Dungeon Hunter - Chapter 89

Chapter 89: Episode 24. Hashumal (3)

Hashumal’s expression distorted.

Although I wasn’t wearing a mask at the moment, she could pick up on the fundamental scent of Mana, so she managed to detect what I was in an instant.

“…”

However, she didn’t carelessly speak.

I guessed her reason and shrugged my shoulders. “I thought the angels’ ‘communication’ cannot function without their wings?”

An angel’s wings weren’t simply a repository for their divinity. No, it was an important communication device that allowed them to easily guess each other’s intentions without saying anything. You could say that it’s a type of telepathy, but… The wingless Hashumal couldn’t use that.

“What is your identity?”

Recognizing her mistake, Hashumal spoke in a low, heavy voice. Not a hint of fluster could be seen. Then again, if she got flustered by something like this, she would not be worthy of the title “Dominion.”

The sound of her voice was near perfect. An angel’s voice was beautiful enough to be compared to that of a “Siren,” a monster that seduced sailors with its songs. However, the value of a Siren’s voice couldn’t come anywhere remotely close to an angel’s. The way Hashumal’s voice seemed to flow so sweetly into your ears, it made you naturally pay attention to what she was saying.

There was a rumor in Devildom that a handful of high-ranking demons were keeping angels in birdcages after severing their wings off. Supposedly, their ego was erased and they were made to sing the whole day. That caused their lifespan to decrease drastically, and most of the captives never survived past a year.

I used to think that that was some weird taste to have, but after listening to Hashumal’s voice, I could understand it now.

I replied, “What do you think I am?”

“The magical energy in this place is deeply unpleasant. It must be the interior of a dungeon… In that case, you must be a demon, aren’t you?”

The naked hostility.

When I was still with the human awakened, she was only half convinced, but after confirming that this was the interior of a dungeon, she seemed to have finally classified me as a demon.

“I can’t say that I’m not, now can I?”

My earnest reply brought about a deep frown on Hashumal’s smooth forehead.

She said this next, “It does not matter either way. What is it that you’re after? You fooled everyone, then even cut my wings off… I do not understand your need to put on such a ‘performance.’ ”

I was slightly taken aback.

Mixed in among the group of awakened; attacking demons while pretending to help the Celestials; mobilizing M1 and M2 to stab us both, etc., etc… It seemed that she had seen through all of those in an instant.

“It was wise not to go with the first plan.”

I had been contemplating a few things. Had Hashumal remained uncertain of whether I was a demon or not, I would’ve acted like a human awakened also trapped inside the dungeon and buy her sympathy that way. But seeing the current her, that plan wouldn’t have worked at all. It was the right thing to cast aside that idea immediately. My personality meant that such a thing would’ve been impossible to pull off, to begin with.

“Oh, Hashumal. The answer is simple, as I am not a demon that entered this planet the normal way.”

Since her question wasn’t that hard, I answered her without much care.

But that only deepened Hashumal’s puzzlement. “Not a normal demon?”

“Are you curious? Unfortunately, it is not fair for me to answer alone. How about we exchange information alternately?”

“We do not negotiate with demonkind.”

I could only tut. Then again, angels were known to be hard-heads. They would go completely unreasonable with anything related to demons. But that also applied to the majority of demons, too. As for me, I was thrust into battlefields the moment I was born, so such a concept didn’t take root as strongly. Of course, I still had that little bit of animosity towards the Celestials.

“The theory of persuasion that I had been studying isn’t going to work, then.”

I quietly glanced down at the book still held in my hand. It was a tome describing the methods to persuade your opponent, and featured quite a lot of useful information. It proved to be useful to someone like me who was rather weak in that regard. The problem was that Hashumal wasn’t the type to be persuaded in the first place.

When someone rejected everything outright, there was no need for persuasion or anything of that sort.

“Hashumal. Your initial destination wasn’t this place. Am I correct?”

“…”

She neither agreed nor disagreed.

She was supposed to travel to the Devildom through the Dimensional Gate but the eventual destination she and her group reached was completely foreign to them. She was flustered initially by this development, but then sensed the congregation of impure Mana, the dungeon, and tried to attack it. And now, she found herself inside that very impurity.

I asked her, “Do you know… where this place is, and what the demons are doing here?”

This guess of mine was based off on the previous life’s experiences. But, this guess was very close to being a certainty. If the angels knew that Earth was a competition arena meant to find the next “Dark Lord,” then they would’ve invaded on a massive scale, hoping to truly destroy the demons in one fell swoop. Well, this was a heaven-sent opportunity to kill all four Archdukes at the same time, wasn’t it?

