The Demon King's Summit

Only a few days had passed since Sitri's departure when another Demon King arrived at the Demon King Castle on the 69th floor. A carriage bearing the Demon King came to a stop, and the first thing to emerge was a captivating, passionate cascade of red hair that seemed to enchant anyone who laid eyes on it. Gremory von Dieu. The ruler of the 55th floor, who had already conquered every layer from the 56th to the 60th, had finally arrived.

Gazing at the front courtyard of the 69th floor's Demon King Castle through the iron bars, Gremory offered a brief assessment. "You've decorated this place quite nicely."

"Is that Her Highness Gremory von Dieu?"

A middle-aged butler emerged from the gates with a considerable number of attendants. He bowed respectfully and spoke. "I am Kain, the chief butler of the Demon King Castle. Her Highness Seere von Devata has instructed me to escort Her Highness Gremory inside."

"Very well. Lead the way at once."

"Yes, please follow me."

As Kain turned, the attendants swiftly parted to either side, clearing a path. When Gremory passed between them, one attendant asked, "If you have any belongings to entrust, we will hold them for you."

"Hmm? That won't be necessary. I didn't bring anything in particular."

"Understood."

Kain guided Gremory to the reception room. He had chosen the reception room rather than the audience chamber because Seere and Gremory were both Demon Kings. "I will open the door."

Kain knocked once on the reception room door, and a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠slightly youthful voice answered from within. "Come in."

Kain opened the door lightly, and Gremory stepped forward. There she met her. The young Demon King whose name had been on everyone's lips after defeating Belial. She's... younger than I expected.

She had heard Seere was only twelve, but seeing her in person made the reality sink in. Yet Seere rose from her seat with a dignified grace that belied her age and greeted Gremory. "Welcome, Lady Gremory von Dieu. I am Seere von Devata, mistress of this Demon King Castle."

"A pleasure to meet you, Lady Seere von Devata."

"Please, have a seat. I'll have tea prepared."

"Oh my, thank you."

Gremory smiled brightly, accepting Seere's consideration with good grace. Seere returned the smile and addressed Secily, who stood nearby. "Secily, bring us some tea."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Once Secily had gone to fetch the tea, Seere took her seat and spoke. "I must thank you again for visiting in person, Lady Gremory. Shall we begin our discussion right away?"

"I appreciate that you don't waste time. Let's do that."

Smiling, Gremory continued. "I wish to form a close alliance with the 69th floor. Not a temporary arrangement, but one that will carry us both toward greater heights."

"...Greater heights, you say?"

"Where else?" Gremory pointed upward with her index finger. "The uppermost ranks."

"......"

"Your reaction is rather lukewarm. I thought the Devata faction also desired those heights."

"No. Your thinking is correct, Lady Gremory. It is correct, but... wouldn't forming an alliance create a contradiction? We would ultimately become rivals."

Seere narrowed her eyes slightly as she spoke. Gremory reassured her. "You need not worry about that. As I just said, I desire a place among the uppermost ranks—not necessarily the very top."

"Ah... So what Lady Gremory wants is..."

"Yes, that's right. My goal is simply to enter the top twelve."

The line separating the truly powerful Demon Kings—the so-called highest-ranking ones—from the rest had once been the 12th rank, Sitri's former position. Gremory's aim was to reach that threshold.

"I see. Then we won't be direct competitors."

"It seems Lady Seere's goal is to reclaim her father's glory."

"Reclaim is the wrong word."

"Pardon?"

Gremory felt a jolt of surprise. Seere's expression and presence had shifted. The child she had thought merely young now radiated the full charisma of a Demon King.

"I will surpass my father and reach the very pinnacle."

"...Are you serious?"

"If I weren't, I wouldn't have started this in the first place."

Two factors drove this ambition. One was Seere's own desire. She believed her father had died because he had been one step short, and that claiming the first rank would ensure she never faced the same fate. The other reason was...

"As long as there is someone who wishes for me to become that, my goal will not change."

Because Teacher desires it. That goal would never waver.

Feeling the unwavering resolve in Seere's words, Gremory fell silent for a moment. This young Demon King's goal is the pinnacle... while I am content with merely reaching the top twelve. Her own objective had never seemed modest, yet the child's unshakable will and confidence made her feel almost ashamed.

"...What remarkable confidence. I never even considered such a thing."

Gremory voiced her feelings honestly. There was no sarcasm—only genuine admiration. Her tone was so sincere that Seere could feel it.

"Lady Gremory... you wanted my Teacher and requested an alliance with me."

"Honestly, there is some truth to that. After all, you've already grown this much despite being only twelve. It's only natural to take an interest."

"Then it will be possible."

"What?"

Thinking of Nahen, Seere smiled faintly. Even after becoming this strong, she still felt she could never catch up to him. Objectively speaking, he was an extraordinary person.

"Teacher is remarkable. I'm certain he will grant whatever Lady Gremory desires."

"Those words..."

"I accept the alliance."

"R-really? Then we can immediately hand over the layers you requested..."

"Would it be all right if I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠added one more condition?"

