Part 7
Borbos and the rest headed deeper into the hole.
Only the three of them were left.
Badgered about it by Rem and Shera, Diablo explained the situation in detail. He was bad at talking though.
After listening to the whole thing, the girls also displayed difficult expressions.
「……As I thought, the Kobolds were the wild animals that were the subjugation target.」
「No way.」
「……Caliure City's army would frequently enter the forest. They went to hunt dangerous wild animals that would harm the Races──that is what I heard, but they might have been attacking Beastmen races.」
「That sort of thing, that's just terrible!」
He understood why Shera was also mad.
Rem groaned with a pensive look.
「……However, it's also a fact that there are people of the Races living in these lands. We can't have Caliture City just vacate at this point.」
「Is that true?」
「……I'm sure that an Elf who lived in a blessed forest wouldn't understand but……for people of the Races to live somewhere, there needs to be forests where animals can be hunted, farmland where crops can be harvested, and plenty of land and water. None of those things can be prepared so easily. To create a town similar to Caliture City where people have lived for about 100 years, it really would take 100 years to do it over again.」
「Nnー, but, if it's just 100 years.」
「This is the problem with Elves!」
Shera flinched from being glared at by Rem.
Even Diablo felt that 100 years was long.
「Even if the people of the Races were to be moved from this land──even where they would be going, there might be some who are living there before them. The argument of having them leave Caliture is probably unjustifiable.」
「Yes……That being said, subjugating the Kobolds is……I am against it.」
「That's absolutely no good!」
He was also of the same opinion.
The Kobolds were the first ones to live in this land in the first place.
Also, he had a debt of gratitude towards them.
Rem tightly clenched her fists.
「……The Caliture region is vast, and no matter how much the people of the Races have increased, I don't believe there is a need to quarrel over territory with Kobolds of this scale. Reconciliation should be possible.」
Shera vigorously nodded.
「That's right! Even the Elves and Dark Elves were able to get along after all.」
「……Let's get the Kobolds to stop doing something as reckless as attacking Caliture City. On top of that, we should also get the Humans to change their terrible deeds towards the Beastman races.」
He was a bit bothered by something.
「Certainly, there are few Kobolds……but is attacking Caliture City really that reckless? It seems that they brought down a fortress though.」
「……Before leaving the royal capital, I looked through the records in detail. Four of the fortresses that were in the Caliture region had fallen, but it was analysed that the cause of their defeat was because they had lost their ramparts and their commanding officers in the attacks done by the Spriggan.」
「Fumu.」
Diablo had defeated that Spriggan.
They had already lost their main force.
「……I'm sure that the Kobolds also understand that it will become a difficult fight. Most likely, they've noticed that they'll lose.」
It seemed that Shera didn't sit well with that.
「Then, it would be better to not fight, right?」
「……Even so, now is their only chance. Once time passes, the Lifelia Kingdom will send in reinforcements. The fortresses will be rebuilt, and before long, a subjugation unit will come into the forest. Being more stern and thorough than before.」
「I see……」
When they departed the royal capital, Diablo's group was asked if they wanted to go with the army, or go before them.
The reinforcements should be headed here about this time.
Though, since the highway was lost, they wouldn't be arriving all that fast.
「……It is unfortunate but……this is war. The war between the Lifelia Kingdom and the Kobolds, has already started.」
「What should we do?」
「……Just as I said before──First, we need to stop the Kobolds. If they were to attack Caliture City with their current fighting force, they would be annihilated.」
「It's that much?」
「Yes. Caliture City doesn't just have their army──Nn?」
Rem held her tongue.
It was Feneri.
As usual, she was in a state where she didn't have much clothing.
──Well, it's better than what Faltra's Guild Master Sylvie wears though.
Maybe because she had just come out from bathing, she was wiping her wet hair with a cloth.
『Yaa.』
「Hello, Feneri.」
Rem gave a greeting.
It seemed that the words didn't get through to her, but it was something transmitted through the atmosphere. Feneri replied with a smile.
『Diablo, fight, soon. Start. Dangerous.』
「About that……Who is the one that will determine when to fight?」
『Determine? Nnー……』
Feneri tilted her head.
Rem displayed a baffled expression.
「……Do the Kobolds not have the concept of a leader or a chain of command?」
「Do they not have a king?」
Shera also found it mysterious.
Diablo changed the wording of the question.
「Is Borbos the most important person?」
『Ah, un! Strongest. So, most important.』
──That part is pretty animal-like.
