“It’s such a terrible crime!”
Trembling all over, Pastel passionately explained the situation to the knight who had come to hear the circumstances.
“To think they would hire a cult to kill me while I was living peacefully! This crime is among the worst possible out of a million sins in the world!”
“T-that’s true?”
The knight seemed bewildered. It was understandable—there was absolutely no evidence of the murder contract. They only had the claims of Viscount Craft, who claimed to be the victim.
Pastel continued their passionate explanation.
“The masters of the Prism and Sinclair Trading Guilds are no better than evil demon worshippers!”
“Not demons, but malign deities.”
“Evil malign deity worshippers!”
Hiding her slip of the tongue, Pastel slammed the desk.
She stared intensely at the knight.
“Shortly after I was attacked in what seemed to be an accidental bird-related incident, members of the cult appeared at my nest! Taking advantage of my confusion, they abducted me in a way that left no trace!”
Pastel pressed her cheeks with both hands, adopting a terrified expression.
“Kyaaah~!”
It was terrifying.
“Abduction wasn’t the end! In truth, they abducted me to kill me without leaving a trace!”
“Quivering…”
“Look! Like this!”
Pastel mimed placing an imaginary sword at her throat.
The cold and chilling sensation of the metal.
“Kyaaaak~!”
Pastel’s face turned pale. Though it wasn’t entirely true, she acted the part with great expression.
Then, she straightened her expression.
“But just as anyone would have been paralyzed by fear, I maintained my composure without a shred of fear! I even reprimanded the evil cult member!”
She gesticulated into the air.
“Would you dare to kill me, who is innocent? Clearly, there is some evil conspiracy behind this! Admit it immediately, as you should, and let your conscience be your guide!”
Pastel placed her hand on her chest as if invoking her conscience.
“One of the cult members, overcome with agony, revealed the truth—that the Prism Upper Realms and the Sinclair Guild Master had commissioned the murder!”
Dramatic pause.
The evil truth was revealed.
“Kyaaah~!”
Pastel acted utterly shocked.
The knight, who had been listening absent-mindedly, suddenly came to his senses.
“Perhaps, where might that cult member be now?”
In the midst of the continuous testimony of the self-proclaimed victim, the knight was searching for objective witness testimony.
Pastel looked regretful.
“They perished in a Scoff crash… But the conscience they showed remains vividly in my heart. Knight, please honor that conscience.”
In a gentle voice, Pastel implored.
The knight slightly hesitated, slightly perplexed.
Pastel’s expression gradually disappeared, her face cold as she stared at the knight.
The knight, who shuddered and nodded.
“Understood.”
Pastel immediately brightened again.
“Of course, it’s you, the knight! Since it concerns a cult, ensure nothing, not even a speck of dust, remains!”
“Pa-sha-pa-sha!”
She swung a fist in the air.
The knight, observing her with a strange look, slowly nodded.
#
Day by day, investigations upended the entirety of the Prism Upper Realms, surrounded the skywhales, and combed for cult remnants. The ledgers of Prism were disclosed, and many unrelated crimes were newly uncovered, neatly progressing.
After observing the process for a while, Pastel decided to focus on personal matters. Legal actions against a guild would naturally take time.
The first thing she did was to try eating the essence stored in the magic stone knife.
“Absolutely not. Hand it over at once.”
The devil firmly extended a hand.
“No!”
Pastel quickly shook her head and hugged the knife tightly. Despite the devil’s constant request, she guarded it day and night.
“Junior Craft, why on earth would you want to eat something so dangerous? With time, you’ll naturally grow stronger. You don’t have to meddle with this power that warps one’s essence and clouds the mind.”
“Mercury said they needed Venus!”
The solar system needs more family!
The devil pressed her forehead.
“What does that even mean? Without explanation. Hmph. Don’t get lost in the inner world. Pursue harmony and order in your inner self, but don’t obsessively cling to it. Nature is inherently chaotic; imperfection is natural.”
“I don’t care! I’ll do as I please!”
Pastel simply shook her head.
As the argument continued, the devil raised both her hands in surrender.
“Then do as you wish. Without my help, you won’t be able to extract the essence, and before long, the magic stone knife will become unusable.”
The devil then grabbed a butter knife as an example.
“Look.”
Holding the knife by both ends, she bent it. The thin butter knife bent completely.
“The knife will break from the inside out when the essence fills it up with energy beyond what it can contain.”
The devil held up the twisted butter knife in front of Pastel’s eyes—a knife now utterly incapable of spreading butter.
“This is your knife’s future.”
Kyaaah…
The future of the knife!
“That simply can’t be!”
Pastel hugged the magic stone knife tightly and trembled.
“QwQ…”
“If you insist, say your goodbyes to the knife quickly.”
The devil waved to the knife instead of Pastel.
“Goodbye, knife friend.”
Kyaaah…
Pastel’s mouth opened wide.
“Knife friend!”
Pastel slumped to the ground, her strength gone. She hugged the knife tightly and sobbed.
“I’m sorry! I couldn’t protect you! I don’t deserve to be your friend!”
She cried louder.
The devil leaned down and spoke gently.
“If you hand it over to me, I can save the knife from this tragedy. To save your friend, hand it over quickly.”
The devil’s whisper.
Kyaaah…
“I’ll give you anything! My soul, my heart, take whatever you like!”
Is this how a weaker party feels when facing a devil?
