Chapter 52

By the hands of the Guild Master Act, the defective demon Vivel evolved into an Evil God Dragon.

Meanwhile, at the northern end of the Demon Kingdom, at the [North Wall], the fortress guarding the boundary with the human world—

One of the Four Demon Kings, [Illegar of the North], was kneeling before a large mirror.

"Did you call for me, [My Lord Demon King]?"

The figure reflected in the magical mirror was a person clad in a black cloak, covering their entire body.

This person was the leader of the monsters, the one who would lead the army to attack and destroy humans—the Demon King himself.

"O Illegar. I have called you here today for one reason. I wish to verify the truth of the information I received from my [confidant]."

"Confidant..."

A fleeting image of [him] flashed through Illegar's mind.

He clicked his tongue in frustration. Because the confidant the Demon King trusted was the very person Illegar despised the most.

"What kind of information is it?"

"I heard that you fired Vivel. Is it true?"

Vivel.

Until recently, she was a defective demon who worked as your assistant.

Why would the Demon King mention the name of such a lowly trash?

Illegar didn't understand the reason, but he had to answer the question.

"Yes, that is correct. I fired that incompetent woman and expelled her from the North Wall."

"Indeed, that woman was a defective piece of trash, lacking magical power despite being a demon. I thought she was unsuitable for this country under the Demon King's rule, so I fired her."

...Illegar finally noticed the change in the Demon King's aura.

"Y-You... My Lord Demon King, why are you so angry?"

"It's because you fired Vivel! You fool!"

The Demon King's roar was accompanied by a surge of immense magical power. Although the power shouldn't have reached Illegar through the mirror, he was blown backward and crashed into the wall.

"G-My Lord Demon King... why are you so angry...?"

The reason for the Demon King's anger was incomprehensible.

Vivel was just a demon, and a defective one at that, lacking magical power.

It was hard to believe she was someone the Demon King would care about.

"That woman was a [secret weapon] deployed at the North Wall to counter the hero, the [Evil God Dragon Vivel]!"

"Secret weapon...? Evil God Dragon...? Are you joking?"

"Do you dare to call my words a lie!?"

"Absolutely not...!"

But Illegar couldn't understand.

How could a defective piece of trash be a secret weapon?

However, the Demon King's anger was abnormal.

Could it be that she really was a secret weapon...?

"Our clan's prophecy foretold the appearance of a [Super Hero] who would surpass the hero. To prepare for this, I secretly had the [Great Sage] create the ultimate weapon against the Super Hero, the [Evil God Dragon Vivel]. She is the one who has the power of the Evil God sealed within her."

"I see... but why didn't you tell me such important information?"

"What are you saying... Are you questioning me!?"

The Demon King's body emitted a murderous aura. He was about to destroy Illegar with a powerful spell from a distance.

"I had no intention of questioning you! It's just... if I had known, I wouldn't have fired her..."

"I told you she was a secret weapon, you fool! If the enemy found out and she defected, it would be a significant blow to our army!"

Illegar understood.

The North Wall was the boundary with the human world.

If the hero were to enter, it would be through this northern fortress.

If Vivel were placed here to confront and defeat the hero before they entered, it made sense.

...But even so, as the commander of the fortress and one of the Four Demon Kings, shouldn't the Demon King have informed him of such important information?

He should have at least given a heads-up.

Clearly, the Demon King was also at fault for not informing him.

Yet, the responsibility was being placed solely on him, and he wasn't even allowed to argue.

Illegar was extremely frustrated.

"Go and retrieve that woman immediately! Right now!"

"Y-Yes, My Lord... but..."

Illegar's blood ran cold.

He finally realized...

"What do you mean by 'but'?"

"N-No... it's just..."

When he fired Vivel, Illegar had killed her with ice magic.

He couldn't tell the Demon King.

He couldn't admit to destroying the Demon King's secret weapon on his own.

"Are you hiding something from me?"

"N-No...!"

"Speak up."

"W-Well, the truth is..."

