The Royal Palace of Edina, Council Chamber.
There, four of the five clan lords, excluding Lucinil, were seated.
“Your Majesty.”
“It has been a while. Great Being.”
Eleris claimed to be my subordinate, but the other three were not in a hierarchical relationship with me. They did their best to help me, but it was only cooperation, not submission.
Of course, Luvien, Gallarush, and Antirianus had moved all their clans to the Edina archipelago.
There was a will to help me, but they also couldn't leave their clans in the chaos of the continent due to the Gate Incident.
The clan of the Vampire Lords now played a crucial role in my military power.
Vampires were mostly mages, and the sunlight-tolerant Vampire Lords were vital pillars supporting my rule throughout the archipelago.
Magic.
Without this crucial power, I wouldn't have been able to provide shelter for the many refugees, build new buildings, or grow food as quickly.
Humans generally fear vampires.
But when they see vampires using magic to farm, grow crops, and work hard to feed them, humans become perplexed.
Humans provide blood as long as they don't turn into vampires, and vampires provide food for humans.
It's a somewhat gruesome symbiotic relationship, but what can you do? It's like having a throat full of grape juice.
So, the clans of the Friday, Thursday, and Saturday seemed to have no complaints about this situation.
The vampires, my most important supporters and collaborators, were watching me.
“Your Majesty, it seems that rumors about this place are slowly spreading across the continent.”
Eleris spoke.
Eleris mostly worked alone.
She wandered the continent, destroying Warp Gates wherever possible, doing what she could to completely end the Gate Incident.
“Rumors?”
“Yes, I can't be sure of the source, but whispers about a paradise in the south are spreading.”
The continent was in chaos.
The Empire, preoccupied with doing their best, had not yet discovered that I had established myself in the far south.
Even if they knew, they wouldn't have the resources to do anything right now.
“For now, there are only rumors about somewhere in the south, and no one knows the specifics… But in the long term, powerful forces like the Empire may reach Port Mokna while searching the southern regions.”
“…That's true.”
Our continental base, Port Mokna.
It's just a tiny dot on a continental map, but if the Empire learns that it's safe and housing a large military force, the problem could escalate.
If someone from Port Mokna were captured, the Empire would become aware that the Demon King had settled in the far southern archipelago.
The Edina archipelago won't remain hidden from the Empire's gaze forever.
The Gate Incident destroyed much of humanity's foundation, but it will eventually end.
Eleris's report concluded.
“The installation of sewage systems in the refugee settlements is nearly complete. The development of large-scale farmland in the south is almost done, and we only need to plant seeds now. Also, we've begun constructing ships to transport supplies to other areas.”
I nodded at Luvien's words.
The Lord of Thursday.
Although I'm not certain how closely related it is, the vampires of Thursday were well-versed in magic involving living beings, including alchemy.
I never thought they would use it for agriculture.
One of my significant advantages is being able to employ a considerable number of top-tier mages for material production and farming.
The Empire cannot adopt this approach.
Their territory to defend is simply too vast, and they never know when monsters from the gates might roam the continent and attack their cities.
Since my land is safe from the gate crisis, I can pour all my resources into supporting the people.
"Excavation is underway at an abandoned magic stone mine near Port Mokna. Although mining is possible, transportation is expected to be difficult. It would be great if Demon King could lead a squad to assist with transport."
"Yes, let's do that."
Magic stones.
A resource that is absolutely scarce at this point in time.
From streetlights to everyday magical tools, there wasn't a single item without magic stones.
Edina Archipelago couldn't produce magic stones on its own.
Simply having lanterns to light up the night would greatly reduce the crime rate in the refugee residential areas. That's why Gallarush had secured numerous dormant mines and quarries to supply magic stones to the Edina Archipelago.
If enough magic stones are secured, the quality of life can be dramatically improved.
In the current situation of the rapidly growing population of the Edina Archipelago, it's no exaggeration to say that magic stones are needed indefinitely.
Eleris, Luvien, and Gallarush finished speaking.
Lastly, Antirianus looked at me.
"Your Greatness, it appears that the Empire has successfully destroyed about 80% of the existing warp gates."
"Is that so?"
Antirianus is in charge of intelligence gathering.
While I try to rescue as many civilians as possible here and have often gone directly to deal with the southern continent's monsters and gates, the key force to end this crisis is ultimately the Empire.
I was already aware that the troops led by Saviolin Turner were focused solely on destroying the warp gates in numerous cities.
Eighty percent.
Once all the warp gates are destroyed, the gate crisis will end.
However, there's still the long and arduous task of dealing with all the monsters that have already entered our world.
And it's only going to get more difficult.
As the number of warp gates decreases, more powerful monsters will pour out from the remaining gates.
The approaching end of the gate crisis means that each remaining gate is becoming increasingly dangerous.
