The Master of Demons (1)
“Lord Lovern, you've returned.”
“Haha. Thanks to these folks, I made it back safe and sound.”
“These folks? Oh, your companions?”
“That's right. They say they want to settle down in our Versilver Territory.”
“If you're vouching for them, Lord Lovern, there shouldn't be any issues. Come on in.”
The first impression of the demon lands they entered was—
“Whoa, it's like the countryside!”
“Even more in tune with nature than the elves' village.”
Cluster knew he should rein in the two for their terribly rude remarks, but the words wouldn't come.
Because I'm thinking the same thing.
Fog Region. Demon lands. And the Demon King's castle. The image that sprang to mind was a chilling fog blanketing a dark landscape, pierced by towering black spires surrounded by layer upon layer of walls.
But the first thing that caught their eyes in a place matching that image was—
“A wooden fence?”
Put kindly, it was a palisade. Bluntly, it was barely better than a simple barrier. Countryside. Nature-friendly. A peaceful village at best, a backwater dump at worst. There were a few stone castles that looked like forts in the distance, and some slightly ornate mansions, but it was the perfect spot to call a rural village.
Lovern chuckled at the group's reactions and began explaining—frantically, though it was hard to tell if it was an explanation or an excuse.
“Humans might not know, but that elf girl over there should understand. The demons have been asleep for 500 years.”
At Lovern's words, Veronica shot Cluster a glance.
He thinks you're human. Shouldn't we reveal who you are?
Cluster pondered briefly whether to reveal his identity. Over the past two years, the most grueling training from Lai Teresa had been masking his demonic mana. Silvia was a special case as the Saintess, but aside from her, it was only natural no one knew Cluster was even a demon, let alone the Demon King.
After a moment's thought, Cluster blinked—an instruction to keep his identity hidden for now. He was more curious about how the demons lived.
“I've heard the rumors that the Demon King has awakened recently.”
“Indeed. Thanks to that, we demons could wake up. The pro-Demon King demons in Versilver Territory are few in number, but most are mid-rank elites and above, so we were short-handed just managing the territory.”
Most are mid-rank and above...
Cluster's gaze lingered on Silvia at Lovern's explanation. To lift the curse on her, powerful demonic mana was needed, so Cluster had to grow stronger for that reason alone. Learning from strong demons could speed things up—that was his thinking.
Not just me. Silvia needs to get stronger too.
Since he'd basically kidnapped her, protecting her was a given. But it was obvious Cluster, as the Demon King, couldn't babysit her forever. Veronica had talked a lot on the way here about guarding Silvia until her dying breath, but who knew what fate might bring?
And Silvia can't use her Saintess powers either.
Silvia's body was a vessel for the gods' pure divine power. Lai Teresa had explained that the more divine power was used, the weaker the vessel became—a definite fact. If the vessel shattered? The divine power spilling out would turn the continent into a sea of flames.
Thus, Silvia absolutely could not use her divine power. In other words, she needed some minimal power to protect herself—swordsmanship, magic, anything but divine power.
This place was perfect for that. With so many strong demons around, she could learn the power she wanted.
“The Demon King visited recently, and that's why it's like this now. Before that, we didn't even have a palisade.”
“The Demon King?”
“Yes. It was around this time last year, so it's almost been a full year since His Majesty arrived.”
The Demon King had appeared? The group's eyes widened. After all, the Demon King was Cluster, right here.
“Can you tell us more?”
“The elf girl looks pretty shocked. Let's find a seat first and talk.”
Sensing the story would be long from Veronica's wide-eyed question, Lovern headed to a nearby tavern.
The village's scale, as Lovern described on the way, was impressively vast. Size-wise, it wasn't even a village—it evoked a small nation, surpassing even the concept of a territory he'd mentioned. Surrounding the outskirts was a river with vast rice paddies and fields. Inside, residential areas with houses and commercial districts were clearly divided. It showed planned development. Demons walked about laughing and chatting, their faces free of worry. Aside from slight physical differences, they looked no different from humans in a peaceful city.
“This place wasn't this developed originally.”
Lovern spoke first after they sat at a table.
