How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord: Volume 13 - ebook

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The Story So Far—

In the MMORPG _Cross Reverie_, Takuma Sakamoto was overwhelmingly powerful, and was able to role play so well that his performances were more boss-like than the actual bosses of the game. For this reason, he came to be known as the “Demon Lord.”

By defeating the Demon Lord of the Mind, Enkvaros, faster than anyone else, he obtained the super rare item, the 《Demon Lord’s Ring》. It was one of the ultimate pieces of equipment in the game, able to reflect all types of magic.

Then, one day, Takuma found himself summoned to a world that looked exactly like _Cross Reverie_! Having performed the ritual magic at the same time, the Pantherian, Rem, and the Elf, Shera, fought over which one of them was his Summoner.

But thanks to the Demon Lord’s Ring he wore, the magic was reflected, so the Enslavement Collar meant for him clamped onto the two girls instead!

Faced with Rem and Shera arguing, Takuma was at a loss of what to do. While he may have been a superior player back in the game, he couldn’t talk with other people if his life depended on it. After struggling with what to say, the words that came out of his mouth matched the Demon Lord role play he had used in the game:

“Cease your pointless squabbling. You are in the presence of Diablo.”

Diablo soon after found himself foiling an invasion of one hundred Fallen led by a Fallen named Edelgard, as well as an attack from within the city of Faltra at the hands of the Fallen, Gregore. Diablo then later found himself the recipient of a quest from the governor of Faltra, Galford. Prince Keera of the Elven Kingdom of Greenwood demanded Shera be returned to him, threatening open war with Faltra should they fail to comply. The details of Galford’s quest were simply to find a way to avoid the war. The bespectacled, straight-and-narrow Imperial Knight Alicia was assigned to the group as an observer to watch over their actions.

Using the 《Marionette’s Flute》, Keera manipulated Shera and unleashed a forbidden Summon called the Force Hydra—yet Diablo still managed to rescue her.

After her rescue, the group set off to resurrect the Demon Lord Krebskulm trapped inside Rem. But in the process, Krebskulm had lost a portion of her memories as a Demon Lord, being reduced to a biscuit-loving young girl, who was then nicknamed “Klem.”

Peaceful days passed by...

Suddenly, Alicia betrayed the group! Now awakened as a true Demon Lord, Klem went into a destructive frenzy. But thanks to one of Diablo’s ultimate spells and the sound of Rem’s and Shera’s voices, Klem was subdued and reverted to her biscuit-loving form. To ensure Klem would never go berserk again, Diablo bound her with the same enslavement magic afflicted upon Shera and Rem.

Through a string of coincidences, or perhaps God’s own guidance, Diablo found himself rescuing Lumachina, a holy woman, from the Paladin Gewalt. Being a High Priest, Lumachina was the highest ranking member of the church. However, due to her attempts at ridding the church of corruption and avarice, she was nearly assassinated. Still seeking to reform the corrupt church, Lumachina sought the help of the Paladin Captain Batutta, setting out to meet him in Zircon Tower.

Located in the perilous expanse of the former Demon Lord’s Domain, Diablo’s group of Adventurers accompanied her as bodyguards. After a long journey, they arrived at their destination, and were greeted by Batutta.

While there, Diablo claimed back his own dungeon, gained many pieces of helpful equipment and items, and fought off the new Demon Lord’s army, gaining new allies in the process: the grasswalker, Horn, and the magimatic maid, Rose.

Shortly after, Horn decided to change classes and study to become a sorcerer, leaving for the magic academy.

But they could not celebrate their victories however. Having been informed that the elven king, Shera’s father, had passed away, the four traveled to her homeland where Shera was already engaged to a pig-faced elf called Drango (for the sake of the country, of course). Diablo thwarted the wedding, giving her a wedding ring and assuming the throne as the new king of Greenwood.

Diablo then fought and defeated his next great opponent, the Demon Overlord Modinaram. Saving Rem who had been taken captive, he gave her a wedding ring also. But news of Diablo’s heroic deeds reached the king of Lyferia, Delouche Xandros. Diablo attempted to ignore the order calling him for an audience with the king, but still begrudgingly found himself in the audience chamber.

