I Am the Weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings but the Demons Are Obsessed With Me

37 – Kidnapped by the Emperor.

“Woah! Is this the mortal world? It’s all fallen apart?”

“What can you do, the demons handle things so… aggressively.”

The boundary between the mortal and demon world is wide enough to reach from one end of the horizon to the other.

Naturally, there couldn’t be just Primrose’s territory at ‘end of the world’. I came to the mortal world through the still unrecovered eroded land to avoid encountering heroes unecessarily.

And then, I went to find the organization’s branch first.

“Long time no see, Branch Manager.”

“Ugh, you really stirred things up, didn’t you?”

“hahahaha…”

“Please try to consider the employees who handle the aftermath. You left us with impossible disguises to maintain, although it’s our fault too…”

“No, the thing is, the hero suddenly acted impulsively so I had no other choice.”

“I know, I know. I’m tired these days and just wanted to whine a bit. But what’s this about using the Golden Shield? The Emperor requested the location of ‘Plum Radiant Orchid’. Someone who is officially known to be dead. They seem to have noticed that she’s part of our organization… Should we make a fake body and pass it on, according to the manual?”

There are not many people who have received the Golden Shield from the current emperor, who used to be the lowest in line for succession.

Naturally, the Emperor must have also noticed that I was the ‘Plum Radiant Orchid.’ Being someone who could directly commission the organization, he probably had a good grasp of the situation already.

“It’s difficult to manipulate information against the imperial court. They have more than a few specialists devoted solely to that area.”

“Exactly…”

“Just send a ‘restricted information’ notice. They probably know we’re with the organization anyway, and if we say it’s classified because of that, what can they do?”

“But that’s an outrageous overstep of authority! Even if both sides know it, you’re still revealing the identity of an agent currently on a necessary, long-term mission!”

“If they trip us up on manipulating information, that would be far worse, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes, but…”

“Just request the authority to do it.”

“That level of overstep requires direct permission from the ‘elder’! I can’t do that!”

“…”

I never imagined that a regional head, of all people, would whine so much about the ‘old man’ being scary.

Or perhaps, it’s precisely because he’s a regional head that he knows just how terrifying that old inspiration can be. Unlike me, an ‘agent’ by background, he’s likely someone who started as a ‘staff member’ right from the beginning.

I can somewhat understand his timidness.

“Regional head.”

“Uh…”

“Then instead of a restricted information notice, why not just spill it?”

“What?”

“Our location. The ‘Plum Radiant Orchid’… I mean, my location. That’s doable with just the agent’s permission, right?”

“Well, yes… but are you sure?”

“Weren’t you hoping I’d say that after all your whining?”

“Ha ha… Was I that transparent…?”

“Extremely.”

From the regional head’s perspective, it must have been quite the dilemma.

Normally, a cover identity ends with ‘death,’ but to attract such trouble just before dying was inconvenient. Death had to be processed, yet there were too many watchful eyes.

A mistake in manipulating information against the imperial family could lead to claims, and the responsibility would fall not on the staff but the regional head. Yet confessing to being with the ‘organization’ would be overstepping authority.

In the end, conveying that ‘the person with the cover identity hasn’t died’ seemed to be the best course of action.

In this case, it interferes with the agent who’s officially supposed to ‘die’ to escape their cover identity.

It’s a three-way standoff: the Emperor VS the old man VS the agent.

Given the situation, I too would have chosen to appeal to the agent. Partially because my role already deviated too much from the ‘cover identity’ I was assigned, which, due to my conscience, made it impossible for me to deny the regional head’s request.

And so, after acceding to the regional head’s request, I left the branch.

Memories of the old days came to me. I remembered reading fairy tales to that child in the royal palace.

Those were really peaceful and pleasant times.

‘I wonder if I’ll be invited to the royal palace?’

It wouldn’t be bad to meet that child after so long.

It’s frowned upon to seek out people I’ve encountered during my duty, but in this case, I’m being invited as ‘Plum Radiant Orchid’, so it should be no problem.

Of course, it would be absurd for a ‘Modified’ noble, who is officially considered dead, to receive a direct invitation from the emperor and have a proper conversation. But…

The instruction to infiltrate the demon world was absurd to begin with, so, well.

