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Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka? (LN) - Volume 10 - Chapter 5.2




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THE ELDER DEMON ADMITS DEFEAT 

“Wait.” 

After leaving the meeting, I called out to a few of those who were quickly walking away. 

I stopped Second Army Commander Sanatoria, Sixth Army Commander Huey, and Ninth Army Commander Nereo. 

“What is it, Lord Agner?” 

“Surely, I need not speak it for you to understand? Or do you need me to elaborate?” 

Speaking for the group, Nereo asks my business, but I doubt anyone would fail to understand why I have gathered this particular set of individuals. 

“Hmm. I find it difficult to ascertain what you might want of me.” 

And yet, Nereo feigns ignorance. 

I suspected that he might do as much, so I will simply cut to the chase. 

“I ask only that you be aware that you have been knowingly let off the hook. That Her Majesty the Demon Lord already has a knife pressed to all your throats. Be assured that there will be no second chances if you make any furtive moves again. The Demon Lord is not so benevolent as to look after those she has no need for.” 

Nereo’s expression doesn’t change, but Sanatoria and Huey tense up ever so slightly. 

These three are the commanders who sent troops to the rebel army. 

I have no proof, but I am certain of it. 

And I am sure the Demon Lord knows as well. 

She has set Bloe up as the scapegoat, but only as bait to lure out these three. 

If they let their guards down simply because she did not overtly single them out at this meeting and tip their hands soon after, she will destroy them without mercy. 

“You are free to heed my warning or ignore it as you wish. But in the latter case, all that awaits you is inevitable destruction. That is all.” 

Having said my piece, I turn my back on the three of them. 

I have given them fair warning. 

If they choose to rebel against the Demon Lord anyway, that is their choice. I will not save them. 

At any rate, Nereo can do little without an army of his own, and if youngsters like Sanatoria and Huey attempt anything, they will quickly give themselves away. 

Even if Nereo advises them, it will not change the outcome. 

For the Demon Lord is far more powerful than even I had imagined. 

Those three certainly don’t stand a chance against her. 

Leaving the silent trio behind, I walk away. 

In the private room that has been allotted to me in the Demon Lord’s castle, I sink heavily into a chair and think. 

The topic of concern is my next course of action. 

But I suppose there is little more to think about there. 

I know that I have no other choice no matter how long and hard I contemplate, yet I cannot help asking myself whether there might be some loophole. 

But try as I might, I cannot think of a good plan and ultimately circle back to my original conclusion. 

Namely, that there is nothing more I can do. 

Damn that Potimas. 

I thought he might at least be of a little use, but instead he simply withdrew without doing anything at all. 

What a tremendous letdown. 

As my thoughts reach this point, I cannot help laughing at myself. 

I schemed to entrust our problems to another race, yet now I have the gall to blame them for our failure, even if only in my mind. 

Potimas made no blunders. 

He was slowly and steadily preparing to strike a single, powerful blow against the Demon Lord. 

The fact that we were crushed before his preparations were complete simply means that the Demon Lord outmatched us. 

It is I who fell far short for failing to even detect that the Demon Lord was going to take action, never mind preventing her from crushing us. 

Ah, I have no choice but to admit it. 

I have been defeated, completely and utterly. 

My plot to create a clash between the Demon Lord and Potimas that would weaken both sides has ended in total defeat. 

I planned everything so carefully. 

There wasn’t a ghost of a chance that Warkis’s rebel army could overthrow the Demon Lord. 

I assumed that the Demon Lord would recognize this as well and decide to crush the rebels in order to wipe out her dissenters once and for all. 

Then Potimas’s unexpected intervention would take advantage of her careless pride and strike. 

Nereo, Sanatoria, and Huey. 

I spoke to them dismissively, but it meant nothing. 

For I am the true mastermind behind the rebel army. 

I am sure those three assumed that they were the ones manipulating the rebels from the shadows, but in truth, it was I who guided them into action. 

That is how I know it was them, even if I have no proof. 

Sanatoria and Huey played right into my hands. 

Nereo, too—of the three, he alone seems to suspect there’s someone else pulling strings from behind the scenes, but I do not think he has surmised who it is. 

He may have an inkling, but I have no doubt his suspicion of me has dropped somewhat after our most recent interaction. 

I do not know what Nereo will do now, but it’s none of my concern. 

At any rate, I made careful preparations during the years that the Demon Lord was traveling in human lands. 

I instigated Warkis to form a rebel army, deepened the connection between him and Potimas, and even used my precious Spatial Magic user to create a teleport gate linking us with the elves. 

And I did all this without ever letting on that I was leading the way or leaving evidence behind. 

I even fine-tuned the amount of soldiers transferred from the other armies so that we would still be able to recover even if the rebel army was wiped out completely. 

If the rebel army got too large and was massacred by the Demon Lord, it was a distinct possibility there might be too few demons remaining to keep our race alive, so I proceeded with utmost care. 

That is why I kept Nereo and the other colluding commanders in the shadows. 

