319. Choice (3)
319. Choice (3)
- 1 -
"What do you want."
The question fell from Dantalion, slicing through the silence and shattering the coldly frozen air.
"I like that you are direct."
A soft smile spread across my lips at his de facto declaration of surrender.
The air in the conference room was sharp as a blade, but it did nothing to stop my smile.
"However, I wonder if you can give me what I want. Your situation does not seem so favorable."
Dantalion's jaw muscles twitched.
Though the expression beneath his mask was hidden, the intensity of his rage was unmistakable.
"Both of you, this is not a place for expressing emotions. Please remember that this is an occasion to find a peaceful resolution."
At Stella's mediation, I nodded and spoke.
"A guarantee of non-aggression, and a gag order on me, would be sufficient."
"Non-aggression, you say."
Dantalion's brow twitched.
"Are you suggesting we reconcile, now of all times?"
"As if."
I took a sip of tea, then focused my gaze back on him.
In that brief interval, the fury deepening in his eyes grew more prominent.
"Actually, there is no reason for us to fight, is there. Our domains are far apart across the continent... and if the start had been good, we could have built a more constructive relationship. I am saying, let us make that start even now."
"Your intentions are suspect."
Dantalion laughed coldly.
"You have already broken one of my subordinates and plundered another. And yet you speak of non-aggression?"
Of course, I knew as well. That what he was saying now was nonsense.
Suggesting we stop fighting after exchanging blows was excessively idealistic.
But at the same time, it was not an impossible thing to say either.
Because we were not individuals, but lords of collectives.
Reaching a conclusion contrary to one's heart is not a difficult thing.
"... Fine. Let us do so."
As expected, Dantalion chose.
"I will not attack you. So you, too, cease all operations against me."
"I have no idea what you mean."
He twisted his lips beneath his mask.
"You will not pretend to be ignorant of the Wepar incident."
"Sure."
When I readily nodded, Dantalion let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes.
He looked just like a man muttering curses under his breath.
"... I hope there will be no repeat of such incidents after this."
"Yes, I promise. From now on."
"'From now on,' you say?"
Dantalion glared at me for a long moment, then slowly nodded.
Beside him, Stella let out a faint sigh.
It was a sigh of relief.
"Then, we shall discuss the scope and conditions of the non-aggression in detail."
"There was a monster mercenary group that came up to the Northern Continent. Is it yours?"
Dantalion asked directly.
It was a question that hinted at how far his influence had extended among the humans.
"Yes. Correct. They are those under my influence."
"Withdraw them."
"That is difficult. It is due to a contract separate from this one."
Dantalion's face darkened with menace.
I had simply spoken of a contract between myself and the humans, but to him, it must have sounded different.
"Those bastards..."
During the brief moment I closed my mouth, he seemed to have reached a conviction all his own.
I had no intention of correcting his misunderstanding.
"Fine. Then, let us speak of what you must give me."
He demanded it boldly, to the point of appearing not just shameless but insolent.
"You must return Botis's power."
He seemed not to have considered at all whether that was possible or not.
As a lord of a faction, it was an excellent virtue.
- 2 -
"What do you mean, return it?"
When I asked back, raising the corner of my mouth, he declared.
"Do not pretend ignorance. I sense Botis's power from you. It has changed slightly, but I am not one who would fail to recognize what I gave."
"Let us say that is so."
When I nodded nonchalantly, he twisted his lips and added.
"Thanks to you breaking my marquises, my control over the Demon Realm has greatly weakened. Surely you will not claim you do not know that."
It was unexpected. To speak of his own weakness himself.
But I soon understood his intention.
"Non-aggression between you and me holds only while I remain a Grand Duke. For instance... if someone of equal martial power ascends to the Grand Duke position, they would seek to overcome the one I could not overcome, to heighten their own control."
'Using his own weakness as a threat.'
I laughed hollowly inside, but outwardly maintained an indifferent expression.
'Kimaris.'
I thought about the one called the second-in-command of the forces under his command.
A Black Demi Lich and powerful warrior, he was known as an existence comparable to Dantalion in terms of sheer martial force.
Therefore, his words were not empty.