Everything this organization does is absurd. All because of that old woman.

In the end, all roads lead to retirement, they say.

I want to retire.

“Rein, what on earth is your real identity?”

“A worker who wants to retire…?”

“Aha. How about trying to be an adventurer after you retire? It seems like you’ll have a lot of use for a sword!”

“Wouldn’t a staff be enough even if I were an adventurer?”

“Why do you swing a staff instead of me, a sharp and cool sword! It doesn’t even have a blade!”

“What do you mean ‘attach a blade’?”

“The most beautiful, useful, and greatest thing! The history of human civilization can be said to be the history of the blade!”

“Well, that makes sense to some extent….”

But isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?

I’m not sure.

That way, I chatted with Geomsoon while taking a nice walk. It seems that there is a lot of things I want to see since this is my first time going outside in a long time.

“Why am I called Geomsoon?”

“Well, you’re a sword and a woman…unless you’re a man?”

“No, I am female! But your sense of naming is terrible…weren’t there any prettier names?”

“I think Geomsoon fits just right…”

“Goodness! Better let me name myself. That’s okay, right? It’s my name!”

“Sure.”

“Hmm, how about Sharp? A sharp sword, a sharp woman! Isn’t it perfect for a sharp sword like me?”

“Like a pencil?”

“Huh. Why a pencil? I can’t understand Rein’s sensibility!”

Sharp.

The word itself seems not bad. Easy to say since it’s two syllables.

Should be good enough until I recall its original name.

“Yes, Sharp.”

“Huhu, of course a sword as sharp as me needs a name as sharp as this!”

I wonder what the term ‘sharpness’ really means to ‘Sharp’.

If all of the priests from the ‘God of Whetstones and Sharpening Stones Church’ were as sharp as this guy, I could see why they’d label their god as a demon. Their obsession with sharpness bordered on madness.

What on earth was the mythical age…?

“Did half-demons like me exist during the mythical age… The time that you, Sharp, lived?”

“Of course! The Demon God was quite a troublesome God back then too. There was no such thing as a Demon King, though.”

“Were half-demons a discriminated race back then too?”

“Hmm, that’s a bit complicated.”

“Complicated, how?”

“Well, during the time I lived, one’s faith wasn’t necessarily defined by one’s birth. There were so many gods that they often fought over who was superior, so people didn’t bother too much about one’s heritage. People who shared the same faith had a strong sense of camaraderie back then. Of course, there were races who disliked the demonic powers within half-demons… but that was a matter of personal preference.”

A difference of times… should that be?

The mythical age seemed to have had a completely different social atmosphere compared to the present.

The age where a goddess chased away all the demons and stabilized the world versus the mythical age where gods of all kinds competed with each other. It was hard to say which age was better. I knew little about the mythical age, and there was little information about it in the first place.

Even though the native of that age is right by my side.

People who have lived ‘inside’ a society often have a hard time viewing it objectively. Evaluations based on memory could not be trusted.

“But the Demon God is indeed amazing. How did he manage to rule a world all by himself for tens of thousands of years? If it was me, I wouldn’t have bothered. Ah, is that why the Demon God created something like the Demon King? I’m not sure. If I get a chance, I’d want to see this Demon King in person!”

“Could be possible if you were given to the hero.”

“Eek, I hate that idea. I like you, Rain. It would be even better if you just used me recklessly! A sword is meant to be swung! I bet you don’t understand how joyous it is to swing a sword until the edge wears off. It’s pitiful that you don’t understand the beauty of a sharpened edge.”

“But if you’re used so recklessly, won’t you quickly become unusable?”

“Well, no helping that. A sword is somewhat consumable after all.”

“For a sword with a spirit to say that…”

“What, you don’t want to use me because you want to talk with me forever and ever? Can it be that you’re smitten with me?”

“People aren’t objects, you know.”

“But a sword is an object!”

There’s no point in discussing this topic further, it will only give me a headache.

He randomly uses ‘himself as a human’ and ‘himself as a sword’ interchangeably. His unique style of speech makes me dizzy if I keep listening to it.

I still feel a bit dizzy.

The sensation was similar to the dizziness I experienced when enduring training to resist drugs like sleeping pills, hallucinogens, and truth serums in the organization. It was comparable to the disorientation of the final, tenth level….

