- Iori -

I can't believe what I'm hearing!

"Just so I get this straight. All of you deliberately decided to follow your own free will and intentionally go against my prohibition for you not to go out there by yourself and not to engage the enemy. That’s correct so far, right?" (I)

Right now, four super demons are quivering in front of me like children getting scolded.

And yes, they're confirmed to be ridiculously strong.

In fact, Helfa, my fire one, fighting off an army of thousands all by himself was what brought this situation to my attention.

Before, I was a bit wrapped up in orchestrating the formation of an army to fight back against the enemy tides, after my early plan didn't seem all that feasible anymore.

Yet now I'm here dealing with this.

"Come on now. I'd like to have an answer." (I)

"We are sorry, creator, and will accept any punishment you have in mind." (Damina)

"Sigh, you don't really seem to grasp the concept of securing measures. I don't want you to come to harm, neither do I want you to cause harm. Is this seriously demanding too much?" (I)

"But if they are against you, demon king. Urgrah! I mean, ma-master! Then we need..." (Helfa)

"Then I will deal with the issue myself. I'm not about to sacrifice you for my convenience." (I)

"I-it's my fault! I instigated this, hoping to serve you better than the others. I tried to avoid danger, but the response was more than I could handle alone." (Lajus)

Sure.

I probably should have expected the rogue in my team to act rogue.

One more thing to mentally note down.

"Also, we made sure not to harm the sentient beings on the enemy side." (D)

Wait, I feel like there was an important piece of information just now.

"Sentient beings? The enemy started making use of those?" (I)

"There were some at the edge of showing individualism; however, there was, in fact, at least one who acted with clearly a mind of their own." (L)

This is concerning.

I don't know how I'd work around an army of people I shouldn't kill.

This is a handicap that wouldn't end well for me against my far more experienced opponent.

However, giving up and leaving Chiaki in their grasp is certainly not an option.

So what to do?

"There's more." (L)

Sure. Because one problem can never come by itself.

"Yes? What else is there?" (I)

"This human. They call him The Savior. At least, the enemy arranged it so that we'd get to know him like this. I'm convinced this was intentional." (L)

"Savior?" (I)

I'm not even surprised.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

My opponent is giving their all to force me into a classical demon lord scenario.

So giving someone the hero class is just what one would expect.

"He was strong. His magic element is light and he uses it to devastating effect." (D)

"The saint beside him was also formidable, with light abilities of her own, and together with his entire party, they are substantial stronger than their general forces. Yet the most important thing would be that the enemy intends for him to visit certain places, called dungeons, within their territory. I, I barely dare to say it, but they proclaimed once his journey comes to completion, he would be able to vanquish the demon king. Th-this is the information I was seeking to acquire to your benefit." (L)

Goddamnit.

Could it be even more cliche?

At this point, this whole world is one big ripoff of the fantasy genre.

But, can this really be true?

I didn't even consider it until now, but could my opponent truly have a way to seriously harm me?

This might all be a big ruse, but it's hard to completely deny the very possibility, just because I can't see it happening yet.

However, wouldn't future me have warned me about this kind of possibility?

No, I'm rather sure they would've intervened to prevent my eventual obliteration if already my parent's divorce was grounds to mess with the delicate fabric of time.

On the other side, maybe there are other ways to deal with me.

For example, sealing me away or banishment.

I still remember how Makoto's grandfather forced me to switch dimensions, and I couldn't really prevent the transport itself.

Would my future self truly mind if I spent one or two millennia in isolation as unhinged as they were?

For this reason, I should at the very least be careful.

But before I can focus on this I need to focus on what's right in front of me.

Mainly, four demons who are still waiting for their verdict.

Could I maybe just forego this and claim this uncertainty to be the punishment?

No, I don't think so.

That would be just lazy.

"Sigh. Fine. Do what you want. That was the point of this all in the first place. Just don't expect me to resurrect you if something happens, you understand me?" (I)

"Yes, Ma-, errh, my lady!" (all of them, with more or less success)

We really should figure out this part.

While those four clearly went against my orders, I can't say it didn't benefit me.

Whatever is going on, the "Savior" and the "Saint" are the centerpieces of the enemy's play.

But what about Chiaki?

Could it be?

Did they brainwash her?

Oh my god, what would I do in that case?!

It might not be impossible as a factor, given who I'm dealing with, yet I am basically only making wild assumptions here.

I probably should put some effort into having a more concrete foundation to base myself on.

For now, I should focus on getting more power out.

This means more fighters on the field, as every piece is valuable in a game.

The creation has to run nonstop and I have to spread my influence in every single moment.

However, on another note, I should invest in small flying units to keep some tabs on this savior.

No matter how little I know, what is clear is that he is a unique figure in the center of my opponent's plans.

I can't say if they'll lead me to Chiaki, but nothing comes from nothing, so I should at least investigate.

Having made up my mind, I create more production facilities.

By now I have a sizeable number of them.

Currently, my creations charge the main passage between the two regions, where they meet a continuous influx of over and over-replenished human-like soldiers.

No matter what I send against them, there always seems to be some answer.

If I come with behemoth-sized tanks, they counter with war machines.

If I send fliers, they suddenly have more archers among them.

If my stronger demons start mowing through the first ranks, they get promptly turned into ashes by spellfire.

It's frustrating at the very least.

Should I maybe just delve in there myself?

Yet I shouldn't do such a thing.

Which my other self is surely going to elaborate any moment regarding why not.

As I clearly know, they're baiting me.

Worse, all the processing power going into making a big entrance will cut me short on other fronts.

Yes, I might claim an overwhelming victory right here, but the overall drawback would far outweigh this.

Not to speak of the risks of such an exposure of our person.

Then I'm asking myself why my 'smarter' side doesn't take over.

Because that one's already fully occupied!

I'm sure I can figure out things by myself.

What's that supposed to mean?!

No answer, huh?

Well, seems like I don't have a choice.

As I don't see much hope breaking through that defense anytime soon, it seems more opportune to try it over the various side paths.

With small troops I might slip through, and if I don’t find any major places, I’ll at least disturb this production.

But of course, that is within my opponent's expectations.

I feel particularly complicated about several of them getting eradicated in the woods through arrows shot by elves.

I like elves.

At least aesthetically.

However, I also started coming from other flanks.

It's not quite as simple to overcome the natural barriers that my opponent erected as part of this game, but flying helps a great deal in this respect.

I can not only transport ground units this way but also have fliers up in the air to finally get some intel on positions.

Maintaining a mental connection of this scale is expanding my mind by a deal that surely isn't healthy for my sanity, oh, so many impressions.

However, I don't have much of a choice, for Chiaki.

And then I spot something.

A group that looks very much like the typical adventurer troop.

They're taking the road toward a cave I already scouted.

Yet then the one at the front points at the bat I'm currently using for my remote video feed.

A moment later, the input goes dark.

I think the ranger of the group just shot my bat with a lightning-fast arrow.

Was this the hero party with this ominous savior?