The victorious Wolfe comes running up to me with a very good face, covered in a lot of blood.
　It's quite a freaky sight, though it's cute.

I did it!
"I didn't think you'd actually do it. Mixu, get Wolfe's blood on him.

　At this point, the only ones who are shocked are me and Mikus.
　As for Ecdysius and Ilias, they look as if they've done well.
　Lakra is doing just fine.
　While Mikus is washing the wolfe with water and wind magic, he heads towards Ilias.

"Ilias, did you know?　Did you know that Wolfe had grown so strong?
I've felt the magic in your body sharpening day by day, so I've felt your progress firsthand.
It's so unexpected, it's thrown our plans out of whack. We're constantly readjusting.
You underestimate us too much, we're really fighting for you.

　We're fighting for you," Ilias said proudly, but then Lakra put her index finger to her mouth and tilted her head.

But now Ilias-san's role is gone, isn't it?

　Ilias froze with a smug look on his face, yes, that's right.
　The Purple Demon King's only remaining pieces were his left leg, his tongue, and himself.
　At this point, he can read all of his opponent's pieces, and he can win the next round without fighting.
　There is a possibility that the Iliad, which he had so much confidence in, could end up being the final weapon.

"No, no, no, you can still--
No, no, no, no, you can't take it off me now.
...... Let me see your eyes for a second.

　Iliad approaches and looks into his eyes, probably wanting to see how far I've come.

They're a little cloudy, but ...... they look okay.
I still have some work to do, so I'm taking my time.
I've given you permission to use it once, but not for a long time. ...... No, I've kept my word, so I'm not going to complain.
If you're ready to talk about it, get ready for the next fight. It's your turn.
"Hmm?　Do I have to do this?
I'll be finishing up soon, so be prepared to fight with all your might.

　With a flutter of his hand, he heads for the Purple Demon King.

------------------------------------

　I can feel a sickening sweat running down my spine.
　I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's a good idea.
　What the hell is that subhuman girl, the amount of magic she possesses, everything about her is out of the norm.
　She is as strong as if she were facing Yugra, the embodiment of absurdity.
　No, Duvraeori is no match for him.
　It incorporates every demon strengthening technique I've devised since my resurrection.
　I've made it to specs that should be more than enough to take on a battle-hardened demon lord.
　--No, that's not it.
　That's not what I'm really worried about right now, it's the match against him.
　There are only three pieces left, and now I have to put my defeating piece on the board.
　If he reads my placement again, I will be defeated without Duvelelli's fight.
　I will not be able to have him, body or soul.

You don't look so good.

　He walks up to me, his dark eyes staring at me emotionlessly.
　Oh, what a look, just a cruel, cold look, as if he could see right through me.
　Emotions that I hardly felt even when I was killed by Yugra take over my body.
　This is shivering, fear, how wonderful and terrible.
　But I can't lose, I want him, and my wish is true.
　For the first time in my life, I have found something of value, and I will have it.
　But what are the chances of that happening? It may be too late.
　How could this happen? I thought I had the upper hand, but the game turned out like this.
　It's not only his personal strength, but the strength of the people he brought with him far exceeded the strength of the pawns I had prepared.

This time you're not happy, although it's true that Wolfe's strength exceeded my expectations as well.
...... I wonder how much of this is true?
"It's all true, Lakra over there is a priest of Mejlis, but he can see through lies. It's not worth lying in this world when you know you're dealing with someone like that.

　--I can certainly do something similar.
　I have learned how to find out the true meaning of words from the fluctuation of the other person's magic power.
　So I know that there is no lie in his words.

But it's only a small margin of error. But it's only a small margin of error. I was actually planning to come to this place with only the Golden Demon King and Ecdysium.
"Did you really think you could win this game in that condition?

　He doesn't answer, but looks at me.
　Yeah, you don't need to tell me that.
　The strength of that man raised by Vegragudo would be enough to defeat any great demon other than Balaguerin and Ramugresca.
　And he actually defeated Ramugresca.
　If you add the Golden Demon King to that, it's possible to prepare a result similar to the current situation.
　Right now, he's just crushing me with his overpowered forces.

...... I would like to ask you one question, do you ever think that I might accept to lose on purpose and become yours?
"Why don't you just ask yourself that? You're a woman who prefers to be grabbed rather than grabbed, so as long as there's a chance to win, you'll go for it. That's why I'm doing this now, trying to figure it out.

