Mr. Ferro!　What the hell does this report mean...!

　A conference room.
　Surrounding the oval-shaped table is - to put it crudely - a big man.

　When my name is called, I turn my face, with a smile pasted on it as usual, to the other party.
　This gathering is, in a manner of speaking, a debriefing session about the original dungeon we were commissioned to investigate.

''I thought it was as described. The investigation of the 24th original dungeon was completed without a hitch. Not only were we able to collect valuable data, but we also obtained a lot of treasures. As per the previous agreement, the things we acquired through the Spirit's Trials belong to the person in question. As for the others--

It doesn't matter!

　For publicly recorded magical tools, their whereabouts are thoroughly tracked.
　Also, except for dungeon capture and defense and very special cases, even those who have the right to own them do not have the right to use them.

　In modern times, they are basically treated as antiques.
　If you have money, connections or luck, you may be able to have it, but you should not use it.

　For example, if there is a criminal act that an ordinary person can't do, the owner of the magic tool is even examined along with the [position (job)] holder and race that can do it.

　All the magic tools discovered this time will also be recorded, and the ownership of the magic tools will be acknowledged by me and Margrethe-dono's trade association.
　Although there are some things that are dangerous if abused, she and I will strive to prevent such things from happening to our respective prestige.

　Nevertheless, it will be in the form of handing dangerous magic tools to Margret-dono, who is a human (normal) and who has built up trust in her ancestral trade.

　Because I am a demon.

　You can't avoid trouble, except for the inevitable.
　They are aware that they 'know' such moves of mine.

　I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to do anything about it.

''Then what is the problem?''

'I know!　[Black Mage] It's Leme!

"...what about him?

'Too much black magic!　A horn performance that rivals the [Demon King]!　The amount of magical power he possesses is unthinkable for his age!　And on top of that, a spirit blessing!　Not only that, that guy is too close to many [brave] people--too close!

　A voice rises to say yes, that's right.
　It's well hidden on a civilian level, but even if it's the Demon King's Castle, it's a dungeon. They pay their staff well, and there are those who can know that Leme-dono is working as Lemegeton.

The fourth 【Brave Man of Flame】 is Fenix's closest friend, the first 【Brave Man of Storm】 is highly regarded by Aerial, the ninety-ninth 【Brave Man of Silver Ridge】 is so close to him that he disguises himself as a demon and cooperates with him, and the ninety-fifth 【Brave Man of the Eternal】Ellie, the ninety-fifth 【Brave Man of the Eternal】 and others end up helping the entire party to defend the castle!　[Lake Brave] Wraith professed that he wanted him as a party member, and now he became the benefactor of the second-ranked [Jet Black Brave] Ex...!　Don't tell me you don't know what this is all about!

　A different person said.

''He has made a significant contribution to the investigation and capture of the original dungeon.

　My statement, "I'm not going to hear the end of it.

'Quarrelsome!　The question is, how much of a threat will he be when he becomes an enemy of humanity!

　Only those who know him can say it's too trivial.

　It may be that those with power cannot protect a country unless they first question it.
　In fact, sadly, adventurer crumble and demon crumble - mainly those who woke up in a combat-type [position (job)] and didn't get any other aptitudes - sometimes fall to criminals.

　It's too late for them to cause a terrible incident.
　For example, if you give them the option of knighthood, will they become knights who serve their country, or will they grow resentment towards the viewers who did not appreciate them?

　Some agencies are said to keep a close eye on the movements of adventurers and demons on a daily basis. In this conference room, there would be a high ranking person from that institution sitting in this conference room as well.

''As the Demon King's Army Chief of Staff, he has the support of many sub-humans and has ties to some of the best adventurers. If he falls into the wrong hands, what kind of trouble will he be in? As well as his own power, he'll be in trouble if someone close to him gets involved and helps him do something bad!

　Spirits who control the four great attributes are the allies of humanity.
　They are beings that lend their power to mankind in accordance with the old pact.
　When the contractor has fallen into evil, the pact is broken.

