Chapter 133

“Is this… a gate? Where does it lead?”

“The Western Continent. Specifically, the Western Continent’s Demon Territory. And as of today, I am the Demon King.”

An indescribable, bizarre silence filled the room.

Then, low laughter began to trickle through the air.

The first to burst out laughing was Oma, the Elf Chamberlain who had recently been appointed through Sodin’s recommendation. Originally, I only intended to bring in Chel’s group, Shia, Sodin, and the three sisters (?) of the Geom-shin Party… but no matter how much I thought about it, it made no sense to install a gate inside the manor while excluding the steward who manages the household’s affairs.

I was actually somewhat grateful for his presence, as it slightly reduced the burden of being the only male in the room, but….

“Pfft… Come now, Sword God. What a joke. In the first place, intercontinental gates are still beyond human technology, which is why they only exist in Sanctuaries. But a gate connected to the Western Continent out of the blue… and the Demon Territory, no less? I think your sense of humor is a bit lacking. Sodin isn’t exactly the fun type either… at this rate, you’ll be called a ‘No-fun Couple’ later….”

“Absolute Command: Suffocation.”

As Oma clutched his throat and collapsed with a thud, the rest of the manor members chimed in one by one.

“Oppa. Even for you, that was a bit too much.”

“The D-Demon Territory… Pfft! Th-then we’ll get to see a M-Demon King too?”

“Sword God, I believe you. If you call the hill in front of the neighborhood a Demon Territory, then from that moment on, it is a Demon Territory to me.”

“…….”

I chose silence instead of an answer. Since I wasn’t the only one—the four Western Continent members were also staring blankly at the manor members with eyes that said, ‘Poor fools, they know nothing…’ the residents of the house began to tilt their heads, sensing that something was different from what they expected.

Sodin, who had been keeping her mouth shut with the wisdom befitting a 7th-Circle mage, asked cautiously.

“Sword God. Was it… not a joke?”

“I’ve had a good meal; why would I joke? This really is the Western Continent’s Demon Territory.”

“Bordeaux Kingdom?”

“You know of it? I guess so. It would be stranger if a mage of your level didn’t know.”

“……!!!”

And Shia drove the final nail in.

“What Sword God says is all true. I cannot tell thee the specific details… but the place where Sword God was last located was truly the Demon Territory.”

Only then did the faces of the manor members turn pale. Especially Oma, who had laughed first—his face was turning a literal shade of blue….

“Hey, Sodin. Isn’t he turning cyanotic because he can’t breathe?”

“Ah… you’re right. I was so surprised I completely forgot.”

“What do you mean ‘you’re right’? You’re going to kill the Elf. Release it quickly.”

The atmosphere felt like questions were about to pour out again. Sensing the impending headache, I decided to shut them up and pushed the group through the gate.

“Just go in. We’ll talk once we’re inside.”

Then Illeia and Selan, who had been peering curiously at the gate and were the first to be shoved in, cried out.

“W-wait a second! Oppa! You said that’s the Demon Territory! Won’t it be crawling with monsters! Ah, is that it? It was a joke! No, why are you being silent now?! Is it really the Demon Territory? Are we going?! It’s weird to push the Priestess into a dangerous place first… Ah! Aaaaaaaah!!”

Illeia’s scream as she was sucked through the gate distorted into an ‘Aaaooouuuu…’ sound, much like the Doppler effect. The rest of the group flinched at that eerie and subtle sound.

Well, I originally intended to tell them that the ‘monsters had already been cleared out’ before pushing them in… but since they were guilty of doubting my words and laughing, I chose silence.

“Alright, that’s one down. Next. Selan, go in.”

“N-no… w-wait a moment, Master! I haven’t p-prepared my heart… Eek! Shia, d-don’t push! No! I’m being sucked in!! M-Master! Please look after my fa-mi-lyyyyyyyooooooo….”

“Alright. Scala, you too.”

Despite it being my command, Scala hesitated—a rare occurrence.

“M-Masters. The thing is….”

True, in the perception of people in this world, the Demon Territory was no different from hell. Her reaction was normal. However…

“If you go in, I’ll praise you a hundred times.”

“Demon Territory?! I’m going! I’m going! I’m going right now! Kyahhoo!!”

With her eyes half-flipped, Scala dashed into the gate.

I scratched my head and spoke to Shia.

“…Hey, Shia. Isn’t she a bit too broken?”

“Mm… I might have tinkered with her a bit too much. I shall restore her to her original state later.”

Anyway, after sending everyone through the gate, I stepped through last. Sure enough, the manor members were looking around with blank expressions.

Sodin muttered while deploying detection magic.

“Sword God. Where are we? It looks like the interior of a very old building….”

“The Demon King’s Castle. Specifically, the wreckage of it.”

“……!”

“……!!”

“……!!!”

For reference, due to the battle between me and Disis, the upper floors of the castle that once pierced the clouds had all collapsed, leaving only about seven lower floors. And this place, where Disis’s true body and I first met, was the first floor of the castle where the gate was installed.

“…You aren’t joking?”

“I told you, I’m not.”

“Th-then the Demon King… the West Demon King?”

“Dead.”

“…What?”

“Dead. Along with all the monsters in the Demon Territory.”

Sodin gulped.

“…That sounds an awful lot like you’re saying you defeated her, Sword God….”

“That’s right. I killed her.”

“H-how?”

“Skillfully.”

“…Sword God. I’m not in the mood for jokes right now.”

“Then no comment.”

“Sword God…!”

“No comment. At least, not right now.”

I stared steadily at Sodin, who was trying to press further. Sodin opened and closed her mouth before eventually avoiding my gaze and turning her head slightly.

