Ch.76To the Human Realm (1)

The stagnant state affairs suddenly gained momentum.

With the hero as a guide, they would advance into the human realm. They would exact revenge against the heavens while simultaneously slaughtering the escaped former Demon King and erasing the pain of the previous era.

Once clear objectives were set, the demons moved as one. They inspected weapons and sorted incoming warriors from various regions, assigning them to appropriate legions. The castle overflowed with vitality, seeming to reflect fragments of its golden age.

High-ranking demons from other continents could especially feel the nostalgia of those times. Most had grown disillusioned with the central authority, so they now saw hope. Perhaps they could return to those days once more.

“Impressive. To think you could elevate things to this extent.”

At the eastern gate of the Demon King’s castle.

As sorcerers gathered demonic energy to continuously activate spatial transfers, the first greater demon appeared with a smile.

“So I’ll express my admiration once more. Lord Regent. As the guardian of Istria, I’m once again feeling your greatness.”

Eastern Grand Duke Lucifer Astasha Del Istria.

Responding to the Demon King’s summons, he spread his arms in greeting.

Once comrades in the Black Army who fought on the same battlefield, the two demons now met again as representatives of their respective continents.

“Lucifer. Won’t you set aside your position as Grand Duke and serve as High King?”

“Haha. Wouldn’t that require me to reside in the central region?”

“I found no relevant guidelines in the law. It doesn’t matter if you remain in the east.”

“Then I’ll maintain my position as Grand Duke. I’ve lived with that name for over a hundred years, so anything else wouldn’t feel right.”

He said this as he approached the Demon King.

Behind the Regent waited his daughter. Once a thoughtless young lady, she now had the clear-eyed face of a ruler.

Though joy and pride coexisted within him, the Grand Duke didn’t show it. Displaying only loyalty, he advanced before his master and knelt.

“Your Majesty.”

“Thank you for responding to my summons.”

He maintained formality for this reason. The affairs of the realm were more important than blood ties. As the demon realm stood at a turning point toward its golden age, only proper etiquette passed between them.

“According to law, a banquet should be held when the rulers of each continent gather, but the current situation is more urgent, so we’ll discuss the future in the royal hall.”

“Let everything be according to Your Majesty’s will.”

“Please go inside. I’ll wait here for the other rulers.”

“I’ll do as commanded.”

The Grand Duke rose. Exchanging only a glance in greeting, he headed down the corridor to his designated place.

“……”

Serphin didn’t turn her head. The gate was stirring again, so she prepared to welcome the arriving vassals.

North, South, and West.

She steeled herself to convey her intentions to those who had shared in the demon realm’s history.

Though a young demon, she needed to maintain her presence and receive their homage without faltering.

Honestly, even that moment facing the Grand Duke hadn’t been entirely to her liking.

The next would be better.

“The Northern Grand Warrior requests an audience!”

The gate sorcerer asked Serphin.

She infused power even into this formal procedure. Serphin lifted her head firmly and called out:

“Let him enter!”

#

“Hmm.”

“I didn’t expect to see all your faces like this, but everyone looks quite well.”

The meeting of continental rulers. Due to civil war and antagonism over the past century, they weren’t on particularly good terms.

Many demons were surprised that the central authority had summoned them at all. The South was irrelevant since they had been executed, but the Northern Grand Warrior’s presence was most unexpected.

“Do you want to study your enemy with your own eyes?”

“Hardly. The North is under the castle’s rule. Our will was severed after the last war.”

“I heard you charged in during the war, saying you’d kill the current Demon King. Hard to believe.”

“One must do their best in war. Should we fight while considering the opponent?”

This drew the most attention. As Yoannina from the West gently prodded him, the Eastern Grand Duke added his own comment.

“I heard our Eastern forces stopped you. You might want to try harder.”

“It was the Regent who defeated me. Lucifer, you’re hardly in a position to run your mouth.”

“Says the one who lost the northeastern territory to us. Want to fight again?”

“You’ve grown arrogant since your child became ruler. Do you think you’re sitting on the throne?”

The atmosphere quickly turned hostile. When demons who had lived for hundreds of years clashed, it was different from the mere disputes over formalities that used to occur in the royal hall. The atmosphere had significantly deteriorated, to the point where Aurelia, the South’s governor of much lower rank, could barely breathe and could only blink her eyes.

“You should watch your words, Grand Warrior.”

“You started the fight, but now you’re backing down.”

“Hmph. The northern nomad speaks well. This is more irritating than I expected.”

Demonic energy swirled, filling the royal hall. The royal guards tightened their grip on their weapons.

Though conflict shouldn’t happen, they were prepared to intervene immediately if it did. They wanted the chaos from the previous hero incident to be the last disturbance in the Demon King’s castle.

“Enough.”

Fortunately, it ended at the level of verbal sparring.

Durin, entering through the hall doors, cut off the power struggle between the two. The dispersed demonic energy scattered instantly.

