◆ Demon Lord Castle, Top Floor, Demon Lord’s Chamber ◆
As I watched Eeks cough painfully, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret. I had known the hardness of this black armor beforehand, and I couldn’t afford to hold back too much. Moreover, attacking without killing him was even more challenging.
Eeks, unable to rise, didn’t glare at me with resentment; instead, he wore an expression that seemed to understand something profound. At that moment, I finally grasped that he hadn’t been fighting me with all his might.
That Bad End might have indeed aimed to kill me, but it felt far too gentle for that. Even so, there were countless ways he could have caught me off guard.
After taking a deep breath and lying flat on the ground, he smiled for the first time—not the mocking laughter from before, but a gentle smile.
“You’ve grown strong… To think you could surpass me in just ten years. Haha, I guess it’s no wonder I’m slacking off in such a dreary place…”
“My life was saved by you, Eeks. So, this strength is the same. Eeks… I can finally thank you. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
There was a chance I might never have been able to say those simple words. It was only because Eeks was alive that I could express my gratitude. I had thought he was dead, but here he was, alive.
“Hey, hey, don’t cry… Even after getting stronger, you still haven’t changed in that regard…”
“B-but…”
He placed his hand gently on my head and stroked it. It was the first time in ten years he had done that.
“Eeks, um… This might sound cheeky, but… What you protected as an Adventurer is certainly here. Both me and Lua-chan are here, and even if there are people who harbor resentment, there must be those who are grateful. So… please don’t be too pessimistic.”
“Y-yeah! Even if someone says something, I’ll be right here with you!”
“I’ll be right here with you, huh? That’s something an older guy like me should be saying…”
Eeks ruffled his own hair, biting his lower lip as if trying to hold back tears. I understood he didn’t want to show that side to us children. So, I averted my gaze slightly, saying nothing.
“…Let me tell you. You want to know what happened that day, right?”
“Yeah…”
“This is also the story that led to my fall into the Demon Lord Army.”
“Eh…? But you just said—”
“It’s true that I was fed up with it. And… I was given a mission to wipe out the people of Ikana Village, which means you all.”
Kurinka and I were left speechless. It wasn’t that we doubted him, but hearing it from a calm Eeks was even more shocking.
“Is that the Kingdom of Avangarde?! Why would they do something like that?!”
“OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
A sudden roar echoed from the throne. The Demon Lord, who had seemed to be in pain, stood up from his throne, holding something in his hand. No, it was more than just pain; it was…
“M-Master Demon Lord, how are you feeling now…?”
“Ah, I feel much better now.”
The Demon Lord, who had been weak just moments ago, now stood tall and proud. Dressed in a black cloak, he had a tall figure and sharp red eyes. With a well-defined nose and striking features, he was as handsome as Eeks.
“More importantly… Shin.”
“Yes!”
“What is this…?”
“Y-yes, that is… Ahhh!”
“What on earth have you been doing until now?”
In the Demon Lord’s hand was the book that Shin always held dear. I knew he had been writing something in it, and I had been curious. As I watched the Demon Lord’s beautiful face grow increasingly severe, it seemed that whatever was written was not good news.
“U-uhhh… S-Shin! What is this?! Master Demon Lord, I take full responsibility for this!”
“That is… Lua’s… weakness…”
“…It seems you’ve been enjoying your journey.”
Shin’s face turned pale, and he began to back away, trembling as if he might burst into tears. What on earth had been written?
“What have you been doing all this time?! Answer me, SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!”
“Yikes! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
Bathram quickly sensed the enraged movements of the Demon Lord and rushed to intervene. But with just a wave of his hand, the Demon Lord sent Bathram flying to the edge of the hall, finally grasping the situation.
“Guhah…!”
“You said you would take responsibility? Then die here and now.”
