I was... No, I am the Demon King.
I am Demon King Galgard.
I am the strongest man in the Demon Kingdom, the one who holds its highest station.
Heh heh heh.
Though I suppose I’m still no match for my wife or my daughter.
Now then, regarding the organization of this parade. I had three primary objectives.
The first was to serve as a decoy to flush out those acting suspiciously in the villages and cities where Teleportation Gates had been installed. We intended to capture the malicious elements before they could cause real harm. It would have been pointless to let them slip away into Shashato City or the Royal Capital, so the plan was to use the parade as bait and strike with a surprise offensive. The parade was also a convenient excuse to evacuate those we couldn't afford to see caught in the crossfire.
The second objective was to unify the will of the current Demon Kingdom nobility. As the leader of this nation, I have no intention of invading the human lands any further. Maintaining the status quo is more than enough. I have spent the last several years acting with that philosophy in mind.
However, a significant number of nobles are dissatisfied with this approach. They demand we annihilate the Human Kingdoms. While opinions in the Royal Capital are split roughly down the middle, the calls for war grow louder the further one travels from the seat of power. I wanted to find a way to rein them in and consolidate our stance toward preservation.
Of course, I wasn't so naive as to think a single parade would solve everything. But I did want to tip the scales of opinion in the capital toward the status quo. To do that, I had to display my might. Fortunately, the position of Demon King allows for a certain degree of barbaric logic. "Follow my lead and I shall promise you prosperity." I judged that a parade flaunting our martial prowess was the most effective way to demonstrate that visually.
The third objective was to address the Human Kingdoms. Even if we have no desire to fight, the result is the same if the other side is determined to wage war. We would be forced to fight to defend ourselves, and that is a fruitless waste. Thus, I wanted to put our military strength on full display, making them realize that starting a conflict would result in nothing but loss.
Furthermore, conflict often stems from a lack of mutual understanding. If there is understanding, nations do not resort to war so easily. To be blunt, the Demon Kingdom’s diplomatic history with the Human Kingdoms has been abysmal. This isn't the fault of Beezel, our Minister of Foreign Affairs; I doubt anyone else could have achieved more than he has. After all, the human nations harbor an incomprehensible level of hostility toward us simply because we are the Demon Kingdom.
However, the winds have begun to shift over the last few years. Several envoys from human lands have arrived seeking diplomatic ties. This is a welcome development. I wanted to show these people the true state of the modern Demon Kingdom and teach them that they have no reason to fear us.
Those were the three objectives for the parade.
However, I agonized over whether to include the Village of the Great Tree in an event with such political weight. My personal belief was that it was best to leave the village in peace. It would be one thing if they had approached us, but it felt wrong for us to drag them into our affairs.
Yet, Tiselle insisted they be included. She had two reasons of her own.
First, she wanted to normalize the presence of Inferno Wolves and Demon Spiders among the citizens of the Demon Kingdom. To ensure the public wouldn't be terrified, I had previously asked the Village Head to keep his wolves and spiders within the Forest of Death. Because of that agreement, they couldn't be used as a defensive force anywhere else. Tiselle argued that, considering the Village Head’s future travels, it was a problem if his protectors couldn't accompany him to his destinations.
Personally, I think we have more than enough military power to protect him without them, but I suppose she was thinking of her father’s safety with a daughter’s devotion. It was a reason I could respect.
Tiselle’s second reason concerned the Garlet Kingdom. They had been our enemies for a long time, but recently they shifted to a more friendly stance. I had hoped to use them as a mediator for a truce or peace treaty with the other human nations, but then the Garlet Kingdom went and split apart.
The cause of the split was a disagreement over whether to surrender and request annexation into the Demon Kingdom, so I can understand the sentiment. However, I really wish they would have unified their domestic opinion before approaching us about it. To be honest, it’s a nuisance.
If we accepted the annexation, the Demon Kingdom would gain an exclave. We couldn't leave such a territory undefended, meaning the front lines we have to maintain would only increase. We don't need such a burden, so I have no desire to accept. On the other hand, if I refuse the hand of someone who is essentially trying to surrender, it could be misinterpreted as us having "no intention to forgive" or "intending to keep attacking." Other nations would see it and assume surrendering to the Demon Kingdom is a death sentence, which would only make the wars more brutal.
I couldn't say no, but I didn't want to say yes. Therefore, I simply didn't answer. You might wonder if that’s acceptable, but that is politics. We can't leave them hanging forever, but it buys us time to make our next move.
My ideal scenario would be for the Garlet Kingdom to pull itself back together and occupy a subordinate position to the Demon Kingdom rather than being annexed. Then we could provide them with aid and have them handle the other human nations on our behalf. I know that’s a convenient fantasy for us, but if you don't pursue the ideal, you’ll never get results. They gave me an impossible choice, so I figure I’m entitled to a little wishful thinking. I’m well aware things won't go perfectly, though.
Regardless, I bought time by staying silent. To make that work, I had to give them a glimmer of hope so they wouldn't equate our silence with hostility. That hope took the form of the Angel Race participating in our parade. If the Angels, who serve as the Advisors of the Garlet Kingdom, marched with us, the people of Garlet would think, "Is annexation still on the table? Can we hope for a deal?"
Since that was the goal, I could have just asked the Angels directly. But doing so would have made me beholden to them. That wasn't the real problem, though—the real problem was the risk of ignoring the Village Head. If I’m going to owe a debt, I’d much rather owe it to him than to the Angel Race. Tiselle agreed, which is why she wanted the Village of the Great Tree involved.
By the way, Tiselle handled the negotiations with the Angel Race Leader herself, so she ensured everything was coordinated to prevent a scenario where the Village Head showed up without the Angels.
With my three objectives and Tiselle’s two, we officially decided to hold the parade and invite the Village of the Great Tree. The turnaround time from the decision to the execution was so short that I caused quite a bit of trouble for the civil officials. I’ll admit, I underestimated the logistics. I figured since we do military marches all the time and the village holds festivals every year, it would be easy. I’ve since learned that holding a parade in a major city is a monumental task.
As for the parade itself...
On the first day, we covered Village Five and Shashato City. In Shashato, we had to deal with Dos-dono’s "manners checks" and the chaos of those mysterious flying skeletons, but we pushed through. It was unavoidable that we had to adjust the schedule for the second day.
On the third day, we made the dash from Shashato City to the Royal Capital. The original goal for this leg was to capture suspicious figures along the route, but as it turned out, we had already achieved that during the rehearsal phase.
When we ran a rehearsal featuring the Post-Age of Gods Dragon Race trio—Ojes, Hyfryguta, and Kihatroy—along with ten Inferno Wolves, the insurgents mistakenly thought a full-scale invasion was underway and completely gave themselves away. I had thought they were quite incompetent for people plotting so close to the capital, but it turns out they were just small-fry who had been lurking in the city.
Apparently, those people had been flushed out during the Royal Capital cleaning operation—a thorough sweep we conducted to ensure the safety of Alfred and the others while they attend the Academy. At the time, I wasn't sure if that operation had been effective since attackers and assassins kept popping up afterward, but it seems it did some good after all.
In any case, one of my primary objectives has been fulfilled. No, it has been more than fulfilled. At this point, I think I can safely declare the parade a success. The fact that the goal was achieved before the actual parade even started is a minor detail.
Yes, the parade is a success!
On the final day of the parade, as I gazed out at the Royal Capital—which had somehow transformed into a battlefield—that was the thought that crossed my mind.
I knew it.
I was simply escaping from reality.