Chapter 291

Chapter 291

Otherworld Demon King Survival Guide.

Episode 291: Regrouping (2)

ㅡCheok!

The goblin infantry, dressed in standardized military gear, assumed their spear-wielding stance. Seeing them all lined up filled me with satisfaction and a shiver of excitement—it was truly overwhelming.

“Kkeuhk…!”

At last, my army had proper military equipment!

The compensation and supplies extorted from the Helson Barony were incredibly useful. With them, I finally created what could be called a real army.

“Keruk!”

“Keruk!”

“Keruk!”

All members of the goblin infantry, excluding the new recruits, wore unified outfits.

They donned green-hued quilted armor under their plate cuirasses, all designed to look identical. Their shoulders were protected by plate pauldrons, and every soldier wore iron gauntlets.

They also wore combat trousers reinforced with leather around the thighs and boots crafted from high-quality leather.

This was a truly perfect set of personal equipment!

“At ease!”

“At ease, Keruk!”

And that was not all!

The goblins all wore matching iron helmets with brims. Think of them as helmets shaped like straw hats!

Now they weren’t just soldiers—they had become proper heavy infantry. But if it ended here, it would simply be well-equipped armor.

There was an essential feature I added.

“Hehehe.”

The custom-made goblin iron masks.

Since goblins had long noses, wearing ordinary helmets made them look odd with their noses sticking out. That was when I got the idea.

“It’s like the mask of a plague doctor.”

Yes, these iron masks covered even the goblins’ noses. With their long noses tucked inside, the masks resemble a plague doctor’s mask—but with an open lower section, giving them a unique appearance.

When the goblins put on these masks over their armor…

“They look exactly like the army of a Demon King.”

It was a peculiar, exotic, and absurdly stylish infantry. I couldn’t get enough of how amazing those masks looked!

“Guys! How do you like the new equipment?”

When I asked with enthusiasm—

“I love it, Master! Especially the mask! The mask is amazing! Keruuuk!”

“The mask is fantastic, Keruk!”

“Keruk! Keruk! Long live the iron masks!”

“Chills of pure coolness! Kerurururk!!!”

All my subordinates responded with excitement! The goblins knew just how stylish they looked right now!

Soldiers radiating insane levels of coolness!

“From today, all this equipment is yours! Take good care of it!”

“Keryaak! Thank you so much, Master!”

Ah, why was managing this army so enjoyable? Just seeing them in armor made them look so powerful.

“From now on, you’ll train in this gear! It may be heavy, but remember, you are beings empowered by the Demon King’s magic! The harder you train, the stronger you’ll become. Make that armor a part of you! Long live the invincible Kyuse Demon Army!”

“Long live! Keruk!”

“Long live! Keruk!”

“Long live! Keruk!”

The goblins shouted joyfully.

Not a single goblin complained about the heavy equipment. They knew that this hardship would turn into strength and endurance.

“This is truly the army of the Demon King. How magnificent.”

The Saintess, standing beside me, expressed her admiration.

“Don’t you agree?”

“A unified, strong army. Just imagining how our enemies will react fills me with delight. Fufufu.”

Exactly.

That was the point.

This sense of unity!

Soldiers clad in identical armor, moving in perfect coordination—it’s enough to intimidate any opponent. Just looking organized makes them seem incredibly powerful.

And it was not just the goblins.

“Nekri, line up the Dark Elf special forces.”

“Yes!”

The Dark Elves also wore standardized equipment, though their design differed from that of the goblins. It was leather armor, which suited the Dark Elves perfectly.

Since the Dark Elves weren’t meant to fight in formation like the goblins, their armor design had to be different.

“Perfect! And Juria!”

“Y-Yes, my lord!”

Unfortunately, the lamias didn’t have standardized armor. Outfitting them in full plate armor would have required an enormous amount of resources, so I had to settle for unified quilted under-armor.

Their outer armor was worn freely, giving them a variety of appearances. But it wasn’t a problem—it actually made them look cooler. Knights were supposed to wear individualized armor anyway. That was exactly the vibe the lamias gave off.

“Truly splendid! It’s the best!”

With this, we had almost completed our standardized equipment. The goblin infantry would serve as our symbol.

Relatively peaceful days passed.

With no external threats, we focused on internal affairs, military training, and stockpiling supplies.

Living as a lord like this for a while had gradually improved my management skills, and I had become more efficient in operating the territory compared to before.

“Though, to be honest, it’s all thanks to the Saintess.”

If it weren’t for the Saintess, I’d be in serious trouble. There’s no way I could have managed the domain by myself with my abilities alone.

Anyway.

Leaving those matters to the Saintess, I focused on other things.

Whenever reports came in about monsters attacking farmland, I immediately deployed troops and “harvested” new recruits. I trained those recruits and spent some of my time with nuns who had fled here, attracted by the Saintess’s reputation.

It was a productive time indeed.

Feeling that things had somewhat stabilized, I gave an order to Vanessa.

“Vanessa, could you check on our homeland?”