“Master Demon Lord, please stay calm… I don’t care what happens to me… But Shin, whom you have cared for so dearly…”
“I’ve heard that nearly all of the Twelve Demon Generals have been defeated, and those who remain have fled. Bathram, what can you accomplish with this? The enemy is all of humanity!”
The Demon Lord grabbed Bathram’s head and slammed it against a pillar repeatedly. As one pillar collapsed, he moved on to another, then to the floor. His expression was no longer that of the Demon Lord from moments ago. Drooling from the corner of his mouth, he howled like a beast, tormenting his opponent.
This was not normal; he shouldn’t be able to hurt his subordinates to that extent.
“This is bad; he’s breaking down… The Demon Lord is no longer…”
“Eeks, do you know something?!”
“This Neo Demon Lord Army is made up of the descendants of those who were once human.”
Once human. What did that mean? I couldn’t comprehend it.
“Thirty years ago, those who fought against the Kingdom of Avangarde were… originally subjects of a certain human experiment conducted by the kingdom. They were implanted with monster cells… creating the ultimate biological weapon, a forbidden act that even the Divine Being would fear…”
We simply listened in shock to Eeks’s story. It took an unusually long time to digest his words and understand them. The Demon Lord Army was originally human, and the kingdom conducted human experiments. I began to realize what I had been a part of.
“I don’t know why the kingdom was secretly conducting such experiments… But there was no way such experiments could succeed. The test subjects died one after another, treated like garbage, as if their corpses were nothing more than waste to be burned. They were said to have been treated worse than slaves… One day, the survivors staged a massive escape.”
“Can you imagine the sight of familiar faces transforming before your eyes… and dying?”
Bathram, bloodied, endured as the Demon Lord stepped on him. The beast-like Demon Lord was now holding his head, frozen in place.
“If the Demon Lord Army is human… then I might be…”
“Lua-chan, it’s not your fault! Just forget about it!”
Kurinka held my hand tightly. I was on the verge of losing myself.
“There was nowhere for us to go after escaping from the kingdom… Those who had half their bodies turned into monsters or were on the verge of complete transformation… Naturally, opinions would clash on what to do next. Some wanted to hide and grow stronger… desperate for revenge. Others sought to live peacefully… We were perfectly divided.”
I needed Kurinka to process Bathram’s story. Without her by my side, I felt like I might go mad.
“The moderates… were relatively less aggressive. So they could choose to live quietly!”
“Master Demon Lord, please calm down…”
“Friends die before my eyes! Lovers die! Transform into grotesque forms! To say that killing is the only option…”
A single tear fell from the raging Demon Lord’s eye. He was angrier than anyone and sadder than anyone. Having endured horrific experiences, he survived and vowed revenge. If things had been different, he would have lived in peace.
Instead, he created such a legion and became a threat to people all over the world. If he sought revenge, it should have been against the Kingdom of Avangarde, so why?
“Back then, I was still young. My father led the charge, taking the name of the Demon Lord from the king who made a name for himself in the Demon Realm. It was a fitting name for those of us who were no longer human. The Demon Lord Army invaded the Kingdom of Avangarde, but…”
“You know the outcome.”
“S-so you are the survivors of the Demon Lord Army from thirty years ago…”
“I have served since the time of the previous Demon Lord. I have seen everything. The Demon Lord was slain by humans, and we lived on the run… We brought along children who were barely old enough to understand, and we arrived at the Great Garnis Glacier. We met the Demon Race and taught those children how to use their powers… Finally, we completed what is now the Neo Demon Lord Army.”
The children of those who had challenged the Kingdom of Avangarde thirty years ago were now the Demon Lord Army. The initial target of the Demon Lord Army was indeed the Kingdom of Avangarde, and that had been their true purpose all along.
Unaware of this, I had faced the Twelve Demon Generals—people who had once been human.
“What do you think? When you open the lid, it’s rather anticlimactic, isn’t it? The terrifying Demon Lord Army that threatened the world turned out to be the remnants of test subjects.”
“Are the monster subordinates… also human?”
