I Became the Priest of Blasphemy of the Outer Gods

Chapter 71. Maid (1)

Before long, the space had transformed into an unfamiliar and alien place.

The walls were painted in rough, black strokes.

Numerous metaphysical green symbols were drawn upon them.

‘Has the teleportation succeeded?’

Eldritch and I found ourselves on a stone table, within which was embedded an object similar to the teleportation jewel we had used.

“This is a well-composed spell. A teleportation with greatly enhanced stability and various protections to prevent any interference…”

Eldritch examined the space with interest. Watching him curiously glance around helped calm my previously tangled thoughts a bit.

There are too many things bothering me. The strange reaction when the masked woman revealed her face. The inquisitor’s bizarre action of suddenly freezing in my presence.

“Let’s not think about it now. We don’t have any information anyway.”

“Lord Ethnos.”

Eldritch cautiously spoke to me.

“I sincerely apologize for not being by your side in the earlier situation. Please forgive me.”

“…?”

What’s up with him?

“You were just doing the task I assigned, so there’s nothing to apologize for. Besides, there wasn’t any harm done.”

This was merely an accident. An unexpected event occurred due to the instability of the illusory miracle. What more could we do? Yet Eldritch continued to act nervously.

“I can’t fathom why he’s being so submissive all of a sudden…”

Is he really that terrified of the inquisitor? Puzzled, I decided to move outside. Following the passageway upwards, we emerged above ground. It turned out that the place we had been in was a cave, not a room in a building.

“That must be the castle.”

The castle that appeared was smaller than I had anticipated. An old fortress, intertwined with ivy. For a stronghold owned by an entity related to the Outer Gods, it appeared rather ordinary.

“A lot of cleaning is needed. Likely, we’ll also need to purchase new furniture.”

“We have plenty of money anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”

As we approached the castle, its exterior seemed dilapidated yet sturdy. The gate wasn’t like an ordinary front door, so I had no idea how one would open it with a key.

“Shouldn’t it be opened from the inside?”

As I looked around, pondering if I should knock, I noticed something peculiar: a keyhole not on the door, but on the wall.

“Hmm… will this work?”

As I inserted and turned the key, a creaking noise came from within. It sounded like an old mechanical device moving, surprisingly loud for a simple key turn.

Creeeak!

The screeching noise accompanied the opening door. Though the mechanics were unknown, the mere fact that it worked like this indicated it wasn’t an ordinary castle.

“Strange. It’s cleaner inside than I expected.”

“Indeed, there’s not a speck of dust.”

There were old pieces of furniture and decorations inside, not polished but very tidy.

“It feels like someone’s been regularly cleaning and maintaining it… Could Belido be doing this?”

“You’re here.”

Just as the saying goes, speak of the tiger and it shall appear, Belido stepped through an inner door. This time, unlike before, he appeared in perfect human form. Without the half that was formless residues, his clear appearance and well-tailored garments were now visible.

“You… were you a noble?”

“Indeed. Did you not recognize my family’s name?”

I shook my head, taking out my sword, and Belido, startled, raised both hands in the air.

“Why are you doing this all of a sudden?!”

“Just in case.”

“…… Just in case of what? I was merely conducting a check before you arrived.”

“Personally doing the cleaning……?”

I narrowed my eyes.

“No, I’ve only come out for an inspection. There’s a maid specifically for managing and cleaning this place.”

“A maid?”

At first glance, it sounded like a normal sentence, but from the atmosphere, it wasn’t just about hiring a maid. Belido’s cautious yet somewhat troubled demeanor was clearly strange.

“Initially, yes, but I don’t know her true identity. Our conversations don’t even integrate well!”

Belido said, looking troubled.

“The term ‘maid’ is something I use just for convenience. She acts no different from a maid in a noble’s mansion.”

“So, she’s not an actual maid you hired, then?”

Belido nodded, adding that it could be considered ‘something that mimics a maid.’

“I’ve had no particular use for this castle, and the location wasn’t ideal, so I abandoned it. But then, suddenly, that maid began managing it without my permission.”

“What kind of management would allow such a person to enter without deterrence?”

Eldritch interjected with a tone of displeasure, glaring at Belido, who returned the gaze with contemptuous eyes. Their mutual disdain was unmistakable.

“How dare a lowly stray pet interrupt a conversation with your master?”

“At least my blood isn’t sullied like stagnant muddy puddle water.”

“Enough!”

I intervened, raising my voice to mediate between them.

“I don’t know why you’re both so hostile, but let’s stop and get to the main point. Why haven’t you driven away such an uninvited guest?”

Belido calmed down momentarily before glancing towards the wall.

