That day.
　The Demon King's Castle was enveloped in a strangely tense atmosphere.

　There was an event being held that could have serious implications for all of the Demon King's troops.

　That was.....
　It was an audience with the Demon King by the previous four Heavenly Kings, Grandfather Grandfather.

◆

Hi, hi. Are you hurt already?　Is it safe to play outside?

　The demon king is still in a light tone of voice.
　Even with this tone of voice, his appearance was old and great, which made it even more eerie.

　In front of him, a massive, massive man was kneeling.

　He was the Granbaza of the previous Four Heavenly Kings, "Karma Fire," who was renowned as the strongest man of all time and was still renowned for his many heroic stories.
　This was his first audience with the Demon King since he retired from active duty.

　He had been away from the Demon King's Castle for a long time due to the injuries he sustained in the battle with the previous brave men and the resulting retirement.

I'm in a good mood," he said. It's with a sweaty face that I've been away from you for so long.
It's fine. It's fine. You know that a year or two is just a blink of an eye for me, right?

　Even if he was the strongest of all time, a child was the same in front of the Demon King.
　That's how absolute the Demon King was to the demon tribe.

"The reason I have excused myself today is because I have a request for the Demon King.
'What?　I'd rather ask for a favor than be asked to do one, wouldn't you?
It's about my son, sir.

　Even so, I don't know if the Demon King's playfulness or seriousness is the reason why he doesn't follow the mysterious pace of the Demon King, because he is the strongest man in the world.

I'm very happy and grateful to my father for having my son Bashvaza as the Fourth Heavenly King. However, as the person who has been responsible for the Demon King's Army in the past, I have to think about the gains and losses of the entire Demon King's Army.

　It was no longer a perception shared by the entire Demon King's Army that Bashbarza, the current Four Heavenly Kings' 'Ayan Fire', was not worthy of the title.

　Numerous failures.
　He didn't even show a modicum of remorse and has now even abandoned his duties.

It's not good for morale if we let that idiot run around any longer. I beg you to issue a royal decree to remove him from office immediately...
'What?　It's okay.　It's still going around as it is, right?
'That's because Droyer is standing alone. Her work is marvelous. But we can't continue to burden her forever.
Hmm, it's just so annoying to have to reselect the right person from scratch.

　The demon king just acted like a spoiled child.

"Are you sure you're really here, Granberza?　You're going to close the door on your son, aren't you?
''For the sake of the Demon King's army, the Demon King, and all the Demons, his son's future is a trivial matter. His incompetence is his crime. I won't let anyone else take the blame for his incompetence.
Are you a tough daddy, huh?　But is that really the only reason?

　The Demon King's flaccid, yet sharp tongue flies.

''There are more things you're angry about. Like the fact that he fired Dariel-kun without permission.
''Huh?''

　Grumberza's entire body froze.
　It's a good idea to have a good time.

''You bought Dariel-kun, didn't you? I thought that the new Four Heavenly Kings, who were all young and inexperienced, would turn out just fine with Dariel-kun's support. If they dismissed him, they'd be pissed off.
Indeed, excluding an aide as good as Dariel is proof of my incompetence. It's one of many.
You don't, do you?

　'Demon King,' he says.

'You're not angry at Bashvaza-kun for being incompetent. You're angry at Dariel-kun for getting rid of him, aren't you?　The men you have raised with your hands are more important to you than the sons you've shed your blood with.
....
You've never let your feelings get in the way of your job. Except when it comes to Dariel. I like that about you, because it's in your nature.

　Glamberza fell silent without a word in return.
　Only the Demon King was the only one who could cajole the all-burning Flame General to this extent.

''Oh, that's right. Tell me a story, Grumberza-kun!''

　The demon king suddenly said.

I love that story. If you do it again, I'll be in a good mood and I'll probably listen to your request!

　This kind of selfishness of the Demon King is not the first time, and the other party is the absolute leader of the Demon Race, so he cannot be disobeyed.

''Is this about your encounter with Dariel...?''
'Yes, yes!　That's it!

　The Demon King liked to talk about this, and every time he had the opportunity to have a solo meeting with Granberza, he pestered him and forced him to do so.
　The story.

It was a long time ago now.

　The faces of the four Heavenly Kings back then were also completely different from what they looked like now.

　One of them was a demon tribe called Bezetan of the 'Muddy Water'.
　He was powerful, but he was a s*xual predator and a scumbag. He was a troubled child who was hated by the other Four Heavenly Kings as well.

　That Bezetan was dead.
　He was killed by a brave man.

It seems that he had been running his own operation in secret from his colleagues. It failed and he was returned. By the time I noticed and rushed over, the brave man had left. Bezethan had been mortally wounded.

　He was still breathing, but he couldn't be saved by any means.
　His colleague, in such a state, is said to have said to Granberza.

'I left a trump card. If you use that one well, the brave man will surely be able to defeat it.''

　Then he told her what seemed to be a secret hiding place, and shortly afterwards he died.

