Chapter 8 (1/2)
The 8th Story: Status Rising and Na
Me and Astarte headed towards another room on the same floor
A red carpet continued towards the room’s center
Cutting off the carpet was a large drawn hexagrale person
In the four corners there were four torches e purple flames
Apart fro much placed in it
This roo of “the ritual will commence now”
The slow-footed me was pulled by Astarte by my hand, and I was led into the room
The slime made a dirty noise with a nucha nucha
Even so, there’s that
This child really doesn’t care about getting dirty fro a Ghoul’s hand
Even now the sticky sli to her palm and sleeves=
I don’t knohether it’s because Astarte’s a child or it’s just her own personality, but to be honest, up until now, I think she is the first person who came into contact with me favorably
If ht now…nope, I’ll pass Iination cut
Why was she so kind to me up until now?
As far as I’m concerned, there’s the reason of “because I saved her when she was being kidnapped by humans,” but I believe it would have been solved in the end even if I wasn’t there
I only changed the scenario where those two humans would be killed by the other demons in the castle
Besides, didn’t Astarte come to my place before that?
Co like sympathy?
Just sympathy?
Doing this much for that? Normal
“You know, I feel grateful”
Astarte talked as if she read my mind
“Living in this castle is super strict”
Really?
Because she’s the castle lord’s daughter, I thought she could be haughty and selfish as much as she likes
“Unless I have no work, I’o is really only this floor and Rinne’s lab Outside of this castle is a dream within a dream”
Rinne e breasted woman in a white robe
Without interjecting, I listened carefully to Astarte’s words
“I really understand that Otou-sama really treasures me Besides he toldno o to the lower floors to play sometimes”
“The people in the lower floors are so a’s head, and a Mr Bird that can talk It’s so fun, as if I’m lost in a picture book’s world But everybody runs ahen I get close…”
Ah…
I get it
Astarte is that old hter
The way I see it, that old hter co rude to Astarte and her father hears it, they would be iht easily
Fearing that, the castle’s de to do with Astarte
“In the end, because no one wanted to play with me, I went to the lowest floor, the “Ghoul” floor…”
Ahh Is that why she always appeared where I was?
“But it’s not like the ghouls would listen to me talk And even if I talked to them, they wouldn’t react…”
There, Astarte looked at ain and talked
“But I met you”
Me?
“It was my first time A person ould deal with ht? Everyone looks down on you, but I think they’re wrong”
…
“Because you are my first fr-…friend…”
She fully e the phrase “friend”
There probably was never someone who could talk to her as an equal up until now
And now, Astarte gulped down her saliva with a “gokuri” (gulp) and seriously hesitated as though she were confessing But she certainly said it strongly
“So please be by ht!”
I was…
Honestly bewildered
I never experienced so up until now
Frankly, I didn’t knohat on earth I should reply her words with
A moment of silence
There, my lifeboat appeared
“Eh~, gohon (ahem)”
Behind me, the old man cleared his throat
“!!”
Astarte was startled! And she floated up a few centiround
“To think you were that excited about this ghoul…”
The figure of a stale sulking father was there
He has an “I don’t care what happens in my life anymore” face
“I don’t care what happens in my life anymore…”
Yep, that’s right
Astarte-san
“Then shall we start, Astarte?”
While behaving a little sulkish, the old man advanced into the inside of the room
“Come”
There for the first time, the old man looked at me in the eye and talked to me instead of Astarte
Come to think of it, this is the first time he’s directly talked to me
He’s been ignoring my existence all this time
But you can say that’s natural
In which world would you find parents ould ask a pet for its opinion in a family council on whether to keep it or not?
I responded to the old , I felt soence…”
The rank up ceremony was finished relatively fast
First the olda silver needle
I felt sorimace with an “Ow…!”
I thought “it would be fine to not do this if you’re going to ht be an extremely important ritual
The old man recited an incantation, their blood formed the shape of words, and it was absorbed into the massive spell book the old man held in his hand
After that, what happened was the chanting of an boring, pointless,ceremony speech of a school principal
Frankly, I didn’t understand what ot hat I was accustomed to for this one month
But as it finally approached its final sentence
“As the Castle Lord Sanjelht to rigorously safeguard ic power!”
“Don” (bang)!
As those words began, a shock broke out in the room
Ashen steam from the center of my body filled the room
Honestly, it was unbearably smoky
“Geho! Geho! (cough cough) What is this…!”
I muttered this
…Huh?
“Huh?”
A voice caiven emitted from decayed vocal cords
It was a proper human voice
I touched my throat
There is skin
It uy say this, but it is a silky smooth skin
At least it is cleaner than the decayed and sludge covered ghoul skin
My Adah it was flat up until now!
I touched rew there
I touched my face My nose which was function-less up until noas breathing
I touched my teeth All of them are there
All of houl features disappeared
In other words
“My appearance became that of a human’s! Me!”
“Don’t be so happy, that’s just the rank up’s supplee unchanged, and it’s not possible to maintain that form for 24 hours”
The old man said that from behind me
“I’ence from the start? Or is this also a power from the rank-up? I do not know, as I have never heard of anyone strengthening a ghoul…”
“Old man!”
“Who is a old man! I am Count Sanjelman Call me Count-sama”
“Count-sama!”
“Very good”
“I’lad~!”