The Demon King, huh…
I expected the Demon King would exist the moment I heard about the Hero and the Saint. But why did Lili, the Demon King’s subordinate, appear before Nameless and me?
I tried to decipher her intentions by examining her expression, but Lili was still brightly smiling, waiting for our response.
I just couldn’t figure out what she was after.
Letting out a small sigh, I lowered my head to look at the Mage lying under Lili’s foot, seemingly in a life-threatening state.
“,,,”
The Mage seemed to be in danger yet was smiling like a fool.
I couldn’t help but facepalm.
“Well, I guess I shouldn’t have come here.”
Who would’ve thought she’d be so happy…
Nameless, looking slightly dazed, stepped forward as if to protect me and approached Lili.
“Did you say Lili? What do you and your Master want from us?”
“It’s Lili! What we want? Uh… what was it again? Just a moment!”
Lili seemed genuinely struggling to remember, tilting her head with a finger on her lips.
Her foolishness was so out of character from her appearance that I couldn’t help but frown.
Nameless glanced at me before raising his wooden sword at Lili.
“…What are you trying to do?”
Lili smiled at Nameless, who aimed his wooden sword at her, and clapped her hands.
“Ah! I remember! Could you help us with our Demon King’s revival?”
Nameless furrowed his brows, opening his mouth to respond but turned to me instead.
Was he looking for my opinion?
Hmm, honestly, I’m not keen on picking sides with either the Demon King or the Hero.
If I side with the Hero, he will eventually become a hindrance to my goals, and siding with the Demon King feels too grim, as I would be accompanying someone who openly embraces evil.
And with the Hero appearing, the Demon King’s revival will probably succeed whether we cooperate or not.
“Let’s hear them out for now.”
Regardless of my thoughts, now that the Demon King’s side had noticed us, I couldn’t fully ignore them.
‘I don’t know how we caught their attention, though.’
For now, it’s crucial to navigate this situation smoothly.
“Master?”
“Smart decision!”
Nameless looked startled, and Lili smiled wide, clapping her hands.
Of course, I didn’t say I would genuinely cooperate just to hear them out.
The reason I’m maintaining this attitude is to gather detailed information about the Demon King, plus there’s a Mage about to lose his life under Lili’s foot if things go wrong.
Always assuming the worst is important; this was a rational decision.
We exchanged looks, and I nodded.
That seemed to be enough for Nameless to understand my intentions.
As I agreed to listen, an excited Lili launched into her explanation.
“What should I start with? Oh, let’s talk about our Demon King!”
Suddenly, Lili’s expression changed. She looked sad and pressed her fingers together.
“Right now, our Demon King is sleeping… thanks to that damn Hero…”
“The Hero?”
“Ah! Yes! It was hundreds of years ago, so if the Hero was a human, he’s probably dead by now?”
If it was hundreds of years ago, it’s likely before I arrived here.
I nodded along.
Lili cleared her throat and continued, still looking mournful.
“Anyway, when our Demon King wakes up, he’ll need a LOT of souls to regain his original power!”
“And what do you want from us?”
As I was conversing with Lili, I felt a headache coming on and needed to progress the conversation, so I asked her what they desired.
But the reply I got was rather baffling, and my brows knitted together.
“Well, I don’t really know.”
“If you don’t know, then what are we supposed to do?”
Lili scratched her head awkwardly, seeming embarrassed at her inability to answer.
“Actually, before going to sleep, the Demon King said something, but it was kinda… vague!”
I felt a headache brewing again and rubbed my forehead.
So, what does that mean for us?
Continuing to dance around the topic without any real answers felt pointless, so I decided to switch gears.
“Ha… if you’re not willing to talk, then what’s in it for us if we help you?”
As I rubbed my face in frustration, Lili’s eyes lit up, and she beamed while spreading her arms wide.
“A completely new world! The Demon King’s goal is truly something else! If you listen, you’ll surely be amazed!”
A new world, huh…
That piqued my interest a bit, and my eyes brightened.
Lili took my reaction positively, becoming even more animated, while Nameless stiffened and moved away from me.
“Listen! The Demon King will sacrifice a lot of souls and cast off the limits of his physical form! After that, he’ll become a transcendent being, like a god…”
“Ha!”
A god, you say?
Indeed, as Lili said, that’s definitely a remarkable goal to be amazed by.
Isn’t that potentially the key to getting closer to the heavens?
My lips couldn’t help but curl up.
“Gaining powers— Kyaagh!”
Before Lili could react, I lunged forward, grabbing her hair and planting her into the ground.
Leaning closer, I whispered in her ear.
“If you want my cooperation, you better spill the details.”
“…Ugh.”
I placed the wooden sword against Lili’s neck.
“Or else your head will roll.”
Lili’s previously carefree expression faded, and her face went pale as she nodded.
“Good girl.”
Traveling with Nameless had been enjoyable, and at the end of the day, fortune had come knocking on my door.
What a lovely day.
Nameless glanced back at me, still carrying the fainted Mage on his back, and looked at Lili awkwardly.
“Is the Mage really going to be okay?”
“Yes! Of course! He’s probably dreaming something nice right now!”
Indeed, the Mage had been grinning like an idiot for quite some time now.
Suddenly curious about the content of the Mage’s dream, I remembered that the dream-sharer was a Succubus and shook my head.
“It’s probably time to head back.”
I approached Lili and tapped her shoulder.
“Lili.”
“Yes? Yup!”
Lili snapped to attention, fixing her awkward stance into a more rigid posture.
As I fixated on a point, my vision shifted.
“…Nameless and I will proceed as stated earlier, so relay that to your companions.”
“Sure!”
Turning my back to Lili, I moved closer to Nameless.
“It’s time to go.”
“Yes, Master.”
I briefly turned my head, noticing Lili finally snapping back to reality, spreading her wings, and soaring into the sky.
Once Lili was completely out of sight, I nudged Nameless in the side.
“Ugh, Master?”
“Do you remember what I told you back there?”
Nameless paused, recalling the moment, and his lips pursed.
“…Yes, I will follow you to the end.”
His cute response, stemming from a minor misunderstanding, made me smile.
I wanted to pat his head, but the height difference made it awkward, so I settled for holding his hand instead.
“I know what you’re thinking, but it probably isn’t what you expect.”
“Really?”
Nameless’ ambiguous response made my eyebrows twitch.
“Do you not trust your Master?”
Nameless shook his head.
“…To be honest, it’s hard to imagine Master under someone else.”
His excessive praise made me oddly bashful, so I scratched my cheek.
“Then what are we going to do?”
“Hmm, let’s get the Mage settled first and then talk.”
Nameless glanced back at the Mage he was carrying and nodded.
“Ah, right.”
So, what Lili— the Demon King’s side— demanded from me in broad terms was to gather a large number of souls, and I had agreed to that.
While it might appear from our conversation that I would be engaging in ‘evil deeds that harm others,’ like Nameless suggested, I don’t intend to comply with their demands literally.
In the first place, I don’t even know how to harvest souls from people, and simply gathering a lot of souls means I just need to gather people, right?
And there are ways to gather people without resorting to violence.
Immediately, what I thought of was building my unique faction.
Specifically, if I gather those who lead harsh lives— those struggling just to eat today, harboring hatred for the world— they wouldn’t want to leave my side once I take them in.
Of course, if asked if I would harvest their souls, my answer is no.
At some suitable timing, I could just cut ties with the Demon King.
Giving a round of applause to my keen intellect for coming up with a perfect plan, I smirked.
“Master? Isn’t that just volunteer work instead of gathering people?”
“What?”
While discussing with Nameless, I gradually polished my plans.
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