That being said, they have been fighting against the Lifelia Kingdom for a long time. It seemed necessary that someone strong would become the leader.
「At any rate, I guess we need to persuade Borbos first.」
「……You mustn't overdo it, okay, Diablo?」
Rem gave him a warning.
A male Kobold showed his face from deeper within the hole.
『Oi, Feneri! Hurry up. The ceremony is gonna start, you know!?』
『Ah……un……』
*Furu* A shiver went up her spine.
「A ceremony?」
『Un……Enemy, strong. Warriors, courage, need. That why, ceremony……do. Before fight, ceremony.』
──So it's to raise their fighting spirit.
The Kobolds needed to bring Caliture City down before the Lifelia Kingdom's reinforcements come. If they were going to fight, the earlier the better.
Going by the talk from earlier, they probably planned on attacking once the storm that was happening right now was over.
『Bye.』
Feneri headed deeper into the hole.
Shera muttered.
「Somehow, she didn't have much energy.」
「If we are going to stop the fighting, I suppose it would be best to do it before the ceremony to increase their fighting spirit.」
Part 8
They got lost.
The Kobolds' burrow was much more complex than they had thought, and it diverged the deeper in they went.
It would have been better if they were guided by Feneri.
Rem pointed.
「……There are voices, coming from over here.」
After peeking in that direction, the Kobolds were certainly gathering there. There were about 200 of them.
It was a huge hollow.
However, Diablo's group was at a part of it where they were looking down at them from a second floor part.
「Ah, Feneri-chan.」
Shera pointed.
At the front of the wide room──on a platform, her figure was there.
In addition to her, there were several young female Kobolds.
Rem narrowed her eyes.
「……Doesn't it seem like, there's a questionable atmosphere?」
Borbos stood in front of those girls, and gave the Kobold men a speech.
『We'll win!』
The Kobold men thrust their fists up.
『Ou!』
『We'll absolutely win!』
『Ou!』
『In order to win, we, are here!』
『Ou!』
『Show your spirit!』
『Ou!』
『You're too quiet!』
『UOU!』
──Rather than a speech, it's more like shouts of encouragement.
It didn't look like trying to rationalize with them would be welcomed.
Like this, even if he were to explain the loss and gains of the situation, it didn't seem like he could get them to agree.
When he was mediating between the Elves and the Dark Elves in the Greenwood Kingdom, he was able to persuade them with reasoning.
The Elves were intellectual.
The Kobolds, they were excited before a battle, and were overflowing with an even more wild animal style.
After several more war cries, Borbos spoke.
『Starting now, we will perform the pre-battle ceremony.』
『Uoooh!』
『There will surely be those who will die in battle. But, your souls will dwell in the children.』
──Nnn?
Diablo leaned forward.
For some reason, he said something fishy?
Borbos hit Feneri's butt with a *pishan*.
『Hyan.』
『That's a nice sheen! That's a butt that'll give birth to a strong and healthy warrior!』
The Kobold men raised war cries.
『Even if we die, our souls will eternally──』
While shouting, Borbos placed a hand on her clothing. After pulling down, they came off quite easily.
Feneri was put in an appearance where her clothes were wide open in front of the men.
『Nnhaa～』
The fact that it wasn't an accident could be inferred from the responses from her and those around her.
It seemed that it was this kind of ceremony.
Although she was red in the face, Feneri had a look of consent, and didn't even try to hide her body.
Borbos loosened his loincloth.
『First off, I will pour in my soul.』
『……Un.』
With a tranced expression, Feneri focused her gaze onto one spot.
Watching that from the second floor part──
Rem and Shera were red in the face.
「……Wha!?」
「What are they doing!?」
For the two of them who were unable to understand the Kobolds' words, they probably couldn't understand what was going on at all.
Even Diablo who had heard the speech could barely understand.
「It seems to be this sort of ceremony though.」
「……Impossible!」
「That's no good!」
The girls' opinions were justified.
However, that was under the sense of values that the Races had.
Denying the Kobolds' culture couldn't be said to be the right thing to do.
──Ah, no no, this was a ceremony meant to raise their fighting spirit, wasn't it. If we're going to stop the war, we need to do it before the ceremony happens.
Diablo jumped down from the second floor part.
「You all should wait!」
*Kapah* Feneri opened up both of her legs.
Being able to see it all in the open, Diablo felt like he would fall down.
──Tha, that was close!
