Volume 1 - CH 2.2

Translated by Riciel

“Oh, it’s starting.”

The Demon King Kengo leaned forward from his chair made of dragon bones happily and cheerfully. He remained with the other six generals in the Imperial Conference Room.

They were all planning to watch Sato’s work. The Ruler of Greed, a beautiful woman wrapped in a military uniform, waved her command whip lightly and cast her magic. Using an elaborate combination of detection and illusion magic, she projected an overhead image of the battlefield across the conference desk.

(It’s always a TV broadcast, isn’t it?)

Kengo thought of this, but of course, he didn’t dare divulge anything about his human life.

In the image at which seven pairs of eyes looked, the 66,600 soldiers of Satan’s army moved in unison could be seen.

“Oh, they’re quite beautifully aligned.”

“He’s showing us his leadership and organizational skills, isn’t he? Your Majesty is watching, so Sato seems to be rather excited.”

“But they’re indeed a well-trained army under Sato’s tutelage, aren’t they? I’m jealous.”

“Mmm. Those soldiers, I want them in my Mammon army.”

“Well, well! My Lucifer army is more awesome than his!”

“… I’m hungry.”

Satan’s army encircled Fort Krall while the demon generals were casually commenting on them.

“Oh, an excellent siege. This is what it means to not let a single ant escape.”

“But he hasn’t started attacking at all. Pathetic! I knew that my Lucifer army was better than his!”

“Kahaha. I’m sure Sato’s up to some pretty nasty stuff.”

“And he gets to keep all of His Majesty’s favours for yourself! I’m so jealous of him.”

While the demon generals said whatever they wanted, Kengo looked expectantly at the battlefield. In fact, the siege laid out by Satan’s army was supposed to be putting pressure on them. After all, each and every one of the soldiers was a demon. It wasn’t just tough-looking guys, but guys with lion heads, guys whose necks were covered with poisonous snakes, and many other scary guys. They weren’t just muscular, but some were also over three or five meters tall.

(If I were on the human side, I’d raise the white flag within a second…)

He wondered if it would happen, or if they’d at least try to make peace, so he observed the reflection of the human allied forces on the conference desk. But,

“Kill the Demon King!”

“Show them the power of our will, the dignity of the human race!”

“I’m ready to kill one person at a time and a hundred people before I die!”

“If we don’t give up our lives now, then when will we!?”

“Kill them, kill them, kill them, kill them…”

The allied forces members were in high spirits like lunatics who had fallen in love with a dangerous religion.

Kengo became stupified.

(In this world, demons and humans are both the same…)

Even if he could convince his subjects, this would still be no way to make peace like this.

In his mind, he was on his last legs.

(In this situation, Sato, you’re our only hope. At least keep it civil… civil…)

Kengo watched the footage as if he was praying. Finally, Sato appeared on the battlefield.

Using his flying magic, he descended from the clouds alone as if he were a true warrior and stayed in the sky above the fort. From there, he faced the holed-up human army and announced.

“O’ foolish and pitiful human race! You are no better than the worms of the earth. My name is Sato. I am a vassal of His Majesty the Demon King Kengo.”

The demon in the form of a young boy looked down on the allied human forces in the fort as if they were insects in a cruel tone of voice.

(Hmm?)

The gap between him and the Sato that Kengo knew was so large that he couldn’t help but wonder, “Who is this guy?”

He cocked his head in confusion. Unaware of his concern, Sato continued in the broadcast.

“Humans. I will only say this once, so listen carefully! The merciful Lord Kengo has granted you the honour of being kept as slaves. You were originally destined for death, but now you are being cared for like cattle. Weep with joy! Be grateful! Let us fill the sky with our gratitude to Lord Kengo!”

(Hmmm?)

Isn’t there something wrong with the broadcast? And Kengo cocked his head more and more.

“Now choose… Become livestock or death! I will say, however, that I’m not very patient.”

Sato declared and began to chant a spell.

“Oh…!”

“Sato is finally getting serious.”

“You should have been going all out from the start!”

The other generals were also in an uproar. Demons at their level didn’t need to make such extensive preparations to use magic.

In other words, it meant that Sato was preparing for a large magic spell.

In fact, a large amount of magical power was suddenly blowing around Sato, gradually increasing and becoming thick miasma. The aftereffects were even transmitted through the images to the Imperial Conference Room.

It was enough to make Kengo’s skin crawl.

(Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn???)

Kengo was already twisting his neck so much it was starting to hurt.

“I-is this really local footage…? Has Mamoyo tampered with something to process and modify it?”

“This is outrageous, My Lord! Daring to show you a false image is worthy of death! I, Mamoyo, swear to you that I will never commit such impertinence!”

“That’s right. I mean, there’s no way any such trickery could fool us.”

“Mm. This mistress agrees.”

“Something like that wouldn’t fool our eyes.”

“… I’m hungry.”

(W-well, that’s true. Well, actually, there’s nothing wrong with the way my eyes see it…)

It’s just that he couldn’t believe his eyes when seeing it on the screen.

“But isn’t there something wrong with this Sato? Isn’t that too different from the usual Sato?”

“Hahaha. How funny, Your Majesty, Kengo.”

“For all intents and purposes, it’s the same old Sato, Your Majesty.”

“Nah. You’re still as sharp as ever. I’m jealous.”

“I don’t find your play funny. Where’s the fun in that?”

Once again, the demon generals denied him everything, and Kengo was flummoxed inside.

