I teleported into a narrow, dark room.
This was the Royal Capital’s Underground Facility. It served as the Spy Headquarters, a place for activities that could never be brought into the light of day.
The only source of illumination was a few flickering candles. For an undead like myself, however, the darkness was no obstacle. When I narrowed my eyes, the details of the room came into sharp focus.
Roughly twenty humans sat in a row, bound to chairs. Each was blindfolded with a thick cloth. The metal rings encircling their limbs and necks were enchanted with Magic Sealing. By destabilizing the magic power within their bodies, these shackles induced a state of chronic malaise, effectively preventing any voluntary use of magic. It was a necessary precaution to ensure they couldn't resort to any unexpected arts.
The people lined up here were Foreign Intelligence Agents who had infiltrated the Royal Capital. Disguised as refugees, they had slipped into our city to plunder the Demon King’s Domain of its secrets and technology.
This was hardly a rare occurrence. Infiltrations by foreign agents had been happening for some time; it was only recently that their numbers had surged enough to become conspicuous.
Their objective wasn't a Demon King Subjugation. Rather, they sought to bolster their own nations' prosperity using the information and technology they stole from us. While they were likely also searching for my weaknesses, that was probably a secondary goal. Tempted by the wealth and advancement of a domain that boasted the continent’s greatest military force, they had come to snatch away whatever they could.
To achieve this, the agents had skillfully masked their identities to blend in with the common folk. While weeding them out from the masses of harmless civilians was a daunting task, it was well within the capabilities of the Demon King’s Army Spies led by Luciana. To professionals like them, it was simply part of the job.
The individuals gathered here were those who had been exposed and detained. It appeared even more agents were being held in the adjacent chambers. With the numbers growing this large, it was likely beginning to strain the spies' operations. I realized it might soon be time to consider a significant expansion of their ranks and the establishment of a formal Training Institution.
“You’re already here. As expected of you, Demon King-sama.”
A cheerful voice called out from the side.
Leaning against the wall at the edge of the room was Luciana. Beside her stood a wooden shelf stocked with tools for interrogation and torture. They were varied and numerous, meticulously prepared to inflict every conceivable form of agony.
As the person in charge, Luciana didn’t technically need to handle such tasks herself. Normally, she could have simply issued orders, yet she chose to participate proactively. She made a point of breaking her subjects’ bodies to their absolute limits before using her Charm to dominate their souls to the very core. In terms of sheer efficacy, her methods were exactly what one would expect from a member of the Former Four Heavenly Kings.
I looked at Luciana as she idly toyed with a piece of torture equipment and asked, “What is the nature of your business?”
“Well, I’m in a bit of a bind, you see…”
Luciana’s expression softened into a frown. She didn't seem to be joking; it appeared she truly required my assistance. She began to explain the situation.
According to her, the group gathered in this room was behaving strangely compared to the other captured agents. They had been mumbling incoherently without pause, and even her Charm wasn't taking hold as it should. Suspecting they were under the influence of some form of mental manipulation or a special art, she had decided to summon me.
“I had a bad feeling about it, so I wanted you to check them yourself, Demon King-sama. It wouldn't do if I accidentally triggered something nasty by poking around blindly, right?”
“A wise decision,” I replied with a nod.
Luciana’s judgment was sound. To defeat the Demon King and seize his riches, the leadership of human nations would resort to any means necessary. They wouldn't hesitate to employ even the most inhumane forbidden arts. In such a climate, there was no telling what kind of schemes were being woven.
As long as they can hide behind a righteous cause and claim the mantle of justice, humans are capable of sinking to any depth of depravity. This was a lesson I had learned many times over in my role as the Demon King. Even the slightest anomaly demanded the utmost caution.