Chapter 41 — Everything Now Belongs to Your Majesty (1)
Chapter 41 — Everything Now Belongs to Your Majesty (1)
The sight of mountains of wheat being transported into the city was a spectacle. It was said that all the people lined the main thoroughfare to watch.
Roan's satisfaction reached its peak.
A little over two months had passed since he became the Demon King.
Of all the results he had achieved so far, this was the most visible.
That day, the surface-level filtering was useless.
Without even attempting to hide it, Roan wandered around the city with a smiling face all day long.
"Hmm, I wonder if the grain is being properly distributed."
That had been the story of a few days prior.
To prevent a single trading company from monopolizing the profits, a few companies above a certain size were selected and permitted to sell the wheat in the markets of the major cities.
However, it was inconvenient for the emperor to personally visit and inspect the markets or the trading companies.
They would only show him a staged scene.
Going undercover was also problematic.
Because, in essence, he was human on the inside.
There would be nothing stranger than the Demon King being flustered by the culture of demonkind.
"Are you concerned, Your Majesty?"
Grünent asked Roan with a smile.
"Since Your Majesty personally commanded it, everyone will do their best. Though I do understand your desire to see it for yourself...."
She turned her eyes back to the report.
"I often ran away for that reason when I was young, myself."
"Hmm?"
Roan looked at Grünent, who was reading a report on labor dispatch. Her gaze was on the paper, but what she saw was a distant past.
"I was very curious about the people my family and I were to govern. I also wanted to see if we were doing a proper job."
And then, a bitter smile appeared on her face.
"Though I came to regret it once I'd grown up a little."
The game itself revealed that the royal family of Merde was not virtuous.
They treated the Hero and the people like expendables.
There was no need to look far.
One only had to see how they treated Grünent. Even for a royal family said to lack familial affection, to conceive the idea of sending their first princess off to an enemy nation where neglect was a foregone conclusion.
It was a decision difficult to understand from either a practical or an emotional standpoint.
"It's fine. So long as you don't run away now."
Roan spoke lightly, but Grünent's cheeks flushed red.
"Your Majesty, really.... I am your wife."
It was one thing for Grünent, but why was Rauka blushing alongside her?
Now that he thought about it, a few days ago, Rauka had overheard his bedtime activities with Grünent from outside the bedroom.
The physical abilities of a forest fairy surpassed those of humans.
With her hearing, eavesdropping on the conversation inside the room from outside must have been all too easy.
She had heard the sounds of her reaching climax again and again.
And curiously enough, her affection had risen.
Had she imagined things while listening to his voice during her own self-pleasure?
Her affection was now -25.
"Ah, come to think of it, Your Majesty."
Grünent closed the cover of the report and spoke.
"I've heard that this is the period of the Harvest Festival. They say it's the biggest festival of the year."
"Mm, that's right."
Though it was a bit funny for me, originally a human, to act knowledgeable, I had studied quite a bit by now. Hm.
I had learned about various things, not just politics, but the overall culture.
I might not know as much as a natural-born demonkin, but I could confidently say I knew more than a human.
The Demon King had been a complete rogue to begin with.
Now, no matter what I asked, they only thought of it as praiseworthy.
'...No, I mean, wasn't I treated like a plague....'
A being who didn't communicate but could take my life.
When such an existence, almost like a natural disaster, declared it would understand and be governed by them, everyone welcomed it with both hands raised.
"It's a festival held around September 9th, timed with the period when the first wheat of September is harvested and released to the market. They practically hold the festival for an entire week."
Since it was a festival similar to a national holiday, normally the emperor would step forward and pray for a good harvest, but.
Here, I was still a natural disaster.
Nobody invited me to the event.
What a relief.
"The demon maid assigned to my room was very excited about going to the festival."
"Well, they're days of plenty."
A demon maid, excited. It wasn't easy to pick up on such things from brief observation.
The three human maids couldn't do everything. As Grünent began to stay here longer, she had also started to grow closer to the other servants.
"Your Majesty, I'll leave the reports I've finished reading here."
"Right."
"This report was written by Diobe, wasn't it? It's been a while since I've seen Diobe."
It wasn't the first time he'd heard Diobe's name from Grünent's lips.