What awaited him in the castle wasn’t words of praise, but gazes full of suspicion. Left with no choice, Diablo accepted a quest from the king in order to guarantee the safety of him and his companions.

His quest led him to the southern frontier town of Caliture, Rem’s hometown, where her family — a clan of martial artists known as the Gadou Clan — resides. There, Rem’s aunt, Solami, trained him in the use of the Glow.

The objective of his quest was to slay a clan of Kobolds, but Diablo ended up befriending the creatures and turning against the Kingdom of Lyferia. But before things could develop any further, the Gelmed Empire invaded Lyferia from the east!

Gelmed’s elite soldiers and commander, Aira, use Magimatic Sols, the same weapon Rose does. Lyferia’s army took to the battlefield to oppose them, led by the king himself. However, Lyferia’s efforts ended in spectacular defeat, and the King of Lyferia perished in combat.

The prime minister, Noah Gibun, fled the country with the Order of Palace Knights. Meanwhile, the Gelmed Empire’s armies laid siege to the capital, Sevenwall. The twelfth district and the Grand Cathedral somehow manage to push the enemy back, but..

It seems Rem is the ‘Girl of the Vessel’ the Empire is after, and she is pursued insistently by the enemy. Diablo steels his resolve, destroys the Magimatic Sols pursuing Rem, and slays his enemies to save her. At the same time, Alicia is captured by the Gelmed Empire and experimented on, being thrown into Goldinus of the Gold. The Magimatic Sol, which had consumed all who had previously attempted to use it, accepts her as its compatible user.

Alicia looked around the room, her eyes burning with red.

“...So ugly.”

The first words Goldinus of the Gold uttered.

CHAPTER 1: ERINA REUFELIA

The smell of the battlefield hung in the air. With the city reduced to a smoldering mess, the scents of blood and iron hardly lingered. It was mostly the distinct aroma of trees, cloth, and coal burning. Despite it being past noon, the sky was darkened by the dark clouds blotting out the sun.

Both friend and foe lay dead by the dozens. The Empire had apparently withdrawn its army, and the sounds of combat were dying out. The church’s soldiers cheered at having successfully defended the twelfth sector, but judging by those lying dead on the ground, it was clear who was the true winner of this battle. Lyferia’s side was vastly inferior.

Using his《Flight》magic, Diablo flew up to the Inner Sanctum.

_This is what war means._

This wasn’t the first time Diablo saw something like this. He’d fought off the Demon Lord’s Army in Zircon Tower, and took part in defending Faltra from the Demon Overlord’s invasion. But this was the first time he’d fought in a war between the races of man, and the unbearable sights filled Diablo with an intense feeling of disgust.

At the same time, he was also overcome with relief. Relief at not losing someone dear to him in this fierce battlefield. Rem was in his arms.

“...Thank you, Diablo,” she said.

“Hmph,” he replied curtly.

He had no idea how a Demon Lord was supposed to respond in this situation. By acting grandly, Diablo claimed to be a Demon Lord from another world. But the truth of the matter was that on the inside, he was a shut-in gamer crippled by a communication disorder. Before coming to this world, he couldn’t so much as hold a conversation with a girl, to say nothing of holding hands with one.

And while he did acknowledge that he’d gotten marginally better at speaking to people lately, he still had a long way to go. And yet, there he was, just a moment ago…

Diablo recalled the events that unfolded earlier. Rem was nearly abducted by the enemies. When he’d seen her, lying with her legs crushed, Diablo was shaken. Regret and wrath overcame him, and so, silencing his fear and own sense of morals, he launched offensive spell after offensive spell, killing the enemy to rescue Rem.

When the healing item he used completely reversed her wounds, he was on the verge of weeping with relief. The emotions rushed over him, and…

_No, that’s just an excuse. I… I can’t believe it. I... !_

A different kind of shock jolted Diablo’s mind.

_I, I, I k-k-k-k-k-kissed her!?_

Truth be told, this wasn’t the first time he’d kissed a girl. He’d been kissed soon after being summoned as part of the 《Enslavement Ritual》, and Rem and Shera had kissed him after he fought off the Demon Overlord Modinaram.

