Chapter 26. Seed Potato, Ready (2)

The Cold Monarch, Sirgi.

The moment six blades flash, no enemy standing before her can survive—a renowned powerhouse of the Abandoned Land.

But these days, she was feeling down.

No, to be precise, frustration had been piling up inside her.

"..."

Just how much longer would she have to watch that nonsense? Just how much longer would she be stuck in this place?

She didn't know.

And that made it all the more suffocating.

'Seriously, just how much longer…'

Clench!

Sirgi ground her teeth as she looked down from the balcony. The front yard of the Demon King's castle. A desolate land, red—deeply red.

She could see a small group gathered on one side of it.

'Credos...'

Demon King Credos, the farming corps he had recently organized, and that baby dragon he had picked up(?) not long ago.

'They look happy.'

Which only made it more pathetic.

While the demon race of the Abandoned Land were inching ever closer to the abyss of destruction, the once-great demon race, who should have been invading the human world, quenching their thirst with blood and tearing into juicy flesh, was now shriveled and withering in this pathetic state.

Credos, what could possibly be making you so happy?

'And on top of that…'

It's disgusting.

Digging into the barren earth and laughing together like that?

'To think that such a creature is the Demon King I, as one of the Four Heavenly Kings, serve?'

She found Demon King Credos more pathetic than ever.

And that only made her feel even more pathetic herself.

Naturally, a colder chill seeped into her eyes as she stared at Credos from afar.

Then it happened.

'...Hm?'

While she was glaring at Credos with eyes full of resentment, blame, and scorn,

Suddenly, Credos turned his head—quickly, sharply—toward her.

Their eyes met.

Flinch.

They definitely met.

But that wasn't the end of it.

Credos, having locked eyes with her, gave a slight shrug and began walking toward her.

"..."

What kind of stunt is this?

But that thought only lasted a moment.

Before she knew it, Demon King Credos had broken into a jog, running toward her.

"....."

Seriously, what is he doing?

Without realizing it, she bit down hard on her lower lip. Honestly, she wanted to draw her six swords right then and there and slice Credos into ribbons.

And yet, Credos, not stopping there, actually entered the Demon King's castle—and moments later, he was knocking on her door!

Knock knock knock.

"It's me. Can I come in?"

"...What if I say no?"

"Uh, I'd still like to come in."

"How surprising. The almighty Demon King asking for permission before entering his subordinate's room—what a rare sight."

"Can't you just say I'm being polite?"

"I'm not in the mood for word games."

"Uh, well, you never seem to be in a good mood anyway."

"It's not always like that."

"From what I've seen, it is."

"Then I assume you now fully understand the reason why I'm always in a bad mood?"

"Is it because of me?"

"Do I really need to say it?"

"Uh, so, can I come in?"

"What if I say no?"

"Then, should we just talk like this?"

"With a door between us? The Demon King and one of the Four Heavenly Kings?"

"....Yeah, that does sound weird."

"Of course it does."

"Ssshh. Open the door."

"Then go ahead and come in."

"Uh, alright."

Creak.

Credos opened the door and stepped inside.

Somehow, he looked... oddly awkward and hesitant. Or was that just her imagination?

"....May I ask why the Demon King has come looking for me like this?"

Suppressing the rising sense of futility, Sirgi asked. And ran a few guesses through her head.

Why would the Demon King seek her out like this?

'Why did he come to me? This is weird.'

Maybe he was finally going to talk about resuming the invasion of the human world?

It was possible.

After all, the farming they had talked about hadn't even led to a single planted crop yet. But now, turning around and declaring they'd resume the invasion would probably hurt his pride.

So maybe he was here to discuss a proper justification—one that wouldn't tarnish his authority—to stop farming and begin a war.

'Please.'

She truly hoped that was the case.

And maybe that was why—

Two seconds later, she almost instinctively unsheathed all six of her blades upon hearing the Demon King's request.

"Uh, so, Sirgi? Could you help me cut some seed potatoes?"

"...."

She almost actually cut him.

The Demon King continued.

"Uh, so, here's the thing. We've finished plowing the fields, the potato sprouts are all up, and the potato field is nearly ready. So this is the final step."

"You mean... cutting the seed potatoes?"

"Yeah. Exactly. This part is super important. How you cut them—and how well you preserve the eyes while cutting—can seriously affect the final yield."

"Cutting seed potatoes, you say."