"Mm, she's an administrator now, so she's become busy."
"I enjoyed talking with Diobe."
"Hm?"
This was unexpected.
In the original game, the two of them had had no point of contact.
One had been imprisoned the entire time before escaping, and the other had stayed continuously by the Demon King's side.
But as I began to change the situation, they had more opportunities to talk, with a common subject.
Since both were humans living in demon society.
Both were high-ranking women from the same kingdom.
They already had common ground, and it seemed the situation had drawn them even closer.
"It's hard to explain why, but... I feel at ease when I'm with her. A little reassured, too."
Come to think of it, Diobe was a noble and a knight, so she might have known of Grünent.
"Diobe is deep-thinking."
Though in a bad direction, that depth became scheming.
"You're right, Your Majesty. The last time we went in front of City Hall, if it hadn't been for Diobe bringing the hood in advance...."
Grünent glanced back at Rauka.
"I was fortunate that Rauka and Diobe were there."
"Oh, what are you saying."
Rauka scratched her head as if embarrassed but couldn't hide the corners of her lips trying to curl up.
"So, Your Majesty."
Grünent's eyes sparkled.
"Would you run away with me, just this once?"
*
Magic was truly convenient.
When I consulted about going undercover, Liron handed over a magic tool for disguise without a single question.
I had remembered Minoreus and Liron accompanying us during the old Diobe kidnapping incident, so it was a good thing I had casually asked Liron.
"Even someone who is not a wizard can use this conveniently. Please return it at your leisure."
"Thank you, Finance Minister. The work you're doing now, it's a gift from Barbara, isn't it?"
The Finance Minister's movements froze for a moment.
It must have been fortunate that he had no skin. If he did, his reddened face would have been exposed.
Liron scratched his skull with a finger bone.
Pinned to the collar of his robe was a small brooch.
Grünent smiled as though she hadn't expected an answer.
"I'll tell Barbara. She'll probably be glad to hear the Finance Minister is using it well."
"She would... be glad?"
"Of course."
What was this warm, fuzzy atmosphere?
Liron was a skeleton; was this okay?
Seeming a little embarrassed by this conversation, Liron quickly ushered us out of his laboratory.
"Since Diobe will be busy, let's just go and give our greetings."
I didn't want to lose affection points for disturbing her work.
"Understood, Your Majesty. Hee hee, we're finally leaving the castle!"
In truth, Diobe might have been an excuse, and perhaps Grünent had simply wanted to go outside the castle.
Though there had been such an incident a few weeks ago, her heart seemed to have healed well. In any case, Grünent growing accustomed to Evirgio was a good sign.
"Still, just in case you're not recognized, don't wander off."
"I'm not a child. Don't you worry."
Rauka grumbled, but she too diligently used the disguise tool. It appeared the desire to finally see the world of demonkind had stirred in Rauka as well.
The Demon King's appearance was a humanoid form with added horns.
Such an appearance could not be found unless it was the Demon King or a high-ranking noble who was a relative of his ancestors.
Therefore, no matter how much the people didn't know his face, it was impossible for him to sneak out of the castle.
Because the moment they saw someone in humanoid form bearing horns, the people would be horrified and start sneaking glances.
Thus, he had been confined to the castle, half by his own will and half by circumstance. At most, he had occasionally come and gone from City Hall.
For Roan as well, this was his first proper outing.
'...Since the guild building is close to City Hall.'
The service dispatching humans was being actively conducted in a corner of the Commercial Guild.
They left through the back door connected to City Hall.
The three had changed their appearances and put on simple outing clothes, so the City Hall employees seemed to think they were noble officials returning from somewhere in the Imperial Palace.
Their blank, silent bows were not an attitude taken toward the emperor.
Grünent, still beautiful even after changing her face, smiled like a mischievous child.
"Fufu. They really don't know, Your Maj...."
Grünent hesitated.
"...Roan."
And she flushed her cheeks red.
Calling Roan by his name for the first time seemed to feel awfully impertinent to her.
"Kyaa, you said his name, Rauka!"
"Behave yourself, Grün..., Rine."
As they stepped out of City Hall, Rauka's eyes, which had been about to give her a scolding over something, went round.
"Oh."
"Wow...."
