"Hmph, hmph. Something urgent just came to mind. It's a shame, but perhaps we'll meet again when the opportunity arises, young man."
With those words, the Silver Wolf departed at a brisk pace, loudly cursing the Lizardman as he went. I couldn't make out everything clearly, but the gist was about missing the chance to fleece a mark and whatnot. The Silver Wolf quickly vanished into the crowd.
On the broad avenue, hundreds of monsters were shuffling toward the city. Ruckuses large and small were breaking out everywhere.
"Hey, you! Why the hell did you bump my shoulder?"
"You're looking for trouble for no reason, aren't you? They say Frogman innards smell like pig—I was just itching to see whether that's true."
"Huh? I'm gonna stuff that slutty fox bitch into a cesspool and carve her up!"
"Are you barking mad from leprosy or something? You reek like a pigsty, you slimy amphibian freak—want me to turn that ugly head of yours into an open-air café? Who knows, maybe breathing some fresh air through that thick skull of yours might sharpen you up a bit."
"Looks like that fox whore drank herself stupid on vodka. Shall I carve up that dopey face of yours, huh?"
A fox-faced monster and a frog-faced monster were snarling face to face. The other monsters passed by without reacting to what was clearly a routine sight. Only a few who appeared to be friends of the involved parties were casually placing bets on whether the fox or the frog would come out on top.
Okay.
I had a rough idea of what the Demon Realm was like.
To draw a comparison, this was the kind of place like Libertatia during the Age of Exploration, or Anglotown, El Rey, and Johannesburg in Burma—like the notorious cities of the original world, where outlaws wrote the law and the most lawless among them could become ruler.
Scams and brawls broke out in broad daylight with people walking about. When night fell and the daytime crowd was gone, predicting how cruel and cunning they could become wasn't difficult at all. They'd be breathing extreme individualism and revolting factional rivalry like oxygen as they roamed about.
'Thanks a lot. The goblin guide really gave me a thorough education.'
The feeling that I'd come to a resort to rest had long since evaporated. I already knew from various media that the more lawless a city was, the more extreme its luxury and indulgence became. Lapis would genuinely try to help me relax, I was sure. But until I met Lapis, until I could take shelter under someone I trusted, I couldn't afford to let my guard down.
I straightened my hat—the one I wore to hide my Demon Lord's horns. Steeling my resolve, I walked toward the checkpoint.
"Your eyes look different now," the checkpoint officer said as she collected the toll. She was a Rattlerman with a friendly, raccoon-like face.
"A little while ago you looked like a total pushover, but now you look like a seasoned thug. Ah, for the record, that's a compliment. You might not know this, but in Niflheim, even a moderately successful thug has more presence than a mid-rank demonfolk."
She handed me a slip of paper with an address written on it.
"This is an inn run by the organization I belong to. It's not the kind of place petty riffraff would dare touch. The lodging costs twice as much as a regular inn, but at least you won't wake up missing your internal organs."
"I'll gladly take it."
The Rattlerman gave me a cheerful wink.
Once I passed through the checkpoint, the city stood on the distant horizon. It was a massive port city. Ships came and went ceaselessly from the sea, and over a dozen major avenues led from the land into the city. The spot where I stood was just one of those avenues. Even now, thousands of monsters were streaming along each road in a thick, writhing mass.
Riiip, rip.
I tore the slip of paper the Rattlerman had given me to shreds. During our conversation, her emotions had come through clearly. They were pure greed.
She'd probably been working as a guide on the side, steering newcomers like me—easy marks—to an inn connected to her network in exchange for a commission fee. And there was no guarantee that commission fee hadn't been paid for by selling off one of the guests' kidneys. If you were an outsider, nobody would come looking for you—it was the perfect place to make someone disappear.
I followed the northern avenue where Lapis was supposed to have sent someone to meet me.
Before long, I encountered the person dispatched by the Kunkuska Trading Company. On the surface, he looked no different from a human, but he introduced himself as a vampire. It was easy to find him—he was holding a large sign that read "DANTALION" at the city entrance.
"Your Majesty, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Bupue, a Grade-3 office demon assigned by the Company to escort Your Majesty to the lodgings we have prepared. First and foremost, I give you my word that while you are in Niflheim, the chances of any threat arising to your safety are virtually nonexistent."
The handshake conveyed a firmness of grip appropriate for projecting friendliness. Since his actual emotions felt genuinely warm and welcoming, I shook his hand without hesitation and with pleasure. Was it because he was a vampire? His palm was cold as ice. But I didn't particularly mind.
"I am Dantalion, ranked seventy-first among the Demon Lords."
Until now, I'd been hiding my identity to avoid any potential incidents, but as Lapis had earnestly advised me—a Demon Lord must maintain at least a minimum of dignity—I decided to speak informally. With this particular counterpart, there was no reason to hide the fact that I was a Demon Lord.
Then again, there was no need to unnecessarily flaunt Demon Lord authority either.
"This is my first time in Niflheim, so there's a great deal I don't know. You're far more of an expert on this city than I am. I'm counting on you."
"Of course."
The young man's eyes widened slightly, and soon a smile appeared on his lips. The hologram informed me that his Affinity had gone up by one. Unlike what I'd expected, his affection grew precisely because I, as the Demon Lord, had shown humility.
"Among all the Demon Lords attending Walpurgis Night, Lord Dantalion, you were the first to arrive. There is still about a week left before the event begins. If there is anything uncomfortable or anything you desire during that time, please let me know. The Kunkuska Trading Company will serve Lord Dantalion with the utmost sincerity."
"Thank you. But where is Lapis Lazuli?"
