Kuro no Maou

533 The King’s Price

“—You really saved me, Hitsugi.”

“Uhehe, it’s nothing, Master!”

Hitsugi’s cheerful voice echoed in my head. By the way, my mind was no longer confused.

“If not for you, I’d have been eroded.”

“Exactly! We almost lost you, Master! Stop being so unreasonable!”

I never thought the day would come when Hitsugi would reprimand me.

But hey, she got a point. After all, I was the one who tried to confront blackening head-on.

From now on, it’d be better to secure at least one other emergency method that could dispel the curse.

Even so, I still didn’t get why Hitsugi’s presence bolstered the erosive power of blackening. In the first place, Hitsugi was a cursed glove, not a living person. She didn’t have a soul. Her power depended on the black magic power supplied by me. Hence why, even if she was here, it shouldn’t be possible for her to enhance my power. Nevertheless, back then, it felt as if my blackening power had doubled, as if there were two people…

In fact, that was the only reason why I triumphed over Maximilian, which was brimming with curse.

Is this also the result of evolution?

…I guess it was safe to assume that she’d evolved.

“By the way, Hitsugi, what do you think?”

“The new armor suits you very much, Master!”

Even more pressing than the mysterious power of Hitsugi was the fact that I’d been donning the tyrant’s armor before I knew it.

I also wore a skull helmet which concealed my face, but my field of vision was as clear as ever. Such a wide field of view should be physically impossible, so it was probably the effect of additional enchantment.

When I lowered my gaze, I could see the ominous metallic armor enveloping my body like a towering, jet-black castle wall. The gauntlets I wore also had renewed design.

The full body armor seemed to be made of authentic dark matter, but strangely enough, it was lightweight—as if I was wearing a robe. Despite the fact that it was even larger than my height, it fitted snuggly. Even though I should be about 10 cm shorter, my feet were perfectly on the ground.

It was the same sensation as when I was holding the cursed weapons. However, since it was a full body armor, the comfort of wear stood out the most. If anything, it was as if I never wore it in the first place.

Maybe that’s why I don’t remember ever wearing it…

It probably happened while I was in the midst of a mental battle. When I was about to succumb to Maximilian’s blackening, or when Hitsugi awakened and shifted the tide. At that time, I didn’t have enough time to focus on reality.

At the same time, it wasn’t just Hitsugi’s success that warranted the subjugation of Maximilian.

I made another discovery—

“Who would’ve thought hat [Over Ecstasy] is so useful…”

I did it on a whim. When Hitsugi awakened, I also regained a semblance of my sanity. To acquire some mental immunity, I casted [Over Ecstasy], thinking it’d give me a slight advantage.

However, the fourth divine protection turned out to be more effective than expected.

Until now, with the exception of Hitsugi, who had a mind of her own, I never knew a curse could talk…

After casting [Over Ecstasy], I wasn’t only able to communicate with the curse, but also see its appearance…

In a nutshell, it was akin to appraisal magic. It was almost similar to when I was looking at Sariel’s memory through a reverse interference backdoor, and I’d come to see how it became a curse.

The girl who played the role of a king was betrayed by everyone and turned into a tyrant. To become king, she resorted to any means necessary, which ultimately doomed her into becoming a curse.

Not only did she fail to realize her dream, even after her death, she didn’t attain peace.

—But it’s all over now.

I sympathized with her, and wanted to bring an end to her agony.

Of course, I was also aware of how many lives she’d claimed. From a humanitarian point of view, she was undoubtedly an unredeemable tyrant, but…

…As someone who wasn’t from that era, I found myself wanting to forgive her.

With that feeling, I became the source of her hope in the end.

Knowing her history, along with her wishes, I firmly declared that I’d become her successor.

Of course, I also had no intention of calling myself the 9th King of a country that perished long ago. In the first place, I was just an adventurer. Still, after seeing how desperate I was, she seemed to acknowledge me as her successor. Or maybe I was the first human she saw after a millennium, so she had to make do.

—Well, sorry that I’m not of noble birth…

Either way, blackening alone wasn’t enough to subdue this armor. After all, if I went as far as lifting the spell, the situation would’ve been flipped instantly. However, that wasn’t what happened. Instead, the armor offered me maximum comfort, as if it was my long-time comrade-in-arms.

Perhaps this is what it means to truly master a curse.