However, they didn’t. For several times in a row, they only dipped their toes as if to test the waters. I couldn’t be sure why the timing had been brought forward this time around, but Hashumal’s group was, in a way, advance scouts. The possibility of them coming here without knowing anything was quite high.

She still didn’t say anything, so I sneered at her. “Indeed, you do not know anything. You’re clueless, yet still try to judge everything through one existence, me. Worse, you don’t even know anything about me. What a funny notion this is.”

“Sophistry.”

“It is not sophistry but mere fact. When you first arrived here through the Dimensional Gate, you must’ve seen them. The structures spread throughout the surroundings, and the wondrous objects that not even the Dwarves can replicate! This is not the middle earth, it’s not the Devildom, nor is it the Celestial World. This is a completely new world… A completely different dimension. And you also have witnessed it, have you not? Countless demons and monsters that have gathered here in this completely different dimension.”

“Interfering in another dimension is a forbidden act. You must be conspiring to commit a dastardly act away from the eyes of the Celestial World.”

“Conspiring a dastardly act, is it…? First of all, Hashumal, allow me to tell you one nugget of truth. Every demon present on this planet wishes for the destruction of the human race. Ariel, Ufa, Pandemonium, and Oculus – all four of the Devildom’s archdukes and their factions have gathered and are working together. Only I do not wish for the annihilation of the humans. Instead, I have been lending my aid to the humans so that they can fight back against the demons.”

The chances of Hashumal returning to her base was close to zero, anyway. Even if I told her everything, it’d never get to the Celestial World.

“Is that why you identified yourself as not a normal demon? That you’re different from the other demons? Now that is a funny notion. A demon will always be a demon.”

“Just what is the definition of a demon to you?”

“Unpleasant negative Mana. Their very existence is the darkness itself. Those who fit this criteria are referred to as demons.”

“Haha! Indeed, demons are used to the ways of the darkness. However, oh dear Hashumal, if you define an existence by looking at just one distinguishing feature, then the current you does not qualify as a Celestial, either. Because I have never heard of a wingless angel in existence before.”

“I am not wingless, but they were taken from me. It was you who made me this way.”

“Will the others think the same as you, though? The current you that can’t wield divinity because of your lack of wings are no different from a slightly strong human being. No, hold that thought. You’re definitely a human right now.”

“What is your aim by distorting the truth like this? Is this your way of humiliating me? I have no desire to humor a demon’s ‘noble’ hobby, so just kill me already!”

Her clear, firm will could be sensed from her words.

I massaged my forehead. As expected, beating around the bush like this didn’t suit my temperament. It just was not my style.

So, I told her straight, “Come under my wings.”

“I’ve already said this before, we do not negotiate with demons…!”

“Fuu! If only you shifted your viewpoint slightly, you’d have realized that this action will benefit the Celestial World greatly.” I sighed softly before carrying on. “All of the Devildom’s archdukes are here. And I’m trying to prove myself through a completely different method from them. I’m sure you can decipher what all this means. Do you believe that keeping me at arm’s length and treating me like an enemy forever will truly benefit you and the Celestial World?”

“How will going under a demon’s wings benefit anyone?”

“Every archduke and their close aides have assembled in this dimension. By sweeping away the demons present in this world, you will attain a significant achievement.”

Hashumal’s eyes were fixed on me. It seemed that she was deeply contemplating the meaning behind the presence of all the demon archdukes in this world.

If it was true, then her mission obviously would be to save this planet from the demons.

She asked, “What is… the main reason for the archdukes to gather in this world? For what purpose do they wish to annihilate the humans of another dimension?”

“The seat of the Dark Lord has been left vacant for the longest time. They have moved the arena after realizing that the time is nigh. The condition is quite simple. You just have to kill more humans and destroy more territories than your competitors.”

“The position of the Dark Lord is decided by such a childish way…?”

The demon god was the one who suggested this whole thing, but it was wiser not to mention anything about a “god” to her. The possibility of her growing suspicious and not believing me was far greater if I did.

“To some, it may seem childish, but to others, it is a desperate, must-do situation. The Devildom has been mired in the war over the seat of the Dark Lord for far too long. There was a need to bring about a conclusion by resorting to whatever methods available.”

I then stared deeply into Hashumal’s eyes.

Within those calm lake-like golden eyes, minute ripples were spreading out.

