A Demon's Survival Strategy

Looking closer, however, Saruon noticed that Gusion was locked inside a cage. And looking even closer, there was another one in the cage next to him...

Saruon asked, trembling with terror. "A-Avatar."

"Yeah?"

"Am... am I being taken away too?"

The day has finally come! Working with Archisus, I knew this day would come eventually!

"...What on earth are you talking about?"

"O-Oh, is that not it?"

"It is not. Tsk. What a shame."

The dwarves smacked their lips as they stared at Saruon. He looks like a pretty decent blacksmith too!

"These guys are demons who opposed me and got captured."

"I never opposed you!!" Gusion shouted in an incredibly aggrieved voice. When did I ever oppose you!

Tae-hyun ignored him and continued.

"Why would I capture a hard-working demon like you, Saruon? Of course, you didn't exactly do a great job during the Orc Great Chieftain quest in Uruk, but..."

"Hey, that wasn't my fault!"

The Orc Great Chieftain had been corrupted after drinking Esla's Blood! Tae-hyun had brought Saruon, Esla's direct subordinate, to steal the Great Chieftain back. He figured if the enemy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠necromancer could control him with demon blood, he could do the same. Of course, Saruon lacked the skill. He failed to take control because he wasn't good enough, and in true demonic fashion, adopted a "if I can't have him, no one can!" mindset and drove the chieftain into a wild rampage. Thanks to that, the plan had gone completely awry and turned into a total mess... But Saruon felt it was unfair. That part wasn't his fault.

"Incompetence is a sin, buddy. Anyway, you're doing well in other areas, so it's fine."

In truth, Saruon was one of the most competent NPCs in Tae-hyun's territory. He had run the Demon's Forge for a long time, training blacksmiths, raising territory stats, and crafting all sorts of necessary items! Tae-hyun had acquired him through his connection of freeing Saruon's master, Esla, from his seal. Otherwise, a talent like him would have been completely out of reach.

It's a bit sad that a demon is more competent than my church NPCs...

Come to think of it, as long as they weren't NPCs from the Archisus Cult, everyone seemed highly capable. From Saruon to the captured angels like Yohas and Satique, to the giant warriors and knights brought in from the outside... they were all incredibly competent! For some reason, he felt that even if an angel of Archisus appeared in the future, they would probably be utterly useless.

"Anyway, the reason I'm here is because I need your help."

"...?"

"I'm going to craft Edaor's Musket, and I figured you'd be the best one to help make it."

"If it's a demon-related item, I certainly have confidence."

"But Edaor's Musket, you say?"

"Yeah. Don't look down on it just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠because of the name. Its performance is surprisingly..."

"...Why would I look down on Edaor?"

Saruon ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stared at him as if he were talking nonsense. Even if Edaor had been beaten up a few times by Tae-hyun, he was still a great Demon Duke ruling over an entire layer of the Demon Realm. As a fellow demon, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Saruon could never look down on Edaor!

"Huh? No, I mean, Edaor gets beaten up and kicked out every single time he shows up."

"...That is true."

A sobbing sound came from behind the cage. Saruon looked puzzled. Did a demon just cry?

"Of course, even though Edaor has been beaten and driven away by you every time he set foot on the continent recently..."

"U-Uwaaaah!"

"...?"

"Ignore it."

"Right. He was driven away, but that was..."

"That was?"

"Only because you are the Avatar of Archisus..."

"..."

"..."

Everyone present nodded in agreement!

"I don't think that's Edaor's fault. Though, of course, it is a bit pathetic..."

"How dare you...!"

"What keeps making that noise?"

Only then did Saruon turn his head.

"Apparently, he's one of Edaor's subordinate demons."

"Ah. I see... But isn't this a bit too much? Capturing another demon from Edaor's faction."

Saruon felt a pang of sympathy for Jukenen. No matter how you looked at it, capturing Jukenen of all demons again was just too cruel. He could have captured some other demons instead!

"He's the one who showed up in my territory, you know?"

"What?! A subordinate of Edaor showed up in the territory of Archisus?!"

Saruon cried out in disbelief. What kind of foolish demon would do such a thing!

Jukenen had no excuse, even if he had ten mouths to speak with.

"Enough chatter. Let's get started."

"Very well. Oh, this device is magnificent. Is it a device that extracts demonic power?"

"You know your stuff, demon."

The dwarves of the territory and Saruon conversed amiably. They had a lot in common!

"If we attach a holy water pipe here, we can instantly subdue them if they try to resist or escape."

"What a brilliant method...! How demonic!"

"Haha, thanks for the compliment."

"When feeding demons, it's better to mix in iron ore instead of pure mana stones to increase the volume. It might taste a bit worse, but the amount of demonic energy increases."

"Brilliant!"

"S-Stop it...!"

Gusion tried to stop Saruon, but Saruon completely ignored him. Gusion's father was indeed terrifying, but that demon was far away in the Demon Realm, while the Avatar of Archisus was right next to him!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The deafening sound of hammers echoed. Even the mechanical engineering blacksmiths were mobilized to assist Tae-hyun and Saruon. The work speed was incredibly fast! Everyone watched in awe as they hammered without a single tremor, flattening the metal, shaping it, and completing the weapons. Was he even human? Tae-hyun was showing off the skills he had honed back in Pan-On 1. This level of perfection was impossible to achieve without countless repetitions.

