NOVEL SIMPLE Volume 1 – Chapter 10
I made sure to use Cleanse this time on Elissa before we left our guest bedroom.
We were to have a brief breakfast before our summons with the Demon Lord Council. There was no menu as such, but Tomiko informed us the kitchen would make whatever we desired, within reasonable limits.
“Strawberry cake!”, Elissa announced as she was bouncing her butt on the chair, holding two knives in her hands.
You might want to swap one of those out for a fork, Elissa…
“Human eyeballs with a side of blue cheese!”, Ao made his strange order.
Interesting choice…
Uhhh, what would I have? I don’t need to eat, but I should still think about this, seeing as I have a sense of taste. Racking my brain I couldn’t come up with anything. So I picked something between Elissa’s and Ao’s selections.
“{I SHALL HAVE A CAKE MADE OF HUMAN HEARTS}”
Oops, my creepy voice came out. Perhaps because the others were so energetic and excited.
“Very well-meow!”, Tomiko bowed. She then passed on the orders to one of the servants in the kitchen. There were two cat girl maids living in the building we were staying in.
A short while later, the two servants brought out our meals. Their movements were polished and professional.
The table setting fit the style of the rest of the interior. It was of remarkably high quality. What was this place? I wondered where the human ingredients came from. The kitchen must have been something special to accept random orders like these on such short notice.
Elissa dug right into her cake, forgoing the cutlery as she shovelled it down with her shiny latex-covered hands.
“Delicious!” Elissa exclaimed.
Ao was also enjoying his meal, picking out at individual eyeballs with a small fork held in one of his tentacles, carefully slicing the cheese with a special looking knife, combining the two as he let the cheese stick to the eyeball. Wrapping small, bite-sized pieces in his tongue, he swallowed them.
“Most excellent! I am ever so grateful to be dining together on this splendid meal with my Masters!” he said between his chesty bites.
Ao had better table manners than Elissa… I guess when it came to food Elissa was a very honest person.
What about my meal then? All I’ve had in this form was some apples back at Wealdthurst. My meal was set next to Elissa’s. I pulled out two tentacles from Elissa’s side and using Locate, got a good look at my meal.
It looked like a normal cake, except it was made of fresh human hearts. Some were actually still beating. Talk about fresh! Some hearts were probably put through a grinder to create a sticky mass held the whole thing together. I wasn’t sure. I never cooked anything except for instant noodles. The top of the cake wasn’t adorned with strawberries like Elissa’s. Instead, it was adorned with what looked like 7 infant hearts.
In my past life, I would have probably puked at the sight, but right now it was looking kind of appealing.
“Your Lordship, may I suggest a condiment?”, Tomiko said as she stepped forward with a bottle of dark red liquid. It was blood.
I didn’t see why not, so I waved her in with my tentacle.
Tomiko poured the thick blood over the cake. Then she left with a skip in her step. She had a smile on her face when she returned to her position, standing some distance from the table.
I looked at the cake. Umm, isn’t the blood Tomiko squirted shaped like a heart? I guess it was appropriate given this was a heart cake…
I put the matter aside and used my tentacles to hold a long fork and knife to cut myself a slice. The utensils cut the flesh like butter. I placed a slice on my tongue.
I could immediately taste the complex flavours. It was delicious!!
I didn’t know human heart flesh could be so tasty. The touch of what I thought was sugar and honey only added to the sweet flavour. I swallowed the slice. Inside my mouth, the flavour was mixed with the texture of the cake and blood rupturing from the hearts. It was quite a treat! I enjoyed the aftertaste as I had more.
“Interesting.”, I said as I picked up the second forkful and threw it into my mouth.
“What’s interesting, Hero?” asked Elissa.
“This… tastes so good… I wonder how they get the blood to taste so fresh and delicious. Would you like to try some?” I offered.
“Ok, just a slice. I don’t want to get fat from eating too much cake before our meeting today,” Elissa said.
I don’t think you’ll be getting fat anytime soon with most of your body made up of mine. I could compress or expand my mass at will.
I cut Elissa a piece of the cake.
Ao noticed us sharing food and placed a two eyeballs on Elissa’s plate, with some cheese already acting as a sort of canape base.
“Would my gloriously gluttonous Masters like to sample the eyes?” he asked.
“Sure. Thanks Ao!”, Elissa replied.
I too tried a cheese eyeball. Eye colour: green. I popped it in my mouth and crushed it between my tongue and the roof of my mouth.
