Side: Rurua
After the international conference concluded, our discussion shifted toward the immediate crisis. Of course, that immediate crisis is the matter of the Hero.
"Now, as planned... if we don't quickly settle the issue regarding the Hero, it won't be good for Gartz or Weed."
At Seraria's words, everyone nodded in unison.
"On top of that, because of this mess, it's been leaked that Derieu is the Demon King—to say nothing of the fact that the 'Four Heavenly Kings' are here. With that, the current Demon King will surely take some kind of action. Information like this is impossible to suppress, especially after that trash princess went around barking it at the top of her lungs."
That's right.
That idiot princess of Rankus had shouted things like, "Weed is occupied by the Demon King and the Four Heavenly Kings!" as she left. Of course, she was barking and pointing at Derieu, but Derieu now holds a solid position and great popularity in the city.
The residents of Weed simply scowled at the princess. However, no matter how trivial a rumor may be, it will spread like a joke. And eventually, it will reach the ears of the actual Demon King.
"Considering a member of the royal family made such a scene, it will be difficult to completely suppress the rumor."
"Indeed..."
At Sheila's words, Seraria holds her head.
"To dispel this rumor, we'll have no choice but to join the campaign against the Demon King."
"...If we only provide indirect support, it might leave lasting resentment."
"Yes, thanks to that filthy idiot princess, if we hold back on sending troops, the joke will become reality."
"Even if Rankus is destroyed?"
"If we could capture and dispose of every single person in the Rankus royalist faction without exception, we might manage, but..."
"That's impossible. There's no way to distinguish them all."
She really has left us with a troublesome mess.
"Well, there's no use crying over spilled milk. Derieu aside, the problem was letting Zargis and Leia live. That's my responsibility. I'll accept punishment later, but for now, we need to gather information on the Demon King."
"Why do you have to be punished for that!!"
"That's right!! We object!!"
Seraria and Sheila, along with the other wives, immediately raised their voices in protest.
"Calm down. I'm saying if things stay as they are."
"What are you going to do then?"
"Well, regarding the Hero, Taiki-kun, we mostly know his movements, and we can contact him via Call anytime. We just need to put up a front of intercepting him to match his plan."
"...I won't stop you, since there's merit in showing off our national power. The real issue is the rumor about being allied with the Demon King. I'm certain the Demon King will make a move because of it."
That is the problem. The possibility of Weed being swept up in the flames of war has significantly increased.
"Just a declaration from the Demon King saying he's teamed up with Weed would be a major blow, but honestly, I can't read what his next move will be."
"True... Wait—you just said something terrifying. If the Demon King claims to be allied with Weed, that would be devastating. Just that would probably cause several countries to stop trading with us."
"Indeed. As usual, Onii-san has a knack for thinking of the moves that would hurt us the most."
Everyone looked impressed.
Truly, Danna-sama's thinking is always one step ahead—or rather, aimed in a completely different direction.
Certainly, if the Demon King loudly proclaimed an alliance with Weed, trade would stop, residents would grow anxious, and our national power would decline. For Weed, which exists for the sake of its people, that is a move we want to avoid even more than a clumsy war.
"That's why information gathering is crucial right now. We've been too busy to deal with this until now, but it's time to have those two explain things. You can come in."
Danna-sama turned his gaze toward the door. We followed suit, but no one entered.
"Call: Zargis! Leia!"
『Oh, Master Yuki, did something happen? Regarding the radio... rather than converting magic into electricity, it might be faster to just create a spell formula for—』
"—Forget that and get to the government conference room immediately! You've heard about the situation, haven't you?!"
『Oh, I forgot, sorry. I'm on my way.』
"And Leia, what about you?"
『The cow's labor has started!! Pull right there! Heave-ho!!』
"Ah, I see. Come to the conference room once that's finished."
『Yeah, got it! Come on, just a little more!!』
Danna-sama ended the Call.
"...Let's forgive Leia for being late."
"Agreed."
"She is working hard, after all."
At Seraria's words, everyone nodded.
You don't often hear a conversation with that much desperate intensity.
