Summoned To Have Tea With The Demon Lord, I Guess I'll Defeat Him

Chapter 26: Canephora

"What are you doing here?" I ask through clenched teeth.

"Why wouldn't I be here? This is a direct attack on those who should be under my protection," he answers.

"Your job isn't to protect—"

"To protect and serve? But that's what police officers do, isn't it, Chiba?"

"But you aren't a police officer! You're the Demon Lord!"

"Who said I couldn't be both?"

This is terrible. You can eject a corrupt ruler from his throne, sure, but you can't necessarily de-seat the police chief when the law is on his side.

"Anyway..." He leers. "That outfit suits you."

I'm speechless with rage.

He continues talking. "Look at this little reunion tour you've organized. You've done well for yourself, Chiba."

"We've all got names, too," Mamoru growls.

"Chosen Hero!" the Demon Lord exclaims. "Even you! This is a delight. It looks like you've recovered after our scuffle, too."

I frown. "You seem unusually happy to see us, Sinensis."

"What's unusual about it? I didn't bring you here to be miserable."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Izumi asks.

"Who knows?" With a flourish, he pulls out a notebook and a pen. "Now, I do believe you were going to give me your statements."

Meticulously, he pulls our stories out of us. We leave out the part about being here as representatives of the Thieves' Guild, opting for our bodyguard cover story, and he writes it down without question. This is so weird.

"We'll be confiscating that new tea as evidence, of course," Sinensis adds. "Besides, we'll have to test it for poison."

"Poison?" Lilah narrows her eyes. "I don't feel poisoned."

"You might not be," he agrees. "But we can't take that chance. Be glad we aren't keeping you for observation."

"Observe this..." she mutters, making an obscene gesture.

They stare each other down, neither giving an inch. Finally, Sinensis is the one to back down. "There's no need for that. I only wish you adventurers the best."

"Then why did you do this?" I ask. "If you like us so much, why did you bring us here in the first place?"

"Because, Chiba, you all needed—"

A soft breeze blows my hair around as a figure in a brown robe flits past me like a hummingbird. Sinensis hisses and doubles over, clutching his stomach as if in pain. I didn't even see our mystery man throw a punch!

It's the diplomat who was talking to Lilah, I realize with a start. He throws Sinensis over his shoulder and turns to us with a wide, fanged grin.

"You won't mind if I take this, will you?"

The room falls silent. For some reason, it's hard to breathe. Poison gas? No, nothing so underhanded. Each person – each demon – seems to be surrounded by an aura of some kind. It's translucent, nebulous, and hard to describe. Magic. I'm getting a headache from the psychic pressure.

"My lord!" Lavender yells, sprinting across the room to no avail.

The diplomat has already zipped over to the shattered window. All of the foreign demons have gathered there, fighting off the advances of those in police uniforms. They disappear into the night, all of the policedemons in hot pursuit.