How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord: Volume 1

by Yukiya Murasaki

“...I also have no intention of handing him over.”

  Diablo felt no small relief at seeing their reactions.

  —It looks like my magic is actually strong in this world.

  He couldn’t let his guard down just yet, but he should at least be able to feel a little relieved at knowing that.

  Just as a Demon Lord would, Takuma put an arrogant smirk on his face.

  “‘Amazing,’ you say? But of course... I am Diablo, the being known and feared as the Demon Lord!”

  †

  The two girls had always called him “Demon Lord,” but it was the first time he had used it himself.

  Rem gave a satisfied nod at hearing those words.

  “...Thank goodness... I really did succeed in summoning a Demon Lord from another world.”

  “Of course! I was already planning on having a Demon Lord as my Summon from the beginning!” Shera proudly exclaimed.

  “...Not only does she lack understanding, but she does not even listen to other people when they talk... Typical Elf. Well, no matter. As long as I have Diablo’s power, we might be able to defeat it...”

  “And what is this ‘it?’”

  “...The Demon Lord of this world, Krebskulm.”

  She pressed her hand tightly against her chest.

  It was as if she were praying.

  The expression on her face was a pained one.

  In Cross Reverie’s setting, the Demon Lord Krebskulm was the most powerful boss in the game.

  The story in the game went something like this:

  “Long ago, there was a great battle between the Celestials and the Fallen. The Celestials emerged victorious over the Fallen, and the soul of the Demon Lord was sealed away. However now, 1000 years later, the Fallen are plotting to resurrect the Demon Lord. The only ones who can put a stop to this are the descendants of the Celestials—Adventurers.”

  The player was made out to be a member of a gifted race and set out into the world of Cross Reverie as one of these Adventurers.

  Adventurers were always doing battle with the Fallen, who were scheming to revive the Demon Lord, and trying to stop their plans. If the resurrection was somehow a success, then their mission would be to combine forces to destroy the Demon Lord.

  —That being said and all, that’s just the objective for the story of the game. I’m pretty sure most players only play because they “want that weapon,” or “want to learn that magic,” or “want to clear the next event.”

  The story for Cross Reverie was not complete.

  Online games were always like that, though. The story would keep going until the very last day the game’s service finished.

  Even now, they would periodically add limited-time events and new story quests.

  When the game first started three years ago, the last boss was supposed to be the 《Demon Lord of the Sword, Sankdius》, who the Fallen had resurrected. Beating that boss gave you a kind of “Congratulations!” scene.

  It turned out, however, that Sankdius was only a “Fragment of the Demon Lord.”

  Players speculated that, at the time, the Demon Lord had not been completely resurrected.

  —But is Krebskulm supposed to be the completed Demon Lord? That hasn’t been confirmed yet, huh...

  In the game’s lore, Krebskulm was “a name that the Fallen held in great respect.”

  So far, there had not been any quests released that included him.

  In any case, Takuma thought it might be for the best not to call himself “Demon Lord” here. Since other people did not know about his situation, there was no telling what kind of reaction he would get from them. At the very least, he expected it wouldn’t be a favorable one.

  Shera tugged on the dark sleeves of the Ebony Abyss.

  “Hey! Let’s hurry and go back to town and do our Adventurer registration! Since you’re here, I can finally register myself as a proud Summoner, too!”

  “Is that...so?”

  “Mmph.........”

  Rem glared at Shera, a look of extreme dissatisfaction on her face.

  His interest piqued, Diablo asked:

  “You two. Are Summoners people you respect?”

  In the game, Summoners were either people who were not using their skill points correctly, or people who did not care about stats and just did what they wanted.

  The three classes available to you from the start were 《Warrior》, 《Sorcerer》, or 《Archer》.

  It was just common knowledge for anyone who picked “Sorcerer” to spend their skill points to make their Elemental magic stronger.

  Depending on your stat distribution and the skills you learned in Cross Reverie, the name of your job-class would change automatically.

  For a Sorcerer who prioritized their point allocation, they could, for example, go from 《Pyromagician》 to 《Burstfire Sorcerer》, and even further to 《Incineration Sorcerer》; or possibly even a 《Frostflame Sorcerer》. There was an endless amount of titles depending on your level and how you distributed your points.

  Even if you were to reach the max level of 150, it was not possible to master every kind of spell in the game.

  This was because the points you received from leveling up would not be enough.

  After clearing numerous difficult events, achieving victory over other players in battle, and obtaining various items he earned as a result... Using all the points he had saved up, Diablo’s job class had changed to 《Sorcerer of Annihilation》.

  It was thought that there was only one player in Cross Reverie who held this job title. This was because, even if you managed to reach the same stats, you would only become a 《Sorcerer of Destruction》.

  Because it was the only one of its kind, it was thought that it was a title given to the person who had first managed to reach the requirements for it.

  Though nothing was officially announced about it, it might have been a modest reward for the challenger who had cleared a path through areas of the game that had not yet been found on any strategy wikis.

