by Fuse
But it did the trick. It prevented the end of the world and allowed Guy and Milim to come to an agreement.
These were the first three demon lords, and each had their own goals.
One wanted to find the farthest reaches of power.
One wanted to live free from all barriers.
One wanted to promote balance in the world.
But that was fine. These differing goals were exactly why they could see one another as equals.
The demon lord ranks were soon swelled by a giant protecting the gates to heaven, as well as a vampire from ancient times. A figure fallen from heaven became number six. This was the second generation—not as strong as the oldest but more than strong enough to rule over the world.
The giant’s body was too imbued with the holy element to allow the seeds of demon lord-dom to take root, but he was still so blindingly strong that he got in anyway—an unusual path to take. The old vampire was shrewd, sly, and more conniving than any of the others—although someone else was currently occupying her seat at the Council for her.
The sixth one was interesting. Definitely strong, but completely uninterested in the world. Laziness was the watchword here. No doubt had the ability to rule the land but probably still living just as “fallen” as ever somewhere.
Four out of the six demon lords at this point had “awakened” to the job, apart from the giant and the fairy. They had survived multiple Great Wars, polishing their skills with each one—enough so to earn ultimate skills, like Guy’s and Milim’s.
In addition to them, there was Guy’s friend, Leon. Leon was a human and a former Hero. A unique upbringing led to him picking up an ultimate skill, making him strong enough even to satisfy Guy’s strict standards.
That made seven. And how many of this next Walpurgis’s attendees would live up to the standard of these seven? Guy couldn’t wait to see.
And then there was Clayman.
That fool thought he could rule over Milim. It was just too hilarious. Guy could barely contain his laughter. That was impossible. If Guy couldn’t do it, there was no way someone like Clayman could. Lower-level skills simply didn’t work on those who possessed ultimate skills. All the natural laws that ruled this world were nothing more than unique cases to them; they could easily nullify any magical attempt to cloud their minds.
An elemental attack that struck at their weak points might have some effect, yes. But mind-domination magic? Out of the question. Anyone spineless enough to be ruled over by conditions like that would never be able to obtain an ultimate skill in the first place.
Ultimate skills, as the name implied, gave the wielder ultimate power to control the very laws of nature. The only way to counter an ultimate skill was with another ultimate skill. That was the absolute, unbendable rule of this world.
Clayman couldn’t do a thing against Milim. Milim was just having him dance on the palm of her hand.
What a fool…
Guy flashed a weak smile as he watched the events unfold.
The era of weaklings styling themselves as demon lords had come to an end. The fakers would get sifted out; the generation of true demon lords would begin. Guy was sure of it. He smiled.
And thus he set off for what was bound to be the most chaotic Walpurgis in recent memory.
CHAPTER 4
IN THE LAND OF DESTINY
So everything was set. After giving my final instructions to Veldora, I waited for an envoy to direct me to the Council site. I didn’t know where it was, so I’d be going along with Ramiris—who, by the way, also didn’t know.
I asked why, and she had replied, “Because someone always comes to take me there!” Which made sense, I suppose, in its own way. The way she always got lost, wherever she went, I guess it’s just a given that she had a guide. If someone doesn’t really feel like memorizing a route, they never will, no matter how many times they repeat it.
Either way, I figured someone would be teleporting in to guide us, so I decided to wait for that.
It was almost an hour before midnight when I was contacted—not by an envoy, but by Benimaru.
“What’s up? Some kind of problem?”
I was expecting the worst, but Benimaru instead had a request for me. Battle had just begun with the enemy, and we already had a full gauge of their capacity.
The gifts Benimaru earned from my awakening had upgraded his class to Oni. This was a type of spiritual life-form, along the lines of the dryads—Benimaru, in other words, had reached the same lofty heights as Treyni. Shuna, Soei, and Hakuro were all Onis as well, which put them about as high up on that ladder as you can go.
