"Hmm."
I tapped the ground twice with my left foot. It was a habit I'd picked up after my right foot got injured and I couldn't use it for a few days. Not exactly a dignified habit.
I spoke in a calm, detached tone, as though I'd anticipated the rejection, but with an air of demanding an explanation.
"Why is that?"
"To begin with, there is no guarantee that the epidemic will actually break out. Lord Dantalion, you pointed out that a plague would emerge. You also stated that it would spread across the entire continent and wipe out two-thirds of all races. However, that is a claim, not evidence. The Trading Company does not invest money in prophets."
Right. The obstacle I'd expected.
I knew the game's settings, that was certain. But knowing them and using that knowledge to convince someone else were two entirely different things.
Imagine this: someone tells you that the worst plague in history will erupt within two months, killing half the continent's population. At best, you'd be accused of inciting rebellion and dragged away. Even if I were in Lapis Lazuli's position, I would never lend out a single coin.
'So far, everything's going according to plan.'
But that didn't mean I should let this incredibly valuable information go to waste. That would make me the biggest fool in the world.
I smiled faintly.
"How about this? First, inform the Trading Company that I've submitted a loan application. Then report to your superiors what kind of business plan I have. It's fine if they don't lend me the money."
"Pardon?"
"I'll only borrow the one thousand gold that can be arranged on short-term terms."
"Lord Dantalion, short-term loans have extremely high interest rates..."
"Immensely high, I'm sure."
It didn't matter.
"It's okay if the Trading Company doesn't lend me money this time. If the plague spreads the way I said it would, only then will the Trading Company realize that I, Dantalion, truly had an accurate business plan in mind. And when that happens, your interest in me will skyrocket."
It was a shame, but I gave up on the idea of making a fortune off the plague.
Instead, I would earn the trust and expectations of the Kunkuska Trading Company. Among Demon Lords, some are occasionally born with the gift of prophecy. The Trading Company would start thinking, "Could it be that Dantalion is...?" And on the back of that misguided trust, I would bide my time for the next opportunity — the great famine that would follow the plague.
"I simply cannot understand. Right now, Lord Dantalion, it's almost as though—"
Lapis spoke with considerable intensity.
"—as though you already know everything that will happen in the future. Whether you're a true prophet or the greatest gambler of the age, frankly, I find it difficult to tell."
I smiled faintly. There was no need to answer. It was better to leave such misconceptions alone. When the other party overestimates you on their own, how could you not be grateful? Especially when that party happens to work in the business of lending money.
"......"
Lapis averted her gaze.
Oh? This was the first time she had ever avoided eye contact. Lapis always looked me straight in the eye when she spoke. Right now, I could feel that she was unsettled.
*What's going on?*
I wanted nothing more than to check her psychological state through the Status Window, but unfortunately, her Affinity wasn't high enough for it to display that information.
For the past two weeks, I had tried everything — acting cute, throwing little tantrics — all in an effort to raise her Affinity, but Lapis was an impenetrable fortress. Considering how easy it had been to raise the Affinity of the males in Jalsen Village, the difficulty here was absurd. Should I call her the ice queen representative of the Demon Realm?
"There is something I haven't told you, Lord Dantalion. In truth... my influence within the Trading Company is not significant. No, it's extremely limited. So even if you had a solid business proposition, it's very likely that upper management would have dismissed my report regardless."
"Well, yeah. You're a Grade 5 employee, right?"
Being a lowly staffer, of course her voice would carry little weight.
Lapis shook her head.
"Even a Grade 5 employee is granted a minimum level of say and discretion. The Kunkuska Trading Company is a corporation that thoroughly champions meritocracy. To test the abilities of its employees, it deliberately grants them considerable latitude."
"Oh my. So you do have some room to move money at your own discretion, then?"
"No. Quite the opposite."
Huh?
"I have only the bare minimum of discretion. To be completely honest, I'm something of a heretic within the Trading Company. Most of my superiors and colleagues think poorly of me.¹"
"Unexpected. Lapis seems quite capable, even if she is a bit taciturn. Is it because she lacks social skills?"
For a moment, Lapis's gaze sharpened. I quickly changed my tune.
"Oh, well, in a meritocracy, that wouldn't be the only reason."
"As Dantalion is surely aware, we Demonkin are fundamentally individualists. Social skills are not exactly a recommended virtue. Our worth is measured by our ability and results."
