s been a few days since there’s something going around Basara and the girls.
Of course Basara himself noticed it, but as he can’t read the true nature of this presence, he refrained himself from taking a more direct action.
—But at the same time, he obviously couldn’t just leave it be.
Therefore, this morning Basara instructed Shiba to do something about it.
“Thank you for dealing with that… in the end, who was it?”
He thanked Shiba for the speed of his work, and he asked that at the same time.
“I thought it was someone from the hero clan, or perhaps even from the divine realm but… In the end it was actually a demon. In any case, I’ve restrained him in my apartment for now”
Currently, Shiba is living in what was once Hasegawa’s apartment.
Without terminating her current lease with the apartment, Hasegawa continues on with it and they got Shiba to live there, and when Basara has conversations he can’t have in front of Mio and the other girls, he would go there himself.
“A demon huh… Do you know what faction they’re from?”
Basara asked, puzzled by this development.
If it’s regarding observation, Takigawa had already been dispatched as a joint operative from both the current demon lord faction and the moderate faction.
For either of the top two leaders Ramsus and Leohart to dispatch another person to monitor them doesn’t seem very likely. This is due to the nature of their current relationship with Basara and the girls, as well as due to the presence of Takigawa.
On that side, there should’ve already been a level of trust.
With that,
“I’m trying to get him to spill, but he’s pretty tight-lipped… But from reading his ki, he doesn’t have the aura from either the moderate faction or the current demon lord faction”
The moderate faction and the current demon lord faction have a slight difference in their magic.
The aura they emit when using it is different.
And Shiba, who excels at manipulating ki, has no problem at all reading the aura of others.
So it’s likely that this person is someone from neither the current demon lord faction nor the moderate faction.
—The current demon lord faction and the moderate faction are two of the largest forces in the demon realm.
With their combined forces, they make up around 70% of the demon realm. However, there exists other factions in the demon realm, and there are also independent communities that exist outside of factions.
If there’s a third party who’s aiming for dominance in the demon realm, surely they won’t sit by and do nothing, looking on enviously as the two largest factions, the current demon lord faction and the moderate faction start working together. It is understandable that they would look into avenues around Basara and the girls, who could hold the key to their goals, and make their move from that point.
“We should report this situation to the current demon lord faction and the moderate faction through Takigawa”
“While I think that’s a solid idea… I think we should think carefully about how it’s told to the heads Ramsus and Leohart. I think it would be better if it’s told to just the two of them, just like the discussions about forming the alliance.”
“…What do you mean by that?”
“That guy—I’m not sure, but it seems like they figured out Mio-chan and the other girls are pregnant”
At Shiba’s words,
“…”
Basara narrowed his eyes.
—The truth of Mio and the other girls’ pregnancy, is top level secret. It’s known only by a select few.
The ones that Basara and the girls can confirm for sure are just Ramsus from the moderate faction, Lucia and Sheila.
Of the current demon lord faction, it’s just Leohart and Liala.
Of course—in order to have the alliance go forward, it’s necessary to disclose that Mio and the other girls’ pregnancy is the reason behind their planned marriage at this time.
When an alliance is being considered, if there are hidden major details like this, if it’s to eventually come to light at a much later point, it won’t be easy to control the situation and could leave a bad feeling.
—In the end however, that’s a conversation that should still be limited to just those in the moderate faction and current demon lord faction.
They can’t see any good results from revealing the pregnancy of Mio and the other girls to other factions.
There’s only one possibility they could think of.
“Most likely a spy had infiltrated either the moderate faction or current demon lord faction, and that spy was spreading information to other factions.”
“Except… Within the moderate faction and current demon lord faction there aren’t many who knew of this information to begin with. This isn’t a good look right now. Perhaps, this guy I managed to capture isn’t here to observe, but he’s here for an assassination.”
Most likely, said Shiba.
“It’s the action of a rebel faction in opposition to the alliance with us. Maybe they acted, thinking the pregnancy of Mio and the other girls provided a good opportunity to do so. If they managed to kidnap one of the girls, there would be a difference of opinions on how they would handle it between the moderate faction and the current demon lord faction, likely to a large degree… If it doesn’t go as well as it could, then in the confusion, they’ll be able to find some sort of opening to create chaos”
What should we do?
“We should deal with it in a straightforward way, and present this guy’s dead body to that faction, in that case, we could show that we’re aware that they’ve been spying, and we might be able to restrain them as well.”
At that suggestion of Shiba’s.
“…No”
Quietly, Basara shook his head.
“Let’s hand that guy over to the demons… We’ll get Takigawa to hand him over to Leohart. As much as possible, I would like to avoid doing anything that might be viewed as offensive, causing negotiations for the alliance to stop”
Besides.
“If there’s a traitor in the alliance… That’s an error on their part. If we pin that down and handle it in a way that involves them by handing the guy over, it would be a positive impression”
“I see… But you’re handing him over not to the alliance but to the current demon lord faction. It’s one of the ways to handle the current issue with Celis-chan”
Smiling happily, Shiba instantly understood Basara’s intention.
“Well done Basara… Looks like you’re gradually growing to be able to make some pretty clever decisions”
His string like thin eyes opened ever so slightly.
“You should face the issue with Celis-chan using that level of cruelty”
“…”
“Oops, looks like I said something out of line. Sorry.”
Haha, Shiba laughed.
“Well then… If that’s all decided, I’ll be heading back for now. After all, now that we’ve managed to get our hands on a high value hostage. I have to restrain him real well, even though his consciousness probably won’t return for at least another day, I would like to make sure he’s not going to die on us or anything like that, I have to ensure that his ki flow isn’t going to be a problem”
As Shiba said that, a train arrived at the platform.
It’s the super express that Basara’s taking.
With that,
“Well, I’m going now. Aah, right, I almost forgot.”
Like remembering something, Shiba handed a paper bag to Basara.
“—What’s this?”
Opening the paper bag, Basara sees a toothbrush, toothpaste, breath mints and a small plastic water bottle, and on top of that, deodorant spray for his clothes,
“It’s the main event tonight. If you’d like, use these before you get home”
After those words, as Basara looked up to glance at him, Shiba was no longer there on the platform.
Basara, with a smirk, put a couple breath mints into his mouth.
After returning the case to the paper bag, he stepped into the open door of the train.