ODGD 31

Chapter 31

Almost at the same time, a system window appeared.

<Warning!>
<Ranked 147th in the Demon World — Count Dosion Izmir has appeared!>

The dungeon’s master had arrived.

Thanks to the system window that appeared as soon as I arrived here, I already knew where I was.

This place was “Count Izmir’s Monster Kindergarten.”

Count Izmir’s rank was only fifteen steps higher than Princess Aldred, who ranked 162nd in the Demon World.

Like Aldred, he was clearly an opponent beyond my capability. Not counting Cardinal Ruben and the other Paladins…

“Hmm. There’s even a useless child here. I suppose I’ll just use you as food.”

F-Food?

Count Izmir approached, his pink eyes gleaming sharply. His diamond-shaped pupils, characteristic of demons, were pink.

His jet-black hair fanned out in all directions, giving him a grotesque yet tacky appearance.

On his lean body, he wore a flashy tuxedo, and two whips crossed and swung behind him.

“Who are you?”

Ruben asked in a stern voice, and Izmir grinned. He spread his arms proudly and began to speak.

“Look at this place! Amazing, isn’t it? Incredible, right? There’s no other demon in the Demon World who raises more monsters than I do! Haha! Consider it an honor that I personally reveal my name. And so I am…”

…You are?

Count Izmir’s chest swelled with pride, his face flushed with confidence. He seemed incapable of containing how proud he was of his identity.

I decided to interrupt his momentum.

“You’re Count Izmir, right?”

“!”

Izmir’s pink eyes widened. Ruben and the Paladins were equally shocked.

Izmir trembled as if having a seizure and asked,

“How did you know?”

It was understandable. How could a human know his identity? For demons, just like humans, meeting a human might happen once in five hundred years.

But I shrugged, as if it were obvious how I knew.

“I saw it in the Demon World Encyclopedia. It’s a book from five hundred years ago. They said some demons mentioned there might still be alive… and it’s true?”

The most shocked by that wasn’t Izmir, but Ruben.

“You saw that ancient tome…? Where did you get it? It’s written in an ancient language — nobody alive today could read it!”

Ruben wasn’t wrong.

The Demon World Encyclopedia was truly a rare old book. But when I lived in Neverland with my father, we had a copy at home.

Because I enjoyed stories about demons, my father had obtained the encyclopedia and read it to me. Thanks to that, I naturally learned the ancient language.

I answered Ruben.

“Yes. It was at home when I was young. I learned the ancient language from reading it.”

“You can even read the ancient language…?”

Ruben was so shocked he seemed to forget that a demon was standing before him. The other Paladins were equally dumbfounded.

As all eyes turned to me, Izmir panicked and shouted,

“Enough! Fine. I am Count Izmir. I’ve been living in this Demon World for six hundred years. Yet for five hundred years, I couldn’t serve the Demon King! Finally, the Demon King has returned, and now I have the chance to show my loyalty. How will I show it?”

Izmir stretched out his arms and pointed to where the monsters were confined.

We hadn’t even asked.

“I will present my adorable children at a feast celebrating the Demon King’s return! Haha!”

Another feast?

Ugh, that guy… still holding a feast, I see.

At that moment, Ruben stepped forward with a deadly glare.

“Shut up! You filthy demon. You won’t be attending that feast. If you even try, you’ll die by my blade!”

A long silver sword appeared along the trajectory of Ruben’s arm. It looked extremely heavy.

Its surface radiated a light that seemed divine, as if polished with holy power.

In the blink of an eye, Ruben leaped toward Izmir, swinging his sword. Despite his late 40s, his movements were so light and fast he seemed like a teenager.

The other Paladins drew their swords and took defensive stances.

Izmir struck Ruben’s sword with a whip, and Ruben reacted at lightning speed to attack again.

Clang! Clang!

The sword and whip clashed again.

The whip pressed tightly, but the sword pushed back with a force like sprouting wings.

Just when it seemed Izmir’s whip might be pushed back, his other whip shot out like a snake and tore apart one of the iron bars. Inside, the already excited monsters roared and rampaged.

“Kyaaaak!”

“!”

“My lord!”

The startled Paladins swung their swords at the monsters but couldn’t stop them from reaching Ruben.

“Ugh! Ugh!”

“Kuekk!”

The Paladins’ attacks were fast and precise, leaving no opening for me.

When Ruben’s sword left a deep scar on one monster,

“Hahaha!”

Izmir, now keeping a distance, laughed leisurely.

Cheeky bastard!

He must have released the monsters because he realized he was losing to Ruben in a one-on-one fight. Izmir’s gaze became more serious.

“My new slaves… feed my adorable children well.”

What?

“They need to grow plump so the Demon King will adore them. If they die in a minute like the last humans who came, it would be a disaster. I’m not telling you to be food — feed them, you fools! Hahaha!”

“Stop right there!”

Ruben, who had already destroyed two monsters, charged at Izmir again. But Izmir vanished.

Only his voice echoed through the cavern.

“Our cute babies get violent when hungry, so be careful! Feed them for one hundred days, and I’ll send them to the human world! Haha! Hahaha!”

“……”

In that echo, the Paladins fought the remaining monsters. The monsters’ sharp teeth lunged at them from all directions, tearing uniforms and spilling blood.

“Kraaak!”

“Ugh!”

“Ughhh!”

“My lord!”

Ruben joined the Paladins.

The fierce battle ended quickly but brutally. Most monsters were slaughtered. Blood was everywhere.

Perhaps the other monsters were enraged that their kin were defeated by humans.

The remaining monsters raged even more violently.

In the chaos, one Paladin said,

“Feed them? Let’s just kill them all, my lord!”

“That’s impossible. We must return home first to plan for the future. We have to feed the monsters.”

Another Paladin, calmer, explained, and Ruben’s expression deepened. I understood why.