Chapter 292

Chapter 292

Otherworld Demon King Survival Guide.

Episode 292: What Is Politics? (1)

He sent a letter saying he’d come, so what could we do?

“Well, we should be ready to receive him. As the Saintess said, we’ll need to listen first and decide how to respond.”

“I understand. But keep this in mind. The envoy coming under these circumstances is unlikely to bring good news.”

“Of course. It’s probably a demand for submission or something like that. They must be trying to grow their power too.”

“Thinking that way makes it easier to accept.”

No matter what, Count Saidin, who had been fighting tooth and nail against the angels in the capital, had personally sent an envoy to us.

We’d have to greet him properly.

For now, he was an unbeatable opponent. If we were a small country, they were a great power. Unless they made a terribly offensive proposal… We should probably hold off on giving a definite answer and then accept or negotiate at a critical moment.

It was a difficult issue.

“But we do have the Saintess as our trump card, don’t we? No matter what kind of proposal we get, we’ll have something to say, right?”

“Leave that to this Saintess. I’ll make sure to handle it well.”

The Saintess smiled confidently. She was definitely reliable when it came to diplomacy. She knew exactly how to maneuver in these situations.

“Hahaha, understood. Well, then. Let’s wrap up the meeting here and get back to work.”

The Saintess nodded at my words.

“Just stay diligent in your duties.”

“Of course. We must continue to grow stronger. Only that will guarantee our survival.”

She was right.

So, let’s get back to work.

“Hm.”

An envoy from Count Saidin’s house…

I wondered what kind of person would come?

Since Saidin’s side held the upper hand, it wouldn’t be strange for them to act high-handed. Well, it was a bit unsettling, but they were nobles of the anti-angel faction. Surely nothing disastrous would happen.

We could tolerate a certain level of arrogance.

At least until I grew stronger.

A while later.

I heard the news that the envoy from Count Saidin had arrived. He was staying at an inn near the castle. He’d probably be coming soon.

That was what I thought.

“Hm.”

The envoy stayed at the inn for three days without making any contact. What was going on? After some discussion, I learned that he was investigating this barony.

“It seems like he wants to gather information before negotiating.”

“Hmmm. We can’t really stop him, can we? All we can do is wait?”

“We can’t assassinate him, can we? There’s nothing we can do for now.”

Since there hadn’t been any contact yet, there was no real solution.

Anyway.

Time passed, and finally, the envoy came.

As planned, I hid the soldiers and waited for him at the inner gate. He was supposed to come with two attendants… is that him? As I waited, I saw what looked like a pig walking from the other side.

What? A pig?

—jiggle.

Did it just jiggle?

Wasn’t that sound usually made by a woman’s chest? But, surprisingly, the sound came from the envoy’s belly fat.

—thud.

A huge pig, weighing at least 150kg, walked in wearing luxurious clothes, flanked by female attendants, shaking the ground with every step… Was that the envoy sent by the Count?

“…”

As he approached, I tried to sense his energy. There was some mana… but nothing particularly strong. I couldn’t imagine why someone as important as the Count would send someone like this as an envoy.

Still, just looking at his bulk, I could tell this guy wasn’t normal. In this world, strength was the most important thing. In the end, you needed power to stand above others. But with that kind of flabby body? He was not fit for combat.

I had a strong feeling that this guy wasn’t normal. Anyway, as he approached, he stopped in front of me, tilted his head, and spoke.

“Hmmm? Who are you?”

“I am Kyuse, the Saintess’s knight.”

“A knight? A male knight? The Saintess of the Goddess Church with a male knight? Where’s her personal guard, Lea?”

Did he know about Lea? Well, the Saintess was famous. Naturally, there would be information about the knight guarding her.

“Personal guard Lea is currently handling other duties. Anyway, are you the envoy from the Count?”

“And who is this?”

“What?”

“Show some respect, immediately! I am Viscount Kelson, sent on orders from Count Saidin! And who do you think you are, raising your head so high in front of me, a mere unknown knight!”

Uh…

This was the first time I had encountered a situation like this, and I was momentarily taken aback.

“What is this…?”

I mean, sure, he was a noble sent by the Count, but… could he really act like this on someone else’s turf? Especially to a knight? Wasn’t he worried about getting his head split open?

“…”

As I had these questions, my chest grew cold.

Let’s think calmly.

Maybe this was a power play. He was asserting that he was in a dominant position, likely to steer the negotiations in his favor. This guy was a noble too. A noble sent on an important mission to negotiate power during wartime. There was no way he’d act this stupidly for no reason.

This must be a calculated move, a deliberate attitude to gain an advantage.

I quickly made my decision.

Whatever I did next would determine how this guy proceeded. If I complained, he’d probably add more unreasonable conditions under the guise of me being rude.

But if I bowed my head?

“I am a knight, and I bow to no one but my employer!!!”

