The World I Was Supporting Was Real - Chapter 68



68. Are you not afraid?

* * *

From the day the proclamation was drafted until it was enacted, the Demon Lord spent most of his time with the Emperor.

Since the harmony between humans and demons was unprecedented in history, they had to negotiate as much as possible.

When the discussions ended, the Demon Lord would lie with his head on Eirene’s thick thigh, basking in the sunlight streaming through the window.

Truthfully, for the Demon Lord, this was the moment he felt most at ease.

Meanwhile, at the church, he spent time with a platter of Holy Knights.

His main task was to correct their misunderstandings about demons.

If he could show them that demons weren’t beings who simply hated humans, the Holy Knights would work with the Gweodeon Church to diligently guide that information to the public.

And every time that happened—

“Hm? What is it? Is there something you want to say to me?”

zzZ

――Dodo-don

“……No, continue with your explanation.”

The Demon Lord eyed the rabbit sleeping on Ophelia’s head.

How it maintained its balance so perfectly, even in sleep, never falling from Ophelia’s head as she moved about, and—

It wasn’t just that, but the intense aura it radiated made it impossible not to feel a knot of tension in my gut.

Thankfully, the rabbit didn’t bother displaying its power, content to simply nap.

It was a truly bizarre situation. Possessing such a potent divine beast, one capable of easily handling any demon, including myself, the Demon Lord, and yet, they insisted on dialogue.

Through these talks, I could correct the misunderstandings surrounding demons and, at the same time, dismantle the inherited belief that “all humans are inherently bellicose,” a misconception passed down by generations of Demon Lords.

And while I was at it, I also dealt with the ministers who desired to speak with me.

Most of the private audiences were with vassals whose territories housed dungeon entrances.

With the ministers who’d converted to the Gwodeon religion, the conversations proceeded without any real need for negotiation, everything flowing swiftly –

But with those who hadn’t converted, the discussions were, inevitably, much longer.

“Are you absolutely certain it won’t cause bodily harm? Rumors that ‘exposure to demonic energy has horrific effects on the body’ are still very much prevalent…”

“Yes. I can assure you of that, at least. I swear it on the name of the Demon Lord.”

*Crunch, crunch.*

The Demon Lord, munching on the cookies the vassal had provided, nodded with dignified solemnity.

“I understand. Ah, would you like some more?”

“I would be grateful.”

“Just a moment.”

Normally, the maid would have swiftly prepared refreshments for the reception—

But for some reason, the retainer wanted to personally give this Demon Lord the treats himself.

“Here you are. If you want more, just say so. There are plenty.”

“Thank you. Humans really do eat delicious things.”

The Demon Lord said that, then crunched down on a new cookie, *odok*.

Her eyes flashed for a moment.

“Since it’s a matter of saving lives, I’ll cooperate as much as I can. Even so, in the long run, I think you’ll still need to provide various forms of help. If every world ran on good will alone, it’d be different, but…”

“I know. I understand what you’re saying.”

“Really? You don’t need me to explain it simply?”

“Of course not. What do you take me for?”

“A Demon Lord.”

“Hmm. You know well.”

And so, these strange talks repeated themselves a few more times.

In a way, they were engaging in very political discussions… but each of the retainers who met the Demon Lord had their guards down, readily expressing their willingness to cooperate with the Demon Lord’s wishes to the fullest.

The sight of the little chick-sound-making brat walking around while munching cookies, *omul omul,* was just the thing to lighten the retainers’ complicated minds.

And so, time passed, and the day of the decree arrived.

It was now time for the Demon Lord to return to the dungeon and report on the situation.

“I have been in your debt, Emperor.”

“No, not at all, Demon Lord. Come visit anytime. You hear?”

“Understood. There’s no harm in fostering friendly relations.”

After shaking hands with little Eirene with his tiny hand –

“This way.”

He approached Linea, who had been waiting to guide him.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Linea.”

“…It’s nothing.”

Linea von Einsberg.

For some reason, it was also her job to be the most wary of the Demon Lord within the Imperial Palace.

