Project Necro is an official initiative by Re:Library.

I returned to my office and, sipping the tea Kait had made for me, thought about what to do next.
Thanks to the interrogations of the prisoners, I’ve learned quite a bit about the political situation in Rolmund.

It turns out that Eleora Kastoniev Oligania Rolmund is not the emperor’s daughter, but his niece. As she is the daughter of the emperor’s sister, she is a princess through the female line. In Rolmund, she is apparently referred to as an “outer princess.” Princesses through the male line are called “inner princesses.”
She belongs to the “Oligania House,” one of the houses with a claim to the Rolmund throne.

The House of Oligania consists of Eleora and her younger sister, whose name is apparently Sophie.
Although Eleora herself never mentioned it, it seems likely that her sister was being held hostage.

Incidentally, “Kastoniev” is her father’s family name. Eleora’s father was apparently a son-in-law by marriage.
I’ve heard he’s already passed away, but he must have had a hard time.

As we were talking about this, Kait muttered with interest.

“It’s interesting that you have family names. We don’t really have them in Miraldia.”
“Demons don’t have them either. I’m just ‘Vait,’ and you’re just ‘Kait.’”
“It’s nice and carefree.”

Only the nobility—that is, the families of potential governors—have family names.
In the north, people are descendants of escaped slaves, so they don’t have family names, and in the south, there’s a custom of using parents’ names as surnames, so it’s different from Rolmund.

I picked up the documents and called out to Kait.

“Here’s the information on the imperial family of Rolmund. It’s a bit complicated, but I’ll drill it into your head.”
“Got it.”

The current emperor of Rolmund is Bahazov IV. He’s apparently regarded as a “pretty decent emperor.”
This emperor’s family is the Schwelynn family, and they have children who are heirs. There’s a younger brother who is first in line to the throne and an older sister who is fifth. Both are said to be “pretty safe choices.”
Normally, when it comes to emperors, being a safe choice is best.
Let’s remember them as the “Safe Family” to make it easier to recall.

Next, the family related to the emperor’s younger brother is the Doniesk family.
Here is the emperor’s younger brother, second in line to the throne, who has two sons. They are third and fourth in line, respectively.
Since anyone from the Doniesk family could become the next emperor if they were to oust the Crown Prince—who is first in line—this clan is considered the center of conspiracy.
I’ll just go ahead and remember them as the “Ambitious Family.”

From seventh place onward are Eleora’s sister and various distant noble relatives.
The order of succession is basically “paternal males, paternal females, maternal males, maternal females,” but there are numerous exceptions based on status and other factors, making it quite complex.
This is a legacy of the countless exceptions created—such as an emperor without sons attempting to place his daughter on the throne.

I glanced over the documents summarizing the Rolmund Imperial Family, then looked up and asked Kait.

“Kait, did you manage to memorize this?”
“Not a chance.”

Kait shook his head and began making a copy of the documents.

“It’s not that easy to memorize the imperial families of other countries. What about you, Mr. Veit?”
“There’s no way I could remember all that.”

Anyway, I realized the place was full of potential rivals.

My head was starting to hurt, so I stepped out into the hallway, muttering under my breath, “the brother’s family is trouble, the brother’s family is trouble.”
Okay, I’ve got it.
I continued muttering, “The emperor’s family is first and fifth…”
I’ve got it.
Whether I’ll still remember this by tomorrow is anyone’s guess.

Rasie, whom I passed, looked intrigued, but I waved one hand and made a gesture to indicate, “It’s nothing.”
She’d just pulled off a major feat in the defense battle the other day, using an illusion to disguise the Old Town’s castle gate as a wall. Thanks to her, things went a lot smoother.
I’ll spare her the hassle.

I popped into the barracks where the prisoners were being held.

“Excuse me. You mind?”
“Ah, Lord Veit!”

An officer named Natalia stood up and saluted, and the other prisoners also stood and gave the Rolmund-style salute.
I returned the gesture with the Demon Lord’s Army-style salute.

“Are you dissatisfied with your treatment? You are important hostages—to prevent Her Imperial Highness from doing anything reckless.”

As I said this with a wry smile, the prisoners returned a similar wry smile.
It seemed they shared my opinion.

Despite having so many comrades killed, the soldiers of the 209th Magiarms Battalion were extremely obedient.
When I asked a man named Borsche, the adjutant, why that was, he replied with a look that suggested it was only natural.

“We do not fight out of personal grudges or selfish desires, so we are trained to leave no hard feelings whatsoever once the battle is over. That is the most basic principle for a Rolmund soldier, and it is also our greatest source of pride.”

Hearing him say that with such a cheerful expression actually sent a chill down my spine.
It’s okay if you hate me more, you know?

However, they regard hating their enemies as an amateurish way of thinking and act with a strong sense of discipline and reason.
As a member of the Demon Lord’s Army—in other words, a young armed guerrilla from the countryside—I can’t fight that way.
That’s why I treated them with respect, as professional soldiers.

One of the soldiers bowed his head to me.

“Lord Veit, I’d like to thank you once again for conducting the funeral for our comrades with the honors of a High Priest.”
“I heard it is different in Rolmund, but we do have a Sonnenlicht High Priest here too.”

Then Natalia said this:

“In our homeland, having a High Priest conduct a soldier’s funeral is a privilege reserved for generals and medal recipients. Thank you.”

It seemed the respect I held for them had, in fact, been conveyed to them as well.

“I wish I’d had the chance to speak with you all personally before the battle began…but I suppose that wasn’t possible.”

