I am but a lowly soldier working in the royal capital.
I would never be able to join the royal guards.
Even so, I could still see how great demon king-sama was!
The inferno wolves, who are known for their overwhelming power, left the royal capital with just a wave of demon king-samaâs hand.
Amazing!
Simply Amazing!
And whatâs more, demon king-sama didnât even have any subordinate with him, he was all alone!
Eh?
A squire?
There might have been one but he wasnât fighting in front, was he?
He was just standing behind demon king-sama.
No, he should be standing beside him.
But thereâs no need to count him.
In any case, demon king-sama was alone.
Thatâs what Iâve been telling everyone while drinking at a cheap sake store on the outskirts of the royal capital.
The owner looks annoyed but forgive me given everything that has happened.
And Iâm not the only one making noise.
I hear similar comments from other tables.
Demon king-sama is amazing.
Of course, itâs not just what he does with the infernowolves thatâs amazing.
Even the hateful angels ran away without pointing spear at demon king-sama when they saw him.
Hnn?
Ah, no, I donât think anything against the angels.
Iâm young.
Itâs the older generation that hates the angels.
The so-called long-seasoned soldiers.
They taught us about defending against angels whenever an opportunity arises.
Itâs not very useful though because it canât be applied to anyone other than the angels.
Against harpies?
Ah, they come with the angels so they are included in the anti-angels defense.
It was the same today, wasnât it?
The harpies act as logistics while the angels go offensive.
Thatâs how the roles are divided.
For me, a lowly soldier, the harpies are more troublesome than the angels.
Why?
Because low rankers will not be targeted by the angels.
The angels basically target the commanders.
Hnn?
Well, you can tell who the commander is by looking at them.
They should be the ones who are wearing expensive clothes and armor.
Well, it seems that even if they managed to fool them with normal clothes and armor, they can tell who the commander is by watching the movements of the soldiers from the sky.
Iâm not an angel so I donât know much about it.
-0-
But I digress.
Letâs get back to the topic.
Demon king-sama is amazing.
At the end of the parade, there was a sudden battle and everyone was confused but it was a surprise military exercise.
They did it to tighten up the situation since it had been peaceful for a while.
Indeed, if that had really been an enemy attack, it would have been quite dangerous.
What is amazing about demon king-sama is that while tightening things up like that, he sent out a âdeclaration of victory in the war against the human kingdomsâ to the world.
You didnât hear it?
Well, I guess youâre preoccupied due to the military exercises.
I heard it loud and clear.
Demon king-sama unilaterally declared victory against the human kingdoms in front of the royal castle.
How could he expect the other parties to listen to him?
Right.
Even so, what about it?
If they have a problem with that declaration, they should come to us.
Do you think they will?
I donât think so.
If they were, they would have come by now.
No matter what we say, theyâll just have to shut up and listen.
Hnn?
What would change with the âdeclaration of victory in war against the human kingdomâ?
âŠâŠ..
Iâm not sure.
No, demon king-sama said a lot of things and the cheers were loud.
I heard aboutâŠ..ehtoâŠ.
Yeah, it means that the current demon king-sama will continue to be the demon king-sama for at least a thousand years.
Areh?
Was it 500 years?
Well, either way, itâs something to celebrate, right?
The reign of the great demon king-sama will continue.
I also heard him saying something about building a new country between the Demon Kingâs Kingdom and the human countriesâŠ..
I donât really understand why.
Why do we need to build a new country?
Thatâs just more trouble, right?
As I was thinking about it, a stranger sitting next to me told me.
ăDemon king-sama decided to create a neutral country between us and the human kingdoms because he knew that having them adjacent to each other would only cause more trouble. Itâs like a buffer zone.ă
A buffer zone is a place that was built to decrease the battle lines with human kingdoms, right?
ăThatâs right. The ones that have vast territories among the human kingdoms areâŠâŠright now, the Fullheart Kingdom and the Galbart Kingdom. We are fighting to maintain a physical distance between these two countries.ă
I see, so thatâs how it is.
ăItâs too much trouble to maintain that distance so weâre talking about building a country there.ă
Heh.
However, since it is âusâ who built that country, wonât it be attacked by human kingdoms?
ăA plan has already been devised to prevent that from happening. The newly created country will be a proxy for negotiations with the Demon Kingâs Kingdom.ă
?
