It Seems the Demon King Has Returned to a World Where Gender Roles Are Reversed - Chapter 8

 Chapter 8 :

Night had fallen.

Ragna carefully rose from his spot, scanning his surroundings.

Everyone was fast asleep.

The sound of snoring echoed through the lodging, filling the air.

"Hmm…"

After a moment of observing his surroundings, Ragna gathered mana in his hand and softly muttered an incantation.

“Gather and scatter, follow the form of the radiant triangle, and enact the will carried in these words.”*

As he recited the strange, ancient words, the mana in his palm began to shimmer with a violet hue, dissolving into a fine, powdery mist. Ragna brought the mana close to his lips and whispered,

“All of you shall fall into slumber.”

As if obeying his command, the powdery mist surged outward, spreading throughout the lodging. It didn’t stop there. The mist slipped through the cracks of the door and the open windows, drifting into the surroundings and vanishing into the night. Moments later,

“…”

Ragna approached an elderly man sleeping nearby and gently tapped his cheek.

But the old man, lost in a deep slumber, showed no reaction.

Confirming that the spell had taken effect, Ragna gave a slight nod. For at least the next three hours, no one would stir.

With that thought, Ragna stood up. As he moved toward the door,

“…Oh, I almost forgot.”

He clicked his tongue lightly and returned to his spot. Rummaging through the bedding, he retrieved a hidden object.

Ragna tucked the item into a small pouch he’d prepared and slipped it into his cloak.

With his preparations complete, he headed for the lodging’s entrance.

*Creak—*

“…”

Outside, soldiers stood guard to ensure the workers didn’t escape. But they, too, were slumped over, dozing off like the others inside. Careful not to disturb them, Ragna slipped past, weaving between their slumbering forms.

Then he sprinted toward the clearing where he’d promised to meet Seria.

“Huff… huff…”

Fearing someone might notice him, Ragna had run at full speed. By the time he reached the clearing, he was panting heavily. He glanced around.

The forest clearing was silent, devoid of any presence.

Had he arrived too early?

Without a clock, he couldn’t be sure, but it seemed likely.

“Phew…”

Ragna decided to wait for Seria and settled in a corner of the clearing. Leaning against a large tree, he looked up at the sky.

The towering pines stretched sharply upward.

In this peculiar clearing, where no trees grew, a patch of sky was visible, studded with twinkling stars.

At its center, a large, pale moon hung with an almost haughty air, as if proclaiming it would remain unchanged through the ages. Gazing at it, Ragna muttered bitterly,

“Are you the only thing that hasn’t changed…?”

Five hundred years had turned everything upside down.

The world he once knew, the beings tied to him they were likely gone.

The moon, standing alone above the flow of time, was the only solace, a reminder that this world was still the one he knew.

Perhaps the moonlight was too dazzling.

Ragna closed his eyes, a bitter expression on his face, and lowered his head.

He murmured to himself, “Who would’ve thought it’d come to this?”

He had expected his mana to recharge in a few years decades at most.

Then, he’d herald the Demon King’s return, rally the demon tribes, and wage war against humanity once more.

That had been the plan of Ragna, the Demon King.

But that dream was now unattainable.

His subordinates came to mind, and Ragna bit his lip unconsciously.

If the old man’s words were true, his followers had likely fled when the Demon King’s castle fell.

They must have survived somewhere in this world.

It was, without a doubt, the best decision they could’ve made at the time.

“So, in the end, I was the fool.”

With a bitter, self-deprecating laugh, Ragna whispered an apology to his lost comrades.

Because of his misjudgment, his precious subordinates had suffered.

If he’d stationed even a fraction of his forces especially the battle-hardened Togue tribe at the castle, history might have unfolded differently.

His thoughts circled back to his own mistakes.

Ragna let out a sigh and steeled his resolve.

No amount of self-reproach could change the past.

If that was the case, he’d focus on what he could do now.

And at this moment, his only goal was clear.

Escape this place, no matter what it took.

Find the remnants of the Demon King’s army.

For that, he was willing to do anything.

Even if it meant betraying the girl who had saved him, the first to offer him a smile and a hand in this new world.

As he solidified his resolve, a sound broke the silence.

*Rustle—*

“...!”

Footsteps approached, crunching through the underbrush. Ragna cautiously stood.

*Rustle, rustle.*

The sound grew closer, and a figure emerged from the shadows into the moonlight.

It was a red-haired girl, her expression cautious as she glanced around.

Her nervous demeanor, like that of a startled kitten, made Ragna smile despite himself.

Brushing off his pants, he approached Seria.

Startled, Seria turned toward the sound of his footsteps. When she saw him, her face lit up.

“Ragna!”

Her smile was so bright it felt like clouds parting to reveal the sun.

