After the meeting is successfully completed, I decided to return to the room that has been lent to us. On the way there, I was approached by Eva, the representative of the guild committee.
“Shinichi Tanaka, right?”
“Are you implying something by calling me that? Do you need something from me?”
“It’s not really that I need something from you. I just want to talk to the true ruler of Logas kingdom. I mean, the guy who had his clone play as King Logas.”
I was horrified.
Tanaka α was not at fault of course. He wouldn’t have said anything that would reveal our identity. However, Eva had seen through the relationship between me and the current king.
Eva smiles deeply, as if enjoying my reaction.
“I am not trying to do anything, I am just interested in you.”
“Interested? Now that you said that, I also want to know why a former demon king is at the top of the guild.”
Hearing that, she led me to a bench in the hallway. I guess it means to sit down and talk. Eva sat down on a bench and stared at the cloudy blue sky through the window in front of her. At the meeting, she said that she liked the human world, but would she really betray her fellow demon kings and God? I really want to know her true intentions.
“I like humans, both as food and as pets. Do you know what kind of demon I am?”
“Do you mean your race?”
“Yes. If you know that, you will naturally find the answer why I betrayed my comrades.”
I thought about it for a while. This is because she does not have any such peculiar characteristics in her appearance. Except that she is an extremely beautiful girl…… No, on the contrary, it may be a hint. The monster I once encountered looked no different from a human.
“Are you a vampire?”
“You’re right. I am the Queen of Vampires and the Progenitor. Humans call me black princess.”
She opened her pink lips slightly, revealing her sharply pointed fangs. But I still don’t get why she betrayed her allies. I wonder if it’s because she’s a vampire.
“Vampires cannot survive without drinking human blood, and the other demon kings insisted that humanity should be annihilated. But if they do so, my clan will be in danger of extinction.”
“That’s why you betrayed them?”
“It would be more correct to say that I left the Demon’s Coalition Army. It is also true that I cooperated with humans by passing useful information to them, but I never joined the human army.”
“Then why are you attacking people now? A vampire who calls himself Federer is hunting adventurers in Mohed’s Great Dungeon you know.”
“I told my clan not to attack people blindly, but there are some misfits who can’t stand that rule. Federer is one of them. He has a radical idea that we should domesticate human beings. I decided to expel him for the sake of the unity of the clan.”
Don’t attack blindly huh…… She’s saying that they haven’t attacked unreasonably.
Eva continued.
“You want to know why I am at the top of the guild, right? It’s simple. It’s a proof of trust I’ve gained by being deeply involved with people. Despite my appearance, I don’t care much about anything other than the survival of the clan. No matter how many of my stupid followers are killed, my heart won’t hurt in the slightest.”
“…. Still, even though you’re saying that, aren’t you planning something? Trying to take over the world by becoming the ruler of the guild, perhaps?”
“It’s the other way around. I protect humanity. In order not to be eradicated, I made them cooperate and thought them how to fight. Looks like you are having a misunderstanding here, but in the first place, the guild is an organization that I proposed to humans and made it happen.”
I was more astonished than ever. She just said that the guild was an organization created by a demon.
“You seem to be surprised. Most people’s mouths drop open when I tell them this. Yes, just like you now.”
She giggles as she looks at my face. Anyone who hears such a story would indeed expose their silly look. An organization to exterminate demons was founded by a demon. But if that’s the case, it’s understandable why she has so much power in the guild. It is natural for the founder of a guild to sit at the top.
“Now then, enough about me, tell me about yourself, where did you get that robe and bangle?”
“Robe and bangle?”
I wonder why she asked about my magic tools? I then told the story of how I got it, hiding the story of the dumpster site.
“—you picked it up?”
“Yes. I picked it up.”
“……God may have chosen this man.”
She mumbles.
I’ve been wondering for a while, but who exactly is the “God” she is talking about? When I was about to ask about it, Eva stood up without warning.
“That’s about it for today. I’ll tell you about him again another day. Oh, and make sure you have enough energy to fight the angels. See you then.”
She patted me on the shoulder before leaving.
◇◇◇
When I returned to the room, for some reason, I saw Dodol and Vishu drinking on the sofa.
At the window, Queen Diana and Sir Frederia are talking to Erna, and on the floor, Freya is rubbing Pero’s back with a sloppy face. Liz was asleep in the dark cloud, floating near the ceiling.
