Pastel ran through the sewer.
Huff huff.
The oil lantern rattled, and the light flickered.
A massive swarm of giant rats followed like a tidal wave.
The uproar filled the sewer.
Aaaah!
“What happens if I get caught?!”
“You’ll get knocked over after a few slashes with a knife and then get eaten alive.”
“Aaaah!”
Fear! Shock!
“Squeaky Friends! Don’t do this! We’re friends, right?!”
“They don’t think so.”
Gulp.
They really are a shy bunch!
Totally the opposite of what I expected.
You have to be careful with them; maybe I came on too strong.
My mistake, heh.
“Check the fate compass. Which direction holds the inheritance?”
Oh right.
Pastel looked at the fate compass she was holding. The needle pointed backward.
Eek.
Running, she glanced back. Beast eyes swarmed in the dark.
Ugh.
“Demon Lord! Demon Lord! I think I need to make up with the squeaky friends! I’m sorry, friends! Let’s make up!”
It didn’t help much.
They really are super shy!
“Guess I have no choice but to take the long way around the sewer.”
“I guess so!”
Pastel kept running. She passed through the corridor, turned at the intersection, and smelled all sorts of aquatic stink.
The rat swarm didn’t tire and kept chasing her.
“Friends! Aren’t we being a bit too obsessive?! No matter how much you like me, this is a problem!”
Aaaah.
What if they confess their love or something? I really like the squeaky friends, but obsession and confessions are a no-go! Let’s just stay friends!
From somewhere, a snake sound echoed. Yellow eyes appeared in the darkness ahead.
Huh?
A snake lunged through the dark. It was several meters long and as thick as a head.
A gigantic snake surged up to target Pastel. Its mouth opened, revealing red flesh inside. Droplets of saliva dripped from its fangs.
Snake friend?
Pastel widened her eyes and dodged with a quick twist of her body. Her excellent reflexes and athleticism evaded the snake’s attack.
The giant snake flew past and crashed into the approaching rat swarm. Hungry beasts instantly surrounded the giant snake. Flesh was torn away, and blood splattered everywhere. The resisting snake instantly turned into chunks of meat and disappeared.
Aaaah!
“My snake friend!”
The snake friend she just made was eaten alive!
Glancing back, Pastel felt chills.
“The Demon Lord was right! Those friends are like a natural disaster!”
The rat swarm didn’t stop for a second, as the rear group overtook the front eating the snake.
Aaaah.
Am I about to confess my feelings? I really like the squeaky friends, but obsession and confessions are not good! Let’s just stay friends!
The sound of snakes echoed again as Pastel realized she had entered snake territory.
Yellow eyes appeared multiple times in the darkness.
Huh?
Snake friends?
Are you here to help me?
Giant snakes surged up, targeting Pastel with their mouths wide open.
The girl threw her compass and lantern up to the ceiling. With empty hands, she clenched her fists.
Her fists pummeled straight ahead, hitting one snake after another. The sound of impact echoed. The heads of the snakes exploded. Debris rained down.
With both hands, she caught the falling compass and lantern.
Just then, a giant snake came charging at her late.
She spun around. Her pink hair flew as a kick struck the snake. A loud impact echoed. The snake flew and smashed against the wall. Shockwaves rippled, and flesh burst.
Pastel exhaled and ran again. The remains of the snakes were quickly covered by the rat swarm. Blood splattered everywhere.
Sorry, snake friends!
I’ll remember your sacrifice!
After running through the corridor for a while, she stopped. Maybe because they were too busy eating, the rat swarm stopped chasing her.
She leaned against the wall and breathed heavily.
Ugh.
“I thought I was gonna die.”
“You escaped well.”
“Ugh, it’s scary when weak friends gather like that.”
Walking again, she splashed some water on her face.
“Normally, when you encounter creatures of that level of natural disaster, running away is the right thing to do. With that many, they are a disaster in a narrow corridor.”
Hundreds of giant rats are a few?
“Won’t they starve to death? What were they eating just now?”
Is there a lot to eat in this sewer?
Do our friends eat moss?
“Think in reverse. What do you eat to survive?”
