Throne Room of the Dark Castle, domain of the Demon King of Darkness Ashmedia—one of the Four Great Demon Kings.
"I find it utterly hard to believe. Did our god truly fall in battle?"
In response to the question raised by one of the leading figures, another spoke up.
"Immediately after the plan was set into motion, an all-out dragnet for suspicious individuals began across the town of Balse. Because we had already departed the city, we did not witness the events firsthand. However, judging from the circumstances, in all likelihood..."
The Man in Black's diffident voice resonated through the throne room in reluctant affirmation.
"Was the one who struck down our god truly the legendary Hero?"
"We have been gathering information within the limits of our ability, but a strict gag order regarding the incident seems to have been imposed across all of Balse. Nothing is certain. You have my deepest apologies."
The Man in Black cast his eyes downward as he bowed in apology. Immediately, agitated voices filled with impatience and anxiety erupted from every corner of the throne room.
"Silence."
At the heavy, commanding female voice issuing from the throne, every retainer fell silent at once. In a split second, a deafening, tense quiet descended upon the hall.
"What do you make of this, Old Man?"
The beautiful, blue-skinned girl clad in black vestments turned her gaze to the petite, equally blue-skinned elder attending at her side.
"No matter how formidable a Hero may be, they are ultimately mortal. A mere human cannot slay a god."
"Then how do you explain what occurred?"
"There are only two conceivable possibilities.
First—that the entity which struck down our god was another god entirely.
Second—that the ritual was incomplete, and what manifested in this realm was not a god at all, but a mere weakling.
It must be one or the other."
"Do not dodge the question. Which do you believe it to be, Old Man?"
"Had a deity powerful enough to vanquish our god truly crossed over into this realm, we would hardly be standing here conversing so idly at this very moment. That is your answer."
"Hmm. A fair point."
At the elder's decisive reasoning, the beautiful girl seated upon the throne nodded in agreement, and collective sighs of relief slipped from the retainers.
"So in either case, we must hone the precision of the ritual. Is that your conclusion?"
"Indeed. We have already succeeded in anchoring the gate to the otherworld. There are no flaws in the rite itself; this failure was undoubtedly due to imperfections in the ritual site. That being the case—"
"We need only secure a new ritual site. That is what you wish to say, yes, Old Man?"
"Precisely. We are currently narrowing down candidates for the next location, so I humbly beg for a little more time..."
"Very well. I leave the matter in your hands."
Pinching the bridge of her nose between her right thumb and forefinger, the blue-skinned girl on the throne sighed.
"Honestly... If only those humans had not summoned a monster like that otherworld Hero, we would never have been forced to rely on such borrowed power..."
She muttered to herself, the exhaustion heavy in her voice. Without exception, the faces of her retainers twisted in bitter resentment.
"The Hero possesses terrifying strength. And the humans desire nothing less than the total eradication of our demon race. If we sit idly by and take no action, what awaits our kind is slavery at best—and absolute extinction at worst."
"I know that! I know it all too well, but even if they are our hated human foes, dragging innocent civilians into this sits terribly with me."
"My King. That is—"
"Do not say another word, Old Man. I am well aware."
The blue-skinned girl looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes tight.
Taking her gesture as their cue, the retainers at her flanks bowed respectfully and began filing out of the throne room.
"Indeed. I must lead my people. Even if this body becomes stained in utter disgrace."
The blue-skinned girl's whispered vow was caught by the fierce gale sweeping through the entrance and scattered into the empty air.