"Yeah, super important work."

"And if it's that important, why are you asking me to do it?"

"Huh?"

"Wouldn't it be better to assign it to your beloved farming corps you've been cherishing lately?"

She asked.

Honestly, it seemed obvious.

She was one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Abandoned Land.

She had cut down countless enemies, and would continue to face many more as the blade of the demon race.

And yet, now that very blade was being asked to... cut seed potatoes?

'.....'

Just thinking about it stirred a cold fury inside her.

And whether he understood that or not, the Demon King responded with a surprisingly sincere expression.

"Precisely because it's important, I want you to do it."

"..."

"Besides, this is something I need your help with."

"....Why is that?"

"Because you have the sharpest and cleanest blades in the entire Abandoned Land."

"...What?"

With that, the Demon King pointed.

At the end of his gesture were her six icy blades.

She involuntarily furrowed her brow.

"...What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means I want to use the finest blade possible—at the most critical stage of this potato farming."

"..."

"Is that... weird?"

"..."

It's weird.

Extremely weird!

Her blades only revealed their true worth when soaked in the blood of her enemies. They were forged for that and that alone. For slaughter, nothing else.

She wanted to protest with an icy retort.

But she couldn't.

Because the Demon King started speaking a beat earlier.

"Listen, Sirgi."

"...I am listening."

"I want to change the Abandoned Land."

"...What?"

"I want to change it. People keep saying nothing can grow here, that we're doomed to never know abundance, that it'll always be like this. They accept that and live their whole lives under that suffocating air."

"What are you talking about..."

"Have you ever been to a low-ranking demon's home?"

"...Not particularly."

"Yeah. I figured. I went recently."

"...."

The Demon King—

Credos—what was he trying to say?

What exactly was he trying to tell her?

"I don't know... it just kinda hurt."

"...What?"

"It hurts. Emotionally."

"..."

"Was it just pity? Feeling bad because they were dirt poor and looked so frail? No. It just... reminded me of my old self."

"What are you…"

Sirgi was baffled.

His old self?

Was he talking about the version of himself that used to toss weak demons into pits, grind them to death, and drink their blood?

As she stood dumbfounded, Kim Jangcheol continued speaking—his voice earnest.

"Back then, I killed without end, just to vent my anger, to relieve stress. And now I find myself wondering, why did I do all that?"

"....."

"The way the people here used to look, and the way they look now, it's completely different. It made me realize—so this is how they really were. I'm starting to see things I couldn't see before."

"..."

"So yeah. I want to change things. I want to make everyone, whose bones are sticking out, healthy and radiant. I want to bring color back to everyone's faces. That's, recently, the new goal I've come to hold while looking around this place."

Because only then, could he avoid invading the human world again. Because only then, would that bastard Aged Kimchi finally take an interest in the Abandoned Land.

Because only then, could he reach the ending where he lives happily ever after.

Kim Jangcheol spoke with sincerity.

Sirgi understood his words.

But in a slightly… different way.

"..."

Ah.

This Demon King Credos bastard.

He plans to fatten up the demon race until they're plump and juicy, just so he can eat them more deliciously and squeeze out their blood.

Chill.

She never imagined Credos was working on such a grand scheme. Sirgi felt an involuntary shiver run down her spine.

And so, the Demon King she served started to look a little different.

'Still… wicked as ever.'

And with that wickedness, he wasn't planning to devour the human world—but instead, fatten up and exploit the Abandoned Land. Even farming was just one part of that grand plan.

".....Understood."

She nodded without realizing it.

She had a feeling that perhaps this recently odd-seeming Demon King Credos had, in fact, become something even more terrifying than before.

'For now… I'll just watch how this plays out.'

If she got on his bad side at a time like this, she might end up worse off than Asurat, who had become nothing more than a living lightning rod.

She felt a twinge of danger creeping up her third cervical vertebra and decided to step back.

And so, she followed the Demon King down to the potato storage.

But once inside the storage…

'What is all this ridiculous setup?'

The moment she entered, Sirgi flinched.

Sprouted potatoes were piled high in one corner, like a mountain. That much she'd expected. But the things next to them were a bit unexpected.

Bubble bubble.

There were six massive cauldrons.

Steam rose from them, bubbling noisily.

And heaps of white cloth were stacked nearby.

'What... is that?'

Cauldrons bubbling and a mountain of clean cloth?