As red battle intent dominated the hall, the Grand Warrior and Grand Duke had no choice but to back down.

“The King will enter soon. Maintain silence.”

He said this while guarding the throne. He suppressed any rash behavior.

“Um… Durin?”

Yoannina asked cautiously. The Queen of Monsters glanced around nervously as she tried to rise from her seat.

“I need to make a presentation before His Majesty today. May I prepare first?”

“I permit it.”

“Thank you!”

Even a demon who had lived a thousand years became small before him.

The others were the same. Though they feigned composure, they began to move while strictly observing protocol.

The authority of the Demon King’s castle that tolerated no disorder.

It was a moment when the powerful strength forged through victory shone brightly.

#

The first agenda of the rulers’ meeting was none other than the treatment of the hero.

Information about the one who had left indelible wounds on the demon realm had spread after the war. Some places were shocked, while others had already known unofficially and were just waiting for official acknowledgment.

Thanks to this, reactions were mild compared to the unprecedented situation. They calmly laid out response measures.

“Since we need to use him as a guide anyway, wouldn’t binding magic be sufficient?”

“Haven’t you heard about the recent disturbance? They say he fought equally with the Regent.”

“Huh? Wasn’t that just Durin playing around?”

“Y-yes, I thought so too.”

Various opinions emerged, but this matter wasn’t treated seriously.

With Durin present, what was there to worry about? With a controller more powerful than binding magic, they couldn’t think of other options.

Following custom, they conducted a formal vote and quickly moved on.

Their interest lay in the second item.

“Then shall we talk about the expedition to the human realm?”

When Yoannina stepped forward, the hall’s focus intensified.

Those who had been fighting within the demon realm finally had an opportunity to advance into a new world. While the heavenly realm was a land where they needed to fulfill their long-desired revenge, the human realm was an unknown land that offered possibilities.

“Now, now. I’ve collected information based on the gates I secured while clearing out angel outposts. I’ve gathered quite a bit of meaningful data through reconnaissance beasts, so you can look forward to it.”

The thousand-year-old demon showed interest.

Serphin, seated on the throne, leaned forward. Seeing this, Yoannina grinned. On the prepared stage, she continued excitedly.

“You all probably know roughly, but the human realm is currently in great chaos due to the Crusades.”

“Is it an army to capture the Demon King?”

“That’s the pretext, at least. They say they’re moving under the Pope’s direction after receiving revelations from angels.”

She affirmed the King’s question. However, it wasn’t a complete answer.

“That’s how it started. But it means it eventually degenerated in a different direction.”

“As expected of your intelligence. They call it a Crusade, but without a commander to lead them, it’s bound to be a mess, right?”

The greater demon’s smile swept across the audience.

“In a situation without a hero, humans can’t face transcendent beings. Thousands or tens of thousands may go, but they’ll all just die.”

“Quite some time has passed. Couldn’t they select a new hero?”

“The Creator’s blessing can only be received by one person. And that human is in the demon realm, isn’t he?”

“That means…”

“Fake heroes. They might have been granted holy power by archangels, but they lack the absolute power that forms the foundation.”

“Despite being unable to face us, human leaders continue to push the Crusades. Is it for their own interests?”

This time it was Durin’s question.

From what Yoannina was saying, there was no reason to maintain the Crusades. The only means to defeat the Demon King would be the descent of angels. The heavens were likely already doing this, which was why they couldn’t focus on the demon realm.

The best humans could do was to appease public sentiment by putting forward fake heroes, yet they were maintaining costly armies.

It couldn’t help but raise questions.

“Self-interest is part of it, but that’s not the important thing.”

Yoannina shook her head. But the smile on her face was growing deeper.

What could she be hiding that made her so pleased? As the demons were trying to guess her intentions…

“The Demon King is doing something interesting, and the humans are being dragged along.”

Snap!

She snapped her fingers, and a sorcerer jumped forward. His hands were already forming a seal.

It seemed he was about to show a situation captured by reconnaissance beasts.

Unlike the information Ludmila had faintly detected beyond the Milky Way, this was a clearly captured scene.

“……”

Silence fell as the demons saw a world they hadn’t witnessed before.

“Insane.”

Only Durin’s quiet lament offered any commentary.

“Oh my. I’ve been discovered?”

As the familiar voice echoed and the scene played out, astonishment swallowed anger.

A dim night.

Land burning with war.

Corpses of holy knights strewn about.

In the midst of it all, a woman looking up at the sky.

Her horns were hidden, perhaps concealing her identity. Only those vicious eyes revealed her as the Demon King.

It could be considered a significant achievement, but an even greater sense of dissonance surrounded the betrayer.

“Well…”

“I didn’t expect to see something more shocking than the hero.”

There was no demonic battle intent around her.

A flowing religious robe fluttered in the wind.

It was almost as if…

“Yoannina. Answer me. Why is the Demon King imitating a saint?”