CH 12

… I understand the situation. I’ll forgive you.”

Said Demon Lord Rukie.

I was currently sitting in seiza.

“Seiza” is from the world of the Hero. It’s a way of sitting that means “reflection”.

In front of me, Demon Lord Rukie, who has her true face exposed, sighed many times.

It was my fault that the mask and robe of Demon Lord Rukie were taken.

I forgot that the different world-style [Simple Warehouse] has an automatic item organization function.

It was an ability to automatically collect and organize rare items when they were found.

It’s a necessary function for a [Simple Warehouse] that stores a large number of items, but, because of that, even the “mask” and “robe” of Demon Lord Rukie who came inside were automatically collected. ..

After that, it was a chaotic uproar.

Demon Lord Rukie, was crouching while holding her face with both hands, and Mabel was running around in a hurry.

I explained the situation, apologized, and the two finally settled down.

Then, when they heard about the situation, Rukie, the Demon Lord, forgave me.

“I understand that you didn’t do it on purpose. I forgive you, so please be at ease.”

“I’m sorry, your majesty.”

…… What have I done?

I was carried away by the sweetness of the item.

The hero from another world wielded transcendental power to fight the Ancient Demon Lord and drove the demons to the north. They definitely changed the world.

If it’s an item from the world of Heroes, it shouldn’t be strange if it has an unexpected effect.

“Well, you don’t have to be that depressed. It’s okay, Thor Regus.”

Rukie, the Demon Lord, said so, as if troubled.

The mask and robe remain on the floor.

It seems that she gave up hiding her identity.

Next to me, Mabel is also sitting in seiza.

She knew the true face of Demon Lord Rukie.

The other people that know her true face are Chancellor Kelve, the maid who takes care of her and her family.

Demon Lord Rukie told me why she was hiding his identity.

The reason was ──

“Because the Demon Lord must have a powerful dark magic power and be a mysterious existence that everyone fears.”

── That was it.

To the south of the Demon territory is the military power Dolgaria Empire.

Even though they have signed a non-aggression treaty, no one knows how long it will last.

As long as the Empire is a threat, the Demon Lord cannot be known as a weak girl.

That’s why Demon Lord Rukie wears a mask and a robe with cognitive obstruction function on it.

“… And what about it?”

Rukie, the Demon Lord, said, looking sideways.

“Are you disappointed that a little girl is the Demon Lord. Well, it can’t be helped, since this little girl was wearing a cognitive obstruction robe, and mask, hiding her identity and sneaking around calling herself the Demon Lord…”

“Rukie-sama, that kind of thing …”

“I don’t care, Mabel. He’s already seen my true face. Thor Regus, this little, unreliable figure is the true Demon Lord.”

Demon Lord Rukie said so and looked at me.

Certainly, it was a small figure.

She’s 15 years old, but she was petite.

She is short and her limbs are thin. If I hugged, she might break.

“If the Demon Lord has such a figure, the Empire wouldn’t take us seriously. “

Demon Lord Rukie continues the story.

Her father, the predecessor Demon Lord, died when he was young.

Her daughter, Rukie, was placed on the Demon Lord’s throne at an early age.

She can use powerful dark magic, but for some reason, her body grows slowly.

She didn’t grow tall and didn’t gain weight and she was missing the highs and lows of her body.

She can use powerful magic, but she is not physically strong.

Of course, in another two or three years, she would be able to withstand the “physical strengthening” magic. That way, Rukie will be strong, both magically and physically.

Until then, as a measure against the empire who “believes only in strength” She’s supposed to wear the mask and robe

──Demon Lord Rukie talked about such things.

“In the old days, when a Demon lord died, the next Demon Lord was supposed to be decided by a tournament, but because of the threat of the Dolgaria Empire, it was not a good idea to raise disputes within the Demo Territory. So it has become a hereditary system. “

“Rukie-sama has the magical power that is suitable for the Demon Lord. It’s just that her body grows slowly.”

“I don’t need useless consolation, Mabel”

Demon Lord Rukie said in self-deprivation.

“And the person that pushed for me to hide my identity the most was Chancellor Kelve. He probably thinks that he can’t unite the Demon territory with this poor figure.”

“… Rukie-sama”

“How is it? Thor Regus”

Demon Lord Rukie put’s her hand on her chest and looked at me.