  Whatever the case, a Sorcerer was expected to use the power of their Elemental magic as a wave-motion cannon to inflict high amounts of damage upon their enemies.

  This was not about sending your Summon to the front lines to fight for you. Spending points on Summoning was nothing short of impractical.

  This was common knowledge in-game, but...

  It seemed like the girls respected and even looked up to Summoners here.

  Shera’s face showed surprise.

  “They’re Summoners, you know!? When you think of Sorcerers, it’s gotta be Summoners!”

  “And what of elemental magic? I already showed you my power, is it not the most supreme form of magic here?”

  Rem was the one who answered his question.

  “...The average elemental magic is not that powerful. At best, it can be used to muster up a fireball the size of your fist, or summon a gust of wind to knock someone over.”

  “Right? You would just get laughed at if you called yourself an Elemental Sorcerer. People would just tell you, ‘If you want to start a fire, just go get some flint!’”

  “...I cannot deny that. Elemental magic is good if you are a child who wants to practice using spells, but once you grow up, you learn Summoning magic.”

  “How...could this be...”

  —Is elemental magic really that weak here!?

  This could be the biggest difference between the game and this world—Diablo thought to himself.

  The job class he had spent so much of his time and enthusiasm into—now a job class for fools! He couldn’t believe people treated it as a laughingstock.

  It was as if his days of information gathering, saving up points, and training his elemental magic was being denied. He felt nothing but grief.

  Rem shook her head.

  “...Your elemental magic is on another level. If the other Elemental Sorcerers could put out a hundredth... No, even a thousandth of the power you showed us, then maybe they would be treated
a little better.”

  Shera nodded in agreement.

  “Usually if you said you wanted to be an Elemental Sorcerer, everyone either pities you, starts talking bad about you, or gets really angry with you.”

  “...Kind of like an Elf who chooses not to become an Archer.”

  “It’s not a bad thing for me to choose a path that’s more suited to my own talents!”

  Tuning out their bickering for the moment, Diablo was busy setting his own heart straight.

  Elemental Sorcerer was now a job class for fools.

  But that was only because it was not studied as much here; Diablo’s magic was shown to have the same amount of power as it had back in the game. It was thought to be fairly strong.

  He was a little saddened at having lost his comrades from the strategy wiki who would trade information about elemental magic with him...

  But it was no problem.

  Diablo steeled himself and called out to them.

  “Are you two only capable of fighting when you open your mouths? We’re heading into town. Come with me!”

  It was only after he finished speaking that he realized something.

  It would not be very Demon Lord-like to ask where the town was after saying all that. It would definitely be lame.

  —Please let the town be in the same direction I remember it being!

  Using his memories from the game as a base, he started to walk.

  “W-Wait up!”

  “...Y-You are going a little fast...”

  Since the two of them had started to run to catch up with him, he was relieved to see that he was probably going the right way.

  †

  After continuing on through the rock-strewn plains, they eventually came to see a large river spanning from north to south, as well as a sturdy-looking bridge made out of stone.

  This was 《The Bridge of Ulug》, located to the west of town.

  After crossing the stone bridge, there was a fortress made to look like a castle gate, and beyond that laid the town proper.

  Walking this far from Starfall Tower should have usually taken about three minutes in-game, but it had taken about three hours to get here.

  —Well, it’s not like this is some crappy game that takes three hours to get anywhere. And there’s no way they would build a fortress in a place that only takes three minutes to get to by foot.

  In the game’s setting, the Bridge of Ulug was supposed to be the one defense that the city of Faltra had to protect itself in this area.

  This was because if you passed through the Man-Eating Forest that spread out to the west, you would enter the domain of the Fallen, where high-level monsters would appear.

  It was used as a place that players could recover their HP and MP and wait for their other party members in order to conquer the 《Primordial Forest Ruins》 dungeon located in the forest.

  —I was the only one who would pass by everyone waiting for their party and head to the dungeon by myself, though!

  How was the Bridge of Ulug used in this world?

  He didn’t see any Adventurers around.

  Since it was located along the southeast path to the town, the Bridge of Ulug also acted as a checkpoint of sorts.

  They would do things like check travelers’ identities and inspect luggage; kind of like modern-day security checks.

  There were numerous guards equipped with armor, making it easy to understand that this was a heavily fortified position.

  Despite their heavily-armored appearance, the guards were standing at full attention.

  Diablo crossed the bridge and tried to pass through the fortress—a guard stood in his way.

  “Hey, you there!”

  He carried a halberd in his right hand, with only the upper half of his body covered in armor.

  It was normal for infantrymen not to wear any armor on their legs. Because of that, the armor they wore from the waist up was quite thick.

  His race was that of a 《Human》 male. He had short brown hair that spiked out at the ends.

  His eyes were wide, and there was nervousness on his face.

  Now that he looked at him, he seemed to be quite young.

  Perhaps it would be better to call him a teenager.