There was no way to cover it up.

He had killed Vivel.

...There was no other choice.

"Actually, it was my subordinate, [Tsukuaene], who killed Vivel when she was fired!"

He shifted the blame to someone else.

If he had to take responsibility, at least he could try to avoid it by blaming someone else.

"Tsukuaene killed her without my orders! I had nothing to do with it! The responsibility lies entirely with him!"

Fortunately, the Demon King hadn't witnessed the killing.

So, the best course of action was to sacrifice his subordinate like a lizard's tail.

"That foolish subordinate destroyed the Demon King's precious secret weapon without orders! I had nothing to do with it! The responsibility is entirely his!"

The Demon King's response was unexpected...

"I see. Well, it's fine."

"Huh? It's fine...?"

"Yes. That weapon isn't so easily destroyed. Besides, if it were destroyed, I would have been notified by the spell I placed on it."

Illegar was relieved, but also surprised that Vivel had survived the Four Demon King's magic.

He hadn't held back at all.

He had intended to kill her, yet she was still alive...

Vivel being a secret weapon wasn't a lie, then.

"Illegar, find Vivel immediately and bring her back. Before she falls into the enemy's hands."

"H-Ha...! Yes, My Lord! I will bring Vivel back!"

Illegar bowed and raised his voice.

"...If Vivel falls into the hero's hands... do you understand what will happen?"

The aura emanating from the Demon King was not anger, but clear intent to kill.

The ultimate weapon created to counter the Super Hero.

If it were taken by the hero himself, the Demon King would suffer an even greater blow.

"I understand! I will take full responsibility and ensure she doesn't fall into the hero's hands!"

"That's the least you can do, you piece of trash. Why can't you understand without being told? If a demon with zero magical power is kept around, there must be a reason... Young demons these days are so stupid and annoying."

The Demon King cursed and cut off the communication.

"...Damn it!"

Illegar left the room and headed to Tsukuaene.

"Tsukuaene!"

"Ah, Illegar-sama. Is something the matter?"

Illegar grabbed Tsukuaene by the collar and said,

"Find Vivel and bring her back immediately!"

"But... that woman... you killed her with your magic..."

"She's alive! Just find her quickly! Gather those skilled in detection magic!"

"Y-Yes..."

Tsukuaene immediately gathered those skilled in detection magic and sent flying subordinates to search for Vivel from the air.

"I found her!"

"Where? Where is she!?"

"She's in the human kingdom of [Geta Nyiga], in its capital."

"Good," Illegar nodded.

"I will send the army to attack the capital immediately."

"W-What!? But... so suddenly..."

"Shut up! This is an order! Gather the troops and destroy the capital. Then bring Vivel back."

Just bringing Vivel back wouldn't be enough to appease the Demon King.

He needed a trophy. If he could destroy the capital of a human kingdom, it would help ease the tension.

"But the capital... the hero might be there."

"Hmph...! Unlike in ancient times, the current hero party is just a bunch of human scum. It won't be a problem."

...Illegar didn't know.

The kingdom he was about to attack was home to the strongest hero in human history.

"We will attack and destroy the capital. If possible, we will destroy the entire human kingdom and retrieve Vivel."

"Y-Yes... but this will require a significant number of troops. The North Wall's defenses will be weakened."

"I don't care. No one has reached the North Wall in a long time. Even if we leave it unattended for a while, no one will come here."

Between the North Wall and the human world lies the [Nether Forest], a forest infested with powerful monsters.

Most humans (heroes) are wiped out in this forest.

"But if someone breaks through the Nether Forest and takes advantage of this opportunity to attack the North Wall..."

"Shut up! This is an order! Don't question me!"

"Y-Yes... I will gather the troops and advance into the human world."

...Illegar didn't know.

This was a trap orchestrated by Act Age.

Everything was under Act Age's control...

[To the Readers]

If you found this interesting and are eager to read more, please support us by giving a rating [☆☆☆☆☆] or bookmarking the story!