The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, Vol. 2 (22 page)

Maou’s Star Festival make-a-wish drink giveaway was a massive success. By the time Chiho left, the bamboo plant was covered from tip to root with small tied-up pieces of paper.

“Maybe that feng shui stuff isn’t as stupid as it sounds, huh? I don’t really believe in horoscopes and stuff like that, but you have to admit, that sort of thing makes you think a little.”

The light turned green as Chiho spoke. She began to walk toward the curb.

“…But was it truly a coincidence?”

Suzuno’s low voice stopped her.

“Huh?”

Emi turned around as well.

“Oh! That reminds me. What did you think of Maou’s work ethic and stuff, Suzuno?”

Chiho cheerfully tried to change the subject. Suzuno ignored them both as she spoke to Emi…using a different name.

“Did you not notice, Emilia?”

“…Uh?”

“Emilia…?”

The green light began to flash, leaving the three of them flat-footed on the sidewalk.

“Emilia’s…Yusa’s real…? Suzuno, don’t tell me you’re…”

Chiho brought a surprised hand to her mouth. Suzuno glared at her before turning her attention to Emi.

“I had had my suspicions, but Chiho is fully aware of the Devil King as well, is she not?”

The sharp glint to her eyes pierced through Emi.

“I know, Emilia, that you have your own motives. That you aim to defeat the Devil King on your own terms. But, watching ‘Sadao Maou’ handle his assigned tasks today, I have come to the conclusion that we must dispatch the Devil King as quickly as humanly possible.”

“Wha?! Wha—Suzuno?!”

Chiho, agitated, began to lean toward Suzuno before Emi stopped her.

“What are you talking about? I don’t have any idea where this is coming from.”

“Have either of you given a moment’s thought about why the Devil King is acting like a fine, sensible Japanese youth?”

Suzuno spoke slowly, allowing the atmosphere to ooze between her words, like a priest reciting Holy Scripture to his flock.

“Have you ever thought about what may happen if he continues being promoted, if he begins to wield influence within societal systems here? A Devil King with the full trust and acclaim of the people behind him?”

Suzuno spread her arms wide.

“Have you ever imagined what the moment might be like when he reveals his true intentions? When he finally betrays the world and makes it his own?”

“Sorry, but no.”

Emi sliced right through her speech.

“No offense, but what is getting promoted at MgRonald’s gonna earn him? I mean, yeah, it’s a big company, but even if he goes insane and torches their headquarters or whatever, that’s really not gonna hurt the world much! Maybe it’ll make stock prices go down or shake up the fast-food industry, but it’s not gonna make the world flip upside down or…”

“We
reside
, may I remind you, in a nation where people with nothing more than an elementary or technical school education have become prime ministers that sway the very direction of the world. Do you honestly believe that the Devil King’s bloodlust will be sated within the structure of MgRonald alone?”

“Oh! You’re talking about Kakuei Tanaka, right?”

Chiho’s interjection, like a student waving her hand excitedly and stammering
Me me me me me!
in class, was not enough to lighten the mood.

“It would be much more logical, I think, to see it as a ruse to throw us off. This cruel tyrant who laid waste to so much of Ente Isla, now a cheerful, hardworking frontline employee. Demons have long lives to work with, Emilia. There is no telling what manner of intricate schemes he has unfolding in his mind. That is why we must strike
now
, while we can! This is no longer simply an Ente Isla crisis. The safety of Japan, and the Earth itself, is at stake.”

“N-no! You can’t! Maou’s doing really great as a shift supervisor, too!”

Chiho, finally realizing this apparent new visitor from Ente Isla was seriously contemplating Maou’s murder, hastily came to his defense. Suzuno glared at her over Emi’s shoulder.

“And the fact she still retains her memories is another issue we have to tackle. If it becomes more widely known that the Devil King is alive, there is every chance of more visitors coming to Japan—visitors seeking the simple glory of defeating them, not the loftier callings that drive you and me. Do you think such people care at all about what happens to Japan and its people in the aftermath? They may even try to use Chiho and the people around her to hurt you or the Devil King. Before that happens, we must erase the memories of everyone who has interacted with the Devil King and strike the final blow to end all of this!”

