192. Pandemonium (3)
192. Pandemonium (3)
- 1 -
We arrived at the administrative office of the Demon King's Castle, Corona Tenebris, and went up to its fifth floor.
The ones who greeted us there were two male demons.
"You've arrived. We have been waiting. Lady Libertas."
"Grimm. I didn't expect to see you here."
One of them was Viscount Grimm Du Rol, a goblin who had been continuously owed a debt by the Mammon Trading Company.
Though I only met him in person after coming to this world, I had known of him before that. It was because of his history as a dungeon merchant going all the way back to 'Milden 1'.
With the passage of 200 years, his appearance had changed a little, and his abilities had grown by leaps and bounds, but his essence hadn't changed much.
He was still a merchant, and he had simply learned to wrap that in a splendid presence.
"I had heard the rumors. It is an honor to meet you for the first time. Lady Libertas."
"And you are?"
"I am the deputy director in charge of the Dungeon Lord department at the administrative office. I am called Count Ophilius del Fuwelyn."
The other one standing beside him was a demon with a rather handsome face.
He was a dream demon like Scarlet, more specifically, an incubus.
He had placed his hand on the pattern near his collarbone, and after that pattern flashed once, he was looking at me with interest.
What he had tried to do was immediately obvious.
"There was someone who tried such a thing on me at first and got a scolding for it."
Those granted the title of count were fundamentally on the same level as a Dungeon Lord with no title at all.
That was why I was addressing him as an equal. Even if our peerage titles were the same, the rank of his title was likely far older.
"It seems like someone you might know as well."
As I said that, thinking of the red-haired succubus of his same race who now held my favor, his eyes colored with admiration.
It was genuine sincerity, without falsehood.
"Even if it's a simple level of favor, I didn't expect there to be no signs of it whatsoever. Just as I've heard."
"What would you have done if it had worked?"
I replied with a gentle smile on my lips. I had been holding Serica, who had been trying to step forward and show an aggressive reaction, by our interlocked hands this whole time.
"Of course, I would have released it immediately. Since even committing a disrespect toward Lady Libertas would be a loss to me."
"Wouldn't it be better not to do such a thing in the first place?"
"If the Dungeon Lord who many people are paying attention to turned out to have weak mental fortitude and broke their expectations, wouldn't that be a very big problem?"
In his own way, it was a valid point. The method was just sleazy.
"You speak as if butter wouldn't melt in your mouth."
"Thank you for the compliment."
After giving a slight nod to him as he bowed his head, I turned my gaze back toward Grimm.
He was wearing a rather apologetic expression.
"It seems you were the one who talked about me. Grimm."
"I am sorry I couldn't stop him. Lady Libertas."
"It's fine. How could that be your fault?"
He said he was sorry, but the probability that this deputy director had appeared here against Grimm's intentions was high anyway.
Grimm had likely come here simply to help with my administrative processing.
Although rumors about me were spreading a little in the demon world, the treatment of someone backed by a person with that level of power versus someone without such backing was entirely different.
I had no intention of reproaching him for the poor outcome of actions taken out of respect.
"Now then. Please come this way. I will assist you with the processing you requested."
The fusion of the two monster queens with their cores proceeded faster than expected.
It was thanks to over twenty mages being assigned to the task, none of whom appeared to be below advanced level.
"Is it normal for this many personnel to be deployed for this process?"
"It is not. This is a special measure arranged for Lady Libertas's convenience. The time required for the fusion and stabilization process will be considerably shortened."
I could guess immediately.
The time saved would not be proportional to the number of mages deployed here. If it were, there would be no reason for this process itself to be accepted as a 'favor'.
But I simply nodded in reply. There was no reason to offer thanks and deliberately hand over the weak justification of my gratitude here.
Hwooook...!
Inside the massive magic circle, the bodies of Nirvana and Kamaya and the two cores began to be colored by their respective mana colors.
Nirvana with black and green, Kamaya with scarlet and yellow.
"It is progressing well."
Ophilius nodded as if satisfied.
The mana that had been enveloping the two monsters' bodies slowly stabilized.
The light of mana seeped out from between their closed eyelids, but they had not yet opened their eyes.
"They have now acquired the basic qualifications as Dungeon Lords. Though the stabilization will take some time."
The transformation process into a Dungeon Lord quietly came to an end like that.
Without any splendid ceremony, without any special changes.
The only thing was that the power felt from their bodies had deepened by one level.
I smiled, looking forward to what kind of steps they would take in the future. All that was left now was the master-servant contract between them and me.
"It seems the process isn't originally that long."
"The process of registering a monster in the seat of a Dungeon Lord, an august position, and then securing proof that they have abandoned that august position takes a long time. Normally, we do not mobilize this many personnel."
"I see."
A Dungeon Lord is, so to speak, a successor candidate for the Demon King.
There was no way the process of turning monsters into such beings would end simply. I didn't know about the reverse case, but since I didn't know, it was unavoidable.
I nodded. It was a matter where no further questioning would yield any benefit.
"Now, as I mentioned, it will take a little time. Our mages will assist them in the meantime, so how about you go for a brief tea time?"
"Let's do that. Artemis. Stay here and observe the results."
"Yes."
After taking minimal precautions to ensure the safety of the two Dungeon Lords, we followed the incubus.
- 2 -
The place we arrived at, following the incubus, wasn't indoors but outside—specifically, a wide tea table set in a flower garden.
Before taking my seat, I glanced around for a moment.
"... What a well-made garden."
