With Henry now among my subordinates, I left the half-ruined prison behind.
Our next destination was the royal castle located within the capital. This was at Henry’s request; apparently, there was something within the castle walls he wanted to reclaim. Since I had no reason to refuse, I decided to accompany him.
Along the way, I discarded my mangled form and transferred my consciousness into an intact undead body. The damage I had sustained during the fight with Henry was significant. Both my arms had been completely obliterated, and my spine was cracked. Remaining in such a state would have proven quite inconvenient.
Henry remained unfazed as he watched me swap bodies at will.
“I’m past the point of being surprised by stuff like that,” he remarked.
It seemed the shock of losing our duel was far more profound to him. For Henry, it must have been a novel experience.
I used teleportation magic to move us both to the castle. I was already aware that the interior was occupied by a massive horde of undead. Aside from Henry, there didn’t seem to be anyone of true caliber within this small nation.
This was the expected outcome. Henry was simply an anomaly. It wouldn’t do to have my undead army collapse so easily, after all.
We warped into a grand hall. Wounded ghouls wandered across the room’s red carpets. There were soldiers in plate armor, nobles draped in fine silks, and people who appeared to be servants. Death had made them all equal; they were now nothing more than undead.
“Incredible. They really don’t attack, do they?”
Henry poked at a nearby undead and peered into its face, looking genuinely impressed. Even if I’d told him it was safe, I had to admire the sheer audacity required to act that way. It seemed his curiosity far outweighed any sense of caution.
“So, where is this item you’re looking for?”
“Probably the treasury. It’s on the upper floors. It’s a weapon I’ve used for years. They confiscated it when I was thrown in the hole, but it should still be there. It’s not the kind of thing someone would just throw away.”
Henry spoke with a touch of pride. His words jogged my memory. Back when Henry had first been named a hero candidate, I’d read reports on his combat style. Based on that information, a weapon was indeed vital to his true strength.
This meant that, until now, Henry hadn’t been fighting at his full potential. The fact that he was so formidable while ‘incomplete’ was nothing short of astonishing.
As we climbed the stairs toward the treasury, I sensed a familiar presence approaching. Luciana popped her head out to greet us.
“Yahoo, Demon King-sama! I figured you’d be fine.”
“Of course. I cannot afford to fall in a place like this.”
Several humans stood behind her. They hadn’t been turned into undead yet, but their eyes were vacant and unfocused. Their expressions were slack, clearly indicating an abnormal mental state. Noticing my gaze, Luciana offered a quick explanation.
“These are the leaders of the small nation. I Charmed them right down to the marrow of their souls. Now they’re perfect little puppets who will never breathe a word of defiance.”
“Hoh. Not bad.”
“Right? I know, right!?”
Luciana beamed, practically begging for more praise. I welcomed the addition of obedient human pawns. They would be useful for many things. It was a fine harvest, utilizing her natural traits as a succubus.
The fact that we could easily extract information from them was also a major advantage. They would be instrumental in identifying the third party that had incited this nation into action.
Then, Luciana glanced at Henry. She rested a finger against her chin, observing him.
“So you recruited this human, too. Yeah, probably a good call.”
“Nice to meet ya!”
“Oh. Right.”
Luciana’s response to Henry’s boisterous greeting was remarkably flat. She didn’t seem particularly interested in him. In her case, the only metric she used to judge the opposite sex was strength. Anyone other than me—the one at the pinnacle—was essentially irrelevant to her.
She had shown a similar attitude toward Grom, despite his power rivaling that of the previous Demon King. I hoped they would eventually learn to get along. Friction between subordinates could hinder future operations. I could only pray that time would resolve the issue.
Since we had met up, we took Luciana with us to the treasury. I broke the heavy security enchantments on the door and stepped inside.
The room was filled with the gold and silver treasures the small nation had amassed. It was the wealth of an entire country—a staggering sum. However, I felt no attraction to it. I had become a being that found no value in material wealth. Then again, I hadn’t been particularly attached to money even when I was alive. Being undead likely had little to do with it.
“Ahaha! Look at all this! They’ve really hoarded quite a bit for such a tiny country!”
Luciana, on the other hand, dove into the pile with sparkling eyes. She gathered up handfuls of jewels with pure delight, eventually rubbing her cheek against a particularly ornate necklace. She was clearly in a wonderful mood. It seemed she had a surprisingly materialistic streak.
Henry ignored her and strode through the room. He searched for his target in silence. Finally, he came to a stop.