“Such things aren’t necessary. Just hand over the knife to me.”
The devil wiggled her fingers.
“That can’t be… That absolutely can’t be…”
Pastel trembled and then decisively proclaimed.
“I will not abandon my friend! Not even to sell it to a devil!”
She hugged the knife tightly.
“Knife friend! I will protect you!”
The devil pressed her forehead, her cheeks twitching slightly as she bit her lips, then exhaled deeply.
“Hmph.”
Her red eyes, filled with self-reproach, gazed weakly downward.
“To give a chance appropriate to one’s level, one must lose occasionally.”
Pastel stared at the knife she held dear.
“I’ve also given a chance appropriate to Devil-sama’s level!”
Addressing objects like this…
The situation was incredibly embarrassing.
This was something Pastel refused to do.
“Don’t lie!”
The devil said firmly.
“That absolutely can’t be…”
Pastel’s mouth opened wide.
What about my dignity?!
When did I become someone who says goodbye to inanimate objects?!
“I’m sorry, knife friend! While protecting you, I’ve become such an embarrassing friend!”
The devil shook her head.
“There’s no need to apologize. You’ve always been an embarrassing person.”
It was a calm voice that seemed to speak the truth.
“That simply can’t be…”
This was quite shocking, and Pastel grew confused.
I’ve always been an embarrassing person?
There’s no way to argue against that…
Kyaaah…
The devil seemed somewhat relieved.
“I’ll go do laundry. While I’m gone, reflect on yourself. It’d be nice if you reflect in a way different from usual.”
With those hopeful words, the devil left.
Pastel hung her head.
Devil-sama, you’re so decisive.
If this continues, I won’t just consume the essence—rather, I’ll become nothing but “Devil-sama! Devil-sama! Ughhh!”
She clenched her fists.
“Devil-sama is right! I can’t stay an embarrassing friend forever!”
Deciding not to become a well-behaved child as the devil hoped but instead learning the knack of extracting the essence herself, Pastel moved forward.
“If it was prepared by the previous Maou for the successor, then surely the successor can consume it alone! I can do it by myself without relying on Devil-sama!”
Pastel experimented with the knife in every possible way.
She stretched her hand towards the knife and shouted “Yap!”
She then activated the power of manipulating magic stones, causing the magic stone knife to react and levitate.
Currently, she had two powers: the power to consume magic stones and the power to manipulate them.
Since consuming enhances the body with each stone, it wasn’t helpful now. The mysterious power seemed to be the power to manipulate them.
Could manipulating the knife extract the essence?
“Yap! Yap!”
Though the sound coming out of her mouth was light, Pastel was extremely focused.
She had the hovering knife spin and move several times, then concentrated even more on delicate control.
“Since I’m manipulating the internal magic stone, it should work…”
She carefully touched the internal circuit bit by bit. Nothing happened for a while until, suddenly, something reacted.
A black gel-like substance oozed from the blade and floated in the air. Mixed with magic power, it was the perfect form of edible essence.
Pastel’s lips immediately curled into a grin.
Devil-sama’s help?
No, no, no.
Not necessary for me.
She was about to put the black jelly into her mouth but hesitated.
Instead, Pastel looked troubled, then subtly hid the jelly behind her back. The jelly floated stably behind her.
A little while later, the devil, who had finished washing clothes, returned. Her red eyes looked down at the girl.
“Did you reflect well?”
Pastel looked sad.
“Kya-hng~!”
At the dramatic tone of her crying, the devil looked suspiciously before extending her hand.
“Have you reflected enough to hand over the knife?”
“Kya-hng~!”
Pastel cried even more poignantly, then held out the knife. With trembling hands, she handed “Knife friend” to the devil.
Puzzled at her sudden compliance, the devil didn’t accept it at first and frowned. Eventually, careful and gentle, she accepted the knife.
The devil still looked skeptical, unsure what to make of Pastel’s compliance.
“Hmm, I see. Are you waiting for me to extract so you can secretly eat it again? Your schemes are already known, young Craft.”
Pastel looked like she was caught, covering her cheeks with her hands in shock.
“Shocking~!”
“…What is it?”
The devil felt very uneasy. Eventually, she assumed her purpose was fulfilled when she received the knife and dismissed her emotions.
“Even if you pretend to fall again, it won’t work this time.”
Pastel became even more shocked.
“Twice as shocking~!”
“…Hmm.”
The devil felt even more uneasy. She frowned sternly at the girl.
“Playing tricks on adults is not respectful.”
It was a voice intended to intimidate subtly.
“Wha…!”
If you say that…
If you say that…
Excitement overcame Pastel’s sense of betrayal. She turned her body excitedly.
“Devil-sama! Devil-sama! Look at this!”
She held up the black jelly.
“Jelly! It’s yummy~!”
“Boom~!”
The devil’s eyes widened.
“What…?”
“And and!”
Pastel, completely thrilled, shouted excitedly.
“Pastel playing on Devil-sama’s head~!”
She swallowed the jelly.
“Nyum~!”
Chewing…
Glugging…
Pastel proudly showed her empty mouth after eating it all.
Then she stuck out her tongue.
“Meron~!”
“Finished it all~!”
Breathing heavily, the devil was shocked. Wobbling slightly, she slowly raised her hand and grabbed the back of her neck.
“How did I end up in such a state…?”
Her voice was weak.
#
With the devil gasping deeply in shock, Pastel, victorious, smiled brightly.
