And so, time passed. Day by day, I worked on laying the groundwork for the Magical War Games. Helping with the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, showing up at political events at the Demon King’s request, hunting tough monsters, discussing craftsmanship with the dwarves, plotting more evil schemes, and assisting the imperial knights in practicing for their sporting events. Despite all the problems recently, things were going pretty well in this much-needed lull.
Of course, that didn’t mean the problems were completely gone. After all, we were in the middle of trying something new, and thanks to a bunch of factors, the Magical War Games had been moved up from our original schedule. That meant reworking all the plans we’d made, although postponing it would have been a different beast altogether. The other day, I’d overheard a conversation between the Demon King and the Dwarf King Dodah.
“Blast ye, mon, we already sped up construction! Dinnae tell me ye want us tae work faster!”
“But you can, can’t you, Dodah? Please? We’ll help too. I wouldn’t ask you if it weren’t absolutely necessary. I’m not opposed to begging either.”
“Och, ye wily wee bastard... In that case, we’ll stop work on a few o’ the less important buildings ’n’ focus on the main one instead. Should be able tae manage. Somehow...”
“Right, about that. Forgive me, Dodah, but we need you to make everything you’ve already designed upon our request. It’s all vital, you see.”
“Are ye tryna work us tae death?!”
I remembered that exchange between the two of them very well. Nobody could beat the Demon King in a battle of words, and that terrifying truth had played out when everything had gone according to his plan. It meant Dodah and everyone working with him had had to make adjustments for materials and labor on a scale several times bigger than originally planned, which had probably more than doubled the Dwarf King’s burden. With how much busier they’d gotten, I helped out with the heavy lifting on construction whenever I could.
The folks on guard duty were really flustered, saying things like “Your Majesty, you shouldn’t be doing this sort of work” or whatever. But we didn’t have time to waste, so I just calmed them down with an “All hands on deck” and went ahead with it anyway. Not gonna lie, it was less stressful than doing the emperor’s work. You can take that to the bank.
Thanks to the Dwarf King going out of his way to make it happen, construction around the stadium was progressing pretty well. As long as we ignored the minor stuff, the stadium itself was now ready to go. Dude was a certified boss.
The name of the stadium had also been publicly announced—Atvoini Dominurs. Dodah had named it. Apparently, in ancient Dwarvish, it meant “a hand to the world.”
You could say that this construction project once again demonstrated the dwarven race’s strength in manufacturing to the rest of the world. It’d be great if they kept at it, starting something like a Dwarven Construction Firm and expanding into other countries. It even fit perfectly with what the rulers sought, that being a society where a multitude of races could coexist.
As for the Demon King, the way he worked his people so hard made him seem like an unscrupulous slave driver. But that was just his way of keeping himself busy. Managing a single country was hard enough already, except he also managed most of the Reauxgard Empire, and on top of that was responsible for making sure all the races got at least something out of what they wanted. Though Elf Queen Naforazey and King Reyd of Alisia were helping him out, there was no doubt that the workload Fynar himself handled was incomparable to that of the other monarchs. Not to mention how effortless he made it all seem. He never showed any signs of fatigue, just that cool, collected expression. Genuinely impressed the hell outta me. The man was completely in his element, and clearly enjoying it too.
Despite all that stuff going on in the world outside, the most important thing to me these days was probably Lefi’s and Lew’s growing bellies. You could tell at a glance now that they were pregnant, that new life was growing within them. The lives of our children. They’d both be giving birth around the same time, probably after the Magical War Games.
But to be honest, I was already getting a little nervous. To be even more honest, I didn’t care about the Games or anything else anymore. Okay, maybe that was too extreme. More like I’d gotten really good at separating and prioritizing the different parts of my life. And right now, everything else was pretty far down on the list. Oh yeah, Mrs. Rir had a bun in the oven too. So, unable to contain my excitement, I made full use of the DP Catalog and bought lots and lots of stuff for the kids.
“Okay, this should be enough!”
“Hmm... Yuki.”
“Yes, Lefi, my dear wife? Check this out. If there’s anything else you need or want, you just let me know!”
“You are being much too rash,” she said with a wry smile. “Though I understand your desire to be prepared, you can purchase these straightaway, so I think it is fine to wait until after the babe is born. I will not say this is a nuisance. However...where, precisely, will you put it all?”
“Don’t you worry about that, ’cause I’ll just shove everything into Inventory!”
“Perhaps you should change your habit of doing exactly that. I wager the rubbish is piling up again.”
“It’s not trash! I only put things that are important to me in there!”
