The Imperial Shadow and the Demon's Gambit
Olga’s eyes trembled as she looked up at me.
“You, just how…?”
So, this is what Belial’s demonic energy feels like.
True to the nature of a creature born with a violent temperament, the quality of her demonic energy was sharp and jagged. I suppressed it before it could do any harm to my physical vessel.
To be honest, my impression was simple.
It felt like drinking a potion with a rather overpowering aftertaste.
After clenching and unclenching my hand a few times, I spoke.
“Well, the magical seal is gone now, so you won’t die just by opening your mouth.”
“D-do you think I’d talk?”
“You don’t exactly seem like the type to be genuinely loyal to Belial.”
“I’d rather die than spill information to a human.”
“You’ve got a tight lip.”
Well.
It doesn’t matter if you don’t talk.
I’m only checking to see how much of it aligns with the information I already have.
It’s a sort of zero-point calibration.
“Belial has seven legions under his command. Correct?”
“…….”
“Judging by your reaction, the number has decreased. I suppose the attrition from fighting Zereka was quite significant.”
“……!”
She wore the expression of someone wondering how I could possibly know that.
It’s not hard to probe someone using information you already possess. Especially against a martial-type like Olga, who isn’t exactly skilled at acting.
If she hadn’t been under that seal, maybe it would have been different, but…
“With the Demon King’s throne—the very thing he’s craved for so long—finally within reach, it’s no wonder the guy lost his mind.”
“Y-you… how do you know all that…? That’s information barely anyone among the demons even knows. ……Don’t tell me, is there a traitor in our ranks……?”
“I don’t believe I have any obligation to answer that.”
“Then, the fact that my identity was exposed is also……!”
She’s under a massive misunderstanding.
It seems she thinks she was sold out by an internal traitor.
…
Come to think of it, that’s not entirely wrong.
In the original work, the one who provides the information is, in fact, a demon.
“Is Arjen doing well?”
“……Don’t tell me, Lord Arjen?”
I could feel her agitation.
Arjen.
One of the high-ranking demons who appears in the original work, and… a character with a rather ambiguous standing.
If we’re talking about screen time, he’s a sub-male lead with his own dedicated route.
But his route only ever ends in a Bad Ending.
The ending itself is even titled [The Demon’s Betrayal].
The important thing is that Arjen is also a high-ranking demon of the Demon Realm.
“Why would Lord Arjen……. ……It’s a lie. To think you’d try to deceive me with something like this……!”
“I swear it to the Goddess. It is true that I obtained this information through the high-ranking demon Arjen.”
Olga shut her mouth.
I didn’t lie. It is true that I obtained the information through Arjen. It’s just that it didn’t happen in this reality.
“Lies, it’s all lies…….”
Oh dear.
Well, it’s not reality, but regardless, she seems quite shocked.
In this state, she’ll spill the information easily.
“What is the current balance of power?”
“……I, I can’t say.”
“How was the battle in the Niflheim Mountains? In my estimation, Belial likely gained quite a bit. That must be why he infiltrated you into the Empire across the mountains.”
“…….”
“The alliance is likely with Diamu, isn’t it? Given their compatibility, it’s a good match for the two of them to join forces. Even if they repelled Zereka, Belial must have suffered heavy losses, so he’s likely gathering his strength right now.”
“S-stop.”
“It’s not much different from what I first thought. I understand well enough.”
I confirmed a few more pieces of information from the stunned Olga and stood up.
“J-just kill me! Don’t toy with me like this!”
“Why should Jim listen to your orders?”
“What did you say?”
“Well, if you want to die that badly, I’ll let you, so don’t worry. Of course, only after I’ve decided I’ve extracted all the necessary information.”
“W-wait a minute.”
Leaving the flustered Olga behind, I stepped outside.
“Has it already gotten this late?”
Because I had to verify one by one whether there were any discrepancies from the information I knew, it took longer than I expected.
Still, the gains were significant.
I’ll have to extract every last bit of the finer details I haven’t grasped yet.
“Lily.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“It doesn’t matter how trivial it is—suck her dry to the bone and then dispose of her.”
“Understood.”
Lily bowed her head. If I leave it to her, she’ll move her shadows to pick Olga clean and bring me the information.
By the way, Belial.
“A troublesome one has been caught.”
“Is that so?”
The territory where demons live, Pandemonium.
It periodically undergoes a ‘Great Severance’ that separates it from the human lands.
During that time, there is only one way to cross into the human realm.
Passing through the Niflheim Mountains, located on the border between the two realms.
So, during this period, one high-ranking demon who has occupied the Niflheim Mountains crosses over at random….
“That guy has the foulest temperament of them all.”
Among them, Belial is the most annoying to deal with.
For one, the powers he possesses are rather insidious, and his personality is similarly fond of pulling strings from the shadows.
That’s why I would have preferred the sub-male lead Arjen, or Zereka, who prefers a hearty, head-on collision.
“What a shame.”
“Then, how would you like to proceed?”
