Demon King Daimaou: Volume 2

by Shoutarou Mizuki

  “They should just have the people who did find it tell them where it was. Or maybe it’s not someplace you want to go more than once?”

  “Probably not. But I haven’t heard any rumors about a monster. It’s possible that the forest itself is more dangerous.”

  “There may not be monsters, but I bet there’s a guardian now.”

  “Why do you say that, boss?”

  “Think about it. Why do you think there was a guardian in the underground cemetery?”

  “That’s right... So the guardians appeared only after the map was discovered...” Hiroshi’s expression clouded.

  “Either way, something’s going on that has nothing to do with me... And yet I’m sure my actions will be held against me again,” Akuto muttered.

  “Oh!” Korone interjected.

  “What is it?”

  “I found it.”

  Akuto looked in the direction she was pointing and saw the cave from the photograph. It was half-buried by the surrounding trees.

  “I didn’t honestly think we’d find it,” Akuto said. Korone shoved the two metal rods in front of his face.

  “The ‘Finding Groundwater’ device is a very reliable magical tool. Plumbers use it in their work.”

  “Oh, I see...” said Akuto, mostly uninterested, as he put down his bags.

  He called Hiroshi and had him light a mana torch in his hands. Then he looked at Eiko. Of course, she was eager to go inside, and Akuto had already given up on stopping her.

  “Let’s go,” he said, and he led them into the limestone cave.

  The entrance was low enough that he had to duck to get in, but once he was inside there was plenty of space. The stones beneath his feet were slick and damp. It was humid inside, and it seemed that there was water flowing somewhere nearby.

  “This is quite a sight, huh?” Hiroshi said, impressed.

  His light was shining on a tunnel that was big enough for a bus to pass through. The tunnel walls were glistening with a strange light as water trickled down them from the ceiling. At the bottom there was a mound of melted rock, like ice cream dropped on the side of a road.

  “There’s only one path, huh?”

  They went in further. The path seemed to be tilting downwards slightly. At the end, there was a dark hole where the light wouldn’t reach. When they arrived, they saw that it was an opening to a vast hall.

  Hiroshi made the light stronger so they could see the whole thing. It was the size of a school gym. There were several limestone stalactites pointing down from the ceiling, and anthill-like stalagmites of varying sizes dotted the floor. In the far back were several depressions in the floor that looked like unfinished bowls. All of them were filled with water. It was like someone had lined up a bunch of small swimming pools.

  They followed the walls around the hall. There were small depressions in the wall, but no tunnels leading anywhere else. The limestone cave seemed to come to a dead end, here in this hall.

  —Is this really a dead end? But I don’t see a shrine... Wait, these pools are pretty deep. Maybe they lead somewhere.

  Akuto went to the furthest pool in the back and knelt down. Just like he’d thought, the far wall wasn’t a dead end at all. The pool continued below it, and there was a gap between the wall and water of a few dozen centimeters. If he went in the pool, he could go deeper into the cave.

  Akuto put his hand in the water. It was warm — this must have been the hot spring he’d heard the rumor about.

  “I guess we’ll have to swim, huh?” Akuto said. Hiroshi looked scared.

  “To tell you the truth, boss, I’m a little scared to get in the water.”

  “Yeah... It’s definitely dangerous. Okay, why don’t you wait here with Korone?”

  Akuto stripped down to his underwear and took the ball of light from Hiroshi. If he said the wrong thing, Hiroshi might start talking about how he “needed to become stronger” again, so he said nothing as he got inside the pool.

  The water was surprisingly shallow. He was able to crouch down and go forward with his head sticking out of it. It didn’t go very far back, either. After a few meters, it suddenly opened up into another hall.

  This hall was considerably bigger than the one before. And there was a light shining down from the ceiling. Part of the roof seemed to have completely melted, and the forest was visible above him.

