"You're a monster. Not human, nor even a Demon King. Just a monster. Among the overly populated humans, as humanity diversifies, you're the kind of monster that's becoming increasingly likely to emerge. That's what you are."
"What?"
"For the purpose of preventing the birth of someone like you, Holly and I were created. And yet, it all ended up being in vain."
"Being a monster is what made me fit your criteria, right? Try to be a bit more friendly."
"If someone like you fully grasps the power of the Demon King, the world will indeed end…"
"Well, that's great. So, how about you start teaching me how to use the Demon King's powers meticulously?"
"Really… Collecting nearly all the saintly swords in one place, maintaining self-consciousness even after becoming the Demon King… You remind me of those ancient fools who used the divine swords in wars to obliterate continents."
Maris pondered with her chin in her hand.
It seems she's contemplating the future.
Apparently, a human transformed into the Demon King is supposed to become completely controlled by Maris.
Or they become a being driven solely by the destruction impulse that still whirls within my head, attacking humans on instinct.
It seems I haven't completely lost my mind yet, so she's considering what to do next.
"…You agree with thinning the human population, right?"
"Well, yeah. Sounds fun. I can indulge in the wine of victory."
"…So, because you remember being human, you don't intend to purposely get defeated by the hero and commit suicide?"
"Wow! That sounds cool, doesn't it? Like a hero who saves the world through self-sacrifice! Do I look like that kind of guy to you? Am I that cool?"
"Enough. I get it, just be quiet…"
Maris sighed and gazed at me, seated in a similar air-chair manner as Holly.
"The Demon King's powers will be used by me, so you won't be able to do whatever you please. Still, I suppose I'll let you participate in discusshions about our future direction."
"Hmm…"
The future direction, huh? It seems like this involves planning how to reduce the human population. It's a distasteful conversation, really. Truly unpleasant.
So much so that I better get killed by Shion soon.
"…"
It seems I'm not entirely insane yet, but it doesn't look like I'll last long. My thought processes are unstable, fluctuating between calmness and excitement, and at times I suddenly find everything amusing. I'm starting to lose track of my own thoughts. Right now, I might be closer to my true self, but when I threw Shion off the wall, I was in a pretty bad state. Well, if that made Shion finally give up on me, it would be for the best.
"Let's discuss our future direction then, Maris. Not about defeating the hero, but about how to effectively reduce the human population."
"…Well, okay…"
I have no idea when Shion and Holly will come to kill me, the Demon King. I've left a letter with Teacher Catleya, so I can only hope she'll guide them properly. However, I need to avoid killing humans as much as I can. Somehow, I have to trick Maris into stopping the mass production of dungeons and monsters.
Quickly, quickly, quickly.
My head is spinning.
Shion, please come quickly. I don't know when I'll lose my sanity.
"For starters, the Demon King's abilities are similar to those wielded by the divine swords' users. Being possessed by me boosts physical abilities to be on par with the hero. Then there's the 'Creation' ability."
"Creation? Like the ability to create dungeons and monsters?"
"Yes. Just like the Holy Sword can emit light that destroys anything, and the saintly swords can produce fire or ice, the key difference with your ability is that there's almost no limit to what can be created. Unlike the Blazing Sword that can only produce fire or the Frost Sword that can only produce ice, your capabilities are literally on a different level."
"…"
She seems to have a strong sense of pride in her abilities, recognizing them as exceptionally superior and out of the ordinary, much like how Holly talks.
However, it's an ironic story.
A Demon King with the power of "Creation" reduces humanity.
A hero with the power of "Destruction" protects humanity.
"And then, there's the making of vassals."
"Vassals…?"
"You know about the ability of the Underworld Sword, right? The one that can turn defeated monsters into subordinates. Think of it as an enhanced vershion of that."
"…"
I felt a chill run down my spine for some reason.
I know about that ability.
Holly mentioned it before, the subordinates of the Demon King.
Beings akin to the saintly sword wielders for the hero.
Existences that are leagues above other monsters or bosses found in the depths of dungeons.
They are known as…
"…Are those vassals you mentioned, the Majin?"
"Oh? Did Holly tell you? Yes, it's the ability to turn killed humans into monsters, but very rarely, some retain their memories from when they were alive and become monsters."
"Wait a minute. Don't tell me all monsters were originally humans?"
"What about it?"
"…!"
What a revelation.
Every monster slain with glee by the saintly sword wielders in dungeons was human?
So the hero and their companions were killing humans to protect humanity?
"Well, you hardly need to think of them as humans. They're just residual thoughts left after death. Not even worth calling evil spirits, just the remnants of the deceased. That's why they can multiply without limit."
"…Why do these residual human thoughts go around killing humans…?"
"Huh? Isn't that just what humans do? Has there ever been anyone who hasn't felt anger or resentment in their life?"
"…"
This is the worst.
Everything about this information is the worst.
It's truly sickening.
Meanwhile, my head is still filled with urges for destruction and slaughter.
"…So? These Majin are as strong as the saintly sword wielders?"
"Yes. They're the materialization of residual thoughts with all their will intact. Without the limitations of a living body, they can perform actions beyond human limits. In some cases, they might even be stronger than the hero or Demon King who have physical bodies."
"…Isn't it dangerous to have such beings as subordinates?"
"That's not a problem. Majin cannot defy the Demon King's orders. In other words, they can't defy my orders. At least, they can't harm you."
"Hmm…"
Majin appear to be frighteningly powerful entities.
I had been cautious since hearing from Holly that a Majin had killed a saintly sword wielder, but I hadn't realized they were such a dangerous presence.
The story is that they can't harm me as long as I act as the Demon King.
But if Maris finds out that I'm trying to get killed by Shion, the Hero, to minimize human casualties, there's no telling what she might do.
It would be best not to produce any Majin.
"How are Majin born? Just by creating monsters, and very rarely one turns into a Majin?"
"No, it's different. Monsters are generally multiplied using the residual thoughts left in the world from the deceased, but Majin are formed when humans directly killed by the Demon King transform, but only very rarely. So, if you go on a killing spree and among those killed there's someone with a strong soul, they might become a Majin."
"…"
I let out a quiet sigh of relief, making sure Maris couldn't hear.
That means there are currently no Majin.
Because I haven't killed anyone.
"So, there are no Majin at the moment, right?"
"Eh? There's one, though."
"What? That's not what you said. I haven't killed anyone, have I?"
"You did kill, during the time you were almost fully transformed into a Demon King."
"What are you talking about? Did you possess my body and kill someone?"
"No, you killed them."
"Who?"
"Let me introduce them to you."
Maris snapped her fingers, and a black mist began to form in front of me, seated on the throne.
This mist resembled the one I saw when I was transported to the Demon King's castle.
Was she bringing a Majin from another location here?