“What do you think of this figure of me?”

Her thin hands were shaking slightly.

“I want to hear the opinions of people from outside. Please talk without reserve. What did you think when you saw this figure of Demon Lord Rukie Evergard? “

“I think I saw a godly beauty. “

I said.

“The moment I saw Your Majesty’s figure, my sense of value was shaken. As an alchemist, I thought that magic items with excellent functions were beautiful. The one is called “Functional Beauty”.

But when I saw your majesty, I realized my mistake. Your majesty and Mabel—Before the beauty created by the nature of the Demon Territory, my functional beauty cannot be compared. As an alchemist, I am ashamed of my lack of ability…”

“W, what? ──── !?”

“The beauty of His Majesty the Demon Lord and the “functional beauty” of the items in the Hero’s world. I would like to study both of them in the Demon Territory.”

“Y, you what are you talking about!?”

“I just said what came to my mind.”

“Sa, saying some good things…”

Tears were willing up in the red eyes of Demon Lord Rukie.

She has both hands in a fist,

“What do you understand for someone as perfect as you and has godly alchemy powers!? I had to hide my identity and decieve── “

I said.

Demon Lord Rukie and Mabel looked shocked.

“By the way, I seem to be a shame of the Regus Duke’s house. My father told me to die. It can’t be helped, the empire is all about strength. I don’t have the ability to fight and I can’t use attack magic, my existence has no value. “

“W, w, wh …”

“But I think I was lucky to come to the Demon territory because I was able to work as an alchemist. I was able to understand the happiness of making your favorite items and the joy of using them, in the Demon Territory territory ── “

“Wait a minute, Thor-sama!!”

Suddenly Mabel screamed.

She held my hand and brought her face closer.

“Is this story true!? Thor-sama was sent here as a hostage … Sacrifice …?”

“It’s true. If you think it’s a lie, contact the empire.”

“No, I won’t go that far … but I don’t understand.”

“What?”

“If it is true that Thor was sent to this demon territory as a hostage … Why did you confess it? It would be advantageous to make us think that you are a messenger from the empire. Isn’t it? Then, with the power of the empire as a backing, you should have been able to pass unreasonable demands … No, of course, I know that Thor-sama a person who does that, but, but! “

Mabel shakes her head as if she cannot understand it.

“From the messenger’s point of view, you can claim that the empire is backing you. If you let everyone think so, you should be safe. But … If you come here as a hostage, you’ll lose your backing … “

“Yes, that’s right, so can you keep it a secret?”

“……Okay?”

“If word spread that I was a hostage or sacrifice sent here, the treatment of the Demon Territory would treat me differently, wouldn’t it? My relationship with the Empire might worsen, so keep it a secret, Alright? Instead, I promise I won’t tell anyone Your majesty’s secret. “

“……Ah”

Mabel held her mouth.

Nodding many times while staring at me.

Demon Lord Rukie behind her, also looked like she saw something incredible.

They both seem to understand what I mean.

I don’t have a hobby of revealing someone else’s secret.

But I don’t know if Demon Lord Rukie will believe me with just that.

So I decided to reveal my secrets and weaknesses to her, like an exchange.

──I will keep the secret of Demon Lord Rukie. So she would keep my secret as well.

Under that condition, I wondered if Demon Lord Rukie would believe me.

Well, probably.

Demon Lord Rukie was a petite girl.

she wasn’t confident in herself, so she hid her true self with a mask and a robe.

It … I felt like I was in the empire.

“Can you keep it a secret that I was a hostage sent from the empire, Your Majesty?”

“… Fu”

“If you keep it secret … That’s right. It goes without saying that I will keep your Majesty’s secret, but as someone serving directly under your majesty, I promise to put in more effort and make more and more magic items.”

“………… Fufufu. Kukuku”

“It can’t be helped. Your Majesty knows my secret. Of course, making magic items is both my hobby and my job. How about it? Can you keep my secret? “

“Huh … hahahahahahahaha!”

It was sudden.

Demon Lord Rukie laughed wither hands on her stomach.

“Hahahahahahaha! Thor Regus! You hahahahaha! What a stupid thing. You reveal yourself… in exchange for keeping it a secret, you said “I will keep your Majesty’s secret” is … haha! Hahahaha! Haha … what are you thinking!”

