Chapter 206
Chapter 206. Change of Plans
“Hmm…”
The Demon Lord furrows his brow. Disappointment—no, is he worried about something? That’s the expression he wears.
“…I can’t see it.”
He inadvertently reaches for the teacup left on the table, realizes it’s empty, and places it back down as he speaks.
“Your words until now have contained something that jolted me in a single sentence. But this time, it’s as if I can’t see your intent at all.”
With a calm demeanor, the Demon Lord tilts his head slightly and asks.
“What are you thinking?”
“There are two main aims, Father.”
I begin to speak with a solemn expression.
“One ultimate goal is efficiency. It’s not limited to humans, but no one can live without hope. Unlike the slaves of the past, in the autonomous district, it’s preferable for humans to move voluntarily to some extent and engage in production activities. Rather than forced labor, I judged that it would be better to leave at least a pretense of survival and hope for the future to make use of their strengths.”
In short, rather than forcing utterly demotivated people at the bottom of despair to work, it’s better to dangle a prospect for the future and urge them to move voluntarily.
“That makes sense.”
“In Reiju Territory, we’re implementing a similar approach for humans. Besides slaves treated as livestock for teleportation spells, there are artisan families producing goods for slaves and skilled slaves such as musicians. The reason these skilled slaves obey is that their lives for the next day are secured. I wish to apply something like this system to the autonomous district as well.”
In other words, even the ‘citizens’ of the Demon Lord Kingdom are nothing short of enslaved people.
“Treatment-wise, it should be a bit better than goblins. The idea is to ensure that higher citizens, including demons, can’t casually meddle with them like hunting stray dogs. There’s an aspect of ensuring safety for the subjugated humans in this, but it also aims to facilitate negotiations with the Reiju Tribe.”
“I see. And?”
“The Reiju Tribe is solely responsible for the healthy humans needed for teleportation spells, with the treatment slots created by that preventing excessive burdens on them, while at the same time—”
I glanced sideways. I can’t use the word ‘interests’ in front of that green guy.
“—It consolidates the Reiju Tribe’s position within the kingdom.”
“True.”
The Demon Lord chuckles at my very roundabout expression.
“However, with the emergence of the autonomous district, things could get a bit… complicated. If demons enter the autonomous district and get some humans, then present them to the Reiju Tribe saying, ‘I brought a substitute for you, so treat me at a discount’—if just one or two cases occur, it would be one thing, but if a horde of them came…”
“Hmm…”
“To avoid those situations and also avoid troubles with the Reiju Tribe, I want to handle the humans of the autonomous district as ‘citizens’ to keep them out of harm’s way.”
“…I see.”
“If humans understand they won’t be casually killed or kidnapped, they might work a bit more comfortably. It’s fine if they’re useful; we can exploit them as much as we want for not just twenty years but for generations to come.”
Rather— I continued.
“I honestly don’t understand why you, Father, are so insistent on the extermination of humans. Unlike beastmen, they can survive off grains alone, making them convenient workers that fit the needs of the Demon Lord Kingdom.”
“…That’s it.”
The Demon Lord nodded as if realizing something from my question.
“There seems to be a difference in recognition between you and me regarding humans. The Reiju Tribe has managed humans well, but…”
The Demon Lord let out a sigh, gazing at me with a hint of worry.
“Extreme caution is necessary when handling humans, Zilbagias. The Reiju Tribe took a long time to quell the rebellious spirit in slaves and completely remove their fangs. If it weren’t for the Reiju Tribe, capable of immediate treatment, this process would have resulted in unnecessary casualties along the way.”
I know this too. I heard all sorts of stories when I returned home. Escapes and rebellions were a daily occurrence, and they apparently took a considerable time rebelling, concocting poisons from weeds, feces, or rusted metal, and crafting hidden weapons.
The result of meticulously crushing those rebellious elements was— the domesticated slaves of Reiju Territory as they are now.
