The Demon King vs. The Black Cats

It wasn't that he was careless. But he had been reckless.

He really shouldn't have come to Lemdria after all.

To think he would have to fight against those monsters…

Haruto was fleeing from his pursuers in a truly desperate manner.

(I let my guard down since nothing bad had happened lately～!)

Through the forest, across the plains, and where he finally arrived was the wastelands.

No, it wasn't even wastelands.

It was a place where no living things existed at all. In its center was a gargantuan, deep hole.

The remnants of where the imperial capital once stood. The remnants of where even the souls of three million people had been burned to ash.

He tried to flee from there, only to realize it was impossible.

They had gotten ahead of him. No, had he been guided here from the very beginning?

A magical barrier. He couldn't even use teleportation. From how strong it was, he immediately knew who had created it.

"Azel and Al-san, huh…"

Both were called Great Sages, the strongest mages on the continent.

And as for who was approaching from behind…

"Haruto, it's over."

Shana. A scarlet-haired mage who wielded the strongest destruction magic.

"Well, you went a bit too far."

A giant stood as if protecting her, greatsword in hand.

Thor. Likely the strongest swordsman on the continent.

A hint of sadness was visible in his expression.

"Toru-san…"

An existence from the same world, once called a hero.

But now, a clear enemy. Whether to destroy this world, or to stop it just short of that.

Their paths had diverged.

"Hey, even now, don't you want to start the Millennium? You understand too, don't you, that the circulation of souls will ultimately save this world from ruin?"

Yes, only Thor still retained that softness.

Even Azel and Shana, who had once defeated the Demon King together with him, didn't retain it—that softness toward Haruto Arisugawa.

"It's pointless. Isn't that right?"

The one who emerged from the very back was the leader of the Black Cats.

Yamato. But only a very limited number of people knew his real name.

"Shifaka-san…"

The strongest of the strong. The one Haruto could never defeat no matter what. The strongest human on this continent.

Saint Emperor Ryuke Shifaka.

Having lived for more than three thousand years—an existence that surpassed even dragons.

"I will kill you, set the demon race in motion, and bring about the Millennium. There is no other way to save this world."

Yamato's—Shifaka's voice was weary.

It was the voice of an aged man who had lived not just three thousand years, but many times that.

"By doing that, you rob this world of its possibilities and repeat the same thing over and over, thinking yourself a savior!"

Haruto howled. A man who had been summoned as a hero and witnessed tens of thousands, hundreds of millions of deaths.

Facing him was a man who had witnessed several times that number.

"I am no savior. I simply wish to prevent a Great Collapse like the one three thousand years ago. That is all I live for."

The Great Collapse.

It was certainly something that had to be prevented. But his methods were robbing all living things of their futures.

"In the end, you can't do anything."

Even with sadness in his voice, Haruto murmured.

"You repeat the same thing over and over, just changing your companions slightly. You have no regard for the living will that demons and humans possess."

Haruto's mana swelled. Even though he knew he had no chance of winning against this many opponents.

"While you spent the same thousand years over and over, I failed countless times, yet still searched for a future."

The lives he had sacrificed numbered not just in the thousands or tens of thousands. It was truly the work of a Demon King.

But even so, he had believed in the possibility.

A means to overcome the Great Collapse, to overcome this world's ruin.

"Blocking teleportation but not blocking summoning will be your downfall."

In that moment, Haruto's eyes were unbelievably cold for him.

"Summon: Demon King Machine God."

A massive summoning formation appeared in the sky.

There was no one present who couldn't instinctively feel how dangerous it was.

"Come forth, Humanoid Decisive Battle Weapon!"

A golem exceeding fifty meters in height. But its true value couldn't be understood from its appearance alone.

"That's… no way…"

Only Thor—the one who had been in another world, Toru Hakamada—knew of this impossible thing.

Haruto entered the red crystal that had opened in the golem's chest.

Sporting horns like a devil, its jet-black body was almost human-like. It held two short swords in its hands.

"While you desperately maneuvered behind the scenes to maintain balance in the human world, I believed only in the possibility of a future."

Haruto's voice echoed.

"This is the crystallization of that belief."

"You're kidding…"

"Thor, what is that?"

Even in this situation, only Shifaka's voice remained calm. But that didn't come from courage—it came from indifference to everything.

"That is the power of science. And probably the power of magic combined with it…"

Yes, Thor understood. He understood just how dangerous it was.

"That isn't a golem. It's a decisive battle weapon."

"I see."

Shifaka drew his sword. A divine sword. A true divine sword that had once slain a god.

"Either way, what I must do remains unchanged."

And so, the battle began.

There was no loser.

However, the one to retreat was the Black Cats.

Shifaka made that decision before there were any casualties.

In other words—

The victor was the Demon King.

What the heck.

What is up with those people.

Really, what are they even thinking?

Even though I was planning to make a grand entrance at the final battle all like, "This is my strategic-grade humanoid decisive battle weapon!" with a smug look on my face.

If you gang up on me five against one like that, of course I won't have the luxury of holding back.

It's good that they went home after getting fooled by my bluff, but my secret weapon got all scratched up.

I know there weren't any witnesses, but a wild dance of forbidden spells is a bit much, isn't it? Dark Thermonuclear Exploding Hell and Meteor Shower and such. Give me a break.