By the way, Leia is the person who attacked Narjia-san's village—a self-proclaimed member of the Four Heavenly Kings and a demon who uses fire. Her chest is larger than mine, but since she is also quite tall, her overall proportions are balanced.
Currently, at her own request, she is in charge of agriculture. I was surprised at first, but it seems demons also plow fields, grow crops, and raise livestock for their daily sustenance. Leia-san comes from a farming village, so she has been very helpful with the agriculture here. She's close friends with Kaya-san, and they are always talking about what crops to grow next.
"Hahaha! My apologies, Representatives. Zargis of the Development Department has arrived—buweh?!"
The one who just got knocked down by Seraria's flying teacup was Zaargis — another self-proclaimed Heavenly King, the self-proclaimed genius who created the upgraded pillbug monster that destroyed Naarujia-san's village.
Since coming here, he has been obsessively researching and developing new products after seeing the unusual things Danna-sama shows him, working every day to see if they can be mass-produced in Weed.
Some of the trade goods we brought to Gartz, such as the magic-powered lamps, were also created by Zaargis. Danna-sama had given him this task so that Weed wouldn't rely solely on DP and could produce goods through its own efforts.
"W-Why such harsh treatment?! Leia isn't even here yet!"
"Leia's absence is due to an unavoidable cow birth. You, Zargis, are just being negligent. You understand, don't you?"
"M-My sincerest apologies."
Zargis immediately bowed his head.
By the way, the power dynamic is: Wives >>> Unsurpassable Wall > Four Heavenly Kings. We have trained so that we can decisively win in a one-on-one physical fight, so there are no issues. Zargis especially can't seem to stand up to Seraria... and... he is particularly humble toward Eris and Ratz, who control the finances.
"Now, you know why you were called here, right?"
"Yeah, just like Master Yuki said, it's about the demons, right?"
"Correct."
"With all due respect, even if you say 'demons' or 'Demon King,' the topic is vast. Unless you narrow down what information you need, I won't know what to tell you."
Zargis shrugged his shoulders with a "good grief" expression. But he's right. We need to know what to ask for it to be useful information.
"Furthermore, since you call me a 'self-proclaimed' Heavenly King, is there even any credibility in what I say?"
He had a point there, too. Believing the words of a demon is an act usually reserved for fools. Since ancient times, demons have been passed down in every nation as evil creatures intent on destroying humanity and seizing the world.
"Well, as for me, research funds under Master Yuki are far more abundant than under the Demon King, the treatment is fair, the food is delicious, and I have no complaints. I'm happy to provide information."
"And why exactly do you feel that way? Are we not the enemies you are supposed to destroy?"
Seraria asked suspiciously, eyeing Zargis's straightforward and cooperative attitude.
"Ah, starting from there? Master Yuki treated me normally so I didn't think much of it, but I suppose that's the first hurdle. May I explain?"
Go ahead."
Taking a breath, Zargis began to speak.
"First of all, what Seraria-dono said is fundamentally wrong. We demons are fighting the human 'invaders' for our own survival."
"""What?!"""
Even the representatives of the three allied nations were shocked.
Naturally so—here was a demon claiming that the conflict was for survival, to protect themselves from human invaders.
"...Master Yuki doesn't seem surprised, eh?"
"Well, I had a hunch."
"A hunch? May I hear it?"
"Sure. To put it simply, demonkin were originally humans, right?"
"""!!!"""
Danna-sama's answer caused the entire conference room to fall into silence.
That was understandable. He had just claimed that demonkin were originally the same as us humans.
"I should have expected no less from you. Exactly. We don't know the cause, but demons are born as mutations. Those who gathered together formed the nation of Rust, centered around the Demon King."
"Mutations?"
"Has Seraria-dono never heard of it? Reports of a demon suddenly appearing in a town or village?"
"I have. But wasn't that because a demon was hiding there?"
"That's where you're wrong. According to my research, I believe that when a person reaches a certain age and their mana capacity exceeds a certain threshold, their race changes to 'Demon.'"
"Wait a minute. If what Zargis is saying is true..."