  Akuto was still crouching on the limestone, but some of the rocks in the pool were rough instead of smooth. It felt more like a typical forest hot spring now. There were probably several different hot springs here, connected together at the source but separated by the rocks. He could imagine animals coming here to heal their wounds.

  —It’s kind of relaxing. Not that I’ve got time to relax...

  He was about to stand up to look for the treasure when suddenly someone grabbed him from behind.

  “Uwah!”

  It was Eiko who’d attacked him. It wasn’t that Akuto had been careless — part of the reason he’d let her get so close was that she was good at moving quietly, but mainly it was that he was trying his best to ignore everything she did.

  Akuto could feel something soft pressed up against his back. He was naked from the waist up, so he could feel the sensation of skin pressing against skin.

  “Hey...” Akuto tried to run, but she held him tightly from behind.

  “We’re finally alone, you know. It wouldn’t kill you to relax a bit.”

  Eiko wrapped her arm firmly around Akuto’s body. She pulled him towards the water, like a ghost trying to drag its victim to their doom.

  “Fine, I’ll calm down, so get off me.”

  “No way. If I do, you’ll run away.”

  “Of course I will. You’re not wearing any clothes.”

  “Nobody wears clothes inside a hot spring.”

  “So what, you took your clothes off and chased after me back there?”

  “I’m pretty fast, you know. Your friend didn’t even notice. I’ve been waiting for this chance for a long time,” she said in an alluring voice.

  “Chance? You’re trying to kill me...?”

  “No! Man, you really don’t understand anything, do you?”

  “Anything about what?”

  “I keep telling you I’m in love with you, right? So of course I’m going to do things like this.”

  Eiko leaned into Akuto’s body and grabbed his hands from behind. She guided them towards her own body.

  “L-Like what...?” Akuto’s voice was shaking.

  “You know, you shouldn’t make a girl say things like that.”

  She pressed her breasts into Akuto’s hands.

  Akuto’s hands went rigid as she began to pull them further down. They went past her stomach, and even further below...

  ○

  —It’s important to train the mind.

  Junko was now more keenly aware of this than ever. She’d been able to follow their tracks from the cemetery to the abandoned town, but once she’d gone inside the forest she’d lost Akuto and his group.

  —This is something a first-rate shinobi should be able to do easily. Maybe I’m just too distracted to focus...

  The “distraction” she was referring to was her own mind, which was constantly questioning whether Akuto was doing naughty things with the mysterious girl he’d been traveling with. She was fine as long as she maintained her focus, but whenever she let her guard down, even for a moment, the thoughts had come rushing to the forefront. A few times it had been so bad she’d screamed. And after screaming, she’d found herself looking around to make sure nobody had heard her.

  —Gah! Calm down, Junko Hattori! What’s important here is that if that girl is Eiko Teruya, Akuto might be in danger.

  “But now that I’ve lost them, I’m not sure what I can do...”

  At this point, Junko was just wandering the forest blindly. But just when she’d thought about leaving it entirely to try and pick up the trail again, she found a spring. When she dipped her fin
ger in the water to see if it was drinkable, it was warm.

  —Come to think of it, I haven’t taken a bath in three days. Maybe I’ll take a break and calm myself down.

  She put down her pack, checked around her to make sure no one was watching, and began to remove her clothes. Each time she removed an item of clothing, she would fold it up and place it on her head. Then she tied the bundle of clothes to her head, along with her katana sheathe, to her head with a string called a sageo. It was an old habit she’d picked up that would let her quickly react if she was attacked by the enemy.

  Since nobody was watching, she stretched and let out a huge yawn as she stepped into the water.

  “Whew...”

  She ran her hands over her body as her cheeks began to flush from the heat.

  —All the physical training I’ve done has made my body all muscly. Maybe I’d be more attractive if my body was softer, like Keena’s...

  She quickly shook her head.

  —No, no. This isn’t good at all. I must keep my body toned at all times, so that no one will mock my family for choosing politics over war!