In the first place, getting into contact with a curse was a reckless act that I wouldn’t have imagined of doing. Not to mention, I could withstand it due to being enveloped in black magic. After all, touching the curse directly would be akin to scooping deadly poison with bare hands.

However, with [Over Ecstasy], I could touch it while retaining my sanity.

Aah, I feel like I’ve made a huge discovery with cursed weapons.

“Wow—! Congratulations, Master!”

“Approval of the successor, [RX-666] Kingship master key transfer. <Kurono>, registration complete.”

…Wait a minute, I think I heard a different voice just now.

“Hitsugi.”

“Yes?”

“What was that?”

“It’s Mii’s voice!”

Why is she replying as if it’s the most obvious thing ever!? Does she have more control over the armor than I do!?

Before I knew it, a rectangular window with red streaks expanded in front of me. There was a long list of gibberish that seemed to be ancient characters displayed there. At the same time, the image quality was so crisp, it reminded me of the nostalgic LCD…

“Is this also the function of the armor?”

“Apparently, it can project various things! How curious!”

It was akin to a computer screen—or rather, the cockpit of a super robot that I longed for. A window had opened in my field of vision.

I wonder if it’s equipped with an advanced information system?

Contrary to its appearance, this helmet may be a precision instrument.

No, there’s something more urgent than the unknown secret of the helmet.

“Also, who’s ‘Mii’?”

“Oh, it’s my nickname for Milia! Mii said that she’ll do her best for her new master! …Huh? Oh, she said that since she’s retiring, it’s only natural that she’s watching over you, so don’t misunderstand! You know, this is quite rude. Hitsugi will be sure to tell her off later, so please don’t worry!”

“No, I don’t think that’s necessary… As expected, I’ll ask about the details later.”

Apparently, the will of the previous owner and king, Milia’s, was firmly ingrained in the armor. Because she’d fused with the armor while she was still alive, she probably maintained her sentience as a kind of undead.

The legend of a magician who transformed himself into an undead and defied Death was a famous story that was even told in the seminary class. After all, it took an unprecedented amount of skill to become a sentient undead. At the same time, it wasn’t impossible. Hence why such guys appeared sometimes.

Regardless, it was said that after 100 years, all of them would collapse and eventually become undead monsters or turn into evil spirits.

While it was possible that the same fate might befall Milia, judging from Hitsugi’s story, she seemed to be in good spirits.

—Is Milia’s soul really strong, or is this armor just that amazing?

“For the time being, please remove the mysterious explanation, I can’t see what’s in front of me.”

“Okay.”

I removed the screen that looked like a glorified [Terms of Service], and restored my vision. I was worried if I had skipped a dangerous contract, but I couldn’t read ancient inscriptions anyway, so it was just a waste of time.

…Even so, since that full-face helmet was capable of displaying an ultra-high-definition display, it seemed that the powerful armor hid various hidden secrets.

“For the time being, I look forward to working with you, Milia.”

By the way, I knew it might sound unfair, but I discovered her name through peeking at her memory. ‘Milia’ was her true name, which she abandoned when she ascended the throne.

But since she’d abdicated her throne, her name should rightfully be Milia.

“Uhm, first of all, please forgive me for calling you by that name.”

Along with a somewhat mechanical sound, a new screen opened in my field of vision.

Due to the thunder and sandstorm, it was difficult to tell, but I saw a figure of a girl.

A cute girl with black hair and red eyes who resembled Mia. Perhaps, she was truly her direct descendant.

“Kurono, you should move forward and work your way up. Get ahead in life—”

“—I don’t have any desire to be a king and get ahead in life, but… Well, I’ll do my best not to disappoint you.”

“Wow, amazing! Mii, how did you do that!? Hitsugi also wants to show her true form to the Master!”

The image of Milia was gently closed.

I’m sorry about my noisy maid…

“Kurono.”

When Hitsugi began to yell selfishly again, Fiona called out to me. Thanks to ancient secret technology, I could hear clearly even through a thickly armored helmet.

I turned around, and as expected, there stood Fiona with her cane, ‘Ainz Bloom.’

“Are you alright? Did the armor possess you?”

“I’m alright, Fiona. I can control it properly, [Head Purge].”

I already had the basic functions memorized. Although, I couldn’t exactly describe it in words.

With that single act, the helmet that covered my head was released with the sound of gears meshing together. As the skull faceguard slid into the inside of the helmet, the latter rested around the back of my neck.

It was as if I was simply removing a hood, and my true face emerged.