I wouldn’t feel good saying “Demon Lord’s dishes.”
“Gemstones?”
“Same thing. We feed on magic circulating in the air. Surprisingly, it’s a decent energy source. The rest is made up from common food.”
Wow.
Pastel raised her hand high.
“I want to eat magic energy too!”
I want to be like the squeaky friends!
“Give it a try.”
She took a deep breath.
And then.
“Pooh~.”
Pastel, who just munched on the air’s energy, widened her eyes.
“Whoa!”
My stomach! My stomach!
It feels like it’s getting bigger…!
Not really.
It just feels like I’m breathing.
Pastel suddenly turned gloomy.
Maybe it’s just me.
“If it can’t happen naturally, then it just means you can’t do it. Don’t be disappointed that being able to is strange.”
“The squeaky friends can’t even breathe properly. Does this mean I can’t become friends with them?”
“They probably don’t want to be friends with you.”
Gulp.
That’s harsh.
“More importantly, check the direction. Are we going the right way?”
Pastel puffed out her lips and examined the fate compass. The needle pointed straight ahead.
“The Demon Lord without friends says my compass friend confirms we’re going the right way.”
The Demon Lord ignored her subtle jab.
“I have no idea what might be in the ruins. Last time, it was a magic quiz and an arrow trap and a golem. For a first relic, it was suited for beginners.”
“Is that so? The golem wasn’t something a beginner could handle.”
If it weren’t for the experience of surviving in the mansion, she would’ve panicked and shouted “AAAH! BANG! QUACK!”
“The golem wasn’t meant to be defeated. There was probably another intention behind it. It may have been to teach you to run away after stealing the treasure if you faced an unbeatable enemy. It would have been easy to escape the slow golem and grab the chest.”
“That’s true; you taught me about the aesthetics of fleeing in the last part of your swordsmanship lessons.”
“Running away well is more important than fighting well. The tales of heroes are often embellished by bards. The real history of heroes is completely different. They also ran away when it was necessary, allowing them to survive and become heroes.”
“Oh.”
Pastel felt strangely proud. She patted herself on the back.
“An example of being strong when strong and weak when weak! Always ready to run away before the strong!”
Totally true.
Even Hormone Friend agreed!
The Demon Lord paused for a moment.
“I’m not saying to be that confident…”
Hmm.
So picky.
After walking through the sewer, the compass vibrated against a wall. When she pressed the compass against the wall, it wobbled with an ‘eugh’ sound.
Eugh.
“I think it’s here!”
Just a plain sewer wall.
So dirty.
Will it open a secret door if I touch it?
Pastel hesitated as she reached out, seeing the grimy stains. The stains had a depth to them that showed just how filthy they were.
Wow, gross.
It’s a bit much to touch with my hands.
Instead of using her hands, she cautiously picked up the Demon Sword.
“Demon Lord, I have a question.”
“It probably won’t lead to an ambush immediately when it opens. It’s meant for the successors.”
“No, it’s not a concern about you, Demon Lord. I’m thinking of something else!”
“What is it?”
“If I touch the Demon Sword, will you, um, you know…”
Pastel hesitated and then smiled widely.
“I’ll just ask directly!”
Cheerfully, she continued.
“Do you feel anything when I touch the sword?!”
Huh?
The Demon Lord was left momentarily speechless.
A bit of silence passed.
“I’m sealed within the sword; I’m not the sword itself.”
There was a hint of bewilderment in the voice.
“Aha! Then…?”
Pastel rubbed the sword with her hand.
“Does that mean you don’t feel anything?!”
After how many creatures had she touched, wasn’t that obvious?
“Correct. But why are you asking that?”
“I could treat you and the Demon Sword separately when I need to!”
“To an extent, that is true.”
Oh yeah.
“I got it!”
Pastel sighed in relief and slightly backed away from the sewer wall.
She lifted the Demon Sword.
“Not the Demon Lord, but the Demon Sword!”
Then she pressed the tip against the wall. Scratching the dirty sewer wall as if searching for a secret door. The filthy stains were scraped off, and filth plopped down.
Aaaah.
So dirty.
I’m glad I didn’t touch it with my hands.
