We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Please don’t involve me, okay?
“Elnea-kun, please kill the Demon Lord.”
“Huh? …No, no, no, you demon with the sideways rolled blond hair. I can’t kill the Giant Demon Lord.”
“Oh? Are you intending to point your blade at me?”
“Kyaa!”
The Shooting Star Miko-samas, who overheard our unsettling conversation, are frozen with their faces contorted in speechlessness.
Everyone, this is just a joke from our side, the demon race!
“Fufufu, it is no joke. His Majesty is requesting Elnea-kun to kill the Demon Lord.”
“Though you’ve just arrived, the Giant Demon Lord and you, please leave. Or rather, we are heading to the Armēdo Kingdom and Yorttenitos Kingdom on business, so we can’t be bothered with this.”
“Elnea, I will go to the Dragon Forest first.”
“Nooo! I’ve been immediately abandoned by Mistral!”
“You prioritize going to the human race’s country over my request? In that case, to remove your worries, I shall personally destroy those two nations. Be grateful.”
“I won’t be! Massacre, no! Absolutely not!!”
The only ones laughing at the exchange between myself, the Giant Demon Lord, and Charlotte are unfortunately my kin and the Puppet King.
Not only the Shooting Star Miko-samas, but everyone from the Mimicho Race is also staring blankly and has fainted. Even Astel is clearly displaying his displeasure, with no smile on his face.
“…Huh? Why is Astel back here!?”
It’s then that I finally hear the reason for the Demon Lords’ sudden visit.
“Fufufu, the Demon Lord.”
“I won’t kill him!”
I maintain my firm refusal.
However, Charlotte’s persistent request to kill the Demon Lord makes me wonder if the answer to my question is hidden within her joke.
So, why did Charlotte start saying, “I want you to kill the Demon Lord”?
The “Demon Lord” Charlotte speaks of is not, of course, the Giant Demon Lord, is it? Perhaps she’s talking about another Demon Lord?
The Demon Lords I know are the Sage Demon Lord, who has the Shuzan Palace, where the true rulers of the Demon Race live, near the capital city. To the northwest of that Sage Demon Lord’s domain, bordering it, is the Verdant Demon Lord.
And then, the Fairy Demon Lord, who has relocated to the east of the Heavenly Mountain Range.
“Hah! Don’t tell me, the Fairy Demon Lord broke her promise to me and is causing trouble for the Eastern Magician again? And the Giant Demon Lord is angry about that!?”
“Elnea-kun, unfortunately, that is incorrect.”
“As punishment, your dinner tonight is canceled.”
“That’s a subtly unpleasant punishment! As expected of an evil Demon Lord!!”
Is it my imagination? My wives have already left me to go to the room for teleportation to the Dragon Forest.
And Astel is glaring at me, looking displeased. It’s certainly not my fault, which is unreasonable.
“Hmm. Is there some connection between the sudden request made to me and Astel’s unexpected return?”
The Giant Demon Lord and Charlotte came to the Forbidden Territory along with Astel, not as a visit, right?
Personally, I want this extremely dangerous request of “Please kill the Demon Lord” to be a joke from the demon race.
But, it’s probably not…
And there must be some reason why Astel, who left saying he was concerned about the territory and Toris-kun, has returned to the Forbidden Territory like this, and it’s probably connected to the request to kill the Demon Lord.
“You are astute. Well, if you couldn’t grasp my intentions in this situation, I would have sent you to enemy territory without question.”
“Uwah, that’s tyrannical! That’s the kind of method the demon race uses!”
…Wait, they’re demons, and Demon Lords at that!
Putting that joke aside.
“I won’t kill the Demon Lord, but can I ask you a few things?”
“Fufufu. Elnea-kun, if you ask about the circumstances, you can’t escape.”
“No no no, by the time the Demon Lords came to the Forbidden Territory, it was already confirmed that I would get involved and couldn’t escape, right?”
Even so, I won’t accept the request to kill the Demon Lord!
Just as I didn’t kill the Miko Knight Alice.
“Oh? It seems an interesting person was staying here? Then, tell us in an amusing way.”
“Uh, were you listening to my story? I have to go to the Armēdo Kingdom and Yorttenitos Kingdom from now on. Therefore, I cannot entertain the Demon Lords!”
They are such troublesome people. To push their own affairs onto me without regard for my own schedule.
“Is that so? As usual, you were busy. Then it cannot be helped. I shall return Astel to his territory. However, if I send him back in his current state without proper guards, he will surely be kidnapped.”
“Eh!?”
“Your Majesty, that is a troubling problem, isn’t it? If we left him to Elnea-kun and the others in the Forbidden Territory, Lord Cat Duke’s safety would have been secured.”
“Eeeeh!?”
“That’s right. I had intended to resolve the issue of the Mad Abyss Demon Lord in the meantime, but my plan has failed.”
“Uh…?”
“Then, regrettably… many commoners of that nation will lose their lives, won’t they?”
“Wh-wait a minute!”
“It would be good if the matter were contained within his country alone, but since they are targeting Astel, it may even develop into a war involving the Divine Race.”
“Yes, at this point, the unsettling conversation ends here!”
Ah…
This is a troublesome situation, isn’t it?
The Demon Lords are worried that a problem has started in a southern demon race’s country, and if left unchecked, it could escalate into a major war.
And the situation has already developed to the point where Astel’s safety is threatened, and they are trying to push it onto me!
“That’s right. This Forbidden Territory is the safest place to protect Astel’s person. And yet, he came back to his territory so carelessly.”
