"Emergency—! Emergency—!"
[Quickly, the barrier…! No, mobilize the troops first… Tsk! Damn it!]
"Unbelievable! No one noticed until they were right in front of us?"
Helheim's forces appearing in the heart of Dark Nest's headquarters. Countless demons were thrown into chaos by the sudden appearance. Their intense reaction was only natural.
The 'gates' existed to prevent this kind of situation. Moreover, wasn't this the heart of the faction, connected to all their territories? The defenses against external intrusion should have been impenetrable, but they were rendered useless…
"Hmm~ But I'm surprised. This must be the first time this has happened, but they're more organized than I expected. As expected of Dark Nest."
[…Tsk!]
Hela, the mastermind behind this surprise event, calmly looked around, ignoring the Marquis-class demon Serentata glaring at her, and let out a soft exclamation of admiration. He seemed to take it as mockery, but she was sincere. She had expected them to crumble easily amidst the chaos of the sudden, unexpected situation, but she was impressed by how they were managing to respond. It was on a completely different level from Monstrous Duke Syphar's Abnormal, which she had previously crushed.
"Well, it's all futile resistance."
A chilling smile touched her lips. From the moment she arrived here—no, from the moment Davidson first set foot on this land, this outcome was practically inevitable. Of course, it was quite a bit of work to transport all the troops from the forward base using her 「World of Demonic Heaven」 as a gateway…
'The Outpost is located at the central gate, Dark Nest's strategic location. And I personally intervened here, at the heart of their territory, connected to all their domains. There's no way it could fail!'
Of course, it wasn't a simple task. She had meticulously prepared and planned for a long time to ensure its success. She wouldn't have been able to do it so quickly if she hadn't obtained the divine fragment through Ken.
'It's only natural that the Demon Dragon Duke is so furious after losing that. Of course, that's not all he lost.'
Hela chuckled softly. She, too, was knowledgeable in black magic, so she could easily deduce his plans just by looking at the temple's facilities. That he intended to modify his body using the remnants of the Demon King, and also use the divine fragment he had been saving.
'Considering how freely he used the temple, he might have been chosen to become another apostle.'
But right when he was about to begin, a thief suddenly appeared and stole all the core ingredients. How could he not be furious? It was a grand scheme he had been preparing for hundreds of years. Perhaps because of that, Dark Nest and Demoniac were currently locked in a fierce battle.
'Of course, it's less of an equal fight and more of Dark Nest relentlessly pushing Demoniac, who is desperately clinging on using any means necessary.'
But if asked if she felt any sympathy for Demoniac and the Shadow Duke,
Of course, she didn't. After all, she already had a good idea of what he was plotting behind the scenes.
'He thinks he thoroughly eliminated them…'
Her most powerful weapon. A power whose danger everyone was wary of, but whose true potential no one could accurately grasp. Through the executives swayed by the rapidly growing power of her 'allure'.
"Hmph…"
[…]
Hela, a meaningful smile on her lips, looked at Marquis Serentata, who was wary of her. From the snake head with its long neck to the body with its elegant curves touching the ground, and the long, extended tail.
Although Serentata had the form of a giant snake with a pair of powerful arms, he couldn't bring himself to swing the vicious axe and large saw in his hands.
'…I'll die the moment I move.'
His highly developed instincts rejected any reckless actions. The surrounding air, the mana filling the world, and the space itself pressed down on him, suppressing him. Preventing him from acting rashly. That's why he couldn't move, despite being the commander in charge of defending the headquarters.
Rumble!
Boom Boom
While he was paralyzed,
Helheim's forces, marching from beyond the wasteland, stomped their feet and unleashed their fighting spirit. Lined up behind Hela, they seemed ready to charge and start the war at any moment. The headquarters' defensive barrier shook violently from the erupting fighting spirit. It must be because holes were created in the perfect barrier due to the overlapping 「World of Demonic Heaven」.
Serentata instinctively knew.
'…Damn it, it's over.'
That this was a battle he couldn't win. It wasn't just about the barriers, the other defensive measures against external attacks, or the fact that they still had more troops. The momentum had completely shifted to the other side.
'But it's too early to give up. There's no need to win.'
He was one of the strongest in Dark Nest. If he gave up now, not only this headquarters, but all the territories under Dark Nest's control would fall into enemy hands. He rolled his yellow snake eyes, racking his brains for a solution.
'Buying time is enough for now. If I can just hold out until the Demon Dragon Duke returns…!'
Just as he steeled his resolve,
"I can hear your little schemes from here. But how long are you going to stand there frozen?"
A relaxed voice, shaking his resolve from its core, echoed in his ears. Just hearing those few words accelerated the mental erosion.
And he wasn't the only one.
"Gasp— Gasp—"
[Tsk… I've heard the rumors, but I didn't expect it to be this bad.]
"Oh, Dragon Duke…"
Unease spread among those who had gathered according to protocol amidst the chaos. It was natural for those weaker than Serentata, a Marquis, to react this way when even he was shaken.
[Unbelievable. How…! She wasn't this powerful when we investigated her…]
"How insolent."
Hela, her arms crossed arrogantly, interrupted his bewildered words, frowning. How dare he try to gauge her limits with his meager insight? It was thanks to the divine fragment she recently acquired, but she didn't care about such trivial details. It was her power now, after all.