The room lent by the guild is about eight tatami mats, which is not that big. It feels even smaller now that so many people gathered in an already small space.
“Hey, Shinichi. Please excuse the intrusion.”
“If this would be the case, we should have held a meeting here.”
“Hahaha you can say that. We should have gathered in this room from the beginning.”
“No, I meant it as a joke……”
As I was stunned by Dodol’s words, there is a knock on the door.
Someone is still coming?
With that in mind, I opened the door and saw the King of Winged men holding a bottle of alcohol in one hand.
“I’ve been wanting to have a drink with you for a while and I’d love to hear from you about the time you defeated the Gigantworm on your own.”
“O-oh…… I don’t mind that but……”
“Hn? It seems to be quite noisy, are you busy?”
The King of winged men peers behind me and is shocked. The rulers of the three kingdom are gathered in a small room. It’s also in the room of a man who is not royalty or anything. It would indeed be very unusual for the kings to visit with a drink.
My senses are becoming numb.
When Dodol and Vishu noticed the King of winged men, they invited him in without my permission and began a banquet for the three of them. I’m sure they’ll soon tell me to get a snack.
“By the way, did Shinichi talk to Eva?”
“Yes. Just a little bit after the meeting. I couldn’t believe my ears when I heard that a demon had created a guild.”
“I suppose every royal family hears that story directly from Eva after they ascend the throne. And you have to make a choice. Either go against the guild or coexist with each other and share the benefits. I don’t think Shinichi knows, but the guild pays a ridiculous amount of taxes. That’s a lot of money that would be a shame if it disappeared.”
“Is that the price of being a victim of vampires?”
“Well, it’s true I’m overlooking some things but it is not like I am giving my people to the vampires. If it’s going to cause harm, I’m going to kill them of course. I’m not going to be at the mercy of that woman.”
Dodol said before taking a sip from his glass. Then Vishu added to the story.
“It seems that most vampires only take blood from humans, and that Eva also pays money to those who gave up their blood, promising not to kill them. In other words, vampires who kill people are criminals who deserve to be killed by us.”
“Then, shouldn’t we inform the public?”
“No. Careful preparation is required before making this fact known. Otherwise, it will cause unnecessary chaos. Eva seems to think that it is possible to coexist with humans, but she says that there is still a lack of awareness and technology for it. She mentioned something about a pseudo-blood.”
Pseudo-blood? It’s the world of a science fiction novel I read somewhere. In order not to want human blood, a substitute must have been needed. Eva may be looking far into the future. Even so, I feel uncomfortable with the way Dodol and Vishu talk nonchalantly. Still, both of them are good kings who care about their people.
“Are you dissatisfied with the current guild? As long as Eva is at the top, the humans will be targeted by vampires.”
“Not to say that Eva is a hard worker and a kind woman. She had many discussions with me, something about things she was not satisfied with but each time, she has made concessions. Therefore, I have made concession on that one point as well.”
“It’s the same with me. I agreed on the condition that they share the blood of my people. But if they happen to kidnap or kill even one of my people, they will be targeted. I also have detailed orders such as not sucking children’s blood.”
I’m convinced. Is this what Eva meant when she said she was deeply involved with people? By facing people sincerely, she gained their trust even though she was a demon. I feel that my impression of Eva has changed a little in the midst of this.
Then there is a knock on the door again.
Has anyone come again? The room is already full...
When I opened the door, there was the figure of King Logas, my clone.
“I have something to talk about, come over for a minute.”
“……I get it.”
After telling Dodol and the others that I would be back soon, I left the room. King Logas(Tanaka α) then talked to me by the window in the hallway while looking out.
“I talked to Eva earlier, she recognized me as Shinichi Tanaka’s clone.”
“I know that. She also talked to me.”
“So, did you check her status?”
“Oh, I forgot.”
“Just as I thought. Be sure to do it the next time you see her. You’ll find out the true identity of that vampire named Eva.”
True identity of the vampire? What did he mean?
Tanaka α continues,
“More than that, the problem is what I heard from her. If it’s true, it’s going to be big news that will shake the world.”
“Don’t beat around the bush, talk quickly.”
“Great Mage Moore is still alive!”
“Ha?”
I was so surprised that I couldn’t say anything more.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeineijiworks.wordpress.com.
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