For the next few days, Veldonia is going through so many large changes.
From now on, it is no longer a Veldonia kingdom, but it is a Veldonian republic. It is still led by their previous leader, Mejon Veldonia, but he will lead for only one year, just so he can do all the tasks that were given to him.
The Veldonian republic has released all their prisoners, either they are a prisoner of war, or a prisoner captured for wrong reasons. They also compensate some of the prisoners by giving what the prisoners wished, and based on the daily newspaper of Veldon, nearly all of them wished for some really heavy stuff.
The republic also sent some food and money as a form of support for the upcoming war with the demon kingdom. As a result, five hundred thousand Jules were sent to Mazino as a support from Veldonia that was taken from the Veldonia stash. Aside from that, they also sent tons of food for the soldier rations.
They really did us a favour, it made the king of Mazino laugh.
"Hahah!! This Masked Devil guy really is a devil with his requests!!"
Hearing that his father is complimenting the hero, Lescia can't help but be happy as well.
She then approached her father and told her about her request. She, as the princess who has been very active on dealing with the issues with Veldonia, definitely deserves getting an award for doing her mission well. As the king and as her father, the King of Mazino understood and had no choice but to accept the request.
Lescia left the throne room, leaving the confused king and queen who still had no idea who healed her curse.
The queen definitely had a hunch, but decided to stay silent about it. Lescia knows that her mother knew, and she stayed silent about it as well.
.
One week has passed since the near war incident with Veldonia. Things have been cooling down a lot recently, and there has not been any issues at all with the relation between two kingdoms.
And so, I decided to pay king Mejon a visit.
"Wha--!?! Y-You…!? I did all you asked!!!"
I went to visit him all the way to his bedroom, at night while he was doing his paperwork, wearing my Masked Devil identity.
The man looked so different now in just a week. He became much thinner than before, and he looks so much older. He was probably already quite old, but his previous chubby appearance hid it so well.
Now that he is rather thin and cranky… It is very easy to notice his age.
The defeat has completely rendered him like this.
"I know. Stop panicking."
I approached him and placed my hand on his cut off arm, and I sliced it a little bit with my shadow magic. He didn't even scream nor flinch because I regrew his hand very quickly, right after I cut it.
"See? Good as new."
The king glared at his new hand in front of him. Aside from a week ago, he had undergone some massive changes. His usual chubby appearance is no longer there, changed with an almost thin and pale body. He had gone through quite the stress in doing all the work I gave him, so I think giving him his hand back is a generous gift.
"M-My hand... You healed it..."
Mejon was still very shocked by how fast his hand regrown, but I took no time to react to that. I took off my mask and showed him my true face. He then quickly glared at me in shock.
He definitely recognized me. After all, I did crush his hand with this face.
"Y-You were... Her..."
"Yes. And you might know me in the future, since I am a rising star in Mazino after all. Now, I hope you can keep our promise in the future as well… And I have something to ask of you."
The king, still sitting on the floor, glared at me with a questioning and pissed face.
"What else… do you want?"
"I just want to know. How did the demon king come and contact you?"
Hearing that question, he immediately turned to shock. His body began shivering, and he started moving backwards away from me.
"P-Please…!! I don't want anything to do with--"
"Are you more scared of him or me? Because I am real, and I can destroy everything right now, while that guy can only sit on his throne and tell people what to do."
The king looked really startled, more startled then when I came to his room. From the looks of it, he really does fear the demon king.
It's like he has met him before…
"If you're worried about them… I can assure you. Our side of the continent are definitely strong enough to withstand their pressure.
They will not run us over. We will be the one to seize victory. As such, you have nothing to worry about."
One more time, I tried convincing him. This time, using an argument that is vastly different.
He's afraid of the day when the demon king will come and destroy everything in our land. However, such a day will never come if I do something about it.
It took him a while, but he managed to man up and talk. He began telling his story from less than a year ago, when the demon king approached him by sending demon spies to Veldonia. He said the demon king wanted to make a deal with him. If he helps him distract Mazino, then the demon kingdom will be able to take down Mazino in a flash. Mejon will then own everything that Mazino has, while the demon king gets to destroy the other kingdoms.
Obviously, Mejon had no care for the other kingdoms. His only interest is in Mazino, and what Mazino has.
Territory, riches, mines, and people.
Mazino will get distracted by the war with Veldonia, that they didn't realize the demons were attacking them from behind. Even if Mazino does survive such an attack, the Veldonians will sweep what's left.
Veldonia will obtain everything that Mazino has, right there and then.
The perfect story for Veldonia.
However…
"The demon king gave you only eight powerful demons… That's funny."
"W-What? Why is it funny?"
I took a bite from my sandwich that I ate while listening to his story, and I answered.
"The Elites from the demons… aren't weak at all. I've fought some of them before. The demon king had more powerful demons under him. The ones that he gave you were novices, the ones that were fake Rank 1 rankers."
The demons who attacked the academy in my first year, the ones who Veneo and Julius and their army went up against while fighting for the sword of the war god, none of them were that weak.
When I met those fake Rank 1 rankers, I didn't even notice that they were demons. Probably because they were just as weak as the human rankers, and they are simply strong enough to be called a Rank 1 over here at Veldonia.
But compared to the real demon elites… those guys are nothing.
"N-No way... The demons aren't that powerful..."
"Yes they are. And after they destroy the other kingdoms, they will definitely come for you. Have you ever thought about that possibility?"
"I-I..."
Mejon really is an idiot. He may be clever, but there's a clear difference with not knowing about things and being an idiot.
In any circumstances, it's clear that the demon kingdom is only using Veldonia as a way to collapse the stability of the alliance of kingdoms from the inside. Veldonia is the only kingdom that is inactive in the whole war with the demon's situation, and they are also the one no other kingdoms are allying with.
They are possibly the easiest pawn to cause chaos. And after they have done their job, the demon kingdom can finally turn their attention to Veldonia.
In the end, Veldonia will be collapsed anyway by the demons. It was rather obvious to predict.
I let out a sigh and stood back up.
"Then? How do you contact him?"
He took out an item from his space ring, and he gave it to me. From the looks of it, this is a technology from Xyphon. A magic communication tool, capable of having a really far range.
A spy from Xyphon…
Just how deep exactly have they gotten us buried…?
"Thank you for your service to the alliance. I hope you can continue to respect our deal."
I said with a wide smile as I turned around and left his room. Mejon can only cry on the floor while his eyes are brimming with hatred.
Not towards me, nor the demons… But towards the cruel fate that has bound him.
.
.
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