How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord: Volume 1 Read online

  “And I’ll say it again, too! Diablo answered my summons and came for me, got that!?”

  The two continued to stare daggers at each other.

  They were still fighting over who was the actual Summoner.

  And there was no feature in the game that had two Summoners working together to summon one powerful creature.

  “...Fine. If you’re going to go that far, then let’s confirm who Diablo is enslaved to.”

  The Elf looked down at the cat-eared girl as she gave her response.

  “Fine by me, let’s do this! He is my Summon, after all, so of course he’ll obey me!”

  Things had definitely taken a turn for the weird here.

  The Pantherian girl approached Takuma.

  “...By the name of Rem Galleu, I command you to raise your right hand.”

  So her name is Rem Galleu. Would Rem be her first name, then?

  Takuma obediently raised his right hand.

  The Elf started to protest.

  “Anyone would follow an order like that! If you’re going to order him to do something, make it a little more ridiculous!”

  “...It pains me to see you act like a sore loser, but as you wish. Diablo, I command you to pinch the cheeks of that Elf over there.”

  “Is that something you would normally order someone to do!?” the Elf said, dumbstruck.

  Takuma tilted his head.

  “What? I don’t really want to do that...”

  Rem was shocked at his reply. Because he was able to resist her command, this meant that she was not the Summoner.

  —Or something like that, I guess?

  With her face positively beaming, the Elf stuck out her chest. Noticeably.

  “See! See, see, see! Looks like I was the Summoner after all! So, my Summon, Diablo! I order you in the name of Shera! Give that Pantherian girl over there a good spanking!”

  “...Ordering him to use violence against others makes me doubt the value of your character,” retorted Rem.

  You told me to do something similar just now, remember?—Takuma thought to himself.

  “I don’t want to do that either.”

  “Why!?”

  The Elf’s eyes were as wide as could be.

  Even Takuma was tilting his head a little.

  —That’s weird. There’s no kind of oppressive force that makes me feel like I’m being enslaved... Maybe it’s because I’m a player after all?

  Rem was glaring at Shera.

  “...It seems that something has gone wrong since you tried to take over my summoning.”

  “Um, wrong!? I was the first one who thought to use this place, you know! I was the one who thought the elevated amount of magic here would be able to call a Demon Lord from another world!”

  “...I should have chased you away from the beginning... And it’s still not too late to do that. I will make you leave here by force and redo the ritual. The Demon Lord is mine...”

  Rem reached into a pocket on her leather belt and pulled out a transparent crystal.

  Shera reached for the bow on her back and took a stance.

  If things carried on this way, there was going to be a fight.

  Fighting is bad!

  I’ll talk to them and get them to calm down—thought Takuma. Trying to think calmly, he attempted to reach for the words he needed to explain this all away, but suddenly found himself freezing up.

  —Huh? H-How am I supposed to talk to a girl again?

  Takuma searched his memories.

  When was the last time he had actually talked to a girl in real life?

  A year ago? No, wait! There was that time with the female employee at the convenience store, so surely... Wait, did he actually talk to her!?

  Reality was cruel.

  Even in the game, he always played solo as the “Demon Lord,” so all he ever talked to were dudes who played as girls in-game.

  —Hold on, there was something! I talked to a girl!

  He did talk to a girl, and recently!

  Turning to face Rem and Shera as they continued to get ready to fight, Takuma mustered what little experience he had and called out to them.

  “Cease your pointless squabbling. You are in the presence of Diablo.”

  The two girls instantly stopped moving and turned to face him.

  —All right! That’s it!

  It was the tone of voice he used as the Demon Lord when someone came to challenge him. If he just talked like that, he should be able to talk to girls with no problems.

  He almost felt like striking a pose as he faced the two girls.

  However, he managed to suppress the urge. Demon Lords do not usually strike poses, after all.

  “I am not partial to such futile quarrels. It is incessant, like the noise of two insects fighting with each other. And so, I order you two: make peace by shaking hands...and with a smile!”

  Rem narrowed her eyes.

  “Who would want to make nice...with such a foolish, useless Elf like——!?”

  Shera raised her eyebrows.

  “What!? It’s that little Pantherian pipsqueak who’s at fault here! She owes me an apology, and I won’t forgive her until she——!?”

  The girls’ expressions started to change in strange fashion.

  Their eyelids started to close in awkwardly, and the corners of their mouths began to twitch upwards.

  The changes did not end with just their faces.

  While still holding the crystal in her left hand, Rem offered out her right hand. Shera lowered her bow, and also reached out with her right hand.

  One step at a time, they slowly began walking toward each other.

  “...How...How could something like this...”

  Usually devoid of any kind of expression, it was only now that you could call what Rem had on her face a “smile.”

  Shera was afraid.

  “No... Stop...! Why...Why is my body moving on its own!?”

  It looked like she was about to cry. However, the girls’ faces stayed as they were, lips curved upwards.

