NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6
Chapter 6: Demon vs. Former Hero
Well, it’s Zilbagias here, living the cozy life of a prince for over two years after leaving the blood-soaked battlefield behind.
When Sophia closed in on me, my body reacted instinctively.
— A thrust aimed at my abdomen.
— Should I jump to evade?
— No, I’d just be hunted mid-air.
— I can only dodge.
I struck her thrusting arm to deflect it while leaning to allow her punch to slip by. It was only after I executed the moves that my mind caught up, bringing meaning to my actions.
— Isn’t it ironic? Even with a different body, the “muscle memory” still kicks in.
As such thoughts crossed my mind, I threw a quick jab back at her.
Sophia’s intensity was impressive, but since she wasn’t genuinely trying to kill me, it felt soft. If I just hit, I’d win. And being this close, even my short, childlike arms could reach her.
“Oh dear.”
But with an abrupt motion that mocked the laws of physics, Sophia swiftly pulled back and effortlessly dodged my punch.
Damn it, this is why I hate demons. They tend to float around, ignoring gravity, which obviously translates to their martial arts. Back in my prime, I had my fair share of suffering due to the unreasonable moves of those demons.
If only my limbs were a bit longer… I want to be an adult already!
Having given up on pursuing her, I extended my left hand while pulling my right hand back to my waist, shuffling sideways to inspect Sophia’s movements.
“Hmm…”
It seemed Sophia was also observing me. She landed lightly, tapping the floor with her toes as if savoring gravity.
“You’re quite skilled, young master.”
Sophia remarked, tilting her head while looking at me.
“But where did you learn such moves?”
…….
All the blood that had been boiling from the encounter with dark beings suddenly cooled.
No one needed to tell me that my movements were not those of a clueless two-year-old. The muscle memory turned against me…!
“…I saw them being practiced at the training grounds.”
I wracked my brain for a plausible excuse. Saying it out loud, though, it was an almost perfect excuse! My exploration of the Demon Lord Castle was not in vain!
“Is that so? Such moves weren’t part of the demon fighting style…”
Sophia thrust out her left hand and pulled back her right, smoothly moving as she mimicked my stance.
— I was shaken.
The basic form of human martial arts drilled into me by the holy church had been almost completely reproduced.
Seriously?! Just by watching my moves once? And worse, this could mean I just showcased those moves! Anyone with an eye would know what this was…!
I felt an uncomfortable, clammy sweat along my back as I cautiously glanced over at Platy—
“Sophia. Unfortunately, not everyone can perfectly reproduce movements just by watching, like you can.”
She waved her fan, speaking in a tone that showed disbelief.
“Usually, when you mimic someone, there’s something slightly off about it. And what you learned was demon combat techniques; you haven’t mastered those of other races, have you?”
“I see. That does make sense.”
“The movements of Zilbagias resemble those of beastmen’s martial arts. You must have seen the recruits training at the training grounds.”
Platy interpreted it freely.
“Hehe, just like my child. To replicate that movement just by watching, I’m excited to see what’s in store next.”
…What a relief.
It’s true— the fighting style of the clergy incorporated beastmen agility and had been developed for humans.
And if I think about it carefully, the chances of demon army members witnessing the church’s martial arts in battle were quite slim.
Unarmed combat (well, with claws and fangs) was a specialty of the beastmen, while we humans used swords and shields. And usually, when a human soldier lost their weapon, they often faced death immediately. In the holy church, combat arts were viewed more as self-defense or training.
If anyone were to realize what I was doing, it would either be someone from my own sect or a weirdo who had brawled with humans multiple times…
“Had I known, I should have taught you martial arts earlier. I thought you were still too young.”
While I felt relieved, Platy spoke a tad regretfully.
“However, Zilbagias. A proud demon cannot be seen mimicking the martial arts of an inferior species like beastmen. You must refrain from that.”
I couldn’t help but glance around the room, but it was merely the knight elves serving me, with no beastmen attendants in sight.
…Could she say that in front of them too? Their loyalty might crack.
“Yes, I’ll be careful.”
In any case, I answered cautiously.
I managed to dodge a bullet this time, but I can’t predict what will happen next. If a beastman expert were to see me, suspicion would be high.
I need to seal off all the movements from my hero days…
“Now then, Zilbagias. You’re going to learn the legitimate fighting techniques of demons.”
Even while hiding her mouth behind the fan, that sadistic smile was all too clear.
“Don’t worry; we have all the time in the world… Sophia, continue.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Sophia got into position. Her small girl-like figure didn’t match the aggressive stance she took, raising both hands.
I see, so this is what the proper martial arts looks like…
“Wow, it’s more engaging than I thought, and I’m starting to enjoy it. The young master’s movements might just be surprisingly useful as a reference.”
Damn it, if I screw up again, she’ll replicate it, and I won’t know where I’d be exposed…!
“All right, here I come!”
With her relaxed voice, Sophia launched at me.
— After which, I was literally rendered immobile and ended up getting pummeled to the ground.
Well, being pummeled by a child doesn’t hurt as much when you’ve been crushed by the Demon Lord, but…
“Ah! Finally! Time to study!!”
Sophia looked overwhelmed with emotion as I sank my head into the desk.
Since I lost, it was time for study.
There’s no helping it. For now, I’ll half-heartedly pretend to learn the bare minimum of reading and writing while recuperating. I need to quickly master demon-like movements… and once my body grows a bit more, I’ll make this damn demon pay…!
As I considered this, a piece of parchment was placed before me.
“Now, young master! This is what letters are!”
What seemed to be a jumble of unfamiliar symbols.
“…………?”
Can’t read it.
“Eh… is this supposed to be?? Letters???”
“Correct!”
Sophia said cheerily.
“It’s demon script.”
……………
Now that I think about it, didn’t the commander’s priest mention something like that…?
Though spoken language might be the same, the writing is different for demons…
So even if documents are collected, deciphering them takes time…
“Young master! Demon script is a phonetic script, meaning each character represents a sound. This is ‘A’, and this is ‘I’, and depending on how you combine them, they can change into different sounds. Oh, while I mentioned phonetic script, there’s also ideographic writing, which is more related to human and elf scripts—”
Sophia started blurting out explanations at breakneck speed. I felt myself going numb. Memories of endless nights spent in the church orphanage, struggling to finish writing drills, flooded back…
That day, I may have felt the most despair since my rebirth.
Damn demons… I can’t forgive them.