Chapter 156: Deon Hart, the Betrayer of Humanity

I pledged my loyalty wholeheartedly, but that doesn’t mean I’m without my grievances.

Clearly, the Demon King had no real desire to conquer the Human Realm. I realized his goal in wanting to seize the Human Realm was solely to test and utilize Deon Hart himself.

‘But if you get a new toy, shouldn’t you play with it?’

The Demon King wasn’t one to carefully store away his new toys in a box for admiration. Toys are meant to be played with, after all.

And where could the toy named Deon Hart be used to its fullest potential?

Without a second thought, the Demon King landed on the idea of ‘war.’

‘Let’s wage a war of maximum scale. That should be a stage grand enough.’

Since this war was meaningless, unnecessary, and purely wasteful, I could understand Deon Hart’s dissatisfaction.

That’s why the Demon King took Deon’s seemingly presumptuous actions and remarks as lighthearted grumbling, just like when he submitted his resignation.

Not avoiding Deon’s red gaze, the Demon King grinned.

“Yeah, we should wipe them all out.”

“……”

Deon’s brow furrowed for a moment.

But it was only for a moment. He turned his gaze away from the Demon King and back to the meeting, his expression calm as if nothing had happened. His gaze, now composed and commanding, swept over the legion commanders, pressing down on them.

“…The Empire has superior military strength, and Rweche is rich in resources. We certainly… don’t want to leave them alone to become a nuisance. At the very least, we need to detach either the Empire or Rweche from the alliance to avoid trouble later. I’ll take care of this.”

“Do you have a plan?”

“The magic that was used during the last declaration of war, can we use it again?”

Ah, I see.

I seem to be smiling a lot lately.

The Demon King, who had roughly guessed Deon’s intention, finally couldn’t suppress the rising corners of his mouth and laughed again.

“You mean to warn them?”

“Yes.”

“That’ll definitely deal a significant mental blow. How cruel of you.”

Humanity still doesn’t know the identity of the Commander of the 0th Legion.

Even in the Demon Realm, only the legion commanders and Deon’s close acquaintances—Ed, Ben, and Hien—know that ‘Demon Hart’ and ‘Deon Hart’ are the same person.

This was a situation Deon had orchestrated.

[I’d prefer it if the fact that ‘Deon Hart’ is the ‘Commander of the 0th Legion’ remains undisclosed for now.]

[Why? It’s already widely known that you’re a traitor to humanity. The Emperor no longer has a reason to keep your identity a secret, does he?]

[There’s no need to reveal it either. Humans constantly bite and tear at each other’s throats, so the fact that the person they once lauded has betrayed them is already causing doubts about the Emperor’s judgment within their ranks.]

In such a situation, what would happen if it were revealed that Deon Hart, the Empire’s third hero, was the Commander of the 0th Legion?

The Emperor, unable to reveal that he was playing a precarious game with the Demon King over Deon Hart, would be seen as a foolish human who was ignorant of such a crucial fact for so long.

Not only would his judgment be questioned, but the nobles would also seize this opportunity to strengthen their voice. These individuals, always seeking cracks in the imperial authority, wouldn’t care about the current state of affairs and would instead try to use the situation to their advantage.

In other words, the Emperor would become quite exhausted, both internally and externally.

[We both know this puts a knife in our hands, but what choice do we have?]

There was no other option.

From the Emperor’s perspective, it was better to delay the revelation of their being ‘the same person,’ even if it meant handing over a weapon.

[However, as the war continues, the demons will frequently come into contact with news from the Human Realm, and more people will find out.]

At least, those with doubts would emerge.

Deon Hart, the Empire’s third hero, betrayed the Human Realm and sided with the Demon Realm? Who is he exactly? The only human in the Demon King’s castle is ‘Demon Hart.’

Could it be…?

Could Demon Hart be Deon Hart?

[There’s no need to hide it from the demons, but strict control is needed to prevent this fact from leaking into the Human Realm. It’s an immutable truth that the fewer people who know, the better a secret is kept, so it’s best not to reveal it until the time is right. But we can’t keep it completely secret either….]

His words trailed off.

His voice, which had slowed as if contemplating, continued with feigned ease.

[I’ll have to narrow down those who are likely to find out if we leave it as it is. General demon soldiers, who are fighting fiercely and under strict control, can be pushed down the priority list…]

[……]

[Legion commanders, who have a wide range of activities and are relatively free, especially the Commander of the 2nd Corps and the Commander of the 4th Corps who handle information, will certainly find out. No, perhaps they already suspect it.]

[……You mean we should reveal it to the legion commanders?]

[To be precise, we should inform the legion commanders and those close to me beforehand and have them keep their mouths shut.]

For example, Ed and Ben, and perhaps even Hien.

Those who have watched me closely would figure it out in no time even with just a few pieces of news from the Human Realm. Since the truth will come out eventually, Deon didn’t want to waste energy trying to hide it.

‘I knew he was somewhat sharp-minded, but….’

This is completely different.

Apart from his personality fluctuating due to the merging of his separated memories, Deon Hart, now with his memories whole, was even more acutely honed.

The Demon King’s lips twitched at the sharp analysis, but only for a moment before he smiled naturally.

[Do as you wish. However, the humans aren’t incapable of making reasonable guesses. Are you sure you’re okay with that?]

Deon Hart betrayed the Human Realm and went to the Demon Realm.

Since he was a hero, he must hold a significant position, but his name is nowhere to be heard?

Naturally, they would have doubts.

[Various conjectures will arise. There will be some truth among them.]

[That’s fine. The important thing is that they ‘can’t be certain.’]

