Dungeon Defense (WN)

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Dantalian and Laura were happy all throughout the summer and autumn.

From an outside perspective, they appeared as if they argued frequently about insignificant things like sleeping several times a day, however, they were actually having the best time of their lives. They waded through political strife and war until finally acquiring the peace they had longed for all this time.

However, this peace was the nucleus of a storm.

Rank 71 Dantalian. This rookie Demon Lord, who only made an appearance for the first time at last year’s Walpurgis Night, managed to make a meteoric rise and become a prominent figure in the Demon Lord army within a single year.

Of course, Demon Lords whose powers far exceeded their ranks would occasionally appear. Demon Lord Paimon, who was currently falling, may only be Rank 9, but her influence made her comparable to the top 5 Demon Lords.

But the Rank 71……since Rank 72 Andromalius was killed, that made this the lowest rank. There were extremely few precedents of a Demon Lord who was as pathetic as this being able to extend their influence out throughout the entire Crescent Alliance. A rising star had appeared for the first time in a genuinely long time.

Demon society would always keep an eye on the movements of the Demon Lord armies. Dantalian managed to become quite the hot topic.

But there was a problem.

“Who exactly is Dantalian?”

There was an abysmal amount of information.

Until now, barely anyone cared about the Rank 71. Information on Dantalian was incredibly rare to find. A little truth and mostly lies. There were even rumors added in by conspiracists. The demon world stirred greatly.

“According to what I heard, he’s Her Highness Barbatos’ right-hand man. He isn’t just a subordinate. There are rumors they have a rather close relationship…….”

“You idiot! Her Highness Barbatos is a lesbian. There’s no way she would take a man in as her lover. More importantly, I heard he’s actually the highest advisor of the Plains Faction. He’s basically the brains of the faction.”

The rumors about the romance between Barbatos, who had kept her virginity for the past 2,000 years, and Dantalian got the demon world even more excited. Barbatos has always been popular among the demons.

Not only was she famous for being the most dedicated to demonkind among the Demon Lords, but she received a lot of support from the maniac male fans―and a small number of female fans―who revered her for being a lesbian and also managing to protect her virginity all this time. It wasn’t uncommon to find portraits of Barbatos hung up in people’s homes.

Has Barbatos finally decided to get together with a man?

Rank 8 and Rank 71. A gap far too wide for love to be possible. The romance between these two Demon Lords grabbed the hearts of many. There were people who claimed that this was the biggest love story of the era and there were others who were angry and declared that this could not be allowed.

“That thieving bastard!”

“How dare he defile Our Highness Barbatos!”

“I’ll cut that brat’s dick off.”

A demon author realized the potential of this situation. He wrote a story titled, <My, Barbatos’ First Man>. The story was nothing more than a copy of a tale commonly heard on the streets but with some slight changes, and yet, it received a lot of popularity. All of the authors in the demon world didn’t have to worry about money for a while by copying <My, Barbatos’ First Man>.

Most demons have a tendency of getting worked up about gossip.

Those who wished to look at the situation a little more wisely took a step back from the romance aspect.

“There’s no way that a Rank 71 could have that much influence. Think about it. Ever since Dantalian emerged, the Plains Faction and the Mountain Faction started to go against each other openly. What do you think this means?”

“……Demon Lord Dantalian is nothing more than a decoy set out by the Plains Faction so that the Mountain Faction would focus him?”

“That’s right. The timing is much too precise for it to be a coincidence. Dantalian will most likely get sacrificed in the not-so-distant future. The Plains Faction will probably hand him over to let the Mountain Faction keep face. In the end, he’s just a moth.”

To them, wisdom meant having a different opinion than the common masses. Therefore, they didn’t hesitate when it came to coming up with whatever logic they could to support their theory that differed from others. Self-satisfaction was more important to them than the truth, so, to be more exact, they only wanted pieces of the truth that satisfied them.

Only a small minority of demons knew the truth.

They were people of power. They didn’t have to deduce the truth since they stood in a position that allowed them to obtain the truth directly. People of power knew that Rank 71 Demon Lord Dantalian had truly taken a key position in the Crescent Alliance.

They treated this situation seriously.