If they had stood at the forefront, and the entirety of the Second and Sixth Armies joined the rebellion, they might have inspired other armies to join them as well. 

That could only lead to a massive civil war that would divide the demon race into two—the one thing I had to avoid at all costs. 

So I carefully limited the scope of the rebellion to an amount that would not cripple our race if annihilated, and I even tempted Potimas into assisting us. 

We had just received the order from the Demon Lord to ban all elves from demon territory, so I went about quietly disposing of the elves on our land. 

I then reported their deaths to Potimas as if I knew nothing of how they had occurred. 

“Elves have been disappearing without a trace quite frequently in the demon kingdom as of late. Do you know anything about this?” 

It was a simple trap to lay. 

Potimas was sure to assume from that little information that the Demon Lord was working against him in the shadows. 

And when he received a request for assistance from Warkis at that precise timing, he would no doubt consider it the perfect opportunity to strike back. 

Potimas despises incurring one-sided losses. 

Childish though it may be, he cannot accept anyone else coming out on top. 

If he felt slighted by the Demon Lord, he would never miss an opportunity to exact revenge. 

But what would happen when the Demon Lord and Potimas clashed? This outcome alone I had to leave to fate. 

Such was my pitiful excuse for a plan, which used an outsider, Potimas, to achieve my ends. 

If I thought prayer would promise a better outcome, then I would have pleaded with the gods without hesitation. 

Thus was my stage so carefully prepared, yet it was destroyed by the Demon Lord before I could even raise the curtains. 

I proceeded so carefully, sending my loyal vassals into each army to gather information and manipulate others. 

And yet, I did not catch even a whiff of the Demon Lord’s movements. 

When did she discover the existence of the rebel army? 

I do not believe the rebellion failed to act covertly. 

There was no reason she should have known of its existence. 

Somehow she saw right through it, and without even the slightest warning at that. 

Still, if that was the full extent of it, I could accept that the Demon Lord’s reach was simply wider than I realized. 

But she also discovered that the elves were helping us. 

That was my one and only advantage, the trump card that was meant to deal a great blow against the Demon Lord. I took every available precaution to ensure that the elves’ involvement did not leak to anyone. 

Even if the existence of the rebel army was discovered, I went to great pains to keep her from knowing that the elves were backing them until the last possible moment. 

The Demon Lord was undoubtedly aware that a rebellion was bound to occur sooner or later. 

So even if she learned of a rebel army’s existence, she would not panic. 

I assumed that she would simply confront them without a worry. 

And that would be the perfect moment to unleash the elves, the one weapon that could potentially reach her. 

As long as I kept the elves hidden, it would not matter even if the rebel army was exposed. 

And yet, she somehow learned of the elves as well. 

Otherwise, how could she have used the teleport gate to conduct an attack of her own on their base? 

If anything, perhaps she reacted so quickly because she knew the elves were involved. 

In the end, the rebel army was quickly subjugated and the elves unable to assist at all. 

Ha. What else can one do but laugh? 

I tried everything I could. 

To overcome a demon lord who possesses overwhelming power… 

It was never a sure thing from the very beginning, but the fruits of all my careful labors have only yielded the realization that the Demon Lord is far more powerful and ingenious than I could ever have imagined. 

I suppose gaining that knowledge is an accomplishment of sorts, but having my years of delicate planning crushed so completely for such a meager result is beyond discouraging. I can muster only a strange, bitter chuckle in response. 

Like it or not, I understand now. 

I must admit defeat. 

The only available route for the demon race’s survival now is to obey the Demon Lord and somehow win against the humans. 

We cannot outmatch her strength. 

Nor can we outmaneuver her. 

The former point alone was enough to put us in check. 

I still did my best to find a way around it, but has it amounted to nothing more than struggling in vain…? 

No. 

I suppose I knew from the beginning that this was the likely outcome. 

No matter how crafty Potimas might be, I suspected he would not manage to kill the Demon Lord. 

If nothing else, perhaps he could kill her closest associates and delay the war against the humans due to the chaos caused by the rebel army. 

Yes, that was the best I could have hoped for. 

But now that it’s all over, I am painfully aware of what a hopeless aspiration that was. 

I cannot defeat her. 

All that is left to me now is to show my submission to the Demon Lord in the hopes that I can minimize casualties from needless fighting. 

Which is exactly why I gave Nereo and the others that warning. 

As of now, it does not seem the Demon Lord intends to dispose of the commanders who supported the rebel army. 

If she did, she would have long since done so by now. 

Given that the Demon Lord was able to uncover my carefully hidden information about the elves, she undoubtedly knows that those three were involved. 

But she appears willing to let them live, as long as they don’t do anything foolish. 

I guess the only problem left is…me. 

I can feel eyes upon me. 

My sword is nearby, well within reach, but I force myself not to reach for it. 

One by one, I feel the number of gazes on me increase. 

Eyes. 

Countless glowing red eyes, looking at me. 

My door is closed, yet they still peer into this room, ignoring any space or barriers between us. 

A swarm of white spiders. 

They stare at me from every direction. 

