Chapter 18: Pave 10 Paths and Earn a Penny

“Pardon me, Sir Dantalian, but are you an idiot?”

“……I’m sorry.”

My shoulders were trembling. Standing before me was a girl who was emitting a black aura that was asking ‘Do you know how dumbfounded I am?’.  She’s been in a bad mood ever since she returned to me after I had chased out that old goblin.

“I definitely told you before that you should not speak to demons in a formal manner.”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Apologize first, everything else comes later. I don’t know why, but my mind only becomes this fragile whenever I was with Lapis. Like some people would say, was it because first impressions are what instantly decides the relationship between people? It might be because I behaved simplemindedly and in a very non-Demon Lord-like way since the first day we met, but even if I could act in a more dignified manner now, putting on a false show in front of Lapis was difficult. 

Lapis let out a small sigh. I withdrew my shoulders further.

“Sir Torukel, no, Torukel is a legendary executive in the Keuncuska Firm. Although he was born as a goblin, a lesser demon, he became an archmage and has been alive for almost a thousand years now. It would not be a stretch to refer to him as a living monster.”

“That wrinkly old prune was actually that great?”

“…….”

“Please continue!”

Jeez, it almost felt as if I could audibly hear the air spark as she glared at me. How could a girl’s eyes look so sharp? Miss, you won’t be able to make any friends if you keep this up. Well, she already doesn’t have any friends. Thus, the girl who was apparently shunned constantly by the other demons began to give me an elucidation on how foolish my actions were and what sort of relationship I should try to build with the Keuncuska Firm from now on.

I earnestly received the nagging through my right ear and pulled it out the left. What was important here was to make eye contact with the other party and nod your head every 7 seconds in order to show that you were listening seriously. 4 seconds was too short and 10 seconds was too long. Approximately 7 seconds was just enough to deceive the other party. With this much knowledge, I should consider becoming an actor when I return to my original world.

“Oh right. I raised Lapis’ affection above 20, didn’t I?’

Once the affection of the other party goes above 20, their status window will begin to display their current state of mind as well. I suddenly became curious about Lapis’ stats. It was because I personally believed that Lapis was quite a competent demon. The girl who had returned a thousand gold as twenty-thousand gold. How high are her stats?

‘Status.’

Ding!

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Name: Lapis Lazuli Race: Half-Succubus　　 Faction: Keuncuska Firm Attribute: Neutral(-10)

Level: 23　　　　Fame: 122 Job: Merchant(A-), Witch(B), Swordsman(D)

Leadership: 55　　Might: 32 　　Intelligence: 53 Politics: 72　　Charm: 50　　Technique: 2

Affection: 31 Current thought: ‘This person is completely ignorant of politics.’ ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

I inadvertently let out a sound of awe.

“……Amazing.”

“Therefore, you will be able to negotiate with people of higher standings according to how much your position improves…… Sir Dantalian, are you listening to me? You haven’t been ignoring or belittling the sincere advice I have been offering you, correct?”

Of course not! Banish the thought! I shook my head fervently.

Lapis’ doubting gaze stuck to my face like glue. It was pointless. The degree of brazenness on my face had far exceeded normal standards. This level of acting was a piece of cake. Lapis tilted her head twice before she resumed her nagging. Sheesh, for someone who’s usually quiet and cold, she sure has a lot to say today.

‘In any case, these are some impressive stats.’

Her stats far exceeded my expectations. She had 3 stats that were above 50. Among those 3, her politics stat went as far as to surpass 70. Although it had a minus attached to it, the mere fact that she had a job at rank A and a job flat out at rank B was impressive in itself. If I were to make a comparison as a person who played Dungeon Attack, she was on the same level as a competent chief retainer in any decent kingdom. She wasn’t at the level of being a prime minister, but her ability was more than enough to be a minister of foreign affairs.

‘How could they let such a talented individual rot at the bottom of the ladder? Tsk, there’s bad water even in the demon society as well, huh?’

Demons claim to thoroughly advocate meritocracy. Respect and fame follow those with talent. Personal ability and the honor granted by society. These two things were the central axes that made the world of demons go round. However, fame began to become more important than personal ability at some point…… Among the scenarios in Dungeon Attack, a certain Demon Lord would express their concern regarding this matter. I felt as if demons also had their own share of issues.

“Okay, okay.”

I waved my hands as I spoke up. I had a rough grasp of everything Lapis was trying to tell me.

“To sum it up, you want me to do business with people of high standings and capable people.”

