The Demon King Who Draws

Chapter 37

Time was running out for Mori to search for evidence linking the Baron, the subject of his painting, to the disappearance of the followers.

One day, and a half more.

Hmm-hmm…

Humming a tune, Mori headed to a space akin to the attic of the mansion. His investigation with Bill had revealed it to be one of the few areas beyond the watchful eyes of surveillance.

The mansion was filled with watchful, well-trained eyes. They never showed themselves, but their presence couldn’t fool Mori and Bill.

Creak…

He quickly opened and closed the door before any sound could escape.

“Are you awake? Hmm… no, that’s not right, clears throat…”

Mori’s voice returned to normal.

“Woken up, have you?”

Gasp! Gasp!

There, a maid who looked exactly like Mori’s current disguise lay bound and collapsed.

The bound one was the original owner of the appearance he had taken. Surprisingly, Mori had kidnapped one of the mansion’s maids even before Adelia had requested it.

Looking back, it was a bold yet chilling decision. If the baron had nothing to do with the disappearances, it would have been a grave mistake.

Such overflowing initiative might stem from Mori’s confidence that he could somehow rectify the situation later.

Removing the gag from the maid’s mouth, a trembling voice spilled out.

“My… my face… please save me. Why… why are you doing this?”

“What do you think I am, standing before you?”

“I don’t know…”

“Think hard. This isn’t some touching reunion with a twin sister you never knew you had.”

The maid soon remembered.

The existence of a creature that steals appearances.

“A… doppelgänger?”

“Correct! Then you must know the legend of the doppelgänger.”

Meeting one’s doppelgänger is an omen of death. The maid quickly recalled that fact too.

“No… please! I don’t want to die… I don’t want to…”

All the maid could do now was beg for her life.

“What are you going to do with me?”

“I’m just curious to ask you a few things.”

“Is that really all?”

“Yes. But I’m not very patient. If you lie or pretend not to know something you do, I’ll have to find another way.”

“…”

“You’re the least troublesome option I have. Now, we’re short on time. Shall we begin? Did I mention the precautions? What was your name again… Sara, right?”

Nod…

Mori smirked.

“Sara, the Baron has a secret, doesn’t he?”

Nod…

“Do you know exactly what the secret is?”

“No… not that…”

The first resistance.

“Hmm… Sara, then can you tell me why, among all the maids in this vast mansion, only you and the butler are human?”

Flinch…

“That was a proper question, it seems. The rest are all different species. Fascinating, isn’t it?”

“That’s because the Baron has been kind to…”

“Sara.”

“…”

“There might be a purpose behind that kindness, right?”

“That’s… possible?”

“Is that purpose related to the cellar in the annex?”

Suddenly, Sara’s complexion turned pale.

It was as if the blood drained from her face in an instant.

“I don’t need an answer to know.”

“There are… people imprisoned in the cellar.”

“Good, that’s the attitude. I had suspected as much. Are any of the recently disappeared Ves followers among the imprisoned?”

“I don’t know that… It’s rare for anyone to go down to the cellar…”

“Can you enter the cellar?”

“It’s impossible for me.”

The answer was immediate.

“Why?”

“The cellar is locked with a sturdy lock. I don’t have the key.”

“Forcing the lock would bring everyone in the mansion down on us. Who has the keys?”

“The… the butler, the steward, and the baron himself.”

“With so many eyes, approaching the Baron is out of the question… Do the other two have guards?”

“No. Who would dare harm them in the baron’s own mansion?”

“The steward has signs of martial training, right?”

“I’ve heard… he used to be a mercenary.”

“Not a shallow skill, indeed. That makes it difficult… The only one left is the butler.”

Mori muttered with a sly grin.

“I’ll have to coordinate with Bill. Now, the questioning is over.”

“…Are you going to kill me now?”

“Why bother? Oh! There might be trouble, so I’ll put you to sleep.”

As Sara relaxed, Mori advised her.

“If there’s definitely something in the cellar… you should look for a new job as soon as you wake up.”

Gasp?

As the gag was refitted, Sara’s eyes widened in a silent question, and Mori’s hand struck her neck.

Thump…

Sara collapsed.

“The butler, then…”

* * *

Sara! Where have you been all this time?

“I’m sorry, Steward. The guest wouldn’t let me leave…”

You’re talking about that girl, Adelia. I thought she knew her place and would keep quiet… Sara, did you give her any excuse?

“No, no. She just said she needed someone to talk to.”

Someone to talk to? Did she ask any suspicious questions? Anything related to the baron…

Sara, naturally played by Mori in disguise, shook her head innocently in response to the steward’s questions.

“There were no such questions. She asked if I was satisfied with life in the mansion and about my religion…”

Hmm… That’s a relief. It’s quite bothersome, you know. Those Ves Church pests hanging around the master.

Through the brief exchange, Mori discerned that the steward was a fiercely loyal character. Deception was the only way to get what he wanted from such a woman in a short time.

“Um… Steward…”

Do you have something to say?

“Well… it might be wrong information, but…”

Out with it, don’t dawdle.

“Gulp… Adelia… that is, the Baron’s guest heard strange moans last night…”

…What?

“Apparently, from the annex…”

As soon as the word ‘annex’ was mentioned, the steward’s eyes turned frighteningly sharp.

Shh… Keep your voice down.

“That… could the sound have leaked from there?”

