“Please save me! Please save me!”
Pastel dashed into the warehouse.
“I only committed the crime of hiding in the scoff and stealing…!”
Gasp.
Now that I think about it, that’s almost a death sentence!
Uwaaah.
She frantically ran away.
The dark warehouse was spacious. True to its design as a long corridor, it felt like a storage area set aside for a specific purpose.
That feeling grew stronger when she saw the solitary steel storage box that stood in the center of the warehouse.
The rectangular storage box was large enough that Pastel could lie down in it with several people, and it was wrapped in chains and secured with a lock, suggesting it contained something important.
Pastel reached the storage box and panicked. It was a warehouse, yet there was no place to hide or escape.
Uwaaah.
What kind of place is this!
Shouldn’t there be a hiding place for a good thief who came to loot the warehouse?!
Heartless humanity!
“Looking for an exit? You might as well give up.”
The Demonic Mercenary Captain leisurely walked over. His slow steps seemed to block the only exit, the door.
“That crafty Craft came to die on his own, huh.”
With a drunken look on his face, the mercenary captain chuckled.
“I was half ready to give up, thinking I should only focus on saving my own neck, but I wonder if the Demon Lord is watching me from the afterlife.”
Uwaaah.
“It’s a misunderstanding! It’s a misunderstanding!”
Pastel waved her hands.
“You have the wrong person! I’m not crafty or anything; I’m just Pastel! Pastel Love Love!”
Pastel boldly attempted to change her name.
It was an embarrassing name to say, but isn’t it better to live than not?
“Pastel, what?”
The mercenary captain slung his saber over his shoulder.
Ah, it feels like we can have a conversation!
Pastel was thrilled.
“Pastel Love Love!”
She formed a heart with her fingers.
Heart pop pop.
The mercenary captain stared at her silently.
Silence hung in the air.
“Hmm.”
Demon Lord, what’s wrong?
“Hmm.”
Excuse me?
Pastel felt embarrassed by his reaction and rolled her eyes.
Then she decided to be bold.
After all, it’s hard for popular people to be understood!
Winking, she cheerfully shouted.
“Pastel Love Love!”
Heart pop pop~!
The mercenary captain glared at her and aimed his gun.
“What kind of joke is this?”
“Waaaah!”
Pastel jumped back in shock, completely flustered. She quickly hid behind the enormous steel storage box.
Poking her head out, she desperately shouted.
“Don’t shoot!”
The Demonic Mercenary Captain was truly furious but didn’t shoot her.
“Do you think I’m a fool? Once you’re in here, there’s no escape! Fight for your life!”
“Fight?! Huaaah! I’m a pacifist!”
“A pacifist? Don’t mess with me!”
He aimed the gun roughly.
“Waaah!”
Pastel pulled her head back in a panic.
“Ugh!”
The mercenary captain exhaled as if trying to calm his excitement. Then he spoke with an oddly composed tone.
“No matter how crafty you are, you understand honor, right? Even though the Demon Lord is watching from the afterlife, I don’t plan to end the last survivor of the Craft family in a pointless death.”
Huh?
Pastel poked her head out again. Her pink eyes sparkled.
“Does that mean…?”
It means he’ll spare her?
The mercenary captain aimed his saber at her.
“Then fight for your honor!”
Uwaaah.
“That’s not what I was hoping for…!”
Pastel’s face turned pale.
With her spinning eyes, she searched for an exit.
How can there be no windows in this warehouse!
Then she realized something.
Oh?
Pastel mustered her courage to observe the mercenary captain. The demon grimaced and glared at her.
But he was really just glaring. Despite holding a saber in one hand and a gun in the other, he was only glaring.
Oh?
The Demonic Mercenary Captain wanted to hate and kill the Craft family, yet he was currently trying to reason with Pastel instead of attacking.
Pastel pondered why that was, then glanced at the iron storage box she was pressed against. It was a box that looked very important, wrapped in chains and locked.
Could he be acting cautiously so the battle wouldn’t affect the storage box?
Since he lightly chiseled the iron door with his saber, he might be worried he’d hit the storage box while fighting.
What could be inside?
She didn’t know, but discovering the opponent’s weakness calmed her down.
Pastel regained her composure and looked around the warehouse again.
They moved such a large storage box into the warehouse, yet the warehouse door was small compared to the box. There must be a separate cargo door.
Following that thought, she inspected the side wall and found a lever.
If she pulls that down, won’t the wall open up, and she could escape shouting “Yay!”?
Yes, yes!
That’s a hopeful perspective!
Pastel secretly pulled out a magic stone knife from her possession. She lowered it close to the ground and prepared to move towards the lever.
She stepped forward to catch the mercenary captain’s attention.
“You said you wanted to fight for honor?”
As she stepped slightly away from the storage box and drew her sword, the mercenary captain’s eyes lit up.
“Heh! Now that’s the spirit!”
The saber aimed at Pastel.
“I am Tramout! I’ve devoted my life to eradicating the humans who trample upon the Holy Land of the Sky Island!”
Pastel slowly exhaled and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, her pink eyes gleamed brightly.
“Thank you for introducing yourself. But unfortunately, what to do?”
She pointed at herself.
“I don’t know anything about honor.”
“What?”
The girl aimed her sword at the storage box. With a sardonic smile, she glared at Tramout.
