“Let’s see. After everything’s settled... when there’s peace...”
“When there’s peace...?”
“It might not be so bad to live with you guys in the Sleepless Castle.”
“...Alright. Okay. Okay.”
The Demon Lord didn’t exactly answer her question, but Akane seemed happy, nonetheless. She seemed very excited, for some reason.
“Oh, hey! Look at the weird bird, Hakuto!”
“Just when things were getting serious...”
Just like Akane and her interest in jumping around. She was excitedly pointing at a bird she had never seen, then at a carriage, and to many of the people walking in the streets.
“Look at all that luggage they’re carrying.”
“They’re porters. They do that for a living.”
“But isn’t he... Being pushed around and bullied?”
“He must not be a good porter,” said the man who didn’t carry anything as a porter on his first trip down in the dungeon.
Mikan would have called him out on the hypocrisy if she had been there.
“That kind of thing really grinds my gears. I’ll give them a little talking-to.”
“Hey...!”
Akane jumped off the roof, ignoring the Demon Lord. Her backstory dictated that she would never idly watch as someone was getting bullied. As fast as the wind, she went right up to the adventurers.
“Hey, you! No bullying on my watch!”
“Huh? Who the hell are you?”
The man who had been kicking the portly porter glared at Akane critically.
“Everyone around you is hard at work... What are you doing?”
“Shut up and buzz off.”
Of course, everyone around them was sweating from the hard restoration work. No one else had the time to bully the porter with an already-weak social standing.
“Yuck. Your face makes my stomach turn.”
“This fucking kid...!”
When the man moved to grab Akane, she disappeared from his field of view.
“Over here!”
“You little...!”
Before he knew it, Akane was behind him. With her outrageous Speed stat, she could easily dodge a storm of bullets. If she wanted to, her opponents would have already been knocked flat on the ground without getting so much of a glimpse of her.
“Stop that buzzing... Damnit!”
“Too slow, Admiral! But wow, how’d you survive this long being so slow?”
“You’re using some sort of Wind spe—ellll!?”
With a beautiful kick to the ankle, the man fell on his back. The crowd chuckled at the pathetic pose and the voice he let out. They must have been annoyed by the man jerking around while they needed every hand on deck.
“Come on, bro! If you got enough energy to talk crap, go haul off some debris!”
“Yeah, that’s right!”
“Take a look around! See anyone else goofing off!?”
“What a pathetic little man...”
The man looked left and right toward the voices around him, but soon seemed to realize that there was no one there on his side. He fled the scene, almost on all fours.
“All right, justice always prevails! And look how cute I am.”
As if making a declaration of victory, Akane puffed her flat chest and held out two fingers: V for victory. The crowd gave plenty of cheers and applause to this happy-go-lucky girl that came flying in like a comet.
“That was something, little girl!”
“Man, was that fun to watch. I never liked that slimy bastard.”
Egged on by the cheers, Akane was now beaming with pride. Eventually the portly porter stood up, and approached Akane with a faint voice, apologizing:
“I-I’m sorry... I’ve caused you so much trouble...”
“Nah, don’t worry about it. But you know what, old man?”
“Y-Yes, miss!?”
“See, you got to stop putting yourself down so much.”
“S-Sorry!”
“There you go again!”
The Demon Lord sighed as they played out their infinite loop. She was one of his creations, after all, but she seemed much too reckless. The Demon Lord sent a Communication, ready to return to the cheap inn before the situation complicated.
We’re heading back to the inn.
Whoa! We can still use Communication?
I’ll explain more at the inn.
Okie dokie!
Akane left the scene, waving at the townspeople along the way, and returned to the inn with the Demon Lord via Quick Travel. Since the restoration work had only just begun, the townspeople went back to their work.
