I’m really getting tired of these summit meetings.

I guess it just shows that I’m not meant for bureaucracy, nor for listening to the petty squabbling of the Humans.

I think this is a sentiment shared with all the other Demons and Elves.

Some would think it odd, when looking at the stances taken by the different races.

The long-lived races, the Demons and Elves, wanted quick change to happen now, and to not push it off for the future. Those not familiar with them would have assumed they would be fine with waiting for change to happen, since a few decades would seem a short time to them.

They would be completely wrong.

Those races want change now. Immediately. They know that if it’s deferred, and put off, it will either happen further into the future then would be healthy, or not at all. People who are, for all intents and purposes, unaging, know that when you want something to get done, you need to put in the drive and initiative as soon as possible.

So, during the summit, the demons and elves pushed for immediate and jarring change. They also knew that the change would be painful at first, but when given enough time, would be nothing but beneficial.

The humans took the opposite stance.

They wanted the change to happen so gradually that nothing would be felt, so that everything might remain the same while they were still alive, and in charge of their various kingdoms and estates.

And, some of the changes suggested in the summit would harm their current lifestyles. For instance, there was a movement to have the human populations spread out, so that they aren’t just living on the Human continent. This meant that the power these human kings have would lessen, since many of their subjects had left their realm of rule. It also meant that these people would not be able to pay taxes to them.

There were other changes suggested too, and the human kings vehemently opposed most of them.

The Elves and Demons knew change was now necessary, but the Humans desperately wanted to cling to their traditional bases of power.

It was an annoying quandary, since the Humans were one of the essential bastions of power on the continents. Their individual strength might not be up to much, and they might be badly divided most of the time, but they also outnumber the elves and the demons one hundred to one.

They are a fearful fighting force when riled.

Unfortunately, that meant that we needed them to agree with the changes—and they didn’t want to.

The summit had become a bargaining session, and was now focused on finding a compromise everybody hates, instead of just the humans. That way, the humans wouldn’t feel left out.

For my part, whenever they suggested that even more be taken from the demons; I would join in on the violent refutation.

Surprisingly, a good portion of the elves would join in. Oddly, they were all a part of the oldest generation of elves, with the younger ones still biased against demons in general.

Actually, it isn’t odd, and I shouldn’t really be surprised. I’ve seen a whole lot of the elder elves heading over to the demon building, and having dinner with them. I imagine they share old war stories or something, or reminisce on the past together.

I guess they’ve become tolerant to just about anything over their long lives, due to sheer boredom.   

The demons seemed to readily accept the company, and let them join in on their hearty dinners.

I could see the beginning of a good union between the old folks of these two races.

On another note, I’ve been able to talk with my niece a few times since first seeing her. She’s a very serious person, and seems to not have a sense of humor.

I asked about her mother, but it seemed to be a very touchy subject. Jasper wouldn’t touch upon it as well. I wonder who she was?

She’s a very competent worker though, and handles most of the logistics and communications for Jasper. She’s the heart and the head behind his power, and his leadership. Which means that she really has all the power.

All the demons present for the summit listen to her, and follow her orders. They all trust her enough to do so, gladly.

And, my meteoric rate of growth has indeed not slowed down in the slightest. It might have even sped up a little from what it had been before I had become a full Demon Lord. It had stopped for a while there, with my growth completely halting. I asked Jasper about what he was experiencing now that he was also a Demon Lord, and he told me that his growth even before becoming a Demon Lord had been slow, especially at the levels he had made it to. So, he couldn’t yet judge his rate of growth at the moment.

I also asked him about entities above the Demon Lord level, and he dismissed the notion. Demon Lord is the end of the evolution available for Demons.

It should be considered that it is a true evolution for most demons.

I had gone from normal classes, to Quasi-Demon Lord, to full Demon Lord, but for all other demons, the path to power was much longer, and more convoluted.

There were so many prerequisite classes before Quasi-Demon Lord, that very few managed to get past that particular stage. The one’s that did normally hid themselves away for a few thousand years attempting to break through the threshold of Demon Lord.