But this was the first time Diablo had ever _initiated_ a kiss. They both sought each other out, and out of a wish to confirm each other’s presence, locked lips. Does such an act done between two lovers have a place in Diablo’s life? Was this some kind of mistake? But even as he asked himself that, some part of Diablo did note that they were far beyond just being lovers at this point. There was, after all, a ring on Diablo’s left hand.

A 《Marriage Ring》!

When he was playing _Cross Reverie_ in his old life, he’d demolished any challenger that faced him wearing one of these rings with utter impunity. With all his might, and mercilessly enough to inflict trauma on them. Yet it all stemmed from envy.

_Yeah. I was jealous!_

He burned with maddening jealousy, and with the cold, calculated efficiency of a machine, he brought ruination upon them.

_How does it feel now, normies?! Blow up and get the hell out of my game!_

So he would shout at them. But right now, Diablo was agonized.

“Ugh… Am I the one who needs to blow up now…? No…”

“Are you all right, Diablo? Does it hurt anywhere?” Rem asked him in concern.

Diablo shook his head and managed to revert to his Demon Lord role play.

“It’s nothing! I just used some MP, is all… I’ll recover it later.”

He’d only experienced it since coming to this world, but MP wasn’t just magic points. It was his actual mental fortitude, and once he lost enough of it, he became emotionally feeble. Once, when he’d completely depleted his MP, he became so lethargic he slept entire days away. He had a large supply of potions prepared now, so that wasn’t a problem anymore.

So this current feeling of discomposure must have been because he’d lost quite a bit MP. _Yes, that must be it_, Diablo concluded. He couldn’t afford to stay restless. The war wasn’t over yet, and he stood to lose Rem if he didn’t emerge the victor. And not just her — Shera and his other comrades were in danger, too.

But most of all, he didn’t want this gruesome war to continue any longer. He couldn’t afford to be listless right now.

†

“Lord Diablo! I’m so glad you’re safe!”

In the 《Prayer Room of Fire》, located in the deepest part of the Inner Sanctum, the High Priest Lumachina rose from her chair and hurried over to Diablo. That wasn’t something that would normally happen, as she was the highest ranking member of clergy.

Standing in the room were the Paladin Tria and other high ranking priests, but despite Lumachina acting in a manner that went against tradition and social standing, no one blamed her for it.

“And you too, Miss Rem, I’m happy to see you’ve returned!” Lumachina told Rem.

“...I’m only here because Diablo was there to save me.” Rem nodded gently.

“Let me use a healing prayer on you.”

“...There’s no need for that. Diablo’s potion completely healed me.” Rem said, shaking her legs to illustrate.

Her legs were crushed by a Magimatic Sol, leaving her in a gruesome state, but now there wasn’t so much as a scratch on her legs. Her skin was sleek and healthy, and her tight muscles were well-toned. Diablo lowered her down onto the thick carpet.

“You should be healed anyway, just to be on the safe side,” Lumachina insisted.

“...There are people who are in much worse conditions.” Rem shook her head.

“It’s fine, Rem,” Lumachina told her soothingly. “We’re in the Inner Sanctum, the heart of the church. We have many high ranking priests here, and I’ve been told we have enough healers to go around.”

“Really?”

“There’s something that concerns me. Could you please let me handle this?”

Despite being the highest official in the church, Lumachina made her request politely and lowered her head. Rem shrunk back modestly, her tail drooping.

“...E-Erm, I’m sorry. Refusing a High Priest’s prayer… That was rude of me.”

“Do not worry about it. We needn’t mind trifling matters like this in such a time of crisis. Will you accept my prayer?”

“I will.”

“Then please lie down, Miss Rem. Close your eyes and relax yourself.”

“...Understood. But, give me just a moment first,” Rem’s black eyes turned to look at Diablo. “Diablo, could you stay by my side?”

“Mm?”

“...I’m sorry. This must sound childish. But when you’re standing away from me, it feels like you might leave… It makes me anxious.”

