Should I Fight You?

"Clang—"

The figure of Leo emerged from the magic circle in the manor's basement as a flash of red light passed, returning here once again.

"Have you finished taking care of things, Young Master Leo?"

Miyamoto Musashi, who was still instructing Asuna Yuuki, had sensed the magic circle activate the instant it happened. She waved at Leo as he stepped out.

"More or less." Leo first glanced at Asuna, who was still concentrating on maintaining her sword stance, then replied, "At least her family doesn't object anymore."

After a round of demonic persuasion, Leo had not only explained to the Yukinoshita women the benefits of becoming his servants, but had also taken the opportunity to teach them some basic facts about the Underworld.

In most people's eyes, the Underworld was hell, and the place where Devils lived certainly wasn't somewhere nice. Legends painted it as a terrifying world with an incredibly harsh environment, where Crimson Lotus Hellfire burned everywhere. No normal person would want to settle there.

In reality, however, the dreadful hell people imagined was actually the Underworld Lower Realm, located beneath the Underworld. The upper realm of the Underworld wasn't nearly so terrifying.

Although it had neither sun nor moon, it still had a sky. It was simply purple, and unlike the sky in the Human World, it didn't leave you feeling so relaxed and refreshed.

There was no sea there, only vast lakes. Yet the landmass was as large as Earth, and its population was smaller than that of the Human World. Even if you added together the populations of every race living there, the total still fell far short of humanity's. As a result, the land was vast and cheap, unlike the Human World, where every inch was worth its weight in gold.

There were forests, too, inhabited by monsters such as Hydras, water spirits called Undines, Azure Thunder Dragons, and slimes. It was a fantastical place, with cities scattered throughout. The environment wasn't harsh at all; in fact, the cities were even more beautiful than those in the Human World—at least, that was true of the cities in Devil territory.

As the Demon Kings put it, "It's already the twenty-first century. Humans know how to build pleasant surroundings and improve their living conditions. Devils live much longer than humans and possess supernatural powers. Is it really so hard to build a comfortable city to live in?"

If you could live in comfort, why put yourself through the misery of living somewhere inhospitable?

So the Underworld wasn't just less frightening than ordinary people imagined—it was an extremely pleasant place to live. Many Devils dreamed of retiring to some quiet corner of it and spending their days in leisure. That might be more comfortable than living in heaven.

While explaining all this, Leo had also introduced them to his home in the Underworld: Eligos Territory. He wanted the Yukinoshita women to understand just how vast his estate was.

Since the Underworld's lands were so expansive, even after the Eligos Clan had died out, no one had seized its territory. At most, it had been left deserted. So when Leo inherited everything belonging to the Eligos Clan, its territory was returned to him intact, without a single inch missing.

Eligos Territory was larger than one of this country's states.

Leo couldn't help laughing when he remembered how wide Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno Yukinoshita's mouths had fallen open when he mentioned it—and added that he would grant part of the territory to Yukino Yukinoshita as her own estate.

To put it bluntly, when they learned that Yukino wouldn't become a hated monster after turning into a Devil, nor be treated by him like a subhuman slave, but could instead live longer, remain young forever, and inherit a territory of her own to develop, both Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno had wavered for a moment. They had looked ready to abandon their humanity and join his side. Their attitude was completely different from before.

In the end, there had naturally been no suspense. The Yukinoshita Family accepted Yukino's becoming a Devil, and with it, her becoming Leo's servant.

The main reason was that the matter had already been settled. They had no idea what they could do to oppose it, even if they wanted to.

Could they use the power of the Yukinoshita Family to fight for something?

If Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno hadn't seen the fierce battle between Yukino and Sharon, they might have entertained that idea. But after witnessing it, they understood perfectly well that they had no power to resist Leo at all.

Especially after Leo explained what Devils did in the Human World and revealed how many influential people in Chiba were secretly among his connections, Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno realized that he could easily deal with the Yukinoshita Family without resorting to anything beyond human means.

After all, the Yukinoshita Family wasn't the only powerful family in Chiba Prefecture, nor did it have the region all to itself. There were families even more influential than theirs, and some of them were already working for Leo.

So what could they do?

All they could do was accept it.

And so Leo returned victorious, leaving Yukino behind.

The three women still had some private things to talk about, and Leo wasn't going to stop them. He simply headed back on his own.

"Now that my personal instructor's come aboard, there's only the Yuki Family left. Once I get through that, everything should be fine, right?"