“Your majesty, you’re laughing too much, how outrageous.”

“The outrageous thing is you! Stupid!”

Demon Lord Rukie looked at me while wiping her tears.

“It’s outrageous to strip off my mask and robe, but it’s also outrageous to reveal your own identity. It’s outrageous!

“Do you believe me?”

“You say that now?”

With that said, the Demon Lord Rukie slowly approaches me.

Then she stretched out and stabbed my forehead with her index finger.

“I believe. You believed in me and revealed your secret. If I doubted you, I wouldn’t be too qualified to stand on top of others, right?”

“I think Your Majesty the Demon Lord is a great ruler.”

“Again, with that sort of thing!”

Demon Lord Rukie, grinned and looked at Mabel.

“Mabel. You understand right? The thing we just talked about cannot leave this room. Thor Regus came from the empire as a guest. He is also an alchemist who reports to me directly. Spread it throughout the castle thoroughly.”

“Yes! Your Majesty!”

“Then Thor Regus.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“As a re cap, my identity and your identity cannot leave the room, right?”

“yes … what about that?”

I feel like I just heard some strange words.

Demon Lord Rukie grinned,

“That means this place is an exception. “

“Oh, is that so …”

In other words, in this “different world-style [Simple Warehouse], it’s okay to lay our identities bare.

It serves like a barrier, isolated from the outside world.

It’s a perfect place for Demon Lord Rukie to take off her mask and relax?

“I understand, this place is an exception.”

“Umu. In exchange, I’ll always be Thor’s ally.”

With that said, Demon Lord Rukie held my hand.

When I kneel involuntarily, her golden hair swayed and she laughs.

It’s like a master-slave contract … I thought.

“I laughed so much that I feel sick. Mabel, could you give me some tea?”

“Yes. I’ll prepare soon … Oh, that’s right, Thor-sama.”

Mabel clapped her hands as if she came up with a good idea.

“Can I bring a chair, a table, and a tea set into this storage space?”

“Yeah. There’s a lot of space.”

“Thank you!”

“Is it a tea set that you want for safekeeping?”

Mabel gripped the apron in her maid outfit and hesitated,

“In this place, Your Majesty and Thor-sama can talk about themselves without hiding, right? If so, I wish I could make a corner of this place for that … Of course, I won’t get in the way of Thor-sama… “

“… That’s right. It would be fun if we could do that …”

I was troubled.

I can’t refuse it if I get such pleading eyes.

Well, I certainly want a place where I can talk about myself without hesitation, and if I’m with Mabel and Demon Lord Rukie, there’s no problem.

“It’s fine. Please make this Storage space a place for a tea party.”

“Thank you!”

“Umu! Thank you, my alchemist Thor!”

Mabel and Demon Lord Rukie held my hand and laughed.

Well, magic items are meaningless unless they are used.

If the two can utilize this “storage space”, it should be okay?

If I need my own space, I can always create another one.

“A cute tablecloth is also good. The rest is a pot to boil water.”

“Will Thor make this a workshop? If so, he should make a furnace.”

“That’s right. Let’s borrow the fire from there.”

“I want a cushion and a bed. Mabel, do you have a spare?”

“There should be one. I will arrange it soon.”

──But I think both of you are getting a little too excited.

“… That. Your Majesty, Mabel-san.”

“What’s wrong, Thor Regus?”

“What happened? Thor-sama.”

“Oh, it’s fine if you call me just Rukie. Of course, only in here.”

“Please call me Mabel too.”

“That’s fine, but…”

Are you thinking of making this workshop a hideaway for the two of you to relax?

I tried to ask such a thing ──

“”Hmm?””

“If you want another storage space, do you want me to make one for Your majesty and Mabel-san?”

“What do you say? I just want to entertain Thor.”

“That’s right. I just want Your Majesty and Thor to relax and eat delicious food in this place.”

“Yeah, it wouldn’t make sense without Thor and Mabel?”

“What I want is not items but to spend time together.”

“… I give up.”

I raised a white flag to Rukie and Mabel, who had a very “good smile”.

──────────────────

The tea party at this place will be named “The demon castle’s supreme tea party” and it will influence the Demon territory greatly in the future ──

──But it was a story that no one knew yet.