“Ha! Found it, Boss!”
He held up a bow. The surface was a dull, dusky brown, but it wasn't made of wood. It didn't look like metal, either. It possessed a strange, unique texture.
Yes—Henry was an archer. Despite his prowess in a brawl, his true specialty was long-range combat. It was hard to believe, given his physical strength, but his signature move was sniping from distances where the enemy couldn’t even sense him. In that sense, he was almost like an assassin.
“This here is a bow made of dragon bone and whiskers. One of a kind in the whole world. You can see why I wanted it back, right?”
Henry explained as he tested the bowstring. A bow crafted from dragon materials was bound to be of the highest quality. Even without additional enchantments, it would function as a top-tier magic weapon.
“Since I’ve got it back, I might as well take a test shot. I just need an arrow or two...”
Muttering to himself, Henry rummaged through the treasury and found a few arrows. He didn't seem picky; apparently, any arrow would suffice.
We followed Henry as he led us to another part of the castle. It seemed he wanted to find a proper vantage point to demonstrate the bow's power. He brought us to a room where one entire wall was made of glass. It offered a panoramic view of the capital—a truly magnificent sight. Right now, the streets were under the control of the undead, but it must have been an exceptional view under normal circumstances.
“Yoop.”
Henry kicked out the glass, notched an arrow, and took aim. His posture was flawless. Just seeing him hold the bow was enough to convey his immense skill.
“……”
His expression went cold as he fell silent. The arrowhead began to glow with a faint light. This was likely an effect of the dragon-material bow, functioning as a high-level magic weapon. It was infusing the arrow with power.
At the perfect moment, Henry loosed the string. The arrow flew, trailing a streak of light behind it. Its target was a distant barracks. The arrow accelerated across the sky and reached the building in an instant. It struck the stone tower, piercing straight through the masonry.
A small hole appeared in the tower, and the structure began to groan and sway. The shaking grew more violent until the tower finally collapsed. A rain of rubble came crashing down, crushing the rest of the barracks beneath it.
“Tch. Pathetic. My arms have gone soft from being out of practice.”
Henry lowered his bow, looking dissatisfied. Despite his self-criticism, it was an incredible display of skill. Causing a total collapse from such a small point of impact was something that couldn't be achieved by the bow's performance alone. It was the result of Henry’s own transcendent technique.
Truly, I had gained a monstrous ally. I had to be thankful for the luck that allowed me to bring him into the Demon King’s Army. This alone made the invasion of this small nation worth the effort.
At some point, Henry had produced a bottle of liquor. He must have swiped it from somewhere in the castle. He took a deep swig, exhaling with a satisfied sigh as he savored the taste.
“...Hmm.”
I stood beside him, crossing my arms in thought. A spark of curiosity—and perhaps a touch of competitiveness—began to flicker within me. I wanted to see exactly what I was capable of. The goal of crushing this nation was nearly complete; a little indulgence was surely permissible.
I held my hand out to Henry.
“Lend me an arrow.”
“Oh? Is the Boss gonna show me some sniping? I’d pay to see that.”
Henry tried to hand over the bow along with the arrow. I took only the arrow.
“This is enough.”
“Huh... I mean, if you say so, Boss, but...”
Henry looked bewildered. I was intending to loose an arrow without the aid of a bow. His skepticism was only natural.
Holding the single arrow, I stepped toward the window. I stood exactly where Henry had just stood. Looking past the collapsed tower toward the distance, I flooded my body with physical enhancement magic. I also infused the arrow itself with magic. I had to be careful; if I misjudged the output, the projectile would likely disintegrate.
Once the preparations were complete, I pulled back my arm, the arrow now stained a deep black by my magic. Then, I hurled it toward the horizon with every ounce of my strength.
The arrow broke the sound barrier instantly, vanishing from sight. A moment later, an explosion rocked the mountains that loomed far outside the capital. The peak was sheared off, and a massive section of the forest was obliterated, leaving the raw, gouged earth exposed. The devastation was total.
“A-Ah...?”
Henry stood frozen. Amber liquor dripped from his tilted bottle onto the floor. After a long silence, he seemed to reach a state of zen-like acceptance and shrugged.
“Hahaha... Well, that’s just embarrassing for me. You’re a mean one, Boss.”
“Good grief. Honestly, Demon King-sama, you have a real habit of doing things like that...”
Luciana grumbled, shooting me a sidelong glance. Her eyes were filled with a mix of mild accusation and sheer exasperation. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, I could only look away in silence.