The Neutral Faction owed me an enormous debt.
The story goes back to the time of the Crescent Alliance Army.
At first, Barbatos intended to crush Paimon—who had lured him into a trap—without mercy. He wanted to hold a formal hearing. But it was Marbas of the Neutral Faction who convened a meeting and pressed them toward reconciliation.
At the time, Marbas said this:
"A bird that has lost one wing can never fly. The Mountain Faction was wrong to attack the Plains Faction. However, if the Plains Faction now seeks to annihilate the Mountain Faction entirely, wouldn't that also be wrong?"
And he clearly added:
"Our Neutral Faction desires a fair compromise. Of course, if the Plains Faction shows magnanimity, the Neutral Faction will actively support the Plains Faction."
The key phrase at the end: *active support.*
The price the Neutral Faction would have to pay in exchange for the Plains Faction generously forgiving the Mountain Faction... I played that card. It was to bring down the worst martial god of them all, Agares. Not a bad deal at all.
Marbas's forces had already been crossing the border in force. Eight thousand troops.
Currently, the Neutral Faction was conducting operations in Polythunia. And the Habsburg territory bordering Polythunia happened to be none other than—
"Lady Gamigin. It is the territory you have been occupying without authorization."
The Neutral Faction's army would immediately launch a surprise assault on Gamigin's territory.
I smiled.
"Of course, right now it would be the territory Lord Agares is occupying without authorization. Above all, that's what you yourself have been claiming, Lady Gamigin..."
"..."
"The Plains Faction, the Mountain Faction, and the Neutral Faction will move as one. This is the first time it's happened in two thousand years. The Demon Realm will be shaken to its core."
Barbatos would stand at the vanguard as legion commander, with the Neutral Faction and Mountain Faction supporting from behind. History had already proven how devastating that formation was. In the Second Crescent Alliance Army expedition, they had destroyed two nations.
In the Eighth Crescent Alliance Army, even with all my effort, I still hadn't managed to completely topple the Habsburg Empire. Compared to that, I could easily gauge just how powerful the alliance of the Plains Faction, the Mountain Faction, and the Neutral Faction would be.
"The era of factions fighting amongst themselves is now over, and the era of harmony and unity has dawned. The Demonkin will surely see it that way. Agares and Gamigin have been chosen as the sacrificial lambs for this new age. A festival sufficiently grand and lavish, wouldn't you agree?"
Gamigin, there was one thing you failed to anticipate.
You never imagined that the Mountain Faction and the Neutral Faction would come to Barbatos's aid. But I was at Barbatos's side. I had the means to move Sitri and Marbas. You didn't know that.
"I see. Now I understand."
Gamigin spoke.
"That's your typical method, isn't it? You never put yourself forward. Instead, you draw other forces in to solve your problems. It was the same with the Crescent Alliance Army. When Paimon built his trap, you summoned every legion you could. And now, to destroy Agares and me, you've pulled in the Mountain and Neutral Factions."
She squinted, fixing me with a steady, unblinking gaze.
From beyond the slight smile at the corners of her eyes, her red pupils glinted with a cold light.
"It's rather similar to how a parasite lives, Dantalion. I've always wondered why you remained stuck at rank 71. Bael and Vassago could have easily promoted you long ago. But now it's clear."
Gamigin flicked her finger.
The glass in my hand shattered with a sharp *crinkle*. As the shards scattered, they embedded themselves in my right hand.
"Rank 71 suits you perfectly, Dantalion. In fact, you should be demoted by one. In the long history of the Demon Lords, no one has shamelessly parasitized others quite like you. Marbas wouldn't accept us, you say? That we're nothing but obstacles, according to his ideals?"
Gamigin laughed. It was qualitatively different from her usual smile.
It was a sneer. The gentle warmth, like sunlight, had vanished, leaving only chill behind.
"Unpleasant. Truly unpleasant. You never believed Marbas's ideals were correct in the first place. You just thought they were beautiful. You viewed them as mere spectacles. Do you grasp the meaning, Dantalion? That is the most unpleasant way to trample another's ideals."
"If you intend to call me a piece of shit fit only for dogs,"
I shrugged.
"I would point out that it's not very useful to say. It's a rather stale observation by now."
"You are insulting all of us Demon Lords. Barbatos, Marbas—they did not live to be displayed as your decorative art pieces. At least, that much I know better than you."
"What does it matter?"
I flicked the shards of glass off my hand. The rough texture was a little irritating.
"Bael has a discerning eye for the real and the fake. You're not a Demon Lord. You're a fake. You live like a parasite, without a single belief of your own."
"That's a rather novel accusation. I like it."
"You'll remain at the bottom forever, as long as Bael's eyes are blazing red."
Hm. For some reason, the number of people insulting me lately had skyrocketed.
It was truly unfair. Aren't you always the ones who start it? You attack first, you pick fights first. I only ever treat you properly.
Yet people call me a damn piece of trash, a fake. Granted, I am a damn piece of trash, but that's no excuse for rudeness. It's disheartening. Since when did the world become so corrupted...