While Leo had been at the Yukinoshita residence, he'd received reliable news through his connections that the Yuki Couple were already on their way to Chiba. They would probably meet with him that evening.

His connections were handling the arrangements for the meeting place, making sure it was suitably luxurious and impressive.

So...

"I'm going to dinner tonight. Asuna, don't train too late."

Leo reminded Asuna.

"...I know."

Asuna's grip on the sword tightened slightly. She replied in a low voice, clearly still feeling uneasy.

Leo, by contrast, looked completely unconcerned, as though he were going to meet subordinates rather than someone's family.

That was one of the benefits of not dating and only taking on servants.

When you were dating, the other person's parents were your future in-laws. Wouldn't you have to be humble and show them proper respect?

But when you took on a servant, the other person's parents were your servant's mom and dad. In a roundabout way, they ought to treat you like their big boss and speak to you deferentially.

"So, Young Master Leo, you're free until tonight, then?" Miyamoto Musashi suddenly asked. "Would you like to fight me?"

Her words left both Leo and Asuna stunned.

"Are you challenging me?"

Leo pointed at himself, surprised.

"Yeah." Miyamoto Musashi readily admitted it. "I've heard that you awakened a Mutation Trait that makes you stronger the more servants you take on. Is that right?"

"It's also been a long time since I fought anyone. I'm itching for a match."

A challenge from Miyamoto Musashi wouldn't have been unusual even in the era when she was alive.

She considered herself a Ronin, and her greatest passion was challenging the strong.

It wasn't that she was bloodthirsty. It was simply that learning the sword through battle was a necessary path for every swordsman.

For a true swordsman, seeing a strong opponent and not challenging them was what made no sense.

But...

"What makes you think I'm strong?"

Leo asked with interest.

Based on what he'd shown so far, outsiders would only think that even if he had grown stronger, he was still just a Six-Wing High-Class Devil.

If his opponent were an ordinary person, Leo would unquestionably be strong.

But when his opponent was Miyamoto Musashi, who would think Leo was the stronger one?

Although Miyamoto Musashi only had four wings, she was the greatest swordswoman in history and a servant of Leviathan, the current Demon King. Her true fighting strength was at least on the level of an Ultimate-Class Devil. She might not even be a newly ascended Eight-Wing Ultimate-Class Devil—she could be a Ten-Wing Ultimate-Class Devil!

In other words, in terms of true fighting strength, Leo, who was only a High-Class Devil, was at least one rank below her. He might even be two ranks below.

The difference of one rank was already enormous. Two ranks were an insurmountable gulf. There could be no real fight—only a one-sided beating.

Unless... Leo showed what he was truly capable of.

And did Miyamoto Musashi know what he was truly capable of?

The answer was, of course, no.

But...

"Don't underestimate a swordsman's instincts, Young Master Leo."

Miyamoto Musashi's eyes shone brightly as she looked at Leo. She seemed to have opened the legendary Mind's Eye or Heavenly Eye, and a grin full of fighting spirit spread across her face.

"My blood, bones, flesh, and even my very brain are all trembling and telling me that there's a worthy opponent before me. How could this person not be strong?"

At that, Leo raised an eyebrow and smiled.

His own fighting spirit had been roused. His Devil blood seemed to boil, telling him that he was yearning for battle, yearning for chaos.

"If a servant of the great Demon King says so, then I suppose it wouldn't be right of me to turn you down."

Firelight burned in Leo's eyes as he looked at Miyamoto Musashi.

"Then let's do it."

His unequivocal answer made Miyamoto Musashi's smile grow even more genuine.

The atmosphere in the basement had become as tense as the moment before a storm.

Asuna, who had been practicing her sword stance in the middle of the room, had retreated. She stood outside the basement's barrier, watching the two inside with a nervous expression.

Leo had spread his wings out of habit and flown into the air, taking up a favorable position.

Miyamoto Musashi, on the other hand, remained where she was, showing no intention of taking to the sky. She looked up at Leo with a smile, completely unafraid.

"You can make the first move, Young Master Leo."

She drew one of the two swords at her waist, rested it on her shoulder, and spoke in a bold, carefree voice.

"Then I won't hold back."

Miyamoto Musashi stood casually, but an astonishing aura had already gathered around her. Leo didn't hold back, either.

"Boom!"

Astonishing Demonic Power surged into flames within the basement.

The fierce battle began in an instant.