“It isn’t only with Barbatos, but he is on friendly terms with Beleth and Zepar as well. He has even sworn brotherhood with them. He is apparently treated with the utmost respect within the Plains Faction.”

“He also has Marbas on his side. Hah! How ridiculous.”

“It isn’t only the Plains Faction and the Neutral Faction. I previously heard that Gamigin was also interested in him…….”

“No, even Sitri…….”

He was an unprecedented rookie.

It would make matters simple if he managed to rise up that fast because of his strength. This was rare, but it has happened before. Even the Great Demon Lord Baal, who currently stands at Rank 1, used to be a low-ranking demon 3,000 years ago.

This rookie was different. He didn’t have any strength or substantial wealth. The astounding thing was his political power. His political influence was immense.

Dantalian was now able to influence the Plains Faction, the Neutral Faction, and unaffiliated Demon Lords.

“B-But, even if this is the case, he is still Rank 71. He shouldn’t have that much authority.”

“Are you an idiot? There is no reason for Dantalian himself to use his authority. He simply has to act as a bridge between the various groups. This alone can flip the Demon Lord army around completely!”

“His individual strength is pitiful, but his political strength is unimaginably vast……. The path of the Demon Lord army may start with Dantalian and end with Dantalian from now on.”

He was that much of a prominent figure. They had to make connections with him no matter what.

The people of power throughout demon society moved hastily; however, once they eventually found out that there was no possible way to come in contact with Dantalian, they screamed.

“How is there no one acquainted with Dantalian!?”

“He debuted last year. It would be weird to be acquainted with him. But to think we wouldn’t be able to find even a single person, this is bad…….”

“Mobilize the information bureau! You incompetent bastards! Set this as your number one priority!”

The authority figures were tenacious.

It was around the middle of summer that they were able to find out that Dantalian had an exclusive contract with the Keuncuska Firm and that a certain low-ranking succubus named Lapis Lazuli was in charge of him.

If Ivar Lodbrok hadn’t solidified the security of the firm for the past thousands of years, then these people of power would’ve originally obtained this information within a day or two. 

Thus,

“Miss Lazuli! This is a message from the archduke of Kakola. Please, if possible, we wish for His Highness Dantalian to participate in this autumn’s harvest festival…….”

“A supporters’ association to applaud the Crescent Alliance’s great cause has been created. We wish to invite His Highness Dantalian to an event being held by the supporters’ association. This isn’t much, but we’ve prepared some compensation for Miss Lazuli to pay for the trouble.”

“The Marquis of Nirabuda wishes for her second daughter to……!”

“No, the Duke of Utpala.”

All sorts of requests and bribes washed over Lapis like a tsunami.

After being treated like an outcast all her life for being a half-breed, Lapis’ life flipped completely around in a single night. The flippant rulers of the Demon World were acting like meek lambs as they approached Lapis.

Just a year ago, the authoritative figures wouldn’t dare to look up to a lowly succubus, but their proxies were now doing their best to curry favor with Lapis. There were even some who offered to give her the title of baron. Her position had ascended simply by being Dantalian’s close aide.

“…….”

Lapis felt a thrill.

She was a woman of humble birth. She had lived a shabby life. However, she shed blood, sweat, and tears in order for her life to not end that way as well. Her efforts were finally awarded…….

If this much authority was enough to intoxicate her, then this would probably be the furthest she was going to get. However, Lapis wasn’t that type of person. This was the reason why Dantalian had appointed her as his aide.

Lapis first pretended to listen to the requests sent by the people of power. She made sure to take as much of the bribes as she could. They were offering them for free, after all. There was no reason for her to refuse. The people of power poured out all sorts of bribes with the hope that they would be able to meet Dantalian soon.

But the day they got to meet Dantalian did not arrive so easily.

“Miss Lazuli, did you not promise me a meeting with His Highness Dantalian this month!?”

“I apologize.”

Lapis responded with an utterly impassive face.

“The Crescent Alliance war is still ongoing. His Highness Dantalian has been spending his days very busily due to the war. He has not gotten an opportunity to visit the demon world.”

“You said that last month and the month before that!”

The expression of the silver wolf who was sent as a proxy by a certain Hell’s archduke contorted greatly. 