This was wonderful, but the issue was the skill Benimaru obtained. The unique skill Born Leader was geared toward granting enhanced control over his powers, as befitting the naturally aggressive Benimaru. No matter how much of it he unleashed, he could keep himself from rampaging out of control. Its secret lay in Compute Prediction, which could fully read the flow of power in his body and prevent bursts of waste.
It was also useful in battles between large armies, not just in duels. He could sense the flow of power among his forces, reading his chances for victory like a prophet. If things were looking bad for his side, he could instantly send orders to his forces and change his strategy. It was almost like cheating. In a battlefield, the correct conveyance of information meant everything, and this allowed him to command his full army without a single miscommunication.
Right now, the combined forces of thirty thousand were under Benimaru’s command, and he could move them as smoothly and easily as his own limbs. These thirty thousand elites were no also-ran army, that’s for sure.
What’s more, the Born Leader skill also came with the Inspire Forces effect, adding bonuses to the forces he led that boosted their power by some 30 percent or more. That meant the entire army was nearly a third stronger. We weren’t losing out in troop numbers; we had better-quality fighters… We weren’t disadvantaged in any way. If we could get that bonus, too, then hell, all the better.
And with all of that, Benimaru could see from the start that victory was ours. Once he did, he had a bright idea for a new strategy.
(…So that’s why I wish to attack the main enemy force. Soei’s ready to go as well, and so I thought that, if Clayman’s castle is indeed beyond that cloud, we might as well lay waste to it, too.)
That Benimaru. Brimming with confidence.
(Isn’t that dangerous? You’ve only barely begun fighting. We don’t know how this’ll turn out yet…)
(We’re fine. I am stationed over here. It would be Soei and Hakuro striking the castle…)
(Wait, my brother!!)
Shuna had interrupted our Thought Communication as she was preparing some tea. Um, this was supposed to be a secure line? She broke in there a little too easily for my tastes.
(Er, hello, Shuna. What did you want?)
I could hear Benimaru’s voice jump several octaves.
(Don’t ask me what I want, my brother! The demon lord Clayman is dangerous! He has the power to bend people’s minds! If Soei or Hakuro fell victim to that…)
(No, they’d be perfectly fine against—)
(You can’t!! If you insist on sending them in, then I’ll join them!)
Whoa, whoa. Shuna’s usually a lot more chill than this. What’s gotten into her?
Benimaru and Shuna continued to argue as I sat there in shock. As my friend in my previous life put it, there’s no way a man can ever win against his younger sister. Benimaru was no longer brimming with confidence at all. The all-out assault from Shuna sent him reeling.
The next thing I knew, Shuna was beaming at me. “All right, Sir Rimuru! Give me your orders to move out!”
Um, how do I respond to that…?
I didn’t want to send Shuna anywhere lethal, but she did have a point. No matter how unlikely, I’d never want Soei to be thought controlled. I wanted to keep them from doing anything dangerous, but taking a castle to rob the enemy of an escape
point was a classic strategy. With Clayman gone for the Walpurgis Council, now would be the perfect opportunity.
Still… I mean, as long as I made sure Clayman didn’t get away, we’re good, right? And it’s not like I wanted to kill every single one of the magic-born working for him.
(…You have nothing to worry about, Sir Rimuru,) Soei chimed in. (I promise I will keep Lady Shuna safe.)
(And with me around,) Hakuro added, (it will be no problem to at least peek into the enemy’s stronghold. They might be holding Lord Carillon there. I feel we need to investigate.)
My Thought Communication was getting worryingly busy. Shuna must’ve recruited them both to convince me. It was rare for her to act so selfishly, so I could understand why they wanted her to have her way this time. The fact Carillon was last seen being taken in the direction of Clayman’s castle also intrigued me.
“I am terribly angered by all this, Sir Rimuru. It is hard for me to contain my feelings. What Clayman has done is unforgivable!”
