CH 45.2

Litty forcibly pulled Kuufa away from Baphomet and held her hand.

“Kuufa-san is a wonderful person. Unlike me, you’ve been alone all your life, and you’ve endured everything.”

Just like when they first met, Kuufa stayed silent even at this moment. She seemed to be trying to avoid getting too close even now, even if it was not the right thing for her.

If Litty couldn’t kill Baphomet, then she would be killed. Litty really wanted to get to know Kuufa better, but she had also been holding back.

Because of the lack of contact with people, she had even lost her immunity to interpersonal interaction. And the few people she might have interacted with might have fallen prey to Baphomet’s influence.

Kuufa had to endure everything just to survive. Litty wondered if she would continue to accept this as a given.

“Isn’t there anything you want to do, Kuufa-san?”

“What I would like to do?”

“A goal. A dream.”

“No, I don’t.”

“I see. Then let’s find it together!”

When Kuufa looked up, Litty was already pointing her weapon at Baphomet. It was a little pushy, and Litty could no longer wait in the current situation.

She had her own struggles in life, but also many joys. Her experiences in Ruiz Village, Yggdrasia, and the town of Topaz in her short 15 years of life had made her believe that she could do something to help Kuufa.

If Litty had ended her own life from the desperation she felt during her time with Yggdrasia, she would never have experienced the excitement of living ever again. Litty’s recollection made her hate Baphomet even more.

“You don’t know anything about the summoning techniques, do you?”

“Yes, I don’t know anything.”

“I told you. I told you, I’m a cheap contractor. Do you know that there are summoners who have given up their relatives and loved ones for their summons?”

“What?”

As one would expect, Litty was shocked. Even if it was actually a condition of the contract, she could not believe that there were people who would go to such lengths just to get a summoned demon.

As if enjoying Litty’s shocked emotions, the devil continued to explain happily.

“When it comes to a breach of contract, the penalty can even be Summoner’s life. The greater the power, the greater the penalty. I had explained everything to her, you know?”

“I see.”

“In the first place, the job of summoner is recognized just for being able to make a contract. What would have happened to her if I had not been summoned? Right, Kuufa?”

“Stay alive…”

Before Kuufa could say anything, Baphomet intercepted her and stood in front of her. At that moment, Baphomet’s face, which had been showing signs of composure, became tense.

Baphomet felt something, but it was not the same as what Nils, who was once hostile to Litty, felt. It was more like Aldis, who had unconsciously feared her.

It was the same gaze she directed at Dimos when they first met, at that time when Litty had the feeling of eliminating an obstacle to her dream. To Litty, the demon was no longer an object of interest.

“Continue to live. I will be with you.”

Baphomet didn’t know why he was so afraid of the girl in front of him. Her prowess in defeating the giant mole was impressive, but she was still no match for him.

The more Baphomet looked at Litty, the more the sense of danger increased.

“I know you are not Baphomet. Because if you were real, I would be dead by now.”

“Ha, fi, fine, then I’m going to get serious and kill you!”

Baphomet shot a blast of flame from one hand to chase Litty down again, and as Litty tried to escape, another flame was sent right after without giving her time to steady herself. Baphomet felt a slight sense of relief as Litty continued to escape.

“What! I thought you were going to kill me?”

Just as Baphomet shot another burst of flame, his body was sliced from the side. It didn’t even give him time to wonder how it happened. Besides, it was only a single blow, Baphomet realized.

“Gah!”

“There was a hole here.”

In addition to the natural cave, the area was full of complex tunnels that had been dug by giant moles. That being the case, there were at least one or two small passages that had been created. It was only natural that Baphomet could not respond to Litty’s appearance through such inconspicuous passageways.

As an adventurer, one must know the terrain around them, and Litty did just that. The first time she reached this place, the first time she camped, and the first time she fought the giant mole.

“You… you… you coward…”

“Coward?”

Litty was looking straight ahead while Baphomet was shooting flames uncontrollably as she continued to escape. Moreover, Litty could not understand what Baphomet meant.

Litty simply thought that it was the natural thing to do as an adventurer. It occurred to Litty that the demon was fighting without any strategy or observation.

“I’m not a coward!”

“You took me by surprise through such a sneaky way…!”

This lying demon was not an opponent Litty could ever underestimate.

However, compared to Litty, who had challenged far superior opponents, this demon had only dealt with lower-ranked opponents. This created a big gap between them that could no longer be filled.

“That’s cowardly…?”

Litty, who was used to being taken by surprise in her adventures, still couldn’t understand the demon’s argument.

For a brief moment, she even wondered if she had committed some terrible crime. But then she quickly concluded that it was simply Baphomet’s nonsense.