Aftermath of War
Nahen swiftly organized the situation and ordered Aron to round up the remnants of the enemy forces while regrouping their own troops. Aron followed the command without hesitation, even though it was the first time he had seen Nahen issue orders.
“Ah, Commander. You weren’t hurt, were you?”
“…No, Lord Nahen.”
When Nahen found Rin and expressed concern for her condition, she bowed her head in gratitude.
“Thanks to you, I survived.”
“No need to thank me. I was simply waiting for the right opportunity, and you happened to create the perfect situation for it.”
It was a lie. The moment Nahen arrived, he had seen Rin on the verge of being struck down by the Hydra and immediately charged at Andromalius. However, he saw no reason to place a debt on Seere’s loyal subordinate and chose to phrase it differently.
Rin gave a faint smile at his words and nodded slightly. Nahen’s expression turned awkward as he observed her reaction.
‘…Did she notice?’
With her wealth of experience, deceiving her was no easy task. Nahen cleared his throat once and lightly patted Rin’s shoulder.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“Thank you.”
Nahen turned to Baruna. At his gaze, Baruna snapped to attention and saluted crisply.
“Vice-Commander, why the salute? I’m not even a soldier.”
“…Ah, my apologies.”
The sight Nahen had shown was so overwhelming that Baruna had saluted without thinking. He quickly corrected his posture and spoke to Nahen.
“Please give your orders.”
“Vice-Commander, stay here and assist Count Raiders with the cleanup. I need to go see Seere.”
“Where is Her Majesty?”
“She is with Lady Sitri.”
At Nahen’s reply, Rin asked in slight surprise, “Is that all right?”
“If Sitri has any sense, she won’t lay a hand on Seere. So it’s fine.”
“That… I suppose so.”
“Commander, come with me as well.”
“Understood.”
Nahen placed Andromalius’s head into a pouch and left the throne room. Rin followed right behind him, but soon lost sight of his position.
“Just how fast is he…?”
It was fortunate she knew where Sitri’s army was located; otherwise, she might not have been able to follow at all. Rin quickly made her way toward Sitri’s camp.
Seere, nestled in Sitri’s arms and playing with a doll, suddenly looked up at the sky. Sitri tilted her head and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Seere stretched out her tiny hand and pointed toward the sky.
“Teacher is here!”
“Hm?”
The moment Sitri raised her head, a strong wind blew. Before she knew it, Nahen had appeared, holding a pouch in his hand.
“Huh, when did you get here!?”
“Just now.”
“Teacher~!”
Seere called out to Nahen and squirmed in Sitri’s arms. As soon as she was set down, Seere ran straight toward him.
“Were you listening well?”
“Yes!”
Nahen picked Seere up and held her. Then he spoke to Rin, who arrived shortly after.
“Commander Rin, report the battle situation to Lady Sitri.”
“Understood.”
Rin suggested they move to the tent, but Sitri raised a hand to stop her.
“Nahen.”
“Yes?”
“What’s that in your hand?”
“What else would it be? It’s Andromalius’s head.”
“Hand it over.”
At Sitri’s words, Rin’s brows furrowed sharply. Defeating Andromalius had been solely Nahen’s achievement. He had received no help from anyone else and accomplished it on his own—there was no room for dispute. Yet she was demanding he hand over the head? Rin found the request utterly disrespectful and spoke with a hint of ferocity in her tone.
“Your Highness, that is—”
“Very well.”
Before Rin could finish, Nahen gave an affirmative reply. Rin turned to him in surprise.
“Lord Nahen?”
“In exchange, please claim that you were the one who dealt with Andromalius, Lady Sitri.”
“…Fine. That’s not a bad deal for me.”
“Here you go.”
Nahen readily extended the pouch containing Andromalius’s head. Sitri accepted it and immediately opened it to check the contents.
“That arrogant fool. He’s in quite the sorry state.”
“The agreement to split everything fifty-fifty remains unchanged, Your Highness.”
“I know. I’ll divide it fairly.”
“I’ll be counting on you.”
