I quickly confirmed that, indeed, all my supposed demon generals are actual people.

Upsetting.

No idea what to do with this now.

Using sentient people to make them fight my wars in the truest sense of the word is plain wrong.

But this mess-up really throws my schedule back.

After all, I spent this limited magic resource on them and because of this won't be able to attack and save Chiaki as quickly as I planned to.

Of course, I already set up demon production facilities, but those will be at a clear disadvantage if they have to fight against magically empowered enemies.

On this matter, I should look closer into how my opponent created human mages without them becoming sentient.

I'm absolutely sure they weren't.

Rather, they were like machines that happened to have magic channels within their frames that worked like power lines.

I, on the other hand, have fully functional people here with apparently already developed personalities.

Hmm, maybe I let the energy run a bit too freely.

Though, I guess that's only part of the problem.

Be that as it may, for now, I need to deal with the task at hand.

That means dealing with those who are very likely going to become Kuri's siblings.

Thankfully, at the moment, my mistress demon kindly does the explaining for me.

"And this is why our M-, m-, lady! Our lady, doesn't wish for us to fight in the battles." (D)

In any case, she does a fairly great job at this.

"But isn't this defeating our purpose? What about all the resources Maou-Sama spent on us?" (thief)

"She doesn't wish to be called that!" (D)

"But she is our Maou-Sama! What else would she be?" (fire demon)

We are calling her this because we are conditioned so by her enemy. By no means can we allow ourselves to insult her further by proceeding to address her in this manner." (D)

Ehm...

"Ahem." (I)

Promptly, everybody in the room looks at me.

"While this wasn't planned, it's imperative to take responsibility for one's actions. My mother taught me this and by now it makes only all that much more sense to me. The things one does have consequences. Always be mindful of this fact. Therefore, I'll take responsibility for having created you. This means, there's no way I'm going to send you to fight to the death in my stead." (I)

"M-Maou... Mas... Master!" (thief)

"But... our purpose?!" (fire demon)

Yeah, now they look at him as if he just called me names, ready to end his existence for assumed insolence.

Remembering what happened to the succubus, I quickly raise my hand.

"Actions have consequences! So everyone present here may please reconsider what they're doing next. Aside from that, I'm talking to you right now because you're all capable of independent thinking. You don't need my input to make up your mind about something. Therefore, I won't tell you what to think. This was the whole point of this talk after all. For this reason, what about names?" (I)

I look over the remaining three.

In such situations, I wish I'd have Chiaki's unrestrained thinking as to just put a name on them.

I, on the other hand, require a bit more time to contemplate the matter.

First the thief.

He's lean and mysterious.

So, Leany?

Nah, that's terrible.

What about Lajus?

Well, I guess that's something.

That leaves the two big ones.

So fire and the stature of a bodybuilder.

Basically a true hellion.

Hell... Hell flames... Helfa.

Yep, that's good enough.

This leaves Earth.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Something stony.

Hard and unrelenting.

Kroga!

Yeah, that's the best I got.

So I point at each of them and call out.

"Lajus, Helfa, Kroga." (I)

And don't you dare point out my bad sense of naming!

Though, they don't look like they intend to do so.

"I can't give you more than this. You have the freedom of thought. Make something out of this. Just know that I value this kind of freedom. So I only demand that you're not taking it from others, knowing that I think so." (I)

Hah, I think I'm done.

I never thought I was capable of this kind of speech.

I guess my eldritch mind helped a little with the formulation.

But I really wanted to tell them this.

It might be weird to give obvious demons this kind of talk, but as I made them, I don't want to be responsible for any misery they could cause.

In my name furthermore.

At least, they look totally baffled now.

I guess I should leave them to think about this.

"So, if you'd now excuse me, I need to win a war." (I)

- Damina -

So she left us alone.

Our creator, our master, our one and only Maou-... No, I can't use this title, this insult that was forced upon her.

Our lady deserves better.

I look around at my freshly created brothers.

All of them unique in their own way, but sharing the same origin.

Just as I was told to be as well.

I'm my own being.

I can have purposes and goals.

This is my lady's blessing.

However, now that she left us, I feel weirdly empty.

