Chapter 60
The Demon King does not tolerate rebellion, but others must not arbitrarily kill those who harbor intentions of rebelling against the Demon King.
Although there is no longer a lord, the same laws as before will generally apply.
On-site governance is entrusted to the leader of the Adventurer Guild.
One must not arbitrarily distort and interpret the Demon King's will to commit criminal acts.
The Demon King does not seek as subordinates those who ingratiate themselves merely to justify violence.
......And so on, Yuurai announced to the people of Yusef and Rugimano.
However, since unexpected events can occur at any time, the number of announcements will likely increase with each new trouble.
(Making laws and rules is really difficult...... There are always people who make incomprehensible interpretations, and it's impossible to account for every possibility...... Governance is just endlessly tedious...... I absolutely hate the idea of ruling the world......)
While thinking such thoughts, Yuurai observed the situation, making minor adjustments.
In the midst of this, Yuurai encountered various people.
Those who sought the Demon King's special protection by offering their own children.
Those who concealed bomb-like Magical Tools and attempted suicide bombings.
Those who declared their desire to become executives in the Demon King's army.
Those who claimed to be under the Demon King's command and acted maliciously on their own accord.
Those who tried to ingratiate themselves with the Demon King by exposing and reporting Rebels.
Those who challenged her to direct duels.
Those who judged Lipia to be the weakest and plotted to kidnap or kill her.
To such individuals, Yuurai meted out necessary punishments. Generally, if no actual harm was done, she merely drove them away, but she imposed severe penalties on the woman who carried out a suicide bombing and the man who targeted Lipia.
Yuurai used Magical Remodeling on both of them. For the woman, she turned her into a grotesque creature with spider-like legs growing from her face. Since her body had already been torn apart during the explosion, Yuurai intended to make her survive with just her head, and this was the result.
Since leaving her unattended could lead to unpredictable actions, Yuurai decided to keep her in a small cage. She did not take care of her personally but entrusted her to the leader of the Adventurer Guild. She ordered that the woman be kept alive in a visible place for a month. Once the deadline passed, the guild leader would likely dispose of her swiftly.
The man who targeted Lipia was transformed into a creepy tree that bloomed with human-faced flowers. It was planted in a corner of the square, with a warning sign placed beside it. Yuurai ordered that no one touch it for a month. Once the deadline passed, someone would likely burn or cut it down on their own.
Despite various troubles, in the face of Yuurai's overwhelming power, people eventually began to give up.
Though she was a hated enemy, it was no longer wise to resist or seek revenge. As long as they caused no harm, she did not threaten their livelihoods, so it was better to do nothing. Suppressing various emotions, forgetting the Demon King's existence, and returning to their previous way of life seemed preferable. Since freedoms other than revenge or rebellion were not taken away, life under her rule was surprisingly not so bad.
Sensing the change in people's attitudes, Yuurai and her group spent ten days there.
With no contact from the Cult Leader of the Demon King Cult, they decided to leave it be for now.
Around the time they began to think about external relations rather than the governance of the conquered town.
Past noon, as Yuurai was patrolling the town with her usual group of four, a petite girl appeared.
She was about 140 centimeters tall, perhaps. Her face was somewhat childlike, but not as young as an elementary schooler—more like a high schooler. Her orange ponytail gave her an energetic impression, but her teary eyes made her seem timid.
In her hands, she held a massive hammer almost as tall as herself.
(......Could she be a Dwarf?)
The tentative Dwarf girl spoke to Yuurai in a trembling voice.
"M-M Demon King......! I-I've taken the Eyeless Tribe girls, Ragvela and Jeevy! I-If you want them back safely, q-quietly offer your life here!"
Though the girl seemed on the verge of tears, making it hard to take her seriously, Yuurai understood that she was apparently being threatened.
(......Were those two kidnapped? The Fiend I left in Grimoire wasn't that strong, so it's possible. Should I have left a stronger one there......? It's too late to think about it now......)
While feeling anxious about her companions being kidnapped, Yuurai was also perplexed by how weak the person threatening her seemed.
"......Are you an Adventurer or something?"
"I-I'm an Adventurer!"
"Hmph...... Did you take on a request to defeat me or something?"
"That's right!"
"......Do you want to die?"
"Eek!"
Yuurai wasn't particularly trying to intimidate her. Even so, the Adventurer girl trembled, her legs shaking uncontrollably.
"Uh...... Well, I'll talk on the assumption that you're seriously threatening me. To me, Ragvela and Jeevy are, of course, important companions. But honestly, I don't value them more than my own life. If it were these three here, maybe, but using those two as hostages means nothing to me."
"......Y-Yeah, right......"
"......What did you really come here for? You don't seem like you're seriously here to threaten me, but if you've hurt or killed Ragvela and Jeevy, I will absolutely not forgive you. I'll make you experience suffering so intense you'll regret ever being born."
Yuurai took a step forward. The Adventurer girl stepped back, her body trembling violently.
"Um...... Uh......"
Yuurai released her Concealment magic, briefly unleashing her magical power as she commanded.
"Release those two right now. Otherwise, you'll lose your life."
"Hiiiaaaaaah!"
The Adventurer girl dropped her warhammer and collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Tears streamed down her face, and she even wet herself.
(......Is this girl really an Adventurer? If she's this scared from a light threat, she couldn't even handle a Monster......)
"I-I-I-I-I'm so sorryyyyyy! I was just ordered to threaten the Demon King! I haven't laid a hand on those two! Please, please, forgive meeeee!"
The Adventurer girl bowed so deeply that her head scraped the ground. Though there didn't seem to be a culture of dogeza in this world, Yuurai felt she was witnessing something close to it for the first time.
Yuurai reapplied her Concealment magic while letting out a sigh.
"......Fine, fine. I don't really get it, but go tell whoever ordered you to do this. Tell them to return those two immediately."
"O-Okay! Uh, huh? My legs......!"
The Adventurer girl tried to stand but only flailed in place.
It seemed her legs had given out.
"......What is this? Lipia, give her a hand."
"......Okay."
Lipia approached the Adventurer girl and spoke to her gently.
"Calm down. Yuurai doesn't hurt people indiscriminately, so you'll be fine."
Lipia crouched beside the Adventurer girl and patted her back.
The Adventurer girl burst into sobs, and it didn't seem like she would calm down anytime soon.
"......What were they thinking, sending someone like her?"
Yuurai tilted her head, waiting for the Adventurer girl to compose herself.