　You're right, I don't feel bad about being his.
　But I want it, I want to win it, I want to grab it.
　I can't give up the opportunity he's given me.
　It's not enough to be his, I want it to be mine, I want it all.
　He quietly averts his gaze and turns to face Duvraioli.



"Duvvreoris, I would like to have a few words with you personally before we begin placing the pieces now.
"......

　Duvvleoris doesn't open his mouth, he's probably watching me.
　It's because I reminded him to keep his mouth shut.

You can open your mouth.
Huh. ...... So what do you want?
Depending on the outcome of the next deployment, the Purple Demon King will be defeated, as you can sense.
...... The game is not over yet.
Yes, it's not over, but you're at a disadvantage. So I have an additional offer for you personally.
Me?
"What I'm proposing is that from now on, all of my pieces will face yours. Except for my pieces, of course.

　What did he just say?
　He's not missing a single piece, he's got six pieces left that can fight.
　And now you want me to face them all?
　That is equivalent to declaring that you will now read the layout of my pieces six times in a row.

So, what's the price?
"If I grant your wish, you'll be under my thumb, win or lose. That's what I'm offering.
...... Are you f*cking kidding me?
I'm not joking. There's nothing wrong with that, no matter who wins this game, you'll still be under the purple demon king.
It's...
If you don't want to accept it, fine, I'll just win and you'll be a free man. But since one of my public goals is to neutralize the Purple Demon King, I'm not going to let someone who doesn't work for me stay by my side. After that, rampage and perish as you please.
"......

　Duvraioli's eyes are on me, he wants my opinion.
　I don't know how to answer, or if I should take it if I'm given six more chances.
　But, but...

You don't have to listen to the Purple Demon Lord, I'm talking to you personally now.
"...... I can think of no one but the Lord to protect me. I can't think of anyone else I'd rather protect than the Lord, even if it's at his behest.
I don't want to be your best, just promise me you'll obey me on the side.
And you think I'll keep that promise?
I don't want to be your best, just promise to follow me. A verbal promise will suffice, if your loyalty is not false.
"...... Fine, if you accomplish that task, I swear I'll put you next to the Lord.

　I'm sure you'll be able to understand that I'm not the only one.
　Demons, or demons, are instinctively hostile to humans.
　The great demon Duvraeus has promised to serve humans.
　No, I made him do it.

You've got a good squire.
Does this mean anything to you?
"Duvvlayori has been relieved of his position as your property in previous games. He may obey you, but he's still a coward to me. Think of it as a coward's insurance policy.
"So you have six more chances to lose yourself?
It doesn't matter, I can't lose a reading contest with you anymore.

　He looks at me quietly, afraid to make eye contact.
　I'm afraid to look him in the eye. He's serious, he's going to guess the placement of my pieces in succession now.
　I can't allow that to happen.
　He's always exposing his losing conditions, and yet, and yet...
　Yes, if we put a demon in this table...

"Just so you know, I can read your thinking, I can read your pieces, I can smell if you're cheating. And any sign that you're going to do it.
Aah!
Now, let's see you put the pieces down.

　No, he's reading our every move.
　If I take the easy way out, he'll make sure I'm defeated.
　If I don't think, I can outsmart him.

"Ah.

　The pieces are placed, and they face each other.
　None, "tongue", "me", none, "left leg".
　None, "knight", none, "he", "cleric".
　As he had declared, the pieces of Duvraeus and his companions faced each other.

. ------------------------------------

　The Purple Demon King's expression clouded over again, though he seemed to have recovered to the level he was at before Balaguerin was defeated.
　This is good, I don't want him to get desperate yet.
　Before making the final move, Duvraeor must be conquered at all costs.
　The reason why I hit Ecdysium and Ramugresca first, and why I hit Lakra and Ulfe against Balagwelyn was all for this time.
　The first goal was to have Ecdysium, who was skilled in survival techniques, draw on the power of the great demons with special enhancements.
　Next, let the speedy Wolfe buy us some time, and let Lakra get a feel for its strength through actual combat.
　And finally, I would pit both Ilias and Lakra against Duvraeus.
　This was the original plan.
　The Purple Demon Lord's greatest strength was undoubtedly Duvraeus, and in order to win a serious match against her, he would have to settle the score with Duvraeus.
　If possible, I was going to leave it to the Golden Demon King to take care of Ramugresca on the way, but I had a series of happy miscalculations.
　Ecdysium had won, and Ulfe had become too strong.
　Lakra's learning period was short, but he could manage.
　I thought about combining Iliad and Wolfe, but my senses told me that Rakhula was a better choice than Wolfe.


