Demon King of the Royal Class

Chapter 453

I had seized the throne of the Edina Archipelago so easily.

But a thug who had suddenly appeared and made the king vacate his seat for him would not immediately be recognized as the master by everyone else just like that.

Then again, I was the Demon King. I was not just any strong thug, but one with the weighty title of Demon King, which instilled fear in everyone.

Those to whom I did not want to reveal that I was the Demon King now knew. Therefore, it no longer mattered if the whole world knew I was the Demon King. As such, I intended to use the fear stemming from my name as much as possible.

Fear is a very powerful tool for domination.

“As you have just witnessed today, the warp gates across the continent have been altered and are summoning monsters from another world. The current disaster is not just affecting this archipelago, but is a catastrophe playing out across the entire continent, encompassing the entire world.

“The strange phenomenon that occurred in Rajak also manifested on the other islands of the archipelago, in the cities of Saint Louis, Port Ramz, and Greenwindle.

“Currently, my subordinates are suppressing that phenomenon which is manifesting in those locations. While the Edina Archipelago will suffer some damage, it is far from the main continent, so destroying all the warp gates across the archipelago will be enough to resolve the situation.

“The reason I emphasize that I am the savior of the Edina Archipelago, which would have perished if left alone, is to let you know that my rule will be a rather generous and benevolent one.

“Submit, and you will gain stability and peace.

“In the short term, I will focus on stabilizing the Edina Archipelago, which is in chaos, and in the long term, I will make my advance onto the continent, which is now stained with monsters.

“I will give you one day. Even if you do not comply, I will not kill you. Those who do not wish to submit to me, leave.

“I will allow you to live as ordinary people of the archipelago. Of course, you can try to escape to the continent to avoid my rule. However, once you cross the distant sea and reach the continent, you will find that there is no safe place for you to set foot other than on this archipelago.”

With the entire continent in a state of chaos, going to the continent would be a death wish. However, they might also believe that I was blatantly lying to them, that the Demon King was merely trying to scare them.

Whether they choose to believe me or not, whether they choose to submit or not, was up to them. I had no intention of forcing them to do anything.

I did not know if all of them would accept me as their ruler, but there was much I needed them to do.

“The sudden chaos must have been terrifying, but the anomaly that occurred in Rajak has been completely resolved at this point. Thus, there is no more need to be afraid. Begin the restoration and reconstruction efforts immediately.”

Even though the chaos had settled down, the streets were still lined with corpses. Aside from the burned and burning buildings, we needed to focus on identifying the exact number of casualties and stabilizing Rajak.

“All available forces are to go out to Rajak immediately to recover the bodies and assess precisely the amount of damage done to the city. Also, I need a report on the status of any relief supplies, including the food stockpiled in the castle.”

The attendants in the chamber seemed a bit dumbfounded by these first orders, which did not exactly seem like the orders a Demon King would give.

What did it mean to act like a Demon King? Should I have offered a blood sacrifice or some sort of human sacrifice as soon as I sat on the throne in order to be considered a proper Demon King?

No matter what expectations they harbored of the Demon King, I was surely very different from what they had imagined. They were still standing around, looking bewildered, as though unable to comprehend what I had said.

“Did you not hear me? If you’re going to leave, then leave, and if you’re going to listen and obey, then move quickly, you bastards! Do you think we have all the time in the world?”

In the end, it was the same everywhere—you had to shout to get people to understand.

The soldiers quickly left the royal castle in accordance with my orders and began the recovery and relief efforts in Rajak.

I didn’t know whether they would actually do the tasks I assigned them well or not, but it was, after all, the first day.

I dismissed the other retainers, telling them to go about their duties.

***

It was late at night and one by one, my party returned to Rajak.

They came to meet me at the Edina Palace, as I had instructed.

Riana had even brought the Duchess of Granz, who had been taking refuge at Angel Capital, back with her.

They must have witnessed some horrific scenes, but it seemed they were even more confused by the situation at hand. When they had left Rajak for the other islands, we had all just arrived in Rajak, yet I was currently sitting on the throne in the audience chamber of the nation’s royal palace.

“What... What happened here?” Olivia asked.

“I told you I was going to take over the Edina Archipelago.” I simply said to Olivia, who was still in shock.

There was much to discuss, and plans to make for the future. Riana and Harriet, who had seen terrible things, seemed shaken, and so was Eleris.

Lruien and Galarsh did not seem as affected, but they both wore grave expressions.

Lruien, though, also seemed a bit surprised. “To become a king in a day... Is it really this easy?”

“Given the circumstances, it was easier than expected,” I said. “Anyway, did everyone manage to handle the situation?”

“The damage was significant, but we destroyed the gates and exterminated the monsters.”

My party had succeeded in suppressing the chaos in the four major ports of the Edina Archipelago.

“The local administrators will handle the restoration and relief efforts, but given these events, there might be riots...” I said.