“No, that was the Four Heavenly Kings… arranged by the Demon Race, or perhaps the wild monsters that originally lived there.”
“I see…”
I struggled to suppress my trembling. I never imagined that I would be the one to harm a human with my own hands.
“Lua-chan is not at fault… not at all…”
Kurinka was trying to reassure me, but it felt as if she was convincing herself too. Even her kindness made me feel guilty. If I had known this truth sooner, perhaps I wouldn’t have had to fight against the Demon Lord Army. If only I had done this or that. Those thoughts swirled endlessly in my mind.
“If I had known you were from Ikana Village a bit earlier…”
“…If I had known, what then?”
“You already understand. Ikana Village was founded by the moderate faction that escaped.”
“That’s… that’s a lie…!”
It had to be a lie. That would mean the people of Ikana Village were nothing more than test subjects. Bathram was trying to deceive me because we lost. It didn’t make sense; if that were true, then Kurinka would be the same as me.
“Wha-what…?”
Kurinka was like me. No, that wasn’t the point.
“Then… does that mean I can transform into a Dragon…?”
“ROOOOAAAAARRRRR! UAAOOOAAAAAAHHHHHH!”
Once again, the anguished scream of the Demon Lord echoed through the air. He writhed, desperately trying to stand while something spilled from his mouth.
“M-Master! No, not again… he’s having another episode…!”
“Tch!”
Eeks jumped up and rushed toward the Demon Lord. I wondered what he was planning, only to see him attempting to plunge the Bad Slayer into the Demon Lord. It was an impressive leap, and as far as I could remember, hardly anyone could dodge that. Even with the damage he had sustained, his movements were flawless. But the opponent was the Demon Lord. Just like with Bathram, he was swatted away as if he were a mere fly. Even though he managed to take a fall, the sheer power of the Demon Lord was staggering. Eeks seemed to pale in comparison.
“Eeks!”
“D-Don’t come near… the Demon Lord… he’s… already broken…”
“What’s that supposed to mean?! We can’t just leave him like this!”
“Listen! You have something you need to do! We’ll handle the Demon Lord, and you don’t need to get involved!”
“Something I need to do…?”
“Gah… ugh…”
Bathram lay motionless, the Demon Lord’s foot resting atop his head. I couldn’t believe he could do that to Bathram, someone who had been by his side since childhood.
“I… I don’t understand anything anymore… Kurinka, what should we do?”
“I’m curious about what Eeks said about what we need to do… but what do you want, Lua-chan?”
“I don’t know, that’s why I’m asking!”
“That’s a lie! You know exactly what you want! You don’t want to abandon this place, do you?! If that’s the case, there are things we can do!”
“What can we do…?”
“We can do it, can’t we? Right?”
“Eeks, we won’t run away. So just watch us with confidence.”
Eeks closed his eyes slightly, as if resigned, then nodded and exhaled deeply, waving his hand dismissively.
“Fine, do as you like. But remember, the Demon Lord is strong, beyond imagination.”
“Hey! You fools! Are you planning to kill the Demon Lord?! That’s something Shin—”
“…It’s okay, Shin. As promised, we won’t kill the Demon Lord.”
“Lua-chan…”
Seeing my resolve, Kurinka felt relieved. She gripped her staff and began to swing it around as if warming up. I tightened my grip on Disballade in response. Then, I cupped Shin’s head in my hands, and we quietly stared down the transformed Demon Lord, who resembled a beast.
“I sympathize with your circumstances, but what you’ve done can never be forgiven. However… even so, there are people who would grieve your absence. We can think about what to do after you regain your sanity.”
“I can’t forgive the Neo Demon Lord Army, but I also want to sort out my thoughts. So please, just be quiet for now.”
【The Demon Lord has appeared! HP: 204,000】
I focused all my killing intent, but as expected of the Demon Lord, he bared his teeth like a starving beast and lunged at me without any warning.