After returning to the inn, the Demon Lord and Akane spoke of many things as they ate. At first, they were only served loaves of hardened bread by the stern-faced innkeeper, until the Demon Lord chucked a gold coin onto the table and had him bring them food from a restaurant. With a gold coin, they now had extravagant dishes filling the table. Many of them were meat dishes, like pork chop, turkey roast, and smoked lamb. There was also bean and turnip soup, but no seafood.
“Hey, Hakuto. Do you think we can use magic too? What do you think?”
While Akane was freely enjoying all of the dishes, the Demon Lord was sipping on a soup, getting tired of the meat-heavy course.
“Don’t think so.”
The Demon Lord answered as he recalled his advisors’ stats. No slot for magic. The only thing he could think of was an evolved base he designed as a joke, called Slimy Metal House that cast a magic spell called Zizzle.
“Hey! Hey, Hakuto! I was thinking...!”
One moment, Akane was interested in magic, then she wanted to dungeon-crawl, then travel around the world as an adventurer... The Demon Lord brushed off her free-spirited rants as he popped pieces of smoked meat into his mouth.
“Hey hey hey! You’re not even listening!”
“Shut up and eat.”
The Demon Lord was unbothered. Still, Akane stared at the Demon Lord, quizzically.
“What now?”
“You’ve changed a bit, Hakuto...”
The Demon Lord’s heart skipped a beat. While Akane wasn’t book-smart, her intuition was as sharp as a wild animal’s. The Demon Lord decided to agree to her comment.
“I won’t deny it. Many months have passed since I’ve come to this world...”
He was implying that everyone would undergo some changes with a shift in their environment, especially with a shift as major as coming to a new world. Akane seemed to take that as an answer.
“Okay. I like you better now, though, Hakuto.”
“Is that so? Good to hear.”
“Can’t you be a little more excited about it? What’s with the cold shoulder!?”
“What’s to get excited about being liked by you?”
“That does it...! I’m going to finish all these steaks myself!”
“Who do you think paid for those...?”
As they carried on their ruckus of a meal, the Demon Lord kept hammering in knowledge of this world into Akane. Just as a teacher would do to a student.
That night, having completed Akane’s 101 crash course of this world, the Demon Lord was watching the town alone from atop the roof. Akane was already fast asleep, sprawling across the entire bed with a satisfied expression.
(Even restoration is mostly done by magic.)
The Demon Lord pondered some things as he lit a cigarette.
(The village is in constant construction, anyway...)
The major expansion of the village of Rabbi was still ongoing, and he felt that observing the restoration process here might benefit him in some way. While various heavy machinery made modern construction possible, magic spells were the heavy machinery of this world. Large debris made lighter by Wind spells, and some cumbersome stones and walls were even sunk into the ground with Earth spells.
(Magic...)
Recalling the Water spell he was hit with in the dungeon, he couldn’t he
lp but wince. A higher-rank spell could have been lethal. He needed to work out a strategy against magic, and fast. Then, a bird came down right next to the Demon Lord deep in thought.
“Hm? Just so you know, I don’t have anything to feed you.”
There was no way that a bird should have understood him, but it remained still, as if it was resting. In fact, it even crooked its neck as if to read the Demon Lord’s expression.
“What...? You want me to find out if you’re finger-lickin’ good?”
He lazily shooed at it, but the bird remained. Surprisingly, the bird fluttered its wings and hopped over to the Demon Lord, then onto his shoulder.
“Whoa, I’m not into birds that much...”
The Demon Lord chuckled, then the color drained from his face as he heard a woman’s voice, as if spoken directly into his eardrums.
Caught you with your guard down...
An eerie voice came out of the bird’s beak. The Demon Lord subtly looked around, but couldn’t find anyone else around them. The only explanation was that the voice was spoken from the bird on his shoulder.
“Practicing your ventriloquist act?”
The Demon Lord puffed out his cigarette smoke, concealing his shock.
You are an interesting one... Are you man or devil?
“Doesn’t matter. What do you want?”
He acted as undaunted as ever, but even the Demon Lord was taken aback by the next words out of the bird’s beak.
