Reincarnation as a Great Demon Lord - Chapter 18

Chapter 18: The Great Demon Lord Thrills with Anticipation

The moment the Hero fell, the fortress defenders lost all will to fight.
Their surrender came swift and silent, like a candle snuffed out in the wind.

It was only natural—after all, their greatest champion had been defeated by Eaglet in a single strike.
What courage could remain after witnessing that?

The only question that lingered was whether I should honor the promise I’d made to that fallen Hero—
to spare both citizens and soldiers alike.

In the end, I decided to keep it.

Even a Final Boss must maintain a sense of dignity.
Breaking my word so easily, even to an enemy, would cheapen my title—and besides, Eaglet had earned the right to have her victory respected.
She had won fair and square.
To celebrate that triumph was my duty as her lord.

Arcelia argued that we should capture the Hero for “research.”
Naturally, I refused.

True, letting them go meant word of our existence and our power would spread beyond this place.
But fortunately, my Great Demon Lord’s Castle is mobile.
Exposure at this stage was no great risk.

Besides, because the enemy had laid down their arms, the mines and fortress city had fallen into our hands intact.
Had we indulged in slaughter, we’d have inherited nothing but ruins.
With the Magic Stones and the Rock Orcs at our side, repairs to the castle would proceed at lightning speed.

And speaking of the Rock Orcs—
the morning after our ambush, they requested an audience.

They appeared exactly as I remembered them: towering two-meter giants, their bodies coated in stone and moss.
The elder leading them was a particularly striking sight—two great crystals jutted from his shoulders like jagged wings of quartz.
A walking bedrock, through and through.

The elder trudged down the hall and knelt before me with a thud that shook the floor.
Even the sound carried weight.

“Y—Your… Ma—jes—ty…”

The words came out rough and broken, like stones grinding together.
Just as Selen and Eaglet had warned me, the Rock Orcs struggled with the Demon Realm’s tongue.
Still, his effort to address me with reverence deserved praise.

“You’ve endured much these past hundred years,” I said.
“From this day forth, you are free.
Return to your mountains, or travel to lands of your choosing.
But know this—those who wish to serve shall be welcomed into my army.”

“As… Your… Ma—jes—ty… w-wish—es…”

At that, I could sense the tension in their massive bodies ease ever so slightly.
Good. Just as planned.

Even these representatives looked gaunt for their size—clear proof of the harsh labor they’d been forced to endure.
Had I ordered them to serve me out of gratitude, resentment would’ve festered.
They would have obeyed at first, of course, but bitterness would eventually bloom into rebellion.

And while I, as a Final Boss, welcome rebellion for sport, now is not the time.
Not when my foundation is still unsteady.

So instead, I lifted the restrictions on their food supply—Magic Stones—and granted them freedom.
Creatures who choose to serve always work harder than those who are forced to.
Loyalty born of will is worth far more than obedience born of fear.

Not that I’m worried.
I already held their loyalty.
Proof came in the form of a new trait etched into my status: “Seventh Sense – Magnetism.”

A sense that perceives the magnetic pull of the planet and the ores buried within it—
the very gift that allows Rock Orcs to locate mineral veins in the endless dark below the earth.

On its own, it was little more than the ability to become a living compass.
But I knew better.

After all, I’d learned something from Selen’s illusion-crafting trait:
if you pour mana into a characteristic, you can expand its form, size, or range.
Meaning the true limits of a trait depend on the user’s imagination.

Eaglet’s “Radiant Dragon Scale” had been simple—resistance to heat and physical damage, nothing more.
But this “Seventh Sense”…
this held infinite potential.

In the game, there had been a Hero called “Magnetica, the Princess of Magnetism.”
She’d wielded a similar power, using magnetic force as her weapon.

Curious, I decided to experiment after the audience.

I focused my mana into the new sense and—
“Whoa!?”

A sword mounted on the wall flew straight toward me!
Thankfully, it was still in its sheath, or the Great Demon Lord would have been sporting a rather undignified bruise.
A catastrophe for my image.

After a few more tests, I realized I could not only pull metal, but also repel it.

Just as I suspected—“Seventh Sense” was a means of magnetic manipulation.
The range, strength, and ultimate scale of this ability still needed testing,
but the possibilities… oh, the possibilities.
Perhaps even planetary cores could be moved.

A grin spread across my face.
How thrilling.

Magnetism—its applications span everything from the iron in blood to the magnetic fields that blanket worlds.
A power so vast, so absurdly overpowered…
it was the perfect ability for a Final Boss.

At last, I had gained a truly isekai-worthy cheat skill.
My heart soared.

I would consult Arcelia at once and have her incorporate this power into the castle’s systems.
This fortress was, after all, a floating hulk of enchanted metal.
It was practically begging for magnetism.

Ahh, yes…
my dreams expand with every new discovery.
This is why being the Final Boss never gets old.

