episode_0160

The road to the Demon King’s Castle.

Sylphy and I left Kubel together and headed towards the Demon World.

Originally, I had planned to go alone, but I had no choice since I could not learn the structure of the magic circle that Mariel taught me on my own.

The route to the Demon King’s Castle relied a lot on my memory.

This is because I actually had the experience of returning from near the Demon King’s Castle to Kubel via Ainblad, the city of pure-blooded demons.

Ludmilla had moved me from Ainblad to the outside of the Demon World using magic, but I remembered the approximate route.

I, Sylphy, and I set off from Kubel on horseback and traveled as fast as we could to the Land of No Owners.

When they arrived at the land without an owner, they handed over their horses to the kingdom’s army guarding the area and decided to go on foot.

This was because in the demon world, the animals used as vehicles in the kingdom were scared and could not move properly.

Sylphy followed behind me and became a watchful eye to see if any monsters were approaching the area.

Sylphy’s keen senses and ability to discern great distances served as an early warning before danger approached.

In particular, this aspect of Sylphy became more highlighted beyond the unclaimed land, which, unlike the kingdom, had many flat wastelands and open terrain.

Thanks to this, we were able to easily enter the demon world without any interference from monsters.

“Is this the Demon World? … It’s not as scary as I thought.”

“In the end, this is also a place where people live.”

“Ugh… I see.”

Normally, the people of the kingdom rarely go beyond the land of no owner and set foot on the land of the demon world.

Historically, the kingdom was always pushed back by the Demon King’s army, and it was able to turn the situation around by killing the Demon King through its warriors.

Instead of leading an army to subdue the Demon King, the Hero has been subduing the Demon King by moving only as a party.

This was because in the past, just defending against the invasion of the Demon King’s army was too much for the kingdom’s army.

Therefore, except for the warrior party, people from other kingdoms had almost no opportunity to set foot in the demon world.

That may be why all the bizarre and scary rumors about the demon world circulating in the kingdom are exaggerated and spread.

However, once you realize that demons are ultimately a type of another race, a person, that thought disappears.

Of course, there are monster-like demons like Bloodstain that make you cringe just by looking at them, but most of them resemble humans.

The Carias, an underground race that I became indebted to when I first fell into the demon world, were similar to humans except that they had mushrooms growing on their heads connected to their life force. The pure-blooded demons I saw in Ainblad, and even the demon king Vercella, were human. It was similar to

If there is a clear difference between the demon world and the kingdom, is it the magic flowing in the air and the ecosystem?

It was clear that a person who could sense magical power would be very embarrassed when he or she came to the Demon World and sensed the magical power here for the first time.

The color of magical power that can be felt through magical power detection… … .

Strictly speaking, it cannot be expressed with simple colors, but if the magic power of the kingdom was blue, the demon world was red.

And the kingdom’s adventurers could not use red magic when demons used it.

This red magic power used by demons was different in power than the blue magic power used in the kingdom, even though it was the same amount.

That was why when I was able to accept and use the red magic power in my body from Ainblad, my power went out of control.

In the first place, it is strange that humans can draw on the magical power of demons.

And another difference is the ecosystem.

In the kingdom, animals and monsters are distinguished.

Naturally, there were many ordinary animals in the kingdom, such as rabbits, horses, pigs, cows, etc.

And we called more dangerous creatures such as slimes, ratmen, goblins, etc. ‘monsters’.

However, the ecosystem of the Demon World was a little different.

In the Demon World, there was no distinction between animals and monsters, perhaps due to the different types of magic power spread in the air.

Even when I was under the care of the Caria village in the past, the people there were afraid of monsters like worm dragons underground.

People in the demon world treat monsters like dangerous wild animals.

The people of the kingdom naturally thought that the existence of monsters was nothing more than an evil creature controlled by demons.

However, no matter how demonic they are, they cannot control all demons.

Just as humans tame and domesticate animals, they cannot domesticate all the animals in the world.

Demons can also tame and control monsters, but they cannot tame all the monsters in the world.

If you think about it that way, it’s just a different way of life and environment.

It would be nice if other people in the kingdom realized this too.

“Senior, aren’t you scared of going to meet the devil?”

“You’ve already met me once.”

“Still… You said you never had a conversation. What if something very dangerous happens?”

“If you see it in person, you won’t think that way either.”

Sylphy looked at me a little uneasy.

Although I followed him with the sole intention of helping him, meeting the Demon King still seems scary.

