Cough, Cough, The Plague Gallery
A plague had swept across the entire Demon Realm. While such occurrences were rare, they tended to cycle roughly every hundred years. Consequently, the long-lived Demon King and the high nobility were well-versed in the guidelines for wisely weathering these pestilential periods.
"Shut the castle gates!"
"Seal the entrances! All supplies are to be brought in via the Gallery Shop or using pulleys from the outside, just as we did before!"
"Strictly forbid any outsiders from entering the territory for the time being!"
Their strategy was simple: lock down the castles, territories, and estates, and hold out indefinitely until the epidemic ran its course.
The initial symptoms of this plague were mild, making it seem far less severe than the great cataclysms that had ravaged the Demon Realm in the past. Moreover, thanks to the prolonged war, the nobles had plenty of stockpiled provisions. Operating under the philosophy that it was better to be safe than sorry, they holed up in their homes one after another.
The bustling main streets of the capital were completely deserted. The number of patients steadily climbed, while those hiding indoors prayed for the plague to pass without claiming them.
"Hmm."
The Demon King was no exception. Around the time the number of sick users in the Gallery began to spike, the Demon King's Castle was swiftly locked down under the Regent's orders.
Initially, she killed time by watching the movie series the Head Mod had uploaded. But once she finished them all, she found herself utterly bored with nothing to do. Naturally, she turned to browsing the Gallery—as a Guest, of course. If she registered a Fixed Nick, the ever-anxious Yugelt would undoubtedly follow her into the forum to nag her.
However, the Head Mod, whom the Demon King had been keeping a close eye on, had suddenly started acting remarkably active after a long period of quiet.
The Head Mod is distributing medicine?
The Head Mod was personally visiting the sick to supply them with food, water, and medicine. A few days later, those very gallery users posted messages of gratitude, claiming they had recovered thanks to his remedies. It was a sight to behold.
This is the very model of an ideal ruler that Yugelt always spoke of.
She had been taught that those of high status must always look after the hardships of the common folk and share in their pain to become great rulers. Of course, most of her lessons in statecraft emphasized that "it is crucial to grip your subordinates with a cold and ruthless iron fist," but...
The Demon Kings of the past who ruled like that ultimately lost the hearts of the people, the trust of their subordinates, and the Gallery.
On the other hand...
The Head Mod never metes out severe punishment unless absolutely necessary. He laid down the whip and won the hearts of the users with carrots alone.
How was such a magical feat possible? The Demon King pondered deeply in her chambers. A few days later, she reached a conclusion and decided to put it into action.
"Yugelt."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Do we not have a member of the Royal Guard capable of 'Shadow Stealth'? I believe their name was Siloen?"
"Yes, that is correct. Do you perhaps wish to learn 'Shadow Stealth' yourself?"
"No, assign them to me as a bodyguard."
"...Pardon?"
The Demon King altered her appearance to look like an ordinary peasant woman. Throwing on a set of shabby clothes, she spoke.
"I saw on the Gallery that Kronendike's Relief Center No. 2 is severely short-handed. I plan to go and help. No one will recognize me anyway, so a single bodyguard is plenty."
"Why on earth would Your Majesty visit a relief center to perform manual labor in person?!"
"Yugelt."
Hearing the unusually calm, grounded tone in the Demon King's voice, Yugelt realized this was no mere whim.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"I have learned a great deal from watching the Gallery and the Head Mod over the past few days."
The Demon King placed a worn, tattered hat on her head and continued.
"The Head Mod sought out the sick to give them food, water, and medicine without asking for anything in return. He spent hours every day scouring the Gallery to do so."
"That is because the Head Mod cherishes the Gallery..."
"Indeed. The Head Mod is the master of the Gallery. Then what about me?"
"!"
The Demon King was the master of the Demon Realm. By that logic, just as the Head Mod looked after the gallery users, the Demon King had to look after the subjects of the Demon Realm. Yugelt desperately wished he could take his words back.
"Where was the so-called master of the Demon Realm, the Demon King, and what was she doing? Cowardly hiding inside her castle, waiting for the plague to blow over."
"Pestilence does not discriminate by status, Your Majesty! All the more reason for you to preserve your precious health—"
"Speaking of status, in that 'Star Wars' series the Head Mod uploaded, even noble women without physical power threw themselves into deadly situations for the greater cause."
The Demon King pulled up a screenshot of the scene in question and continued.
"Like Senator Padmé of the Galactic Republic, or Princess Leia of the Rebellion. If they could do it, why can't I, who am far stronger than them, volunteer at a relief center?"
Yugelt desperately racked his brain for arguments to stop her. However, because his inner turmoil was written all over his face, the Demon King sighed and played her trump card to persuade him.