---

The next morning, every Rock Orc—save for the children—pledged themselves to my army.
Apparently, I’d underestimated my own charisma.

With their strength, reconstruction of the castle accelerated rapidly.
That said, there were still limits to what could be restored with Magic Stones alone.
We’d managed to bring three systems back online:
the Weapon Forge, the Barrier Generator, and the Automatic Library—a repository of the knowledge of all past Demon Lords.

The Library’s internal data was gone, rendering it useless for now,
but even the empty shell was valuable as an archive for official records.

According to Arcelia, this meant only thirty percent of the castle’s systems were operational.
Still, that was enough—for now.
The rest could wait.

There was, after all, something more important to attend to.

A victory deserved a celebration.

The previous campaign had been a rescue mission,
but this time—this time—we had crushed the enemy utterly.
It demanded a proper feast.

So, I instructed Selen to arrange the Great Demon Lord Army’s first Victory Banquet that very night.

The host, of course, would be me.
The guests: Eaglet and her Dragonkin Knights, the Rock Orc representatives, and our resident mad vampire scientist, Arcelia.

---

“—My Lord is deeply pleased that you have gathered here tonight,”
Selen announced, her clear voice echoing through the throne hall.

A long banquet table stretched before the throne,
covered in an array of colorful dishes, all prepared by Selen herself
from ingredients found in the fortress’s stores.

But what truly impressed me was her attention to detail—
each meal matched the guest’s tastes.
A blood-sausage dish for Arcelia.
A gleaming heap of polished Magic Stones for the Rock Orc Elder.
And before me, a perfectly seared marbled steak, still sizzling with heat.

Ah, the aroma alone was enough to conquer me.

“Tonight’s feast,” Selen continued, “celebrates our army’s first victory, and the liberation and joining of the Rock Orcs.
Please, enjoy yourselves to your hearts’ content!”

“Oooh! A toast—to our King!”

Eaglet and her knights raised their goblets high.
I raised mine in answer and drank deep of the crimson liquor.
A curious taste—born from Demon Realm plants, apparently—but undeniably fine.

Once I lowered my cup, my subordinates began to eat.
I followed suit, slicing into my steak.

…Magnificent.
Truly, the finest meal I’ve ever had—across both lives.

My guests seemed of the same mind,
devouring their dishes with blissful silence and generous gulps of wine.

I glanced toward Selen in silent approval.
She beamed back at me, her beauty radiant as starlight.
Had this been my middle school self, I’d have confessed on the spot.
But now, what bothered me was that she remained standing, serving rather than joining us.

That would not do.

“Selen,” I said, “come. Sit beside me.”

“M-My Lord!? I—I couldn’t possibly—!”

“You can. I command it. No one shall object.”

“…My Lord…”

Tears welled in her eyes as she pressed her hands to her lips and sat beside me, smiling softly as she finally tasted her own cooking.

Yes. This was how it should be.
My rule would know no walls between servant and master—only rank and loyalty.
All under my banner would be equals in my domain.

This day would mark the first law of my reign.
One day, it would be celebrated as a national holiday—
complete with parades, gold, and enormous balloons of my glorious visage.
Perhaps even a fleet of drones for citizen surveillance—yes, perfect!

And just as I was savoring that thought—

—BOOM!

“What!?”

The castle trembled violently.
Not an earthquake—something had struck us.

Sirens blared.
The newly repaired defense system activated, projecting a holographic image of the intruder.

A human figure appeared, cloaked in tattered robes.
But even beneath the grime, one thing shone clear—
the sword in his hand, radiating a sharp, divine blue light.

That blade—
I knew it.

A holy sword, unadorned but perfect in its craftsmanship,
its very presence made my demonic instincts scream in alarm.

There was no mistaking it.

That was the Heaven’s Mandate Sword—
the weapon wielded by the Hero of Myths 2, the protagonist of the previous game.

Which meant the intruder was him—the Holy Sword Hero himself.

But that was impossible.
He’d lived a hundred years ago!

“Th-the ‘Holy Sword’!? T-that’s impossible!”
Selen’s voice cracked with terror, confirming my suspicion.

“Selen,” I asked quietly, resting a hand on her trembling shoulder,
“you’re certain?”

She swallowed hard, drew a shaky breath, and answered:

“Yes… that sword—without a doubt—belonged to the Hero, the one who alone slew the previous Demon Lord!”

Her words rang through the hall,
silencing even the bravest of my subordinates.
Fear and disbelief rippled through them all.

But me?

I couldn’t stop smiling.

“Heh… now this is interesting.”

I tore off the last bite of my steak and stood.
My heart throbbed with exhilaration.

A confrontation with the previous game’s protagonist—
what could be more fitting for a Final Boss?

I didn’t know how or why he’d appeared,
but that didn’t matter.

Because right now—
my blood was on fire.

I am the Great Demon Lord.
The Last Boss.
And if I can’t overcome this trial,
then I don’t deserve the title.

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