"It seems a lesson is in order. Now then…"
Her red eyes, imbued with the power of 'domination' from the 「Seven-Colored Demonic Eyes」, flashed sharply. Her dominance resonated with those behind her, blindly following her. And it connected with this world, the 'Demon Realm'—.
["Kneel."]
A short command was uttered. The reaction was dramatic.
Boom!
Rumble!
Thud!
With a loud rumbling as if an earthquake had struck,
Most of the troops gathered to stop Hela were forced to the ground. Demons of various forms—giants, beasts, plants—prostrated themselves before her. Only a handful of high-ranking demons could barely resist the force.
[…]
"What?!"
But they, too, were frozen by the sudden turn of events. Even if they were weaker than high-ranking demons, they were still the elite combat troops left to defend the headquarters. But to be neutralized by a single word…!
"Phew."
Hela sighed softly.
Thump Thump
She felt it.
From the moment she stepped into the enemy's heart, usurping their leader's authority and suppressing his followers,
Her power as Demon King was growing stronger.
'I think I understand why the Demon King's position is so absolute in the Demon Realm.'
In the Demon Realm, the followers of the Demon King were practically believers. Having raised several avatars who reached quasi-divinity, she instinctively knew how to use this power efficiently. At the same time, she realized how foolish the 15th Demon King, who perished due to the Demon Dragon Duke's scheme, was. If he hadn't been so greedy and focused on consolidating his power, even the Demon Dragon Duke, allied with the human god, wouldn't have been able to harm him while he was in the Demon Realm.
'It's nothing new that greed is the greatest enemy of those in power.'
Hela slowly stepped forward. Unarmed and unguarded, neither attacking nor defending. But the Dark Nest forces, gathered with the resolve to fight to the death, couldn't block her path or harm her. They could only stare blankly.
"Kneel!"
Just then, Siana, who had been quietly following behind Hela, shouted. She, too, was a Count-class demon. Those who had been barely resisting collapsed at her fierce command.
"Bow your heads."
Then, Ken, scanning the surroundings with sharp eyes, muttered coldly. With the added pressure from him, now a Marquis, those who were trying to get up were pressed back down.
[Bow down—!]
Marquis Tovares, the Balrog who had quickly defected and raised a new banner, now returned as a conqueror, roared. His voice, directed at his former comrades now bowing their heads to the ground, was filled with amusement.
""Before the King!""
Serentata closed his eyes tightly as the Helheim soldiers shouted in unison. King. Demon King. Ruler of the Demon Realm. The one who reigned over all demons, ruling the Demon Realm in place of the Demon God.
…He had no choice but to accept it. Here, in the heart of Dark Nest.
That a new Demon King—the 16th Demon King—had been born. And that the Demon King wasn't the Demon Dragon Duke he supported.
Clang!
The large axe and saw in his hands fell to the ground. He slowly bent down, placing his hands on the ground, not resisting the immense force pressing down on him.
[I greet the new Demon King!]
Thus,
The moment the commander's head touched the ground,
"Influence as the Demon King expands. The individual's existence becomes clearer."
All of Dark Nest's territory, the largest in the Demon Realm, fell under Helheim's control. A sudden and decisive home invasion, successful while the owner was away fighting.
***
At Dark Nest's encampment on the front lines with Demoniac,
[…What? What did you just say?]
Demon Dragon Duke Crushire asked incredulously after hearing his subordinate's report. It was understandable. Anyone would react this way after hearing such an absurd story!
"T-the gates…!"
But his subordinate's following words made him realize he hadn't misheard. Of course, it was impossible for him, who could distinguish even the footsteps of ants, to mishear anything. But the important thing was that something unbelievable had actually happened.
[Impossible!]
The Demon Dragon Duke immediately teleported. To one of Dark Nest's forward bases, where he had been able to travel without any problems until recently. But…
[…]
There was no response. His body remained on the front lines. He tried teleporting to other locations, even to his headquarters, his nest.
The gates were truly sealed. Even he, who had free access to all of Dark Nest's territories, couldn't teleport! He knew the cause from the rest of his subordinate's report.
Crack
While he was away,
His headquarters had been captured in a surprise attack, and all connected territories had fallen as well. To that mongrel from Helheim!
[GRAAAAAAAAAH——!]
A furious roar erupted from the Demon Dragon Duke. He had been betrayed not once, but twice. It was even more painful because he had never been defeated by anyone since becoming the Demon Dragon Duke, except for when he failed the Demon King selection.
[I'll kill you, you bastards—!]
Of course, he could still travel, even if teleportation through the gates was blocked. But he was currently in the middle of what used to be Shadow Duke Pieta's territory. It was great for a swift advance, but it also meant it took a long time to transport troops without the gates. It would take a considerable amount of time to return to his headquarters from here…
'That's enough time for her to absorb most of my territories!'
And he couldn't just abandon his troops and go alone. If he faced that mongrel without his army backing him… something irreversible might happen.
Crunch! Crunch!
"Kieeek!"
"Y-your Grace… Gah!"
To quell his rage, he shoved the nearby demons into his mouth. He only stopped after some time had passed. Even then, he would have continued if it weren't for the sudden contact from an unexpected person.
[…What, Pieta? Have you finally given up on living? Tired of running away?]
The moment Helheim began its solo advance,
A conversation between the betrayed victims took place.