◇

"Now then, first I"ll seize the City Core."

There are probably other people who can use City Core"s power besides the Dark Sage Sorijero after all.

I reach my hand toward the City Core that"s floating in the air while emitting blue light.

『Welcome, king of the higher domain. Would you register this land as a satellite city?』

Unlike before where it said "An exclusive user already exists", a voice that"s hard to distinguish as either male or female spoke.

--Who the heck"s a king.

>t.i.tle [King] Acquired.
>t.i.tle [Anonymous King] Acquired.
>t.i.tle [Hero King] Acquired.

Ignoring the retort in my mind, system messages displaying t.i.tle acquisitions appeared on the log.
These [Anonymous King] and [Hero King] are probably due to my name being a blank s.p.a.ce and my t.i.tle [Hero].
The higher domain must be about the [Dragon"s Valley] Source. It"s a Source that was ruled by the Dragon G.o.d after all.

"Register it."
『Acknowledged--』

>t.i.tle [Land Lord] Acquired.

『--Do you want to let the other supporting wardens to succeed?』
"No, I don"t."
『Removing supporting wardens. Do you want to retrieve the terminal interfaces loaned to the supporting wardens?』
"Please do."

After agreeing to the City Core"s suggestion, seven bracelets that look the same as the one the depressed demon lord wore appeared before me.

『Unable to retrieve the first terminal interface loaned to an individual named s.h.i.+zuka. If you"d like to create a new one, 20000 MP is needed.』
"No, there"s no need to make a new one."

s.h.i.+zuka that the City Core mentioned is the depressed demon lord"s name.
Apparently, it can"t retrieve items in my Storage.

『Do you want to carry over the environmental setting?』

Setting huh.... I don"t want to tamper that, but--.

"Display the setting difference between the previous lord and the one before that."
『Acknowledged. Red indicators are of the previous lord, blue indicators are of the lord before that.』

It seems the Dark Sage had changed it arbitrarily, there are some large differences between the red and the blue indicators.

The magic power that should have been originally used to stabilize people"s life is diverted to the lord, the Dark Sage, to strengthen himself and for his experiments.

"Change the setting to the blue ones."
『--Completed the change. Due to the insufficient magic power, the climate setting change will be reflected in the land after 21 days.』

With this the neighboring agricultural life should be better I"m sure.
Now then, it"s about time to get back from the digression.

"Can you close this room?"
"It is possible. Do you want to execute it?"
"Do it. I"ll be ordering it from the terminal if I want to cancel it."

I ordered the city core after collecting the seven bracelet-shaped terminals from the floor to my storage with [Magic Hand].

Now then, there"s a reason why I seized the City Core.
It"s in order to freely move in the city with [Unit Arrangement].

Now that I"ve completed the preparation, let"s begin the punishment.

◇

"d.a.m.n you false G.o.d"s fanatic!"
"W-why is the 『Demon Lord of Blessing』 following the hero?"

When I went out of the room accompanied by the depressed demon lord--s.h.i.+zuka, the combatants of the [Light of Liberty] were waiting as expected.

I made low leveled people to faint with the anti-personal [Sound Pressure] magic, and beat down the people who withstood that and people who were pretending to be unconscious with [Remote Stun] magic.

"Oy oy, what the heck is this?"
"That white mask looks to be the culprit."
"Can I eat that? I"m hungry."

Three men and women who acted like some big-shots appeared on the entrance of the hall filled with agonizing cries.

"I-it"s the four kings!"
"T-that hero will meet his end now."
"After all the Lightning Speed--"

The mobs who were still conscious had begun to explain about the people who appeared.
It seems they were going to tell their names and nicknames, but since I don"t intend to remember them, I"ll make a short work out of them.

It looks like they can evade magic, so using the combination of Ground Shrink and vital point strikes, I knock down the three four kings.
Only the man called Lightning Speed tried to make an evasive maneuver while grinning, but he still couldn"t avoid my combo techniques, and fell down to the floor.

I completely neutralized the tumbling man and the remaining mobs with [Remote Stuns].

Then, the last of four kings made a surprise attack.