Gremory tilted her head. Seere spoke to her. "You may not take Teacher away. If you have business with him, please visit the 69th floor in person."

Seere's request seemed minor, yet it carried significant weight. Rather than offering what Gremory wanted on a silver platter, she demanded that Gremory come herself if she desired something. This firmly established that the 55th and 69th floors stood as equals in their alliance. Moreover, if Gremory began frequenting the 69th floor, everyone would know the two factions had grown close. That would make the yet-unconquered Demon Kings of the 61st through 66th floors uneasy—especially since Gremory had already conquered everything up to the 60th floor. An alliance between Gremory and Seere would put them in a precarious position.

Seere had proposed this with both effects in mind. And Gremory...

"Seeing how much you value your royal advisor, he must be worth the trouble."

"You accept?"

"Yes, let's do that. In exchange, may I open a portal connecting the 55th floor to the 69th?"

Seere nodded. They were forming an alliance, and she had no intention of breaking it lightly. Frequent visits would require convenient travel.

"By all means."

"Thank you."

The two women drafted an alliance contract. After pressing their blood seals, they each took a copy. Its contents were as follows:

Seere, now holding her copy of the contract, lifted a teacup that had been set out at some point. She took a small sip, then relaxed her expression. Watching her revert to a youthful look, Gremory felt surprised once more. Looking at her like this... she really is just a child, no matter how you see it.

The presence she had shown moments ago had been that of a true Demon King. Gremory's curiosity grew. She wanted to know more about the teacher who had raised Seere to this level.

"Lady Seere."

"Yes?"

"What sort of person is your royal advisor?"

Gremory had simply wanted to learn exactly what kind of man Seere's teacher was. But to Seere, the question sounded different.

"Lady Gremory."

"Yes, Lady Seere."

"...You aren't interested in him in that way, are you?"

"What?"

Gremory tilted her head, then understood the implication and covered her mouth. "Oh, no. That's not what I meant. I was simply curious about the teacher who made Lady Seere this strong."

"...Ah."

Seere's furrowed brow relaxed, and she took another sip of tea, visibly relieved. Gremory watched the change with mild confusion but didn't dwell on it. She took a sip of her own tea and spoke. "Ah, then... would it be possible to meet Lady Seere's teacher today?"

"That might be difficult."

"Pardon?"

"Teacher isn't here today."

"Where did he go?"

Seere answered simply. "He went out for a while."

#

As Seere had said, Nahen was not at the 69th floor's Demon King Castle. His destination was none other than the human realm. Waiting in the forest where he always met Eri, two figures appeared.

"Lord Nahen."

"Lord Nahen!"

Dane and Eri. The excellent spies Nahen had raised through his full support. Seeing them arrive, Nahen nodded in greeting. "I summoned you to give you a new mission."

"What? If that's the case, couldn't you have sent a letter...? Why come in person?"

"That's an obvious question, Eri."

At Nahen's words, Eri flinched and lowered her head. "I-I'm sorry! I failed to understand your intentions, Lord Nahen...!"

"...Hm? No, I'm not angry."

"R-really...?"

"I came because there ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is work to be done in the human realm."

Nahen looked at Dane. Dane promptly produced something from ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his coat and showed it to them. It was a collection of round orbs.

"What are these, Lord Nahen?"

"Dane, Eri. Take these and distribute them to the largest merchant guilds in each country."

"Yes, Lord Nahen."

Unlike Dane, who answered immediately and firmly, Eri looked slightly puzzled. "Is it really possible to distribute these?"

"It's fine. They'll be more than enough to lure the merchants in. Try channeling a bit of mana into one."

"Yes."

As Eri channeled mana through her staff as instructed, the orb reacted instantly. Seeing the mana packed inside, Eri looked at Nahen in shock. "Pretend they're magic tools."

"...What are you planning to do with these?"

"Eri."

Nahen looked at her. "You're asking a lot of questions today."

"Ah, no! I'm sorry!"

"I understand your curiosity, but I can't tell you right now. All you need to do is carry out my orders."

"...What if they refuse the deal, saying they don't have enough stock?"

"Eri, do you really think the mages of the human realm won't covet these?"

Eri stared at the mana contained within the orb for a moment. Of course they would. Every human mage would desire them. But what unsettled Eri wasn't simply the mana-filled orbs.

...There must be something more to this.

Still, she held her tongue. Pressing Nahen further might actually anger him.

"You two will carry out this mission together."

"What?"

"Is that all right?"

"It will be difficult for one person to suddenly approach a merchant guild alone. Go together and complete the task. But make sure to distribute them to at least two guilds."

"Yes, Lord Nahen!"

"Understood."

After receiving their orders, Dane and Eri gathered the orbs and departed. Nahen gazed for a moment at the remaining orbs in the leather pouch. When he fiddled with the pouch, the orbs inside clinked against each other.

"...Even doing something like this doesn't make me feel guilty."

Nahen wondered if he still saw this world as nothing more than a game, or if his mind was gradually changing to match his Archdemon body. Lost in thought for a moment, he let out a deep sigh.

"To see the ending..."

It can't be helped, he muttered quietly, then turned and walked toward the Holy Kingdom.