The problem arose from an entirely different direction.
Barbatos accepted my words. But not every Demon Lord was under my control—especially those whose relations with me had grown strained from fighting me.
"The Republican Representative Assembly?"
Early in the winter, I was taken aback when a certain official document was delivered to me.
The contents were simple. It called for gathering every politician, scholar, and artist representing the republicans of the continent for a large-scale conference in the capital of the Batavia Republic. Naturally, no such meeting had ever been held before.
I spoke with distaste.
"What is this absurd..."
"The same invitation has been sent to the citizen representatives of Niflheim as well."
Ivar added from the side.
Right now, only three of us were in the office—myself, Ivar, and Daisy. The other executives had each gone out to handle their respective duties, and Ivar had brought the official document.
"I looked into it personally, and it appears the invitations were also sent to the Grand Dukes of the Demon Realm."
"Even the Grand Dukes..."
That meant the same documents had been dispatched to every free city as well—on both the continent and the Demon Realm, without distinction. It was a conference of preposterous scale.
The invitation was issued by the Committee of Thirteen of the Batavia Republic. Known as the true power behind the republic's rule, but when you looked beneath the surface, they were nothing more than Paimon's puppets. Without a doubt. This was Paimon's doing.
I crumpled the invitation in one hand.
"Damn it... it's still too early for this!"
Paimon's intentions were plain as day.
At present, a specter by the name of republicanism was sweeping across the continent.
The Habsburg Republic had been born, and the Frank Empire had been restructured anew under the leadership of the republicans. Free cities—born with republicanism inherently in their nature—were sprouting up left and right.
Moreover, with the Royalist faction's leading representative, Bretagne, having fallen… if one thought simply, it would appear as though republicanism was rising like the sun.
That was Dantalion's thinking—he intended to seize this opportunity and build even greater momentum.
"No. Now is not the time to publicly reveal a supranational alliance…."
When I muttered those words, Ivar tilted his head.
"Your Majesty. If it's merely convening a meeting, there shouldn't be much cause for concern, should there?"
"It's not a simple meeting. The fact that demons and humanity are seen together is what matters."
Up until now, cases of humankind making contact with figures from the Demon Realm had been exceedingly rare.
As far as humanity was concerned, a leader of the demons meant the Demon Lord. It wasn't entirely a wrong perception, but in truth, the ruling class that governed Demon Realm society wasn't the Demon Lord—it was the Grand Duke or citizen representatives. They were the ones who held real power.
I let out an anxious sigh.
"This will be the first time the Demon Realm's leadership makes its political debut on the continent. And at that, a gathering bearing the name 'Republican Representative Congress'… how do you suppose the monarchs of the Human Realm will receive that?"
"…I see. In the worst case, they could mistake the entire Demon Realm for republicans."
Ivar's violet eyes glinted.
Among the entire Demon Lord's Army, Ivar possessed the most outstanding political and diplomatic acumen. Lapis and Jeremy weren't bad either, but they still fell short in certain areas. Ivar faithfully assisted me in precisely these matters.
"Monarchs are already watching with unease even as they celebrate Bretagne's downfall. They may be glad that a rival has collapsed, but the fact that the Royalists lost doesn't sit well with them."
"Yes. And now a 'Republican Representative Congress' is being held in that situation… they'll be provoked for no good reason."
Ivar nodded.
"That perhaps the Demon Lord's Army's true purpose is to spread republicanism across the continent. That is what the monarchs will believe."
The problem was that this wasn't groundless suspicion.
The one who had delivered a republican-style speech on the Bruno Plains was none other than me—Dantalion, the Demon Lord. At the very center of the continent lay the Elf-Dwarf tribal alliance. As was common with tribal systems, it was essentially a republic. And to make matters worse, the Demon Lord's Army had happened to carry out its operations alongside the Batavia Republic….
No matter how one looked at it, the Demon Lord's Army had clearly been making pro-republican moves. Once suspicion took root, there was no end to it. My head throbbed.
"And as a backlash, the royalists will start gathering in force… Damn it. Ivar, Daisy. Get ready and follow me. We're heading to Paimon's Demon Lord's Castle."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
I had to prevent humanity from uniting.
Paimon. I understand your desire to spread republicanism across the continent as soon as possible, even by a single day.
But now is not the time. I can only earnestly hope you'll see that….
The Demon Lord's Castle <Hanging Gardens>.
A castle that, true to its name, floats in the air by defying gravity. It was famous for its beautifully adorned scenery, which earned it the name Hanging Gardens.
The Demon Lord's Castle hovering in the sky was a natural fortress in and of itself. In the game, the Hero's party had to mobilize a griffin squadron to infiltrate this impregnable fortress. Paimon is pierced through the heart and collapses… along with her castle and her great ideals.
I had originally hated Paimon.
Now that I knew the truth, I felt a deep fondness for her. It was fine even if she was a hypocrite. After all, if there were no hypocrisy at all, what would make life dazzling? I admired Paimon, and I hoped she would not meet the same tragic end as in the game.
Spirits dressed in maid uniforms guided us. After a long walk, we came upon a small lake. Sitting by the lake, Paimon was quietly sipping her tea.
"Ivar, Daisy. Wait here."
I had the two stand by and strode toward Paimon.
"Paimon."
Even though I approached her side, Paimon continued to gaze at the lake without a word.
A separate kind of still air enveloped only the space around her. I felt that if I let my guard down, I would be swept into that air myself.
I knelt on one knee. I pressed my lips lightly to the back of Paimon's hand. As always, her skin was soft and fair. I did not rise. Still on one knee, I spoke.