"Got youuuuuu!"

I knock down the [Light of Liberty] executive who has appeared by smas.h.i.+ng through the wall with [Magic Arm].
He was in plain sight since the radar had caught him.

Since there"s no [Light of Liberty] magician that can use teleport here, I throw them in the [Desert] sub-s.p.a.ce after binding them with magic.
The sand might be a bit hot, but they shouldn"t die with just that much.

◇

"I knew your skill from defeating the Dark Sage, but you"re really ridiculously strong."

Demon lord s.h.i.+zuka crosses her arms like she"s astounded.
The hills that are probably of F cups are getting emphasized, but it doesn"t seem like she"s trying to tempt me.

Together with her, I advance through the corridor heading to the underground tomb.
Countless torture devices were put in a hall along the way.

"Fuhahaha, masked man! You have a bad luck coming to the room of this Bazef-sama! I"ll show you the thing called true pain--"

I neutralize a suspicious looking macho who appeared between the torture devices with mind magic [Pain].
I thought he would scream, but instead he"s convulsing while discharging various body fluids.
Apparently, he"s not strong against pain himself.

I imprison the fainted macho to the same place as the people earlier.

Then I purge the torture devices in this room with [Disintegration].
They wouldn"t be put to good use even if I left them, and I wouldn"t have any use of them even if I put them in my Storage.

Demon lord s.h.i.+zuka is staring in amazement at the torture devices disappearance.
While ignoring her words that are mixed with awe and shock, I go to the altar beside the pit inside the mausoleum.

"What an ominous place. I feel like I can hear the grief of those who were given unfair deaths."

An item called [Curse Pot] is left on the altar.
According to the detailed information on the AR reading, it seems to be a magic tool used to collect grudges and negative thoughts.

--KWONOURWAAAAMYUUUUYEEE.

>[Soul Hearing] Skill Acquired.

Sorry but I can"t stand horror, so I don"t intend to activate that skill.

"I can hear the voices of souls--"

Yet, demon lord s.h.i.+zuka heard some unnecessary voices.

"It seems they want to seek revenge."

I guess that"s normal for people who died unnaturally.
However, I don"t intend to help them in the ma.s.s slaughter--no wait.

Perhaps I can control the apparition created from soul magic.
According to the magic books I"ve read, it"s possible to control the ghost as long as the user has higher level and high soul magic skill level.

Then maybe I can grant them the revenge while also easing my work.

I locate the spell I need from the soul magic book.

"....■■ Create Lich Lord"
『Our master, please bestow us the opportunity for revenge.』
"No."

A Lich Lord wearing a worn-out brown robe floated up from the pit.
It raised an echoing voice that chilled me to the bone, but since I don"t intend to take part in murder, I rejected it.

Defiant thought flowed from the Lich Lord, but it immediately quieted down when I denied it.
I got it easily suppressed, but it feels like a balloon that"s on the verge of imploding.

"I"m only ordering you to take away the skills and levels from people who killed you guys."
『....That is amusing. Truly thrilling. Pus.h.i.+ng people who reveled in splendor down to h.e.l.l on earth. Our master truly understands what revenge means.』

I"m a bit opposed to the Lich Lord"s valuation, but now it should go on neutralizing the [Light of Liberty] bunch without killing them.

◇

"Y-you d.a.m.n apparition!　I"ll purify you with my holy magic!"
"Such thing like an apparition is no match against me who have received blessing from demon G.o.d-sama."
"G-go away! Go away, you d.a.m.n undead! I-I cannot die in a place like this!"

There were some people who resisted like such, but it seemed that it was impossible to block level 50 Lich Lord"s level drain and skill drain when they couldn"t move.

I entrusted demon lord s.h.i.+zuka to supervise the Lich Lord while I concentrated capturing people whose level are higher than 20 in the city.
There were some people who went out of the city to seek help from their friends in the Holy City"s Inquisition Bureau, but I made a surprise attack with s.p.a.ce magic"s teleport and let them join their friends to become the Lich Lord"s victims.

Of course, I also handled the Inquisition Bureau guys and cardinals like so too.

