The Queen, who had been looking around with a faint air of tension,
"Hmm. Just you, huh?"
—finally curled her lips in a rather arrogant tone.
"For someone whose eyes are darting about so busily, your response is pretty calm."
"If you were a vampire noble, maybe. But someone like you?"
…Ah.
I'm being looked down on quite a lot here.
"That's not something I can just let pass. Are you saying a doppelgänger is beneath a succubus?"
"Of course. Even the bottom has a bottom. We may be a minor race, but at least we're above doppelgängers."
With a smirk, she gestured grandly toward the phantasmal constructs.
"In Eveldun, the strong always devour everything from the weak. Nothing's different now. Go! Kill him!"
The phantasmal constructs—her weapons born of her world.
The policemen's batons of the people loaded their pistols one after another at her command.
"How lamentable. That the Queen of Succubi of all people would say such things."
Ignoring them, I rubbed my eyes.
Moistening my thumb with spit, I dabbed it around my eyes, so it looked as if tears were falling.
"…What did you say?"
"Isn't it obvious? Such a worldview is nothing but wordplay made by the strong. And here you are, in a position where you should be shouting for the rights of the weak, spouting such nonsense. I really must wonder if you truly possess the qualities of a queen."
Twitch.
Her eyebrows twisted most unpleasantly.
"…You've got a tongue that can really anger people."
"The highest praise. Thank you. As you know, all a doppelgänger has are its teeth and its tongue."
"But you do realize, don't you? That big mouth of yours is powerless before overwhelming strength?"
As if to prove her point,
the "policemen" stepped forward.
"You terrorist bastard! Don't you dare lay a hand on the Chief!"
Bang—!
The pistols spat fire.
But what came out wasn't bullets—it was magic.
'If I had to classify it, it's the same as arrows of aura. Is this the limit of imagination?'
Like Batory, the Queen too must have thought of pistols as a kind of staff.
If so, the response was the same as with magic.
The direction of killing intent and the flow of mana—
as long as I could read those, avoiding magic was child's play.
Especially when it wasn't even a boss-level spell, just fodder.
"Ch-Chief! That bastard's dodging with his eyes closed!"
"That's impossible…!"
When I opened my eyes again,
I saw the Queen gnashing her lips with a furious expression directed at me.
"What's the matter? Are you upset things aren't going as you imagined? That a minor race like a doppelgänger isn't falling before you?"
"…Hmph. Your evasion skills are superb. But how long can you keep it up?"
She still hadn't given up.
She must've had confidence that in her own Unique Barrier, she would never lose.
"My subordinates will arrive soon. Let's see if you can show off that skill of yours against a crowd."
"Haha, whether it'll go as you expect, I'm not so sure."
Of course, it was a vain hope.
'What, do they think I'm crazy enough to block that dream team?'
The archmage Batory, specialized in wiping out crowds.
Rene, the Saintess chosen by the goddess—arguably the worst possible matchup for a demon.
And… what was it again? I forgot his name, but the holy knight who stood steadfastly to protect those two.
Against that well-balanced team, these phantasmal constructs the Queen summoned?
Please.
To me, they were nothing more than free experience points.
'Instead of worrying about them, I should focus on this side first.'
Maybe my provocation had gotten to her.
Her face flushed red, so I threw out another jab.
"The lingering taste of shame… Looks like even in Eveldun, you acted in a way befitting your words now. So you do know what it is to feel embarrassed?"
"Shut up! What would you know?!"
"Sigh, how pitiful for succubi. To be saddled with a queen like you in this generation."
I clicked my tongue for her to hear, and got a violently angry reaction.
"What are you doing?! Kill him already! Can't you deal with a single maggot like that?!"
Her creations always obeyed her commands.
Their attacks toward me grew fiercer.
But it wasn't without its benefits.
'Anger blinds the eyes.'
The more frantic they became trying to catch me, the looser the protective formation around the Queen grew.
This was far easier for me than if she'd just turtled up inside a shell.
"Very well. Shall I play along for a bit?"
I had to be honest with myself.
I was a warrior specialized in evasion and disrupting variables.
Right now, I was dodging easily enough, but as time went on, I'd be overwhelmed by sheer numbers.
Yes—by my own strength alone.
But if I borrowed another's power, that was a different story.
"How dare a succubus try to block my path? Huh?!"
I let out a crude, mocking laugh.
Because, after all, the strongest Revine I'd ever met always behaved with such arrogance.
"You…! That form…!"
"What's wrong? Why don't you laugh at me like before? Ah, but perhaps you're just a coward who tucks her tail before Revine?"
[Unique Magic, Mask of Myriad Transformations, activated.]
[Borrowing the appearance of 'Illegitimate Child Lecton.']
The Queen's face twisted into shock.
The straight horn pointing skyward, a symbol of her race's pride.
The bursting muscles in arms and legs.
Even the arrogant tone and demeanor.
Right before her eyes appeared the very Revine she feared the most.
'I need to finish this quickly.'
About one minute of limited time.
Within that, I had to wipe out all of her phantasmal constructs.
—Crack!
"Oh-ho, it works."
"M-Monster! Fall back while shooting!"
Indeed, the raw strength befitting one of the Three Great Demon Races!
I tore down the police station's walls and ripped out pillars whole.