'He would not be easily usurped... but yes. Monarch-rank is dangerous.'
I had easily suppressed Jin Soha in the previous battle because I held a power with an advantageous affinity, but believing such luck would come in all things was excessive arrogance.
Kimaris was not cooperative with Dantalion, and moreover, had cultivated powerful strength without receiving the fate-bound otherworldly power.
Even if only half the rumors were true, that Demon Realm noble would not be so easy.
"Fine. I will return half of the power taken from him."
"Half?"
"I have already digested the other half."
"... I will accept it. Then what of Wepar?"
An expected question. Before I could even open my mouth, Dantalion added.
"The world still knows her as my subordinate. The transfer of a Marquis of the Demon Realm is a tremendous affair. I demand her return."
"I refuse."
At my immediate answer, he leaned his back against the chair.
He must have expected such a reply. Common sense dictated there was no way I would return a Marquis-level combatant.
But he likely had not expected this statement.
"After all, I have no hobby of casting aside a woman who has already come into my arms of her own accord."
"Come into your...?"
Even though his mask hid his face, I knew.
That by now, his brow would be deeply furrowed.
I spoke in a whisper.
"She chose me on her own. She is being treated in my territory for the wounds received from you. How could I send a victim, gravely wounded in body and mind, back to her perpetrator?"
"Nonsense."
Dantalion's low voice resonated through the conference hall.
"She resided in my territory for over a hundred years. She is not the kind of woman who would be swayed by a petty temptation."
"Temptation? I wonder."
I slowly repeated his words and smiled.
"I simply gave her a choice. To be treated properly as a companion and subordinate, not as a tool or property."
Crrk!
The glass shattered to pieces in Dantalion's grip.
It was a glass imbued with special crafting and mana for use by high-ranking demon nobles, but before his fury, it was nothing more than trash.
Fwooo...!
The air around him warped as an alien power swirled.
A blasphemous color that should not exist in this world enveloped him and filled the conference hall.
His composure had collapsed. Just as I intended.
"Secret Duke."
Stella's voice, her brow furrowed, echoed sharply through the room.
Seeing the scent of iris rising from her, she seemed to have already roused her mana.
"Are you attempting to raise your mana right now, inside the palace of the Supreme One?"
The power subsided slowly, more gradually than it had risen.
'A pity.'
It was a chance to gain a far greater profit, even if it meant paying a considerable price.
Of course, I had known it would not happen.
The possibility of him crossing the line had always existed; I had simply gambled on it.
The fact that he did not take that bait was proof that he possessed a judgment colder than I had expected.
"As time passes..."
Dantalion let out a growling voice.
"... the truth will be revealed. Will you still be able to smile then."
"I wonder. Even a flower knows where it should bloom. Your ice palace is a difficult place for rosemary to grow."
As Dantalion's aura grew menacing again, Sister Stella intervened.
"Libertas. Please remember the rules of the conference. Provocation does not aid discussion."
"I apologize. I went too far."
When I raised one hand to convey my apology, she looked back at the two of us and placed her hands together on the table.
"Let us summarize. Prohibition of acts of aggression against each other. Regarding the Ugly Marquis Botis, half of the power shall be returned; the Deceitful Marquis Wepar shall maintain her current status."
Her hands glowed darkly, and a document appeared on the table.
"This agreement is concluded under the name of the Supreme One and holds a validity of one year. Whether it is renewed thereafter shall be decided by mutual agreement. However, regarding Marquis Wepar, who is in a state of severe mental weakness, renegotiate after one month. Do you agree?"
"... Understood."
"I agree."
As Dantalion and I raised our mana in turn and signed, the document emitted light and split into three pieces.
One went to the Demon King's library, one to Dantalion, and the last came back to me and disappeared.
Aside from the one going to the library, the document itself would be carved into soul and body, restricting actions without needing separate confirmation.
"Then, with this, the talks are concluded."
With Stella's declaration, Dantalion rose from his seat.
The fury from moments before already having vanished cleanly, he stared at me and threw out his final words.
"I withdraw for now, but your arrogance will ultimately dig your own grave. Remember that."
"There is no need for me to deliberately remind you of what happened to you."
After hearing my answer, he maintained silence for a moment, then soon turned away.
