Black Iron Magician

Late at night on a certain day, the imperial capital of the Elderado Great Empire on the continent of Dai was quiet. It was late at night when everyone was asleep. Normally, there would be nothing strange about it. However, for those who know this country well, this was an unusual situation. Elderado has no human rights, and even in normal times, it is usually filled with the voices of slaves who are forced to do hard labor and soldiers who train beyond their limits. Even if it is late at night, the bustling atmosphere never ceases in Elderado.

The harsh environment is not limited to commoners and soldiers. The heads of the various divisions in Elderado have selected the strongest personnel to form the 『Great Eight Generals』, a unit of battle experts. They are rumored to be the strongest group in Elderado, established to fight against the Great Eight Demons. They have a position close to the top, and they were also scheduled to hold an urgent meeting even today. Repeated invasions and defeats―― in order to break through this situation, they were devising measures and they spared no time for sleep.

「U-Ugh, hmm…?」

Ernest, one of the Great Eight Generals and known as the 『Ice General』, woke up in a room in the castle. He wasn’t even sure if he was asleep, but anyway, he regained consciousness.

(I was asleep at such an important time? Me, in the middle of a meeting? No matter how tired I was from the continuous battle, excessive work is an everyday occurrence. As someone who stands at the top, this is not something――)

As he gathered his thought, his vision gradually became clearer. Just as he was about to open his mouth to apologize to his colleagues, who were blurred in his view, he saw an unbelievable sight.

「W-What the hell is going on!?」

Ernest was sitting at the round table for the conference. The room, as he remembered it, was a conference room exclusively for the Great Eight Generals. At the round table, the other generals were sitting on chairs and it was as if they were still arguing with each other. But there was something wrong. The colleagues around him were indeed in such a position, but they were not moving at all. Some had their eyes wide open and some were still standing up, but they didn’t move at all. It was as if the time had stopped completely in the middle of the meeting, except for himself.

「Zool, Acerola! Are you unconscious!? Hey, answer me! …… Kuh, is this an attack from the outside? The magic power that I could feel slightly is from the water system. I think I’m the only one who can break this situation since I have the 『Water Resistance』 skill. However, I don’t know any water magic that can cause such a phenom――」

「――Oh, someone is awake, huh? It’s a wide-area magic that was released all over the capital, but it seems that there is someone who can resist it. But now it’s just a hindrance. Just sleep.」

「Wha…?」

Someone’s hand was suddenly placed on his head. In the next moment, Ernest, who couldn’t detect it at all, froze like his colleagues without the time to change his posture and facial expression. No, maybe he had a slightly stupid look. Anyway, his face said that he didn’t understand what happened at all.

「Hee, so they are the rumored Great Eight Generals. I guess they have better personnel than in the past, huh?」

The door of the conference room was opened, and a man in a black robe entered the room. His face couldn’t be seen since it was covered with a hood.

「I’m happy about that. But recently, they don’t grow as much as expected. At best, they are about level 7.」

After patting the shoulder of unconscious Ernest three times, the mysterious person walked in front of the black-robed man. Needless to say, the identity of the mysterious person is the 『Old Skull』 Vakala Zwinziga, the oldest member of the Great Eight Demons, and the black-robed man is Deris disguised as Lilyvia’s subordinate, Black.

「There was a little problem, but now all the creatures inside the capital, except for a few, have stopped completely. Let’s go to that place.」

「Is it necessary to do it exaggeratedly? We can go there without being seen even if we don’t do something like this, right?」

「The impact is important. They will feel the danger if I do it this way, right? Besides, covert action is not suitable for me. I mean, I’m still a Great Demon King even if I’m like this, you know?」

「Yeah, sure. Then, let’s go to the poor emperor.」

Deris and Vakala walked in a world where all creatures, such as civil servants, soldiers, maids, researchers, and experimental monsters, have stopped. The place is the inner palace section which is strictly guarded and off-limits even for those of high rank. It is the most sacred place in the castle, the place to make the heir to the Elderado Empire. However, such circumstances are of no concern to the two. They simply passed by the strong guards at the entrance and at the gateway, and they proceeded to the inner part as if they were the only ones there.

「We’ve arrived. The emperor is behind these heavy doors. Well, with his companions. I’ve excluded this room from the magic, so they are probably doing something inside. Hohoho!」

「Shut up, you pervert old man. Sigh, they should think carefully about the high-performance soundproofing. The whole capital is like this, but they don’t seem to notice at all.」

「Don’t be unreasonable. No one has been killed, and there’s no uproar. He’s so absorbed in doing his job as a ruler, so it’s not surprising that he doesn’t notice it. Well then, let’s go. Ah, I’m going as the Demon King Vakala, so keep that in mind.」

「Yeah, sure. I’m going as Black, so you should keep that in mind too. Then, let’s go――」

――――BAAAAM!

The two iron doors guarding the innermost part of the inner palace were blown open by the impact from outside, crashing into the wall at the back of the room with great force. Because the doors were high enough to look up at, the roaring sound and aftermath caused by the impact were tremendous.

「Kyaaaaaah!?」

「Noooo!」

「W-What!? What happened!?」

「What the hell is going on!?」

Most of the voices coming from the room were women’s screams. However, there was a man’s voice among them. It seems that Vakala wasn’t lying when he said that he didn’t use his magic on this room only.

「You sure are passionate even at this hour, Emperor of Elderado.」

「Y-You bastard… Vakala…!」

When the two stepped inside, they could see a king-size bed in front of them. On the bed, a man in his thirties but with a magnificent appearance, and three beautiful women were getting up naked. The wall behind them was pierced by the iron doors that had just been blown off.

「Black, this is what is commonly known as a harem. You also have the qualities, so why don’t you try to aim for it? Maria’s daughter and the young girls around you are very fond of you, right?」

A vulgar topic suddenly came to Deris. ‘You changed your way of talking, but you’re still a pervert old man in the end,’ Deris retorted in his mind. However, he can’t ignore it since he’s acting as Black right now.

「What kind of joke is that? That would only bring unnecessary trouble. It will only bring me to ruin.」

「Hmph, that answer is very like you, Black. And it seems that it will actually destroy you.」

Deris’s face couldn’t be seen because of the hood, but he wasn’t at ease. If there was such a future, it would certainly be the worst possible future. He would bear more stress than Chinatsu and meet his end.

「Well, Emperor of Elderado, I have something to say to you today. I have come all the way here to tell you this: Carmine, the corpse country, declares war on your country, the Elderado Empire. Specifically, we are going to take your head. Well, that’s it. Just give your all to defend this imperial capital.」