Pope Zazaris is in fact not a member of the [Light of Liberty] so I"m not handing him to the Lich Lord.
I"m going to deal with him together with demon lord s.h.i.+zuka later.

"--So, is it over?"
『It"s over.... We deprived the power from all of the fanatics. O master, our grat.i.tude for granting us the chance to get our revenge.』

After telling me that, the Lich Lord got wrapped in light and disappeared as if it was purified with magic.

"What is that I wonder?"
"Looks like the Lich Lord has left it."

An item called [Spirit Orb] fell on the place where the Lich Lord was.
I have a hunch that it"s a crystallization of the levels and skills that the Litch Lord s.n.a.t.c.hed, but since the detailed information on the AR reading is blank, I don"t really know its true nature.
I"ll keep it in the Storage for the time being and ask Corpse and Yuika about it when I visit the labyrinth lower layer.

◇

"You demon! You think you can invade the holy ground of this holy city parion!　■ Divine Punish"

Pope Zazaris cut me and demon lord s.h.i.+zuka with an illusion of a huge sword of light.
This is the first time I"ve seen him, he looks very young you wouldn"t have guessed he"s 150 year old. His race is human, so he"s probably maintaining his youth by using G.o.d"s miracle or youth medicines. His long blond hair looks very glossy.

I"ve come to the great shrine in the holy city of the holy state Parion with demon lord s.h.i.+zuka.
In order to collect [Heal All] unique skill from Pope Zazaris of course.

"--Accept the familiarization"

Using [Gea.s.s] on the neutralized pope, I made him accept the demon lord s.h.i.+zuka"s familiarization.
Next we transfer his Unique Skill to a small louse.

Of course the small louse couldn"t hold the [G.o.d"s Fragment] and instantly began to turn into a demon lord.
Its body turned violet colored, the transparent wings turned into dark violet color.

The louse demon lord"s level is 50.
Apparently, once you turn into a demon lord your level becomes 50 at minimum.

The louse demon lord that has become gigantic breaks through the sanctuary"s ceiling.

"W-what an abominably colored monster! Do you want to let that monster attack our holy city!"

Leaving alone the pope who"s unable to stand up, I go to eliminate the louse demon lord before it could fly away.
I finely chopped the louse demon lord with a holy sword while leaving blue afterglow, and then absorbed the emerging [G.o.d"s Fragment] by cutting it with the Divine Sword.
I cut it quickly, so I couldn"t hear the [G.o.d"s Fragment] muttering.

I was slightly hesitant removing the useful-looking [Heal All] like this, but since the former user had been killed already, and giving it to someone would lead them turning into a demon lord if they used the skill too much, we chose this way since handling it would be too troublesome.

"Answer my questions."

I interrogate the pope about the Dark Sage and the [Light of Liberty] after hypnotizing him with mind magic.
Guided by me, the pope answers the questions intermittently.

"....It is impossible for Dark Sage-dono to be a demon lord believer....You asked the same thing as my foolish treacherous retainers....Dark Sage-dono is a pious believer of our G.o.d who has helped raising our priests using unparalleled techniques....I gave him the great priest and landlord position for his achievements...."

Surprisingly, he didn"t know that the Dark Sage is related to the [Light of Liberty].

Moreover, he looks like he doesn"t know about the existence of demon lord s.h.i.+zuka.

"Then how did you get the 『Heal All』?"
"....The great G.o.d Parion must have bestowed it to me...."

It seems the pope doesn"t remember demon lord s.h.i.+zuka transferring the [Heal All] from Norio-kun.

After interrogating him more, I felt that he was like Baron Muno and the others when they were brainwashed by the lesser demon.
It seems his memories were tampered by the Dark Sage.

Disguising demon lord s.h.i.+zuka"s name and appearance as a caution was a good decision.
Right now she"s wearing bull horns on her head and a blank mask. Her skin has also been made to look like a dark elf"s.

It looks like the pope was also used by the Dark Sage.

"The interrogation is enough with these much right? What do you want to do demon lord?"
"I do not wish for anything more after taking the Unique Skill."

