“Demon God, huh….”
The Demon Lord muttered quietly. There was a hint of possessiveness in his voice as he spoke.
“Alright. What title would you like as Ice Ghost? Also, feel free to say what you desire.”
At that, Ezekiel immediately opened his mouth. He already had something in mind.
“Han-shin.”
Upon hearing that, the existing Han-shin’s eyes widened in surprise.
The “Han” in Han-shin (God of Regret) is from the character meaning ‘sorrow.’
Ezekiel’s “Han-shin” (God of Chill) was derived from the chill technique.
The meanings were completely different, but the fact that they sounded the same carried significant weight.
This statement could essentially be seen as declaring a direct duel against the existing Han-shin.
Naturally, the demons reacted strongly.
“Are you trying to step on an already existing title?”
“You’re starting a fight from the get-go. If you act like this, who on earth would welcome a demon like you?”
“…This is why I hate humans.”
However, the Demon Lord’s response was different.
“Hahaha….”
Valetta laughed heartily, clearly intrigued by Ezekiel’s intentions.
“Hah…! Hahahahahaha! Hahahahaha!”
His laughter just kept going and suddenly morphed into maniacal cackling.
In the midst of all this, Ezekiel stared directly at the violet flame located on Han-shin’s head. It was a pity that he couldn’t see his expression, but he was probably feeling quite uncomfortable.
He added with a smirk.
“I told you to say what you wanted.”
Ezekiel quietly extended his finger.
The tip of his finger pointed directly at the existing Han-shin.
It was a very blatant accusation, yet no one bothered to call him out on his rudeness. Perhaps it was due to him being treated equally among the demons now.
No.
To be precise, everyone was confused about how to treat Ezekiel because they were witnessing something entirely new, leaving only the Demon Lord with clarity.
All eyes turned to Ezekiel.
He had successfully reached the point of controlling mana. Now he just needed to execute the rest as planned.
“I want the title of Han-shin along with that guy’s city.”
The other demons looked stunned. They couldn’t believe what Ezekiel just said.
“…”
Everyone’s gaze naturally shifted to Demon Lord Valetta. As the ruler of the Demon Realm, only she could provide answers in this situation.
However, the silence dragged on.
“…Are you hesitating? How ridiculous. I know that there isn’t anyone with a constitution like mine in the Demon Realm. I thought you were being quite humble.”
Ezekiel pressed on.
He wasn’t the slightest bit scared, surrounded by demons with the Demon Lord right in front of him. It was because three energies were boiling crazily inside him.
The ability-infused chill, the Sun Elixir hailed as the most precious in the continent, and the blood gem of the Demon Realm…. All of it was infused inside him, albeit in small amounts.
He was the most excited about what was to come. Just how much power would he unleash? He found himself secretly hoping for a fight.
“Hehehe…! Hahahahaha…!”
The Demon Lord clutched her face in uncontrollable laughter. It seemed she couldn’t stop, no matter how hard she tried.
“Ice Ghost! You truly have a knack for making me laugh with such serious talk. Or maybe it’s funny precisely because it’s serious? I’m realizing it once more—being with you always brings joy.”
Valetta exclaimed, genuinely enjoying herself.
The other demons had complex reactions. It was the first time they had seen their Demon Lord enjoy herself to this extent.
Snap—!
With a flick of her finger,
Whoosh, Ezekiel’s body jumped through dimensions. In the blink of an eye, he found himself on Valetta’s lap. The Demon Lord had placed him on her thighs.
“Young little demon, I shall allow you to sit on my lap. It seems the troubles of Han-shin will be long, so let us have a delightful chat.”
“…How disgusting.”
Ezekiel promptly lifted his butt from the Demon Lord’s thigh. Meanwhile, the demons held their breath, watching this shocking situation unfold.
Both the Demon Lord’s actions and Ezekiel’s attitude toward her were utterly shocking.
Only Arcne bit her lip in peculiar jealousy.
