Chapter 137

In the end, summarizing the words of Lumina, the Moon Goddess, it boiled down to this:

1. The Celestial Realm is currently split into two opposing factions. One is the True God faction, which wants the current world to continue. The other is the False God faction, which wants to destroy the current world quickly and open a new one.
2. There are True Gods who have sided with the False God faction despite being True Gods themselves.
3. Yuel, the Governing God, belongs to the True God faction, but is currently in the military (!?), making intervention impossible.
4. When a Demon King is caught by an irregular like me, a “soft landing” process for that continent’s military power is necessary to prevent the excess force from being turned against one another.
5. Unlike the Northern Continent, the Western Continent was not prepared for information control, so the True Gods believed it would be troublesome if the Western Demon King were caught “just yet.”
6. Therefore, they intended to send me back, but were unable to do so due to the persistent interference of the False Gods.
7. The False Gods threw me into the Western Continent with the mindset that they didn’t care if I died or the Demon King died.
8. When the West Demon King was brutally killed only three months after I was thrown there, the flustered False Gods quickly leaked revelations through a few subverted True Gods stating that the West Demon King was dead.
9. Fearing a continental war would break out, the True Gods issued counter-revelations to their followers, including the Pope, telling them to restrain themselves because the Demon King was still alive.
10. Since counter-revelations alone weren’t enough, Lumina, representing the True Gods, requested that I act as the West Demon King for the time being.

‘Hmm….’

Naturally, the “aggro” of a provocative story like “The Demon King is dead” is overwhelmingly higher than the obvious statement that “The Demon King is alive.” Even more so when it’s a divine revelation.

Even if there are opposing revelations, there will surely be attempts to confirm the Demon King’s absence in various ways.

That is exactly what Lumina is worried about right now.

“Acting as the Demon King… I needed to scare off those coming anyway to maintain ownership of Bordeaux Island. I guess I can just do it all at once.”

[…Wait. By the way… this is a bit sudden, but may I point one thing out?]

‘Hmm? What is it?’

[I’ve been listening, and… you were using polite speech just fine, so why have you suddenly switched to casual speech since a moment ago?]

‘Ah, that? I thought about it, and I caught the North Demon King for you, I caught the West Demon King for you, yet I haven’t received a single reward in the meantime, and now I’m even doing you another favor? To be blunt, you people are just obnoxious folks who take without giving… I figured there’s no reason to bow and scrape using polite speech. Why? You got a problem with it?’

[Heh, hehehe….]

A low chuckle flowed out as if she found it absurd.

She swept back her golden hair, which fluttered on its own in the windless space, and pointed to the radiant wings of light behind her back.

[Whew… I am the Moon Goddess, you know? I am a Subordinate Heaven (Ophanim). Aside from Governing God Yuel, there is no one above me.]

‘Is that so? Then deduct it from the debt.’

[…Pardon?]

‘You guys have a mountain of debt to pay me. Deduct the right to speak to you as an equal from that.’

[Uh, well….]

‘Hey, you said you follow the Golden Rule or whatever. I don’t know much about it, but doesn’t that Golden Rule mean you get what you give? Then I can ask for what I want as the price, right? It’s not like I’m a beggar; surely you don’t expect me to just take whatever you decide to give?’

[No… but there are conditions that even we cannot grant….]

‘Was speaking casually with you such a difficult condition? Is that more precious than saving the world? If that’s the case, aren’t you guys no different from those False God bastards?’

[…Fine. Just a moment. Let’s put it on the scales.]

‘Scales?’

Immediately after, a balance scale shimmering with actual golden light appeared in Lumina’s hand.

‘Oh…?’

She placed a gold weight on one side of the scale and a silver weight on the other.

[The gold represents what you have done for us, and the silver is the condition you’ve requested from us. Let’s see what the ratio looks like.]

And then…

Creak, clank!!

The scale tilted almost violently toward the golden weight.

[0.7 percent… My goodness.]