The unique flavour of the liquid inside the eyeball and the cheese mixed perfectly.
Elissa went after my cake, this time with cutlery.
“Delicious!! Truly delicious!! My cake does not compare to this one!” she said enthusiastically, her long ears pointed and twitching at the ceiling.
“You can have the rest of you like. I don’t need to eat,” I said.
Tomiko was watching us with her cat-like grin. I wondered if she found us amusing. Maybe she was just pleased the food was to our liking.
“I see. Then I shall have the rest of your cake. It looks delicious!”, Elisa said.
“It’s all yours!”, I replied.
Humans were delicious, it seemed. Who would have guessed? I never had any in my previous life. It occurred to me that monsters hunted humans quite eagerly. I now knew why.
As Elissa and Ao continued their meals, it thought it imagine a discrete hunt to some isolated human village. I’d be sure to prepare a feast for Elissa and Ao.
Live human, raw human, cooked human, stuffed human, and a curry made with glazed human flesh! I could use some recipes I’ve hopelessly tried to read in my previous life to prepare food in ways no one here knows about. If only I knew how to cook!
[NOTICE: Master Chef skill unlocked.]
…
Could someone explain why a pair of sentient tights would need to know how to cook?!
—
After our breakfast, the time of our summons finally arrived.
“Are you ready for the Demon Lord Council, Elissa?” I asked.
“Yes, Hero. I’m nervous, but I am feeling eager to meet the other Demon Lords. They’ll give us useful information, right? That’s what Tomiko said,” Elissa said.
“Let’s be honest with them. They probably know a lot more than we do, so there’s no point in hiding things.”
Stop!
But don’t tell them I’m an Abyssal Lord, how we met and anything about my title skills or abilities. Let’s keep those a secret for now.
Start!
“Alright, Hero.”
I made a show of our honest attitude to the Council in front of Tomiko while keeping some minor details from her in pause time.
I also telepathically communicated with Ao, telling him to keep quiet about what happened in Wealdthurst’s dungeon, about our contract and any of my abilities.
He wouldn’t be joining us for the meeting, but I thought it to be prudent that everyone was on the same page.
“Tomiko, where is our meeting with the Demon Lord Council?” Elissa asked.
“Your Lordship, my apologies for not informing you sooner-meow. The Demon Lords Council awaits us at the Pentagram. Its chambers are at the centre of Lord Justus’ castle, the grand spire you saw yesterday. The Council has called a special session to welcome you and discuss the current situation-meow,” Tomiko answered.
We left Ao behind in his quarters, or rather, in the dining room. Apparently, he wanted to sample the dishes we ordered, ordering seconds.
“All to learn the preferences and needs of my Masters!!”
I suspected he just wanted to stuff himself with more delicious food.
Before we left, we retrieved Rodd from Ao’s storage. Apparently, there were no rules against bringing weapons to the meeting.
Lord Justus must be one of the Demon Lords we would meet today. We made our way to his castle, some distance away from where we were staying for the night.
The morning light illuminated the island, shining down through the clouds. It was a peaceful, serene view.
I wondered what sort of reception we would receive from the Demon Lords sitting on the Council.
As we approached the base of the castle, I realised the bone white colour wasn’t just a coincidence. Upon closer inspection, it looked to be built entirely from human bones. Skulls were used to a tasteful decorative effect in various locations.
At the large stepped entranceway, we were met with another cat girl servant. She wore the same back maid outfit as Tomiko, black tights included. Her hair was blonde, and she was slightly taller than Tomiko. For some reason she was wearing a witch’s hat.
“I welcome Your Lordship to Demon Lord Justus’ residence. I am your hostess for the day-meow. My name is Aiko. Please follow me, I will lead you to the Pentagram-meow,” she said, bowing to us. Tomiko followed alongside us.
She actually made the “meow” sound! I’m detecting a pattern here.
We entered a tremendous hall, its walls lined with bookshelves, each filled with various tomes.
At the centre was a spiralling staircase, made of, you guessed it, human bones.
We made our way up the steps. Eventually, the staircase narrowed and the walls of the castle closed in on us, until we were walking single file. Aiko was in the lead. I could see her blonde tail moving left and right under her dress. Behind us was Tomiko. I could feel the commotion and excitement at the pace of her steps.
Finally, after walking for some time, we made it to a door in the ceiling. Aiko opened it with a key.
We stepped up and inside through the trapdoor in the floor and were welcomed to a large, round, open room with high ceilings.