Then we can just leave it at this.
I cancel the mind magic for interrogation.

Demon lord s.h.i.+zuka also releases the familiarization.

Managing the country should be difficult from now on since all of the high-leveled pope"s subordinates are gone, but that"s for the ruler, Pope Zazaris, to work hard on.

"So you won"t kill me! Demon lord and his attendant!"

Leaving the screaming pope alone, I take demon lord s.h.i.+zuka"s hand and send her to a safe area with [Teleport an Object].

"My 『Judge Eye』 can see through all disguises! Demon Lord Ducky and his attendant Rasputin! I"ll let all temples in the continent to know about you!"

[Ducky] and [Rasputin] that the pope spoke of are aliases that I just made up with [Name Order] earlier.
I have to change the demon lord"s name back to s.h.i.+zuka later.

Looking at him, it looks like even the rare skill [Judge Eyes] can"t see through Mana Camouflage.
Feeling relieved, I moved to the desert where demon lord s.h.i.+zuka was waiting.

After that, I threw the [Light of Liberty] members from this country to the underground prison of the Holy State Parion after taking away their disguise items.
Of course I"ve left a written board about their offenses and evidences of them being demon lord believers so that they won"t be released.
The only person I"ve taken to s.h.i.+ga Kingdom"s underground prison is the cardinal who was involved with the sakuramochi incident.

◇

"Can I really live here?"
"Yeah, I can also prepare someone to take care of you if you need it."
"Don"t need--but, I"d like to keep a small bird and a puppy."

I brought the depressed demon lord s.h.i.+zuka to a place in the farm area that"s been covered in Yuika"s barrier.
Oops, she"s recovered from the depression condition, and she"s promised that she won"t act like a demon lord, so I should call her s.h.i.+zuka.

At first I thought of taking s.h.i.+zuka to the labyrinth lower layer where the reincarnated people are living, but since she wanted to quietly live in a place with no other people for a while, I brought her here.
Of course it"s not for the sake of keeping s.h.i.+zuka but for her peace.
I feel that the demons would meddle if she were in the outside world.

"Okay. Do you have any request for the bird"s and the puppy"s types?"
"Right.... I"d like a java sparrow and siberian husky."

The java sparrow is not a problem, but I"ve never seen a siberian husky here.
I"ll bring a kind of dog that"s similar to it for the time being.

To make her secluded life easier, I"ve prepared a splendid house on the river bank of the farm area with [Create House] and an agricultural land nearby with [Cultivation].

Furthermore, I"ve left several Wood Puppets for the labor works.

"Hey, can I look inside the house?"
"It"s your house, so you can do as you please."

I gave an answer to s.h.i.+zuka who was curiously looking at the house.
After seeing her off, I installed a freezer, a refrigerator, a was.h.i.+ng machine, an automatic bathtub and a flush toilet magic tools.
Once I"ve done the one-man work and comes back, s.h.i.+zuka is currently looking at the clothing on the bed while frowning.
I"ve put some change of clothes when she wasn"t present, I wonder if it"s not to her liking?

"Are these underwear made in j.a.pan? But, my cla.s.smate said that men would give underwear because they want to take it off themselves. I"m being protected by him after all, I can"t refuse if he wants me I think. But, but, doing it with someone whose face I never see is."

She"s quite talkative when she"s talking to herself.

No she"s been freed from her depressed condition, so this might be her true character.
On top of having big b.r.e.a.s.t.s, s.h.i.+zuka is a beauty and I don"t have any complain regarding her age, but I feel that marriage or mistress routes would certainly be waiting for me if I treat her like that, so I don"t intend in putting my hands on her. I"m fine with playing around limited to the professionals.

I call s.h.i.+zuka after knocking on the door.

"I"ve put magic tools, foodstuff and flavoring needed for your livelihood for the present. You use them like you use electronics in j.a.pan, and if you want to eat other food, you can collect fish and sh.e.l.lfish in the river, and fruits in the forest."