‘So that means I only need to deduct 0.7 percent from the debt? Call. Deduct it. In exchange, you guys are on equal footing with me from now on.’

The goddess stared at the scale for a moment before finally letting out a sigh.

[…It is approved. From this moment on, no god in the heavens, excluding the Governing God, shall object to or retaliate against your casual speech.]

‘Ah, right. And….’

[What else is there? Just so you know, things like divine weapons or armor are impossible. Your combat power is a factor that directly affects the Trials.]

‘I’m fine with Astraphe for a weapon. As for armor, it doesn’t matter as long as I don’t get hit.’

[Then what is it?]

‘I’ve sold your name quite a bit down on the ground.’

[Ah, you did. I was actually going to have a word with you about that. You…]

‘So put that on the scale officially, too. How much of a deduction is it for the right to use your names however I want?’

After a moment of silence, the goddess finally raised the corners of her eyes.

[You… seriously….]

‘Hey. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, you know? You said lying using your names feels similar to being insulted to your face? It seems like there’s friction and likes/dislikes among the gods too… I’ll mainly sell the names of the gods you hate. Isn’t that great?’

[…….]

‘…….’

[I… dislike the Sun God. My relationship with the Great Earth Mother is also a bit… so-so. And also with the Elf God, and the Dragon God….]

‘…Are you a loner by any chance?’

[I am not!!]

‘Well, fine. Anyway, you’re accepting it, right? Oh, and there’s one more. Can you weigh this on the scale too?’

[Sigh….]

Anyway, that’s how it went…

I secured the right to be on equal footing with the celestial gods, the right to use their names as I pleased, the right to pluck Yuribel’s feathers whenever she visited, and even the right to forcibly designate her outfit, all in exchange for a 20 percent deduction of the debt.

‘Ah! One more! The smartphone connected to Earth….’

[Stop it already!!!]

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.
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‘So? This acting as the Demon King thing—what do I actually have to do?’

[Just do the kinds of things a Demon King would typically do.]

The goddess replied in a weary tone, her golden hair fluttering—though it seemed somewhat faded compared to before.

[Many nations will likely scout the Demon’s Territory with a mix of doubt and anxiety. They might send a grand fleet, or perhaps launch airships escorted by mages. Some Magic Towers might even dispatch elites via teleportation after thorough preparation.]

[Ah, and you must also take care of the “Raids”. If the monsters that used to swoop in suddenly vanish one day, it will lend weight to the revelation that the Demon King is dead. Oh, and you’ll need to send out doppelgangers from time to time as well.]

‘Wait, wait. There are quite a few problems here… I’ll concede and scare off the intruders to chase them away. But how am I supposed to create and send doppelgangers? Besides, you need monsters in the Demon’s Territory to send them on raids. I’ve already wiped out all the monsters there. Don’t they only respawn if a Demon King is present?’

At that, the goddess wagged her index finger playfully. Seeing that gesture, which somehow resembled Yuribel’s, I couldn’t help but let out a small smirk.

[That’s why I’m here. Do you remember what I said at the very beginning?]

‘Huh?’

[I said I had a favor to ask.]

‘Ah… right.’

[A Dragonian visited the Adventurer’s Guild today, didn’t they? Saying they wanted to commission a request.]

‘Kate? Yeah. I wasn’t feeling it, so I just told her I’d think about it and sent her back.’

[Accept that request. Because that request is essentially the same as one sent by me.]

‘Hmm? What kind of request is it?’

[You can hear the details for yourself later, but to explain it simply: a territorial war has broken out near Seol, and some priests of the Lumina Order are trapped between the two sides.]

‘The request is to rescue them?’

[Yes.]

‘And what does that have to do with creating monsters out of thin air?’

[Among those priests is my “Second Shadow Saintess.” I was actually in the middle of sending her to you anyway… but things have gotten tangled like this.]

‘Shadow Saintess? What’s that? Is it different from a regular Saintess?’

[A Shadow Saintess is a “vessel.” A vessel capable of holding a god. At the same time, she is a “Anti-Demon King Weapon” that we’ve been preparing for a long time.]

