I collapsed onto the ground once more. This time, I even came down with a fever.
I had pushed myself before my body fully recovered. The attending priest panicked, worried that something had gone wrong. I couldn't very well tell him honestly that I'd caught a fever from showering a woman with kisses, so I kept my mouth firmly shut.
...Fools can't be cured by medicine — that saying described my situation perfectly. Still, I considered it a bargain: all I'd paid for conquering Paimon was a mere fever. I even congratulated myself on getting off cheap.
"Now I know exactly what kind of person you are as a Demon Lord."
Saint Longwy was fed up. Those were her words upon coming to visit me in my sickbed.
"You and I could both have died because of that. This is outrageous."
"But in the end, we're all alive, aren't we?"
I flashed a grin and held up both my hands. Finding this utterly absurd, Saint Longwy raised her voice.
"A person's body exploded right in front of my eyes. Do you have any idea how shocked I was?"
"I'm glad I was able to give you such a rare experience."
"Goddess, please curse this devil...!"
Saint Longwy gnashed her teeth.
I hadn't told her in advance who the attacker would be. I didn't know how good Saint Longwy's acting would be. Being ambushed while knowing about it was far less convincing than being ambushed while completely in the dark. So I had kept it a secret.
"The original plan was for you to come to your senses within five days. But it's already been half a month now. Do you understand? Half a month."
"Hmm. My constitution turned out to be shabbier than I expected."
"That is not what I'm talking about!"
Saint Longwy exploded in anger.
I had no idea what she meant. If you have something to say, put it into words that others can understand. Even a goblin would just tilt its head if you screamed gorilla-like noises at it. To think this woman had graduated top of her class at the theology academy — I seriously suspected diploma fraud.
Either that, or go raise your Affinity to twenty first. I'll read your mental state for you. That way, it'd be easier for the gorilla and easier for me. A happy ending for everyone.
"...You're thinking something strange again, aren't you?"
"I don't know what you mean."
I played dumb. My shameless audacity was the strongest on the continent. I had no worries whatsoever.
The Saint let out a heavy sigh.
"I'm telling you that I was truly on the verge of death. Demon Lord Dantalion. The Kingdom of Bretagne and I have decided to cooperate with you, but... if your plans always carry such unstable elements like this one, we will have no choice but to reconsider our cooperation."
"I see. Unstable elements."
That was certainly a cause for concern.
The Queen of Bretagne and Saint Longwy were putting their lives on the line to cooperate with us. If it were discovered that our staged act had caused actual terror, both sides would be annihilated. It was natural for a political partner to feel uneasy if you couldn't even secure your own life.
It was a little disappointing.
"Saint Longwy. Do you know who you are speaking with?"
"Pardon?"
"I am Dantalion."
I gave a thin smile.
"I am the one who annihilated your army and delivered despair to your queen. I don't wish to brag, but that once-mighty knightly order of Bretagne was all turned into cold corpses beneath my boots. Was the Bretagnian order so weak that anyone could defeat them?"
"That's not true, but..."
"Bretagne's army was strong. Trust in me with that same conviction."
The Saint fell silent. Even if she wasn't convinced, she had no grounds to argue.
I cleared my throat. It was time to steer the conversation in a new direction.
"The reason I am not revealing the mastermind behind this incident is because you persuaded me to do so. At least, from an outsider's perspective, that is how it must appear. The problem lies with the other Saints, not you."
"...Is there some issue with the other Saints?"
"According to our script, you end up becoming excessively the 'Good Saint.'"
To a populace weary of war and plague, Saint Jacqueline Longwy was a paragon who had halted the recurrence of the endless racial conflicts. With each passing day, the voices praising her would only grow louder.
"The other Saints won't find that particularly amusing."
"You don't actually think the Saints would be jealous of me, do you?"
Saint Longwy let out a scoff.
"I wouldn't expect someone like you—an evil person—to understand, but Saints are selected through a rigorous screening process. One must be outstanding in character, devotion, and every other aspect to obtain and maintain the position of Saint. Jealousy? Don't be absurd."
"Oh, Saint. There's very little in this world that counts as an absurd concern."
I spoke with a playful tone.
"Having passed through such a rigorous screening and become the Saint of Athens, Jacqueline Longwy—just how remarkable a personage must you be to now be conspiring with the Demon Lord?"
"……I did it for Bretagne!"
"It's the same thing. The other Saints will each come up with their own plausible excuses. Just as people pick out clothes that suit them, humans are beings who change their excuses day by day."
I coughed. This one was a genuine cough.
"There's no need for the other Saints to go through all the trouble of dressing me with their own hands. Saint Longwy—once you gain continent-wide popularity, the prestige of the Athenian Temple will rise along with it. Do you think the priests of the other temples will sit idly by?"
"……."
"Even if the Saint wishes to remain silent, those around her won't let her. They will find some way to interfere."
In particular, several Saints had cooperated with Elizabeth. That was the problem.
With Elizabeth currently suspected of being the mastermind behind the terrorism, they wouldn't openly assist her—but the likelihood of them launching a covert offensive was more than high. It was certain. If it were Elizabeth, she would threaten the temples with something along the lines of "We're already in the same boat."
The Saint let out a sigh.
"Is there a good solution?"
"It's simple. Just make them all accessories to it."
I said, coughing softly.