"She is staying near the lodgings arranged for you. Naturally, it would be her duty as your dedicated guide to attend to Your Majesty, but..."
Bupue smiled playfully.
"There are various difficulties when a woman escorts a man. Niflheim is one of the foremost cities in the Demon Realm and its greatest resort. As is typical of resorts, Niflheim has no shortage of women-restricted areas."
His rather direct manner of speaking made me blush slightly, though I didn't show it.
"I'm looking forward to it."
"To what exactly? First, why don't we head to the lodgings? Once you have freshened up, if you are amenable, I can escort you to a fine restaurant. Then, by carriage..."
The young vampire Bupue was about to lead me off. I shook my head.
"No. I won't be taking a carriage."
"Excuse me?"
"Besides, I didn't bring anything that could be called women's attire. There's no need to go to the lodgings first."
I glanced around. This was a makeshift market set up at the city entrance. Monsters buying groceries, monsters selling them, monsters drinking with friends from broad daylight onward—violent, yet brimming with vitality.
"I'd like to take a look around the city first. On foot."
"Understood. I'll take you to the entertainment district right away."
"No."
I shook my head again.
"Here, I want to see how monsters live. Right now, countless emotions are being transmitted to me. Joy, excitement, ennui, exhaustion, revulsion—an endless stream of feelings. I can sense that they, too, are living beings no different from myself. I want to see with my own eyes how they actually live, what life here is really like."
This was originally how I thought about travel.
Touring scenic spots and historical ruins was nice too. There was great meaning and enjoyment in that. But above all, understanding through firsthand experience how people actually lived in a place came first. A monument I revered as magnificent and beautiful could be a tedious, revolting space to the people who lived there. A place that bored me could be sacred ground to a local. When visiting a place, wasn't the true pleasure not merely enjoying its surface appearance, but savoring the psychology of the people embedded within it?
'More than anything, I'm curious about how monsters have built their city.'
Most of the monsters here appeared to possess a high degree of intelligence. I was curious about what conversations they had in their taverns, how they went on dates, what their living spaces looked like.
"...I can sense Your Majesty's intentions. I'll need to change today's schedule."
Bupue spoke with a hint of surprise.
"We'll visit District 2 and District 4. Both are the oldest areas in Niflheim. They are primarily inhabited by native residents, so you'll get a strong sense of Niflheim's local character. However, there are only traditional restaurants in those areas, so the food might be a bit rough for Your Majesty's palate."
"That doesn't matter. My body doesn't require nutritional intake."
True enough. Since becoming a Demon Lord, I no longer needed to eat. According to the original Dungeon Attack settings, a Demon Lord was simultaneously a living being and a spirit. They composed and sustained their physical form through the mana present in the earth.
"Thinking about tasting the food here for the first time in my life actually has me looking forward to it. Now, lead the way."
"......"
Bupue regarded me with a peculiar look in his eyes. At that moment, a strange emotion was transmitted to me.
'Hm? What's this?'
Affection and longing? And a hint of anger? These were emotions his counterpart wouldn't normally feel in this situation. I furrowed my brow slightly.
"What's the matter?"
"I beg your pardon, Your Majesty. It's just that I realized you're different from the usual Demon Lords."
Bupue lowered his head. Well, from what I'd heard, Demon Lords were apparently self-indulgent, psychologically damaged, and authoritarian. That was why Lapis had been so surprised by me. I didn't care what other Demon Lords were like, though.
'He felt affection because I'm different from the other Demon Lords.'
The anger was probably directed at those other Demon Lords. I could easily identify the nature of his emotions. I grinned and asked him to guide me. As if the strange feeling had never existed, Bupue began transmitting his affection toward me. He smiled and fell into step beside me as we walked down the avenue together.
'What was the longing about, though?'
The question briefly crossed my mind. But I didn't give it much weight. The heart was subtle and complex—depending on what kind of life one had lived, one experienced a wide spectrum of emotions.
"Oh. Your Majesty, it's quite rude to refer to the citizens here as 'monsters.' The citizens use 'monster' to describe their kindred who live outside civilization, driven purely by instinct. They themselves, however, refer to as 'demonfolk' or 'Demonkin.'"
"Demonfolk? So there's no racial distinction between monsters and demonfolk?"
"That's right. In fact, the criteria for distinguishing monsters from demonfolk are extremely subjective..."
As I listened to Bupue's detailed and witty guide, I set off on a tour of Niflheim.
The streets gradually narrowed, a sign that we were moving away from the bustling center.
"Niflheim is a relatively recently established city. Until not long ago, it was nothing more than a backward fishing village. It's been only three hundred years since a thoroughly rotten port town was transformed into a city of vice."
Sure enough, houses gradually began to appear. Most were two-story structures built from stone. The sight of a monster—no, a demonfolk—leisurely hanging laundry on a rooftop was a fresh shock. That was just like any Korean ajumma.
"This rough, lawless city avoided being conquered by the fearsome nobles of the Demon Realm because... over the past three hundred years, the demonfolk who gathered here united their thoughts and will. For our mutual benefit, we combined our strengths to ensure that our specialized 'professions' could be carried out safely."
Bupue explained that Niflheim was a kind of city-republic. Five great trading companies had come together, and they claimed themselves as the city's rulers. The Kunkuska Trading Company was one of those five.
"Of course, we bicker and clash with each other on every little thing. Major conflicts between organizations are not uncommon. But when it comes to external threats, we stand united without exception. That is the city of gambling, fraud, and violence you see before you—Niflheim."
Bupue smiled.
"It is because we overcame internal rivalries and cooperated with one another that we built three hundred years of prosperity."