  “But still...”

  Junko had lowered her face under the waterline to the point where her words were coming out as bubbles, when suddenly she sensed someone’s presence. She poked her head out from the water without a sound, and began to look around her.

  Then she heard a scream, and the sound of splashing water.

  —Two people?

  Junko silently moved in the direction of the noise, which was past the rocks. She could hear voices.

  “We’re finally alone, you know. It wouldn’t kill you to relax a bit.”

  —What?

  The sweet tone of the voice was enough to tell even Junko that it was a man and a woman in the throes of intimacy.

  —Maybe I should leave then...

  Junko’s face was now bright red, and not from the steam. She turned to go, but for some reason she found herself staying to hear what happened next.

  “Fine, I’ll calm down, so get off me.”

  “No way. If I do, you’ll run away.”

  “Of course I will. You’re not wearing any clothes.”

  —That serious, yet blunt tone... That voice...!

  Junko couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She drew her sword and poked the end of the blade just a bit past one of the rocks, so she could use it as a mirror to see what was going on.

  Akuto was mostly naked, and a girl was embracing him from behind. He was struggling to get free, but the girl was rubbing herself up against him hard.

  Junko’s mind was clouded by a mix of embarrassment, confusion, and anger. She pulled the blade back and pointed it straight upwards, and within an instant she was leaping into the air.

  “Noooo!”

  ○

  Akuto could probably get her off of him if he tried, but he wasn’t sure he could control his power. If he wasn’t careful, he might send Eiko flying. And once he calmed down a bit, an even bigger concern was that he might piss her off, and somehow end up with more of a mess to deal with.

  — If I keep playing along, maybe I can learn something... But I don’t have that much experience, so I won’t be able to keep calm... and I can’t go all the way...

  He didn’t want to do anything that would give her any encouragement, so he just kept his hands pressed up against her stomach where she was holding them. His only choice was to keep the conversation going.

  “Hang on. Weren’t you saying something about choosing between me and your master?”

  “So maybe I end up with both of you. Who cares?”

  “What if I care?”

  “Aww, don’t be such a wimp.”

  “That’s not what I’m talking about. I want to know more about this other guy. I want to know how much of a man he is.”

  Akuto personally didn’t think his own words were convincing, but they were good enough for Eiko.

  “Oh, that I can understand! He’s...”

  Before she could continue, however, a voice came down from above.

  “Noooo!”

  Akuto looked up.

  Junko was leaping down at him, totally naked with her clothes tied to her head. Her sword was raised and her legs were open.

  “Why aren’t you wearing any clothes?!” Akuto screamed without thinking.

  It was only then that Junko seemed to realize how she was dressed.

  “N-Nooo!”

  Still in mid-air, she folded her arms and legs up to hide herself, and then crashed right next to Eiko and Akuto in the water. There was a huge splash. Akuto and Eiko let go of each other and moved away.

  “H-Hattori... What are you doing here?” Akuto asked. Junko poked her head and sword up from beneath the water. Her face was a brilliant red, but her voice was sharp and clear.

  “That’s not what’s important here! That’s Eiko Teruya! She’s a government spy!”

  “A spy?”

  Akuto looked at Eiko. She was standing tall, and making no effort to conceal herself. He looked away, and she chuckled.

  “That’s right. I’m sure you knew it was something like that, right?”

  “Yeah. I figured it was something like that, but I wasn’t able to figure out that you worked for the government. So some government big shot is involved here?”

  “That’s right! He wanted to know if you’re a man who can stand up to your fate. And I was sent to help him figure that out. But you know, you’re standing at a very dangerous crossroad right now. If I don’t help you, you might die when you get your hands on that treasure.”

  “Die?”

  “That’s right. You need to be worthy to possess it, and right now, you aren’t. At least, if you ask me.”

  “I’m really not interested in being tested for my ‘worthiness,’ so I don’t care.”

