A Demonic Covenant Reforged in the Ashes

The Barbecue Gathering

The seafood in this world wasn’t all that different from Earth’s. The so-called "Purple Sea Thorn Ball" was somewhat similar to a sea urchin, except its spines were soft, resembling the outer skin of a rambutan.

"A portion of the succubus maids should be assigned for… hmm, is it called ‘gathering seafood’?"

Satania asked while chewing on a shrimp-like creature similar to a jumping fish. The smoky aroma of the barbecue made her squint in satisfaction. "Actually, Ira, you can just tell Silina directly," she added.

Her tail wagged happily, showing how much she had come to trust Ira in such a short time. "And as for mobilizing magical creatures, you can just inform the little fairies directly. No need to ask me every time…"

But this wasn’t necessarily because of Ira’s special status—at least, not entirely. The real peculiarity lay in Satania herself, a Demon King with an astonishing lack of understanding of power and responsibility.

"No, that won’t do!"

Ira responded seriously while eating a skewer of grilled seafood. The other magical creature leaders present…

Yes, thanks to Mr. Laim spreading the word about the barbecue, everyone had shown up, preventing the situation from becoming just a two-person, one-maid affair.

"Come on, it’s really not a big deal~ Ahh, so delicious!"

Vera interjected, her hands clutching skewers in each fist as she spoke to Ira. "Everyone does it this way, and no one thinks that anyone would ever be a threat to the Demon King."

Indeed, unlike the Empire—or even the rest of the world—this place might have been the closest thing to a true fantasy land.

"No need… to worry… Ira… we understand… your goodwill."

The leader of the constructs, a golem, spoke while eating a skewer… or rather, stuffing grilled shellfish into its head, breaking it down into mana for absorption.

From a certain perspective, that could be considered ‘eating’ as well.

"Indeed. Even the Headless Knights conduct their patrols without needing to report, yet no one would ever assume they pose a threat to the Demon King."

The black-flamed Headless Knight spoke. It was the first time Ira had heard her voice and realized she was female. That meant either she was wearing a chest binder or, in life, had been so underdeveloped that her armor didn’t need any special adjustments.

The black flames where her head should have been flickered and spun, roasting a piece of shellfish in the process.

That… might also count as eating?

"I brought a young one along without informing the Demon King…"

The towering, bipedal beetle-like insectoid said. The small spider-girl he had brought along blinked up at him curiously, unsure why she was being mentioned.

"…Indeed, a barbecue like this…"

It really felt like a family gathering. In fact, it was more akin to an intimate meal shared by the closest of kin—where formality was unnecessary.

Understanding this, Ira fell silent for a moment before ladling a bowl of clam-like soup and, without thinking, held up a spoonful to Satania’s lips.

"Ahh~"

The Demon King…

Ira watched calmly as Satania drank the clam soup with a satisfied expression. He still didn’t know what to say. This situation reminded him of something—

Isabella used to confront him, saying, "Can’t you stop trying to teach me? Can’t you just let me do things on my own?!"

And he would always respond with silence, only to follow up with another round of "Why should I do XXX?" or "What benefits does implementing XXX bring?"

Because Isabella was the ruler, and Ira neither could nor wanted to overstep her authority.

"There are plenty of shellfish resources around the Demon King’s domain, and they haven’t been harvested on a large scale before. It should be safe to gather them. Are there any fairies willing to take charge of this?"

Ira asked. The five tiny fairies, their faces gleaming with oil from the feast, exchanged glances. One of them boldly flew forward and declared, "I’ll do it!"

Since she had no other fairies supporting her, she kept her words brief.

Ira looked at the tiny fairy standing on the table. Gently, he picked up a napkin and wiped the oil off her mouth before saying, "Then, Silina, you should persuade two or three succubi capable of wide-area charm magic—ones that can penetrate a certain thickness of sand—to assist her."

Silina responded, "Yes!"

A beat later, she hesitated, her lips twitching. Ira’s tone had carried an air of command, and she instinctively answered the way she would have responded to the previous Demon King. Realizing the awkwardness, she quickly added, "I mean… leave it to me!"

That sounded more natural. This was exactly why Ira disliked issuing commands.

"That’s settled, then. Remind the goblins to watch out for rising tides and any sea monsters along the shore. Any sea creatures that are too small—just throw them back into the water."

Ira instructed while finishing wiping the fairy’s mouth.

"Understood!"

The fairy cheerfully flew back to her group, where the other fairies began chattering enviously about how Ira had personally wiped her mouth.

"Why throw the small ones back?"

A ghostly woman in glasses inquired. She adjusted her spectacles with the heel of her clean hand and looked at Ira with curiosity—her thought process likely along the lines of, Even the tiniest morsel is still food.

"This ensures that beach resources don’t deplete too quickly. Though it won’t completely prevent it, it follows the same principle as releasing small fish when fishing."

Ira explained. Then, after noticing everyone’s expressions, he realized… in this world, fishermen didn’t release small fish.

Poor little fish… how tragic.

"Ira, I have something to ask, and since everyone is here, this is a good time."

Satania spoke, not forgetting the reason she had invited Ira to dinner.

If she had known that Laim would invite everyone, she wouldn’t have bothered calling Ira separately.

"If I wanted to reclaim lost territory, would you help me?"

"Reclaim lost territory"—this could only mean punishing the rebellious magical creatures and then retaking the lands that originally belonged to the Demon King from the Empire.

If Ira agreed to help, that would mean opposing the Empire.

"…"

The atmosphere grew tense. Everyone waited for Ira’s response, or perhaps his anger.

Everyone… except Vera, who seemed utterly unsurprised, as if she had already seen through everything.

"I would," Ira said lightly. "As long as you can ensure military discipline among the magical creatures…"

His tone remained calm as he continued, "If you can guarantee that after unification, the Empire’s civilians and magical creatures will hold the same status, then I can contribute to the Empire’s downfall."