Published: September 10, 2025
Satou here. Even in my grandfather’s countryside, pest control was tough, but the pests in this other world are so fierce they can scatter entire armies, making it impossible for civilians to handle them. It’s like trying to take on bears or dinosaurs with farming tools.
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I hesitated a little about the order of confirming the Demon King suspicion, but decided based on travel convenience.
In my form as Kuro, I moved to a relay point: a branch of the Echigoya Trading Company located in Count Cuhanow’s Domain.
This place was a temporary warehouse-like spot with no executives present.
“Whoa… wait, is that Kuro-sama with white hair?! Don’t scare me like that!”
“Don’t worry about it.”
The branch manager’s daughter, who just walked into the room where I arrived via unit placement, exclaimed in surprise.
She was a slave bought by the manager but was entrusted with running the branch due to her business talent and negotiation skills.
Apparently, once the branch gets on track, she would be freed from slavery as promised.
Some slaves, like Tifaliza, reject freedom, but most get much more motivated when working under the condition of liberation.
“So, what business brings you here today? Could it be the report I sent yesterday already arrived?”
—Report?
“Not yet. Is it something important?”
“No, no, it’s just that one of the sake breweries is about to collapse.”
Oh, that kind of thing... wait.
“Is that really worth reporting?”
“Yes, because it’s a brand the manager regularly orders from, I thought I should ask whether we should intervene.”
“Could it be ‘Lesseur’s Lifeblood’?”
“You know about it, Kuro-sama? What secrets could that cheap wine possibly hold—”
I lightly threatened the curious branch manager’s daughter, “Curiosity killed the cat.”
This Lesseur’s Lifeblood is the favorite drink of True Ancestor Van, the true ancestor of the vampires residing in the lower levels of the labyrinth.
Investigating the Demon King is important, but I shouldn’t neglect this either.
He’s a friend and has helped me out in many ways.
“So, is the reason for the collapse economic?”
If so, the Echigoya Trading Company could just buy it out.
“No, the vineyards in the farming villages contracted to the brewery face total destruction due to a massive monster outbreak. The Count Lesseu’s troops only clear monsters around the mines and cities, and the rural areas far from towns are suffering overall.”
I listened to the branch manager’s daughter while checking the map.
Monsters along the roads and near cities, which the national army promised to clean, are few, but the countryside around villages appears to be a dangerous zone with monsters wandering about.
The monsters are all low-level below 20, but expecting villagers to exterminate them is unrealistic.
“What are the village names?”
“Josebedo and Suibudo villages.”
Checking the map, there’s an ant-type monster nest near the mountains by Josebedo, and caterpillar-type monsters spreading around Suibudo.
“Then I’ll go exterminate them.”
“Huh? Kuro-sama—”
I told the branch manager’s daughter this and teleported to the mountain near Josebedo village.
The “teleport” magic is very convenient since I can open teleport destinations anywhere on maps I’ve explored.
Of course, “Teleportation Gates” are the same but consume a lot more magic power.
I plan to use them accordingly, considering “unit placement” only allows destinations within my domain or visible range.
◇
“Damn ants! They’re destroying the vineyards we poured our hearts into!”
“Tagosa! Stop! Fighting with hoes is a death sentence!”
Such tense words drifted on the wind from the village.
Radar showed ant monsters attacking the vineyards at the foot of the mountain.
I took out level 30-class demon cores from storage and scattered them on the ground.
—“Create Stone Wolf.”
Around the cores I scattered, ten bear-sized stone wolf statues appeared.
These stone wolves are a type of golem.