“Hmph. Such a ridiculous concern. The Empire’s army has retreated and shouldn’t launch another attack so soon. The Magimatic Sols cannot fight for long periods of time.”

“They can’t?”

“Mm. That was how the game mechanics worked… I mean, don’t concern yourself with trifling details! You have your body and your health to worry over. Know that no one may restrain me. I shall be where I wish to be!” he exclaimed with a strong tone.

Rem beamed happily.

“...All right. I’m relieved now.”

“Hmph!” Diablo flapped his cloak with grandiosity and turned, so as to hide the blush on his cheeks. “Lumachina, I leave her in your hands!”

“Yes, Lord Diablo.” Lumachina bowed her head devotely.

Apparently Lumachina was still under the impression Diablo was God and needed to be worshipped. Even after he clearly and decisively denied it…

†

Diablo left the Prayer Room of Fire alone, when a high-pitched voice reached him from the other side of the corridor.

“Diiiiiiiiiiiaaaaaaaaa…”

“Mm?”

“—bloooooooooooooooooooooooo!”

Just as that shout reached his ears, something soft rammed itself against his face.

“Mmmg?!”

Hewas shoved between two large, soft swellings. At this point, Diablo recognized who this was just by the sensation.

“Diabloooo, it was sooo scaaary!”

“Mmg, nng…!”

“There was this loud noise, like, booooom, baaaang, and it started shaking, like brrrrr!”

“Mmmg, nng…”

“Diablo?”

“Fha!” He finally managed to push away the softness bearing down on his face.

_I almost choked in there!_

“Whoa.” Shera let out a small, sweet screech.

The elves were typically slender and thin, but despite that, Shera was endowed with a giant pair of breasts that kept shaking and jolting softly. On top of all that, Shera was incredibly beautiful. It wasn’t for nothing that elves were considered the closest race to the Celestials. Despite working alongside her for quite some time now, Diablo couldn’t look her in the face without blushing.

But despite that, Shera peeked at his face curiously.

“What’s wrong, Diablo? Did something sad happen?”

“Ah… Ugh…”

“Yeah, you’re right… A lot of bad and sad things happened today. I’m sorry, I couldn’t help you at all…” Shera looked down sadly.

It was like seeing a flower wilt in the span of a second. Shera’s bright smile could light up any situation, but that only meant her frown made it feel as if the sun had suddenly gone dark. Diablo extended a hand to place it on her shoulder, but eventually was too shy to actually touch her and simply left it hanging.

“You should smile.”

“Huh?”

“If there’s anything you can do to help in this situation, it is to smile.”

“Mm… Like this?” Shera said, managing a crooked, pained smile.

_No. Not like that. More, encouragingly…_

Diablo felt pathetic. He couldn’t even manage to get a single girl to smile — a girl he’d given a wedding to, no less. Bringing a smile to a girl’s lips was so much more challenging than defeating a Magimatic Sol was.

Silence hung over them… But then an uncharacteristically bright voice sailed between the two of them.

“Oh, hiya, Diablo! Great work out there!”

“You did great, boss!”

A pair of grasswalkers tottered over down the hall. One of them was Sylvie, the Grandmaster of Faltra’s Adventurer’s Guild. The other was Horn, a thief aspiring to become a sorcerer. Both of them looked like little girls, and Horn was, in fact, thirteen years old. Diablo didn’t know Sylvie’s age, but she was apparently much older.

Grasswalkers were a race that had a rabbit’s ears and tail and retained a childish, youthful appearance even upon growing older. Sylvie motioned with her hand for Diablo to come closer, her ears swinging back and forth.

“The church’s people made us food. Potions can heal your wounds and mend your bones, but you can’t work or fight on an empty stomach.”

_Food, huh…?_

“Right, right!” Shera raised both hands to the air. “That sounds tasty! Diablo, let’s go eat!”

Eating was indeed necessary. The fighting started in early dawn, and by now it was past noon.

_I should eat now, when I still have the time._

“I saw you out there, Boss!” Horn said excitedly, swinging her clenched fists. “You were super strong!”

“Mm?”

