Chapter 88. <36. Special Gift>
The old man of Red Moon.
No, the newly born Demon King wore a serious expression.
His foolish subordinate going on about "my lord" was extremely annoying.
'I should have blown his head off sooner.'
The Demon King, who had been contemplating, soon shook his head.
No. Still, thanks to that guy's provocation, he was able to properly assess the intruder's abilities. That much was worthy of praise.
'I almost passed by the most dangerous one without realizing it.'
That's right. That boy was the most dangerous existence for the invasion of the human realm.
The Demon King judged so.
Of course, there were no others as strong as him.
There was the Knight King who had beheaded the previous Demon King, and the Golden Dawn that had repeatedly blocked invasions.
While they couldn't compare to those, other Sword Masters and mages could exert tremendous synergy when gathered. Enough that even he, the Demon King, felt burdened.
'But they are existences whose ages have fully matured....'
They probably wouldn't grow any stronger. Even if they did, there wouldn't be much difference.
However, that boy was different. In terms of potential, he was more dangerous than all those great figures combined.
Thinking about his future changing year by year, it was enough to break him out in a cold sweat. The Demon King made his decision.
'I'll change the target. I'll start with that boy first.'
He had planned to unconditionally aim for the Knight King's weakness, but not anymore. That boy's potential was too unsettling.
The Demon King, who nodded, quietly withdrew his gaze.
He wore an evil-looking smile.
'As expected, it was good to declare territory in a human body even if I had to accept some losses.'
If one declared territory over vast lands or fortresses, they could exert stronger power.
But the problem was that it was too conspicuous. Moreover, since the time required to expand territory was long, there was the disadvantage of giving humans time to prepare.
That was why the previous Demon King fell. His magical energy was tremendous enough to surpass himself, but not enough to defeat the human allied forces.
It was a regrettable matter.
If only the previous Demon King's movements had been freer. And thus, if he had defeated them one by one before humans could gather their strength... wouldn't the human realm have become a colony of the demon realm by now?
'It's not too late!'
No, rather, it's just right.
Thanks to the previous Demon King's failure, he was able to rise to the position of Demon King. He became able to cook the human realm as the main character, not as a sidekick.
The possibility was sufficient too.
He had declared territory in a human body, and succeeded.
The vessel was also to his liking. It was insufficient to contain all his power, but it was more than enough to defeat the continent's strongest forces one-on-one. It was worth targeting a Sword Master's body.
'In another 2-3 months, I'll perfectly adapt to the human body. From then on, I'll set out for assassination.'
The targets were the ten strongest on the continent!
And the monarchs of powerful nations serving as central pillars!
If he dealt with them first, taking the human realm into his hands wouldn't be impossible.
'The first Demon King to achieve the feat of conquering the human realm... I like it.'
The Demon King let out a dark chuckle.
Drinking wine red as blood, he once again refined his plans for assassination.
***
"Phew."
Rumian Calad opened his eyes. His expression looked somewhat more at ease.
It wasn't because things were resolved. Because the bald demon had died, he had to harbor various curiosities unsolved in his chest.
The reason his mind became more at ease was simply because he had regained his usual mindset.
'Let's only worry about what I can do. Let's not think about other things.'
It was Rumian's motto.
Rather than obsessing over useless parts by worrying, let's do what he could do.
In fact, this wasn't well kept in matters related to women, but fortunately, he could fulfill this now.
Then what was it that he could do?
'Purifying this mountain. Informing about the demons' schemes.'
And becoming stronger.
There was no need to think of anything else.
Rumian, who nodded, quickly searched the red mountain. It was to pick up the demon stones dropped by the high-ranking demons.
It wasn't a difficult task. Since they were wafting with demonic energy, he couldn't miss them even if he tried.
He put four of the total 34 demon stones into his spatial backpack, and also collected some of the soil and branches that had turned red.
It was intended to inform that a red territory had appeared in the human realm and had been subjugated.
'If I send these as evidence to the Order along with a letter, it will help them grasp the seriousness of the situation.'
In fact, there was a high possibility they already knew. No, it was certain. It was impossible that the Main God's Order or powerful nations like Zenas and Rodia wouldn't know what he had realized after half a year.