I spoke to the manor members with a firmness that bordered on cold.

“I’ll only tell you what I can. The Demon King has fallen. The monsters of the Demon Territory are all dead. The Demon Territory—this Bordeaux Island—is now mine, and I can come here anytime through the gate. Or to the Western Continent if I wish. I intend to open this place to you, and I don’t care what you do here. That’s the end of my explanation. From now on, I won’t take any questions regarding the ‘Demon King or the monsters of the Demon Territory.’ Or rather, ask if you want, but I won’t be giving a straight answer. Do you understand?”

Then Illeia cautiously raised her hand and pointed to the Western Continent members.

“Um… do those people who accompanied you this time know the full story?”

“Yes. They know. To some extent. It couldn’t be helped, as they were right there when the Demon King fell. But they won’t be answering any related questions either. I’ve made sure of that by using a Geas contract to keep them tight-lipped.”

To be honest, I was lying about the gatekeeping—I didn’t actually use a Geas.
But after witnessing the battle between Disis and me with their own eyes, would they really dare to ignore my warning? Not a chance.

“Why? Is it absolutely necessary to keep it a secret?”

“Because there are things that shouldn’t be known.”

…Or rather, it’s just a hassle.

Plus, I’m concerned about how the manor members’ attitudes might change if they found out I’m at the Potestates rank—though, to be fair, I can only pull that off about once every six months. The odds of it happening are slim, but I’d rather not risk the rumors spreading.

Sodin looked disappointed.

“Not even for me?”

Actually, Sodin is the person I want to find out the least. If she learns I’ve ascended to a celestial throne, her Study Mage curiosity—which borders on obsession—will definitely kick in.

I still haven’t forgotten that crazy mage who threw a few coins at me and tried to stick an implant in my head.

Who’s to say I won’t wake up one day strapped to a laboratory dissecting table?

“No.”

“Ah….”

“Ooh. A bad boy! Well, a slightly bad boy is always more charming than a pushover who says yes to everything. Even the Princess is drawn to that charm of yours, Sword God….”

“Absolute Command: Kill.”

“Gah! Heff! Huff! I… I resisted….”

“Tsk. I guess a 7th Circle isn’t enough.”

“You were serious just now! You seriously tried to kill me!!”

I gave Oma a grateful wink. He’d clearly intervened on purpose because he sensed the atmosphere was about to get weird.

Anyway, thanks to him, I was able to continue smoothly.

“I’m not saying it’ll be like this forever. Maybe I’ll tell you someday. Let’s leave it at that. More importantly, let’s head out. There’s nothing to see here besides the gate.”

Shia, who was riding piggyback on my shoulders, grumbled.

“How canst thou say there is naught to see in a Demon King’s castle? There is no rarer sight in this world.”

An hour later.

“It really did collapse from the seventh floor up.”

“If this really is the Demon King’s castle… then I guess the Demon King really is dead.”

“…But how?”

“For over two hundred years, people couldn’t even see the Demon King’s face, let alone defeat her. But suddenly?”

“Maybe the Demon King ate Oppa and is pretending to be him.”

“M-maybe Master’s true identity was the D-Demon King all along… and he came to the Northern Continent to p-play adventurer because he was b-bored.”

“If Sword God is the Demon King and Shia is his consort… th-they would look quite good together….”

“Hey. I can hear you. Stop trying to frame me, will you?”

“We’re saying it specifically so you can hear us, Oppa.”

“I-i-if you don’t like hearing this, then g-give us a more detailed e-explanation….”

“Fine. Talk all you want.”

And so, having enjoyed the “Demon King’s Castle Tour” (even though it only went up to the 7th floor) as per Shia’s insistence, the group finally stepped outside the castle, looking satisfied.

The moment they opened the doors and saw the vast plains and felt the soft breeze brushing their cheeks, they all gasped in unison.

“So this is the Demon Territory….”

“There really… aren’t any monsters.”

“But the terrain around the castle is a mess. It looks like it was all plains over there… why would anyone build a castle in a place like this?”

Sodin, who had been scanning the surroundings with magic, whispered to Illeia and Scala.

“That terrain… it changed just within the last few days.”

“Pardon…?”

“Just a few days ago, this was all flat plains.”

“…But there are mountains and valleys… the height difference between there and here looks to be at least 100 meters.”

“…Those are the traces of battle. Likely the destruction left behind when the Demon King clashed with whoever defeated her.”

Illeia spoke in a flustered voice.

“This is? No… this area spans at least several kilometers. All of this?”

The group’s gaze quietly gathered on me, but I played innocent and shrugged my shoulders.

“Must have been a fierce fight.”

“…Ah, how frustrating. So frustrating! The answer is right in front of me! Why can’t I reach it!”

“Anyway, now that you know I was telling the truth and you’ve seen how things are, let’s go back. You’ve seen enough.”

Sodin furrowed her brows at my words.

“Already? I feel like we could explore a bit more….”

“We need to pack properly if we’re going to do a real survey. We don’t even have food or water; what are you going to do? Besides, if we stay cooped up here any longer, the employees will get suspicious.”

“Mmm… I suppose so. Let’s head back, finish our preparations, and meet again in one hour….”

“What are you talking about? We’re coming back in a week.”

“What? You want me to leave this treasure trove of knowledge and wait a whole week?”

“Exactly one week. I need to rest too, you pest.”

“Ugh….”

“I’m not doing a single thing for a week. I’m just going to rest.”

And that wish of mine was shattered exactly three days after returning home.

“Sword God…?”

“Huh? Kate? What brings you all the way here?”

“Um… I, I don’t know where to look, so… could you please put some clothes on first?”

“Ah, the swimsuit… J-just a second.”