“Your magic blasted that red giant from the Empire! I looked out just in time to see it!”

Diablo fell silent.

“And then you finished that white giant too, and saved Rem! Your magic is the best, boss! I hope I can use something like that someday too…”

“Kuh…”

Diablo could remember it. The last words he heard coming from within Viatonos of the White…

_“Aaah, aaaaaaaaah.... Nooo! It’s crushing me! It’s tearing me apart! Save meeee! Migurtha, Migurthaaaa! Airaaaaaaaa! Somebody, save meeeeeeeee!”_

_“Discard your unit, Rikka!”_

_“It won’t budge! It won’t open, it won’t... Aaaaaaaah... Mommy, big sister... Save me... Somebody, please save meeeeeeeeeeee!”_

The scream lingered in his ears. Diablo felt something bubble up from the pit of his stomach.

“Ugh...”

If his stomach wasn’t empty, he’d likely have thrown up. He silently swallowed the bitter, acidic gastric juices that rose up to his mouth and turned his back.

_There were people riding it…_

Magimatic Sols were manned weapons, and they weren’t monsters or evil villains inside. They were just his enemies. His opponents. That was all.

“Huh?” Horn asked. “Boss, where ya off to? The toilet?”

“Go ahead and eat without me.”

“Huh?! You’re not eating? But you haven’t eaten all morning...!”

But when Horn tried to go after him, she was stopped by — surprisingly enough — Shera.

“Diablo… If you feel hungry, come eat with us, okay?” she said with a sorrowful voice. “I’ll be waiting for you…”

As bad as he felt for what he was putting her through, he couldn’t suppress the urge to throw up. The thought of food was the last thing on his mind.

_I’m not hungry…_

He thought back to those words. The words he’d told his family in the old world when he shut himself off in his room.

†

Diablo walked down the corridor. Normally, Shera would follow behind him without saying a word, but right now there was no one there. She probably realized he wanted to be left alone. Or maybe the air he was giving off was simply that standoffish.

“Kuh…”

As socially inept as he was, he didn’t want to spoil the atmosphere for everyone else. If anything, it was exactly that dread of spoiling the mood that made him linger, choose his words all too cautiously and eventually say nothing. And then the guilt would make it hard to breathe, making his head spin all the more, before eventually he succumbed to outright panic…

_No, no, no! I’m a Demon Lord now! In this world, I’m the Demon Lord Diablo! I’m a Demon Lord! A Demon Lord, a Demon Lord, a Demon Lord!_

He chanted the words in his mind time and again, trying to lift himself up from those depressing thoughts. He felt as if Shera and the others had long since seen through his acting, but that didn’t matter.

“Ahahahahaha! I am a Demon Lord! Even if my sour attitude spoils the mood, I don’t give a damn! If anything, it’s obvious it would! That’s how it works! A Demon Lord being nice and friendly makes no sense!”

“Excuse me…?” someone suddenly called out to him from behind.

_Aaaah?!_

If Diablo could, he’d give himself a pat on the back for not exclaiming out loud. Nothing was more embarrassing than being caught talking to yourself. And so, while blushing profusely on the inside, Diablo made a menacing expression as he turned around.

“Fool! I should hope you’ve prepared yourself for the consequences of beckoning me…?!”

“M-My apologies!”

The first thing Diablo noticed was the blue armor. It was Tria, the paladin. She was a truly pious woman who worked to save Lumachina when the Cardinal Authority was in control of the Church. She stood still, her back straight like an arrow, and her expression seemed nervous.

“P-Paladin Captain Diablo, I’d like to ask about what you said earlier!”

“Wh-What I said?!” He repeated her inquiry, a bit of a shiver in his voice.

He had to suppress the urge to squirm in place.

_C’mon, let a guy talk to himself! Just pretend you didn’t hear that! If I don’t have my Demon Lord role play, I can’t keep my peace of mind intact!_

As his internal self was moments away from bursting into frustrated tears, Diablo stiffened in place… But as it turned out, Tria was speaking of something else.

“I mean what you told Miss Rem.”

“Mm?”