She was confused.

She had no idea what they were for.

And then—

"Here, sit here."

Pat pat!

"....."

She sat where the Demon King pointed.

And then, she listened to his explanation.

"From now on, we're cutting the potatoes. But there's a trick to it. Each potato has a different number of sprouts, right? If it has three or fewer? Don't cut it. If it has more? Then you need to cut it so that the sprout-eyes are evenly distributed on both pieces. Got it?'

"What if it has too many sprouts?"

"Then just make sure one side doesn't get all of them. Cut however you like—just evenly."

"So I can start now?"

"Yeah. Let's begin."

The moment the Demon King nodded,

Sirgi made up her mind to get this ridiculous task over with as fast as possible.

'I'll finish this in five minutes.'

She could do it.

It was such a trivial task.

Just like this…

…..Shing!

Her hands drew two ice blades from their scabbards. Four more blades shimmered, extending from the joints on her back.

She got ready to charge at the mountain of potatoes.

She vowed to tear them apart with a flurry of strikes like a storm—

"Wait! Stop!"

"....!"

Just as she was about to launch forward—

Kim Jangcheol stepped in front of her.

"What are you doing?"

"Uh? Cutting the potatoes…"

"You were about to go slash slash slash through all of them at once, weren't you?"

"Well, of course…"

"Are you insane? You're trying to kill all the sprouts? Huh? Can't you take this seriously?"

"Th-then? What should I do…"

"Cut them one by one. Carefully. One at a time."

"..."

Should I just cut your neck one at a time.

Sirgi felt a burst of irritation well up without realizing it.

But then, seeing the Demon King's face, that irritation naturally subsided. It was just… facing him directly, there was something about that face—

That face…

It was unsettling. Like he'd haunt her dreams or something, just from the way he looked.

Anyway, she didn't feel like confronting him head-on.

"..."

In the end, she quietly sat down.

She received six potatoes handed to her by Kim Jangcheol. She floated them in midair. Slash slash! In an instant, six potatoes were turned into twelve pieces.

"Nice. You're good at this. Now, give me your blades."

"...Huh?"

"Come on."

"....."

This bastard Credos, what kind of nonsense is he up to now?

She just wants to get this over with.

So why the blades…

"Come on. Didn't you hear me?"

"....."

I think I'm gonna lose it.

Feeling like she was about to go insane, Sirgi handed over her six blades.

And moments later, she experienced one of the greatest shocks of her life at what the Demon King did next.

The Demon King's action—

That unexpected behavior was:

"Oh man, your blades are covered in dirt and potato juice…"

"...!"

The Demon King!

Grabbed her blades, one by one! Dipped them carefully into boiling water! And wiped them thoroughly with a clean cloth!

He even did it lovingly!

Meticulously!

"....."

Wh-what…

What is he doing right now?

"Ah, they're clean now. Okay, more potatoes. Cut."

"...Huh? Oh, okay."

"Hurry."

"....."

Slash slash!

Again, six potatoes became twelve pieces.

And once again—

"Ugh, look at all this dirt and juice again."

"....."

"Gotta clean these up. Lululu~"

"..."

He dipped them in boiling water again, wiped them down.

Still with that loving touch.

Still meticulously.

Still with that overly careful gaze.

"....."

What the hell is this...…

Credos, being more obsessed with cleanliness than she is, and treating her blades so delicately.

This was… directly hitting her preferences…

Sirgi felt a strange emotion she couldn't put into words.

Of course, Kim Jangcheol?

None of that crossed his mind.

Naturally.

Because he was genuinely focused on just keeping Sirgi's blades clean.

'You gotta do this or the potatoes will get infected!'

It was true.

When cutting potatoes, it's best to sterilize the blade each time. Otherwise, any bacteria or viruses on one potato could spread through the blade to the others.

And if that happens?

'The whole season's crop is doomed from the start.'

Such a disaster must never happen.

If it does, they're truly doomed.

Absolutely unacceptable.

So with that determination, Kim Jangcheol dipped Sirgi's blades in boiling water and wiped them with cloth.

But Sirgi had no way of knowing the reason behind it.

And so, she…

'He's insane. He's lost it. This Demon King Credos, this guy, this bastard, is insane. Seriously, has he lost his mind?'

Her face, scrunched up in frustration, had turned slightly flushed without her realizing.

[T/L: Read more chapters here: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]