“No! You can’t! You just can’t
do
that!”

The stoplight turned again, bathing Suzuno in bloodred light as it went through yet another cycle.

“Chiho, do you know what the purpose of the Star Festival decorations are in Japanese culture?”

“…Huh?”

The sudden change of subject caught Chiho off guard. Emi’s face tightened.

“The five colors that those paper strips people write their wishes upon represent the five elements that control the spirit in Chinese philosophy. The leaves of the
sasa
bamboo tree are fabled to house the souls of one’s ancestors, while its straightened twigs and branches contain the power to ward off evil. There is, of course, none of those forces at work in modern-day Star Festival decorations. But did you see it? The moment the Devil King installed that tree out front, MgRonald was immediately overrun with guests. What do you think that means…?”

“…You’re saying his bamboo tree
attracted
people?”

Suzuno replied with a heavy nod.

“The
sasa
tree, long associated with the spirits of the earth and the power to cleanse it of evil, is infused with the souls of the people who look to them for seasonal décor. The Devil King unconsciously infused the tree with his demonic power as he decorated it. That is the most natural explanation.”

“Considering how much of a shock a flat-screen TV was to you, you sure know a lot about Japanese customs.”

“I would be a failure at my missionary work if I did not research the religious customs of the lands I travel.”

Suzuno, completely ignoring Emi’s sass, took a step toward both her and Chiho. The two of them glared back, unable to move since walking backward would put them in a car lane.

“So do I have your understanding here? This is no longer merely an Ente Isla issue. If we do not hurry, then Chiho, MgRonald, and soon this entire land will find itself awash in a whirlpool of chaos. Failure to take action, and quickly, will cost us dearly later.”

She focused her sharpened gaze upon Emi.

“And besides, you have already been attacked by an unknown
third party. I must keep this world safe, but I must also bring you back to Ente Isla. I understand it may be a painful decision, but these are people you should never have met, in a world you should never have needed to visit. We must erase Chiho’s memories and eliminate all traces of Ente Isla that exist in Japan.”

Emi glared back at Suzuno, the humid night forming sweat beads upon her brow.

Suzuno’s stance was substantially persuasive. If it were a year ago, when Emilia the Hero was still a recent visitor to Earth, she would have eagerly agreed to Suzuno’s proposal.

Internally, Emi had found herself supremely lost. And while she may not have intended it, Suzuno was helping Emi solve the question that bothered her the most—why, if she had access to her powers again, did she find it impossible to will herself into slaying the Devil King?

But before Emi could fire back at Suzuno, a shakier voice made itself known.

“…No.”

It was Chiho.

“No…you can’t. I, I don’t want to forget.”

“Chiho…”

“I don’t want to forget. About Maou, about you, about Ashiya, about Suzuno… Okay, and I guess Urushihara, too, but…”

She tossed her head back and forth to emphasize the point.

“We’re all friends, we’ve spent all this fun time together…and you want to make me forget all of it just because of stuff going on in another planet? That…that’s just mean!”

“…I know there is no way to fully apologize for it. But…Chiho, this is for your own safety as well.”

Suzuno averted her face, looking honestly conflicted. It wasn’t enough to convince Chiho. She continued, almost shouting as tears welled in her eyes.

“I don’t want to forget about Maou! No matter what!!”

But Suzuno, a touch of resolve painted on her serene face, returned fire with another punishing barrage.

“Chiho, the Devil King Satan will use those feelings of yours to his own advantage. He must. And the fact that you are attracted to him may even be part of an elaborate plan he has concocted to make us hesitant, unwilling to combat the Devil King…”

This, again, was something that the Emi of old would have enthusiastically agreed with. But…what could it be? The thought seemed impossible to her now.

And if it didn’t move her, it certainly wasn’t going to move Chiho.

“It is
not
! Maou isn’t that kind of person! Why do you have to say all those horrible things?! He’s working really hard, he’s so nice to everyone… Why are you saying all of that?!”

The normally calm and composed Chiho was allowing her emotions to explode.

