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Endymion, entrusting Beelzebub’s magic core to Mammon was a kind of gamble.

Mammon must have immediately recognized what Beelzebub’s magic core was all about.

If she had betrayed me and swallowed the core whole, I would have thought about devouring Mammon instead.

However, if she didn’t get greedy, and if she didn’t fall for the demon lord’s magic core and instead placed Beelzebub’s core into another vessel, I would have considered her a true ally.

Mammon betrayed about half of my expectations and met the other half.

“I’m not one to fuss over vessels, but I never imagined it would be in the body of a ten-year-old kid.”

“Desperate times call for desperate measures. Haha. And isn’t it a good thing? At least it’s not a ‘human body’.”

“Ugh.”

Currently.

The reflection in the mirror shows me as a little girl around ten years old.

The unique feature? I’m pretty like a doll.

Of course, that makes sense.

Because I’m a doll.

“I never thought possession was possible with a doll.”

“It’s not that you can’t possess objects. There’s the Ego Sword and such. It’s possible, just easier for living beings to move.”

I shifted my creaky body forward.

“Living beings can easily move their entire body, but inanimate objects have to be forced to move with mana. Got it? Just moving like this means I need a magic stone. The fuel efficiency is horrendous!”

“But I have a tremendous amount of magic stones.”

“Hand them over.”

“I will.”

I received the magic stones from Mammon.

As soon as I swallowed the magic stone, it slid down my throat and was greedily consumed by Beelzebub’s magic core inside me, converting it into the mana that moves my body.

“…If it weren’t for this, I would have seriously killed you and self-destructed. I would have stored Beelzebub’s magic core and your core somewhere quiet and reclaimed them to make them all mine.”

“But if I die, there will be no supply of magic stones.”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Tch.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

Mammon toyed with the frill decoration above her head.

“Choosing a gothic lolita doll on purpose wasn’t for nothing. Haha.”

“……Just wait until later.”

I won’t forget this humiliation.

“…Sigh.”

Now that the magic core is in, moving it into another vessel would result in a huge loss of mana.

It’s better to just stick with this body.

Since my original body was summoned into this world and was bound to a girl’s body, I don’t care whether it’s a woman’s body or a doll’s body.

Just.

“Mammon.”

“Yes?”

“Isn’t the implementation of this thing too well done?”

“Because it’s a real doll.”

I shivered at Mammon’s words.

“Real…what?”

“It’s a very special doll made in the Anari Principality. Yes, it was made for that purpose.”

“…So you’re saying I’ve been using that as my body? Wait a minute. This body is—”

“Demon Lord.”

Mammon grinned, grabbing my shoulder.

“The current vessel is an adult. There are no problems whatsoever. It’s not just permissible under principality law, but it also poses no issue under imperial law. Even if it became that vessel due to hasty procurement, it’s definitely not that. You understand?”

“…Y-Yeah.”

I was left speechless in the face of such overwhelming presence.

With that kind of presence, I wouldn’t lose even in a one-on-one fight with a hero.

Even against Satan wielding a holy sword.

“…Well, fine. The shape of the body isn’t a big deal for me. The important thing is the political problem. How’s the ‘Spartan’ doing?”

“The morale has dropped a bit since the hero left, but everyone is expressing their frustration with the Empire.”

“That makes sense.”

Those fighting on the front lines find those backseat drivers with desk theories frustrating.

“Inform the Spartans in advance. Even though my body has been captured by the Empire, a part of my spirit remains within this doll.”

“Understood. Then from now on….”

“Belerze.”

“…How about a doll named Lady Bel with the last name Erze? She’ll become the mascot of the Spartans.”

“I don’t much care about that. The important thing is not to let the warriors’ morale drop. And….”

I placed my hand on the map spread out on the table.

“Until Lucius secures the spirit device and returns here, we need to buy time to prevent the Empire from collapsing as much as possible. That’s our task.”

While the other ‘me’s are active, I must be the brains of the warriors here.

“I’ll become the commander of this unit. If the Empire acts poorly again, I’ll do everything in my power for the Anari Principality.”

“But Demon Lord, the Anari Principality is under severe political pressure right now. We can’t act recklessly.”

“That’s why we need to find another way.”

Though it’s a method I’ve used long ago, today’s humanity is unaware of it.

“We just need to lure the Demon King’s Army to the Anari Principality.”

Even if Satan’s Demon Army advances through the system, there’s a way to make some of them return to the Anari Principality.

“Spread the rumor. There’s a heritage left by Demon Lord Belphegor in the Anari Principality.”

“…Is there really?”

“Yep.”

There is.

“If I create it from now on, that will be the heritage. And that will be…for the Anari Principality to use.”

“…The legacy of the Demon King’s Army?”

“Does the source of the item matter? What’s important is who uses it and for what purpose. After all, calling it a heritage is just referring to technology. Right?”

