[You have completed the sub-quest “Find the Escaped Black Mage.”]
[You have been rewarded with 100 EXP, 10 gold, and 1 Demon’s Contract.]
[Congratulations! You have fulfilled a special condition.]
[The sub-quest has been converted into a chain quest.]
[Chain Quest #2]
— Raise Crowell.
To escape the clutches of the Black Mage, Crowell must develop his own power.
Within 90 days, you must raise Crowell to a “7th-grade” Black Mage.
If Crowell strays and kills a non-Black Mage, thereby truly awakening as a Black Mage, the quest will fail.
Rewards: 200 EXP, 20 gold, information regarding the next plan of the Four Heavenly Kings at the point of achieving the condition, and 1 Black Magic skill suitable for the character.
Penalty for Crowell’s failure to grow: Crowell’s death.
Penalty for Crowell’s betrayal: Caron’s death, and your information will be provided to the Four Heavenly Kings.
‘7th grade?’
Perhaps due to their reverence for demons, Black Mages often use reversed rankings.
Currently, Crowell is at the 9th grade. Raising him by two whole grades is necessary.
A 90-day time limit. And the condition that he cannot kill non-Black Mages.
It’s tricky, but it’s not impossible, so it’s not exactly a problem.
The real problem is…
‘The penalty for failure… is too severe.’
Caron’s death is a major issue, but the fact that the Four Heavenly Kings would “recognize” me is an even bigger problem.
Even if I’ve hidden my identity behind an animal mask, if they start tracking my every move, they’ll eventually figure out who I am.
In the worst case, “Red King” Broken might start roaming around to assassinate me.
‘This feels like it’s escalating…’
I knew this would trigger a chain quest, but I never thought it would endanger my life so soon.
I figured such a quest would come around the 4th or 5th one.
With rewards, the difficulty increases—that’s what a “chain quest” is.
“But to think that a life-threatening quest would come as early as the second one…”
I looked at Crowell, who was holding a boy named Joseph tightly. A character whose name and face I was seeing for the first time.
In other words, an extra.
‘Should I just kill him?’
Reject the quest and kill Crowell.
If I do that, the risk of my information being leaked would be virtually eliminated.
But…
‘I accept.’
[You have accepted Chain Quest #2, “Raise Crowell.”]
There are four reasons why I accepted the quest.
First, to defeat the final boss, variables are needed.
Second, the rewards are substantial.
Third, the rewards grow as the chain quest progresses.
And lastly, the fourth reason.
‘It’s impossible for Crowell to betray me.’
There’s “something” that ensures he can’t betray me.
I just acquired it a little while ago. As long as Crowell doesn’t betray me, there are virtually no penalties for the quest.
Accepting the quest was the obvious choice for me.
What about the “death” penalty for Crowell if he fails to advance?
‘That’s none of my concern.’
That’s something Crowell himself has to bear.
If he didn’t want to die, he should have worked hard to become an excellent(?) Black Mage.
How can a Black Mage advance without killing someone? Well…
‘That’s his problem to figure out.’
No matter how pitiful someone is, if they don’t help me, I have no intention of helping them.
Because I’m a bad guy.
If it’s for clearing the game, if it’s for survival…
‘I’ll do whatever it takes.’
Asking someone like me to help an extra I just met? That’s nonsense.
Well, I might be willing to make a “deal” at most.
After all, I have to advance Crowell to get the rewards and continue the quest.
“Mister, let’s run away. You’re strong, aren’t you?”
“J-Just be quiet.”
Crowell was holding onto the boy named Joseph, trying to keep him from acting out.
I lowered my voice as much as possible and spoke to him.
“Alright. I’ll let you live.”
“T-Thank you! Really, thank you!”
“But you’ll have to play the role of a spy for me.”
“W-Why? Becoming a Black Mage wasn’t my choice! I was kidnapped and forced into it!”
“Ignorance is also a fault. If we forgive all mistakes, this world would be full of criminals.”
“T-That’s true, but…”
“Running away is useless from the start. Wherever you go, a Black Mage will follow you.”
“What?”