Even with all of your powers, you are completely defenseless against magic...
“Ah... Do you think so?”
Gazing up at the moon, the Demon Lord imagined who he could be speaking to.
This little bird is the prime proof of it. Most people would keep a lowly familiar like this one away with a rudimentary protective spell or barrier... but you didn’t — or couldn’t — bother.
“I see... that you find enjoyment in eavesdropping.”
Now, he remembered that the bird on his shoulder was the same one Akane had pointed out during the day. It seemed safe to assume that the bird was listening to at least a portion of their conversation.
Empire, Sleepless Castle... I don’t understand these words that you’ve used.
“No need to understand them. Before you know it, they’ll be a reality.”
The bird finally fell silent at the Demon Lord’s bold declaration. Soon, a strange spiral appeared before the Demon Lord, and a girl adorning a black robe emerged from it. She was Olgan, the Star Player.
“One question... Are you truly the Demon Lord that appears in legends?”
“I’m not interested in fairy tales.”
The Demon Lord brushed the question off, but he really didn’t know or have interest in any legends. Only those around him kept (mistakenly) imagining the Demon Lord to be the figure in their myths.
“Then allow me to demonstrate a theory.”
“Oh? Please do.”
The Demon Lord agreed, a little nervous. Fiddling with the crystal ball in her hand, Olgan sharply glared at the Demon Lord.
“Long ago, you fought the Great Light and suffered grave injuries. You were nearly dead, or sealed. That’s my starting point.”
“Hm...”
“Now you have lost the majority of your powers, and are under some sort of heavy restraint.”
“I see.”
As he feigned nonchalance, the Demon Lord was shocked that part of her theory was true. He didn’t know if the girl thought of the fact by coincidence or perception, but it was true that many of his abilities were locked and heavily restrained.
“Now... I want to make a deal with you.”
“Deal, huh? What do you want from me?”
“There’s someone I want you to kill.”
“Now that doesn’t sound very peaceful.”
Exhaling the cigarette smoke with a sense of enjoyment, the Demon Lord was relieved for the time being. This girl didn’t seem to be the one who sent him the message in the Bastille Dungeon, nor the one who messed with his Admin features.
“It’s frustrating, but I can’t finish the kill on my own.”
“If I do kill whoever it is, what am I going to get out of it?”
A deal couldn’t stand unless it was a win-win.
“...His castle contains an abundance of gold and treasure, as well as countless historical magical items. Take them all for yourself.”
The Demon Lord held a long pause at this. Seeing his uninterested act, Olgan couldn’t help but grip her fists in anticipation of a refusal. It was do-or-die for her. After watching him in action at the counter-invasion the other day, she was sure that he really was the mythical Demon Lord, or at least someone with similar powers. This wasn’t a chance she could let slip by.
“The treasury contains seeds that boost the user’s magic abilities, crystals that temporarily boost the power of magic spells, and a magical item that will bounce off any lower-rank spell. I’m only interested in taking his head. Everything in the treasury is your reward.”
“...And who is it that you hold such a grudge against?”
Truth be told, the Demon Lord wanted to jump on the deal, but wasn’t careless enough to agree without knowing who he was dealing with.
“A grand devil said to be the next King of Devils... Belphegor.”
“The King of Devils, huh...”
With a subtle nod, the Demon Lord internally cheered in victory. The King of Devils was (what he thought to be) the weakling monster that attacked him out of the blue when he came to this world. They considered that wannabe gargoyle a king? Ridiculous. Still, the Demon Lord didn’t want to seem desperate by agreeing too easily. Just as the Demon Lord of the Empire would have, he refused to make a clear answer for a while...
“All the treasure in his castle isn’t enough for you...?”
The Demon Lord again only answered with silence. In situations like these, silence was golden. More often than not, the terms of the deal would only improve.
“Then, I’ll make sure you have whatever it is you want. You name it.”
“Oh...?”