“Even now, the slaves for teleportation spells are under extremely rigorous surveillance. Humans require an amount of effort and time far beyond that of ordinary livestock to breed safely. However, the autonomous district is of a scale that will become exponentially larger than the Reiju Territory. It would be impossible to establish a monitoring system akin to that of the Reiju Territory. Thus, the more humans gather, the more likely they are to do something.”
The Demon Lord told me with a serious expression.
“To put it bluntly, I fear humans.”
At this unexpected confession, both I and Emelgias, who was listening nearby, were left speechless.
“To put it another way, I hold humans in high regard. As enemies.”
“…You, Father? But they’re nothing more than a nuisance to you!”
Emelgias shouted in disbelief.
“—That ‘nuisance’ struck down my father, the first Demon Lord Raougius.”
However, the Demon Lord’s retort left us dumbfounded.
“The strongest Demon Lord was, of all things, killed by a mere human. It’s a fact many of the older generation hesitate to speak of, likely because they don’t want to confront the details of his death…”
The Demon Lord seemed to be recalling the past, his eyes distant.
“My father was ambushed on the battlefield. He was stabbed in the back by a hero lying in wait amidst a pile of corpses. While everyone condemned the hero as a coward, I felt a terrible fear.”
Because—
“The mountain of corpses where the hero was hiding was built by none other than me the day before. I had swept away and thoroughly burned the forces of the Holy Church.”
Yet, the hero—
“Despite being battered and burned all over, survived amidst that. For a full day, without adequate treatment or using spells to avoid detection, going without food or water! It was pure misfortune that my father happened to approach while surveying.”
Even now, I recall it as if it were yesterday, the Demon Lord murmured.
“I still can’t comprehend it. The hero’s mana was so weak I wouldn’t have noticed even if it were lying around. Yet, at the moment of striking my father, he enveloped himself in an astounding amount of holy energy that shattered my father’s protective spell. Was he not a Sword Saint? How did he achieve such a feat? The hero himself collapsed and died at that moment, and thus the details remain a mystery… It was truly a miraculous occurrence.”
Do you understand? The Demon Lord fixed his gaze on Emelgias and me.
“Though not as extreme as this case, any experienced warrior should have a similar tale or two. Don’t you have one as well? Perhaps a time where you underestimated a weak, inconsequential adversary only to be surprised by their unexpected tactics?”
Having said that, he suddenly focused on me.
“Well… you might not have such experiences yet since it’s your first battle.”
“No.”
I instinctively stroked my neck— Barbara’s strike—
“I nearly lost my head. All because I underestimated an opponent who could kill me with a single thrust.”
I recalled that moment, the desperate charge of that priestess— a ferocious display of holy power akin to a volcanic eruption.
Perhaps the prodigious senior hero who delivered a fatal blow to the first Demon Lord had a similar trump card as well—
“If you understand,” the Demon Lord leaned in, his gaze fixed on me.
“The terror of humans does not lie simply in their magical power. It comes from the unpredictability of what they might do. Dragons, dwarves, elves, and beastmen each possess strengths, making their next moves decipherable. Yet humans are not like that. They can forge weapons like dwarves, brew poisons like night elves, delve into the workings of objects like beastmen, and on top of that, there are mages like forest elves. There are even abominable spells like holy magic… One day, if pushed to the brink, I wouldn’t be surprised if humans started to breathe fire like dragons.”
—As a former human, the only thought that came to mind was, “That’s absurd!”
“They should be weak and insignificant, yet they engender unpredictable situations— if there’s a battlefield debacle, it’s almost always the doing of humans.”
When my father fell, I swore in my heart, the Demon Lord said.
“I will never let my guard down against humans. If I cannot manage them as thoroughly as the Reiju Tribe, I believe we should eliminate them from this land as much as possible. That is precisely why I granted the title of Count to that mad former human undead.”
Because our goals align, the Demon Lord said. …Emel, you’re being treated like a madman here, you know. Well, I have no objections either.
“By the way, Zilbagias, there was a time when heroes descended from the sky before you were born. That truly shocked me; to think a death squad would infiltrate my castle directly…”
“Oh? Even the Demon Lord was rattled by our surprise attack?!”
