I raise my head from my paperwork when my secretary informs me that the time for my meeting with the Demon Lord has arrived. I was already well aware of this, of course.
Thus, I take my time tidying up my papers, putting down my pen, and standing up.
“Very well. Let us be about it.”
My preparations are long since complete.
I begin walking without hesitation, followed by my secretary and attendants. The lot of them seem slightly more agitated than usual.
The atmosphere has been different ever since the Demon Lord, whose whereabouts have been unknown for some time, suddenly appeared at the castle yesterday.
The previous Demon Lord disappeared, eventually died in some unknown place, and was replaced with this current Demon Lord.
To be honest, I cannot deny that some part of me hoped this Demon Lord, too, would stay missing forever.
With the current state of the demon race, we are in fact better off without a demon lord.
Our many long years battling the humans have exhausted us, causing so much destruction that it has become impossible to ignore.
Our land is barren, our population—and therefore our workforce—is depleted, and our citizens are starving.
The famine only further reduces our workforce, lowering our ability to produce food.
We cannot possibly go to war while this vicious cycle continues.
It was for this very reason that when the prior Demon Lord went missing, it was a boon to the demons.
If there is no demon lord, then there will be no war.
We put our battle against the humans on hold and focused on recovering our own strength. Thanks to that, the livelihood of the populace stabilized somewhat while the Demon Lord was absent.
The one thing we have not managed to improve is our shrinking population.
Our declining birth rate is connected in no small way to infants dying of malnourishment or being attacked by monsters.
Though we have recovered slightly, we still have a long way to go.
And yet…
As I sink into thought, we arrive at our destination.
I reach out to open the door to the room, pause just in time, and knock instead.
“Come in.”
A voice permits my presence, so this time I open the door and enter.
“Hey. How’s it going?”
A short-statured girl greets me with a casual wave.
The Demon Lord. By appearances alone, she would seem to be an ordinary child.
But the powerful energy that rolls off her, as if unable to be completely contained, serves as a reminder that she is anything but.
I have never encountered anyone but this Demon Lord who reveals such power even when thoroughly suppressing it.
Her presence is so overwhelmingly powerful that I could sense it even through the door.
“I am terribly sorry to have kept you waiting.”
“Nah, it’s not your fault I showed up early.”
I had intended to enter the room first and await her presence, but instead I made the Demon Lord wait for me.
Yet she forgives this blunder with a smile.
Her actions may seem like those of a benevolent ruler, but I cannot be sure of the truth that lies behind her eyes.
“Well, no point in standing around, right? Have a seat.”
“Of course! Pardon me.”
I sit down on the sofa across from the Demon Lord, and my secretary and company stand behind me.
The Demon Lord, on the other hand, is alone.
She had several attendants with her yesterday when I greeted her, but they are not present now.
All of them save one were young women, but like the Demon Lord herself, their appearances were no doubt deceiving.
The Demon Lord has no need to take them along with her. She has little use for guards, after all.
What a truly terrifying person.
“As I stated yesterday, we are most pleased to celebrate your safe return.”
“Hmm. Are you, now?”
I was merely offering a polite greeting to begin the conversation, but the Demon Lord reacts strangely.
Her gaze passes over me to the attendants standing behind me.
“Just a moment, please.”
Sensing danger in that gaze, I call over my secretary, list a few names, and have them removed from the room.
Within moments, the attendants the Demon Lord was eyeing are ushered out of the room.
“Pardon the interruption. I shall deal with them accordingly after our meeting.”
“Nice, nice. You’re quick on the uptake, huh?”
The Demon Lord nods in satisfaction. It appears that my actions were correct.
“It’d be a pain to have to deal with some stupid revolt. All I want are obedient soldiers, y’know? Soldiers who’ll fight for me, and die for me, at my command.”
Her voice is calm as she says the unspeakable.
Yes, it was certainly the right decision to dismiss those hot-blooded attendants ahead of time. If they had shown even the slightest resistance to her statement, she might very well have killed them to set an example.
“Give your subordinates a warning for me. They can either fight the humans or get killed at my hands. I recommend the former. In the latter case, there’s not even the slightest chance of survival.”
With these words, the Demon Lord is essentially declaring that she herself is stronger than the entirety of humanity.
If anyone else were to say such a thing, I would scoff at such nonsense.
But in her case, I cannot say that she is wrong.
“I need you to ramp up military preparations, please.”
Though it’s phrased as a request, I know it is an order.
“Understood.”
“Great. Thanks.”
I have no right to refuse.
After that, we discuss the finer details of our upcoming plans, and the meeting ends.
“Whew.”
“Good work, my lord.”
When I returned to my office and let slip a sigh, my secretary offered me words of praise.
“Thank you. I cannot remember when last I was so exhausted.”
The only reason I complain thus is that there is no one else in the room but my secretary, who has worked at my side for many years.
“However, this is no time to rest.”
I open the desk drawer and grasp the object inside.
A device known as a “mobile telephone,” small enough to be held in one hand.
The telephone has only one button, which I press now.
I am told that long ago, in an ancient culture, this device was used to speak with many faraway people. But now, it has no such features.
The device in my hand can contact only one person.
As I hold it to my ear, it makes a dull tone for a while, until finally a beep indicates that it has connected.
“It is I, Erguner. Can you hear me?”
“Yes, of course I can.”
The voice that comes through is that of a completely emotionless male.
Namely: Potimas Harrifenas.