The space was bathed by the morning light, as there were no external walls I could see. A bony ceiling seemed to hover above the floor with no supporting structure.
Elissa looked around, and through her eyes, I saw a spectacular 360 degree view of the entire island. I had opted not to use Locate here in case it could be detected somehow, so I was completely reliant on Elissa’s eyes.
There was neither wind nor draft blowing inside. The forces of the outdoors were being blocked by a force field of some kind.
At the centre stood a large stone table in the shape of a pentagram. Instead of each point, it had a round cut outs where 5 chairs, or rather thrones, were set. Its surface was carved with all manner of scenes fitting within the double lines of the pentagram.
The depicted places varied from a picture of someone with horns, a dragon, a winged woman being slayed by a man with a lance, a compressed rendering of the island we were on, a carving of 5 men and women embracing each other, and indecipherable symbols in between other imagery I didn’t recognise.
The floor too had been carved, following the lines of the table, with triangular embossing around the five seats.
“Your Lordship, I must take my leave now-meow. The Demon Council Shall be here momeowtarily,” Aiko announced.
She then silently chanted something and teleported away.
Elissa and Tomiko exchanged glances for a moment. Tomiko was clearly excited, her purple eyes now practically beaming with joy. Elissa seemed more reserved, probably nervous to finally meet our hosts.
“Someone’s coming,” I said as Elissa straightened her back.
Six figures started appearing before us in the blue glow. Three were seated at adjacent seats at the pentagram. The other three all had cat ears and stood behind their charges to their right.
So there are only three Demon Lords in attendance?
I couldn’t but help force time to slow in anticipation of a surprise attack.
When the teleportation process finished, I saw three Demon Lords seated in their thrones at the pentagram.
To the left appeared a translucent mass of slime in the shape of a girly but well-endowed woman.
If I had to wager a guess, it was a slime girl. She had long curly “hair”. She was completely naked, and her body was entirely made of the same iridescent blue-purple-pink substance. Behind her stood a cat girl maid wearing the same outfit as Tomiko. She was short and petite. Her shoulder length hair was the same iridescent colour as her master’s. Looking closer, so were her eyes.
In the centre sat an old man in black wizard robes. His chin ended in a long white beard, which extended beneath the edge of the table. He was completely bald. He had a spiral tattooed on the top of his head. Underneath his bushy eyebrows were his eyes, a bright, dusty blue, currently intently affixed on Elissa. His maid had the same uniform as the others, except for a black oversized witch’s hat on her head. It was Aiko we had met earlier!
Finally, to our right, was the inexplicable sight of the third Demon Lord. I say Demon Lord, but what I was seeing through Elissa’s eyes was a little girl that looked no older than 8 years. She was wearing a fuzzy, hooded, patchy black and white onesie with bear ears. Her hair was black and her eyes were dark brown. Her features looked ordinary but for a pair of black, thick-rimmed glasses resting low on her nose. She looked of mixed Asian descent, a sight unseen in this world until now. If I had to describe her attitude in one word, it was “bored”.
Her assistant was a tall, slender, handsome… cat boy?!
Well, what do you know? This was the first time I had seen a cat person of the male proclivity. He was wearing a black butler’s suit made of the same material as the maid outfits. Notably, he was wearing shorts, with black knee-high socks held up by suspenders. His short hair was black. He looked perfectly content, as if he wasn’t in an overwhelming minority of the gorgeous cat maids here!
“We, the Demon Lord Council, welcome Demon Lord Elissa and the Abyssal One with heartfelt congratulations and condolences!” the old wizard called out, snapping Elissa and me out of our fascinated stupor.
Condolences?
“What follows are introductions, a single question, and shall you answer to our liking, the secrets passed down by successive Demon Lords shall be offered to you, along with a seat at this here Council, should you accept it,” the old Demon Lord didn’t mince his words and got right down to business. I liked that!
Still, I hadn’t even considered that we would be offered a seat at the Council. If the intended effect was to throw us off, then it was working.
“Oh! Oh! Justus, let me do intros first!” the slime girl put up her hand while pressing the other to her cheek. Her voice was like a fine, sweet desert to one’s ears.
“Ahem, very well…” the old Demon Lord replied. His laser focus on Elissa broke for a split second in what appeared to be a moment of exasperation.
