[12th Round] Investors and Developers
“Your Majesty, it is true that I run the Dark Commerce that’s hiding in the Trade Republic, but please don’t call me the Demon Lord’s daughter simply because of that.”
“Is that so?”
Was it because of the people around us?
“Dark Commerce?! You deceived us all!”
“Damn it! So that’s why… To think I really liked you!”
“I knew it! Your incredible figure has been suspicious right from the beginning!”
“Who knew that there was an enemy among us…”
The ambassadors from the Trade Republic immediately expressed their disdain towards her.
The Dark Commerce was a large retail network among medium and small businesses.
The enterprises of the Trade Republic could also be considered large, but their influence extended only within the Central Continent.
The Dark Commerce had been around for so long that they had connections across all five continents of Fantasy, leaving the Trade Republic no match for them. They openly violated the laws of the countries in which they operated, making competition even more problematic.
But these merchants were just pretending to boycott them when they were actually relying on it. In the first round, that was often the case.
My companions had raided their Black Market in one of the villages. Though they used violence, they still saved the debtors. With a calm heart and without looking back, we then went on with our journey.
And a year later…
That village’s situation became miserable.
Having rid themselves of their debts, the locals, full of hope, worked diligently. However, they could no longer find buyers for their goods.
Traders didn’t visit remote villages that didn’t have money. In addition, they didn’t want to deal with defective debtors who rebelled because they couldn’t pay off what they owed.
And even if they did business with them, they carried out dishonest deals that unfairly favored themselves since they had an advantage.
“Silence. Unless you want only corpses to return to your homeland.”
Realizing they had raised a fuss in front of the emperor, they immediately did as ordered.
“Stop wasting my time with your empty talk, merchants. If you want to survive and meet your families again, then leave. Now. And when you come back, make sure your business will be worth my while. Otherwise, be prepared to lose everything.”
The traders’ faces turned pale. Escorted by the knights, they left without even looking back.
I hastened to add:
“You. Stay. Or do you see yourself as a traveling merchant, Mrs. Dark Commerce?
-I’m a miss.
-You are the wife of the Marquis. You’re already a missus.”
This cowardly demoness hid her true identity on the Northern Continent by marrying someone of high status.
Hence, she was definitely a Mrs.
“I don’t know what you mean, Your Womanizing Majesty.”
“I’m a bachelor.”
Although I had a son, I wasn’t married.
Regardless, because of that one phrase, I was convinced once more. She cowardly hid her skills and behaved like a human, but she was definitely a demon.
▷ Race: Human
▷ Level: 395
▷ Job: Merchant (Condition = Trade ↑)
▷ Skills: Trade MAX, Charm MAX, Calculation A, Self-defense B, Endurance B…
▷ Status: Cautious, Discontent
If not for her mean figure and familiar looks, even I wouldn’t have recognized her.
“All of you. Out.”
There were no longer any subjects or knights next to me. No one would think that such a weak trader with thin arms and legs could somehow harm the Hero, after all.
Only me and the tradeswoman now remained in the imperial hall.
“Cowardly Hero, how did you recognize me?”
As soon as everyone left, she showed her true colors. She still looked human, but that didn’t matter.
I answered honestly.
“Intuition.”
“You’re insane.”
The Demon Lord’s daughter, Ssosia, rubbed her forearms with both hands. She acted like she was a beauty in front of an excited pursuer.
“So you haven’t lost your memories?”
“Do you still like conquests?”
Ssosia sat down on an empty chair, crossing her legs.
No merchant should behave like that in front of the emperor, but she was no longer a merchant. At that moment, she was the daughter of the Demon Lord fighting against the Hero.
Social status no longer mattered.
“I’ll be upset if you ignore me,” the First Spirit brazenly intervened, dangling her legs from my head.
“Auntie, your presence, as always, is weak.”
“How dare you say that?! Drug Hero, teach her a lesson!”
To begin with, I wanted to use my fingers to teach the insolent spirit a lesson for ceaselessly beating my forehead with her heels, but since I could do that at any time, I decided to postpone it for later.
“Since my aunt is with you, Spineless Hero, then you probably already know the truth.”
“You’re one of the creators of this world.”
“Yes. Together with my father’s sister, I created a system that would raise heroes tailored to defeat my father, for he was too obsessed with his childhood dream of dominating the entire universe. Looking at the result, then perhaps this is a huge success. The graduates defeated my father, thanks to which this system spread throughout the entire universe. All of the current skill holders came from the same school, too.”
“Indeed…”
We could say that this was a great success.
If the students of one particular academy monopolized the management of politics and the economy, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this school ruled the entirety of civilization.
That was the epitome of modern warfare. There was no need to shed blood anymore.
“But this is a victory that has no winner. Think of this as a game where the investor and the developer had a falling out. Due to that, though it was once popular worldwide, it found itself in a long duration of stagnation, and instead of updates, only apologies were released by the developer.”
“So you’re the developer?”
“Yes, and my aunt is the investor who gave me the power to develop the system. She wanted to swallow too much of it, causing her to choke. She doesn’t understand anything in the system either, although that’s probable due to the security password I set.”
It sounded childish, but that often happened in the modern world.
A situation in which a flourishing company crumbled down the moment the investor and the leader fell out over different views.
The situation was the same here.
In other words…
“You’re just a demon with a vile chest now.”
“The system seems to have messed up. To think it has chosen a pervert, an obscene man like you, as a hero …
“Well, that man you’re talking about is your fiancé.”
“Father decided that without my knowledge!”
“Then you should be grateful to the Demon Lord. Where else will you find a father that would get worried about his daughter not being able to marry even though she imprisoned him?”
“Unless you know anything about the society of demons, you better keep your mouth shut.”