“…That’s right.”

Mammon’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“Will you tell me about that heritage too?”

“Of course. We….”

Um.

“…Well, it’s kind of embarrassing, but I look forward to working together, comrade.”

“…….”

“What? Why the emotional face? Hey, wait!! Stop hugging me! What is this madness!!”

“Sniff, haah. Sniff…!!”

*

At that moment, aboard the Bride Ship.

“I wonder if everything is going well.”

Fixing my blue hair in the mirror, I checked my condition.

“It’s a bit troublesome that I’m stuck with this outfit, but it shouldn’t be a big problem.”

A black dress shirt.

A blue tie.

And hot pants.

Sufficient skin exposure advocated by the Order of the Crescent Moon Goddess is achieved, and the parts that need to be covered are adequately hidden, so there’s little burden.

The only issue is that the mana pouch containing Leviathan’s magic core grew larger than expected.

“…Lucius. You know this is your fault, right?”

“I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for, but just be responsible if this leads to something later.”

“Yes.”

Lucius had embedded Leviathan’s magic core into Marine’s chest, which I had hidden under the bed.

Thanks to that, I could exist as a clone in Marine’s body, but the fact that Marine’s body had more mana than expected was a problem.

“The majority of the mana in your body is storm mana. Are you going to embed some holy sword here?”

“Not that, but I thought having a little extra mana would be good.”

“You’ve put in too much. This might explode.”

“…Should I take some out?”

“Forget it. I’ll handle the removal myself, so just calm the kids during the journey to the Sky Island.”

I tightened the buttons of my shirt that were about to pop open and pointed toward below the room.

“Think of this as a rare opportunity for all three of us to rest legally, and our bodies are heating up properly. You too. Right now, you’re just in a swimsuit and shorts.”

While battles against the Demon King’s Army are taking place on the continent, we are enjoying our own vacation as we travel.

“It’s a vacation that’s not really a vacation. Enjoy it while you can. Just like we did in Belselphia, we’ll be resting until we reach the Sky Island.”

Supplies were perfectly arranged, and we could embark on an expedition for at least two months without any resupply.

“I’ll handle the affairs on the ground as myself in the Empire and in the Anari Principality, so all we need to do is maintain our mental fortitude and strengthen ourselves.”

“…I understand, but is it really necessary to be in this appearance?”

“What’s wrong with staying in swimsuits? It’s possible because we’re together.”

Swimsuits.

That’s right.

Both I and Lucius, as well as the other three, are living in swimsuits right now.

-A swimsuit isn’t underwear, so it’s not embarrassing, right?

Under the pretext of being able to swim at any time, we all lived in our swimsuits until reaching the Sky Island.

Then, one might ask:

Why swimsuits?

I said I just wore a swimsuit because of the atmosphere after leaving Belselphia, but why now, again, swimsuits.

-The Sky Island is going up into the sky, right?

-Exactly.

-Going up into the sky means getting closer to the Blue Moon, where the Moon Goddess resides, right?

-…That’s correct?

-Then it would be necessary to maximize the visible area of our bodies so that the blessings of the Moon Goddess can be more effectively bestowed, right?

-…Huh?

Thus, due to the saintess’s logic, I approved the normalization of our swimsuits.

– Hey, what if something dangerous happens while wearing swimsuits? Isn’t that risky?

-Risky? Just like the Spartan soldiers did, we can also be safe while exposing our bodies, right?

-That’s true, but…

-If a battle can break out anytime, then it’s best to be dressed in the safest attire to fight in any situation, don’t you think?

-But it’s a swimsuit?

-Spartan warriors fought with just a helmet, a codpiece, and combat boots without any casualties, right?

-…….

Thus, under the saintess’s exceptionally logical argument, our uniforms became swimsuits.

“Master.”

“What?”

“Aren’t you going to wear a swimsuit?”

“Me? There’s no reason for me to wear a swimsuit without the blessing of the Moon Goddess—”

“There is.”

Lucius was serious.

“If the other four are in swimsuits and you’re wearing this alone, the enemy will definitely think it’s strange. They might assume something’s up and target you first.”

“Is that so…?”

“Yes. This is what I think. Whether you have the blessing of the Moon Goddess or not, acting as if you can receive the blessing would confuse the enemy. It’s bluffing.”

“Hmm. That makes sense.”

“Yes. So.”

Lucius pointed to the wardrobe in the captain’s room.

“Choose one from these. Should I…help you pick?”

“Hmm….”

I didn’t want to agonize over such things.

“Fine. Just bring me any one. I’ll wear that.”

I left the choice of swimsuit to Lucius and focused on our route to the Sky Island.

“Master.”

“What?”

“What color should it be?”

“Um.”

There’s nothing particularly set.

“Black.”

 

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