The scenery there was exceedingly beautiful.
Along the paths between flowerbeds where all sorts of colored plants, centered around black flowers, were in full bloom, demon statues made of black marble stood in rows.
Vine plants were tangled and growing on the shoulders and heads of those demon statues, and their flowers were a deep crimson.
Between the flowerbeds, transparent spring water was bubbling up. The small streams formed by the spring water passed through every corner of the garden, gathering into a single pond.
"This water contains mana."
"You have a good eye. It contains magic for tending this garden, with the magic circle itself taking the form of these waterways."
When Mure explained it and I looked closely, it was just as she said.
The water flowing through the waterways was naturally activating some kind of magic.
Most of it was for growing the garden's creatures, but some detection magic was mixed in as well, likely to prevent damage to the flowers.
'It's so natural it's hard to recognize at a glance, but at the same time, it isn't weak either.'
Admiring the precision of the magic, I looked around further.
Around the pond, water lilies with white petals were floating.
Among them, fish with red scales were swimming, creating a scene as if snowflakes were falling onto red water.
And the light shining down from the ceiling, illuminating everything, had a dark crimson hue.
The light reflected off the garden's flowers, red vines, and sculptures, creating a strange beauty.
It was a garden where one felt a weighty beauty rather than splendor.
It was clearly a place receiving someone's meticulous care.
"It is only natural, as this is a place one of the queens personally cares for."
"The Demon Queen did...?"
It was only natural, but the Demon King did have queens, after all. Three of them, in fact.
'There are also ten consorts, and countless women who have received the Demon King's favor at least once.'
However, not a single one of them had directly borne the Demon King's heir.
It was because there was no woman who possessed a seed strong enough to conceive by receiving the Demon King's power.
Most seeds would simply be crushed under his mana.
As such, this heirless position held less power than one might think.
Even if there was the unique distinction of living in the Demon King's Castle as his woman, and the respect due to being the Demon King's consort.
I caught my straying idle thoughts and redirected them.
"Tea time in a place personally managed by Her Highness... is that really alright?"
At my question, Count Ophilius answered, still wearing his cheerful smile, with a reply that seemed to say it was only natural.
"There must be dozens of gardens within this castle that they directly or indirectly manage. It doesn't matter as long as you use them cleanly."
"Is that so."
I nodded, but it wasn't a convincing answer.
In the end, it just meant he was using the garden as he pleased, and it was merely tolerated because it was difficult to find fault with each instance.
Actions without proper consent are nothing more than tyranny or arbitrariness.
But even if I objected, the obvious answer that would come back was 'why wouldn't it be allowed?'
Besides, I wasn't qualified to be self-righteous, since I committed such tyrannies far more frequently against other humans on the surface.
"This is good tea."
"Is that so? That's a relief!"
Fortunately, the unnamed flower tea of the demon world possessed an aroma and taste beyond my expectations.
It felt as if my discomfort was melting away in an instant.
'Though it's not as good as what those children brew...'
However, I felt that compared to the good ingredients, the taste hadn't been perfectly brought out.
The tea Eve or Ran brewed always felt like it drew out 120% of the ingredients' flavor.
"May I know the name of this tea?"
"Hmm. I'm not sure. A subordinate brewed it for me, so... I will have it packaged for you."
"I will gratefully accept it."
Suddenly, I saw Maria, who was standing beside me as a guard, writing something in a notebook.
Thinking I should ask her later what she was writing, I focused on the small talk for now.
Conveniently, the topic of conversation had just shifted to her, who stood beside me.
"It's uncommon for others to raise humans; you are unique. Aren't they a species whose greed always precedes their ability?"
It was a tone that naturally carried discrimination against a race, as easily as breathing.
Feeling Maria's gaze cautiously turn toward me, I smiled.
"Even if a pearl is hidden in the sand, without the effort to find it, it remains merely a part of the sand."
"Indeed... Are you certain that she will be a pearl?"
"Depending on how she is polished, she could become a diamond or mithril."
The incubus expressed admiration, though his nod was tinged with faint contempt.
What this count wanted was this very connection.
A friendship with a being newly surviving and expected to build a proper demon realm.
The steps a Dungeon Lord showed on the surface weren't conveyed unless they themselves or other Dungeon Lords around them sold information to the demon world, but the knowledge the Dungeon Lord themself possessed was hard to hide.
In cases of rapid growth like mine, it was actually more helpful not to hide it.
"Do you have any other beings like her? If you could perhaps give me an opportunity to collect one as well..."
"Hmm... I put great care into my possessions. If there were an owner who put in more care and treasured them more than I do, that might not be so bad either."
"Indeed. You are a gracious master."
At the indirect refusal, the incubus simply accepted it.
It had just been a polite remark; he hadn't seemed that interested from the start.
Frankly, it was unpleasant, but I decided to endure it for a moment.
The reason Grimm had deliberately arranged this meeting was probably because he was certain that a close relationship with this man would be helpful to me.
Even if I didn't like it, playing along for now was the right attitude to take toward someone who claimed to be on my side.
Of course, if there were no results, then it would be dealt with at that time.
... It was just as I was thinking that.
"... That person is."
Suddenly, at the intense feeling of eyes on my back, I turned my head and looked in one direction.
"... Your Highness!"
In the direction where all the nobles except me had hastily risen and bowed their heads, a woman was standing.
A woman with black hair and purple eyes lighter than mine, who gave off a similar feeling to me but was much taller.
Her eyes meeting mine, she was looking at me with faintly trembling pupils.