Chapter 35 – Moonlight Temple

The demon—still had breath left. He raised his fingertips toward me, trying to gather miasma, but then crumbled into sand from that point onward.

The demon gave a wry smile at the sight, then sighed as if giving up and lay spread-eagled. I know this. Their deaths—are always like this.

As I approached while keeping the Magic Circle floating above my palm, the demon shook his head.

“No need for a finishing blow. I no longer feel any pain.”

…But we can exchange words, huh? However, I have no intention of getting familiar with demons.

Then, what should I talk about with this guy?

First of all, what was his objective? If the predicted summoner from the Cardiff family turned out to be a demon, then he created the black Transference Stone. Can I assume that’s correct?

For what purpose?

…——.

“—Moonlight Temple.”

When I said this, the demon’s eyes widened. I don’t have the time or means for interrogation, but I can at least set a trap and observe his reaction.

Not that I had any real conviction about it.

It makes more sense than him being here to kidnap people for money or feed on victims’ emotions.

“Truly—interesting. A remarkably fascinating child.”

Perhaps realizing he’d fallen for the trap, the demon gave a small shudder.

“Your name?”

“…Theodore.”

“I see. Be proud, Demon Slayer. My name is Linette.”

The demon maintained his smile—as his entire body rapidly turned to sand and scattered in the wind.

…They’re like natural disasters. Someone once described demons that way.

I shook my head slightly and switched my thinking. There are other things I need to consider.

Moonlight Temple.

A place said to be in the lower levels of the Termwills Labyrinth.

In BFO, it was an unimplemented area, but its existence was hinted at during the game.

Something about how in the past, demons broke the seal and stole the treasure.

Since I don’t know the timeline, I wasn’t certain, but if demons have business in Termwills, that must be it.

If he was researching Transference Stones to infiltrate the Moonlight Temple, then it makes some sense why a demon would infiltrate Termwills.

That would mean the seal on the Moonlight Temple hasn’t been broken yet.

So the incident must occur between now and ten years later—when the main game story begins.

Either way, in the game, this country including the Termwills area was peaceful.

The dangerous area at the start of the main story was the north, due to the massive monster outbreak.

That was related to the Grand Quest during the streaming period—but if I were to shout about that now, I’d just be considered delusional.

Magical Inquisition is meaningless. It only determines whether someone is lying or not, and what someone genuinely believes and the truth are never equal.

Plus, although it’s called a Grand Quest, BFO is a game where you can live freely in a fantasy world.

You don’t necessarily have to follow the main storyline, so I had been putting off certain parts.

I don’t know how far south the monster outbreak would spread, but there’s no harm in building up strength. In the labyrinth, I won’t lack for opponents to fight.

…Wait, could the stolen treasure be related to the monster outbreak…?

That might be possible. Having demons be the ones causing the monsters to rampage would be an easy-to-understand setup for the game’s plot, and the stray demons that appeared in the game were called rogue demons.

If you consider what they’ve strayed from, there might be demons with specific objectives working in an organized manner.

In this reality, connecting those dots might be jumping to conclusions, so I can’t say for sure. But Prince Albert and Sword Saint Oswald do exist in reality too.

Either way, regarding the Moonlight Temple… I’ll probably be questioned about the demon anyway, so maybe I should bring it up.

If I say the demon mentioned it in his dying words, the Moonlight Temple will inevitably draw attention. Then the higher-ups will probably investigate using materials I can’t access.

“Theodore-sama!”

The people who had fled from the square earlier were gathering. Grace and Ashley pushed through the crowd, having heard the commotion.

“Ah, both of you.”

“Th-they said a demon appeared…!”

“Don’t tell me—you defeated the demon by yourself?”

Both of them looked worried. Well, from my perspective, I’m glad I didn’t encounter the demon while with them.

Since the Maurice situation wasn’t resolved, I had been on alert since yesterday.

After freeing the victims from the base—and today began. I had gone to the Adventurer Guild alone for discussions and explanations.

Apparently, the authorities did something different from the plan, which ended up stirring up trouble.

From there, a hydra appeared breaking through the Count’s mansion, and then a demon showed up.

The Adventurer Guild members were evacuating citizens from the square, and since I was free, I handled the offense while keeping them occupied. That’s the gist of the situation.

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

“Theodore-sama, blood—”

Ah, from the recoil of the High-Tier Magic. The bleeding from my left hand had stopped, but remembering it brought a dull pain.

Ashley took my hand and cast Healing Magic.

“Thank you, Ashley. Grace, over here.”

After thanking Ashley, I applied a seal to Grace.

Grace’s cheeks were flushed red, and she had a dazed expression.

Maybe the smell of my blood triggered her bloodsucking impulse. I might have done something bad.

“—Theodore. I owe you one. I’ll definitely come to thank you properly someday.”

When I turned at the voice, I caught just a glimpse of Sheila in the crowd before she disappeared.

Judging from her slight smile… her friend must be safe.

As for the kidnapping victims, they’re fine. But there are plenty of problems piling up.

The disposition of the captured female-form monster hasn’t been decided, what happened to Maurice, what will happen to Talcott who’s under the Prince’s care—there are many things I’m concerned about.

I myself fought quite openly in front of everyone, so things will probably be noisy for a while.

Hmm… Crushing demons is fine, but all the surrounding commotion is bothersome.

Maybe I’ll dive into the labyrinth first thing in the morning for a while starting tomorrow. I should ask Rosetta about Ashley coming to the labyrinth too.

This country should remain basically peaceful… but it wouldn’t hurt for Ashley to get stronger sooner either.

After embellishing my interaction with the demon a bit to draw attention to the Moonlight Temple, I made some excuse about being tired and wrapped things up, then came home.

“…I’m causing you trouble. Both of you.”

This was Grace in her nightwear, shrinking her shoulders apologetically in the master bedroom.

“I-It’s fine, Grace-sama.”

Ashley also seemed somewhat embarrassed.

…What should I do about this situation?

“I don’t think it’s trouble either. But does my blood really make you that intoxicated with just that much?”

“Yes… It feels like—a very good smell to me.”

…This part must be psychological.

Even at night, Grace remained intoxicated by the smell of my blood, and the reaction hadn’t subsided. I tried various efforts, you know.

So Grace insisted that we should sleep together tonight too. Since she wants to keep things as equal as possible with Ashley… Ashley is joining too. If that helps maintain their good relationship, then it’s fine.

Probably because I fought a demon, I ended up making them worry.

But… um. That means I should sleep between them in a river formation, right? That must be it.

Since staring at each other forever won’t help, I lay down mindlessly in the middle of the bed, and the two came to my sides.

“Theo…”

Grace’s slender hand touched my cheek as she murmured softly, and she narrowed her eyes contentedly. It’s a bit ticklish.

“Um, Theodore-sama…”

“Yeah. It’s fine.”

“—Yes.”

Ashley also timidly placed her hand near my shoulder.

Whether I look right or left, there are stunningly beautiful girls.

Eventually, the two began breathing quietly in sleep…

…I can’t sleep. And endure, me.