The Mysterious Child: An Adventure Tale Beginning with Numerology

I let my guard down.

The rumor that I had defeated demons.

The rumor that Roze was the Mystic King.

I should have been more alarmed when those two rumors spread simultaneously.

There were several people outside our inner circle who knew about the former. I didn't pay much attention, thinking the information had just leaked from somewhere.

But the latter was different.

In this town, only us three disciples knew that Roze was the Mystic King. I should have thought more deeply about how that rumor spread.

In fact, there was one more person who realized that the one wearing the perception-inhibiting robe was the Mystic King.

It was the white-armed demon.

In his dying moments, he saw through Roze's true identity and spoke it aloud.

And his comrade - the demon lurking in the shadows who killed him - also understood from those words.

They grasped that the Mystic King was in this town. At the same time, they detected the "Full Scan" magic, realizing there was also someone with the Demon King's seed.

If we had thought more, we should have been able to predict that it was the demons who spread the rumors.

Regardless of their purpose, the demons spread rumors to influence Roze's actions. If that was true, it meant the demons were still targeting this town.

And we should have realized that they were using humans to work behind the scenes, unnoticed from outside Elen's "Full Scan" range.

The demons are after the Destruction Factor. We also had information that the Destruction Factor was one of the nobles.

And at that timing, Viscount Montarc planned a party gathering the nobles. Recently, there's been talk that his wife is in poor health, but no one has seen her.

With all these hints, I still failed to notice.

The demons were one step ahead.

"Saaya!"

I run, suppressing my feelings of panic.

I immediately rushed into the darkened party venue. In the moonlit hall, almost everyone was cowering in fear as if they had lost their reason, some even foaming at the mouth.

It's a state of panic.

One of the mental status abnormalities. It's common knowledge among adventurers that the greater the level difference, the more susceptible one is to status abnormal magic.

I call out to her, the only one unaffected in the venue.

"Elen!"

"Hm, Cure Potion."

Of course, Elen, who has the skill to nullify status abnormalities, remained calm. She had retreated to the window, away from the confused guests, waiting for me.

As I called out, Elen released a "Full Scan" while throwing me a status recovery potion from her item box.

I caught it and poured it into Saaya's mouth, who was nearby in a state of panic.

"Pwah! What? What happened?"

"We were probably attacked by magic, and everyone's in a state of panic. The attacker is--"

"Hm, over there."

The one Elen detected with "Full Scan" was hiding behind the farthest table.

Realizing they'd been found, they revealed themselves with a laugh.

"Kuhahaha! There really was someone with the Demon King's seed! Was it okay to eat them if we found them?"

It was a demon with flame-like red hair and sharp eyes and teeth.

He licked his lips looking at Elen and said with interest:

"The Demon King's seed... and are you a defective? We came looking for the Destruction Factor, but what an unexpected event! Hey, Kage! In this case, we can really do as we please, right?"

The flame-haired demon spoke to someone, but there was no response.

"Tch, not here yet? I can't sense the Destruction Factor at all, let alone the Demon King's seed... Damn, is it really okay? It's fine, right?"

The flame-haired demon started to fidget.

It seems he can't detect the Destruction Factor, but he can apparently sense that Elen is the Demon King's seed. From his words and hostility, it seems unavoidable that we'll end up in conflict.

Can't be helped.

"Hey, demon."

"Huh? What is it, defective?"

"I'll ask just in case. What's your purpose?"

I casually shield Saaya from the flame-haired demon's line of sight and attempt a dialogue.

If only this guy had the same chivalrous spirit as the white-armed demon...

"Purpose? That's obvious. Find the Destruction Factor and bring them back. If that's not possible, kill them."

"I see. Is this whatever-factor here?"

"Who knows. I heard there's a high possibility... Wait, are you the collaborator Kage mentioned?"

Hmm.

So Viscount Montarc was indeed cooperating with the demons. Though from the looks of it, it's more accurate to say he was being threatened.

