Book 2: Chapter 14

The Zadark Kingdom castle town, the Royal Capital Arkverm.

Right after Vermudol was created, that place was nothing but neglected ground, but nowadays, there many stores and houses……as well as crowds of figures of Mazoku.

Avoiding the Demon King Castle main gate, which had become a tourist attraction, and leaving through the back gate, Vermudol’s group was within that hustle and bustle.

「Hey, hey, what is this?」

Nino pulled Vermudol’s hand, and tried to enter a store that had a signboard that said John’s Grill.

In this castle town, what was prepared weren’t carts, but fairly able shops, and with face-to-face type counters in between, they would sell goods to the customers.

The hygenic side was taken into consideration……Or rather, it was something like the resolution of the shopkeeper that settled down at that place, and it was probably also a threat from him saying that he wouldn’t give this spot up.

Seeing customers come out from the John’s Grill store in front of them with things that gave off a savory smell with them, Nino looked like she couldn’t take it anymore.

「Welcome. This is something where Charging Boar meat and Kagari Mushrooms are alternatingly stuck on a skewer and grilled. And when a matching special sauce where Sparim and Shagal are mashed and mixed is smeared on it……Look.」

The Majin shopkeeper took a skewer that was grilling and thrust it into a pot that had a sauce with a deep darkish color, and then put it back to spot that it was grilling at.

When he did that, the heated sauce went *shuwa* and gave off a savory aroma.

「Heeh……This is quite good……」

When Vermudol was being impressed by that aroma, Ichika made a complement.

「It is a flavor that has been spreading in Arkverm recently. It would seem that it has quite a high degree of completion.」

「I won’t say it out loud since it’ll turn into a fight, but I can proudly say that it has the best taste in this area.」

Hearing those words, Vermudol made a wry smile.

Certainly, if someone were to say that they were the best, Mazoku would claim to each other that they were the best, and that would surely start fist fights in order to decide who really was the best.

「Ahh, I see, so that is why there aren’t any voices of barkers.」

It was a spectacle often seen in mankind’s territory……where they say things like “the best flavor is found here”, “this is the original”, or “this is its birthplace”.

When it came to special products, there were many that would claim that they themselves were the best, and even contests between barkers would get superheated.

However, here, that sort of thing wasn’t seen, and the town was bustling with only people coming and going.

「It’s more like everyone has found it questionable to have fist fights in Demon King-sama’s home territory. It’s been decided to do it silently. The matches are done in silence……see.」

「Incidentally, how are the winners of those matches decided?」

In response to Vermudol’s question, the shopkeeper made a broad grin and answered.

「……Isn’t obvious that it was through a fist fight? I was the last one remaining. It was decided.」

「I see.」

「So, will you buy some? If you do now, then I also have an interesting extra for ya.」

「An extra?」

When Nino showed her interest, the shopkeeper stuck out his fist.

「Ou, not too long ago, an interesting messenger from the Demon King Castle was going around here and there, see. Janken……it seems to be a way to have a match. I was thinking of practicing this match that was started by Demon King-sama. If you win against me, then one of them will be for free, so how about it?」

Vermudol smiled at the shopkeeper who then said “Of course, that’s only if you buy more than two though”.

He thought “I see”. He should have just taught the match method to the Four Cardinal Generals before they left the Demon King Castle, but Ichika probably made a smart move and had it taught even in the castle town.

When he sent his gaze to Ichika who was standing next to him, she made a faint nod and affirmed it.

「I see, that is a good method. We have also heard about that match method.」

「Is that so, well then, that means that you won’t have any complaints about the match. Whoops, if you’re going to accept it, you’ve got to make an order, got it? Since there’s three of you, will you have three of them?」

「That’s right.」

「Okay. Well then, here we go……Jan, ken……pon!」

The shopkeeper had rock, Vermudol had scissors.

It was the shopkeeper’s win.

「Ha ha ha! That’s too bad. Well then, that’ll be six large copper coins. Well, don’t mind it too much, it’s because you aren’t losing anything to begin with.」

「That’s true. But still, what do you think of this Janken thing, after having tried it.」

While taking the skewers off from the fire, the shopkeeper started his answer with “Let’s see……”.

「I think that the part of having a lighthearted match like this is good. It’s because before, even little things wouldn’t settle down without a fist fight.」

「Well, that’s true.」

「But still, in the end, important things can’t be settled except through a fist fight. I think that it’s Demon King-sama’s intent to tell us that we should moderate and regulate that part and choose what to do, you know?」

When Vermudol looked at the shopkeeper seeming impressed by him, the shopkeeper noticed his gaze and swung his body seeming like he found it unpleasant.

「……I see. Here, six large copper coins.」

「Aiyo. Here, three skewers.」

Vermudol received them, and handed over one to Ichika and Nino each.

When Nino immediately sunk her teeth into it, her eyes sparkled the moment she did.

Vermudol also took a bite……the lightly salted taste spread throughout his mouth, and he was assaulted by a sensation that felt nostalgic yet didn’t.

「Delicious.」

「Yeah, it is tasty.」

「It sure is.」

After Nino’s impression, Vermudol and Ichika also gave interjections.

That taste that was a combination of the well-grilled meat, the mushrooms with a crispy texture, and the sauce, it was quite irresistible.

After having finished eating, and wiping his hands, Vermudol once again surveyed the area.

At the town that was well-maintained, and the smiling faces of the Mazoku that were coming and going.

When he had first awoken in the Demon King Castle, he didn’t think that he would see a spectacle like this.

「……Come to think of it, how is the maintenance of the public order done?」

「With this place being directly under Demon King-sama, there is no one that would disturb the public order……but, tentatively, patrolling is performed by a collaboration of the western army that is under the direct control of the Western General and the central army.」

Hearing Vermudol’s mutter, Ichika answered like that.

「Be that as it may, what’s being done is something like a face-off of a duel though」

The number of events that happened that would be called crimes in mankind’s territory were zero.

There was no one that would do such things at the Demon King’s home territory……that is what Ichika explained.

「Is that, so.」

Hearing those words, Vermudol pondered.

When he was in mankind’s territory, there was a high probability that the type of people called thugs were in back alleys.

He knew that Nino had eliminated them before they picked a fight with Vermudol, but it seemed that quite terrible things happened even in places that had nothing to do with them.

It wasn’t in countryside towns but large towns like the royal capital that stupid people like that would lurk in great numbers in.

Despite being a king’s home territory like this Arkverm, why would they appear that close.

……No, the answer had already come to him. Vermudol himself simply recognized it, and reached the conclusion to that question.

Mankind was……Humans were rotten, and it was because of that that nothing could be done.

Just by recognizing that, it was fine.