“You look foolish, squirming and begging while being so well-prepared.”
Tramout was taken aback by her sudden attitude shift.
Seizing the opportunity, the magic stone knife flew across the ground. When it reached the lever, it tried to push it with its body but slipped due to a lack of success. After several attempts, a slight friction sound emerged.
The girl struck the storage box with her blade. A clear resonance spread across the dark warehouse.
“To think you get all boastful just because I’m acting scared…”
Her pink eyes glared at Tramout.
“You look foolish.”
Tramout’s expression hardened.
“You…”
The girl folded her arms and looked down at him.
“Don’t you think it’s odd?”
Is it just me?
“That crafty one came to die on his own.”
She tilted her head.
The mercenary captain flinched, seemingly uncomfortable, and as his imagination expanded, his eyes trembled.
One side of the girl’s mouth curled into a smirk.
“I’ve known you from the moment you set foot in my territory, or even before that. Thoughts, ideas, plans. A common desire fueled by malice and straightforward notions.”
“Don’t mess with me!”
Tramout ground his teeth.
“What could you possibly know, you ruined Craft! Your clan’s intelligence network has been uprooted long ago!”
The gun barrel was roughly aimed at the girl.
She made no attempt to persuade him.
Instead, she spread her arms and gracefully spun in place. The fabric of her clothing fluttered, and her pink hair danced in the air.
A gentle voice emanated.
“I just wanted to let you know.”
After stopping her rotation, she leaned forward and met his gaze.
“Thank you. Because of you, I could easily swallow up the academy’s power.”
Tramout’s expression hardened.
“Wait, you knew about this? Catching the advanced party right out of the sewer to create a reason, coming straight here after gaining power in the academy… You knew from the beginning…”
The aimed gun barrel shook.
The girl smiled with her eyes.
Her pink lips quivered.
“You look foolish.”
The voice filled the dark warehouse.
Flames ignited in Tramout’s eyes.
“You knew and let it happen! You knew!”
The gun barrel was aimed at the iron storage box, which was bound by chains.
“You left it so it could be brought to the docking station?! Craft, you lot always said that! You joyfully weighed lives for a measly bit of power while laughing at the feelings of people!”
Tramout was enraged.
“But now you don’t care if ordinary humans die?! Do you not distinguish between humans and demons! And still calling yourself human?!”
His finger pointed accusingly.
“You worthless beasts!”
The girl felt perplexed. As she pondered and rolled her eyes, she suddenly smiled gently. She pointed at herself.
“I’m not human.”
Her voice was lighthearted, as if making a joke about life.
Tramout stiffened.
An icy silence lingered.
Pastel, who was acting up a storm, let out a sigh of relief inwardly.
Phew, joke successful.
In her imagination, she trembled.
Uwaaah.
Why is that person suddenly like this!
She managed to suppress her fear, yet she feared he might stab her, and her mind was spinning in chaos.
However, having lived her life as a popular person, Pastel demonstrated her super ultra improvisation skills.
That was, of course, a humorous mood-changing joke!
It was so effective that the boiling atmosphere seemed poised for a fight but changed in an instant.
Feeling satisfied.
Eating magic stones does make you not human~.
Surprisingly real.
Hehe.
Tramout, whose anger had cooled, glared at her.
“This plan is no longer necessary; I will end the Craft family line with my life.”
Uwaaah!
Why are you doing this to me…!
Pastel trembled internally and finished her act.
Clapping her hands with a smile.
“That’s a great mindset. But what can I say?”
The magic stone knife barely moved the wall lever. The entire wall trembled.
“You won’t have such a future. I told you, I gained power in the academy because of you.”
The wall opened entirely, pouring in light. A gust of wind rushed in, whipping her clothes and pink hair.
“Used tools that have finished their role…”
The girl walked toward the open wall. She tidied her hair, which was blown by the wind.
“Are to be discarded.”
As she pointed to the light pouring from the opened wall, silhouettes of people appeared. Figures in armor leapt from the small scoff beyond the waiting wall and entered.
An elite squad in magic stone armor.
The Knight Corps.
The Knight Corps surrounded Viscount Leonard as they entered.
Oh?
Pastel was caught off guard by the unexpected situation and was stunned, forgetting her act.
Oh, oh?
Did they get evidence from the demons dining in the restaurant? Did Leonard request the Knight Corps?
Wow.
Hehe.
Tramout’s eyes widened.
“You bastard!”
The gun barrel aimed at Pastel.
“Craft…!”
The trigger was pulled, and sparks flew.
The bullet accelerated explosively, ignoring the laws of nature and the resistance of the world, tearing through the air.
Pastel’s eyes widened.
As she reached for her sword, the knight beside her moved first. The blade flashed, colliding with the bullet. Sparks flew as the bullet ricocheted away.
Hwa!
Pastel took a moment to calm her startled heart and finished her act.
She glared at the gun-wielding Tramout.
Her pink lips quivered.
“You look foolish.”
All eyes turned toward her, and silence hung in the air.
“Craft! Craft…!”
Tramout shouted in fury, then kicked the ground and lunged.
Waaah!
I’m not acting anymore!
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please save me!”
Pastel flailed her arms and fled.
“Knight Corps! Knight Corps!”
Please catch that bad person!
He completely harassed me!
Uwaaaah!
