‘Lord Demon King. A message has arrived from the demon general.’
A light shone against the dark maze of his thoughts.
He sat up in his chair and summoned a giant mirror.
On the surface, the minotaur appeared, kneeling.
‘Forgive me for being late, my lord.’
“It is fine. What happened? Where is the kobold?”
‘Yes. I was able to pull him in successfully… However, he is a troublesome creature…’
Berganda nodded with a troubled expression.
“Troublesome, eh? When I borrowed your form before, he did appear to be someone with a spine.”
‘Yes. He still claims that he will defeat me and the Demon King. He has not changed at all.’
“I see… Defeat me…”
The kobold wanted to kill him.
It was something that was surely impossible. And yet he was trying to accomplish it with his own will.
Giant-killing.
The act of defeating something that was far above you, and becoming the supreme ruler.
“I cannot wait to speak with him. His name…is Sheto, is it not?”
‘Shall I bring him here?’
“Speaking through a mirror would be boring. I need to hear his breathing, smell his rage towards me. Feel the danger in the air.”
He felt excited as he spoke.
A sensation ran through his body, so strong that he felt dizzy.
“Indeed… What face he will make when talking to me. The words he will say… How he will attempt to kill me… Ahh! Just the thought! It fills me with such fire…”
His mouth twisted into a smile.
Ever since he had learned about the kobold, he had not been able to stop thinking about him.
“Sheto… I must meet him soon… My beloved monster…”
‘…When will you be coming to Morania?’
The demon general asked weakly.
“What? Are you upset that my affections have moved to the kobold? Don’t worry, I will have plenty of sweet words for you later.”
‘You jest.’
The bull-headed general frowned as the Demon King roared with laughter. Life would be so much more interesting if his subordinates knew how to take a joke.
‘The Seer’s army is tougher than expected. I do not know how long we will be able to protect Sheto…’
“I have only just started sending the demon beasts towards Efalia. They will not be able to return so easily. You must fight and survive. Bring Sheto to me unharmed.”
‘…You jest.’
The minotaur smiled again. Seeing something in his expression, the Demon King narrowed his eyes.
“After such a defeat, you seemed to have grasped something.”
‘Forgive me. I am but a humble minotaur, who is incapable of understanding the depth of Your Majesty’s mind. If you could tell me in more certain words…’
“You are certainly more vocal than before.”
There was a calmness he had not seen in Bergand previously. Regardless of what the source was, it was clear that his subordinate was learning steadily.
“Experience defeat and survive. Swallow the truth without lies. And being able to stand up again. That is a true general. I saw proof of that inside of you.”
‘I am not worthy of such words. However, there is still a long way to go. It must lead to victory as well.’
“Very well. Let us finish with these trivial matters swiftly. After all, it would be difficult for you to oversee the battlefield while keeping an eye on the kobold. Besides, Zono has been wanting to get off of his seat and onto the field.”
‘In regards to that, could you not wait a little longer?’
The minotaur looked up with a curious passion in his eyes.
Was he expecting something? Or was he testing his master?
‘I was hoping that you would leave Sheto in my care for now.’
“Why?”
‘There is a job that I want him to do.’
“You, a demon general, are going to use a god’s Hero?”
‘Yes. If it goes well, it will be terribly interesting.’
The Demon King’s mouth widened into his biggest smile that day.