Gabiru asked for help.
After hearing that answer, Adelio formed a one-sided [Contract].
A one-sided [Contract] stating that, in return for an alliance with the [Lizardmen], he would save them.
"I could demand a greater reward, but for now, this should be enough."
He had no intention of looking down on the [Lizardmen], but objectively speaking, they fell short of demons in many ways.
There was no need to compare lifespans or racial traits. Just as Moss had said, the difference was obvious enough if you brought in even a single [Greater Demon].
"...Come to think of it, there's no need to keep hiding anymore."
Remembering Moss's clone, the one that had been trying to kill Gabiru and the [Lizardmen], Adelio quietly murmured into empty air.
"Moss, you can come out now."
Sliiide
A moment later, a tiny clone of Moss, no bigger than a palm and looking like a doll with a tired face, dropped its concealment and popped up onto Adelio's shoulder.
"Hm? There are still about a hundred eighty thousand left, aren't there? Is it already okay for me to come out?"
Rubbing his eyes like a sleepy child who had stayed up too late playing around, Moss tilted his head and showed him the souls he had gathered from the battlefield.
"Yeah. The rest aren't our share."
Adelio gave a small nod, accepted the souls from him, then turned to Ria beside him.
"Twenty thousand vanished all at once, so the [Orc] won't be coming this way for a while. While that buys us time, I'm going to go meet those majin for a bit. Stay here and assist Ria."
"Aw, come on... I'm on standby again? I kind of want to get involved myself now—"
"—Moss."
"...! R-Ria...?"
Just as Moss was about to complain to Adelio, Ria called his name with a smile that was alluring, yet somehow terrifying.
"Hehe, I don't recall ever abolishing the chain of command~ ...So you're saying you have a problem with Adelio's 'request,' are you?"
"N-no...! T-that's not what I meant..."
From Ria, who was giving off the faintest trace of killing intent, Moss saw the cruel smile of Blanc overlap with her face. At once, he remembered the queen's "venting" that he had personally suffered through for tens of thousands of years, and his complexion turned deathly pale.
People said that thanks to Adelio and Shizue, much of her old cruelty had faded lately, but when it came to her subordinates, she was still strict and merciless.
"Ria. I'm fine, so let's leave it at that."
Caught awkwardly between the two of them, Adelio saw Moss's expression and spoke with a wry smile.
He understood why Ria reacted that strongly, since he knew her personality better than anyone, but Moss was also in a situation where he had every right to grumble a little, so Adelio stepped in to stop her.
Situations like this could happen with other races in the future too, and they couldn't solve every single one of them with a demon's way of doing things.
"...Hehe. I'll let it slide this once for your sake, Adelio... but there won't be a next time."
"Y-yes, ma'am!"
If this had been in the past, she would have insisted punishment had to be carried out properly and sliced off at least one of his ears, so letting him off with a light warning alone was remarkable progress.
Of course, the biggest reason was that she didn't want Adelio to see that cruel side of her while he was by her side...
...Anyway.
"Whew... I'll be back as fast as I can, so wait here a little longer."
Whoooosh...
Letting out a sigh of relief and wearing a faint smile, Adelio rose into the sky once more and flew toward the forest bordering the marshlands.
*
Crash!
"Damn it...! What the hell are those monsters?!"
In the forest near the marshlands.
In a small clearing where a short walk down the forest path would bring the swamp into view, a majin hurled a crystal ball to the ground and shouted.
"We were just moments away from the birth of a 'new Demon Lord,' and at a crucial moment like this...!! Where did those nameless freaks even come from?!"
"Now, now, how about calming down a little first, Sir Gelmud~? I get that you're angry and rattled, but this Laplace feels the same way~!"
Laplace, the clown trying to calm the beaked-mask majin, spoke in a light, amused tone, but inwardly he was shaken enough to sympathize completely with Gelmud.
"...This is bad. I knew this was the land where the Storm Dragon was sealed, so I thought I'd been as careful as possible, but to think monsters like that were still around..."
Thanks to the level of skill he had built up before becoming a Deathmen, Laplace was the vice chairman of the Alliance and, in truth, practically its strongest member. Even so, not even he could compare to the two demons he had just seen through the crystal ball.
On top of that, Adelio and Ria had only caused that much destruction while holding back. If Laplace had known that, he would have knocked Gelmud unconscious and fled the great forest if he had to.
But—
"...I think it'd be better if we revised the plan—"
Fwaaa...
"Greetings, majin who disturb the order of the forest. I am Treyni, caretaker of the forest."
—Laplace had neither the ability to see through that truth nor any chance of escaping.
"W-what...? Who's that?!"
"...That's a [Dryad], isn't it...??"
"...What?! That's the Storm Dragon's representative?!"
In front of them stood Treyni, the [Dryad] who had suddenly appeared before their eyes—
Whoooong...!
"Oh my... I didn't expect you to come here too."
Tap...
"Well, the more hands you have, the better, right?"
"Hehe, of course."
—and behind them was Adelio, who had appeared while concealing his presence.
"Y-you! You were with the [Lizardmen] just a moment ago, so when did you get all the way here?!"
"...What a real monster."
Adelio swept his icy gaze over the two thoroughly unnerved majin, then placed a hand on his scabbard and spoke.
"This works out nicely. Since it's a perfect two-on-two, let's have a nice, fair fight."
The way he spoke was enough to remind one of his master, and even the playful smile that suited his arrogance looked just the same.
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