Became the Emperor of the Demon Realm Empire Chapter 2.5

Became the Emperor of the Demon Realm Empire

Chapter 2: Netorare Warrior

“You wish to establish diplomatic relations with the human kingdom?”

Upon arriving at the annex where my trusted vassals resided, I decided to hear their opinions one by one to avoid chaos.

The first was Cecilia, the Primordial Vampire.

“The Emperor’s will is absolute. A loyal subject follows the path His Majesty walks. However…”

“However?”

“Sitri will definitely oppose it. A woman of integrity and refinement can set aside personal grudges for the greater good… but you know how it is. Sitri is a birdbrain who can’t even do simple arithmetic.”

…She had a point.

As I nodded, Cecilia continued without hesitation.

Since none of her words were wrong, I simply listened.

“Hehe.”

Twenty minutes later—

Only after Cecilia smiled in satisfaction did Sitri’s turn come.

“Hmm… If that’s Your Majesty’s will, I’ll follow it. But I don’t know how she will take it. As you know, that stubborn old hag’s temper is no joke. Who knows? She might even dare to hold a grudge against Your Majesty and start a military rebellion!”

“……”

“Why do you look like that, Your Majesty?”

“No, it’s just that I feel like I’ve heard something similar just now.”

“Hehe, by the way, Your Majesty.”

“Hm?”

“What does ‘diplomatic relations’ mean?”

“…Next.”

I pressed a hidden button under the table, and the floor beneath Sitri’s feet suddenly gave way.

“Huh?!”

Before she could even flap her wings, she plummeted.

By the time Sitri’s screams faded beyond the closing trapdoor, Echidna timidly entered the room.

“Echidna. I intend to establish relations with the human kingdom—”

“I-I’m all for it…!”

“I knew it. Next.”

Echidna scratched the back of her neck and giggled awkwardly.

Meanwhile, the hallway remained silent. I signaled to the attendant by the door.

“Is Endymion not attending?”

“Brother. I’m right here.”

A voice suddenly spoke up.

I turned my head.

A row of skeletal statues stood in line.

After a brief game of spot-the-difference, I finally recognized him.

“Oh, so you weren’t just decoration.”

TAP! TAP-TAP!

“From now on, keep your eye sockets lit so I can recognize you faster.”

“Can I go now?”

“Go.”

“Woo-hoo—!”

And just like that, Endymion left, dragging Echidna along.

“……”

Left alone in the silence, I came to a conclusion.

“The Empire’s darkness runs deep.”

Leaning back on the sofa, I waved my hand, and the attendants bowed before retreating.

The Empire’s unification owed much to them. I had hoped they’d be of help this time too, but it seemed my expectations were too high.

“The hero appeared half a month ago. By now, they must have reached the borders of the Kingdom of Rodran.”

Then I must hurry.

This world’s system won’t leave her fate untouched.

“I entrust the Empire to you.”

I wrote a letter to leave for my vassals

Fortunately, the Empire had many politically capable individuals.

If they put their heads together, they could run the Empire nearly as well as I could.

“Hero, wait for me.”

I’ll come to meet you myself.

* * *

Glory to those who uphold justice.

Honor to those who act with courage.

Those chosen by the gods must not fear their enemies.

Those who receive this blessing must always act with bravery.

The title of ‘Hero’ is a rank bestowed by me, Holy Emperor Regius, in the goddess’s name.

“I swear upon my soul to speak only the truth. Until the day I shed my last drop of blood, I shall protect the weak and follow the goddess’s will.”

The hero knelt solemnly.

The Holy Emperor looked down and smiled.

“May the goddess’s blessing be upon you.”

At that sacred declaration, the cathedral’s bell tower rang.

Amid the cheering crowd, Holy Emperor Regius took a step closer to the hero.

“Hero Leticia. Your role will be great from now on. Please, in the goddess’s name, bring hope to this world…”

“Your Holiness. You may speak freely.”

“……”

“Though I leave the Holy Church to fulfill the goddess’s will, I will never forget your grace, Father.”

“Oh… How noble of you!”

The moved Holy Emperor patted Leticia’s shoulder.

“You’ve grown into such a splendid woman.”

“…?”

“The goddess watching from somewhere must be pleased as well.”

That sticky, caressing touch gave her an odd feeling, but she shook it off and smiled lightly.

Thus, in the eyes of all, their relationship seemed strong. The people responded to their smiles with fervent cheers.

And why wouldn’t they? There was a legend.

Once, an orphan wandering the slums was taken in by Holy Emperor Regius, and soon after, that child received the goddess’s blessing.

“How laughable.”

Yet, even this seemingly perfect myth was nothing but a disgusting setup to someone.

“I won’t let that wrinkled old man take Leticia from me.”

Lorian, the NTR Hero.

A war orphan who once roamed the slums with Leticia, he had promised her a future together.

But when Holy Emperor Regius appeared before Leticia with the goddess’s revelation, the story twisted.

The Holy Emperor was determined to take Leticia, who bore the divine mark.

Of course, Leticia refused, until he dangled the offer to adopt Lorian into a noble family.

Then, she reluctantly stepped into his arms.

Thus, Lorian began training desperately to keep the ‘promise’ they made as children.

