A Mastermind? No, I'm just the Live-In Son-in-Law-Chapter 52: Contact (2)

And the aura radiating from the figure in front of him was unmistakably that of the supreme leader of the black mages.

Terrified, Pedro simply kept his head to the ground and braced for the inevitable scolding.

“Why do you think I called for you?”

“W-well... D-did my subordinates commit some offense...?”

He asked as politely as possible, voice trembling—but the answer did not come immediately.

‘What do I even say now...?’

Whitney, pretending to be the Great Shadow and forcing out his lines in a deliberately cold voice, momentarily lost his words.

‘If I slip up even once and he notices something's wrong, there’ll be no turning back...!’

‘Damn it, what kind of mistake did these useless idiots even make!?’

Even if it meant being misunderstood by Lunelle, Whitney was determined not to fight Pedro.

Pedro, for his part, had never seen his master so serious before and desperately wanted to escape this situation alive.

It was a ridiculous and tragic standoff for both of them, but every second felt like walking a tightrope.

“Listen well, Pedro.”

“Y-yes, of course...”

Finally, Whitney broke the silence.

“...You and your group will be sitting out of this operation.”

“...What?”

“I’ll handle the demon summoning myself.”

Hearing this bold statement, Pedro nearly blurted out “What the hell are you talking about?”, but his well-trained survival instincts barely held him back.

“B-but, my lord... have you not yet fully revealed yourself to the world...?”

“...And do you remember why that is?”

“T-that’s...”

Pedro, who had just internally praised his instincts, now felt his lips going dry as he carefully answered the question shot from the front.

“You’ve not regained enough power to manifest your true form...”

“Right. That was the case.”

But Whitney’s own lips were drying just as fast.

“But this time, I have no choice but to act personally.”

“M-may I ask why...?”

“Because... I must give birth to the Hero with my own hands.”

“...Excuse me?”

His brain having long since stopped functioning, Whitney was now talking through pure spinal reflex.

But then he recalled something Parsha had muttered during a strategy meeting at the mansion.

“To resurrect the Demon King, a Hero is absolutely necessary.”

“Ah...!”

“And that Hero must be born by my own hand, so that I can twist fate itself.”

Pedro and even Lunelle widened their eyes at that, nodding slowly.

Miraculously, the improvised story worked.

“Then... why have you not shared this truth with us until now...?”

“Pedro Gomez. And why exactly should I explain myself to you?”

“...F-forgive me.”

Emboldened by the success of his bluff, Whitney lowered his voice even further.

Pedro, already flat on the ground, now buried his chest to the floor as well.

“...If I must explain, it was to distribute information selectively.”

Now that the flow was completely in his favor, Whitney took a gamble and stepped forward.

“You’re aware that the officers of the Shadow Union all have different goals, right?”

“Th-that’s true.”

“The Puppeteer. The Death Knight. The Shadow Witch. The Jester.

They may bow before me now, but any one of them could betray me at any time.”

Thanks to his knowledge of the original story, Whitney knew each of the Shadow Union executives well.

“...If a Hero were to appear despite my direct involvement, they’d all start plotting.”

“......”

“How many of them do you think would turn against me?”

By spinning his understanding into something persuasive, Whitney managed to make Pedro—whose brain was marinated in fear—accept it as fact.

“In my eyes, you won’t be one of them.”

This was the basis of Whitney’s gamble.

“You’re new to your position. You lack both standing and power.

Until things tip in your favor, you’ll remain loyal to me.”

“I-I would never think of such betrayal even once—”

“I’ll give you a chance.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Since it had come to this, Whitney decided to go all in and use Pedro instead of Rebecca as his puppet.

A dangerous gamble.

“The position of my direct subordinate—second only to me in the shadows.”

“...Hah.”

“Given that you care more about immediate gain than ambition, it’s an appealing offer, isn’t it?”

Of course Pedro would bite.

But the real threat to Whitney’s bluff wasn’t /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Pedro—it was someone else entirely.

— Hey. Who gave you the authority to decide the officer lineup like that?

Right on cue, a playful voice rang out in Whitney’s head.

It was the real “Great Shadow”—the one Pedro currently believed Whitney to be.

‘...I accept your offer.’

But Whitney had his own ace up his sleeve.

‘I’ll act as your stand-in. Just play along.’

Hmm?

‘If I’m to serve as your substitute, I need connections like this to make it work, don’t I?’

Sure, the risk was close to signing away his soul.

But with Meredia and the awakened Saintess as his backing, Whitney could afford it.

