What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?

He might not remember the others, but he had a very deep impression of the strongest of the Seven Sages.

However, this surprised expression prompted Aura to cover her mouth and scoff: "Don't you notice, handling government affairs every day? Mahat is now serving humanity."

"Really?? What exactly happened?" Although he felt that this guy was as annoying as ever, Ash didn't make a move this time. Instead, he urged him to find out what was going on.

"I heard before that he was looking for something? Something related to guilt?" Instead of being angry, Aura, looking rather disappointed, casually recounted what he'd heard when they met, adding an extra sentence afterward:

"Also, Lightning Hurlake and his men were all killed by Mahat a while ago when they attacked that city. If it's not necessary, we should stay away from him. That guy is a troublesome person."

"The Demon King's general?... This guy really has no brotherly love whatsoever."

"Who would care about that kind of thing? Or do you care?"

"That's true..."

Although he was speechless after being rebuked, he still changed direction and borrowed a passing carriage with Awula. Ignoring Awula's dumbfounded look, he took the two of them into the city together.

Despite what Aura said, he still wanted to see what the other party was really up to.

After all, it's rare for demons to take the initiative to contact humans, which makes him very curious about what the other party's situation is.

“Lord Ash is just as willful as Lord Aura,” Lina remarked, resting her chin on her hand in the carriage.

Her casual remark, however, drew an unpleasant glare from Awula: "...Have you really been corrupted? Now you even treat me like a willful person."

"But Lord Ash said I can say whatever I want?"

"You were adopted by me, weren't you?"

"Um...I'm sorry, Lady Aura." Linne only thought for a moment before bowing her head in apology with a hint of dejection.

Ash, who was driving the carriage, couldn't help but lift the curtain and turn around to look over.

"Aura, don't bully Linne, she's still a child."

"Tch, lolicon, only knows how to protect Rine."

"...What lolicon? Where did you learn that from?" He shook his head, feeling a headache coming on, but he was too lazy to say anything more to Aurado.

After all, Aura had always seemed to be in a rebellious phase since childhood, and no matter how he tried to educate him, it would only have the opposite effect... Now he could only give up and waste his breath.

..............................

..............................

Viezé, a large urban fortress on the border of the Empire.

Nobles who lost in the power struggles of the empire would mostly come to this city, and like most nobles of the time, they would frantically plunder the wealth of the people.

The excessive exploitation was so extreme that it could be described as draining the pond to catch all the fish. Every year, many citizens starved to death in poverty. This was information Ash had obtained in the past, but such a situation was very common in this world and was not surprising at all.

After all, in this era, even someone who considers himself to have very ordinary moral standards is considered a very good person.

However, upon passing through the door, what unfolded before him was an unexpectedly prosperous city.

The main streets of the city are lined with houses and shops of varying sizes and appearances. Most of the residents look quite ordinary, without the overly exploited, overworked, busy, sorrowful, or numb demeanor of the local populace.

This made him curious, so he secretly crossed the city streets and brought Aura and Line to the lord's mansion.

But just as he stepped into the open green space, a male demon with a large horn on his forehead, a large cloak draped over his left shoulder, and a rather tall stature that was not exaggerated for a demon, appeared silently in front of him.

Even though he was clearly within the range of magic perception, Ash and the others only noticed his presence when he actually appeared in front of them... His precision in manipulating magic had already surpassed that of Vlame.

At least the Vlame he knew did not have as much control over magic as the demon in front of him, and he even seemed much more dangerous to him than the Corrupted Sage.

Even the entire Hero Squad couldn't defeat the Corrupted Sage. If this even more terrifying guy were to obey the Demon King's orders and try to wipe out the Hero Squad... there would likely be no other outcome than total annihilation. Even now, he didn't want to confront him head-on.

He had also heard Frilian say that Mahat had easily defeated her about six hundred years ago, but Mahat did not kill her and let her go as an insignificant henchman; otherwise, he would never have seen Frilian again.

Even now, Frilian still can't imagine what it would be like to defeat her opponent... She simply doesn't think it's possible to defeat him, after all, six hundred years have passed, and Frilian's rate of progress is clearly not as fast as that of the much younger Mahat back then.

A monster whose mastery of magic has surpassed the pinnacle of humanity, who hones his skills with the goddess as his goal—this is—Golden Land Mahat.

As for Aura, who was also one of the Seven Sages of the Collapse... Ash glanced at Mahat, then at Aura, before silently looking away and sighing.

Even though she hadn't said anything, that gaze alone made Aura furious: "—Ash! What kind of look is that? Are you looking down on me?"