  “Stop talking like that!” Eiko yelled. “Okay, do you want me to make this simple? Choose me. If you fall in love with me, I’ll make you a man.”

  “Wait!” Junko interrupted. “I don’t know what Eiko’s talking about, but she works for the Imperial Public Safety Committee! They’re in charge of the knights, but they’re a bunch of extremists who want to wipe out black magic and black mages!”

  Eiko’s temper flared in response.

  “Extremists? Hah! If we let everybody use any kind of magic they want, the whole empire will collapse! Why can’t you understand that?”

  “That’s what makes you extremists!” Junko yelled back. “You Teruya are always reckless! And all you care about is learning how to murder people!”

  “And the Hattori are just a bunch of wimps who chose to serve the Imperial Cabinet instead of fighting!”

  “Shut up! And anyway, the government’s laws say that Akuto Sai is only to be observed. What are you thinking, trying to interfere and lead him to the treasure of the last Demon King?”

  “The Public Safety Committee’s following the law too! And Akuto Sai came here of his own free will! I can tell you that for sure!”

  “Then leave! Stay away from him!”

  When Eiko heard this, a superior smile spread across her face.

  “Oh, so that’s it. If that’s what you want...”

  She wrapped herself around Akuto again.

  “Hey, are you going to choose her? Or choose me?”

  “What?!”

  Akuto had no idea what to say to that.

  “Girls like us work for the benefit of our master. Right now, Junko’s trying to help you, but if you accept me and reject her, she’ll lose the right to complain about anything I do.”

  Eiko brought her lips close to Akuto’s ear, but she was speaking loudly enough that Junko could hear her. What Eiko was saying didn’t make a lot of sense, but from looking at Junko’s reaction, Akuto could tell she was telling the truth. She was watching Akuto with a bitter look and biting into her lips.

  —I don’t know what’s going on here, but this is a problem... Hattori’s really mad at me, for one
thing. There’s no way I could be her master.

  Junko, however, was unwilling to wait for an answer. She screamed and ran at Eiko with her sword.

  “Enough talking! This is our problem, not yours!”

  But when she came out from beneath the surface of the water, Eiko just turned Akuto’s head towards her.

  “No!” Junko gasped and dropped back in the water again.

  Akuto realized that she was too worried about being seen to come out from the water, so he spoke to her in a timid voice.

  “I-It’s okay. I won’t look, so go ahead and do it without holding back.”

  “You’re lying! You totally saw me! And when you say ‘do it’ it sounds like you mean something naughty!”

  “This is no time to be stubborn!”

  “Then get out of here!”

  “Sorry, you’re right... No, wait! There’s a reason I can’t move!”

  Akuto had just realized something. But at this point, neither Eiko nor Junko were listening.

  “This is perfect! I’ve been waiting years for this!”

  Eiko ran at Junko. Junko fought back, but she couldn’t match Eiko’s fast movements while trying to cover her body. In the space of a moment Eiko had broken past her guard, struck her wrist, and knocked her sword from her hand.

  “Damn it!”

  “Ahaha! It’s hard being a shy girl, huh?”

  Eiko’s body began to flicker and waver. Clones of her appeared on either side. It was the same skill that was Junko’s specialty.

  “Once a girl loses her shame, she’s finished!” Junko yelled back, and cloned herself as well.

  Several clones of Eiko and Junko began to scream and punch at one another.

  “I taught you that skill when I was little!” yelled Eiko.

  “I don’t think so! Everybody in the village knows it!” Junko shot back.

  “I covered your ass when Master got mad at you!”

  “That’s because you slipped poison in his food and blamed it on me!”

  “Shut up, virgin!”

  “Shut up, slut!”

  It was a petty argument to witness, but with all these Eikos and Junkos leaping around the hot springs, Akuto couldn’t move. And since they were all naked, even if the Junkos were doing an admirable job of covering their privates, it was still really awkward.