"Additionally, the Empire has successfully reclaimed all directly governed territories, including thirty major cities, and has secured its defensive posture. From now on, it seems likely to assist other surviving nations and reclaim territories. It would be fair to say that the Empire has fully restored its national functions."
Although the Edina Archipelago is relatively safe, the Empire has reclaimed its territories taken by monsters on the riotous continent and fully restored its national functions.
The power of humans struck me anew.
I wasn't sure if it was good news for me, but Antirianus smiled faintly.
"However, the population concentrated in the Imperial Capital has exceeded forty million. Large-scale refugee camps have formed on the outskirts of the Imperial Capital, and the Empire is currently unable to cope with the scale. The streets of the refugee camps are filled with waste and corpses of starved refugees, resulting in a state of lawlessness."
It was natural for people to flock to the Imperial Capital, as it had been in the original work.
As a result, vast lawless zones were formed.
The population within the Imperial Domain alone is incomparably greater than the total population of the Edina Archipelago.
The empire cannot support, control, or guarantee the safety and livelihood of all these people.
Monsters frequently roam the continent, posing a constant threat of attack.
Although the Gate crisis is gradually being resolved, the empire still faces other pressing issues.
Antirianus continues to speak.
"Moreover, as distrust toward the Five Great Religious Orders has reached its peak, the majority of refugees have come to believe in the Hero Religion, which positions the hero Ellen Artorius as their prophet."
The coerced hero.
As it is revealed that I am the Demon King and the root of this crisis, Ellen is forcibly made the prophet of the Hero Religion.
Antirianus laughs.
It's as if he finds the situation amusing, where I, the one orchestrating all this for the sake of humanity, have become the object of hatred for the vast majority of humans.
"The majority of refugees, and a significant number of existing Imperial Domain residents, are believed to follow the Hero Religions, and their dissatisfaction is mounting."
"Dissatisfaction?"
What kind of dissatisfaction would they have if they believe that Ellen will kill me, as per the Hero Religion's doctrine? Is it dissatisfaction that Ellen hasn't killed me yet? Ellen doesn't even know where I am.
"The followers of the Hero Religion wish to make the princess, who they believe to be the Demon King's collaborator, a sacrificial lamb."
"..."
Ah, so that's the issue.
—---
I had already heard about Charlotte. Rumors had spread about the strange power she possessed.
In reality, I wasn't colluding with Charlotte, but people's hatred towards me has reached a breaking point, and I am still not on the continent.
People desire a sacrificial lamb that they can present before themselves.
As a result, Charlotte, who had been abducted to the Demon King's castle and had been close to me, was considered the prime collaborator with the Demon King.
It's quite ironic.
Ellen is portrayed as a pitiful hero who has been deceived by the Demon King all this time.
Charlotte is considered a collaborator who worked with the Demon King.
Antirianus continues to laugh.
Although he has always cooperated with me, at this moment, I truly want to punch that smirking face.
A crazy loyalist who finds happiness in his lord's misfortune.
Antirianus says,
"The imperial family has consistently been unresponsive to the demands of the masses, but this attitude may eventually breed distrust towards the imperial family. They might think that the imperial family is also colluding with the Demon King, hence why they're not handing over Charlotte de Gardias. That's the kind of talk going around."
"...That would be the case."
People believe what they want to believe.
Why isn't the princess being executed?
Aren't you all in this together?
The discussion about why the princess must die has already concluded. They just want to believe that she is the Demon King's collaborator, so they believe it without question.
Therefore, they will inevitably come to hate everyone trying to protect such a princess.
Demands from the Hero Religion and the general public to execute the princess continue throughout the Imperial Domain and the continent. If the empire remains unresponsive, riots will eventually break out.
Executing the princess won't solve anything.
However, people are simply angry.
They are furious, aggrieved, and saddened.
They just want someone to bear their anger and die.
It's not the Demon King, whose whereabouts are unknown, but the princess within their reach.
"Emperor Bertus must eventually present the princess before the masses."
Bertus, who has become the emperor.
The Emperor must protect the empire.
The fate of the empire and Charlotte's life cannot be exchanged, nor should they be.
Regardless of my will, the Gate Incident has already occurred.
No matter what Bertus wants, Charlotte will eventually have to face the stake.
The princess's life must be traded for the citizens' anger.
"O great being, what will you do?"
Antirianus laughed heartily.
Charlotte cursed me.
She said I should die the most miserable death in the world.
There's no particular grudge. The misunderstandings I've built up with Charlotte are enough to warrant such words.
Does Charlotte still hate me?
I cannot know.
Once when escaping from the Demon King's Castle.
And once in the Spring Palace.
I have saved Charlotte's life twice.
So, whether Charlotte still hates me or not, I'll do it a third time regardless of her will.
I swore I would do so.
I will overcome any night, any hatred, and all malice.
I will save Charlotte.
"I need to check the situation."