"Exactly. You've driven away young children as monsters, killed them, and even slaughtered their families. That is the origin of the demons. Most likely, the first person to become a Demon King took all that accumulated grudge and unleashed it upon the various nations along with his companions. Since having mana above a certain level means they have a fair amount of skill in using magic, it's a power a bit too great for a child. When they grow up, they become soldiers worth a thousand men... the children who survived, that is. I was born and raised in Rust, so I don't fully understand those feelings, but I imagine it's beyond anything we can conceive."
Seraria was speechless.
Of course, the rest of us, myself included, were the same.
"Well, as for whether I hate you all specifically... I don't. It's an old story from long ago, and I don't drag it around, but we were driven away regardless. Honestly, the 13th Demon King before the current one said he wanted to live in peace with humans and retreated quietly to the mountains where crops hardly grow... yet you sent nonsensical subjugation armies, attacked farming villages, and ravaged the fields. We were simply desperately protecting the land we lived on."
"Seraria, what about the territories of the Four Great Nations over the last few centuries?"
Danna-sama asked Seraria.
Without lifting her face, she answered his question.
"Under the guise of 'liberating' the lands where the Demon King lives, many great expeditions have been carried out. Just as Yuki predicted, the Four Great Nations have expanded their territories by carving away the regions said to be the Demon King's domain."
"In other words, even from a historical perspective, Zargis's claim is correct."
"...I suppose we can't ask why peace hasn't been achieved." Seraria whispered.
When Seraria looked at Zargis, he shrugged with a troubled expression.
"It's just as you think. Even if we spoke of peace, we'd just be ignored or killed on the spot. The current Demon King seems to be a pacifist who is trying her hardest, but from my perspective, it's already a lost cause. Your side has branded us as absolute evil, and our side has to secure land just to survive. If we can't negotiate, we have to take it. To you, we are enemies that must be defeated. It's just a cycle now."
Zargis didn't even blame us, calling it a natural progression. But he seemed a little sad.
"What do Roshure, Gartz, and Rithea think?"
"Well, that is..."
"We only receive reports that a demon appeared and were disposed of."
"Same for us. After disposing of a demonkin, only a magic stone remains. No corpse is left behind."
The kings, too, had been judging based only on reports and the evidence of magic stones. It seemed they never imagined they had been laying hands on children.
...It was the same when I was a Saint. There weren't many cases, but I remember about three in total.
"Hmm. Scouts are likely coming anyway. In that case, how about we try capturing any demonkin we find — especially if they look like children — under the pretense of 'protective custody' to verify if Zaargis's story is true?"
"Indeed. That would be best."
"Gartz will go with that plan as well."
"Rithea has no objections. If it's the truth, we have been making a terrible mistake."
The kings of each country accepted Danna-sama's "capture" pretext.
"Hou, you believe me surprisingly easily. I thought you would dismiss it as nonsense."
"Zaargis, you really aren't very sharp in that regard, huh?"
"Well, I've only ever focused on research."
"Just as Zaargis said, if demonkin are merely the result of sudden mutations and peace is actually possible, then there's no longer any need to continue this fight. The money spent on national defense can be reduced, and many things would become more convenient. Until now, it was a battle over the right to survive, so neither side could back down. But if we understand the circumstances, there may be room to find a solution."
"I see. Is that how it is? But will it really go well?"
"Probably not? The weight of everything that's happened until now is too heavy. Still, we have to do something, or it'll turn into an all-out war, right?"
"Indeed... Ah, I see. Perhaps that old story—where the Hero cornered the Demon King but didn't kill him—was aiming for this possibility...?"
When Zargis mentioned that old tale, I remembered it too.
Long ago, a Hero descended upon this continent, united the nations trembling before the Demon King, exterminated monsters, and cornered the King in the central mountains.
There was always the question: why didn't the Hero deliver the finishing blow to the cornered Demon King?
There are many theories. That the Hero had suffered injuries so great he couldn't go any further. That national power had declined, so a further pursuit was impossible.
And then, there is the theory considered the most foolish.
'Hoping for a day when we can coexist. Let us both do our best.'
The story that the Hero was kind and even reached out a hand to the demons.
The details of that last story are vague, but that Hero's name still remains today.
The Hero from Another World: Touya Yashiro.
Just like my husband, he was the first recorded visitor from another world.