“…He is the Devil King. He allowed his demonic hordes in Ente Isla to conduct untold atrocities. He made everyone on the world suffer. He is the leader of all demons!”

The spite was becoming clear in Suzuno’s voice as she tried to wrangle with the unwavering Chiho.

This was the pure, unvarnished truth, a matter of common sense to anyone from Ente Isla discussing the Devil King.

But Chiho refused to blink.

“Well, before he became Sadao Maou, did you ever even
meet
the Devil King Satan, Suzuno?!”

Several silent moments passed.

Both Emi and Suzuno had difficulty immediately understanding what Chiho had just asked. It was something nobody—especially not Emi, watching on from the side—had ever thought of before.

“What do you mean…?”

To them, Chiho was making so little sense that they couldn’t answer the question with anything but another question.

Chiho’s teary eyes swiveled toward Suzuno.

“All of you are going on about Maou like,
ooh, he’s the Devil King, he’s the Devil King
, but if he’s really a demon thinking all those bad things, why would he do stuff like fix up the destroyed Shuto Expressway and erase all those terrible memories of the scene from
everyone’s minds?! When he got all of that massive power back, he could have mind-controlled the prime minister or the US president or whoever and taken over the whole world! Why didn’t he
do
that?!”

Now it was Suzuno’s turn to hesitate.

“I…I did not witness the battle Olba Meiyer perpetrated with my own eyes. But I am sure the Devil King had his reasons. Some deeper explanation only he would…”

“Is there any
other
reason, except he’s a nice guy who wants to help people?! If you cause trouble for other people, then you’re supposed to apologize and make up for it! That’s common sense! And Maou was just doing the obvious thing!”

“……”

“I learned how to do my job from Maou. He went through all the steps with me. If I messed something up, he always brought me to task about it. He always had my back when I was still new and inexperienced. Whenever I need to talk about something, he’s always there. Even when he turned into the Devil King Satan, he kept his promises. He taught me how to clean the ice-cream machine. On the same day! If someone like that really wanted to summon his demon hordes or whatever and conquer the world, then how would you explain all of that?!”

“So…so you are bidding us to simply let the past go and forgive him?!”

Suzuno exploded as well.

“How many innocent lives on Ente Isla do you think were snatched away by the demonic armies?! Do you think those people would accept it if they heard the Devil King has mended his ways?! You live in a nation at peace. One where you may never be exposed to mortal danger during your entire natural life. And I will
not
have someone like you question the will behind our quest to slay the Demon King!”

Chiho remained steadfast.

“What would
you
know?! You just fought those demon armies. You never even
met
the Devil King himself!”

“…What?”

Suzuno fixed her gaze upon Chiho, too openmouthed to respond.

“Even if Maou turns into Satan again, I
know
he’s a good person! And I also know that that big church in Ente Isla tried to kill Yusa for no good reason!”

That experience composed the brunt of what Chiho knew about Emi’s homeland.

“You never met the Devil King before you stormed the Devil’s Castle, either, right, Yusa? You talked about how Satan’s armies invaded the land and did all these evil things, but that’s it. Do you even know what the Devil King was
doing
before then?”

“…You would make a gifted court attorney someday, Chiho. By my name as a former member of the Council of Inquisitors, I guarantee it. The way you turn people’s words against them is breathtaking.”

“Suzuno! Don’t dodge the question! Please, answer me!”

“He was their commander! He bears full responsibility for what his armies did! Do you think a man who orders massacres should escape fault because it was someone else who actually committed them?”

“Hey, can both of you calm down a little? We’re not gonna accomplish anything arguing out here.”

“Wait!”

“But we must!”

The two of them protested in unison at Emi.

“Suzuno… No. Crestia Bell. I think everything you’re telling us is correct. Really. But I just want to say one thing.”

Emi brought her hands behind the back of Chiho, whose face was reddened with tears by now.

“Yusa…”

“The peace I fought for is the kind of peace were people feel like smiling again. Not a peace where sacrifice is viewed as a necessary evil, where I have to turn my eyes away from something that makes my friends cry.”