“Anyway, when you get near the Demon King’s Castle, you’ll have to hide somewhere else. Because I will meet the devil alone.”

“What about the magic circle?”

“You can’t install that anywhere. If you hide it and install it and it is discovered by a demon or monster and it breaks, it will be a disaster the moment you ride the magic circle on Kubel.”

When I arrived at the Demon King’s Castle, I planned to meet the Demon King first, without setting up the magic circle that Mariel taught me.

Once Demon Lord Bersella confirms that he is a person on whom he can communicate and builds a certain level of friendship, he will request a suitable location to set up a magic circle.

Otherwise, the risk of installing a magic circle in the demon world was too great, no matter how well it was hidden.

That’s why we want to obtain Versella’s permission and install the magic circle in the right place.

“Would the devil really allow such a thing?”

“You’ll have to talk about that to find out. If they don’t allow it anyway, the conversation won’t end well, right? Then there would be no need to install a magic circle.”

“Ummmm… Honestly, I don’t know.”

“Well, it would be natural to think that way. First of all, because he is the devil.”

I lightly tapped the anxious Sylphy on the shoulder and hurried on my way again.

The journey to the Demon World with Sylphy alone went very quickly.

First of all, I had greatly strengthened my body with magical power, so if I wanted to, I could run as fast as riding a horse.

And since Sylphy was the type to be confident in her agility, I was able to speed up as much as I wanted, putting aside any worries that Sylphy might not be able to keep up.

As I continued to advance through the demon world… … .

The familiar cityscape began to appear in the distance.

“Huh? Senior, I can see the city.”

“Is it Einblad…? … .”

“Ainblad?”

“It’s the name of a city of demons called pure-blooded demons. I stopped by for a moment. It is also Shari’s hometown.”

“Huh? Is Shari’s hometown here?”

“Yes, I also found traces of my mother here.”

Although I’ve only been there once, it feels somewhat familiar.

But walking into Ainblad now was definitely not a good idea.

There would be the same reaction as if a demon walked into the kingdom city.

“Let’s turn far away so we don’t get caught.”

After watching Ainblad from afar for a while, I spoke to Sylphy.

It was a good thing I came with Sylphy.

If Mariel had come with me, she would have been in trouble because she was panting and couldn’t keep up.

* * *

“Versella… Is it really okay like this? … .”

“It’s okay. What’s the point of sitting as the king of the demon world if you can’t even take care of your own happiness? I’m happy now.”

“But… … .”

“Xaviel, I still remember. The things you said when I was being controlled by the demon spirit or something.”

Versella said as she took a mouthful of Bloodstone Cake, Ainblad’s famous dessert.

Xaviel followed Versella’s orders and went to Ainblad and brought many sweet things to the Demon Castle.

It would have been unimaginable if the Demon King, whose original Demon King Soul resided, was ruling the Demon World.

The Demon King must be threatening, majestic, and hate humans.

Originally, the Demon King was such a being.

But now Versella… … .

“That’s what the devil is by nature.”

“So, you were hoping that I wouldn’t be me anymore, right?”

“That… that… … .”

“Even if I rip you to death right now, you honestly have nothing to say, do you?”

Versella said, glaring at Xaviel.

At that moment, Xavier felt goosebumps rising on his body.

Even now, when it is not under the control of the Demon King’s Soul, Versella is fully capable of doing so.

Xaviel, who knew the great power that remained in Versella, kept his mouth shut so as not to displease her any further.

“… … I’m kidding. Don’t make that face.”

“… … .”

“Rather than that, I would like to change the Demon King Castle a little, is it okay?”

Versella asked Xaviel.

Xavier was nervously listening to Versella, not knowing what strange thing he would ask him to do this time.

“The current Demon Castle, isn’t it so gloomy and uninteresting? Ainblad is lively and has many interesting things.”

“The Demon King’s Castle is close to a defense facility to protect the Demon King from heroes. This is not a place to find fun.”

“Noisy.”

“… … .”

“I wish they could bring a cook to the Demon Castle. Build a kitchen… … Ah, I wish I knew what they do in the human kingdom. Humans like entertainment.”

“That… that… … .”

Versella put the last piece of bloodstone cake into her mouth, looking at Xaviel who looked confused.

Free from the devil’s spirit, she was now fully prepared to enjoy life to the fullest.

Even if a new hero appears later and invades the Demon King’s Castle, as long as he can fully enjoy life until then, that’s okay.

Bersella wanted to make the Demon World, including the Demon Castle, a more enjoyable place.

* * *