Translator: MadHatter Editor: MadHatter

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(Chirito POV)

“Without further ado, I would like to announce the fourth meeting of the Japanese Demon Conference.”

As usual, Kamogawa declared the conference to be in session.

“Before proceeding to the agenda of this meeting, I would like to first express my gratitude to all of you for your outstanding efforts in the recent incident involving the ‘Crawling Octopus King of Chaos’.”

He then gave us a bow.

Good grief, even if he is the head of the human beings, he should not easily bow his head, but let’s just make a follow-up.

“What are you rambling about? The Kirijin simply brought their own forces and arbitrarily buried those who were insolent.”

After saying this, I looked at the faces of the other representatives of the Demon Kings.

“Right. For our part, we were merely testing out a new weapon devised by the Fox Princess-sama.”

Inaho-san, who was the representative of the Fox Princess, also seemed to have caught on to my intentions and offered words accordingly.

“In my place, it was the cooperation of the local residents that enabled us to defeat the invaders, so if anything, you should be thanking them.”

Yuu, the representative of the Snow Sage, also said so.

“I am ashamed… to admit that we were not able to fight them off on our own when it came to our part… so even if you bow down to us…”

It seemed that the Dragon Sovereign’s representative, Michiru, was somewhat embarrassed.

Well, the Dragon Sovereign’s location appears to have sustained more damage than others, so this reaction is justified, I suppose.

“Instead, I believe we should be concentrating our attention right now on preparation for the Octopus King’s assaults, which are likely to persist in the future.”

“That is true. And that is also our agenda this time.”

Everyone expressed their affirmation in some form or another.

“First and foremost, regardless of how many times we are attacked, there will be no obstacles unless the enemies invade the Fox Princess-sama’s and our place on a larger scale than this time.”

“That’s accurate, I suppose. We have the Fox Princess-sama’s technology and there is numerous notable kin, including Nasu Ryo, the commander of the ‘Mercenary of the Mist,’ in addition to the half-Demon King, ‘Blade Princess of the Undefined Sword,’ who may be considered an irregularity at the Mist King-sama’s place.”

Inaho agreed with my evaluation of the present situation.

Judging from the looks on the faces of the people surrounding me, I would say they were all in unanimous agreement on that aspect.

“Therefore, our concern is the territory of the remaining two Demon Kings and the vacant region facing the Sea of Japan,” I said as I opened the map and indicated the approximate sphere of influence of each Demon King.

“Right. This time, not only the Octopus King but also the Demon King of the Arctic Ocean had made their move. Owing to the wits of the Snow Sage-sama, we experienced no difficulties, but if we have to engage in a series of battles, there are many variables that need to be addressed.”

“Our side is more critical. This time, the Dragon Sovereign-sama’s level has risen, so she can augment her capabilities to some extent, but even so, I don’t think the lack of firepower will be able to be compensated for.”

Yuu and Michiru stated with a stern look.

“In terms of the Snow Sage-sama’s location, I think we can use the method of converting the settlers into agricultural soldiers, which is a concept that existed in the past. Even now, it is safer than the other two Demon Kings’ territories, and many people desire to reside there, and I am positive that the Snow Sage-sama will be able to handle even this weak troop properly,” Kamogawa suggested this as one of his proposals.

Or, to put it another way, Kurokiri-san is nothing more than a terrifying figure in the eyes of the general public, right? Well, it seems that the Fox Princess is likewise.

“The problem is Dragon Sovereign-sama’s place, isn’t it? Although there are many people who want to settle here, with all due respect, the Dragon Sovereign-sama doesn’t seem to be suited for military service.”

“I agree. Unfortunately, even if there are a lot of individuals who wish for this, I don’t think it will be possible to manage them all.”

Michiru’s expression darkened at once.

Well, the Dragon Sovereign definitely didn’t seem to have a flair for military tactics. That was what I believed from the content of the sham battle and from what I heard from Kurokiri.

“But, the Dragon Sovereign-sama and her kin, the Sakurahijin, are also the holders of invaluable recovery-type skills. I am not inclined to abandon this option.”

“I concur with that as well. However, the distance involved makes it a bit demanding to send reinforcements in case of an emergency.”

Yuu and I looked at Inaho while discussing such things.

Well, our responses were reasonable since it would be tough to send reinforcements by both Kurokiri and the Snow Sage.

“That is something I can comprehend. We, the Kitsunejin, will be the main reinforcements, as we did this time.”

Alright, she agreed to this. But.

“T-Thank you very much!”

“However, both of you will maintain a standing army, and we will demand something in exchange, like the dispatch of Sakurahijin to various locations.”

“Naturally, we are willing to do at least that.”

“While I have no assurance, I think my side can deal with that much at our discretion.”

“Y-Yes.”

This much is a given, isn’t it?

Well, I suppose Kurokiri-san would approve of this much. In fact, he might even consider it a wonderful opportunity to learn about the Fox Princess’ skills and the stratagem of the Snow Sage.

“Numbers are power, you know. If a human can be influenced, we too can be swayed.”

It seemed that with the slightly changed atmosphere, Kamogawa was also cooperating in protecting the Dragon Sovereign’s territory.

Yeah. This was a good sign.

“Now then, the problem is the vacant zone, right?”

“As for that part, shouldn’t the three forces of the Fox Princess-sama, the Mist King-sama, and the Snow Sage-sama jointly guard that area?”

“That would be fine. The other day, the Mist King-sama seemed to have gone out of his way to dispatch troops to that area as well. Could you please explain to us what you were doing?”

Ah, so the Fox Princess side had found out.

Anyway, Kurokiri mentioned that what should be kept under wraps was what kind of troops moved in, and what they had done wouldn’t need to be concealed from the outside world, so I supposed it wasn’t a matter to disclose it.

“I am not informed of everything either, but apparently we have captured a monster that was infiltrated from the Sea of Japan and is capable of independent thought, namely, the Octopus King. As for why he captured them or what he did with them afterwards, it escapes my knowledge.”

I said this while making an “oh dear” gesture.

“Well, that’s fine. In any case, since it’s the Mist King, he must possess some kind of special skill.”

“That is likely to be the case.”

“Yes, that’s right. It seems that there are also Sakurahijin who continue to dwell in the ‘White Mist and the Black Swamp Forest’.”

“It’s no secret that in the territory of the Mist King-sama, disappearances are a frequent occurrence.”

Yeah, I didn’t like it when they stared at me at this point. Even if I wanted to stop them, I couldn’t.

“Oh, yeah. You see, let us overlook that part of the matter as a confidentiality issue for each Demon King. The remaining problem lies in how to deal with ≪Disaster Curse≫ that may arise when we are trying to cooperate in this way.”

“As reported by my younger sister, the curse seems to be quite a nasty one.”

“Although there have been no reports of outbreaks in Japan, there is the possibility that they have simply exhausted their lifespan before we can detect them.”

Alright, I had succeeded in diverting the conversation.

This curse, though, was substantially more than a nuisance. My older sister also perished as a result of this curse. This curse as well as the creator of the curse, I will absolutely not forgive them.

“It’s also a bummer that the sole known precedent is Chirito-dono’s older sister’s case. Whether or not the curse’s strength is proportional to its source will have a significant impact on our countermeasures.”

“Even though it’s a passive measure, the easiest approach to deal with this is to flee when they emerge.”

“Yes, indeed. Even a half-Demon King might have a hard time dealing with such an opponent, so that’s the only way to deal with it.”

“The reality is, if the curse could be lifted, that would be ideal.”

At my comment, all the members present involuntarily let out a sigh and nodded their heads.