Lapis declared this with conviction. She seemed to take considerable pride in her abilities. Good grief, what a cold, aloof woman. I clicked my tongue inwardly, then a question suddenly grew heavier in my mind.
"Wait, that still doesn't make sense. Why are you isolated, then?"
"...Because I am a half-breed of Demonkin and human."
I waited for her to continue. But Lapis said those words and immediately shut her mouth, as if that one statement explained everything.
I asked in disbelief.
"So what? That's it?"
"...I'm sorry?"
"Oh, is that the end of the explanation? Because you're a half-breed of Demonkin and human? How interesting."
In the Dungeon Attack, there had been a half-blood heroine too — a powerful mage named Raumei who was shunned by human society. Anyone with another race's blood mixed in was liable to be ostracized.
After the Black Death spread, human hostility toward Demonkin had reached its peak. But this was still an era before any great enmity had developed between Demonkin and humans. Lapis probably wasn't being bullied too severely either.
I said, treating it as no big deal.
"So what's the big deal about being a half-breed? Humans and Demonkin both naturally dislike and ostracize anyone who's even a little different from them. It's fundamentally childish behavior. Don't waste your time worrying about it."
Lapis stared at me blankly. That was another look I'd never seen from her before. I found myself discovering yet another new side of Lapis today.
"...Understood. I will return to the office now and prepare the emergency funds for Dantalion."
"Yes, do that. And don't forget to relay my plan to upper management as well."
"I will handle it without fail."
Lapis bowed politely at the waist. Beneath her feet, a light pink magic circle blazed to life.
The light wrapped around her waist like mist, and in the blink of an eye, she vanished. She must have returned to the Demon Realm. Even in that final moment, Lapis kept her back bent, never once straightening up.
Hm. Dependable. A bit stiff, perhaps, but well-mannered and a good kid.
I nodded with satisfaction. I rose from my seat and grabbed the pickaxe, when a sound effect suddenly chimed in my ear.
"Affinity with Low-Ranking Succubus Lapis Lazuli increases by 15."
"Huh?"
A raspy sound escaped my lips involuntarily.
The Affinity that had been stubbornly frozen no matter how hard I tried to raise it—why was it suddenly going up? I slowly retraced my words, but I had no idea which line had struck Lapis's heart.
I fretted and agonized for a while before finally lifting the pickaxe.
"Oh, well. Let me just dig up some ore first."
Whatever.
It wasn't like it was a bad thing for me. I strolled through the cave, humming a little tune.
Come to think of it, Lapis was a Succubus. Her basic Status Window didn't display species, so I hadn't known.
A pinkish mist had swirled around Lapis before dissipating.
Lapis was thinking. For demonkin, the color of a magic circle signified species. Centaurs were gray, vampires were red. Succubus like her mother were deep crimson. But she herself…
An infinitely faint light pink.
She raised her head.
The room was bare. Neat and clean, but without a single decorative item. The desk placed in the center of the room was the only luxury—if it could even be called that.
This was the office the Trading Company branch had assigned to Lapis. The company provided private offices starting from grade 5 employees. Lapis had endured decades as a trainee to earn this single small room.
Lapis sat down in the chair. Dozens of bundled stacks of documents were piled high on the desk.
The client she managed wasn't just Demon Lord Dantalion. Orders always overflowed. But right now, no other client's orders came to mind.
'So a Demon Lord is... a Demon Lord.'
Dantalion, the Demon Lord ranked 71st.
Her first impression, honestly, had been thoroughly unconvincing.
'But... I don't have any money.'
'Is that so? Forgive me asking, but what is Lord Dantalion's total net worth?'
'406 gold.'
A Demon Lord was not simply a slightly stronger individual.
They were the only beings among the Demonkin who could command a legion. They grasped the psychology of monsters, read them, and in a Demon Realm where strife and betrayal never ceased, they alone achieved unity. A Demon Lord required extraordinary charisma.
By those standards, Dantalion was clearly a failure.
'Lord Dantalion, may I ask how many monster troops you have in your dungeon?'
'...One.'
He even used honorifics toward her. A Demon Lord addressing a mere Succubus with polite speech — if any other Demonkin heard it, they'd laugh themselves rolling on the floor.