"You must know why I've come. I'll get straight to the point, Paimon. The timing is premature."
"……."
"A Republic Representative Council? And you're inviting people from both the Human Realm and the Demon Realm? The risk is far too great. If we band together tightly on our side, the enemy will grow equally wary and consolidate their forces. Humanity's resilience remains more than threatening enough."
I knelt and adopted a submissive posture. At a time like this, Paimon wasn't the type to maintain a stone-faced silence forever. She continued gazing at the pond, her pale pink lips moving.
"Then how long should we wait?"
Her voice lacked energy, but the question was unexpectedly agreeable. Good. Paimon was willing to talk to me. I considered that a relief inwardly, then answered calmly.
"Sixty years. No, waiting just fifty years will be enough. With the successive plagues and wars, the populace grows more discontent by the day. For the next fifty years, the monarchs of the Human Realm will have to pour all their energy into suppressing popular uprisings."
"......"
"After fifty years, Frank's new government will have stabilized to some degree. We'll gain a massive ally in Frank. Paimon, fifty years isn't such a vast stretch in the span of our lives. Please wait just a little longer."
A few minutes of silence passed.
Bathed in the brilliant sunlight of early winter, a hawk glided down toward the lake as if sliding. The splash of it hitting the water could be heard from a distance. Perhaps because it was the Demon Lord's Castle overflowing with mana, the vegetation here remained lush and green despite the early winter.
Paimon turned her head toward me. Our eyes met.
Her pupils were dark, yet their focus was sharp. A sense of dread engulfed my entire body in an instant. That was not the gaze of someone who still held room for discussion.
"Dantalion. I have just one question for you. ...Fifty years from now, how will Barbatos's Plains Faction act?"
"......That is."
I was at a loss for words.
Barbatos, naturally, would set out to conquer the continent. Leading the Demon Lord's Army, he would establish the continent and the Demon Realm into a single, absolute state. This wasn't solely the Plains Faction's goal. The future Barbatos proposed currently commanded the greatest support within Demon Realm society.
"We're not the only ones gathering strength over these fifty years. The Plains Faction is doing the same. Dantalion, as you said, in fifty years, the Human Realm will be greatly weakened. With such frail prey right before their eyes, will the demons truly be able to hold back?"
"......"
It was an impossible proposition.
For a republican government to encompass both humanity and demons, a balance of power between the races had to be established above all else. If the demons were overwhelmingly powerful, humanity would be treated as, at best, second-class citizens. They would openly discriminate based on status.
Paimon despised that kind of discrimination.
"Now, in the immediate aftermath of Bael and Agares disappearing, is our chance. The Demon Lord's Army has been struck, and humanity has also been struck. Using peace as our pretext, we must unify the continent."
"……The risk is far too great. As Chief of Staff of the Demon Lord's Army, I absolutely cannot agree."
I felt my patience wearing thin.
Right now, Paimon saw the Plains Faction as a rival. That was dangerous. Humanity was the enemy, and the Demon Lord's Army was our ally. If we confused those facts, infighting would break out immediately.
"Paimon, we must stand united. Please, think calmly! Every time we've been wracked by internal strife, we've lost. Every time we've stood together, victory has followed without fail."
"I'm afraid I cannot agree."
Paimon shook her head. The gesture was resolute.
"Dantalion. Who do you think lost the Puppet War?"
"Obviously, the Queen of Bretagne and the continent's royalist faction."
"No."
Paimon's gaze sharpened.
"It was the common people — swept up in the chaos while madmen waged their war, dying without even knowing why. Dantalion. They are the truest losers of all."
"……."
"You mustn't fall under any illusions. The reason it looks like we won is simply because we happened to be on the winning side. Did I ever tell you to wait fifty years? To wait for the monarchs to exhaust themselves oppressing their people for five decades?"
Paimon offered a faint smile.
"People suffer and die unjustly, and you simply look the other way. I cannot tolerate that."
"……."
"Dantalion. I won't condemn you. You have your own way of doing things. I can sense — even if only dimly — that a certain kind of moral principle resides within it."
However, Paimon continued in a gentle voice.
"I'm sorry. I'm just a woman who has no choice but to live this way."
"……Paimon."
It was devastating. What kind of expression must I be wearing right now.
The last time Paimon had accused me of playing the villain, I had countered that in order to remain a thorough axis of evil, I had to be exactly this way. The same logic now applied in reverse. Paimon had resolved to remain a good person to the very end. Which meant she could never stand by and watch the people die like dogs.
If I were to advise Paimon here to "let the sacrifices go for the sake of victory," I would be urging her to become a hypocrite. I couldn't do that…
Paimon spoke with a faint smile on her lips.
"Dantalion. If the day comes when I have to fight Barbatos… will you choose my side?"
I couldn't bring myself to answer.
With that, the conversation between the two of us came to a definitive end.
Paimon didn't utter another word after that, and I had nothing to say either. I turned my back and walked away from the lake. I felt wretched.
"Your Highness. Are you all right?"
Seeing my expression, Ivar asked with a worried look on his face. I shook my head.
"No. Let's head straight for Barbatos's Demon Lord's Castle. There's a lot to do."
If things continued as they were, Barbatos and Paimon would end up clashing. The rulers of the Human Realm would watch that spectacle and clap their hands with glee. I would never allow that kind of ending.
Save them both—Barbatos and Paimon. That was my resolution. But was it really possible? Could there truly be a happy ending for everyone? I couldn't be sure…
I gazed up at the pale early-winter sky. A sigh escaped my lips.
"I'll be busy in more ways than one. This winter is going to be a long one…"