I Became a Burden to the Conscienceless Party

At the point when Esmeralda left to hunt down Irina who had run away.
The being who had been out of everyone’s consciousness finally began to move.

“Lady Milia. Happy birthday.”

The demon spy, Jim.
What could be the reason he only showed himself now when everyone was gone, after acting as if he only knew how to scoop up food?

“Yeah, Jim. Thank you. But are you enjoying the party properly?”
“Yes, thanks to you, I was able to taste all kinds of delicacies I’ve never eaten before. I’m grateful for this opportunity.”
“I’m glad you think so.”

Jim greeted Milia with obviously stylish etiquette.
To those who don’t know Jim, he would look like a noble, not a porter.
Jim seemed that familiar.
As if he was born that way.

“Ah, but I think I ate too much, so I’d like to get some fresh air for exercise. Could you possibly show me the way out of the Magic Tower?”
“Is that so? Alright. I wanted to talk more, but health comes first. We can talk later anyway.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Yeah, then follow me. I’ll guide you.”

Milia started walking ahead with an expressionless face.
That’s why Jim, who was walking behind, couldn’t know.
What expression she was making now.

“We’re finally alone.”

Milia was smiling more brightly than ever before.
However…
Her eyes were also more lifeless than ever before.

Even though the protagonist of the party was leaving her seat, the surrounding magicians seemed unbothered.
That’s what Milia meant to them.
The pride of the Magic Tower. But a position that could never be called close.
Yes, like an actor in a famous theater troupe.
Someone everyone thinks is great, but in reality, no one knows.
That’s why Milia was an outsider even within the Magic Tower.
Jim, walking behind such a Milia, suddenly thought.

‘Is Milia perhaps angry?’

The expressionless Milia actually looks like she’s angry.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t know who the target was, but…

“Lady Milia.”
“Yeah.”
“I think it might be okay to express a little outwardly.”
“…”

Milia stopped walking.
The two had already left the Magic Tower. In a space utterly chilly, beyond even the range of magic that kept the surroundings warm.
She turned around and looked at Jim with her usual expressionless face.

“Express outwardly, you say?”
“Ah, yes.”

But to Jim, that expressionless face seemed somewhat chilly.
And as if that was true.

“Then Jim, can I ask you something?”
“Yes, Lady Milia. Is there something you’re curious about?”

Milia, with a chilly voice, an eerie gaze, and resolute gestures.

“You’re thinking of running away from now on, aren’t you?”
“…”

She warned Jim.

“Don’t, Jim. Don’t run away.”

Her mana interfered with the world and deployed magic.
Her new technique that she had shown to Jim not long ago.
An amorphous, sticky liquid clumps together, wriggles, and blooms like a flower.
The sticky black liquid that bloomed like a flower. And not stopping there, it expands further and wriggles.
Yes, that sticky black liquid was wriggling like tentacles.

“If you do, you’ll die.”

Jim finally noticed.
This wasn’t a coincidence.
She had known he was trying to escape from the moment he made the excuse of wanting to get some fresh air.

“I’ll kill you.”

And that everything she’s saying now is sincere.

It was when Esmeralda, Jim, and Irina were changing into party attire borrowed from the Magic Tower.
In the meantime, Milia, who could be called the protagonist of the party, was talking with Glisha, who had thrown the birthday party for her.
Like a parent and child.
Glisha was one of the more morally upright among the Tower Masters.
Yes, that’s why she tried to have personal conversations.

“Your friends seem quite unique.”
“Yes, they’re all unique.”

Milia answered Glisha’s question with a cliché response.
Glisha nodded even at such a perfunctory answer.
Their conversation was like this.
Because Milia had spent too long with faded emotions.
Because Glisha was used to it, they just repeated such cliché questions and answers. Even knowing she had changed. In the end, the relationship between the two hadn’t changed.
This is the Glacies Magic Tower.
A place that researches water, freezing, and stopping.
That ‘stopping’ also included not abandoning humanity.
It’s clear that Glisha is also quite a madman at the point where she’s consciously controlling this.
But she genuinely worried about Milia.

“They’re unique, but they can’t be called good friends.”

That’s why she could speak without hesitation words that Milia might hear and get angry at.
Milia is a wise child.
So if you speak this directly, she’ll understand.

“Everyone is just lying. Did you know?”

That’s why Glisha didn’t feel the need to hide her true feelings and didn’t speak indirectly out of consideration for Milia.
The Milia she knew was a genius who understood immediately without questioning what she learned from others.

“The hero is busy watching others’ reactions, and the saint is busy looking out for her own interests. Even a mere porter is living while hiding himself.”