But the truth was, there was a bunch of stuff in there that I’d only ever use once... Still, it definitely wasn’t trash. Someday, I was sure I’d think, Ah, I’m glad I had this! again! Or...I know it was probably too little too late to say this, but maybe I was just a hoarder... Thanks to my ridiculously massive Inventory, I had a collection of garbage—I mean, stuff. All kinds of stuff.
If it were me alone, the dungeon would probably end up a hot mess, but Leila and Nell were good at cleaning. Plus, with the girl gang—upgraded from the little-girl gang—in residence, even I felt the need to tidy up as much as possible. Wouldn’t wanna set a bad example for them, y’know?
“All right, then let us organize your Inventory again sometime soon. I shall burn everything, one by one.”
“The hell you will.”
Merciless wench. She always went easy on Iluna and the others, saying things like, “Well, it is what it is. Though let us be sure to tidy up next time, shall we?” But when it came to me, she was absolutely ruthless. Ready to burn my shit at the drop of a hat, her flames not even leaving a speck of ash behind. I’ll never forget how you burned all my prototypes... But now that I thought about it, she’d never burned anything I really liked.
Exasperated, Lefi inspected all the toys I’d bought, then spoke.
“By the by, that... What was it called again? The Magical War Games? How is that faring?”
“We’re almost there. Sorted out most of the problems, and we’re on track for opening day. I’m sure it’ll all work out juuust fine. You guys should come watch too. I even abused my power as the emperor and had a VIP box made just for us!”
“For all your complaints about the role, you are quick to take advantage of it when it suits you, eh?”
“I mean, what’s the point of working hard if I can’t reward myself? Not like I’m a patriot either.”
I hated working for my own ideals, so why would I work for free for a country when patriotism wasn’t even a principle I believed in? Maybe it really is for the best that I give up being emperor. Speaking of, discussions on that front were progressing smoothly. And it looked like I’d also get that Knight Order Zero I’d thought up.
“Such a terrible ruler.”
“Damn straight! Because I’m a demon lord, and I’m only faithful to my own desires!”
I cackled, then carefully picked Lefi up and placed her on my lap. She leaned into me, all relaxed and stuff.
“So. The Magical War Games will take place, after which we will likely give birth, and after that, we shall send Iluna and the young ones to school. Do I have the right of it?”
“You sure do. I’m just glad we managed to convince En.”
“Gah ha! She has her pride. Truly a blade that does not bend or break.”
“Yeaaah. The way she lives her life is so cool. Being with En always makes me wanna stand undaunted, with my head held high.”
“Your posture is excellent, though.”
“Ohhh, you got jokes, do ya?”
“I do indeed. Go on, laugh. Now.”
“I see you’ve found a new way to pressure me, damn.”
Why does she look so smug about such a lame joke?
“You are my husband, are you not? You should be considerate of your pregnant wife’s mental health and laugh at even the smallest of jests to keep her in a good mood.”
“Bwa ha ha ha ha! You’re sooo funny, Mrs. Lefi! Oh god, I’m dying laughing! Ha ha ha!”
“Very good.”
“Wait, really? Whatever you say, my lady.”
Hey, if that was good enough for her, I could manage just fine.
Back to the topic of school. As we’d expected, En was reluctant about being away from me for long periods of time, but I’d gotten her to agree on the condition that I’d call her if anything dangerous happened. It definitely hadn’t been easy to convince her, but it’d been a big relief when she’d ultimately given in.
As far as actually enrolling them went, according to Leila, the best time would be after Lefi and Lew gave birth. Not long ago, I’d gone to the ovine village by myself and reunited with Madam Eldgalia, Leila’s mentor and basically her second mother. There, I’d filled out all the necessary paperwork.
Dang... The girls are gonna start school. I felt like my heart would explode from all the feels. I wasn’t arrogant enough to say I’d raised them, but it wasn’t wrong to say we’d all worked together to get to this point. We’d grown together as a family. And we’d keep at it into the future.
“What is it, Yuki?”
“Well...just thinking about the girls and how they used to be so little, and now they’re gonna start school... It’s enough to make a grown man cry.”
“Gah ha! You have said the same thing before.”
“I’ll probably say it again, since I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“It is the same for me.”
Lefi’s voice was soothing to my ears. Her warm weight comforted me, and her sweet scent enveloped me. She was a little heavier than before, thanks to our child nestled inside her.
“Lefi.”
“Hmm?”
“Ain’t happiness grand?”
She smiled a little, brushed her lips on my cheek, then snuggled into me again.