Whenever that may be, I will do so.
—---
Teleport is high-level magic, and Mass Teleport is an even higher-level magic.
Only the Vampire Lords, including Eleris, can support such a level of magical power.
Harriet could cast the highest-level magic with the help of power cartridges, but due to the circumstances, she couldn't secure enough cartridges and didn't use them.
Therefore, only a very few people can immediately return to Edina Archipelago from the continent or be deployed to the continent through Mass Teleport.
For example, only someone like Liana de Grantz, who teleported to the Royal Central Training Ground with Eleris, could travel by teleport at this level, as it is extremely limited.
The elder Vampire Lords of the Council are not always present here, as they all have their duties.
Liana, dressed in a simple outfit, looked at me and nodded her head.
"Did you get some sleep?"
"I didn't."
Liana, now better known by her nickname, Thunder King, was both the shield protecting Port Mokna and the strongest spear saving people chased by monsters.
"Ugh, I'm hungry. Let's talk while eating something."
"Alright."
Although we have a trivial conversation, Liana has killed the most monsters among us and saved the most people.
Harriet, Liana, and I sat in the royal dining hall, sharing our stories.
The king's meal is not particularly extravagant, but it is not too meager either.
Comparatively, the meals provided at the temple were incomparable in both quality and quantity.
"There are no monsters or people left around Mokna. We need to go incredibly far to even see a monster's tail. There's nothing more we can do there."
Searching for people hiding or fleeing from monsters near the fixed base has now become an unrewarding situation.
That's why, although a large number of refugees were initially brought on ships, today, there were only 800 refugees.
"There's another port city about 170 kilometers west of Mokna. It might be better to secure that place and use it as a base for search and rescue operations."
"Let's look into it."
We should establish another base and turn it into a forward base to carry out rescue operations and monster relief efforts. Liana asks while chewing on a sausage.
"Then, the crucial decision is whether to abandon or maintain Mokna. What do you think?"
"Hmm... If we operate two forward bases, the chances of being detected by the empire double. It seems a bit unnecessary to maintain Mokna, which has lost its usefulness."
"But it would be a waste to abandon all the supplies and infrastructure there."
"That's true."
I was convinced of the need to establish a new forward base, so the discussion of whether to abandon Mokna was postponed.
"Anyway... Will you be alright? Are you really going to the empire?"
This time, it was Harriet who asked me.
"The empire? What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
Liana tilted her head, not knowing what I was planning to do.
"Recently... There seems to be a strong public opinion to execute the princess in the empire. So, he's going to go there personally to investigate their movements."
"…?"
At my words, Liana tilted her head.
"Wow... I usually think of you as a pushover, but... Isn't this going too far? Not only caring for humans but also taking care of the imperial princess, who is our enemy?"
Liana was the one who most wanted the empire to collapse and the Gardias Royal Family to be destroyed among us.
Liana wasn't even particularly close to Charlotte in reality.
So, it was natural for her to get angry at my words about going to the empire to investigate because I was worried about the princess of the enemy nation.
Well...
Is this the act of a pushover?
I don't know.
"Hey, I've been doing a job that doesn't suit me for two years now. You know?"
"Being a king?"
"Yeah, I hate sitting around all day listening to people's requests. It drives me crazy."
"You've done pretty well so far, considering that. And what will you do if being a king doesn't suit you as a demon lord?"
"I've been doing it reluctantly, it never suited me. Of course, neither does this, but it's a bit better to go out to the continent and kill monsters. Sometimes, when someone comes all the way to the royal palace asking for punishment because their neighbor broke their dishes, I want to lash out at them regardless of right or wrong."
"Ah, you're talking about that time..."
Harriet knew what I was talking about since she had been with me at that time.
There were more than one or two people who came to me with trivial matters, asking me to solve them.
It even makes me feel terrified that the past when I died from high blood pressure would be repeated.
At my words, Liana looked at me with a slightly puzzled expression.
"Ah... You're under a lot of stress, huh?"
"It's not something I should say to you who's on the front lines, but I'm fed up with this. I can't do it anymore."
I've been doing this for two years.
It's an area that doesn't suit my aptitude and has no talent. I did it because I had to, not because I enjoyed it.
And as I do it, my mental state keeps deteriorating.
Harriet can help with political affairs for a while. And she'll surely do better than me. However, I can't hand it over to her since she'll have to do it for the rest of her life.
And Harriet had many responsibilities as a magic expert, not just as a secretary.
So, we need someone who can sit there for the rest of their life.
I'll appoint someone with more talent and efficiency than me to be the king for the rest of their life.
"I don't know how, but if I get a chance, I'll have to bring Charlotte. I'll make her the king instead of me."
At this point, it's not that I'm saving Charlotte.
Charlotte is the one saving me.
She has saved my life three times already.
Isn't it time for me to receive some compensation?