An officer named Renkov nodded, sounding somewhat apologetic.

“Yes. The military code in Rolmund is extremely strict; if we were to do such a thing, we would be stripped of our military status and reduced to serfdom.”
“That’s quite strict, don’t you think?”

Renkov nodded and added:

“Yes. That’s why, if we were to surrender, the usual outcome upon returning home would be execution or assignment to a penal unit. Our surviving family members would likely be punished by association as well.”

It seems that, in practice, assignment to a penal unit is essentially a death sentence.

“In other words, you all surrendered fully prepared for that outcome.”

For them, surrender seems to be an act even more dangerous than death.
The Magiarms Battalion’s battle is still ongoing.
That’s how they should view it.

They serve as both a means to win over Princess Eleora and as a military force for the invasion towards Rolmund.
Even for the sake of Miraldia’s safety, I can’t very well take Miraldians all the way to a distant foreign land. An expedition is an extremely dangerous mission for both commanders and soldiers.
That’s why I’ll rely as much as possible on the survivors of the Magiarms Battalion and the pro-Eleora factions back in the homeland.
I’ll have to make sure to win them over properly.

Just as I was harboring such devious thoughts, Natalia approached me with sparkling eyes.

“Excuse me, Your Excellency Lord Black Wolf!”

She just called me “Your Excellency.”

“What is it, Miss Natalia?”

Then, with a look of keen curiosity, she fired a question at me.

“I’ve seen all of your plays, Lord Black Wolf—who is your one and only?”
“……My one and only?”

For a moment, I couldn’t grasp the meaning of her question at all.
After freezing for a few seconds, I finally realized she was asking about my romantic feelings.
Just what does she think of me?

I’ve been so busy with work that I’ve never even thought about that.

“I’ve been so busy with work that I’ve never even thought about that.”

Since it was such an unexpected question, I just answered honestly, saying exactly what was on my mind.
Then Natalia nodded with a meaningful expression.

“I see… work, huh. Thank you.”

That’s the face of someone making wild assumptions.
Whatever, take it as you please.

I consulted with the officers of the Magiarms Battalion and reaffirmed that, in order to protect Princess Eleora and her subordinates, we need to stir up some trouble in Rolmund.
If they returned home as is, it’s certain that everyone would be killed, so they promised to cooperate with me.
Looking at it this way, that overly strict military discipline is something to think about.

After finishing my discussion with the Magiarms Battalion and returning to my office, I found Master had dropped by. Looks like this Demon Lord has some free time on her hands.
Having finished examining and treating today’s casualties, Master had taken up residence at the table.
She was munching away on fried bread piled high on a large plate, sprinkled with expensive sugar.

“Master, you’ll get fat if you eat that much, you know?”
“I’ve used a massive amount of mana treating both friends and foes over the past few days. I’m simply replenishing my reserves, you see.”
“Wouldn’t it be enough to just warm yourself by a campfire?”

Since Master can absorb both chemical and thermal energy, there’s no need for it to be fried bread.

But Master seemed in high spirits, chuckling to herself.

“A mysterious young beauty who healed countless soldiers, friend and foe alike. One day, when they realize I am the Demon Lord, they’ll all prostrate themselves before me.”
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
“What’s that?”

I spoke to my master—who was munching on fried bread and flapping her feet on the chair—with a sense of guilt.

“To avoid any misunderstandings, I’ve already told our allies that you’re the Demon Lord.”
“What!?”
“You said just the other day that it was about time to reveal it to ordinary citizens and soldiers, didn’t you?”

At that, my master washed down her fried bread with milk and protested to me.

“That was something I intended to do myself. Don’t take away this old lady’s simple pleasure.”
“…I didn’t know you were looking forward to something like that.”

I took a piece of fried bread and asked my master.

“By the way, Master, the prisoners can’t use magic, right?”
“That’s because I’m manipulating my mana to draw theirs away. In Lüenheit as it stands now, no one can use magic without my permission.”

So, as expected, Master’s ability to draw away mana is superior.

“Actually, Master, I was able to do something similar myself.”
“Hmm. It seems you’ve successfully acquired a portion of my power.”
“That’s true, but is this really okay?”

At that, Master smiled gently.

“You’ve simply unconsciously understood the power of my Vortex and imitated how to use it. Since it’s the result of learning, there’s no change to your true nature.”
“I would’ve been happy if I could’ve absorbed the magic’s effects too, though.”

Eleora’s flames were extremely hot.

My master laughed again at my grumbling.

“As I taught you when you first began your training, mana is a form of currency. Since it’s in a state where it hasn’t become anything yet, it’s easy for a mage to handle. However, once it’s converted into heat or motion, it can’t easily be turned back into manar.”

So that means the power of my “Vortex” is currently only effective against special attack methods, like a magic staff.
To put it in gaming terms, it “absorbs only pure energy-based attacks.”

Master picked up the last piece of fried bread, broke it in half, and handed one half to me.

“That said, you can absorb any kind of magical energy. Before the enemy can use it, go ahead and suck up every last bit of the surrounding magic power.”
“That’s Energy Drain!?”
“Did you say something?”
“No, nothing.”

I’d just casually secured a new means of attack.

Master smiles at me while reluctantly nibbling away at the remaining half of the fried bread.

“You are now a werewolf that devours all mana. You are truly worthy of being called a Demon Wolf. As your master, I’m very proud of you.”
“Thank you, hehehe.”

I’ll have to try that out when the opportunity arises.
I chuckled to myself, stuffing my cheeks with fried bread.