Even Ragna found it hard to face such a radiant expression.

“Sorry I’m late! It was harder to slip out than I thought.”

“It’s fine. I’m the one who asked for something unreasonable.”

“Exactly! So after all this trouble, you’re not gonna tell me it was ‘nothing’ or some nonsense, right?” Seria teased, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.

Ragna gave a small smile. “As if. Anyway, close your eyes for a sec.”

“Huh?”

“I’m going to take out what I prepared. Surprises are important for this kind of thing, you know.”

“Hmm… I’m already excited enough without the theatrics…” Seria grumbled but obediently closed her eyes.

Her complete trust stirred a pang of guilt in Ragna.

Using a girl like her didn’t sit well with him.

But there was no time for hesitation. He couldn’t let this chance slip.

Confirming her eyes were closed, Ragna swiftly raised his hand.

Gathering mana, he chanted,

“I call out and seize. All within my grasp shall be bound, constrained by the form of the rippling polyhedron!”

Sensing the ominous aura in his voice, Seria’s eyes snapped open in alarm. But it was too late.

“...!”

A dark, tongue-like tendril shot from Ragna’s hand, lunging toward her.

“Ugh!”

The sinister energy wrapped around her like a coiling snake, and Seria collapsed to the ground, unable to resist. *Crunch!* Fortunately, the surrounding brush cushioned her fall.

She wasn’t badly hurt, but her eyes were wide with shock and disbelief as she stared up at Ragna.

“W-Wait! What’s going on? Ragna, what’s happening?!”

“…”

Ragna remained silent, his expression unreadable.

Perhaps due to the strain of the spell, his red eyes glowed faintly in the darkness.

*Rustle, rustle.*

“...!”

As Ragna approached, Seria flinched, struggling against her bindings.

She fought desperately to break free.

But it was futile.

The “Binding Spell” was a highly effective magic, especially for its low mana cost. No matter how much she thrashed, it wouldn’t break easily.

Still, it was only a temporary measure.

Given the small amount of mana used, the bindings would soon weaken especially against someone like Seria, who possessed strength beyond that of an average adult.

With that in mind, Ragna quickly closed the distance and began another incantation.

“Gather, scatter, and gather again. My will resides in this hand. Along the scattered fragments, the shards of the uneven plane shall gleam, revealing their true form in alignment with the stars—”

“Wait, Ragna! What are you doing…?”

“The scattered fragments sever their connections and recombine. From past to future, from future to past, I inscribe the red sigil within the rift—”

“Stop it! This isn’t funny anymore! Stop, Ragna!”

“…IRA, KAHA, TAHA, NAHA, by these words, I engrave the mark of bondage!”

“No—!”

A burst of light erupted.

The light transformed into something dark and surged toward Seria from Ragna’s hand.

As the energy seeped into her, Seria let out a long, piercing scream.

Moments later, the streams of light vanished without a trace.

The clearing fell silent.

“…Huff, huff.”

Ragna’s bloodshot eyes gleamed. Blood trickled from his eyes and nose, and his body was drenched in sweat as he gasped for breath. The sudden expenditure of a massive amount of mana had left him on the verge of collapse.

“Ugh…”

Swaying with dizziness, Ragna looked at Seria, who lay limp on the ground.

“…Did it work?”

He couldn’t be certain.

But the odds were in his favor.

The spell he’d just cast was one of cognitive alteration.

He called it the “Slave’s Brand.”

Among mind-control spells, it was one of the least mana intensive. But as his current state showed, “less” was relative it still demanded a significant amount of mana.

Nevertheless, it was the most stable and viable spell he could cast in his current condition.

The spell altered the target’s perception, binding them mentally to the caster a true “Slave’s Brand.”

“Phew…”

Exhaling softly, Ragna wiped the blood from his face.

Honestly, he probably looked like a wreck.

The only silver lining was the hope that his condition would improve with time.

As he wiped away the blood, some time passed.

“…Ugh…”

Seria began to stir.

Ragna steadied himself and approached her.

The cognitive alteration spell bound the target to the first person they saw after it was cast.

The first encounter was critical.

With that in mind, Ragna looked at Seria.

She sat up, her expression dazed, glancing around.

Then her eyes met his.

“…”

“…”

An uneasy silence hung between them.

Her blank expression made Ragna frown slightly.

Had the spell been incomplete?

Using what little mana he had might have caused imperfections. No choice but to fix it manually.

As he stepped toward her, something shifted.

“…!”

A sudden, ominous feeling made Ragna recoil. At the same time, Seria’s face twisted with rage.

“Ragnaaa!”

Like a feral beast, she roared and charged at him. Ragna’s expression hardened.

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Translated by Reversalnovel.web.id