The patriarch of the elves and a heretic who brings ancient secrets into the modern era.
“The Demon Lord has returned, just as you said she would.”
A few days ago, Potimas contacted me through the mobile telephone, informing me that the Demon Lord would soon return.
Thus, I informed the guards of the Demon Lord’s characteristics and instructed them to guide her politely to the castle should any such person appear.
So that this would not seem unnatural, I temporarily dispatched watchmen to the Mystic Mountains so that I could claim to have learned from them of the Demon Lord’s return.
In truth, our domain has not the spare hands to send a guard to the Mystic Mountains.
But I suppose I will no longer be able to say that soon enough.
“And? Surely you have not called me simply to relay that fact.”
As ever, Potimas is quick to guess my intentions.
“Indeed. I wish to know the state of the entrance to the Mystic Mountains on the human side. Has the boy with horns on his forehead appeared there these past few days?”
“Hmm.”
Potimas falls silent, as if deep in thought.
During my conversation with the Demon Lord, she mentioned the boy.
She said it was possible that he might cross the Mystic Mountains, breaking through the ice dragons’ territory in the process, as unlikely as the scenario seemed.
If he did show up, the Demon Lord instructed me to avoid provoking him and contact her immediately.
That was the end of our conversation. She did not explain what connection she had to this boy with horns.
But since she made a point of bringing him up and warning me about him, I must assume that this situation is important to the Demon Lord.
I thought perhaps we might be able to take advantage of that somehow, but since the Demon Lord herself said it was unlikely, I doubt the boy will come our way.
But I cannot afford to worry that it is an unlikely chance, nor do I have any idea how I might use it against her.
“…It doesn’t appear that we have received any reports about a boy of that description. But I shall place the entrance to the mountains under watch, just to be safe.”
“Thank you.”
Even as I respond, calculations are racing through my mind.
Because his response showed that Potimas Harrifenas, too, has a vested interest in the horned boy.
If he has drawn not just the attention of the Demon Lord but also Potimas, then how can I discount this boy?
“Do you know anything about the boy?”
“Not a boy with horns, no. However, up until recently, there have been several reports of an unusual ogre taking down a great number of adventurers. It seems as though there might be some connection, does it not?”
“I see.”
An unusual ogre?
Ogres are indeed a humanoid race with horns.
And though it is incredibly rare, I have heard tell that it is possible for an ogre to ultimately evolve into a form to more closely resembles a human: an oni.
It is possible that this ogre evolved enough that it was able to become an oni.
However, that is all I can speculate.
The only information Potimas offered me is a morsel that I likely could have learned on my own with some investigation.
Oni are extremely rare, but I doubt that alone is enough in itself to garner attention from both the Demon Lord and Potimas.
There must be something else they’re not telling me.
But no doubt, Potimas will remain tight-lipped, even if I press the issue.
“Thank you for the information.”
“But of course. It is a trivial matter to share with a friend.”
Friend? Surely you mean pawn.
“I will contact you again if anything else happens.”
“Quite. I may need a favor from you in the future as well. If I do, I hope you’ll indulge me.”
“Indeed.”
I end the call.
Immediately, just like after my meeting with the Demon Lord, exhaustion assails me.
“Whew.”
“Good work, my lord.”
My secretary and I repeat the same exchange as when I first returned to the room.
“Work, indeed. The Demon Lord and Potimas alike are truly taxing to deal with, even in light conversation.”
Personally, I would prefer not to get involved with either of them.
But I have no choice in the matter.
The Demon Lord holds authority over all demons, and the elves have had a powerful influence on the demon race’s revival.
From supplying food to providing new technology, the help of the elves has been instrumental in getting the demon race back on its feet.
I knew that Potimas had motives of his own, but I was left with no other options.
And since I owe him such a debt, I cannot turn against him…or so Potimas undoubtedly believes.
“All of them assume I will do just as they please.”
I received an order from the Demon Lord, one that I did not relay to Potimas.
To get rid of every elf in our lands.
“And the Demon Lord makes the most unreasonable demands.”
The realm of demons was saved thanks to the aid of the elves—at least, this is the only part of the truth that most demons know. Many feel indebted to the elves as a result.
And now we are to drive them out of our territory, even if we must use force?
The citizens might very well revolt.
If I obey the Demon Lord, there will be chaos in our ranks, and soon we will be made to go to war against the humans.
Yet, if I defy her, she will simply take matters into her own hands.
Either choice will undoubtedly prove to be a thorny path.
The future of the demon race looks bleak.
And yet, I cannot give up. I must devise a way to survive, for the sake of my race.
I will use any means I can to find a path to salvation, no matter how minute that path might be.
Fortunately, the Demon Lord will leave this place in a matter of days.
Once she does, I can move a bit more freely.
The Demon Lord is heading to the heart of the demon realm: Phthalo. The land that generations of demon lords have called home, ruled by Balto Phthalo.
Balto is a capable man but perhaps a bit too obedient.
His intellect keeps him from opposing the Demon Lord, as he knows all too well what the result would be.
If only he were a bit more cunning, we might yet make better progress.
But that is fine for now.
Let him obey the Demon Lord and win her trust if he can.
I, on the other hand, am willing to get my hands dirty.
I will pretend to obey the Demon Lord’s orders, while secretly maintaining a connection with the elves, seeking a path to the demon race’s survival.
“I will survive and outwit the Demon Lord and the elves alike.”
No matter how difficult that might be.
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