Negotiations on behalf of us?
ăThatâs right. The counties that have diplomatic relations with us will remain as they are but the newly created country will be in charge of all new diplomatic relations. For example, letâs say youâre negotiating aboutâŠâŠthe return of prisoners of war or the return of stolen treasure. The future Demon Kingâs Kingdom will not engage in such negotiations. It will be the newly created country that will do that.ă
Heh.
However, how can we be so sure that they wonât be attacked?
Wonât the countries that donât want to negotiate invade?
ăOf course, they will. However, the countries that want to negotiate will stop them. After all, it is the only window. If they invade, it will be a declaration that they donât plan to negotiate with us.ă
Even now, there are hardly any negotiations, are there?
ăAlmost no negotiation is not the same as no negotiation. Even if we are at war, there are things we have to talk about.ă
Is that so?
ăYeah and itâs exactly the kind of negotiation I was talking about earlier. About returning the prisoners of war or returning stolen treasure. These negotiations are beneficial to human kingdoms. They will not be so easily discarded.ă
I see.
ăBesides, even if we said we were going to build a new country, it would only be a slightly bigger city with big territory. There is not much to be gained by attacking and destroying such a place. It is more beneficial to maintain it as a window for negotiations. They wonât attack it.ă
I see.
Demon king-sama has thought about many things, hasnât he?
ăThatâs right. Demon king-sama is thinking about a lot of things. So, you understand that there is no danger of being attacked, right?ă
Yes, I understand.
ăI have an offer for you.ă
Is it a money making deal?
Ah, come on, I donât want to be part of a shady deal.
ăNo, itâs nothing related to that. We are currently recruiting soldiers to protect this new country weâre building.ă
Recruiting soldiers?
No, Iâm part of the kingdomâs army.
ăDonât worry, itâs alright. The new country to be created is, of course, not part of the Demon Kingâs Kingdom butâŠ..it is in fact a part of the Demon Kingâs Kingdom. In any case, the kingdom will provide the funds to build the new country. Personnel management is also under our control. In other words, the soldiers will also be provided by the Demon Kingâs Kingdom.ă
Doesnât that mean that the offer you are talking about is quitting the Demon Kingâs Kingdomâs army and becoming a soldier of the new countryâŠ.
ăWe are looking for people who want to be transferred. You donât have to worry about being attacked but youâll be in the front line of the front line so the pay will be higher.ă
Higher pay?
N, no, thatâs too goodâŠâŠ
ăThe royal guards will be on defense duty at first so thereâs no need to worry that something will happen to you. If the newly created country collapses too soon, demon king-sama will be in a lot of trouble. He will do everything he can to prevent that from happening.ă
T-thatâs true.
So, becoming a soldier that protects the new countryâŠâŠ
ăItâs a money-making deal, right? Iâm sure the public affairs department of the military will announce it tomorrow so if you doubt what Iâm saying, you can ask there too.ă
Ah, oh, alright.
Thanks.
ăNo no. I should be the one thanking you. By the way, can you please tell your colleagues and friends about it?ă
Hnn?
Why?
ăDonât you want to be together over there? Isnât it cool?ă
Ah, right.
ăSorry for talking too long. Alright, the sakeâs on me. Iâll pay for it. Cheers, cheers! Hereâs for todayâs heroic performance of demon king-sama!ă
Ah, youâre really paying?
Thanks!
Waitress, more drinks please!
However, Iâd like to make a toast for our heroic demon king-sama!
Hahahaha.
Todayâs a good day.
-0-
The flow of events in the royal capital.
Parade starts.
At the end of the parade, the battle started at the royal capital.
Demon king ended it.
Demon king started his âdeclaration of victory in the war against the human kingdomsâ!
At the same time, he says he will do his best to rule for a long time.
He announces the creation of a new country.
Parade ends.
Evening party begins.
-0-
Continuation?
Normal Soldier: Whoah, Iâm drunk!
Demon: Looks like it. Here, sign this.
Normal Soldier: Ah, whatâs this?
Demon: A certificate for staying out overnight.
Normal Soldier: Alright, sign signâŠ..is this okay?
Demon: Yeah, thanks.
Normal Soldier: Why am I in the mercenary corpsâŠâŠ