The day after the founding of the Astor Empire, it was 19:00.

　It was 19:00 and I accompanied my men out of the dominion's domain to make the declaration.

　--Watch your surroundings!

　I cautiously stepped south from the area of control in order to make my voice reach as far away as possible.

''O-Kan-sama, we have no hostile forces within a kilometer of our perimeter.

　When the maple returns from its reconnaissance, it approaches my side noiselessly and reports.

'Two kilometres away?'
It's in the middle of nowhere.

　The area around me is 3km long, so we can't fight humanity today.

　Is this the right place?

''Uh ... uh ... uh ... to the humanity of Kanazawa City. Nice to meet you, is that right?　It's the Demon King Theon who controls the territory controlled by the north of the prefecture. Unlike the Demon King Kaoru of Komatsu City - I didn't come here today to declare war on you, so please be assured. I have a report to the humanity in Kanazawa City today and this is why I called out to them.

　But I'm never going to get used to speaking alone without a response.

''Then, I'll cut to the chase. I hereby declare that my dominion over the northern part of the county - the area that unifies the county - will be founded as 'Astor Empire'. We, the Astor Empire, are open to any mankind who wishes to surrender. Fact!　Your fellow human beings, who lived in the north of the prefecture, including the city of Zhuzhou and many others, are living a wholesome life in my controlled territory. Humans who wish for a peaceful future, come unarmed to my controlled territory!　Then I promise to give my 'Emperor Astor' a safe haven!

　I announced the founding of the country and the recommendation. The recommendation came as an afterthought. I have only faintly hoped that I'd be able to win as many of my fellow countrymen as possible.

　After completing what I had to say, I returned to the territory I controlled.


　◆


What do you think?

　When I returned to the realm of control, I went to the Information Management Department - the residence of Tusk.

'It's tough, isn't it?'
What do you mean tough?
The name "Astor Empire" did appear on social media for a brief moment, but it was deleted as soon as possible. But it was deleted as soon as it appeared on social media.
What about TV and video streaming sites?
Including the local ones we've had zero exposure.

　Tusk replied to my question with a shrug of his shoulders.

'It was taken as a declaration of war... or without any misinformation?
None. This time Zion-san's actions themselves are non-existent in form.
Well, that's fine, because if it appears on social media for even a moment it proves that my declaration has been received. We'll just have to continue steadily.
I'll let you know if I need anything else.

　I left Tusk's abode.

　When I returned to my room, I took out my smartphone, which had become a dedicated "Laplace" activation device.

　I wondered if any useful information had been dropped.

　After logging into Laplace, I looked into the "Senior Demon King's Gathering Threads".


　313 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Is there a Tokikama in here?

　314 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0115
　What's a TOKIKAMA*?

　315 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Huh? I don't know about TOKIKAMA☆, or is Iiko really the senior demon king?

　316 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0115
　You continue to be a disgusting bastard.

　317 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　What? Don't throw away the possibility that I'm a little girl!

　318 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0031
　How many times have we had this exchange....
　So, Nina, what is "Tokikama*"?

　319 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　You really don't get it, do you?

　320 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　Nina, that's enough.

　321 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Let me tell you something.
It's the same as "Tokimeki Kaosu Maou", or "Tokimeki Kaosu Maou" for short. It's the same as "Tokimeki Kaosu Maou" for short.

　322 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0115
　What is it?　That glittery, painful name.

　323 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0159
Tokimeki Kaosu Maou is the 13th Evil Star.

　324 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Yikes, the storytelling is so much better.

　325 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　If you're a qualified demon king who can participate in this thread, it's very likely that you're a 'thirteen evil star'.

　326 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0159
　There are currently nine participants. No wonder they are all "Thirteen Evil Stars"!

　327 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　If everyone here is really following the rules, wow.

　328 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　Nina, I thought we decided against that topic, didn't we?

　329 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. So, is there a "Thirteen Evil Stars" in here?

　330 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0115
　Stupid. Even if I did, there's no way I could tell you!

　331 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0031
　If you give out your identity, your account will be frozen.

　332 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　You're so boring.
　There's one guy........who's been confirmed as a "thirteenth evil star", though.

　333 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0013
　If you set up a reign at that point in time, they'll know.

　334 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　Even I can't defend myself on that one.


　Cold sweat drips down my face as I pour over the thread. By the looks of it, I guess they know that ID0536 is me.

　335 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0536
　So, are there any other 'thirteen evil stars' besides me (...)?

　336 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　Huh? W, speaking of which, you're a little sub-row, aren't you?

　337 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　If I were to declare myself a 'thirteen evil stars', would you believe me, Sableau?

　338 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0536
　I don't know.

　339 Unnamed Senior Demon King ID: 0007
　That's the answer. I don't believe you unless you can show me proof. But you can't show proof.

　340 Nameless Senior Demon King ID: 0027
　I'm not even going to show you the proof, though.


　Frustrated by Nina's incendiary comments, I tried to read the new posts - and I found

"Error, the thread you're looking for does not exist.

　--?

　

　Did my comments violate the terms and conditions?

　For what it's worth, I loved looking at that thread.... Are you lucky that your account wasn't frozen?

　As I was trapped in a strange sense of loss, a notification appeared on the smartphone I was holding in my hand, letting me know that I had received an email.