  An exchange of handshakes.

  Though their odd facial expressions clearly showed that they didn’t like it...just as Takuma had ordered, the girls shook hands, smiles and all.

  Suddenly, a black light began to coil around their necks.

  A low, vibrating noise could be heard, followed by a heavy *thunk*, as if something was being locked.

  Two thick collars had materialized around Rem and Shera’s slender necks.

  They appeared to be made out of a dull-colored metal, similar to iron.

  Rem’s eyes opened wide as she touched her neck.

  “This is...an Enslavement Collar!?”

  Shera checked her own neck, and let out a scream.

  “What!? Why!? Isn’t this supposed to go on the Summon instead!?”

  “...I am certain we performed the Enslavement Ritual necessary to have the Summon wear an Enslavement Collar.”

  Takuma tilted his head.

  “Hm? Enslavement Ritual? On me?”

  Rem nodded while making a puzzled face.

  “Y-Yes... Um, well, we certainly...cast the ritual...you see...”

  Takuma looked down at his body.

  He was wearing the armor 《The Ebony Abyss》, and an extravagant cape called the 《Curtain of Dark Clouds》. On his head were two goat-like horns—《The Distorted Crown》.

  On the middle finger of his left hand was a ring that appeared as if it had been shaped from a flame, with an ebony jewel embedded into it.

  He remembered seeing this pattern before.

  The Demon Lord’s Ring.

  This incredibly rare item from Cross Reverie possessed the ability 《Magic Reflection》, an effect that had no equal when it came to battling with enemy Sorcerers, though it was difficult to use since it also reflected healing and support spells.

  Takuma started to put two and two together.

  —So, because of this ring, it looks like the enslavement magic b
ounced off me and onto these two instead.

  It was not Takuma who had been enslaved, but rather, the two girls who were meant to be his Summoners, instead.

  †

  “...While Magic Reflection is quite a powerful ability...there is no way I can accept this situation. Not at all.”

  “Well, me neither! I don’t want to be enslaved by a Summon that we should be enslaving!”

  Rem and Shera were shouting.

  I feel like leaving the two of them like this would be a bad thing—Takuma thought.

  As for now, Takuma had succeeded in “enslaving” the two girls.

  However, “Enslavement Ritual” was a word that was only mentioned in explanations of Cross Reverie’s backstory. It wasn’t something that players could do any time they liked.

  According to the setting for the game, Summons were powerful beings who lived in another world, with their entire existence revolving around being told what to do by puny humans.

  In the game, Summons were not meant to fight back or resist in any way.

  Because of this, it was unclear what the effects or details of the Enslavement Ritual really were. At the very least, there was no system in place where Summons would suddenly rebel against their masters.

  Takuma was currently in a world that was very similar to Cross Reverie. One of those “summoned to another world” things, it seemed. Well, as long as this wasn’t all a dream...

  In this world, what kind of effects did this “Enslavement Ritual” have?

  —Maybe there’s a way to release them from it?

  That might be bad.

  When not being used, Summons in the game would turn into items and be placed in the player’s inventory.

  —What would happen if I was turned into an item?

  The visuals in-game showed Summons turning into some kind of crystal. He didn’t think that things would go smoothly if this happened to him.

  He should give the order not to allow this item-ification to happen while they still had these Enslavement Collars on.

  —But first, I’ll ask if it’s possible to undo the enslavement magic.

  “You two. Can you not even release yourself from your own magic?”

  In the middle of bemoaning their predicament, the two turned to look at him.

  Rem’s eyes narrowed.

  “...If we could, we would have already done so. This isn’t the kind of magic that you would normally need to undo, so we don’t know how. If we head into town, we may find a way. Or...if the Master dies, then the enslavement magic will be undone.”

  “Hmph.”

  There was the slightest tremble to his voice. Even though he had worked on his Demon Lord act for many years now, it took all he had to retort with just that one sound.

  It seemed to have done the trick, however, as Rem backed off.

  “...That was just another method. If you were weak enough that we could defeat you, then there would be no point in summoning you. We understand...that we are no match for you.”

  There was fear in her voice.

  Thanks to his “Demon Lord” performance, as well as his ability to use Magic Reflection, it seemed that Rem and Shera took that as a sign that he was a powerful force to be reckoned with.

  They must have taken the slight tremble in his voice as a sign that he was angry.

  He was just glad that none of his true self had slipped through the cracks there.

  —But...am I strong, as I am now?

  While his Magic Reflection ability had indeed activated, it was also a possibility that the only thing that carried over from the game world was his equipment.

  Takuma had reached the max level of 150 in-game, and had mastered numerous kinds of elemental magic. He was the ultimate Demon Lord who used his countless battles as research to learn all there was to know.

  That said, there were no menus or shortcut icons to be found. Without a mouse or keyboard, it was possible he would not be able to use magic.