　But that's not the point.
　If the 【Brave Man】, who has accepted a large reduction in his battle power and receives great support from the people, becomes an ally of one 【Black Mage】.
　And that too, even in the unlikely event that it happens, more than one.

　The impact on society would be immeasurable.

　It's their job to be suspicious. That's fine. It's not just okay, it's healthy.
　It's just that no matter how much you try to keep it under wraps, it always leaks out somewhere as a rumor.
　It's not uncommon for things to develop into something more troublesome if you have the personnel to actually work on it.

　The tragedy that happened to the Ex Party at one point in time was similar to this.

　[Jet Black Brave] Ex and [Knight King] Arthur received blessings from spirits other than the four great spirits.
　Although there had been a lot of noise since their debut, more and more people showed interest in them after they found out that they were excellent.

　The impetus for this was a request for cooperation from some research organization?
　There are still many mysteries about spirits. They are so mysterious that they rarely appear in public except for the four major spirits and their offshoots.
　Somewhere, he wondered if their stories could be used to help him in his future relationship with the spirits.

　And the rumor spread quickly - countless people who 'wanted to get the blessing of a spirit like the two of them' sprang up and began to roam around them.
　The two of them can only talk about what happened to them, but among those who didn't get their hopes up, there were a few who hurled mindless slanders and spread rootless rumors.

　Such things happened to each of the other members as well.

　For example, [Seer Wizard] Merlin used the Evil Law to subdue multiple spirits, so he could manipulate various attributes to a high level, and so on.

　The [Transcendent] Mordo is not some kind of special ancestry, but a monster created by human experimentation, and so on.

　The absolute guardian] Gallaher's unusual role as a shield is strange, he's probably cheating to avoid damage by manipulating his magical body (avatar).

　Sometimes information, even if it has no basis in fact, permeates the world, and the number of people dancing around it can be enormous.

　Being special does not necessarily deliver happiness to the person.
　It doesn't necessarily mean that the people around you will bless that specialness.

　It can happen that even if Leme-dono has obtained something as a result of just living hard, it is only dangerous in the eyes of unrelated others.

　Now, how do I round them up? Normally, this would be a place to show my skills.
　Perhaps today I don't have to.

　I play with words and persuade people with the presentation of benefits because that is the only way I can serve my purpose.
　There are beings in the world who can solve things without such slumber.

　For example.


I'm going to interrupt you.


　-- my father, for example.

　He walked into the conference room as if it were a given.
　This facility, this room, you can't imagine how high security was put in place before he got there.

　That is meaningless to him.
　He didn't even have to hurt the guards.
　If he decides to pass through it, no one can think of interfering with it anymore.

　Who could work the impudence of blocking the king's path?
　The only thing the weak can do in the face of the overwhelmingly strong is fear.
　The air in the conference room changed.

　No one could say a single word.
　You try your utmost to sharpen your awareness of every breath you take and do your best to keep the king happy.
　A pressure so strong that it makes you forget your position and nothing else, and pulls out your instincts.

　The strongest [Demon King] Lucifer controls the place just by being there.
　He's a king by nature.

"...I hear this is a place for us to have a trivial discussion about that...

Father, what a surprise. By that, do you mean, Lord Leme?

　Quickly, I add a supplement in the form of a question.　
　My father, as a matter of course, does not respond to my words.

　But not denying it was an explanation to those around me.
　I was able to make them understand that this was Lord Leme's story.

That is my apprentice.

　It was only when they heard those words that they seemed to realize that their father's right horn was missing.

'He's just a man who foolishly aims to live a life of bravery. That's all he is, a little boy.''

　My father takes a step forward and a few people fall out of their chairs with a clatter.

"If any of you join with me, try to interrupt that for once. All those involved will not even have time to regret it.

　His words would be firmly etched into the souls of everyone in this place.
　Most of them only trembled.

''Shh, but........!　I can't afford to do nothing in the face of even the slightest suspicion...!

　........great.
　That person who has managed to stand up must have strong convictions.

'I suppose.'

　My father said, somewhat happily.
　Yes, my father didn't come to threaten the people here with anything.
　The reason why he is releasing his usually suppressed magical power is so that they can feel his own power firsthand.