“That is correct. At the very least, you must not harm your relationships with such individuals. Therefore, Sir Dantalian, your hostility towards Torukel was…….”

“Lapis Lazuli.”

She promptly shut her mouth. I looked at her with a bright smile on my face.

“……I apologize. I went too far.”

“I’m not trying to reprimand you. I’m not foolish enough to ostracize someone who is trying to offer me advice. The weak have their own way of living, do they not?”

“…….”

The weak.

This term referred to a half-baked Demon Lord like myself and to a half-succubus like Lapis. Our common ground was the fact that we had half-baked lives. I didn’t become a Demon Lord because I wanted to and, as expected, Lapis wasn’t born a half-succubus because she wanted to be.

The fact that we were bestowed things which we didn’t want as our identities and the fact that the direction of our lives was determined because of those things. We had a lot in common. This was probably why I found myself growing fond of Lapis. I maintained a slight smile on my face as I continued.

“Lapis, I am weak. Not only do I suffer from bipolar disorder, but I’m an awful coward. This is why I’ve been earnestly thinking about what I need the most in order to survive as one of the weak. Should I latch on to someone who’s strong and live like that? For my immediate survival, that isn’t a bad option. However, the only reason the strong allow the weak’s parasitic behavior is because the weak have some sort of use. The lives of the weak end the instant their value disappears.”

Do business with the executives from now on. This is good advice; however, the only reason a firm executive had come to me in the first place was due to the fact that I had planned a successful business with black herbs. Once I’m no longer able to think of more business ideas of that level, it was as clear as day that the executive would abandon me without any hesitation.

“I can’t allow this to happen. No matter how much time passes, I cannot escape from my humble position. Everything will eventually come to an end after only being able to take a passive stance. Lapis, for the weak, we have the best option, a middle option, and the worst option. Surviving by mooching off of the strong is the worst option. The middle option would be to form an alliance with other weak individuals whom you can trust. The best option would be to discover a strong individual’s critical weakness and using them with it.”

The best option wasn’t available to me. There was no way for me to know the Keuncuska Firm’s weakness. The worst option was also impossible. There was no guarantee that the Keuncuska Firm would support me to the very end. Therefore,

“I intend to carry out the middle option.”

“The plan to form an alliance with other weak individuals? But with who……?”

“You.”

I pointed at her. I looked straight into her azure stone-like eyes.

Lapis was silent for a moment before she opened her mouth.

“Me?”

“That’s right. Lapis Lazuli. You are the very person of talent whom I require.”

“I apologize, but I fail to understand your intentions, Sir Dantalian.”

Her impassive face was noticeably confused.

“I am merely an employee that is at the bottom of the ladder. As I told you before, my social standing is not good as well. I am grateful that Sir Dantalian puts this much trust into me and I naturally intend to acquire a higher standing in Keuncuska by assisting you.”

She spoke as if she were giving me her life story.

However, that is all, Lapis concluded.

“Nothing good would come if people were to find out that a Demon Lord was getting friendly with a social outcast and minority like myself. To demons, Demon Lords must always be higher beings that are detached and pure. They must be like crystal clear mirrors that capture the yearnings, dreams, and the collective subconscious of demonkind and reflect them all as is. I would be nothing more than a red, rusty smudge on Sir Dantalian’s mirror.”

Lapis’ raw emotions were being transmitted to me. I could feel her deep-seated resignation. Her emotions which were once sticky with despair, thoughts of revenge, victimization, and harm solidified a long time ago and was now laying stagnant like a boulder. People were all like this. Everyone had no other choice but to live their lives with these boulders on their backs. However, it was only natural for these boulders to become weathered and crumble one day. This was what I believed and I wished to become the wind that would push her.

“No, you are the one I need. I need someone like you at my side.”

I told her straight out.

“Who was the one that answered my call and came to me when I had no one to rely on? You. Who was the one that decided to pledge a hundred years to me and stand by my side? You. Who was the one that trusted me when no one else did and brought me profit in my stead? You. Who was the one that just now was counseling me, Dantalian, for the sake of success? Lapis Lazuli, it was you.”

“You mustn’t. In Sir Dantalian’s long-term life plan, I am nothing more━━.”

“How can you be so certain of that? Have I ever said that to you before?”

Lapis closed her light-pink lips.

My voice was filled with confidence.

“I am the one who will determine how I will live my life, not you, Lapis Lazuli! Do not plan out my life all on your own.”

The weakest Demon Lord.

