Chapter 4: Village in the Demon Realm?

The next morning.

Arsep began explaining to me what kind of world this was.

• And so, the two continents were divided into the Demon Realm, where demons live, and the Human Realm, where humans live. Of course, humans also live in the Demon Realm, and demons live in the Human Realm.”

To summarize the explanation that lasted about 30 minutes:

This place isn’t much different from the typical fantasy worlds that come to mind.

There are three main continents: the Demon Realm, dominated by demons, the Human Realm, ruled by humans, and the Fairy Realm, where other races live.

“Do you have any questions?”

“The president of the Human Realm and Demon Realm… no, rather, who are the kings? Even though the countries are subdivided, there must be a king who represents the continents, right?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“It can’t be helped. The Demon Realm is full of dangerous monsters, and even among the demons, the weak aren’t looked upon favorably. If I were to go outside in my current state…”

It wouldn’t end well.

Just as Arsep said, it wasn’t safe even within the castle, and outside would be even worse.

Of course, staying in the castle where humans constantly visit isn’t the best idea either, but going outside means not only worrying about humans but also demons.

‘So, what I know is just basic knowledge, only the information that can be obtained within this castle. As I mentioned before, I don’t know much about the current era’s culture either.’

The castle had a decent number of books.

However, there wasn’t a single book that I could read.

Although I could communicate with Arsep, the characters used here weren’t Hangul or even English, so unless I took the time to study separately, it would be difficult to understand.

“The books in my castle are all written by demons, so it’s only natural that you, being human, can’t read them.”

Arsep opened the window wide and looked outside.

Beyond the castle walls that surrounded her mansion, although it wouldn’t normally be visible, perhaps my vision had improved.

I could faintly make out what seemed to be a village where people lived.

“For now, let’s stop here. I’m starting to get hungry, so how about we have breakfast? Are you hungry too?”

“I’m a little hungry.”

I wasn’t actually hungry.

But since Arsep seemed to be, I just replied that I was.

“I’ve already prepared it! Let’s head to the dining room!”

Arsep grabbed my hand and led me down to the first floor.

Even though I wasn’t hungry, I was curious about what kind of breakfast would be served in such a grand castle.

Could it be something like steak? Or perhaps a lighter meal, like freshly baked bread and warm soup, the kind of meals you’d only see on TV.

As I was thinking about that and heading to the dining room—

“… Uh, I’m not trying to be picky or anything, but…”

“What’s the matter?”

“Is this what you’ve been eating all this time?”

“No? The timing just worked out well since the fruits in the forest garden are starting to ripen now.”

On the massive dining table, something you’d only see in movies, there were only red, berry-like fruits and a single cup of water.

Even Arsep’s seat was the same.

”…So, originally, you were just surviving on water to fill your hungry stomach?”

Arsep, perhaps aware of the issue, laughed self-deprecatingly as she picked up one of the berries and ate it.

Thinking about it, it was only natural.

She had mentioned that she hadn’t stepped outside the castle and therefore couldn’t gather food from the outside, and having been asleep for centuries, there was no way any food would have been left.

There was a village nearby where people lived, so it seemed like it would be fine to buy food from there, but…

The Demon Realm was too dangerous for her to go out alone.

“Do you have money?”

“I have plenty of things that can be used as money. I hide them away so well that even the humans who infiltrated my castle couldn’t steal them.”

Arsep returned after a moment with a pouch in hand.

When I opened it, I couldn’t help but be startled by the large number of gleaming gold coins.

“…You probably thought you could just buy food from outside, right?”

“But if you go out alone, you’ll just get attacked by monsters or other demons and have your money stolen, right?”

“That’s right! Exactly!

Though it’s nothing to be happy about.”

We have plenty of money, but we still have to drink water and starve.

If there were a delivery service in the Demon Realm, it would have been really useful for Arsep, but alas, there wasn’t.

***

“Then let’s finish breakfast and head out.”

“H-head out? But outside is…”

Arsep shrank back again at the mention of going outside.