“Hi! I’m Mellow! It’s nice to meet you! I hope we get along. It’s been a while since a Demon Lord awakened. In fact, I was the one before you! Oh, that was about one thousand years ago. And don’t mind Justus, he always acts so serious, but he’s a total party animal! I know! He doesn’t look like it…” the slime girl, that is Demon Lord Mellow, spoke in one uninterrupted stream of words as her gelatinous body jiggled. I could see Elissa’s gaze slowly dropping to Mellow’s bouncy breasts as each endlessly moved and collided with the other. It was like looking at a lava lamp.
“… You like girls?”, Mellow noticed Elissa was staring at her breasts. “You’re quite a cutie, aren’t you? My castle is the one made of crystal, if you ever feel like joining me for a bit of-”
“Mellow!” Justus called out, holding his face in the palm of his hand.
Mellow complied, but not before winking at Elissa.
While all this was happening, the Demon Lord girl in the onesie pulled something from under the table. It was a tree branch. She started chewing on the leaves, completely expressionless.
Could someone explain what is going on? Judging by the lack of any reaction or surprise by the cat maids and butler, this was a regular occurrence. Aiko, the ditsy-looking one with long hair and the butler may as well have been statues.
“As you have likely already surmised, I am Demon Lord Justus,” the old wizard said, his face rising out from behind his palm.
“I also imagine that by the simple process of elimination, you have realised that the Council chambers you are currently setting foot in, are located in this here, my castle,” he continued.
“Demon Lord Mellow is right to say that the awakening of a peer is an exceedingly rare occurrence. I hope that you can understand and forgive her excitement.”
Elissa nodded. We were yet to actually say anything.
Both Mellow and Justus then turned to the third remaining Demon Lord.
“Panda!” the little girl in the onesie called out.
“Well put, Pandora-sama,” the cat butler behind her said.
“Most excellent Demon Lord Pandora. Your brevity is only ever matched by your wisdom,” Justus inexplicably added.
In the meantime, Mellow, the slime girl, was looking Elissa up and down with her jewel-like eyes.
Okay…
There was a moment of awkward silence.
Oh right, it was our turn to introduce ourselves. As if sensing what I was thinking, Elissa spoke up.
“I am Elissa. I became a Demon Lord only yesterday. I am pleased and honoured to meet you all,” she said as she curtsied in the air.
“Oh how adorable!” Mellow clapped.
“I see you possess some manners, unlike other Demon Lords,” Justus said as he glanced at Mellow.
Pandora was occupied with her leafy meal.
Tomiko, quiet and so far averting the gaze of the Council, looked up.
Justus nodded.
“Your Esteemed Lordships, if you would allow me. Her Lordship Elissa is… joined by the Abyssal One. I humbly request that you hear his Lordship’s introduction,” she said nervously as she pointed her head and ears downward.
“Indeed, the introductions would not be complete without you, Abyssal One,” Justus said.
Wait? I was expected to introduce myself as well? I wasn’t a Demon Lord. Hell, I was just a pair of tights! I was feeling nervous, butterflies in my stomach… just like the day I introduced myself at middle school for the first time. Here goes nothing…
“{HERO}”
As I said this, the air reverberated. I could sense a dark pressure wave bounce off and around the three Demon Lords. I hadn’t realised it, but each Demon Lord was emanating a powerful Evil Aura, just like Elissa did. As I spoke, I could feel theirs pushing back at Elissa’s and mine.
Oh no, did I overdo it?
Justus and Mellow were now looking right at me, whereas before, they directed their attention entirely to Elissa. Pandora stopped chewing for a moment, but then went right back to it.
“How curious. It is not everyday one sees an Abyssal Being not merely on contract with a Demon Lord, but also in a state of symbiosis with one…” Justus broke the silence.
“There are many things I would wish to ask of you, Abyssal One, but that shall have to wait until Demon Lord Elissa is confirmed. Know that as each of us here has contracted with an Abyssal being as a prerequisite to awakening as Demon Lords, and so we hold your kind in special reverence.”
I couldn’t tell if I had messed things up or made a good impression, but I didn’t want to leave it at that. I calmed myself.
“I understand. I only ask that you see my presence as undivided from Elissa. In essence, we share our bodies and senses together, as separate as our minds may be,” I responded in my everyday voice.
“Then it shall be so,” Justus responded.
Mellow nodded, barely masking her curiosity. Pandora… well, she appeared to agree as well by virtue of her sheer disinterest.
Justus turned back to Elissa, glancing at Tomiko.
