Volume 8 Chapter 23 The Conditions Of A Village Head
I thought about becoming a village head to participate in the village head meeting, but there was one problem.
"What are the specific conditions to become a village head, anyway?"
"There are 2, Master♪."
Since the brother Renril went hunting, I asked the sister Rollo, and she smiled mischievously and replied.
"One is that most villagers acknowledge it. You're already the Master, so I think that's already been achieved."
"Hmph."
"Demon will easily submit if treated well, you see."
Rollo said that and stood up, sat down beside me, and leaned against me.
"Hey, Master~? You're treating me so well, and Rollo really happy~..."
"What are you doing, I wonder...?"
Just then, Ice quietly placed her hand on Rollo's shoulder from behind. Rollo stiffened with a "Pshi" sound.
"W-what...? Why are you making such a scary face...?"
"...Why...? If someone is worthy of being Wade-kun's partner, it's okay to increase the number of wives, don't you think?"
But...? As Ice said that, her hand's palm began to freeze Rollo's shoulder.
"H-h-hurt... It hurts..."
"I think demons are no good... They won't really move for Wade-kun's sake... Only those who can risk their lives for Wade-kun when he's really in trouble are acceptable..."
"Ah, Ice. It's okay. I won't lose to this level of temptation. So, can you stop that?"
"...Rollo-chan, got it, yeah?..."
"I understand. Sorry about that...!"
"I'm glad you understand..."
Ice smiled gently and returned to crafting weapons. Rollo stroked her thawed shoulder, trembling and saying, "I-I was more scared than dying just now..."
"...By the way, I forgot to mention, but all the girls I introduced as friends are my wives. If you don't want to be killed by those 3, it's better not to be reckless with your life."
"I'll remember..."
The female demons who were watching me also gazed at me with pale faces. Yeah, it's better if she doesn't get close to me. I'd be troubled too.
"...So, there's another condition."
"Ah, the story continues?"
I thought it was over. I'll focus again.
"The other condition is that the village head is dead."
"Huh? What's that?"
"The village head is a powerful figure, so they've got a lot of magical power gathered around them. Because of that, their revival isn't like a normal demon's, and it doesn't happen right away. So, you need to kill them and become the next village head during the time they're dead."
So, Rollo continues.
"In your case, Master, the villagers already acknowledge you, so you just need to kill the village head once."
"Ugh, I don't want to kill them... but I'll do it."
"Hehe, don't worry about it, okay?"
Rollo said, shaking her shoulders in amusement.
"But, the village head of this village is a magic beast..."
"What?!"
Why is that?
"Well, you see... a while back, the villagers were almost all turned into sl*ves and taken away to another village. The only remaining village head said, 'I'm tired of this, so you be the village head,' and then killed themselves. And then, that magic beast became the village head from then on."
"This village head system is so messed up!!"
"And what's more, since the magic beast has been living for a long time as the village head, it's become really strong and hard to kill. It was originally raised as a magic beast for food, too..."
Rollo is laughing away, saying that's why it's become a mascot for the council, even though it's only half-baked...
This has gone beyond any moral discussion... The organization is a total mess. I can't help but grit my teeth. This is ridiculous.
"So, Master, it's better if you go and kill them quickly?"
Rollo gives me a mischievous grin.
"Probably, the council will gather at dawn because of Bael-sama's attack earlier. The council always meets in the morning, you know?"
"I'll go!"
"Go ahead, Master! Good luck!♪."
I stood up, quickly gathering my belongings, and Rollo was chuckling to herself.
As I was about to leave, Toxy caught up to me.
"Let's go together, Wade! The villagers' treatment is already done!"
"Oh, that's reassuring. Then let's go."
"Yeah!"
Toxy walked alongside me with a bright smile.
"What's our goal this time?"
"The village head... who's supposed to be a magic beast."
"... It's always hell, exceeding our expectations in a bad way."
"If we assume that short-sighted fools will always act irrationally, it's only natural to think that way."
"That's really true... I only understood it after Sandra explained it to me."
The demons, all of them, are just acting foolishly. There's nothing we can say to them, not even us who aren't demons.
"But why did Sandra know so much about it?"
"Sandra's parents were once deeply involved with the underworld, the Roman Empire's hell."
"Sandra's parents must have been really high-ranking..."
It's like they were the ultimate gold rank. I heard their death was also incredibly dramatic.
"Still, it's really good that we got stronger before coming to hell... If we were weak, it would be a real hell here. Even if we're strong, it's still an unpleasant place."
"I'm grateful to Alex."
As I said that, I used my second eye, Ajna Chakra, to search for the village head magic beast. It was there, not too far away, but in the forest.
As I walked, Toxy followed me with a cheerful expression.
"What's with the happy atmosphere?"
"It's just that we haven't been alone together for a while, Wade."
"Ah, you're more spoiled than the other 2, Toxy."
The 2 of them would get spoiled in front of others, but Toxy couldn't say that because it would be embarrassing.
"Don't say that!"
"Haha, sorry sorry."
As Toxy patted me on the back, I laughed and defended myself. Then, Toxy took my arm and hugged me.
"By the way, didn't you get powdered by demon-chan's sister earlier? Ice-chan chased her away, right?"
"Ice doesn't get jealous, does she? Sandra doesn't either, but there's a slight difference, you know? And Toxy is the type who gets jealous properly."
"Is that bad?"
"No, it's cute."
"...You idiot."
While hugging my arm, Toxy turns away with a "pui" sound.
We continued on in silence for a bit. The snow kept falling quietly. I wonder if Nilfheim is always like this. Nothing grows here, after all.
As I thought about that, Toxy suddenly says, "Hey..."
"If we defeat the Demon King of Nilfheim, does that mean we'll have to take down the Roman Emperor next?"
"That's probably what'll happen, right? Queen Hell will be fun too. I wonder how strong she is."
"...This is a serious question, but..."
"Hm?"
I look at Toxy. Toxy is staring up at me intently.
"―――How strong can you get, exactly, Waed?"
"...What do you mean by 'how strong'?"
When I ask her back, Toxy looks straight ahead again.
"No, it's a bit different. I think you can become the strongest in the world, you know? Like, no one can beat you, that kind of strength."
Toxy takes a deep breath and says,
"I think Wade will definitely have that kind of absolute strength."
"...Like the Roman Emperor?"
"Haha, the Roman Emperor is that kind of person, after all. That's why he can do whatever they want. I've heard all sorts of things about him. But..."
"But?"
Toxy tightens her grip on my arm.
"...Wade likes strong enemies, so a world where everyone is weaker than him would be no fun, right?"
"..."
I fall silent. A world without strong enemies. A world where everyone is weaker than me.
That's... hard to imagine. It's a simple idea, but it doesn't quite click.
"...I don't really get it."
"―――. ...Well, when that time comes, we'll think about it then. Don't worry We'll be with Wade, after all!"
Toxy gives me a smiling face and says "Right?" and I smile back, saying "Yeah, that's right."
Then, I turned to face forward, and there was a forest. In other words, it was the forest where the village head magic beast I found earlier lived.
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