The sound of the conference room door closing echoed loudly.
'Just as I thought.'
I tapped the table and organized my thoughts.
He had chosen the best... and the second-worst option.
He would not know. How fatal a mistake that choice would become.
The first stone for his downfall had already been cast.
- 3 -
"Hoo..."
Stella let out a long sigh, then glared at me with an angry expression.
"... You will have to explain yourself. Rita."
"What do you mean, big sister."
When I opened my eyes slightly wider as if I knew nothing, she came closer and gently took hold of my shoulders.
Her grip was quite strong.
"You did it on purpose. I mean provoking Dantalion."
At her words filled with conviction, I offered a slight smile laced with aegyo.
It felt like I was doing something that did not suit me, but it was not so disagreeable.
She let out a small sigh, as if she had no choice.
"... Let us go to my study first."
We exited the conference room and walked down the hallway.
Beside me, Stella's scent tickled my nose.
It was the scent of iris. The flower she liked, and the flower that symbolized her.
"You are much younger than I am, but sometimes you act like you have lived for hundreds of years. You little old fox."
I could not answer quickly.
Even if I combined my life on Earth, it would not be half the years she had lived.
But discussing a lady's age is forbidden. Better to keep my mouth shut.
Deolkeong!
Stella's private study. The door was made of massive rock.
I stepped inside and looked around.
When I had infiltrated this palace disguised as a lady-in-waiting, I had visited her office often, but only managed to come to her private study a few times.
In the center, a giant crystal ball was slowly rotating, and around it, several books were orbiting.
When Stella reached out her hand toward one of them, the book flew to her grasp as if it were the most natural thing.
It seemed she had arranged them to easily find her favorite books.
"Now, tell me."
Stella said, approaching the central table.
After seating me beside her among the various chairs, she held my hand with both of hers and spoke in a low voice.
"Why did you do such a thing?"
I held her hands in return and answered.
I did not want to hide anything from her, but I could not possibly tell her everything.
Given her current attitude, it was all too obvious what would happen if I told her the entire truth.
"Because if those talks had broken down, Agares and Eligos would have truly made a move."
"Why?"
"An opportunity to deal with one or more rival Grand Dukes of the Demon Realm. I would have suffered some damage as well, but considering the future, it would have also been a chance to grow my power in a much more comfortable situation."
Of course, I had been convinced he would not move there as I desired.
Whether for his own sake, or being conscious of my sister beside him.
If he had not been that kind of person, he could not have become a Grand Duke.
"You did it knowing it would not happen..."
My sister murmured as if she could not believe it, then slowly pulled me into an embrace.
"Sister?"
"Rita."
"Yes...?"
She stroked my back and whispered softly.
Her body heat warmed me hotly, and her voice, with its sternness buried within the softness, seeped into my ear.
"You certainly acted after calculating the risks and the gains. But you made your big sister's heart flutter in a bad way."
I closed my eyes, entrusting my body to her touch as she patted my back.
Her embrace was warm like spring sunshine, even amidst the dark and red sunlight of the Demon Realm.
"You are self-opinionated."
"I am sorry."
"No. A lord must also know how to be self-opinionated. But..."
Haa.
The sound of a sigh resonated above my head.
"I wish you would think a little of your big sister who worries about you."
I swallowed the words I could not bring myself to say.
I absolutely could not tell her that originally, I had intended to provoke him even more aggressively there to extract far more aggressive gains.
"Then, let us prepare for the next thing now."
"Yes."
A moment later, she released me and spoke those words.
I, too, immediately understood what she meant.
"Stay in my palace until the day after tomorrow. Now it is time to officially acknowledge our relationship."
We looked at each other and smiled with our eyes.
"I look forward to working with you from now on. Libertas, 'Your Highness'."
"That is a request I should be making. Your Highness, the First Demon Queen."
We exchanged words comically and laughed.
The day after tomorrow, a grand event of the Demon Realm awaited me.
That was precisely the Title Investiture Ceremony and the Demon Name Bestowal Ceremony to be held concurrently.
That day, I am scheduled to officially acknowledge that I am a child of the Duke of Gluttony and the half-sister of Bellastella.