“It looks like you’re safe. As expected of Kurono, I didn’t expect you to master such an armor.”

“No, if Hitsugi hadn’t woken up, I would’ve succumbed to it. It was close.”

“Hitsugi? Oh, you mean your glove. I thought it had already been purified.”

No, she’s alive! From the beginning, I believed that she’d wake up and wait!

Still, I get why she might think that…

“Fiona, thank you for your support. If it had barged into the store and stole all the weapons, the battle would’ve been lost.”

“No, I’m sorry that I can only do so much. I’m sure Lily would’ve been able to provide even better support.”

Did she mention Lily out of shame?

Somehow, I doubted that. If anything, it was as if Fiona was trying to replace Lily.

Perhaps, we might cross path with Lily again. Although, it was probably either to make up, or to say goodbye. As such, Fiona might be assuming the worst.

“Anyway, I’m glad that it somehow ended without causing that much damage.”

“Hoho, even though the front entrance, which is the brand image of our Mordred Weapon Firm, has collapsed, it’s not a big deal, is it?”

Eh, Mordred!? Since when…?

“You came back so quickly. I thought you ran far away.”

“Don’t underestimate me. There’s no way I’d abandon the collection and run away.”

Oh, right…

Mordred had been eyeing [Maximilian] for a long, long time.

“Still, I owe you one, good sir. Thank you for stopping the rampage of [Maximilian] earlier. Even someone as influential as me will be in deep water if I made a ruckus in the middle of the town.”

—Eh, so you’re just going to gloss over it after?

But he’s scary, so I’ll just refrain from asking questions.

Otherwise, I might be treated to the darkness of Sparda…

“Look, even I didn’t do it out of good intentions. Look, I keep the armor completely intact. There were no casualties except for those who failed to respond immediately. Now that everything’s settled, I want to receive a corresponding reward.”

“Of course. When it went berserk, I was prepared to take the matter into my own hands, but thankfully you returned unscathed.”

Hearing his tone, I somehow doubt he means it…

“Alright, it’s time to reward you. Say no more, I can already tell from your appearance.”

“Wow, that’s quick…”

“Do you remember? When we first met, I told you that I like cursed weapons, but I like those who can use them even more. When I said that, I meant it.”

—Come to think of it, he did say that… And here I thought he was trying to sway me.

If those words were serious, then I’d have to reconsider Mordred a bit.

“You have donned the legendary armor, [Maximilian]. Rather, it appears that the armor himself acknowledges you as his rightful owner. If that’s the case, I—Wein Welz Mordred—shall hand it over to you—”

“—Thank you, I—”

“—for 300 million Clans.”

“…100 million.”

“270 million.”

“Uh, 130 million?”

“Are you mad? 250 million!”

“Hey, that amount sounds close to my bounty! 150 million.”

“What do you think [Maximilian] is!? 230 million.”

“Are you kidding me? You saw how great I was back there. 180 million.”

“Alright, alright, 200 million.”

“Ah, hey, Fiona—”

“—This is taking too much time, so I decided to put a swift end to it.”

Fiona forcibly decided on the price and ended the negotiations between me and Mordred.

Even though I might be able to decrease it a bit more…

“Alright, Kurono, shall we continue our date?”

“Eh.”

Fiona took my hand and started walking as if nothing had happened. Without hesitation, she took my left hand, which was wrapped in a gauntlet that was part of the cursed armor.

“What’s the matter?”

“No, even though I’d survived a life and death battle, you went on as if nothing happened…”

It’s as if she has a change of heart, or something like that…

“We still have time, right?”

Well, she was right.

“Then, let’s finish shopping—[Terra Shield].”

With a quick swing of [Ainz Bloom], there was a loud roar, and a magical rock shield pushed away the rubbles of the dilapidated entrance from below. It opened a tunnel just enough for people to pass through.

“Eh, do you want to shop here?”

“The inside should be fine.”

…I’m confused, while she’s confused that I’m confused.

As usual, Fiona was at her own pace.

“Okay, let’s go in.”

I nodded, half giving up. At the same time, I was worried about whether or not the shop would cave in on us, so I glanced at Mordred.

If Mordred himself said, “We’ll close the shop for today.” I’d have an excuse to leave, but…

“Haha, welcome.”

Mordred welcomed us with his skull rattling around.

What’s with this development? Am I being dense again?

—Thus, I resumed my date with Fiona with mixed feelings…