Chapter 507: Yuka's Proposal

With that, Petra ended the call, leaving Kouhei standing outside with his phone still in his hand. He stared at the screen for another moment before putting the device away, allowing himself a brief moment to collect his thoughts before returning to whatever awaited him inside the mansion.

He let out another sigh, feeling a little more tired than he had been before the conversation began.

Truthfully, he wasn’t particularly fond of the situation he had gotten himself into, even if he couldn’t deny that he enjoyed spending time with Petra and Aegis to some extent. Under ordinary circumstances, what they were doing would definitely count as cheating, especially since Kouhei already had several lovers of his own. Regardless of how complicated their arrangement was or how useful it might be, he couldn’t pretend that the situation was completely free of moral complications.

The thought still made him feel guilty from time to time.

He wasn’t particularly proud of maintaining an arrangement like this while being involved with so many other women, and there were moments when he genuinely wondered whether he was taking things too far. Even if he had his reasons for continuing, that didn’t automatically mean he could ignore the uncomfortable feelings that occasionally came with it.

However, his lovers had already told him that they were fine with the situation, provided he continued giving them the attention and affection they wanted from him. They understood his circumstances and were willing to accept them, as long as he didn’t neglect them or make them feel as though they had become less important in his life.

It wasn’t exactly the simplest arrangement to maintain, but at least they had been honest with one another about their expectations.

That didn’t mean his guilt had completely disappeared, of course, but knowing that the people closest to him understood the situation made it somewhat easier to deal with. He still had to make sure he didn’t take their patience for granted, because the last thing he wanted was to damage his relationships simply because he had become too comfortable with the way things were.

While Kouhei was still thinking about all of this, he suddenly became aware that someone was standing behind him, close enough that he wondered how long she had been there without making her presence known.

“Did you overhear that?” he asked as he turned around, already suspecting that he knew who he would find waiting behind him.

Sure enough, Yuka was standing there, looking at him with a slightly apologetic expression that suggested she wasn’t particularly proud of what she had just done.

“I’m sorry,” she said, lowering her gaze briefly before looking back at him. “I was kind of curious about your conversation with Petra, and I ended up listening for a little while. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on you, though, so I hope you won’t take it the wrong way.”

Kouhei studied her expression for a moment before relaxing his shoulders and deciding not to make a big deal out of it.

Honestly, he didn’t think it was particularly surprising that Yuka had become curious about the conversation. As far as he knew, she was already aware that he and Petra met up regularly, so hearing him talk about another scheduled meeting probably wasn’t enough to reveal anything she hadn’t already suspected.

Besides, considering that they were standing on the grounds of her own mansion, he probably should have expected someone to approach him eventually. Finding a completely private place in someone else’s territory wasn’t always as easy as walking around a corner and hoping nobody happened to be nearby.

“It’s fine. I don’t really mind,” Kouhei replied casually, deciding that there was little point in making the situation more awkward than necessary. “By the way, what brought you out here? Were you looking for me, or did you happen to be passing by?”

Yuka hesitated briefly before answering, looking as though she were trying to figure out the best way to bring up whatever had been on her mind.

“Actually, would you mind sparing me a little time to talk about something?” she asked, her expression becoming noticeably more serious. “It’s about our candidacy for the position of Demon Lord, to be more specific.”

***

Both of them made their way to the meeting room where Yuka usually held private discussions with other people. It was a place she often used whenever she wanted to talk about something important without having to worry about others overhearing their conversation. Once they arrived, Yuka took her usual seat across from Kouhei and settled comfortably into it, looking at him with a pleasant smile that suggested she was genuinely enjoying his company. There was something about the way she looked at him that made it seem as though she was already anticipating how their conversation would turn out, almost as if she had something interesting in mind and was simply waiting for the right moment to bring it up.

“When are you planning to leave the country?” Yuka asked, casually bringing up a question as she looked at him.

Kouhei blinked at her. He hadn’t expected her to ask about his departure so soon, especially when they had barely begun their conversation. Still, he couldn’t think of any particular reason to keep that information to himself, and she didn’t seem to be asking for the sake of making small talk either. From the way she spoke, it seemed as though she genuinely wanted to know rather than trying to dig into his plans for some hidden purpose. Perhaps she simply wanted to figure out how much time they had left to talk before he left the country, since there wasn’t much point in arranging another meeting if he was already preparing to leave.

“Well, I’m planning to leave this weekend,” Kouhei replied, giving her a straightforward answer.

“I see. Thankfully, it seems I won’t be taking up too much of your time before you leave,” Yuka said with a small smile. She then shifted the conversation toward something that was clearly more important to her. “Kouhei-sama, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you. Would you consider merging our forces?”

Kouhei blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the proposal. He had expected their meeting to involve an ordinary discussion, perhaps about their respective factions or something related to their previous dealings. Instead, Yuka had suddenly brought up something that could have serious consequences for both of them. Merging their forces wasn’t exactly a small decision that could be made over a casual conversation, especially when they were both candidates competing for the position of Demon Lord.

“Merging our forces? I don’t think that’s going to go over very well, Sano-san,” Kouhei replied, his expression gradually becoming more serious. “Do you understand the implications of what you’re suggesting right now? This isn’t something we can just agree to without considering what might happen afterward.”

“I understand perfectly well,” Yuka answered, showing no signs of hesitation. “If two candidates for the position of Demon Lord decide to merge their forces, the others will probably assume we’re conspiring with each other. Naturally, that would attract their attention, and some of them might even become hostile toward us because of it. They could start seeing us as a greater threat than before, especially if they believe we’re planning to work together to eliminate the competition.”

She paused briefly, giving Kouhei enough time to consider her point before continuing with her explanation.

“However, I don’t think that would change much compared to our current situation. Even now, the other Demon Lord candidates might not be making any moves against one another, but that doesn’t mean they’re on friendly terms. We’re all competitors, after all, and the title of Demon Lord is something every candidate wants to obtain. It’s only natural that we consider one another enemies when we’re all pursuing the same position. The fact that nobody has started a major conflict yet doesn’t mean they’re suddenly going to become friends and forget about their ambitions.”

Kouhei listened carefully, keeping his thoughts to himself as Yuka continued explaining her reasoning. Although her proposal had caught him by surprise, he couldn’t deny that there was some logic behind what she was saying. The candidates were currently maintaining a relatively peaceful situation, but that arrangement could easily fall apart if someone decided that eliminating their competitors was worth the risk.

After all, if the title of Demon Lord could only belong to one person, then every other candidate was ultimately an obstacle standing between them and their goal. Even if they were willing to tolerate one another for the time being, there was no guarantee that their patience would last forever.

“The advantage of merging our forces is that the others would have to think twice before making a move against us,” Yuka continued, leaning back slightly in her chair. “They would have to consider the consequences of provoking two candidates working together instead of dealing with us separately. Even if they’re keeping their distance for now, I’m certain they’ll eventually make their moves. Someone will eventually decide that eliminating the competition is worth the trouble, and when that happens, I’d rather not find myself dealing with the situation alone.”