“…… It’s strong. However, it’s not dangerous unless attacked first, and it’s oddly fixated on managing this castle… so, I decided to leave it be.”

Since Belido judged it to be strong, it seemed it wasn’t an ordinary dangerous entity. Feeling uneasy, I snapped back at Belido.

“You never mentioned such a potential danger to me, did you?”

“I intended to remove it before you arrived this time. But as soon as I mentioned your arrival, the maid suddenly started rushing around the castle, as if….”

Belido abruptly looked up at the ceiling.

“…… Cleaning.”

There was a squirming black mass, resembling formless residues. It glowed subtly with an unusual green Hue, and the biggest difference from the residues was its visible eyes. The eyes within the mass of bubbling slime were staring at me.

“It has appeared.”

I was prepared to engage in combat immediately. However, the entity slowly descended, extending its form to the floor and gradually taking on a human shape. It took the guise of a woman dressed in what one might typically picture as a maid’s outfit.

‘What is this……?’

Aside from the bizarre outfit, the figure itself was quite beautiful. Her skin was a deep purple, and here and there, globules that shone green would appear and disappear. The clothes were twisting and throbbing intermittently as well.

“This is the maid. I have no idea what species this is. I can’t fathom why it’s wearing such peculiar garments. Its actions are incomprehensible, and when I try to communicate, it doesn’t speak a word –

“My master,” the maid interrupted Belido’s explanation, speaking.

“I’ve finally met you.”

Belido’s eyes widened in surprise, and I, too, found myself equally perplexed.

It was a somewhat awkward implementation of language.

While the word order was all over the place, it wasn’t to the point of being completely incomprehensible.

“It feels like someone used a malfunctioning translation machine.”

It was astonishing that a race related to an Outer God would act this way. Whether they spoke or used telepathy, all the creatures I had met so far had spoken normally, but this one seemed to have some issues with its language skills.

“You can speak?! But why haven’t you said a word until now…?”

“…….”

Nevertheless, it did not respond to Belido. As Belido stood dumbfounded, the maid pointed somewhere with her finger, looking at him.

“Are you telling me to leave…?”

Belido stared at the maid, even more speechless. The maid nodded awkwardly.

“You haven’t even answered me until now, not even a reaction! Ah… never mind. It’s not my concern. Since you don’t have any other business with me, I’ll take my leave.”

Belido glanced slightly at Eldritch before transforming his body and disappearing through the gap in the wall.

Unlike true formless residues, half of his human form remained; it was fascinating how he could transform and move like that. The maid finally spoke after a long pause, staring at the gap where Belido had vanished.

“I have been waiting. For you.”

She had been waiting for me… Come to think of it, she mentioned earlier how we finally met. Of course, it was my first encounter with such a being.

“You seem to be saying you’ve been waiting for me… Why? And you are…”

Eldritch interrupted me briefly.

“Lord Ethnos, just as Belido, a hybrid, was clueless, I, too, know nothing about that being’s identity. Let’s not get too close.”

“Are you saying even you have no idea?”

… How does he not know?

I had already figured out the maid’s identity quite a while ago. I could even remember it thanks to that unique maid outfit.

“A maid outfit in this kind of medieval setting… really?”

White frills and stockings—her attire seemed anachronistic, which sparked my curiosity. I had previously questioned this very matter.

—Why on earth is a monster in a medieval fantasy wearing an outfit you would see in your favorite anime?

I had asked incredulously, looking at one of Dowol’s illustrations.

—I regret to inform you that in the anime I watch, there are no maid outfits. Furthermore, this race was created for service. So it’s only natural they wear such outfits.

Dowol responded with confidence, although for reasons I couldn’t fathom.

—You could say the entire race is a kind of maid. They were created for such purposes, you know?

—More like slaves than maids, right? Besides, how can a squirming eyeball slime possibly be a maid?

—No, really? They are supposed to be maids.

The race that Dowol, with a heavy dose of his personal taste, introduced.

“Shoggoths.”

These artificial lifeforms, allegedly created by the ancient rulers of Earth, were designed to handle various tasks like machines, making it more appropriate to describe them as robots or slaves rather than maids.

“They even rebelled and overthrew the race that once dominated them. That’s uncannily identical to what you might read in classic novels about robots.”

Originally treated as heavy machinery due to their massive size, they were immensely powerful and resilient.

“In terms of danger, it is indeed a dangerous existence…”

Yet this race had never appeared in the episodes that Dowol prepared, although he constantly talked about maids.

I never anticipated encountering such a maid shoggoth. As I curled my lips into a complex and bittersweet smile, the next words from the shoggoth froze my expression.

“I caught you. Truly, for a long time. I have been here. On the request. From the traveler, Dowol.”

TL’s Corner:
A trace of Dowol!