The Demon Sovereign (14)

“Now… isn’t it time to prepare for negotiations with the humans?”

The atmosphere in the Demon capital was so unusual that even a mindless drunkard could sense it.

Those who claimed to wield some power were all seemingly plotting something, one by one leaving the city to return to their own territories.

Some among this exodus claimed to be mere refugee groups, but it was harder to believe those well-dressed individuals with telltale signs of wealth.

While the Demons were not ones to heed others’ words often, they did have a council.

Currently, half the seats were vacant, which was an issue, but in any case, the regular meetings had commenced.

“How can you utter such words so calmly! Bow our heads to the humans? Do you have no shame!”

“No, he is correct. This is the time for us to secure maximum gains. The longer time passes, the more disadvantageous it becomes for us. You must acknowledge it.”

“Remember the past. Even in worse situations than this, we have risen! It is too early to give up.”

“It seems you are failing to grasp the current situation-“

It immediately erupted to the point where it was indistinguishable whether this was a council or a marketplace.

To be honest, they all knew inwardly.

Pushing the humans out of the capital temporarily? It was a temporary result achieved by the Demon Sovereign resorting to brainwashing and sacrificing lives.

They raised their voices, clutching each other’s collars moments before coming to blows, but their eyes were calm.

This whole affair was a well-designed show.

They had survived this arena of cannibals not because of competence, but because they knew how to speak eloquently and read the situation.

Those clamoring for continuing the war and those arguing to cut their losses and retreat had actually agreed on the broad strokes the previous night and were now just adding embellishments.

“Say, did you perhaps receive something from the humans? You seem to drool every time you mention them.”

“Ha! Who else thinks about the future of our race as much as I do? Rather, those absent from this gathering are the most suspicious.”

After fighting over who was the problem for a while, they naturally drifted to placing the blame on those not present.

“Have you said your piece?”

“Well then. Should we settle this with a duel?”

“That’s going too far.”

And after the play had more or less concluded, one thing remained.

“Come, come. We won’t reach a conclusion by fighting among ourselves like this.”

“Chairman.”

“In the end, wasn’t it His Majesty the Demon Sovereign who enabled us to drive back the humans and discuss our future like this?”

The spotlight returned to the Demon Sovereign, who had been silently observing from the elevated seat.

After stroking his beard contemplatively while enduring the dozens of gazes upon him, the Demon Sovereign spoke:

“Indeed.”

“……”!

“It seems the time has come to consider negotiations.”

With the Demon Sovereign’s pronouncement, the eerily silent council chamber became noisy once more.

“See! Wasn’t I right?”

“I, I misjudged Your Majesty’s intentions……”

“No. I understand your loyal hearts well. How could our hearts for Your Majesty and our race differ?”

As soon as the official word came down, those who had previously clamored for war began dabbing at their non-existent tears with handkerchiefs.

And the opposing faction, who had beaten each other to the point of being unable to bear the same sky moments ago, discreetly hid their cudgels and embraced them.

Watching this unfunny play, the Demon Sovereign soon left the council chamber, apparently unable to endure it any longer.

---

From beginning to end, nothing pleased him.

He did not even hide his displeasure. Their weakness displeased him.

While he had initiated the war, hadn’t they laid the groundwork beforehand?

Yet they now acted as if nothing had happened, subtly dropping hints and insisting they should stop, which was truly infuriating.

“Your Majesty, what shall we do now?”

A subordinate who had been waiting for the right timing came running up to him and asked.

The Demon Sovereign was not unaware of the events unfolding at the vanguard… well, right before the Demon Capital, in any case.

“So, about the situation with the soldiers outside and the battle conditions-“

“It’s fine. I already know everything.”

In fact, he grasped the reality better than anyone else.

Wasn’t it stranger if he didn’t know, considering how frequently he visited others’ minds, more often than bathrooms?

And at this point, those in power usually have a go-to line:

‘Who told them to embezzle? I didn’t expect the situation to become this dire either.’

‘This is that bastard’s fault. There was nothing wrong with my orders.’

‘There was a problem with my orders? Then you must have misinterpreted them.’

Passing the buck.

‘As you all said, it seems I was the one at fault. I should take responsibility and step down.’