The third son, Ares, had secluded himself, and the eldest daughter, Yuria, was amicable towards the Demon Lord, but besides friendly gestures like holding hands and going for walks nearby, or going to see the flowers together, she didn’t do much that was politically strategic to promote goodwill.

‘To think this little kid is the Demon Lord…’

The more she saw him, the harder it was to believe.

Is it God’s will to make the Demon Lord a little girl?

As much as she looked like a cute little girl, the massive event that was a dialogue with the demon race proceeded without a hitch.

In other words, the ‘will of God’ that Linea understood, was that He’d paved a path for demons and humans to talk smoothly, right?

The Saintess, Luca, and Ophelia said, ‘If it’s God’s will, then it must surely be the right path,’ but no matter how much Linea thought about it, she couldn’t be so certain.

Dialogue is a good thing, but is it truly alright to join hands with the demon race like this?

“Munch munch.”

“…….”

This cute creature holding her hand, making little squeaky sounds while happily munching on cookies, seemingly gifted by her retainer—are we to be swayed by her appearance and trust her without question?

As Linea was thinking this, the Demon Lord’s voice reached her.

“You still haven’t put your trust in this body, have you.”

“That’s…!”

“There’s no need to be surprised. I feel a wariness from you that I don’t sense from other humans. And, I’m not saying this to admonish or blame you.”

Linea didn’t really reply.

The Demon Lord seemed to take that as a signal to keep speaking, and she opened her mouth again.

“Linea, was it?”

“That’s right.”

“You’re incredibly beautiful, must be from taking after your mother.”

“I am honored to say, but the current Empress is not my birth mother.”

“……Really?”

“Yes. She is my mother’s younger sister.”

“I see. You look so alike… Well, it’s not strange that siblings’ children would resemble each other, I suppose.”

As he said, in truth, Linea resembled her aunt, Eirene, a little more than her mother.

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Before she joined the Guodeon Church, the eldest daughter, Yuria, also had an aura similar to her aunt’s younger days.

Of the three siblings, the one who resembled their mother, Aisha, the most was the third son, Ares.

“Regardless, it might be a subject that is a little inappropriate for this one to bring up, but… Linea. You—”

—Aren’t you afraid of God?

“!!!”

“I feel that perhaps because you are afraid, I too cannot believe.”

At that instant, Linea’s steps faltered.

Simultaneously, the Demon King’s squeaking also stopped, creating a chilling feeling in an instant.

“You don’t need to worry so much. Your ‘god’… Iggugodeon is a very warm being. To the point that I can feel their deep love for you humans.”

“…….”

‘I know that,’ or ‘I don’t think so,’ there were so many things she could have said-

But for some reason, instead of brushing it off, Linea wanted to seek advice, even from her.

Even if she looked like a cute little girl, she was still the Demon Lord, so perhaps she might offer a meaningful answer.

“If the results are good… is it alright?”

“What do you mean?”

“I agree that Iggugodeon-nim and the Godeon faith aim for a path that benefits everyone. It’s also true that since the Holy Maiden descended, the corruption and malfeasance in the religious world have been wiped away, and my mother, who was somewhat focused on political strife, has repented and is walking the path of a just ruler.”

“But… one day suddenly, after feeling what the god calls ‘plain facts’ through the Holy Maiden, she’s acting like a completely different person… It scares me.”

The reason she still, to this day, keeps the Demon Lord in check.

The reason why, among the Holy Knight Platter members, she doesn’t speak the words ‘plain facts’.

It was because of her fear of the god.

Her instinctive fear of intervention by a transcendent being, something she—no, something a human—couldn’t possibly handle.

“I see…”

The Demon Lord started walking again, making little *squish squish squish* sounds.

Her hand held captive in his, Linea had no choice but to move with him.

“There’s no need to be so afraid. The gods won’t harm you, no matter what.”

“…How can you be so certain?”

“Am I not proof enough?”

The Demon Lord looked up at Linea, a soft smile spreading across his face.

“The gods made me this way to protect you, not us.”

“…!!!”

“Thanks to that, I have the opportunity to speak with humans. So, I, too, am deeply grateful to your gods.”