[……Alright!]

And so, on that day, the Demon King and Deon gathered the legion commanders, Ed, Ben, and Hien, and revealed that ‘Demon Hart’ was ‘Deon Hart.’

The reactions were more varied than expected.

The Commanders of the 2nd and 4th Corps nodded as if they had expected it, and some, while slightly surprised, admitted they weren’t completely unprepared for the revelation. Some, including the Commanders of the 9th and 7th Corps, seemed genuinely shocked but then laughed it off, marveling at how it was indeed Demon-nim.

‘Lirinel had the most unique reaction.’

She clutched her head in her hands, exclaiming, ‘The leader of the Demon Church didn’t even know his name!’

Anyway, the identity of Demon Hart will be revealed in this ‘warning sent by the Demon Realm.’ Humanity, still reeling from the shock of Deon Hart’s betrayal, will suffer a considerable mental blow.

Deon watched the Demon King, who was making lighthearted remarks about his cruelty, with an emotionless face before turning his head.

“…So, let’s move past the alliance issue and focus on the current battle. No, before that, there’s something we need to address….”

Recalling the longer-than-expected siege of the fortress, he finally couldn’t suppress his irritation, scowling as he spat out his words.

“I knew that demons couldn’t use their full power in the Human Realm, but exactly how restricted are we? It seems far more limiting than I thought.”

He had anticipated restrictions on the use of magic and unique demonic abilities, but he hadn’t expected even their physical abilities to be diminished. And even if they were, he hadn’t imagined the difference would be this significant.

No wonder fighting demons was easier than he’d braced himself for when going back and forth between the Demon Realm and the Human Realm. He had initially thought it was because they were just common demon soldiers, but it seemed their physical abilities were being suppressed.

Indeed, no matter how low-ranking they were, they were still demons. It wouldn’t make sense for ordinary humans, not even ‘heroes,’ to defeat them so easily.

“Well… it’s because you’re coming through the border, which is an abnormal passage,”

The Demon King said, wearing a troubled smile as if trying to calm him down.

“Originally, the border was exclusively for the Hero. Demons aren’t authorized to use it. Since unauthorized individuals are using it freely, restrictions are inevitably imposed.”

“…Could you elaborate?”

“Where should I begin… Do you know that demons are a race despised by the world?”

“…I think I know the reason. Is it because we can use ‘magic’?”

“Well… yes.”

He glanced at the legion commanders who were silently watching the conversation from their seats and then fixed his gaze back on Deon.

The Demon King was a mistake and an error born from the world, and demons were a race born from him. It was only natural for them to be thorns in the world’s side.

But there was no need to say all that. The Demon King chose his words carefully.

“The border is meant for the passage of beings who would annihilate such despised races. But what if, conversely, demons entered the Human Realm and annihilated its most cherished inhabitants? Or even before that, what if the Demon King were to enter the Human Realm?”

“……”

“The border is ultimately a passage. If entering is possible, then exiting is naturally possible too. Since it’s impossible to completely prevent all demons from moving, restrictions are imposed to prevent them from rampaging freely in the Human Realm.”

“…So, even Lord Demon King in the Human Realm….”

“I can’t go to the Human Realm through the border at all. The world has used all its remaining power to stop me.”

The world couldn’t stop all demons, including the Demon King, from using the border.

Facing reality, the world made a quick decision. Instead of blocking the demons’ movement, it shifted its approach to imposing ‘restrictions,’ reducing the consumption of power and focusing all remaining interference on the Demon King.

After all, the Demon King was the most dangerous factor who should never set foot in the Human Realm.

‘Thanks to that, the other races in the Abyss benefited.’

Unintentionally, because the demons drew the world’s attention at the forefront, other races were freed from restrictions.

The fairy race, who were friendly to the world, and other races with no particular affiliation could pass through the border into the Human Realm without any significant restrictions. Only demons, including the Demon King, were affected. Oh, and magical beasts that were a bit too strong also faced restrictions.

It was a measure that only elicited scorn.

“…That’s enough. Please explain the rest later.”

This wasn’t a topic for deep discussion in this setting.

Deon, belatedly aware of the surrounding legion commanders, waved his hand to signal the end of the conversation and highlighted a key point from the Demon King’s statement.

“You mentioned that the border is an abnormal passage… Then what is the normal passage?”

“A contract. Originally, demons should enter the Human Realm through contracts with humans. Although even that doesn’t come without its own restrictions.”

A brief explanation followed.

The total amount of power that could be used in the Human Realm depended on the vessel of the contracted human.

Seeing that the conversation was about to shift to contracts, Deon quickly raised his hand.

“Wait… Before that, there’s something I want to clarify. What exactly are the limitations imposed when crossing into the Human Realm through the border? I know physical abilities are reduced… but what about magic and the use of magic?”

“It’s possible. But since it consumes twice as much magic power compared to when you’re in the Demon Realm, everyone tends to refrain from using it. And right now, there’s a ban on magic, so we don’t use it at all.”

“But… if our lives were in danger, we’d still use it, wouldn’t we? Yet I haven’t seen that happen….”

“……Is that so?”

The Demon King’s usually relaxed expression stiffened for a moment.

“…Knowledge and wisdom are passed down to descendants through records, or so they say… Even so, after so much time has passed, some things should have been lost… They’re tenacious.”

It was like a cockroach, seemingly cut off but stubbornly continuing.

The Demon King, recalling the Emperor’s words during the previous declaration of war, chuckled lightly and muttered under his breath.

“Deon, you need to factor this into your calculations.”

“What do you mean…?”

“It’s a formation. A formation that suppresses the magic of demons.”