‘Yes, I acknowledge it. It was due to my lack of virtue that this came to be. So I must take responsibility and step down-‘

If not that, then he would have to lie down and claim he was the one who should die. Then the subordinates would reluctantly get on their knees and sing praises like “Please reconsider” as if listening.

However, contrary to expectations, the Demon Sovereign did not pass the buck, lie down in defeat, or deny reality.

“We must acknowledge it. We have lost.”

“…Your Majesty.”

The official who had been bowing his head before the Demon Sovereign did not explicitly ask, ‘Then why did you let it come to this?’ His life was too precious, and if he knew the whole truth, he would at least have an inkling, which is why he could remain composed.

No, he must have an inkling. If not, how tragic was this reality?

“If you have intentions, please grant me the honor of knowing them.”

“Hmm……”

The Demon Sovereign ignored the hopeful gaze of that official, mulled it over, and then turned his gaze elsewhere to ask:

“Are the preparations for my departure ready?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Since you mentioned it would be a considerable distance, I have prepared many attendants, but……”

“It’s fine. Select only four or so who are tight-lipped and swift-footed, and keep them.”

There must be… a plan.

“I, I’m not sure I understand your meaning.”

“There is a place I must visit. That is all you need to know.”

“Your Majesty? A place to visit?”

In this war? A place to visit?

“Do not breathe a word of this to anyone. Understood?”

“Yes? Yes!”

Fleeing?

Surely, he was not truly fleeing? The Demon Sovereign?

Leaving the official behind, who could only open and close his mouth, not wanting to die, the Demon Sovereign slowly began walking away.

The legs that had once allowed him to run for days without tiring now moved with difficulty.

These days, merely climbing a few stairs left him breathless. It was only natural, for he was of that age, after all.

“I have lived quite long with this body.”

The Demon Sovereign muttered softly. The memories of his life until now flashed rapidly before his eyes.

Of course, it was not yet time for death, so it was not an ending credits montage.

He was simply searching for a way to live.

And when a proper method did not come to mind, he proceeded to search for a way to take revenge. How terrifying someone without a future could be.

“It is time I let go now.”

“But before that, there is one matter I must take care of……”

His mind soon reached a conclusion.

It was a trivial matter of finding just two humans.

---

Not all anti-fans are the same.

Those who were once fans but turned anti are an entirely different breed of terrifying.

“Why is that?”

“Because they likely know the subject better than anyone.”

No human would openly reveal their weaknesses to their enemies.

That’s why even I had difficulty from the outset in assessing who the Demon Sovereign was, along with Freugne.

However, the situation for the Demons who had once served him as their lord was the opposite.

Regardless of whether their motive was money, power, or something else, unless they were born with a silver spoon, they must have studied the Demon Sovereign more diligently than their own girlfriends.

“And the degree of dislike is proportional to the degree of admiration they once had.”

In this case, ‘loyalty’ would be a more apt word than ‘admiration’, but in any case, the thought of their hard-earned Demon Sovereign coins plummeting like a water rocket would undoubtedly breed more than a few resentful feelings.

Due to the sunk costs of time, effort, and money they had invested, they would want to blame someone, and there was only one target.

“There are actually many loopholes in administrative procedures. If I set my mind to it, I could prolong the time it takes for a single document to be processed to a year.”

“There are also ways to meddle with taxes. I could list my name as an intermediary and then swallow everything under the guise of service fees, which wouldn’t be too difficult.”

“While the chain of command is quite tangled, I could divert a division or so to the rear. Perhaps the Demon Sovereign forgot about it, saying he would take care of it later, and left it as is. What if we use that for the rebellion later?”

And these individuals, who had initially received my guidance, eventually became so accustomed that they took the lead in deliberately pressing the Demon Sovereign’s berserk buttons.

Beyond the capital, deeper into Demon lands.

There, the Demons who had formed secret friendships with me and Freugne sent constant reports and letters.

“Should we start a rebellion now?”

“The Demon Sovereign still maintains control over the military. The capital’s defenses cannot be ignored either. But it seems our strength will soon surpass his, tee-hee.”

And as they timed it, calculating that they could throw the capital into chaos within a month or two…

One bright summer morning, Freugne came running down the stairs, calling out to me.

“Uncle, Uncle!”

“What is it?”

“The Demon Sovereign, the Demon Sovereign.”

Freugne caught her breath and then continued in a slightly calmer tone.

“The Demon Sovereign has gone missing.”

“……?”