Of course I"ve left three months worth of preserved food and daily general goods in the underground storehouse.
The only thing missing is liquor. I"ve left out the liquor since there"s a danger of her falling into alcohol dependency.

"Okay. I saw some shrimp when I was looking at the river earlier, the nature around her is quite rich isn"t it."

--Shrimp?

I caught something off from s.h.i.+zuka"s words.

"What"s wrong?"
"No, I was just thinking where I could get a siberian husky."
"It"s alright as long as it looks similar. I just want the warmth."

After telling her that I"d get it quick, I moved out of s.h.i.+zuka"s house with Unit Arrangement.
I did not teleport to the solitary island palace.

I went to the abandoned fort in Muno Earldom since there"s something I want to investigate.
In order to check it, I cast [Another World] on the bank of a streamlet near the abandoned fort, creating a small sub-s.p.a.ce.

"There are really small fish and sh.e.l.lfish in this streamlet too...."

Looks like living beings are created along with the sub-s.p.a.ce.
I realized that I had the wrong idea when I thought that far.

"....I should"ve realized it when I saw that there were plants."

Moreover this country has the alchemy technology about human body to create h.o.m.onculus like Nana.
Due to the moral value from my former world hindering, I"ve been thinking that creating living beings is something special.

Human body alchemy huh.... If I make use of the code that creates living beings in this [Another World]....

I shake my head to throw away the inquiring mind.

"No, I really should not."

Yup, for my mental health, let"s stop trying to do that.
After nodding twice, I write a postscript on the taboo entry in the memo pad, "Forbidden from developing magic that creates intelligent life."
I should entrust creating intelligent life to the G.o.d after all.

◇

I tell the usual members about the extermination of the two demon lords and then head to the labyrinth where my companions are enjoying hunting the dinosaurs.
I"ve asked Tifaliza in the Royal Capital for the dog and the small bird matter.

"SSatou-san! I-it"s terrible!"

As soon as I arrived at the labyrinth, Sera who was resting in the shade rushed to me.

"There was an omen for the G.o.d"s oracle! There might be a demon lord manifesting somewhere!"
"Not an oracle itself, but an omen is it?"

It"s probably about the ape demon lord that I defeated two hours ago and the louse demon lord defeated one hour ago.

"Y-yes. In order to receive oracles, I need to be in the holy sanctuary where it"s easy for G.o.d"s voice to reach, or create a simple sanctuary and use a ceremonial magic."

I see. Looks like you can"t receive oracle anywhere anytime.
For now, I"ll calm her down.

"Two demon lords appeared in the Holy State Parion earlier, I think it must be about them."
"T-two demon lords?!"

Sera raised a voice of despair.

"Master, if they appeared in two different place, please leave one to us. We"ll prevent any victim no matter what it takes until Master has finished with the other one."
"Master, permission to deploy."
"Tama too~?"
"Po-Pochi too! A de-demon lord is nothing nanodesu."

Before I could calm Sera down, Liza and the others drew close to me with determined expressions.
Zensan and the princess fell on their knees without being able to talk.
Lady Karina looks like she"s hesitating whether to partic.i.p.ate or not.

"Everyone, calm down, I"ve already defeated the two demon lords, so don"t worry about it."
"T-the demon lords have been defeated?"
"In such a short time, and two of them?"
"Admiring master."
"Goodjob~?"
"Very, very amazing nodesu!"

I lend my hands to Zensan and the princess, lifting them up.

"as expected of my S-"
"Satou-san, you"re amazing!"

Zensan whose eyes" s.h.i.+nes had recovered interrupted the princess and took my hands, swinging them.
Waiting until Zensan released my hands bashfully, I took everyone back to the solitary island palace.

Now then, the airs.h.i.+p should arrive at the Royal Capital tomorrow, I"ll go visit some of my acquaintances.

The day after tomorrow is the appointed time for the contact from the hero"s party, I have to ask about their progress with the demon lord extermination.
Recently, I"ve only conversed with the secretary lady who"s house-sitting, I"ll talk to Hayato directly through [Telephone] if he"s still absent.

I also have to tell everyone about me sheltering demon lord s.h.i.+zuka.