If, for some impossible reason, that man's mind should fall to the ground I will take care of him. That is my duty as a teacher.

　This is a promise from the world's strongest to humanity.

　An assurance that [Black Mage] Leme will never be a dangerous person.
　And if that is betrayed, the Demon King himself will take responsibility for his disciple's misbehavior.

　There is nothing more reassuring than this.
　If it was an ordinary human's words, he wouldn't be worthy of this kind of verbal trust.

　But he's the [Demon King] Lucifer.
　A lie?　It's impossible.

　What would he have to do to deceive the world?

　No one will ever find such a thing in the past, present, or future.
　Because there is no such thing.

　Everyone in this room knows that.
　For those of us in positions to participate in this conference, it is a subject that we once considered dangerous and investigated.

That's all.

　With that, my father left the room.
　The air in the conference room feels lighter, as if it was released from gravity.

　-- a release of magic power that even I can feel the breathlessness. He seems to be very mindful of his apprentice.

　I can't imagine in the past that my father would care about someone so much.
　Thinking about that, I look around at everyone and smile.

'Oh no, my father is ridiculously rude.

　The rest of the meeting went smoothly.
　Needless to say, the response to Reme-dono was 'quiet for now'.


　And after the meeting ended.
　When I got into the carriage to pick him up, my father was already in it.

'Hey, it's been a while,'

Let me tell you an example.

Don't you say hello?

　I chuckle and sit down across from my father.

　The example is when my father sent me an email asking me to resolve the occurrence of the original dungeon.
　We even casually talked about the current situation of Leme-dono. That's probably why my father showed up like this.

　And actually, I told him about another project.
　This is a plan that I told Aerial-dono's story to [Indomitable Brave Man] Altrito-dono as well.

"I'll take you up on your scheme.

Huh...

　-- Here it comes.........!

　I almost sat up.

　I couldn't stop my heart from racing.
　My body trembled with joy and excitement.

　This is what I've been working for, for this future.
　I hadn't built my ideal world in time, but I didn't know that my purpose would be fulfilled first.

　My father was bored with this crappy world and disappeared from the public stage.
　I haven't forgotten the words my father let slip when we met again.
　When I asked him how I could bring back the strongest Demon King, his answer was.

　-- ''...if an enemy worthy of using his horns appears, or...''

''Did you feel that much value to Lord Leme?''

　My father did not answer, but looked at me.

'I'm going to give you some names. Gather them all together, or say my name.

　What he mentioned was the name of the one-horse demons who had once gathered under 【Demon King】 Lucifer.
　Although it was limited, it meant - the strongest Demon King's Army, its revival.

　◇

　When I woke up in the morning, I felt eyes on me.
　My dorm, my room, my bedroom.

　Mila, the beautiful vampire, was in a cuddle position, looking at my face with a happy smile on her face.

''Good morning, Reme-san. You looked lovely asleep.''

"...Good morning. How long have you been watching?

"Uh-huh, all the way.

　Since the night I took her hand in mine, I feel like........something like an aura of happiness emanating from Mira-san has come into the air.

　In the past, when our eyes met, for example, she would smile at me when we met, but if before she was smiling at me, nowadays I can't help but smile at her.

'You'll be making breakfast in no time, won't you?

Uh-huh.

　Mila leaves the room.

'That nerd is pretty bad. Because in the morning--''

You don't have to tell me.

　I raise my upper body and a black chick sits on top of my head.
　It's dark.

　I still don't know what the spirit is that controls it. I've asked him several times, but he's been deflected every time.
　It doesn't seem to control dreams and visions.
　Well, he himself?　This spirit?　If you don't want to say "I don't want to", I'll let it go.

''If you're more interested in us, I might tell you about it~''

What's for breakfast?

Isn't it awful that you're more concerned about the morning's menu than the identity of your partner?

　I headed to the bathroom and washed my face before going to the living room.
　When I got to the dining room table and turned on the video board (TV), I saw an ex-party on.

''Inntabiyu again?　People like this.'

　Waiting for the original dungeon to disappear, the survey team decided to leave the village.
　Since the party in the village was free to participate, the survey group also provided food. The [Cook] people also cooperated with us, and a wide variety of food was lined up.

