An Overview of the Demon Realm and a Forceful Invitation

The Demon Realm. Almadelux-sama explained that it was a kind of shadow world distinct from the mortal world. Its inhabitants were said to be only the monstrous Race known as Demons.

They occasionally came from the Demon Realm to the mortal world, wreaked havoc on human society according to their individual desires, and then returned. In most cases, by the time the mastermind behind an incident was identified, they had already gone back to the Demon Realm. That made them the most hated Race among monsters in the eyes of humanity.

When I hear the word Demon, I picture a cunning and cruel being that seduces people and then leads them to ruin. Almadelux-sama also told me, 'Never trust them,' so this impression of mine seemed to be accurate. Even if not every one of them was malicious, they could hardly be called a benevolent force.

Humanity had tried many times to pursue Demons in order to retaliate, but had never once succeeded. Apparently, the reason was that they could only enter and leave through entrances located somewhere in the mortal world. Even Almadelux-sama did not know where any of them were, so he had never been there.

A ticket to such a place had been given to Mossa-san and the others. Its rarity was the second-highest, 'L (Legendary).' There was no choice but to use it!

"This is just a prediction, but I don't think anyone who didn't receive an invitation can go. Right, Maria?"

"Yes, that's right. But be warned: the Demon Realm is a dangerous place. Whether you can return after going there depends on you. Still, since you're Wayfarers, even if you die, we'll be able to revive you with our power, so go ahead and take it easy."

Maria-sama had casually added something terrifying, but in any case, apparently only Mossa-san and the others, who had received invitations, could go to the Demon Realm. I wanted to go too, but there was nothing in my inventory. What a shame.

"Sorry, everyone, but we'll be going without hesitation..."

Even if they went to the Demon Realm, we would have no choice but to operate out of the 'Dragon Sanctuary' from now on. That was because getting the battleship we'd received into shape would take time. It would need repairs and assembly before it could even be operated, and if possible, we'd like to give it some weaponry as well.

We'd start gathering materials for that purpose. We'd rummage through the junk in the 'Ancient Ruined City' to recover anything usable, then ask Iris and the craftsmen of the 'Dragon Sanctuary' to help us work on the machinery. We had all discussed and decided on this earlier. Even with advice from the onboard AI and the facilities here, it would not all be finished overnight. I estimated that it would take at least a month in real time. We would proceed without rushing.

"Sorry!"

"We'll bring back souvenirs!"

"There's no need to feel bad. It's not as though we're in a hurry, and you three aren't the only ones going somewhere far away."

Now that we had achieved the clan-wide goal of reaching the 'Dragon Sanctuary,' our next objective was repairing the battleship. However, some of our companions might find it a hassle to devote all their efforts to that alone. We had made them tag along this far, so from here on, I wanted them to pursue whatever they personally wanted to do. In fact, Jigoro planned to go to the Aquaria Archipelago to test his evolved powers, and Nanako and Sei had said they would accompany him.

The other members said they would remain behind because they wanted to see the ship completed as soon as possible, or because they had nothing in particular they wanted to do at the moment. They could have accompanied Jigoro and the others, so perhaps they were being considerate. I was grateful.

"I suppose I'll reward you if you take care of the Demon Spirits and Spartoi still lurking in that forest. They're a pain, after all."

There were still many Demon Spirits and Spartoi left in the 'Black Death Ice Forest.' Those Undead apparently had not originally belonged in that forest. So they wanted us to dispose of these intruders. We could accept a quest to thin their numbers. It was available at any time and offered rewards, so we should definitely make use of it.

For that matter, why had those Undead appeared in the first place? It was because MacFarlane had created them. At first, there had only been Demon Spirits, but apparently a young Dragon attacked the one who had remained in front of the barrier for so long.

However, young Dragons who had only just left the 'Dragon Sanctuary' were no match for MacFarlane, who possessed powered armor. The armor seemed to have sustained damage through repeated battles with Dragons, but apparently things changed after he had killed several of them. Dragon corpses could be used as materials for powerful Undead.

Dragon fangs were used to make Spartoi, while materials from monsters in the 'Black Death Ice Forest' killed by the Demon Spirits and Spartoi were combined to create Imitation Bone Dragons. Once he had accumulated those forces, even young and hot-blooded Dragons stopped approaching him, leaving the forest in the state we saw now.

As for why Langhote-sama, the Ancient Light Dragon Lord who had erected the barrier, had overlooked it, apparently she thought it was perfect for testing the strength of visitors from outside. MacFarlane was undoubtedly a nuisance, but his forces were powerful. She had made him a touchstone: anyone capable of defeating him would be considered strong enough to meet Almadelux-sama.

"Well, it was because Ran had only put up the bare minimum barrier back then that some thieves managed to sneak in..."

"You?"

"Oops, never mind. My mouth slipped."

Maria-sama was still smiling, but there was no smile in her eyes. The fact that she had cut him off meant that this was information we were supposed to uncover ourselves. Still, I had learned something from that one slip alone. Judging from the words 'thieves managed to sneak in,' there was no doubt that they were the people who had stolen the Dragon Orb under orders from, or at the request of, that foolish noble. Since the barrier had been reinforced afterward, I assumed that was what had happened.

