Because he had only been in the sword for a thousand years, this demon was a little naive and clumsy. As if expecting to be annihilated, the demon, bound by restraint magic, bit his lip.
"I'm an incompetent person who has no powers, and is famous for not having mana because he was cursed by a dragon."
I smiled as lovingly as I could. "Don't let him disappear." After a short cough, I changed the subject.
"...But how long can this devil stay here?"
"At most, he can only stay for another thirty minutes. There's a high chance that he won't be able to come out again."
Oh dear... I let out a sad sigh. Less time than I expected. "Why? I thought that if you were sealed in the sword, I could let you escape freely."
"I only know how to seal the demon. Ministering to the devil... You'll probably need a summoning ceremony or a spell. I think mana is needed, and I don't know exactly."
Unbelievable. There's something even Dominic doesn't know.
'I thought I had an all-you-can-eat ice supply, but it was a limited edition for 30 minutes...'
I let out a long sigh and finally dug up some information. Even in the original work, there was no description of the demon that was sealed with Dominic.
"Then, who else is in that sword?"
"The Winter Moon, the Autumn Mountains, the Summer Stars, the Spring Flowers—the four devils live there."
The devil's names sound romantic. Are they nicknames? I nodded and winked at him. "Then let's make slushies for half an hour, shall we?"
"Hey, human! I'm the weakest of them all! Don't be conceited if you annihilate me with slushy magic when I'm weak, human. The rest of the demons are more powerful, so they'll avenge me!"
Looking at the demon's blazing winter moon eyes, I smiled lovingly. "No, I will never let you disappear." There are four powerful slaves trapped in that sword, so why would I let them die? But what was important now was the Winter Moon Demon in front of me.
The demon made eye contact with me and shuddered. "Dominic, look into this human's eye!"
I hid my eyes and smiled lovingly. "What's wrong with my eyes?"
"You're a complete madman!"
After a while, on the first floor of the old stationery store, which had not yet been remodeled, there were three large glass barrels that filled one wall. The inside of the large glass barrel summoned by the demon was like a refrigerator, emitting a chilling energy. And with a crackling sound, crushed ice poured down infinitely.
On the ice bucket, Dominic poured out grapes, oranges, pineapples, and sugar that had been hastily flown in from somewhere. And the two of us were blending them together to create grape-flavored, orange-flavored, and pineapple-flavored slushies.
In front of the glass case, the demon, bound by an invisible restraint, let out a long sigh and twisted his body. However, he was caught in a trap from which he could never escape.
"Please, let's take a minute's rest, human!"
Every glass barrel was more than two-thirds full of slushies. But I didn't know when I'd meet him again, so I had to make as many as I could. I touched the demon's body with flashing eyes.
"Hurry up and make more ice, Winter Mountain Devil. I have to make a lot of slushies."
"The Winter Moon Devil! Ah, anyway, if I regain my power, I'm going to kill you for doing this to me!"
Dominic picked up the metal plate beside him and slammed the demon's arm down painlessly. "Be quick and fast."
"No, but still, young—"
"You're pretending to be a child just because you look like a child, but you're more than a thousand years old."
The demon cracked and began to make ice again.
"Have you finished it?"
"Not yet."
"Do you want to go back to the sword...?"
The devil's face turned red. I said coldly to him, "No, I haven't made a slush yet. You can't go yet, work more!"
The Winter Moon Demon shouted with a smug face, "Hey, devilish human! Satan, the great leader of the Demon World, will praise a human like you immensely!"
...Is that a bad word or a compliment?
The demon was crying, grimacing, making ice with his hands, crushing it, and putting it in the glass container. The slushie made of ice that never melts was almost full in the barrel.
"Do you want to have a drink?"
I wondered if he had brought the grapes with him, but Dominic held out a crystal glass to me.
"Yes!"
I shoved the glass into a large glass barrel and took a sip of the grape slushie. It was sour, cool, and sweet, just like the slushies I used to eat.
"Ice that will never melt, but when it enters a human body as you ordered, it will melt! So let me go now!"
"Not yet."
I shook my head, looking at the Winter Moon Demon with satisfaction. I liked this combination quite a bit.