The demons began murmuring amongst themselves.
“Three energies contained in one body? Does that mean there’s mana existing that won’t devour other energies? What on earth is going on?”
“I can hardly believe he’s still human now.”
As all this was happening, the Demon Lord continued to revel in her joy.
“Fortunately, this city is having a festival, and this spot has turned into a banquet? Pour the drinks! Bring forth the feast! Let us celebrate the birth of our new demon!”
It was certainly a seat prepared for Han-shin to slay Ezekiel, but now it transformed into one to celebrate the birth of a new demon.
“I obey the command of the Demon Lord—”
Immediately, succubi dressed as courtesans lined up and entered. Each one lovingly held a bottle of alcohol.
The Demon Lord grinned at Ezekiel.
“Ordinarily, I should be offering you a drink to be the main character of this event, but I find myself drinking in the excitement. New demon, please understand my drinking binge.”
Valetta chugged an entire bottle without losing a shred of her elegance.
“I was going to let you go free…. But seeing that result, I cannot. You must stay here, no matter what happens.”
“Stay in the Demon Realm?”
Valetta nodded, her eyes gleaming like jewels. The deep black of her eyes was truly peculiar.
“Yeah, didn’t you tell me to share my honest thoughts once? As the great Demon Lord, that is.”
She wiped her mouth and continued.
“Ice Ghost, I want you. Stay in the Demon Realm and become a model for all the demon races. At the same time, you must grow diligently and bring light to the Demon Realm.”
“And then?”
“Next, we must go around saving every corner of the world, one by one.”
“Saving, huh.”
Ezekiel muttered incredulously, but the Demon Lord seemed pleased even with his disdainful expression.
“Ice Ghost, my lovely new demon, why do you think conflicts never cease in the world?”
Ezekiel felt the chaos swirling in her dark eyes; it was quite dreaded.
“Because there are too many races, and each holds diverse powers. If we could unify the entire world through mana, that would signify peace and salvation.”
“When did destruction become synonymous with peace?”
“No! It’s right to say that in order to achieve peace, one must also be capable of destruction. To attain eternal peace, it’s essential to eliminate the resistors.”
Valetta’s tone grew increasingly sticky.
“That’s why your existence is significant, Ice Ghost. A human accepting mana and remaining unharmed? That will serve as the catalyst for other races to have lowered barriers toward mana.”
“Bullshit.”
“If the barriers are lowered, what’s next is simple. They’ll start trying to absorb mana into their own races as well…. After that, it won’t matter whether they succeed or fail! They’ll just love it!”
The Demon Lord ignored Ezekiel’s words and kept going.
“Those who fail and are devoured by mana will yearn for strong mana until their dying moments. The ones who survive and remain will become the temptation for those different entities to reach out for mana!”
“…”
“How many people are there who wish to become stronger on the continent? Countless. All of them will grasp for mana. Then the Demon Realm will only become stronger.”
Smash—!
The wine bottle in the excited Demon Lord’s hand shattered.
“The ones who don’t reach for mana will grow weak and be eliminated, while only those who accept mana will survive. A time will come when mana will serve as the standard for judgment in this world, leading us to become even more magnificent.”
“In the act of killing the innocent, you’ve already failed.”
“If you really want to break it down, being weak is a sin. The weak can only serve a purpose by dying to raise the awareness of others.”
Ezekiel looked away from the Demon Lord’s face.
Inside her dark eyes, chaos was swirling; it was something one couldn’t handle while sober.
She only desired war and the death of living beings.
The Demon Lord’s thoughts were too different from Ezekiel’s own. He realized she was someone he must deal with in due time.
But, at that moment.
“Your Excellency the Demon Lord.”
A careful voice spoke up—the existing Han-shin, who had remained silent till now.
All attention immediately turned to him.
Then he uttered a statement that diverged from Ezekiel’s expectations.
“I will gladly hand over my city.”
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