“Fortunately, besides your pet saint, they were all insignificant weaklings.”
What the—?
Zilbagias was about to blow a gasket, but I bit my tongue. It was true that I didn’t cause the slightest scratch to the Demon Lord.
…Back then, it was still.
Still, yes.
“The discussion has strayed. Anyway, let me answer your question again. My strict stance towards humans is due to the fact that they are never to be underestimated. It boils down to that one phrase: ‘You never know what they might do if left alone.’ They’re exactly that kind of ‘nuisance.’”
In front of my son, who has been taken over by that ‘nuisance.’
“However, most are not that troublesome. But every so often, some tremendous individuals are born. Do you truly want to let such pests breed freely within our borders, Zilbagias? For now, I understand your aim of learning knowledge on agriculture and animal husbandry, but once that is accomplished, I believe you would wish to see them extinct.”
The Demon Lord snorted, leveling a sarcastic smile at me.
“Even if you were to show mercy and acknowledge their autonomy and existence, upon realizing that they could do as they please, they’ll surely bare their fangs at you, Zilbagias. They will relentlessly search for gaps and retaliate in ways you never expected—”
Ah, of course.
If I were in their shoes, I would surely do just that.
“The humans you’ve spared in your autonomous district will annoyingly rebel. Would that be acceptable to you?”
In response to the Demon Lord’s condescension, I beamed at him.
“—Yes, that’s perfectly fine!”
The Demon Lord looked puzzled.
“Rather, I’d love for them to rebel more!”
The green fellow echoed, “Huh?”
“Actually, this is precisely the ‘main objective’— my second aim, Father.”
With my hands clasped on the table, I began speaking calmly.
“The Demon Lord Kingdom has a significant contradiction, doesn’t it? Not now, but a dilemma that will become apparent a hundred or two hundred years later.”
The Demon Lord pursed his lips in response to my cryptic inquiry.
“What is it?”
“—The depletion of battlefields.”
“…!”
The corner of the Demon Lord’s mouth twitched.
“As written in ‘Chronicles of the Demon Lord’s Foundation’— the initial Demon Lord’s work, we demon folk manage to ‘digest’ our overly fierce combativeness by directing it outward. That is why we continue wars while holding back our advancing speed to avoid overwhelming attacks all at once—”
As long as the Demon Lord Kingdom remains an overwhelmingly powerful invading nation.
There will come a day when we must face that wall.
“—But what happens if we conquer the entire continent?”
As a result of perpetually invading this land,
The enemies opposing the Demon Lord Kingdom,
The nations we aim to invade—
—What if they all disappear?
“Where shall we direct this combativeness?”
When peace reigns, and the continent is unified.
The ones who would suffer the most are, in fact, the Demon Lord Kingdom.
A return to the days of squabbling and killing one another within the “Sanctuary.”
That would cause war, invading wars, or else.
But if all of that were to vanish—
How could they secure opportunities for war efforts and achievements to elevate their ranks—?
“…I see.”
A chill ran down my spine, and the Demon Lord’s eyes widened.
“Is that what you mean—?!”
He stood speechless. It seems he’s grasped what I’m trying to say.
“…?”
The green fellow seems still bewildered, not having connected the dots.
“—Exactly. Let the autonomous district rebel, then crush it.”
If a battlefield ceases to exist and becomes an inconvenience,
Let us create one.
That’s precisely what I’m suggesting.
“Eradicate humans? What a waste! Let them survive and sharpen their fangs. So that in the future, when our demon folk seek opportunities for conquest, they may hunt and kill as they please. That, Father, is the meaning of the being alive for humans and the way to utilize them!”
“…Yet…”
“‘You never know what they might do.’ Is that not what you said?”
I chuckled lightly.
“Didn’t you say, ‘It’s a bad habit of our demonfolk to want to control everything’? It’s precisely because we strive for perfect control that we fail. Instead, let them have a certain degree of freedom to lead them in desirable directions.”
I shaped a square box with my hands, demonstrating.
“You said, ‘Even if you lock them in a completely airtight metal box, they’ll slip out without you noticing as long as a hole exists.’ If you purposely create a small hole from the start…”
From the beginning, if you set an ‘exit’…?
