Chapter 458

Most of them had escaped from the crevices of monsters that could become a lifelong trauma just by facing them, not to mention those who had lost their families. So their mental state cannot be normal. They just had to run away to survive, and when they arrived at Edina Island, they were plagued by sudden aftermaths, even if they could live without the threat of life. As Iri said, it was to allow them to escape from the reality of hell for a moment. It was more effective than imagined. It makes them dream of peaceful dreams. As a result, refugees became obsessed with succubi like finding drugs, but it certainly helped to give temporary peace of mind to those who had experienced hell. Starting like that, now succubi were counseling each refugee one by one, listening to their stories, and adjusting their dreams to prevent nightmares if necessary. Originally, the reputation of succubi including Iri in the capital city of Edina Island, Lazark, was at rock bottom. There were even times when public opinion became ominous when it was known that they were not even human but succubi. But not for refugees. Succubi who smiled kindly and listened to their stories and comforted them as soon as they arrived in the land of demons were nothing but angels in the form of demons to refugees. So refugees like succubi more than demons like me, and they like Succubus Queen Iri, the leader of such succubi, even more. What is a dream? Even though they know that the small rest found there cannot change reality, people want to dream of happy dreams and love succubi who give them that dream as a gift. They can dominate humans with dreams other than nightmares. During this time, not only succubi but I also learned something new. "Your Highness. All personnel have finished their duties." The one who came to me was a pale-faced creature in a black robe. "Good job." All ships sailing with sails have a predetermined sailing speed. And since ships sinking with refugees due to rough storms occurred, I designated a magician of the Lord Vampire clan as a responsible person for each ship. With the help of magicians, we were able to sail safely in rough storms and quickly in calm seas. "And the Lord of Thunder will return soon." "...Ah. Yeah, got it." The person in charge of the convoy finished speaking and left. Harriet was watching the back of the returning vampire with her lips trembling. "Does Rianna like... that nickname...?" "If she doesn't like it, she'll hate it. She probably likes it." "Really...?" Something about the Four Heavenly Kings. Suddenly, people were calling Rianna de Grandt the Lord of Thunder. And seeing that they didn't say anything about it, it seemed to be secretly pleasing. Rianna was in charge of rescuing refugees and defending the base at Port Mocna, the continental connection point of Edina Island. In the continent, it was Rianna's role. In the island, it was Iri's role. They were responsible for the refugees in their own way. The refugees arrived safely without any problems. However, in the beginning, there were many serious problems. Some people were so scared that they wanted to run away. Some people went on a rampage, saying they would kill everyone as soon as they arrived. The cause of all this was the Demon King. Some people were so angry that they would rather die than live under the Demon King's rule. However, they knew that they had no alternative to me. I provided them with a place to stay and food to eat, and then sent them to a settlement on Edina Island or another island. They had to accept my rule, just as they had to get used to the landscape of demons living among them on the island. They knew that if they rebelled, they would have no future. They knew that their food and clothing were maintained by the labor of demons. Of course, not everyone was like that. Some people believed the false rumors spread by the empire that the gate incident was my fault. If I had done that, there would be no reason to rescue and feed humans like this. The rumors about the Demon King that spread throughout the world were all false, and there were many who believed that the Demon King was actually a good being. In fact, I was the one who suppressed all the gate incidents that occurred on the island, including the one at Port Mocna, on the first day, and saved the entire island. I didn't say anything about the truth or the lies. I didn't become king because I had their support. I ruled them with my power, and I have the power to subdue them if my opposition becomes too great. So whether the citizens hated or worshipped me, it didn't matter to me. After returning to the palace, a report came in about a murder at the refugee camp. The violence of the refugees was not surprising, and there were many extreme cases. The important thing was that there was not enough space to build large-scale prisons to accommodate them. Most prisoners were not in prison, but were forced into hard labor in large-scale isolation facilities. Everything seemed to be seen only as numbers. During the report, Harry suggested that I take a break for a few days, but I refused because if he did better than me, it would create distrust towards me. Translation:

Summary of previous part of chapter only for context: In this chapter, the protagonist reveals that the rumors about the Demon King are false and that he is actually a good being. He suppressed all the gate incidents that occurred on the island, including the one at Port Mocna, and saved the entire island. He rules with his power and has the ability to subdue opposition if it becomes too great. The citizens' opinions of him do not matter.

Later, a report comes in about a murder at the refugee camp. The refugees' violence is not surprising, and there is not enough space to build large-scale prisons to accommodate them. Most prisoners are forced into hard labor in large-scale isolation facilities. During the report, Harry suggests that the protagonist take a break for a few days, but he refuses because it would create distrust towards him if Harry did better.