Ahh, the armor's all warped and the magic formations are slightly damaged. The foremen are going to be angry… Or maybe they'll be happy for more work? Those guys are work junkies after all.

Well, it wasn't all bad. Even if it was as expected, I was able to measure the operational time limit in actual combat.

Alrighty, teleport. Good work, me.

"Haruto-san… no, His Majesty Ars."

Ah, Ferna-san. When did you get here?

Eh? What's with those sparkling eyes?

Hey, seriously, stop it. I'm not good with that kind of thing.

Yeah, I'm really grateful from the bottom of my heart that you took our side instead of just sheltering me.

But right now, you have the same expression as my retainers.

I don't like that kind of thing, which is why I've been acting alone.

"My will is with your ideals."

Uwaa, there it is!

The ideal declaration's arrived!

"Ferna-san, please stop. My ideals aren't anything so great."

No, really. It's more like haphazard than ideals.

My original motivation was trying to recreate modern Japanese life while also preserving the environment.

In the process, I learned about the meaning of the Millennium and the hopelessness of the Great Collapse, and by that point, there was nobody else who could do anything about it.

Ah, no, wait. That's not right. Those people have the power too, and if the dragons felt like it, they could survive the Millennium.

In the end, I'm just doing what I want to do.

Also, weren't you supposed to be in Orgus?

"I'm just doing what I want to do."

Really, that's true. It's just that, unfortunately, what I want can't be achieved without saving the world.

Even now, if there's someone who wants to swap with me, I'd swap in a heartbeat, you know?

Ah, Ferna-san, please stop that pose where you clasp your fist over your chest.

Please stop making your eyes sparkle even more.

Yeah, I understand. I really do. I've had that look directed at me many times.

That's still just being in love with love.

You still have time, so instead of an old geezer like me, go fall in love with a boy your own age. I'm older than your great-grandfather, you know.

Yeah, she's my type, so if she comes on to me, there's a possibility I won't be able to refuse, so I need to do something about this now.

While I was thinking about such things, my adorably annoying child came along.

"Your Majesty～"

The barrier's gone too, after all. Well, if she'd used the real trump card, she probably could have gotten through, but that's still incomplete.

The adorable flaxen-haired vampire descended in front of me. And then she took my right arm. Ooh, soft. No, no—this is familial love.

Rei was following behind her too, but devil wings are faster after all.

"I was so worried! No, actually, I wasn't worried at all!"

Eh, what's that about?

Hmm, does that mean she trusted me?

Well, that's better than having her stick her hand in that battlefield.

But if you don't worry about me at least a little, even I'll cry, you know?

"Your Majesty…"

Rei was standing a step back. But her eyes looked like they might start crying any moment.

Ahh, she was worried for me, huh. Well, I was up against two heroes and two Great Sages. I'll pat her head slowly later.

H-huh?

Somehow my left hand is being held by Ferna-san?

And she and Asuka are glaring at each other?

"Your Majesty, who is this woman?"

"Ah, she's Ferna-san, who's going to be our companion from now on."

"Please call me Ferna."

Ahh, Asuka-san. Even if they've gotten bigger, please stop pressing your chest against me.

I've known you since you were a baby. I know you from when you were bawling in a diaper.

No matter how cute you've grown up to be, my sense of ethics is kicking in…

"Nice to meet you. I am Ars-sama's foster child, Asuka."

Speaking of ethics, there was that woman, Princess Guinevere.

In that suspension bridge state right after desperately defeating that dragon, she said something adorably devoted, and I ended up doing it with her.

"At the very least, I want to offer my purity to the person I love from the bottom of my heart."

If someone says that, you can't call yourself a man if you don't respond, right?

But you know, when you think about it.

The only remaining royalty was that person alone.

With Carla firmly on her side as her greatest fighting force, she could choose any lover she wanted. It didn't have to be with my child.

Thinking about it now, maybe she chose me precisely because there were no obligations?

That woman was fundamentally scheming. Should I call her a wicked woman? She's not a bad girl though.

Well, I got plenty of pleasure from her too, so I don't have the right to complain.

At least let me grumble in my mind, okay?

While thinking about such things, my left arm ended up being held by Ferna-san.

… Um, Ferna-san.

You seem to have a complex about being boyish.

But the destructive power of breasts is a threat to all men, you know?

"For now, let me show Ferna-san to the base."

I teleported with the girls gathered around me. Rei, your chest is as deadly as ever. Your father here hopes you find a good husband soon.

Of course, I'll make absolutely sure to vet the man thoroughly though!

"What an unusual room."

Yeah, it's natural for Ferna-san to have trouble adjusting since this is her first time seeing it.

This room was originally meant to recreate an average Japanese house… in other words, my old room.

Add a bath, toilet, and kitchen, and you can pretty much live like this.

Ahh, I'm so tired though.

I don't think those people can catch up to my thousand years of accumulated knowledge at this point.

But still, I wanted to stay hidden if possible.

"Sorry, but could you keep watch? I'm going to sleep for a while…"

This is a hidden place in demon territory, so those people shouldn't be able to get in.

I'm already getting sleepy from using too much mana…

I found various points for improvement too, but…

For now, sleep is justice!

So, Asuka-san.

Please stop trying to sleep beside me.