Though he hit the limits of his talent and despaired, the year he came of age, he miraculously received the goddess’s blessing and became a hero.

The tutorial ended there.

“One day, I’ll kill you with my own hands.”

Lorian had been suppressing his rage since the Holy Emperor appeared.

Though he wore a saintly smile before the crowd, beneath it festered an ugly nature.

He wanted to rush forward and strangle him, but he had to endure.

The Holy Emperor’s influence, as the goddess’s proxy, spanned the world.

Above all, Lorian’s personal strength was pitifully weak.

[ Lv.12 Lorian ]

[ Lv.50 Leticia ]

…Was this the gap between genius and mediocrity?

No, calling him mediocre was too generous.

The current Lorian was a ‘useless fool’ who couldn’t even clear a goblin den alone.

In contrast, Leticia was a reverse-hero who could easily slay trolls.

Perhaps aware of the gap, Leticia didn’t even glance at Lorian.

“It’s fine. I know the original story. I’ll grow faster than anyone else and make you look at me. I’ll find the growth potion and the Giant’s Root soon.”

…Still, couldn’t childhood friends exchange at least a light greeting after reuniting?

Especially since we promised each other a future.

“She’ll act cold, but I know it’s because of guilt.”

Lorian admired her retreating figure as if it were a painting.

A golden-ratio figure towering over 170 cm.

A provocatively curvaceous body accentuated by her attire.

He could almost understand why the Holy Emperor licked his lips in regret.

“Leticia.”

“…?”

“Long time no see.”

Though this was their first real meeting, they were old acquaintances through the screen. Indeed, Leticia was even more beautiful in person than in pixels.

“……”

Leticia tilted her head, then awkwardly extended her hand.

“Ah, Lord Lorian. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve heard much about you. I’m Leticia.”

“…Huh?”

This was the moment he had dreamed of holding the heroine’s hand.

The character he’d only seen as pixels now stood before him, more real than any 3D model.

But…

‘What the hell is this situation?’

Before he could even savor the warmth, Lorian was thrown into confusion.

‘Is she pretending not to know me? I’ve never heard of this development!’

Lorian, the NTR Hero.

His inner self was Kim Du-pal, a Korean reincarnator.

Only after seeing Leticia turn away without a shred of hesitation did his intuition solidify into certainty.

‘Did skipping the tutorial erase the entire childhood friend subplot?!’

“What kind of bullshit is this—?!”

“…?”

Silence fell over the cathedral.

The cheerful crowd gasped and shut their mouths.

Leticia flinched and turned, furrowing her brows.

“…Sir Lorian. Is there a problem?”

Her address had suddenly shifted from ‘Lord’, to ‘Sir’.

Under her icy gaze, Lorian’s spine chilled.

When the Holy Emperor’s glare joined in, he instinctively stepped back.

“Sir Lorian. Please forgive me.”

“F-For what…?”

“In these turbulent times, when the demon realm’s influence threatens even the heavens, the Holy Church lacks the power to publicly declare you as a hero.”

“……”

“Can one who received only a fragment of the divine mark truly be called a hero? We’ve expended great effort just to suppress such dissenting voices. Ah, but of course, I believe in you, Sir Lorian. The goddess’s blessings know no hierarchy.”

Lorian clenched his fists so hard his nails dug into his palms.

The Holy Emperor’s words were blatant mockery.

‘This horny old bastard—!’

He wanted to tear that mouth to shreds.

Dismember him limb by limb and throw him into a pigpen.

But it wasn’t time yet.

Rash actions would only lead to ruin…

After all, he knew the original story inside out.

Whether by gaining greater strength to kill him or rising to a higher position to purge the Holy Church, there were countless ways to destroy the Holy Emperor.

It was only a matter of time.

‘First, I need to kill the 71st Demon King, Dantalion.’

In the original story, every time Leticia returned after slaying a Demon Lord, the Holy Emperor exploited her weaknesses and raped her.

To ensure that never happened again, Lorian had to become stronger than Leticia.

“There seems to have been a slight disturbance. Let us proceed with the Holy Sword succession ceremony without delay.”

The Holy Emperor’s intervention calmed the crowd.

But some still glared at Lorian as if they wanted him dead.

“By Your Holiness’s command.”

In that tense atmosphere, Leticia knelt and received the pure white holy sword, Fragarach.

The Holy Emperor’s speech, which lasted several more minutes, was nearing its end.

“And thus, Hero Leticia. Fulfill the goddess’s will. Become her sword and eradicate the demons. The sworn enemy of humanity, who conquered the Demon Realm—”

“……”

“Slay the Emperor of the Demon Empire—Alteron!”

“…What?”

“Wooooah—!!”

The crowd rose in a standing ovation.

Only Lorian remained seated, stunned.

“The Demon Empire…? An emperor? Not the 71st Dungeon?”

This was nothing like the speech he knew.

It felt like he’d stepped into an entirely different world.

Among the 71 Demon Lords in the game, there was no ‘Alteron.’

Naturally, he’d never heard of a “Demon Empire” either.

Lorian’s hands trembled.

If all of this existed in the original story, there was only one conclusion.

The one mode Kim Du-pal never played, because an eroge should stay an eroge.

“I’m screwed…”

This was probably—

Pandemonium Mode.