Then this was sufficient. He just needed to trust them and quietly build his strength until they moved.
'And, if a demon comparable to the Archduke of the Demon Realm appears again, or if the Demon King's Castle reveals itself...'
It wouldn't be too late to move then.
Until then, there was no need to worry, no need to be anxious.
"Alright."
His mind was neatly organized.
Having finished his thoughts, he looked down.
Thirty demon stones excluding the four to submit to the Order.
His face frowned at the demonic energy wafting from them, but Rumian's eyes contained regret as he looked at them.
'If my level were higher, I would have chewed them all up right here and greatly increased my aura...'
But he couldn't do that.
The absorption of demon stones had been possible until now partly thanks to his purification ability, but ultimately because his aura amount was insufficient compared to his experience and ability.
But from now on, the situation was different.
Rumian had recovered most of his realm. To increase his aura further, he had to break through his current realm.
If he tried to accept more aura without doing so, his internal pathways including his dantian would all burst.
'In fact, there were several knights whose bodies exploded from eating too many spirit medicines compared to their abilities...'
But Rumian's face was still full of regret.
It was only natural.
To others, they were nothing but evil stones that would damage the body and mind, but to him, they were spirit medicines unparalleled in the world.
How unjust would it be if he handed all those over to the Order and then later, if his realm rose and he gained the ability to digest them?
'But it's hard to store thirty demon stones, not just one or two.'
That was the problem.
A few could be put in a spatial bag without issue, but thirty was a different story.
That was no different from putting in a real high-ranking demon. Even if just for a moment, if left for long, it would definitely have a negative effect on the surroundings.
To store thirty demon stones without problems, one would need to use a sealing tool rare enough to be seen only in royal palace reports.
Of course, Rumian didn't have such things. He muttered.
"Should I just give up and purify them all..."
That was when it happened.
A familiar voice came from the sky.
It was a song. The melody repeated and the lyrics were very simple, like a nursery rhyme children would sing.
Rumian raised his head with a dazed expression.
Water, water, sprinkling water- full of Lady Alia's grace-
Bottom this way- tail that way- dancing and sprinkling diligently-
Sprout, sprout, sprouts grow- receiving Lady Alia's grace-
Petals like this- grass like that- smiling brightly-
It was the baby dragon Semeu.
The guy was sprinkling holy water on the red mountain with a giant watering can he had obtained who knows where.
Sarararak-!
Parureut!
The effect was amazing.
Everywhere the guy passed, the red energy was neutralized. The soil and trees, flowers that had been emitting a bloody smell shone with full natural colors again.
It was almost at the level of effect as if the Archbishop or Pope of the Alia Order personally performed a purification ceremony.
'Is it because he's a dragon? Amazing.'
Rumian wore a bright smile.
He wondered how long it would take him to purify the entire mountain alone, so he was fortunate.
He called Semeu.
"Semeu!"
"Huh? Lord Rumian! It's Lord Rumian! Thank you! Thank you!"
Buuung
The guy, who discovered Rumian, quickly flew over.
Even while approaching, Semeu didn't stop sprinkling holy water. Following the path he passed, a green aura bloomed as if painted with a brush.
However, his expression grew increasingly strange.
The face that had been delighted to see Rumian was nowhere to be seen. And tremendous fear welled up.
Semeu, whose teeth made clicking sounds as they hit each other, lifted the watering can high.
And tried to pour holy water toward the thirty demon stones.
Rumian was flustered.
"No! Semeu!"
"It's a demon! A demon!"
"Calm down! They're not demons, they're demon stones!"
"Heok! That's true! But demon stones are bad things too! Die!"
"No! Just wait a moment!"
Rumian desperately stopped Semeu.
The guy did listen, but still had a dissatisfied expression. The fact that breath was huffing out of his nose was proof.
"Are you trying to eat them again? These are poison, is it okay to keep eating them?"
"It's fine."
"I don't think it's fine..."
"I'm not going to eat them right now either. I was thinking of storing them first, but I was worrying about where to store them."
"Can't we just purify them instead of worrying?"
"No."
"Heeing..."
Semeu drooped his shoulders.