The Demon Lord gave her a sharp glare. Finally, some music to his ears. His attitude showed it, too. Olgan was wary of what he could possibly ask for, but she needed him to say yes, above all else. Whether he knew Olgan’s thoughts or not, the Demon Lord solemnly spread his arms and declared:
“Rejoice. Your wish is granted...”
Even Olgan was stunned at his absolute confidence. He already seemed sure of his victory.
“Quite the confidence... We’re infiltrating his land in Hellion territory.”
“No matter. Why do you want this devil dead, anyway?”
Olgan looked to her feet, and remained silent for a long while. It didn’t seem like something she wanted to say. Still, she must have decided that she couldn’t afford to upset the Demon Lord over it. Reluctantly, she answered.
“Because that devil... is my father.”
Now the Demon Lord was actually struck silent. He couldn’t imagine how a father and daughter could want to kill each other, but assumed that devils lived in a different world than humans.
(Her dad’s a devil, huh...?)
At the same time, he finally noticed that the girl before him was no ordinary human, but a Firebrand like Tron.
“Now, what should I call you? Demon Lord? Or do you prefer Fallen Angel...?”
“Demon Lord is fine.”
The Demon Lord contained his laughter at the mention of Fallen Angel. He recalled the cringey story about Lucifer he had read in the library with Aku and shrugged his shoulders.
“I see. Then I will address you as such, Demon Lord. When do we leave?”
“Now.”
“What?”
“Didn’t you hear me? We’re leaving now.”
“W-Wait a minute! We’ll need some time to prepare before attacking his castle...”
“No need at all. We have Akane with us, anyway.”
With that, th
e Demon Lord jumped right off of the roof and headed to the inn. Olgan could only watch him disappear into the town.
—Later in the night, when all were asleep...
The four-member party was gathered at the entrance of town: the Demon Lord, the still half-asleep Akane, Olgan the Firebrand, and S-rank adventurer Mynk. Ordinarily, these four would have never crossed paths, but now that they were together, it was quite the sight.
“Hey, Hakuto. Who are these people? I’m tired...” Akane said, wobbling as if she was about to fall asleep standing.
Mynk was surprised to see the Demon Lord, too.
“Why is the Demon Lord here...? My sworn nemesis!”
(Nemesis?) the Demon Lord thought, puzzled. Olgan, trying to assume the role of the leader, shortly explained to the party:
“We will infiltrate Hellion territory. Our objective is to kill Belphegor.”
The Demon Lord nodded with reverence. Akane had already fallen asleep, still standing. Mynk alone reacted in surprise.
“Hellion territory...!? With just the four of us!?”
“With just the four of us. Any weaklings would only get in our way.” Olgan countered stoically to Mynk’s reasonable reaction. Olgan knew full well how insane this was, and even she was having a hard time keeping her composure.
“T-This is your plan, isn’t it, Demon Lord...!? You’re trying to usurp me as the superior agent of darkness...!”
Mynk glared at the Demon Lord with animosity, jabbing the air between them with her finger.
“What is she going on about?”
“Ignore her. It’s a sickness.”
“Are you out of your mind, Olgan!? If darkness meets darkness, the Dark Salamander sealed in my right hand may arise from its slumber!”
Mynk grasped her right hand, showing a pained expression. Seeing her, the Demon Lord seemed to understand that she had a bad case of goth or emo or something. At this rate, their departure was only going to delay.
“Olgan, was it? Lead the way to... Hellion territory, right?”
“All right. Mynk, knock off the nonsense.”
“Nonsense!? Once I set a single foot in that place, I won’t be able to contain my... Hey!”
Olgan grabbed her by the neck and sprinted. The Demon Lord carried Akane (still masterfully standing and sleeping) under one arm and followed. The mismatched quartet began their invasion of Hellion territory, uncharted by man. One might have shuddered to imagine what sort of commotion they would bring with them.
Demon Lord, Retry! Volume 3 Page 20