　When Granbaza went to the place indicated, he found a newborn infant placed there.

'I guessed at first that this was Bezetan's son. He was a bachelor, but it's not uncommon for him to get his hands on some daughter and have a baby.

　Bezetan was hated as a villain, but has he awakened to his parents' feelings in the face of my death?

''I left you a trump card. I'm sure that if you use it well, you'll be able to defeat the brave man." Grambarza received the will as meaning that the son who inherits his talent will surely become a strong man who can defeat the brave man.

　Although he disliked it during his lifetime, he was entrusted with a forgotten memento from a colleague and Glambarza sincerely raised the baby.
　He wanted to raise her to be the best wielder of the demon tribe as his late father wished.

　A year passed, then two years, then several more years....
　When the child became more materialistic and grew into a boy, Glamberza noticed something strange.

''The child was unable to use magic. How is it possible to have a father who was so great that he was selected as the Four Heavenly Kings, yet not inherit even a little of his talent?　And after a good deal of research, I realized something significant.

　That the child is of the human race.

'I was astonished. The child Bezetan had entrusted to him was not a demon, but a different species. Why would he do such a thing?　As long as we're of a different race, he's not even the son of Bezetan.

　It would be confusing.
　But my former colleague who knows the answer is dead and has no mouth to speak.

　So what shall we do?
　There is no point in raising a child of the enemy human race any longer.
　It was normal to think so, but Granbaza did not abandon the child's upbringing.

　He spent years raising them. The time they had spent together had made the nurturer and the nurtured hard to share.

　Glambarza was deeply devoted to the child he named Dariel.

'Fortunately, Dariel was a really good learner, except for magic. Putting the arts of the army, the skills of a general, and all that sort of thing, Dariel became a great assistant.

　And in fact, Dariel demonstrated his abilities as the assistant to the Four Heavenly Kings.
　It can be said that his talent for generalship, trained by the fierce general Granbaza, is incomparable, and it is because of Dariel's assistance that he was able to fight the previous brave men.

'But every time Dariel helped me, I couldn't help but wonder if this was really the right thing to do. I wondered if this was really the right thing to do.

　No matter how much he achieved, Dariel, who couldn't use magic, would never be able to stand up in the Demon King's army.
　On the contrary, his true birth as a human race could cause him to instantly lose his position.

　Dariel was, in truth, a genius.
　He was a pure and honest young man who could learn and master anything but magic.
　The person who recognized his talent and cared for him more than anyone else was his nurturing parent, Granbaza.

　He loved his greatness so much that he tried to keep it, hiding his origins, but that was just his own selfishness, wasn't it?
　Granbaza has been tormented by such conflicts day in and day out.

"I was furious when I heard that Bashbursa had thrown him out, but at the same time, there was a part of me that thought, 'This is good. As a human, Dariel will never be happy as long as she is in the Demon King's army.

　Is that why I should leave the Demon King's Army and hang on to the possibility of finding happiness on my own?

　Now Dariel's whereabouts are unknown, but I could only hope that he had shown his brilliance somewhere and was on his way.

'Wow, that's interesting. It's always good to hear stories about you, Glamberza-kun.

　The Demon King crackled and clapped his hands.

'I cannot thank you, Demon King, for knowing the truth and tolerating it. Since the time you approved of Dariel, I have been prepared to offer this life, this life, to the Demon King at any time.
Because the Demon King is omnipotent, your life doesn't really matter if you're alive or not. But it's still a regret, isn't it?

　That's how I left Dariel, who I raised with such love and care as a son, without a word of goodbye.

''........I am old enough to be a good boy. I may never see him again. But that is just as it should be.

　He was so fond of Dariel that he kept him in a place where he shouldn't be.
　After all that, it was his own son who was unreasonably banished.

'I am not worthy of that boy's adoration to begin with. Dariel should have grabbed his own life in a place I don't know where he belongs. He has the strength to do so.

　Strict on its own.
　That was one of the factors that made GranBaza the strongest of all time.

　If it were true, he would want to do everything in his power to find his son, whom he had raised with great care.
　However, his guilt over his origins was making him hesitate to act.

''.........''

　Looking down at such a heavyweight, the Demon King looked vacantly at him.

''........Lux Village.
What?
It's a small village on the outskirts of the demon territory, a bit outside the human area. A human village, of course. Of course, it's a human village. It's a good distance to go for a walk while you're rehabilitating.
''Demon King-sama, what in the world........?


　Glambarza immediately thought of this.
　The Demon King's versatility that surpasses one's imagination.
　It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get a good deal more.

''I'm sorry, Demon King-sama.......!　This kindness to me...!
I like to have fun. You can do what you want with it.

　It is difficult for the living to break off the compassion, even if they try to break it off.
　Glamberza slapped the Demon King deeply and immediately resigned.

　Where are we going?
　I didn't need to ask that.

''The Demon King knows everything!

　Even things that Granberza and Dariel himself don't know.

　The Demon King knows everything, and yet he loves to be funny.