“It is now the beginning of autumn. It is already autumn. When exactly will we be able to meet His Highness Dantalian?”

“I will set up a place for you around the middle of September.”

“Kuh.”

The silver wolf’s mouth twitched.

June was the initial month that this request was made. Before long, the promise was pushed back by 3 months. It wasn’t only one or two groups within the demon world that wanted to meet Dantalian. They were eager to make connections with Dantalian before anyone else, but the succubus before them was mocking them.

‘Only her face is emotionless. I bet her insides are filled with dozens of venomous snakes!’

How dare a lowly half-breed look at a noble silver wolf with disdain. If he could, he would tear her mouth out and eat her neck, but he couldn’t do that. The other party had the knife, after all.

The silver wolf swallowed down his anger before speaking.

“Understood. September! Without fail! We will meet His Highness no matter what!”

“Yes. I wish to thank you in His Highness Dantalian’s stead for your patience.”

Lapis bowed her head. Her movement was so clean and courteous, that the silver wolf had to hold back his murderous intent once more. 

He took out the golden box that he had prepared beforehand. The gold box was filled with gems.

“This a small gift of sincerity that the Archduke wishes to give to His Highness Dantalian.”

“Thank you very much. His Highness will surely be delighted.”

Lapis didn’t waver even slightly despite having a large amount of money placed in front of her. She simply received the box.

The silver wolf got sick of this succubus’ nerve. He inadvertently let out a sigh as he left Lapis’ office. He strangely had a feeling that he wouldn’t be able to meet Dantalian even in September……. 

Lapis saw the silver wolf off before checking the value of the chest. Lapis had been interacting with gems quite frequently recently, so her discerning eye for gems had become quite skilled. Lapis appraised each gem while wearing gloves.

“Sapphire, diamond……and some gold coins. This is about 2,000 gold.”

This is a somewhat hefty sum, Lapis nodded to herself.

She was in the middle of playing a game of tug of war with the rulers of the demon world. Not only did these rulers wish to meet Dantalian, but they wanted to do so before their competitors as well. Lapis utilized this desire of theirs. Her strategy was as follows:

I can connect you to Dantalian. However, I cannot do so with empty hands. I will not provide a meeting easily.

Hand over your money.

The person who gives the most money will be prioritized. You gave 10,000 gold? That is not enough. You brought 20,000 gold this time? That is still not enough. Money, offer more money.

In other words, Lapis was treating the people of power within the demon world as racehorses and making them compete. The rulers figured out what Lapis was doing, but they couldn’t do anything about it. They had no other choice but to desperately offer bribes in order to not fall behind their competitors.

Lapis sealed the box up and took out a piece of parchment from her pocket. She wrote down the value with a quill.

“80,000 gold now……this should be enough.”

Throughout the past 3 months, she managed to take a total of 80,000 gold from those influential people!

She was collecting all of this money for Dantalian.

‘This is the time to be making money. This is the most opportune moment to do so since everyone is overestimating His Highness Dantalian.’

Lapis knew very well about Dantalian’s sloppy attitude. Thus, she knew better than anyone else that this was the greatest opportunity since Dantalian’s value had skyrocketed far beyond his true value due to the Crescent Alliance.

‘Therefore, I have to wring them dry now.’

Lapis’ blue eyes glimmered.

Her merchant soul was on fire.

Shortly after, the proxy for a different person of power came by her office. It was a dwarf this time. The dwarf shouted boisterously.

“Miss Lazuli! Did you not promise a meeting with His Highness Dantalian this month!?”

“I apologize. His Highness Dantalian had received secret orders from the Crescent Alliance, so he is currently…….”

Lapis thought to herself as she proceeded to skillfully cook the dwarf.

‘Let’s gather just 20,000 more gold.’

Even as she was making this resolve, Lapis remained utterly calm on the outside.

All of the leaders of the demon world shuddered in terror before this low-ranking succubus’ wickedness.

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. That was some nice world building. I know I said in the previous chapter that this chapter would come out rather quickly, some personal matter with my editor came up involving his family and he had to take a few days off. Don’t worry, though. The chapter after this will definitely come out fast this time(probably tomorrow). I’ll see you guys then.

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