“Demon Lord Elissa. understand that Tomiko has been bound to you, and has sworn loyalty to you from the moment of your awakening. If you’re so willing, please keep her services, regardless of what happens from here onwards. It would be a waste for someone as talented as her to die because the bond was severed. I promise you, she is not a spy. It is a promise from one Demon Lord to another. Whether you see value in it is up to you, but you shall soon understand the significance of promises made by our kind,” Justus explained as he raised his eyebrows.
Oh, so Tomiko is like the individual support staff you get from a company when you spend enough money on their gacha game. Except she’s supposed to be loyal, and will die if she loses her job. That would have been nice with the gacha VIP support girls. They only cared about you as long as you kept pumping money…
Elissa turned to Tomiko, who was bowing her head.
“I have only said that, to express one consequence of the decision the Council puts before you. Know that there are others,” Justus’ expression turned stern.
“It is upon satisfaction of three conditions that a Demon Lord is awakened. First, a contract with an Abyssal Being. Second, a true desire to destroy all of humanity. Third, the carrying out of a slaughter of one million humans, our mortal enemies since time immemorial.”
Oh, so those were the three requirements that Elissa met! Finally, an explanation! Though it didn’t explain why I had ended up with the title of Abyssal Lord. I doubted whether even the Demon Lord Council was aware of that fact…
“Demon Lord Elissa, I will not ask you to reveal how you awakened. That one loathes humanity is only natural. That you have contracted with an Abyssal Being is, frankly, apparent. I am but curious how you slayed so many humans, but the fact you awakened is indisputable. Every Demon Lord is immediately notified of the name and location of a newly awakened Demon Lord through Status,” Justus continued.
“Imagine my surprise! I was just in the middle of… something… when I got the Status,” Mellow piped in.
“If you’re curious about how it happened…” Elissa said as she turned red and brought her latex-clad knees together.
“It was an accident…” Elissa said. She actually said it…
“See! Justus! See! I’m not the only one!!” Mellow stood up from her seat. Her breasts bounced wildly. I could see that her form was indeed that of a nude humanoid. Her lower half was anatomically accurate…
“I would ask more, but we have more pressing matters to attend to…” Justus looked disappointed. I felt bad on his behalf!
It seemed it was pretty lonely being a Demon Lord. Both Justus and Mellow wanted someone to relate to. I’m sorry, Justus!
He cleared his throat and returned to his previously stern look.
“There is a single question, which is essential to the proceedings. And know that your answer will be taken as binding to the Council. To betray the answer is to betray us. Likewise, considering what was disclaimed, I also direct the question at the Abyssal One. Do you understand, Demon Lord Elissa?”, he said.
Elissa nodded.
“Do you, Demon Lord Elissa, swear to never attack or harm any Demon Lord, old or newly awakened, nor their servants, unless duly and grossly provoked, and only so far as to defend yourself or your servants, leaving resolution of any disputes to a decision by a majority of the Demon Lord Council?”, Justus said as he leaned forward, pressing his hands firmly onto the table. Tomiko looked at Elissa, both nervous and excited.
Stop!
Elissa, this is Hero.
Hi Hero, this is Elissa. I wasn’t expecting the Demon Lord Council to be this interesting!
Right, interesting is the right word… what do you make of Justus’ question? It sounds almost like a contract. It could be dangerous.
I think they just want to know that we won’t attack them. They seem like fun. Why would they go through all this trouble just to trick us?
Yeah, I can tell they’re stronger than we are…
I know you could beat them, Hero!
I think they will attack us if we say answer “no” though. That’s what I’ve gathered from Justus’ words. I don’t think we could escape here easily. We’re at a disadvantage, but I’m willing to fight if you don’t want to go along with it. There may be a reason for all this.
I wouldn’t mind some allies.
I wouldn’t mind getting more intel.
Then I’ll say it?
Go ahead.
Time unfroze. No one seemed to have noticed our little intermission.
Elissa stepped forward. She had a presence about her, not unlike that of a queen ready to ascent to the throne. It was like a switch flipped inside her. She knew how to act the role she was given.
“I Demon Lord Elissa, hereby swear never attack or harm any Demon Lord, old or newly awakened, nor their servants, unless duly and grossly provoked, and only so far as to defend myself or my servants, leaving resolution of any disputes to a decision by a majority of the Demon Lord Council.”
The carving on the pentagram on the table and floor lit up from the centre. The lines extending to the empty seat next to Mellow glowed a bright red.
Justus sat back on his throne, relaxing. Mellow threw a celebratory punch into the air. Pandora finished eating her branch and looked up at Elissa and me.
What we were told next changed everything.