Yes, she’s ultimately a magician approaching transcendence. A dogmatic explorer.
She says it’s for Milia, but that’s just an outsider’s view.
That’s why she doesn’t know.
That this could become Milia’s sore spot.

“I don’t understand why you’re using a demon as a slave, but there’s nothing good about keeping such incompetent trash close.”
“Jim is…!”

That Milia can get angry too.
She closed her mouth as if surprised in the middle of speaking.
But she wasn’t the only one surprised. Glisha’s eyes widened at the clear expression of emotion different from usual. It wasn’t her usual act. It wasn’t the superficial behavior to live among people. Milia got angry.
She couldn’t suppress her emotions upon hearing insulting words about her friend.
More clearly than ever before.

“…Jim is a good friend.”
“You’ve changed… More than I thought, no, that’s not what’s important. Was it because of that guy?”

Milia’s growth isn’t bad.
But if the cause is a demon, it’s absolutely unacceptable.
Milia belatedly realized her mistake and bowed her head, but Glisha pressed on as if she didn’t care about such things.
For magicians, emotions can be good fuel for growth.
Of course, after reaching a certain level, they start to eliminate them as they become more of a hindrance.
At Milia’s current level, it can still be a good medicine.
But it’s worrying.

“…But that guy is a demon.”

Because of who the other party was.
The current situation is extremely unstable.
Leviathan, the Demon King who had firmly held on for decades, was killed, and a new Demon King, Belphegor, ascended.
The Celestial Order, which was so old that even accurate history was hard to estimate, lost its god and collapsed.
The dragon race, who had always claimed to be mediators, started rampaging madly while antagonizing both humans and demons.
In such a situation, deeply interacting with demons wasn’t a good idea.
Glisha advised Milia with a more cautious attitude.

“It’s better not to give too much affection to slaves or experimental subjects…”
“Jim is not a slave!”
“If he’s not a slave, then even more so! Are you saying a demon is freely roaming in human territory?!”

As Milia’s voice unconsciously raised, Glisha also raised her voice.
Even if she was dogmatic, her concern for Milia was genuine.
Milia is the being who will fulfill the common wish of the seven Magic Towers.
How could they stand by and watch such a child being enchanted by a demon of unclear origin and thoughts?
Glisha thought of Milia like a daughter, but in reality, she was just seeing her as a possession.
Milia knew this wasn’t new, but today it felt so heartbreaking.
Yes, she had been steadily learning emotions, secretly, even when no one was paying attention.

“Milia…”

Seeing Milia start to shed tears, Glisha could finally reflect on herself.
Self-observation is a virtue of magicians. That’s why they were good at controlling emotions and could eventually completely exclude them.
That’s why Glisha, who tried to approach Milia as a parental figure, was swept up in emotions.
She knew it wasn’t a good situation for a magician, but Glisha didn’t control her emotions. Because it was necessary now.

“Milia, I’m sorry. But demons and humans can’t deeply interact, you know.”

Hybrids are not born between demons and humans.
If a child is born between them, it must be a demon.
The problem isn’t simply that it’s not a hybrid. The problem is that there’s a clear line drawn between the two races.
Demons are different from humans.
Fatally different.

“It’s hard for us to live together with them. You know that.”

They are beings who are poor at interaction.
While the Demon King’s army maintains discipline and control through the overwhelming power of the Demon King, basically, demons were no different from beasts.
They don’t have affection.
That’s why they casually name themselves and others.
It means they’re basically beings who don’t need to call others.
Becoming close to such beings, falling in love with them, is a very painful thing. Because they can leave at any time. Because they separate from lifelong companions just on a whim.

“…”

Even Milia found it difficult to answer Glisha’s sincere advice.
In fact, she was aware of this problem too.
Jim is kind and communicative, but other demons are not.
Most of them are stupid and only think about themselves.
Only soldiers controlled by powerful forces or high-ranking demons have minimal discipline and emotions.
But Jim, as his name suggests, isn’t a high-ranking demon, is he?

“Then…”

Milia thought about this problem too.
She had to worry about it.
It was a problem she had recently realized.
Jim, who had been with her for 3 years, was now only thinking about running away.
Yes, those 3 years that changed Milia’s life might have just been annoying and something Jim wanted to leave behind.
It might have been something he didn’t care about.
She thought so.
It was so sad.
That’s why…

“We just need to make sure he can’t think that way, right?”
“Milia, you…”

Milia learned necromancy.
It seemed the only way to completely control Jim.
Just like she had in the past.
You just need to make them into an obedient doll by excluding emotions.