Later that night, the spies brought word of a new development.
Civil war had apparently broken out in the Republic.
Discord between the rival factions within the government had finally reached its breaking point. The "Hardliners," who advocated for an offensive against the Demon King, were now in open conflict with the "Submission Faction," who sought to minimize further damage.
The stage of the battle had expanded from the boardroom to the streets of the capital, and the fighting was only growing more intense.
If it had ended there, I might have let it be. Conflict born of differing opinions was hardly a rare occurrence.
The problem, however, was that the demons who had entered the country were participating in the fight.
They were reportedly fighting as allies of the Hardliners.
As a result, the chaos had deepened, and there was no sign of a resolution. The Republic’s capital was now teetering on the edge of total collapse.
Information was a jumble of conflicting reports from the various skirmishes, making it impossible to get an accurate reading of the situation. Some of my spies had even been injured after being caught in the crossfire.
I established a Telepathy link and ordered them to withdraw from the capital immediately.
Intelligence was important, but the lives of my spies were more so. In a city that chaotic, reliable information was nearly impossible to come by anyway. There was little reason to risk their safety by staying.
Losing elite personnel would be the far greater disaster. For now, an overview of the situation would suffice.
My plan was to maintain a policy of non-interference regarding the Republic’s civil war. I didn't want to get dragged into an unpredictable mess by intervening carelessly.
To be honest, I wanted to stop the fighting. However, rushing in without a clear picture of the situation was never a wise move. Overconfidence could easily lead to even greater disaster.
This was a moment to swallow my impatience and remain a bystander.
(Honestly...)
I set the report aside and stared up at the ceiling, unable to hide my mental fatigue.
It felt like I was constantly on the defensive. While my overarching policy made some of this unavoidable, a certain feeling of unease lingered.
None of these events were accidents.
The demons had sided with the Republic's Hardliners. For them to provide assistance at such a critical juncture suggested they had traveled to the Republic with full knowledge of the coming war. In fact, it was more likely they had responded to a specific summons.
(Who laid the groundwork for this?)
The question was unavoidable.
Given the scale of the civil war, someone must have been in contact with the remnants of the previous Demon King's army for a long time. They had been interacting with the demons in the former territories for years. At a conservative estimate, this was a scheme that had been in motion for several years.
The Hardliners were now using that accumulated military power to seize the advantage.
When I looked at the situation as a whole, it was incredibly methodical.
Cunning, thorough, and precise.
I had to admit it: the situation was unfolding exactly as someone had intended.
I was still waiting for the analysis results, but I suspected this person was also involved in the recent magical beast outbreaks. I had a premonition that the Republic was tied to those incidents as well.
And I doubted I was overthinking it.
(This isn't just the Will of the World. I can feel a distinct, personal malice behind this.)
The mastermind’s identity remained a mystery, but they were undoubtedly moving in the shadows even now. While I couldn't yet see their ultimate goal, it was clear that it ran contrary to my own.
I had to find a way to uncover who they were and where they were hiding.
I glanced over at Luciana. She was silent, lost in thought.
She wore an unusually grim expression, biting her nails as she stared sharply into the void. It was a side of her I had never seen before—a departure from her usual composure that she never showed, no matter the circumstances.
In the silence, Luciana noticed my gaze and snapped back to reality.
She forced her usual seductive smile and tilted her head playfully, trying to hide her lapse. She likely hadn't wanted me to see her like that.
Ignoring her attempt to brush it off, I asked, "You have an idea who's behind this, don't you?"
I was referring to the civil war. We were both thinking the same thing.
Luciana placed a finger to her lips. "I do remember someone who favored this kind of insidious, bothersome methodology."
"Hmm..."
I understood what she was implying.
The person Luciana was thinking of was someone I knew well. The recent events were certainly reminiscent of his style. He had used almost identical tactics in the past.
"That man?" I asked.
"That man," Luciana replied bitterly.
My suspicion had been correct.
As one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the previous Demon King's army, Luciana’s specialty was sabotage and intelligence. She would erode a nation from within, using Succubus’s subordinates to seduce and corrupt the leadership. She manipulated events so that by the time the enemy realized what was happening, it was already too late.
The man we were thinking of was also a master of clandestine maneuvering, but the similarity ended there. The key difference was that his endgame was far more ruthless.
The man had been a gifted Instigator. He had used that talent to devastating effect, toppling numerous nations through staged civil wars and rebellions.
However, these current events shouldn't have been his doing.
Because he was already dead.
I was the one who had killed him, over ten years ago.
While the circumstances brought him to mind, it was an impossibility.
That left one possibility: a successor was pulling the strings from the shadows. I didn't believe a common human could have managed this level of preparation.
If the mastermind was someone connected to that man, it would explain why the demons were involved.
If my theory was correct, I was the only one who could resolve this. It wasn't just my responsibility as the Demon King. I had to settle the unfinished business from my days as a Sage.
Just then, a Telepathy message arrived from Grom. I focused my attention on it.
『M-Maou-sama! Do you hear me?!』
"I hear you. What’s happened?"
『A magical beast outbreak has occurred in the Slave Autonomous District! Suddenly, some of the slaves have... they've transformed into magical beasts!』
"...What?"
I couldn't help but ask for clarification. The report was that hard to believe.
『They are appearing simultaneously in multiple locations! We are spread too thin! It pains me to trouble you, Maou-sama, but please... we need your strength!』
"Understood. I'm coming at once."
I cut the connection there.
Grom had made the right call. It would have been far worse if he had let the situation spiral out of control because he was too hesitant to ask for help. Given his immediate report, the situation must be dire.
Seeing me stand, Luciana spoke up. "What's wrong?"
I gave her a brief explanation. Luciana let out a heavy sigh.
"Well, that's certainly an escalation..."
"Indeed."
Civil war in the south. Rampaging beasts in the north.
The emergencies were piling up.
Nevertheless, I had to deal with them. I forced myself to stay calm and think. If I let my frustration get the better of me, I would be playing right into the mastermind's hands.
With my resolve steeled, I turned to Luciana.
"Focus on gathering and organizing intelligence. Proceed under the assumption that we are dealing with a successor to that man."
"I hear you. Understood. Be careful, Maou-sama."
"I will."
I nodded to her and teleported to the Slave Autonomous District, where my army was waiting.