Sitri smiled in satisfaction, tucked the pouch away, and entered the tent. Baphomet followed her inside. Rin glanced sideways at Nahen. Sensing her gaze, Nahen spoke.
“You think it’s an incomprehensible decision?”
“Honestly… yes.”
“I have no intention of causing harm to the 72nd Floor.”
“Are you saying that handing over all the credit is beneficial?”
“If we attribute Andromalius’s defeat to the 71st Floor, we can conceal our own strength.”
Rin tilted her head. She understood the meaning of hiding their strength, but not the necessity of it.
“What’s the benefit in hiding our strength? Wouldn’t revealing it make others hesitate to provoke us?”
“No, not right now. It’s better if other factions remain unaware of our true power.”
If the other forces learned how formidable the 72nd Floor was, it would indeed deter them from acting recklessly, just as Rin said. However, that would also hinder their ongoing conquest efforts. That was why Nahen deliberately chose to conceal their strength—even if it meant giving the credit to Sitri.
“That way, our enemies will let their guard down.”
Rin understood his intent after hearing his explanation.
“You had a plan all along.”
“Make sure the soldiers under your command keep their mouths shut about this.”
“Understood. Anyone who speaks of this battle will be severely punished.”
Nahen smiled at Rin’s loyal demeanor. After nodding in acknowledgment, he met Seere’s eyes as she rested in his arms. Gazing into those pure eyes for a moment, he let out a soft chuckle.
“Shall we head home now?”
“Yes!”
#
With the combined forces of the 71st and 72nd Floors, Andromalius’s faction collapsed and the Demon King was slain. The news spread rapidly throughout the Demon Realm. Alliances between Demon Kings to strike at higher ranks were common, but the death of a Demon King during such conflicts was rare. Demon Kings with significant rank differences paid little attention to the matter. They simply thought it was an interesting occurrence and moved on.
However, Dantalion, the Demon King of the 69th Floor—who was highly likely to be the next target now that Andromalius was dead—was an exception. Upon receiving the report from his adjutant, Dantalion could not hide his shock.
“Andromalius is dead?”
“Word is that Sitri killed him.”
“That’s impossible. How could that woman…?”
Dantalion’s eyes widened as he entertained an absurd possibility.
“Don’t tell me her seal has been lifted?”
“That can’t be. It seems the cooperation with the 72nd Floor made it possible. Isn’t one of Seir’s Four Swords still remaining on the 72nd Floor?”
At his adjutant’s suggestion, Dantalion nodded in understanding. If Rin El Laza, one of Seir’s Four Swords, had assisted Sitri in battle, then Andromalius’s death was not surprising.
“Then… am I next?”
“We must prepare accordingly.”
“…I need to send a letter to Decarabia.”
“You intend to form an alliance with him?”
“Do you have a better idea? They’ve absorbed the forces of the 70th Floor. Even if their rank is lower than mine, they’ve become an alliance we can no longer ignore.”
Dantalion was completely different from Andromalius in temperament. While Andromalius had built his power through brute strength, Dantalion was a Demon King who had constructed his influence through strategy and intellect.
“I’ll send a letter to Decarabia requesting an alliance. He won’t have any reason to refuse.”
“A wise decision, it seems.”
#
When Nahen returned to the Demon King’s castle with Seere, Kain, who was repairing the front door, greeted them.
“Welcome back, Lord Nahen.”
The two of them tilted their heads in confusion, wondering why Kain was fixing the door.
“Why is the front door broken?”
“Ah, I made a mistake with my strength control… I’ll have it fixed shortly.”
“You broke it?”
Nahen paused for a moment before asking Kain indirectly, “Did an assassin come?”
“How did you know?”
“There’s no other reason to destroy a perfectly fine door.”
Kain nodded. Nahen’s sharp deduction was entirely correct, and he added one more remark.
“Congratulations on conquering the 70th Floor.”
“You already know.”
“A messenger came running to inform us immediately.”
“I see.”
Nahen glanced at Devata Castle, the Demon King’s castle of the 72nd Floor, and spoke.
“We won’t be moving the castle.”
“Pardon… Pardon? Why not?”
“I plan to give the 70th Floor’s castle to Sitri.”
“What!?”