"Tae-hyun, can I upload a video of this?"

"Yeah, I don't mind."

"Tae-hyun, is it okay if we go hunt some monsters nearby while you're working?"

"Go ahead."

"Ahem. I'll also take a quick..."

"Cain. Stop trying to slack off and go raise your skill levels. If I check your skill levels later and they've dropped, you're going to meet the wrath of Archisus."

"?!?!"

Cain, who had been trying to sneak away with the rest of the group to play, flinched. How did he know?! He thought Tae-hyun wouldn't notice since he was staring intently at the hammer and workbench the entire time...!

"Oh dear."

"Do not worry! There is a way."

Saruon confidently walked over to the demon cages. He grabbed the device in front of Gusion.

"W-Wait! Not me! It's not my turn!"

"Silence, Gusion. Act with dignity, as befits the son of a Demon Duke."

"I'm telling the truth! Ask the Avatar! I was granted a two-week break!" Gusion cried out, on the verge of tears. He was truly aggrieved.

"Is that true?"

"Ah, right. Extract it from Jukenen next to him."

"Understood."

Saruon immediately turned toward Jukenen. Jukenen's face turned pale with despair.

Whirrrrr!

"Demonic energy can be utilized in this manner as well!"

"Incredible...!" Tae-hyun was impressed.

"Of course, not just anyone can do it, but if you have a demon when constructing buildings, you can use demonic energy like this to shorten the construction period."

Tae-hyun learned something highly valuable!

In the future, if I find a decent demon, I should capture them instead of killing them.

"A compromise... let's make a compromise."

"?"

After crafting a mountain of Edaor's Muskets, a feeble voice drifted from the cage. It was Jukenen. Hearing this, Gusion sneered in pity.

"Foolish bastard. Only now do you react like that? I suggested a compromise ages ago!"

Jukenen was dumbfounded but held his tongue. There was nothing to gain from arguing with Gusion right now.

"A compromise?"

"Yes!"

"Gusion said something similar. Of course, even after that, he didn't listen to me for a while, which deeply saddened me..."

"..."

"..."

"But he eventually made me happy by contributing to your capture. You should do the same."

In other words, shut up and let your energy be drained quietly until another demon was captured!

Jukenen desperately rattled the bars of his cage and shouted.

"Avatar of Archisus! Listen to me! I have information that will interest you!"

"Impudent fool! How dare you! Avatar, there is no need to listen to the words of such an insolent bastard!" Gusion desperately interfered, terrified that he might be targeted for energy extraction instead of Jukenen. Fearing that Tae-hyun might simply walk away, Jukenen shouted again.

"Avatar! Please hear me out!"

"What a cowardly wretch! There is no reason to trust such a spineless..."

"Ah, both of you shut up. Be quiet."

Tae-hyun sat down in front of Jukenen's cage. Then, he spoke.

"Jukenen, just in case you're thinking of it, don't even bother saying things like 'If you free me, I'll reward you handsomely,' or 'If you free me, I'll bring you an item from the Demon Realm.' The guy next to you already tried that line."

"..."

No credit allowed! That was Tae-hyun's absolute rule. Why on earth would he trust a demon and release them on credit? If you want to be freed, bring something of equal value first!

"I-I'm not asking to be freed... I'm just asking you to stop draining my energy."

"Hmm. So, what can you offer me?"

Gulp.

Jukenen swallowed hard. Honestly, his original plan when Tae-hyun arrived was to use his silver tongue to scam him. Humans were a greedy race! No matter how much they pretended otherwise, they were bound to fall for it if you stimulated their greed. He had planned to deceive him with lies like "I know where a legendary treasure is hidden" or "There is a sword in the Demon Realm that will allow you to rule the continent if you possess it"... but Tae-hyun had completely blocked those avenues.

"You didn't call me over with absolutely nothing to offer, did you? Surely, you're not that stupid."

"Indeed. This fool is a mere subordinate of Edaor who dared to trespass onto the land of Archisus."

"True, that's a good point."

While Tae-hyun and Gusion bickered, Jukenen desperately racked his brain.

Damn it! I don't have anything on me, so what am I supposed to do!

Locked in a cage with nothing but his bare body, there was nothing he could physically offer right now. At that moment, Jukenen's eyes fell on Gusion. How had Gusion escaped his crisis? He had escaped by selling out Jukenen. In that case...

I'll sell out other demons!

If he sold out even more demons, and far more aggressively than Gusion had, he might actually get released! Jukenen opened his mouth.

"I will offer you other demons!"

"!"

Gusion was shocked. What a piece of trash! He wasn't shocked because Jukenen was selling out his own kind. Demons didn't care about things like loyalty. Rather, it was: How dare he steal my method? It was pure irritation at having his own strategy stolen!

"Hmm... No. That sounds like a lot of work. Honestly, I don't think I have the time."

Did he really have to embark on a long journey to find some demons hidden far away? He'd rather spend that time doing his Authority quests.

"No! They are close by! In the Erangs Kingdom!" Jukenen blurted out rapidly. "Among those who came down the World Tree with me, there are those who headed to the Erangs Kingdom. I know exactly where they went!"

Yes, those were the demons who had descended the World Tree together! They were the very same demons who had mocked Jukenen for heading to the Atali Kingdom. Little did those demons know that their mockery would come back to bite them like this.