Dahh… Yeah, I get that. I know I’m not the only one who felt a little helpless against him, back there. And I can see how Shuna would resent being left waiting around on the home front.
(All right. I’ll let Shuna join in. But Soei and Hakuro, I want her safety to be job one for you. And if their HQ has more defenders than you predicted, put safety first and just bring back intelligence for me. Even if you discover Carillon, don’t reach out to him unless you’re sure it’s safe. Got it?)
(Thank you for accepting her request.)
(I will be fine,) Shuna replied. (I can simply teleport out if something happens.)
(Indeed.) Hakuro laughed. (If anyone might be taking their sweet time in there, I imagine it would be me.)
(All of us have resistances to spirit-based attacks,) pointed out Soei, (so I imagine we will not waste much time. And with Lady Shuna there, there is nothing to be concerned about. If we do discover Lord Carillon, we will think over matters then.)
That put my mind at ease a little. Certainly, with Shuna’s unique skill Parser, she’d be able to identify any attacks aimed for her mind—and with Spatial Motion also in her arsenal, I didn’t see that much to worry about. She didn’t have that much magical energy to tap, but the skills in her quiver were excellent.
Soei was right about Carillon as well. He might not be there at all, so there was no point harping on the issue.
(All right. You have my permission, then, but always make sure you’re on top of the situation over there. Just in case, I’ll have you begin operations at midnight, just after the Walpurgis Council begins.)
(((Yes sir!)))
So now I had a three-member team attempting to infiltrate Clayman’s base of operations.
It was just before midnight now, so I decided to take a moment to ask Veldora about the demon lords. “I have no interest in such little gnats,” he began (of course), but he still had a fair amount to say about them all—except for Leon, who ascended to the role after he was sealed away.
Given his penchant for violent rages across the countryside, Veldora had fought against a demon lord or two in his time. Around two thousand years ago, he attacked and destroyed a city of vampires, which naturally earned him the anger of legions of those creatures—a chase he apparently loved. One of them, a female vampire, was particularly beautiful (and beautifully dressed) and boasted strength beyond all her peers. When the dust finally settled, her cadre of vampires disappeared from the scene, and Veldora didn’t know what had happened to them.
“What was her name…? I believe it was Lu, erm, Lurus? Or Milus? Regardless, I never treated her that seriously, but she was a rather challenging plaything for me, so I would be wary around her. She can’t take a joke, do you see?”
I think that was more Veldora’s fault than hers. Anyone would be a little pissed off after their homeland was burned to embers. Of course, that was millennia ago; maybe she’s mellowed.
“Ooh,” interjected Ramiris from adjacent to me, “didja know that guy Valentine’s a demon lord now, too?”
This Valentine had apparently taken over the original one’s role about 1,500 years ago. I can only hope time’s healed wounds between these vampires and Veldora.
Daggrull, the demon lord giant, was another keen rival of the dragon’s. They had tussled several times, with no clear victor ever being crowned, and if Veldora bothered to remember his name, he must’ve been a pretty mean match. This guy had the power—or the guts, at least—to take on a dragon type. Probably a standout among the demon lords. Better watch for him.
Our conversation moved on to the topic of demons. Veldora had apparently dispatched several groups of demons in his time—a practice he found fun, since even if you incinerated them, they always resurrected to an even stronger form over time. A bunch of great playmates for him, really.
Not even he had fought the lord of these demons, however. This king held his domain in a castle on the frozen tundra of the northern continent, a place so frigid that he never bothered to make the trip.
“It is far too cold up there! What’s the need for me to pay a visit? Kwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!”
That sounded pretty evasive to me, but he refused to give up any more details. No need to think about that now, though. It would be going pretty far out of his way to storm the place.
“Yes, well, Guy isn’t any pushover,” Ramiris observed. “Me, him, and Milim are the oldest demon lords you’ll ever find!”
That’s doesn’t mean much coming from Ramiris. Suddenly Guy sounds like nothing special at all. But ah well. I’ll back-burner this guy.