"Just because of the desire for power, if I were to hand over the throne to Harry, he would have to do it for the rest of his life. If people were to see how capable he is while he takes my place for a few days, they would only think about that moment when Harry was in charge. I can't let someone too capable take my place. Unless I'm giving up that position altogether."

"I see. I didn't think that far. I just thought you looked tired..."

Harry cautiously placed his hand on my forehead. His slightly cold hand touched my forehead.

Did I have a fever? I'm not sure.

"Hey, mischievous kid. Didn't I tell you not to take advantage of your position to curry favor with our king?"

At the end of the hallway, Olivia Lanche in her gray priestly robes was heard.

"Oh, that sister is here again..."

"Why can't I come here?"

"Why does someone who should be in the temple keep coming to the palace?"

"Are you trying to trap me in the temple and do something to our king and me? Do you want to die?"

"What are you saying? How rude."

I stared blankly at the approaching Olivia and Harry's eye contact.

Liana is a key frontline fighter.

Airi takes care of the trauma of refugees.

Harry is my advisor and secretary who always gives me his opinion.

"I have to go preach to the refugees who arrived today. I came to see our king's face for a moment before that."

Olivia Lanche was the leader of the Unified Holy Sect.

So.

In this Edina archipelago, a religion similar to Protestantism was the mainstream religion, and Olivia Lanche was the leader of that sect.

* * *

The Masin religion forces that were hiding in the Gekorgis Desert.

According to Olivia's information, Friday's Gajoo Gallarsh led them from the desert to the southern continent.

The demon king created a country in the far sea of the southern continent and claimed to make the Masin religion forces his people.

They were able to organize a large-scale caravan and bring tens of thousands of Masin religion forces to the archipelago.

However, there was bound to be noise.

Their religious practices were grotesque even to me.

Should I call it primitive or cruel?

The sight of Masin doing all sorts of strange things, including cannibalism and human sacrifice, as Masin wanted, was nothing but disgust.

Moreover, if they were not ordinary Odae Jushin religion forces but Masin religion forces and they were involved in such things on a daily basis, they could never be assimilated into the general public.

So, under my orders, Olivia Lanche carried out a large-scale conversion work on the Masin religion forces.

They considered me, the demon king, as the representative of Masin.

An old misunderstanding.

The demons do not believe in Masin. The belief in the Masin religion was just a strange faith that arose from misunderstandings between humans and demons, who actually believed in the same gods of the Unified Holy Sect. Therefore, the work was more about resolving long-standing misunderstandings between humans and demons than religious reform. Under the protagonist's orders, Olivia Lanche carried out a large-scale conversion work on the Masin religion forces, who were brought to the archipelago by Friday's Gajoo Gallarsh. The process was not smooth, as there was strong resistance from extremists among both the Unified Holy Sect and the Masin religion forces. However, the protagonist and Olivia were able to suppress the extremists and unify the two religions. As a result, new priests who could handle the power of both gods emerged, and a new religion called the Unified Sacred Sect was established, with Olivia as its leader. The belief that humans and demons worship the same gods became common knowledge on the Edina Island, and the Unified Sacred Sect provided a new spiritual home for the people. The trauma of extreme situations was taken care of by Ailey, while the Unified Sacred Sect provided long-term peace of mind. "The Masin religion followers may cause problems occasionally, but they no longer engage in cannibalism or human sacrifice like before. If it's an order from me, who became the representative of the gods and demons, the Masin religion followers will generally comply. Since they are also human, it wasn't that difficult for them to assimilate. However, they are an army. The priests of the Edina Island and the Friday's Gajoo Gallarsh were not that powerful to begin with. The majority of the Masin religion priests now had their own army, as they could also use the power of the gods. It's also true that a considerable number of Masin religion priests were dispatched to Fort Mocna. Even I, as I watched, felt like they were some kind of incomprehensible horror, using both healing and curse powers at the same time. It's like wondering if it's okay even though you're watching it. In the end, everyone is living their own busy lives. As Riana said, when you see everyone taking care of their own big tasks, you wonder what's different from being one of the Four Heavenly Kings. Three of the demon kings are also human. Is this okay? It's not that strange considering that even among the previous Four Heavenly Kings, Larken Simeon'state was also human. "Anyway, I'll go. Don't push yourself too hard, Your Majesty." Olivia and I had a conversation and Olivia quickly left the palace because she had a preaching schedule. If you think about it, Olivia is not only the leader of the sacred sect, but also a very important pillar of my military power. She is also responsible for political projects targeting civilians. She is a religious leader, defense minister, and civilian business executive. If Olivia is not there, my regime will not collapse, but I will die from overwork. Harry watched Olivia's back as she left and sighed deeply. "The Council of Elders will be held soon." I nodded my head at Harry's words. The Council of Elders. It has now become another name for the Vampire Council."