Chapter 58: Enzo and Gon

“By the way, how about this city? This is the largest and most prosperous town among the demons.  Takumi and the others have seen the capitals of the Human, Dwarf, and Demon tribes, right?”

　This place feels more like modern-day Europe than medieval times.

　The buildings are stylish and have a sense of unity.

　The same goes for this mansion where we are in.

　This is not the Demon King’s second house, it is his residence. There is no castle in this city. The familiar Demon King’s Castle in games doesn’t exist here.

　If some other worlders came to subdue the Demon King, they would surely be surprised.

Then there are magical tools. For example, there are no stone walls around this mansion; it is surrounded by elegant fences. I wondered if it was suitable for a king’s residence, but the fences serve as magical tools, constantly maintaining a barrier. They have higher durability than the walls of human cities and can even repel magic.

　There are many differences in appearance and functionality that take some getting used to, but the contrast is interesting. As I explained, the Demon King, Karla, and Gale all smiled happily.

“Karla, let’s talk about the war between humans and demons.”

Mia whispered to Karla.

“Oh, right. Thanks, Mia. Father, did you cancel the retaliation against the humans?”

“Everyone treated Karla like a daughter, so I couldn’t stop them because they were too excited.”

“Eh? Then…”

“Listen to the end. It’s safer to have them under control than to have them take retaliatory actions behind my back. That’s why I left it to Alessandro to lead the troops and advance. He should still be buying time. Karla, join forces with him and persuade them to stop the war.”

I see. That does make sense. It’s true that it allows for better control. I thought he was just a battle maniac, but he truly is a king.

“Well, if a war breaks out unfortunately, I’ll be the one to stop it.”

　No, no, that’s not good! If the Demon King joins the battle, it’ll only make things worse. If adventurers are present on the battlefield, they’ll mistake it for a final boss battle. …Although I’d kind of like to see that.

“So, please leave tomorrow to meet up with Alessandro. Gale, I’m counting on you too.”

“Understood.”

“Enzo-sama, leave it to me.”

“I also have something to discuss as the ambassador of the Dwarf tribe. Is that okay?”

“Of course, though for me, I’m more interested in Takumi’s personal story than the ambassador of the Dwarf tribe.”

“Can you meet with the Dwarf King right now?”

“…Right now? How long do you think that will take? It’s impossible.”

“In that case, would you spare about an hour for me?”

“Interesting. Fine then. Are we going to do some special training?”

Ignoring his final words, I took out a ‘Portable Magic Circle’ from the plushie in my pocket and temporarily placed it. I communicated telepathically with Tatara-san and the Dwarf King to settle the matter. It was a sudden request, but both of them kindly agreed.

　First, Mia acted as an example and stepped onto the stone tablet, teleporting to Gonhillrim.

“Now, please step onto this stone tablet.”

The Demon King confirmed Karla’s nod and stepped onto the stone tablet, disappearing from sight.

“Gale, keep an eye on the stone tablet here. It’s dangerous to leave only Father, so I’ll go with him.”

And so, Karla and I headed towards Gonhillrim.

◇

— Gonhillrim’s entrance and exit control room.

“Is this… really Gonhillrim? I can’t believe it.”

“Yes, it is. This was developed by the Dwarf tribe and Takumi and Mia.”

“I-it’s unbelievable. I never imagined such technology existed.”

I led the astonished Demon King to the reception room in the entrance and exit control building. For a while, he bombarded me with questions, but halfway through, his eyes sparkled as he pondered about the operation of the Portable Magic Circle.

Then, the door of the reception room opened, and the Dwarf King entered.

“Enzo, it’s been a long time. How have you been?”

“Gon. It’s been a while. What happened while I was away? You seem to be having a great time. Give me some of that action too.”

“Wahhahahaha. Have you also been influenced by Takumi and Mia? The normally closed-off demon tribe seems quite proactive.”

These two seem to get along really well. Judging by their interaction, their relationship seems more than just superficial.

“You thought they would clash and compete with each other, right, Mia?”, Karla asked.

“Oh yes? I didn’t think that the Dwarf King and the battle maniac would get along, but it’s surprising.”

“They’ve been friends for a long time. I don’t know all the details, though.”

　After that, the topic of my battle with the Demon King came up. Although it was explained that it was to verify our identities, what was their plan if I had died?

“Enzo, what would have happened if I hadn’t been able to block your final attack?”

“You would have died… Nah, I’m just kidding. The flames of the ‘Demon Sword – Danzai’ can be freely controlled. Once I confirmed the durability of the barrier, I planned to return the flames to the sword. It was meant as a test. We demons have a curse that makes a similar attack to that of the ‘Sword Saint’ impossible. And even if I could attack, it would be dangerous if I couldn’t control it. And about the Minotaur incident, Karla had taken thorough precautions, so please ask her directly.”

“I see…”

“I asked Karla to handle the power comparison with the monsters. Karla convinced the demon tribe, and she chose the optimal monster for me that wouldn’t cause me any injuries. If it weren’t for the final spectacle, there wouldn’t have been any particular problems.”

“T-Takumi…”

“Karla, don’t worry about it. I was just deceived by the Demon King.”

“It seems there were no problems. And getting the trust of the demon tribe is a big deal! The fact that I chose you as the ambassador wasn’t a mistake. Wahahaha!”

That Demon King, he was confident that I would protect Karla and shifted the responsibility for safety to her. It’s quite tough to make me say that there were no problems myself.

Afterward, a technological and military alliance was formed between the Dwarf tribe and the demon tribe.

◇

　——Back at the Demon King’s mansion.

“By the way, this ‘Portable Telepathy Device’ is an incredible invention. Are you sure it’s alright for me to have one?”

“Yes, I intended to give them to the kings of each race after confirming their character.”

“So, that means I met your standards?”

“No! I didn’t intend to give it to you. But the Dwarf King asked me to, as he vouched for you.”

“…Well, it is what it is. I can’t blame you for not trusting me on the very same day you met me.”

　What, that’s not the reason!

　Karla tightly pursed her lips, holding back her laughter, while Gale looked down, his shoulders trembling.

From the Dwarf King’s reaction, he doesn’t seem like a bad person.

I entrusted the “Portable Magic Circle” to the Demon King. For now, they’re preparing temporary buildings for its installation. In the future, they plan to create a new city and make it a hub for transportation and logistics.

Since a “Gonhillrim Pass” is required to use the teleportation magic circle, we will need to discuss the operation method with the Dwarf King.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen Father so happy. The demon tribe doesn’t have much entertainment since they don’t interact with other races. Their only sources of enjoyment are raising and competing monsters or engaging in power comparisons. From now on, they’ll have more fun developing the city and interacting with other races.”

“To do that, we need to establish rules so they don’t  go about challenging other races to battle!”

That’s right, Mia. Say it louder. Karla may say things like, “Yeah, they’re all muscle heads, and it’s troublesome,” but she’s included in that too.

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