"I already have a slushie."
I haven't even remodeled the building yet, but it's already a success!
'You have a good premonition.'
I smiled happily and patted the devil on the shoulder.
"Perfect taste!"
"Really?"
"Hmph, but your arms are playing, Winter Moon Demon."
"...Even in our demon world, we don't do this kind of high-intensity labor... One minute of work, ten minutes of rest is the rule!"
Seeing the Winter Moon Demon constantly making and crushing ice, I handed him a glass. "Okay, I'll give you a reward. Eat what you made."
The demon snorted and shook his head. "Hmph! We don't eat human food. I covet nectar, this kind of thing."
I put the glass in front of his chin. "I wonder how the devil would feel."
"Phew, it's a nuisance..." After grumbling reluctantly and taking a sip of the slushie, the devil's eyes opened wide.
"Huh, what is this?"
He drank a series of slushies, wide-eyed, and looked around. "Am I being brainwashed?"
"Why? Is it not tasty?"
The Winter Moon Demon shook his head incredibly fast. His pitch-black hair fluttered across his forehead. "Hey, it's a revolution!"
I nodded. It seems to be a taste that works for demon children from another world to some extent.
"Give me more!"
"Drink more."
The Winter Moon Demon nodded and gulped down the drink in his hand.
'It's a pity that it's a limited edition...'
I looked at the demon with admiration. "He's a really good talent. I want to work every day."
"I don't work every day!"
The demon, clutching the crystal glass in his hand, took another sip of the slushie and opened his rabbit eyes. "But this is so delicious."
Then he disappeared into the sword again.
'Oh no, I thought he'd disappear with his rabbit eyes still open.'
I puffed out my cheeks and looked at Dominic. "Thirty minutes have passed?"
"Yes." As Dominic said, it seems that only thirty minutes is the limit.
I looked at the slushie bucket and said to myself, "Is there really no way to work with the devil...?" The next time we meet again, I won't miss it, Winter Moon Devil.
I looked at the full slushie barrel and smiled inwardly. As I sipped on the sweet grape slushie that the devil had created with hard labor, I reviewed my work plan again.
"Thanks to the devil, I got a slushie." I laughed contentedly. "Things are unraveling like toilet paper."
"I think we can give out a free glass of slushie to each visitor?"
"Yes. I've never tasted such an unusual drink before. I think it will be properly imprinted on people." Dominic sipped the slushie in the cup.
"The devil liked it, but do human children like it too?"
"Yes."
"Can't you test whether you like it or not?" However, there is a way to meet the children of the academy in advance...
"There's one academy student. Up there." Dominic cast his gaze over the stairs.
'Speaking of which, there was a cute child up there, right?'
A child who was asleep and injured his leg. Dominic and I went up to this floor together. Then I held it out to the little child who was lying down and sleeping soundly.
"Little Knight, do you want to drink this?"
The child stood up, rubbed his aching legs, and nodded. "Ugh, give it to me!"
I handed him a crystal glass. The child squinted, gave him a cheer, raised his glass, gulped, and began to drink the slushie. After taking a sip, the boy took his mouth off the glass and looked at me. His twinkling eyes stared straight at me.
"What do you think?"
"Ugh..."
"Huh?"
"Cold..."
"You have to chew it thoroughly."
The child nodded vigorously, fidgeted, and opened his eyes wide again. "Huh?"
The boy's eyes began to sparkle. I don't think Columbus was so surprised when he discovered the New World. The child opened his mouth and wheezed, then opened his mouth widely.
"You're so good, it's delicious!"
The child was happy to feel the crunchy slushie. "Eating this, I'm me, I..."
The child blew a cold breath and then opened his eyes and bit his lips, which had turned slightly blue. "I feel like I'm just thumping and running here!"
"...Isn't it because it's cold?" I said it was cold. The slushie is a bit cold...
"It's not a car running!" The child drank the slushie and put one hand over his cold, tingling lips. "You, you picked me up and treated me when I was injured, and gave me this kind of strange thing..."
Then he tapped the slushy glass down on the floor and squeezed his hand tightly. "I must be in love!"
I laughed at the unexpected cute compliment.