In order for such an individual to survive, you can’t coincide with the preexisting power structure of society. There are already 70 other Demon Lords beside me. If a relative newcomer like myself tried to squeeze in with everyone else, I wouldn’t be able to put up a fight and end up being used instead. If that’s the case, then I will form an alliance with those who have been outcasted by society. I will persuade them and make them into my comrades and subordinates. I may be a coward, I may have the worst stats━━but I will survive by using the yearning and resentment of the innumerable weak as my weapon.

This was the grand plan that I had desperately thought up of.

The best move to protect my dungeon (Dungeon Defense).

The first step for my plan is you, Lapis.

“…….”

Lapis remained silent. She wasn’t being intentionally quiet. Her small lips kept opening and closing over and over again. She wanted to say something, but she couldn’t find the right words.

It was at that moment.

─ Adventurers have invaded the dungeon!

A notice appeared in front of me. The display was showing me that a group of 15 F-rank adventurers had just entered the dungeon.

I grinned.

“It seems some invaders have entered.”

What perfect timing.

I called out for my unit of golems and fairies in my mind. The sensation of more than a dozen monsters answering my call flooded my head. The excitement of battle, the resolve to fight for their master, and the delight of being able to slaughter humans. My mind was filled with all sorts of colors in an instant.

“Lapis, follow me. I will show you the war of the weak.”

I advanced together with my unit of monsters. There was no need to wait in front of my Demon Lord room. My unit soon encountered the adventurer party. The adventurers were surprised by the number of golems that exceeded their expectations. They must have had some skill and courage as they got into formation and retaliated; however, the ends of their spears were blocked by the heavy barricade known as golems and were pushed aside powerlessly.

“Why are golems in a battle line!? I’ve never heard of this!”

“Fuuuck! Who said this place was on the level of a stroll!?”

A slight gap was revealed every time the adventurers pushed their spears forward and swung their blades. I used those moments to order my fairy unit to use their magic. The sound of wind being cut rushed by. Their Wind Cutters sliced into the arms and legs of the adventurers relentlessly. Screams began to fill the cavern.

“Guaaaah!”

“Magic, damn it, it’s magic!”

“Luke, you son of a bitch! Don’t run away! Don’t back away! Fuck!”

Their actual injuries were light. If they could manage to react calmly, then they could have limited their taken damage; however, I didn’t let them have the minimum amount of time required to regain their composure. The golems’ fists slammed down on the adventurers’ heads like heavy rain. One of the adventurers whose forearm was injured by a Wind Cutter wound up dropping his shield. The price of his action was brutal. The golem’s fist crushed the adventurer’s chest. Blood splattered everywhere.

─ You have defeated Rooks Village Adventurer Party. Additional experience points have been granted for the complete annihilation of the party.

─ Congratulations! Your dungeon level has increased.

─ Due to your dungeon reaching level 2, you are now able to create an additional facility in your dungeon.

It simplifies things immensely once a hole is made in the opposition’s formation. The party was wiped out in a blink of an eye. The two adventurers who tried to run away were sliced into pieces by my fairy unit’s volley. I was standing in the midst of the 15 corpses. I could clearly feel my monsters’ elation because of our victory; however, they remained silent for their master.

Lapis mumbled next to me.

“With only lowest-tier monsters, without receiving any damage…….”

“I am weak, but I am not foolish.”

I stuck my right hand out.

“Lapis. Let us show the world the pride of the weak.”

She looked at my hand with her blue eyes. She raised her right hand and it hesitated for a fraction of a second. I didn’t press her and continued to wait quietly. After a while, Lapis grabbed my hand carefully. I felt the warmth of her palm transfer to me.

「Lower Succubus Lapis Lazuli’s affection has risen by 20! The other party now ‘trusts’ you.」

「The other party’s affection has reached 50. You can now persuade them to become your ally.」

“I will be in your care……Your Highness Dantalian.”

“Likewise.”

It was at that moment, the monsters that had been waiting quietly broke out into a cheer all at once. The sound of cheering echoed throughout the cave. This day may have been the first day since I fell into this world where I achieved a genuine victory.

***

TL note: Thanks for reading the chapter. I should probably mention that the next chapter isn’t exactly a real ‘chapter’. The story will continue in Chapter 20, but Chapter 19 is a ‘what if’ chapter that the author wrote. It’s basically a Bad End. What would have happened if Dantalian did something else at a certain point in the story? Just keep this in mind when the next chapter comes out so you aren’t too confused.

I’ll see you guys in the next release.