The Grellverelka Empire
“Haaah, traveling all the way from the surface and crossing the Unlimited Poison Sand. You’ve got some nerve!”
Shutra and the others were using the sisters’ fight happening in the distance as a topic of conversation, their chat blossoming. Before they knew it, Melfina had joined them, leading to even more camaraderie. They had even spread out Melfina’s special lunchbox and a mat.
“I was just being carried on Mel (Sister’s) back. I was asleep, so I don’t really remember much…”
“Don’t be so modest. The fact that you could sleep in that poisoned place is impressive enough.”
“That’s right. You were in the midst of evolution, so Shutra should have been more reliant then. Ah, may I have some of that fried chicken?”
“Sure, here you go.”
“Thank you. Nnnh—! Melfina’s cooking is exceptional, as always.”
Melfina shrieked with joy as she bit into the golden fried chicken she received from Vegalzelld. Setting aside the panting pervert beside her, a generally harmonious atmosphere had settled in.
“Exactly. Demons are generally indifferent to cooking. Some have unintentionally improved, but none reached this level. That Efil, I wish she’d work for us.”
“Efil (Female) is head over heels for Kelvin (Older Brother), so it’s 100% impossible. She immediately rejects offers from any major power.”
“Is that so? What a shame… If she came to us now, there’d be an open spot among the Four Heavenly Kings of Demon, a chance for a lone female to join.”
“The Four Heavenly Kings of Demon can include non-demons…”
Wouldn’t a mere ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ be fine then? Shutra thought, but since everyone has their own sense of style, she decided not to voice her opinion as it shouldn’t be easily dismissed.
“Speaking of which, you mentioned evolution earlier, right? Ah, I think it was Shutra. I heard it’s rare for humans to evolve, but at your age, isn’t that even more unusual?”
“Is that so? My Older Brother, Big Sister, and Grandpa are all stronger than me, so I’ve never really thought about it. Ah, I wonder if I could beat Dahak now?”
“Hmm, you might be able to. Let’s verify that when Dahak returns.”
“—I’ve only ever seen humans evolve within a Hero’s party, and not all of those Heroes evolved… You guys aren’t some kind of new type of Hero, are you?”
Vegalzelld was thinking of the previous generation of Heroes, Serge and the others. Since the one who defeated him was a Hero, he might have a complex about them.
“Hahaha, (My friends are Heroes, but I’m) not a Hero!”
“Ufufu, unfortunately, I am also not (a Hero, as I am a Goddess).”
“(Although I was the catalyst for the summoning) there’s no way someone like me could be a Hero-sama.”
“Is that so? Then I can rest easy!”
Through telepathy, they seemed to hear a sneeze from the sister-type dual-wielding Hero.
“Not to brag, but I haven’t fallen behind either! Among the Four Heavenly Kings of Demon, only the leader Sebastian Del had surpassed the ‘High-ranking Demon’ wall, but after my revival, I was subjected to what Lord Bel called the ‘Death March’ training without question. I literally trained to the brink of death and survived, and now I’ve evolved into this magnificent state! Well, I suppose my original level was already high.”
“Death March? …A march of death. Ah, so you really are sisters.”
Shutra seemed to recall something and came to a realization while thinking to herself. Her mind conjured images of Touya and the others in distress.
“So, that means all of you, the Four Heavenly Kings of Demon, have evolved?”
“Except for Sebastian Del, who was already a top-tier demon. This is just between us, but Gustav-sama also underwent Lord’s training. Wanting to show off to his daughter, he grew the most… Frankly, he’s become even more unmanageable than when he was the Demon King.”
“Oh, my! My Older Brother would be delighted.”
“A father striving for his daughter… Family love is a wonderful thing!”
“Your surprised reactions are quite different from what I expected…”
The ancient Demon King has been resurrected and even strengthened. It’s easy to forget, but this is where one should feel fear. The most rapidly growing demon, his name is the former Demon King Gustav. One who is rigorously trained by his daughter and finds joy in it…! You shouldn’t convert your thoughts like that.
“Ah, that’s right. If Gustav, Sera’s father, is here, then I must also deliver that report.”
“You mean that thing? Hmmm, Sera (Big Sister)’s ‘that’ is indeed something we can’t avoid.”
“What’s this, what’s this? What is this report? Did something Happy happen to Lord Sera?”
“Yes, it’s something Happy. After all, it’s about Kelvin (Older Brother) and Sera’s engagement. We must offer our congratulations properly.”
“Hoh, that’s Happy indeed! An engagement greeting to Gustav-sama and Lord Sera… Guve-rabu-ss!”
Vegalzelld suddenly spouted blood.
“O-O-Uncle!?”
“…W-wait. Please, just wait a moment. What did you just say?”
“Ah, um, Sera (Big Sister) is engaged—”
“Daburascam!?”
Vegalzelld, while spitting blood, did a backflip. He’s acting nonsensically due to shock. His agitation was even greater than Gallia’s.
“Are you alright!?”
“Haa, haa… I-I’m not alright, but I’ll be fine. More importantly, this is Bad, this is terribly Bad! You guys better leave here quickly. If you become associated with someone who’s aiming to get engaged to Lord Sera, let alone date her, your entire family clan will be massacred by Gustav-sama!”
“Wh-what!?”
“Gustav-sama is always tyrannical, but when it comes to his daughters, he goes even more out of control! He won’t show any mercy, even to women and children, just like me!”
“Ah, so you were showing mercy after all. Thank you, Doctor.”
“Don’t interrupt me! And forget what I just said! …Listen, when it comes to Gustav-sama’s orders, even I can’t defy them. If it hasn’t been discovered yet, I might be able to overlook it. As long as you scum are obeying my orders, it shouldn’t have reached Gustav-sama, who is higher up in the command chain. Now, if you understand, hurry up and get out of here! I’ll seriously eat you!”
Vegalzelld stood up and started to menace them with his arms spread wide. There was no trace of his earlier casual demeanor.
“…Uncle, Older Brother has already entered the Demon Capital. Even if you say that, we can’t just leave by ourselves.”
“Sorry, but give up on Kelvin. He’ll likely be judged by Gustav-sama himself. So, give up. That’s all I can say.”
Vegalzelld was serious. Shutra, Colette, and Melfina, who were present, were skilled at reading human emotions, but regardless of that, their earnestness was palpable.
“I see. Hmm, Doctor Uncle, you are indeed kind. But I still can’t accept your proposal.”
“That’s right. I agree with Shutra-chan. Abandoning Kelvin-sama, who is god-like, is absolutely unthinkable.”
At the same time, the golden Wise Woman and the silver Saint stood up. In their hands were threads imbued with magic power, and beside them, the lion statue, Mystic Cougar, was growling.
“…Fools. If it comes to this, I’ll stop you even if I have to knock you out. Know the power of me, the Giant King of Demons, a power that rivals that of past Demon Kings!”
As Melfina took another serving of her lunchbox from Kuro’s storage, a fierce battle was about to begin.
