Chapter 48

Angelica had a completely blank look on her face.

She’s definitely thinking that demons make no sense at all.

“Don’t you think demons are being a bit too flexible with that kind of thing?”

“Well… I’m the only one left who could be called the direct lineage of the Ryuzen family, and my relatives are all pathetic… The high-ranking demons are viewing this as a sort of last resort.”

“So I’m that last resort. Even though I’m not even a demon.”

“Legally, you are my only child, so that part seems to be fine. After that… the talk is that if you just marry a demon, it should all work out…”

Angelica’s face turned bright red.

I suppose that sounded a bit like sexual harassment given the context…

But it can’t be helped! We can’t just ignore the matter of reproduction!

“Look, if you become the Demon King, it means you’ll stand at the pinnacle of all demons, right? In a way, couldn’t you say that’s a fitting position for a Hero to hold…?”

“You really are the Demon King through and through…”

With a look of exasperation rather than anger, Angelica turned her back.

“I don’t want any more after-dinner sweets. Leave me alone.”

Angelica headed outside. I imagine she wanted to catch the night breeze.

As expected, bringing this up so suddenly was likely too much of a shock.

“That girl said she didn’t want any more sweets, but she finished them all~.”

Lateia, I love that inner strength of yours that never lets your worldview waver for a second. That kind of grit might be exactly what I need as the Demon King.

“Garto, don’t worry about it. If you’re royalty, succession issues are bound to happen.”

Lateia poured me a drink as if to comfort me.

“But it’s a fact that I’ve troubled my daughter’s heart.”

“Children that age hate having their futures decided for them. It’s not just her; it’s a story you’ll find anywhere.”

I suppose even if I weren’t the Demon King, exchanges like “Inherit the shoe workshop!” followed by “No! I’m going to the Royal Capital to make a name for myself!” probably happen every day within the Kingdom.

“If it’s a common story, I wish there were a simple solution…”

“There’s no such convenient thing. You just have to believe in her and explain it to her very, very carefully. That’s all you can do.”

Lateia tapped me lightly on the shoulder.

“I’ll help too, but since it concerns the demons, you’re the only one who can stand at the front and talk, Garto. Do your best as a father.”

As a father, huh.

Come to think of it, perhaps arguing over a child’s future is part of a father’s job.

Since I didn’t have children until now, I managed to avoid it, but it seems I’ve finally reached the stage where I must undergo this rite of passage.

“I understand. I won’t run away; I’ll face her.”

A father who constantly runs away from his daughter looks pathetic, whether he’s the Demon King or not.

After finishing my meal, I went outside.

I heard the sound of practice swings, so I found Angelica immediately.

She was likely doing her training as a Hero.

“You can keep practicing your swings, but could you just listen to what I have to say?”

After a brief pause, Angelica shot a quick glance at me.

“You’re going to talk even if I say no, aren’t you? Go ahead and do whatever you want.”

And with that, she went back to her practice swings.

It seemed like she was focused intently on her training, but her attention was clearly directed toward me. I suppose it’s asking too much for her to ignore my presence entirely.

“Even though I say ‘Crown Prince,’ it’s strictly a formal convenience. It doesn’t mean your path to becoming the Demon King is set in stone. For example, if… if Lateia and I were to have a child, that child would become the primary candidate for Crown Prince…”

“So you are doing that stuff.”

“I didn’t say that… I’m just saying that’s how it would work in theory…”

Since these matters inevitably involve talk of intimacy, making her the stepdaughter in this situation is about as awkward as it gets for her…

“At the moment, I have no intention of stepping down immediately. If anything, the point is to signal to my distant relatives that I have no intention of handing the throne over to them. If that message gets across to enough people, we can eventually adopt someone trustworthy and have them succeed me in the future.”

This was the truth.

The heavyweights of the demon race didn’t necessarily feel that a human girl had to become the Demon King no matter what.

They were more concerned with suppressing the position of some distant, minor branch of the Ryuzen family whose only pride was their lineage.

“So, in other words, you want to use me politically, so give you my name?”

“Hey now… that’s a bit too blunt…”

It’s tough for a father when she comes at me with such a combative tone.

Angelica continued her practice swings with a rhythmic whoosh.

She didn’t seem to have anything else to say.

Well, that was only natural.

I hadn’t even asked her properly yet.

“Angelica, please, will you agree to be the Crown Prince? I need you!”

I called out to her, my voice rising to a shout.

Perhaps because it was night, my voice carried clearly.

“If you truly hate the idea, I’ll move forward with selecting an adoptee behind the scenes! You can make the final decision on whether or not to actually become the Demon King. I promise I won’t trap you in a life you don’t want!”

Angelica stopped her swings and looked over at me.

“I have one condition. I’m still the Hero. You have to be the one to clear it with the Kingdom that I’m becoming the Demon King’s Crown Prince. I won’t have people treating me like I betrayed my country.”

So she was willing to listen to my selfish request.

“Understood! I’ll report this to the Kingdom and begin negotiations immediately!”

“Fine, fine. Then I guess it’s okay.”

Angelica let out a long sigh.

“It can’t be helped. I’m responsible too for not being able to beat you. After all, the one who actually brought peace to this world wasn’t me—it was you.”

“I’ll spar with you.”

I drew the sword I always kept ready.

“Then don’t expect me to hold back!”

I suppose I owe Angelica one now.

Next time, I’ll have to listen to one of her selfish requests in return.