Mahat, who had been watching Ash intently, glanced at Aura as if noticing something, but quickly looked back and narrowed his eyes.

"You're so young... What brings you here?"

"We're here for Lightning Shrek." Ash completely ignored Aura, and Mahat, who had only glanced at Aura briefly earlier, focused all his attention on Ash.

"Shulake? Is he your friend?"

"No."

"Then what are you doing here? Don't tell me it's to avenge your clan or anything. Even though you're an outsider, you shouldn't be that kind of friendly."

"I just feel that excessive killing of one's own kind is not good... Well, that's just polite talk."

Unexpectedly, this guy recognized him as a demon at a glance, which made Ash laugh after probing him a little: "I'm quite interested in what you're doing here."

"Before I answer that question, shouldn't you tell me who you are?"

“Ash is, for the time being, Aura’s older brother.” As he spoke, he glanced at Aura briefly.

These lines, usually reserved for humans, sounded strange coming from a demon's mouth, causing Mahat to frown: "Brother?"

"Do not you know?"

"I know the concept, but..."

"Actually, that's just how I feel, because I'm the one who raised her from infancy, taking care of her every need."

He claimed all the credit for himself, which infuriated Awula, who was already somewhat annoyed.

"—You raised me? I was the one who raised you, wasn't I?!"

"Alright, alright, stop interrupting when adults are speaking." Ash, looking annoyed, reached out and grabbed Aura's horn, shaking her until she was dizzy and fell onto Linne. Only then did he look at Mahat and get back to the point:

"And then? What are you doing here?"

“Now it’s about time…” Mahat glanced back at the elderly male nobleman who had noticed the uninvited guests in the distance, and smiled: “It doesn’t hurt to tell you—I’ve fallen in love with humans.”

"Uh... this is truly astonishing." He stared blankly for a moment before unconsciously looking at the old man not far away.

Although it seemed unlikely, Mahat's gaze made me unconsciously think in the wrong direction and wonder if I should respect other people's sexual preferences.

"So I want to understand them better, and try to figure out what guilt is."

"Huh? Guilt? I thought..."

"You think I like Gluck? Of course I do like Gluck."

"...Let me double-check." Mahat's strange statement made him instinctively cover his head, trying to sort out his chaotic thoughts: "Your 'like'...it shouldn't have any strange meaning, right?"

"Strange meaning?" Mahat was genuinely puzzled by his confusion.

"...Never mind, it seems I've been around too many nobles, and my mind has become corrupted."

Looking at the bewildered Mahat, Ash couldn't help but shake his head vigorously, trying to shake the strange scene he had seen at the nobleman's house not long ago out of his mind and make his thoughts a little more upright.

If you want to know how strange the scene was, it was probably that a nobleman, who was clearly male, kept more than a dozen boys in captivity. When he was discovered, all of them were naked and enjoying themselves.

Similar incidents were even common among the nobility, which he found hard to understand. Why did these people prefer men and boys over beautiful girls? At least he personally didn't think he would get tired of beautiful girls.

His strange behavior made Mahat stare at him for a long time before slowly speaking:

"...Although I think it's unlikely, you wouldn't be able to understand guilt, would you?"

"That's acceptable for now."

"Really?"

Why would I lie?

"Although I really want to doubt it... it's really strange, your eyes give me the feeling that they're a mixture of humans and demons."

Mahat stared at him, paused for a moment, then grinned: "So, if I kill a strange guy like you, will I be able to figure you out?"

"...You actually came to this conclusion? You really are like a typical demon." Ash was stunned for a moment, but then a smile appeared on his face.

However, the other party did not reply and remained silent.

A chilling coldness spread at this moment, silently and gradually seeping into every inch of space.

.............................

As if they had reached some tacit understanding, they gazed at each other silently, neither wavering in the slightest.

However, hidden within this still scene lies a surging sense of crisis, as if the air itself is filled with the premonition of thunder and lightning, making every breath exceptionally heavy and difficult.

They didn't move, yet the torrent of magic began to swirl around them, constantly colliding with each other.

The fallen leaves scattered on the ground were blown into the sky, and even the glass of the mansions in the distance trembled and creaked.

As a demon, Aura was naturally well aware of the fickle nature of demons.

For example, Mahat in front of her was very casual, killing the demon general at will... and she was the same in this respect.

Even now, almost simultaneously with Linne, she conjured scales and twin swords, preparing without any mental preparation to help Ash kill his opponent.

However, just as the atmosphere was about to escalate, both sides seemed poised to attack, and Aura was contemplating whether he should strike first...