“There are so many people who have lost their homes... what will happen to them...?” Harriet said with a gloomy expression.

“We need to start by assessing the damage in each port city. How many people have lost their homes, how many orphans there are, and whether we have enough relief supplies to give them.”

It was a headache from the start.

“Given the situation, trade with the continent will be impossible. Part of the reason I decided to come to this faraway place was to settle down somewhere the empire wouldn’t know about. From now on, the Edina Archipelago must somehow become self-sufficient, in terms of food and other necessities.”

I had become king to deal with the Gate Incident, but the nation had already been facing a crisis. The Edinian royal family might eventually be grateful that the Demon King had taken on this troublesome task himself.

We held long and lengthy discussions. I had to explain everything to Airi, who knew nothing about what had happened up to this point, step by step. And we had to decide what to do next.

What tasks to start with, and what sort of responsibilities a king had towards the people whose lives had been destroyed... It was all new to us, and we had never imagined we’d be doing all this until that morning.

But we had to do it.

***

It was perhaps the longest day of my life, and it wasn’t even over yet. Although I had taken over the palace, the royal family that had ruled the Edina Archipelago until now still lived in this castle.

My seizure of their palace had been unjustified, but I was the Demon King. Just as people assumed I had evil intentions simply because I was the Demon King and interpreted my actions as they pleased, I had no intention of justifying my rule and making it legitimate.

I would let them think that I was doing all this just because I was the Demon King.

I wasn’t about to drive the royal family out overnight. I needed to absorb the knowledge they had about the archipelago and the foundations by which they governed it.

I stood atop the palace’s spire at night, gazing down at Rajak sprawled out below the cliff.

The phenomena from the Gate Incident had been resolved, and the port city was quiet. In the distance, I could see soldiers running about carrying torches, following my orders to recover the bodies.

Smoke still rose in places, and I felt as though I could hear the cries of children who had lost their parents, like an echo.

Was all of this my fault? From the spire, I looked past the distant sea beyond the harbor to the horizon. Beyond that sea, on the continent, people were likely still dying.

This was the fate I had to face.

Everyone at the Temple who wasn’t with me would probably be gradually deployed into battle as the mobilization order was issued. Some would die, and since the Gate Incident had occurred earlier than expected, some of my classmates might die.

In the midst of this situation that had arisen because of me, I was trying to start something on this remote archipelago at the southernmost tip of the continent, to do something.

Could this be the path to salvation? Or was I merely setting the stage for another war?

—Aahhh!

It seemed as if I could hear cries that should not be heard coming from somewhere within the lights of the city.

Splash...

It was almost as if I could hear the sound of distant ocean waves that should not have reached me.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

The voice behind me made me turn my head, and there stood Riana de Granz.

Whether I was a king or not, we were still friends, it seemed.

It was amusing that I considered myself a king when it hadn’t even been a full day since I first sat on the throne.

Riana stood next to me, arms crossed, looking down at the view of Rajak.

Riana de Granz... An electrokinetic superpower user.

While magic was important, Riana’s supernatural electrical abilities had been a great help in suppressing the monsters that had emerged from the gate. And she had also been a great help in my escape from the capital.

“When did you find out?” I asked.

Riana knew that the murder of Duke Granz wasn’t my doing. That was why she had saved me.

“Not long ago. My mom told me.”

“... Really?”

“I always thought my dad said a lot of strange things, but a revolution? I never thought he was planning something so crazy.”

Riana chuckled as she looked down at Rajak.

Strictly speaking, Riana knowing the truth was unrelated to her saving me. However, Riana had tried to save me, and she had actually succeeded. That meant she had another intention besides just saving me.

“Do you want to destroy the empire?” I asked.

“...”

Riana remained silent for a moment.

“I thought you could do it,” she finally said.

Her actions might have been to save a friend, but she had also intended to save the Demon King.

Riana knew that the death of Duke Granz was a fabrication by the empire, and thus she harbored a deep-seated desire for revenge against it.

The fact that she hadn’t immediately attacked Vertus, Charlotte, or Tana made me realize just how profound Riana’s thirst for vengeance was.

It was a desire for revenge that couldn’t be satisfied by merely killing a few conspirators or royals.

It was a thirst that could only be satisfied by the collapse of the empire itself.

I couldn’t fathom how deep and dark the desire for revenge was beneath Riana’s seemingly calm expression.

Was it a feeling similar to or even more intense than the despair I felt? Just as Harriet had given up being a grand duchess to stand by my side, Riana had given up being the daughter of a duke to stand with me.

Of course, in a world teetering on the brink of destruction, how meaningful could such positions be?

“You didn’t seem to care much about such things,” I said.

“That’s right.”

I had claimed that I had done everything to protect humanity, and I was still building on that purpose. Although the Demon King seemed like a plausible figure to aid her in her revenge, in reality, it wasn’t the case.

I didn’t want war, nor did I wish for the empire’s collapse. However...

