Underground Labyrinth – Villa Conference Room

Carrion slapped his palm on the table.

"Alright, it's settled then."

"Chishiya, from now on, we're allies!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

Carrion really was the Beast Kingdom's top dog. Straightforward to a fault.

He immediately had Albis draft up the agreement on the spot and got Chishiya to stamp it with his fingerprint.

Honestly, with a personality like this, he didn't feel like a Demon Lord at all—more like the head of a yakuza gang.

The terms of the agreement were basically a copy-paste of the one with Gazel Dwargo.

Non-aggression, technology sharing, road development, and trade.

"Hahaha!"

Carrion slapped Chishiya on the back like an old drinking buddy.

"The moment I saw you, I knew we'd get along."

"You've got that spark!"

"Unlike this guy, always stiff-faced and no fun at all."

He shot a glance at the Dwarf King, who was sipping his wine in silence, totally ignoring him.

...So the reason you've never established diplomacy with Dwargo is just because your personalities clash?

The Beast Kingdom—Euranazia—is a superpower in agriculture, boasting farmland bigger than all of Lapris combined. The variety of crops alone could fill a whole trading book.

If we can get a grip on their agricultural tech, it'll save us a ton of trouble moving forward.

Chishiya tucked the agreement into his briefcase and raised his glass.

"Then I'll be counting on your guidance."

"Hahaha, of course!"

Carrion grinned and downed his drink.

—

Meanwhile, Fuze and Youm were seated across from each other, silently locking eyes across the table.

Youm was… surprisingly calm.

He thought, I've made progress… I can now eat at the same table as a Demon Lord…

And since he'd already joined up with Chishiya, there was no need to voice any opinion. Just sit tight and let the world sort itself out.

As for Falmuth?

Whatever. He'd long lost faith in that greedy, idiotic king.

On the other side of the table, Fuze looked visibly tense.

He took a sip of wine and glanced around the room.

A stoic, speechless Dwarf King.

A loud, lion-faced chatterbox of a Beast King.

He furrowed his brow.

Damn it!!! I can't get a word in edgewise!!!

He hadn't even gotten to the part about establishing diplomatic ties with Chishiya yet!

Would you two old fossils just finish talking and leave already?!

This is a negotiation table, not an izakaya!

Fuze's frustration flared, but he didn't dare say it aloud.

So he just stared at his wine, then downed it in one go...

Narrowing his eyes, Fuze made up his mind.

He had to solidify his connection with Chishiya.

It wasn't just coincidence that so many powerful figures were gravitating toward him.

This was a convergence—strong attracting strong.

If the world was entering a storm, then Chishiya Shuntaro was at its very center.

And Blumund needed to ride this wave, no matter what.

—

Meanwhile, in the Crimson Demon Village

"Frieren-sama, morning! You need to get up now!"

Fern knelt next to her, shaking the dozing Frieren, who had drool hanging from the corner of her mouth.

She sighed.

I should've known…

Frieren-sama is just not a morning person…

Holding her forehead with one hand, Fern looked completely done.

"Ugh…ugh..."

Frieren clenched her eyes shut and burrowed deeper into the blankets.

"..."

Fern stared at her for a few seconds.

Seeing no movement…

Swish!

She grabbed the blanket with both hands, yanked it up in one smooth motion, and hoisted her upright in one go.

"Yamete yo~!" Frieren squeaked, curling up into a ball, half-asleep in baby talk.

Fern ignored her and dragged her into the living room, calmly brushing her hair and dressing her like it was routine.

It took almost an hour just to make her presentable.

Yuiyui clasped her hands together, her smile like sunshine.

"Wow~, Fern-chan is so thoughtful."

"You're like Frieren's mother."

"...Sigh."

Fern exhaled, her expression full of complicated emotions.

"It's just… Frieren-sama is extremely lazy…"

"She always needs someone to take care of her."

"I'm sorry, Fern," Frieren mumbled, swaying like she might fall asleep again at any second.

"I'm sorry to cause you trouble."

Fern gently pressed her back down as they bowed together toward Yuiyui.

"It's fine~, Fern-chan is adorable. Please visit again anytime."

Yuiyui smiled.

"And you too, Stark-kun."

She gave Stark a thumbs-up of encouragement.

"Lastly… Frieren."

Yuiyui stepped forward and adjusted Frieren's collar with care.

"You'll always be welcome here. Don't forget us when you return to your world."

The trio froze for a moment, then all nodded.

"Take care," Yuiyui said with a wave.

"Goodbye," the three replied in unison.

"Let's go," Megumin said, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

"It's about 10 kilometers south of here."

"If we find the Master, we might be able to go home."

"Got it."

The three followed behind her.

Ten kilometers… would take a few hours on foot.

Stark and Fern turned back.

Yuiyui and Hyoizaburoo were waving at them from a distance.

This might be the last time they ever saw them.

"We'll come back."

Frieren didn't even look back.

"After our journey's over, let's return here and tell everyone about it."

The other two paused.

Then nodded.

Their hesitation vanished. They turned to face forward.

"...Yeah!"

—

Since the journey would take some time, Megumin chatted casually as they walked.

Mostly just swapping adventure stories.

Megumin shared her tale about the Orc Lord.

Fern responded with how they'd defeated Aura the Guillotine.

With her outgoing personality, once Megumin got talking, the conversation really started to flow.

"Wait, the demons in your world are totally different from ours," Megumin said, surprised.

Fern nodded. "Demons in our world are basically talking beasts."

"They learn human speech just to hunt us."

"After the Hero Himmel destroyed the Demon Lord, peace finally came to the land."

Megumin looked up at the sky, Milim's innocent face flashing in her mind.

"…That's completely different."

"Here, there are good demons and bad ones. Honestly, they're no different from humans."

"Even Demon Lords and demons who could wipe out a city don't necessarily harm humans."

Fern and the others stared blankly.

In their world…

Humans had tried to coexist with demons before—but every attempt failed.

Even Himmel had once believed it possible.

That maybe, with a shared language, understanding was possible.

But the truth was—

A language born only to hunt humans… was never meant for understanding.

There's only one reason for a predator to learn your language.

And that's to deceive you.

(To be continued.)

***

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