What an unsettling sight. 

My heart pounds out an alarm. 

How long has it been since such a sound reached my ears? 

I strive to keep my expression unmoving, to hide the clammy sweat of my clenched fists. 

And then a white figure appears before me. 

“Welcome. Although I cannot say I hold much admiration for a woman entering a man’s room alone.” 

My greatest concern is to keep my voice from shaking. 

I must not show my agitation or my fear. 

These may be my last moments, but I have pride of my own that I wish to hang on to. 

Or perhaps I simply do not want to embarrass myself in those last moments. 

“Ah, but I suppose you are not alone after all.” 

My lips twitch sarcastically as I look at the swarm of white spiders all around us. 

I had to make some sort of joke, or I fear I might have screamed. 

“So may I ask what brings you here?” 

The person who appeared is the girl they called White, who seems to be the Demon Lord’s closest aide. 

Eyes. 

Perhaps I should be clearer in my language. 

This girl herself is the Demon Lord’s eyes. 

The watchful eyes that captured not only the rebel army’s movements but the elves’ as well. 

Meaning that most likely, she is also aware of what I have done. 

Otherwise, she would not have come to see me at this time, in this situation. 

The snow-white girl stands in silence. 

Her eyes are closed, but the white spiders all around her stare at my face intently, as if seeing for her. 

As if they’re ascertaining something. 

“Orders.” 

How much time must have passed? 

After a moment that seemed both short and infinite, undoubtedly the most uncomfortable moment of my life, the girl finally opens her mouth. 

And then she continues in short, halting words, explaining the contents of said orders. 

“Is that what Her Majesty the Demon Lord wishes of me?” 

I have my doubts about the orders I’ve just been given. 

If the Demon Lord truly gave them, I cannot understand her intentions. 

At my inquiry, the white spiders rustle about in a show of displeasure. 

My blood runs cold at the threat of them all attacking me at once. 

“Really?” 

What exactly does her question mean? 

Is she asking whether I really need to ask after what she just told me? 

Or is she saying to simply follow orders without asking questions? 

In this case, I suppose it must be the latter. 

For a moment, I turn my gaze upward. 

Toward the ceiling—at least in theory, but all I actually see is a swarm of white spiders staring down at me. 

It feels as though I’m being told that there is nowhere to run. I cannot help but smile bitterly. 

“I admit it. I have been completely and utterly defeated. There is nothing else I can do. And it stands to reason that the loser must obey the victor. I vow on my life to devote everything to the Demon Lord. Use or dispose of me as you please.” 

I look the girl straight in the face. 

“If you do not mean to destroy me here and now, I shall humbly carry out those orders.” 

I am prepared to be utterly annihilated if it comes to that. 

Such is the gravity of my deeds. 

“Okay.” 

But instead, I’m given an almost anticlimactic one-word response. 

And as if that word was a signal, the white spiders all around us begin to vanish. 

Is this Spatial Magic or perhaps some higher art of which I remain ignorant? 

Perhaps it is Dimensional Magic, the evolution of Spatial Magic, which is whispered of in legends? 

Even the Demon Lord’s subordinates are terrifying monsters. 

“Thanks.” 

With that, the girl disappears as well, so suddenly that I cannot tell when she cast the spell. 

All that remains is the sight of my room in its usual state, so ordinary that one might almost suspect that what just happened was a nightmare or illusion. 

But my fists, clenched so tightly that they’ve drawn blood—the only way I was able to keep my composure—remind me that it was all too real. 

It appears that even though I had accepted the possible fate of being erased, I still could not help but experience fear at the moment of truth. 

I suppose Warkis, who fell so nobly, was a far better man than I. 

…In the end, all I accomplished was sacrificing him. 

I lost that simple, honest man and have nothing to show for it. 

“A fool,” he said… 

I am far more deserving of that criticism than the Demon Lord ever was. 

For I raised the banner of revolt against the Demon Lord, even knowing how wretchedly hopeless such an action would be, and let her brand me as a traitor. 

And a fool such as myself has only one path left. 

I must become the Demon Lord’s dog and do my best to keep as many demons alive as possible. 

I will not let Warkis’s sacrifice be in vain. 

It will be a warning, to prevent the other commanders from attempting any further rebellion. 

If there are any signs that such a thing might occur, then I myself will not hesitate to dirty my hands. 

Bloe has been given the burdensome role of cleaning up this mess. 

Perhaps he dug his own grave with his everyday words and actions, but I do pity Balto. 

I will do anything in my power to help those brothers avoid misfortune. 

For I must clean up the mess my struggling caused myself. 

Since I am being allowed to live, the Demon Lord must have deemed me useful yet. 

I must get on her good side by proving that her judgment was correct. 

I shall cast aside my honor and pride. 

Wretch that I am, I must hang my head, beg forgiveness, and vie for her favor. 

Not for my own life but for the continued existence of the demon race. 

Difficult though it may be, I must do it. 

For that is the only path left open to me. 

Thus, I shall begin by carrying out the orders I have been given. 



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