I obtained a general command from the Demon King.
I also volunteered to do paperwork.
Perhaps because only satisfactory things have happened recently, the Demon King willingly accepted the offer.
'Since this is the human you brought in yourself, he will be useful anywhere.'
I received permission, so it's okay. Whether it was material or spiritual, I ignored the murmurs that followed.
I also requested an investigation into the duke. The Demon King, who knew the situation, personally went to investigate.
'If the commander is looked down upon, the command center and control will not work properly.'
In the past, if there was a problem, I could afford to go to the human world, but now there is no such thing as a second option for me. I thought.
'I shouldn't look weak.'
If I look weak, I die.
The demons view my physical durability and combat power separately. In reality, it was not like there were such demons, so I accepted it more easily. That's why, even though I showed signs of weakness, such as hemoptysis, it has been controversial until now.
But what if I completely turn to the Demon King's side and they see me face to face and fighting every day?
'Demons may be a little dull, but they are not stupid.'
Maybe they will find out. The fact that Deon Hardt is not as strong in combat as they thought.
If this fact was discovered, what happens next is obvious.
I would fall down the ranks of the demons, and the position of commander that I have achieved will become a scarecrow. It's obvious that the demons would have no mercy towards 'humans' who were low in rank.
The reason I was able to be at the top of the demons until now was because I was recognized as strong before I had the protection of the Demon King.
'So, keep the fighting to a minimum.'
Even if I fight, don't drag it out, keep it short. By being as cruel as possible, I have to not only bring the momentum to this side, but also bring out fear in my allies. Don't let anyone analyze me. So don't even think about nonsense.
'I can't show overwhelming force, so I have to show at least overwhelming fear.'
Demons who were oppressed by force and determine rank by force will naturally mistakenly believe that the reason for their fear is 'force'.
'I shouldn't become friends with demons.'
Bonding and fear have opposite properties. When you face fear, your bond decreases, and as fear decreases, it becomes easier to build bonds. Also, if the bond is solidly built, even if you face fear, the fear may disappear...
To me, a bond with demons is poison.
'Let's build an unrivaled image.'
Fortunately, my image before was one that was not easily accessible, so there was no problem.
'Haven't I been subject to unintentional misunderstandings before?'
Now it is my turn to intentionally do it.
Just doing what I did before is not enough. Not being ignored and building more walls than before. The purpose of all these actions is to make them not doubt my strength.
For someone to whom being strong seems as natural as breathing, they wouldn't even dare to doubt their standing. Coincidentally, I remembered one person from that premise.
'Stigma Primero.'
The time has come to put to use what I learned from him.
***
Winter passed by in an instant.
How many things have happened so far, with the snow melting and the grass sprouting.
It wasn't a very long time, but the events that happened were so outrageous that Paul stared at the tree forming new leaves outside the window with a new expression on his face.
'The most outrageous news I heard recently was that Deon Hardt was on the Demon King's side.'
At first, he thought it was a rumor.
That's right, Deon Hardt was a hero who faithfully followed the Emperor's orders to the point where he was called 'the Emperor's dog.' Even the Emperor cared for him so much, so who would dare imagine his betrayal?
'But it was true.'
As if waiting for this news to become known, the death of the fourth hero, Cruel Hardt, was also announced. The news that he was the one who was with Deon Hardt until the end was a bonus.
People's minds were shocked after they realized the context.
'Deon Hardt killed Cruel Hardt.'
To be exact, he killed him and fled to the demon realm.
No one doubted it.
Deon Hardt hated Cruel Hardt so much. Everyone knew Deon Hardt's hatred toward Cruel Hardt, as he openly showed his hostility without any intention of hiding it.
'The announced timing is so elaborate that I'm suspicious... but let's move on.'
When this news became known, the continent was greatly shaken.
A traitor to heaven who even killed his last blood relative. A traitor to humanity who turned his back on the human world and sided with the demon realm.
It was truly a terrible sin.
Almost everyone was in shock. The majority couldn't help but be angry at his sin, and some shouted that his inhuman appearance was due to not being human. From the beginning, all kinds of malicious rumors, including that he was on the Demon King's side, were poured out, but soon they lost credibility and were gradually buried.
As a result, Deon Hardt became everyone's enemy.
'And if it's another big incident...'
Klak. At the sound of the door opening, he lifted his head and lifted the hand that was resting on his chin.
Iram, who was one of Daniel's strong supporters, was seen coming in, looking tired and squeezing his eyes. Paul smiled weakly and waved his hand.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm just a little tired."
"Hmm... I guess you came here after fighting with the leaders. I thought there would be some cooperation now."
"How can cooperation be possible when the new guys are trying to secure their share of the future by suppressing the others, and the remaining guys are trying to protect their share as they did?"
Moreover, since he was not the official head but a temporary acting head, he smiled awkwardly and pretended not to hear the strangely stinging remarks.
"I thought Daniel cleaned up all the trash, but I guess he didn't."
"If we had tried to remove all the trash, 90% of it would have been lost, not half. Then it becomes difficult to maintain the Revolutionary Army itself, so we have no choice but to compromise. Still, I was able to get through it because Daniel cleaned up the really toxic trash."
"That's a good thing."
"... More than that."
This time, Iram looked at Paul with thorns in his eyes.
It was impossible to understand the meaning of the gaze, so the moment Paul tried to sneak away, he said something blunt as if he would not tolerate any more avoidance.
