Chapter 19 - Mex, Demon Pushover?
I found it strange that no one really seemed to care that a human and three monsters were waltzing right into the place. I looked around the castle grounds, but it was mostly grass, and there were even some flower beds being cared for by blue-skinned females who were wearing modest clothing.
Not what I had expected from a self-proclaimed Demon Lord, but maybe I was holding on to my human world views of things that didn't really even exist. I am sure that if the monsters saw our people in our world, they would ask why we all look so much alike.
The front door to the castle was unmanned, but It took all I had to even get the thing to budge. Of course, that was when Jilly decided that I might need help, and the door was opened with ease.
This was just another reminder that even though I was in great shape and that I was an MMA fighter, The problem was that I had come from wrestling, and I had been a submission specialist.
Sure, I had knocked a guy or two out, but all of my real fights for victories came from forcing my opponents to submit. I didn't really think that monsters and demons were the submitting types, but I had been wrong about many things so far.
As we walked into the castle, the first thing that we saw was a mass staircase that fanned out at the bottom. On either side were small fountains with water shooting up from them, but the sound was gentle and relaxing.
"Welcome new and old guests! It is my pleasure to have you join me on this fine day! I am the Great Demon Lord Mex, only of this area of course, and I do love to Gloat my Minor Demon status a bit," A lighter blue demon with more giant wings than the others I had seen said.
He was standing at the top of the tapered staircase sanding on a soft green carpet that almost looked like grass. I would say it was like astroturf like they used for minigolf, but from what I could see on the stairs, it looked too real for that.
"Hello, thank you for the warm welcome. My friends and I decided to pay you a visit since I am new in the area, and they told me that you were a kind and welcoming man. I can see that they were not wrong," I said, trying to butter this Mex guy up.
I wasn't really sure what the protocol was here. We hadn't really said who was going to do the talking, but then Jilly can and picked Mary off me like a child.
"Come with me, darling, and we will go see Nushi; you can come with me as well, girls, but you will need to change back. Madam Clesh does not like monsters to shed in her castle," Jilly said as Mary latched around her.
The Cerberus girls changed back, and then they headed up the stairs and then to the left, all but almost pushing Mex over the railing of the stairs. The Demon Lord had to Squeeze by them, and he made his way down to me.
What was going on here? Was this Demon just a big pushover or something?
"I am glad to see Jilly, Mary, and their new friend, and they are getting along strangely enough. Just who might you be?" Mex asked me as he stepped off the stairs.
"Kazz Foreman, I just got here from another world," I said; there was no point in trying to hide it.
"Oh! Good, then you will be a good strong lad that wouldn't mind helping me out with a small task? I could make it worth your time? Say, three square meals, guards to train, I mean train with, and a place to sleep? You got one of those fancy system things, right?" Mex said so fast that I could barely keep up with him, but I got the gist of it.
"I did get a System, but it's not one of the super-strong ones. It doesn't actually help me fight at all," I explained, and Mex's eyebrows shot up.
"You refused the Hero System? Just how long have you been here for?" Mex asked as he now walked around me. "And what did you do before this?"
I explained to Mex about my past and what I had done, and how long I had been here. It took about thirty minutes to explain it all, but I brought him up to speed.
"Fascinating! So, you are the caretaker of these girls?" Mex asked me with great interest etched all over his face, and I nodded my head. "Oh, this is more than fascinating!"
"Hmm? Am I missing something?" I asked, unsure what was so fascinating, but I guess just me surviving this long must be interesting to him.
"No, this is good, and you know what? I am feeling even more generous than normal! Listen, normally, I would ask you to go kill a mighty monster, but I think that would not end up for you well, so this is what I will do. Come sit down here," Mex said as he put a hand into the air and called out, "CHAIRS AND TABLE!"
I expected to see some more of the smaller and darker blue demons rush out, but instead, it was the table and chairs… walking out. The entire inside of the castle was covered in dark mahogany-colored wood, and no stone showed, so it was weird to see a bright light yellow oak table walking.
Not that the walking part wasn't weird enough already, but the stark contrast just felt off. Then, when the three pieces of living furniture stopped, they all went back to being a typical set of out-of-place tables and chairs.
"I will tell you a little bit about the workings of this world; not everything is as friendly as it seems," Mex said as we sat down.
Little did Mex know, I was well aware of this little tidbit of knowledge, but I was interested to hear what he had to say. Maybe this would shed some light on his previous excitement as well.