Riana stretched and then draped her arm over my shoulder.

“But, you know, it’s not like you wanted things to turn out this way, right?” she said.

“... That’s true.”

I was a harbinger of destruction just by my very existence, and by the time I’d realized it, it was too late for many things.

The Gate Incident, which had been triggered by Baalier in the original story, had now been triggered by Eleris.

I had not wanted certain things to happen, but they had happened anyway, as if destined.

It felt like I was the protagonist, living out an ancient prophecy.

“It just seems like everything you don’t want to happen just ends up happening, doesn’t it?”

“... That’s harsh.”

Riana laughed heartily as she looked at me. “Since you don’t want the empire to fall, I bet it’s going to end up being destroyed because of you.”

Her words were so over-the-top that they didn’t even make me angry.

“So even if you don’t want war but you have to go to war with the empire, I’ll lend you a hand.”

I wished for peace and stability for humanity, but because of that wish, the Gate Incident had occurred. I still wished for peace and stability for humanity and the preservation of the empire, but because of me, the empire might fall. The world seemed to be broken in that way.

Riana seemed to think that as long as she stayed by my side, she could always find an opportunity for revenge.

With her arm still around my shoulders, she looked out over the view of Rajak.

“Hey, then, am I like one of those... Four Demon Lords or something?” Riana’s words left me momentarily speechless.

‘The Four Demon Lords? Why is she thinking about something like that at this moment?’

Riana looked at me with sparkling eyes. “You’re going to make me one of the Four Demon Lords, right?”

‘Make you one? Does she think this is some kind of neighborhood-gang-leader game?’

“Uh... well... if you were to be one, you’d be the only one, so how could you be one of the Four Demon Lords?”

“Find three more somehow. Let’s say those shady vampires are like the elders or something... then Harriet, Olivia, and that pink-haired girl... That makes four, right?”

‘This is ridiculous, really. She was talking about revenge a moment ago, and suddenly we’re talking about this?’

“Wow, that sounds plausible,” she continued. “A mage, a holy knight, a superpower user, and whatever that pink-haired one is, but anyway, that’s four.”

Airi, Riana, Harriet, Olivia... It seemed Riana had already drawn up a blueprint for the Four Demon Lords in her mind, even though I hadn’t said anything.

Poke, poke.

Riana poked my side with her elbow with her other arm.

“Hey, Demon King, give me a cool nickname, will you?”

“You’re a complete lunatic,” I said.

At my words, Riana laughed heartily and released her arm from around my neck.

‘Come to think of it, it might be quite easy. Since she uses lightning, something with the character for thunder (雷) in it...? Damn, why am I even thinking about this?’

“Anyway, you must have been through a hard time, huh? I saw your face turn white when you ran into me while escaping earlier,” Riana said.

Since I had not been able to tell Riana the truth before, when I had run into her during my escape, I’d thought that everything was over. In reality, though, it was the exact opposite.

“You did well, though. How did you hold back from explaining yourself?” she asked.

“If I had explained it to you, it would have made things worse.”

“Exactly.” Riana clicked her tongue. “How did you manage to keep all of it in all this time?”

Building relationships with people without revealing my true identity and enduring the guilt and pressure...

Riana ruffled my hair as if it was impressive that I had managed to keep it all inside up to this point.

“Ugh. Are you going to keep messing around with me?” I said.

Talking with her made me feel like we were back in the Temple, but that was a time I could never return to. It was a good feeling, but a painfully nostalgic and sorrowful one.

“Anyway, I’m going. I need to rest. I’m dead tired.”

It seemed the effects of the long day were getting to her as well. Riana stretched and headed towards the spiral staircase that led down the spire.

“Cliffman,” I said. I couldn’t hold back what I’d wanted to ask any longer.

“...”

“Is he okay?”

Riana’s voice was noticeably subdued. “What do you mean, is he okay?”

“Just. Anything.”

“I haven’t told that punk anything.”

I remembered that they had vowed revenge against the Demon King together. After learning the truth, though, Riana hadn’t told Cliffman anything.

Perhaps she realized that the empire was too great an enemy for Cliffman to handle together.

Riana had plotted with Harriet, but had not been able to tell Cliffman anything. Therefore, Cliffman would remember Riana as a traitor to the empire and humanity. Just as the misunderstandings about me would grow, those around Riana would grow as well.

I wondered if that was okay. Because I knew that, as those misunderstandings piled up and finally exploded, the feeling was unbearably terrible.

“It has to be okay. There’s no other choice.”

With those words, Riana descended the spiral staircase.

She was going to face an overwhelmingly large enemy, yet Riana had chosen not to share anything with Cliffman.

Riana, Harriet, and Olivia would be remembered as traitors to the empire and humanity. As a result, everyone would have to bear something, and I needed to be able to bear what they had to endure on their behalf.

Because I was their king.

Because they had chosen me.

I had to become someone who could protect those who had chosen me.