So how many demon lords does that leave remaining? I had already met Milim, Ramiris, and Carillon; we had just discussed Valentine, Daggrull, and Guy. There was Frey, the one who Phobio said had dealt the decisive blow to Carillon. There was Leon to think about, along with my current target, Clayman. So one more…
“Mm? I couldn’t say.” The allegedly sage Veldora was useless.
“Oh, you must mean Deeno!” Ramiris cried. “He’s even more of a goof-off demon lord than I am!”
I suppose he and Ramiris were two peas in a pod, then.
“We are not!”
I’ll just ignore that.
So that’s ten, some of whom had a bone to pick with Veldora. I’d need to keep that in mind as we discussed matters. Many seemed far more capable of defending themselves than I thought. Using this wimp Ramiris as a baseline could land me in deep trouble—maybe it was better to assume Milim was par for the course with them. Even after my evolution, I was leery about my chances of beating her in battle. We had sparred a few times, but she wasn’t being at all serious about it. I needed more data. In sparring mode, I could totally take her on now, but I couldn’t be cocky until I knew what she was more fully capable of.
I still couldn’t believe that Milim de facto approved of rubbing me out. There’s got to be something behind that. She’s not the type to backstab her friends or be mind controlled like that, and there was never gonna be any negotiating with her. There had to be some reason—a reason of her devising, too.
…Well, no point dwelling on it. I’ll figure it out when I see her.
As we talked, I felt a wrinkle in space erupt out of nowhere. Here comes our ride, I thought as this huge, bombastic, ominous-looking gate appeared. Pretty fancy. Me, I usually just kind of ripped a hole in time and space, so maybe I could learn from this. Once I had a concrete image in mind, it’d be easier for me to whip up a gate like this next time and teleport through it.
Regardless, the door opened, revealing a green-haired woman in a dark-red maid’s outfit. She bowed her head toward Ramiris. “I have come to take you, Lady Ramiris. And is this your guest? I’ll be happy to guide you together.”
Then she stood by the gate and lowered her eyes, eliminating her presence as much as possible. A well-trained pro at the servant biz, it felt like.
But something concerned me. She was exuding just as much overpowering force as Diablo at his best. S
he was a demon, a high-level one. Regular demons could only climb so high up the latter. No matter how long-lived they were, an Arch Demon was about the most they could hope for. Anything beyond that required a certain trigger…which, in the case of Diablo, was me naming him. This let him break out of the base demon framework entirely, evolving him from an Arch Demon to a so-called Demon Peer.
“Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh. I have no interest in strength,” he had said at the time, “but now I see there is always something higher to strive for. Perhaps I should try to make more of an effort at this?”
He had “no interest” in strength, but he had a hell of a lot of interest in fighting. As he put it, he had been too content with himself before, since becoming too strong would squeeze all the fun out of battle. Was he kidding with me? Because if he wasn’t, that’s just scary.
And now I had this other Demon Peer here, this maid. Or more like a maiden messenger from the underworld, I suppose. With the kind of anime and manga I consumed way back when, a maid was more a type of battle unit than anything—and with her being a Demon Peer and all, she was clearly one deadly woman.
“Oh, hey! Haven’t seen you in an age, Mizeri! How’s Guy doing?”
Ramiris clearly wasn’t afraid of her. In some ways, it made her even scarier.
“…It is not upon me to worry about the condition of my master…”
“Ah. Haven’t changed a bit, have you? Well, that’s fine.”
She fluttered her way into the gate, the rest of us following behind. We had to hurry, or else we’d get shut out. If I wasted any more time here steeling my resolve and wound up missing my ride there, I don’t know how I’d ever explain that to Benimaru and the rest.
So this maid Mizeri works for the demon lord Guy? The lord of the demons, and one of the oldest demon lords to boot. If he recruited Demon Peers as doormen, that said a lot about his power. Probably shouldn’t try riling him, then…unless the times called for it.