— Haha, fine. Do as you like.

— “......”

— The contract is sealed, Whitney Ringaarden...

As the voice in his head faded and a strange energy filled his body, Whitney furrowed his brow and sighed.

‘...Never thought I’d end up making a pact with the black mages’ leader.’

— Fufu, don’t worry. I’m quite gentle with the ones I like...

And with those words, the voice vanished.

Whitney, still standing stiffly, slowly turned his gaze back to Pedro.

“M-my lord, if I may ask one thing...”

Sensing that gaze, Pedro swallowed hard and forced himself to speak despite the oppressive aura growing heavier.

“Wh-what if the Hero created this way ends up opposing our plans...?”

It was the one lingering doubt his terrified mind couldn’t ignore.

“...You don’t need to worry about that.”

Looking down at Pedro, Whitney completed his high-stakes bluff, powered by the newly forged pact.

“Raise your head and look at me.”

“...!”

Lifting his gaze at the command, Pedro finally saw Whitney standing before him—

And froze, mouth agape.

“The Saintess. The Hero. They’re already in the palm of my hand.”

“Ah...”

“Everything is part of my plan.”

With that, the long and tense standoff came to a sudden end.

“A lowly servant like myself can only be awed by the Great Shadow’s foresight...”

“Good. I’ll be counting on you from now on, Pedro.”

***

“...I’ll take my leave now.”

“All right.”

“If you ever need me, please summon me at any time.”

Bowing to me several times, Pedro began quietly drawing a magic circle on the floor.

“...What’s he doing?”

“Ah, well... I was summoned so suddenly that I forgot to prepare a proper summoning circle...”

As much as I wanted him gone as soon as possible, it seemed it would take a bit of time.

Maybe he hadn’t drawn one in a while—he kept tilting his head, fumbling with his hands.

“Lunelle. You know this is all an act, right?”

“......”

“Hey, could you maybe not make that face?”

With the mood growing more and more awkward, I leaned in and whispered to Lunelle, who had been staring at me with a disturbingly meaningful expression.

“Master. I will always be on your side.”

“...Haa.”

“The victor is always the one in the right. I will make you the justice of this world.”

But Lunelle only responded with twisted loyalty, her face solemn and eerie.

“I will cut down anyone who stands in your way.

Whoever opposes you must be evil...”

“What are you even saying...?”

I could’ve sworn her lips twitched with something resembling sinful pleasure, but I didn’t have the energy to call her out on it.

“...But Master, your body is hot.”

“Haha... I guess I pushed myself too hard.”

Whether it was the aftereffects of the torture, or the contract I’d just signed with the self-proclaimed Great Shadow, my body felt awful.

“That seal—I'll have to use my power to undo it...”

“I-I’ll try breaking it with sword energy.”

“...Even for you, that seal’s not something you can break with just a dagger.”

I wanted to leave the room right now, even if we had to leave Pedro behind still scribbling his magic circle,

but the black magic seal on the door couldn’t be lifted without white magic.

“Just give me a moment to rest... I’ll handle it.”

“Master! You mustn’t close your eyes!”

“I’m not, though...”

Barely staying upright as my consciousness wavered, I felt Lunelle at my side raise her voice in panic.

“This won’t do. I’ll force it open—”

“I said no...”

I tried weakly to stop her, knowing that even she couldn’t brute-force a black magic seal with a dagger—

— BOOM!

—but my words were made meaningless by the sudden explosion,

as the door blasted off its hinges and embedded itself into the far wall.

“Huff, huff...”

Stepping through the shattered remains, panting and wild-eyed, the intruder was—

“...Cecil?”

“Brother...!”

To my shock, the one who had just stormed in was my little sister, Cecil.

***

Meanwhile, inside the judges’ waiting room within the stadium—

“Gasp...!”

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freeweɓnovēl.coɱ.

“......?”

Hestia, who had been quietly sitting with her eyes closed, suddenly sprang to her feet.

Meredia, calmly drinking tea as she reviewed the updated match lineup, tilted her head and looked over at her.

“What’s wrong?”

“I-I can feel something.”

“What kind of something?”

Hestia responded vaguely, her expression dazed. Then she clenched her fists and added,

“...It’s a feeling I’ve never experienced before.”

“Are you messing with me right now...?”

“But somehow, I know exactly what it is.”

Hestia abruptly turned and walked out.

Meredia, confused, followed after her—until her face hardened in an instant.

“This... This is definitely the energy of the Demon King.”

“...What did you just say?”

Hestia’s words were so unexpected, they stopped Meredia cold.