"Rine. Rauka."
Since they were about to look around like country bumpkins the moment they left City Hall, I quickly called their names.
I was holding back the urge to look around in every direction myself!
Naturally, the city was full of demonkind, but seeing beings of such diverse forms walking around the large plaza and streets was a completely different sight.
The Demon King's Castle was a quiet and dark place.
He was seeing the lively appearance of demonkind for the first time.
He wanted to stand and observe, lost in thought for a moment, but if three people dressed in fine clothes stood blankly in front of City Hall's main gate, gaping at the street like country travelers, they would stand out tremendously.
"Let's go to the guild."
"Yes."
"Ah, yes, Your Maj... Roan."
By nature, the Demon King's presence was powerful. There had been almost no occasion where he'd been overwhelmed by something.
But being surrounded by a procession of beings taller than himself was not a pleasant experience.
Even in his original world, he had rarely been surrounded by bigger men. Because he was usually the one who was that 'uncomfortably large person.'
But the Demon King's physique was only large for a human.
Here on this street, he was a shabby, insignificant fellow.
"Rine. Rauka. This way."
"H-hic, it's, it's scary...."
He guided Grünent and Rauka to the edge of the street. If even Roan was feeling breathless, the women wouldn't end with just a bruise if they collided with a large demon.
Unlike the calm atmosphere inside the castle, the festive mood was clearly palpable in the streets. Colorful decorations fluttered on the simple but ancient-looking buildings, and people's faces were bright with excitement.
Fortunately, City Hall and the guild were really only a few minutes apart.
"That's the building."
Spotting the commercial guild's large signboard, Roan let out a sigh of relief.
If the distance hadn't been this close, they might have been trampled by that crowd. Grünent and Rauka were already exhausted from being on edge.
"...It's, it's not easy."
"Still, we arrived alive and in one piece. I thought we'd be crushed and split apart."
While the two barely managed to straighten their clothes, he surveyed the interior.
'So this is a fantasy guild...!'
Finally seeing something he'd only viewed as in-game graphics!
It was deeply moving.
Inside the wooden building, which looked exactly like a typical illustration, it was bright and noisy.
While many people were busily moving about for their respective tasks, he finally spotted a familiar face.
"Diobe!"
She turned and looked at Grünent, who had spoken to her.
Diobe twitched an eyebrow slightly and asked.
"Yes, how may I help you, Miss?"
Grünent's face went blank with shock.
It seemed she had momentarily forgotten that her face had been changed. Roan laughed quietly.
"Diobe. This is Grünent."
At his low voice, Diobe, who had been looking at Roan for a moment, started in surprise and bowed her head.
"No, Your Maj...."
"Roan. Rine."
Diobe stared at Roan with a flustered look before hastily lowering her gaze again.
"Roan. Rine. Then the one behind you is—"
"Yeah, I'm just Rauka."
"Rauka. What brings everyone here?"
"Rine said she wanted to see you."
A smile spread across Diobe's surprised face.
"I'm sorry to come suddenly, but I was curious to see you working. Diobe, you're very busy, aren't you?"
"Thank you, Rine."
"And I also wanted to see this Harvest Festival."
Hearing that, Diobe smiled wryly.
"The Harvest Festival is splendid, but because of it, our work is especially hectic. I'd like to personally guide you...."
"We didn't come to interrupt, so don't worry about it."
At Roan's words, Grünent nodded fervently. However, there was no phrase as concerning as a superior's usual 'don't worry about it.'
The three first-time visitors likely didn't know about the 'passageway.'
It must have been quite an ordeal for the three of them, with their human-sized bodies, to push through that crowd of large demons. Even if His Majesty was present.
To wander around outside, especially in the current situation, having a guide would be best.
Diobe handed the documents she was holding to the demon behind her and looked around.
She spotted someone just entering the guild door and called out a name.
"Lisa!"
Roan and Grünent whipped their heads around.
"Ah, yes! Diobe?"
A woman with a bright voice answered.
Light green hair, chest swaying and stealing the gazes of the people inside the guild.
"Oh my, you're the one who was cleaning the tower inside the castle...."
"Yes, that's right. But excuse me, who might you be?"
Next to her head, the number Affection +68 appeared and then disappeared.