Chapter 4: In a Mirror, Hardly Dark
The mage appeared before two attractive people. Something separated him from them, perhaps a barrier, but its form was imperceptible. They stood in a large room of questionable aesthetics, both in its colors and its strange symmetry.
The man was handsome, although he was dressed for lying around the house, at best. The fabric of his shirt and trousers was unusual, but not anything that stood out when compared to the girl. She wore a vibrant red outfit and possessed cute features that made you want to protect her. The most striking part of her appearance was her hair, an impossible gradient of colors. It was almost as if…
“Demons!?”
“Correct,” the male demon confirmed.
“B–But I didn’t summon any demons today!”
“Correct.”
“Th–Then why are you here!?”
The male and female demons looked at each other in confusion, then back at the mage. The girl remained silent.
“Why are we here? We live here.”
The mage spun around while he inspected his surroundings. “You mean to say, I died and my soul came to the demon realm? This is the fate of those who summon demons…?”
“No, you’re still quite alive.”
“I’m alive? How did my body make the journey to the demon realm?”
“I brought you here, temporarily.”
“You can do that!?”
“Indeed.”
“My God!” the mage shouted in surprise.
“Before you panic, know that I intend to send you back home shortly, unharmed.”
“You will? Wait, but even if that’s true, if you can summon people, that’s a disaster!”
“My sentiments exactly.”
“What do you mean?”
“Try to imagine things from our perspective.”
The mage did as he was instructed, for a few moments. “Yes, if I pretend to be a demon, I can see how I’m currently fearing the very thing that demons live in fear of every day. Strange… I’ve never given it any thought before.”
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“It’s a betrayal of an ancient pact, but I won’t bore you with the details. Allow me to reassure you that I have no intention of bringing random humans to this realm.”
“How can I trust such a claim?”
The demon shook his head. “You should know that demons don’t blatantly lie to humans.”
“True…” The mage had to accept demons were known throughout history to be true to their word, tricky as they could be.
“You’re here because I want your help, just for a short while.”
“Why should I help you?”
“As I said, I don’t intend to involve humans who didn’t already involve themselves in this feud between humans and demons. All I want is some simple information from you. In exchange for your answers and subsequent silence, I will share useful advice regarding a certain fellow guard who obstructed you recently.”
“What!?” The mage seemed interested. “That bastard?” He seemed very, very interested. “And I can trust you won’t use any information I provide to harm the innocent?” His wavering ceased. “Fine.”
“We have a deal.”
The mage pointed at the demoness. “By the way, who is she?”
The girl frowned but the male demon answered. “She’s here in case you lie to me.”
“I–I see…”
For the next several hours, the mage shared information with the demon. Topics included the mage’s full name, medical history, family history, life story, detailed magical aptitudes, and many other details which would allow the mage to be uniquely identified. The demon was particularly interested in geographic and geological details related to the places where the mage worked and lived.
The demon took meticulous notes all throughout the conversation. He frequently flipped back and forth between his recent notetaking and materials he prepared prior to summoning the mage. Occasionally, the demoness would glance at the documents only for her eyes to glaze over.
“Good, most good.” The demon actually showed a hint of emotion. “You’ve been quite helpful. I’ll share with you what I know about him, so pay attention.”
The demon explained swordsman’s past, including his darker secrets. Apparently, he had gotten away with quite a few crimes over the years. A few of the transgressions could be exposed if only one knew where to look for the evidence.
“Such depravity…”
“Indeed,” the demon agreed. “All the simpler for me to learn about him.”
“My reluctance is gone. I can taste my revenge. He will pay for his lawlessness, and I will enjoy every moment of it.” The mage snickered.
“Then I made good on my end of the bargain.”
The mage nodded.
“Let me warn you though. If you get too absorbed in your vengeance, you may transform into something worse than a demon.”
“I wonder about that…”
In response to the mage’s apparent dismissal of the demon’s advice, the demoness spoke up for the first time. “You dare disregard—“
The demoness was interrupted as the male demon thrust his hand in front of her face. “Speak your mind,” he said to the mage.
“O–Oh, I meant no offense,” the mage clarified. “It’s just, is being worse than a demon necessarily a transgression? Before we met, I would have thought so, but after meeting you?”
“There are all kinds of demons, just as there are all kinds of humans. Can I trust you will never summon a demon again?”
“Y–Yes, of course. To be honest, I enjoyed our conversation, and I’ll miss the opportunity to speak again, but summoning a demon just to ask for friendly advice would be… disrespectful.”
“Eh,” the demon responded. “Odds are you wouldn’t enjoy the conversation anyway.”
“I see. Anyway, though it was highly unusual, I enjoyed meeting each of you. Please rest assured I’ll hold up my end of the bargain. I shudder to think what would happen if I did not.”
“Good. Farewell.” The demon gestured, returning the mage to the land of humans.