"Yugelt, if Father were still alive, what would he say to me on a day like this?"
"!"
At the mention of the former Demon King, Yugelt fell dead silent.
"Father, who never hid behind his subordinates and always led from the front, would probably say he was disappointed in me. Wouldn't he?"
"...He might have. But if Your Majesty were to catch the infection—"
As if she had been waiting for those exact words, the Demon King grinned.
"Then I'll just get some medicine from the Head Mod. I saw that it's a miraculous drug that cures people in a matter of days."
"Your Majesty..."
Unable to oppose his liege any longer, Yugelt reluctantly backed down. And then...
"Lift the lockdown on the Demon King's Castle! If there are any surplus supplies, use them all to aid the sick! This is the command of His Majesty!"
With the Demon King's Castle leading the charge by releasing supplies and nursing the sick, the tide began to turn.
"The Demon King commanded that?"
"D-don't we have quite a few surplus sacks of flour in our stores? We must donate them to the relief center at once!"
"Clean water, bandages, medicinal herbs—bring every last bit of our excess stock!"
The hesitant nobles began to move. Soon, the wealthy merchants and traders under their influence joined the effort. Overnight, the fear of the plague vanished from Kronendike, and order and vitality began to return to the capital.
The Demon King smiled brightly as she received reports on the situation from her Royal Guard member hidden in the shadows. And then...
"M-miss, could I... have some water..."
"Just a moment! Here you go. This is clean bottled water I received from the Head Mod."
"T-thank you so much."
Just as she was helping a patient up to pour them some water...
The notification chimed exactly as she had configured it when the Head Mod's post went live. After checking the contents, the Demon King stepped outside the relief center for a moment and focused her mind.
—Yugelt.
—Yes, Your Majesty.
—Did you see the announcement posted in the Gallery?
—Yes, I have just confirmed it.
—What are you waiting for? Take the Anti-Paladin Squad immediately and head to the headwaters of the Aspol River!
—!!!
—Understood!
A moment later, a dozen wyverns took off simultaneously from the Demon King's Castle.
"Good grief, the Demon King herself..."
The image of the Demon King he had heard from Yugelt was that of a spoiled, disobedient little girl. Yet, that very same Demon King had looked at him, mended her ways, hidden her identity, and was now doing menial labor at a relief center.
If I told her that I only distributed medicine and supplies because sick gallery users meant fewer posts, which slowed down my point and gallery experience gain...
She would probably demand her touching moment back and try to tear him limb from limb. He decided to keep that fact strictly to himself.
"Hyaaaah!!!"
Meanwhile, at the headwaters of the Aspol River, Yugelt and the paladins had just clashed.
The paladins guarding the Saintess were battle-hardened veterans. At a glance, they looked deeply experienced and formidable. However...
Crunch!
"Aaaaargh!!!"
Attempting to boldly block Yugelt's strike, a paladin's sword—reinforced with holy power—shattered into pieces. His right shoulder was cleaved by Yugelt's axe, and he collapsed instantly.
"Their opponent is the Regent, after all."
If the man could easily crush boulders, why would a human be any different? Seeing the fight decided in a single exchange, Yugelt grumbled in dissatisfaction.
Tsk. Are the paladins of this generation so weak? There was no need for me to come in person.
Yugelt was the right hand of the former Demon King and had once been counted as the strongest martial force in the Demon King's army. He had retired at least thirty years ago. Consequently, the paladins facing him now had absolutely no idea that this troll was the legendary "First Line Breaker" of the Allied Forces.
"Regroup calmly! Maintain formation!"
"Keep your wits about you!"
The middle-aged man who had been berating the Saintess grabbed her hand and closed his eyes. As he began to mutter an incantation, a blinding radiance erupted from the paladins' bodies.
"The Goddess watches over us! You are now empowered! Go forth and slaughter the demons!"
"Yes, Father!"
With the Goddess's blessing upon them and the Bishop acting as an infinite holy power battery by holding the Saintess, the paladins believed they couldn't lose even if they tried.
"Slay them in one fell swoop and carve a path out of here!"
"Uwoooooh!"
They charged forward, but...
The Goddess? We have the Head Mod. All units, prepare!
At Yugelt's command, the Royal Guards threw off their black robes. Revealed beneath were tiger, lion, and boar beastmen, their bodies packed with muscles that looked ready to burst.
Demons, who reinforced their bodies with mana, were at a disadvantage against paladins whose holy power could nullify mana. However, beastmen, who relied on honed natural physical abilities, were completely unaffected by holy power. Furthermore...
"Oh? Is that..."
They pulled something out of their pockets.
Psst! Pop!