  But even if he could use magic...

  —If the maximum level for this world isn’t 150, I’m kinda screwed.

  This meant that he had to test his strength against something to check and see for himself. How strong was he compared to monsters or other people?

  He had to check with other people from this world—that is, the two girls—and gauge their reactions.

  “Hey, you two.”

  The Elf girl pouted her lips.

  “Geesh! Stop calling us ‘you two’ all the time! I have a wonderful name, you know! I’m the genius Summoner, Shera L. Greenwood!”

  —Hm? Greenwood?

  That was a name he felt he had seen before in a compilation book for Cross Reverie. Though it was on the tip of his tongue, he could not bring himself to remember.

  “Hmph... ‘You two’ should be enough. Do not anger me with your pointless drivel.”

  “Oooh... F-Fine, I got it...”

  It seemed like the effects of his Demon Lord act were still working in full-force.

  But soon enough, he would have to show them how powerful he actually was. He should confirm his power as soon as he could.

  Starfall Tower was only meant as a place to summon beasts, and was fairly cramped as a result.

  While he was worried about being too weak, he also had to worry about being too strong at the same time.

  If the magic he cast spread beyond the range he was expecting, it was possible that these two could be caught up in it as well.

  “Are there any monsters around here?”

  “...Only the occasional beast that gets chased out of the forest. There are plenty near town, though.”

  Takuma silently breathed a sigh of relief.

  He didn’t want to get into any sudden battles while he was still unsure of his own abilities.

  If he started acting like a coward now, Rem and Shera might start to question how strong he actually was.

  He had to at least act like he was strong.

  “Hmph... So there are no monsters around here. What a dull place... No matter. Any kind of boulder will do for my purposes.”

  With the staircase as his goal, he started to walk.

  While his memories were a bit fuzzy, he was relieved to find that the stairs did indeed go down.

  “Wait a minute! Don’t just head off on your own! You’re my Summon, you know!?” Shera called out from behind him.

  “He’s not your Summon...” Rem mumbled.

  Taking short steps, Rem trotted over to Takuma’s side.

  The small, cat-eared girl gazed up at him.

  Well, technically they were panther ears. She was a Pantherian, after all.

  Though she didn’t have any expression on her face, he sincerely felt that to be an adorable trait of hers. It was like she was a small, innocent animal.

  —Dang, she’s cute.

  He was overwhelmed with the sudden urge to pat her on the head.

  Ahhh, how he wanted to try touching her ears!

  However! Demon Lords did not just go around patting cute girls on the head.

  The sound of Shera’s footsteps approached them from behind.

  Glancing behind him, it wasn’t just Shera’s golden hair that was swaying to and fro, but her voluminous chest (that seemed completely unbefitting of an Elf) as well.

  —Holy crap.

  Mustering his will of steel, he managed to tear his gaze away.

  Like a true Demon Lord, he walked as if he were leading the two girls.

  The truth of the matter, though, was if they ran into trouble, he would have no choice but to rely on them.

  †

  Footsteps echoed off of the stone staircase.

  Because everything had happened so suddenly, they were moving at a relatively slow pace.

  Placing his hand on the wall as he walked, Takuma descended the narrow spiral stairs of the tower.

  —It’s all so real.

  The thin cracks etched into the stones, the coolness when he touched it... />
  Perhaps because the place had been built so long ago, fragments of the wall cracked and fell off near their seams.

  Sunlight streamed in through the circular windows.

  Thinking back to Cross Reverie, he tried to remember what things had used the name “Sunlight.”

  When Takuma would gather information, he did not focus on things such as backstory or information about the world, but was only interested in things like new items or practical ways to efficiently use spells.

  He had already beaten all of the main story quests, so he felt he had a decent grasp on the world overview...

  The real problem, however, was how much this world had in common with the game.

  They exited the tower to the outside.

  Takuma squinted his eyes against the bright white light that washed over him.

  After his eyes adjusted, he began to get a clear view of the outline of this world.

  While looking exactly like Cross Reverie, the feeling of reality from the landscape that spread out before him was incomparable to any game.

  Up until now, he had been at Starfall Tower.

  The 《Man-Eating Forest》 sprawled out to the West.

  Though the dense overgrowth of foliage and trees was blocking it from view, there should be a dungeon in the form of some ruins near the entrance to the Man-Eating Forest.

  To the East, ever-expanding fields of green stretched out as far as the eye could see.

  In-game, there would be a river just beyond these plains, with 《The Border City, Faltra》 being just past that.

  If he remembered right, going by foot should get you there in about five minutes or so... But from here, he couldn’t even see the river. Maybe it was because of the landscape of the plains; maybe because it was far away.

  Or it could be that the geography of the world was different.

  There were three modes of transportation in Cross Reverie: walking, riding mounts, and teleportation.

  When on foot, there was a chance you could encounter monsters. They would pop up at random, with most of them attacking players on sight.