When I came to my senses, I found myself kidnapped and bound hand and foot.

What’s peculiar was that this place was not a warehouse or a basement, but a bedroom adorned with sumptuous draperies. And—

“Teacher! You’re awake?”

“…Your Majesty.”

The Emperor was staring intently at me, right before my face.

“Yes!”

“May I request a brief explanation of the situation?”

“I’ve brought you here, teacher!”

“Why… in such a drastic manner?”

“It’s to show that I’ve finally come to understand a certain level of knowledge about you!”

The Emperor took a notebook from a small drawer beside the bed and began to read.

“Nyle von Adleheim, Lemon, Miles, Stenie D. Eil, Coral, Rainy Weather, Burnt Umber, Ecru, Plum R. Orchid…”

All names I have used before.

“Do you know what all these people have in common, teacher?”

“…I can’t say.”

“They’ve all made sacrifices and died for others!”

Looks like I have overused that repertoire a bit… Next time, I’ll have to consider a more creative exit strategy.

“So for now, I’ve brought you to the safest place in the empire… my bedroom!”

“Indeed… that is wise.”

“If you understand, I’ll untie you now. Sorry, your wrists must hurt?”

“Oh, just a little…”

“The knight who tied you will be executed.”

“…It really doesn’t hurt at all; you needn’t worry.”

“Ha-ha, teacher, you’re still so kind.”

At a moment like this, an ordinary agent would think to themselves, ‘I’m screwed.’

But I was no ordinary agent.

I was, in fact, an agent on the cusp of retirement. Moreover, my final mission was as good as completed.

So, that was it.

‘…maybe I should just rest here until the hero defeats the demon king?’

For some reason, the Emperor seemed to want to keep me safe.

It seemed wise to just go along with it.

“Your Majesty, now that I think about it, my sword and staff… they were not with me, were they?”

“Ah, shall I have someone bring them to you?”

When the Emperor rang the bell hung in the bedroom, a woman who looked to be a maid entered.

The Emperor ordered the maid.

“Bring the weapons that our distinguished guest has entrusted to us.”

“Understood.”

I hadn’t entrusted any weapons, and possessing weapons during a private audience in the Imperial chambers simply didn’t make sense. I was perplexed by the maid’s flustered yet prompt response as she bowed, but I didn’t point out these irregularities.

Perhaps because the Emperor’s eyes when he spoke down to the maid were incredibly chilling.

“Teacher?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Shall I have her killed?”

“…Who do you mean?”

“That maid.”

“Why would you do such a thing?”

“I don’t like the way she rolls her eyes.”

If she was a maid of the Emperor, she probably was the daughter of a high-ranking noble.

Was it really all right to kill her on a whim?

More than that, I wish he wouldn’t speak so casually about killing someone, as if he were asking, ‘Shall we kill her, Master?’

“I would prefer if you spared her.”

“Why?”

“If someone loses their life just for rolling their eyes inappropriately, then given I’ve been looking at Your Majesty throughout, my own life wouldn’t be nearly enough even if I had ten of them, would it?”

“Hmm, is that so? Well then, let’s spare her life.”

Before long, the sword and the staff were brought in.

As I grasped the sword, I heard the voice of Sharp. This voice was transmitted directly into my head, so the emperor wouldn’t hear it.

“aaah! That was terrifying! Who are these people?! I was so startled when Rain was suddenly taken away!”

Instead of responding to Sharp’s queries, I engaged in conversation with the emperor to help Sharp understand the situation.

“Your Majesty.”

“What is it, Teacher?”

“I’m concerned that I may be stealing precious moments from Your Majesty’s time.”

“…Tsk. You’re telling me to hurry up and get back to work, aren’t you?”

“As the father of your imperial citizens, you ought to set an example.”

“Fine! I’ll finish up quickly and return! Oh, and the head of the Knights is guarding the door, so don’t you run away, okay?”

“Understood.”

The emperor seemed regretful that he couldn’t chat more leisurely, glancing back at me several times before leaving the room.

Sharp’s voice came through with a sense of disbelief.

“What on earth is Rain’s true identity?”

“A corporate drone who wants to retire.”

“And what exactly does this ‘corporate’ place do?”

“I don’t know.”

Only the old lady would know.