(What part of this is my lovely Satooooo!?)

He widened his eyes and stared at the image, at the ruthless profile of Sato as he continued to chant. And then… Sato’s large-scale magic was complete.

A sphere that apparently made out of darkness suddenly appeared and covered the fort. The scope of the magic was tremendous. It was as if it could encompass a large fort with thousands of people inside.

It was tactical-grade magic, as Mamoyo categorized it.

(What’s going on!? What’s going on inside!?)

Kengo examined the inside of the fort with a gaze that penetrated the dome of darkness. He was appalled.

The soldiers of the human army were running around left and right from the sudden appearance of the jet-black dome.

To them, the sun suddenly disappeared, and they got trapped in a world without light. It was as if the apocalypse had come. They were desperately searching for light, stumbling here and there, kicking things around, and grasping for any light source. All of this panic was unfolding at a dizzying pace, as if on super fast forward. The generals, who were also watching, were all excited at once.

“I see. That has to be the secret arts of the Satan family!”

“That Sato guy. He’s manipulating time inside the fort, accelerating it by tens of thousands of times!”

“What exactly do you mean by that!? Please explain it to me so I can understand.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Inside that dome, the flow of time has become terribly fast due to Sato’s secret technique. At a rough estimate, a day will have passed before we count to ten.”

“What happens then!?”

“Only inside the fort, months and years will pass before we know it.”

“And that’s it?”

“They’ll starve,” replied the lazy, middle-aged dandy with an M-shaped mustache.

The Demon General of Sloth assured him as he squeezed his magnificent mustache. As if to pay a grudging tribute to Sato’s vicious maneuver, he explained.

“Tens of thousands of soldiers are currently besieged in that fort. After a year or two in that condition, no matter how much food they have stockpiled, they will run out.”

“That’s it!?”

“It’s a rationing frenzy. Or… let’s call it a ‘super-fast ration consumption of troops.’ Soon, the human army would be forced to surrender. Normally, it would take months or even years to get them to raise the white flag, but Sato has shortened it by using the secret art of manipulating time.”

“Oh god… How terrible…”

Kengo lost his voice and could only mutter.

It was an unbelievable strategy. However, it was a big hit with the demon generals.

“I see! Sato, you’ve thought of everything.”

“So, this way, we can get the humans to surrender the castle without bloodshed.”

“Tick-shaw! He’s so clever!”

“Don’t be jealous. Don’t be jealous, Levi-San.”

“Yes! So cunning and shallow! But I would have been smarter than that!”

“Wipe your tears, Lushiko.”

“… I’m hungry.”

The demon generals were already in a winning mood and were making a lot of noise. Meanwhile, Kengo was having none of it.

“Ahhhh…”

The images of the site spread across the desk in front of him—the horrific conditions inside the fort— making his mind spin around.

In the meantime, months and days passed at a frightening pace inside the fort, and the soldiers were losing weight at an alarming rate. The bodies of the well-trained, strong men transformed into nothing but skin and bones. Their eye sockets hollowed out, and their soulless eyes showed that their energy and spirit had been consumed by starvation. They were no longer strong enough to stand. They threw out their spears and sat down here and there in the fort, a scene of such devastation that it made Kengo feel uncomfortable to watch.

Despite this, the allied forces did not raise the white flag. They refused to do it. Or maybe they had already lost the ability to make any proper decisions…

(What? That’s not good… This is seriously not good…)

Kengo groaned as he held his head. Memories of his previous life came flooding back. People said that extreme hunger robbed people of their ability to think straight. Back then, Kengo became interested in the book and went to the library to read about ‘Killing by Starvation in Tottori’ and ‘The Siege of Leningrad.’

If they continued to stand by and watch, the fort would eventually be covered with the bodies of the starving dead, or there would be a scourge of people eating one another. As Sato had planned, would they indeed raise the white flag before that happened, or not? Honestly, he couldn’t watch it anymore!

“Ooohhhh…”

Kengo growled. He plopped down on the conference desk and continued to groan with his head in his hands. He had forgotten all about acting like a demon king and has returned to his true self.

Seeing their true nature, the demon generals…

“O-oi…”

“You seem to be terribly angry, your Majesty.”

“What’s the matter with you…?”

“Did Sato do something to you?”

“No, I think it’s a brilliant move that I’m jealous of…”

“… I’m hungry.”

They were all uncomfortably discussing with each other, looking in wonder at Kengo, who looked like he was slouching on his desk. He held his head, shrunk down, and said weakly.

“Mmm, mmm.”

The way he continued to groan, no one would believe he was a demon king. He looked like a helpless demon being. However, in the eyes of the demon generals, they could see it clearly.

At first glance, Kengo seemed to be trembling like a fawn, but in fact, a great deal of magical power was pouring out of his body. The aura emitted from the Demon Lord’s body blazed brilliantly like a glowing blue flame, spewing forth like a pillar of fire that pierced the heavens, raging furiously and ferociously. It was a scene that even the generals couldn’t help but shudder.

EN: Killing by Starvation in Tottori – A tragedy that took place at Tottori castle in the 16th century where many people died from hunger as a result of starvation tactics employed by the warlord Hashiba Hideyoshi in fighting the castle.

Siege of Leningrad – A prolonged military blockage (2.5 years) undertaken by the N**i against the Soviet city of Leningrad where they blockaded the city and cut all lines of resupply, causing massive casualties due to destruction and starvation. There were records of cannibalism occurring during such event.