Sometimes there existed Demonkin more powerful than a low-ranked Demon Lord. But even such Demonkin showed reverence to a Demon Lord. The only one who could rule and dominate the Demon Realm was a Demon Lord.
When headquarters issued the order assigning her to manage Demon Lord Dantalion, Lapis had seen it as a golden opportunity. She had absolutely no intention of rotting away as a grade 5 employee forever.
'I will make the Demon Lord my client. No matter what.'
The reason Lapis wore an expressionless face stemmed from the tragedy and bullying she had endured in childhood. Beneath that unchanging exterior, she harbored a fierce hunger for power and revenge more intense than anyone else's.
In the Demon Realm, having mixed blood with humans was an enormous weakness. To the Demonkin, who worshipped brute force and scheming, the label of 'a child born from a frail human' was a devastating blow.
Demonkin's shame.
It was the phrase Lapis had heard most often in her roughly hundred years of life. A clinging sense of inferiority had, at some point, hardened into something rigid, covering her face like a mask.
'I'm sorry, Lord Dantalion. I don't mean any disrespect, but I have no choice but to say this.'
'Go ahead….'
'This is the most pathetic dungeon I've ever seen in my short life as a demon.'
The moment she had grasped the truth of Demon Lord Dantalion, how bitterly disappointed she had been.
Honestly, she hadn't even been surprised. Her first reaction had been, So that's how it is, after all. There was no way the Trading Company would hand a grand undertaking to a half-breed mongrel like her. She had been foolish to let herself hope.
Right after meeting Dantalion face-to-face, Lapis had steeled herself.
A customer is a customer.
Lapis reflected on the fact that, even for a single moment, she had viewed a customer as a tool for social advancement. By nature, she was diligent. Putting aside every last shred of personal expectation, she began fulfilling Dantalion's orders. Even when it came to trading pitiful goods like rough Mana Stones, she made the trip to the Demon Lord's Castle each and every time.
A demon's life spanned several hundred years. She might be in a difficult situation now, but who knew when things could change.
Suppress the impatience. Forget the urgency. Steady and slow, one step at a time, and someday… the day would come when she'd rise to an executive position at the Kunkuska Trading Company.
Would that really be enough? That retort rose from a corner of her heart, but she forced it back down and buried it deep.
"…Today was different."
Lapis stared up at the ceiling and muttered to herself. She replayed the conversation she had just had.
At first, it had been the same as usual. When she visited the Demon Lord's Castle, Dantalion was playing around with goblins.
Did he even know the meaning of the word 'dignity'? She had never seen or heard of a Demon Lord who doted on mere goblins like that. She had heard the rumors about Lord Sitri, ranked twelfth among the Demon Lords, who used goblins as playthings to satisfy his particular sexual tastes—but this was something else entirely.
'You're willing to provide a loan?'
'Yes.'
On top of everything, he had spouted that absurdity today. He wanted to borrow money.
Sure, selling ore and the like might not have been enough to satisfy him. But borrowing money in a pinch was, regardless of the era, the pinnacle of foolishness.
Lapis harbored a certain fondness for this strange Demon Lord who was kind even to goblins. She tried her absolute best to persuade him. To stop. She explained just how vicious the Kunkuska Trading Company really was. Fortunately, the Demon Lord seemed to understand what she was saying.
'A plague.'
That was when the atmosphere shifted violently.
Lapis felt the air in the cave change. The air that had been as still as a pond until now suddenly surged like waves in the dead of night. Tension coiled around her spine. If she hadn't always been the calm and composed Lapis, she would have been greatly flustered.
'...A plague, you say?'
Even Lapis could only manage to speak the word in halved phrases. Her chest felt crushed. The fact that her voice didn't waver was more than enough reason for her to be commended.
Whether the other party knew what state she was in or not, the Demon Lord before her smiled brazenly.
'Do not treat my prophecy lightly, young girl of the Demonkin.'
His tone had changed. She had never once seen Lord Dantalion speak with such gravity.
And yet it didn't feel awkward at all. It was as though that was his true voice all along. Lapis couldn't even bring herself to retort, and pressed her lips tightly shut.
The Demon Lord declared:
'Dark clouds shall cover the continent! Within two months from this day, every human on the continent shall fall into despair and grief! This is the Demon Lord's prophecy!'
Lapis's heart sank with a thud.