"Well, I can understand Lord Gamigin's anger well enough. But venting it all on me won't do you any good, will it?"
Gamigin looked at me quietly. I could clearly feel the killing intent. Oh dear, I was just throwing back the very words he'd said to me... If he disliked it that much, perhaps he shouldn't have said them to others in the first place. It's disappointing that he can't even grasp the most basic tenets of etiquette.
Hm. Perhaps I should take a step back at this point. Pushing the tension too high won't be useful in negotiations.
"Of course, I know my place. As Lord Gamigin pointed out, I'm only fit for rank 71. Even if I'm at a slight advantage now, I have no intention of threatening you unilaterally."
"Oh? Then what?"
"Let's start negotiating."
I said.
"Betray Lord Agares. No, if the word 'betray' grates on you, fine. Take revenge on Lord Agares. You, Lord Gamigin, were quietly minding your own business when he launched a surprise attack on you. Isn't that right?"
At least, that's what you're claiming.
I am a gentleman of good manners. If a lady says so, I have no desire to deny it. I shall, as always, respect the lady's opinion.
"If you do, I'll generally recognize the territories you've been occupying without permission, Lord Gamigin. You'll have to give up a little, of course, but that's something you can afford to lose. Don't worry. I'll only take a flat forty percent, no more, no less."
I gave a faint smile.
"For reference, this is a huge discount. We, the Plains Faction, will recover the territories you were unfairly robbed of on your behalf, and I'm only asking for a mere forty percent commission. Quite reasonable, isn't it?"
"......"
Gamigin fell silent.
To lose forty percent of her territory as the price of defeat in war. It was a massive loss. Gamigin had started this war because she was unhappy with how cramped her current holdings were, so this was hardly a pleasant proposal for her.
I paused for a moment before speaking.
"There is a way to reduce the forty percent to around twenty, but..."
Gamigin looked at me with questioning eyes. I reached out and stroked her chin. Soft skin grazed my fingertips. It was an unabashedly suggestive gesture.
Gamigin scoffed.
"You want me to offer my body? I see you haven't changed. You really are a third-rate actor."
"So that's your real face, Lady Gamigin."
Her face was twisted with contempt, as if she were looking at the world as a pile of trash, a heap of filth. Once the hint of amusement vanished entirely, nothing remained on Gamigin's expression but cold mockery and derision. Just like an old person who, though once wise, had become too embittered by the world and withered in that state, Gamigin was insulting the entire world with a single facial expression.
For the first time, I found Gamigin adorable.
"If I'm a third-rate actor, then what are you, Lady Gamigin? You've shown your true colors in front of me. Doesn't it remind you of that actress who confidently left the countryside to try her luck in the capital, only to fail miserably?"
"You don't just want my body. You've never once looked at me with 'that kind' of gaze."
Was she sensitive to how others looked at her? Perhaps Gamigin was overly sensitive to everything, to the point where she eventually believed the world held nothing but base desires.
She was right. I had never viewed Gamigin as a sexual object.
"Yes. Unfortunately, I'm not suddenly captivated by you. Well, who knows, I might be in the future."
"Cut the small talk. What do you want?"
"I made a promise with Barbatos. After sleeping with every Demon Lord known for their beauty in the world, I need to publicly declare that Barbatos is still the best."
Gamigin stared at me with a look of utter disbelief.
"What?"
"Our little Demon Lord is a more delicate person than you'd think. Believe it or not, the condition I'm putting forward is this: become my lover. And then spread the word that we're lovers."
Gamigin's expression grew even more incredulous.
"So in the end, it comes down to this — you want to sleep with me and toss me aside."
"To put it more elegantly, yes."
"And with that, you'll preserve the territory I hold? How terribly generous."
Gamigin's lips twisted.
"But I have a condition. Preserving eighty percent of my territory isn't going to cut it. Acknowledge every last bit of the territory I've claimed."
"Fine."
I answered readily. What could Barbatos complain about anyway? I had infinite excuses. Pushing Agares further into a corner left me no choice, making too many enemies wasn't wise — any excuse would do.
How much had I invested to hand Barbatos the victory in the civil war? I'd burned through every wish I'd left with Sitri and even forgiven the debt I'd sunk into Marbas. That was no small loss. Securing my own safe love life seemed like fair compensation.
"Well, that simplifies things."
I said, sitting at my ease.
"Get undressed."
Gamigin stared at me, unblinking.
She rose from her seat and reached for her clothing. The white garment slowly slid from her skin and fell away.
*Thump* — the clothes dropped onto the grass.
It was evening. The vivid yellow twilight traced Gamigin's body in white along its contours. She was looking at me with a flash of humiliation in her eyes — that humiliation made all the more grotesque by her desperate effort to hide it. I simply smiled.
Without question, it was a sight more beautiful than any masterpiece in the world.
============================ Author's Afterword ============================
The promise Marbas made appears in Chapter 113. Since Dantalion's memory isn't perfectly accurate, the exact wording is slightly different.