This is another problem. The demons’ territory is quite far from the Empire, as it happens.
In other words, I can’t even plant people there.
……Which conversely means it’s hard for the demons to enter the Empire, too.
Yet they insist on planting people in the Imperial Capital.
“Tsk.”
I could feel the malice of fate, wanting to bring the Empire to ruin.
“For now, it’s better to watch and wait. In any case, Belial won’t have the capacity for much else right now.”
“Understood.”
Considering the power dynamics among the demons, Belial, who repelled Zereka, must have suffered considerable attrition.
In such a situation, Belial cannot afford to ignore the checks from Baalzad and Arjen.
If he’s not careful, he’ll be attacked while he’s weakened.
“However, keep a close watch on the demons’ movements. They might reach out to us first before long.”
“Reach out…?”
Belial may have taken the Niflheim Mountains.
But the Great Severance will end soon.
Then, whether it’s Zereka, who was defeated by Belial, or Arjen, they will likely try to make contact.
Because by then, everyone will know that the Empire gave Belial a taste of his own medicine.
“If they come, accept it.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Then, are you perhaps keeping a cooperative relationship with the demons in mind?”
Lily asked, looking puzzled.
Cooperate with the demons?
“No.”
Why would I?
Of course, Arjen is a character who is helpful in many ways in the original work. Setting aside the fact that you only get a Bad Ending if you follow his route.
Personally, if we’re talking about likes and dislikes, he’s a character I’m fond of.
But there’s no particular benefit for me in cooperating with him.
“What they want from me is the help they need to become the Demon King themselves. But I have no reason to help in the birth of a Demon King, do I?”
If their help were desperate, that would be one thing.
But I’m not. Personally, I’d prefer the demons to keep fighting amongst themselves.
And if possible, without crossing over to the continent where humans live.
“Then I will simply accept the contact if it comes.”
The demon matter is settled with that.
“What about the heretics?”
“Ah, Lady Elizabeth is currently interrogating them. Shall I guide you?”
“No, that’s fine.”
Elizabeth will handle it.
She’ll probably suck them dry to the bone.
There’s no need for me to intervene in the heretic matter anymore, either. I’ve already caught them all in the Imperial Capital and pulled them out by the roots.
“They won’t be eyeing the Imperial Capital for a while, either.”
Even if there wasn’t a high-ranking official above the level of a bishop among those caught this time.
They lost the believers they’d infiltrated over several years—especially those who had been baptized by heresy and somewhat elite-trained—all at once.
They’ll try not to catch my eye.
“When you say ‘for a while,’ does that mean they’ll commit such acts again later?”
“They will.”
If they were the type to come to their senses after being taught a harsh lesson once, they wouldn’t have become heretical cult fanatics in the first place.
Once some time passes, they’ll lose their minds and start plotting again.
Before that happens, I need to step in personally and crush the entire branch.
“Regarding the eradication of heresy, I’ll have to have a talk with the Holy Kingdom soon.”
“Shall I prepare for it?”
I nodded.
Leave the medicine to the pharmacist. The Holy Kingdom is good at catching heretics.
Although there was a bit of an unpleasant incident between us. Still, the Holy Kingdom itself isn’t all that bad.
Before I possessed this body, I somehow had an image of 2D clergy as a hotbed of corruption.
But the clergy in this world are basically equipped with sincerity and kindness.
They try to alleviate the suffering of those in pain and cannot forgive those who spread evil teachings.
The majority are true clergy in every sense of the word.
“Though there are cases where they go too far.”
“Ah.”
Lily awkwardly let her sentence trail off.
“You mean the incident with Sir Lucius.”
It was an incident that turned the Holy Kingdom upside down.
Lucius was like that.
He was certainly kind and sincere. But he went too far, and he believed only his own convictions were right.
Should I call him a righteous fanatic?
He was a tragic holy knight who met the tyrant’s knuckle, had his head dented, and ended up ascending to heaven.
“The Holy Kingdom probably won’t talk about that incident anymore, either.”
Because they know that talking about it further only makes them uncomfortable, too.
In many ways, the relationship between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom is currently not bad.
“Then, I will make contact with the Holy Kingdom under the table.”
If I handle the countermeasures against heresy with that kind of feeling, I’ve done everything I need to do for now.
By the way.
I’m here in the Imperial Capital taking care of the rear, but… Theodore, that kid, he’d better be doing well.
*
Clang-clang-clang!
Two auras collided. Without either side overwhelming the other, the waves of two massive powers engaged in a struggle.
“Kwahahaha! Let’s fight until we die, Theodore!!”
“Haha…! If we die, it’s not a sparring match!”
“But isn’t it fun!?”
As if to say no answer was needed.
Theodore swung his sword once more.
Groom ripped his mouth open in a savage grin.
“That’s the spirit──!!”
Once again, the two forces clashed.
“……I’m going crazy.”
“Y-Your Highness!”
It was a living hell for the staff of both camps watching them.