“Then the pests will naturally crawl out from there.”
“…”
“Or let’s say… it’s incredibly hard to grasp elusive pests flying freely in complete darkness with bare hands. In that case,”
I reached out, pulling towards the center of the table the candlestick that flickered gently.
“Let’s provide a light of hope! That way, the pests will gather. They won’t even realize it’s a false flame rather than the sunlight announcing dawn—”
And when they come flooding in—
“I can crush them.”
I snuffed out the candle’s flame with a hissing sound.
“…”
The Demon Lord stared silently at the thin white smoke wafting from the candle wick.
Eventually, the Demon Lord released a small clump of magic from his fingertips.
With a soft pop, the candle was lit once again. In the dimly lit room, the flickering light drew deep shadows across the Demon Lord’s blue skin and lion-like blonde mane—
“—Specifically, what measures do you propose?”
The Demon Lord asked earnestly.
“Although it’s an autonomous district, its scale resembles that of a small nation. Undersecretaries and other competent officials will be made up of night elves, demons, and hobgoblins. However, I intend to assign the local low-ranking officials and guards to humans. At that time, I will allow them limited armaments.”
Let them have some sense of freedom.
“Of course, the captains supervising the guards and those overseeing the officials will be personnel from the Demon Lord Kingdom. They will be tasked with monitoring these personnel and enforcing laws against ‘rebels of the Demon Lord Kingdom.’ Although, in reality, I doubt anyone will actually be apprehended. You’ll likely only hear reports that ‘everyone is loyal to the Demon Lord Kingdom’—”
Yet, conversely,
“The ones who will closely communicate with the guards and the guards themselves form the rebel reserves. Additionally, I’ll have city districts and ordinary citizens monitored by night elves, but intentionally ease the scrutiny in select areas. Humans will easily sense this and begin hoarding supplies in the areas with the lightest supervision for future insurrection.”
The Demon Lord closed his eyes and silently listened.
“If we know the locations where supplies are being amassed, even if a rebellion occurs, we can roughly predict its scale and flow. For instance, how about demolishing the walls of Evaroti? We could brand it a symbol of peace and trust toward humans. It’d be easy to take down but formidable to defend—turning it into an unsuitable base for the rebels.”
“What matters, Father, is providing hope. Clear hope. Nothing can survive without hope. Put differently—if there’s hope right in front of them, they can’t help but cling to it.”
“What about taxes?”
“The taxes in the autonomous district will be slightly heavier than those of beastmen in the Demon Lord Kingdom. I’ll let humans use the surplus as they please. Let them breed abundantly; more future heads will accumulate. However, if the population becomes excessive, we can either increase taxes or impose severe labor to somewhat control the timing of potential revolts.”
“…And food production?”
“We’ll gather knowledge by allowing humans their freedom while listening. Our goal is to publish an agriculture manual in a few years to hand out to the beastmen in the realm. In the autonomous district, I’d prefer prioritization toward animal husbandry over grain production.”
I patted the materials the Demon Lord had given me.
“I don’t believe the heated battle over livestock theft will settle overnight. During this time, the beastmen in the kingdom will concentrate on producing wheat and beans to serve as fodder for livestock. We’ll have them transport that into the autonomous district to raise livestock in a secure environment free from theft, which we’ll then ship back to the Demon Lord Kingdom. Ideally, as the territory expands further in the future, we want them to become a base for producing meat.”
So, we would hold on until the livestock theft spat cools down—
That was the excuse, but
My true intention forks from here. While the livestock thievery chaos troubles the animal husbandry within the Demon Lord Kingdom, I aim to make the supply of meat production in foreign autonomous districts largely dependent.
I want to normalize the supply from the autonomous district.
The beastmen in the Demon Lord Kingdom wouldn’t be likely to devour all livestock sent from the autonomous district. Surely, they’ll breed their own livestock.
When push comes to shove, they’ll start living with the expectation of fresh livestock flowing in from the autonomous district.
