They arrived at the village before long. As they looked around the perimeter from the entrance, Karos muttered.

“It’s quite large, isn’t it?”

The village was indeed large. Despite being a countryside village, it had all the trappings of a domain. It was hard to fully grasp its size from the outside, but it was certainly enough to be called a domain.

“Not bad. It would be difficult to use as a base if it were too small.”

“…But why is their defense so weak?”

Bathesia exclaimed in disbelief. Karos shrugged.

“This is normal for a village far from the front lines.”

“No. But still, this is too much, isn’t it?”

The fence surrounding the village was made of intertwined wood and bushes, so poorly constructed that a single blow from an ogre could break it. Furthermore, there were gaps in the fence wide enough for a child or a goblin to pass through.

The attitude of the guards seen from a distance was the epitome of negligence. They yawned, and chuckled in conversation with each other, and one was even caught napping.

Moreover, the weapons. Some spears were poorly maintained, with rotten spots here and there, and the blades had lost their sharpness, resembling blunt weapons.

“What is this?”

The villages Bathesia knew were on the front lines, places of constant danger where preparations were impeccable. Even she, a Demon King, would find it difficult to enter those places unchallenged.

However, this place was different.

“…I could do it alone.”

“The only enemy of humanity is the demon race, and this place is quite far from the front lines. It’s only natural.”

When demons descended into the middle realm and began to divide the land, humans ceased their own wars. They united against the clear invader. Though they might fight among themselves again if the demons retreated, that was a story for another time. Currently, humanity’s enemies were only the Demon Kings and monsters, and the result was evident.

Humans had become complacent in places far from the battlefield. Young people were conscripted, but there were no wars or looting. The existential struggle for humanity’s survival was a distant tale, leading to lax defenses. Bathesia ground her teeth.

“We could just attack now without even scouting…”

“Don’t.”

“Why stop me?”

Karos grabbed Bathesia by the collar as she was about to rush in, causing her to growl. She felt as if she had been insulted. The humans she had fought until now, though enemies, had been formidable. Their hostility, murderous intent, and readiness were beautiful. And yet, those protected by them indulged in such negligence?

“These rotten ones should be annihilated immediately! Trash that doesn’t even prepare to defend or manage themselves!”

“It’s fine to annihilate them, but can you handle the aftermath?”

Karos’s cold words made Bathesia flinch. He tapped his forehead as if annoyed and continued.

“If we annihilate them, the empire will send investigators. And they’ll find out a Demon King is involved. A Demon King appearing inside their territory amidst a tense situation? What then? In two days, an extermination squad will come and kill us all. Can you stop them all?”

The answer was no. The current state of humanity proved it.

“You are strong, Bathesia. Even now, weakened, you’re not inferior to other Demon Kings in your original strength. But even when you were at your full power, controlling one-tenth of the continent, you couldn’t conquer humanity, could you? Not to mention, you’ve been trapped and nearly killed before.”

Bathesia bit her lip. Everything he said was true. She spoke in a suppressed voice.

“Then what do you suggest…! We have to conquer eventually! It’s bound to be discovered!”

“If it’s not discovered, there’s no problem.”

“What?”

“That’s a conversation for later. Let’s go in. The guards seem to have noticed.”

Karos wrapped his robe around him and approached the gate. The guard brandished his spear.

“Halt, this is the domain of Bathelak. What business do you have?”

“Ah. The domain’s name is Bathelak? It’s nothing serious. We are adventurers, and after a long journey, we’ve become tired. We saw your village and wondered if we could rest.”

“Show me your identification.”

“Understood. Bathesia.”

Karos signaled to Bathesia. She nodded slightly and chanted a spell. Magic enveloped the guards, and soon their pupils dilated.

“…Verified. You may enter.”

“Thank you. By the way, do you know where I can find a fruit shop here?”

“If it’s a shop, it’s in the center of the village.”

“Thank you.”

Karos spoke calmly as he entered. Bathesia followed, grumbling.

“It’s too easy. No magic inspection or magic detection devices.”

“I told you, it’s far from the frontline.”

“Ah. So this is a human village.”

The village was lively. The people’s faces weren’t exactly bright, but there was vitality. Children ran around, laughing as if unaware of any worries, and the smell of food wafted from all directions.

“Quite fancy.”

“Life isn’t bad here. But the people’s morale… doesn’t seem too high.”

“How can you tell?”

Bathesia looked curiously at the humans. To her, they were merely things to be killed.

“If the smell of food is this strong, it means there’s no significant problem with food, and while the children’s faces are bright, the adults’ are not. You can tell from that.”

“…How do you know all that?”

Karos was a truly unusual Demon King. Most demons thought only of killing or conquering humans. None could read their lifestyles and expressions like Karos.

“Because I’m weak, I have to cultivate these skills. Let’s go.”

“Go where?”

“Where do you think? To the fruit shop.”

Karos moved at a leisurely pace.

**** ****

“Why are we attracting so much attention?”

Bathesia frowned and pulled her hood down further. She felt the focus of the people as they walked. Karos adjusted the edge of his hood and said,

“It’s natural for three hooded figures to attract attention in a rural village.”

“It’s annoying. Can’t we just take them off?”

“No.”

“Why?”

“Because it would cause even more trouble.”

Hyung_Otaku

I'm currently Translating the following novels: Pick Me Up! | A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War! | The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player. If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!