“Hmph. What’s wrong with coming back to where I like, when I like?”
Astel bares his fangs like a cat and threatens the Demon Lord.
He expresses his emotions honestly, even towards the Giant Demon Lord. This observation will have to wait for another occasion.
“Uh, is the Demon Lord called the Mad Abyss Demon Lord trying to kidnap Astel?”
Why? The question immediately came to my mind, even for me.
“The mention of the Divine Race in the conversation means that if the problem in the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country is left unattended, it could escalate into a war with the Divine Race? If it becomes a war, a lot of supplies will be needed, so is Astel, who has the ability of Material Creation, being targeted?”
“That is correct,” Charlotte says with a smile, narrowing her eyes.
“To be more precise, there is a small civil conflict occurring in His Majesty the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country. However, if it were a normal civil conflict, it would be a common occurrence in demon race countries, so other nations would not be unduly concerned…”
The demon race’s country is truly a place of the survival of the fittest.
If you show weakness, you’ll be backstabbed. Even Demon Lords are the same; their vassals rebelling or bandits rampant are everyday occurrences, aren’t they?
In fact, we were just caught up in a civil conflict in the Verdant Demon Lord’s country, I saw the Puppet King listening to our story with enjoyment.
“Fufu, fufufu. Both enemies and allies find the ‘foolish cat’s’ abilities attractive. Please rest assured. As long as they desire the ‘foolish cat’s’ abilities, their lives will be guaranteed.”
“No no, you can’t think that it’s okay to be kidnapped just because your life is guaranteed!”
I’m talking about the Puppet King. If Astel is kidnapped, he will surely use it as material to create a new puppet show.
This time, in the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country.
“By the way, who is the Mad Abyss Demon Lord?”
I tilt my head at the existence of a Demon Lord I’ve never heard of. Then, Charlotte tells me.
“As Elnea-kun is aware, there were formerly three demon race countries bordering the west of Dragon Peak.”
Dragon Peak and the demon race’s countries have long borders running north and south.
However, the Fairy Demon Lord Kusharilla, who was located furthest north, was relocated far to the west, and that territory is now ruled by the Giant Demon Lord.
So, Charlotte’s words are in the past tense.
But I know that the Giant Demon Lord’s territory borders the west of Dragon Peak, but what about the other country?
“To the south of the country ruled by His Majesty, there is also a demon race country. That country’s Demon Lord is the Mad Abyss Demon Lord.”
“So that’s how it is! This means it also borders the Berisalia Empire, a Divine Race country, further south? Ah, so that’s why if the civil conflict grows, the Divine Race might attack?”
But the Berisalia Empire should be focusing on its western expedition, so would they open a front in the western region?
I am ignorant of international warfare and ambitions, so I simply voiced my question.
“That is correct. Those Divine Race barbarians are in the process of steadily preparing to invade the human race’s cultural sphere far to the west.”
At Charlotte’s words, the Shooting Star Miko-samas tense up.
The Shooting Star Miko-samas must also be perplexed, knowing that the human race faces an existential crisis.
And the fact that the Demon Lords and Charlotte are discussing this without clearing the area implies that they intentionally want to inform the Shooting Star Miko-samas about the world situation.
“Nevertheless, if the demon race intervenes, those Divine Race barbarians won’t stand idly by, will they?”
“Eh? Wait a minute. Why would a civil conflict within the demon race lead to a war with the Divine Race’s country?”
A civil conflict is when demons fight amongst themselves, right?
To my question, Charlotte answers politely.
“Fufufu. Elnea-kun, we are demons, aren’t we? Causing trouble, rampaging, and toying with things are our true desires. Therefore, isn’t it natural to think of getting involved with and rampaging against those Divine Race barbarians by taking advantage of the chaos among the demon race?”
“No, that’s absolutely not normal!”
That’s the common sense of demons, and the uncommon sense of the world!
“Nevertheless, if there is chaos in a demon race’s country, the Divine Race barbarians will not overlook it. We do not want the Divine Race barbarians to use a civil conflict within a demon race’s country. Therefore, you go into his country ahead of them and kill the Demon Lord.”
“So that’s what this was about! I absolutely refuse!!”
That’s an outrageously dangerous request.
A civil conflict is occurring in the Mad Abyss Demon Lord’s country. Astel is being targeted, and there’s a possibility of Divine Race intervention, or perhaps an excessive number of demons might attack the Divine Race’s country. Therefore, kill the Demon Lord to resolve the problem!
“Hmm? Now that I think about it, a question arises. If I defeat the Demon Lord of a country where a civil conflict is occurring, won’t the situation worsen? Wouldn’t it be better to defeat the ringleader of the civil conflict rather than kill the Demon Lord?”
“Yes. Therefore, His Majesty is making a request to Elnea-kun. He wants him to kill the ringleader of the civil conflict, His Majesty the Mad Abyss Demon Lord.”
“Right, I don’t understand at all!!”
My head is starting to get confused.
A civil conflict is usually a disturbance caused by rebellious vassals or bandits, isn’t it?
Yet, the Demon Lord, the ruler of the country, is the ringleader of the civil conflict!?
What is going on?
“Fuh, this is why that fool Dragon King…”
“Astel, if you keep saying things like that, I won’t protect you.”
“Who would willingly be indebted to you!”
“Fufu, fufufu. It seems like another fun daily life awaits us?”
“Just thinking about the developments ahead is giving me a headache…”
Will I be able to refuse the request from the Extremely Evil Demon Race skillfully and go to the Armēdo Kingdom and Yorttenitos Kingdom safely…