I slowly spoke, “Oh, Hashumal. I am the one who walks alone. I do not belong to any of the archduke’s factions. And I’m not even planning to join one. Because…”

With determination in my eyes and tightly clenched fists…

“What I kill are other demons. The one who will hunt every demon existing on this planet is none other than I. And by doing so, I shall climb up to the seat of the Dark Lord.” As the corners of my lips curled up, I spoke the following words in a passing manner, “This is also an opportunity for you, in a sense. A singular opportunity for you to stop me, the one scheming to become the Dark Lord by killing all the other demons. So, open your eyes a little wider and make up your mind. I shall grant you enough time to realize the truth of my words and the current situation. I recommend that you give this serious consideration.”

Right after that, I spun around and left her room.

I lifted all of Hashumal’s restrictions so that she could freely roam within the dungeon.

She had already lost her wings, anyway. Although she could still exhibit the strength of a high-grade monster, it was still not too big of a threat.

If she insisted on getting out of here, then I’d simply eliminate her and earn five million points. That was all. But I was looking forward to the achievement I’d get to earn by corrupting her and then adding her to my combat force.

“Something that no other demon has managed to do.”

No demon had managed to corrupt a Celestial and have it serve them. The story was the same even in the past life, too. This was an event that only appeared in myths. My heartbeat faster thinking about it.

Attempts to corrupt Celestials had been made before. However, every single one of them failed. If I do succeed, then several paths that I hadn’t thought of would be open. And one among those would become the path reserved only for me.

To achieve this, some time to let Hashumal convince herself was required.

“Not to forget, I should be able to find out a more detailed explanation.”

The invasion of the Celestial World had been brought forward. I might get to hear, at least a little bit, on what exactly was going on up there.

I could conceivably use her in the upcoming invasion of the Celestial World. Making adequate preparations or learning more about the combat forces of the Celestial World might become a possibility. As a “Dominion” class angel, no one on this planet knew more about the affairs of the Celestial World than her.

I was expecting many good things after Hashumal was corrupted.

I rubbed my chin.

“All the angels that crossed over through the Dimensional Gate can’t return to the Celestial World before killing every demon present.”

This fact had been revealed during the previous life.

Back then, the angels that crossed over took over a dungeon and transformed it into a “sacred area,” then continued to oppose the demons. However, not a single one went back to the Celestial World. Things like procurement of information and lending support were the only things that went back and forth, so it had become almost a fact.

”Will you quietly welcome your death, or let go of your stubbornness and go wild?”

There was no way that Hashumal didn’t know she’d be killed if she rejected my offer. But if she were to die just like that, now that would be the very definition of a dog’s death. She hadn’t achieved anything notable yet, after all. To avoid that fate, she had no choice but to stop being stubborn and follow my lead.

Time continued to tick by while she made her mind up. Hashumal took an in-depth look around my dungeon and displayed some interest in the “Tree of Origin.” Of course, she didn’t show any other reactions outwardly.

Instead, she requested for me to let her go outside the dungeon. She wanted to see what was happening outside and find out whether or not I spoke the truth with her own eyes.

It was not an easy request to grant. Far too many demons were still keeping their eyes on this place right outside the dungeon. No haphazard scheme would fool their senses if she wanted to slip past them.

However, that problem was resolved unexpectedly easily.

“She could use the Japan dungeon to leave.”

Indeed. There was a teleportation magic circle connected to Japan’s dungeon. I had her in a light disguise, and gave her a cloaking magical item on top as well, before mobilizing Krathra.

An unexpected journey around the world began. As I couldn’t afford to give her a lot of time, I told her to return within a week. And Hashumal showed up exactly one week later.

She was sporting a very confused expression. No, there was not much of a change in that cold expression of hers, but her eyes were trembling. Those small ripples grew uncontrollably larger.

Not only did she confirm the existence of other dungeons, but she also personally witnessed the presence of truly powerful demons. Additionally, she came across the scenes of the world currently being destroyed by those creatures.

It was not too late.

Leaving them alone would be a dereliction of duty. If she hadn’t seen it, fine, but now that she had, accepting her death like this simply couldn’t happen anymore.

Her stubborn streak might have been legendary, but her main job was to be an angel. She carried on her shoulders the weighty duty of bringing light to the world being submerged in darkness.

Hashumal stared at me in a confrontational manner for a long while, before finally speaking with some difficulty, “This is definitely not me choosing to be a demon’s follower. I shall still vanquish all demons, so do not ever forget that you’re also included in that mission.”

Smirk.

I smiled at that.