To jump down and then suddenly slip up would be really lame.
Borbos glared at him.
『You are……』
「Hmph……I'll be butting in.」
『If you wish to watch, do as you like. Having an even greater number of people watching will surely get Feneri excited as well.』
──Seriously!? Ah, no……
「I said "wait", you know?」
『Guest, this is, an important ceremony for us Warriors.』
「You all are mistaken! Since it looks like you will die in battle, you should leave behind children, you say? Damned fools. You all should feel ashamed for being so incompetent that you could only come up with such a foolish strategy!」
"Grrr……*, Borbos growled.
『Did you just say I was a fool!?』
So, as he expected, he couldn't be persuaded with reasoning.
Diablo took out his Magic Staff, the 《Tonnerre Empereur》.
「I heard this from Feneri but, it seems that you all make it so that "the one who is the strongest is the most important", right? In that case, if I win──」
『So you challenge me!』
As he thought, there was no reasoning with him.
At the same time he emitted his bloodlust, Borbos sprang at him.
──Fast!?
An attack from his forefoot──no, an attack with is fist.
If he hadn't received Master Swordsman Sasala's guidance, he might have had his head taken without even noticing that he was attacked.
Diablo caught the blow with his Magic Staff right before it made contact.
Even so, he was blown five steps backwards.
──On top of being fast, it was heavy.
In terms of ability types, he was close to being a Pantherian Fistfighter. He was fast and had power.
If it was in a distance where his hands could reach, he was the strongest.
However, right now, the distance had opened up.
Since it would be bad if the underground hollow were to collapse, and since Feneri and the other Kobolds were also here, he couldn't use attacks with a wide range.
「How about this! 《Lightning Bullet》!!」
『HA!』
Borbos jumped.
Avoiding the magic, his fist came attacking Diablo just like that.
──Is this a fighting game!?
Jump, heavy punch.
From there, a consecutive attack combo of Punch→Heavy Punch→Killer Technique all starting from a standing position was fired.
Borbos's killer technique was where his SP was made into a bullet of light and came flying at him. It was a 《Shining Blow》.
It was the same as the one that the Head of the Holy Knights Baduta had used in the past.
So he was a Fistfighter that was over level 100.
As expected, it was no wonder he was the patriarch of a group that fought against the Lifelia Kingdom with just a few number of people.
The Kobolds that appeared in the game, they were just small fry with low ability values that used weapons and whose large numbers were the only troublesome thing about them.
So Borbos was special.
Were the rest of them about the same?
──No, there's no way they would be.
If even half of the two hundred here at this place were over level 100, they wouldn't need the Spriggan. They would win even if the Lifelia Kingdom's army had tens of thousands of people.
『To think that you would survive my attack, guest!』
「Don't say that you didn't get serious after this, got it!?」
For the current Diablo, he had surpassed level 100 even as a Warrior. He was being overwhelmed in terms of speed, but the difference wasn't to the point that he couldn't defend against it.
『I always go at full strength!』
「Is that so. Sorry about that. I was just checking if you were "an opponent that would be fine if I went at full power".」
『NU!?』
Diablo fired his magic.
「Can you avoid this one!? 《Burst Rain》!!」
A shining magic formation spread out in the air. From there, countless fireballs were fired.
It was slow for its effect to activate but……
It wasn't something that could be evaded so easily.
『Nugagaga!?』
The Kobold men who were watching the fight made a stir and backed off.
Even the women raised screams.
He had sufficiently calculated the angle so that no one else would get dragged in but……
『Feneri!』
Borbos shouted.
As he had his attention taken for an instant, a fireball made a direct hit on him.
Going to where he had fallen, Diablo changed to the Magic Sword 《Tonnerre Empereur・Libéré》, and thrust tip of the blade into the ground.
「You have quite the speed, but you cannot win with just that.」
『Gugugu……It's my, loss.』
How sportsmanlike.
Diablo checked on the Kobold women.
──They're not injured, right?
He should have properly taken them out of the magic's effect range but he was still worried.
Feneri had frozen up with her legs still opened up.
Her hands, extended to her important place.
She had teary eyes.
『U, um……me……what to do?』
「Hurry up and wear your clothes!」
Rem and Shera, who came down from the second floor part of the room, placed a blanket over Feneri.
Part 9
Diablo stood on top of the large hollow's platform.
Borbos was next to him. Fighting spirit could no longer be felt from him.