There was also MacFarlane's statement about 'taking back the laboratory.' Gravekeeper-dono had also said that civilization had been destroyed by biological weapons created by humanity, and that the Dragons had defeated and sealed them away. With this much information, the deduction was easy.

"...The First Civilization was destroyed in a war between humans, the Dragon clan sealed away the ancient weapons that caused its downfall, and then the Second Civilization was destroyed by the Dragon clan for stealing the Dragon Orb. Is that what happened?"

"...You?"

"W-wait, calm down! That's just an answer I deduced from information I investigated myself, right!? Safe! I'm in the clear!"

Maria-sama's face was smiling, but there was not the slightest smile in her eyes, while Almadelux-sama was flustered. This confirmed it. One piece of this world's history had just come to light. Heh heh heh, I had learned the truth of history!

"A-anyway! The battleship can serve as your base! You can return to your original world from there! I-I just remembered something I need to do, so I'm leaving!"

"...Excuse me."

Having rattled that off, Almadelux-sama left the dry dock as though fleeing. Maria-sama followed after him without hurrying, yet radiating a strange pressure. Almadelux-sama would surely receive a thorough dressing-down. I felt sorry for him, but he would have to accept it. All we could do was press our palms together, pray for their safety, and see the two of them off.

◆◇◆◇◆◇

Yes, I have logged in. After the furious goddess left the dry dock, those of us who remained were taught by Matis-dono, who had also stayed behind, what we must not do in the 'Dragon Sanctuary' and so on. That was not to say there was anything particularly special about it. He said that as long as we behaved within the bounds of common sense, everyone would be happy to accommodate us.

Afterward, we logged out aboard the battleship we had received. Just as Almadelux-sama had said, the battleship also had the function of serving as a base from which to log out. It even supported Base Teleport, so once repairs were complete, we would have a flying base. Our range of adventure was about to expand!

Setting that aside, we were now gathered in a grassland in the 'Dragon Sanctuary.' Naturally, our purpose was to watch them use the 'Invitation to the Demon Realm.' It was said to be a valuable item, and I was also curious about what kind of spectacle would accompany its use.

"Are the others still not here?"

"No, this is everyone who's coming today."

Although we had gathered, several people were nowhere to be seen. They had real-life obligations. The entire clan had conquered the 'Black Death Ice Forest,' but it was impossible for everyone to log in all the time. Today was a holiday, but I actually had to go to work after seeing them off. Ugh, how depressing.

"Then I'll light it."

Following the instructions written on the 'Invitation to the Demon Realm,' Mossa-san and the others tossed the letters into a bonfire they had prepared in advance. When the three black invitations were placed in the flames, reddish-purple smoke rose up. From it came a cloying, unpleasant stench like overripe, rotten fruit.

"What is this smell?!"

"It's awful!"

Shishu and Wool, who had been standing close to the bonfire, appeared shocked by the smell. Mossa-san was coughing as well. The Dragon Puppies, who had been watching us out of curiosity, scattered like spiderlings, and Karu silently flew away as well. It was nice to see that they were getting along.

Even if we set aside the urge to escape reality, this was an unbearable stench. Without a clear purpose, we might have backed away as well. As we fought the urge to leave, a change finally occurred. The reddish-purple smoke gathered together as if defying the laws of physics, forming a single tentacle. The tentacle shuddered, and its tip split into three.

The smoke tentacles writhed and squirmed, enough to inspire instinctive disgust in anyone with an aversion to such things. Those of us accustomed to Iris were fine, however.

"What the—?!"

"Eeeek?!"

"Oh nooo..."

While we stood dumbfounded at the unreal sight of smoke turning into tentacles, they wrapped around Mossa-san and the other two at a speed too fast for the eye to follow! We hurried to help, but by the time we moved, it was already too late. The smoke holding the three of them formed a sphere in midair, contracted all at once, and vanished with a deflated 'poof.' At the same time, the bonfire went out, and our companions disappeared without a trace.

"A-are they all right?!"

"Calm down, Iris."

Perhaps because she was agitated, Iris was waving her tentacles around violently. I found myself impressed that she did not get tangled up despite moving them so much. There was only one thing we could do now, so panicking would accomplish nothing.

"First, let's check on their safety. Let's contact Mossa-san and the others."

"The chat, huh? I'll give it a try."

At that, Nanako began deftly poking at empty air with her beak. Apparently, it was better suited to operating the virtual display than her wings. Still, the way she made tiny movements with her beak to type in the chat made her look less like a crow and more like a woodpecker. That was a secret.

"Oh? I got a reply! They're all safe!"

"That's good."

Mossa-san's reply came through properly, and we breathed a sigh of relief. It would have been far too pitiful if it had turned out to be a trap.

"He says they're in some kinda creepy building. Apparently, the map calls it the Demon Palace."

"The Demon Palace... Could it be the Demons' headquarters?"

Inviting players from the mortal world to what was clearly an important stronghold called the Demon Palace—what could their objective be? We waited silently for Mossa-san's response.

"...I see. Apparently Mossa-san has figured out their purpose."

"What is it?"

"Apparently, they intend to recruit Mossa-san and the others to become Demons."

A recruitment offer from the Demons. When I heard its purpose, I found myself strangely convinced.