‘A vessel for a god? Wait, are you talking about “Descent”? Were you planning to descend into a human body and fight directly?’

[Yes. It’s strictly a last resort. But if there’s truly no other way, wouldn’t we have to do at least that? The penalty would be significant, but it would still be better than a direct “Manifestation”.]

‘…So you weren’t just sitting on your hands.’

[Of course not. This is our world, after all. In fact, there are quite a few True Gods besides myself who have prepared vessels. Though their importance has dropped significantly now, thanks to you.]

‘Since you said “second,” does that mean there are more?’

[Since there are four Demon Kings, shouldn’t there be four Saintesses? The Second Saintess is a girl tuned specifically for the West Demon King.]

‘Hmm? Then….’

At my unspoken question, the goddess gave a faint smile.

[Yes. Thanks to you, she’s become unemployed.]

‘Phew… okay, I get it. I get it, but… can this Shadow Saintess girl create monsters too?’

[No. She is just a vessel. A vessel large enough to hold me. And a vessel can hold “anything.” …Even if that “anything” is a Demon King.]

‘……!’

[You took the West Demon King into your imagery, didn’t you?]

‘You knew.’

[Of course. Do you think I earned my rank as a Subordinate Heaven (Ophanim) just for show?]

‘…You didn’t?’

[Why you little… Sigh, forget it. Put that Demon King into the body of the Shadow Saintess. Then that girl will be able to use the Demon King’s power. Of course, she won’t be like the real thing, but she’ll be able to create a few doppelgangers or revive monsters in the Demon’s Territory.]

‘…Hmm.’

[You’ll save her, won’t you?]

‘…….’

As I remained silent with a furrowed brow, the goddess lifted her sleeve to her eyes and feigned sobbing.

[Sniff, sniff. How pitiful… She was a girl who trained so hard, thinking only of the day she would do battle with the West Demon King… and now her life’s goal has vanished into thin air because of someone… This job could provide her with a new meaning in life….]

I shook my hands in disgust.

‘Stop it. It’s creeping me out. I was going to take the request anyway, so you don’t have to go that far.’

I raised my hand high toward the Vice Guildmaster and requested the floor.

“I have an idea. Let’s give up on a rescue mission that probably won’t work anyway. Instead, why don’t we just eliminate the root cause that put them in danger in the first place?”

The Vice Guildmaster tilted his head at my answer.

“…What do you mean by that?”

“Any group tends to lose its wits once its head is smashed. Let’s not make this complicated—let’s just go crack Count Evas’s skull right now.”

“……!”

“……!!”

“……!!!”

Hyacinth let out a hollow laugh and asked.

“So… you’re saying we should kill Count Evas?”

“Killing him is fine, and kidnapping him works too.”

“My god….”

“You said the second son married well and snatched the position of successor, right? Then the eldest must be full of resentment… If the Count dies or disappears, the state of the fief will be a real circus. Do you think they could really continue a territorial war in that situation?”

“…….”

“If the territorial war stops, there’s no reason to keep holding the priests anymore. Then everything is solved.”

“No, that’s all well and good… but who on earth is going to do that?”

“I’ll do it.”

Only then did the Vice Guildmaster snap out of it and ask again.

“What do you plan to do about the two Masters under Count Evas? I’m talking about Organt Duncan Evas and Carmen Sonya Evas. As far as I know, at least one of them is always at the Count’s castle guarding the Marquis. If you’re unlucky, you might run into both.”

“I’ll handle that myself, too. I’ll take care of it cleanly without leaving a single trace of evidence.”

I didn’t waste any time.

The very next night, I rounded up the unnecessarily high-quality personnel who were idling at the mansion and headed straight for the Count Evas Fief.

After arriving at the border of the fief via two teleports, we crossed two mountains in just 30 minutes and reached a spot where Count Evas’s castle was visible.

“The scale of the castle is quite impressive, isn’t it?”