“I’ll come with you, so don’t worry. If even the Great Demon King was surprised by me, I probably won’t be underestimated anywhere in the Demon Realm, right?”

“That’s true! What a great idea! I really think I made the right decision saving you! Most higher demons won’t dare mess with you!”

After I said I would come along, Arsep finally relaxed and smiled with relief.

To think that she was once the ruler of the Demon Realm centuries ago—it was hard to imagine.

It wasn’t just about strength or weakness; her personality didn’t seem like someone who could dominate or rule others.

“Then let’s hurry up and finish eating, and head out. It’ll be your first outing in centuries, so make sure you’re well prepared.”

“Got it! I’ll get ready right away, so wait here for a moment!”

Arsep excitedly left the dining room, looking like a puppy who had just been told it was time for a walk.

As I watched her retreating figure, I noticed she was even wagging her imaginary tail.

She was so excited just from the mention of going out.

I wondered how she had managed to endure all this time feeling so cooped up.

Watching her made me chuckle, and I picked up one of the red berries from my plate.

And then I regretted that decision.

It tasted like a mix of the astringency of an unripe persimmon and the unpleasant sourness of a tomato.

How could anyone eat this?

Yet, hadn’t she been eating this very same thing and enjoying it, claiming she had nothing else?

”This won’t do.”

I resolved to find proper ingredients on this outing.

Otherwise, this so-called Great Demon King would continue living off these awful berries for the rest of her life, and that was something I couldn’t just let happen.

***

Arsep and I stepped outside, both wearing hoods.

Her hood had holes to accommodate her horns, while mine had fake horns attached to the hood.

“Humans do live in the Demon Realm, but they’re not exactly welcomed. That’s why I added horns to your outfit. They won’t come off easily, but still, be careful.”

I understood right away that wearing hoods was to conceal our identities.

The outside world felt quite fresh.

Not in the sense of fresh ingredients, but in the sense that I had never seen anything like this before.

The sky, even though it was morning, was as red as if the sun was setting.

The forest was filled with a strange, unsettling presence.

“As expected…! With you here, the monsters aren’t attacking! Normally, by now, they’d be swarming to devour me…”

The strange presences in the forest seemed to be monsters.

Monsters here were just like those in video games—vicious creatures that attacked on sight and were far more dangerous than ordinary animals.

One key difference between the Demon Realm and the Human Realm was the number and danger level of monsters.

The Demon Realm had far more monsters, and they were significantly more threatening.

“Huff… huff…”

“…Shall I carry you?”

It had only been about 10 minutes since we left the castle, and Arsep was already on the verge of collapse.

Seeing her like that, I figured it might be easier if I just carried her.

“No…! I can’t… just…!”

Of course, she refused, saying that as the Great Demon King, it would be shameful to be carried when she couldn’t even walk properly on her own.

Five minutes later.

“…It’s really embarrassing, but… can you carry me?”

In the end, I ended up carrying Arsep on my back as we headed toward the village.

“Ugh… It’s true I haven’t walked this much since I woke up from my long sleep… But I didn’t expect my legs to go numb after just a little walking…”

“When you wake up after a long sleep, your muscles don’t work properly. And considering it’s been centuries, it’s understandable.”

Arsep was extremely light.

Even though she looked small, she was lighter than I expected.

I could probably carry her on my shoulders without any trouble.

“When we get to the village, I’ll walk on my own. As much as I’d like to stay on your back, it would draw too much attention if I’m carried into the village.”

She said she would walk once we reached the village, but her still trembling legs seemed pitiable.

We had been walking for about an hour, so she should have rested enough by now.

“…Wait, hold on.”

I stopped Arsep as we neared the village.

“Why, what’s wrong?”

“Are you sure this is really a village in the Demon Realm?”

“It’s in the Demon Realm, so yes. Is something wrong?”

It wasn’t wrong to say it was a village in the Demon Realm.

But there was one problem…

“But those people… they’re humans, aren’t they?”

The village, about an hour from the castle, wasn’t inhabited by demons, but by humans.