"The power of the true demon king...

　Me repeating her words.

　In other words, does this mean that my current power is incomplete?

　No, to begin with, before talking about such things──.

"For all intents and purposes, I'm not that Demon King Yulisha.

　Well, to say there's a face to be found would be an understatement....

''Megafire!''

''Whoa!''

　She suddenly shot a top-level flame spell at me, and I hurriedly deployed a defensive spell.

''What are you doing all of a sudden?''

You're not supposed to be doing that.

If it weren't for me, you'd be dead right now.

"Because you insulted my son. Your disrespect to the Demon King is worthy of death.

　A girl with her mouth agape.

　Is she sulking?
　I don't want you to shoot 'mega fire' at me for that.

I'm sure you've been trying to kill a strawberry. The one who actually killed him was the other one.

　........You mean Lyle.
　If you know that, then this guy is still Yurisha?

'But the Yurisha I fought against had a bit more of a charisma as a demon king. And you just look like a little guy.

'Ragnabomb'!

''So stop shooting attack spells out of nowhere!

　I cast a defensive spell this time as well, to get past her magic.

''........hmm?　That... that's the Demon King's crest.

　I noticed a pattern floating on the back of her hand.
　It's the same design as my Demon King crest.

''Then I knew you were Yulisha...?

Hmm, now you believe me.

　Little Yulisha folded her arms in a pompous manner and sniffed.

'Well, Warawa originally wanted to build a mental body (astral) in his adult form, too. Somehow he was fixed in this form. Or it could be the influence of the Miracle Armor you were using.

"You mean 'Gram'?

　The Miracle Armor, the Gram, which has the ability to block magical effects.

　It was my favorite weapon when I was a hero.

　After the battle with Yulisha, I looked for Gram, but I couldn't find it.
　The other favorite weapon, a pistol, was found, but....

''I interfered with the Warawa's revival magic and brought you back to life as the Demon King instead. It's a disaster to have a weapon in your possession.

　Yulisha scowled at me.
　I flinched at the resentful look in her eyes.

'Come to think of it, aren't you dead?'

　I'm going to digress.

'The body is extinct, but the soul is immortal. The body has been destroyed, but the soul is immortal. Think of this as an astral body - well, a temporary body made of mental energy.

　Yulisha puffed out her chest, eh?

The current straw cannot influence this world. You will have to do your best as the Demon King.

"As the Demon King...

"You don't want to fight for the demons because you're ex-human?

I'm dead because that person betrayed me.

　I don't hate all people, but...

And I don't think I don't want to protect them because they are demons.

　It hadn't been long since we met, but I felt warm and fuzzy when I met Stella, Lilim and the others.
　I naturally felt the desire to protect them.

Hmm, I'm still a little confused about what to do, but I think the feeling is real. Well, let's get started.

　Yulisha grins.

''From the previous generation to the current one - the Demon King's succession ceremony. If the Demon King's power is incomplete, he will not be able to fight.

Not really.　We were able to hold off the invasion of the brave men in plenty of time.

What, are you that powerful?　Let's see some status.

　While saying it, Yulisha chanted 'Status Display'.



　Name: Freed
　Rank: Demon King
　Overall LV: 4742
　H P: 35766
　M P: 91205
　Attack: 70530
　Protection: 45400
　Evasion: 31985
　Hit: 55739

　Equipment
　　　　　The Robe of the Supreme Being
　　　　　The Demon King's Staff
　　　　　The Mask of the Demon King

　skill
　　　　　: Intimidation (LV 261)
　　　　　: Waves of miasma (Lv 553)
　　　　　Demon Obedience (Lv. 19)
　　　　　Demon King's Emblem (LV2)

　incantation
...


　Hmm?　That's a bit of a step up from the last time I saw you.

''Nah, nah, what is this?!''

　Yurisha shouted in surprise.

''Impossible... it's too impossible... it's an overwhelming number, more than any of the previous Demon Kings!　Even this strawberry is level 631. Why would a mere mortal resurrected entity like you...?

Why don't you think so?

　I don't know.

"Or is this just another example of your miracle armor?　Did you get an error when transcribing the ability values during resuscitation... no, the numbers are too big for that...

　Yurisha growled.

''Well, that's not something to think about now, is it? Right now──the first thing to do is to hand over the true power of the Demon King to you.

True power, huh? But it's a piece of cake in its current state.

When I say power, I'm not talking about simple combat skills.

　Yurisha shakes her head.

''To 'pass on true power' means to 'qualify as a demon king'.

"Qualified...?

For example, you have the right to hold the Purgatory Demon King's Sword (Ladis), the essence of the Demon King's power, or you have the right to follow the Demon King's rider, the Belga Elfida. You can also have the right to have the Demon King's Ride, the "Belga Elfida" which is the Demon King's ride. And the acquisition of the activation ability of the Demon King's Castle, which is the final defense mechanism of the demon world - there are several other things as well.

　It's all new to me.

　It's hard to imagine that Stella would forget to explain them, or maybe it's information that only the past demon kings have known.

''I'll give it to you as soon as possible. Give me your hand.

Okay.

　A small key appeared in his outstretched hand.

It's the activation key for the Demon King's Castle. Don't lose it.

Activation key...?

I've got a few other things for you. I'll put it all together for you.

　Yulisha held her hands up high.

''Next, the Purgatory Demon King's Sword (Radis) will be awarded.

　Thus began the task of transferring the Demon King from Yulisha to me.

　　　　*

Where's the way out...?

　Lyle, the brave man, was going on and on in the darkness.

　He no longer had any sense of time or the day.
　No matter how far he walked, the darkness spread before his eyes.

　Darkness, darkness, and more darkness.

Could this be hell?

　It suddenly occurred to me.

　Was he guilty of killing his master?
　Was it punishment for forgetting his debt of gratitude and betraying Fried for the sake of honor?

''........So what.........''

　He gritted his back teeth just in time.

　Lyle did not regret his actions in any way.

　From the time he was picked up by Freed, all he asked for was 'to stand above others'.
　That was the only thing he wanted.

　Ambition and the desire to dominate were everything to Lyle.

　And yet, Freed was always preaching about justice as a brave man and compassion for saving people - such things.
　Nonsense, he scoffed inwardly.

　But Fried's ability was real and he was an excellent teacher.
　So, on the surface, he posed as an obedient apprentice and followed.

　Eventually, Lyle grew up - he was chosen to be one of the Hundred Brave Men who had made a decisive march on the demon world.
　He made it to the Demon King and came one step closer to defeating him.

　That's when I realized.
　Even if I defeated the Demon King at this point, most of the credit would still go to Fried.

　At the same time, it occurred to me.
　Now was the time to fulfill his childhood ambitions and desire to rule.

　If you kill Freed and the Demon King, then you will be the one to become the Demon King's killer.