The Demon King and the Pope

Pope's perspective

"Surprised I've become the Demon King?"

Ariel entered my private chambers without invitation, took a bottle from the shelf with familiar ease, and began drinking straight from it.

I have never invited Ariel here. But given who she is, knowing the layout would not be surprising.

Her unhesitating consumption of another's drink—this is the arrogance of one who stands at the absolute peak of this world.

The wine she drinks is irreplaceable. It cannot be obtained again. But there is nothing to be done about it.

"Of course. Shiro must have known I'd be surprised. You're quite the trickster."

I never imagined Ariel would become a Demon King.

Even after learning she had begun moving after the incident with the labyrinth nightmare.

That she now stands as the Demon King carries significant meaning.

Ah. I think it's either that Shiro didn’t mention it because she didn’t see it as worth the trouble, or she simply forgot. I can’t claim to know what Shiro is thinking, but I doubt there’s any deeper meaning behind it.

If Lady Ariel says so, then that is how it shall be.

That Lady Ariel has become the Demon King should have been clear from the fragmented information alone.

My failure to realize it only shows how shallow my thinking was.

I knew the importance of the information, yet still failed to reach the correct conclusion from what was given. That makes me foolish.

It is not my place to blame Lady Shiro.

After all, Lady Shiro is of the Demon Clan.

She would not hand over Demon Clan information to someone like us—representatives of the Human Race.

Then. You did not summon me for idle conversation. Please state your request.

Hmm. I could spice up an old tale if I wanted to, I suppose.

Ariel-sama did not respond to my prompt, tilting the wine bottle instead.

Her slender throat moved with force, the contents disappearing.

"Pfah! Delicious!"

"One of the finest in my collection."

"Hmph. After all, I am the Lord of Gluttony. I know quality when I taste it."

She drank with evident pleasure.

"Dustin. Still no change in your thinking?"

A voice so faint it might have been missed.

My answer was already decided.

"Too late now. From the start, I had no right to choose. A fool who abandoned the goddess and chose the path of humanity. No other path remains."

"Is that so."

Silence.

Only the sound of Ariel-sama drinking echoed.

Only Gyrie and Potimas remain among those who know the past. Everyone I knew—gave themselves entirely.

They were great.

Greatness means nothing if they are gone. Syrius-sama did not wish for this.

Even so. They followed their beliefs until the end, resisted this world until their final breath. I envied them. Even thinking such a thing—perhaps that is forbidden to me.

Ariel-sama’s former companions were strong.

Not only in combat ability. In spirit as well.

Perhaps their strength lay precisely in that spirit.

In the belief that they would save the goddess.

Yet they are gone.

No reincarnation possible.

They gave up their entire souls.

“Well, I can’t really say much about them either—I’m about to go against Ariel-sama’s will, after all.”

Ariel-sama spoke, her voice tinged with loneliness.

The oldest phantom beast, who had upheld Ariel-sama’s will alone, guarding the world without deviation.

The conflict of acting against that will—how deeply it must have torn at her.

I cannot even imagine the weight of that decision.

“Potimas must be killed.”

A flat voice.

The intent to kill was so overwhelming it sounded hollow, as if emotion had been stripped away.

Potimas had gone too far.

Having already provoked Ariel-sama’s wrath, he had only deepened it.

“We cannot reconcile. But on this matter, we must cooperate.”

“Of course.”

We cannot erase the past. To reach out and grasp hands again—impossible.

Sophia and Lady Ariel have walked too far down a path with no return.

Mutual recognition remains. Yet the path we walk leads to no shared end.

Still, this time, cooperation is possible.

An enemy’s enemy is a friend—was that the saying in Sajin’s world?

"Afterward, shall we have a grand slaughter?"

"I’d rather decline, if you don’t mind."

A remark spoken with irony.

Yet it will surely come—after the defeat of the elves.

We may cooperate temporarily.

But we remain enemies.

No matter how far we go, we will not merge.

Then a resolution must be reached.

If Lady Ariel has become the Demon King, it is to mark the end of this world.

At that moment, I will only be an obstacle to Lady Ariel.

Thus, collision is inevitable.

Ariel’s actions, even against her own will, leave no room for restraint.

She will leave her mark with every fiber of her being.

Terrifying.

The chance of victory is nonexistent.

Even so, I must stand against her.

For the sake of humanity.

To uphold the oath made in days past—to protect humanity even at the blasphemy of the goddess.

"Thank you for the meal."

Ariel set down the empty wine bottle.

A bottle with only a fine label, no contents within.

It felt like a reflection of herself. A dry laugh rose in the throat.