“It seems you didn’t know. When you go through the process of becoming a Black Mage, a tracking spell is imprinted on you along with a brand.”
“W-What are you saying…!”
Crowell roughly pulled down his clothes.
Under his left collarbone, a reverse pentagram brand was glowing darkly.
It was the brand of a Black Mage.
While it served to distinguish friend from foe, it also had a tracking function.
There aren’t many people who would throw the continent into chaos.
Most, like Crowell, become Black Mages due to kidnapping, torture, and other forms of coercion.
‘Of course, many of them fall into darkness after that.’
They start as Black Mages to survive, but gradually get corrupted and continue their life as Black Mages by choice.
They get intoxicated by the power.
That’s why Black Mages usually target commoners or peasants.
Those who are oppressed always yearn for power.
“Right now, you might be left alone due to the confusion, but if you continue to roam alone without joining, eventually an assassin will be sent after you.”
“T-That can’t be…”
Crowell collapsed to the ground.
He couldn’t escape the Black Mages, but he didn’t want to die as a spy either.
He might be thinking it’s better to take his own life at this point.
Of course, I had no intention of letting him do that.
“But it’s not like there’s no way out.”
“W-What?”
“There’s a way to remove the brand.”
“I-Is that true?”
“Of course. It requires some expensive materials… but if you help me, it’s not impossible.”
It wasn’t a lie. There are quite a few ways to erase a Black Mage’s brand.
Having played the game tens of thousands of times, I’ve naturally had experience playing as a “Black Mage.”
Of course, most of the time, it was an involuntary awakening as a Black Mage.
And the ultimate goal of such characters was always the “removal of the brand.”
“Ah…”
A short sigh. Along with it, the hope that had filled Crowell’s eyes faded again.
“I-I’ll decline.”
“Why?”
“W-Well, what if you don’t keep your promise?”
He was implying that I might just discard him after using him.
Crowell’s suspicion and argument were reasonable, and if I didn’t have the confidence to persuade him further, I would have chosen to kill Crowell.
If I didn’t have “that.”
“Keke, don’t worry about that. I happen to have a Demon’s Contract.”
“A-A Demon’s Contract! How could a human like you have that…!”
“That’s not important right now. What’s important is whether you’ll make a contract or not. It’s your choice.”
“I-If that’s the case…”
Crowell’s eyes filled with life.
Now that he saw a possibility of surviving, it was only natural.
Alright, now to pull out the Demon’s Contract and make the deal…
“N-No! Absolutely not!”
Suddenly, a tackle came from the side.
It was Rezé. She was holding a picket that said “No” and protesting.
Is she a protest rabbit now? This rabbit is truly unpredictable. At this rate, she might as well be a chameleon instead of a rabbit.
“Keke, why not?”
“B-Because there’s a risk that information about us might leak.”
“That won’t happen. I’ve prepared a countermeasure.”
“S-Still, no!”
Rezé raised her picket high, and the picket poked at my shoulder.
She’s starting a violent protest. Normally, I would have grabbed her by her idiot hair and subdued her with force, but…
Since the fate of the chain quest is at stake, I decided to persuade rather than threaten.
“Think carefully, rabbit. This is a huge opportunity. A chance to benefit without lifting a finger.”
“Squeak?”
“If we obtain information about the Four Heavenly Kings’ plans and base, what do you think the Empire will do?”
“Wouldn’t they sweep them all away?”
“Exactly. The Four Heavenly Kings will be easily eliminated. We won’t even have to lift a finger.”
“T-That might be good…”
“And that’s not all. In the process, many Black Mages will die too. The more they die, the less we’ll have to fight against demons. It’s only natural that we’ll be able to live a peaceful life.”
“T-That’s true! What an amazing plan…!”
Rezé started looking at me with sparkling eyes, as if she respected me.
There was nothing wrong with what I said.
Of course, I left out the part where we would also have to join the Empire’s efforts to eliminate the Four Heavenly Kings and Black Mages…
“H-Hehe… A safe life… with friends!”
She seemed to like the idea, so there was no need to mention it.