She was just like her father.
Both spoke in such a way that made it difficult to argue back.
“Oh… But you’re right, Cowardly Hero. I can no longer interfere with the system, degrading me into nothing but a tool for growing heroes. My current position is the head of the Dark Commerce. You’re the only being here who can bring me down.”
“So you came to have me do it again? You’re quite the slut, aren’t you?”
“No! I was just curious who the crazy hero is that’s been making money off mermaids, so I came to see him in person! I don’t want to hear about your fantasies! That really spoils my mood.” Ssosia wore a cold expression.
It pissed me off.
“You think you’re the only one whose mood has been spoiled? I thought talking to the creator of this stupid Fantasy system would enlighten me, but you turned out to be a simple bag of experience points.”
“You… as soon as I regain my original strength, I will immediately turn you into a eunuch and make you regret your behavior for the rest of my life.”
“How about I teach you a lesson right now?”
“Ha! Can you do it?”
In an attempt to provoke me, she clicked her tongue and began to change forms.
Above the ears on both sides, as befitted demons, two horns appeared, and her skin turned light red.
From a fragile person, she became a powerful demon.
But…
“Of course, I can.”
“What?!”
I didn’t just stand still and watched her finish her transformation. I couldn’t allow her to do that.
If a battle broke out here, we would destroy the entire imperial palace, which was the heart of the empire. If it collapsed, then my plans would be put to an end.
I couldn’t let that happen.
Grabbing her by her newly grown horns, I struck my knee across the bridge of her nose. However, she just screamed without receiving any injuries.
The bridge I wanted to break was still intact.
Then…
Summoning the Holy Sword Nucleon, I aimed at the cleft between her breasts. From there, she wouldn’t be able to deflect my sword.
Ding!
“What…?”
The tip of my blade didn’t even penetrate her skin.
“S-surrender now. Attacking me before I complete the transformation is cowardly. Even though my aunt betrayed me and kicked me out, I, as a developer, am under the absolute protection of the Fantasy system. There is no way you can harm me in this dimension!”
“That’s a bug!”
“More like a perk.”
Her transformation was complete.
▷ Race: Second Demon
▷ Level: 999+
▷ Job: Queen (Charm → Domination ↑)
▷ Skills: Dark Energy ZZ, Life Energy ZZ, Immortality ZZ, Charm ZZ, Fortitude Z…
▷ Status: Magic (Demonic) Sword
She had a lot of ZZ-rank skills. But that was nothing compared to the entrance exam where Alex had Sword Mastery ZZZ.
Ssosia opened her purple wings and tried to fly away quickly, but I didn’t let her go.
Releasing the wings of the righteous hero, I instantly closed the distance and grabbed her by her slender neck.
“Kh- What kind of power is this…”
“Useless demoness, did you think you can win against me since we’re already in the secondary education course?”
“Even though my stats are hidden… As expected of you, you still managed to catch me- Hggngh?!”
Although she wasn’t injured, that didn’t change the fact that I had enormous combat power. She wasn’t a statue either, but a living organism. She would still feel this pain, and she could still get dislocated bones.
I started between her 6th and 7th cervical vertebra.
From here on out, the moment she turned her head, she would feel terrible discomfort.
As soon as Ssosia twisted in pain, she fell to her knees and touched the floor with her hands, a huge hole immediately forming under her.
If we started fighting in full force, then the imperial palace would collapse within a second.
“We can’t fight here.”
I couldn’t immobilize her or kill her instantly, which meant that my surprise attack had failed. There was no choice but for us to move to another location.
I threw Ssosia out the window.
Drawing an arc in the air, she flew out, breaking it, and immediately tried to regain balance in the air by flapping her wings.
However, I didn’t let her come to her senses.
Soaring to the skies through my wings of the righteous hero, I caught up with her before she fell to the ground. I then kicked her body upward, throwing her into the air again.
This way, we could fight as much as we wanted.
► Confusion: From the concept of the secondary education course’s perspective, the goal of the Hero is to beat up the demons, but I, for some reason, feel guilty watching this…
‘You must remain strong, beautiful Trainee Teacher! She’s just a worthless demon!’
I couldn’t take her lightly, though.
“What the hell was that?! How can you punch a woman in the face? And you dare call yourself a righteous hero? Aren’t I supposed to be your fiancee?!”
“You denied it.”
“Hmph! Fine! Then I won’t hold back either!”
Violet energy appeared around Ssosia. I had seen such a picture before.
The Old Prince used it during the Battle of the Pacific.
I activated the special effects of Brave.
► Race: Dual-core Cosmic Human
▷ Level: 1
► Job: Brave (All around = Level 1)
► Skills: Gifted ZZZ, Divinity Z, Fabrication Z, Favoritism MAX, Immortality MAX…
► Condition: Holy Sword, Divine, Dragon Scale
Now I was level 1.
The same happened with Ssosia, who triggered this effect. But the changes on her part didn’t end with a level drop.
Her entire body turned dark gray, and a dark haze began to emanate from her.
“Is this some kind of demonic awakening?”
In her right hand was a familiar sword.
“I didn’t want to resort to this, but since you keep scoffing at the efforts of others, I’ll teach you a lesson for the sake of the woman’s happiness, which will someday marry the villain that you are. It’s time for you to see the difference between us, you slave of skills.”
“Teach me a lesson…”
My brows quirked up in irritation, but I decided to concentrate.
Yet another detestable transformation? I thought a summon would be the perfect answer to it.
“Ssosia, I don’t want your future husband to not lose all his hair from the stress you’ll give him, so I’ll teach you a lesson. Come forth, Captain Fantasy.”
“Ah…”
In this universe, only Master Mollan and my mother’s tennis racket could teach me a lesson.