What kind of purpose could my existence even have if it's not to serve her?

"What are we supposed to do now?" (K)

A good question, which I don't know the answer to.

"What can we even do? We were told to stay here until our busy lady may find the opportunity to handle us." (D)

"I'm angry! Not being able to do anything is frustrating." (H)

Flames burst from my brother, a testament to his fierce temperament.

I instinctively feel a certain disdain for him.

His element, no, his whole being is created in opposition to mine.

Where I grow and nurture he burns and destroys.

Nonetheless, the deep familiarity I feel from sharing the same background renders me unable to hate him.

The disposition therefore only amounts to slight agitation.

"This mustn't be like this." (L)

My other brother begins to speak.

While he seems to be the frailest of us, his appearance betrays the immense power this slender frame contains.

It already becomes apparent in the way he raises his voice.

Though, this isn't quite right.

It's more like a whisper becoming more clear and distinct to my perception.

He has no need for shouting.

Not at the moment.

Rather, his will carries the words straight to us.

And only us... Peculiar.

"I don't know how this is for you, but I'll go looking for 'Chiaki'." (L)

I shudder, unable to fully process what he just stated.

"Lajus, is it? Did you in any way consider the implications of what you just said?" (D)

"Of course, I did. Coming to the very conclusion I just told you. In fact, we should all move to the human realm." (L)

"What are you talking about?! We were explicitly forbidden to do so!" (K)

"Not forbidden. Our Mao-, Ma-, C, Cre-! Our, c-creator wishes that we think on our own. So if we think in the way that we want to support her of our free volition the condition she put up is fulfilled." (L)

Can he truly mean this?

The very idea is correlating with betrayal on our very creator.

Such a thing.

My other brothers think alike.

"Whom"

Kroga stomps once and his powers lift a gigantic pillar off the ground, which he promptly grabs and raises as his weapon of choice.

"Whosh"

Helfa's flames on the other hand, which never receded from his earlier agitation, burst with an even greater intensity before he charges straight at Lajus.

"Traitor!" (H)

The very same answers with a particularly strong gust of wind that not only serves as a minor impediment for Helfa, it also propels him out of the fire's range, where he makes for a casual landing.

From this new position he speaks once more, but this time even louder.

"Am I? Our creator has a wish! A longing! Can any of you truly state this shouldn't be fulfilled? That it can be part of our existence to ignore her?" (L)

At this, I let my tendrils, which I carefully prepared below the ground burst out around him and let the vine wrap him up before he can escape again.

"Doing so would mean to defy her orders!" (D)

"Then so be it. I'll accept any punishment once I achieved to retrieve what is so precious to our creator. But before this happens I won't accept to only sit tight and watch her grieve!" (L)

"Swsh"

A massive burst of magic emanates from him and wind blades sever my vines.

He's proficient, I need to give him that, even if he's a traitor.

Would destroying him, a marvelous work of my lady, because of this kind of dispute truly be in her sense?

Isn't what he intends to do the very idea of what our creator was trying to convey to us?

Rather than following her orders, he wants to fulfill her desires.

Such an act I understand too well, as desire is my nature just as loyalty is.

"Mhm, it could be that he does have a point." (D)

"You too, Damina?" (K)

"Why did our creator grant us the freedom of choice if we won't make use of it when it matters? What would our personal reason to exist be if we can't even support our creator in her hour of need? I want to serve my lady. Be it willing or not, despite her immeasurable capacities, I can't accept letting her take this on all on her own. So shouldn't we act, not as her servant to complete her orders, but as devotees who will do anything to make her content?" (D)

"I... understand your position. I can't bear to see our Ma, ma-, master distraught. Nonetheless, going against her direct orders can't be right either." (K)

"Grmph. I'm still angry. The enemies shall perish!" (H)

I'm truly conflicted.

Should my loyalty or my love for our creator take priority?

How could I decide this?

Is this what free will is like?

To think that it would be so bothersome to navigate.

Yet it seems others have a clearer path in mind.

"Well, once you've settled your dispute try catching up to me. I'm leaving now!" (L)

With a gust of wind, he rushes out of the hall into this wide world, which I only know from the thought influence I received during my creation.

Ready to find this Chiaki.