I glanced to the side. Toward Luna, who was wearing a cat mask.
“Any objections, kitty?”
“Of course not. It’s the pride of our family.”
As expected of the Lester family.
Protecting the Empire and its citizens, fulfilling their duties as nobles.
Even after being branded as a family of traitors, the pride of the Lester family remained unbroken.
“But where did you get that demon contract?”
“Keke, I was lucky to come across it.”
Of course, there was no way to mention that it was a reward from a recent quest.
It was one of those situations where you had to be vague, even if it meant getting chewed out a bit.
But Luna didn’t seem particularly suspicious. In fact, she continued speaking nonchalantly.
“Is that something you can get just by being lucky? Well, never mind the details. Could you give me one too if you have a spare?”
“This is the only one I have at the moment… May I ask what you plan to use it for?”
“Oh, nothing much. Just a ‘till death do us part’ kind of deal.”
Right. Our Luna was always the clingy type, wasn’t she?
Whoever that contract is for, they’re in for a lifetime commitment. Poor soul.
…
It won’t be me, right? Luna has a close friend, Rezé, after all.
I shook my head, trying to brush off the ominous thought.
“Keke, then let’s proceed with the contract.”
Fwoosh-!
As I pulled my hand out of the pocket dimension, a burning paper and pen appeared.
It was probably due to the unique effects of the ‘Demon Contract’. Despite the flames, it wasn’t hot at all.
“As you know, the terms written in a demon contract must be strictly followed.”
“Of course, but you’re aware that the contract should be written based on mutual agreement, right?”
“Naturally. ‘Written by mutual agreement’. It’s a great phrase for a clean contract.”
Maybe it was because I agreed immediately, but Crowell’s tense expression eased slightly.
“Since you’re understandably uneasy, I’ll leave the drafting of the contract to you. I’ll even let you have the position of ‘Party A’ as a special consideration. We’ll take the role of ‘Party B’.”
“T-Thank you for such consideration! I will fulfill my duties as a spy to the best of my abilities!”
Crowell’s face completely relaxed.
Handing over the demon’s pen, and on top of that, giving him the superior position of ‘Party A’—it was a natural reaction.
The preliminary steps were now complete. Just as I was about to move on to the next part of the plan—
-Crowell, henceforth referred to as ‘Party A’—He paused after writing that.
“Um… but… who are you people?”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, I need to know your names to draft the contract, even if you don’t reveal your faces. At the very least, there should be a group name…”
He was right. We needed something to refer to as ‘Party B’.
Usually, I’d just use ‘Zero’, but right now, we were an anonymous group wearing animal masks.
Even if we wrote a group name, it would still be recognized as valid by the contract. But…
‘What should we call ourselves?’
Deciding on a group name was the problem.
This was a bigger issue than it seemed.
‘It could end up becoming our alias.’
Even the black mages who revealed themselves as Four Heavenly Kings were officially recognized with that title, rather than being called ‘fools’.
In such a favorable era, coming up with a cool alias was a given.
Something luxurious and glamorous.
And a name that, once heard, no one could forget.
For example…
‘Akatsu-something or other?’ (TL Note: Author wanted to say Akatsuki, from Naruto)
Anyone who had seen that manga would instantly recognize the reference, especially given the outfits we were wearing.
Yes, it was the legendary group from the manga.
Even though it means ‘dawn’ or ‘red moon’ in Japanese, the [Interpretation] skill should handle the translation just fine.
The only problem might be the concern about plagiarism…
‘But this is just a game, so who cares.’
I, Zero, am not afraid of something as trivial as plagiarism!
Alright, our alias shall be Akatsu—!
“Dark Beast Squad!”
“…?”
Luna’s confident shout from beside me.
At the same time, a holographic window popped up before my eyes.
[‘Dark Beast Squad’ has made its first appearance on the continent.]
[If your reputation increases, you will receive special rewards. Please work hard!]
[Current Reputation: 2]
“…”
And just like that, we became the Dark Beast Squad.
–TL Notes–
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Zero you better make sure Luna doesn’t get one of those contracts because you and Reze would be doomed.