“About the Gelmed Empire’s Magimatic Sols. I believe you mentioned something about them... I’d appreciate it if you could tell me in further detail.”

_...So she wasn’t talking about how I was talking to myself!_

Diablo regained his cool within moments and folded his arms grandly.

“Hmph… State your question. But you would do well not to disappoint me.”

“You said ‘Magimatic Sols cannot fight for long periods of time.’ Is that true? If so, then we can safely order our troops to step down and rest.”

_Oh, I see._ Diablo thought to himself.

He had little experience in fighting wars. He’d played simulation games religiously, but had no knowledge of tactics. He never cared for military affairs or politics. Still, he could at least imagine that the church’s soldiers were on high alert in anticipation of an attack from the Gelmed Empire.

The castle had fallen, after all, and the Empire’s army was just across the canal from them before. The bridges connecting to the other sectors were destroyed, but Magimatic Sols were capable of flight. They were understandably wary.

_How do I explain it…?_

In the smartphone simulation game _Girl’s Arms_, each unit had a stat called ET — Energy Time. It gradually depleted as long as the unit was deployed in combat, and using special abilities consumed further ET.

The Gelmed Empire were chasing Rem because she was the ‘Girl of the Vessel’ or something, and the Church’s soldiers and the Empire’s knights were clearly exhausted and on their last legs. But despite that, the Magimatic Sols retreated.

Based on that, Diablo concluded that Magimatic Sols were limited by ET in this world as well. But he couldn’t say ‘That’s how the game mechanics worked, so they probably won’t show up again for a while!’ And trying to explain it to Tria likely wouldn’t convince her. There were too many lives riding on her shoulders.

“Heheheh…” Diablo cackled condescendingly. “Can you not tell when your opponent approaches their limits? They were greatly exhausted and needed rest.”

“M-My apologies, Paladin Captain! Your wisdom and experience humble me.” Tria bowed her head in awe.

Of course, Diablo couldn’t tell how much ET they had left or if they were even using ET to begin with just by fighting them, either. He was bluffing and lying through his teeth.

“Realizing that much just by observing the enemy’s movements is to be expected! Have your men rest. The Empire’s forces shouldn’t move for some time. Though even if they do try to force an attack, I will smite them myself!”

“Thank you very much, Paladin Captain! I will have the soldiers rest and only leave sentries!”

“Mm!”

That was what his usual Demon Lord role play was like, but his own words reminded him. A Magimatic Sol enveloped by flame… Its interior destroyed by his 《Burst Mine》 spell. Tentacles writhing in pain. A charred human figure… the remains of a girl.

“Ugh…” The urge to vomit rose up in him again.

“Paladin Captain?” Tria asked.

“...It’s nothing. Inform me at once should the enemy strike again.”

“Understood! Paladin Captain, thank you very much. We were in fact quite stumped. The prisoner would not tell us anything.”

Of course not. They probably captured an ordinary infantry soldier, which would know little about how Magimatic Sols worked.

“One of those armors’ pilots might know more about it,” Diablo said.

“Yes, that’s what I think, too… But she keeps her mouth shut.”

“Mm? Wait.” Diablo paused, realizing he’d just heard something strange.

“Huh?” Tria asked in confusion.

Diablo thought back to what she’d just said.

“...Hey. The prisoner’s just an ordinary soldier, right?”

“No, it’s the knight that rode the Magimatic Sol you destroyed, 《Burix of the Red》... Though I’m not sure if ‘knight’ and ‘ride’ are the right words to use here.”

_No way!_

“You mean... it’s Erina Reufelia?!”

“Ah, yes. I believe that’s who she identified as.” Tria nodded.

_I thought I killed her!_

But come to think of it, Diablo recalled that most of the pilots in _Girls’ Arms_ weren’t human, but rather what one would usually call monsters girls. And Erina’s race was…

“She’s a…” Diablo muttered.

“I suppose burning isn’t enough to kill a vampire.” Tria concluded.

“Where is she?!” Diablo grabbed Tria by the shoulders. “I need to see her, now!”

“Haa?! She’s down at the surface, in a prison camp…”

†