“What, what?”

That’d make me look like a pushover…!

The world of nobles! It was survival of the fittest! If he sensed that I was weaker than him, he’d act even more arrogantly! I must protest the insult here!

“Viscount Kelson…! How dare you speak such nonsense to a knight like me!”

I didn’t know what kind of man Count Saidin was, but if he sent an idiot like this on such an important mission, he wouldn’t have made it to the rank of Count. This was a calculated move. And that calculation needs to be shattered!

“If you don’t apologize immediately, you’ll experience something very unpleasant! I’ll make sure your fat body gets acquainted with the ground!”

I was, after all, a knight. And a knight never let an insult pass without retaliation, as Vanessa taught me. After all the battles I had won, do you think I’d fall for such a cheap trick? If he wanted a show of force, he was messing with the wrong guy. My specialty was intimidation.

“Apologize now!”

“What, what did you say? Is this madman for real? Do you even know who I am…!”

He feigned shock, his eyes wide. I could see through his act. Pretending to be an idiot wouldn’t work. We were not to be underestimated. I would make sure he knows that.

“This is your last warning! If you don’t apologize for the insult, your fat will be strung up in the butcher shop over there! You’ve got plenty of it! Just cutting off the belly fat could feed the townspeople for days!”

“Butcher shop?! What kind of barbaric nonsense is this…! You uncouth rascal, you don’t know your place!”

—flash!

In an instant, the fat arm of the Viscount lifted! His abundant double chin jiggled as he showed off his high-calorie physique!

At the same time.

His massive body began to gather strength. So, that was it? Despite his appearance, he was still a noble. He wouldn’t hesitate to use violence. If I backed down here, I’d be marked as weak.

“I’ll hold your master accountable for this!”

—whoosh!

Kelson swung his palm at me. But, to me, it looked painfully slow. I have grown a lot since then. Movements like those of a golem were easy for me to read.

—swish.

I quickly stepped inside, lowering my stance and grabbing his right leg.

“What?!”

With my body weight and magic, I threw him backward.

—bang!

“Gwahk!”

That was enough to shake the ground.

“Ah!”

Kelson’s two female attendants stamped their feet in panic, unsure of what to do. Those non-virgins didn’t matter right now. I couldn’t afford to appear weak here. If I didn’t pay back the insult, the Count would think we were easy targets and make unreasonable demands.

“Imme—”

So I punched him in the face.

—bang!

“Gah!”

“Viscount Kelson! I’ll say it again, if you dare to insult me or my employer again, you’ll pay dearly! Show respect to the Saintess!”

“Wait, before that—gah!”

—bang!

I threw about five punches at his face. If you acted out in someone else’s territory, you should be prepared to get hit. This was the absolute rule among the powerful.

A dog that couldn’t even bark in its own yard couldn’t protect its home. Nobles were like dogs, and power was their home. If you couldn’t defend your own yard, you were just stew meat.

“Ugh…!”

By the time I had subdued Kelson…

“What on earth is going on?!”

“Aaah!”

The nuns in the castle rushed out to stop the fight and separate us. Fine. Let’s stop here. I got up.

“Kgh, what… what just…! Do you even know who I am?!”

Kelson, helped up by his attendants, was now sporting a bruised eye and a bloody nose. His expression was one of outrage, like he couldn’t believe what had just happened. He could make a great actor with that performance.

“Viscount Kelson. The one who needs to show respect is you. If you don’t want to taste more of this, enter peacefully.”

Anyway, we needed to talk.

Let’s let him in now.

After taking a beating, he wouldn’t dare make any unreasonable demands.

“Tch! Just wait!”

“This guy…”

“What?!”

“…”

I glared at Kelson, but he entered the inner castle with surprising composure, without showing any sign of intimidation.

He was more resilient than I expected. As expected, a noble was still a noble.

“Let me guide you.”

I followed closely behind him as he led the way. The Saintess was waiting in the reception room. Let’s see what he had to say.

Now that I thought about it, if Count Saidin really intended to devour us, there wouldn’t even be a need for negotiations… Politics was tough. It was difficult to figure out how a small nation like ours could survive, caught between great powers. These thoughts whirled around in my mind.

“Damn, damn…! How could I be treated like this! I came all the way to this backwater myself and get treated like this…!”

Kelson grumbled the entire way.

“You were the one who started it, Viscount Kelson. Don’t complain now.”

What were they going to do, whine? The Count was busy fighting angels in the central region, and sending an army to this remote area would take a lot of effort. So I could afford to act tough here.

“Ha! I’ll discuss this with your master! Let’s see if you’ll still act so arrogantly then!”

Your master, huh.

I was the Saintess’s master.

I didn’t know what this guy was planning to demand, but I had a strong feeling that the negotiations wouldn’t go smoothly.

“…”

Because he was smiling.