“Do you mean going to the old dungeon and checking on the hobgoblins and lizardmen?”

“Yes.”

“Haa… a reconnaissance mission, is it? Well, I suppose I have no choice but to carry out the order. Please provide detailed instructions.”

“Understood. Thank you very much, Vanessa.”

“A knight merely follows orders.”

I had planned to inspect things once the situation had stabilized. Both the hobgoblins and lizardmen could prove to be valuable soldiers.

The jungle was my last line of defense. There should at least be one monster settlement under my control there.

Though the farmland they cultivated was tiny compared to what humans produce, having it was still essential. I just hoped they had built their strength properly.

ㅡSeuk seuk.

I wrote up the orders for Vanessa. In addition to checking on the monsters, I asked her to keep an eye on the Dark Elves and Lamias.

Though I had already taken the nearby Dark Elves and Lamias under my command, many more of them were lurking deep within the jungle.

Both races were endowed with the qualities of excellent soldiers. If given the chance, I might even launch a conquest to bring them all under my control.

With those thoughts in mind, I finished writing.

“Sharan, could you deliver this to Vanessa?”

“Yes, Master.”

“And this one, pass it to Ruby.”

“Shasha.”

Since they were heading out on a mission, I needed to arrange supplies too. Ruby had been working really hard lately. Anyway, it was about time I contacted Karuti for our regular report.

Since my conversation with the Duchess, she has shown up occasionally. Whenever I talked with Karuti, the Duchess would sometimes appear to praise me.

But… there was no “service.”

It was a bit disappointing.

I wondered if I needed to do something better to earn some kind of service from her.

Not that I was enchanted by her, of course. Watching her regularly would help build resistance, after all… Ah, damn. I really wanted to devour that Duchess—wait, what was I even thinking?

Just then—

“Master.”

Lumica, who had gone downstairs, called out to me.

“Oh, Lumica. What is it?”

“Well, the Saintess said she has something to discuss. She’ll be coming up shortly and asked me to let you know.”

“Something to discuss? What is it?”

“I’m not sure. I didn’t get the details.”

“What could it be?”

Well, since she said she’d come up soon, I’ll just wait until then to find out.

“…A request for an audience has been made.”

With a serious expression, the Saintess spoke.

“Who has requested an audience?”

“Take a look at this.”

The Saintess handed me a letter.

“A letter came from the Saidin family, requesting that we receive their envoy with hospitality.”

“The Saidin family, huh.”

I hadn’t memorized all the nobles in the kingdom yet, but I remembered the Saintess mentioning the Saidin family before.

“Isn’t that the place where you were considering seeking refuge, if things didn’t work out?”

“Yes, that was before I came here.”

It was a story from before the Saintess arrived in this territory.

At that time, the Saintess, who had been at the center, was being relentlessly pursued by angels, her life constantly at risk.

There were a few nobles who extended a helping hand, and one of them was Count Saidin. He stood at the forefront of the faction opposing the angels. To put it simply, he was the most influential noble among those who resisted the angels—a powerful aristocrat who had no intention of allowing the angels to seize power.

Thanks to Count Saidin, the anti-angel faction of nobles was able to unite and resist the angels at the center. That speaks to the immense power the Count wields.

Lea, while on the run, had insisted multiple times that they should seek refuge with Count Saidin’s family rather than face death.

“However, I couldn’t accept that proposal. My goal was to rebuild, revive, and ultimately reign over the Goddess Church. If I had accepted the Count’s protection, I would have been forced to serve under him forever.”

“That’s true.”

“And that’s not all. I would have had to become the Count’s concubine under the guise of an alliance—handling state affairs by day and serving him in bed by night.”

“Just thinking about it makes me furious. How dare he lay a hand on my woman?”

“Aah!”

When I expressed my possessiveness, the Saintess squeezed her thighs together and blushed. That bastard Saidin—what a vile man, trying to NTR my woman. Unforgivable.

“Y-Yes… This Saintess’s body belongs only to you, the most superior male…”

“Of course. I’m the only one allowed to play with the Saintess.”

Anyway, it seemed that damn Count heard about the Saintess being here and decided to send an envoy.

“So, Saintess, what do you think this means?”

“I doubt it’s anything good. Count Saidin is an ambitious noble. Since you aim to reign supreme, it’s likely that you and he share a similar goal.”

I would become the great king.

And that grand noble undoubtedly harbors the same ambition. Everyone dreamed of being king, after all.

“So, he’s my competitor, and the Saintess is the irresistible prize everyone desires.”

“Hehehe, yes, that’s exactly right.”

This was troubling.

A grand noble far stronger than I was had now taken an interest in us.

Count Saidin was said to be a central figure in the anti-angel faction. But now that the Saintess was here, there was bound to be friction.

“Is he coming to ‘sort things out’? Saintess, do you have any advice?”

“Though I have some guesses, I can’t be certain. Perhaps we should talk with the envoy first?”

“Yes, I suppose we should.”

Whatever it was, I didn’t have a good feeling about this.