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I felt a little bit of pity for those people, and a fair bit of bashfulness knowing the fact that I had somehow skipped those prerequisite classes completely, immediately becoming a Quasi-Demon Lord at level seventy five.

Actually, it was also strange that I had become a full Demon Lord at level one hundred exactly. It was like something pushed my evolution to happen at man-made points, as if someone had programmed it into me somehow.

After all, I didn’t follow the ‘natural’ evolution paths, and just jumped directly to the destination.

There was definitely something strange about my strength, and how I get it.

It was like an equation that stared me in the face, but one without a single answer.

In other words, it was frustrating.

And, like I said before, Jasper hasn’t heard of anything like it before, so I was all alone in finding a solution to this.

Not that I needed to. It’s a case of my curiosity killing me a little. I mean, I’m fine with whatever it is, as long as it gives me more strength.

In other news, a member of the Elven delegation disappeared a few days ago. He wasn’t a main member of the party in any way, and was not all that powerful, but the very fact that he couldn’t be found, even by the likes of Amadeus, was concerning.

This was his land, and he was connected to it in ways unfathomable. He should be able to locate anyone on it within a few heartbeats, but that’s not the case here. It’s as if the man had never existed. He was just gone.

And, it’s not like he had just escaped beyond the range of Amadeus’s control. For one, that range was terrifyingly large. He had given an estimate as to how far his power reached, and a few members of the summit fainted on the spot.

But, apparently we are deep within the forests at the heart of the Elven continent. There’s nothing beyond this little slice of civilization for weeks. And, there are powerful monsters, and even Mana Beasts beyond Amadeus’s shielding.

There’s no way anyone would leave his protection voluntarily, unless they were insane, or stupid, or both. This man was not either. He was known for being a levelheaded tactician in charge of a few key elven regiments.

Even his quarters gave no sign as to what had happened to him. All we knew was that he simply didn’t show up to a summit meeting, and was gone when his absence was followed up on.

It was a little concerning, to say the least.

Most people suspect foul play as the cause, especially after reminding themselves of the kidnapping attempt that had happened with me early into the summit.

Though, after I had proven to the demons that I had beaten the kidnappers with my own strength, they warmed up to me considerably.

It also helped that I was a Demon Lord. They tended to instinctively band around the holders of that illustrious class. It was the fact that they thought I had relied completely on the strength of another that pushed them away, and alienated me from them. Once they knew that I had power of my own, and handled my own mess, they welcomed me into their dinning hall. Well, most of them. Like I had said, the older demons are far more accepting when compared to the younger generation.

I go to their eating hall as much as I can, splitting my time between the elven building and the demon one. I knew this would likely be the only time in history that so much of the strength here on the continents would be gathered in one place, and that the demon’s and elves’ strongest beings would be out and about. Most of them typically prefer to seclude themselves, unless there was a great national emergency that required them to fight.

And, I could feel that they summit had passed the mid-point, and was quickly approaching the time when everything would be settled, and all imaginable eventualities would have been planned for.

Until then, I guess I’ll just continue being bored out of my mind, listening to the bickering between the humans and everyone else.

Maybe I’ll even present some ideas on how things could be done.

Or not.

I really have none. Everyone else at the summit has a very solid idea on how to improve things. Or make them stay the same.

This whole thing has given me an appreciation on how small I really am, in the whole grand scope of things. And, the only way I can be bigger, is to get more power and experience. Knowledge will come naturally after having these things.

And, after this summit ends, I need to work on those things.

After all, Toledo had told me straight out that I was now responsible for the well-being of the continents, and I really don’t want him coming after me, or giving him a reason to in the first place. After all, I have a feeling that guy is more powerful than even Amadeus. 

Besides, I do feel responsible. I've met some good people here, and had some worthwhile experiances. 

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Author's Note:

I had forgotten how much coffee messes with me. 

Let's just say that I was a little hyperactive when writing a good portion of this chapter, and had the attention span of a squirrel on crack. 

Never again, River—never again. 

Though, I suppose I told myself that last time as well. 

Oops.

—River.