“You mean the Demon King who appeared last year developed it this far?”
“The elf girl is sharp.”
Veronica had glanced at Cluster while saying it. Depending on his reaction, a fight might break out.
Seeing Cluster's unexpectedly calm demeanor, Veronica relaxed and focused on Lovern.
“Mid-rank demons woke first, but the high-rank ones were still asleep, so we couldn't touch much with just them.”
Even for development, accidentally damaging a high-rank demon's domain would mean facing their wrath upon awakening. Of course, as Lovern said, the pro-Demon King high-ranks didn't swing their power recklessly, but demons followed a law of the jungle based on strength. Weaker demons instinctively feared the strong. There were oddballs who charged at them sometimes, though.
In that situation, they built crude shelters against rain, hunted wild animals or monsters for food, and lived primitively—that was it.
“Then Rozania, the Demon King, came.”
After that, things progressed as they saw. A massive overhaul of the village—no, city was more like it. Fields, residential zones, and commercial areas were separated, buildings built accordingly, and a palisade erected around to fend off monsters. To most demons, monsters were no big deal, but young ones sometimes died crushed by large beasts, so it was a justified policy.
“I'm Lovern, the head gatekeeper guarding that palisade.”
One could sense his pride from how he thumped his chest. It even felt like a skull was grinning from the helmet—his head—on the table.
“But is this Rozania really the Demon King?”
A highly sensitive question. One that could completely flip the friendly guide's attitude. Cluster tossed it out anyway. Veronica eyed him in surprise, but his gaze was serene. Lovern's head on the table showed no change either. Honestly, he looked a bit tougher, but Cluster was confident he could take a mid-rank dullahan like Lovern easily. No need to read his mood here—but this was Lovern's home turf. Unrevealed, Cluster was at a disadvantage. Even revealed, the fake Demon King had considerable trust. He might be mistaken for an imposter come to oust her, forcing him to fight all the demons.
“Truth be told, we can't say there are no suspicions. Not just me—even among those stronger than I am.”
Lovern cautiously moved his head to the table's center, near the group, and spoke.
“You humans might not know, but we demons are heavily influenced by demonic mana.”
Common knowledge. Demonic mana—the dark mana in the air. When scarce, mid-rank and above demons slept. Or live in mana-rich Boreas Region.
“The key is the Demon King's appearance.”
“You're saying that when a Demon King is born, the density of demonic mana across the continent rises gradually.”
“Oh? That makes it easy to explain.”
After Rozania appeared, strong mid-rank demons awoke. Low-ranks barely holding the territory naturally saw her as the Demon King. Nothing else explained dormant demons suddenly waking—except a massive demonic mana source like the Demon King descending.
That was around when Lovern awoke too.
“What's suspicious about that?”
She'd diligently developed the territory into a livable place without seeming to wield power tyrannically. Cluster's interest piqued at Lovern and others calling it suspicious despite her praiseworthy deeds.
“I just said it—the Demon King's arrival raises demonic mana density.”
Confirming Cluster and Veronica nodding, Lovern glanced around once more and spoke carefully.
“The Ripent and Franet demons, and some from Setarite, haven't awakened.”
“Ripent? Franet?”
“Ah, you wouldn't know them. They're the strongest pro-Demon King clans here. Their heads held ducal ranks when the Demon King was alive.”
Cluster realized why Lovern suspected the fake Demon King in the castle now. Powerful demons staying asleep despite her presence didn't add up. Just take the high-rank succubus Alicia Sien—she woke the moment Cluster left the cave because he was nearby.
“Of course, Black Knight Tuhal, one of the high-ranks, has been looking into it, but it'll take time.”
“Even with an awakened high-rank demon, you're still suspicious?”
“He's different—joined recently from Fog Region's center. Said he was guarding something there.”
Dullahan, banshee, wraiths—undead classified as demons. Above them, the high-rank death knight. Tuhal, one of the strongest, had left to gather info.
Wouldn't it be natural to reveal himself when Tuhal returned? As Cluster thought that—
“I heard outsiders arrived today. Where are they?”
The tavern door burst open as a group of demons poured in.