As for the Kobold women, Rem and Shera led them and moved to an adjoining room. It was because, depending on the progress of the talks, it was possible that things would turn into a battle royal.
──Uugh……I ended up standing on the platform from going with the flow.
Diablo was bad with being basked in people’s' attention.
Fortunately, the other party was nothing but Kobold men.
Since they all had fox heads, the pressure had loosened up a bit. It was a bit of a soothing type of view.
It was like a fox village.
Borbos asked a question.
『Let us hear your story. Why, did you stop the ceremony?』
He should have said it, but it seemed that they weren't listening at all.
「It's because it would be a suicidal act for you all to attack Caliture City with only this level of a fighting force.」
『In fights, there is no telling how it will turn out, until we try it.』
「In the Lifelia Kingdom, there are guys that could defeat the Spriggan. Can you still say that?」
He didn't lie.
He just hid the fact that he was talking about himself.
『What did you say!? There's no way a guy like that could exist……!!』
「How can you say that there isn't? The one who advanced through that highway, it's only natural to think that they came from Lifelia's royal capital.」
『Uugh……』
──Well, if it's those guys of the Royal Palace Chivalric Order, they could probably defeat the Spriggan.
Before, he had seen that they had hunted a Huge-class Thunder Dragon. There was no mistake that they were a party that had all surpassed level 100.
He didn't know if they would come to the newly developed Southern territory though.
「Putting it bluntly, you would all die in vain if they were to attack. That is why, I stopped you all.」
『Do you plan on saving us?』
「That's wrong! I am a Demon King! Whether it's a person of the Races or a Beastman race, I have no intention of saving anyone. However, I just feel like doing this, see. I shall negotiate with Caliture's Feudal Lord──So that they will approve of you all living in this land.」
『What did you say!?』
It wasn't just Borbos, even the other Kobolds were surprised and made an uproar.
『Have the Human Race approve!?』『We don't have to fight!?』『Is the Demon King thing true!?』
「Hmph……How about it, will you try leaving things to this Demon King?」
The Kobold men fell silent.
They waited for Borbos's response.
Deep wrinkles formed in between his eyebrows.
『Why, would a Demon King, go so far, for our sakes?』
──A debt of gratitude for a night and a meal……I guess saying that would be Demon King-like.
Diablo daringly smiled.
He flourished his mantle.
「It is because I am too strong! I find the conflicts of the weak to be annoying. It is like clearing away the flies that fly before my eyes! Or, would you like to try fighting against a Demon King that has gotten serious? I would probably end up blowing away something like this cave though.」
Borbos pondered.
However, he probably wasn't the type to think deeply about things to begin with.
*Vun vun* He shook his head left and right.
『Got it! We will obey the strong. We shall leave it to you.』
Going "Hou……", Diablo breathed a sigh in his mind.
It looks like he was able to get the Kobolds to stop for now.
He went to the room next door where the women had evacuated to.
「It's been decided.」
Since there wasn't anything like a door, when he peeked inside without even knocking──
「You can't!」
He was suddenly criticized.
It was Shera's voice.
Looking at them, Rem and Shera were having red faces.
*Dara dara* They were dripping in sweat.
「……You can't come over here, Diablo.」
「Wh, what?」
The girls were blocking the way and trying to hide it, but the figure of Feneri who was behind them had entered his eyes as well.
Her face was flushed red, and her breathing was rough.
『Haa……Haa……Nnu……Hafuu……Me……Endure, can't, maybe.』
She shouldn't understand the meaning of their words, but Rem and Shera were persuading her.
「Keep it together! You need to keep it together, Feneri!」
「Although I don't really get it, it seems like something you shouldn't do, you know!?」
I've seen something outrageous!?
As for the other women, if there were those whose cheeks were red in a similar fashion, there were also those who weren't like that and were calm.
In other words, those who were swallowed up by the atmosphere of the ceremony were……
──Se●ually excited!?
Is she se●ually excited!?
Diablo spilt a cold sweat.
「It, it's a cold, isn't it! It's because you didn't properly wear your clothes. What a helpless fellow. You should wrap yourself in a thick blanket, drink something warm, and have a good rest! This Demon King will allow it!」
Feneri twisted her body.
『Nnu……Here……itch……want.』
Rem and Shera, who had gone red, shook their heads up and down.
「That's right, it's a cold!」
「It'd be better if you rest, Feneri-chan!」
Is this part of the Beastman race's culture──Although he was astonished like that, Diablo left the room at a brisk pace.