He’d been ‘changed’ from a demon… for us, not them…

Linea turned the sentence over and over in her head as she led the Demon Lord toward the dungeon.

The will of the gods.

*Was it divine love, or…*

…Simply a capricious whim of the gods, one that came with the advent of the Saint?

Ironically, the person who was most wary of the gods was the only one among the Holy Knights – no.

Perhaps, among all people including the royal family and the clergy – who was closest to understanding the true nature of the gods.

* * *

After parting with Linea.

The Demon Lord, arriving at Cheryside Dungeon, the closest dungeon to the capital of Iguoguo, composed his tense heart.

Naturally, he was bound to be nervous.

Because today was, essentially, the ‘Day of Liberation’ for his comrades!

‘Even for this body, I can’t seem to contain this trembling heart.’

Securing territory solely for the demon race, the long-cherished ambition of all demons.

The thought of telling his comrades that they could now live openly filled him with a strange exhilaration.

To deliver the achievement he had accomplished, the Demon Lord confidently took his small steps.

Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak.

Then.

“T-This sound… Could it possibly be the Demon Lord?!”

“……?”

He tensed up for a moment, hearing a voice from beyond the dungeon that he’d never heard before –

But the fact that it addressed him as ‘Demon Lord’ meant they weren’t hostile.

So, the odds were high it was one of my own kind… but had there ever been one among us with such a delicate, lilting voice?

“What is it?”

“This intense aura I feel… you must be the Demon Lord! Ah, um… could you perhaps, just for a moment, come over here…?”

My feet moved with a *squeak-squeak* towards the sound, and there—

“…!”

A naked human woman stood, flustered, covering herself with her hands.

*‘No, why the hell is a human here?’*

In that instant, the Demon Lord’s unfortunate-scenario circuits went into overdrive.

Could it be that during my absence, there had been a minor skirmish with humans… and one human female had been kidnapped and imprisoned in the dungeon?

—No. For one, she’s calling me “Demon Lord,” and I’ve never seen a human walk around without clothes.

To a demon, a human’s naked body is nothing more than another species’ naked body, no more or less, so there’s no reason to confiscate their rags. If that’s the case, this woman must have entered the dungeon in this state from the start—

I had barely gotten that far in my thoughts when.

*‘This is no time to panic.’*

I’d just issued my proclamation, hadn’t I?

Before the tower I’d painstakingly built came crashing down, I needed to calm this human quickly.

Looking over her, thankfully, she didn’t seem to have any injuries. Maybe she was simply lost.

The fact they called me Demon Lord might mean they already recognized that I’d taken the form of a human girl.

After all, I’d given a speech in the middle of the capital. It wouldn’t be strange for the humans around here to know what I look like.

The Demon Lord spoke, using the most imposing voice she could manage.

“Who are you? How did a human come to be in this place… You must have been struggling due to the mana. If your kin brought you here, there must have been a misunderstanding. I shall resolve it, so explain the situation in detail—”

“N-No, that’s not it! I’m not human!”

“What…?”

The Demon Lord examined the woman again.

Her long, purple hair, covering one eye, gave her a mysterious air.

—Of course, the fact that she looked about to cry killed about half of that mystery.

Her skin was so pale and delicate it would be fair to say she’d never been in the sun. Her exposed chest was so voluptuous that it couldn’t be completely covered by one hand.

A small fact she’d learned while living in the capital—The Gweodon religion worshipped the large breasts of human women. She was certainly big enough that even Saint Erin would acknowledge her.

Though from the Demon Lord’s perspective, having just been facing Eirene, they didn’t seem *that* large.

The shape of her chest and hips, the fact that she used human language.

No matter how she looked, she was obviously human—

“That… I was trying to go to the Demon Lord’s room, but light leaked out and, in the instant I lost my mind, I suddenly ended up like this….”

‘…Huh?’

Wait a sec.

Light leaked out?

Could this be the moment I gained a human body?

When lost in thought, the Demon Lord had a habit of never letting his guard down easily.

And, a being who could approach the depths where I resided without my guard down—

The Demon Lord, as if not believing it, asked while breaking into a cold sweat.

“You… by any chance, are you Ballus?”