That’s… impossible. Well, not impossible, but it’s never happened before.

Fortunately, the steward seemed to be the worrying type.

‘So, it’s not strange for moans to leak from that facility.’

Whatever was hidden in the basement of the annex, it didn’t seem to be anything normal.

‘The ones in the cellar must be alive, and their physical condition… certainly not normal.’

The steward muttered, biting her nails.

If that’s true, it’s serious. If the Ves Church’s lackeys hear it, it could blow up into a big issue.

“What should… how can I…”

Sara. I can’t leave my post right now. You’ll have to go to the annex and check the situation…

Just as the perfect scenario Mori wanted was about to unfold,

…Hmm, no, that won’t do. I’ll go to the annex myself when I have time.

“…Yes, Steward.”

Then, continue to look after Adelia. Since my eyes can’t reach her quarters, your role is crucial.

“I’ll keep that in mind, then…”

Go on, then.

Mori, disguised as Sara, vanished into the room where Adelia was.

Naturally, Adelia and Mori didn’t have any special conversation. She just quietly observed the actions of Faust’s minions.

“Bill, come out.”

Swoosh…

“I kept the steward’s attention as long as you said. You got it done, right? I’d be disappointed otherwise.”

Jingle…

Bill handed over a bunch of keys that looked exactly like the ones hanging from the steward’s waist.

“One of these must be the key to the annex. The steward kept fidgeting with this bunch while talking.”

Won’t she suspect me when she realizes a key is missing?

“That won’t happen. To be precise, the key isn’t missing; it’s just been swapped. She probably won’t notice until she tries to open the annex door herself.”

Hmm… Did you replicate the key itself? I don’t have that kind of skill.

“I can disguise myself, but I can’t steal faces either. We each have different skills. As long as it helps Him, it doesn’t matter what it is.”

Jingle…

Right. What about the guard?

“I put him to sleep standing up. He won’t notice even if you get close.”

Is that even possible?

“Infiltration is a basic skill. It might be quicker to find something that’s impossible.”

Adelia, the holy woman of the Ves Church, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, interjected.

…What if the steward goes to the annex sooner than expected?

“That won’t happen. I’ve instructed the holy knights to cause a commotion from now on.”

…Ah!

“The steward will be too busy preventing the noise from reaching the baron’s ears.”

You’ve prepared that far…

Bill nodded and said to Mori,

“Mori, go check the basement of the annex in his stead.”

* * *

“Is everyone alright? Perhaps…”

The guards stood motionless, not even glancing at Mori.

As if they had lost consciousness.

“Did you knock them out? Impressive. That guy, I must admit, he’s skilled.”

Mori, disguised as Sara, confidently descended into the annex’s basement without any hindrance. A door locked with a large padlock was revealed.

Jingle…

As the sound of keys echoed, voices seeped from within.

“Ugh… ugh…”

“It hurts…”

Curiosity about the scene beyond the door grew in Mori as he tried to find the key that fit the lock.

Click… click…

“Not this one.”

Click…

“Nor this one.”

Click… click…

“Nor this.”

Click.

…Smirk.

Creak…

Creeeak…

Mori, having opened the door to the annex, whistled.

“The scent of blood is an art form here.”

The stench of blood was so pervasive that it numbed the sense of smell.

The basement’s interior was damp, as if covered in a mist of blood.

“Let’s see… not many living creatures left.”

What lay there were remnants of various races. They were referred to as remnants because few maintained their entire bodies intact.

The atmosphere was unique, unlike a wicked laboratory or a brutal interrogation room. Mori instantly understood the intent of the place’s creator.

For amusement.

A perverse and sadistic place constructed solely for the owner’s interest.

The shelves were filled with body parts of different races preserved in an unidentified liquid. Eyes, hands, even scalps.

There was not a single human part in sight. The blood mist in the basement likely formed during the creation of these specimens.

Even Mori, a creature of the dark, who lived close to blood, found this particularly unpleasant blood unsettling. The blood of those who couldn’t resist.

“Let’s see, there must be something intact left.”

If Mori here were a creature of the dark, he might have indulged in the blood, but this Mori was an agent of Faust.

He had a job to do.

To avoid frightening the victims further, Mori shed Sara’s appearance and took on that of a suitable adventurer.

Approaching the restrained creature that was moaning, Mori asked the same question.

“Are you a follower of the Ves faith?”

“Ughhh…”

“Wrong, this one’s been corrupt for a long time.”

A follower of Ves?

“Save me…”

“If you were a follower of Ves, I might consider it.”

“No… I’m not…”

Just then, someone nearby addressed Mori.

“Ves… Have you come to save a follower of Ves?”

“Are you a follower of Ves?”

“Oh… O Ves deity. Sob… You have not forsaken me in the end…”

“Look, I don’t have time. If you’re going to babble, your tongue will soon join the other curiosities in the cabinet.”

Mori inquired.

“The missing follower of Ves, right?”

“…Yes.”

“And the others? Where are they? I heard there were more.”

“They were… here.”

The statement was accurate.

To his left was a decapitated corpse, and to his right, a body with its entrails torn out.

“…At least one is alive, that’s fortunate. Listen, you’ll stand trial in a religious court. You’ll face the judgment of Ves or whatever deity. Can you testify?”

“I’ll testify… But who could possibly judge Grimhal?”

Mori smirked.

“Well, if the numbers add up, it’s possible, isn’t it?”