We absolutely cannot let him roam free.
"What do you mean, Crow? If we don't reduce the number of saintly swordsmen, the situation won't improve. Just dragging this into a stalemate is pointless..."
"I know your strength. You're not behind the saintly swordsmen. But can you win against the hero Shion?"
"...That is..."
"Even if you manage to eliminate some of the saintly swordsmen, if the hero remains unharmed, it's pointless. Even if we can reduce their numbers, they can prepare replacement saintly swordsmen. There's no guarantee the followers will be weaker than the current ones."
Ah, this is bad.
Geranium, unlike Maris, isn't easily fooled because he's smart.
"Indeed... There's a significant chance that killing off the current saintly swordsmen could just hand over the divine sword to an even stronger set of saintly swordsmen."
Ah, my mistake.
He's actually pretty gullible too.
"You're currently our greatest asset. We can't afford to lose you in an attempt to reduce the number of replaceable saintly swordsmen. Unlike them, there's no substitute for you."
"Let's consider the worst-case scenario. You, having charged into the royal capital to reduce the number of saintly swordsmen, are met and obliterated by Shion and Amaranth. The Demon King loses his greatest chess piece, and the hero acquires a new saintly sword, the Epoch Sword. Our forces significantly weaken, while the enemy's grow stronger."
"That's right... I am a demon and also a saintly swordsman... It would be foolish to let the saintly swords fall into their hands..."
Geranium's expresshion turned grave.
He was more shaken by his rash actions than I had anticipated.
"That was close... It seems I've become overconfident since becoming a demon. I'll take your words as a lesson."
Yeah. He's pretty foolish, too.
Even though attacking the royal capital right now would be the most strategically sound move.
"Listen. We're at a significant disadvantage in the current state of affairs. However, I know there's always a way to turn even the most desperate situations around. We must avoid rash actions and move carefully. I already have a vishion for our comeback. I'll share the details later. For now, just wait for my recovery!"
So, he essentially told them to do nothing with a smug look,
"Got it."
"Your recovery is the top priority, then."
It seems the two gullible subordinates of the Demon King are completely convinced.
Now, all that's left is to wait for Shion and Holly to arrive while I'm supposedly using my illness as an excuse to lie in bed.
I went ahead and used my ability to freely alter the interior structure of the Demon King's castle to prepare a bedroom to my liking.
I also prepared a separate room for Geranium, but,
"I'm going to take a look around the Demon King's castle. Don't worry, I won't do anything rash."
With that, Geranium disappeared from the Demon King's castle.
"Maris, there's something I need to tell you. Don't trust Geranium."
When it was just Maris and me alone in the Demon King's castle, I broached the topic.
"He's a dangerous entity, even to the Demon King. He's a menace who intends to eradicate humans down to the last one."
"It seems so. Being close to him, I had a feeling he was bad news. But don't worry. As long as I'm a demon, I cannot defy your orders as the Demon King, so you can rest easy."
That's not exactly reassuring.
There are always exceptions to everything, and it wouldn't be strange if there were someone who could ignore the Demon King's control over demons.
And Geranium is definitely that kind of entity.
"Also, I have something to report. It's just the two of us, so this is a good time..."
"Report?"
"It seems... you can't summon the Dark Sword."
"...What?"
"Each Demon King has their own unique Dark Sword with specific shapes and abilities. Unlike Holly's Holy Sword, which has a fixed shape, the Dark Sword that is my true form changes its shape and powers with each new Demon King. Depending on the situation, even its size can change."
"And?"
"There's no doubt that the Dark Sword is within you, and after your death, it will disintegrate at the particle level and enter the body of the next child to become the Demon King, transcending space and time."
This conversation has taken a grand turn.
For now, I understand that the Dark Sword changes shape and possesses different abilities with each Demon King.
"It seems that you, the current Demon King, have a unique Dark Sword with its own shape and abilities that you should be able to manifest. But for some reason, you can't. Maybe as you become more accustomed to my possesshion over time, you'll be able to..."
I see, I got it.
Despite becoming the Demon King, I've retained my sanity and am avoiding killing humans, clearly behaving in ways unbecoming of a Demon King.
It's because I haven't fully transformed into a Demon King.
So, to the hero, I'm an ideal target.
"Ha..."
I can't help but laugh.
Shion is the strongest hero in history, yet his counterpart, me, is the weakest Demon King ever.
Turns out I'm quite the failure as a Demon King, too.
I suddenly felt like crying.
"But it's not all bad news. You were overwhelming a woman who wielded the Ogre God Sword and Rakshasa Sword with your bare hands. It's rare for a Demon King to possess such martial prowess."
"Huh..."
Since I had no interest in defeating the hero, I responded half-heartedly.
"If anything, it was similar to the power of the eighth Demon King, who had a belt-shaped Dark Sword that could strengthen his body beyond steel."
"Hmm."
Well, every Demon King eventually loses to the hero anyway, so it doesn't really matter to me.
All that's left is to take a nap and wait for Shion to attack the Demon King's castle.
"I'm going to rest now. Leave me alone for a while."
I lay down on the luxurious bed I had made for myself.
Yeah. It's firm with a strong rebound, just the way I like it.
Too soft, and I find it hard to sleep, plus it makes my back hurt.
I prefer beds as hard as lying on the ground.
As I lay there, Maris floated over to me, inching closer.
"Hey, hey. Play chess with me later."
Wait, could it be...?
"Hey, I said. Don't ignore me."
"Don't ignore me~! Play with me~! Entertain me~!"
She's already taken a liking to me!
That's way too fast!
Much faster than Shion and Holly!
But, hold on.
I might be overthinking this.
I couldn't possibly be that charming.
We've only met a month ago, and we've only had proper conversations for about two days.
There's no way someone would develop a fondness for another person after such a brief acquaintance...
"Hey, hey. I'm just curious, but Crow, do you dislike women who don't have a physical body?"
She was right here.
The dark spirit who falls for men too easily. Chapter 6: The Melancholy of a Useless Demon King
How many times is my life going to take such turns?!
Unexpected developments!
It's been ten days since I became the Demon King.
Shion hasn't shown any signs of attacking the Demon King's castle at all.
Nothing happens in the Demon King's castle.
I have no motivation to fulfill my duties as the Demon King, so I have nothing to do.
All I could do was wait for the hero to attack.
It felt like being on death row, waiting for the day of execution without knowing when it would come, driving me nearly insane.
If you're going to kill me, just do it already! But I couldn't say that; all I could do was laze around in my luxurious bed or slouch around the throne room.
If I were to be a wicked king like a Demon King, I'd want to indulge in a life of luxury and debauchery, trampling over humans. But I can't do that... or can I?
Since becoming the Demon King, I haven't eaten or drunk anything, but I'm not hungry or thirsty.
Maris said,
"You won't feel hungry for years, and you can eat as much as you want without ever feeling full."
So, I started to feel like indulging in excess wouldn't be such a bad idea.
Well, Maris probably wouldn't allow anything related to women, and if Shion or Holly found out, it would likely eliminate any chance of being killed quickly by them.