  —I wonder what kind of role guards play in this world?

  Back in the game, they were basically the police, and would dole out punishment to any Adventurer who committed crimes.

  So, for example, if you did something like killing a player outside of combat or stole something, then those Adventurers would have their names colored red as a mark that they were a 《Criminal》. If you approached a town or fortress in this state, the guards would surround you and beat you to death.

  —I didn’t somehow become a criminal, did I?

  His Demon Lord act was just that: an act. It wasn’t like he was doing anything bad!

  There was no name display either, so he couldn’t know for sure.

  In the game, there were no events where guard NPCs would stop the player. He was considerably shaken up by this unforeseen development.

  If he gave a weak reaction here, then there would have been no point to him doing his Demon Lord roleplay for the two girls behind him.

  He would have to answer back as best he could!

  He mustered his voice.

  “What is it, knave? I trust you have made your resolve for stopping me, Diablo.”

  The guard backed off, stunned.

  It was obvious he had been overpowered.

  “W-Well, it’s just... We’re in charge of checking those who come through here trying to get to Faltra, and I’ve never seen you before... It might seem rude, but I’d like you to tell me who you are and what you’re here to do.”

  Rem’s voice came from under Diablo’s arm.

  “...He is my Summon...kind of. The circumstances are a little complicated.”

  For some reason, she was hiding her body under Diablo’s cape, only making her head visible to the guard.

  Just like Rem, Shera also only showed her head as she spoke.

  “And I’m telling you, you’re wrong! I’m the one who summoned him!”

  “Oh, it’s Rem, and Shera the Elf... But, a Summon? I’ve never seen or heard of a human-shaped Summon before. Not only that, but he can talk, too?”

  Rem looked away.

  “...With my power, I am able to call Summons the likes of which have never been seen before. You’re not doubting me, are you?”

  She had tried saying that in a forceful tone of voice, but since it was only her head sticking out from under the cape, ears twitching, she looked more like a scared kitten. Cute.

  The guard was a bit flustered after being asked that.

  “N-No, I would never doubt your power, Rem! But, you know...your Summon doesn’t have the necessary collar around his neck or anything...”

  Diablo reached back and grabbed the two girls hiding behind him by the scruff of their necks.

  “Collar, was it?”

  Sorcerers may seem to be fairly weak physically, but once you reach level 150 like he had, picking up two girls with both hands was a piece of cake.

  “Wha—!?”

  “Stop! Stop it!”

  Rem and Shera resisted, but Diablo was able to drag them out from behind his back with little effort.

  “If it’s collars you want, then here they are.”

  “Whaaaaaaat!?”

  The guard was shocked.

  Turning a deep shade of red, Rem and Shera hid their collars with their hands.

  “...Humiliation.”

  “Oooh... This isn’t what it looks like!”

  The guard raised his voice, bewildered.

  “H-Huh!? But usually it’s the Summon who gets the collar, but... Huh!? On you... Huh!?”

  “Hmph... Do not put me together with the likes of those Summons. It is unpleasant. If you insist on fouling my mood any further—”

  “...Please let us through.”

  “What else
do you want from us!?”

  In the face of Diablo’s overwhelming pressure and the girls’ protests, the guard stepped aside.

  “I-I’m terribly sorry! Please take care!”

  “Good. Let’s go.”

  “Wait, you’re going too fast! And while we’re at it, try not to stand out so much!”

  “...The shame...it’s unbearable... I will absolutely remove this spell once we make it back to town.”

  Ignoring their objections, Diablo kept walking.

  In a panic, Rem and Shera ran to catch up with him.

  The other guards and travelers they passed on the Bridge of Ulug reacted with the same level of shock when they saw the girls’ collars.

  Their faces showed great concern as they watched Diablo walk along, the two girls in tow.

  †

  Faltra was a town with a warm climate that received blessings from the river nearby.

  The townspeople were cheerful and kind, and because of how pleasant it was, there was no small amount of Adventurers who chose to settle down and live here—that’s what the setting for it was in the game, at least.

  The area around here was about level 60 or so. This was only a place the game’s story would have you come back to, or for when you finished the beginning parts of the game. If you were going to settle down here, he thought, then the game wouldn’t go on...

  Whatever the case, there was no mistake that it was a convenient, warm, and beautiful town.

  The outer walls were built of stone, and came together in the shape of an octagon.

  Water from the river was drawn into waterways, forming a moat around the town. It also ran inside the town, splitting it down the middle.

  The stone walls and the moat served as a way to avoid monsters. Wild animals were a constant threat to the normal people living here. They would even damage the crops.

  However, in the face of abnormally strong enemies such as the Fallen or Summons, they were severely lacking in power.

  It was not just the walls and moat that protected the town.

  Towers were built in the corners in each of the eight sides of the stone walls.

  They were thin and tall, like antennas.

  These towers formed a barrier that would protect the town.

  This barrier did not allow just anyone who approached it to pass through, and would only intercept and protect against attacks or the Fallen.