Pastel grimaced as she stepped back a bit. She turned her head and squeezed her eyes shut while dragging the Demon Sword along the wall.
Ew.
Scrape scrape scrape.
Thud thud thud.
Aaaah.
After doing this for a while, the Demon Lord seemed a bit disgusted.
“Well… It’s a complicated feeling.”
Pastel flinched.
“You really feel one with the sword, don’t you?!”
Am I currently experiencing some intense rebellion?
“No, it’s just…”
The Demon Lord hesitated with a noise of contemplation.
“Do as you wish. It’s better than dirtying your hands.”
Oh yeah.
“Then I’ll have to go for it!”
Pastel began scratching the wall enthusiastically with the Demon Sword. Of course, she maintained her distance from the wall.
Scratching the demon sword.
The stains fell off.
Wow.
Pastel paused and glanced at the Demon Sword. The tip was covered in filth.
Eew.
She looked at the Demon Sword with a gaze filled with contempt.
Contempt.
Contempt beam~.
Contempt for the Demon Lord~.
Enjoying the rebellion subtly, the Demon Lord spoke.
“I didn’t mean to tell you to go that far.”
Oops.
So sensitive.
“Instead of scratching the wall, stab it. That way, it’ll be less dirty and still work.”
Gasp, genius?
“Got it! I am not enjoying the rebellion at all!”
“You…?”
Gulp.
That slipped out.
“W-whoa whoa, I’m busy!”
Super busy Pastel!
Pastel enthusiastically searched for a secret door.
Busy, busy!
After poking around the wall for a while, she found a promising spot that went in deeply. The sewer wall shook and moved, opening a space.
Wow.
“Alright! Let the relic exploration begin~!”
Wiping the dirt off as if to shake it off, Pastel cheerfully walked forward. Then she subtly caught a whiff of the Demon Sword and took it away with a disgusted expression.
“Are you doing this on purpose—?”
“Let the relic exploration begin~!”
Yay-ho.
Pastel stepped into the first room. Just like last time, there were magic books and a magic quiz. If you solve the puzzle, the door opens.
“It looks easy!”
While examining the quiz using stick devices, she exclaimed.
“Oh? Try it. This is a significantly higher level problem than last time. It seems the Demon King values the intellect of the successor. You’ll need to study the books thoroughly.”
Intellect?
“Let’s solve it in one shot!”
Pastel put on a smart student expression.
The kind of expression that captured the research top position only through research reports without submitting battle reports.
Intense brain activity continued.
With an answer popping up in her mind.
She solved the riddle.
“Yahhh!”
Pastel struck the quiz device with her sword. A loud boom echoed. The device emitted light and then exploded.
Boom-!
The closed door opened.
Pastel threw her hands in the air.
“Correct~!”
Oh yeah.
“No.”
Pastel felt proud.
“There’s no way the mechanism designed to not give a treasure to the successor would just break down! The weakness is that if it breaks, the door just opens!”
A complete answer that discerned the test maker’s intention.
Is this the kind of intellect the former Demon King desired?
“Don’t learn strange things.”
“Yeah.”
Pastel proudly stepped into the second room.
And then paused.
What looked like a trap corridor was in complete disarray. As if a giant creature had rampaged, the floor was cracked, and both walls were destroyed. Various traps lining both walls lay broken and abandoned.
Huh.
“There’s an intruder. From the traces, it appears to be a snake. It hasn’t been long.”
It was probably a snake the size of her height. Its length was unimaginable.
Wow?
Pastel walked forward hesitantly, exiting through the broken door.
A cavern unfolded.
In the center, a white snake coiled itself. It seemed so large and massive that it took up half the cavern.
Pastel rubbed her eyes.
Wait.
Is this a dream?
Why is there a snake as big as a train?
The white snake rested its head in the corner of the cavern, flicking its split tongue. The forked tongue caressed the only treasure chest.
Huh?
The snake’s mouth opened.
The treasure chest was swallowed.
Nom nom.
Gulp.
Hmm?
The white snake savored the taste. Then it opened its mouth slightly.
Gurk.
A burp echoed.
Aaaah.
My inheritance…!