If I act like a collaborator, he might spill a bit more information.

"Kage, you mean the demon lurking in the shadows, right? I didn't know he had a name."

"What, you know about him? Then you really are the collaborator-- As if! 'Fire Lance'!"

Seems I wasn't trying to deceive him, but it was obvious anyway.

The flame magic shot by the flame-haired demon simply dissipates upon touching my cloak. Such a thing won't even scratch unicorn hide.

"What the hell, you've got some good stuff!"

"Hm, can I go?"

"Wait, wait. What about the nobles getting caught up in this?"

Elen, seething with killing intent after I was attacked.

During panic, they can't even take a defensive stance, so if Elen fought, even just the aftermath would severely injure them.

I'm not too keen on it, but since the other side is raring to go, a fight seems unavoidable. It doesn't look like we can extract any more useful information either.

"Demon, I'm fine with fighting, but shall we do it outside? We'll end up involving others."

"Huh? Why should I listen to you, defective?"

"I see. So you want a handicap, huh?"

"...Huh?"

When I lightly provoked him, a vein popped on the flame-haired demon's temple.

"There are many of our acquaintances here. Fighting here means you're not confident you can beat us fair and square, right?"

"Don't spout that bullshit!"

"Which one of us is? If you're confident in your skills, you should fight fair and square."

"Fine then! Let's do this outside!"

In his irritation, the flame-haired demon shot magic at the wall.

Part of the wall crumbled, creating a hole.

"Come on, you defective! I'll crush you to a pulp!"

Phew, it's a relief he's so simple-minded.

Viscountess Schreine is here too. Even in the worst-case scenario, I don't want her to get caught up in this.

I followed the flame-haired demon out into the garden.

We face each other at a distance.

Alright, this should be safe enough. Though Elen still can't use her area attacks in the middle of town.

"I'll torture and kill you before the Demon King's seed, you defective. I'll make you regret acting cocky when you can't even use magic until you die!"

"I see. Then this defective will try his best to live up to the name."

"Die, you damn defective-- 'Flare Purge'!"

The flame-haired demon chanted a high-powered magic that drops a heat ray from above.

It's a single-target attack magic that engulfed my body, but against my cheat-level cloak, it's no more than a warm breeze. Besides, if it were Elen, she could incinerate even a super-giant Great Boar in one hit with the same magic.

The flame-haired demon bared his fangs, seemingly surprised that I was unharmed.

"Then how about this-- 'Earth Eater'!"

The ground opens like a monster's mouth, trying to devour me.

The demon race's skill is attribute bestowal. They're apparently good at creating special situations by bestowing attributes on themselves or their surroundings. The red-eyed demon who had merged with the earth had earth attribute bestowal. It was difficult to deal damage by attacking recklessly, but... what about this one?

I'd like to observe a bit longer to get used to fighting demons, but... well, it's fine. It's annoying to just take attacks without doing anything, even if there's no damage.

"'Blade Shift'"

"Gah!?"

I sent a slash towards the flame-haired demon's ankle. It didn't cut it off completely, but I sliced the Achilles tendon side, causing the demon to fall with his knee bent.

The pain interrupted his magic, and the earth magic that had been activated crumbled like soil.

Seems he's not bestowing attributes on himself like the red-eyed demon. Though I don't know if the race skill can be used by anyone in the first place.

"Y-You bastard, what did you do?"

"Figuring that out is part of the thrill of fighting against mystic arts-- 'Blade Shift'"

"Gah!"

I cut the tendons of his other leg and both wrists as well. It might seem merciless, but while Elen and I are fine, Saaya is still low level. Even a single debuff could be fatal for her.

Besides, I've sealed his limbs, but he can still use magic. If he's a proud warrior who would still attack in this situation, I'd have to give him a proper execution.

As I looked down at him with cold eyes, the flame-haired demon gritted his teeth.