"Succubus magic tricks like this, I'll smash through with brute strength!"
I reenacted the wide-area technique Lecton only used in times of crisis.
[Skill of 'Illegitimate Child Lecton,' 'Whirlwind Spin,' is being applied.]
"Uwaaaaagh!"
"Damn it! Call reinforcements—gaaah!"
The many policemen fought valiantly,
but what could mobs do against a boss-class foe?
With the Saintess's blessing behind my rampage, the constructs crumbled into powder without even leaving corpses.
"That leaves just you."
At last, the balloon of muscle deflated,
and the horns on my head vanished.
The horde of phantasmal constructs that had protected her and hunted me were wiped clean away.
"Well then. Care to resist further?"
"..."
Even if she had mana great enough to form a Unique Barrier like this,
the succubus body itself was weak to the extreme.
Even I—back in the unimpressive body of Hans Byron—could subdue her without difficulty.
And beyond that—
"Hans, we've cleared below."
"You actually held the boss in check. Guess you really earned that Vice Representative position. To think you could stand against a high demon."
"Saintess, demon. Just in case, please stay behind my shield…."
—our reinforcements arrived as well.
The Queen of Succubi's defeat was all but assured.
"…Unfair."
With her head drooping, trembling, such words spilled from the Queen.
"Brother, what are you doing? Hurry and knock her out. We need to get out of this disgusting dungeon."
"Now, now, hold on. Our Queen says she has something to say. It won't be a pretty sight, so step out for a bit. Take the holy knight with you."
"…Well, since it's you, I guess you know what you're doing."
After sending the group back, he stood before her.
"Well, how does it feel? To be crushed by a doppelgänger you so despised?"
Merciless mockery of the loser.
Unconsciously, the Queen clenched her fists.
Because she lost to a mere doppelgänger?
That too, but more than that—she couldn't accept the way she lost.
"…Unfair. It's unfair!"
"What's got you so upset? Didn't you say the strong taking everything from the weak is the law of the world?"
"You didn't win as a doppelgänger! You borrowed Revine's power, and had help from humans and a vampire!"
His infuriatingly tilted head.
"And what's the problem? I simply used my abilities and connections. Isn't that too part of the power you praised so highly?"
"…I, succubi—we have no such power…."
She was envious.
No companions, no people. Nothing left to her.
Unlike her,
even a fellow minor race like Frost Mane had built his own faction in a foreign land.
How could she not feel jealousy seeing that?
"This is unfair. From the very starting line, it's different."
"That's true. I agree."
Annoyingly enough, he nodded.
"Revine has overwhelming strength. Vampires, unparalleled mastery of magic. Gargoyles, skin impenetrable by any weapon. Truly, for weak races like us, what hope is there?"
"…I didn't ask for sympathy! You're no different!"
"What power do I have? How unfair. All I can do is wag this tongue of mine."
He stuck out his tongue and tapped it with a smirk.
"At best, that's the only trick I've got."
"What are you trying to say…? What do you want from me, leaving me alive like this…?"
If he wanted her dead, she'd already be dead.
If he wanted to escape this Unique Barrier, he'd have cut her down and left.
What did he want from her, enduring her resentment and having this pointless discussion?
The Queen couldn't tell.
"I told you from the start. Eveldun is wrong."
The origin of the talk they once had in prison—
the very topic blocked by fear of the Demon King—he spoke now.
"If the laws of the world are based only on strength, then yes, people like us are worthless. But life doesn't always work that way."
"..."
"Even I, with just this tongue, carved out influence in the Human Empire. If we used your beauty and abilities, finding you a position wouldn't be hard."
With a shrug, he extended his hand.
"Join us. As fellow minor races, let's form an anti–Demon King faction. Someday, we'll overthrow that wretched Eveldun!"
From between half-lidded eyes, his glistening, mad pupils gleamed.
Maybe it was only because he hadn't faced the Demon King yet that he could speak so boldly.
But unconsciously, she swallowed hard, overwhelmed.
"I'm useless. A worthless queen who sold my succubi to the Demon King. Even if I helped, what use would I be…?"
"Now, now, don't say such sad things. Just by being a queen, you're already valuable."
As if urging her to take his hand,
he pushed his arm out again with honeyed words.
"Doesn't it excite you? A world where succubi aren't scorned, but recognized for charms beyond battle?"
"…You talk nonsense at length."
To anyone who knew Eveldun, utter foolishness.
But strangely enough…
Even over her fear of the Demon King,
the hope for that bright future began to stir in her chest.
"…I lost. In battle, and in debate. I'll cooperate. What must I do?"
The victor takes everything from the loser.
Just this once, she borrowed the logic of the Eveldun Empire,
and took his outstretched hand.
As the dungeon collapsed, they returned once more to the prison.
[Dungeon, 'Dream Labyrinth,' cleared.]
[Objective exceeded.]
[Rewards will be distributed.]
Compared to the original plan of winning the Queen over, the journey had been harsh.
But as if to repay their suffering, the status window glittered.
The problem was… there was no time to check it.
"Everyone, freeze!"
"Is the Saintess unharmed?"
"Demons, how dare you here! You student, too—come here! We'll protect you!"
The prison was packed full of holy knights.
'…Now how do I smuggle the Queen out of here?'
Cold sweat ran down my back at the new crisis.
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