But that was only for a moment, he flapped his wings and spoke.
"Then, put them in the box at my house!"
"No. If you put them in just any box, there'll be trouble."
Rumian shook his head.
Even a spatial backpack with magical processing would have trouble lasting a week, so he didn't even want to think about what would happen with an ordinary box.
But Semeu's attitude was strange.
Just like when he had made a bet with him before coming here, he was standing on two legs with his chest puffed out. His confident expression was a bonus.
The guy spoke loudly.
"It's not just any box! The box at my house is really, really good!"
"Hahaha. How good is it?"
"It's completely good! It's completely good! And besides that, there are lots of cool and pretty things! Want to come see?"
"Pfft, a guy who's only ten years old, what could he have collected..."
Rumian chuckled.
He also knew that dragons' hobby was treasure collecting. He didn't know if it was true, but at least in novels and ancient history books, it was written so.
But he didn't think Semeu, who wasn't even a hundreds-year-old dragon and was younger than himself who had reincarnated, would have rare items.
But Semeu's following words changed his expression.
"I didn't collect them."
"Huh?"
"The dragons from before collected them. But now they're all mine."
"......!"
Like someone who picked up a gold bar on the street, Rumian's posture froze stiff.
Semeu misunderstood this. He thought he was reluctant to come play at his den.
'Cheez. There are really lots of cool and pretty things!'
The guy, who puffed his cheeks roundly, pouted his lips and said.
"If you come visit, besides the really, really good box, I'll give you really, really pretty jewels or really, really good swords as gifts! Come visit! Come visit!"
"...How many will you give?"
Rumian said with a calm face.
It was an expression trying hard not to show it. But he couldn't stop himself from gulping down saliva.
Fortunately, Semeu wasn't an experienced dragon enough to grasp such trivial things.
The guy, who beamed brightly, spoke excitedly.
"I'll give you this much!"
The guy spread one front leg wide.
It wasn't an action he thought about. He had just spread his toes as much as possible because he felt good.
'...I wish there were five toes.'
Semeu's front toes were only three.
Rumian, swallowing his regret, asked gently.
"So... is that three including the box? Or three excluding the box?"
***
The baby dragon Semeu's den was located in a forest right next to the red mountain, no, the now purified mountain.
Strictly speaking, it was another mountain disguised as a forest. Its level was much higher than the barrier the demons had set up, so even Rumian almost fell for it.
"The dragons who lived before kept developing it! They're dead now though!"
Semeu spoke heavy words in a lively tone.
It seemed his attitude toward accepting death was different from humans.
Of course, that wasn't what was important right now.
The fact that the dragons of the past were that great was important, and the fact that the treasures those great dragons had collected were in Semeu's den was important.
'What should I take... First, I hope there's a sword that suits me, and if possible, armor too...'
Since being a knight was his calling, such thoughts came to mind first.
But Rumian forcibly lowered his expectations.
He didn't think dragons would have collected many swords and armor that humans used, and above all, he was worried that he would be disappointed seeing items that fell short of his expectations when he was full of anticipation.
Therefore, he deliberately maintained a solemn expression and dignified attitude.
"Ta-da! Here it is! How is it? Cool, right? Pretty, right?"
But when he took his first step into the treasure warehouse guided by Semeu.
Rumian couldn't even let out a single exclamation.
It wasn't because of the numerous gold, silver, and treasures filling the warehouse.
That they weren't amazing was certainly not the case. But there was something else that captured his gaze.
A sword stuck carelessly among gold lumps rolling around like stones.
It had quite a stylish form, but why did that sword, which was a common sight here, catch his eye first?
He couldn't know. But it didn't matter.
Rumian walked steadily, grasped it in his hand, and infused it with aura.
Then.
Sharararak-
Beautiful flower petals rained down from the sky.
"Wow! What is this? It's really amazing! Woaah!"
Semeu flapped his wings and shouted.
It seemed even he was seeing this sight for the first time. Rumian raised his head and looked at the sky.
The falling petals created a romantic atmosphere.
He didn't know what principle it worked on. But one thing was certain.
'I'm feeling something.'
It seemed like it would be amazing if used in front of a woman.