　When he fought Parshero, the two of them were able to coordinate reasonably well, but that was only because Ilias was able to match him.
　I don't think that the current Wolfe will be able to maintain a high level of coordination while maintaining his strength.
　If it's not good enough, it might not be able to move satisfactorily and might even be weakened.
　So I have chosen Ilias, who is currently the greatest strength candidate, and Lakra, who is the best assistant.

　So, let's have a little strategy time.

　He left the table and went to Ilias and the others.
　Ilias looks very happy and enthusiastic.
　Lakra, on the other hand, looks slightly uncomfortable.
　I had given another instruction to Lacla during the mission time before the battle with Baraguelin.
　It was, 'Be prepared for the battle with Duvraeor after this.

It's really just as Shosho said. It should have been Wolfe instead of me.
"Ilias and Wolfe can't attack at the same time, so if I had to include Wolfe, I would have had to leave Ilias out. You were going to be there anyway.
That's good to hear, because if you don't get a chance to play, you never know what kind of reprimand His Majesty will give you.
Good luck, Iliad!
Of course I will.
If the odds are against you, I'll give up as soon as I can, and then I'll send out Wolfe and the Golden Demon King.
"No need. I'll settle this myself.

　Ilias was full of confidence.
　I don't know how much confidence he has in himself after Yox, who should have been his equal, was completely defeated.
　It's hard to say with the example of Wolfe.

"So, do you have any words of encouragement for me as I go into battle?
No.
......
Don't look so glum.
You've said so much to everyone else.
The Iliad doesn't need to be told what to do.
Hmm, not a bad word. Well, it's not a bad word, but there are times when you should dare to say it.
How many times do you think I've repeated that embarrassing line today alone?

　This is why knights are so athletic: .......
　I'm not sure what to say, but I think it's a good idea.
　I'm not sure what to say to the knight that will motivate him. ...... I can't think of much, but for now...

I'm not going to let my sword break so easily.
"...... Not bad, all right!　I'll be back.

　It seems to have worked well enough, thank goodness.
　Lakra, seeing this, also looks like he wants something.

"Mr. Shosho, I want you to say something too.
What is this ...... thing about me, man?
Isn't that awful?
If we were lovers or something, I'd give you a hug, but you'd be embarrassed.
Well, ......, that's true.
I'll call you when I have something to say.
Uh, well, ......, squishy, squishy.

　I'm not sure if that's a good idea, but if it motivates the normally unmotivated Lakra, I'm all for it.
　He clears his throat and puts his hand on Lakra's shoulder.

"Go ahead and do whatever you want, Lakra!
"Hmm, something's not right.
This guy.
"No, no, but I'm glad you said that. I'll be going now.

　Ilias and Lakra each made their way to the center.
　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but I think it's a good idea.
　Tenesasparigun has already transformed into his demon form, but Duvraeori is still in his butler's uniform.
　In demon form, there is a definite increase in muscle strength, but a decrease in speed and maneuverability.
　Also, according to Ecdysium's analysis, the quality of the magic enhancement is poor.
　The human form is probably one of the most complete forms of human form.
　I don't know how much I can see, but I've equipped myself with metahuman glasses, and I've got Wolfe and Mikus by my side, ready to rescue me at any time.

"The signal to begin will be when this gold coin falls to the ground. Are you ready?　
"Yes, of course.

　After confirming Ilias's response, Duvraeus flicks the gold coin straight up.
　The only people looking at the raised gold coins are those who are watching from afar.
　Those who begin to fight are already in a state of readiness, their swords drawn, their eyes fixed on their opponents.
　And the sound of gold falling to the ground echoes through the square.
　Each of them made a move, whereupon the enhanced kinetic vision of these superhuman glasses exceeded its limit.
　The next thing you know, you're witnessing a blinding torrent of light.