Gulp, gulp, gulp.
Reina, who was watching alongside him through the Gallery's eyes, spoke up.
"H-Head Mod, is that perhaps..."
"Yeah, it's the energy drink."
It was the Gallery Shop's Hot Seven, which had an incredibly potent effect on beastmen. The moment they chugged it down, their eyes flashed open and their breathing grew heavy, a change visible even through the screen.
"Huuuuh!"
The beastmen guards kicked off the ground, launching themselves forward like projectiles.
"You filthy de—huh?!"
They subdued the charging paladins in an instant, treating them like mere children.
"Whoa, I couldn't even see them move."
Just three seconds. In a mere three seconds, the remaining four paladins dropped their swords and were left sprawling on the ground with two or three dislocated joints.
Drag them over here.
Yugelt looked as if he might cleave them with his axe at any moment.
"Whoa, wait a second—"
He slammed his axe into the ground right next to the priest, opened his Gallery window, and politely stepped aside.
They have been secured.
"Phew."
He was relieved that they had subdued the paladins without killing them, though he had been terrified at the end thinking Yugelt was actually going to execute them. Before he could ask why they were spared, Yugelt spoke first.
"Ah, that's true."
First, he needed to clean up the situation. Beyond the screen, he saw a woman with sky-blue hair trembling in fear, and a middle-aged man who had pissed himself and fainted. Since the man was unconscious, he addressed the woman.
"Hey, you."
"Y-yes? Wh-who are you?"
"I'm the Gallery's Head Mod."
"Th-the Head Mod?"
The woman trembled and hung her head low.
"You guys are the ones who spread the plague in the Demon Realm, right?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
"Is there a cure?"
"Y-yes... It's possible if we create holy water capable of eradicating the disease and have everyone drink it."
"Then that's settled. Regent?"
"Yes, Head Mod."
"Could you send that woman to me? You can register her as an item on the Exchange. You can take the rest as prisoners."
At that, the Royal Guards looked shocked.
Y-Your Grace? She is the Saintess of the Goddess Religion!
If we keep her as a hostage, we can turn the war to our advantage!
Even if we owe the Head Mod a great debt, handing over the Saintess after the Hero is...
Silence!!!
Yugelt's thunderous roar instantly silenced the area.
Do you dare dictate decisions to me, the Regent of the Demon Realm? Have you forgotten the duty of the Royal Guard, which is to execute orders without question?!
N-no, sir!
We have committed a capital offense!
Having swiftly restored order, Yugelt replied.
I believe I must consult His Majesty on this matter.
"Yes, please do."
After all, it was the Regent and the Royal Guards who had rescued the search party and captured the intruders. He wasn't in a position to boss them around. However...
"Distributing the holy water is going to be a pain."
If curing the plague required holy water made by the Saintess, it would be much easier if he registered the items directly in the Gallery Shop. That was why he had asked for her. But if they couldn't send her, he could just have the holy water delivered and upload it to the shop.
As he waited...
His Majesty has stated that she will hand over custody of the Saintess to the Head Mod, provided one condition is met.
"What is it? A promise not to return the Saintess to the Empire? Or a guaranteed punishment?"
He was prepared to refuse if the condition was too extreme. But...
No, it is nothing of the sort.
"Then...?"
Perhaps the condition was too embarrassing to speak aloud. Instead of replying vocally, Yugelt opened the Gallery and sent a chat message.
"Ah, if it's just that..."
And so, the negotiation was concluded.
"Stay quiet!"
"H-hiiiieee!"
The massive shadow of the giant troll loomed over the terrified Saintess. A moment later...
Delivery complete!
"Ugh, wh-where am I..."
The ordered Saintess had arrived.
"Nice to meet you, Saintess Serena."
"Wh-who...?"
"Me? You don't need to know."
Thwack!
"Ouch!"
Before she could fully regain her senses, he lightly tapped her on the head to establish dominance and said,
"You've been kidnapped."
Coincidentally, at that exact moment, Reddy and Blackie, whom Liv had been playing with, flew over and hovered right above his shoulders.
In an unfamiliar, strange space, a man stood before her, with the eerie red glow of a magic stone and the dark aura of a sword blending together to cast a terrifying shadow behind him, calmly declaring, "You've been kidnapped." It was a spine-chilling scene that planted deep terror in her heart. And then...
"Head Mod, did the 'woman' arrive safely?"
Hearing a voice from behind, she turned her head.
Emerging from the dark hallway was a succubus, her eyes glowing with a vivid purple light as she drew closer.
Serena, who was already wound tighter than a guitar string, couldn't take it anymore.
"Hiiiiieeeek?!"
With that final shriek, she fainted dead away on the spot.