　It was a very enjoyable time.

　By the way, my parents weren't surprised when I told them who I was the day before.
　...well, that's because they had noticed it in the first place.
　When I asked them when they noticed, they replied that it was the moment they came out.

　It must have been very curious, but people didn't ask me more than what I told them.
　For example, 'What did you do with your horns?'

　-- 'As long as you're not unhappy, that's fine'.

　Or maybe...I thought for a moment that maybe...my master had come to explain to me.
　At the time, I was only thinking of my own thoughts, but after thinking about it, having a child from another place take over the corner is a pretty serious matter.

　Even if I heard about the child's determination, would that be enough to get my master to carry it out?
　I'm curious, but that's probably not what I should be asking, since the parents and the masters haven't said anything.

''........Reme. Xu-san's face looks swollen...''

'Oh, I heard Mr. Mordo hit me before the recording. It was in an email from Ms. Merlin.

　This was not a live broadcast. Mr. Merlin had written in an email about the recording.
　Or rather, the email only mentioned the matter.

　Just then, the reporter mentioned it.

'Yes, Mr. Ex, well, are you hurt?'

　Interview.
　I might ask about the original dungeon and the reason for their non-attendance since it's per party.

　It's pretty common on the way home and back to town.
　Me and Mira-san also received a few.

'Oh, no, don't worry about it. I'm just coiling up a bit within the party.''

　From what I've heard, Mr. Mordo was upset with Ex-san's weakness and the fact that she hadn't told him how she really felt.
　He thought that since Ex-san was strong, there was no need for him to be weak, and since they were his friends, there was no need for him to hide his true feelings.

　In addition, it's likely that Mord-san had some thoughts about this, since it caused him to forgo participation in the raid and the party members to temporarily go their separate ways.

　That Mordo-san crossed her arms unhappily, and [Guardian] Galach-san smiled as if she was troubled.
　Arthur-san was holding his forehead and Merlin-san was laughing with her belly.

''Kook, phew, it's a masterpiece.......!　I never get bored with you guys.'

　The reporter looked puzzled, but started the interview.
　I watched it while having breakfast with Mira-san.

''I heard that Mr. Ex struggled a lot during the Spirit's Trials,''

"Yes, it's a great way to poke at your weak heart.

You're pathetic. Oh yeah, Leme!　You saved the a**h*le leader?　I appreciate it.

　I'm surprised when my name suddenly comes up.

'Yes, I'm indebted to Reme.'

　Mr. Arthur nodded.

　Mr. Xu didn't hide the fact that he had been eliminated once. And that I had used the right of wish to enter his dream.
　That also brought more attention to me than ever before.

''Oh my goodness, you're attracting even more attention again, Leme.

　Mira says happily.

'Yes, he reminded me of that. The longer one spends on something, the more one fears that it will be wasted. That's what happened to me. I was so scared and scared, I couldn't be in pain, and I ended up drowning in the dream world. And yet, even in that dream, I was an adventurer.'

　Mr. Xu gave a small smile before continuing.

''Apparently I don't want to spend my time in a heavenly kingdom of happiness only. No matter what kind of freedom I'm given, no matter how many times I'm rewound in time, I'll make the same choices, gather the same friends and aim for the same summit. Even though we know that the hardships of hell will be waiting for us there, and we don't know when it will end, we can't help but jump in.'

"You've overcome your fears and passed the test, right?

'No, I'm not sure about that. Maybe fear is not a match. You can never lose it. You don't overcome it; you just have to hold it and go on. So I'm going to go on from here on out, despite my fears. Together with my best friends, we are going to be the best in the future.

　To prove that you are not only worthy of the first place.

　I am sure that all people who try their best will suffer similarly.
　There are more people who devote a lot of time and work hard to achieve their goals, but are not rewarded.

　It's hell to give up and hell to not give up.
　The pain of separation and the pain of staying are only understood by those who are serious about it.

　And yet, I hope that one day we'll end up with a smile on our faces.

　--We are running through the hell that we have chosen.