"As you know, the Habsburg Empire has no state religion. The Saint was also executed during the war with the Crescent Alliance Army. We'll turn the lack of a state religion to our advantage—by granting official recognition to every temple."
"Pardon?"
The Saint blinked involuntarily. It was quite a cute gesture, and before I knew it, a fond smile had crept onto my face.
"A symbol of harmony between humanity and demonkind. That is what the Habsburg Empire must become from now on. It would be strange to have religious discrimination on a land that has no racial discrimination."
Saint Longwy furrowed her brow.
"But the temples have no reason to accept the Empire's proposal."
"If they have no reason, we'll create one. I'll grant every temple territory equivalent to a barony, free of charge. Do you think they'll still refuse?"
The Saint's expression turned serious.
"…I believe it's possible."
"Good. Please use this proposal to persuade the great temples of each nation."
Unfortunately, I had absolutely no connections in the religious world. Saint Longwy would have to do the legwork.
"Start with the great temples that are friendly toward us. Make sure to negotiate with the Hestia Great Temple and the Hephaestus Great Temple last—they'll be hesitant to cooperate with us. Then threaten them with isolation……"
At that moment, a violent cough burst out of me in rapid succession. A bone-dry, hacking cough. Damn it—looking like a patient like this was unpleasant. Not that I wasn't one, in reality.
Saint Longwy grimaced.
"Are you really feeling alright?"
"My body has mostly recovered. It's likely a psychological issue."
For some reason, the Demon Lord's body was highly susceptible to psychological factors. For instance, right after I had fallen into this world and taken an arrow to the thigh, the wound itself healed almost immediately, yet I had limped on my right foot for a good one or two months.
"In any case, this isn't bad news for Bretagne either. Our Empire will grant you the title of honorary duke."
"Hah. A title bestowed by a Demon Lord isn't exactly something I'd be happy to receive."
Saint Longwy refused outright. It was a mere honorary title, yet it was a duchy.
"Do not refuse gifts so hastily. Did I not say already? This is no bad news for the Kingdom of Bretagne."
The saint wore a puzzled expression.
I spoke with the gentle demeanor of a teacher patiently guiding a student who had just repeated a grade.
"If you accept an imperial title, Saint Longwy, you will no longer be merely Bretagne's saint. You will also be a noble of the Empire."
"And so?"
"The Kingdom of Bretagne cannot deploy its military under the treaty it has signed with us. However, Jacqueline Longwy, Duchess of the Empire, would be able to mobilize armies depending on the circumstances."
"...!"
The saint's eyes went wide.
"Y-You mean you would permit military action!"
"Depending on the circumstances."
I smiled.
"For instance, yes — in cases where it does not contradict the interests of the Habsburg Empire and simultaneously aligns with the interests of Bretagne, I could make an exception and allow it."
"..."
Saint Longwy bit her thumbnail.
The Kingdom of Bretagne was barred from trespassing on the Frank Empire's territory for the next fourteen years.
Yet aside from the Frank Empire, there was no land route through which Bretagne could advance onto the continent. In the last war, Bretagne's navy had been virtually annihilated. In other words, Bretagne was completely incapable of any military action for the next fourteen years.
If she accepted my proposal here, a new avenue for Bretagne to deploy its military would open up. If push came to shove, it would become possible to intervene on the continent by force. For the saint, this must have been a devilishly sweet offer.
However.
"So if we are to move our armies... we would need the permission of the Habsburg Empire."
"That is correct."
"The Empire's diplomacy depends on you, Dantalion."
Jacqueline Longwy's gaze was somber, yet it burned with fierce intensity.
"We would end up becoming your subordinates. Every time we move troops, we would have to inform you, make every effort to obtain your permission... and that is what it would ultimately come to, isn't it?"
I smiled and quietly asked back.
"So will you refuse?"
Jacqueline Longwy pressed her lips tightly together.
An uneasy silence lingered for a while.
The saint spoke, suppressing her indignation.
"It's always like this. You make your proposal look favorable to the other party, but in reality, it entangles us deeper and deeper with you until we can't extricate ourselves."
"I'm a coward, you see. I can hardly bring myself to trust others."
I shrugged my shoulders.
"When people are entangled with one another, betrayal becomes difficult for both sides. What do you think—doesn't trust develop naturally from that?"
"……The moment you call that trust, you are already finished as a human being."
I didn't bother denying it. I saw no need to.
The saint said she would consult Queen Henrietta and visit again, then took her leave.
Naturally, the answer that came back later was 'yes.' Henrietta was utterly consumed with the idea of expanding onto the continent. She was willing to accept our control if that was what it took.
Thus, a military card to be played in an emergency was placed in our hands.
We proceeded with the pre-planned acting, step by step.
Barbatos issued the military conscription order, a sense of tension that war might break out enveloped the continent, and in response the saint met me privately to make her case, whereupon I was moved by her appeal and decided to keep the identity of the perpetrators of the terrorism forever secret.
Longwy the Saint, along with every other saint, praised this as a 'great decision'.
Along with this, the Habsburg Empire declared 'equality for all great temples'. From the people's perspective, it seemed a truly and perfectly peaceful conclusion had been reached.
One month had passed since the terrorist attack.
I returned to my Demon Lord's Castle bearing the title of 'Pioneer Who Would Go as Far as Assassination for the Peace of the Continent'.
No one else but I, Dantalion, had become the symbol of peace.
—Winter was drawing to a close.