"Paul, Daniel nominated you as his successor."
"... I know."
Paul paused and then smiled quietly.
... Another big incident was that Daniel, the first leader of the Revolutionary Army, died.
Yes, Daniel was dead.
Even when he died, he did not die meaninglessly. After noticing the Duke's deception, he used some of the Revolutionary Army, including himself, as bait to strike back, completely cutting off the link between the Revolutionary Army and the Duke.
Thanks to this, the leash of the Revolutionary forces that had been tied ever since they formed a relationship with the Duke was loosened.
As soon as this news spread, Paul moved quickly and made Daniel and the trash that was dead at the time into heroes.
'If I hadn't moved first, other leaders would have tried to make the 'Second Leader Paul' incident something that never happened, pointing out Daniel's poor judgment in wasting half of the Revolutionary Army's strength.'
He couldn't bear to do something so bold as to denigrate the hero of the Revolutionary Army.
It felt bad that trash was being revered as a hero, but he liked that his mentor became a hero.
Paul, who admirably followed Daniel's will and maintainedhis position, smiled faintly at Iram, who was having a hard time trying to control the Revolutionary Army, which was already showing signs of division, and dealing with the leadership who were pecking at him, saying that he could not leave the leader's position vacant for long.
"I'll get my seat right away tomorrow. Instead, please give me freedom today."
"The situation is confusing..."
"I'm going to be busy from now on, but there's someone I want to see one last time when I have free time."
It wasn't hard to guess who that person was.
Iram touched his forehead.
"Daniel and you, really..."
The disciple looked just like the teacher.
What can we do to resemble useless things?
"... I won't stop you, but since you are important now, please bring some guards with you when you move."
"Yes."
***
After the Salvation Church collapsed, Sheia resumed living in the slums.
A life that would not be surprising even if it ended at any time. Will I die today or will I die tomorrow? Even though she made an uncertain bet with herself, she continued to live her life in the hope that salvation would come miraculously if she had to die. If she was hungry for a long time, food would make her sick, and medicine would be given to her.
The human need for survival was so extreme that even she, who had no will to live, had no choice but to reach out for dubious salvation in the end.
And.
Even today, there were eyes watching the child from afar as she buried her head in her lap without any motivation.
'She doesn't seem to be sick, I feel like she's eaten roughly, and most of all, she's alive...'
Paul was unsure if that could be considered safe, but he was glad that she was still alive and well.
Since he wouldn't be able to come often from now on, he'd have to watch her a lot now.
His mouth was bitter. He hope Sheia lived with motivation, but he didn't have the right to have her back. Because he had already led her down the path of destruction called the Salvation Church.
'I checked, so it's okay. Let's go back now.'
Paul, who had been standing there watching the child, disappeared and soon after, someone stood in front of Sheia.
"──."
One-sided words fell out. As if something interesting had been said, Sheia, who had been motionless, flinched and raised her head.
"... Demonism?"
A child who had once been possessed by a pseudo-religion and had yet to escape it showed interest in a new religion.
***
"... Demonism?"
It seems to be a pseudo-religion that worships some kind of demon, right?
The Duke laughed at the evilness that could be felt from the very name.
"They say that where there are no tigers, foxes reign as kings... Now that the Salvation Church has become quiet, an unheard-of pseudo-religion is rampant..."
"..."
"We can't lose. Aggressively increase the number of believers in the Salvation Church."
He needed to let people know that the tiger was still alive.
The tiger was clearly alive, although it was pretending to be dead for a moment. How dare something like a fox try to reign as king in the tiger's territory?
'In these times, a religion that worships a demon...'
It was obvious even without looking into the background. At least it must be from the demon realm.
The corners of his mouth naturally went up in an asymmetrical way.
"Let's try to get along with each other properly."
Who attracted more believers?
Even as he said this, the Duke was confident of victory.
How many people would go to a religion with an ominous name? If the religion that opposed it has the name of 'salvation' and has once done good deeds, it was natural that people's hearts will be drawn to this side.
That's why the Duke was able to draw a leisurely smile.
***
There was something the Duke overlooked.
In the eyes of the poor, Salvation Church has already failed once.
Even if the tiger was alive, if it has lost all its claws and teeth and was still alive, how can the tiger's territory be recognized?
It would be better to stick to the lively fox who invaded his territory and claimed it as his own.
A religion that has already collapsed once will collapse a second time. What the poor wanted was a religion they could depend on, so Salvation Church no longer suited the religion they pursued.
In comparison, what about Demonism?
'The name makes it seem strong.'
'It won't fall down easily.'
'Like the Salvation Church, they hand out food.'
In the first place, the 'Demon Church' was not a fox. If you were to compare it, it was an animal whose identity no one had ever seen before.
Since you don't know its identity, you don't know the power it has. Was it stronger than a tiger, is it more trustworthy, and what is its personality? Since they had no idea, they were just looking forward to it.
'Then there is nothing to worry about.'
Except for those who turn to the Salvation Church and those who miss the good memories of the Salvation Church and those who have completely withdrawn from religion, the majority of these people turn to the Demon Church.
Contrary to the Duke's expectations, who thought it would be overwhelming, the situation was going smoothly.
***
"Lirinel, you are not participating in the war, so why do you look so busy?"
"I'm busy with Demon Cult work, so the ignorant and ugly commander of the 9th Corps, go away! You're not even a Demon Cult believer!"
"..."