"D-Damn it, I give up! I'm no match for you... Shit, so you're really one of the Mystic King's companions, huh?"

The flame-haired demon spat out.

So he did know about Roze. The demon lurking in the shadows probably shared the information, but it's unclear how much this guy knows.

I crouched down beside the fallen demon and spoke matter-of-factly.

"Now then, demon. Let's have you tell us everything you know. If you promise not to lay a hand on this town or our companions after talking, I'll spare your life."

"I-I got it! I'll talk! We came here on Lord Saturn's orders to retrieve the Destruction Factor. The ones who came before died, so we were sent as the follow-up team. Kage's plan was to search for the Destruction Factor while keeping the Mystic King and Demon King's seed, who would likely interfere, as far apart as possible... Well, you can see the result."

"I see. Have you been aware of the Mystic King's location all along?"

"Of course, Kage's been watching through various means. I heard they've got someone with good compatibility on standby to prevent them from coming here in case of emergency."

"Is it just you, Kage, and the one assigned to the Mystic King who came to this town this time?"

"No, there's one more. That one is-- Gah?"

Suddenly, a large amount of blood spilled from the flame-haired demon's mouth.

There was no sound, no presence.

I realized there was a hole in the flame-haired demon's stomach.

Blood and entrails poured out.

I jumped back to create distance and searched for any presence.

"Hm, shadow!"

Elen immediately searched and pointed at the shadow of the now-dead flame-haired demon.

Slithering out of the shadow like crawling appeared a demon in the form of an old man.

Without a doubt, this must be the one called Kage.

"The Demon King's seed, the Divine Tree's apostle, and the Destruction Factor... This might be tough even for me."

The shadow demon muttered in a hoarse voice, stepping on his killed comrade without hesitation and grinning.

"It must have been boring dealing with that fool? Next, I - the upper-class demon Skat - shall be your opponent."

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Author Notes:

  [～Afterword Tips: Status Abnormality Edition～

Status abnormalities is a general term for continuous damage or physical/mental interference caused not only by illness or injury (physical elements), but also by magic essence or spirit essence.

Incidentally, direct interference with the soul is broadly categorized as either a "curse" or a "blessing," and is considered separate from status abnormalities or skills.

●List of status abnormalities and medicines that can treat them

Example: Charm → Smelling salts(ammonia inhalants), Cure Potion

○Damage Types

• Poison → Antidote, Cure Potion

• Severe Poison → Antidote, Cure Potion

• Corrosion → Vitality Drug, Holy Water

• Hemolysis → Vitality Drug, Holy Water

• Burns → Sedative, Cure Potion

• Frostbite → Sedative, Cure Potion

• Electric Shock → Sedative, Cure Potion

○Action Impairment Types (Physical)

• Paralysis → Anti-paralytic, Cure Potion

• Petrification → Vitality Drug, Cure Potion

• Sleep → Smelling Salts, Cure Potion

• Blindness → Light-enhancing Drug, Holy Water

• Silence → Throat Medicine, Holy Water

• Slow → Smelling Salts, Holy Water

• Magic Seal → Sedative, Cure Potion

• Metallization → Only Panacea

○Action Impairment Types (Mental)

• Charm → Smelling Salts, Cure Potion

• Confusion → Smelling Salts, Cure Potion

• Panic → Smelling Salts, Cure Potion

• Berserk → Sedative, Cure Potion

• Lust → Sedative

• Void → Only Panacea

※Panacea and Elixir work on all status abnormalities, so they are omitted.

※Incidentally, adventurers can cover most status abnormalities, so they carry Cure Potion and Holy Water as a set. Metallization and Void are rarely known as there have been only a few reported cases in 800 years, and while Lust is easily contracted from fruits like Apple Raune, many don't treat it as it naturally heals when mentally satisfied.

※Note that curses cannot be cured even with Panacea or Elixir. Specialized treatment methods are required (to be described in the main story later)]