“—If a rebellion occurs in the autonomous district, wouldn’t the supply of meat run dry?”
It’s only natural for the Demon Lord to be concerned about this.
“To avoid that, I believe it’s best to have multiple autonomous districts. The more, the better. Even if one somewhere starts a rebellion, we should be able to receive sufficient livestock supplies from elsewhere. Moreover, to prevent a collective uprising, we shall place territories of various demon clans between autonomous districts, limiting their interactions to a large extent. …It’s not completely forbidden, but as previously mentioned, this is to intentionally leave small holes.”
“Even so, the threat of a mass uprising persists.”
“There are numerous strategies to shake the unity between autonomous districts. This is an area in which night elves excel; fueling discord by favoring some while neglecting others is an easy task. Humans are troublesome when united, yet once infighting begins, it turns rather ugly.”
“…Do you speak from experience?”
Oops, that might’ve slipped.
“I heard enough of that sort of talk from the night elves’ informants.”
“I see, you were on friendly terms with them. It makes sense.”
“Regardless, pulling away their autonomy as a threat while exerting further pressure is always an option. I’m sure the night elves are well-versed in sowing discord.”
“Hmm…”
“In practical terms, due to their physical distances, coordinating a simultaneous uprising might be tough. Besides, even if it occurred, it would be on a smaller scale compared to a massive counter-offensive initiated by the Holy Church.”
“That’s likely the case.”
The Demon Lord nodded slightly.
“If that’s the case, it shouldn’t pose a significant risk.”
…Yet, the Demon Lord is saying that,
There’s actually a loophole present. A loophole the Demon Lord doesn’t see.
Stir the unity among the autonomous districts. If one starts a rebellion, suppression will be easy. Furthermore, if another autonomous district keeps supplying uninterrupted during the conflict—
—However, all of this
Is predicated on the notion that the Demon Lord Kingdom remains in optimal condition.
Should they be stirred up obstinately by the night elves’ cunning methods,
—What if the Demon Lord were to fall?
—What if the governing structure of the Demon Lord Kingdom were to waver fundamentally?
Even while bickering, no one would continue to ship livestock diligently. Surely they would all revolt in unison.
If that happens, the balance that hinged on receiving supplies from the autonomous districts would collapse, and the meat supply within the Demon Lord Kingdom would dry up rapidly. Rather, from the anxiety of supplies being severed, a livestock theft spree would run rampant once again.
Leaving behind nothing but mountains of grains that the beastmen and night elves cannot consume—
“…How does that sound, Father?”
Once more, I posed my question to the Demon Lord.
“…”
Once again, the Demon Lord closed his eyes, crossed his arms, and fell into contemplation.
“…This proposal could fundamentally shake the policies of the Demon Lord Kingdom.”
The impact is far too significant.
“Therefore, I cannot decide immediately.”
—However, the Demon Lord continued.
“There is worth in considering it. Extremely great worth.”
He was smiling brightly. It seemed the load on his shoulders had lightened somewhat.
“Very well. You shall be the touchstone, Zilbagias.”
The current Demon Lord Goldgias Orgi leisurely reclined back in his chair.
“Govern Evaroti as you wish. Then, show me—how you say, the way to make use of humans.”
With a sly grin, the Demon Lord tightened his expression.
“Zilbagias Reiju.”
I snapped to attention and stood tall.
“I hereby appoint you as the provisional governor of Evaroti Autonomous District.”
“I shall humbly accept.”
“—Show me the future of the Demon Lord Kingdom.”
With a smile, I replied.
“I will give it my all.”
I’ll show you.
The writhing of the pests.
While the Demon Lord and I shared cheerful smiles—
Only Emelgias silently watched, dumbfounded.
Thus, the policies for the Evaroti provisional autonomous district were set, and for the time being, the unnecessary sacrifices of humans were avoided.
From today onward, I am the 7th Demon Lord’s Prince and Count of the Demon Lord Kingdom, as well as the Director of the Royal Necromancy Institute and the Provisional Governor of Evaroti Autonomous District, Zilbagias Reiju (6)!!
